Yummy Carob Vanilla Protein Smoothie

i hope everyone is having a wonderful weekend. both of my boys are down for a nap after a fabulous afternoon playdate. i've been making a wonderful nutrient-dense protein smoothie concoction that not only tastes good but is soooo energizing. i never measure the ingredients so you will just have to play with it and adjust the ingredients to your desire.

here it is:

almond milk or any nut/seed milk freshly made
coconut water
2 dates
2-3 scoops of vanilla and or natural sun warrior raw fermented brown rice protein powder
lots of bee pollen
carob powder (carob pods are shown above)
vanilla powder
cinnamon
mesquite or lucuma powder

-some days i add in all the spices that are in chai tea: ginger, cloves, cardomom, cinnamon etc.
-other days i will use a base of a tea such as yerbe mate, rooibos, or pau d'arco instead or in addition to the coconut water
-to make it frothy add in a few ice cubes.

CAROB is fabulous to add to drinks and recipes. here are just a few of its health benefits:
-Improves digestion.
-Lowers cholesterol level in the blood. Carob seeds don’t have a cholesterol agent.
-It acts as an antioxidant.
-It can be used to treat diarrhea in children and adults.
-It contains an active substance that is effective against asthma. Carob is also used for asthma problems caused by allergies.
-It doesn’t contain caffeine. It works nicely for patients that have high blood pressure.
-It contains vitamins E and is used for the treatment of cough, flu, anemia and osteoclasis.
-Carob tannins have Gallic acid. Gallic acid is analgesic, anti allergic and antibacterial. It is also antioxidant, antiviral and antiseptic.
-It is rich in phosphor and calcium.

Plus it tastes fabulous!!!

ENJOY!!

kelly

My Blissful Day

Good Morning,

Monday was an amazing blissful day for me. i love all forms of movement; yoga, gyrotonic, pilates, biking, hiking etc. i just love moving my body and being active. monday was filled with movement. this was my day:

i woke around 5ish to drink my tea and make my green juice. i included loads of cleansing greens like cilantro and parsley.


the boys woke around 6:30ish. i love the mornings with the boys. We started the day by making mason his nutrient-dense shake. he loves sitting on the counter and helping me put all the delicious and nutritious ingredients in the vitamix. Owen started his day with breastmilk and a mash of papaya, peaches and udo's oil.

i went to my 9:30-11 yoga class. one focus of vinyasa flow yoga is linking the breath with the movement. this is very important for everyone to focus on in daily life. we need to get optimal amounts of oxygen into the cells for our bodies to function properly. transferring the breathwork from class to daily life is one of my daily intentions.

stopped at home to drink a little green juice and pump milk for owen for later.

Next was the best part of the whole day........THAI MASSAGE!!!!!! it was just amazing. i was sooo relaxed, released and rejuvenated afterwards. The healing art of Thai Yoga Massage is an ancient and sacred system of healing with roots in Yoga, Ayurvedic Medicine and Buddhist spiritual practice. It is a unique and powerful system of Yoga Therapy, which combines rhythmic massage, acu-pressure, asanas (Yogic stretching exercises), gentle twisting, energy work and meditation. Thai Yoga Massage stimulates and balances the flow of healing energy within the body, opening the areas which are blocked bringing the person deeper into balance and harmony for health, happiness and wellness of being. This system creates a powerful release of stress and tension, an increase in vitality and well-being and it deepens the connection between mind, body and spirit in both the giver and receiver.
**if you would like to know the practitioner i saw please email or call me and i will pass along their information.

monday was the last day of my 3 day GYROTONIC EXERCISE YEARLY UPDATE. The update course was saturday, sunday and monday from 2-6. during these updates we review all the exercises, experience them on our own bodies and then work on hands-on techniques to use to get people to truly feel what the exercise should feel like. the hands-on work in gyrotonic is amazing. i love taking these courses and other continuing education courses. they inspire me and give me new creative ideas. i also love spending my time with other like-minded people. i took the course with 2 other girls and i just loved the energy we all had.


So i had an amazing blissful day. i then came home and made a big smoothie with fruits, greens and vitamineral green. it was sooo YUMMY and nourishing!!!


Plan a personal day of bliss for you!!! ENJOY and BE WELL,

kelly

Nourishing Baby Food

Good Morning, it is 6:17am and i just got done making my green juice for the day and stocking up on baby food. owen is 6 months old now and eating fabulous organic nutrient dense foods. i continue to breast feed him and plan to till he is 2ish. i prepare most food in the vitamix blender which i could not live without!!! i started him with mono-meals of all the foods i feed him to make sure he tolerates them well. Now i combine some of the foods for various meals and snacks. i prepare everything i feed him and make sure it is all organic, clean and safe. This morning i prepared:

blended papaya and peaches
blended cucumbers
blended peas
blended carrots



meal combinations that i feed him include:

smashed banana, avocado and spirulina
blended apples, pears, bananas and oil
blended peas, carrots, almond milk and oil
blended sweet potato, avocado, almond milk and oil
for lighter snacks i may just do blended cucumber and carrots or cucumber and apples



i add avocado or one of the following oils to most of his meals:

udo's choice with DHA
flax oil with DHA
hemp oil

i also add spirulina, goji juice and/or almond milk to some meals.

Gradually i continue to introduce him to new foods making sure he is getting all the nutrients that he needs.

my intention with my boys is to introduce them to a variety of healthy foods and nourish their minds and bodies the best i can. the earlier you introduce your kids to whole organic foods the more likely they are to choose these foods in the future. i want to introduce their palates to the bounty of fresh whole organic foods and flavors that our earth offers. i will not be dogmatic or force anything on them. i want them to choose a healthy lifestyle for themselves. i want them to run home from school and choose to eat the fresh raw veggies and fruits instead of the candy they will be offered at school and friend's homes.



people often think that eating healthy means depriving yourself of all the foods you love. i look at it as the opposite. eating whole organic local foods allows me to taste the uniqueness of each food. i love the experience of eating. i love simple fresh foods. i love to eat slowly and savor each bite (which does not always happen with two little boys). eating in-season white nectarines or figs is sooo much more satisfying compared to even the thought of eating a bowl of store-bought ice cream or sweets. i never crave processed foods. as you begin to eat more simply you stop craving all the processed foods and you only crave whole organic real foods. if you keep your diet simple you will truly enjoy the flavors and essence of each food. this is part of my philosophy with owen and mason- introduce them to all the fresh whole organic foods and they will be set up to desire these foods in the future.

Feed the babies and kids of the world whole real organic foods and we will create a world of healthy, happy and well people!!!

kelly

Raw Living Wellness

i have so many great things to share. raw living to me is about living simple and being present in everything i do. One aspect of living simple to me is enjoying the day to day activities of life in a new amazing way. for instance my daily ritual of preparing my green juice each morning is truly almost a meditative activity for me. i wake before all my boys, take my supplements, make my tea and then i'm ready to prepare my juice. the house is silent and its just me and the food that is going to nourish me for the day. its so soothing and it helps center me for the day. then i hear mason's little voice say, "mommy, mommy, mommy."

my friend marie, who i met in nutrition school and went to culinary school with, came to stay with me for 4 days. we are working on a manual/book for pre/post natal women and their kids in regards to nutrition and nutrient-dense recipes. it was a YUMMY few days. we created many amazing dishes and tested many recipes. it was so fabulous and fun!!! my favorite creations are our raw fermented sauerkraut and sea veggie salads wrapped in nori (picture above). i love wrapping all my salads in nori. Nori is very nutrient-dense and a great source of protein for vegans. other recipes we worked on included energy bars, nut milks, shakes, smoothies and so much more.

a simple nutrient-dense nut milk recipe that you can try is:

2 cups almond or brazil nut milk
1-2 tbsp bee pollen
1 tbsp sun warrior natural or vanilla protein powder
1 tsp mesquite
1 tsp carob

in addition to our culinary creations we also lived our raw wellness everyday. everyday we went to yoga class, did wheatgrass shots and filled our bodies with loads of green juice. i love combining my green juice with spirulina. i blend it
for just a few seconds in the vitamix and it gets a little frothy.



On to another topic: REST and RELAXATION.
Part of living my wellness includes making time for rest, relaxation and rejuvenation. i got a seaweed body wrap treatment and facial at Veria Wellness Center and it was fabulous. i was very impressed with their knowledge and professionalism. it started with a complete body exfoliation which is very important to get rid of all the dead skin and toxins. our skin is a major detox organ and we need to keep it functioning optimally. next she applied the red algae and then wrapped me in a slightly heated cover. it was such a relaxing treatment. when i'm getting massages and treatments such as this i always practice silence and deep breathing. it allows me to get the most out of the experience. while my body was wrapped in the sea weed she did my facial. all organic products were used. after removing the wrap i rinsed off and then she applied essential oils. So if you are in need of some rest, relaxation and rejuvenation i suggest you get a treatment and practice being totally present during it. you will feel rejuvenated afterwards.


Finally, i started my seasonal colonic series this week. i get mine done at a local wellness center. each season i do a series of 3 colonics. one per week for three weeks. it is amazing how clean and light i feel even though i eat so well and keep my insides functioning well. colonics are not for everyone but if you have not considered them before i suggest you do some research and consider trying one. the average person carries around 5 lbs worth of stuff in their colon which causes nutrients to not be optimally assimilated. if the colon is clean you will assimilate your nutrients and get the most benefits out of what you eat.

So i suggest everyone cleanse the body and mind with some yummy green juice, daily yoga and seasonal detoxification practices (such as body wraps and colon cleanses).

Be Well and practice your own wellness daily,

kelly