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- I made this protein powder chia pudding for breakfast to hold us over before our flight out and it did the trick. Mark and I enjoyed it so much that it’s now been breakfast since getting back. Well, I have some fruit first and then have chia pudding eventually. On vacation I had the best tasting local Macintosh apples (my favorite apple) for fruit in the morning. This week I’ve been having grapefruit, papaya, or frozen berries – 1/2 cup unthawed wild blueberries and 1/2 cup mixed berries.
- I was leaning into extra simple meals prior to our trip and since coming back it’s been the same. The big bonus is that they are extra quick to make.
- One of them is just adding frozen vegetables to a large pot and cooking them. When I want it extra simple, I’ll just steam with a tiny bit of water, drain the excess water once cooked, and then I top with a little lemon juice, an avocado, and lots of Berbere seasoning. Another version is adding some coconut milk, curry seasonings, and sometimes tomato paste when the vegetables are cooked half-way for the remaining time. For frozen veggies I’ve been doing frozen riced cauliflower, frozen broccoli, frozen mixed bell peppers, and frozen okra sometimes. Okra can get a bit gummier when cooking if the pot is too crowded, so I usually add it in after the other veggies have cooked half way. It seems to do the trick when I cook it for a bit less (for this purpose anyway).
- I’ve still been making this pantry tomato soup.
- As well as this coconut turmeric ginger sipping broth.
- Some simple meals that inspired me during our trip that I plan to make: roasted spaghetti squash and eggplant with doctored up marinara or spaghetti sauce, a curry cabbage coconut soup, a veggie quinoa soup, a spicy coconut kale soup, a more bitter tomato chili (tasted a bit too bitter at the time, but I started to really enjoy it towards the end and am still thinking about it) – so basically a lot of soup. For a good part of my life I could have passed on soup and now I can’t get enough. I didn’t know what I was missing! Mark on the other hand has always liked soup, so he’s happy that’ve I’ve come to the other side. If you want to make a soup heartier, adding in quinoa, beans, wild or black rice does the trick. Otherwise, serving it alongside some baked sweet potato wedges is great too.
- I took a lot of supplements with me on vacation to keep my gut and immune system happy. With all of the eating out I felt great with the exception of a gluten free, vegan cheese pizza which tasted funny to me and happened to be my least favorite meal. They were out of the fish that I went there for, but either way, I was so inspired by the scenery which equally excites me that the bad pizza was worth it. I also had dairy (butter) on the trip once and broke out with a bit of a rash on my face the next day, but I sprayed Magic Molecule all over and my face mostly turned around in 24 hrs.
- I think a big reason my gut didn’t feel off on vacation (besides the pizza), was because I was faithful taking BodyBio’s Sodium Butyrate. Although I’m still newer to this gut supplement, I think it’s working wonders. I probably should have shared with Mark since he felt like crap coming home, but he also eats more than I do outside our home. Plus, it’s never good to start a new supplement while on vacation just incase our body does not respond well to it. Since he’s used to eating so clean, it really affects him when he has gluten and dairy out – he gets extra inflamed. Eating how we do is a blessing 95% of the time, but can be a curse when still wanting to live and enjoy outside the home. We pick restaurants and vacations that have better quality food options for the most part, but sometimes it’s less than due to wanting an experience, limited options, or just thinking it will be better than it is. To be clear, living healthy to me means indulging in whatever the heck I want guilt-free as well, it’s just that I know my triggers and try to avoid feeling like crap. 🙂 Mark and I need to go to Italy just to test out if their higher quality gluten and dairy affects us like it does here. I have a hunch it won’t. We do do better with some sprouted grain breads and goat and sheep dairy. I’ll have those on occasion.
- My immune system also stayed strong while traveling despite feeling I might be getting sick right before leaving. I took 2 liposomal vitamin c’s in the morning and 2 at night before bed. I also took extra vitamin D. Before leaving for the trip, I took Beekeeper’s Liposomal Vitamin C Propolis packets and they didn’t let me down. I don’t know what is is about them, but they always seem to work the fastest compared to a cabinet full of stuff when I feel like something might be coming on.
- I’ve been very diligent about getting in more Omega 3’s due to their HIGH anti-inflammatory effects amongst many other benefits the past couple months in the form of freshly ground flax or chia seed. However, I just ordered Foods Alive organic flax oil and organic chia oil to easily add to salads and meals when I don’t feel like the thicker texture or taste of the ground down seeds. According to Dr. Brooke Goldner, who I learned the extreme value of Omega 3’s from, chia seed pudding is great and healthy, but since the seeds are not ground down, we are not absorbing Omega 3’s like we do when we have freshly ground flax or chia seeds or their oils. When using cold-pressed oils, I won’t cook with them as I don’t want to destroy the Omega 3 fatty acids. I’ll add them to salads or cooked meals right before eating.
- This is the time of year I turn on the remote candles more, burn beeswax candles, and diffuse seasonal scents. Some holiday scents to diffuse: pumpkin spice (vanilla, orange, and spices), holiday season oil blend (orange, cinnamon, ginger nutmeg), fir needle (Christmas tree scent)
- This week’s Quince Picks: Free shipping, 365 day returns, and quality products for amazing prices is why I shop Quince often. This little leather pouch goes with everything and is great for a wedding purse or date night out. It can easily be carried as a small day-time clutch as well. I personally like it without the strap and may just remove it all together.
- We need both experience and time for many aspects in life. To figure things out and learn what works for us and what does not.
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