God Given Talents

I have been feeling really convicted about my talents the Lord has given me that I am wasting away. I really love my jewelry making and art creations. I have not been truly pursuing them actively. Right now I am rehabilitating my knee and it is a fine time to make more jewelry.

A pair of earrings I made from upcycled zippers

Now I just have to await the arrival of my tools and beads in a few weeks in the moving truck.  Good thing I have blogging, books and one knitting project.  Or else I might go mad. My jewelry website is here and my Facebook page is here.  Check it out and like my page!

Another little ditty I made

What talents do you have or dreams that you have that you have not been pursuing?  Or have you even thought of this?  Are there things that you love to do that you have put aside because they are "too hard" or you don't know where to start?  Let me hear what you have to say!


Thanks for reading!  Aloha.

A Fresh Start

Well, I am back!  2012 has been a tough year for my fitness and health overall.  Physically and mentally.  I plan on blogging more often, although I only have five followers now.  That really does not matter, perhaps someone will read this and it will benefit them.


Anyhoooo, what have I been up to?  Whelp as you know from previous posts I have been struggling with my weight and health.  Since trying to gradually change my lifestyle back to the healthy one I once knew.  I re-joined Weight Watchers in February and did astoundingly well.  I was eating a high raw diet mixed with fish and chicken.  I lost about 15 pounds in 2.5 weeks.  I even lost weight on a cruise!  While on the cruise I had a flair up and both my legs were swollen (mostly towards the last three days).  After much pain, a night in the ER, countless tests the ER doctor was perplexed and he was not a young guy either...Eventually we narrowed it down to my left knee.  I have been faced with a knee injury since the end of February.  


Prior to the knee injury I had a physical with my doctor to which he declared me obese.  Yes, I said it, OBESE.  "OMG!  Seriously?" is what I thought to myself.  Morbidly obese, yup me.  I NEVER in a million years would have ever pictured me in this place.  Because my BMI was so high and due to practice protocol, my doctor had to write me a referral for a Bariatric surgeon. I told my doctor I didn't want it and that is when he told me he had to write it for me.  So I literally that day went straight to Weight Watchers where I weighed in at my all time high.  When I got home I put the referral smack dab on the handle of my fridge door.  How did I get here?  This is not a picture of me, but it is a picture of the typical american.  More than one third of adult Americans are obese 35.7% to be exact; according to the CDC's website.

Sadness will not go away if you eat more

So after the cruise, I had lost weight, but I was sent to physical therapy for two months.  I went through pain that could have been a lot worse I am sure, but it was the worst knee pain I had ever felt, well really it was my whole leg as I had hurt tendons in my calf and ankle too.  I was on modified bed rest for quite some time as they thought that I had blood clots.  I had been through physical therapy in recent years for my other knee, but it was never this bad.  Truth is my body was crying out for help then four years ago.  I didn't listen to the call then, but I sure am now!


All that to say, here I am five months and some change later having gained more weight then where I started.  I have moved to a new city to live with family since I have been on medical leave for so many months and the lease was up on my apartment that I could not pay for on my own.  So, I packed up gave some stuff away, sold some stuff and journeyed to Phoenix to be with family.  I have been here for four and a half days now.  Sadly I caught some sort of stomach bug before leaving and was really nauseous days before leaving for the road trip with my two kitties in the car and my mom.  It seemed to have subsided and then flared back up again.  I am eating really bland food now and on August 1st I started fresh.  Since I cannot eat veggies or fruit right now (besides bananas) I am taking a multi-vitamin, calcium, probiotics and an omega.  I have not missed a dose remarkably!  It has always been really hard for me to remember my vitamins much less twice a day.

There is much controversy over taking supplements versus eating fresh (or raw) fruit and vegetables to gain nutrients instead.  I for now am going to take them until I can incorporate more of the yummies in the pictures below into my daily routine.  The supplements I take are from Melaleuca, The Wellness Company which have Oligofructose Complex for maximum mineral absorbability and antioxidant protection (ask me how to order these!).

Yummy in my tummy!

Each day there are little conscious decisions I make to incorporate vitality and health back into my life.  One of them is choosing products that are safe for me, my family and the environment.  Cruelty free is key too!  Each day is a difference and I know I can do this, I just have to take it one day at a time instead of looking at the overall amount of weight I need to lose.  So reach one, teach one.  Encourage someone today to make a positive change in their life.  One of my favorite scriptures is Philippians 4:13 which says "I can do all things through Christ, who gives me strength.".  I am going to have to really lean into that this next year as I work hard to take some serious weight off.  So stay tuned for my adventures of fun, fitness cruelty, and plateaus.  Thanks for reading!  Much Aloha!   

Tantalizing Tart Juice

I just had a juice experiment turn out very yummy!
Ingredients:
Ginger root
1 medium to large jicama
2 fiji apples
1 green apple
2 large minneola tangelos
1 lemon

First I juiced the citrus with my citrus juicer, next I juiced the ginger, jicama, then apples. Threw it all in a large bowl to whisk and now I am slurping it down in my mason jars.

Zesty Coconut Thai Noodles

Today I had an amazing lunch! I made raw noodles with yellow summer sqaush and zucchini with my spiral slicer. Then I used raw coconut butter, juice from two lemons, grated fresh ginger and threw in a few shrimp. I cooked the shrimp and then poured it over my raw noodles, grabbed chopsticks and devoured it! Enjoy!

Sub This For That! Easter Edition

So tonight after a long eventful day, (well for me anyhow) I found myself sitting on the couch hearing the Easter candy calling my name from the kitchen.

So instead of giving in to temptation, I thought I would make a game of it. I now found myself with my hands on my head above my ears, sticking my tongue out while saying "nah, nah, boo, boo I WIN!" right in temptations face.

"What did I do?", you ask. Well, I sprang from the couch...haha as fast as my knee injury would let me. Which is about as fast as a nine month pregnant lady our a ninety year old lady (get the picture yet?). I got my hind-parts off the couch and checked my produce stash, the fridge, freezer and pantry. What was I looking for you might ask...well, I was looking for a yummy sweet healthier version of the Easter candy that was beckoning me OH so loudly from the kitchen.

So instead of eating starburst "fruit" candies I took two containers of organic blueberries (Thanks Rawfully Organic Co-op!), about eight large strawberries and some almond milk and threw them in my blender for a tantalizing treat.

Now, I find myself satisfied, full,happy and gloating over my low fat win.

Jenny - 2 points, Easter candy - 0. WINNING!

Orange You Glad God Made Fruit?

I am so grateful for fruit! Even Even knew a good thing when she saw it ;-).

I am battling quite a sinus infection and allergies. Houston has had an ozone warning for the last three to for days, possibly more; which makes things worse. So what did I do? I busted out my perfectly ripe citrus from Rawfully Organic Cooaperative and my citrus juicer and went to town!

Cheers to fresh vitamin C!

Adding Insult to Injury

Well, at the age of thirty I have been diagnosed with osteoarthritis...not a happy thing.  I have known my health was deteriorating for some time and that I needed to focus and lose weight, but due to my knee pain I always had a hard time sticking to any exercise regiment.  Now I have heard from my doctor, physical therapist, and orthopedic surgeon and one sweet medical secretary of the grandma type that I "must lose weight".  Do you notice the word choice there?  Not need, but rather I MUST lose weight.  


I now have been diagnosed with what I somehow already knew was there...well I knew something serious was wrong with my knee(s).  I am now having to cope with the the fact that I will no longer be able to run.  Running was always one of my favorite exercises which I have not been able to do for quite sometime.  Now I am told I need to learn to love swimming, cycling (already love it!) and yoga (love too!).  


Although, when I found out this news, I was really deflated, discouraged and almost sad.  It was almost as if all the things I had been ignoring and slightly nurturing about my health and well being all hit me at once.  What happened to the athlete in me?  I know she is still in there and dying to come out, but she has been defeated by so many things over the years.  My assignment right now is to find balance.  Physically I am supposed to find a balance with exercise as it helps OA, but if I you exercise too much it does the opposite.  So now, I am forced to listen to my body and pay attention to what it has been trying to tell me for years.  Perhaps having this diagnosis and hearing that I "must" lose weight from so many is the ultimatum I truly needed. I allowed myself to wallow for a day and then decided to move forward.  So hear is to moving forward and pressing onward!  Cheers!

EMPOWERING! I am on the go from a doctor's appointment to weight watchers to another doctor's appointment. I planned ahead and had fruit and multi-grain chips and good 'ol H20 with me. I am finding making healthier choices very rewarding! Even while I was on my cruise it was easy! There was fresh fruit, egg whitea or egg beater options, and even Royal Caribbean's own "vitality menu which showed calories and had healthier options. Next week I am hoping to hit my first goal which was 5% of my body weight when I rejoined weight watchers three weeks ago.

Cabbage Concoction Soup

I made some fabulous soup for dinner!  I was craving butternut squash, so I used what I had in my fridge and I must say it is quite yummy in my tummy and really low in points too!  

Cabbage Concoction Soup

4 Cups of Chicken or Veggie Broth

4 Cups of H20

1 small head of cabbage

5 sprigs of kale

3-4 cups of butternut squash cubed

5 cello carrots

4 celery stalks

2 cups of whole wheat quinoa

Pre-steam butternut squash so that it is still slightly firm and also pre-cook the quinoa.

Add broth and water to soup pot, then add chopped carrots and celery, chopped head of cabbage, de-stem kale and add to the mixture.  At the end add the butternut squash and qunioa.  I added non-salt herbal seasonings and basil to my soup.

Another option is to pour the soup over the quinoa in your bowl so you can better control your calories and portions.

Enjoy! Hugs & Aloha!

WOW! All I have to say is wow! For once I am craving healthy food! Thank you Lord for giving me strength for this healthy shift in my lifestyle. It has been an uphill battle with knee issues and the more weight I put on the harder it got. I am so grateful for friends and family members that I have in my life who support me and see my heart rather than the shell I created for myself to hide out in for a while. I am reminded of my favorite, well one of my favorite verses "I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me. " ~Philippians 4:13 Remember it is never to late to make a healthy choice! Thanks for stopping by my blog. Hugs & Aloha, Jenny

On my coffee break at work. Reading and eating yummy fruit for a snack. Yahoo! This book is hilarious!

Whooo hooo wouldda known?! This week at work I only drank doppio espressos with two raw sugars and cinnamon powder with the occasional splash of nonfat milk. I also drank brewed coffee or Americanos, but mostly the espresso. I noticed that not only did I reduce my caloric intake and sugar intake, but I typically had leas caffeine too. Whoo hoooo! One step at a time.

Wow! My new leader sent me a welcome back postcard in the mail! No wonder she won leader of the year award so many times!

Empowering Choices

Well folks, after one week back on the Weight Watchers Points Plus system I lost 5.8 pounds!  I have been finding that I pray when I feel week and I truly was addicted to food.  I ate when I was sad, angry, bored, tired, or whenever.  I was eating healthy choices and much organic items, but then I would blow it by eating crap at work or driving through somewhere.  I think that I was afraid of success and failure all at the same time.  This week I made many healthy choices, including listening to my body when it was tired and going to bed early a few nights.  


I found that while eating healthier made me feel better emotionally by the simple fact that I was choosing the be healthy for myself and that I just had a clearer mind.  I am looking forward to incorporating more healthy choices this week and for my cruise next week and making good choices there too!  


With that I wanted to share a nummy recipe that I dreamed up tonight with y'all.  I call it Quinoa Surprise.  I named it such because I was surprised at how yummy it was!

Quinoa Surprise

1 cup of cooked or soaked whole wheat quinoa

2 cups of raw or steamed butternut squash cubed

3 cups of spinach

Add your favorite salad dressing (2 tbsp) *

***I used Seeds of Change Organic Red Pepper Vinegrette

Place in a giant bowl toss with tongs, grab a fork and a spoon and enjoy!

Not just obese....morbidly obese!

Well folks, yesterday I had my physical appointment.  Between my last stressful job and my  now living at Starbucks and the coffee house at church for work I bloated up some more.  I have been struggling lately with will-power in anyway or even caring.  I have been so tired I just go for convenience.  I abandoned all of my abundance of knowledge of anything healthy.  


So yesterday my BMI was so high that my doctor had to refer me to a bariatric surgeon for being "morbidly obese".  Wait....what?!  Am I still not the sporty spice athletic girl?  When did this happen?  How did this happen?  I will tell you how....a knee injury plus a lot of excuses and depression.  I refuse to have a surgery to which I told my doctor (whom I have a great relationship with and love).  He said that he recommends a regimented diet such as Weight Watchers or Jenny Craig and so forth.  I told him that Weight Watchers had worked for me in the past so I left the doctor's office and went straight to the Weight Watchers center by myself.  I signed up and caught the last bit of a meeting.  


Today is my first day on my points plus system.  I had "purple" oatmeal for breakfast.  Steel cut oats with half milk and half water with 1 cup of frozen blueberries added along with one packet of sugar in the raw.  It was yummy.  Took forever to cook on the stove, like 30+ minutes, but it was well worth it.  The blueberries turned the oatmeal a fun purple color. I also made coffee and actually measured out my creamer and a medium banana.  Eating right is empowering when you do it.  I look forward to sharing all kinds of recipes with you all and lovely pictures as I work my way back to health.


Hugs and aloha!  Cheers to improved health in the very near future!

Miss Poppins: Family Planner

Miss Poppins: Family Planner: If you don't already have a family planner.... YOU NEED ONE! {in my humble opinion} :) (To get the free printable pages like in the...