Katie and Curt in Cali

Spring Time! :)

2010-04-25T14:24:00.000-07:00

Spring this year has been full of fun... My mom and sister came down unexpectedly to see us in January (okay, so not really spring yet), my parents visited us in February (super fun and mom was sooo wonderful helping me out in my classroom!!), and Kelli, Ethan, Alyssa, Lucy, and Maddie came down for a visit in March! Sad to say that I am not great about remembering to take pictures... so the photos start with Kelli and Ethan's visit over spring break.... Thanks to everyone for making our last few months so much fun!
Here's Lucy and Kelli eating out back at our place:
Here's Lu and Maddie posing for a picture (taken by Curt as you can see) :)

Cute little Madeline!

We also went down to San Diego with Kelli and Ethan while they were all here and checked out the beach, spent time with Uncle Todd, Aunt Jean, and cousins Kyle and Jackson (super fun!), and just soaked up the glorious weather... Lucy didn't so much like the beach however, no sand-n-surf between her toes thank you very much! :) (We think she might have liked it more but was a little tired... as you can see Lucy was quite content just to chill in mom's arms. It looks comfy to me!) -->

Madeline on the other hand LOVED the beach and all the sand! She even let Uncle Curt dig a big hole and stick her in it, so just her arms poked out -- as long as she could still use her shovel and dig away, she was happy! This is my FAVORITE picture by far!!! (please, can it get any cuter?)

Me hanging with Maddie digging away....

More sandy fun....

Curt and I:

We also hit up the zoo for a full day of fun in the sun -- my favorite was the big cats! Check out the teeth on this thing!! (reminds me of our cat when she eyes me hungrily... and if she was this big, she would eat me without question, trust me)

Cougars were cool too... but imagine coming across one of these in the wild. YIPE!

Family pose by the flamingos -- their beautiful salmon and pink colors always make for a hit!

Me and LuLu :) Love you sister!!!

This weekend (April 25th) Curt and I hit up the AV Poppy Reserve... and it was out of this world breathtaking!!! Sorry to say that this was the first time we had even checked this place out since we've lived here (4 years) -- and with all the rain we've had this spring, we've never seen anything quite like it! It was like God had reached down and painted the fields this vibrant orange in sweeping stripes and patches....

me and curt chilling in the poppies :)

This gives you a sampling of the color splashes -- but the pictures hardly do the views justice!!! We actually do live in an area with a great deal of beauty... we sometimes forget this when the desert is so hot in the summer months. This was a good reminder :)

Hi! :)

Mountain views and bands of orange... love it!

There were all these gorgeous purple and yellow flowers too:

Loved this picture... the path of yellow through the purple leading to the orange....

Curt decided to take one little purple fellow home. That's legal, right?

Here's the victim... now planted in our backyard :)

Fresh cut roses from our bushes sure give our dining table a splash of color!! :)

Some fresh lilacs we bought from a local farmer out of the bed of her truck out at the poppy fields... our whole house smells AMAZING! :)

A shot of part of our backyard...

We did hanging baskets yesterday -- I planted this one :)

Curt's gardens... here are chives, chard, and lettuce:

Potatoes, lettuce, and corn:

Hope everyone else is having a beautiful and relaxing spring! Can't wait to see everyone this summer!!! :)

Christmas 2009

2010-02-06T08:08:00.001-08:00

Better late than never getting these 2009 Christmas pictures posted to our blog! :) It seems that heading back into school and being sick for the last four weeks tends to put a damper on getting the ol' blog updated.... But never mind all that; here's what happened over the break!
Curt and I took off for Bend, OR the day after school got out for Christmas break... and my sissy flew into Bend the next day! We were soooo excited to see her and Mark (he joined us closer to Christmas). Here's me, dad, and Jen at the airport in Bend:
Me and sissy by the tree at my parent's house:

My good friend Katie Ford was still in Bend when we arrived, so she came over and hung out a couple times before heading home to family in Walla Walla (soooo good to see her! Esp. since she's leaving for China in just another week... we'll miss you Ford!)

Jen and I made a ton of mom's sugar cookies... they were soooooooooooooooooooo good. As you can see, I could barely wait to stuff them in my mouth:

Hi mama! Here we are getting prepped to do some more serious baking -- this Christmas I learned how to make my mom's delicious buns and tea-ring! yummmmmy.

Can you see that I am listening very intently to instructions.... just the right temp. water for the yeast, just the right amount of sugar... salt... (I can do this, I can do this!)

It's looking like a success people! Here are the buns and rings rising:

Ahhh, the almost finished product! They turned out quite lovely :)

After frosting and decorating them with the classic jelly/dyed cherries - lol - I couldn't hardly wait to eat them Christmas morning:

But I did.

Hanging with the fam Christmas Eve... Curt, Chris, and Charles:

Note to self: Do not leave plate full of fudge and snack foods on counter while at church with dogs in the house. They will in fact eat them. oops.

Justin and Trevor (ooooohhhh, how cute):

Jenny and Mark - reunited at last! hehe

The hubby and I:

Even cat joined in the festivities... and who knew she was a Guinness fan?!

Chris and Karen... and surprise! Charles. hehe.

Cat's favorite perch (out of reach from the dogs) - and hanging with Tyler:

The weather was so cozy the whole time we were there; everything was literally frosted white:

Hanging out Christmas Morning:

The 3 amigos (aka: partners in crime):

The whole family together at last! :)

We left a few days after Christmas and made our way up to Bellingham to spend New Years with Curt's family! We had so much fun being with everyone, and of course seeing how big the twins had gotten since this last summer! They are as adorable as ever!!! Here's a cute shot of Lucy at Kelli and Ethan's house:

Having our own Christmas at Brian and Lisa's -- we exchange stockings and gave the girls a little something. It was so fun! Here's Lucy and Maddie climbing on Ethan:

Here's the girls at home... hanging out and showing us their new found agility walking with a little help:

My sissy came up to Bellingham for a day to see her good friend Amy (and me, right sis???) - I met them for Pizza downtown - it was super fun. :)

For New Years we had dinner reservations out at "The Fork" - this great restaurant on Lake Whatcom -- we were a little disappointed that it was a fixed menu just for that night - but the food tasted delicious, and Curt was all too happy to indulge in the 5 course meal! Here's Grandma Day, Lisa, and Brian:

The whole gang:

The first course I believe was some type of one-bite deal with crab... I at least tasted the sauce, and Curt said it was amazing. The presentation of all the courses was really fun.

Course #2: Duck liver (Foie gras), with toasted bread, a light citrus salad, and fresh grapefruit sorbet to cleanse the palate ... Mmmmmm .....

Course #3: The clam chowder in a fresh bread bowl with spinach leaves -- I had this as my meal, and it was lip-smackin' good!!

Ahhhhh, some chilly, fresh, lime sorbet to cleanse the palate again (to die for!):

Course #4: The main event! A medium-rare steak with an augratin potato stack (so cheesy, and soooo good), with fresh chives and sauteed greens. It was mouth wateringly fantastic!

Course #5: Who can forget dessert! Some kind of brittle with peanut butter, white chocolate, real whipped cream and strawberries with chocolate-mouse-goodness. It was a lick your plate type of finish to the evening's courses. :) Thank you Brian and Lisa, and thank you "The Fork!"

Curt's Grandpa Day had to go into a nursing home before Christmas, which has been really hard for the family -- but we had many nice visits while we were there... one of which was to celebrate his birthday! It was a packed room, and so fun to see everyone and have that time together. Here's Curt and I hanging out with the babies:

I had to include this one last picture of Molly and Lily chillin in bed together. Our kitty HATES other cats, and most every dog for that matter... But, LOVES Molly! Sooo cute.

Well, all for now! Hope everyone had a very Merry Christmas themselves... and is having a great start to the new year! Love to all family and friends! Will update the blog again soon!

Thanksgiving break!

2009-12-12T08:52:00.001-08:00

Well, once again it's been much too long since I last updated the blog! It's that time of year I think, when things get insanely busy between the holidays, and your first graders go nuts, and you just don't have a minute to think! hehe :) But I have been itching to get the pictures from Thanksgiving and our WONDERFUL time with Brian and Lisa up on our blog... so here they are!

Curt's parents came down the Sat. before Thanksgiving, we picked them up at LAX (lovely airport, wouldn't you agree? eeewwwwwww), and headed straight for truly lovely San Diego. When we got there we hooked up with Curt's uncle Todd, aunt Jean, and his cousins Kyle and Jackson and went out for a delicious Mexican dinner in Old Town.

The next day, uncle Todd took us on a tour of the town, and one of our first stops was MCRD (Marine Corps Recruiting Depot). Here's Curt and I after enlisting:

After checking the place out, including a pretty cool museum (complete with props as you can see above), and doing a little shopping at the exchange of course, we had a great lunch at Pizza Nova (yummmmyyyy!!!) and then headed over to Coronado, a beautiful island right off the downtown. We checked out an unbelievably gorgeous, huge, old white hotel right on the beach (I failed to get those pictures off of Lisa's camera! Shoot!)... and we walked around and checked things out - very fun. After our great day out and about, we headed inland to Todd and Jean's house for a great evening in! Jean made the yummiest kabobs and twice baked potatoes, and we finished off our meal with Kyle's apple crisp! It was delicious cousin! :) Here's Todd, Jean, Lisa, and Brian:

We decided to do some wine tasting in Temecula on the way back up to our house, and so we checked out a few wineries, enjoying the fruits of the land in liquid form, along with a little shopping, beautiful surroundings, and relaxation. It was a great time!

This was a winery (Ponte) that cousins Jen and Brian recommended - it was way fun and delicious! I loved how it was wrapped up for Christmas:

Wilson Creek winery was gorgeous and tasty as well - as you can tell! Whoa Curt!

A quick shot of the fam at the tasting bar....

The grounds outside were aMaZing!! Just lovely - and we had perfect weather as you can see:

This was a fun sculpture on the lawn, don't you think?

Brian and Lisa:

Home again, home again, here we are back up in Palmdale - it was so nice having a much bigger place for our guests compared to our tiny apartment! We had so much fun hanging out with Lisa and Brian, doing a puzzle (or trying - we're bringing it home at Christmas by the way! lol), just relaxing, and enjoying the fruits of the season and being Thankful for family and friends.

Here's a shot (though not in great light) of our tree this year:

Here's the table set up for the Thanksgiving feast Curt and Lisa made:
And a last great shot of the four of us before feasting! We love you guys so much, and thanks for coming and being with us on Thanksgiving!!!

Until Christmas...........

Love to all! :)

Huskie Fans

2009-11-08T07:55:00.000-08:00

This fall has been so busy that I am realizing I have had absolutely zero time to update our blog on a regular basis. . . . That said, here are some pictures from the UW/UCLA game we went to yesterday at the Rose Bowl down in Pasadena. It was a blast, despite the fact that the UW lost (grrrrrrrr) and SHOULD HAVE WON. (where was the review on that touchdown play?!) Anyhoo, we're not bitter....
Here's the tailgate scene, we had BBQ wings, chips and refreshing drinks all to enjoy in the sunny, 75 degree weather. There is not much to hate about California this time of year.

Curt getting in a little pre-game texting

On our way into the stadium, sure of victory

Our fellow partners in tailgating and Huskie fans for the day, Brian and Andrea

Quick pic inside the Rose Bowl....

A shot of the stadium....

Getting ready to start!

Just some football pics:

By games end: 24, 23 - UCLA. Nnnnooooooooooooooooooooo. What the heck happened UW?! Great day, but would've been even GREATER with a win, esp. when surrounded by gloating Bruins fans. Ugh.

Will update with more pics soon, especially as we get our new place in order -- (it's taking forever). I am missing the days of working only 2 or 3 days a week and writing papers! There was so much more time for decorating...... lol. Oh well. :) Love to all family and friends! Miss you guys!

Recent Happenings in Cali

2009-10-14T12:54:00.000-07:00

It's been FOREVER since I last updated our blog... Full time work is craziness...and I don't know where all my time goes any more! (wait...... to work). I've turned into somewhat of a flake of a friend and am tired all the stinkin' time -- BUT, am starting to "get" first grade and enjoy it more and more each week as I get the hang of things. Whew! :) I would've also updated our blog sooner had it not frustrated me to the point of almost throwing our computer out a window two weeks ago when I added these pics, as it wouldn't let me re-order them! Darn you blog! (I might have also slightly over-reacted, something I am good at). So I am going with them some what out of order. I will live. :)

Remember when all those crazy fires were buring down in Cali about 6 weeks ago? We captured a few pics of the event out on the deck of our old apartment:

On another note, Curt suprised me with a fabulously fun trip just North of Santa Barbara in celebration of our 5 year wedding anniversary! We "camped" in this huge canvas tent, complete with a bed, electricity, and heat -- it was super relaxing and just a short walk down to the beach. Here was a little flower we saw on one of our treks (out of order)...

Curt posing in front of the sign where we stayed... we would highly recommend it! There are awesome cabins too (but a tad more expensive).

The long drive up to the enterance...

Walking along the beach... it was a misty and refreshing morning -- so nice to escape the 100 degree heat of the desert!

Happy 5 years! hehe :)

Random picture.... beach that way -->

More beach pics:

The dinning hall and general store at El Capitan -- Meals a little over-priced and greasy, but still very fun -- all part of the experience! :)

The pool overlooking the ocean we mercifully had to ourselves a couple different times:

A grape shot:

Me and the tent:

More grapes! (out of order... GRRRrrrr).

Curt made dinner reservations Sat. night at a FABULOUS place called Bouchon in downtown Santa Barbara -- it was AMAZING. They specialize in fresh, seasonal, organic foods. You know the meal is going to be good when the bread and butter before you even begin your meal is out of this world! The rest of the food and wine did NOT disappoint. My salad below -- pear, nut, and goat-cheese with a vinaigrette and caramelized onions... Mmmmmm...

Curt said his heirloom tomato salad was the best thing he has EVER eaten. It was soooo good. The pictures don't do it justice either; we didn't want to be "those" patrons with the flash going off every few minutes on our camera in a nice restaurant. hehe.

Sharing our YUMMY dessert -- lemon ice-cream with a blueberry cake and fresh berries. Mmmmm... Loved every bite!

Snapped a quick pic outside... Thanks for the AmAziNg food Bouchon!

One last pic of the tent -- an inside shot! Fun fun... (but also out of order). :)

Fabulous weekend! Great way to celebrate 5 years!

Will update again soon with pics of our new place (we are renting a house... yippppeeeee!) and maybe some pics of my classroom!

All for now....

The Last Days of Summer....

2009-09-06T13:20:00.000-07:00

So the last week has brought with it some big changes in the Stephan California household! I was officially offered a job this past Thursday.....Yaaaayyyy!!! I got the call while teaching my 6th graders during my long term sub job... the district sent a sub in later that morning, and I had 1/2 of Thursday and Friday to fill out paper work, clean my new classroom, set it up (as much as I could), and prepare materials for the little first grade kiddos on Tuesday morning! WheW! It was a long and semi-stressful Friday -- but my fellow first grade teachers were unbelievably helpful, and made me feel sooo much better by the time I left Friday evening. More updates to come on this however... and pictures, but for now, I have got to finish up this summer!! So let's head to Bend, my parent's new home (still crazy to think about!)..... Here's a great shot of Mt. Hood on our way down from Portland, where we spent the weekend before at my brothers' homes:

Let me tell you, we sure didn't waste any time getting straight to work helping my parents paint their new house! We were so excited to help start making it more of a home by getting some color on the walls and some decorative items unpacked.... Here's Curt getting ready to roll:

Here's mom hanging out in the great room, with the dining room behind her. All the big windows in the house are just gorgeous, and let in tons of natural light, which I love! Notice how everything is stark white and moved into the middle of the rooms..... Lot's to do, but I love a blank slate!

Already paint on the walls is making a HUGE difference... getting above the cabinets was a little tricky, as demonstrated in the photo below, but never-the-less, the warm yellow tone popped the rich color of the cabinets and wood flooring right out.

Hideous shot, but thought I would include documentation of my holding a paint brush as well. I served in the prepping (aka: taping) and edging department (aka: standing on my tippy toes trying not to paint the ceiling while my arm is shaking): not my favorite, but I was out on the whole rolling thing!

One of our favorite things about our week in Bend, (besides just being with family which was the best!), were all the incredible rain and thunder storms we got to experience.... They were crazy!! Hail one day, torrents of rain the next (as I try to show below), and incredible lighting too (documented even farther below). Anyway, the bursts of moisture were welcome relief to the heat and super fun to watch. I wish you could see how hard the rain was falling in this shot!

The rain brought out a few little friends too.... including this adorable frog! I went out and tried to hold it, and it promptly relieved itself on me (thanks a lot!). Needless to say, our time together ended before it began.

Here's a shot of the kitchen with the paint all done, including our very favorite color on the left wall, Cocoa Bean.

The great thing about where my parents live is that there are about 3 dog parks right in the area, all just a few short miles apart. Their dogs LOVE it... and my mom is so good at taking them out... usually 2 or 3 times a day for runs or walks. (Mom, I know there is a good chance I'm spelling their names horribly wrong, so sorry!)... But, here's me, Charlie, mom, and Colette:

We went into downtown Bend one night when my dad arrived for a yummy dinner out, and our walk afterwards lent us this incredible sunset shot over the Deschutes River! We just fell in LOVE with Bend.

Here's Curt, me, dad, and mom.... I love this picture with all the soft light in the background.

Here's the entry-way of their house (on the right), and the great room..... things were really starting to come along after the paint got on the walls. We started pulling out decorative items, which was so fun! Did I mention, however, that me, Curt, and mom moved the grand piano and the armoire (featured in the picture below)? Let's just say our limbs were sore for days afterward, and it looked like Curt had taken a box cutter to his forearms!! Poor thing did the brunt of the lifting -- I'm a total weakling.

A look from the great room back into the breakfast room and kitchen. Love it, love it! And there's that beast of a piano we moved. I shuddered to think about moving that thing ever again. Yeeeesh.

So while we were in Portland visiting my brothers and family, Curt snuck down to Eugene for a night to go fishing with his buddy Simon. He caught a huge Steelhead, which he promptly froze so the whole family could be lucky enough to enjoy it together later. The meal Curt made with it was out of this world! For those of you that don't know... Curt loves to cook. And let me just say, he is darn good at it.... as I tried to showcase in the picture below. I can only take credit for the salad... the fish, potato salad, and asparagus were all his, and packed with a flavor punch! MMmmmm.....

Here's Chris, Karen, Curt, my dad, mom, and I at the table ready for the fish-feast:

There was another gorgeous sunset that night... after another torrential rain storm. Love, love, love the rainy stormy afternoon's and evenings.

Hi brother!!

Karen, me, and mom..... the sun was so stinkin' bright that we all appear really peeved about something in this picture... like the blinding, scorching sun.

Me and Charlie having some bonding time, although, don't I look more excited than she does?

Colette and Charlie hanging out.... They are so cute! And let me tell you, the fact that they don't shed a hair is pretty cool.

As a final parting shot, the last night we were at my parent's house there was a WickEd thunder and lighting storm. Curt took the digital camera outside, and after taking a hundred or more pictures, was please to find he captured this awesome lighting pic!

We miss you family! Can't wait to get back up to Oregon and Washington to visit! Love you guys, and mom and dad... LOVE the new place! We are super excited to explore much more of Bend and the surrounding countryside. Until next time....

Hanging out in the 'ham! (part 2)

2009-08-30T18:57:00.000-07:00

Slowly but surely I am catching our blog up! (This statement seems to be a theme, I know). Things in Cali are going well... Curt and I are both super busy with school and having a great time hanging out with friends and enjoying the summer weather; though it would be nice if it were just a tad cooler. But, let's get back to life in Bellingham this summer, which had its own warm, sunny weather! Here's LuLu and I with the twins... I'm holding Lucy, and Alyssa has Maddie.

We enjoyed a super fun Stephan family BBQ in Brian and Lisa's backyard.... including delicious yummies and family photos. Here's our family... Lu, Curt, me, Lisa, Brian, and Kelli and Ethan with Lucy and Maddie. (We miss you guys sooooo much!)

Here are the Kolb's.....

And the Stephan's....
Here's Kelli and I with Lucy, trying to stay cool in the shade:

More cute babies!! Lu with Madeline, and Aunt Jani with precious little Lily! :) (Love that headband)

Curt also got a chance to do some fly fishing on one of his favorite rivers... the Methow! He and his dad took off for a 4 day weekend and had a blast... as documented in Curt's smile below :)

Here's Brian casting....

And showing off a great catch....

Hanging out on the river.....

Meanwhile, Lisa and I had a girls weekend over at Kelli's with the twins while the boys were gone, as Ethan was out of town for the weekend as well for a bachelor party. It was so fun hanging out with my adorable nieces! We had a blast uncovering some cute clothes, accessories and shoes for the girls.... and playing dress up! Maddie, love the Santa hat, tutu, and animal print flats-- you are so stinkin' precious!
Lucy was a little freaked out by her Santa hat and red tutu get-up however! hehe :) I couldn't resist posting this wide-eyed photo....

Hi Maddie-cakes! :)

Lucy sporting a little fro-hawk! :)

Before we had to leave Bellingham, Brian and Lisa treated us out to a delicious dinner at Mambo's in celebration of my having completed my elementary ed. and master's degree! Yay!! The dinner was a celebration in itself as my lasagna was to-die-for. MMmmmmmm. Thanks guys!! Here's Lisa, me, and Lulu.

Another table shot that included the boys too! Alex, Curt, and Brian....

One last departing family shot -- Alyssa, Lisa and Lucy, Me, Curt, Ethan, Kelli, and Brian with Maddie. (oh! and Molly dog) :) Love you guys!

Hanging out in the 'ham! (part 1)

2009-08-15T09:02:00.001-07:00

Backtracking a bit again to our travels, adventures, and family time from our vacation this summer, we return to Bellingham! After friends Brian and Andrea departed for Cali, we had about another 2 1/2 weeks to chill in the 'ham, and soak up some time with our wonderful family! Man, do we ever miss you guys!
One fantastic experience I got to have was to help Kelli with Lucy and Maddie's swimming lessons....The girls were so adorable in their little swimsuits with hot pink ruffles! We'd start off by just sitting in the water with them while they splashed around, and then took them into the deep end (deep for them that is... Only 3 1/2 feet for anyone that was panicking) for some more kiddie activities.
One of the days at swim, the girls had the opportunity to try out the pint-sized life jackets! So adorable. Maddie LOVED having hers on, and was content to just float around on her back in it. Lucy, did not so much love it however. So we chilled side-pool while sister sported the red, puffy cocoon.

Once the girls were dried off, they snuggled into their car seats.... Does Fiddler on the Roof come to mind anyone? Anyone??..... (match maker, match maker, make me a match... find me a find..)

In other excitement and adorableness from this summer, Remy dog deserved a spot on the blog. Curt's sister Alyssa babysat little Remy for a friend of hers for a couple days, and so Remy hung out at Curt's parents house a couple afternoons. He was SOOOooooo stinkin' cute, as depicted in the picture below. (How could you resist a face like that?! Seriously). The best part, however, was constantly hearing Lu's voice saying something along the lines of "Remy NO!, No Remy! No!" hehe.

Molly dog was not keen on Remy's level of adorableness. She pretty much hated that brown-furred ball of energy that chased her around the house and bit her ankles. So of course we had to make it up to Molly for her generous toleration. Love you Molly! Here's Curt and I hanging out with Lucy (w/me) and Maddie (w/Curt). Madeline doesn't look all the sure of old unci-C.... :)

Hi Maddie and Lucy! Cute as little buttons I tell ya! (I am definitely the bragging aunt here) :)

Curt had a little side adventure while we were in the 'ham; running the Chuckanut Foot Race! 7 miles of beautiful wooded paths, lush green foliage, fresh sea and mountain air, and grueling hills. (It's possible that I might have signed up and then backed out. Oops). Here's Curt all numbered up and ready to smoke some peeps. Get 'em!!!!

The best part of this day (outside of his race time/killer placement of course), was that I was the designated photographer, and I had myself all lined up on this corner to catch Curt as he came by. Well. The race started and in the confusion of 1,000 people flying by me, I had absolutely no clue where he was, when he would run by, and couldn't for the life of me remember what he was wearing to even pick him out. Frustrated and feeling like a failure, I took ONE blind shot into the crowd and left. Later, looking through my pics, this one picture I took captured Curt exactly as he was rounding the corner! Granted, unless you have the ability to see microscopic images magnified ten times their size, you may have trouble picking him out of the picture below (he's the third person from the right in the pic, starting with the person in the red way on the right), but I swear he is there!!! I am sooooo good.

I then jumped in the car and raced ahead to the next point I hoped I could snag a pic. I got there just in time to leap from the car, run across a treacherous highway, and snap this shot. Dang, I am telling you, I was working it people! :)

Yay! Good job honey!

Again, you made need a magnifying glass to read this, but Curt placed 31st overall running it in about 45 minutes and 45 seconds... and in doing so, broke the personal goal he had set for himself - so he was pumped! We then enjoyed the music and yummy food they were serving down at Larabee Park post-race, and then headed for home. Quite an exciting time.

More Bellingham pics to come..... :)

Washington Sightseeing Extravaganza...continued!

2009-08-10T16:17:00.000-07:00

Well, Curt and I are back in Cali, and officially both started school today! Wahooo! I was fortunate enough to get a long term sub position with the Westside District, at a school and in grade I love (6th). :) It's definitely the next best thing to a full time job, as the experience has been amazing getting to set up and start a year off. Curt enjoyed his first day too, and was glad that two of his six classes were reduced a few students -- down to 40, instead of 44. Ugh. Crazy huh? Anyway, in a desperate attempt to get caught up with our blog.... I must back-track yet again to this past JUNE. What?!? I am sooo behind.... at any rate, enjoy the third installment of our good times up in Washington with friends Brian and Andrea. :)

After leaving Twisp... it was off to Bellingham, and a beautiful drive through the North Cascades Pass awaited us. Not a cloud in the sky people! Virtually unheard of. We were pumped that B & A got to see Washington like this. Here's Curty and I posing for a picture road-side. (Please ignore Curt's closed eyes):

Playing in the snow....
A quick pic at Ross Lake. Amazingly beautiful!! The silt and other goodies in the glacier water give the water that deep green/blue color... almost unreal looking.

More Ross Lake scenery, and Andrea's "man-hand." The poor thing got taken out by a mosquito!!

Me and Andy with the San Juan Islands in the background.... a gorgeous day to drive up Chuckanut!

Finally in Bellingham with our nieces!! Here's Curt with Maddie, and Kelli and I with Lucy and Madeline... They are precious little pumpkins and I miss them terribly!

Another fun adventure we embarked upon was our ferry ride out to Victoria, B.C. The water was practically like glass the entire way there... and beautifully sunny and warm. We couldn't have asked for a better day to make the trek!

Here's some pics from on the boat as we near Victoria, and then posing by some pretty flowers. I really wanted to drive out to the Butchart Gardens, but we just didn't have time to drive up there and tour it all with only a few hours. It made me feel better to find out later that the entrance fee is 30 bucks a pop -- so I was appeased for the time being. Hehehe... Next time though, as I am sure it would be worth the coin if well planned! :)

Here's a snap shot of the Parliament building we toured... and me looking at it from the outside, upside down, enjoying my jasmine iced tea... Ummmm... I could really use one of those right now, so refreshing! (did I mention that it's 101 here today - ugh). Sweet, cool, merciful Pacific Northwest - we miss you! (although I wouldn't have missed it a week ago when it was almost 100 in the 'ham w/no AC -- for all of you that survived, hats off to you!!).

Chillin' on the boat home... Ahhhhhhhh.

The views were spectacular! Here Mt. Baker looms in the distance:

Here we are enjoying a little relaxation fireside in Curt's parents backyard. Brian got a chance to bond with Molly dog... you can see Andrea was pretty happy about that.

Fourth of July was a blast celebrating at Kelli and Ethan's with family... breaking out the oysters on the BBQ and spending more precious time with Lucy and Madeline.

Here's Lu and Brian about to take oyster shooters. EWWWWWWWwwwwwwwwwwwww.

AHHHHHHHhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh. Tasty.

We busted out the fireworks later and had fun lighting up the streets with our hoop-la. (I was mostly scared of all the sparks and the possibility of getting taken out by an errant bottle rocket, but still enjoyed myself never-the-less.)

Happy Fourth! Hi Lisa and Brian... miss you guys sooo much!!

We also toured downtown Seattle, the wharf, and Pike's Place Market -- check out those hanging peppers! They were amazing... all fresh, but dry in a few months to look just as cool. The produce looked yummy too... ummmm.

Curt and I stopping for a quick pic under the public market sign (wait, I'm sure you didn't know that from the picture).

Enjoying one last delicious meal at Anthony's on the pier with B & A before they headed back to Cali...

More updates to come.... For now, happy travels to those of you still on summer break, we are so sad it's over for us!!!! (but seriously, can we complain after having 10 full weeks off. Ummm, probably not).

Tour de Washington...part two!

2009-08-01T17:09:00.000-07:00

Thought I would update with more adventures from the summer (I am so behind in posts!) From Walla Walla, it was on to Lake Chelan, where the drive on the east side of the state afforded our dear friends Brian and Andrea (aka: B & A) to see yet another aspect of the great state of Washington! We meandered through sweeping wheat fields, hills, and valleys until we ended up at our campsite right on the lake at the Lake Chelan State Park. We scored a sweet spot with awesome views, and docks that gave us the opportunity for near perfect summer bliss. Here I am enjoying such a moment, basking in the sun... Ahhhhhhh....

The only interruption to our lazing about was the discovery of a beaver!! (sorry Brian, I couldn't resist). Wait. Make that a marmot. Lots of marmots. Cute little buggers until they start edging closer and closer to your campsite, lured in by the scent of delicious camp snacks wafting through the air. Or when they wake you up at 4:30 am because they are all over your picnic table, cooler, and bags you left out over night. (Thankfully all free of accessible food items -- we learned our lesson well in Zion. Beware of squirrels?? AHahahahah. Then they eat through your backpacking pack to get to the PB&J you left in it. Whoops.)

After enjoying some evening time out on the dock we chilled 'round the campfire and enjoyed a beautiful sunset...

Lone behold, a late trip to the bathroom presented a wonderful opportunity to get acquainted with an adorable frog! (or is that a toad?) Anyway.... strange or not, I just thought it was the cutest thing ever and was so happy it let me hold it! (and smoother it in kisses). Just kidding, I promise. :)

And if we thought the sunset was pretty, the sunrise was probably the most spectacular thing I saw all summer! (Or at least top 5). Thank you marmots for rooting through our stuff! I zipped open the tent lickity-split and sprinted to the car to retrieve the camera. I was not going to miss this! And the picture I think, does do it justice. Drink it in..... *sigh*

We were up an' at 'em early to catch The Lady of the Lake Ferry, which would take us all 55 miles up the length of the lake to Stehekin. I would only say this: In hindsight, we should've taken the faster boat for more $$ (2 hours compared to 4). But it was still fun (and cheaper), and provided us gorgeous views; such as the shot below:

YippeeEE! We reached the top! Hello Stehekin, thank you Lady of the Lake! So we strapped up, made a short jaunt to the Ranger Station to get our backpacking permit, and looked around for the bus that would take us to our jumping off point to begin our hike (I was a bit scared thinking about what kind of contraption we would be riding on for an hour plus up a dirt/gravel road).I am pleasantly surprised! The buses are new, roomy, and the driver gives us a free history lesson as we make our way up to the last stop.

Welcome to the North Cascades Natl' Park!
We followed an old gravel road that had been washed part of the way out by a major flood several years prior and hooked up with the Bridge Creek Trail... It was beautiful! Views of the Stehekin River, towering mountains, and meadows were a treat for the senses.

Once we made it up to the Bridge Creek Campground, we set up shop and then explored our surroundings. The Stehekin River was really close by, so we headed over to hang out and cool off. More like freeze your butt off. It was COLD! Here's Curt and Brian contemplating a quick dip, which turned in to jumping in, and jumping out even faster. BURRRrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr.

Potential Christmas card shot.... if only my hat weren't covering half my face....

We most fortuitously found an old rusty tractor, which was super exciting for some, as detailed in the picture below:

Man vs. Wild had us on the lookout for old man's beard (great fire starter according to adventure extraordinaire and survivalist Bear Grylls) -- and find it we did, and then promptly turned it in to old man's mustache:

Meanwhile, Andrea worked on her killer shank.

And Curt tried his hand at making an all-natural-tiki torch:

Which worked! (The gobs of old man's beard [aka: explosive fire starter] hanging in the branches right above the tiki torch did make me a little nervous.)

We took a different route on the way out the following day, which gave us even more great views and pretty mountain scenery to take in... such as this little lake below!

More glorious mountains...

Here we are waiting for the bus back.... Along the way we made a quick stop at a waterfall and got a tasty bakery treat at a bomb cafe on the ride down; Curt back on the ferry, as we settle in for the return trip down the lake.

Once we made it off the lake, we made our way up to Twisp to camp river-side on some family friend's property. (Thanks to all Anderson's!!) :)

In more recent news, I thought I would update a little fish catching action! Curt landed a 30 inch, 10 pound Willamette River steelhead outside of Springfield, OR, on his 6 weight St. Croix fly rod thanks to his fishing guide/buddy Simon. Curt was so pumped because he hadn't landed a steelhead since our move to Cali. Yay!

More updates to come..... We have been enjoying our time in Bend at my parents new place, and spent the last week painting and helping them get organized. Happy summer adventures everyone! :)

StepHan and UndErwoOd ToUr De WasHinGton! ... (part one)

2009-07-25T22:24:00.000-07:00

The day after my parents moved to Oregon (still crazy to think about, but we are so pumped to visit their new place in Bend - we'll be there tomorrow and can't wait!), our friends Brian and Andrea drove up from Cali to visit us and check out the beautiful state of Washington! Curt and I were so excited to have an excuse to check out parts of the state we hadn't yet explored; bring on the adventures! Our dear friends Jill and Corey were kind enough to house all four of us, since our pool-side pad was now in new hands (thanks guys!). The first night they arrived we had dinner at Sweet Basil (sooo yummmy; best pizza ever)... and then took them on a drive around the near countryside, catching a gorgeous sunset up in the foothills of the Blue Mountains. Here's Andrea and I chewing on a little wheat and Curt and Brian doing... I don't know exactly what...(pretending to be some kind of creatures??)

We tried to catch an action shot of Curt -- and this is the best of what we came up with: Blurry face, aka: slightly scary. Haha.

Our fantastically amazing generous hosts and wonderful friends Jill and Corey.... A million thanks again you two!

Saturday found us up bright and early and on our way for a day full of wine tasting! We'll be able to hit up 10 or so wineries, right? ahahahhhahaha. Here's stop number 1: Cougar Crest - which actually ended up being some of our favorite wine of the day. Brain and Andrea toasting our tour off - Cheers!

Next stop, Reininger Winery, where we grabbed a quick shot out front and Curt had a chance to do a little bull roping (which he LOVED).

Then it was on to Three Rivers (another fav. with great wine). Oh! And just so you know, we did have a designated driver. That would've been me. Note to self, great time was had, but even better time could be had next time if someone else is given the job. :)

After a yummy lunch at the Farmer's Market in downtown Walla Walla, giving us some much needed food in the stomach, it was on to Patit Creek Cellars where my dear friend Amy works serving up wine in the summer!

Here's Amy pouring! Curt and Brian checking out the goods in our behind-the-scenes tour (would not recommend Grain Alcohol people - and we didn't sample it, but we imagine it's close to rubbing alcohol), and Curt also helping himself to some bulk wine. Uummm, I'm sure that's kosher... and sanitary, right?

Amy also showed us the barrel room... Ooooooo. (Is that what it's called??) Anyway, it was cool.

From there we checked out a little winery across the way (that's Andy and I in front of a huge wine barrel), and then K Vintners out on Mill Creek Road. SUPer cool winery -- probably the most unique we visited (that's the four of us by the large K. I'm also sure I needed to include this explanation given its name, haha). :)

After a quick stop at Klickers for some much needed cheese, fruit, and chocolate (Our snacks were perfect for wine tasting, were they not?) We were off to our final winery of the day, Basil Cellars. Gorgeous winery up on a hill overlooking part of Walla Walla valley and a killer view of the Blue Mountains. The wine wasn't too shabby either! Andrea and I can be seen taking a load off below (my feet had it in for me! So much for being cute - Give me some flip flops or slippers stat!!)

Needless to say, we did not make it to 10+ wineries. What were we thinking??! Even so, making it to 8 was quite respectable! Or should I say, ridiculous. Ha :) Anyway, it was a blast, but we were happy to hit up some delicious Walla Walla tacos before heading back home and taking in a quick nap before getting ready and heading out to Whoop-em-Up Hollow Cafe for dinner in Waitsburg. (If you haven't been, and are planning a trip to WW anytime in the future - I highly recommend it's scrumptious, southern style, Cajun food... Uummmm).

Here's just a couple shots of us girls at dinner and outside the restaurant. So fun!

We unabashedly asked one of the staff to hop out and snap our picture, though we're pretty sure she was slightly irritated at our being so excited for a group shot outside the place. The look on her face screamed: You are SO annoying; please leave already. (needless to say, we did not linger long. Thank you sweet bus-girl!)

Ahhh... Our adventures with Brian and Andrea have barely begun! Next stop, a drive to Chelan; camping; a ferry ride up the lake; backpacking; driving over the North Cascade's Pass... and then on to Bellingham! More to come, so stay tuned.... And happy adventures to you all! :)

MinnEsOta to WalLa wAlLa!

2009-07-12T16:51:00.000-07:00

The summer has continued rolling along.... I can't believe it's the 19th of July already! Crazy, crazy. I'm so anxious to post pictures of what we have been up to lately (especially the time spent with our adorable twin nieces!), but I am so behind with our adventures from earlier this summer, and I wanted to finish posting those first. :) We'll be in Bellingham a couple more days, then it's on to Portland, then Bend to see my parents new house, then home to Cali.

These pictures take us back to the middle of June as we left Minnesota. As we were driving along, we happened upon a little farm town called...dun-da-da-dah!.... Bellingham! What??! Curt was compelled to take a confused picture to symbolize his surprise that another Bellingham does indeed exist:

Here we are in North Dakota at the Theodore Roosevelt Natl' Park (this made a total of 4 Natl' Park visits so far, with one more to come). Here I am trying out another pose to keep things interesting, haha. It's hard to keep our pics lively when only Curt or I end up in them!

Contrary to your pre-conceived notions regarding North Dakota (and South Dakota for that matter), it is really pretty there! Rolling green hills and "painted," desert like rocks cutting deep valleys; it's not all prairie people! :) We even saw a buffalo...ooohh yeeeah. Although the picture we took ended up making it look like an ant. As an added FYI, this is not the buffalo picture below, so don't strain your eyes looking for it!

We finally reached home.... good old Walla Walla! (Though now it's just a fond memory! Sweet, blissful memories! - definitely being overly dramatic here, as we will certainly be back to visit our wonderful friends who still live there). After a few last days relaxing at my parents house pool-side, we were off for a fun day on the Snake River! Hello warm weather, good friends, and a jet ski! Here's Jilly and I cruising...

....and done cruising!
Ah, a man and his grill. Curt and Corey getting ready to prepare a tasty fare; BBQed burgers, along with 3 varieties of chips, and a huge bag of delicious cherries! YUmmY. (They kind-of have the Captain Morgan's Rum look going on, wouldn't you say?)
All fun must come to an end, but we stretched it out by stopping along the road to catch some pictures of the sunset on the drive home... it was gorgeous! Although, not so much this picture of me below hugging the air, haha.

Ahhhh, much better sunset shot. I wasn't lying! Awww, we miss you Jill and Corey :)

And wouldn't you know, the very next day, all that was left of my childhood home was a bunch of big empty rooms! The final night was spent on the blow-up mattress (back to camping we go! although house-camping comes complete with latrine, air conditioning, t.v., and meals out, you gotta love that). Here's some final shots of the house all packed up. Craziness!

Here's mom and I posing for one last picture outside... You were good to us "pizza hut"! We will miss you!!! (For those of you who may not know, all growing up my friends always thought the shape of the roof of our house was similar to that of a greasy pizza joint - so I adopted it as a fabulous navigation tool! Handy dandy I tell ya!)

More adventures soon to come.... Especially as our friends Brian and Andrea arrived from California to explore the grand state of Washington with us! We miss you guys already and had a blast -- I'll be updating our blog with those travels later this week. Until then.... :)

Colorado Springs to Minnesota! Summer travels continue...

2009-07-10T17:42:00.000-07:00

Thought I would update the blog with more adventures from our summer! Here's a look back in June at our time in Colorado and Minnesota. :)

After leaving The Black Canyon of the Gunnison Natl' Park, we were on our way to Colorado Springs! Here we are on Monarch Pass (11,312 ft)... it was gorgeous!

We stayed with our friends Mark and Tiffany, (Thanks guys! We miss you!) and they showed us around their beautiful town. First stop, the Garden of the Gods. Here we are in front of some of the huge, jutting, red rocks... and Curt and Mark climbed up between a couple spires so I could catch this shot:

Here's my favorite pic overlooking the Garden - it was simply breathtaking!

We checked out Denver the next day, and a rockin' REI downtown in a huge old train station that had been remodeled. From there we took off and traveled up to Boulder where we hooked up with my friend Laura and her husband Travis, who graciously showed us around and took us to the BEST Mediterranean restaurant we have ever been to. YUMMY. Lamb meatballs, bacon wrapped dates, cheeses, humus and spreads, pizza, smoked trout, and... well, you get the idea. :) It was off the hook! (Thanks guys!!)

Here's a quick morning shot as we are saying goodbye and about to take off for Minnesota.

We drove straight from Boulder to my grandparents farm in central western Minnesota; 15 hours later, we had arrived. Yiiippppeeeee! We had a WoNdErFuL time visiting with family and friends. My little sis (Mark, we missed you!), brother Chris and his wife Karen, and my mom all stayed at my grandparents farm, and though it was bitter sweet being there with both my grandparents now passed away, we had a wonderful time going through all the memories contained in the house. Old trunks and boxes explored turned up videos dating back to my mom's first steps and pictures of my grandpa on family road trips from the 1930s! It was so fun.

Here's a few pics from our time out there... Here's my sis, mom, me, and my uncle Curtis outside my grandparents farm house:

My uncle Mark and aunt Elaine and cousins Lance and Rosina:We had a great wiffle ball game out in the front lawn one afternoon... I have to say, I was hitting 'em out of the park!

A quick pic of us girls after the big game:

We also had fun exploring "the old farm house" as we call it -- the farm place a mile from my grandparents house that my grandpa was born in!

Here's Curt and I in front of one of the old out buildings... and we even ran into a wild turkey!

We also spent lots of time over at my Uncle Mark and Aunt Elaine's as well... They have a beautiful place, full of warmth, and lots of adorable cats to boot!

Here's a pic of the fountain my aunt built all herself -- I want one of these for our house some day! They are so crafty! :)

We also had a ton of fun checking out some of old relics we found -- here's Jen and I sporting some old glasses, and my bro talkin' on the original cell phone.

Here my bro is wearing my grandpa's original American Airlines hat and shirt, posing by one of the ultralight airplanes my grandpa built.

We love and miss you grandpa and grandma, thank you for some of the most wonderful memories of my whole life out at the farm in Minnesota. It will always be a second home to me :)

More summer adventures and updates to come as I try to catch up our activities with our blog. :) I gotta get on this! Love to you all, and we hope you are having a wonderful summer filled with your own adventures!

Arches and Black Canyon of the Gunnison

2009-07-04T08:54:00.000-07:00

First of all, happy 4th of July everyone! I have been meaning to update our blog for weeks now.... and there have been lots of adventures since the last post. I'll start by continuing with our National Park's "tour" and camping we did at the beginning of June. Later I'll update with Colorado pictures, Minnesota, Walla Walla, Chelan, and Bellingham.... so stay tuned! :)

Curt and I continued our adventures as we left Zion by heading to Arches National Park! It was beautiful… We arrived about 5 pm, and since there weren’t any camp sites available, we just hung out and hiked in the park until it got dark, which wasn’t until about 9:30. We LOVED Arches, and the little town of Moab just outside of the park was awesome – definitely somewhere we would like to visit again. For any of you mountain bikers out there – apparently it’s DA-bomb. :)

First we took a little jaunt to Balanced Rock, which you can see me “holding” here:

Here's a pictures of Double Arch, and Turret Arch:

From there we headed up the road to the trail head for Delicate Arch. The hike was gorgeous! Amazing panoramic views and scenery – this was one of my favorite hikes of our whole cross-country trip…and the view at the top was mesmerizing. I could have sat up there for hours (and many people were doing just that!) Check out Curt and I under the arch....

After viewing the Fiery Furnace from above, and snapping a few last pics in the fading light, we made a little late dinner and headed out of the park to find a place to camp for the night.

Next stop, The Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park in Colorado! I have to be honest, this stop was high on Curt’s list, but I had never even heard of it, and didn’t really know what to expect as we drove the high mountain road up to it.

Boy was I ever in for a surprise! It was gorgeous! Sweeping views of a breathtakingly deep canyon with a green river flowing at the bottom…We decided we definitely wanted to hike down the steep canyon walls to the bottom, so into the visitor’s center we went to grab a back country pass.
You can see the river... WAY the heck down there!

My first clue should have been when the Park Ranger mentioned the hike was “SELF-RESCUE” (aka, if you fall and break your leg, you crawl out…yikes). It didn’t help that they kept mentioning this fact, and then had to show us a book of all the scary parts of the hike (like the section you have to repel down the trail with a chain, or all the loose boulders you crawl over, or the THICK layers of poison ivy you cannot possibly avoid). Did this deter us? Heck no! So down the trail we went. I definitely thought about turning back after sliding (not hiking mind you) down the first 50 yards of the trail. Think all loose rocks, dirt, and pine needles on a ridiculously steep incline. The fact that Curt also put HIS cell phone down as the emergency number our contact sheet we gave to the rangers also had me a little worried. Sweet that they would be calling our cell phone, which doesn’t get service, if we ended lying at the bottom of a cliff somewhere!! (Thankfully that didn't happen).

Here's some pictures of the descent:

On our way down we also kept a look out for poison ivy, which sadly, niether one of us knew how to identify. We finally decided on the plant below. Wrong, wrong, wrong! We looked it up later, to see what it really looked like, and I'm sure we were frolicking in meadows of the itchy stuff! Thank goodness I was in pants. :)

Finally at the bottom of the canyon enjoying some lunch:

It was actually a pretty awesome hike, and if given the chance to do it again, I would definitely go for it!

Our adventures continued in Colorado.... and I'll update soon with pictures from Colorado Springs, the Garden of the Gods, and Boulder!

Adventures in Zion National Park

2009-06-05T20:39:00.000-07:00

Our trek across country has been wonderfully fun thus far....and we wanted to begin by sharing a few of our favorite highlights from one of the three national parks we have explored in the last week....Zion!
We rolled into Zion in the late afternoon on Monday, and we were fortunate enough to reap the benefits from someone who had to cancel their camping reservations (yay!!) So we set up shop, and began looking over the handy brochures and maps to pick out what hikes and sights we wanted to do/see. Of course I tended to veer away from the ones that stated: "extremely strenuous, steep exposed cliffs with long drop offs, not for those with a fear of heights." So what hike did we end up doing the next day? Angels Landing of course! (Scared out of my mind - but the view was totally worth it).

The peak we hiked to is actually the one above Curt's head:

A little something to get my anxiety levels sky-rocketing. You want shaky legs before you start hiking the part where you hold on to chains and you have a 1,200 ft. drop on one side, and an 800 ft. drop on the other, right??

They weren't kidding. Cliff exposures? Notice the chain in the corner of the left picture?!?

As Curt leaped from one rock to another like a gazelle, I held onto the chain with sweaty palms for dear life. In the end... the view was amazing, and I am glad we both made the trek, and made it up and back down in one piece. The view from the top:

The Emerald Pools were also amazing.... (and not so scary to get to)... though I am realizing that we actually didn't take many pictures of the pools. Oops. And to be quite honest, they weren't really emerald. At any rate, the surrounding scenery stole the show:

We also wanted to hike "The Narrows" -- which follows the Virgin River through one of the many canyons in Zion. Darn those required permits! (Though, let's be honest for a second here, the 16 mile hike through mostly water with the constant reality of a flash flood snuffing you out in seconds did make me feel a tiny bit better about not being able to do it. That and the people we witnessed going farther and farther upstream -- some up to their chests in icy cool, rushing water, yeeesh). Don't get me wrong, however, Curt and I fully plan to go back and do it, anyone else interested??

All for now... more summer adventures and pictures coming up!

Amanda's Wedding

2009-05-27T17:45:00.000-07:00

Clearly this spring has found us rather busy, as I haven't updated our blog in years it seems. As of this Friday I am done student teaching and practically done with my Master's program! Just a few loose ends to tie up and my diploma application to send in! Waahhooooo! :) It definitely feels good. This Sat. we'll celebrate by going boating with our good friends Brian and Andrea, and then on Monday morning, take off for our cross-country adventures! We are planning on camping in Zion, Bryce Canyon, and Arches Natl' Park, then hitting up Colorado (seeing a few friends along the way)... and then booking it to Minnesota to hang out with family there for a week and a half. We are way excited :)

Yesterday I got back from a whirlwind Memorial Day weekend in Walla Walla for Amanda Thomas's wedding, to her now husband Justin. Curt wasn't able to make it (the $500 dollar plane ticket was a bit of a deterrent), so he headed up to Mammoth for some high-altitude training, aka: trail running while I stuffed myself full of wedding cake and paid the price for it (sick all Monday night... ugh). The weekend was a total blast, despite missing Curt and being sick however, and here are a few pics capturing the fun memories made:

Here's Amanda and flower girl Madeline Harrell at rehearsal :)

Tyler, Lisa, me, Katie, and Amy hanging out at the reception....

Me, Amanda, Katie, Kelsey, and Amy at the "photo booth"

Amanda and Justin cutting the cake..... ...... it was soooo yummy!

Hopefully we will update more often along the way this summer .... can't wait to see all our loved and missed family and friends! :)

Planet RAW! Yuummmmyyy....

2009-04-04T08:26:00.000-07:00

Yesterday found Curt and I taking a beautiful drive through the mountains near Malibu - saw a few shacks the size of castle's along the way - and the pictures we took just do not do it justice. Especially since I passed on trying to dig the camera out of the bag in the back seat as we wound our way up switch-backs with drop offs straight down on my side with no guard rails. I just kept saying "Oh, it's so pretty!" followed instantaneously by... "Keep your eyes on the road!"

Here's a pic as we snake our way down the slopes and get a shot of the ocean (our brakes smelled AWFUL... and then Curt decides to tell me he remembers the time his brakes got so hot in his truck in college that they stopped working. Perfect.)

Once we got down to the 101, it was smooth (and for the most part, brake-free) sailing on our drive along the coast south towards Santa Monica. Saw a few more "shanties," and stopped at one of the state beaches for a couple candid shots (love those yellow flowers!):

We continued our drive....
After a little shopping at REI (our favorite!) we had dinner at Planet RAW.... I was SooooOOO excited. It did not disappoint! We sipped the best smoothies either Curt or I have ever had (by his own admission)... a mocha "milk"shake for Curt, and a coconut one for me.... Though I failed to snap a pic of these, shoot! For the main entree we dinned on the AVO Honey Mustard Sandwich on flax "bread" (me) and Curt on the Fat Cheese Sandwich on "wonderbread." Unbelievable! I kid you not, the honey mustard on mine was the best I have ever tasted. And nothing on the menu is made with anything other than fruit, veggies, nuts, seeds, spices, and honey... all RAW, and all super delicious!

I'm happy with my own tasty raw concoctions too..... Like the cherry, strawberry, almond, vanilla smoothie I made yesterday morning... mmmm. :0)

'till next time.... later alligators!

It's OVER! Yiippppeeeeeee!

2009-04-02T14:53:00.000-07:00

Well, the cleanse is over people! THANK GOODNESS is all I have to say. :) And in case you caught it, yes, technically it shouldn't be over until tonight at midnight, but yesterday put me over the edge. Let's just say my digestive stimulators caught up with me, and I felt like I was dying by night's end. I decided to throw in the towel, and gleefully fixed some raw, homemade, cinnamon applesauce this morning in my Vita-mix, and savored delicious guacamole for lunch. Eating solid food is the best.

I will still do cleanses in the future, but this Blessed Herbs one was rough! It definitely cleans house, per say, but it's a little harsher than I like. I feel great doing the lemonade cleanse, but the satisfaction of getting rid of some old junk-in-the-trunk isn't as good. At any rate, giving your body a rest from digesting food is never a bad idea - if even for a day - and I feel really good having done it for a solid 7 days.

And how's my skin you ask? Well, that's another story. Of course now I begin the 6-8 week anti-inflammatory diet. Aka, it will mildly suck, but no where near the cleanse! :) My skin is doing OK. Of course I forgot that cleansing usually draws out and helps your body eliminate impurities, so naturally my skin as been worse than ever! Perfect. That said, I am hopeful that it will slowly start to improve over these next few weeks as I fail to ingest dairy, wheat, processed sugar, etc... I will certainly keep you updated.

On a small note, I may continue eating tomatoes and on the rare occasion, corn - but only in the form of the spicy corn salsa at Chipolte... I just can't enjoy my chicken bowl without it! But chocolate, peanut butter, and rest of it will go.... at least for now. :o)

Tomorrow Curt and I head to the beach and Santa Monica for some fun shopping and dinner out at a raw restaurant. I am way excited. Curt, sort of excited - but a trooper to be sure after what I have put him through in complaints, wicked cravings, and stomach episodes this last week! I will have to buy him some trans-fat laced pizza rolls as a reward, haha. Well, maybe...
Until next time. :)

Half way there.... :o)

2009-03-30T16:57:00.000-07:00

Well, I am a little over half-way done with my 8 day intensive cleanse! (Thank goodness!) I did the Lemonade Diet (aka: Master Cleanse) for 3 days to prepare me for the Blessed Herbs cleanse, which I am on day 2 of. It's pretty intense, although I must say, so far, is going MUCH better than last time -- where I was miserable, and practically sprinted to the grocery store on the eve of the 5th night to get a can of organic veggie soup.... lol. I was reading my cleansing notes from last time too, and it looks like I broke the all liquids diet a couple times, once to indulge in a sprouted cinnamon-raisin bagel w/honey. MMmmmm... honnneeeeyyy.

The hardest part of this, other than the occasional stomach cramping due to the digestive stimulator's (if you know what I mean...) :) and frequent trips to the restroom due to drinking 90 ounces of water and juice a day (insane!), is just plain missing food. I torture myself at night inhaling whiffs of the dinner's Curt whips up (a cheesy, broccoli, pepper something last night...); and crazy enough, just about EVERYTHING sounds good. Two days ago, I would have committed murder for a fish-fillet sandwich from McDonald's, which is more than weird considering a) I haven't eaten at McD's in about 4 years, and b) I have never even so much as looked at a fish-fillet, little-lone eaten one! Ha. Soooooo yeeaahhh. Just like last time, cleansing is nuts!

I've decided to prepare myself this time with planning how I will come off the cleanse on Friday, and with the meals I'll make for the few days after as well (no grains or meats at least for a couple days). Then, onto the anti-inflammatory diet -- which, to be honest, I might slightly modify... (I just don't know if I can live without tomatoes for 6+ weeks!!) Until next time, pray I make it through this!

Also, I'll be adding a few pics of the Blessed Herbs cleanse either later tonight or tomorrow :o)

Spring Cleaning & the Anti-Inflamatory "Diet"!

2009-03-26T20:07:00.000-07:00

As long promised... the "horrible" cleanse is about to begin! I figured spring was as good as time as any to do a little cleaning, shall we say, and so starting today, I am in cleansing mode (though I barely stayed motivated through Curt's egg's benedict, left-over Chipolte burrito, and asparagus-cous-cous-mango chicken stir fry today... you are killing me sweet, loving hubby!) But here it is, 8:15 pm, and as promised, today was the lemonade cleanse for breakfast, lunch, and snacks, and steamed veggies for dinner (trust me, veggies have never looked so good in my life). Tomorrow will be much the same, and the lemonade "diet" will gradually turn into the fresh squeezed apple juice Blessed Herbs concoction Sat. morning....

And why, you ask, would anyone put themselves through something like this? All I can say is that doing a cleanse once or twice a year is not a bad idea, and it's highly motivating to eat healthy afterwards. I just love giving my body a clean-slate in a sense... and all liquids for a few days gives your digestive system a chance to rest and recoup! Something that has definite benefits for me and my whacked out stomach. Not only this, but I am now embarking on a whole new "diet" (not for weight purposes people!)... The anti-inflammatory diet! This way of eating is meant to test whether or not eating non-inflammation causing foods will have a profound effect on my skin (i.e. NO MORE BREAK-OUTS ALREADY!). Basically, I will be really happy if it helps, and really sad at the same time, because guess what's on the no-eat list?? In case you were wondering, the tragedy follows below:

Inflammation causing foods (no-eat): White potatoes, peanut butter (NNNNNNNNOOOOooooooooooooo!), citrus fruits (lemons OK, don't ask me why), wheat, dairy, all refined sugars, tomatoes (boo-hoooooo), corn, non-organic meats, pork, beef, chocolate (I practically live off of chocolate... or should I say, did live off of chocolate...), and caffeine - which I don't consume anyway. Brutal huh? BUT, perhaps it will be worth it! I just figured, after being on prescription drugs for my skin for 14 + years, isn't it time to give the natural route a chance? So here is your chance natural route!

The Master Plan:

Thursday & Friday: Lemonade cleanse, digestive stimulator, non-caffeinated herbal teas, steamed veggies, and tons of H20!

Saturday: Lemonade, digestive stimulator, herbal teas, and H20

Sunday-Wednesday: Fresh squeeze apple juice with the Blessed Herbs cleansing packets (about 5 a day), digestive stimulator, tons of H20, and herbal teas

Thursday: Fresh squeezed veggie/fruit juices, steamed veggies, tea, and H20

Friday: Much the same, except fresh fruits and veggies added as well

Sat.: More of a normal day, healthy eating.... following the anti-inflammatory "diet" for the next 6-8 weeks!

....... WISH ME LUCK! and of course I will be updating frequently and explaining more about the cleanses and eating plans as I go along. For now, how about a tall glass of lemonade before bed?

March upDate!

2009-03-13T13:53:00.000-07:00

Hi all! Nothing too exciting to report as of late... just continuing on with student teaching and Curt is as busy as ever with teaching and coaching these days... Things are going well for both of us, but it will be nice when next week is over and we are on spring break! yipeeee! A week for Curt, and dare I say, two weeks for me, which is fabulous. One exciting piece of news was that I had a job interview two weeks ago that went really well, but because none of the school districts in the area are hiring next year due to budget cuts, I won't hear anything about a potential job until this summer, when enrollment numbers come in, etc. Such is life, but I am optimistic, despite the state of our economy! (just don't watch the news.... it's dreary enough to depress anyone, and it's made me see why I need to start reading more again!) :)
On the health front, that scary cleanse I talked all about when I was doing my raw experiment will be making its way out of the box and into my tummy during the second week of my spring break (starting two weeks from today). If you want to be tremendously entertained by someone else's experience, or rather, experiment, please tune in! It's sure to be quite the undertaking, if it's anything like the last time. Oh! And just three weeks ago, Curt and I signed up to begin receiving these amazing boxes of organic produce from local farmers off a semi-truck that comes through our area. The produce has been AMAZING... truly yummy. It's so satisfying to eat something that tastes so darn good, and is good for our earth, AND supports local farmers. It's "win-win-win" if I were to quote Michael Scott ("The Office" people! If you don't watch, you must start now!)
All for now... and on to writing grad papers and lesson plans! The fun never ends :) hehe.
Cheers!

February Update

2009-02-28T14:40:00.000-08:00

I can't believe that it is already March! As usual, time is flying by as life seems to always be so busy. Katie's student teaching at Cottonwood Elementry School (6th grade) is going well, and despite huge budget shortfalls in almost every school district in the State of California, she recently had a job interview - awesome! Teaching is also keeping me very busy as well (5 Advanced Placement World History classes, and 1 AP US Government and Politics class) and Track season has also just began so my days are quite long! The weather in SoCal is great this time of year...sunshine almost every day, and usually in the high 60's...although it is 73 today! I talked with mom and dad earlier this week, and it snowed 4 inches or so in Bellingham, so I know all of you folks in the PNW are jealous of our weather!

On the political front...well what can I say. Looks like we are headed back in the direction of Big Government. Personally I don't trust the government to do anything right, so more government is never good. The stimulis bill and outrageous new budget of the current administration is just unfathomable to me. I just don't see how increasing social spending, creating more entitlements, and nationalizing anything is going to cause a new generation (or anyone for that matter) to be more creative, develop a better work ethic, and get us out of this hole we are in. I'm going to refrain from getting on my soap box though, and direct you to read a great article about all of this: http://www.cnbc.com/id/29434104. By all means the President is still my President and I will respect him and continue to pray for him, but it is not looking good folks!

The week of February 15-22 was the annual Missions Conference at our church, and what an awesome week it was - we had an opportunity to meet, talk with, and hear from missionaries all over the world - Japan, India, Ethiopia, Guatemala, Jews for Jesus, an amazing speaker from the Voice of the Martyrs, and a great band - Fronline Generation. The theme of the missions conference was "The Persecuted Church." It was really a great opportunity to see how great we really have it here in the United States, yet how so many of us take our freedoms for granted. There are 40 countries in the world where faith in Christ is illegal, the Bible is outlawed, and the Church is greatly persecuted. Did you know that more people have died in the name of Jesus Christ in the 20th and 21st centuries than all other centuries combined? A pastor from Ethiopia spoke to us about being imprisoned and tortured for his faith, watching loved ones murdered before his eyes for their belief in Christ, and the incredible trials he has been through and witnessed. It made me question...how many of us have had to put our faith to the test like that? And if we had to (and the way this country is headed, believe me, the day will come) how would we respond? Matthew 5:10-12 says..."Blessed are those who have been persecuted for the sake of rightousness, for there is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are you when people insult you and persecute you, and say all kinds of evil against you because of Me. Rejoice and be glad, for your reward in heaven is great; for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you." Some cool websites to check out in regards to what our missions conference was all about if you are interested:
Voice of the Martyrs: http://www.persecution.com/
Jews for Jesus: http://www.jews-for-jesus.org/
Frontline Generation: http://www.frontlinegeneration.com/home/

We also had the privilige of hosting one of the missionaries, Paul Chandran for a weekend. Paul and his wife Leela work with Christians In Action in Kerala, South India, where they care for poor and orphaned children, care for the elderly, teach English, plant churches, and of course preach the Gospel. Getting to know Paul and spend time with him was a real blessing, and Katie and I both hope to make it to India sometime soon to visit Paul and help out with his ministry and efforts!

Katie, Paul, and I

Red = nations that restrict Christianity and the Bible by law

Dark Grey = countries in which Christians are often victims and targets of violence

2009 Inauguration

2009-01-25T14:30:00.000-08:00

Hey everyone! While Katie has been a ‘blogger’ for quite some time now, this is my first official entry. Last week I took 10 of my students to Washington D.C. for the Inauguration of President Obama…and it was an awesome experience. Now for those of you who know me quite well you know that I am a conservative republican, and that I am a very political person to say the least. However, let’s put politics aside for this historic event that I was so blessed to be a part of and bring some of my students along for the ride. Being in D.C. for this historic event, really was a once in a lifetime experience. I am a very firm believer that the United States is the greatest nation on God’s green earth, and this event defined as to why that is so. Our nation is a nation of people from every background, ethnicity, religion, race, etc….but the one thing that binds us together, the one thing that defines us, is that despite all of our differences we can live, work, play, educate, and govern together as one. The inauguration of President Obama is a huge culmination of events and progress in our nation…regardless of whether you are a elephant or donkey. Lincoln and MLK Jr. were without a doubt smiling down from heaven upon our nation last Tuesday…along with hundreds of thousands of others who at some time or another, in one way or another, have fought, stood up for, or given their lives to the ideals of democracy, freedom, and equality for which our great nation represents.
While my political ideologies have not swayed, through a lot of research, reading, thought, and witnessing the Inauguration of our 44th President - our first black President, I have come to this conclusion. The President of the United States is not only our nations President, he is my president. Regardless of his decisions, his executive orders, the bills he will sign and veto, his beliefs and his stances, he has my support. Our nation is a great nation because we change, we progress, we stand up for those that don’t have a voice, we allow not just the majority to be heard but also the minority. President Obama represents something our nation needs so desperately at this difficult moment in time in which we are faced with – youth, energy, new ideas, change, and direction. And while I may not be on the same page as my President, I will support him, pray for him, and hope for the best. Being in a crowd of 2 million people on our nation’s front yard I realized something. First of all, I realized that I was the minority witnessing such a historic event – a white conservative male. Second of all, as I looked around and noticed the many elderly African American people who made the trek to our nation’s capital to witness our new President that WE elected take the oath of office, I realized that this was an end to a long, long struggle for many of them, that I can not begin to understand. Regardless of what the future holds, and where Obama and the 111th Congress lead our nation, the Inauguration of President Obama was and will always be a defining moment in our nations history and heritage, and well as a major turning point on the road of progress. I truly believe that this will also give many people hope, encouragement, and motivation to realize that anything is possible if one can endure and persevere, at a time when they may need it the most.
Now, let me put my philosophy and thoughts aside…about the trip! The 10 outstanding students that came along with me on this adventure, were exactly that – outstanding. Truly these kids were great, and honestly could have gone on this trip alone – without me and the tour guides. Their maturity and respect level, as well as their thirst for knowledge and appetite for history really blew me out of the water. I had all of these kids as 10th graders in Advanced Placement World History, and now that they are all seniors, have quite a few of them in my Advanced Placement US Government and Politics class. Each and everyone of these students are off to college next fall – from UCLA, UCSB, Cal Berkley, Harvard, UC Irvine, UC San Diego, Cal State Long Beach – and they all are amazing young adults – what can I say I am very proud of each and everyone of them (and hope that I have taught them something along the way!).
We were able to see much more than I had anticipated with the amount of people that were packed into D.C. – we saw Mt. Vernon, Arlington, USMC Iwo Jima Memorial, Vietnam Wall, Korean War Memorial, the Lincoln, Washington, Jefferson and FDR monuments, the National Archives, Library of Congress, the Capital Building visitors center, the Museum of Natural History, the Museum of American History, the Air and Space Museum, and Holocaust Museum, the WWII memorial, and of course witnessed the Inauguration itself (in which we stood in the National Mall for 8 straight hours in 20 degree weather – standing room only!). Our tour guide, bus driver, accommodations, and flights (Virgin America is my new favorite airline!) were all great, and therefore I cannot say enough about how great World Strides is (the company I booked our trip through – highly recommended!) We lost no one, and by the way on this trip I became quite “text message savvy” as that was the easiest and quickest way of communication – although my students say that I am quite slow at it! We also ran into Martin Luther King Jr. III, though his bodyguards keep us at bay – so no pictures. Katie’s sister Jenny and her husband mark (who works on capital hill for Maria Cantwell) were able to meet up with us for a bit one day as well, which was really great. Katie is now telling me that this is rather a long blog entry, so I will wrap it up with this final thought… This was an awesome experience, one that a textbook will never be able to fully describe and/or explain.

President Obama greeted us all as we got off the plane in D.C.

at the USMC Iwo Jima Monument - the largest cast statue in the world (that is one piece)... Semper Fi

Our view of the Inauguration - we were much closer than I thought we would be...but still glad there was a jumbo tron close so we could actually see!

President Lincoln...

This guy we met was holding up this sign near the Lincoln Memorial...the other side read "from slavery to history baby!" He had to of been the happiest guy I have ever met!

What does being "healthy" mean anyway?

2009-01-23T15:18:00.001-08:00

I was talking with my friend Amanda earlier today, who shares my insane passion for a healthful, organic, whole-foods lifestyle... and we talked a lot about what it means to be healthy. What it means to each of us, and what other people might think it is. I know we all probably have a different idea exactly, but generally speaking, I bet most would agree it involves eating well (kind-of general I know), exercising, and watching our stress levels (which I always could work on!).... among other things.
I never want to get on my soap box concerning health stuff, but since this is my blog... I guess I can! hehe :) Plus, I always love to talk to people about health topics -- and I seem to get involved in some kind of health related conversation almost every other day. Like this week, I got to share my health journey with a teacher I encountered, and encourage her to make those healthier choices that she wants to model for her family. I also got to share my raw food experiment with some new faces :) (although, I'm pretty sure they thought I was out of my mind crazy.)
I just wish that everyone knew that when you eat whole-foods (soooo, foods in their natural state, not processed or changed in any way) -- your whole being will be better off and thank you for it! I read this article awhile ago that talked about the vicious cycle of eating refined and/or processed foods.... and it just made sense to me. Basically, if you eat nutrient deficient foods (things that have been modified, packaged, have loads of preservatives and additives put in them, etc.) you body isn't getting the nutrition it needs to function properly, eliminate waste properly, etc., etc. The more of these foods we eat, the more vitamins, minerals, and enzymes we fail to get -- and so our body constantly craves more food in an effort to get the nutrients we need. So we're always hungry, and then we continue to fill up on those empty things... but our bodies are never satisfied. Instead we gain weight, get grumpy, feel bloated, depressed, get migraines, you name it. WHEW! (Quite a mouth full I know).... And our bodies are so amazing! They keep working through A LOT. I mean, please... with my eating habits in college, I should have been dead! haha. Check out what some average meals looked like for me (and please know, I am not picking on anyone who eats any of these items.... because I still eat a little ice-cream now and again, and might even have a little alfredo sauce at Olive Garden once in awhile -- hey, I'm not perfect here! hehe):
Breakfast: chocolate milk/doughnut/cereal, milk/white english muffin with jam/pb/ (I mean, my roommate can testify to me grabbing a donut on the way to class, freaking out, and throwing half of it in the bushes later, haha)
Lunch: deli meat on white bread/fries, tater tots/ more cereal/a salad with ranch dressing/baby carrots/soup/macNcheese/frozen broccoli and cheese/bean & cheese burritos, and when I lived in the dorms, ice-cream -every day.
Snacks: Luna Bars, nutragrain bars/granola bars, yogurt/apple or orange
Dinner: MacNcheese, 4cheese rice (in a box), Bisquick pancakes with artificial maple syrup, eggs/ frozen veggie/hamburger/fries/chicken, stir-fry/etc. etc.
After dinner: ice-cream.... always ice-cream! hehe :) followed by a HUGE helping of guilt.
Needless to say, I believe that me only eating 2 servings of raw veggies or fruit a day, with mostly processed white bread and refined sugar in conjunction with my antibiotic use, contributed to my stomach shutting down 3 1/2 years ago. And guess what, I will always be thankful for it -- as hard as that year was (bless your heart Curt for taking such good care of me).
The experience opened my eyes to the pitfalls of an unhealthy lifestyle, and helped me gain my health back... and keep it! :) Being healthy for me has nothing to do with counting calories or fat grams, or a number on a scale. It has everything to do with what foods are going to nourish my body and keeping my stress levels low (could still use some work in this area especially!) The best piece of advice I could ever give to anyone is to stop thinking about foods in terms of "this food is bad b/c it will make me fat, etc." This way of thinking kept me in a food prison for years. Instead, examine your food in terms of the kind of benefits it will give you. Will it provide the nutrients your body needs to perform well and keep you strong and fit? Be proactive and conscientious of your choices and then enjoy the delicious benefits they are giving you! :)
Here's to your health!

what in the wrong direction on the way home?!

2009-01-17T15:19:00.001-08:00

You can barely tell, but Curt is standing by the sign that proves we ended up in Placerville (on the way to RENO people, headed east ... we needed to be going south to Fresno, whoops) on our way home from Christmas break a couple weeks ago. More of the story to follow below :)

Sooo... It's been awhile since my last post! I am currently getting cozy on Facebook (I like it much better than Myspace, which I seldom frequent anymore...) and realized I hadn't updated our blog for weeks. Christmas was wonderful with meeting our two new nieces for the first time (they are beyond precious), but it was hard leaving too, as the next time we see them they will be about 6 months old! Goodness how time will fly.

In other new news... I finished my last class for my Master's in Teaching program this past Wednesday, and will start student teaching in another week! I am scared and excited all at the same time, but I think it will be fun :) It will just be an adjustment switching from homework to early mornings! hehe -- something I haven't been too familiar with the past couple years.

Another fun tidbit is that Curt left at 4 am this morning for Washington D.C. for the inauguration! He has 10 high school kids in tow with him (and many chaperons from the tour company, so not to worry there. They even have night guards at the elevators and stairs in the hotel! haha) But they are all wonderful kids, so he's not expecting any trouble that way. It will be utter craziness though with a projected 4+ million people attending! We are praying they are able to do everything they had scheduled, no one gets lost, and they all come home safe and sound :) I am way excited for their adventure!

Here are a few pictures from Christmas.... and ooooh! Our trip home from WA a couple weeks ago was quite the car ride. First our cat lily (who lives to torture us) leaped out of the car at a rest stop and we chased her all over the place until we mercifully caught her right before a pack of dogs got out of a truck to use the potty. (Cat, you would've been soooo dead). Second, we somehow took a wrong turn as we busily chatted away, and ended up going 45 miles in the wrong direction until we realized what we had done (by the grace of God). We then tried to take a sneaky short-cut back to the interstate we needed, only to be thwarted by 35 mile an hour mountain roads and pitch darkness. We opted to turn around and back track. We were SOOOOOOOOOOOOooooo tired. Then, as luck would have it, kitty cat couldn't hold it any longer and at 2 am tinkled all over in her cat carrier. This wouldn't have been so bad if I hadn't braked suddenly to get off the road to clean it up, only to have her cage pitch forward and spray urine all over the dashboard. Cue tears. We almost let her go in the field we pulled over by, needless to say. Also, in our defense, we had given her chances to use a to-go litter box, which of course she did not take. Bad kitty cat, bad.

But hey, we made it home, in one piece, with funny stories to tell, so we were thankful. :)

Will update again soon.... Love to everyone!

Our beautiful nieces... Curt is holding Lucy, and I have Madeline :)

Lucy with her eyes open and arms up... Madeline sleeping so sweetly! They are the cutest EVER.

Let it SnOw!

2008-12-24T13:51:00.000-08:00

The weather here in Walla Walla is crazy! Gorgeous, but crazy. My parents said they haven't seen snow like this since 1985. We are so excited to enjoy a white Christmas :) Thankfully we made it here last Saturday night... b/c I-84 from Portland closed 2 hours after we made it through, and has apparently been closed ever since! WHEW. Thought I'd attach a few pictures to share.... Merry Christmas everyone!

The front walk at my parents house.... check out that snow on the bushes!!

The snowy backyard... with little Charly (my parents poodle) enjoying the chilly weather.
The front yard.... You can barely tell where the street is!
Looking up my parents street.... Although they did finally plow the roads this morning.

We are auntie Katie and uncle Curt!

2008-12-15T14:30:00.000-08:00

Some incredibly exciting news... On Saturday, Curt's sister Kelli had the twins!! Lucy and Madaline. The girls were born more than a month early, but are doing really well and will hopefully be coming home with mom and dad soon. We are sooooooooooooo excited to see them in a couple weeks and get to know our precious new nieces! Love you Kelli and Ethan! We are praying for you guys and the new additions each and every day :) (p.s. I stole these pictures from your blog, hope that was okay!)

The Great Outdoors!

2008-12-13T10:03:00.000-08:00

As you all know, living in the desert does not really allow for much outdoor adventure (at least our favorite kinds: hiking, camping, and fishing), especially in the summer when it's 110 degrees out... so you can imagine our excitement when we discovered Mammoth! Just a few short hours away in the eastern Sierra Nevada's, we have found a haven for camping, hiking, fishing, skiing (now, if we just hadn't garage-saled all our ski stuff.... ), eating yummy food, bike riding, walking, exploring, basically, you name it... Soooo, I thought I would share some of our pictures of one of our most favorite places in Cali!

Here we are with some of our good friends at Minaret Lake, 7.5 miles one-way (we had yet to go down at this point and are all still looking quite cheery. I honestly thought my feet were going to fall off on our return trip -- or my legs. It was brutal. BUT, absolutely gorgeous).

Here we are over 4th of July with our good friends Brian and Andrea getting ready for fireworks over one of the lakes .... Here are some more of us hiking (don't we look like a pair with his hat and my bandanna around my neck, haha):

Curt finally gets to go fishing... he is PUMPED!

There's always swimming as well, but this is quite chilly:

Last but not least, enjoying the warmth of the campfire on a cool mountain air night...

AHHhhhhh, Mammoth. :)

Thoughts on the RAW food diet...

2008-12-05T08:50:00.000-08:00

Well, I can't believe the 3 month raw food experiment is over already! And while the first few weeks were the hardest... asking myself over and over again, "Now why again am I doing this?" when I just wasted a bunch of expensive products making an inedible dish (pine-nut cheese anyone?? or perhaps sunflower seed taco meat?) Yeeeaaaah. Those were the rough days, but by the end, I was indulging in delicious pumpkin pie pudding, Italian salad with delicious dressing, rich guacamole with raw flax crackers, and yummy green smoothies! It was generally a wonderful experience, and while Thanksgiving saw me crash and burn a bit (did I accidentally have my mom's rolls and homemade apple pie? oooopps.) I made it through the 3 months predominately raw. My results?
Better sleep! More energy for sure. Not as many stomach aches; and I didn't have to take enzymes with my food anymore! Joint and muscle aching? Better off and on. Gorgeous clear skin? not so much. It almost got worse! That said, this is why I believed that happened: Eating raw massively detoxes your body -- especially when you jump into it with both feet one random day like I did. Your body with push those toxins out of your body in any way they can -- your skin being one of the main paths for this. Thus said, I'm sure the flare ups where due much in part to eating sooo healthy. Crazy huh? But it makes sense. Anyway, I am still eating about 80% raw these days, so we will see if my skin will get better if I keep this up.
My thoughts on all of this are: I loved this experiment, I believe that eating raw IS the healthiest way to live. I have read sooo much and seen sooo many wonderful testimonials and pictures to believe any differently. Is 100% raw for everyone? I guess it could be, but no, we all have to listen to our own bodies.... But, all of us can work to incorporate more raw foods into our diets each day. :) Like, while I plan on giving myself the option to eat steamed or cooked veggies and lean proteins at dinner time, I also plan on staying wheat, dairy, and refined sugar free. I still have a green smoothie in the morning, a big salad or fresh salsa or guacamole for lunch, raw LARA bars, fruits, and veggies for snacks, and eat yummy raw desserts (raw brownies, dates, and ice-creams are my favorite!) at any time in the day.
This raw food experiment was encouraging, fun, and helped to give me a lot more info and insights into what our bodies need to function well and keep us healthy! :) Who knows, maybe someday I will go 100% raw and never look back, but for now, I plan on taking it day by day and continue listening to my body. I also plan on continuing to post fun recipes and pictures for those that would like to add more raw foods into their diets in really delicious ways... So stay tuned! And in the mean time, check out the raw pumpkin pie pudding, salsa, and green smoothie recipes below:
Cheers! :)

Raw Pumpkin Pudding:
1/2 c. cashews (soaked overnight)
meat of 1 young coconut
1 c. carrot juice
1/3 c. raw agave nectar
1/3 c. coconut butter
3 dates, pitted
1/2 tb. pure vanilla extract
1/2 tb. cinnamon
1/2-1 ts. ground ginger (I usually go 1/2 ts. first and see how it's tasting)
1/4 ts. nutmeg
1/8 ts. ground cloves
1/4 ts. sea salt
*blend everthing until smooth and creamy. Pour into containers and refrigerate or freeze. Freezing it will make it last longer... just set out for 15-20 min. to thaw and it's almost like pumpkin ice-cream!

Fresh Salsa:
4 Roma tomatoes
1/4 bunch of cilantro finely chopped
1/4 c. red onion finely chopped
2 cloves of garlic (minced)
juice of 1/2 a lime
sea salt to taste
1 red pepper finely chopped
1/2 red Chile pepper very finely chopped (more or less to taste, depending on how spicy you want it)
*mix together in a bowl and enjoy! :) Great alone or with slices of avocado or guacamole and baby carrots or crackers for dipping.

Chocolate Banana Spinach Smoothie:
2 ripe bananas (optional: freeze one or both of your bananas to make the smoothie thicker)
1 heaping tb. cocoa powder
a large handful of spinach
6 ice cubes
1 tb. of raw honey or raw agave nectar (optional or to taste)
2 tb. raw almond butter
1/4 c. water
*blend until smooth, ignore the green color, and enjoy! :)

some raw pics!

2008-11-16T18:53:00.000-08:00

Thought I would finally upload some pictures! I wish I had even more, but our camera sucks, and our computer has been giving us trouble lately... At any rate, after uploading the pictures to Curt's computer and transferring them to my USB stick, here are a few! I hope to be better about photographing my food in the future, to give you all a better idea about what I'm eating these days... although I am also thinking my food would look even MORE appetizing if our camera wasn't circa 2000 (note: we are asking Santa for a new camera this year). Enjoy all! :)

Here I am outside of Living Cuisine... the yummy raw food restaurant we ate at in Santa Monica for our anniversary! Not exactly a great picture of it....the inside was much cooler, but thought I would include it anyway :)

Here's a picture of the fabulously delicious raw apple pie I made awhile back... the piece of pie shows some raw caramel sauce drizzled over the top!

Last but not least.... a little salad I made Friday night. It's topped with dried cherries, thinly sliced pear, candied pumpkin seeds, and a tangy lemon vinaigrette!

Week TEN :)

2008-11-14T10:42:00.000-08:00

Hi all! Well, I will have been on the raw food diet for 10 weeks this Saturday! Crazy to think that it has been this long already...and thankfully it has gotten easier as the weeks have past by, otherwise I would've never made it. This week I made a quick and easy cabbage salad with poppy seeds, green onion, celery, sugar-snap peas, and almond slices with an olive oil, apple cider vinegar, honey, & sesame oil dressing. It was delicious! I also experimented with a raw pumpkin pie recipe, which ended up being more of a pumpkin cheesecake pudding, and it was unbelievably rich and delicious! Eating it, you really wouldn't believe there's no dairy in it (more like coconut, cashews, carrot juice, coconut butter, agave nectar, and yummy spices). And a little at a time goes along way... trust me. lol. I ate too much one night and the richness got to me a little, :) although a few drops of pure oil of oregano fixed my tummy up real quick! [Even Curt swears by oil of oregano -- and has taken it many times when his stomach has felt queasy. Something to check out if you are looking for something natural to sooth digestion, plus it has a lot of natural antibacterial properties too.]
So, the end of my 3 month challenge ends the weekend after Thanksgiving...and while some may gasp at the prospect of eating raw veggies on turkey-day, and not being able to indulge in delicious sweet treats, there is no such thing to fear! First of all, as I have said in the past, the raw diet includes no limit to delicious, rich, creamy, aMAzing raw desserts, and I will probably have a little roasted turkey and a few cooked veggies -- and not feel too guilty about it :) Like I said, I usually have fish a couple times a week as is, and even more rarely might have a piece or two of cooked veggies (like my favorite, acorn squash). According to some raw foodist, as long as you are ingesting 80% raw in a day, your body usually doesn't have too much trouble processing the 20% of food you eat that is cooked. Soooo... yeah! Most days I'm 100% raw, and if a few days I have some organic fish, chicken, or squash, I'm just not going to fret about it. The most important thing I have found is just to carefully listen to your body -- when I do this, I rarely get myself into digestive trouble! haha :) Honestly though, I don't miss meat that much, certainly not beef. I do love fish though. Sometimes I miss breads... especially last night when Curt sits down with two toasted cinnamon bread slices covered in butter. (salivating here...) BUT, once it's out of sight, (or out of range of smelling) it's out of mind, and I remember that I never felt that great when I ate that stuff anyway.
The good news with my tummy is that it is hardly ever upset that much anymore -- only if I indulge in something that's really rich and I eat too much of it :) OR, if I eat something cooked with no enzymes, or badly combine some foods. For the most part, however, I never have to take my digestive enzymes anymore, which is unbelievably cool for me! I lived off of a million of those things for 3 years! I still swear by them though, and believe anyone would benefit from taking them, especially before you eat something you know usually upsets your stomach.
I need to use up some fresh basil I have, so I might make some pistachio pesto tonight over zucchini noodles or on some raw crackers :) I am finally, FINALLY feeling like making raw food is not much of a hassle anymore. More and more I am getting the feeling for what things go together, how to make good dressings, that simplicity is better, and to not make things my gut tells me I am NOT going to like! lol. Like those icky cheeses I tried making out of sunflower seeds. Ugh. More power to a person if they can make them well and enjoy them, but those did not go over well for me.
I would encourage anyone who is interested, to buy a great raw food "un"cook book, one with lots of salads and raw, sweet treats, and try making a few and get more raw foods into your diet, especially those dark leaf greens! Super-foods my friends! :)
Well, all for now! Cheers!

orange julius

2008-11-02T09:18:00.000-08:00

If you want something super creamy and delicious, that tastes just like an orange julius (which I enjoyed as a kid...my brother made a great homemade, dairy-based one)... Then try this fantastic raw version that's packed with nutrients and dairy free!

"RAw OrAnge JuLiUs"
1 1/2 frozen bananas (organic preferred) broken into pieces
4-5 ice-cubes
1/2 C. fresh coconut water (or just filtered water is fine too)
1/2 a peeled and seeded orange (organic is best, especially since you'll be using the peel for the zest!)
1 1/2 ts. grated orange peel/zest
1 ts. pure vanilla extract
2 tb. raw tahini
2 rounded tb. raw honey

Combine all ingredients in a blender and blend until smooth and creamy...enjoy!

Middle of my 7th week!

2008-10-21T22:45:00.000-07:00

My gosh, I hadn't realized that it had been about 3 weeks since I last updated my blog! Not that any of you are checking in on my blog several times a day (although you are THE BEST if you are, lol), impatient for an update, haha, but never-the-less, I return to writing! So... "how's it going?" you ask. The word I commonly use to describe my experience has probably become much overused in the last 7 weeks, but I'll use it again anyway: interesting. But interesting in a good way! I really love eating this way for the most part, and as of now, I'm thinking I'll just continue eating 80-100% raw depending on how I feel or what's going on :) This food is just sooo much better for you!

So, like I said, 7 weeks in, and here are my results thus far:
1) Things are getting easier...as in, I have some recipes I like and can make much more quickly... and I've started making bigger batches of things (such as a huge yummy salad that'll last for 3 days)
2) I am beginning to enjoy cutting up/blending/making raw food cuisine and don't get as frustrated anymore.
3) My skin is clearer, and I am starting to cut down on the number of days I use my prescription acne face meds (which I HATE using but can't seem to completely part with... vain, I know) :)
4) Still sleeping like a baby every night. This has been AMAZING. Plus, it helps my moods! (Curt has got to be loving this, lol)
5) I really had not seen an improvement in my joint aching until about 4 days ago... when all of a sudden I got into bed and realized I had hardly felt an ache that day! Weird huh?? Tonight as I type, I am realizing the same thing... my biceps, arms, wrists, ankles, and fingers don't hurt as much. They are still a little restless before bed, but as of right now... I think I am beginning to see an improvement. (I hope, I hope!!)
6) My tummy. Huumm... OK. This one, haha. Yes, much better when I watch my food combinations. There really is something to this! The other good part, I hardly ever have to take enzymes anymore, and before I was taking 5-8 of them a day! (I still take them if I have a piece of fish or a cooked veggie)
7) Oh, and for any of you that were curious as to whether I've lost weight doing this (which was not a goal personally for me embarking on this adventure), the answer is yep - 7 pounds. And I eat A LOT. Seriously. Also, I don't count calories or think about what or how much I'm eating. I just listen to my body and go from there. It's been really fun, and freeing in that regard :)

Besides the occasional waff of fast food or the sight of homemade pasta that make my mouth water for a split second, I really don't miss the way I was eating just a few short weeks ago. I don't crave refined sugar or dairy, and I definitely do not miss meat (not including fish, which still sounds good on occasion). Speaking of my scaley, swimming friends, I've had fish probably 3 times since starting this, and 100% vegetable soup (cooked) 3-4 times. Yes, yes. I know. I haven't been 100% completely and totally raw this whole time.... BUT, most days I am.

Well, that's it for now... off to bed! Oh, but one last thing. Look up the movie "Raw for 30 Days" on YouTube and watch the trailer for it... (it's not in theaters or anything like that) but I really want to see it sometime! It's about 5 people who have type 2 diabetes (some have had it for 20+ years) and by the end of eating raw food for 30 days, none of them have diabetes anymore!Crazy huh?! Not only that, but in 4 days of eating raw, I think all of them are off their insulin! Anyway, it looks like it would be really encouraging and interesting to watch.

Cheers all! :)

apple pie

2008-10-01T15:18:00.000-07:00

Yikes! I guess it’s been awhile since I last updated my blog…unfortunately it’s the last thing to get done when my days and weeks are busy. Well, I’m 3 ½ weeks into this grand experiment, and there are some noticeable differences: 1) I am sleeping MUCH better – as in, I have only had 1 restless nights sleep since I started this, whereas before I probably tossed and turned 3-4 nights per week (I kid you not). 2) My energy is finally starting to improve and stay more constant – I’m sure my raw vitamins are helping…I love them! 3) I am generally feeling better consistently; i.e. no “bricks-in-the-stomach” feeling. Some results I’m still waiting (hoping) for: 1) my aching to improve (which has been really bad in my wrists and fingers the last 3-4 days), and 2) my skin to clear up (break outs have been worse in the last 2 weeks). I think the third eye on my forehead could be due to all the toxins pushing their way out of my body by any means possible, and that eventually it’ll get better…Let’s hope!
In other news I think I am finally starting to get the hang of making food that I like, and besides spending 2 hours making 2 salad dressings last week I ended up throwing out (don’t ask…a very sad story), I finally stumbled upon a raw food chef who’s recipes are tasty AND quick. Thank goodness! One of these recipes being a raw apple pie – which I have to say, is as good as the “real” kind made with refined sugar, white flour, and dairy. Let me share this tasty recipe here, and perhaps give it a try the next time you are in the mood for some pie… being it is a very healthy alternative and fall is upon us :)

RAW APPLE PIE:
For the crust you will need:
1 C. raw almonds
1 C. pitted dates
1 ts. Sea salt
For the Syrup:
½ C. pitted dates
1 organic orange peeled and seeded and sliced or broken into sections
¼ C. water
2 tb. Cinnamon
For the filling:
5 organic apples (whatever is sweet and in season) peeled and thinly sliced
½ C. raisins (or dried cranberries…or both)

Blend the crust ingredients in a food processor until thoroughly mixed, soft, and chewy like. If you want, sprinkle a little almond flour or ground almonds on the bottom of the pie plate to help the crust not to stick. If you don’t have any, forget it, it works fine without it. Using your hands and fingers, spread the crust out in your pie plate covering the bottom and sides if you can – the crust will be pretty thin. (If you want a thicker crust, double the amounts above). When this is done, make your syrup by placing all the items in your food processor and blending until smooth – like the consistency of cake batter almost. Next, mix your peeled and sliced apples and your raisins together in a big bowl and then dump in the syrup, mixing again until everything is completely coated. I found that using my hands worked the best to evenly coat everything. Finally, dump your filling into your crust…and enjoy! You can let it sit out for several hours (up to 24) to soften the apples and cement the flavors, or stick it in the fridge straight away. I left mine out for about 3 hours and then refrigerated it…. Soooo tasty. Will last up to 3-4 days. Also, if you want to get really decadent, make some raw caramel sauce to drizzle over it: mix 2 parts raw, Amber agave with 1 part raw coconut butter (my favorite thing in the world) and enjoy the creamy goodness – which really looks and tastes like real caramel.

I’m going to make strawberry parfaits later this week…so I will let you all know how that goes! Oh, and if you want a dreamy chocolate “milk” shake, blend the meat of one young coconut, 1 banana, ¼ C. agave or pure maple syrup, 1 tb. Vanilla, 1 tb. Cocoa powder (or 2 to make it super chocolately), 1/3 C. coconut water (from your young coconut), and 4 ice cubes. Unbelievably smooth and decadent. I’m thinking everyone is probably getting the idea that I only sweet treats all day long! Haha. Let me assure you I usually only have 1 a day… and that I eat lots of big salads, guacamole (with homemade, dehydrated corn chips, flax crackers, or baby carrots), had Cashew Crème sushi the other night (very good), lots of “green juice” (spinach, celery, kiwis, wheat-grass, and apples), fresh heirloom tomatoes (currently out-of-this-world good) sprinkled with sea-salt, and will be making pesto over mung-bean noodles later this week (I’m a little nervous about this one). Oh, and I also have a rice dish I’m going to try – which begins by soaking wild rice until soft and adding some other components… also a little scared. Anyway, bon-appetite my friends! :) The raw food experiment continues....

Eating out RAW :)

2008-09-22T14:48:00.000-07:00

Well, some of you might be wondering how the ol’ anniversary weekend went celebrating with a salad…well, well my friends! Not quite so! Curty, being the sweetheart that he is, found a raw restaurant in Santa Monica that we decided to try, and the experience was fantastic, not to mention tasty! :) This last Saturday began with us heading down to the Getty Museum to check out the medieval art displays and the gorgeous outdoor gardens. It was a beautiful, if not incredibly, smog-free day down in LA with temperatures in the high seventies. After spending several hours of wandering over the grounds and through the expansive halls filled with art and sculptures, we headed down into Santa Monica – which was just a few miles away – to find the raw food restaurant Living Cuisine (check out the Juliano’s Raw link to see the restaurant and food pictures!) I have to say, I was really nervous about trying the restaurant! Maybe more so that the people there would all be raw-food snooties able to sniff out my recent conversion and pizza-roll eating husband as soon as we walked through the door—and assume we’d know the in’s and out’s of dining raw. I was way off. We were pleasantly surprised by how super nice everyone was, and how our waitress took time to explain the menu and how things were done. The dwindling daylight, candles, relaxing music, and the fragrant smell of orchids soon lulled us into the raw-food eating atmosphere, and when our first item arrived, we were excited to begin! I was most delighted to find out, they recommended starting with dessert, for food combining purposes and to get the digestive acids going in your stomach [suuurre, whatever you say!]. Umm… I believe the magnet on our fridge says it all: “Life’s short, eat dessert first.” Needless to say, I was happy to comply with their suggestion. I ordered a chocolate shake, and Curt got a berry iced-tea concoction. The shake was out of this world! Curt fully drank half and said he couldn’t tell the difference between that and an ice-cream based chocolate shake. Not bad to start the night off…. Creamy, cold, and delicious – three of my favorite “food words.” After enjoying our drinks, our appetizers arrived: pumpkin tortellini and spring rolls with Thai dipping sauce. YUM! The pumpkin tortellini’s were unbelievable….seriously. They were made by slicing raw pumpkin really thin to mimic raviolis, and filled with nut-cheese, and then dehydrated to get them warm, chewy, with a slight crispness to the “pasta” shell. Curt loved them too (whew!). The spring rolls were decidedly yummy as well, and save for the mint (which I enjoyed but not so much Curt) we were thrilled with the tastes, textures, and flavors. Oh, in case you were curious, those were made with cabbage, different veggies, avocado, and rolled up in minutely thin coconut wraps. Our second to last item was the Garlic Ranch Salad with mixed greens, beets, radishes, tomatoes, cucumber, and “croutons.” You absolutely could not tell that the dressing was all raw and made with nuts instead of dairy…it was crazy good! Even Curt had to admit he would have no idea it was a raw dressing if he was served it somewhere else. To top off the night (even though we were stuffed by this point), we decided to go for the raw caramel-apple pie. Oh my goodness. I swear it was just like a warm apple-caramel crumble from Costco – only better. The apples were a mix of fresh and dried, with raw whipped cream, candied pecans/walnuts, and caramel, chocolate, and strawberry sauces drizzled all over it! I honestly couldn’t believe that it was all raw…but it’s amazing what a person can come up with if making raw cuisine is your business and passion. :)
Well, I’m sure you get the idea that eating raw can be quite the dinning experience and a pleasure for your taste buds :) I really wanted to try everything on the menu just to see what all the textures and flavors were like…So come visit and we’ll sample some more!

Cheers!

TaSty tid-BitS

2008-09-17T11:47:00.000-07:00

Well today I thought it might be fun to update the ol’ blog and maybe give you all an idea of what I’ve been munching on the last week and a half. I have to say, at least at this point in the experiment, it hasn’t been too hard eating in the raw…at least from much of the taste standpoints. The real challenge is usually finding enough to eat – or eating a varying amount of foods – i.e. not just fruit smoothies or salads. I’ve been wanting to make my own crackers and granola with my dear friend Andrea’s dehydrator, which she graciously let me borrow (“Thanks Andy!”), but have not yet made the effort. I am planning to change that, however, by firing it up tomorrow! As I'm finding with most things on this eating plan, it’s time consuming when you must first soak all your nuts and seeds and then dehydrate them for several hours—only to find that I may have put the ingredients together wrong and the whole batch and my $$$ is worthless. On the other hand, my pocket book says I can learn to love cardboard granola! haha. At any rate, I am excited to try! And I think as time goes on I’ll get into the swing of things and become more proficient and quick at preparing meals and snacks.
Currently, a typical day consists of things like this: When I first wake up, it’s 30 oz. of fresh fruit and veggie juice (something like: celery, spinach, carrot, pear, apple juice). This usually staves of my hunger for about 5 min., so following this might be a peach or a banana and almond butter. Lunch might consist of a big batch of fresh guacamole, which, I have to say, I have become pretty stellar at making. Avocado + red onion + red chili pepper + coarse sea salt + lime + cilantro = yummy! :) I usually dip baby carrots into it and these raw flax seed crackers I bought. A couple hours later it’s a LARA bar (raw dried fruit and nut bar—my favorite is Apple Pie) and then probably another piece of fruit later. For dinner, a huge salad filled with veggies, fruit, and maybe a few nuts or seeds with a lemon/lime/mustard seed/olive oil/sea salt/raw honey dressing. Before bed, a smoothie or raw ice-cream – my favorite part of the day! My two favorite smoothies at present are chocolate/banana and bunny-spice. Bunny spice, if you perchance are curious, consists of two frozen bananas, 4-5 ice cubes, ½ C. fresh carrot juice with a splash of fresh ginger juice, 1 tb. of almond butter, 1/2 C. of purified water, and a dash of cinnamon. Blend and enjoy cold and creamy pumpkin-pie in a cup! Some of you I know personally might be a tad sickened by this concoction, but it is soooooooooooo good if you like cold pumpkin pie (which of course I LOVE). My chocolate/banana smoothie is made up of 2 frozen bananas, 6 ice-cubes, ½ C. purified water, 1 tb. Coconut butter, 1 tb. Almond butter, 2 tb. Raw agave nectar and 1 tb. Raw cocoa powder. Creamy, cold, and delicious people!!
The fun part is, this way of eating does not limit sweet treats! So, for those of you that know I have an insane sweet-tooth, I haven’t felt deprived in this way at all – it’s just that I am using raw, natural sweeteners. Yipppeeee! (Okay, yes, you are still probably suppose to limit these yummy goodies, but I am just not at the point yet where I look forward to and/or crave a spinach smoothie! Yuck)
The part that gets tricky is when I’m teaching, because then I start my day with a smoothie (for more calories and substance to stick with me until lunch), and have a salad for lunch (so now what the heck do I have for dinner??). This is why I want to make crackers and granola, b/c then I could do these for dinner if needed! Anyway, we’ll see. I’m taking things ONE day at a time, and just going with how I feel.
Also, for anyone concerned about my getting enough calcium, certain vitamins, etc. (mom) :) after doing much research I have begun taking these brand new RAW vitamins from the Garden of Life (my favorite supplement brand – their products are amazing! I take their HSO Probiotics, digestive enzymes –less occasionally now however, and starting yesterday, their vitamins, which are called the Vitamin Code – I take the one for women) – and they are 100% natural/raw/non-synthetic designed to be completely absorbed by your body. I am definitely excited about them, and would encourage anyone interested to check them out. I’m hoping this helps with my energy levels, because after doing a little more research, I found that I haven’t been getting certain B vitamins (like B12) in my diet for the last two weeks, and that’s not a good thing. So yeah...the raw experiment continues! (Ask me how I’m feeling after this weekend, eating out with friends and celebrating our 4 year anniversary with a salad, haha).
Oh, and one night I did have a small piece of cooked chicken and some cooked squash – but then had the most horrible stomach ache until the next morning! My poor stomach, like it hasn't been through enough in the last few years! After that I decided right now I can do 100% raw, and if a day comes when I feel like a piece of fish, than fish it is! I just don’t want this to control my life or become some terrible chore. Right now it’s fun, and I’m excited to see what lies ahead! (Come on skin, clear up!!!!) :) Until next time………
Cheers!

What in the heck have I gotten myself into??

2008-09-11T19:54:00.000-07:00

Back by popular demand….It’s an update to my blog! I actually wrote a spectacular bit two nights back, but in typical computer fashion, something went hay-wire and I lost the whole darn thing. I could have cried…oh wait, I did. Well, it’s useless to cry over spilled milk, or almond milk in my case, so I’m over it, and moving on! :) In short, it basically recapped my experience thus far, and exemplified my thoughts on some of the interesting view points that accompany the raw food movement. Let’s just say that I am not on a quest for spiritual enlightenment… and can safely attest to the fact that I was not feeling the “life-force” of the veggies dripping in tamarind almond sauce wrapped in collard greens I ate the other night. (Ugh)
Here are some things I’ve learned in the past 6 days:
1) This is hard. And…
2) This is hard. And…
3) This is hard.
I think I had visions of craving bowls filled with dark leafy greens and biting into sumptuous tropical fruits and vowing never again to return to the evils of cooked food! It has not been so simply my friends. Reality hits when you are starving (all the time) and making dinner takes 2 hours, you waste half or all of some precious and expensive ingredient on a recipe you’ve never tried and it ends up tasting like raw veggies with a side of raw veggies with a sauce of raw veggies complimented by a mystery spice. I have definitely asked myself on occasion this week: What the heck have I gotten myself into here?!? Hitting upon a more serious note, I promised myself that I wouldn’t do anything to compromise my health, so hopefully going to bed so hungry I feel sick doesn’t indicate this…Wait a minute….Yeeeaaah. That can’t be good. I hate to give someone the opportunity to say “I told you so,” but Amanda, “you told me so!”
Being the type A personality I am, I jumped in with two feet and thought, the heck with this! Go big or go home! All or nothing people! (I may have been slightly mistaken). Now, many people have turned raw one day and never looked back, but I don’t know if I can be that person. So, long story short, I may incorporate a few steamed veggies at dinner for the first part of this experiment and perhaps a sliver of baked fish or chicken. Mind you, I am still eating nothing else for the rest of the day that isn’t completely raw! I promise! Nada.
So on that note, feeling like a failure already, I vow to keep going….I will not relent! The experiment may take on a new twist as I ease myself into a new way of eating, but I hope that by the end of my 3 months raw (give or take a few steamed dinners if you will pardon them), :) I have much good news to share about how I am feeling and can produce a list of benefits that eating raw has bestowed upon my science experiment (i.e. body).
On that note, one might be wondering; “How is she feeling?” Besides being perpetually hungry (which is getting better by the day), I have to say that I feel great! I definitely think my body is still in cleansing mode, as I have headaches off and on and still lack in the energy department at times, but after I eat, I feel good. Not heavy, not sick, not remorseful (haha)… mostly just refreshed! It really does feel good to put good-for-you-food into one’s fuel tank all day long. Imagine that! :) Anyway, the beat goes on. Day 7 tomorrow… Oh, and I got my herbal cleanse in the mail today! OH MAN. I did this one last December… and it was not pretty, in more ways than one. I will spare everyone the details...at least for now.
Cheers! :)

RAW....day one :)

2008-09-06T22:40:00.000-07:00

Today I woke up after a night of pizza, Cesar salad, ice-cream, and two bites of a dark Milky-Way, to the grim reality that my body really, truly, seriously... cannot handle these types of foods. I mean, ice-cream is my favorite -- and I hardly ever indulge, but lately, dairy, wheat, refined sugars, and convenience foods have slowly crept back up into my life and generally taken over. oops. How did this happen?!? Not three years ago I was barely functioning, terribly sick with a stomach disorder and a mass of food intolerances, and changing my eating habits was a big part of what helped get me well.

Sooooo.... I'm now realizing that as I started to feel better and better, my wonderful healthy habits of yester-year faded ever so gradually, until it was looking more and more like my college days of chocolate milk, doughnuts, carrot cake, diet soda, and ice-cream at lunch and dinner. EEEewwwwww. Did I just admit to that?!?

No way! I'm not going there! I'm tired of feeling.... well, tired. And achy -- and moody, and having a perpetually upset stomach (and I'll spare you the details). So as I pondered the gravity of my situation, I began revisiting the natural healing info I began collecting last summer on RAW foods and the awesome outcomes people have had. But would it work for me? Or, more importantly, how the heck can a person do this?? Eat this way?? I'll be an outcast! A crazy! :) Nooooo... no. Still the same me, just a much healthier version, full of living enzymes I can't live without. I figure, I spend enough money every month buying enzymes so I can digest my food, so why not try eating foods that are packed with their own?! A novel idea indeed.

So let's start with the facts.... It's day one, and this is where I'm at: I'm 26 and 3/4 years old. I still break out (darn it all). I ache constantly in the joints of my wrists, hands, ankles, feet, hips and in the muscles of my arms. (I'm definitely risking sounding like an old person here, complaining about all my maladies, so bare with me). My stomach sucks -- upset at some point every day with a variety of symptoms (use your imagination). I also have trouble concentrating, I've found 4 gray hairs, I do NOT deal with stress well, and I do not sleep well at night. I could go on, but you get the point. Now, I'm not expecting RAW food to cure every ill, and make my life a fairy tale of sorts, but I am interested in giving it a try -- to see if I can tell a difference in how I feel and how my body responds....

Will I feel better? Will my stomach settle down? Will my skin clear up? Will I be able to focus more clearly and handle stress better? Might I finally start sleeping through the night without Benadryl?? These questions and more will be the focus of this experiment! Join me if you will......... day two begins tomorrow, and things can only get more interesting!