Simple healthy eating Ideas for better digestion!

Hello Girlies!

From our book The Beauty Detox Solution we've learned 2 simple things!

Concerning Digestion:

Did you know that the full process of digestion takes more energy than any other specific internal function of the human body?

So.....

1.  Eat your fruit on an empty stomach and wait 20 mins. to eat your meal.  Did you know that fruit digests in 30 mins and proteins takes 3 hours.   So if you eat some fruit after your proteins it ferments.  That puts toxins in your body!  When you eat your food correctly, your body doesn't have to work soooo hard digesting.  Instead the energy in your body is free to work on other needs within your body like anti-aging or weight loss!

2.  Vegetables contain alkaline, and they fight the acid in your body.  So by eating some raw veges before each meal, you coat the lining of your stomach and intestines with nutrients.  That helps your body digest your meal easily.  So again your body can work on other needs within your body.

These are two very simple changes that we have made in our diet! 

Recipe:

The Before Din Din Salad <3

This is sooo easy! (Please remember to wash it all well with Trader Joes Vege Wash!)

Spring Mix (from a bag or fresh bin at the market)

Baby Spinach Leaves (torn up, we buy baby spinach cuz it's sooo tender!)

Fresh Basil (torn up)

Romaine Lettuce (torn up, if you did not know this Costco has a huge bag of whole romaine heads for approx. $2.50 ...well worth it!  You can use this lettuce for lettuce wraps too!!!)

Olive Oil

Flavored Vinegar (Trader Joes has wonderful flavored vinegars, right now we are using Orange Muscat Champagne Vinegar, we also like Red Wine Vinegar and Pomegranate Vinegar!)

Place an even amount of all the above lettuce, go light on the basil, in a bowl.  Lightly drizzle the olive oil over lettuce.  Depending on how much you like drizzle the flavored vinegar over the lettuce, I like alot!  Toss well and eat while preparing dinner.  Make enough for your family members to eat as well.  You can add other veges or eat a carrot on the side if you would like! 

Enjoy!

Monica's Munchies and My Life by Melissa

Let's talk Health and Vitamins! Written by a WannabeHeathnut, who is really just a Mom!

Hello Ladies! 


In this day and age we ladies are running into alot of physical problems.  Our unhealthy ways or our hormones are really getting to us!  I have tried for years to eat better, take vitamins and exercise!  Hahah...not until now have I accomplished some of these things.  Most of you know I am having a bout with early detected breast cancer.  I have fought my hormones for years and they finally have won out resulting in a hysterectomy in '07 and now a lumpectomy with lymph nodes removal in '11.


Our bodies are already in a bad state of affairs because we are soooo far removed from the perfect bodies Adam and Eve had in the Garden of Eden.  Then to top it off, the food we eat either by choice or by financial reasons is mostly unhealthy!! Stress, life and unhealthy ways come together to make the perfect storm in our bodies rage!


My eyes have been open through my health trials and I wanted to take some time to encourage you with what I have learned.  It took me forever to get it, to roll with it, to act upon it! So I understand and know where you are at....if you come away with even one good idea to improve your health as you see fit, I will be blessed! 

First of all fruits are Vitamins!

We must corral our hormones and one good way to keep them in check is with vitamins!  A good rounded daily vitamin from your local health food store is soooo important to us as women.  Our emotions, our pre or post menopause, our weight and our organs are all at stake here.  We need to feed our bodies with what is missing from our food!  We can build a better body just by feeding each member what it needs to thrive in health! Then we can serve our Lord, our families and our communities with strength and perseverance! <3

Vitamin D 1,000mgs - 3,000mgs fights cancer

Vitamin C- 2,000mgs promotes healing and protects from illnesses!  It has helped me to keep well this whole chemo season.  I try to take 2,000mgs in the morning and 2,000mgs in the evening.

Other things we need!

We need things like encoated fish oil pills and flax (seed, oil or pills)  These things help us to fight cancers, blood pressure problems and cholesterol!  These 2 are very important to us a women.  We cannot possibly eat enough of these so we must supplement!

Vitamin D 1,000mgs - 3,000mgs fights cancer

Vitamin C- 2,000mgs promotes healing and protects from illnesses!  It has helped me to keep well this whole chemo season.  I try to take 2,000mgs in the morning and 2,000mgs in the evening.

I know for a fact that these things have helped me and my Oncology (cancer) doctor is amazed at how healthy I am!!

Next is Protein Drinks

We have been using Garden of Life's Raw Meal protein drink.  I like it, we flavor it with a lite chocolate sauce and a banana!  You truly feel satisfied all day and no cravings for the unhealthy, plus it keeps you regular!  Yipee!  You can get this at Sprouts.  It is a good weight controller too! <3  Melissa and I feel very satisfied and good on these drinks!  <3 They keep things moving at a really good pace!  hahaha <3 This one you can get at Sprouts and it goes on sale from time to time.  It is good to drink every morning!

What you eat together counts! 

Read up on food pairings.  This can be very important to your health!  We are learning this too..and excellent book is The Beauty Detox Solution book by Kimberly Snyder C. N.

We are learning sooo much in it and no we are not going to be Vegan or Vegetarians! Haha!

 But we need to add alot more vege's to our diet!  We made her smoothie and it was really good.  Also we made her No chickpeas zuchinni hummus and it is great.  It is always good to get new ideas and learn new things.

Exercise!

Walking is the best exercise according to Dr. Oz.  He says 10,000 steps is really good each day.  No need to run and hurt your knees, and no need to go all out for an hour on the treadmill either.  A nice walk on your treadmill and your all daily tasks can add up to all the steps needed.  And truthfully I only accomplish this on Disneyland days!  I believe our trips to Disneyland and all the walking we do has trully helped me with exercise! 

Melissa and I bought cheap pedometers at Kmart and they really are fun to check and see what you've accomplished every now and again.  I was amazed that on a regular day without even trying I walk 4500 steps! 

Of course prayer, stillness before the Lord, the 2 of us working together and a splurge now and again alll help us tremendously in making changes that count! 

I hope and pray that you can take one thing from this list and start to improve your health today!  We can alll do better! 

Blessings, Grace and Peace to you and yours!

Monica's Munchies! <3



 

Study in Isaiah 55

Isaiah 55:8-9, "For My thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways My ways, declares the Lord. For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are My ways higher that your ways and My thoughts than your thoughts."

 

Here is a quote from Streams in the Desert that my mom sent to me this morning, I read this after I read Isaiah and it fits perfectly:

 

There's a simplicity about God in working out His plans, yet a resourcefulness equal to any difficulty, and an unswerving faithfulness to His trusting child, and an unforgetting steadiness in holding to His purpose. Through a fellow-prisoner, then a dream, He lifts Joseph from a prison to a premiership. And the length of stay in the prison prevents dizziness in the premier. It's safe to trust God's methods and to go by His clock.
--S. D. Gordon

 

Difficulty is the very atmosphere of miracle -- it is miracle in its first stage. If it is to be a great miracle, the condition is not difficulty but impossibility.

 

There are so many times when I question if God really knows what He is doing. Of course He does, duh!! But why is it so hard for me to understand? Because He is God and I am not!!  

 

Job 12:13 With God are wisdom and power; counsel and understanding are His.

Col 2:3 In Christ are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge.

Rom 11:33 Oh the depth of the riches and wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are His judgments and how inscrutable His ways!

 

I have to remember that even when things don't go my way, that doesn't mean God made a mistake. He is in control and I just need to seek Him while He may be found and call upon Him (vs 6).

 

Spring/Easter Birds Nest Wreath

My mom and I went to Michael's yesterday to pick up a few things when I saw the cutest little birds and little mini eggs. Instantly I was inspired to make something with them. So I made 2 mini spring wreaths. They came out so cute and it was so easy to make. I hope this inspires you to create something of your own!

Here is what you will need: 

Scissors
Hot Glue Gun
Hot Glue

2 mini wreaths:

1 bag assorted types of moss:


1 bag of mini eggs and mini birds:



A few bunches of assorted colored flowers:

(I bought green, white, purple, blue and pink)

Now your ready to start your project.

First plug in your hot glue gun so it can warm up. If you have never used a hot glue gun before please be careful, the glue is very hot and will burn you if it gets on your skin. I have been using a hot glue gun for years and only been burned twice, the second one was last night haha!! So I have a nice blister on my finger. But if you would rather not use a hot glue gun you can always use regular craft glue, it may take a little longer as you have to wait for the glue to dry between steps.

Start by gluing the moss to the wreaths:



Then cut some flowers off the stems and arrange some extra moss as a bed for the flowers:

Now your almost done!

Add a nest out of the red moss, the mini eggs and birds and your all set.

 The last thing I added was a ribbon so I could hang it on the wall. You could use a small but sturdy wire or you could just hang the wreath on a nail using some of the branches on the back side.

Now your all done and you have a cute spring decoration that you made. I hope you like it!

Monicas Munchies: How To Get More For Your Money

I bought some expensive perfume body powder the other day. You see I needed a new powder puff. While I loved the smell, it was really smelly. I wanted to get more for my money, so I mixed it with two parts Baby Cornstarch powder! Now it's perfect and I love it! I got 2/3 more than what I paid for and it's the perfect amount of perfume smell. My allergies are happy and my body is powder dry.

Please remember when powdering don't breath in the powder. Years ago when I was Kalico Kandy the Klown, my clown friend kept getting bronchitis and her doctor told her it was from the powder.

Blessings on you for finding new ways to stretch your dollar too!

<3 Monicas Munchies  

Ps, I am writing this to you during my 3rd of 4 chemos. God is good all the time!!

Exercise

We all know the importance of getting exercise. But if your like me, I don't. I had a gym membership, but I didn't go. That was such a money waster. Now I am determined to get back into the groove. I recently heard that we should be walking up to 10,000 steps a day. Wow, that seems like a lot, but it really isn't. A couple of weeks ago I bought a pedometer. It was $11 at Kmart. It really has been a helpful tool in tracking my steps. When we went to Disneyland I walked well over 10,000 steps and it felt amazing! This last weekend we were moving out of our apartment and I was wearing my pedometer all day. By the end of the day I finally reached my goal of 10,000 steps. Now during the week while I am working I have to figure out some sort of plan to get my steps in. I am not going to try to get 10,000 steps every day. But a couple times a week would be great.

Here is a website I found that is very helpful in setting a plan. So, let's get walking!!!! 

Mum's Better Batch of Cookies

Looking for a healthier cookie? Try this out!!

7   Droppers of Vanilla Stevia
1   C. of Sugar
2   Eggs
1   Cup Room Temperature Butter


1/2 C. Soy Milk Creamer (Fresh and Easy)

4 oz. Applesauce (One tub)



2   C. of All Purpose Flour
3   C. of Whole Wheat Pastry Flour
3   Tsp. Baking Powder
1   Tsp. Salt

Cream together vanilla stevia, sugar, eggs and butter.  Mix in soy milk creamer and applesauce.

Mix together dry ingredients in another bowl.  (Sticky? Add a little bit more all purpose flour)

Add dry ingredients to wet ingredients a little bit at a time. 

Roll out (don't forget to put down some flour first!) 1/4 to 1/2 in thick...

Spray cookie sheet with Pam

Bake at 400 degrees for approx. 8-10 mins. 

Note:  these cookies are like the sugar cookies from Albertsons,  very tender!

Beware, these are a little bit healthier, but don't go overboard eatin them!  hahah

Monica's Munchies

Aaarrrozzz Con Pollo

Here is a recipe that is sure to be a crowd pleaser!

1 regular pkg.  Chicken Legs  (If you have extra large pot, you can upgrade to jumbo pkg. hahah!)      

1 jumbo  pkg.   Chicken Thighs

Rinse chicken and pat dry!  Season chicken with garlic salt and white pepper.  Heat heavy bottom (enamel type) pot adding extra virgin olive oil.   Brown chicken on both sides.  (Your not cooking it through just yet!!  Don't move it around, wait and then lift when it lifts easily on it's own.)  Remove chicken from pot and set aside. 

Add more extra virgin olive oil to pot, plus:

1 ea. purple and brown onion, chopped

5-8 garlic cloves, chopped

Saute (Keep it moving and pick up brown bits from the bottom of the pan! )

Add 3-4 cups Basmati rice to pot and brown for a few minutes.  Stirring often.

Once the rice is browned.....add 1/3 to 1/2  can El Pato Tomato sauce..very spicy and yummy. 

Cook into rice for 5 minutes.

Monica's Munchies Note: No El Pato on hand, chop a jalapeno or two, saute w/ the onion &amp; garlic.

Chicken broth

Canned diced tomatoes

Frozen mixed Veges

Saffron 

                       Monica's Munchies Note: The goal is to make 2 cups of liquid per 1 cup rice.   

Measure liquid and canned diced tomatoes in a large measuring cup. 

Figure approx. 1 1/2 cups broth plus 1/2 cup canned diced tomatoes per 1 cup rice.

Pour into pot over rice &amp; stir. 

Add 5 ish  strands of saffron to liquid.  (Purchase at Cost Plus for pretty cheap)

Bring to just under a boil.  Taste for seasoning....add garlic salt and white pepper if needed

Add a cup of frozen mixed veggies, stir again.

Lower heat to just a simmer.

Add all chicken back to pot.  (No stirring) Cover! 

Cook for approx. 25 min's, or until chicken is cooked through and rice is done.  ,

Allowing it to stand  for 10 min's is a good idea, but not always possible because your mouth will be watering!  hahah!

Monica's Munchies Note:  Don't sweat it if  the chicken isn't cooked all the way, just nuke it for a minute or two! 

Yummy.

Enjoy!

Monica's Munchies