Hello, dear love bugs....it's been AGES since I posted!    Lots of fun things going on; I just got back from an amazing weekend in the gorgeous city of Victoria.   I am working toward getting my personal trainer certification....one step closer after taking the Strength Training module in Victoria!      I have to admit, one of the key components missing in my life is a regular workout routine.    I'm finding it difficult what with moving around all the time and all.....it seems that I just get settled somewhere and get into a routine and it's time to leave again.    Don't get me wrong, I LOVE my life!    It's fun living in different, gorgeous homes and I feel really blessed!    I just have to figure out a new routine each time I move, that's all.    I'm back in Qualicum Beach for now, and I'm looking forward to getting back onto my favourite running trails.    AND looking forward to warmer weather.....I am definitely a tropical creature and would be QUITE happy swinging through trees eating fruit in the hot sun!    LOL
You'll be happy to hear I've made some progress on my book.....rough copy of Chapter 1 (Fun with Breakfast) is done.       Don't know when the book will be finished....it's an on-going work in progress and I have a lot of other projects on the go right now.   :)     Will keep you posted!

One of the recipes in the breakfast chapter....walnut cherry praline granola!   xoxoxo    A new favourite for sure.   

HAHA!!!    Hello, darlin's.......I have a fun one for you for breakfast.   FRUIT pizza!   Any of you remember or like the "Treatza Pizza" from DQ??    I know you're out there.....I used to love DQ too back in the day.   Here's a fun, healthy, SIMPLE recipe you can make with the kids, and it's delicious!  None of the icky things like refined sugar or dairy.....just healthy, yummy, sweet LIVE food!    xoxo

SOOOO easy....just take some ripe, squisy bananas and mash and squish them onto a plate covered with saran wrap.  Squish 'em up goooooood, then top them with yummy fruity toppings....the red "sauce" is a blend of fresh mango and frozen raspberries, then I added some chopped mango, goji berries, bee pollen and a teeny bit of coconut.     It's also quite wonderful without the sauce....just sprinkle with cinnamon and top with lovely things.     This is  a super low fat version, but you can also put lovely things like pecans or cacao nibs on top.    I just wanted the FRUIT!    xoxoxoxoxo  
Enjoy luvvies.....have fun squishin' up nanners with your little ones!    Or by yourself....

Hello, fellow fruit lovers!  xoxoxo     My original plan was to do a cleanse for 7 days, but it turned into 8.....just feeling so good!    I actually ate VERY little fat today too, only eating a small taste of the granola I made today.   It's mighty devine, I must say....walnut cherry praline!    It's not done yet, but will post pics when it's ready.   My body is really loving the greens right now, so I had a lovely and sweet mango/banana/dandelion smoothie for breakfast and a bok choy/mint/mango/banana one for lunch.  It's a great time for ataulfo mangoes...the local grocery store had a great on them and they are soooooo GOOD!!!  Can't seem to get enough.   Maybe a trip to "mango island" is in order for the near future....   All I wanted for supper was mangoes, bananas and romaine lettuce....I had a handful of the granola I made too.   When I make granolas I cut down on the fat content by using lots of buckwheat to replace the bulk of the nuts.   The result is still a nutty, crunchy granola but without all the fat.
Watch for pics of the latest granola caper!
Sweet, fruity dreams, luvvies!
xoxoxo 

Good morning, lovebugs.....Ozma and I have been up and at 'em already playing with our food!   xoxo   We created a fruity, yummy salad to honor the special dedicated to LOVE...which should be every day, really.

Fruit is so beautiful already with its gorgeous array of color it's EASY to make dishes that are appealing to the eye, quick and HEALTHY!!
The pretty red "puddle" is a mango/raspberry sorbet...just blend up equal amounts of frozen raspberries and fresh mangoes.   We topped it with an array of fresh cut mango and dragon fruit, and added a few gooseberry "bubbles" for fun!  
When a day starts out THIS colorful, only good things can happen!
Have a gorgeous, fruity valentine's day, Lo

Hello, all!   xoxoxo    Day 7 of the fat free "cleanse" and feeling great!   I started the day off with a fantastic kale/banana/blueberry/carob smoothie and it was SOOO yummy!   I usually make it with chocolate, but it was great with the carob!   The quality of carob you buy makes a HUGE difference...carob is not what it was 20 years ago!    The kind I buy is sweet, raw good quality stuff.....not the powdery, pale kind.    The good quality raw carob looks grainy.      I drank a litre of coconut water/wheatgrass juice again today and snacked on dates...that works great for when I'm out and about.    I went to Rawthentic Eatery in Qualicum Beach for a Tropical Explosion smoothie late in the afternoon and had them add spinach.....it's such a lovely, vibrant green color!   It was such a gorgeous, sunny day here that I took it down to the beach and enjoyed it there whilst inhaling fresh sea air.....such a perfect experience!!
I had the pleasure of spending time in my new friend Sandra's kitchen showing her how to make some raw goodies for supper......I love teaching others that raw food can be easy AND yummy!   xoxoxoxo    All in all, a pretty perfect day....Hope yours was too!!    
Here's a recipe for the "chocolate dinosaur" smoothie:
1 bunch of dinosaur kale      (NOW the name makes sense!)
2 bananas
1/2 cup blueberries
pinch cinnamon
1/4 tsp. vanilla powder
1 tablespoon cacao or carob powder
ENJOY!!!     This is one of my faourites......LOVE it!   :)    

I hope you all had a wonderful Sunday...I sure did!   Ozma and I stayed all snuggled in bed late today...awake early but lazed around for a bit.   Felt goooooood!    I had the most amazing smoothie for breakfast....spinach, banana, frozen mango, carob, mint and spirulina.    It was super yummy and satisfying!    I work on Sundays cleaning, so I took some dates with me and a bottle of coconut water blended with wheatgrass.   My body seems to be wanting concentrated GREENS right now!     After work all I wanted for supper was a super simple romaine and citrus salad, so I stopped by the grocery store to get some romaine.   To my delight, there were some awesome ataulfo mangoes, so I picked up 3 of those too.   For supper my salad was super simple....blood oranges, mango oranges and chunks of mango.   The mango was SOOO yummy I had to eat one while I was making my salad!  

I will quite often add dulse and chopped dates to this salad, but all I wanted tonight was the fruit and romaine.   I love it that I'm back to craving things like fruit and romaine lettuce.......the biggest thing I wanted to accomplish with this "de-tox" was to get back to basics and listening to my body again.   When life gets busy it's so easy to grab what's handy (which was "toast" in my case as I always have it around) and not be fully conscious of what/how much you are actually eating.
Enjoy!!!   This is a FABULOUS time of year for citrus...make the best of it!    If you want to make a super simple, fat-free dressing for this salad all you have to do is blend up some mango and orange.   Sweet, thick and simple!
xoxoxoxoxo

Hi there!!   I hope you had a lovely Saturday like I did.  I started my morning off nice and early...no alarm clock but woke up at about 6:15 (maybe a little help from Ozma) feeling fantastic!    I had a WONDERFUL, colorful, shimmery fruit salad for breakfast....dragon fruit, mango and two different kinds of citrus.    YUM!!!    I went to visit Grandma and took her favourite raw treat....Cinnamon Babies!   She loves them so much.....
I took myself a little bag of dates to munch on so I wouldn't be tempted to eat the cinnamon goodies....it was HARD, but I stuck to it!   Those are among my favourite treats....anything loaded with cinnamon is a good thing, IMHO!   I drank a litre of coconut water with wheatgrass cubes today too...when I got home I made a lovely fat-free salsa.

I made it in my fabulous little manual food processor, and it took MINUTES to whip up!
I used....
1 orange pepper
half a small purple onion
8 small campari tomatoes
handful of parsley
juice from half a lemon
It was very mild; I would normally spice it up and add cayenne, garlic and salt but am avoiding salt for my de-tox.   I put the salsa on a bed of garlic sprouts and baby bok choy leaves....so tasty!!   I usually use cilantro and lime in place of the parsley and lemon, but I was really wanting parsley and lemon so I went with that.   Fresh salsas are great to experiment with....have fun with them!
xoxoxoxo

Hello, all!   xoxoxo    I've done day 4 of my de-tox and feelin' great!!    I started the day off with a watermelon orange smoothie, a combo I got from my friend Chris Kendall.   It's super yummy, and tastes DIVINE!!   I had a watermelon given to me yesterday and have some LOVELY Buck Brand organic oranges on hand, so it only made sense!

I didn't eat a lot today; I'm finding my appetite to be smaller, which is GOOOOD!   As mentioned, I was definitely over-eating which one reason I started the "de-tox".    My main goal this time is to get myself back on track with eating more fresh fruit and veggies and less fats and de-hydrated yummies.   In just a few days, I am feeling lighter and have shed about 4 pounds!     Feelin' fine.....I also ate a few dates today, drank 1 litre of coconut water with wheatgrass and had a Sour Cherry Mango Tango smoothie.    Nice and light......that's when I feel my BEST!
Tomorrow I plan on posting a recipe for a fabulous fat free salsa....I love salsas!   xoxoxoxoxo
Sweet dreams, luvvies.

Good morning!!   I am on day 3 of a de-tox, and woke up with an appetite for something sweet 'n' YUMMY!  After two days of water fasting, I feel a lot lighter and mentally clear.....YAY!    I decided to make something super tasty for breakfast....I named it a Sour Cherry Mango Tango!    It's a brand new original green smoothie, and I'm sharing the recipe so you can enjoy it toooo! 

There it is...wearing a crown of frozen sour cherries!    Here's the recipe:
1 cup sour cherries   *****
1 cup frozen mango
2 monster sized handfuls spinach
2 dates (soaked in about 1/2 cup water)
1/2 tsp. vanilla powder
    Blend and do the Sour Cherry Mango Tango around the kitchen!!
I did, and so did Queen Ozma!   :D
******If you live in the Oceanside area, you can get lovely sour cherries from Rawthentic Eatery in Qualicum Beach.   They're really reasonably priced and a YUMMMEEEE treat!   Sour cherries are also high in iron....bonus!!!
Enjoy.....have a fabulous, Sour Cherry Mango Tango kind of day!!!!!
xoxoxo

Hello, luvvies!!!!    Here I am on day 2 of a de-tox I plan on doing for about a week.   Day 1 was just a day of water fasting...whenever I embark on a de-tox of any kind I like to start out that way.   It just seems to "re-set" everything....that, and everythings TASTES so much better when you are actually hungry!  I have been over-eating way too much lately, and even over-eating healthy food is never a good thing.
My de-tox week is super simple.....no fats of any kind for a week.    That's not as scary as it sounds....I will be posting nummy recipes like things for salsas and smoothies that will satisfy and leave the body feeling nice and LIGHT!    I am finding today that even though I had nothing but water and coconut water yesterday, I am really not hungry today either.    I have had nothing but water today, and it's almost noon.     I am going to whip up a nummy green smoothie to take along in case I need it though....it's a recipe of my own called a "Cranberry Cry-baby!"    It's a bit tart, but I LOVE it!

CRANBERRY CRY-BABY SMOOTHIE
2 dates, soaked in 1/4 cup water
1 cup cranberries
2 small apples
1 cup water
4 collard leaves or greens of choice; I used spinach today because that's what I had.....2 huge handfuls of spinach.
Blend well!!!!!
xoxoxoxoxo