Happy New Years!
As we all know it's been quite the year. No matter what you think of it of what perceived 'side' of things you might be sitting on; it's been a strange one. But there also have been magical events too-weddings of close friends, my own engagement, beautiful babies born and more. I am always one to look at the bright side of things, and when I find myself unable to do that, I zone out for a little while before I pick back up. But I digress, there are so many things that I could chat about and share knowledge around on this first day of 2021 but I'm choosing to look at traditions.
Whenever I hear the word tradition, I automatically go straight to wanting to sing it Fiddler on the Roof style but often refrain depending upon my audience 🤣. This year I have created a few new traditions and for New Years Eve that is no exception. There is a Spanish tradition known as las doce uvas de la suerta (the 12 lucky grapes) which says that eating 12 grapes at the stroke of midnight (one for each chime of the clock) will bring good luck in the coming year. The 12 also symbolizes each month of the Gregorian calendar year.
So I decided in addition to my champagne toast at midnight I would add in this wonderful grape tradition-since WAY back my ancestors were in Spain, might as well toast to them! 😀🥂
Do you have any fun or meaningful New Years Eve traditions that you rock?! 🎉
As we all know it's been quite the year. No matter what you think of it of what perceived 'side' of things you might be sitting on; it's been a strange one. But there also have been magical events too-weddings of close friends, my own engagement, beautiful babies born and more. I am always one to look at the bright side of things, and when I find myself unable to do that, I zone out for a little while before I pick back up. But I digress, there are so many things that I could chat about and share knowledge around on this first day of 2021 but I'm choosing to look at traditions.
Whenever I hear the word tradition, I automatically go straight to wanting to sing it Fiddler on the Roof style but often refrain depending upon my audience 🤣. This year I have created a few new traditions and for New Years Eve that is no exception. There is a Spanish tradition known as las doce uvas de la suerta (the 12 lucky grapes) which says that eating 12 grapes at the stroke of midnight (one for each chime of the clock) will bring good luck in the coming year. The 12 also symbolizes each month of the Gregorian calendar year.
So I decided in addition to my champagne toast at midnight I would add in this wonderful grape tradition-since WAY back my ancestors were in Spain, might as well toast to them! 😀🥂
Do you have any fun or meaningful New Years Eve traditions that you rock?! 🎉
Well I normally don't dive into the pumpkin spice latte land (or should I say argument) because frankly, I do what I do and others can do what they do, but this year I felt the need to consume some actual pumpkin spice, not the artificial crap but the actual spices in a beautiful tea latte.
The biggest reason I never jumped on the PSL train would definitely be the ingredients that are in a typical pumpkin spice latte. They vary depending upon where you purchase this drink but a few of the less than desirable ingredients from a Starbucks include Natural Flavors, Potassium Sorbate, Carageenan, Potassium Sorbate, and Sulfiting Agents. (There are more but wanted to keep it fairly short)
Natural Flavors: Natural flavors are almost the exact same thing as artificial flavors (I know this made me sad too). These are made from things that do occur in nature (animals, plants etc.) but they also can include solvents, emulsifiers, preservatives, and other additives which can make up to 80% of the formula.
Carageenan: This one has been talked about for awhile now with a lot of back and forth regarding the health impacts of consuming it. Some evidence suggests that carrageenan can cause inflammation, gastrointestinal ulcerations, and further damage to your digestive system.
Sulfiting agents: There six of these that are used in food production in this country (let's note how Starbucks doesn't actually tell us which ones are this 'drink'); sulfur dioxide, sodium and potassium metabisulfite, sodium and potassium bisulfite and sodium sulfite. These have been banned by the FDA for use on fruits and veggies that are meant to be consumed raw. Many people have reactions to the the sulfites in wine but this can happen in any other processed foods that you might be consuming.
Potassium Sorbate: This is a synthetically produced salt and is a widely used preservative in food, some personal care products and drinks. This is another one that there has been much back and forth with. With large amounts (more than is technically allowed in food) of this it has been shown in animal studies to cause reproductive and developmental toxicity.
So instead of buying it, I'm on the hunt for a recipe to make my own! If you have one please share! 🍂
👉Guys. it's Monday. Ya know, in case you weren't sure.
I make it a point to start the week with a positive attitude, does it always come naturally? no. But it does always come. Whether that's first thing in the morning and I'm raring to go and start my week or it's more in the afternoon/evening when I've got my week planned out and have actually started working on things in a practical, more aligned way.
During my meditation this morning, my app asked me, 'how do I want to feel this week?' What a beautiful way to start a Monday! Not just with, 'What do I want to accomplish this week?', no it's deeper than that. As I've come to continue to realize (and at this point in my life need constant reminders about), accomplishing things doesn't always make me feel good. It's more about feeling grounded and in alignment with my life and the side effect ends up being accomplishment (thanks Lexi!)
What's one (or more!) word that describes how you want to feel this week?
ps. I want to feel inspired this week🙏
I make it a point to start the week with a positive attitude, does it always come naturally? no. But it does always come. Whether that's first thing in the morning and I'm raring to go and start my week or it's more in the afternoon/evening when I've got my week planned out and have actually started working on things in a practical, more aligned way.
During my meditation this morning, my app asked me, 'how do I want to feel this week?' What a beautiful way to start a Monday! Not just with, 'What do I want to accomplish this week?', no it's deeper than that. As I've come to continue to realize (and at this point in my life need constant reminders about), accomplishing things doesn't always make me feel good. It's more about feeling grounded and in alignment with my life and the side effect ends up being accomplishment (thanks Lexi!)
What's one (or more!) word that describes how you want to feel this week?
ps. I want to feel inspired this week🙏
Mondays can be awesome.
They are a start to the new week, a way to re-energize yourself for things to come and a new chance to make positive things happen in your life. I bet we all can sink into that feeling of starting something new and how exciting that can be! Whether that's getting a new puppy, a new book, a new car or house-these are all new adventures that we take on with an excitement that isn't always present as you go through having these things for a long time. It's not that you love that puppy any less or anything but let's recall that new feeling; the excitement and joy that holds true even when that dog is driving you crazy!
Welcome to the Monday excited feelings!
Drop an emoji below if you're doing something new and exciting this week, even if it's something small like a new flavor of tea, a new type of workout, a new place to get your walk in or a new song or album that you've been rocking out to! Bonus points if you share what that is because I definitely need to push myself into some new music 😆
"Make Monday the start of something wonderful"
This recipe is so yummy! It's also not so difficult to make, and you can easily double, triple or even quadruple it!
Ingredients:
1 teaspoon coconut oil
2 tablespoons red onion (chopped)
1/3 cup full-fat canned coconut milk
1 teaspoon Thai red curry paste
1 teaspoon ginger (we also used ginger EO for this, cheaper and doesn't go bad)
1 dash coconut aminos (or tamari)
1 cup zucchini noodles
1/2 cup broccoli (cooked, /cauliflower/veggie of choice)
Thai basil (When we made this we used basil EO since it's more economical and doesn't go bad!)
Lime EO
2 tablespoons red onion (chopped)
1/3 cup full-fat canned coconut milk
1 teaspoon Thai red curry paste
1 teaspoon ginger (we also used ginger EO for this, cheaper and doesn't go bad)
1 dash coconut aminos (or tamari)
1 cup zucchini noodles
1/2 cup broccoli (cooked, /cauliflower/veggie of choice)
Thai basil (When we made this we used basil EO since it's more economical and doesn't go bad!)
Lime EO
Instructions
Sweat the onions in the coconut oil in a small pan on medium-low heat for about 1 minute.
Add in the coconut milk, curry paste, ginger and coconut aminos and stir until everything is combined.
Add in the coconut noodles and broccoli (or whatever veggie you'd like) and heat, uncovered, until they reach the texture you like. I like to cook my noodles for around 3 minutes. They get tender, but not too soft.
Add in a drop of basil EO, and lime EO, and chopped peppers and enjoy!
Sweat the onions in the coconut oil in a small pan on medium-low heat for about 1 minute.
Add in the coconut milk, curry paste, ginger and coconut aminos and stir until everything is combined.
Add in the coconut noodles and broccoli (or whatever veggie you'd like) and heat, uncovered, until they reach the texture you like. I like to cook my noodles for around 3 minutes. They get tender, but not too soft.
Add in a drop of basil EO, and lime EO, and chopped peppers and enjoy!
