Saw this, thought of you... or for any parent for that matter.
:)
Ahhhh, yeay, it's the weekend! Friday nights, Saturdays, and Sundays simply taste so delicious once they arrive! This morning, while letting the ladies out to do their business, I noticed that the air had that broken fever feel to it, that lets you know that fall is slowly arriving. Not necessarily a cool feeling, but not a sweltering one, either. Even the oak leaves are becoming too heavy from the summer's intensity, dying, and falling to the ground, creating a crunchy "ball pit" of sorts for Noodle and Darla to play in. It felt amazing outside and was a quick reminder to the fact that a hammock hanging in the trees by the lake, with a book and a blanket would be PERFECTION!
This weekend, I want to clean the house...I mean really tackle it and set Joey and I up for an easy cleaning/staying organized and relaxed and productive routine. I know I've made this statement a trillion times, but perhaps if I keep working towards it and keep failing, eventually I will reach success. Our place today, as compared to my bachelorette abode's is already a good assessment of how I have improved over the years, believe it or not.
Also, I'm working on at least 3 projects; 2 art, and 1 knitting, and I have several ideas for Christmas that I need to jump on, and ideas for other creative endeavors, like taking a stab at writing/illustrating children's books and collaborating on writing/film projects with Joey (I absolutely love that he includes me and invites me into his passions... I'm extremely lucky). I need to get organized first, though... for my own sanity, but the excitement of so many ideas keeps me constantly motivated. So, here we go, Fall, get ready for some serious business!
Anybody want to check out some fun links...
A really fun housewarming party idea!
How big of a backyard do you need to live off the grid? You'd be surprised!
Ok, I'm a little bit obsessed with Lush. They cater to my eco-friendly desires, create amazing products, as well as motivate me to care a little bit more about my beauty routine... which, in the past, is not something I've invested much time into. So, when I recently ran out of my facial moisturizer, I decided to go to Lush to try out one of theirs. I chose Imperialis and I LOVE it! It makes my face feel amazing, and it smells warm and earthy, which I love. Also, I'm eyeballing this little package of joy as well!
Have I talked about how great Jim Henson is lately? Let me fix that...
(Thanks for thinking of sending me the link, Blake!)
Pointless street Flyers... Hilarious!
Oooo, pretty, I might add this to my "To-Do's" for the weekend!
And, last, but not least, once I grow my hair back out again, I want to find the right person to help me to pull this off! So pretty!
Have a beautiful weekend!
Chillin'
Here's McReady. He's the most fun little man on four legs with whiskers since my little buddy Merlin (my old cat) who he both resembles and whose spirit he seems to embody with a little quirky twist that's all his own. If you're aware of or if you knew my buddy Merlin, then you know just how cool a cat McReady must be because Merlin was also his own man and an excellent cat :) However, we have absolutely no need for four pets. So, when we found out that our good friends Garre and Greg were thinking about bringing a kitten into their little family (they also have an awesome 3-legged lab mix named Steeler, who is also his own man), we were ecstatic. Steeler and McReady have become fast friends! Not only had we found an awesome home for McReady, but we can visit him now and even pet-sit when they go out of town! Our furry ladies are always a little more lively when he comes to play and they're always up to some kind of mischief... it's pretty entertaining.
Tsukiko, a beautiful life-size tigress, is my fibreglass tiger that I painted for the UofM Centinial celebration. 100 tigers have been painted or aesthetically manipulated in celebration of UofM's "Tiger's Around Town" and I was fortunate enough, thanks to the heads up from my friend, Heather, to be a part of it. She sat in our carport for about two weeks, one of which I was out of town for, and then, after a long, hot, and sweaty week, she blossomed into the beautiful and exotic lady that I knew she could be.
Because she's awesome, Garre helped me put the finishing touches on my lovely lady (note the knees behind Tsukiko's back legs). I love my Gare Bear!
Night painting is probably not the best exercise in endurance for your vehicle.
If you want to find out more about the "Tiger's Around Town", click here. There's going to be an "Unveiling" on Sept. 10 between 11:00 a.m. -12:00 p.m. when all the tigers will be exhibited. I can't wait to see all of the different tigers, I know they'll be amazing! Also, I know a few of the other artists that worked on tigers, and I can vouch for their awesomeness as well, so you should definitely come check it out if you can!
I hope your Monday was a good one! Today was the first day of school and I must say that it was wonderful to see so many of my kids again and to receive so many hugs. I love my job!
P.S. - the photos of McReady are pictures that I lovingly stole from my good buddy, J.B. I hope you don't mind! They were just so good :) So good, that I'll include a stolen Darla and Noodle picture as well...
I love my ladies! Nugget too, but she was hiding, so we didn't get a portrait of her. Oh well, you snooze you lose.
P.P.S - Greg and Garre renamed McReady Bruce Lee, however, as long as they don't mind, he'll remain McReady over here at the Carr Farm.
Start weight: 132.6 lbs
End weight: 126 lbs
According to what I have read, my weight loss was less than what most women experience, however, I think that's due to the fact that I fumbled my laxative routine during the night before Day 1, Day 1, and Day 2.
As far as weening off the diet goes, here is how that played out in a short summary...
Suggested Routine:
- Day 11 - An orange juice diet, to allow your stomach and body to once again become used to a different type of nutrient source, and, because it's liquid, it won't be as much of a shock to your system.
- Day 12 - Orange juice in the morning, some fruit for lunch, and a vegetable soup with some 1/2 rye crackers for din din.
- Day 13 - Orange juice and/or fruit in the morning, small salad for lunch, and a vegetarian (mostly Raw) meal for dinner.
Once Joey and I got started on our road trip to St. Louis, I immediately kicked off my slow transition back into solid foods. I remained faithful to the first day's rules of drinking nothing but Orange Juice and water. However, I failed somewhat on the second day and ate a salad for dinner instead of the vegetable soup because the restaurant in which we ate at (that was playing the Grizzlies Game the NBA Finals), didn't have vegetable soup. So, for the next day, I ate lightly with mostly fruit, a small salad with some hummus and fresh vegetable deliciousness, and a delicious vegetarian meal at a South American restaurant called Mango. It was quite delicious! So overall, I didn't carry out the suggested routine, however, I'm still here and I still felt extremely healthy coming off the diet, so I'll give myself a break there.
The downside to not following the weening process carefully is that your body can become constipated pretty easily, being re-introduced so quickly to solid foods. I can attest to this. However, it doesn't take long for your body/digestive system to "clock in" and back into a healthy and consistent routine.
How I felt after the cleanse... was it worth it?
I have to say that after the cleanse, I felt like GOLD! Physically, I felt fresh and energized and was much more aware of what I was putting into my body and how that food will ultimately affect my body. Once my body eased back into solid foods, I was able to digest foods MUCH more easily (something I have struggled with all of my life), and mentally I felt Ah-mAzing! I had just proved to myself that I could handle this challenge, still be productive during my everyday routine, and learn from the experience, making changes to better my everyday diet and outlook. I was very proud of myself after I finished the cleanse which was, in my opinion, the best benefit of all :)
Having said that, I do want to include that I did decide to change my diet completely after I finished the cleanse, which very well could have contributed to certain aspects of my experience afterwards. I decided to change my daily menu into a pescetarian one, with the plan to eventually ease into a vegetarian diet. This really wasn't a difficult transition for me as I have never truly craved meat, nor felt a real desire to add it into my diet, but it was simply always served to me, so I ate it. This is not to say that I don't enjoy eating meat... I DO; a delicious Slaw-Dog grilled to perfection makes my mouth water simply thinking about it, however, it's not a hard decision to find an alternative to any of my favorite carnivorous recipes. Also, I have always felt the burden of hypocrisy as I chewed my meat knowing that if the animal I was eating were in front of me, would I slaughter it in order to enjoy it's addition to my meal... No, but why would I let someone else do my dirty work for me and simply put that animal's life out of sight out of mind? I just can't do that anymore.
So, to get back on topic, I had a great experience doing the cleanse, and I even plan on doing it again at the start of next summer. Most likely I will be continuing the trend every summer, as a way to detox and begin again a new adventure of healthy eating. It was definitely not as difficult as I imagined it would be, thought it was a challenge, and it was a great personal goal to achieve.
Was it worth it? In my opinion, YES! Do I think I could do the cleanse while working? Yes, totally. My energy was a little less than normal, however, it was a very slight difference, and if you're consistent with your drinks, you will be fine.
The Complete Master Cleanse, by Tom Woloshyn
Ok, so let me break this review down into three parts...
- Was it a helpful guide to the process?
- Was it informative?
Also, the diet was a creation of Stanley Burroughs, who Woloshyn gives credit to, but, in my opinion, not enough. It seems as though the emphasis of the book is on Woloshyn's work and his personal opinions and less about the actual process of the cleanse. Woloshyn focuses a lot on other alternative medicinal practices, such as Vita-Flex massage and Color Therapy (his areas of concentrations) and spends a good deal of time and devotion to them.
Once finished with the book, I had only marked a couple of chapters in which I returned to quite frequently. This is also because it does not take a 200 page book to explain the process and benefits of The Master Cleanse... only a chapter. In comparison, Burroughs book, The Master Cleanse (which I have not read, but would like to in order to compare and contrast the content), is only 50 pages, and most of what you really need to know can be found via the internet. I will say, though, that for those chapters that I frequented, I was not unhappy with the plethora of information given, ranging from basic steps to what to expect from the process... really intimate information about the physical effects to expect from your cleansing "adventure" which I found to be a very comforting as a guide.
- Would you recommend this book?
I would have to say that if you're wanting a truly in-depth account of the cleanse with all of the details of every bodily function you may encounter, then I would recommend this book, along with an extra 100 pages that you may or may not find relevant and an author who tends to be a little self-serving. However, if you're interested in knowing the basics and focusing JUST on the cleanse, then I would recommend Burrough's book (I've read good reviews), or simply exploring the Internet and it's discussions on the cleanse. The Cleanse = Awesome, Woloshyn's book = Mediocre.
I think that about covers it...
However, like I said in a previous post, if I left anything out, or if you have any questions that I didn't quite answer, then just leave me a comment below, and I'll answer it to the best of my ability!
I'm going to be using a lot of upcoming posts to catch up on things around here, so be prepared to back-track and hang around the thick of the summer for a bit longer... nothing wrong with that, right? I left my camera in Lindsey and Blake's car, so it's up in St. Louis with a lot of awesome summer pictures as well, so hopefully I'll get my sweet friend back soon and I can share those memories with you!
Have a beautiful weekend!
The best non-existant accessory for this summer = shoes.
I'm obviously a neglectful blogger. Not that it's a bad thing to step away from the computer or anything, but you know, a heads up would have been cool too (Sorry about that!). I didn't realize that I would be taking/needing such a break until I realized that I was on it and didn't feel the motivation or desire to search for precious time to devote to posting. That sounds awful, but I was so busy with projects and making the most of my summer that the blog simply got pushed aside. Now, at the start of school, things are going to get busier than ever, but I have resurfaced to find myself motivated and eager to tend to the blog once again and hope to become a more attentive and interesting blogger in the process.
I promise, though, that I will make it a point to give that heads up for whenever I do take a hiatus from the blog. Because it's simply the polite thing to do :)
On my last post, I was going to review the book that I read in preparation for The Master Cleanse and give an overall response to the experience. So, I will indeed create that review, and then catch you up with my summertime adventures and projects and plans yet to be hatched! I hope your summer has been splendid and that you'll forgive me for the long absence.
Talk to you again soon!
