Staying Healthy in the Winter Months

I've never really gotten the flu shot as an adult. I know many people that swear by it. The one year my family (excluding me) by accident got the flu shot (the hubby was in charge of this) they all ended up getting dreadfully sick. I however, despite taking care of each one of them, did not get sick. Now, I'm no doctor and there is always a risk but I think I've done pretty well without it.

Staying healthy is especially important in the winter months. Now that I am pregnant, I want to be extra careful. It's said that in pregnancy your immune system is not at its fullest. So here are my tips and tricks on staying healthy when everyone else around you is getting caught up in the flu season.

Go Green

For the extra healthy boost and vitamins, add a green juice to your routine. I like to drink mine in the morning about a half hour before I eat breakfast. Don't forget to chew your juice:) Here is a great go to recipe...

Juice the following...
2 cups of pineapple
2 oranges
2 cucumbers
5 leafs of kale
1/2 inch of peeled fresh ginger root (a little goes a long way)

*Stir in a teaspoon of turmeric after you have juiced for an added punch and extra immune boost!

For more healthy recipes check out https://aloha.com/shop/recipes. They have some amazing ideas!!

De-Stress with Yoga

Exercise and de-stressing are important in keeping your body and your immune system intact. Stress has been linked to illnesses and increases the likelihood of you getting sick so keep that stress level down by a regular yoga routine.

You don't need to go to a yoga class at your gym to accomplish this. Buy a Yoga video and do it at home anytime!

When I first started out I used this beginners yoga video and I highly recommend it! The video I used was Beginning Yoga with Chrissy Carter.

How do you keep healthy in the winter? Do you have a special remedy or routine?

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Guest Post~ Food Makeover: Pizza Edition

Hey everyone!! I'm so excited for today's first guest post here on 3 Wittle Birds! My friend Robyn over at Miss GM NO is sharing her Vegan Pizza recipe with you all today! Robyn is passionate about  REAL FOOD and is on a mission to change the food industry! You are going to love her! 

 

Food Makeover: Pizza Edition

Most of us think healthy pizza is just about as mythical as the elusive unicorn, but I am here to tell you you’re wrong!

It CAN be done.

Give your pizza a “BAKE-OVER”!  This vegan, gluten-free pizza is killer…and easy to make. Take a look at my recipe below and give it a try! ;)

Okay before I give you my secret recipe…. let’s get one thing straight.  Take the image of your typical pizza- the smells, the tastes etc and throw it out the window. You have to be open-minded people.  This is NOT going to taste identical to Lou’s, or Giordano’s etc. But just because it doesn’t taste JUST LIKE that, doesn’t mean it taste’s bad.  It is just different.  It’s also different in the fact that it wont pack on the pounds, in fact it will do just the opposite.  So take your pick.

MY version of pizza has nearly 1/3  of the calories, 1/2 the fat, 1/20  the saturated fat, 1/100 the cholesterol, less than 1/2  the carbs,  1/4 the sodium and 2 times the fiber as a typical thin crust Domino’s cheese pizza!  Yes- Domino’s Pizza has 100 times more cholesterol you read that right.  Crazy.  Talk about a heart attack in a box…. The ONLY good thing about this junk pizza is the protein but even that is a stretch.  It’s not healthy protein..

Let’s look at the breakdown for both!

Miss GM NO!’s Vegan Pizza ( for 2-3 people)
Ingredients:

4 Brown Rice Tortillas ( found in the freezer section at places like Whole foods)

1 Cup (approx) of Organic ( no added sugar) Tomato Sauce

1 Package Vegan Gourmet Mozzarella Cheese

To Taste: Organic Olive Oil, Garlic Salt, Italian Spices

Directions:
Pre-heat oven to 350.  Place each tortilla on a foiled baking sheet and drizzle a bit of olive oil on both sides.  Sprinkle with garlic salt and bake until golden brown ( about 15 mins). You want the crust crisp!

Then,  put about 1/4 C. of the tomato sauce on each pizza and top with about 1/2 cup cheese.  Sprinkle Italian seasonings to your liking on top as well.

Please directly under broiler for about 5 minutes BUT please watch them!  Every oven is different.  **You will need to foil the edges of the pizzas as well because you don’t want them to burn under the broiler.

When they come out the cheese will look perfectly melted but a little more viscous than dairy cheese.  Just let it set for about 10 minutes to firm up before you eat.

Lastly, I like to sprinkle a little red pepper flakes on there for a little heat.  

Then Enjoy!!! 

Here is the nutritional info I created as well for one whole pizza. ( I combined all ingredients with the brands listed above and allowing for 1/2 T oil per pizza,  so if you chose different brands yours will vary):


Ingredients:

CHEESE:
(vegan, gluten-free, dairy-free, non-gmo)
Filtered Water, Expeller-Pressed Canola Oil, Inulin (Chicory Root Extract), Soy milk Powder (Soybeans), Soy Protein, Agar Agar, Sea Salt, Natural Flavor (Plant Sources), Carrageenan, Lactic Acid (Plant Source).
Contains: Soy

SAUCE:
Organically grown and processed tomato puree, organic onion powder and organic garlic powder.

CRUST:
Ingredients
Brown Rice Flour, Filtered Water, Tapioca Flour, Safflower oil, Rice Bran, Vegetable Gum, Sea Salt.

NOW… let’s compare my pizza to that Domino’s 10 inch thin cheese pizza….

This is for a whole 10 inch personal Domino’s THIN Crust cheese pizza:

 

PIZZA CHEESE:

Part Skim Mozzarella Cheese (Pasteurized Milk, Cultures, Salt, Enzymes), Modified Food Starch, Cellulose (Added To Prevent Caking), Nonfat Milk, Whey Protein Concentrate, Flavors, Sodium Propionate (Added as a Preservative).

SAUCE:
Tomato Puree (Water, Tomato Paste), Sugar, Salt, Spices, Garlic, Soybean Oil, and Citric Acid

THIN CRUST:

Flour (Wheat, Malted Barley), Water, Soybean Oil, Yeast, Salt, Dextrose, Leavening (Sodium Acid Pyrophosphate, Sodium Bicarbonate, Corn Starch, Monocalcium Phosphate), Calcium Propionate (Preservative).

What is all that crap?! Monocalcium Phosphate? Sodium Propionate? Cellulose? Sodium Bicarbonate?   You can easily tell the difference between pizzas and how this fast food is NOT good for our bodies- inside and out.

Give your pizza a “Bake-over” and try this out!! Comment below and let me know what you think!

Sources: https://order.dominos.com/en/pages/content/nutritional/cal-o-meter.jsp#

A Third Child?

I don't know if I'm ready for it and I'm not sure about it in general. After your second child, with two girls, people ask you "are you going to try for a boy?" I used to think I wanted a big family, with lots of kids and lots of love. I equated the amount of children you had with how fulfilled you would feel. The NUMBER started at 5, than crept down to 4. After my second, the hubby and I finally agreed upon 3... maybe.

Our first child was easy. We had it made. Despite the fact that at 7 days old she had heart surgery and we experience a tremendous amount of unexpected stress, which I'm still in therapy for today, we had it pretty dang good once the dust settled. She slept through the night at almost a month old. She never had any feeding problems, was in good health otherwise. She grew up to be the sweetest little girl, only occasionally testing her parent's limits. She followed directions and hardly threw tantrums....

That's when number two came along. That is when all hell broke loose, including my water bag at 28 weeks. I was on bed rest for 4 weeks while we held off the labor and she came at 32 weeks. Ryleigh was a preemie but didn't look like it since she was a large baby, 5lbs! We thought, since again we experienced tremendous unexpected stress, that GOD was granting us with another easy baby. We were terribly wrong.

Don't get me wrong, I love my children so much, but number Two has been more of a challenge than we expected. In addition to a new baby my oldest started having more tantrums. I remember looking at my husband, with two screaming/crying children and thinking what the hell happened to us. I have learned to laugh through the tantrums and the outbreaks, although I'm not sure it's helpful on the children but it keeps my sanity. I know that this too is a season and will pass.

So here we are, 2 and a half years later, confronted with the idea of having another. Ryleigh still drinks a sippy cup of almond milk before bed (it's the substitute for bottle we were supposed to wean her off of at 12 months) but we are trying. We have done everything wrong with our second and I feel insecure with our parenting decisions. I am sweating through answering another question about the third.

So do we shoot for a third? I don't know anymore. It changes on a day to day basis. It doesn't necessarily have to do with the kid's behavior.
I think about how we could be done with diapers soon.
I think about not needing a minivan, although it would be nice.
I think about just being over that baby stage.

But then I think about how warm and wonderful it felt to have a little someone inside of me and how wonderful it would be for Bella and Ryleigh to have a little brother or sister.

I will just have to wait until I know. Do you ever really know, though? Can someone please let me know how they knew when enough was enough?

They are so precious together!

Healthy Weight Loss Update

I wanted to give an update on how The Fast Metabolism Diet: Eat More Food and Lose More Weight
is going... extremely well! The first couple of days were hard to kick my caffeine addiction but this week has been really enjoyable.

I had amazing results last week that I am almost intimidated to post because most people will say it's too much for one week. I promise I did nothing but eat healthy and according to Haylie's plan. I lost 10 pounds in the first week!! I really couldn't believe it myself.

Read the book for yourself and see if this is something for you. Find the book here...

I'm still a little insecure to post full on pictures of the progress but I'm working myself up to that:).


*This post contains my affiliate link that helps support my family. The opinions and experiences expressed are entirely my own.

If you like what you see today, please follow along subscribe by email 

The Skinny on Juicing

We have been in our new home now for about a week and I have barely unpacked!!! I feel the mountains of bags and boxes, which I've realized I am not a very good packer or unpacker, have taken over my life!! One of the first things that I was delighted to dust off was my Breville Juicer!!!

A year ago, I attempted the juice fast by Joe the Juicer. That was the most mind crazing diet I have ever attempted and also the best I have ever felt. Here's the skinny on juicing....



I thought I would share a few of my favorite juice recipes to start your morning right!

Here is one from the website that I absolutely love... Have I told you about my obsession for beet juice. I hate eating beets, but for some reason I love the earthy taste in liquid form!

It's called Bright Pink-A-Licious Juice!!!

By Kelly from Nosh and Nourish!

Ingredients:
1 – 2  small beets (beetroot), peeled
4 carrots
1 orange, peeled
1 sweet potato, peeled
1/2 lemon, peeled  

Directions:
1.) Wash all ingredients well.

2.) Peel the beets, lemon, oranges and sweet potatoes.

3.) Cut the fruits and veggies into pieces small enough to fit through your juicer chute.

4.) Juice all produce and enjoy over ice.

 I hope you enjoy this one as much as I do!!!

P.S. I always recommend using only ORGANIC fruits and vegetables when juicing. It defeats the purpose.

March with Me!

I haven't been writing much recently, it's not for a lack of inspiration. Maybe even to much inspiring for me to really put into words my transformation. One thing that has caught my passion is sustainable organic living. It really saddens me that not only can we not trust out government to do their jobs in monitoring our food, but at the end of the day it's not about the American people, it's about lobbying. 

Have any of you every had that friend, that obsesses over a problem and no matter what advice you give them, they can't seem to get it (I have been that person). You both see the solution plain as day, yet they still don't help themselves. You just want to shake them and say "why are you doing this to yourself?"...............That's how I feel about this issue. 

Why is it, when you post a funny picture( maybe even somewhat offensive and inappropriate) on Facebook you can get a hundred likes, but the second you post something of real substance and concern no one seems to see it? 

Why are we afraid to be extreme in our views when it comes to what we put in our body? 

"We label our mattresses better than we label the food that goes into our body"

I think I'm going to keep this short and simple from here.... Join me!!! 

https://www.facebook.com/events/147274678766425/?fref=ts

We all have a voice.... Do you want things to change with our food? Do you mind feeding pesticides that farmers need to wear a mask to handle? I never signed on to be a test group and I'm sure neither did you.

Image found here

I'm still coming up with sign ideas... does anyone have a suggestion?

Metamorphosis

Do you ever just need some time off, to take a break from all the crazy media chaos in your life? Sometimes I just want to crawl up in a quiet corner, to be left alone and see where my mind takes me. Not that I'm not feeling so inspired lately, maybe too inspired. I'm going through a little bit of a metamorphosis right now.

I remember reading a book in school once, called The Metamorphosis by Franz Kafka. My life is not dreary like the book, just sort of in the clouds recently. Uncertainty and confusion would be the resemblance. I'm feeling very blessed and a bit overwhelmed with all the daily obligations. I miss my blog though and will return soon....

Thanks!

I cut my grocery bill and my pounds!

found here

This year I have been more health conscious with my food. There are so many articles and stories out there filled with reports and information, about what's bad for you and what is worse. I'm not going to lie, the paranoia is sinking in that the government is set out to poison us!! Maaaaybeeee that's a little dramatic, (or is it?) but why would we knowingly allow these foods... substances to be on the market? Sounds to me like neglect and carelessness for our people, but I'm not going to go into politics today... because once I start I don't stop and it's not pretty:)

This post was actually going to be about weight loss and look where it's taken me....

Anyways.... back on topic. For the past couple weeks we have been really tight on grocery budget. Like $50 a week tight, for a family of four, with a lactose intolerance, and diapers!!! I was worried that this lack of funds would lead to buying crap foods. It was actually the opposite!!!!

Snack foods really give you a lot less for more of your money. I loaded up on bananas and tangerines instead and spent less than I would have on fruit snacks and other kid snacks! We also purchased large bags of frozen vegetables! Frozen veggies can be pretty cheap and you don't have to worry about them going bad!!!

It was hard eating PB and J's everyday for lunch and pasta for dinner but we managed to dress is up a couple nights. You can get pretty creative in desperate times!!

link

The most exciting part of all of this is when I jumped on the scale last night and realized I dropped 4 pounds!!!! Maybe we will continue to shop like this if we are saving money and losing weight! So what I really wanted to talk about was living a sustainable lifestyle but I guess I went off on bragging about weight loss and budgeting. I will have to tell you about my backyard farm dream some other time.

Here is a what our shopping list looked like.... Make sure you do an inventory of what you already have. This helps cut cost and really maximize on what you can make. Sticking to a list helps you stay on budget and I estimated ahead of time the cost.

• Pasta, all sorts.... 3 boxes
• Pasta sauce, 2 jars(we love Classico) Has anyone tried the new creamy spinach one? To die for!
• Applesauce
• 1 head of iceberg lettuce
• 2 lbs of ground pork (sale)
• Tortillas
• Salsa
• 2 loaves of bread
• Jelly (we had peanut butter)
• 4 pounds of Bananas
• Bag of cuties
• Multigrain Cheerios
• 2 boxes of instant oatmeal
• 2 large bags of frozen veggies (carrots and mixed veggies)
• Juice (for the kids)
• Silk soy milk
• 2 dozen eggs

Things that we made

• Tacos
• Meatballs
• Italian Chicken
• lots of pasta
• PB and J's every day
• Oatmeal for breakfast everyday
• Snacked on Fruit
• omelets

BPA in receipts!!!

When I first saw this article in my daily Yahoo news, I was shocked. Then when I Googled it I found that this is not new!!! Where the hell have I been? I'm usually on top of stuff like this!

Did you know that those receipts we receive everyday from the grocery store, drive through... pretty much anywhere, are lined with BPA?!?! Thermal paper is dusted with it. Forget worrying about them in plastic, this stuff comes right off in our hands and we touch everything. I just picture my little baby sticking her fingers in her mouth and swallowing that awful stuff.

Because I'm not a scientist or a doctor (although sometimes I like to think I am), here are some links for some of the articles I did read.

NY Times
CBS News
Discover Magazine
sciencenews.org

For those of you who don't know the dangers of BPA it has been linked to cancer and obesity, just to name a few. I can't stop thinking about how I let my girls go through my purse and all those reciepts they took out. Why do we continue to allow these types of chemicals to be manufactured. Why are there not more strict regulations on chemicals that have been PROVEN to cause cancer and other problems? Does the government just not care about it's people? Do these manufacturers and mass producers laugh at the thought of what these products do?

Winter Blues and Juicing

I despise the winter. I hate the cold and the life outside is so depressing. I clearly don't get a long with this season in the north. I'm sitting here, watching another real estate show in some beautiful Hawaiian location, just wishing for some warm weather and flip flops! Good thing we had our Disney Vacation last week!! Pictures are coming!!

I have been on a juicing diet. Took a break for the holiday's and starting back up full gear for the new year! I know, another resolution.. but really I am going to get healthy and fit for 2013! I will be at my goal health by the time I turn 30 in October!!!

A great way to beat the winter blues is have a extra fresh and healthy juice! I like to start my mornings with more of a fruit than veggie ratio. The sugar gives me a jump start for the morning and replaces the need for coffee! This one is a good balance!

Carrot Apple and Ginger

Yummy food used:
2 Apple
3 Carrots
1/2 inch of fresh Ginger

A Year From Now

A year from now, I hope I can look myself in the mirror and see the change.

So this running thing... Started off great... a month and a half into it, still no results. I got frustrated and pissy. Ended up not running for a month. I totally lost sight of what my mission was and why I was doing it. I started to feel sorry for myself . . . eck!

The other day, I ran for almost an hour straight!! I just got up and said "I am going to run"! Now, for a beginning runner this is huge!! I probably could have ran more but I didn't want to pass out right there on the sidewalk. In a fluke accident I sprained my ankle over the weekend. Just another battle to over come.

This is me w/my glasses and my husband

Recently, I got back into my contacts. I went two straight years wearing glasses, coming from a person who always wore contacts in the past. Not that I am superficial but the contacts have given me a new look... like literally I look different and emotionally I feel different. I think I really started sporting the glasses when I had my first baby. Ironically, that is around the time I started struggle.

For me, I think the glasses were a way of hiding behind a curtain. I didn't really have to worry so much about make-up because who could even see me with the thick frames. My weight struggled and slowly packed on an additional 20 pounds with out even realizing it! Emotionally I struggled too. My anxiety went through the roof and I couldn't handle stress like I use to. I think the biggest thing for me was looking myself in the mirror.  I didn't like the reflection and I just allowed it to get worse.

So here I am today, struggling to get my butt in gear, trying to get myself back. I really see myself now that the glasses are gone and man... I look older! Didn't realize how age had taken to me, but I can see ME now and what I have been hiding so long. I am back and I know I will have my struggles in the healthy living process, but I am seeing things clearer! Hopefully, by this time next year I WILL see results!

Coming at you with Pour Your Heart Out...

Spiritual quenching....

Are you like me.. someone who doesn't quite know what they believe in or questions every idea out there? The past ten years have been a dabble of what I call spiritual quenching. Not too sure which direction I wanted to take, but knew there was more out there than any man or thing could provide.

From my very own rose garden!

More recently, I have been hungry for it. Thinking back at the past years, and realizing there are certain beliefs that have caught my attention for more than a day. Born and raised Catholic, this has been my roots and what all answers and expressions come from.

The Law of Attraction and Karma has caught most of my interest in the past years. It seems so simple, yet so difficult. It all makes sense to me and I feel as if my life is a reflection of what I have unintentionally felt it to be. I struggled with making this work towards what I desired. I found it incredibly hard to change my thoughts and inner voice . Sure, I could do the wishful thinking part all day long, which would get me nowhere if i couldn't FEEL well about it.

photo: www.atlantisqueen.com

It wasn't until I came across the law of Karma, that I truly understood how the concept worked. I realized that my own feelings deep with in are what has prevented my happiness. I couldn't help but list off all the negative feelings I had towards other people . That was it. The feelings I had was affecting my direction of a better life.
Anger. 
Resentment. 
Jealousy. 
Defensive. 
Lack of courage.

Not accepting my own demons for what they are, also prevented me from feeling good. I needed to come to terms with "what I've got, what I am not and who I am"~Jason Mraz.... God, I love that song!

According to my yearly horoscope, which I tend to take very lightly, I am suppose to have a year of transformation... like a butterfly or phoenix. Honestly, this is the first time I would agree. So far, this year has been about strength and shedding all that is negative and I am finally realizing.

Big things for me this year are....

Karma Time Integrity

The only missing connection I have is how do I connect this what I have been taught? Where does God and Jesus fit into all of this?

Live stronger

Recently I have started a journey towards a new lifestyle. It has taken me many years to get to the weight that I am today and I can say it has been the heaviest I have ever been. I know that I have been through two pregnancies and I just had a baby 7 months ago, but that is no excuse to let myself go. If I honestly worked out and ate right it wouldn't concern me, but I have done neither. I want to be around for my children and I want to teach them healthy lifestyles.

With all this downer shit said... I have been on this new road for about two weeks now. I have only lost three pounds and I am still struggling with making the right food choices... but I am a work in progress and the fact that I have kept it up this long is enough for me. Day by day, right?

I think what I have been most impressed about is how determined and persistent I have been. I never thought I could run 20 minutes straight and I defied that thought with in days. I am more then I thought I could or would be and that only gives me more confidence that someday, down this long road, I will be where I want to be with my body and my health! I made this change not as a diet but a change in lifestyle, which I know will take longer then I have patience for.



I guess, I just keep imagining my ideal body a year or two down the road, because I know once I get there I will not regret a single workout or meal choice!

I have found a great website Livestrong.com that has helped me track my weight loss, calories and workouts!! It really been helpful and I suggest you sign up for the free profile. I also have the app on my windows 7 phone so I can track my calories through out the day with ease!!!

If you do join, make sure to become my friend (k_delarosa) and we can be cheerleaders to each other!!!

Becoming a runner.

I didn't think I could be a runner. I never liked it when I was young and frankly, it makes me feel like i am about to simultaneously combust. One day I got tired of how I looked and got tired of feeling tired. I can't believe I have let myself go like this... and it has been years. It just took me those years to realize this is not healthy and it is not okay to be okay with being the chubby girl. I want and deserve more than that and so does my family. So two days ago I said "I gonna go for a run" I nearly laughed when the words came out of my mouth but I went out the door anyway. When I got to the park by my house I started a light jog.... I started to feel pain, I started to doubt. This time something inside of me said "keep pushing" I had heard that the first 8 minutes are hell... this coming from an avid runner. So I though, if I could just make it through the first 8 minutes I could see from there. I did make it thought the 8 minutes and I kept going... and going... telling myself "just one more lap"!

And then, 20 minutes later, I had to stop. I didn't want to over do it... this was a triumph in it self. In high school I couldn't even run the 1 mile with out walking 50% of the way and I had just ran for a straight 20 minutes. What I learned was the first 10 minutes are hell, and after that your body starts to move in the direction you want and all of the sudden this meditative states hits you and it is actually enjoyable, even through the pain. I think I am on to something, i thin i might enjoy this... I went for a run the following day and did the same thing!!!! I think I have started to become a runner!

I really think it starts with the attitude and some really motivating quotes on pinterest!