My Juice Cleanse Experience

I have three goals in life:

1.  To love God and serve Him first.
2.  To serve my husband in a way that allows him to be the best man he can be.
3.  To serve my children in a way that allows them to be the best people they can be.

A close fourth is this:

4.  To avoid having another kidney stone.  Ever.  E.V.E.R.

I have now had three kidney stones, all different experiences, but equal in shattering the ceiling on any pain threshold I may have had prior.  And I've pushed out two ten-pound babies, so that's saying something.

Memories of writhing on the ground, screaming in the car, later being pumped full of morphine were the driving force behind my desire to complete a 3-day juice cleanse, along with some lesser significant goals.  Now seemed as good a time as any, so on Monday....it began. 

Unwilling to shell out huge cash for an already prepared cleanse, I used recipes from this website to complete the DIY Blueprint Cleanse.  It was extraordinarily time consuming, but being at home all day, I had the ability to make it happen.  The produce cost me more than expected, but I hadn't factored in that produce is generally more expensive here.  (No Farmers Markets in the tundra.  Boo.) 

Positive Results from the cleanse:

- I felt a noticeable surge in energy every day. 
- I was pleasantly surprised that my hunger level was mild, if any.  I had a CLIF bar on days 2 and 3 to ward off some shakiness.
- I felt significantly more hydrated.  (I was definitely DE-hydrated going in to this week.)
- I lost a total of 6 pounds.  That wasn't the goal of this cleanse, but a not-so-shabby side effect.  :)
- I found I have a smaller appetite post-cleanse, and desire to avoid foods that counter my hard work.

Not-So-Great things about the cleanse:

- It was really difficult for me to consume that much liquid.  I really forced myself to drink all day long.  It's not that the juices were terrible (they ranged from yummy to tolerable), it's that I'm not used to drinking so much daily.  Confession:  I skipped the fifth juice entirely.  I just ran out of time each night. 
- I was cold.  Every day, all the time.  And cold is a feeling I really try to avoid (it's hard, believe me!).  Is there a hot-chocolate/coffee/wine cleanse for us Northerners? 
- It sucked up all my free time.  Next time, I'll do much more prep work.

NEXT TIME?  Yeah, I'd do it again. 

Peace Be With You

 I did yoga once.

(I had to stop typing to giggle at the absurdity of this memory.  I can't even touch my toes.)

To set the scene, I was staying as a guest at the Ritz-Carlton Laguna Niguel as a gift from two of my students (perks of working at a Private School!) and a morning yoga-pilates class offered on a lawn overlooking the ocean (pictured above) was included with my stay.  So, I seized the morning.  It was beautiful, and quiet, and some people were tooooootally into it.  I enjoyed it, too, but to be honest, I was really just there for the view and the complimentary yoga mat.

It has become somewhat trendy in the blogging world to choose a "word of the year"...something you want to experience or perfect or move towards in the year to come.  The challenge is presented to me every January, yet every year I scoff at the idea of narrowing down my goals to ONE word.  Well this year, several weeks late, I've been overwhelmed with one specific goal...and if I had to choose A word to define 2014, it's this:

PEACE.

I want it.  I want it ALL the time.  When I think of peace, the picture above comes to mind immediately, but that kind of peace is a lie...a guise.  I don't want an artificial peace in between bouts of drama.  I don't simply want peace on my calendar (because let's face it, THAT'S not going to happen).  I don't want the NAMASTE kind of peace the world promotes through silly meditative practices.  I want the peace of GOD, the deep contentment that ONLY can be attained through Him. 

I've been under conviction lately that I continue to sabotage my own quest for peace.  One such way I do this is by replaying my problems over and over...in my mind, out loud, with other people.  Over and over and over....ugh!  What a waste of time!  I am acutely aware that living a problem-free life is not possible, but we can control how many times we live through the same problem.  All that time stewing is LESS time devoted to ways God can infuse His peace into the situation. 

It's really thrilling that when you genuinely seek the Lord, you will find Him.  And better yet, He will find you!  Verses have been jumping off the page at me left and right- verses that assure me I'm moving in the right direction...toward the perfect peace he assures.

 This is a quote that has resonated with me recently:
"Peace is one of the most obvious earmarks of the authority of Christ. A sense of peace will virtually always accompany His will and direction, even when the direction might not have been our personal preference." - Beth Moore

And here's a bit of Biblical yoga..."stretching", if you will:

Psalm 34:14  Turn from evil and do good; seek peace and pursue it.

Isaiah 26:3 You will keep in perfect peace him whose mind is steadfast, because he trusts in you.

Matthew 11:28-30 "Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.  Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.  For my yoke is easy and my burden is light."

John 14:27  Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid.

John 16:33 "I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world."

Philippians 4:6-7  Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God.  And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.

 So here's to 2014, and the pursuit of PERFECT peace!

 

A Sweet Celebration

Waaaaaaaay back in December, we celebrated Kendall's birthday with some of her little buddies from Church and play.  Having a birthday the DAY BEFORE Christmas Eve always makes planning her birthday parties a little tricky, but we snuck it in before Christmas week commenced and...the result was a very happy birthday girl! :)

All things sweet and swirly!  My favorite decorative element was our Christmas balls (already up for Christmas), wrapped in cellophane and tied up like gumballs.  Ingenuity helps to save a few bucks!

Our party activity was making "candy necklaces" out of Fruit Loops and Cheerios.  Some girls made fancy patterns!

We enjoyed a treat together....lollypop cookies instead of cake! 

Kendall LOVED all her new toys!  Girls know girls the best :)

A happy celebration with good friends.  Thank you for making FOUR so SWEET!