Enjoy this Healthy Chocolate without the Guilt!!

So I recently was in contact with the nice people over at ChoNanga about reviewing some of their chocolate products & they sent me one of everything! Let's be honest, I'm not about to turn down chocolate, especially gourmet chocolate!

I really love how all of the chocolates have added benefits such as peppermint, maca, hempseeds, turmeric, matcha green tea, bee pollen & more! It made me feel so much less guilty about enjoying chocolate! My favorite was the Energy & Vitality but they were all so amazing that I would probably just order the sampler pack so that I can enjoy them all again!



I love supporting companies like ChoNanga because all of their ingredients are free of gluten, soy and GMO's. They use organic and fair trade ingredients whenever possible. When you purchase ChoNanga chocolate, you are also helping farmers get better prices, educating children in rural communities & keeping pesticides out of the environment. In addition, they pledge 2% of their profits to organizations that support a healthier planet, such as the Sacred Valley Project, which provides boarding and education to low income young women in rural Peru.

To grab some of these amazing chocolates for yourself (or as a stocking stuffer for your loved ones), you can check out their online shop here. Their prices are very reasonable too! Let me know if you try some and which is your favorite!

Disclaimer: I was not financially compensated for this post. I received a sample for review purposes. These opinions are entirely my own, based on my personal experience.  

Home-made Larabars!

I have a confession to make.. I have a slight obsession with Larabars. I love pretty much every flavor that they make, but let's be honest, they can get pretty expensive at almost $1 per bar!! So the other day when I was browsing on Pinterest, I saw a few healthy bar recipes and it convinced me to try my hand at making my own! So here goes, hope you enjoy!

Homemade Larabar Recipe:

1 1/2 cups pitted dates

4 tbsp. cocoa powder

1 pinch sea salt

1 tsp vanilla extract 

2 tbsp coconut oil

1 cup walnuts

Blend all together in the blender, slowly at first and then speed up. You will need to keep mixing and pushing down until it blends into a cookie batter like consistency. 

Put into a casserole dish and place in freezer for about 20-25 minutes. Cut into pieces & enjoy! I keep these refrigerated.

Even my picky husband loves these! Not to mention, they are really quick and easy to make. You can also add extra ingredients such as cinnamon, chocolate chips, raisins, etc. If you make some, let me know how yours turns out!

2016 Goals Accomplished + 2017 Goal Setting!

2016 Goals Accomplished:

Travel
Cruised MSC Cruise Line for the first time in May
Had couples facials at the cruise spa
Went paddle-boarding for the first time (& most likely the last time because I was so scared that a shark was going to pop out of the water, so I didn't really enjoy it)
Went on a catamaran with free flowing margaritas/beer
Went to the beach 2-3 times
Visited St. Augustine again
Visited Disney Springs- went on the hot air balloon ride

House Stuff
Bought new weed trimmer, pressure washer for the home
Ordered Surround speakers & installed in ceiling
Bought + installed butcher block in laundry room
Ordered new woven blinds online & put up in bedroom
Had concrete poured on both well-house and garage
Hubby designed new retaining wall with flowerbed by garage entrance
Cleaned out garage- can actually fit 2 cars now! Made $1K + selling things & + donated to Goodwill
Finished painting exterior rafters
Finished painting exterior hardi-siding + trim
Worked on Landscaping- planted crepe myrtle trees, fruit trees, trimmed around all trees, put down pine-straw around flowerbeds
Hubby installed hood vent in kitchen
Put up interior window trim & painted
Painted 5 interior doors
Bought new furniture- coffee table, buffet table, TV stand, European clock, bedroom mirror, living room mirror, 2 living room end tables
Made over IKEA bedroom stands with new pull handles
Purchased new pillows for living room & new dinnerware
Cleaned out my closet & got rid of lots of jewelry, shoes and clothing since I work from home Consigned & made over $200 this year

Business
Published 3 books on Amazon
Started a new Book Club on Facebook
Collaborated on a live Facebook Marathon for a top business leader
Applied for some new virtual work & submitted 2 video interviews (got out of my comfort zone creating videos of myself!!)
Learned how to design a Square Space Website from scratch
Created styled stock photography & opened a store on Creative Market
Created a free opt-in & grew mailing list
Grew FB Business page
Re-branded entire business
Began writing 2 more books- hope to finish in 2017
Updated my LinkedIn + Resume
Learned much more about social media scheduling, accounting systems & lots of other geeky stuff!

Blog
Had a blog makeover!
Grew my FB Blog Page
Designed new email banner for blog inquiries

Health
Discovered Bullet-Proof Coffee + Golden milk
Eliminated soy, gluten, dairy, eggs, stevia & any organic products with sneaky additives

Spiritual
Learned to trust God even more
Prayed over my anxiety and God delivered me of it!  I now hand over all of my problems to God and don't worry about them anymore!

Self Improvement
Set better boundaries with people
Eliminated more negative people out of my life/personal space

Miscellaneous
Purchased Amazon Prime
Costco Card Renewal
Found a new organic market- Lucky's Market! My new favorite store!
Purchased newer car/better on gas
Sold Suburban
Sold Lake Lot + buyer agreed to pay 2016 taxes! (prayed over this & God blessed!)
Visited Aldi's for the first time and actually liked it! (our closest one is in Jacksonville)
Bought a replacement Keurig + Kcups
Helped Brother on his new house + made some extra money
Won an amazing $50 Gluten Free Giveaway package from Canyon Bakehouse

2017 Goals:
Finish up house projects (well-house, kitchen back-splash, trim, fire-pit, stain concrete, garage walls, a/c cover, landscaping)
Travel more, work less! (Use up free plane tickets)
Enjoy weekends more doing local things
Keep praying about my business vs working for another company
Goal Weight/Tone up
Grow nails
Have professional photos done

I was so busy this year as you can see! I really just want to slow things down next year and enjoy life more. I'm so done with being busy all of the time and I just want to enjoy our new home and have more travel and adventure.

What did you get accomplished this year?

Fall is my favorite time of the year!

Happy November Y'all!! The last week has been full of fun Fall things- Fall costume parties, baking yummy treats, soups, new Fall boots and lots of raking + landscaping. I love this time of year!

The hubby and I made pumpkin shaped cheese straws together

 My fail at a cute Fall photo

 Turmeric Ginger Latte- my new favorite drink!

Lentil soup with carrots, celery & onions

  I signed up for ShoeDazzle and ordered these boots + another pair!

We also renewed our Costco Membership & picked up some healthy eats

Target run + Starbucks is always necessary!

We also have been working so much on landscaping- planting crepe myrtle trees, fruit trees, blueberry and blackberry bushes. I am so excited to have a fruit orchard! Today I am going to work on raking pine-straw to put in the beds and cleaning up the concrete from pouring our drive + well house. This weekend we are planning to have a huge bonfire + hot cocoa, so I'm really looking forward to that!

Lately, I have  been making lots of things from scratch- coconut milk, almond milk, almond flour, larabars & chocolate chips. There are so many additives in processed foods, that I prefer making my own foods at home, even though it takes more work. I just ordered more cacao along with some other health items, so hopefully it comes in soon so I can make the hubby chocolate chip cookies.

What fun things do you do in the Fall?

Weekly Updates

Happy Friday y'all! How was your week? I currently have a load of laundry washing and just finished washing a few dishes. Even though I stay pretty busy, I have been making a conscious effort on slowing down in my life instead of being so stressed & chaotic. I have also realized that I have to stay away from people who are so obsessed with being chaotic, busy and rushed because they cause my anxiety to worsen. That's the life that they have chosen for themselves, but it's not the life that I want. Okay, enough about that- on to this week's updates!

Here is what went down this week:

|| Visited my Mom last Friday & brought pizza and lasagna for dinner
|| Scheduled hair Appointment for next Wednesday
|| Ordered costume for upcoming Fall Party!
|| Ordered Fall Booties. I am so excited to get them in!
|| Additional client work/hours
|| Applied for some VA work with an awesome company
|| Lots of yard-work! I love working with the hubby, picking up sticks + pine-cones when the weather is so nice in the Fall!
|| Finished the concrete- I ordered top soil which they delivered yesterday and later we will order gravel and plant crepe myrtle trees
|| Cleaned Pantry, Fridge and Freezer (now I need to go food shopping this weekend!)
|| Cleaned Bathroom/organized cabinet
|| I also won a huge gluten free giveaway from Canyon Bakehouse! I actually buy their products, but it was nice to win some that I haven't tried yet.

Another big thing is that I started writing a new book about Health. After going through the past couple of years dealing with GI issues, weight gain, anxiety, etc., I figured that I needed to write a book on everything that has helped me heal. I have prayed for God to show me the things that I am doing that has harmed my body and he has shown me several things lately that has helped me lose some additional weight (6 lbs) and feel better! It's a huge epidemic in the world right now and I want to be able to help other people live a healthy, fulfilling life and not be overweight and sick all of the time.

Honestly, the research part for this book has been so much fun! I always love learning about new ways to live a healthier lifestyle. I have been doing some guinea pig testing (on myself) for the book including an 8 day detox replacing coffee with green tea. That was definitely one of the hardest parts!

That's pretty much it for this week. I am headed outside to go for my daily walk and prayer and then I am going to sit down and figure out a weekend getaway that I can plan soon. I would love something that is full of fun fall-like things- pumpkins, apples, mountains! I want to enjoy this Fall season to the fullest!

What are some things going on with you this week?

Working towards my Goals!!

Life has been crazy lately, but in a good way. We have been working hard this year so that we can leave 2016 with a bang! 123 days left to work on those goals!

So my main goals to finish by the end of this year are:

1.) Reach my happy size- I don't care what the scale number or clothing size is, I just want to look and feel amazing! Muscle ways more than fat- seriously, just look at the photo below to see my point! Seeing this has seriously changed my mindset from focusing on numbers to focusing instead of being healthy and toned!

I recently switched from the Ketogenic diet back to the Whole 30, only because I just can't keep up with eating so much fat each meal. Also, because I was really missing eating my fruit and the Keto diet discourages eating too many fruits.

via mysweatlife

2.) Finish the house construction! The only thing remaining is the interior trim, kitchen backsplash, well house and the concrete pour for the drive for the garage. We do want to also work on landscaping later and another project that we want to work on is to do pallet walls for our garage + some organization.

3.) Clean some more in the Garage- I have really focused on decluttering this year and have gotten rid of SO much! But I do still have a few things that I would like to go through and sell on swap and shop. I'm a little OCD when it comes to being organized, so I'm not your typical person. I just want everything to have a place.

4.) Possibly trade in owning a business for a 9-5 I have to be honest, I miss having paid vacations, sick leave, etc. When you're the boss, you don't get paid for the hours you work or the time off that you take which can be a huge downside.I never thought I would want to go back to a 9-5, but after running my own business for almost a year, I really don't think it's for me. And that's okay, I'm very glad that I followed my dreams and honestly I have learned so many new things that I can apply to my new job! (I will talk more about my decision/reasons in a future blog post).

5.) Fit in 1-2 more weekend vacays and relax some. We do have a December week long trip planned, but we have been working so hard that we need some mini-breaks.

6.) Girls Shopping Trip!  Once we reach our fitness goals, my sister and I are planning a shopping trip for possibly this November. I'm so ready to go shopping for some cute clothes! Honestly, I haven't bought much all year because I have not been happy with my weight.It's the one thing that really motivates me to get up early and work out every day!

Here are some things that I have been working on the last couple of weeks to work towards our goals!

>> Successfully completed HIIT workouts every day of the week! On my 4th week of working out without missing a day!
>> Eliminated dairy products starting last Wednesday- I want to see if it helps me in my weight loss, allergies + toning
>> Added social media share icons to my Blog (feel free to share via social media, email!)
>> Hubby fixed the 2 deck caps
>> I painted behind the deck columns and touched up the base trim + touched up 2 last areas
>> Finished painting all of the house + windows!!! If we ever build again- it definitely needs to be a single story or have someone else paint it- I'm so over painting!
>> Listened to some amazing sermons last week & had a clarity moment which helped me so much!
>> Have been working the past 2 Saturdays & made some extra money working with the hubby to put in ceiling & wall project for my brother

I also may have some very good news on one of our huge goals that may be coming to pass soon!! I have been doing so much praying over our future this year and leaving everything in God's hands. I know that God is working on things, even when we can't see it! I honestly am beyond excited to finish 2016 off strong and start the new year with an amazing start!

Keto Scare + No More Swimming

 
Hi lovies! Hope your week is going well! I still can't get over that we have less than 5 months remaining in 2016. It's really made me realize that I need to keep pushing and working hard to get all of my goals accomplished!

So what has been going on with me lately? Well first, I'm back on the Ketogenic diet. I had gotten off of it for about 2 weeks because I kept getting nauseous and dizzy. I thought that maybe that it was the lack of grains in my diet that was causing this so I ended up adding back in brown rice, yogurt and more fruits. I figured out later, that it wasn't my diet but something else entirely different.

Rewinding back to last Saturday, I woke up and nausea and dizziness immediately hit me. I got out of bed anyway, thinking that I could just have an espresso and feel better but when I tried to walk to the kitchen, I couldn't walk straight and literally ran into the dining room table. I felt very out of it and not myself; it was like I was having an out of body experience. I immediately grabbed my activated charcoal from the medicine cabinet and some water and ended up going back to bed to lie down. I got really scared because I felt so dizzy to the point that I couldn't even lift my head up so I asked the hubby to please pray over me, which he did immediately. I ended up sleeping for half the day and once I woke up, I felt like myself again. It scared me so bad that I prayed to God asking him to please heal me and to reveal to me what I was doing or eating that was making me so sick.

The following Monday afternoon, the hubby and I headed to the pool as usual and as soon as I started swimming a few minutes, I started getting dizzy and nauseous and it hit me, it was the chlorine and pool chemicals that was making me so sick!! I told the hubby that I was going to test my theory and not swim for about 1-2 weeks. Today marks almost 2 weeks and I haven't been nauseous or dizzy even one time. I have always known that I am extremely chemically sensitive to the extreme that at home I only use organic cleaners, body washes, toothpaste, laundry detergent. All of our foods are organic as well so I knew it wasn't anything in our house that was causing the problem. I honestly didn't think that the little bit of pool chemicals would bother me, but it did. Lesson learned!

So now instead of swimming, I have started back with my HIIT workouts and speed walking daily. I have been doing jump squats, lunges, regular squats with weights, burpees, mountain climbers, etc. I'm hoping that this will help build my muscle much faster than swimming did. I had issues with muscle weakness when I was swimming which have disappeared since I have been pool-free.

I'm waiting to hit my goal weight and then I plan on going shopping! I skipped both tax-free days in Georgia and Florida because I didn't want to buy clothes for the size I am now. I was really disappointed because I love shopping but I didn't want to buy clothes that I would just get rid of later. It really gave me a kick in the butt, looking at all of the cute clothing that was on sale that I couldn't even enjoy and for what? For me, it's just not worth it to not be in shape and to not feel good about myself. Now that I have figured out that the Keto diet is not harming me, I am excited to get back to it and get in shape!

Are you at your happy size? If not, what is holding you back?

Udi's Gluten Free Review!

I have been working really hard lately to eat healthier and eliminate gluten and I feel so much better eating this way! Still, sometimes my life gets so busy that I have to resort to pre-made frozen meals. Lucky for me, there are so many healthy options out there for people like me!

Recently, Udi's Gluten Free kindly sent me some complimentary coupons to use on their products to review. I was more than happy to oblige! I already purchase their gluten free breads, pizza and pastas but the Veggie Lasagna was new to me, so I chose it to review.

Udi's Gluten Free Veggie Lasagna is layered with mozzarella and ricotta cheese with tomatoes, zucchini, squash, onions and celery. My husband and I eat frozen meals at least once per week since we stay pretty busy and it's great to know that there are healthy, gluten free options out there! I love how easy it was to just pop in the oven and bake.

Comparing this lasagna to other frozen lasagnas that I've had is not even comparable. My husband honestly thought that this lasagna was home-made (I had to break the truth to him that it was frozen and he was very surprised!) For the people who dislike vegetables out there (my Mom and brother!), even though it has zucchini, squash, onions and celery, you could not even tell that they were in there.

You can find Udi's practically anywhere. I purchase mine from Publix, Whole Foods, Fresh Market and even Target.

Have you tried any of the Udi's Gluten Free products? I would love to hear about which ones that you've tried!

Disclaimer: I was not financially compensated for this post. I received a sample for review purposes. These opinions are entirely my own, based on my personal experience.  

Shaping up for the Summer + a Review

Lately, we have been enjoying the summer and going swimming at my brother's pool a few times per week. I have been taking advantage of the pool so that I can exercise and I have also been doing my HIIT workouts and speed walking. For some reason, it's been really difficult for me getting back in shape this time, so I ordered some Chromium Picolinate from iHerb today, and I'm hoping that it helps boost my metabolism and work some magic. Getting in shape is a daily commitment and it's definitely not for the lazy!

I have been eating really healthy since we got back from our week-long cruise. All gluten free, no breads and I have cut way back on sugar. Recently, I received these healthy heart bars from Rawxies to review. I was definitely in need of some healthy snacks and detoxing after all of the heavy foods from my cruise. 

I love the fact that rawxies are gluten free, soy free and dairy free; especially since I have allergies to all three. These heart bars were very filling and the perfect snack! My favorite two were obviously the chocolate chip cookie dough and chocolate brownie- yum! They also carry other great flavors such as mint chocolate chip and cranberry pecan.

If you are looking for a healthy snack these are perfect for before or after your workout. You can find them online at Amazon Prime, Lucky Vitamin, Vita-Cost, Abe's Market or The Gluten-Free Mall. You can also check their locations map online and find them in a store as well.

What's your favorite healthy snack?

Purely Elizabeth Review

I recently spoke with Caroline at purely elizabeth and she kindly emailed me a couple of coupons to try out some of their products. I chose the Blueberry Hemp Ancient Grain Granola & honestly, it was the best granola that I've eaten! The granola was crunchy with sweet blueberries.  It was sweet but instead of regular cane sugar, they use a coconut sugar which is a low-gylcemic sweetener. I love that it is Gluten-free + vegan as well.

The only downside was that it was so good that I kept wanting to eat it..so maybe tell yourself that you'll just have a small portion so that you don't overdo it! They also offer oatmeal, cereal and muesli; so lots of great breakfast options! 

I'm really looking forward to trying out the Pumpkin Fig and Cranberry Pecan Ancient Granola next! You can order any of their products online or at your local food store (Whole Foods, Fresh Market, Sprouts,EarthFare, Kroger, Ralphs and lots more!) I picked mine up at Whole Foods.

They also have a cookbook that looks amazing!- it has over 100 all natural, organic and gluten-free recipes.It's available on Amazon,Anthropologie & more-here's the link to learn more about the cookbook.

Have you tried any of the purely elizabeth products? I'd love to know!

Disclaimer: I was not financially compensated for this post. I received a sample for review purposes. These opinions are completely my own, based on my personal experience.  

Go Raw Snack Review

    

Recently, I connected with Lindsay at Go Raw to collaborate on doing a review on some of their raw snacks. If you've been following me for a while, you know that I like to try to eat healthy 95% of the time. Lately, I've been working on incorporating more raw, whole foods into my diet, so these snacks are perfect!

I also love these snacks because I am able to eat them even with all of my food allergies! They are gluten-free, soy-free, nut-free as well as vegan and no yucky genetically modified ingredients.

 The carrot cake sprouted cookies was one of my favorites! Just a handful was perfect for a pre-workout or even post workout.

 The first bar that I tried was the raisin crunch. I'm a big fan of raisins, so I was excited to try out this one! It was really delicious and I liked how chewy it was. It was not overly sweet like most of the packaged bars in the stores.

 The bars are loaded with lots of healthy sprouted grains like buckwheat groats, sunflower seeds, flax seeds, sesame seeds.This bar had 6 grams of fiber and 6 grams of protein.

Seriously, look at how huge this bar is! I put one of my books next to the bar,so that you can see the comparison. I took a few bites for a snack & I plan on saving the rest for later. I'm excited to have these to snack on, especially with summer right around the corner!

 Honestly, the raw chocolate was my favorite- I'm a chocolate lover! It was extremely creamy and rich. Perfect for an after dinner dessert.

 Loved these coconut crisps- light and delicious!

These went perfectly with my hummus. They had a really good flavor!

You can find any of these snacks in the Go Raw Online Store. I love how reasonable their prices are as well; all of their snacks are very affordable. If you're wanting to eat healthier and get in shape for the summer- these are the perfect snacks to get you started.

Disclaimer: I was not financially compensated for this post. I received a sample for review purposes. These opinions are completely my own based on my personal experience.

Working towards our Goals; one Day at a Time

 

Hi Lovies! I hope that you had a great weekend! I really enjoyed mine and was able to get so much accomplished. The hubby and I have a new plan to paint 4 exterior rafters each per day this week and our goal is to finish that part by this Thursday or Friday. Then we can move on to touch-ups, window trim, etc. Once the painting is finished, we can put up shutters.

I read a book over the weekend about being successful in life and the author was talking about how time is so expensive and that we shouldn't be doing things that we don't want to do just because others want us to. He talked about how we waste time with people who drain our energy/negative and how we should use our time more wisely. Some things that I am applying to my life is to start getting up earlier so that I can get more done. Every day, I feel like I don't have enough time to get everything that I need to get done. In order to finish our goals and to be successful, I am going to have to start sacrificing some sleep. I don't need 9 hours of sleep per night; 7 hours is ample enough time.

We have also been working on some health goals as well. Because of our food allergies, we have started a new healthy eating and exercise plan.

>> Decrease coffee to 1 cup per day (coffee can cause your body to hold on to fat cells)
>> Decrease dairy intake (using coconut milk for coffee creamer)
>> Decrease sugar intake (using agave + stevia)
>> Daily walking break for 20-30 minutes
>> Drinking 6-8 glasses of water per day
>> Eliminated Gluten, eggs, and soy altogether

We also started back taking our vitamins. I have gotten back on the vitamins to build up a good gut health since I had some health issues last year. Our new vitamin intake includes probiotics, chlorella, daily vitamin, slippery elm, MSM, calm with magnesium. I just put in another order with iHerb. I do my shopping here because I earn loyalty points that I can use towards future purchases! For first time customers, you can also get free items. Just use the code above.

I also cleaned out some of the garage on Saturday and Sunday. We are going to get the rest of our things and have a Garage Sale coming up on May 6th and 7th. I hope to clear out half of the garage! My goal this year is to declutter and get our house finished. For us, it's all about making lists of what needs to get done and mark it off one thing at a time. I am so excited to have our goals accomplished by this year so that we can sit back and enjoy what we have worked so hard to build!

What are some of your goals that you are working towards?

Ready for Summer!!

Happy Thursday lovies! It's almost Friday- yay!! The weather is finally starting to warm up here in Georgia and I for one, could not be more excited about it! I love the feel of sunshine on my face- goodbye cold weather! 

Summer is my favorite time of the year- I'm so looking forward to relaxing at the beach and catching up on some reading! Today I decided that it was time that I get my butt in gear and start running & eating healthy, drink more h20, etc! So in order to keep myself accountable, I plan on coming here and keeping you guys updated on how my new healthy lifestyle is coming along.

This morning I ran for 30 minutes and plan on running 30 more minutes with the hubby this afternoon. I noticed that it was really easy to start downing much more h20 while running- who knew! Running has also given me that extra pep in my step and I love how it helps to clear my head. I am super excited about getting healthy + losing the 6 lbs that I gained over the holidays + losing an extra 5 or so more. I plan on adding in lots of green juices, raw foods and salads back into my diet.

I'm cutting back on dairy, sugar, meats and alcohol. The best eating plan that I tend to lean towards is the Paleo and the Whole 30 Plan + Gluten Free but I usually do my eating plan without so much protein. Pork is definitely the worst protein and I don't even like it in our household- it's super unhealthy & loaded with artery clogging fats!! 

 photo via shopstyle

Who else is excited for Summer? Are you starting a healthy eating plan already or starting soon?