THE FOREVER YOUNG REVOLUTION™

A VERY FISHY AFFAIR

2012-02-15T05:30:00.002-08:00

Click on each picture to get an 'EYE-FULL' yummmmmy...

The only reason why I will not be considered 100% vegan is because every now and then I love to eat my fish, I guess you can call me the TWISTED VEGAN :) It seems like it is the only food out of the Vegan food list that 'sits well' in my stomach after I eat it. I love Tilapia, Salmon and Cod fish. My portion is literally like a deck of cards and I always eat it with a side of veggies. I'd say I eat fish at least once a month or once every other month and it is more than enough for me. As for meats and cheese (and all other forms of dairy), they really are my enemies, even though sometimes I 'tease' around with them. My body reacts negatively to these foods and I guess that's why I stay away...Meats and dairy (yes including fish too) are acid-forming foods and live foods (organic fruits, veggies, etc) are alkaline-forming. We ALWAYS want our bodies to be slightly more alkaline. An acidic body is a breeding ground for Dis-ease. If you'll like to know more read THE CHINA STUDY.

A Very FLAKY-FISHY Affair:

I usually use Salmon for this recipe but I didn't have any at home. Works well with either.

Ingredients for Fish:

4 cod fillets
1/3 cup Italian bread crumbs
1 Tbsp olive oil

Directions:

Lightly rub olive oil on both sides of each cod fillet. Next, coat each side of the fillets with Italian bread crumbs. Place each piece of fish in a baking dish. Set oven to 350 degrees and bake fish for about 20 to 30 minutes.

Ingredients for 'CHEEZY' Veggies

1 cup mixed carrots and peas
13 oz can garbanzo beans (cheakpeas)
1/2 tsp black pepper
1 onion, chopped
1 tsp garlic powder
2 Tbsp olive oil
Sprinkle of salt (Optional)
2-3 Tbsp nutritional yeast

Directions:

First, lightly steam carrots and peas mix and chick peas, set aside. Next, in a separate pan saute onions until translucent. Add garlic powder, black pepper and mix. Then add carrots and peas and stir. Lastly add nutritional yeast mix and let cook uncovered for about 2 minutes. Serve with fish and enjoy.

Anyway, hope you enjoy it. My favorite part of this meal is the Cheezy veggies, the nutritional yeast gives it that creamy-cheezy flavor and it is also very nutritious for you. Here are some great benefits of nutritional yeas, which you can buy at your local farmer's market or whole foods store.

NUTRITIONAL YEAST FACTS:

-Great source of B-complex vitamins especially B-12
-It is a complete protein
-It is low in sodium, fat and is gluten-free and dairy-free
-It is NOT YEAST(because it has been deactivated)

ALWAYS STRIVE TO BE HAPPY

Another blurry picture gone ARTSY!

Remember to EAT & DRINK TO YOUR HEALTH, YOU'LL THANK ME LATER!

HAPPY VALENTINE'S DAY XOXO

2012-02-10T19:29:00.000-08:00

George & Camilla (One of my favorite pictures of these two)

How will you spend your Valentine's day? Are you one of those people who show their love everyday and don't feel that one day should be solely dedicated to 'Lovers' or are you going to jump into the band wagon of those willing to pour enormous sums of money into this capitalist frenzy known as Valentine's day? Whichever one you are, do what feels right for you and follow your beliefs, it is one more day in which you are alive so be HAPPY in it! HAPPY VALENTINE'S DAY to all the lovers out there.....

Colleen & Dan (What woman wouldn't love to be kissed on top of the Eiffel Tower in Paris?)

For Those of You with Significant Others:

1. Go out on a date or better yet set up date night at home if money is tight.
2. Do something fun together, what do you enjoy doing together? hiking, pottery painting, etc do something out of the ordinary.
3. Write each other a love letter, a poem, a note, a massage, a foot rub, do the dishes, take out trash: love is in the details, it's usually the very small things that count the most (check out some of my mushy-lovey-dovey poetry at www.authorsden.com/berniceangoh or better yet get a copy of my book 'When a Woman Loves a Man' )
Click Here: BUY 'WHEN A WOMAN LOVES A MAN'

Irene & David (Such infectious smiles too)

For Those Who are Single:

1. Love yourself, pamper yourself, go to a spa or give yourself some TLC treatment at home

Maureen Lermer Photography "Bubble Bath"

2. Talk to an old friend, go out for tea with a friend or go by yourself, enjoy being single!
3. Be your own best valentine, write a love letter to yourself and spoil yourself rotten like no one else can
4. Do some work around the house, paint, read, dance...

What a man can do a woman too can do, EVEN BETTER!

5. If you have children it gets even better, who says your children can't be your little Valentines?

Had to steal this picture of my friend, Maureen and one of her 3 children, Malaika

Maureen & her daughter, Malaika: "GIRL TIME"

Here is a poem I wrote for my daughter several years ago (well, now I have revised it and included my son):

My little Valentines, Nina & Ricky: I was so happy to have captured this cute moment :)

LITTLE CUPID

She/He came neither with a bow nor an arrow

yet she/he cut right through me

with her/his very first cry.

For Those Who are Broken-Hearted:

1. Cry, it always works. The end of a relationship is like a death, you have to go through all the stages, don't fight it. But remember that you will be happy again, oh YES! even if you don't believe it this moment.

2. Get a copy of 'Lemonade Street', a collection of bitter-sweet love poems. You will thank me later for this. Click Here: BUY 'LEMONADE STREET'

3. Be your best Valentine ever, spoil yourself rotten!

Maureen Lermer Photography "CANDLELIGHT"

Thank you to all my friends who let me use their beautiful photography to CAPTURE this wonderful season and BRIGHTEN up my blog entry, love, B

XOXO

PRETTY RAINBOW...

2012-02-07T08:31:00.000-08:00

Nina, 8 years old.

Are you drooling yet?

Eating raw foods makes you appreciate food in such an awesome way...the time you put into making it, touching the food, smelling it, admiring the colors and texture and tasting..hmmm. So why is it that we humans like to take the shortcuts, avoid pain and change, when we know that those things are very necessary to building and molding us? Something to think about isn't it? Lots of great new this week and last, so my little Wonder aka my 8 year old, Nina, got a very impressive report card and a certificate because she made it to Honor's Roll. How cool is that? As a mom and her home-school teacher I feel so humbled and extremely proud.

*** I appreciate all of you who take the time to leave a comment, questions and/or suggestions in the comment box below every blog entry, makes me know that people are at least reading what I write, kinda' important for us bloggers and it's just really nice to get feedback too, so feel free to join the site, recommend to your friends etc

PRETTY RAINBOW SALAD

Ingredients:

1 small head cauliflower, lightly steamed and then chopped
2 celery stalks, chopped thinly
1 medium carrot, chopped thinly
1 Tbsp green onions, thinly sliced
1 Tbsp fresh parsley, thinly sliced
1/2 Yellow bell pepper, chopped thinly
Dash of salt
Dash of black pepper

Place all ingredients in a bowl and set aside.

Salad Dressing:

1 Tbsp olive oil
1 Tbsp lemon juice
1/2 tsp dry yellow mustard
1 Tbsp cashew butter (or nut butter of your choice)
1.5 Tbsp agave nectar

Mix all ingredients for the dressing until smooth and then pour over salad. You may add a few cashews or chopped almonds over the salad or eat as is.

VERDICT= I LOVE IT! It was so refreshing...

Little Miss wants to make a Yoga DVD for kids. This is one of her invented stretches, well, for kids huh? mommy can't do this for 3 seconds without tumbling over ! (And I am very flexible :o)

Breathe, MEDITATION

Ninashka

Remember to EAT & DRINK TO YOUR HEALTH, YOU'LL THANK ME LATER!

CHOCOLATE FOR ALL YE CHOCOHOLICS

2012-02-03T17:27:00.000-08:00

The great thing about raw desserts is that you can never finish it all in one sitting, well, for me though. I had about 2 tablespoons of this and my sweet-tooth was totally soothed. It is so very rich and filling. LOVE THAT! Saved the rest in the fridge for another day.

I hope you have all been having a great week. Mine has been a little stressful but hey, I survived :) Anyway, I know sometimes some of us run towards food when we feel a little low. Sometimes I crave food, sweet foods when I feel blue (who doesn't?) and raw desserts are guilt-free for me. I don't need a lot to satisfy me so I make a batch and just save it in the fridge for whenever I need it.

DARK CHOCOLATE-RASPBERRY MOUSSE

Ingredients:
1 vanilla bean seeds or 1 tsp pure vanilla extract
1/3 cup cacao powder
1/3 cup frozen or fresh raspberries
2 small Haas avocados
1 cup maple syrup (I use grade B maple syrup)

Blend all together in a food processor until creamy. Enjoy as is or with slices of strawberries.

Seeds from vanilla bean

MINI FLOURLESS BROWNIES

I kept these cute little trays from some candy box I found and decided to use them for my mini brownies

Ingredients:

1 cup maple syrup

1 cup coconut oil, melted

1 cup cacao powder

1/3 cup mixture of dried cranberries and chopped almonds

1/2 tsp vanilla extract

Put all ingredients except the dried fruit and nuts in a food processor and blend. Pour into ice tray or candy tray. Place in the freezer for about 30-45 minutes until it's firm. YUMMY.

Some good music for your listening pleasure: LUCKY

XOXOXOXOXOXOOXOXOXOXOXOOOOXOOXOXOXOOXOXOXO

Remember to EAT & DRINK TO YOUR HEALTH, YOU'LL THANK ME LATER!

JUICE, JUICE, REJUVENATING JUICES & SMOOTHIES

2012-02-01T11:05:00.000-08:00

Why does Nina feel the need to put on my glasses each time she 's drinking her smoothie in the morning?

Very interesting I tell you (scratching my head)

B.A.C.K JUICE (Broccoli-apple-carrot-kale Juice)

Ingredients:

3 granny smith apples, cored
1 bunch of kale, stems removed

6-7 large carrots
1 head of broccoli
1 lemon, whole
2-3cm fresh ginger root, peeled

BEET-iful Veggie Juice

Ingredients:

3 red delicious apples
6 large carrots
1 bunch kale
1 cucumber
1 zucchini
1/2 beet root
1 lemon
2cm ginger fresh ginger root

Strawberry-Mango Green Smoothie:

My two little munchkins love their smoothies :)

Ingredients:

2 handful spinach leaves
1 cup frozen strawberries
1 cup frozen mango
1 ripe banana
1 cup water (You may use almond or soy milk if you chose. I like water with this one)

Blend all together until smooth and enjoy.

Blueberry Smoothie:

Ingredients:

2 ripe bananas
2 cups frozen blueberry
1 Tbsp flax seed meal
1 Tbsp coconut oil
1/2 cup soy milk (vanilla flavored)

Spinach-Blueberry Smoothie

Ingredients:

3 ripe bananas
2 big handfuls of spinach
1 + 1/3 cup water
1 Tbsp coconut oil
1 Tbsp Flax seed meal
2-3 cups frozen blueberries

I've found a way to use all my blurry pictures; turn them into art!

Remember to EAT & DRINK TO YOUR HEALTH, YOU'LL THANK ME LATER!

SWEET TABBOULEH & SOULFUL MUSIC

2012-01-29T16:30:00.000-08:00

Tabbouleh is a traditional Middle Eastern dish, usually made with bulgur, tomato, parsley, mint, cucumber, garlic, olive oil, salt, lemon juice and sometimes onions. I love the traditional Tabbouleh and even though I had bulgur wheat at home I decided to tweak it a little and see what it would taste like. I must say I really, really enjoyed this. Feel free to add your own twist to it. By the way, Nina fixed the parsley, she said "Mommy, let me show you how to do this the authentic way. Never use a knife to chop the parsley, it all has to be done by hand like this, see? aren't I a true Lebanese girl!" That's my daughter for you, amazes me all the time, so smart!

Here's the little Ms. Nina enjoying some soul music from one of Cameroon's best: Miss Debra Debs

Here's a link to Miss Debra Debs' site: http://debradebs.com/

SWEET TABBOULEH

I made the creamy white dressing and Nina made her own dressing, the 'yellow' one and it was delicious. My little Chef!

Ingredients:

2 Tbsp green onion, chopped
1 tomato, chopped
3 cups parsley, fixed
1/2 cup cauliflower florets, chopped
1 cucumber, chopped

Mix all ingredients in a bowl and set aside

Sweet Dressing:

1/3 cup cashews, soaked overnight
Juice of 1 orange
3 Tbsp olive oil
Dash of black pepper
1/4 tsp garlic powder
Juice of 1/ 2 lemon
2 Tbsp honey

Blend all ingredients in a food processor until smooth. Toss the tabbouleh with about 4 tablespoon of the sweet dressing. Save the rest of the dressing in a tight container and put in the fridge.

Remember to exercise

Remember to EAT & DRINK TO YOUR HEALTH, YOU'LL THANK ME LATER!

CREAMY NUT-TY SOUP

2012-01-27T10:43:00.000-08:00

I was in the mood for soup today so I went for it! oh, before we get to the soup, just wanted to share one of my favorite lyrics with you...Songwriters ROCK! that includes me too I guess...words, words...words...

CREAMY NUT-TY SOUP

Ingredients:

3 tomatoes
1 leek
1 red bell peppers
3 Tbsp fresh basil
2 tsp fresh parsley
3 Tbsp Cashew butter
Juice of half a lemon
Pinch of salt
1/2 a cup of water
3-4 Medjhool dates

Put all ingredients into a food processor and blend until smooth. Drizzle with 1/2 a tsp of olive oil, garnish with some green onions and paprika. I added a little cayenne pepper to mine because I like it hot. Also, some people may like their soup warm, so it's okay to go ahead and warm yours a little. I like mine cold :) I used several pieces of celery sticks as my spoon and ate it with the soup with each bite, cool huh?

Photo by Nina Lakota

Still rocking my urban twits, unsure what to do next on my hair...

*Photo by Nina Lakota

Remember to EAT & DRINK TO YOUR HEALTH, YOU'LL THANK ME LATER!

Endive Salad with Orange-Mustard Dressing

2012-01-24T18:52:00.000-08:00

Something quite interesting is going on in my house. My 16 month old son has this fascination with books. He is always with a book, 'reading' in some corner, flipping through pages and it goes on for minutes at a time. He even 'reads' off his diaper box ...anything that has words. I hope this stays long after he starts really reading. Anyway just wanted to share that with you.. here is a collage of the times I've had the camera near.

ENDIVE FACTS:

I remember when I first found out about this beautiful-looking greens. I use them in my smoothies, juice it and eat is as a salad. Some people find it slightly bitter but I don't. I have never been the kind to shy away from something because of taste especially if I know it's beneficial to my health. Did you know that when compared to other green leafy vegetables endive is the richest source of Vitamin A? and if you remember from your nutrition class in school vit. A is particularly important for eyesight and good vision. Endive is also a great source of dietary fiber, magnesium, Vitamin E, C & K, Thaimin, folate, calcium, Iron, zinc and a host of other minerals.

Other health benefits of endive include clearing up the skin of acne, in combination with parsley and celery in juices it's a great blood tonic for those who are anaemic. Endive is also a very low calorie (it has just 1 calorie per leaf) food so it is great for those who want to lose weight to eat it as often as they can. It also relieves constipation because it is high in dietary fiber and helps to clean the liver and gall bladder. Now, do you see why I love this vegetable?

ENDIVE SALAD WITH ORANGE-MUSTARD DRESSING

Ingredients:

I head/bunch of endive, wash, fixed and set aside
1 granny smith apple, 1/2 apple julienned and 1/2 sliced

Mix together julienned apples and endive and put in a bowl. Place sliced apples over salad.

Orange-Mustard Dressing:

2 oranges, peeled and halved
1/3 cup olive oil
1 tsp fresh parsley
1tsp dry mustard powder
2 medjhool dates

Blend all ingredients in a food processor until smooth. Dress salad with about 4 tbsp of orange-mustard dressing and save the rest in a tight-lid container and put in the fridge.

photo by Nina Lakota

My daughter likes to take pictures of me during my workouts. Someday I will be able to use just my upper body strength to do a pull-up, for now I am quite content with one leg on a stool.

Remember to EAT & DRINK TO YOUR HEALTH, YOU'LL THANK ME LATER!

Strawberry-banana Chocolate Mousse Pie (Raw-Vegan)

2012-01-22T16:27:00.000-08:00

I NEED A VACATION...can someone give me a round trip ticket to India? I am a die-hard Bollywood fan, NO ONE DOES LOVE/ROMANCE like Bollywood. Those who haven't discovered the beauty of great Bollywood films don't know what they've been missing (I may be a little bias because I have been watching these movies since I was a child, so please forgive me). Seriously, if you can look past the subtitles, and the bursting-into-song parts, no I take that back, the music in the movie is usually as important as the story line. It works great for me because I love musicals (check), I am a sucker for good romance (Check) and I am very intuitive and philosophical (Check, check). I learned about love from Bollywood movies, that love is patient and that love doesn't mean sex and that true love never dies...so many teenagers could learn a lot from that these days...anyway, here are 10 of my favorites (excluding my favorite 80's gems like 'Ye vada raha' aka 'The Promise', 'Disco Dancer' etc)

1. Jodha Akbar (I say the world can keep Romeo and Juliet, I have Jodha Akbar)
2. Taare Zameen par (If this movie doesn't touch you then you are dead inside, a ghost actually lol)
3. My name is Khan ( ABSOLUTELY MIND-BLOWINGLY HEART-WRENCHING movie, of course it has Shahrukh Khan & Kajol, only one of the best jodi (pairs) in Bollywood)
4. Devdas.......
5. Kuch Kuch Hota hai (my daughter's favorite movie: the title song will stay in your head forever...with my favorite actor Shahrukh Khan)

6. Kabhi Alveda Na Kehna (aka Never say goodbye, a little controversial but yes, one of my favorite, starring Shahrukh and my favorite actress Rani Mukerji)
7. Jab we met (I am ashamed to say I have watched this movie more than 7 times and will still watch it again and again...need I say more?)
8. 3 Idiots (Brilliant movie, well it has the amazing Aamir Khan who also did a fantastic job in n# 9 on the line
9. Ghajini (Not for the faint of heart, a little violence but goodness, I sat there for a good 10 minutes long after it was over just thinking...)
10. Rab ne bana di jodi ( If you haven't met King khan aka SRK aka Shahrukh Khan...he is the best all his movies ROCK and this movie is EXCEPTIONALLY BEAUTIFUL)

I still have so many to fit in the top 10, like 'Billu' and 'Swades' and 'Kabhi Kushi Kabhi Gham' 'Om Shanti Om', 'Sawaariya' and the list goes on..... hahahahahaha is that even possible?

All this talk of great movies is making me hungry now, are you hungry? I made a chocolate mousse pie yesterday and my daughter literally drank it ...

Strawberry.Banana.Chocolate Mousse Pie

Ingredients:

Crust:

1 cup pecans
1/3 cup mixture of walnuts, hazelnuts
4 Tbsp coconut flakes
1/3 cup raisin + 3 medjhool dates (add dates until it gets sticky enough to form a dough)
2 Tbsp almond flour
pinch of salt

Blend all ingredients in a food processor until sticky. Press into a 13 inch pan and put aside

Chocolate Mousse:

12 oz fresh strawberries, sliced
5 bananas, sliced, divided (save two sliced bananas for layering crust)
3 Haas avocado
1/2 cup maple syrup, grade B (or agave nectar)
2 tsp vanilla extract
4 Tbsp cacao powder

Blend in a food processor 3 avocado, 3 bananas, 1/2 cup maple syrup, 2 tsp vanilla and 4 Tbsp cacao powder until smooth and set aside. Layer the crust of pie with the strawberries and banana slices.

Evenly pour chocolate mousse over fruit layer, cover with foil and place in the freezer for about an hour. It will still be gooey unless you choose to keep yours longer. I love mine gooey..yummmmmy!!!

Remember to EAT & DRINK TO YOUR HEALTH, YOU'LL THANK ME LATER!

THE BEST DARN RAW-VEGAN CHEESE CAKE EVER!

2012-01-19T18:35:00.000-08:00

I didn't wake up thinking today was the day I was going to create 'THE BEST DARN RAW-VEGAN CHEESE CAKE EVER" but that's what my picky 8 year old, Nina, says it is. She almost ate all of the 'cheesecake' filing before it got into the pan. I was nervous and excited at the same time though, my fingers were crossed the whole time because I didn't want to waste all the expensive ingredients I used, yeah!

Raw-Vegan Hawaiian Cheesecake

THE BEST DARN RAW-VEGAN CHEESECAKE EVER! (I was told to name it that)

Cashews

Macadamia Nuts

Crust

Cheesecake

Ingredients:

Crust:
1 cup almond flour/meal
4 medjhool dates

I used my fingers this time and just mashed it all together until it formed a sticky dough, I just didn't want use the food processor yet until the 'cheese' filling.

Cheesecake Filling:

2/3 cup macadamia nuts, soaked overnight and rinsed
2 cups cashews, soaked overnight
1/3 cup coconut flakes
1/2 cup pineapples
1/2 cup mango
Juice from 2 large lemons or 1/3 cup lemon juice
1/3 cup + Tbsp coconut oil
1/2 cup maple syrup (I use grade B maple syrup)
1/3 cup + 2 Tbsp water
16 oz fresh strawberries, sliced and set aside

Blend all ingredients except the fresh strawberries in a food processor with an 'S' blade until smooth. Pour half the filling over the crust and then layer with some fresh strawberries until whole surface is covered. Pour the rest of the filling over the strawberries and place your cheesecake in the freezer for about 2 hours until firm. Take out of the freezer, slice, drizzle with some chocolate sauce and enjoy. My daughter liked hers straight out of the freezer but I let mine sit for about 15 to 20 minutes before eating, I like it that way.

Chocolate sauce:

1 Tbsp coconut oil, melted
1 Tbsp maple syrup
1 Tbsp cacao powder

Mix all ingredients well in a cup and drizzle over cheesecake.

Remember to EAT & DRINK TO YOUR HEALTH, YOU'LL THANK ME LATER!

FUTURE MOVIE DIRECTOR?

2012-01-17T16:23:00.000-08:00

DELICIOUS BREAKFAST SMOOTHIE:

Ingredients:

1 cup frozen mango chunks
1 cup frozen strawberries
2 ripe bananas
2 large handfuls spinach
1 + 1/2 cup of water
Juice of half a lemon

Blend all ingredients until smooth and enjoy!

Caught on tape: Baby Ricky's new line is "...and action!" but when he's standing up he says it with so much enthusiasm that his whole body shakes hahahahaha, he also makes sure he is on his tippy-toes when he screams it. I am hoping to get him on video when he does the 'standing version' one of these days.

Make a video - it's fun, easy and free!
www.onetruemedia.com

Baby Ricky's favorite green smoothie. Try it with your kids and let us know if they enjoyed it as well

Ingredients:

2 ripe bananas
1 cup frozen mango
1 big handful spinach leaves
1/2 to 1 cup of water (I like mine a little on the thick side)

Put all ingredients into a blender and blend till smooth.

Feel free to send me pictures of your little ones drinking their favorite green smoothies to bernice4fyr@gmail.com

Rick Lakota's Famous Lasagna

I told you there is usually two kinds of food cooking in my kitchen, well, today was no different. While Rick made some mouth-watering lasagna, I decided to create my own new recipe. And NO, I don't feel restricted because I didn't eat the lasagna...people always ask me that and the truth is, when I decide it is a vegan or raw-vegan day/ week (s) for me, I stick to it. When I do purely raw-vegan, I really don't miss cooked food, amazing how the body can adapt!

Mango-Pesto 'Pasta'

Ingredients

1/2 cup pine nuts
3 cups basil leaves (I used 1 bunch)
2cm ginger root
1 garlic clove
1/2 cup + 2Tbsp olive oil
pinch of salt or salt to taste
1 Tbsp fresh parsley
1 Tbsp almond butter (optional)
Juice of 1/2 lemon
2 cups ripe mango chunks
3 cups of mung beans, rinsed and patted dry

Put all ingredients except the mung beans in a food processor with an 'S' blade and blend until smooth. In a separate bowl toss mung beans with about 4-5 Tbsp of mango pesto (I like mine drenched in the sauce). Save the rest of mango-pesto in tight container and place in the fridge. Garnish with some paprika and serve. YUmmy!

Verdict: I LOVE IT!

My FAVORITE Snack:

Ingredients:

1 granny smith apple, sliced
1 Tbsp almond butter (see brand I use below)

What a lovely GREEN day it's been :)

Remember to EAT & DRINK TO YOUR HEALTH, YOU'LL THANK ME LATER!

"JUST ANOTHER MANIC MONDAY..."

2012-01-15T19:11:00.000-08:00

Dora Ako-Bryant

"Just another manic Monday, I wish it were...." Do you know that song? Prince wrote that fabulous song for the Bangles. Hope your Monday is beautiful and bright and that you woke up thinking that it would be your best day yet. My cousin came over for a few days and we had a blast as usual. I did her hair and Nina totally spoiled her with smoothies.

Dora and I

Photo by Nina Lakota

Nina also got her very first check of $35 from selling her handmade earrings. She also gets orders through her facebook fan page as well--you can see more pictures of her beautiful jewelry there Nina's Facebook Fan Page. I have known from a very young age that this little wonder is an entrepreneur. I will never forget when at 5 years old, she made $60 in just a few hours from selling her paintings at $1 each. She was so enthusiastic, determined and she never let some one's "NO, thank you." stop her from going on to the next person. It was unbelievable to watch... So, if you want beautiful earrings (handmade) you can contact her though my bernice4fyr@gmail.com to get more information. GO NINA!

Here are some of the tasty smoothies and juices we enjoyed over the past few days:

Nina's Strawberry-mango Smoothie:

Ready to blend

The best part of my little red head's morning is his breakfast smoothie... he stands by me with both arms outstretched while I'm blending until his cup gets into his little hands

...And he won't drink it without a straw, learned it from his big sister, Nina

Nina's Strawberry-Mango Smoothie (more like ice cream to me, yummy)

Ingredients:

2 cups frozen strawberries

1 cup frozen mango chunks

1 cup soy milk, vanilla flavored (add more milk if needed till consistency suits you)

Nina's Strawberry-banana Smoothie:

Ingredients:

1 cup frozen strawberry

1 banana

1 Tbsp lacuma powder

1/2 cup soy milk, vanilla-flavored (add more milk if needed)

Chocolate Veggie and Fruit Smoothie

you can replace the soy milk with almond milk or water

Ingredient:

1 ripe banana

2 cups frozen strawberries

1 cup soy milk

2 handfuls of spinach leaves

2 Tbsp coconut oil, melted

1 tsp cacao powder (option)

Bonus: Manic Monday Smoothie

Ingredients:

2 cups kale, stems removed
1/2 cup parsley
1 cup spinach
1 cup almond milk
1 cup ice
1 ripe banana
1 cup frozen mango chunks
1 cup pineapple chunks
2 cups frozen strawberries

Add all ingredients into a high-speed blender and blend till smooth. YUMMMMMM

Remember to EAT & DRINK TO YOUR HEALTH, YOU'LL THANK ME LATER!

A gift from an ANGEL!

2012-01-12T09:52:00.000-08:00

What do you do when you receive a brand new food processor in the mail from someone who loves and supports you and FYR? You Scream "Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh..." that's what Nina and I did. I was floored, overwhelmed, excited, in tears...such kindness and generosity! WAO! In such cases even a thank you is not enough...now I can make more food and come up with some decent recipes to share.

Nina and I opened it gently and just stared at it for a while. You know that feeling when you get a brand new thing and you don't feel like using it, just want to keep it safe somewhere like a piece of fine art? I have to christen that food processor with some great recipe. It is so much bigger than the one I had which was a 4 cup, this one is a whooping 14 cup and big mouthed so I don't have to cut or slice before putting anything in. Comes with different blades for shredding, chopping etc like the last one I had. Oh, am I going to enjoy this food processor!

THANK YOU MY ANGEL :)

How would you like to have dessert for breakfast? say a chocolate-apple pudding of some sorts. Nina loved it so much, she said "Mommy this is the best tasting raw pudding you ever made!" ok, so that was a good verdict: I LOVED IT TOO!

Apple-chocolate-y Pudding

Ingredients:

3 red delicious apples, peeled and cored
1 cup raw almond milk
1/2 tsp cinnamon
2 tbsp coconut oil, melted
1/2 tsp lemon juice
1 ripe banana
1 small Haas avocado
1-2 tsp cacao powder

Put all ingredients in a high-speed blender and blend until smooth. Garnish with some raw cacao nibs and coconut flakes. Enjoy!

Meet Yvette Bogniolok, the newest member to join our FYR family.

JOIN OUR FACEBOOK FAN PAGE for more photos: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Forever-Young-Revolution/204244652938442

Remember to DRINK & EAT TO YOUR HEALTH, YOU"LL THANK ME LATER!

MY HUSBAND HAS GONE SEA FOOD CRAZY

2012-01-11T17:13:00.000-08:00

Over the years my husband has cooked some of the most AMAZING dishes I have ever tasted. Sometimes I am almost convinced that he missed his true calling as a chef. He is very talented, he comes up with the recipes as he goes and "smells/tastes the the ingredients all together in his mind before they come together in the pot.." Amazing isn't it? Well, lately he has gone crazy with sea food. See, there is always more than one dish cooking in our kitchen, some people are trying to stay lean (me) and some are trying to bulk up (him). Dilemma? you tell me! when I smell his food I know how 'rich' they are, good for him, not so good for me :), but that doesn't stop me from trying some of his dishes and totally enjoying the ones that are good for me and my trying-to-stay-lean endeavor.

We did really enjoy this sea food extravaganza, it was messy, but he outdid himself on this one, whew: Mussels, clams, king crab, snow crabs and lobster, wao....

LET THE PICTURES SPEAK FOR THEMSELVES:

Crabs, clams and mussels...swimming

Poor Lobster :(

Just out of the freezer and into the boiling water

PINK=READY

Rick's sea food extravaganza

No one ate the corn, but Rick thought it's traditional to have corn, oh well, they look pretty and shinny alright!

It was an amazing dinner he made for us all, his baked potato was Prrr-fect

Some Raspberry chocolate wine...

Baked Potato

Lobster tails are yummy

That was my plate....pretty huh?

Rick's garlic shrimp served on a bed of Lebanese Hushwee

Rick's garlic shrimps

another picture just in case you want to look again :0

I asked him if I could share one of his recipes on my blog and he said "Definitely!" Here it is for you all you sea food lovers and non-vegans....enjoy!!

Meet the AMAZING chef himself!

Rick Lakota's Scalloped-Spinach fettuccine in a white wine sauce with wild mushrooms

Ingredients:

1 pack spinach fettuccine, cooked al dente following instructions on package

White Wine Sauce:

1 onion, chopped

2 garlic cloves, minced

Juice of 1 lemon

2 Tbsp olive oil

1 cup wild mushrooms, sliced

12 oz bay scallops

1/2 stick of butter

1 tsp black pepper

1 tsp salt or to taste

1 Tbsp fresh or dry parsley

1/3 cup white wine

Directions:

-Saute onions in olive oil until translucent

-Add garlic, black pepper and salt

Add mushrooms and cook for about 1 minute

Add butter and cook for about 2 more minutes

Add parsley and lemon juice, stir

-Add wine and scallops and cook on low to medium heat for about 3 minutes covered

-Stir in pasta and let marinade while stirring for about 2 minutes

Serve and enjoy.

I saved some of this in the freezer for myself and one week later when I warmed it up it tasted even better! Let me know how you liked it if or when you do try the recipe over the weekend. Why not? make a date with that special someone and surprise them *wink*

Remember to EAT & DRINK TO YOUR HEALTH, YOU"LL THANK ME LATER!

COOL CUCUMBER DAY

2012-01-10T18:57:00.000-08:00

Some days are just cool, calm and captivating. A day like that deserves a RAW feast.

K.A.L.C Juice (kale.apple.lemon.cucumber)

Ingredients:

1 bunch of kale, stems removed
1 whole lemon
5 small red delicious apples
1 medium size cucumber

Juice all ingredients and enjoy. I really loved this, it was an incredibly satisfying breakfast.

For Breakfast little Miss decided to make a ice cream, her absolute favorite thing for breakfast.

Nina's Breakfast Ice Cream

Ingredients:

3 frozen bananas, peeled, cut in halves and frozen overnight in zip-lock bag
1 cup almond milk (she used the left over almond milk we made from a few days ago)
1/2 tsp vanilla extract

Put in a high speed blender and blend until it starts to look like soft serve ice cream. You may have to move the contents around with a spatula to get it going. Serve as is or top with fruits and/or nuts.

Cool Cucumber Salad

Ingredients:

2 large cucumbers, sliced into1 inch thickness

Dressing:

1 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil
Juice of 1 small lemon
dash of salt (optional)

Mix all ingredients well together and drizzle over cucumbers. Sprinkle a dash of black pepper over salad and garnish with some julienned beet root.

And for supper I came up with this refreshing soup, hmmmm...

Refreshing Cucumber-avocado soup

Ingredients:

2 large cucumbers, Peeled with just some skins left
1 ripe pear
2 small Haas avocado
Juice of 1 lemon
3 Tbsp agave nectar
1-2 sprigs of fresh mint

Pour all ingredients into a high speed blender and blend till creamy. VERDICT: I LOVE IT!

www.berniceangoh.com

Remember to EAT & DRINK TO YOUR HEALTH, YOU'LL THANK ME LATER!

D'lectable Vegan Cheesecake

2012-01-08T16:39:00.000-08:00

I was wondering yesterday how I could make a cheesecake without my food processor :( and I decided not to give up no matter what. I was going to make my cheesecake, food processor or not! I definitely couldn't make a Raw Cheesecake because I had to grind my cashews but then I remembered that I had some Tofutti better than cream cheese in the fridge...ding, ding, ding IDEA!!! I wanted a raw crust and obviously could not make my regular raw crust without my 'S' blade food processor so I came up with a cool recipe that worked, talk about DETERMINATION!

D' lectable Coconut Cheesecake (Vegan)

Raw Crust

Before it went into the oven. Nina came up with the idea of decorating it like this :)

You want to lick the computer screen don't you?

That warm chocolate sauce added another kick to it, YUMMMY

Next time I will use a smaller pan so the 'cheesecake' part of it can be thicker

I got my fix, you can have yours too :) This should keep me good for the next few weeks;)

Ingredients:

Crust:
1 cup almond flour
1 cup coconut macaroons
pinch of salt
6 Tbsp organic maple syrup (I use the organic grade B maple syrup)

Mix all ingredients in a bowl until sticky and starts to formed a dough. Press dough into an 8' pan and set aside.

Cheesecake Filling:

2, 8oz containers of Toffutti Better Than Cream Cheese
Juice of 1 lemon
1/2 cup sugar

Mix all ingredients very well in a bowl. Set aside for about 5 minutes to let flavors and sugar set in. Mix again for another 2 minutes or so and then pour over crust.
Bake in 350 degree oven for about 35-40 minutes.
Remove from oven and put in the fridge to chill for about 1 hour.
Serve with warm chocolate sauce.

Chocolate Sauce:

1 Tbsp cacao powder
1 Tbsp organic grade B maple syrup
1 Tbsp coconut oil, melted

Okay, I came up with this recipe on the spot and the whole time I was keeping my fingers crossed and hoping it tastes half decent enough to eat and not waste--If it was horrible.

VERDICT: I LOVE IT!!!

Now I can make different variations out of this. I hope you enjoy it as much as I did. Also, I warmed my chocolate sauce just a touch before drizzling it over my cheesecake, the contrast between the warm chocolate and the cold cheesecake was MOUTH WATERING!!! YUUUUUUMMMMYYY!!!

I did my hair on the eve of Christmas, took me only 5 hours

These are called 'Urban Twists'

This hairdo is so 'me': trendy

Remember to EAT & DRINK TO YOUR HEALTH, YOU"LL THANK ME LATER!

WILL YOU COME OVER FOR TEA?

2012-01-06T09:47:00.000-08:00

This Christmas I got a beautiful gift from my father and mother in-law. So permit me to brag about this wonderful woman (my mother in-law) for a second. I feel blessed that we are so close and that she knows what I like. She is one of the sweetest people I know, so soft spoken (like me) and loves, loves pink. Anyway, she and Nina had been holding on to this surprise for a while but nothing prepared me for the uniqueness of this gift and yes, it's all organic too: (and oh, the pretty pink antique tea set is a gift from her as well)

THIS TEA BLOOMS!

Flowering teas is what they are, different flowers, different colors, awww, too cute, it starts off as a very small bud and then slowly expands to almost fill the glass jar, how cool is that? The perk of having a mother in-law who loves you and knows what you like :)

My beautiful tea set all so PINK!

Just had to drop a cinnamon stick in there!

BEAUTIFUL

I feel like a princess every time I drink from this set

My little Ninashka, modeling the tea set and tea for mommy :)

Well, thanks for joining me for tea today. Hope we do this again soon. Here are a few smoothies we've been enjoying for breakfast.

I made some ALMOND MILK yesterday

THIS BLENDER WAS ALSO A GIFT FROM my mother in-law, thanks 'Mema'

Freshly made almond milk

Ingredients:

2 cups almonds, soaked overnight and then rinsed
4 -5 cups of water
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 cup dates

Liquefy in a high speed blender and pass through a nut mesh bag or a cheese cloth if you don't have a nut milk bag. Save any left over almond chaff for later to use in pies and biscuits.

BLUEBERRY MOUNTAIN:

Ingredients:

1 cup frozen blueberries
2 bananas
1/2 cup almond milk

BLACKBERRY SMOOTHIE:

Ingredients:

2 cups frozen blackberries
1 cup almond milk
1/2 tsp coconut oil

Here's a photo my daughter took of me while I was working out. It came out blurred. I decided to make use of it and love the outcome.

Till next time, remember to EAT & DRINK TO YOUR HEALTH, YOU"LL THANK ME LATER!

YOU HAVE THE POWER TO UNLEASH THE ENERGY WITHIN

2012-01-04T09:16:00.000-08:00

Yesterday I had to cook food for everyone else in the house and something different for me. It is pretty amazing how rejuvenated and alive one feels on a raw or mostly raw food diet. I wake up feeling like I can carry the world, ALL THIS ENERGY! what a difference. I am still mourning my food processor but I will live for the next few days until I can get a new one :)

My two angels having fun

My mornings starts the same, exercise (with my 8 year old trainer, if you think I'm joking come and get a session with her). Eventhough my thighs were sore from her 'Froggies' I still managed to push through and we had a blast. I do add my own exercises in between but I let her have the upper hand (she feels like a pro). Our juice was quite delicious....

SWEET-VEGGIE Juice

Ingredients:

4 carrots
1 cup red seedless grapes
1 whole lemon
2 red delicious apples
3 HUGE handfuls of spinach leaves

Juice and enjoy!

I had a head of cauliflower in the fridge and I had always wanted to make a mock rice, so I used this opportunity to do just that.

Not- rice and nut-sauce

Ingredients:

1 head cauliflower, (lightly steamed) you can eat it raw but I wanted to steam mine a little
2 Tbsp green onions, chopped
1 heaping Tbsp almond butter
1Tbsp agave nectar
2 Tbsp water
Juice of half a lemon
dash of black pepper
dash of paprika (optional)
dash of salt (optional)

Directions:

Mix first two ingredients and set aside
Mix the rest of the ingredients in a separate bowl until it makes a smooth paste. Pour Nut sauce over cauliflower and mix. This was surprisingly quite satisfying and delicious and also very filling. I definitely will make it again. Feel free to make different variations of this and experiment with another nut, say cashews?

For Supper I had a huge bowl of spinach salad, love my spinach, can you tell?

Simple Spinach Salad

Ingredients:

3 cups of spinach leaves
1/3 cup of walnuts
A handful of dried cranberries or raisins

Dressing:

1/3 cup apple cider vinegar
1/3 cup olive oil
1 tsp agave nectar
1 tsp dried mustard
1 garlic clove, minced

Mix all ingredients well in a bowl, pour on salad and toss. Enjoy!

Okay I made this beautiful veggie juice the other day look what I found after I was done juicing...

Is that pretty or what? what lovely colors...I love beets :) This is what it looked like after I was done:

Looks like blood huh? no worries, no vampires any where close

Here is what I made for everyone else..and yes, they all loved it.

Baked salmon on a bed of raspberry vinegretted (if that's a word) white asparagus and some rice. I may share the recipe one of these days.

Okay, gotta go, have a great day and remember to EAT & DRINK TO YOUR HEALTH, YOU'LL THANK ME LATER!

Every Disappointment Shows You a New Turn To Take

2012-01-02T14:50:00.000-08:00

Happy New Year Everyone and hope your year is going great so far. Mine was going good until my favorite kitchen appliance broke up with me. My 2-in-1 Cuisinart food processor of 8 years finally kicked the bucket! And right when Nina and I were about to make a Raw Vegan Mango Cheesecake. We hadn't even gotten to the cheesecake (cashew and co) part yet and the food processor gave up right in the middle of us making the crust, well, the crust was almost done too. Either way I had to use my my back-up blender to come up with something different for dessert. But first here is how my day went:

My 8 year old Personal Trainer, Nina

I decided to let my daughter be my personal trainer for the morning and she almost killed me, seriously, an 8 year old made me work so hard that I almost cried, I am not joking when I say this, I was aching all over when we were done and the morning after. SHE IS GOOD!!! hahahahahahaha I have to give her that. We've made an agreement for her to coach me in the mornings, also gives us time to spend quality time together, have fun and all while exercising, not a bad deal huh? Then we made a vegetable juice for breakfast, well, for me mostly, the kids decided to do their usual banana/strawberry smoothie:

GOOD morning Vegetable Juice

2 Lbs bag of organic carrots
1 lemon, seeds removed
3-4 Granny Smith apples, cored
2 handfuls spinach leaves

Run all ingredients through a juicer and enjoy. I had a glass of this deliciousness at around 11 am and another around 4pm.

For Lunch I decided to go for a tasty Nori-wrap

Tasty Vegetable Wrap

4 nori sheets (or lettuce leaves)
1 big parsnips (some people call them white/albino carrots), grated
2-3 Tbsp agave nectar
2 small avocados (Haas), thinly sliced
1/4 cup Braggs Apple cider vinegar
3-4 big carrots, julienned
1 medium jicama, thinly sliced

Directions:

Soak julienned carrots in Braggs apple cider vinegar and set aside
Sprinkle a dash of salt and paprika on sliced jicama and set aside
Double nori sheets, lay on a flat surface. With fingers, lightly smear water all over the sheets (don't have to do this is you are using lettuce leaves)
Start vertically adding ingredients to roll in nori sheets; parsnips, drizzle of agave over length of parsnips, carrots, jicama and lastly avocado.
Roll tightly and use water to seal ends of nori sheet.

This was very delicious and quite satisfying.

For dinner we were going to make a mango cheesecake but disappointment turned into a sweet surprise when our food processor broke down ( Can't do without a food processor, have to get one really soon because I make most of my raw foods and desserts with it)

The- mango- thingy- that -was- meant- to- be- a- mango- cheesecake- but- couldn't

Ingredients:

Crust:
1 cup almond meal (ground almond)
1 cup walnuts
1/2 cup dates
pinch of salt

Put in food processor with an 'S' blade and blend till it starts to stick together and form and dough. Press half of the dough 5' pan and set aside. * Since my food processor broke halfway my walnuts were coarse which really gave it a crunchy feel, yummmy!!!*

Mango pudding:

3 cups frozen mango
1 cup coconut flakes, (dry)
Juice of 1 lemon
1 Tbsp coconut oil
3 Tbsp water

Add all ingredients into a high speed blender and blend till smooth and creamy. Pour a layer of mango pudding over crust and then sprinkle the rest of the dough over first mango layer. Top with the remainder of mango pudding, cover with an aluminium foil and freeze for about 1 hour. I just couldn't wait so I got mine out sooner and it was semi-firm but still wildly delicious.

EAT & DRINK TO YOUR HEALTH, YOU'LL THANK ME LATER!

10 QUICK WEIGHT LOSS TIPS FOR 2012

2011-12-31T17:05:00.000-08:00

HAPPY NEW YEAR EVERYONE

I can't believe how fast the past year went by. I hope you are proud of all you accomplished when you look back, if not don't give up, as long as you believe, are ready to work at it, you will be successful. Here are a few weight loss tips to aid you this year:

1. DRINK MORE WATER:

-It makes you fuller faster

-Increases your metabolic rate

-Helps flush out toxins from your body

2. LIGHT BREAKFAST:

- Fruits and vegetable juices are great for breakfast, takes very little time to digest but keeps you energized and satiated.

Anti-oxidant galore YUM

3. SAY NO TO SUGAR & REDUCE SALT INTAKE

-Use fruits, dates, organic maple syrup, honey, stevia or agave to sweeten

-If you crave salt, use dulse flakes, braggs amino acids, or dried celery flakes, you can also eat strawberries or mangoes, they have enough sodium to soothe your cravings.
-Himalayan salt is the best quality salt I know and use, unlike regular table salt whose minerals have been bleached out, himalayan salt still has all its elements.

Raw vegan apple pie

4. AVOID DAIRY PRODUCTS (if you must then buy organic)

-Collard greens, broccoli, almonds are all great sources of calcium

-Have big salads with your meals
-http://www.notmilk.com/
-Get the facts on MILK...click here!

Veggie casserole

5. DETOX

-Excess weight is caused by excessive waste in the body and calories the body can't use

-Do a juice fast or the FYR 21-Day detox (ebooks available at top right hand corner of this site)

FYR 'Fire'

6. EXERCISE before you eat breakfast:

-Forces the body to burn fat as opposed to the body burning sugars from what you just ate

Doing jumping jacks with resistance bands

7. AVOID ALL 'WHITE' FOODS and foods that contain them

- White sugar, rice, breads etc

-Substitute that side of potato or rice with some steamed or raw vegetables instead

8. TRY NOT TO EAT AFTER 8PM OR EAT AT LEAST 3-4 HOURS BEFORE YOU GO TO BED

-Teas or water is fine

9. EAT AS MUCH RAW FOODS AS POSSIBLE

-One of the quickest and safest ways to lose weight is to eat more raw foods.

-You could do raw until dinner and then have some cooked food

-Raw-vegan foods include fruits, vegetables, seeds and nuts

-Raw food contains live enzymes which are denatured by heat when we cook food

-Live enzymes help cleanse the body and get rid of waste

-Eating 70-80% raw will yield tons of benefits to your health, you only need to try it for a few days to know what I mean

Delicious spinach and banana smoothie

10. KEEP YOUR STRESS DOWN

-Please refer to my blog entry titled 'Stress, the silent killer'

-Most people respond to stress by overeating

LOOKING FORWARD TO READING MORE SUCCESS STORIES THIS YEAR.

EAT & DRINK TO YOUR HEALTH, YOU'LL THANK ME LATER!

MERRY CHRISTMAS from FYR

2011-12-23T16:40:00.000-08:00

Good Mommies Have Santa Over for Tea?

(Thoughts of a deep-thinking mommy)

Am I a bad mother because I feel somewhat disgusted at the number of presents I see underneath the Christmas tree? Whose birthday is it anyway? Are those gifts for the one whose birthday we’re celebrating? Will these have to be topped the following year? What gifts do we bring to Him this year? Don't get me wrong, I am grateful that they receive such love and attention anytime, I'm just a worrier, a deep-thinking mommy a I mentioned earlier.

Does it make me too self-righteous for wanting to give more than receive? How many people out there who won’t have a single gift this Christmas? Better yet, the little child who will receive one book or one toy or even just a hug from his/her mommy and have such joy in receiving….but over there another child receives hundreds of gifts but is not happy because maybe mommy and daddy or Santa forgot one thing from the list.

The helter-skelter back home in Cameroon when Christmas was nearing had nothing to do with gifts or presents--even though we sometimes got a new pair of shoe or dress. It was just an infectious season of happiness, more like Thanksgiving over here—gathering around a table to share a meal (rice, stew, chicken, chin-chin, chocolate) to enjoy those things that we usually don’t get to enjoy all year round like candy and cake.

Am I a bad mother for wishing I hadn’t fallen into the fairytale of Santa with my children? For wanting my children to know from the onset where their gifts really came from-- for not wanting the stress of buying for Santa as well? For wanting my daughter to know that one or two gifts is more than enough and means much more than truck load of gifts. But I am on my toes with my children everyday to build in them empathy, character and the joy of giving and thinking of others, sometimes even before ourselves.

We live in a country which preaches SELF-SELF-SELF but I want that acronym changed for my children: S. selflessness, E. empathy, L. love & F. faith. I will fight with all I’ve got to teach them what is right and what I know deep in my heart that is true: that Jesus Christ is Lord…because I know and I thank God everyday that I have ears that hear (sometimes) hahahaha and that my eyes are opened a bit to ‘see’, that amidst all the distractions the SPIRIT within never ceases to call out and if we just quiet down some, we just might hear…

These are my thoughts this season, as I grow older some more is revealed to me.

So many people (including myself) tend to go with the flow “Oh, it’s harmless fun” “Oh, we think it’s okay to celebrate both sides, the Christian and the Un-Christian”. I will never boast to be so morally fit as to say I have no speck in my eye, but I strive to be more like Christ (it’s not always easy but I will not give up). He is the example I choose to follow and hopefully my children and my children’s children will choose the same path. There is a RIGHT and a WRONG, a HOT and a COLD, a NO and a YES and though I sometimes join the ‘luke-warmers’, I do so knowingly.

I guess what I am trying to leave with anyone interested is that 2012 is another year to make things happen. Leave the anger, failures, resentments, bad habits and all that is ugly behind you and enter the new year all shinny and new. Think a little deeper, choose a little more wisely, love a little longer and harder, pray a little more feverently, listen a little more actively, talk a little less, give more freely, hope a little stronger, smile a little broader, walk a little slower, take time to make time for the things that matter, get a journal, dare to start that little business you’ve always wanted to start, be kind to a stranger, love like a mother, hug like a father, eat like a king/queen aha! This is where we talk about FYR. Are you going to carry your procrastinations from last year into the New Year? Or are you going to buy your eBook and attempt to do what you planned at the beginning of last year? Time does fly by doesn’t it?

Enjoy time with your family all year round, give gifts all year round, say ‘I love you’ all year round, hold on to the beauty inside of you, make your own decisions, make wiser decisions…. And please if you see me at the store or on the street “No, I’m not offended by your ‘Merry Christmas’ greeting. I like to keep the ‘CHRIST’ in Christmas.”

p/s Before I begin to read any of your thoughts, I want you to know I am not judging anyone, my convictions won't just let me be, so I am always thinking and searching and learning and relearning and un-programming but above all GROWING and striving to be the BEST version of me there could ever be...

Once in royal Davids city,
Stood a lowly cattle shed,
Where a mother laid her Baby,
In a manger for His bed:
Mary was that mother mild,
Jesus Christ, her little Child.

We have so many BIG SURPRISES from FYR in 2012, JUST YOU WAIT and SEE!!!

Can you tell my daughter and I ( (c) Nikotaphotography ) had a blast taking these pictures? We love colors and all things ARTSY.

May the blessings of God be upon us all this Christmas, May He bring us Peace and Joy as we face this daunting world together. May we Grow and Give and Glow: 3G Mom-ly...

COMING SOON: 3G MOMS

The picture below is some of the gifts my beloved daughter bought for me using some of her savings. She is a giver, always making things for people, always thinking of others and not just during holidays, she does it all year round. I love that most about her, such a thoughtful little one, and she's mine :)

☻ just ♫ call ♫ to ♫ say ☻ ♥ U ♫

Give if your heart compels you to. Here is Nina's WATER4LIFE Fundraiser site: Nina's WATER4LIFE

EAT & DRINK TO YOUR HEALTH. YOU'LL THANK ME LATER...

SPICY GINGER DRINK

2011-11-15T13:59:00.000-08:00

It is starting to get really cold out there and I was thinking about what I would drink if I caught a cold when I remembered my Mom's honey and lemon remedy. I was out of lemons but I did have ginger and I decided to make myself a ginger drink to boost my immune system before anything happens :)

The ginger root is a very medicinal plant that has been used for decades to treat all kinds of ailments. Here are a few benefits of the ginger root:

-Immune system booster
-Anti-bacterial and anti-fungal effects
-Soothes menstrual cramps, migraines and nausea
-Aids in digestion and soothes an upset stomach
-Lowers cholesterol

As for me I ALWAYS use GINGER & GARLIC in almost every food I prepare, I love the flavor and of course their health benefits too.

Our ***SPICY*** Ginger Drink

Ingredients:

1 cup fresh ginger root, skin removed (If you don't like it too spicy you may want to reduce your measurements to 1/2 a cup or 1/4 cup of ginger root)
6-7 cups of water, divided
1/3 cup honey

Directions:

First, place the ginger root and 2 cups of water into a high speed blender and blend until liquefied.
Then pour content from the blender into a medium size pot.
Add 4-5 cups of water into the pot, cover and bring to a boil.
Next, using a sieve, carefully pour boiled mixture (You may also want to let it cool down some to avoid getting burned) from pot into another container in order to catch all the chaff from the ginger root.
Finally, add 1/3 cup of honey into your ginger drink and mix.
You may also add a dash of cinnamon to your individual glass before drinking.
Enjoy it warm or cold
Save the rest in a bottle with a lid and store in the refrigerator.

EAT & DRINK TO YOUR HEALTH, YOU'LL THANK ME LATER!

ALMOST THANKSGIVING!

2011-11-11T19:16:00.000-08:00

I haven't blogged for a little while but you must know I have been super busy. As usual I always have more than one project going on at the same time. Recently I've been busy with the 3G MOMS. Have I told you about the 3G MOMS? Well, you're in for a treat so why spoil it now?

I have been doing my hair, yup, I do my own braids and I'm getting better with practice. See? My daughter calls them Rock N' Roll Twists, others call it City Twists. It is a very trendy hairdo that people pay $300 to have done at an exclusive location here in Atlanta, BUT I HAVE BEEN STUDYING IT FOR MONTHS AND FINALLY CRACKED THE CODE! So I am mighty proud of myself :)

Now let's talk about food. My little Wonder aka Nina and I have been experimenting on breakfast smoothies all week and came up with some pretty delicious stuff. Even my 14 month old son loves it, when he hears the blender he runs to the kitchen screaming "Banana, banana!" it is the cutest thing I ever heard :)

"Mommy, this is the best and most fun part of my morning!"

Our Raspberry Explode:

3 ripe bananas
2 cups of Soy milk (vanilla-flavored) *You can also use Almond milk if you want*
1 Tbsp coconut oil
2 tsp Lacuma powder
5-6 frozen raspberries *You may use your favorite frozen fruit*

Directions:

Blend the first four ingredients until smooth and then pour about 3/4 of it into a glass. Next, add the frozen raspberries and blend until smooth. Pour the rest of the smoothie from the blender into the glass. Be creative with your designs and let the kids do theirs, they come up with the best designs and ideas. This is a great way to enjoy a healthy breakfast. Have fun!

Our Meatless Meatballs:

I was in the mood for some meatballs today and remembered I had some meatless meatballs in the fridge. I also had some cabbage which I'd blanched, squeezed and then stored in the freezer. This was my lunch. The pictures above show just the meatballs before I added my cabbage. Hope you like it if you do try it.

Ingredients:

1.5 large yellow onions, chopped
1/2 green bell pepper, chopped
4-5 cloves of garlic, minced
1 cm fresh ginger root, minced
2 plum tomatoes, diced
1/4 tsp onion powder and garlic powder
1/2 tsp dried parsley flakes
1/2 dried oregano
2-3 Tbsp curry (I love curry)
3 Tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
2 vegan vegetable bouillons (or salt to taste)
9oz Veggie Patch Meatless Meatballs (You can find this in the organic section of your local grocery store)

Directions:

In a saucepan, heat the olive oil and add the onions, fresh garlic and fresh ginger. Once the onions become lightly translucent add the rest of the ingredients except the meatballs. Let cook for about 3 minutes covered and then add your meatballs. Cook for another 5 minutes on low heat. (If you decide to add spinach or cabbage, add about 2 cups of either at the same time you add your meatless meatballs and let cook together). Serve with pasta or eat as is. I enjoyed mine very much. Next time I will add some pepper to kick it up a notch. I like spicy food :)

Hope you're preparing for THANKSGIVING. What are you cooking this year? In my house we always have an International-style Thanksgiving and this year will be no different. I will be making a large pot of eru (my favorite traditional meal from Cameroon)...thinking about it makes me smile already :):):)

EAT AND DRINK TO YOUR HEALTH, YOU'LL THANK ME LATER!

Yvette Odom, Week 2

2011-10-17T12:10:00.000-07:00

The week has flown by but not without great news. Remember I told you I will be giving you updates of Yvette's FYR journey? Okay drum roll please !!!!!!!! You will be happy to know that after 7 days on the FYR program Ms. Odom has dropped 5 pounds! I was very excited for her as we watched the scale go down, down, down :)

She is more motivated than ever and before I write down her struggles and triumphs from the past week, I want to add that she consciously works out every morning as well. We text each other every morning and then wake up to exercise. You can do that too, set a time to consciously wake up and exercise. The time Yvette and I decided is 6:00am every morning. As you know I have two kids including a one year old who wakes up at night but no matter how tired I am I still push myself to get up because I made a commitment to myself and I hate letting myself down. So if I can do it, you can do it too. Yvette is doing it and so can you! I know you can!

YVETTE's NOTES:

Week 1 recap
Challenges
gas
Multiple bathroom trips

Solutions
Alkaline water, smaller meals, no skipped snacks, increased exercise & general activity in the morning

Benefits
Increased energy, less stiffness, feel better during the day & better sleep at night

Other unexpected advantages
Feeling good all day & loss 5lbs the first week, nails & skin looks healthier already.

Next weeks goals
Lose 5-7lbs
Better food planning & organization
To increase flexibility during exercise

Are you ready to join the FYR clan? email me bernice4fyr@gmail.com

My Raw-vegan apple pie

Raw-vegan apple pie

Recipe coming soon...

EAT AND DRINK TO YOUR HEALTH, YOU'LL THANK ME LATER.

Yvette Odom, Week 1

2011-10-10T03:17:00.000-07:00

FYR is about to do something we've never done before: I love working with people on a one on one basis. In the past we've gotten testimonies after the person has done the FYR-detox program but this is the first time I will be tracking/documenting the progress of a new FYR enthusiast. Meet Ms. Yvette Odom.

I have known Yvette for about 3 years now and she's been flirting with the idea of doing the program for sometime now. When we talked on the phone a few days ago she told me she was ready. This time I truly believed her because we all know that we usually only make that BIG decision when we are truly fed up. I am so very excited for Yvette and have no doubt that she will be as successful as she decides to be.

We started by charting her measurements and going through the food list found in the FYR e-Book. Then we both headed out to the local farmer's market so I could help her get the things she will need for her FYR journey. It was a blast shopping with her and picking up all her staples. We discussed key points , hints and many other important things that you will find in your FYR e-book (Yvette had already gotten her FYR e-books many months ago and has read it over and over in order to get the basics down). By the end of the our shopping experience we were both excited beyond belief. I love working with people especially someone as determined and enthusiastic as my friend Yvette.

Thank you Yvette for letting us document your journey and sharing your heart with us. I have no doubt that you will inspire so many people as you begin to LOVE YOURSELF A LITTLE DIFFERENTLY.

Here is a little interview I did with Yvette yesterday in preparation for her FYR journey (which starts today, October 10th).

ME: "Hi Yvette, howdy?"

YVETTE: "Hi Bernice, I'm doing great!" she giggled. She is a full-of-life, bubbly person and her laughter is infectious.

ME: "Can you tell us what is and has been your inspiration to undertake this journey?"

YVETTE: "I was and am inspired by a dear friend of mine (you). She is very disciplined and it shows very well. I see her success and how happy she is and I want to follow in her footsteps."

ME: "Well, thank you dear." I was smiling from ear to ear. What can I say, we were having a blast, yes, we had to control the laughter and concentrate on the interview, oh boy, is that hard!

ME: "Do you have any fears as you start the FYR program?"

YVETTE: "Yes, I fear that I won't do well. I know I will succeed to some degree which by the way my goal is to lose 133 pounds but most importantly I want to achieve optimum health. I want to avoid the stigma of my family background when it comes to diabetes and blood clots due to poor circulation. I know eating a healthier diet will alleviate these issues for me."

ME: "In the FYR ebooks I talk about the process of finding your 'Emotional Why' have you found yours?"

YVETTE: " I have always seen myself as someone with this inner style and personality but I don't think it reflects on my outside as much as it is inside. There is this girl in me that I know so well who is dying to come out of this outer shell. I want to have children, a family, I want to watch my children grow."

ME: "What are some tangible things that motivate you?"

YVETTE: "Janet Jackson. I don't necessarily want to be her size but growing up she has always being my role model for someone who openly portrayed a positive body image. She worked out and did it the way way. I want to do this the right and healthy way. I have been big all my life and I want to show people they can do it too. Most importantly I want to become my own role model."

ME: "Why did you choose FYR when there are many other programs out there that you could choose from."

YVETTE: "I don't want to feel guilty anymore of what I'm eating. FYR makes the most sense to me and is sincerely the very best option for what I want to attain with my health. I want my healthy looking skin back, healthy hair and energy back. FYR not only does it the right way but also the natural way. Plus I have you in my head and ear all the time, so I can't go wrong."

ME: "Don't forget to have a little fun and not take life too seriously while you're on the program, if at anytime you do deviate a little from the program, remember not to feel so disappointed that you abandon the program, just forgive yourself and get right back on board. But I know you can do this and I am so proud of you for making the best decision for your health. With the Forever Young Revolution together we can encourage one another to love ourselves a little differently."

YVETTE's Weight Loss Goal: 133 pounds

Ms. Yvette Odom

"Our environment is our external metabolism."-- Dr. Max Gerson

"EAT AND DRINK TO YOUR HEALTH, YOU'LL THANK ME LATER!"

VEGAN OATMEAL-CHOCOLATE COOKIES

2011-09-27T09:01:00.000-07:00

I have been gone for a while I know, but I needed that time. It is not easy to be a stay-at-home mom who home schools her 8 year old, has a super-active 1year old and has BIG DREAMS and projects she is fired-up about---to name a few. I guess what I'm trying to say is that I have been/and I'm EXHAUSTED...but hey who's complaining? I am superwoman right?

I have decided to RE-BOOT my system with lots of green juices and smoothies. Anyway, anyone who would like to join is welcomed to send me an email to bernice4fyr@gmail.com

I came up with this wonderful recipe the other day and I would like to share it with you:

VEGAN OATMEAL-CHOCOLATE COOKIES

Ingredients:

2 cups old fashion oatmeal
1 cup sugar
A pinch of salt
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp cinnamon
2 Tbsp dried coconut shreds (Optional)
3 Tbsp coconut oil
1/2 tsp vanilla extract

1/2 tsp Energy egg replacer + 2Tbsp water (equivalent to 1 egg)
3 Tbsp 100% pure chocolate powder

1/3 cup water + 3 Tbsp water

Directions:
Mix all dry ingredients in a bowl and set aside
Add water, vanilla extract to mixture of Energy egg replacer, set aside

Now add all wet and dry ingredients together and mix well
Lastly add the coconut oil and mix till mixture becomes sticky

Lightly grease baking pan with non-stick olive oil spray or with some coconut oil
Place spoon-size cookie mixture on baking dish making sure they are several inches apart

Put cookies in oven for 10-15 minutes at 350 degrees

When it's done, let cool down for about 10 minutes and then serve with a glass of almond milk :)

My oatmeal chocolate cookies

Up close and in your face...not quite in your mouth though hahaha

Enjoy!

DRINK AND EAT TO YOUR HEALTH, YOU'LL THANK ME LATER!

4 FOODS THAT WILL KEEP YOU LOOKING YOUNG

2011-07-04T11:03:00.000-07:00

Hello, hello, hello and happy 4th of July to everyone! So, I have been super-duper busy, as you already know, I am SUPERWOMAN lol, Mom of two (7 year old and 10 months old), wife, author, photographer, 3G MOM and the list goes on and on, but I'm not complaining :) creativity fuels me and gives me a RUSH wheeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee (see, I told you)

I am going to share with you four of my favorite foods that keep me (hopefully) looking young, see picture below:

By the way, I braided my hair myself, nice huh?

Anyway, I am going to skip the obvious combination of water/fruits/veggies, as we all know their benefits.

1. Olive Oil/ Avocado: I've known about olive oil since I was a little girl because my mother always added a tablespoon to her body lotion, well, here's my FYR mama, 52 year old mom of 5 (ages 32 (me), 27,25, 24 and 17). I am so happy my mom has been following the FYR guidelines since she returned home almost two years ago. The first picture is when she just arrived in Atlanta and the second she sent to me a few days ago from Cameroon.

As you can tell she looks younger and obviously slimmer.
I love cooking with olive oil, I have not followed my mom's idea of adding olive oil to my lotion but I do add coconut oil to my lotion sometimes.Olive oil is very rich in monounsaturated fats and antioxidants which slows aging and helps prevent age-related diseases. As for avocados, some people avoid eating them because they fear it is fatty when actually a medium size avocado has approximately 30 of fats, mostly monounsaturated fats, and have the same health benefits as olive oil. I also use avocado as a mask for my face and yes you may catch me licking it at times :) edible-beneficial-goodness!

2. Nuts/Seeds: I love nuts, especially brazil nuts, walnuts, cashews, almonds, pine nuts and macadamia nuts. Back in Cameroon we used a lot of pumpkin seeds in many of our vegetable dishes. But then I was only interested in how good the dish tasted, don't blame me, my mom is an extra-ordinary cook. Nuts and seeds are high in unsaturated fats, vitamin, minerals and phytochemicals. When something is good for me I eat and/or drink it. I eat to live.

3. Blueberries: If you don't get the right kind you may end up with a sour taste in your mouth and end up disliking them for no reason. Some of the inorganic blueberries I've bought in the past have usually tasted a little sour, I am yet to discover a sour organic blueberry. Yes, they can be a little pricey but boy do I monitor how we eat these at home hahhaha, I am a mother hen over my blueberries. I have a blueberry addict called Nina Lakota who lives in my house and LOVES fruits and VEGGIES especially blueberries. Blueberries prevent oxidative damage and are highly anti-inflammatory. You can add them to smoothies, salads or make a blueberry pie. Okay when it comes to blueberry pies, no one does it like my mother-in law, she is an amazing cook and her desserts are SIMPLY ADDICTIVE. Hold on, let me find a picture of her blueberry pie, you have to see to believe:

Sorry that's all you can get, a picture!!!

4. Lemons: I used to be one of those who thought that lemons are extremely acidic and bad for the body. But do you know that lemons are basic in the body as opposed to being acidic? and are extremely beneficial to your health? They are supercharged with tons of vitamin C and antioxidants. Lemons are not only great for cleaning your house but they act as a super cleanser for your body against toxins. So next time you see a lemon, instead of running away from it reach for it. Add it to the water you drink, squeeze it over your salad and foods in short marry a lemon, it is good for you :)

DRINK AND EAT TO YOUR HEALTH, YOU'LL THANK ME LATER!

FATIGUE

2011-06-03T10:26:00.000-07:00

I bet you fatigue is a word most of us are very familiar with. Everyday is a 'run' and we are beat by the time we get home. But somehow even a good night's sleep can't seem to remedy it. Aren't we supposed to feel rested after we sleep? yes we are, but sometimes there is a kind of fatigue that feels everlasting--chronic fatigue. Do you know what I am talking about? I have been there in the past and I tell you recently I haven't missed feeling that way, want to know why? My remedy is simple: Detox. Other reasons why you may be feeling this way are;
Low blood pressure
Viral infection
Thyroid disorder
Low blood sugar
Anemia

I realized that whenever I did a detox I got an energy surge. The FYR program has a 21-day detox (complete with recipes in both ebooks on sale on this site) that you can follow if you choose to do it our way. The very least you can do is try to incorporate some of the recipes into your diet a little at a time. And if you 'fall off the wagon'? well then just start again.

Here is one of my favorite green smoothie recipes (Always do organic if you can)

NINA'S GREEN GOOD MORNING

1.5 ripe medium bananas
1 ripe mango
1.5 cups of soy milk or almond milk (vanilla flavored)
1 Tbsp of coconut oil (optional)
1 handful baby spinach

Blend till smooth and enjoy.

I especially love spinach so I eat it in every form possible. Spinach is very nutrient-dense and eating it in its raw(uncooked) form is the best way to get all the benefits you need since heat destroys enzymes. It is very low in calories yet very high in vitamins, minerals and phytonutrients: vitamin K, vitamin A, magnesium, folate, manganese, iron, calcium, vitamin C, vitamin B2, potassium, and vitamin B6. It’s a very good source of protein, phosphorus, vitamin E, zinc, selenium, niacin, dietary fiber and omega-3 fatty acids. It is also packed with flavonoids which are antioxidants and has anti-inflammatory properties. Spinach is my favorite source of iron. Iron is a component of hemoglobin which carries oxygen to all parts of the body. I hope this encourages you to add more spinach to your diet and even better add it to your green smoothies in the morning.

Don't forget to exercise.

EAT & DRINK TO YOUR HEALTH, YOU'LL THANK ME LATER!

PUT YOUR GENIUS MINDS TO WORK!

2011-04-14T22:41:00.000-07:00

RTD(ideal) ± 2(Rx)/week +Qdx = FYR

Yes, FYR has a mathematical formula, the only one you'll see in the program. We do not count calories, no need to, or keep points...WE EAT and enjoy every bite hmmmmmmmm. This came to me a few days ago when I was thinking about the questions people ask me. They always want me to explain FYR in one short sentence and GOD being my abundant source poured this idea into me, isn't HE AMAZING?

So I am calling on your genius minds to decode this and send your answers to bernice4fyr@gmail.com. But first you'll have to get your eBook in order to learn about the program and put your brain to work on deciphering the formula! The winner gets the next dessert recipe hard cover book absolutely free and gets to feature in the book: photo & bio. Are you UP FOR THE CHALLENGE?

Here are a few hint words to aid you: raw, vegan, detox, relax, fire once you buy your eBook, I will give you one last important hint word. Good Luck!

Did you know we now have a facebook FYR page? If you haven't been there, then you're missing the hottest new

spot on facebook. It is FUN-PASSION-FIRE-DETERMINATION & INSPIRATION!

Here's our page link:

https://www.facebook.com/pages/Forever-Young-Revolution/204244652938442

FYR Revolutionists are 'BURNING' ... okay, I have been cooking and baking up a storm, FEAST FOR YOUR EYES...

Created by our amazing chef, 7 year old Nina Lakota

Vegan Oat-banana biscuits with a dollop of vegan cream cheese

Vegan YUMSY peanut butter-chocolate pie: this has only 3 Tbsp of peanut butter and the rest? ah, you'll just have to wait for the dessert cookbok

Created by Ms. Nina Lakota, her delicious, ultra-nutritious breakfast

Nina's mixed fruit smoothie

Don't forget to exercise!

TWIST & SHOUT

Cool down Stretch

EAT AND DRINK TO YOUR HEALTH, YOU'LL THANK ME LATER!

I HAVE ICE CREAM FOR BREAKFAST because I CAN!

2011-04-10T06:00:00.000-07:00

I AM YOUR GENIE, YOU CALLED AND HERE I COME TO SATISFY YOUR SWEET TOOTH

How about a RAW-VEGAN YUMMY ICE CREAM?

Ingredients for raw-vegan ice cream:
2 ripe bananas, sliced and frozen overnight
1 tsp coconut oil
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
3 Tbsp water or coconut water (to add as needed)

Blend till smooth and store in freezer(if you prefer a firmer ice cream rather than soft serve) for about 15 minutes

Ingredients for Strawberry Syrup:

5 ripe strawberries
1/2 tsp coconut oil
2 cubes of ripe mango
1 Tbsp agave nectar

Blend all together until smooth and drizzle over ice cream, you may also add nuts and berries over ice cream. For this recipe I added pineapple chunks, a sprinkle of pecan flour and crushed walnuts. YES AND YOU CAN EAT ALL YOU WANT!!!

This is so delicious that your little ones will love it, how about that? we will be bringing you more raw-vegan recipes and more desserts for those of you with a sweet tooth like me xoxoxoxo ENJOY!

Softer version of ice cream with strawberry syrup YUM-ME!

Click on this text to view our new facebook page:

Firmer Ice cream: CAN YOU TASTE IT?

Our Amazing chef, Nina Lakota, Official Face of FYR, getting ready to make her very first raw-vegan ice cream

Thank you very much Ms. Nina. Please let us know how you liked it when you make it for you and your loved ones.

EAT AND DRINK TO YOUR HEALTH, YOU'LL THANK ME LATER!

HAPPINESS IS FROM WITHIN...: This is why I am happy, This is my story, this is ...

2011-04-09T07:15:00.000-07:00

I just had to share this powerful testimony about Jenny on the FYR program. She is also a contender in the FYR 90-day superstar challenge. Read and be inspired....

HAPPINESS IS FROM WITHIN...: This is why I am happy, This is my story, this is ...: "This is my story, this is my joy...Now the fact is, I never really talked about my struggles with my weight because I felt that’s personal a..."

THE SILENT KILLER

2011-03-25T20:39:00.000-07:00

I remember many years ago when I used to be a worry-wart. I worried about every little thing and then worried that I worried so much. Needless to say back then life didn't get any better, nothing changed because I worried about it, I just grew older and my crankiness and mood swings probably drove those who were close to me crazy.

Early this morning I heard from a friend whose uncle had passed out from being too stressed all the time and also a young woman, 36, who recently died because of stress. Several years ago a 23 year old girl had a stroke that left her left side paralyzed...too many stories to list and all from the same culprit: STRESS. Yes we live in a demanding society where we always feel like we're being pulled from every direction, yes there are bills to pay and kids to feed, such is life! Being stressed over a long period of time sets your body on a continuous fight-or-flight mode, can you imagine always being on your toes or walking on egg shells? that's what happens when you let stress drive your life.

According to the America Medical Association, stress is far more dangerous in causing cancer and heart disease than smoking and high cholesterol, shocking isn't it? Stress is the cause of 60% of all illnesses and diseases. These statistics are a wake up call for us all. There is no use in fretting over something we can't change at the moment, I have learned that now. Did you know that almost all medications are prescribed for stress related diseases? Imagine what would happen if we were all able to control our stress levels or eliminate it from our lives completely. Stress weakens the immune system and leaves you open and at risk to different kinds of ailments.

SYMPTOMS OF STRESS:

Irritability, headaches, feeling burnt out, anger, restlessness, heart palpitations, anxiety, sweaty palms, loss of appetite, constipation, diarrhea, depression and so many more.

HOW TO REDUCE YOUR STRESS:

Unlike some unhealthy ways to deal with stress like smoking, drinking, overeating, overworking, sleeping too much, aggressive behaviors etc, there are many more healthy ways to cope, manage and rid yourself of stress.

1. Be assertive: Learn to say 'no'--something which was very hard for me to do because I used to be afraid of hurting people's feelings but today I have learned to put myself first. You can't please everyone.

2. Stay away from people and situations that stress you out: Sometimes it is better to let go, you may have known someone for many years and feel a certain degree of loyalty in keeping them around, but there comes a point where you have to draw the line.

3. Manage your time better: Make a to-do list and learn how to look at the big picture, break it down into little parts and set realistic goals for yourself. Avoiding to do this may cause you to feel overwhelmed.

4. Forgiveness: My definition of forgiveness is this: "Forgiveness is allowing oneself to be set free, doesn't mean you are weak or that you will erase all memories of it, it is letting go to open up more room for love."

5. Meditate: Set aside quiet time for yourself. Do nothing. Master the art of doing nothing...silence...ssSSH

Ms. Delores Taku

6. Relax: It is very hard for some people to relax but it is a very necessary ingredient in managing stress. Here are few ways to relax; go for a walk, listen to music, take a long bath, drink some tea, read a good book, watch a romantic movie, watch a comedy, talk to a friend (not the ones who stress you out) have a healthy snack--adopt a healthy lifestyle and diet, try FYR :) -- and my favorite one; exercise, exercise. I always feel GREAT after exercising.

Stop Worrying: IF YOU CAN"T CHANGE IT TODAY, DON"T SWEAT IT!

Drink and eat to your health, you'll thank me later!

32 Years Young and Hopefully Growing Younger

2011-03-19T18:30:00.000-07:00

Last weekend I celebrated my 32nd birthday, my actual birthday was march 1st but my aunt, Monica, organized one for me and my cousin, Dora. Should I just warn you that I was spoiled rotten? Well, there, you have been warned...I will let the pictures speak for themselves...

A choconana-appricot cake I made for Dora, YUMMY

Aunty Monica, our gracious hostess

Dora and aunty Monica

The buffet table

Ms. Sharon Arrey and I

Me in my little black dress I got from Dora

Ice cream cake

Me and baby Ricky( in the background)

The other birthday girl, Dora

My 6 month old Chubb-chub and I

Ricky and aunty Flo

My Nina, me, Tresor and Dora

Cutting the cake

Okay, so you see it was a big deal. Had so much fun. I can't thank aunty Monica, Dora, Adel and David enough. I did try a little bit of almost everything. I was very conscious of what went into my mouth though. I had more vegetables than anyone else I think. It was well worth it as it acted as a great laxative for me the next day (sorry, but just had to add that). When I got up the morning after and felt flu-ish, I knew exactly why: it was the ice cream cake! My body knows exactly what it wants; dairy and I don't get along too well. So for the next three days I did a little cleanse, carrot juice fast, and I was back to myself again.

The reason I brought that up is to point out that if you treat your body well, it will actually 'talk' back to you and let you know if it agrees with the things you eat or not. I absolutely love the FYR lifestyle and I hope you decide to join the ride. Several people are taking the FYR 90-Day Superstar Challenge and I can't wait to start getting the success stories. In April, I have a handful of people starting as well, so if you have been waiting here's your chance. Summer is still several months away for all those who want to join the swimsuit challenge.

In the coming weeks FYR will be announcing its first Male Spokesperson. I hope you follow us (click on 'follow') to stay updated. On our next post we'll be talking about sources of Iron and eating red meat won't be one of them.

I will leave you with a great little recipe to help boost your immune system and help fight against cancer. The secret is an ingredient called lycopene found in tomatoes which helps to prevent blood lymphocytes from damage. I love tomatoes, especially raw, you can eat it in your salads or juice them, you can also add it to your smoothies. Fresh organic tomatoes are ideal. So if you're one of those people who won't try anything new, just think of the benefits of this great drink. I hope that's enough for you to try it...love yourself a little differently, it might as well begin with a glass of tomato juice.

Tomato Juice

Ingredients:

2 big ripe tomatoes
1/4 cup chopped celery
1 tsp cayenne pepper ( I love cayenne, the more the better)
1 tsp turmeric
1 tbsp lemon juice
1 tsp agave nectar (optional)

Method:

Juice the celery and tomato in a juicer. Add the rest of the ingredients and stir. YUMMY-DELICIOUSO-Tritious :)

EAT AND DRINK TO YOUR HEALTH, YOU"LL THANK ME LATER!

The Great American Seduction

2011-03-05T18:43:00.000-08:00

We live in a country where food seduction is in competition with marriage. Over 51% of marriages end up in divorce and over 50% of America’s food is highly processed. So which one is stimulating our pleasure centers in the brain more? I think we all know the answer. I was watching a certain commercial yesterday where a company was advertising their ‘Good Mood Food’ and I leaned forward to see what would give such a happy smile on someone’s face and it was interesting to see that it was a sandwich packed with some kind of animal flesh, cheese, and extra grease. I thought oh boy, is there anyone out there who really believes this? It was being advertised as a serving for one person whereas three people could actually eat that and be full.

With so many different ingredients being packed into food to make it addictive, is it any wonder why we can’t seem to stop eating? The reasons why these additives have been added are numerous, some of which are to add flavor and color to a food item that has been totally depleted and robbed of its nutrients.

I can safely say I have been addicted and have fallen for the sweet seduction of such foods twice in my life. The first time it was condensed milk and crackers. I used to rush to the store to buy a big container of condensed milk and crackers and would finish it in less than an hour. I used to feel so sick after that but do you think that stopped me? Another time I got fixated on captain crunch cereal, a box a day was my addiction. It sickens me to remember how horrible I felt afterwards but somehow I could not stop until I decided to ask myself one day why I still felt so ‘Horrible’ inside if all these foods were supposed to make me happy. I was putting myself on a periodic sugar high; I would be happy while eating the food and then sad a few hours later. Thank goodness I got the courage to stop misusing and abusing my body.

Here are a few ways to stop unhealthy food addiction:

Do a periodic fast or detox: (I recommend the FYR 21-day detox found in the eBook on sale on this site). Somehow after a detox your body starts to crave only good and healthy foods, almost as if it knows what it wants and is begging you to stay the course. The moment you stray and start eating unhealthy again imagine that yucky feeling is your body asking you “Why? why are you doing this to me? Don’t I take good care of you? why don’t you take better care of me?”

My 7 year old took this picture of me this morning. I like to exercise when my 6 month old and my husband are still sleeping but Ms. Nina always seems to catch me just right when I'm about to begin. She likes to work out with me. If not, I usually have the whole house to myself. I call it 'Mommy's quiet/power' hour.

Exercise: I love exercising; it is a healthy addiction because it releases the real ‘Feel good’ hormones and keeps you on your toes all day. When you exercise you are more conscious of what you put in your mouth.

Eat your fruits, vegetables, legumes, seeds and nuts: Go back to the basics. These foods would keep your blood sugars from spiking all over the place and keep you from being moody throughout the day. You don’t want to drive anyone crazy, would you? J would you?

Sleep: I don’t think I will ever have a television in my room and definitely not in my children’s room either. It is safer for me to keep it in the living room. A restful sleep is a powerful addiction breaker.

Start your day with a great breakfast, fruits are ideal and in any form: I love green smoothies. It is so much fun and definitely a great-mood-drink.

Have a support system: If you don’t have people who support what you’re doing it can be very challenging. Make your decision and go for it, don’t let anyone talk you out of it. It may come from a sincere place but at the end of the day it is you alone who knows how you feel inside and your health is in no one’s hands but your own.

Drink lots of water: I always start my morning with a big glass of water. Sometimes when you think you are hungry, all you may need is a glass of water to quench your thirst or dehydration. Drink up!

When I juice carrots I love to do my carrot soups then and since I am a lazy cook, raw food usually suits me well especially with something like the carrot soup where you just pour-all-in-and-blend. If you want to warm it after that it's all up to you but here are the simple ingredients:

My Liquid Gold

Ingredients:

2 cups fresh carrot juice

1/2 tsp ginger

1/2 soy or almond milk

2 Tbsp agave

Juice of 1/2 a lemon or 1 lime

2 Tbsp coconut oil

1/4 cup almond mill or ground cashews (to thicken it up)

salt and pepper to taste

A dash of curry

Blend all together and serve. YUMMY-GOLDILICIOUS.

Drink and eat to your health, you'll thank me later!

FEAST FOR YOUR EYES Session 1

2011-02-25T11:36:00.000-08:00

Some days all you think of is food, hopefully good food right? here are a few to feast your eyes on :)

SIMPLY CARROT JUICE

ORANGE-MANDARIN BROCCOLI SAUCE ON WHOLE WHEAT PASTA

SIMPLY BROCCOLI-GREEN ROCKS!

COCONUT-MASALA SAUCE WITH SPINACH PASTA AND VEGAN SAUSAGE

COCONUT-CURRY SAUCE WITH VEGGIES & TEMPEH ON A BED OF QUINOA

'I DREAM IN CHOCOLATE' CHOCOLATE MOUSSE

'MAKE ME BEAUTIFUL' SMOOTHIE

ALMOND CHOCOLATE CUPSENSATION

'RED GODDESS' SIMPLY TOMATO JUICE

'BERRY BERRY HAPPY' SMOOTHIE

COCONUT-OATMEAL DELIGHT DRESSED IN CHO-CO-LATTE

SPINACH MEDLEY

PITA PIZZA

STRAWBERRY SMOOTHIE

DATE NIGHT APPETIZER: BAKED TOFU DRIZZLED WITH AN IRRESISTIBLE SAUCE

SIMPLY SALAD

STUFFED MUSHROOMS

HUNGRY YET? YOU CAN FIND SOME OF THESE RECIPES IN BOTH eBOOKS FOR SALE ON THIS SITE....Drink and eat to your health, you'll thank me later!

WHITE CHOCOLATE APPLE DESSERT WITH COCONUT SHAVINGS

POTATO SALAD WITH AN FYR TWIST

CHOCOLATE HALVA

SIMPLY TILAPIA

FYR™ Swimsuit Reveal is ON!

2011-02-20T23:49:00.000-08:00

Are you ready for the Forever Young Revolution™ to be the solution in your resolution this year?
It is often easier to show love to others than to ourselves, so this year I’m challenging you to spread that love to you, too. For me, it is getting a gorgeous swimsuit(s). All my life, I have always avoided wearing swimsuits, mostly because I was shy and partly because I was insecure about how I would look in them. So here I am, 32 years old, two children later and I can't wait to buy and wear my very first swimsuit... What about you? Have you lived your life shying away from them, too?

I already have my eye on quite a few red-hot-on-fire designs. But, I’d rather not be doing this alone, so I am sending this message to all who want to join me on this exciting ride. It’s the FYR™ Swimsuit Reveal. All you have to do is ‘follow’ my blog, get your copies of the FYR™ eBooks and join The Revolution. I’m betting you’ll love yourself a little differently if you do. Everyone who hops aboard must send me an email telling me about themselves and why they want to join in the fun. You must also include a current photo, and then, another photo of the new you, so that on July15, 2011 the reveals can take place:

All of us will reveal ourselves in our bathing suits. The excitement doesn’t stop there, for twelve lucky people will get the chance to be featured in the very first FYR™ Calendar. All profits, of which, will go to support a worthy charity. How about it? Love yourself a little differently and help feed the hungry? I can’t wait to stand by all you healthy bathing beauties at the event. To purchase your copies of the FYR™ eBooks just look to the right side of this blog and click 'Add to cart' and your e-books can be downloaded in seconds.
May I solicit your help in choosing the best swimsuit for me? Anyway, as you all know I just had my second child 6 months ago, and here's how I look now after the FYR™ program:

V is for VICTORY!

okay here are a few of some of the swimsuits I've been checking out, I will number them so anyone who'd like to leave a comment can tell me which is their favorite. If I could buy them all I would :)

I like them all, but I have to choose at least three or four Hmmmmmm, the search is on. Join me, it's not too late to get to your goal before or by summertime.

Remember to drink and eat to your health, you'll thank me later!

FYR™ Announces its First Ambassador

2011-02-16T06:39:00.000-08:00

Sometime last year I got a very sweet email from Laura. She lives in Cameroon, wanted to do the FYR 21-day detox and wanted me to help her. I was first very impressed because she is very young and aware of the benefits of healthy eating and living, plus she lives in the land I consider "Food Heaven" with food tempting you at every turn and corner. So, to want to do that in Cameroon was pretty impressive to me, she was very determined, had made a decision to do the detox, bought and paid for her e-Books (which by the way is available for purchase on the top right hand corner of this site) and trust me I wasn't going to be the one to step in her way. I was very excited and went right to work one-on-one with her. After her 21-day detox, she couldn't say enough about FYR, she writes:

"Today, I am putting on a dress which my aunt made for me 4 months ago and it was okay on me, but today, I am kind of swimming in the dress."

"Do you know I use to have digestion problems but since I started with your plan, I have stopped having it?"

"Cant help but share the wow reactions I had from my friends and better still my boyfriend this past weekend. He was so shocked when he saw meeeeeeeeeee............................God, it was so great.............. everyone is asking what happened.

When I tell them I ain't using a pill they think I am lying. Oh my God, thanks for coming to my life.........."

This is truly what brings me joy; the results and the way people start to love themselves differently even after just a few days on the program. Ever since, Laura has been very instrumental in sharing her success story and introducing people to the FYR program, her belief and enthusiasm earned her the position of the very First FYR Ambassador. She will be the FYR ambassador for Cameroon and her contact info is: laura4fyr@gmail.com or call her at: +237 77 57 79 40

Me, before the FYR 21-Day Detox

After my FYR 21-day detox program looking younger and healthier!

Congratulations Laura on your new Role as Cameroon's FYR Ambassador. I am most proud of you. You inspire me!

And now here's a recipe from my friend the artist, mother or three, fashion model and SUPERWOMAN, Maureen N. Lermer.

*~Jungle Romance...~*Soup

1 can of sweet corn (you can substitute the corn with carrots, cucumbers or potatoes)

1 can of coconut milk

1 whole onion

2-3 cups of vegetable stock

1 tsp chopped parsley

1 tsp chopped oregano

Salt and pepper to taste

Method

Bring to boil all the ingredients (except for the parsley and oregano) in a pot and cook for 25 minutes. Blend and serve hot. Garnish with oregano and parsley.

Thank you for sharing your tasty recipe EM

2 STEPS TO A HEALTHIER YOU

2011-02-11T04:51:00.000-08:00

Why is it so hard for us to adopt a healthy way of living? why is it hard for someone to buy a book on healthy living but very easy for that same person to spend a whole lot of money on a plate of unhealthy food at a restaurant? or at a clothing store? Bad habits are hard to break. There is no other way for one to start eating healthy than to make a decision to start doing so. We usually wait till it's very late; a death in the family, a scary diagnosis etc. You can start eating healthier today, all that is stopping you is an EXCUSE. We spend so much money to dress the outside of our bodies yet very little attention on 'dressing' the inside.

I love seeing all the celebrities who are RAW fooders or Vegan or both. My favorite of late is Demi Moore, okay she may be married to someone way younger than she is but one can hardly tell the difference. She is almost 50, yet she can compete with any 20 year old! She actually has grown younger over the years and I know why? you guessed right, it is all about what she eats.

Growing younger gracefully

Another favorite of mine is Prince: Does he look like a man a day over 50? I love Prince, and totally in love with his music. He is a genius and yes, it's about all he eats. He grows younger everyday and even has a song about being vegan, quite interesting I must say :)

Beautiful Prince

The list continues with Sting, Woody Harrelson, Alicia Silverstone, Natalie Portman, Uma Thurman, Lisa Bonet, David bowie, Tobey Maguire aka Spiderman, Casey Affleck, Liv Tyler, Jason Mraz, Lea Michelle of Glee(the TV series), Erykah Badu, Zooey Deschanel, Emily Deschanel of Bones (the TV series), Ellen DeGeneres, Portia de Rossi, Andre 300 (of the group Outcast), Richard Gere (no wonder he is looking so young and handsome still), Kim Basinger (is it any wonder?), and the list goes on and on.

Okay, so you don't want to or have to be 100% RAW or Vegan, but how about adding more fruits and veggies into your diet everyday? That's a start, right? Yesterday I got so many beautiful compliments on a photo of me I put up on my facebook page:

Here's what someone sent me in a private message: "You look absolutely ADORABLE in your profile pic! My, my, my. You look like you are your own child! haha. You look no older than 13 in this picture. I'm not kidding or flattering! I'm being really honest."

of course I was totally flattered! Made me realize that what I am doing is good. I remember looking way older than my 31 years when I used to eat an unhealthy diet. Thanks 'Anonymous' for that lovely compliment. Here are my two ways to starting a healthy lifestyle:

CLEANSING: I could write a book about this topic, oh wait! I already did! The FYR Lifestyle e-book is available for you to buy at the top right hand side of this site. Anyone who has ever done any kind of cleanse will tell you how much more wonderful they felt and looked after the cleanse. Our bodies are like a drainage pipe, they get backed up and we must constantly clean it up so it can function properly. Buy your copy of the FYR lifestyle ebook and the 90-day companion ebook and download in minutes.

DISTILLED WATER: We bathe ourselves everyday so we don't smell, what about bathing your inner self, your body and your cells? We are made up of over 70% of water and our cells need to be clean in order to be healthy, so drink up!

Love yourself a little differently this year, don't wait till it's too late!

Remember to eat and drink to your health, you'll thank me later!

B

FYR™ Rising Stars--Winners don't make excuses, they execute!

2011-02-05T04:54:00.000-08:00

I love to celebrate people and the people I will mention here today ought to be celebrated. When I started FYR™ a few years back, I was doing it to keep myself accountable and also to reach out to anyone who wanted to take part in my journey. I had hoped that word about the lifestyle would spread like FIRE(FYR) but never really thought of what that day would look like. Now I get emails from every corner of the world, from people who want to love themselves a little differently. Nothing brings me more joy than to hear about their successes. Here is one success story from early this year:

Ms. Anu Goretti after her 21-day FYR detox

Ms. Anu Goretti is an FYR™ success story and you can read her personal testimony, and a host of many others, in the FYR™ lifestyle ebook available for sale now. You can also follow her on her blog at: www.prgoretti.wordpress.com

Our first rising star is Ms. Jennifer Omolu, who made her very first smoothie yesterday and has begun her FYR™ journey to loving herself a little differently. You see, I am very proud of her because the first time for anything worthwhile is always special and should be celebrated. She made a decision and executed it. Go Jenny!

Jennifer omolu

Jennifer drinking her first smoothie, YUM!

Another person we are celebrating today is Ms. Petronille Mahop. She not only has begun to love herself a little differently by adopting the FYR™ lifestyle but has started her own blog: www.beinggoodtome.blogspot.com to talk about her journey.

A photo of Ms. Petronille and her beautiful daughter, Manuella.

Our final celebrity for today is my very own bundle of joy, 5 month old baby Ricky who had his first green food (sweet peas), and loved it!

Doesn't that look yummy?

...the debut of baby Ricky as one of the very first FYR Kids™

Please feel free to share your recipes, photos and success stories so that we can feature it on the site. Remember no success is too small!

Drink and eat to your health, you'll thank me later!

B

INTRODUCING THE OFFICIAL FACE OF FYR™

2011-01-22T05:06:00.000-08:00

It just makes sense that the youngest member of FYR™, my partner and long time FYR™ enthusiast, Nina Lakota, should be the official face of FYR™, not because she is my daughter but because she personifies everything FYR™ stands for, youth, health and sheer joy. She even puts me to shame when I start to 'fall off the wagon' on my FYR™ journey:

"Oh, Mama, you know you're not supposed to eat that!",

"That's just unhealthy!"

"You can do it Mama, you promised yourself you would exercise today, come on, don't let yourself down."

"I can't wait to do raw food again, and all those raw desserts, yum!"

"Your form is off Mama, you're not doing it like the girl on the workout tape, squat lower..."

"Mummy, I don't want eggs or meat, I want a salad, something fresh and healthy..." she goes on and on and on. Not that we don't splurge occasionally, we do, but when I'm on one of my quarterly detox periods, and I have to stick to the plan, she watches me with eagle eyes "I just want you to be successful at what you do," is what she tells me.

So I asked her a few days ago if she would like to be the Official face of FYR™ and she said yes, that is, after she asked "Will I get paid to do that?" LOL well, yes Ms. Nina, of course, and you can add that to your resume or portfolio too. Little Ms. Entrepreneur!

This got me thinking that we need more young and beautiful faces for this campaign. So FYR™ is conducting a search for 'little' faces to add to our site and eBooks, we need many more FYR Kids™.

Nina came up with some great recipes for her own FYR™ kids dessert Book, yes, this one will be in Print not just an eBook, and we are throwing a 'Mommy & Me for FYR™' and/or 'Daddy & Me for FYR™' challenge to every parent. The idea is to come up with a simple dessert (ingredients have to match those on the FYR™ approved list, so you have to purchase the FYR™ Lifestyle eBook, The 90-Day Companion may also give you some great ideas). The best recipes (creativity and presentation) will be featured in the FYR™ Kids Dessert book, along with bios and photos. Also, Mom/Dad and child must be spotted with any of the FYR™ gears in their entry photo (mug, apron, t-shirt etc) you can get these from the FYR™ Shop at http://www.cafepress.com/foreveryoungrevolution

I am excited to see new FYR kids™ faces. This challenge runs till June 1st and winners will be announced June 15th (along with the winners of the 90-day challenge) and will be notified when the Book is published. Remember to drink and eat to your health, you'll thank me later!

Is it possible that our bodies could have a memory of their own?

2011-01-11T19:07:00.000-08:00

4 Months after my 2nd child can you spy my 4.5 packs? :-O

4 Months after 2nd child

The human body is simply AMAZING, is it any doubt that even through years of constantly abusing it, it can still forgive us once we start treating it with care? Imagine how much harder it would be for us to lose weight or be healthy again if we had unforgiving bodies. Maybe we should all learn a thing or two from our bodies, I know I have.

Do you know that our bodies have memory cells? I know this for sure because twice after having both my babies, it 'remembered' what I used to be like before I packed on the pregnancy weight. I have always loved working out and I know with the law of reciprocity, my workouts have loved me back :-). With my second pregnancy I put on more weight than the first and still unbelievably returned to my pre-pregnancy weight faster (mind you, I'm still breastfeeding, so I still eat well enough to produce milk for my baby). Anyway, the point I'm trying to make is that if you 'remember' your body, your body will 'remember' you. I consciously made an effort to be in good shape before both my children, but with the second child I was even more dedicated, if you can remember my 60-day raw food journey from last year (I 'remembered' my body) and my body 'remembered' me as soon as I started eating healthier (FYR™ Approved foods) and working out. Could it be as simple as that? You bet! It definitely got me thinking for sure. And if you didn't 'remember' your body before, it still will love you once you start to 'love' it, cool huh? Anyway, I am super excited to share with you the upcoming FYR™ eBooks. This new year, I got so many emails from so many people asking me how to get back in shape. And so I decided to put everything into a series of eBooks that you can soon purchase. Here are the first few titles soon to be released:
1) The Forever Young Revolution™--"I just love myself a little differently." (Basically tells you about the FYR™ lifestyle, provides you with a shopping list of FYR™ approved foods, and a detailed 21-day detox menu and recipes for every meal of every of the 21 days, plus a whole lot more you wouldn't want to miss)
2) FYR™ 90-Day Superstar Challenge Companion-- 90 motivational Quotes, 30 Juice and Smoothie recipes and 10 Great Reasons Why You Should Take the Challenge (This is your conscience and me as your coach in words, a detailed breakdown of every day for 90 days of your challenge, great motivational quotes from a few of the greats and yours truly and a bonus star-studded FYR™ Superstar menu for the star in you. Recommended in conjunction with the first eBook above)
3) FYR™ Deserts--Melt away the pounds with every sweet and delicious bite (Just like its title states, you will eat as much deserts as you want and still watch the number on the scale descend. This is the one time when you can eat your cake and have it too!)
I encourage everyone of you to join me in making this year, 2011, the most fabulous one yet. Join the Challenge and see what stuff you're made of. Let's DO IT!!!

The Youngest FYR™ Revolutionist, my daughter, Nina.

I will continue to keep you updated. I must go now but I'll be back soon...
Remember to eat and drink to your health, you'll thank me later!

B

Exercise & Breastfeeding

2010-12-06T15:08:00.000-08:00

THIS PICTURE SHOULD BE THE POSTER FOR 'BREASTFEEDING FOR HEALTHY CHILDREN & MOTHERS'

How beautiful is the girl you see above? This picture got my attention because what she's doing is just incredible: in the middle of a busy beach, Mother of three, Pauline Thomas stops to breastfeed her baby. I have always been a big advocate of breastfeeding because I know the benefits to Mother and Child. Also, that's all I knew growing up: I watched my Mom breastfeed all my siblings and I was determined to do my best to follow that example. I believe any amount of breastfeeding is better than none at all. My hats off to those women who go all the way till baby is 12 months and beyond!

With my first daughter, I woke up every 20 minutes to breastfeed and I thought I was going to lose my mind. But later when I watched her grow with little or no health issues, I was glad that I did. It was also very easy to get back to my pre-pregnancy weight. I waited till I was done nursing (six months later) before starting any form of exercise, partly because I was tired all the time but mostly because I was just lazy. But after 3 months of diet and exercise I surpassed my goals and went down to a size 4 (I was a size 6 when I got pregnant and ended up a size 10 by the time I had her). Breastfeeding had helped me burn alot of calories to begin with, I guess the late night feedings were worth it, LOL.

Anyway, my point today is that I now have my second child and I wanted to start exercising while I was still breastfeeding and was not sure if it would affect the quality and quantity of my breastmilk. After some research, I was inspired to go ahead and start exercising. I must say I've had no adverse reactions from baby so far, plus I realized that I produce more milk as well. I eat a healthy diet and the recommended 500 more calories you should eat while breastfeeding and I still feel like a million dollars :-) Mommy is happy and baby is, too.

My daily routine is hectic but who says mommies don't have the hardest/best jobs? I wake up before everyone and drink a big glass of water, baby usually wakes up soon after. I had asked my friend Pauline (pictured above) what to do with all the leakage during exercise and she had told me she pumps first.

I must say breast pumps and I have issues, for some reason they hurt for me (my nipples to be precise), so what works for me is that I nurse the baby on both sides and when he goes to bed, which is usually soon after, I use some breast pads and I hit the floor and start my exercise routine. I make my healthy shake for breakfast, make coffee for hubby and get Nina ready for homeschool(brush teeth, bathing, breakfast etc)I do a marathon shower before baby wakes up and then my busy day really begins. Now I am accustomed to the schedule and it works just great.

I would like to know about your experiences with breastfeeding and exercise and how you make it work for you.

Mother of 3, Pauline Thomas, looking like she's just 16! BTW, the picture to your right was taken barely three months after she had her third baby, and she's a full-time working mom too, wao!

Thank you Pauline for your love and support and Merry Christmas to you, Rere and your beautiful children, Cynthia, Chris and baby Ntu :-)

For more on Breastfeeding visit lalecheleague.com they are just wonderful.

Drink & eat to your health, you'll thank me later!

B

Good morning Chunky-monkey-pina-strawberry-banana

2010-12-06T08:19:00.000-08:00

Recipe:

1cup of pineapple
1 1/2 banana
3 strawberries
2 cups of soy or almond milk
2 Tbsp of flax seed
1 tsp vanilla extract (optional)

This recipe came about because i had some left over pineapple and didn't know what to do with it and I didn't want to eat the pineapple by itself. I was scared that a mixture of pineapple with soy milk might be yucky but it was actually yummy to the tommy lol. So there you go, have some for breakfast and enjoy.

Once in a while I let Nina indulge so this morning I made her some pancakes, with sliced strawberries, some chocolate syrup and lots of whipp cream, she loved it! eventhough she turned and said to me "Mommy, I feel like I'm eating unhealthy." hahahahahahaha she is too much. I told it was okay on occassion.

The ressurection of FYR is back so get ready, you don't have to wait for the New Year to begin, if you can make it civilized (lol) through the Holidays then you can make it anytime, so be strong and remember to eat and drink to your health, you will thank me later!!!

B

Resurrection of FYR

2010-10-14T12:15:00.000-07:00

Wao! it's been almost a year since I last posted on this blog and I know you all have been wondering where the heck I was. I am a proud mama of two now, yup, just had my baby boy on August 26th, handsome, healthy, young man! During my pregnancy, the first three months were filled with Day sickness--not morning sickness-- so I could not even post here at all, I was sick like a dog (well worth it :-). Anyway I will tell you the story sometime later. Just wanted you all to know I am back and once I'm done breastfeeding, I will be going through a weight loss plan to lose the etxra pounds I gained while pregnant, so stay posted just in case you want to join me,lol. For now enjoy this video of my 7 year old daughter making her favorite breakfast smoothie. Also feel free to visit our older posts from the previous year ( 2009)there's lots of information to digest while waiting. Here's Nina!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8FRdWfTOxVw

xoxo

B

Santa will be a vegan this year...

2009-12-23T06:05:00.000-08:00

Has the jolly guy been to your house yet? He has been to mine and there is only one popular person's name under that tree, lol. Well anyway, Nina came up to me a couple of weeks ago and said "Mommy, Santa will be a vegan this year!", "He's going to have to eat like us." and I thought, hmm, that would be a great title for my blog at Christmas time. Santa has been getting fatter or should I say hasn't lost a pound since we first saw him. Could it be that we are giving him a heart attack with all our cookies and cow's milk in every house? lol Well I think he would appreciate our house more this Christmas, to show him we love him not only for our fancy gifts *wink* we are also feeding him with heart-healthy vegan treats. I will make him my favorite raw pie from my own recipe this year and a tall glass of almond mylk (Alexa spells it this way, I like it). How is that for a change huh? SANTA WILL BE A VEGAN THIS YEAR...IN MY HOUSE, how about yours?

We went to Stone Mountain the other day and although it was freezing cold, we did enjoy the beautifully lit houses, trees and cabins. My mom couldn't help but wonder how much the light bill would cost, lol. Only someone who doesn't take things for granted will think like that. When you are from a place where every little bit is appreciated, your view of certain things change. I didn't even think of that until she voiced it and I'm glad she did. My best Christmas ever will be the Christmas where me and a few others save enough money to build at least 2 wells in a village somewhere where people don't even have the luxury of having clean drinking water. We can do that next year, so if you want to join me do send me an email. I have done the research already for groups and missions who can help us fulfill this dream. Just imagine giving the gift of life to not only one person but a whole community. Things like that change the course of someone's life. And even if I have to do it alone, by next Christmas I would like to have saved enough to help build a well somewhere for people who need it. Nina has already joined me in this so we are two in this for now but we hope it grows and we can start a movement. I am so proud of her for since we talked about this project she has already saved up $7 dollars, seven precious dollars that tug at my heart, seven precious dollars that can change not one but several people's lives...

Here's Nina and her sister Savi after Sunday school. They made angels that day and colored a birthday cake for Jesus.

This is the pie that Santa is going to feast on. Hmm, how great does this look?

Yummy-deliciouso!

Upside-down

The biggest order I have had for my special pie. It felt great to see people eat it and lick their fingers and go "Hmm, this is sooooo good, and you say it has no animal products in it? and it's raw?" I am coming up with more great recipes for I now know that if people have the option to eat or give their loved ones a healthier choice, most of them would do it in a heartbeat. The thing is, most people (like me in the past) don't know there are choices out there like these. We need more raw food activist and more vegan activists as well.

Anyway I wish you all a very Merry Christmas and a FANTASTIC New Year. May all your dreams come true and may this year be the best year ever for each and every one of you. God bless! I will be back after Christmas to share all the goodies.

~B~

THE FOREVER YOUNG REVOLUTION™

A VERY FISHY AFFAIR

HAPPY VALENTINE'S DAY XOXO

PRETTY RAINBOW...

CHOCOLATE FOR ALL YE CHOCOHOLICS

JUICE, JUICE, REJUVENATING JUICES & SMOOTHIES

SWEET TABBOULEH & SOULFUL MUSIC

CREAMY NUT-TY SOUP

Endive Salad with Orange-Mustard Dressing

Strawberry-banana Chocolate Mousse Pie (Raw-Vegan)

THE BEST DARN RAW-VEGAN CHEESE CAKE EVER!

FUTURE MOVIE DIRECTOR?

"JUST ANOTHER MANIC MONDAY..."

A gift from an ANGEL!

MY HUSBAND HAS GONE SEA FOOD CRAZY

COOL CUCUMBER DAY

D'lectable Vegan Cheesecake

WILL YOU COME OVER FOR TEA?

YOU HAVE THE POWER TO UNLEASH THE ENERGY WITHIN

Every Disappointment Shows You a New Turn To Take

10 QUICK WEIGHT LOSS TIPS FOR 2012

MERRY CHRISTMAS from FYR

Once in royal Davids city,Stood a lowly cattle shed,Where a mother laid her Baby,In a manger for His bed:Mary was that mother mild,Jesus Christ, her little Child.

**SPICY** GINGER DRINK

ALMOST THANKSGIVING!

Yvette Odom, Week 2

Yvette Odom, Week 1

VEGAN OATMEAL-CHOCOLATE COOKIES

4 FOODS THAT WILL KEEP YOU LOOKING YOUNG

FATIGUE

PUT YOUR GENIUS MINDS TO WORK!

I HAVE ICE CREAM FOR BREAKFAST because I CAN!

HAPPINESS IS FROM WITHIN...: This is why I am happy, This is my story, this is ...

THE SILENT KILLER

32 Years Young and Hopefully Growing Younger

The Great American Seduction

FEAST FOR YOUR EYES Session 1

FYR™ Swimsuit Reveal is ON!

FYR™ Announces its First Ambassador

2 STEPS TO A HEALTHIER YOU

FYR™ Rising Stars--Winners don't make excuses, they execute!

INTRODUCING THE OFFICIAL FACE OF FYR™

Is it possible that our bodies could have a memory of their own?

Exercise & Breastfeeding

Good morning Chunky-monkey-pina-strawberry-banana

Resurrection of FYR

Santa will be a vegan this year...

Once in royal Davids city,
Stood a lowly cattle shed,
Where a mother laid her Baby,
In a manger for His bed:
Mary was that mother mild,
Jesus Christ, her little Child.

SPICY GINGER DRINK