Happy Friday afternoon! :)

Man, it is warm outside today! Almost 16C and SUNNY! The snow is going, going, almost gone. :D I have been waiting months for this. I heard on the news yesterday that the cold weather is supposed to be over now and it should be getting nicer and nicer from here on out. That’s what I want to hear! Don’t forget this week we turn the clocks ahead…that means an extra hour of daylight at the end of our days.

I am currently blogging outdoors on the deck- sans jacket!

Awwwww…… :D

I had a delicious lunch around 1:30pm today…

A leftover Sweet Potato Pinto Patty in a tomato bun + a dallop of Solgurt:

With a large carrot, chopped and sprinkled with Sun Dried Tomato and Herb seasoning.

Dessert was a banana, sliced and sprinkled with cinnamon (cinnamon helps control blood sugars, thus preventing cravings):

I ate this lunch fast, and my mouth wanted to still keep going after I was finished. I had some tea and decided to call my stomach’s bluff. Sure enough, in 10 mins. the ‘hunger’ disappeared.

Wedding Dress Plan: Again, I skipped the traditional whole wheat bun @ 200 calories and opted for the tomato slices. This saved me about 180 calories at lunch. Slowly but surely these changes are adding up, but at the same time I don’t feel like I am missing out. Interestingly enough, I find that I am being MORE creative with my food choices as a result!

I think this is the key to weight loss- making healthier substitutions for your favourite foods. Coincidentally, this is also the theme of my up and coming Glo Bakery! Stay tuned this weekend for a healthy spaghetti with over 60% less calories!

Yoga

I did 12 mins of ‘Yoga for Pain Relief’ over at www.yogatoday.com! It was good, but like LeahI skip over the beginning breathing stuff. I still have not trained my mind to be patient enough yet. I skipped to minute 13 and went til about 25 min. mark. There were some good stretches and poses in there! I loved the grasshopper! lol.

What I have discovered with yoga, is that I start to get very bored when the instructor carries on the same pose for a long time, or keeps going back to it over and over. Does anyone else experience this?

I find I stick to yoga best when they keep mixing up the poses and switching things up. Then I am not thinking about when I am going to be done! If anyone has some good video suggestions for instructors that constantly change it up, I would be interested in learning about them!

I am going to get ready for the gym now! I will be watching The Doctors while I am there…hopefully it is a good one!

Angela’s Friday Challenge:

Do you have a habit of looking in the bathroom mirror, either at work, home, or a public place, and say negative thoughts to yourself? Do you often say things like….’Oh gosh I look terrible!’ or ‘My hair is a disaster’ or ‘I look tired today’…? I find myself doing this from time to time and it is time to break the negative talk to ourselves!

My challenge to you today- and this weekend- is to smile at yourself, genuinely, every time you look in a mirror. As you smile tell yourself something positive (either outloud or in your head)….

Something like…’Hey hot mama, looking fine today!’ ‘Gorgeous blouse!’ or simply ‘I am working every day to create a healthier ME’

Now go do it and report back how it went! I am going to do it myself. :)

See you tonight for my new food scale and FAQ’s! I will also be revealing when my new website will Launch this weekend.

Good evening!

Why hello there. Glad you decided to come back :D It still amazes me that all of you support Oh She Glows with such a passion, coming back each and every day. I love it! Having the support of my amazing readers inspires me to do great things with this platform.

I have so many ideas for Oh She Glows and I can’t wait to implement all of them!

Well, today didn’t get much better in terms of feeling like I accomplished something! I felt like I was spread out over a bunch of tasks, and at the end of the day I had not much to show for it. Ah well, hopefully tomorrow will flow better! Now that I am going to the gym again, that is an extra hour out of my day and I really do miss that hour. But of course, I am so happy to be able to move my body again!

My workout:

• Elliptical duration: 36 mins.
• Intensity: incline 12, resistance 10
• Max heart rate: 178 bpm (91%)
• Avg heart rate: 162 bpm (83%)
• Feel the burn: 350 kcals

It felt great! It was a tough workout, but luckily since it is no-impact my pelvic injury didn’t feel a thing! :) I still have not heard from the bone scan results- I called today to see what was up but my Sports Dr. had not received it yet. So slooooow.

I meant to mention that I did some yoga last night. It was in front of the TV while watching 24! Does that count?! LOL. I mostly did lots of stretching because my back has been so tight lately. It felt amazing! Tomorrow I am going to set aside at least 20 mins. to do some Yoga Today! Love that website- all the videos are FREE!!!!!

I was dreaming of the summer while working out…

And my wedding dress….lol.

CFW Inspiration:

Since I have been doing my no-sugar CFW, it has made me take a hard look at what I am putting in my bakery items. As you may know, the theme of Glo Bakery is classic recipes with a healthy twist! Since I have been feeling so good by not consuming tons of sugar, I have decided to use natural sugars as much as possible in my bakery.

In many of my recipes, I have modified them to be healthier. I have reduced the sugar, the oil, the butter, etc. But what about using natural sugars? Some of my recipes already do use natural sugars, but not the majority. I am going to experiment with using things like honey, Turbinado sugar, Agave nectar, and the like. With this decision comes a higher price, so I will have to see if there is a market for these types of baked goods (and I suspect there is!). I thought I would share this inspiration with all of you! This is not to say that I won’t be using any white sugar in my recipes, but I am going to try to make many of them use natural + unprocessed sugars.

It is Art imitating Life, if you will. ;)

Fun new after dinner treat:

I found a new dessert tonight that I love! I took 1 Tbsp. of my homemade almond butter and microwaved it for about 10 seconds. I mixed in the warm + gooey almond butter into about 3/4 cup of unsweetened applesauce and mixed it all around. Oh. My. Gosh.It was devine! The perfect combo of sweet + savory. Sorry for no picture- it was so good I gobbled it up!

My New To-Do list:

I will get there!! :)

OSG Announcements:

1) Oh She Glow’s was featured in the top 100 posts of the day on Wordpress- again! My ‘What’s New in Health’ post was featured. I squeaked in at number 96! :)

2) I just realized today that this weekend is Spring Forward for the clocks!!! Who hoo!! Eric and I have already noticed the past week that it doesn’t get dark until 6:40pm now…by Monday it will be 7:40pm- Amazing! Spring is coming. :D

3) Only a few more days to participate in the 30-Day Shred DVD giveaway!

 4) Don’t forget to email me (ohsheglows@gmail.com) if you want to be on my mailing list! I promise I won’t spam you! lol. I will be sending on notices for contests and special announcements!

Tonight I am going to leave you with my favourite new song. It is by Lily Allen and it is called “The Fear“. I must admit, I never paid much attention to Lily Allen, or her music, but when I heard this song on the radio I was an instant fan.

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q-wGMlSuX_c]

I love her honesty in it…it is pretty sad, because what she speaks about is very true for many people in the world, especially celebrities. It makes me think that a truly happy life is a simple life. Possessions and things don’t make us happy. Being thin won’t make us happy. Happiness comes from within ourselves, no one or nothing else!

What do you think of this song? Does it make you think?

Good morning!

For whatever reason this morning, I was wide awake after only 6.5 hours of sleep! My tummy was growling and I was excited about everything I want to do today. It is such a 180 for me to wake up on a week day and feel excited about my day ahead. I really can’t get over it! I wake up every morning with so much energy and passion to do what I love doing. What could be better than that?

I think my ‘Wedding Dress Plan’ is already working! I am feeling great. Last night I meant to post that I had more leftover kale soup and a piece of avocado toast for dinner. After dinner I was still hungry so I had a large carrot and then a tea. For my night time snack I had a big juicy navel orange. Instead of my regular snack (Spelt cereal + banana + Almond Breeze) I am going to be having a piece of fruit after dinner.

By doing this, I will save about 150-200 calories. Because I am not eliminating my after dinner snack, I do not feel deprived, but I am still making small cut backs that will add up over the course of the next 2 weeks. This is a great trick for anyone looking to shed those last pounds. It is all about making healthier and lower calorie substitutions!

Along with my daily workouts on the elliptical, I surely hope that this will be enough to get me back in the dress and not busting out of it! I am not sore one bit after my workout yesterday. That is the beauty of non impact exercise! :)

I think as a last resort if, God forbid, it doesn’t zip up all the way, I could take out the bra inlets. There are some pretty hefty inserts in the dress, and I think if I took those out it would give me an extra inch or two to allow the dress to zip up.

Green Monster Breakfast

My energy has been through the roof lately and I think that is definitely from the green monsters + CFW! Day 12…

Some of you have asked what my plans are for continuing Crap Free Week. It is my plan to continue it until March 15th (when I have my wedding dress photography shoot), and then slowly re introduce sugar thereafter.

Today’s Agenda:

• Drive Eric to Toronto (We are still on 1 car since his car is in the shop!)
• Groceries for lunch
• Lunch with my sister in law and niece!! (Stirfry??)
• Work on Glo Bakery
• Work on new Oh She Glows website
• Clean/dishes/etc
• GYM
• Blog
• Yoga

See you this afternoon! :)

“It takes a lot of courage to release the familiar and seemingly secure, to embrace the new. But there is no real security in what is no longer meaningful. There is more security in the adventurous and exciting, for in movement there is life, and in change there is power.” ~ A Cohen.

Good afternoon!!

That’s right….she’s baaaaack!! :D

I had my first workout today in exactly 7 weeks!!! I swear the endorphins are pumping through my veins. lol. My body doesn’t quite know what to do with itself!

I signed up for 2 weeks at a local gym about 10 mins. away with the intent on using the elliptical machine until I am fully healed and ready for impact exercises.

I rocked my I Eat Real Food tee while working out:

Of course my visit to the gym was not without drama. I came in with a big smile on my face and said, “I’d like to sign up for a 2 week membership please” To which the girl at the counter said “We don’t sell those I don’t think…” And I showed her on the website where they sell 2 week trials. She said “Oh you have to do this online” And me being the practical person that I am, I said, “Oh do you think we could fill it out together?” All the form wanted was name, address, and Credit card info- NOT much. Seeing as I was already there, I didn’t see a problem!

So, she has to go and get her manager. This was the same lady that Eric and I met when we were looking at this gym a while ago (before the running beast purchase) and Eric said she rubbed him the wrong way. She comes out and immediately says, “Why do you only want a 2 week membership?” (like it was her business!). I told her it was because of an injury. She said, “Well we can’t sell you the 2 week membership here, you can’t use our computers…it is a CORPORATE offer, not from our specific club.

I was flabbergasted and I had to collect myself to make sure I was hearing her right. I said, “Are you saying that I can’t even fill out the form while I am here, you are going to make me go home to fill it out?” And she said yes, and repeated that it was a corporate offer.

I said, “I’m sorry but that just doesn’t make any sense whatsoever.”

She said I could still workout while I was there, but I was planning on going home to get my gear anyways, so I just turned around and walked out. I was miffed!!! I went home, filled out the damn form, and then went back later. I really didn’t want to go back to this gym, so I opted for the all women’s club that is attached to it. They were much friendlier there!!

Has anyone else ever had a gym horror story?

This other club where Eric and I used to go wouldn’t let us cancel our membership unless we made an appointment with someone, and then they tried to talk us out of it! I hate that with a passion!

The Workout

Cardio: Elliptical (I watched Oprah while I worked out! It was sad, sad, sad…)

Duration: 35 mins. on incline 12, resistance 10

Feel the burn: 340 kcals

Max heart rate: 176 bpm (90% of max)

Avg Heart rate: 163 (84% of max)

Let me just say this: It felt so damn good to be sweating again!!!

The elliptical was SO gentle…my injury didn’t hurt one tiny bit. I am so relieved I can do something now! :D

Today’s Crap Free Eats (Crap Free Week: Day 11!!):

As you know I need to fit back into my wedding dress for the photoshoot in less than 2 weeks time. I am going to talk a bit about the changes I have made to my diet and some of the thought processes behind the choices. 

When you see ‘Wedding Dress Plan’ in bold, I will tell you the rationale for my choice.

My plan is to burn about 250-300 calories per day with the elliptical and shave off about the same through small cutbacks to my diet. I am not counting calories with respect to what I eat. I want to show others that it is possible to make healthy adjustments to your diet without having to count calories!

This will hopefully result in a 2-3 pound weight loss and have my dress fitting perfect again!

Breakfast: Detoxifying Green Monster

The loot:

• 6 cups of organic kale
• 1 cup Original Almond Breeze
• 1 Tbsp flax
• 1 medium organic carrot
• 3 ice cubes

Wedding dress plan: I skipped the fruit as I didn’t need the extra sugars this morning. Breakfast was late and I knew lunch was only 1.5 hours away. I bulked it up with 6 cups of kale and a carrot. Volume eating is the way to go when you don’t want to feel deprived.

The key to the all veggie smoothie is LOTS of liquids (I should have added more) and blending it for several minutes, to make it smooth. I forgot to take an after pic, but I think you get the just of it! ;)

I worked long and hard on my Glo Bakery incorporation again today. In fact, it took up most of the day. Unfortunately, I still had much more work to do because the name was rejected again! I had to research 5 company names (that were similar to Glo Bakery, like Glo Enterprises Ltd) on the internet and 411 system and find out what types of companies they are. Then, after all of that I had to resubmit! Fingers crossed it gets the go ahead!

Then I had a nice chat with my mom about it and we talked about ideas for it. :) It was fun. She gave me a wonderful idea today- I should get a booth at the local farmers market this summer to sell my goodies!!! I am so going to do this. It would be fabulous!

Lunch:

Leftover Vegetable Kale Soup (with tons of lentils). I sprinkled it with paprika…it was lovely!

Wedding dress plan: I was going to mix in 1/4 cup of Solgourt, but I figure this was an easy cut back and wouldn’t leave me feeling like I was missing much. Instead of sprinkled on some paprika.

Before the gym snack:

An organic gala apple

Post gym snack:

2 large organic carrots with 3-4 Tbsp homemade hummus. I also had a handful of Mary’s Organic Crackers.

Wedding Dress plan: I wanted to slather these with my homemade Almond butter, but to save calories I opted for hummus.

Ok, I am off to pick up E-Dawg (nickname!) from the GO train. We have to stop at Tip Top tailors to have his measurments taken for the suit they are renting him. Adios amigos!!! I’m going to ride my endorphin high all night! haha

See you tonight for the blog announcement! :D

“At times our own light goes out and is rekindled by a spark from another person.
Each of us has cause to think with deep gratitude of those who have lighted the flame within us.”

You all have rekindled my flame many times when I was feeling down about my injury- so thank you all!

Good evening!

Today flew by!! It always does when I am in ‘To Do List Mode’!

I got a lot accomplished, but looking down at my list it doesn’t feel that way. I probably should have called my to-do list Monday-Tuesday-Wednesday To Do list because it is going to take me at least that long to get everything done. That is ok though! :)

Today I made a fabulous Vegetable Kale Soup in my slow cooker. I intended to combine two recipes that I found online, but when I got in the kitchen I just ditched the recipes and followed my heart. I do that often. :D Sometimes following recipes can be cumbersome and time consuming, and since I was short for time I just threw in a bunch of great foods into the slow cooker. I always say I have never made a bad meal from a slow cooker and I typically do not use a recipe. It is fool proof!

Here is everything going in:

The Contents:

• 2 kale leaves, chopped
• 1 6 oz. can of tomato paste
• 2 cup organic veggie broth (low sodium)
• 3 carrots, chopped
• 4 cup water (approx, I didn’t measure anything)
• 1/2 cup lentil soup mix from Bulk Barn (low sodium)
• 1/3 red onion, chopped
• 1 whole sweet onion, chopped
• pinch of saffron
• Italian Seasoning
• salt to taste (if preferred)

It cooked on high in the slow cooker for about 3-4 hours. It was my first time eating kale cooked and I can’t say I was a huge fan. I think maybe the chopped pieces that I had in there were too large. I thought the kale was going to shrink more like spinach, but it didn’t.

The Finished Product:

I scooped some Solgourt onto the top of my bowl and mixed it in for a creamier taste. I am still not convinced with thie Solgourt…it is quite bitter, even in soup! Does anyone have any recommendations for a good non-dairy imitation sour cream?

I had it with tea and a piece of whole wheat toast with 1/2 an avocado spread over it. So good! I am obsessed with avocados now!

Other Crap Free Eats today were:

Afternoon Snack:

Plus a few more crackers and 3 Tbsp of hummus!

Day 10 Sugar Free complete!

Wedding Dress venture:

• Today I was offered to model in a wedding photography workshop by our amazing wedding photographers! I get to wear my wedding dress and will get my make-up and hair done. What could be better than that?
• I will also be given all of the images from the day! Of course I agreed. The shoot is March 15th. The first thought in my mind was that my dress might be a bit snug since I have been injured and not working out. Well lo and behold my dress is a bit tight! So the next two weeks I am really going to be watching what I eat and hopefully my dress will fit for the shoot. I’m not sure what I would do if it didn’t! It is a size 2 so it is no wonder I don’t fit in it after a winter season being off exercise!
• The photographers also want Eric to model with me, but Eric doesn’t know because he doesn’t have a suit. So I might ask if the photographer can lend him one since they are the same size.
• So in case there was any uncertainty whether I would continue with my Crap Free Week- the answer is a definite YES! I need to fit into this dress in 2 weeks time. This is going to be a challenge that is forsure. I may have to start doing some non impact exercise on the elliptical at a local gym. I can get a 1 month pass for about $20 so I may do that.

Me on my wedding night taking all the hair pins out! lol

Here is what the photographer said,

“We were thinking to have your hair done in long loose curls. We will have a make up artist along so you could get your make up done with us at about 9:30. We’re thinking your look will be a bit hollywood starlet, not too dramatic but a bit sexy/red carpet so if you have some fake eyelashes we’ll have the make up artist apply them for you.”

Hollywood Starlet?! Sweet! I finally have use for my MAC individual eyelashes! :D

OSG Announcements:

• Oh She Glows was featured as one of the ‘Blogs of the Day’ today on Wordpress.com! My Clean Sweep post was one of the top 100 posts on Wordpress in 24 hours. So exciting!

What is Blogs of the Day?

“The purpose of BOTD

Blogs Of The Day highlights the most popular content on WordPress.com. The lists produced by BOTD are displayed on this site and on every WordPress.com user’s dashboard, as well as on the front page. You can browse these lists to find interesting things to read. You might even make a friend.”

• Oh She Glows hit a RECORD number of hits today (no doubt a result of being featured on Wordpress.com!!! Today was the busiest dayon the blog yet. My readers are health superstars! Thank you for all of your continual support. And to my new readers- WELCOME and nice to meet you! :D

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This quote helps me get through my injury with my head held high:

“Character cannot be developed in ease and quiet. Only through experience of trial and suffering can the soul be strengthened, ambition inspired, and success achieved.” Helen Keller

Have a great evening everyone! See you tomorrow for a fun blog announcement!

Good afternoon!

Sketchie and I have been basking in the glorious sun all day today in the office! It is so warm and toasty in here, I love it!

I have been going mock speed cranking through my to-do list, but the day is quickly flying by for me and I feel like I have barely made a dent in my list. I guess I was feeling overly ambitious this morning!

Each task on my list is quite lengthy + time consuming, so I will be working on this to-do list probably for the next few days if not longer! I even had to add a few things to the list today (Donation pick-up comes tomorrow at 8am- we need to put 10 boxes on the curb tonight, making slow cooker soup for dinner, and typing out business instructions that my brother in law gave me).

Many of these items are in progress (mailing list, incorporation application, website transfer, nutritional info) and take forever to do! I have done about 5 nutritional breakdowns for my Glo Bakery products so far.

Here is the Glo Banana Bar:

5 grams of fibre, 5 grams of protein, and 7 grams of healthy fats! Not too shabby! :D

Lunch

I inhaled my lunch today! I got so caught up in work I didn’t want to break. I finally stopped around 1:45 and I inhaled my Spelt wrap!!

The loot:

• 1 Slice Tofurkey
• 1/2 Avocado
• 3 Tbsp homemade hummus
• 1 handful cooked organic baby spinach in a balsamic vinagrette
• 1 large organic carrot
• fresh black pepper
• 1 organic homemade spelt tortilla (last one of that batch!)

I also had a serving of Amy’s Organic crackers in Herb:

It took me all of 2 mins. to eat. lol. Then I topped up the tank with a Celestial Seasonings tea in English Toffee.

I have been working by candle light all day to create a zen-like office environment:

Ok, back to it!

See you tonight for an exciting venture I will be doing in two weeks! And no, I’m not going to Africa unfortunately. lol. It involves my wedding dress! :D

Question of the day: What would your DREAM wedding dress look like?

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We have no right to ask when sorrow comes, “Why did this happen to me?” unless we ask the same question for every moment of happiness that comes our way.  ~Author Unknown

Good morning!

HAPPY MARCH 1st!!! Spring is almost here!

I was up late last night (2am) and up very early this morning! I got less than 6 hours of sleep…I hate when that happens. For some reason, I could not sleep for the life of me. I was up at least 3 times last night. So strange how the body works at times!

The Travel Bug:

Last night our friend Jesse came over and we just caught up all night. He just got back from a 2 month backpacking trip to Africa and Europe and he told us some crazy crazy stories from the trip. I mean crazy stories. Some of which I can’t repeat, lol. I just love hearing about other’s trips away, don’t you?

I must admit it REALLY gave me the travel bug again. :) I can only look at our honeymoon pictures for so long until I just want to go somewhere!

Lately, I have been getting all of these emails from Princess Cruise lines with 2 for 1 cruise offers and it is so tempting! Other resorts are all seriously cutting back on their prices too. This next year is definitely the time to travel!

I have been thinking about surprising Eric with a trip this year- either for his birthday or our 1st wedding anniversary (both in August), although the trip itself wouldn’t have to be in August necessarily.

Does anyone know some great deals going on travel wise? I have no idea where I would want to go, but the possibilities are endless.

Quick Blog Time Saver:

I find a good trick for me, is to jot down my ideas for each post (or even posts later that day or week) when they come to mind:

Those were my notes for this morning’s post! Sorry, did I ruin the surprise? :) It helps me keep track of various contests going on, shoutouts I need to do, and the like!

Crap Free Week In Review:

Sorry about the video difficulties last night! I don’t know what is going on with You Tube, but I have been having major issues with uploading. I have read that others have too. I wonder what is going on? I wasn’t even trying to upload music or anything that is restricted.

Here is the video reviewing my Crap Free Week in case you missed it!

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2JL_WDxlBxM]

And just in case that video is not working try here in Blip TV:

[blip.tv ?posts_id=1836965&dest=-1]

To recap the benefits from eliminating sugar from my diet, here is what I found:

• Less sugar cravings overall
• Learned how to satisfy my sweet tooth with natural foods
• Less bloating, my jeans fit good again
• Improved well-being
• Increased energy
• Glowing skin, hair, and nails
• A big part of the craving is a MENTAL craving! You can beat your mind.

I am now on day 8 of Crap Free Week and still going strong!! Please leave a comment or email me if you are doing a CFW challenge: ohsheglows@gmail.com.

Green Monster:

I opted for my fruit + veggie smoothie for breakfast today. I was anxious to try out my first experience with unsweetened Soy yogurt!

The contents:

• 2 Tbsp Organic Solgurt, unsweetened
• 1 small ripe banana (Ripe bananas are KEY to smoothies!)
• 2 ice cubes
• 1 cup Almond Breeze in Original
• 6 cups of organic kale (Yes, 6 cups- look!!)

I licked the spoon of the Solgurt- and I must say it was BITTER tasting- almost like sour cream! Although I shouldn’t be too surprised since I did buy the unsweetened flavour. What I do like about it is that it has 25% of your daily calcium needs in just 3/4 of a cup!

I don’t think I would use this in a smoothie again, but I will definitely be using this as a topping for wraps, soups, sweet potatoes, etc.

This smoothie was good- although a bit bitter from the 6 cups of kale!

31-Day Yoga Challenge:

The wonderful Tina from Carrots ‘n Cake is holding a fabulous 31-Day yoga challenge to motivate herself and everyone else to instill yoga into their regular routines.

I am going to try this challenge! I am not going to be doing yoga every single day, but I am going to shoot for 4 times per week. I won’t set a time limit because I don’t think that is what yoga is about. I will just do what feels good. :)

Who else is going to try this challenge? Let me know! :)

On today’s list:

• Glo Bakery Business (create invoices, Develop Excel tracking sheet for receipts/log etc, scan Incorporation application to Brother in Law, log all receipts, etc.)
• Meet up with Steve, Joanna, Dave, Ewa, and Gabriela for The National Home Show!
• Blog!
• Yoga

Have a GREAT March 1st everyone! Don’t forget to enter my giveaway for the amazing Jillian Michael’s 30 Day Shred workout DVD!

Also check out the fabulous Diana giving away 10 delicious health bars!

Who Said This Quote?

“I still love my Pilates and yoga, and have cut back on fatty foods a bit.  My time in India and Paris really just helped me lose a little bit of weight but there’s nothing drastic going on!”

“I just wish the press wouldn’t harbor on it as I think it’s very unhealthy for young girls to read about and pay attention to.”

“To my female fans: Just be happy and secure with yourself and don’t let other people’s perceptions of you dictate the way you live your life.”

[polldaddy poll=1413866]

Good evening!

I hope you have all had a rockin’ + healthy Saturday! Sorry about the late video…I was out all day and then had some video issues! :)

Without further ado…

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2JL_WDxlBxM]

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My day has been great so far!

We cleaned all morning mostly, then I went to a new dentist today since we recently moved into a new area. Everyone there was so nice and friendly and I felt so comfortable.

The only problem is the dentist thinks that I should get a crown for my molar. I have always had issues with this molar and have a huge filling in it. I also had this tooth break a few years ago, and they had to rebuild it. Well, Doc thinks I need a crown at some point to build it up and help prevent future problems. :( Doh! He said it isn’t urgent so I told him I will likely wait until next year when money isn’t so tight. We have insurance, but it would still probably be quite expensive.

Just for my appointment today it was $67- and that was with insurance covering 80%!!!!! Dentists are so expensive. I got x-rays and everything so they charge a lot for those, plus I had an exam and cleaning. Oh and free toothbrush, toothpaste, and floss. lol. There is also a cavity POTENTIALLY developing on one of my wisdom teeth (I have two- two were removed). He says if I be really careful with flossing I can prevent it…or I can just get my two remaining wisdom teeth removed.

I would like to keep them if I can- they do keep me WISE, you know! :D

After that I went to my sister and brother in law’s for a little family gathering for my sister’s birthday! It was fun. :D I got to see my super cute niece who I adore. I also packed up some of my Glo Bakery cookies!

Then it was home for some blog stuff, a delicious dinner, and after this post I am getting ready to organize my office again. I still have lots to do…and I eventually need to organize all of my recipes and type them out! Good grief this is going to take me a looong time. It needs to get done though! :)

EDIT: Never mind, our friend just came over and are going to hang out for the night! The office can wait :D

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Don’t forget to enter my giveaway of Jillian Michael’s 30 Day Shred workout DVD!!!

Want a chance to win some amazing health bars from the UK?? My lovely friend Leah is giving away 5 of these in her 1st contest!  I have received some of these from Leah before and they are amazing!

Speaking of videos…check out the awesome Veggiegirl sporting some seriously cute Oh She Glows Fit Gear!

Good morning lovies!

Happy Saturday :D I had a good sleep last night…strange dreams, though!

So the question of the morning is….

Was I able to go a full 7 days without sugar?

Click read more to find out!

 YES!!!!

Stay tuned this afternoon for a video on my Crap Free Week review. I will talk about difficulties, benefits, and what I noticed over the course of a week. I will also tell you whether I will be extending my CFW longer.

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What I bought: Week 5

Missed Week 1?

Missed Week 2?

Missed Week 3 + 4?

Wow, I can’t believe it is already week 5 of What I bought! Times sure flys!

When I emptied out my reciepts, I admit I was a bit scared!

What did I buy last week?

Let me preface this by saying that this week we bought LOTS of bulk. For example, we bought printer paper which was around $25, and we bought some bulk grocery items that were on sale. I also bought some out of the ordinary things for Glo Bakery, which ran about $30.

I will separate it by receipt.

- Groceries: [Bottled water, avocados, organic apples, tomatoes, red peppers, no name w/w bread, organic kale, tofurkey, organic free run eggs] Total: $41.90

- Groceries: [butter, rubber gloves for renos, unsweetened applesauce, etc] Total: $11.34

- Groceries: [3 low fat soy milk, 1% cow milk, 2 boxes Amy's veggie burgers, organic kale, spinach, orange pepper, sweet potatoes, tofurkey, bread, tomatoes, spelt flakes, etc] Total: $74.52

- Post Office: $17.05

- Club Monaco: Tee on sale: $21.47

- Bulk Barn:  [1.62 kg of raw chick peas, soup mix] Total: $5.44

- Gas for car: Total: $15.01 (I ran out of gas and couldn’t find an Esso to use my gift card! doh!)

- Wal-Mart: [Filing tote, water, garlic puree, 5 pages of printer paper, organic carrots, red potatoes, dads cookies, raisin bran, frozen pineapple, 3 bunches of bananas, garbages bags (2-3 boxes), organic spelt cereal, bulk honey, etc, icing colouring, piping bags in bulk] Total: $130.34

We had two big grocery shops this week, so technically we had our big shop for next week, this week (if that makes any sense). So I expect that our grocery bill for next week will be much cheaper.

Total spent last week: $317. 07

Successes this week: My biggest one was definitely stopping myself from buying a Lululemon jacket. By not purchasing it, I saved myself about $125! I opted for a compromise- a tee at Club Monaco on sale for $19.

I am still making all of my own hummus and I am now making spelt tortillas and almond butter to help shave costs. I am still disappointed that our groceries are quite high, but we did just shop yesterday for next week, so I guess that is why. We also have to buy purified water because our water system in the house is shot, and we are avoiding buying a new water softener for now (they run well over $1,000!!!!). The weekly water purchases add up so much, so I think we are going to have to cave and buy a softener soon.

I also am proud to say that I have not bought a loaf of Ezekiel bread since I started the challenge!!! Considering I was buying 2 loaves per week, that is a huge savings.

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Breakfast this morning was a veggie green monster as I cleaned the office (pics to come later today!):

Contents: 3 organic kales leaves (wilted!), 1 cup low fat soy milk, 1 Tbsp flax, 2 ice cubes

Did you know:

“Green smoothies are easy to digest. When blended well, all the valuable nutrients in these fruits and veggies become homogenized, or divided into such small particles that it becomes easy for the body to assimilate these nutrients, the green smoothies literally start to get absorbed in your mouth.”

Obtained from: Raw Glow

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Just in case you missed it, I am giving away a copy of Jillian Michael’s 30-Day Shred DVD! It’s as easy as leaving a comment (To the original post) and telling me how Oh She Glows has impacted your life, or tell me what you like best about Oh She Glows!

See you this afternoon for a video on my Crap Free Week! :D

Good afternoon on this wonderful Friday!

I had a slight snag in my Glo Bakery Incorporation application. Apparently there are two corporations in Ontario called “Glo” (not sure how they can have two with the same name, but anyways…) and they asked me to fill out a 4 page document detailing why my business name “Glo Bakery” is unique.

Firstly and most importantly, the name of Glo Bakery was conceptualized via the name I created for this blog- Oh She Glows. So I explained this in my application. The two also have a similar theme- healthy eating.

Secondly, My business name Glo Bakery, is distinct from simply the corporations called “GLO”. It is clear in my business name that my business is a bakery and not some other enterprise.

Thirdly, my proposed business location is different from both of these GLO companies. If they were in the same city, I may see why it would be a problem, but alas they are not.

I hope this explanation is sufficient and will grant me approval for the incorporation of Glo Bakery! I truly love the name; it has personal significance for me (and I suspect many readers!). :)

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My trip to Toronto was fun!

I got to test out my new GPS on my first road trip :D Although, little did I know that the GPS would steer me wrong! haha. Ok, it didn’t steer me wrong…I just followed the directions wrong and got a bit lost. It was HILARIOUS. I mean hilarious. It kept saying (shouting) LEFT LEFT GO LEFT, turn right in 30 metres, LEFT!!! And I started to panic a bit.

I knew I had to call Eric. It is a long-standing joke between him and a couple of his coworkers that I always call Eric LOST and desperate for help getting back on route.

Hey Toronto is a huge city….mmm kay. Don’t judge! :D

So I called him, and before he says hello he goes, ‘You’re lost aren’t you!?’

Busted. So busted.

Before I could get a word out, I started laughing so hard. I laughed so hard I was crying.

Meanwhile, in the background you could hear LEFT TURN, GO LEFT, YOU IDIOT TURN LEFT in 30 METRES!!! lmao. Ok, maybe it wasn’t that harsh, but it sure felt like it!

Only I could get lost with a GPS!

*Takes a bow* Thank you thank you, hold your applause.

But I eventually did find my way, even if I did take the scenic route!

Passing the CN Tower:

Note: Picture was taken while I was in the passenger seat and Eric was driving him to work! No I don’t take pictures when driving…LOL!!!!!!

One of my errands was hitting the mall to make a birthday gift purchase! After that, I made a beeline for Lululemon. As many of you know, Lululemon is my fav. store. I have acquired quite the collection over the years! Each year I buy just one or two pieces to add to my collection. They are expensive, but they are superior quality and last FOREVER.

This Lulu store was HUGE, probably the biggest I have seen in this area. I was in heaven. I wanted to get this jacket but I resisted. It was so comfy and REVERSIBLE! 

I seriously stood in the store for 10 mins. debating it in my mind as I ‘browsed’ around. Somehow I talked myself out of it! I am quite proud of myself. 

I sold a Lulu hoodie for $110 a couple weeks ago, so technically I had a ‘free’ lulu purchase, but something in me said “You don’t really need it“. Le sigh.

Then I went into Club Monaco and I settled for a super cute Tee that was over 60% off! Now that is what I call a budgeting compromise. :) I got it for just $19 bucks.

It has a really cute low-back to it:

One of my favourite styles is the low-back. If some of you recall my wedding dress had a beautiful Deep V back. I think a low back is sexy yet still classy.

On the way home, I snack on 1/2 of a Larabar. It kept me sane until I arrived home for lunch at 12:30pm.

Crap Free Lunch:

Healthy Valley Black Bean Organic Soup:

It is packed with protein and fibre!

I had the whole can (398 ml):

Do you see a little kitty with his scratching post?

Then I had a rock star smoothie:

I am trying to use up my wilting Kale so I had 4 organic kale leaves, 1 cup frozen pineapple, Soy Milk and 3 ice cubes. Man was it COLD!

Smoothie pour deux:

hehe just joking- of course I drank both! :)

PS- Crazy Sketchie was yawning in that pic!!

Have a great afternoon everyone! I have more Glo Bakery stuff to attend to and then more office organization. After that, I have to put together a birthday package for my sister-in-law’s birthday tomorrow. :D

PS- The awesome Ashley from Sweet and Natural gave me a Kreativ Blogger Award!!! :D

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38% of you guessed right that Julia Louis Dreyfus said this quote:

“““I have a chocolate drawer in my desk where I keep treats at all times,” she admits. “As long as I can have one or two pieces, I’m fine. But my biggest food vice is bacon. And no, I don’t have a bacon drawer. In fact, I don’t keep bacon in my house—that would be way too tempting.”

have you guys seen this video of Paula Deen??

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MawQeAlsOEs]

See you tonight for the next Oh She Glows Contest!