Sunday Thoughts

As I sit here on my parents back porch on this beautiful Sunday afternoon enjoying a soda and potato chips, all I can think about is how toxic both of these things are for my body and brain.  I have seen so many health documentaries about detoxing, juicing, and all natural diets, but for some reason, as hard as I try, I cannot break these horrible eating habits.  Not too long ago I went about three months of eating really clean.  During that time I had much more energy, shed quite a few pounds, and just felt better all around.  So why did I come back to eating junk?  Quite honestly, because it was cheap and easy.  I never had to prepare anything, and could eat a lot of food for a lot less money.  I don't like making assumptions but I am going to go out on the limb and say many others share this same mentality.  But as I sit here and think back when I went through my few months of eating clean, all I can think about is how I want to feel that way again.  I think if I start back on the right track I need to not just change my eating habits, but change my thought process as well.  Before I was doing it mostly to lose weight, once I lost some weight I went back to being lazy again.  Definitely not the way to do it.  Also, I kind of went full force right from the beginning and maybe I should take things a bit slower.  Maybe even create a game plan.  As I do this, I may share some things with you along the way.  This will not be one of those weight loss journey/diet blogs,  but I may share some methods here and there that make healthy living a bit easier and maybe even share some recipes that I try out and love.  Bottom line is I want to enjoy life,  and being healthy is a huge part of that.  So there, I guess this means I am turning over a new leaf.  Yes I confess I did finish the soda, but now I blogged about this whole eating healthy thing so now I have to do it.  Here we go!

Some tunes....

to help me get through cleaning day

Photo Shoot!

This week I have been a bit busy.  My classes start next week so I have been trying to prepare myself,  my husband is out of town for work and I had a few things I needed to do in Virginia so I stayed with my parents for a couple days.  My younger sister is a young photographer and taking photography classes so it seems like anytime I am home she wants to use me for a project, which is kind of fun, and I always get awesome pictures from it.  This shoot was fun because we did it with Jenny's friend Bekah and took my parents dog along.  We tend to take him along most of the time.  Honestly I would take him with me everywhere if I could, but here a a few from the shoot!

Yea I could totally balance it on my head....for about two seconds :)

I had a great time and Jenny always does a fantastic job! Definitely check out Jenny's Photography on her Facebook Page.  

She is in the process of creating a website and when she does...I will definitely be posting it.  

My Music

Occasionally I may share some music with you.  I will warn you, I am kind of music bipolar.  Today it's folk, tomorrow it may be old school hip hop. But somewhere out there, there has to be others who appreciate all of the different realms of musical talent on the earth just as much as I.   Here is what I am listening to this morning. Enjoy!

Fair Trade?

      In my intro I state that I like shopping fair trade, well that is quite the understatement.  Fair Trade is something I am quite passionate about and would love to educate others about in a fun and exciting way.  I could post videos of the harsh reality of child slavery and human trafficking, but honestly that just makes people feel horrible for a brief moment to then go about their day not thinking about it anymore.  We have been so desensitized by the media and film that we aren't as affected by seeing videos and pictures of human suffering as we should be.  What motivates me is seeing people do something to make a difference and seeing little ways I can help in every day life.  I must share with you though some of the reality of this issue or we would forget why it is important to begin with.  Slavery is all around us, and we are supporting it every day and all day.  That coffee you drank this morning,  that candy bar from the vending machine at the office, or that shirt you are wearing right now...there is a very VERY high chance that every single one of those products was made by either a child forced to work to pay off family debt, or an adult forced to work with little to no pay.   It is difficult to avoid being consumers of products made by slaves, and by no means am I trying to make you feel horrible about your cup of coffee this morning.  I just want you to think about this and keep an eye out for fair trade alternatives. I must confess I am wearing a cotton shirt right now that says made in india....I am pretty sure it wasn't produced under fair trade standards, but this is what is sold in stores, even high end retail, it is everywhere.  So this is why I want to share fair trade resources with you.  If we start supporting more fair trade and locally produced products, than that industry will be in high demand, and there you go, more jobs with fair pay and treatment for more people and less slavery.

    Since I mentioned coffee and chocolate in this post, I figured I would discuss these two first! 

A great coop you can go to for coffee, chocolate, tea, and more is Equal Exchange.  I have had their coffee before and love it! You can purchase online or I have purchased it from a Ten Thousand Villages brick and mortar location (which is a really cool store for fair trade products).  

For those of us that like to use K-Cups for our Keurigs there are a few options as well... Green Mountain Coffee K-Cups can be found in many grocery stores, and they offer many different blends.  My favorite fair trade K-Cup would have to be Newman's Own Organics Special Blend which can be found at many grocery stores as well.  You really don't have to go out of your way to find fair trade coffee.  You just have to keep your eyes open!


Here is a video of Nell Newman from Newman's Own discussing why they partnered with Green Mountain Coffee to support fair trade.

I already mentioned one place you can get chocolate and coffee, but another place for fair trade chocolate is Divine Chocolate.  They also sell this in some local stores, and at Ten Thousand Villages.  They have a wide variety of candy bars from mint dark chocolate to hazelnut milk chocolate.  I personally love the white chocolate with strawberries.

I will give you a fair warning before you go and think "Geeze fair trade is too expensive, I think I will stick to Folgers" because supporting fair trade is a bit more expensive that is a very common thought. Fair trade products are a tad pricier, but there is a very logical explanation for that.  Fair work equals fair wages which equals higher prices to support the labor.  Makes sense right?  I have always been big on bargains, so i try to remind myself of this quote by Benjamin Harrison when I try to skimp and save a couple bucks "I pity the man who wants a coat so cheap that the man or woman who produces the cloth will starve in the process." Pretty intense right? Yea, so just think about it.  Think quality over quantity and honestly it will not only keep your life from being so cluttered and crazy, but it helps other people support their families with a honest income! 

What to expect....

Ok so I am going to be honest, I have never done this blogging thing before.  I am not a good cook nor am I crafty....which seems to be the cool thing in the blogosphere, but I'm not here to be cool. I am here to share my thoughts, things I discover, and maybe even my attempts at cooking or being crafty, but my ultimate goal with this blog is I want to learn.  I want to learn more about myself.  Taking time to share my thoughts, and things that inspire me I think will be very revealing to me.  I have one of those brains that thinks way too much about things that have not happened yet.  My brain goes a million miles an hour in several different directions and it drives me insane.  I am hoping this will give me an outlet to express some of these things and maybe separate myself for a brief part of the day and organize all of these crazy things going on in my head.  I guess I can't really tell you what to expect I can just tell you what not to expect. Don't count on learning some crafty diy projects, amazing new recipes or organizing tips from this girl...because I am not that person.  Though I think half of my stress comes from wishing I was that person, I am not nor will I ever be that person.  That fact is something I think a lot of women need to come to terms with and be ok with including myself and we would be much happier.

The start of a new life

As said in my intro, I am a newly wed. I figured I would start out by sharing our big day with you all!! The ceremony and reception took place at The James River Country Club in Newport News, VA.  It was an absolutely gorgeous day! Thank goodness it was pretty cool, because a sweaty bride just is not attractive, but anyways enjoy!

                                                                  Time to get pretty!!

     I love this of the groomsmen.  Kristin Partin Photography did a wonderful job capturing everyone's          personality.

    My lovely ladies.

This is probably my favorite picture. His hugs are the best :)

Josh and his beautiful mother

My father, my Great Aunt Joyce and I.  She is such a wonderful woman so kind and not to mention a great sense of humor. 

yea Josh and I were getting down. I even had my dress all hiked up.  Real classy ;)

and we are off!!

I can't even explain how happy I am with these photographs Kristin Partin did an amazing job! It was a magical day and it could not have been more perfect!

If you want to see more, check out the video here