In the Raw!

How is your 101 Things in 1001 Days list going? :) Check my previous blog post to give yourself something to think about that is fun and challenging! I am getting lots done on my list and one of them is to eat more raw foods! It has been nice to focus on this more and have more energy through some very long work days.

I recently received a package in the mail of supplies for this raw food adventure. This included 3 recipe books and a mandoline slicer. The slicer is perfect for preparing foods the right width for a dehydrator. (Boot's tail is in the photo!) :)

This is the first time I have worked with a dehydrator, and so far I am impressed! Using my recipe books, mandoline and dehydrator, I prepped some food including the best zucchini!! The zucchini was marinated and then dehydrated. This made them kind of like little potato chips (but no grease!) and the spices included cumin and cayenne... mmm. These were great to take with me while I was away this weekend, but tonight I used them in my dinner. Excuse the camera phone photo, but this dinner took me about 5 minutes to make and even less to clean up from! I whipped up a cheeze sauce in the Vitamix using cashews, a yellow pepper and many herbs from the garden (oregano, parsley, basil...) I wasn't sure what to put this sauce on, so I sliced up a tomato and placed the zucchini slices around it. Adding the sauce and some raw sesame seeds were the final steps:

lots of people don't like raw tomatoes, so I suppose you could use any veggie with a cheese sauce like this. (it was really garlicy and so good!) I am happy to have the new books since the only difficult thing for me with raw foods is that I just don't know what to make sometimes. The next recipe I will make is ravioli... I cannot wait to try it!

Thanks for reading. If you have a favorite raw food recipe, I'd love to hear it! Post it here on on Facebook please! :)

1001 Day Project

101 Things to Do in 1001 Days!  (Thank you to Mimi for the inspiration!)

Inspires you to set and achieve your personal goals in life.

The Challenge:
Complete 101 preset tasks in a period of 1001 days. 

I think I love numbers and lists too much!  When I read about the 101 things to do in 1001 days, I squealed.  I HAD to do it too!  Lol!  :)  I love this stuff and knowing me, I will do them all and more...  so this is good for me to write out!

If you want to do it too - start now!  It's very fun and I'd love some company with some of my goals. 

Here are mine!

1. make meditation a daily habit
2. eat more raw vegan foods
3. exercise regularly (no half-assed stuff!)
4. hire a business coach
5. keep vlogging daily on vegancandi every day no matter how shitty I look or feel!
6. implement my database and CRM at work
7. get a new tattoo (hopefully with a friend!)
8. write in my gratitude journal every day
9. keep in contact with my true friends regularly
10. play a game every night with Britty (CLAMS!)
11. finish reading ALL the books in my room!
12. make lunch for a friend
13. travel out of the country again!
14. make the NYC trip happen and make it awesome!
15. get a pedicure
16. donate ALL the old clothes in the basement!
17. rock climb on the kiddie wall  (come on, it's damn scary to me!)
18. proudly wear my red animal print bikini on the beach! 
19. use my new dehydrator for LOTS of vegan raw foods
20. keep writing letters to my future husband to give on my wedding night!  <3
21. visit more professionals in my industry for my work blog
22. focus on GREAT couples that I see
23. drink more tea
24. help strangers more - take time to notice them and offer help
25. get to bed by midnight and wake up by 8 am every day
26. take my multi-vitamin and calcium every day!
27. keep an eye on inspirational people
28. play my violin again
29. take one day off per week and DO NOT WORK! 
30. pull my favorite recipes together to make one book of the "greats!"
31. dance more!
32. watch Moulin Rouge again!  (always brings me great luck!)
33. keep growing my container garden!  (omg, I love it!)
34. see the lawyer about the business plan
35. take a walk in the rain at night
36. do my strip aerobics workout!  (without falling!)  ;)
37. eat more oils for soft skin!  (mmm, coconut oil!)
38. buy those sandals I've been staring at online
39. invest in a few great, classic pieces of clothing to build the wardrobe
40. wear more dresses and skirts again!
41. burn more incense sticks
42. floss my teeth every day (ugh!)
43. skip the coffee and drink more water
44. pack my own food for work even on weekends
45. fill the bird feeders and stop teasing the cute birds out there
46. finish translating a song in sign language and do a vlog of it!
47. have a picnic with Britty
48. finish planning my 40th birthday party and make it happen!
49. get married to my perfect man that Britty loves too!
50. go skinny dipping
51. buy a hot tub
52. own a log home
53. make a space in my new yard for a memorial for Minnie and BJ
54. look for the good in everyone
55. limit how much complaining I hear from others
56. have a romantic candle lit dinner
57. live my life out loud 100%
58. get a facial
59. be spoiled by my man
60. visit my grandma and grandpa and auntie at the cemetery
61. go to the Farm Sanctuary
62. help mom clean her house more
63. watch LOST Season 5 and 6
64. watch last season of Xena with Britty!  Yi Yi Yi!!
65. host a dinner party for friends or for my man and his family
66. make a sexy video for or *with* someone 
67. blog here regularly
68. stop playing Jewels on the Droid for one week
69. add weight lifting to exercise routine
70. do Tibetan Rites every day again!
71. convert old VHS movies of us to DVD
72. go to VegFests in Boston and where ever I can!
73. make a new female friend
74. see a nutritionist
75. have a New Year's kiss that is with someone I love
76. buy new funky glasses
77. learn to give a great massage!!  (take a class!)
78. find BJ's breeder and thank her for such a beautiful, healthy boy she gave us
79. go to a sporting event
80. take a train ride
81. buy a lotto ticket
82. do my yoga pose and photograph it
83. buy another new car (Britty needs one too!)
84. have my Tiffany ring set without going broke!
85. be debt free!
86. be pampered at a beach resort
87. meet Brian Tracy again
88. create a time capsule with Britty
89. clean out my fridge completely!  100%  Empty it out!!
90. Get more shelves up in my storage room and organize it
91. have a slumber party in Britty's room :)
92. Have a double date with Britty and her BF and mine.  (Awkward?  LOL!)
93. Build a snowman but never just ONE anymore!
94. go snorkeling
95. become an Aunt.  (jk Debbie!  lol!!)  How about to your new dog?
96. have a girls' night out
97. take lots of bubble baths with candles all around
98. stay in hotels more and jump on the beds
99. look into Peace Corps again
100. revise this list to make it even more challenging as I check off these things!
101. laugh lots

I am mostly scared of the rock climbing on the kiddie wall!  hee hee!  I have to do it though since I wrote it! :)

For more info on 101 things to accomplish in 1001 days, here is the link below and good luck!  You can do it if you can imagine it!

http://dayzeroproject.com/

A Pair of Boots

Meet Boots!

Boots was abandoned by his previous owner and we discovered him at the Sterling Animal Shelter. Britty totally surprised me by taking me to shelters for Mother's Day!  When we saw Boots, we knew he was the one and here is why:


A few years ago, we met a beautiful stray kitty named Boots!  We wanted to adopt him, but the property owners decided they wanted to "keep" him after we fell in love.  When we relocated, we missed Boots a lot and wished we had stolen him!  Sadly, Boots was kept outside despite living on a busy street and was hit by a car and killed.  We miss him terribly and wish we had stolen him, looking back.  We regret leaving him to careless owners and have always felt bad about his unfortunate lack of proper care.   He was a wonderful boy and we will always miss him.

On Mother's Day, Britty pooled her money with some friends and took me to animal shelters to find a new kitty.  I had said I wanted one, but was going to wait until my future family members all approved of having another pet!  I guess Britty didn't want to wait knowing that a new kitty would make me very happy!  So off we went to shelter hop!

The shelters were full of beautiful homeless cats and dogs (oh, and birds too!)  It was very sad to see these babies in cages waiting (and hoping) to be chosen and loved.   To know that lots of them would be put to sleep if not chosen was particularly tough.  For the cats, I did find a beautiful girl that I nearly took home.  She reminded me of our Minnie kitty.   I felt so bad for her!  I wished more people knew of her and all the animals here that were found homeless or dumped off at the shelters.  Some were respectfully released by their owners for good reason, so don't get me wrong, I am not purposefully being judgmental.  I do wonder though how anyone could get rid of their pet?  I would never.  Ever.  EVER.

We went onto the our final stop, the Sterling Animal Shelter.  I immediately saw a cat that grabbed my attention and made me stare is disbelief.  It was a cat who looked just like our BOOTS!!  I really got scared as I walked up to his cage and saw the tag on it and it read:  Name:  Boots.  Seriously.  Seriously?!?!?!?  He looked like him, acted like him, and it was a little spooky!!  It took me about a second to look at Britty and say, "Yep."  She knew too.  Boots was back in our lives!

Original Boots on left.                     Our New Boots on right.

Our baby on his first day home:

His flinging around the room for mice on a rope is the best!!!

To my original Boots, I am so sorry that I did not fight for you or steal you. You'd be alive today and loved by us had I caused trouble back then. I wish I had. All I can do is give this new little boy a great home and take care of him as we would have taken care of you. We miss you, baby Boots. Thank you for coming back into our lives somehow and giving us a chance to love you again in the only way we can now.

You can save a life!

If considering a new pet, PLEASE adopt from a shelter. These animals need a home and they are beautiful and loving and deserve YOU! Take the time to look around, educate yourself and find the right one for you. They are out there waiting for you right now.

Happy Mother's Day!!

Happy Mother's Day to all of the wonderful moms out there! Even if your babies are furry friends, I hope you celebrate being the best mom you can be!

No matter their age, remember to always see the best in your children and be excited by them! You have lots to learn from them!

Britty and Candi 1995

To bring up a child in the way he should go, travel that way yourself.
~ Josh Billings

Always be nice to your children because they are the ones who will choose your rest home.
~ Phyllis Diller

Your children will see what you're all about by what you live rather than what you say.
~ Dr. Wayne Dyer

Setting an example is not the main means of influencing another, it is the only means.
~ Albert Einstein


The best training any parent can give a child is to train the child to train himself.
~ A. P. Gouthey

Thank you to Britty for showing me how to give, be loyal, be open, and to trust.  I thought parenting was all about telling kids what to do and showing them, guiding them, and protecting them.  I had no idea until I met you, Britty!!  I am very proud of you, just like I was then in that photo above.  :)

Happy Mother's Day!  

Already a Survivor

At first, I was very sad to hear that this incredible man in the photo above was diagnosed with cancer.  From Brian Tracy's blog he says, "The doctors have discovered that I have a cancerous tumor in my throat that is fairly well along in development."  As he described chemotherapy and altering his schedule to accommodate "survival," I noticed that even Brian's "bad" news is stated in a way to be helpful and inspirational to others.

He says on his blog, "Cancer can be a metaphor for any unexpected setback or reversal in life, especially in the areas of money, business, career and marriage.  In each case, when your situation abruptly changes for the worse, you go through a process of shock and denial, followed by depression and self-pity, which is then followed by acceptance and resurgence.

Perhaps the most important four words in the English language, words that are always true for all people at all times are, “This too shall pass."

I was surprised to find myself smiling at anything within these blog posts of his, yet his words below summarize Brian for me and make me look up to him in business and in his personal life as well:

"I choose to see this as a “learning experience.” Maybe I’ll develop a speech or seminar to share what I’ve learned, and the parallels with the ups and down of normal life. "  :)

He has the mind set of survival and he has already won, no matter what the future holds for him.

Wishing you a quick recovery, Brian.  I look forward to meeting you again as soon as possible