you are what you eat {kitchen musts and must nots}

i honestly couldn't tell you how many times in the last almost 13 months people have asked me what i eat and what i don't. i tell them what i eat on a regular basis and leave out the nights out with my friends when i occasionally have fried, ranch-covered, processed, cheese filled foods.

for instance, what i ate last night at the super bowl party i went to. when you're not used to eating that kind of food, i can't tell you how absolutely awful i felt today. that's why it's once in awhile, that's why i go running the next day, and that's why these are the things i always have and the things i will never have on a normal day. i figured today was probably a good day to blog about my healthy choices. it's like repentance for ALL the dips i ate last night. :)

absolutely necessary: fruits and vegetables. and lots of them. a few months ago, i started having my produce delivered from green b.e.a.n. delivery and i'm in LOVE. i get to pick what i want and how much of it and (included in the price) i have organic produce delivered to my back porch bi-weekly (you can choose weekly too). even if you're shopping at the grocery for your produce, buy a lot of ORGANIC fruits and veggies this week. it will only take one week of throwing away a lot of veggies (and your hard-earned cash) before you can make one of two choices : don't buy any next week (fail) or actually eat it.

speaking of veggies, my next must have:

do yourself a favor and buy a spaghetti squash this week. i'm going to put up a how-to and recipe that i've been addicted to lately using these little guys. say goodbye to pasta. this low-cal, no fat vegetable will rock your world.

i eat a lot of the following too:

i eat a ton of beans. kidney, pinto and black mostly. great source of fiber and really easy to make delicious.

egg whites! ask my sister, i eat an omelette every day. i'm obsessed.

whole wheat bread. read the labels! a lot of whole wheat breads still have high fructose corn syrup in it. gross. natural, high fiber bread. delish.

this goes in my daily omelette along with tomatoes and spinach. i like feta on practically everything really though. i'm a cheese girl at heart.

hummus is probably what i eat the most of on a regular basis. be careful with your hummus (along with everything else that's packaged) as some of them have sunflower oil instead of olive oil and other added garbage. making your own hummus is pretty easy and you can be creative with it too. my best friend made some yesterday that was pretty delish. she made her own chips to eat with it too but that's cause she's a show off. :)

i'm in love. no fat, decent calories and sugar, and so much protein. it's a post-workout must have.

i've gone through quite a few peanut butters this year and have found quite a few that i like. this one takes the prize. it has flax seed, flax oil, egg whites, and wheat germ mixed into it giving you omega 3's that you don't get from other nut butters. and it's SO good. and the same price as the you're-basically-serving-your-kids-sugar varieties.

lastly, i have to have to have to have york peppermint patties. cause everyone needs a little sugar, a little treat and these are mine. dark chocolate (yum) and mint make the little ones a great treat for 50 calories and keep my sanity intact on hard days. :)

and my "better not be in my kitchen"s:

i do not eat pork or beef. i have no real nutrition qualms with beef except for the fact that it's not a great choice for heart patients and heart disease runs in my family. plus there are alternatives that are healthier and just as delicious. pork, on the other hand, i have major issues with. i won't go into it on here but if you're interested in knowing why pork will never be served in my house, i don't mind telling you. hopefully, it will make you never look at a piece of bacon with lust again.

high fructose corn syrup is the devil. i think it's cute that they came out with commercials trying to justify it and when that didn't work, they started calling it corn sugar. everyone knows - it's just awful. and unfortunately, it really is in everything. read your labels people!

cheese product. seriously? that's not cheese. stop giving it to your kids.

i could put a ton of picture up of every processed, fake food that's on sale for 67 cents at walmart this week but i won't. you know what they are. stop eating them.

i could also put  up a ton of pictures of the other foods i eat but i'll just sum it up quickly: choose the better option and there's always a better option. instead of fruity cheerios (PACKED with corn products), i eat kashi cereals. instead of greasy lays, i buy popchips. instead of soda, i drink water. i buy whole wheat instead of products made with enriched bleached flour (which is exactly what is is called: it's stripped of it's nutrition and then they try to put some back in & and it's literally bleached. sounds yummy, doesn't it?) and most importantly, instead of affordable and accessible, i eat organic and natural. the way i see it, you pay more now for organic or you pay later for your processed, imitation 6 for a dollar dinners.

so there we go. that's what i eat and what i don't (or at least a snippet). i know it was long but if you stuck it out and read it all, don't be overwhelmed. it's not as hard or expensive as it sounds. eat at home. be conscious of what you're putting into your body and your child's. drink a lot of water. experiment with recipes. don't rid yourself of what you enjoy - just find a better version. and there is ALWAYS a better version.

xx

i whip my hair back and forth {give}

i made a decision.

and i'm not telling you about it so you can say 'OMG, rachel is a saint." i'm telling you so that in 5 months, i can't pretend i never said i'd do it.

i'm giving my hair to locks of love in the summer. (www.locksoflove.org)

deep breath.

okay, how do i say this without sounding conceited? i can't. i have hair that would be considered...uh, baller status. it's just good hair. in fact, when i tell jessica (my incredible hair stylist at mitchell's tri county) that we're cutting it off, she's going to kill me. sure, monday - friday my hair is pushed back with a headband and piled on the back of my head. and unfortunately, it finds it's way into a ponytail most weekends too. but if i actually take the time to do it, you'd probably say, "self, rachel has great hair."

my heart is racing even now just saying i'm giving it away. i'm waiting until summer because the minimum is 10 inches and that would give me a buzz cut right about now. i know it might sound silly, but the thought of cutting off my hair makes me feel like i'm losing a part of what makes me me (insert cheesy dramatic music). i know it's ridiculous.

i even thought to myself, just give something else away. but for some reason, i can't stop thinking about giving away my hair. so i researched it a little.

locks of love gives free hairpieces to individuals under the age of 21 who have lost their hair due to medical issues including lopecia areata, burns, cancer treatments, and skin disorders. in other terms, my hair would become a wig for a sick child.

that term sick child could make me give my left arm.

i have a soft spot for children. most people do, i realize that. but for me, it's just a little different. i spend most of my days with children that are not mine. maddi and izzi are two of my best friends and they're 6. i miss hope after i haven't seen her for a few hours. and my mornings with gus pretty much get me through the week.

and so i thought about people like me. people who are fortunate enough to have a child be so important in their lives, and i thought about that child battling an illness.

and i realized that the least i can do is give them my hair.

xx