Health Freedom Expo 2011

It's that time again. I'm really excited to see who will be exhibiting this year!

This expo is always filled with all kinds of wonderful organizations to get invloved with and new products to try.

http://www.healthfreedomexpo.com/site/

Animal Acres

Yippee! I finally got to visit Animal Acres. I have been a supporter of theirs for years, but have never gotten the chance to visit. Lorri Houston has created such a beautiful sanctuary for rescued farm animals. At Animal Acres, they are nursed back to health and can live out the rest of their lives in a peaceful environment.
My family and I walked away with such a sense of love and compassion.
As my husband said, visiting Animal Acres is good for your soul.

Go for a visit, volunteer at the sanctuary or donate!
http://animalacres.org/

Veggie Pride Parade Fundraiser at the Veggie Grill

Go grab some vegan eats at the Veggie Grill to help Animal Acres fund their annual Veggie Pride Parade. Yummy food and a great cause!
This event is Thursday, Oct 21st at the Veggie Grill, located at 8000 W Sunset Blvd in West Hollywood. Go between 5pm and 11pm and tell the cashier that Animal Acres sent you.
50% of total purchase will be donated.

http://www.veggiegrill.com/
http://www.animalacres.org/

Walk For Hope 2010

"The Walk for Hope is a reminder of the things that matter most in life. The purpose of the entire event is to spread more love in the world. The entire 3.5 kilometer route (2.2 miles) is decorated with inspiring quotes, all of them hand-made. You can also expect to find activity stations along the walk route.

The Walk for Hope is free, there is no registration fee. The entire Walk for Hope is our gift to the community."
http://www.bethecause.org/event.php?event_id=624

Dear Jujube

Dear Jujube,
I have been waiting a year for you to return and now that you have, I am enjoying you immensely!

One of my favorite famers market vendors started harvesting their jujubes and I've been having my fill of them. Jujubes are also known as chinese or red dates. They range from cherry to plum size and can be eaten at various stages in development. I enjoy them most when they're brown to sienna colored and the skin is still crisp. At this stage, they're reminiscent of a light and airy apple, but truly have their own unique flavor and texture. As the jujube matures, the skin becomes wrinkly and the flavor becomes more date like.

The wonderful thing about growing jujubes is they don't ripen all at once, so you can pick and enjoy throughout the season, instead of harvesting all at the same time.

Jujubes are high in vitamin c, potassium, minerals and antioxidants. They have been used medicinally for many years and are often made into tea to sooth sore throats. Indulging in jujubes this time of year can boost your bodies immune system and help you avoid getting sick. Jujubes are one of natures most perfect foods!

Walk for Farm Animals

The walk in Long Beach, CA is this weekend, but there are walks happening all over the U.S, so check the listing and come on out for a great cause!

Farm Sanctuary works to protect farm animals from cruelty, inspire change in the way society views and treats farm animals, and promote compassionate vegan living.
http://www.walkforfarmanimals.org
http://www.farmsanctuary.org/

The 8th Annual Walk For Hope

http://www.bethecause.org/walkforhope/web/
The Walk for Hope is this Saturday, Oct 17th at El Dorado park, Long Beach, Ca. Don't miss out on an opportunity to take part in this life changing event!

This will be my 3rd time attending the WFH and my second time volunteering. Three years ago while looking for some competitive race events to sign up for, I came across a posting for the walk. After perusing the website and reading about it, I thought I would attend. That was one of the best decisions of my life! Little did I know that the organization that puts on the event, Be The Cause, would become such a huge part of my life.

The purpose of the Walk for Hope is to spread Love. Such a simple idea manifested in a unique way. The walk itself is not a competitive one, but an opportunity to stroll through nature and stop at the various activity stations to perhaps reflect, give pause or even look ahead. It's an amazing journey that ends with a delicious lunch and camaraderie with family, friends and fellow walkers.

One of the most amazing things about the walk is it's made possible all through volunteers and donations. Registration is free and all participants receive a free t-shirt, free lunch and memories that last a lifetime.
Be sure to register if you haven't already.
http://www.bethecause.org/walkforhope/web/

H.H. The 14th Dalai Lama

I was blessed enough to be able to attend the teachings of H.H. The Dalai Lama last month. My husband, a friend and I attended the 2 day event. It was enlightening, warm and energizing. The Dalai Lama gives several talks and teachings throughout the year around the world. This past month, His Holiness tought over 2 days at The Long Beach Convention center.

To hear His Holiness teach in person was amazing. He is extremely personable and passionate and explains things in a way that makes it very accessible to everyone. I've always been so moved when I've seen His Holiness speak on television or read his words, but hearing him speak in person with much passion and conviction, gave those words such profound meaning.

If you ever have a chance to go see The Dalai Lama speak or teach, I encourage you to do so. No matter what religion you are, you will find it very enlightening. We all could learn to be kinder, respect and love all living things, and cherish the planet on which we live. In my humble opinion, It's the basis for our existence here on Earth.

http://www.dalailama.com/

Women for Wellness

Short notice, I know...
I will be teaching a Vegan/Raw Vegan cooking class Thursday, May 27th for Black Women for Wellness Los Angeles. BWWLA is a wonderful organization filled with many resources and tools to improve womens health and wellbeing. They offer everything from dance and fitness classes to spiritual and emotional support.

Thursdays 3 hour class is interactive and will focus on increasing fruits and vegetables into your diet. By the end of class, you will have learned the basics of maintaining a healthy vegan diet and be armed with many recipes and samples to help jumpstart your journey into vegan cooking and raw vegan uncooking.

If you miss this one, no worries! There are still 3 classes available in June.
All information can be found here.

http://www.bwwla.com/index.php?id=155

Health Freedom Expo

I happened to read about this expo on the internet a day before it began. I'm really glad that I did, because I gathered a ton of great information and met some truly inspiring people! A few of my favorite vendors there were Animal Acres, Leaf Cuisine, Natural Solution and Bragg Live Foods.


Animal Acres: You know how you keep meaning to get in contact with a person or group and never have? That's me with Animal Acres. I have loved them from afar for so long and was extremely excited when I found out they had a booth at the expo. What a blessing!
I enjoyed chatting with the volunteers about the animal sanctuary, veganism, volunteer opportunities and the Veggie Pride Parade. http://veggiepridela.com/
I am so excited to get started helping Animal Acres rescue and rehabilitate abused farm animals. I hope to get a group together soon to go take a tour and lend a hand wherever it's needed. http://www.animalacres.org/

Leaf Cuisine: I've tried quite a few of their raw food offerings through Whole Foods and have been pleased. It was nice to see them there preparing fresh food and educating expo goers on raw and living cuisine. I stopped by and grabbed some "Kickin' Kale Crisps". They were delish and I plan on loading up my dehydrator with my own version soon! http://leaforganics.com/


Bragg Live Foods: This was one of the busier booths at the expo. I passed by several times and they were always overflowing with curious people. Patricia Bragg was there speaking with everyone about the benefits of the Bragg line and living a healthy lifestyle. I was able to get in and grab a few samples and purchase some of their new salad dressing. They had several new items to check out and try. I've been a fan of Bragg's ever since I discovered their Apple cider vinegar. It's truly the best tasting and most nutritious on the market.
While there, I was given a bottle of their new ACV drink. Wowza, it was good! I've mixed up my own at home before but they must have the ratio just right because it was wonderful. I will be purchasing this again as soon as it's available in stores. http://www.bragg.com/


Natural Solution: There were several vendors selling Himalayan salt, but none were the brand that I am familiar with. I happened to see a friend from my raw foods group while I was there and he recommended I try Natural Solutions. He said that the quality was wonderful and the prices were great. He was right and I stocked up on some at whole sale price!
There is nothing like using HS in your food preparation or body applications. The health benefits are remarkable for both the inside and outside of your body. http://designed4lifeusa.com

Before leaving the expo, I received a coupon to The New World Fair in Pasadena, May 16-17, 2009. There will be exhibitors, live music, speakers and even an open drum circle!

I won't miss this one! If your interested, check out the website for more info.
http://www.newworldfair.org

Long Beach Museum of Art

The LBMA is situated on top of a grassy hill overlooking the shores of Long Beach. It just might be one of the most picturesque spots in the city.

I have driven, ran and walked past this museum many times. I've even tried to visit a couple of times, but they were renovating or closed. This time, I did the smart thing and used the good old internet before venturing out. Finally, Sunday was the day that I would get to enjoy all that LBMA has to offer!

The view itself, is an exhibit all it's own. You can have breakfast or lunch at the outdoor cafe, while savoring the unobstructed view of the Pacific Ocean. They offer limited hours, so be sure to check the website before planning to dine.

http://www.lbma.org/index.html

There are currently three exhibits at the museum along with their permanent collections, California Seen 1930-1970, Modernism and the Wichner Collection and David Simon: Dark Forest. I enjoyed them all, but one in particular stuck with me well after I left the gallery, David Simon's Dark Forest. This exhibit was truly awe inspiring. The realness of the sculptures both physically and emotionally, is just as haunting as it is beautiful. Dark Forest is on display until May 31st, 2009. http://www.davidsimonart.com/

33 Earth Years

I've been here on this planet for a little over 33 years now. I've anticipated being 33 for a couple of months, so it feels really good to be actually claiming it! I'm so pleased and appreciative to have made it to this year. With all my life's lessons and experiences, it's been a beautiful journey and I'm ready for some more!

I spent the day with a few of my favorites.

In the morning I hung out with my 2 favorite fur heads, Merlot and Lucy. They keep me on my toes and always seem to bring a smile to my face even when I'm feeling far from joyful. I feel blessed to have them both, especially considering the events of this past year.

My afternoon was spent with my favorite person, my husband. We cruised the beach on our bikes, chatting the whole way and stopping every now and again to take pictures and enjoy the scenery. Our last stop was an impromptu visit to the Long Beach Museum of Art. I've wanted to go for quite some time now, so we played hookey from running and went there instead!

http://andeverything-in-between.blogspot.com/2009/03/long-beach-museum-of-art.html

My evening was spent at my favorite place, Seva Cafe. I don't know that my birthday would have been complete without being able to serve, laugh and love at Seva. http://www.bethecause.com/event.php?event_id=1

Cheers to everyone who came into the world on March 29th! I wish you many more years of love, laughter and enlightenment!

Chocolate Festival and Dessert Competition

Last weekend I participated in the 5th annual Belmont Shores Chocolate Dessert Competition. This was my first time competing and it turned out to be alot of fun!

The competition was filled with all types of deserts. From bon bons to layer cakes to ice cold hot chocolate. With the addition of my vegan and raw treats, there was something there for everyone.

I baked vegan coconut cream cookies for the cookie/brownie category and prepared raw super food chocolates for the unique treats category. If I had it to do over again, I would have entered just one category. It was a bit too stressful running back in forth between sections to try and speak with the judges and serve my desserts.

No, I didn't win or even place, but it sure was a wonderful experience. I will definitely compete in a cooking competition again.

Chocolate Festival 2010, here I come!

Corazon de Vida Fundraiser

My husband and I were blessed enough to spend our Valentines day with the wonderful people of the Corazon de Vida Foundation. This foundation helps to fund orphanges throughout Mexico. The fundraiser was held at Vegan Village in Los Angeles.
http://www.veganvillagecafe.com/

The night was filled with beautiful stories, beautiful music and beautiful people! One of my favorite musical performances of the night was by Elephants with guns. They use musical instruments from around the world to create a wonderfully eclectic sound that you have to hear to beleive.
http://www.elephantswithguns.com/

There were many smiles and the evenings tone was light, although the message was a very serious one. After a recent trip to Casa de Paz orphange in Baja, they learned that the orphanage would be closing soon. The orphanage doesn't have the funding to sustain all of the children and remain operational. A disheartening message indeed, but one that can be turned around. To learn how you could help please visit their website.
http://www.corazondevida.org

The Farmers Market

I look forward to my stroll down to the local FM every Friday. Over the holidays the market shutdown and oh how I missed it!

I love talking with the different vendors and not only finding out where and when they harvest their produce, but also what's new with them. It's so interesting and it does me good to know exactly where my food came from. I love thinking about each person who touched each pear, persimmon, tomato...as I'm enjoying it.

The sights and sounds are something to behold. As I walk up, I'm always greeted by an enticing scent. Today it was strawberries. I was not planning on purchasing any, but the fragrance drew me in! I wasn't disappointed.

There are innumerable types of fruit and vegetables in the world and I plan on trying them all! Not really, but I would like to sample a good amount of them. Here in the U.S we only have about 10% of the varieties that are available throughout the world. FM's are a great way to expand your produce horizon. You can get many varieties of things you wouldn't find in your local grocery store.

All chemical free and straight from harvest!

http://www.localharvest.org/farmers-markets/