Healthy Living

Quick little update for you...I know you've been waiting on pins and needles to know how my detox/cleanse is going. :) I haven't eaten in almost 4 days and I am shocked. I'm a girl who doesn't miss a meal! I love, love, love food but I have replaced that love with the feeling of empowerment. I am really proud of myself for sticking with this detox program. And I think its really working. I really do believe there is a lot of guck up in there and I'm glad I'm doing my little part to help my digestive system get back on track!

I am counting down the hours until Friday night/Saturday morning when I can EAT real good, healthy, food again!

Happy Cleansing!
xoxo

DC, U2 and Me!

Hello Blogland,

Bet you thought I was ignoring you...I wasn't! I promise. Just have had a few busy days since I last wrote.

In case you were wondering, the baby shower was fantastic. Adrienne about cried when she saw me and I about cried when I saw her! She looks so beautiful. A lot of my college girlfriends live in Washington, D.C. so it was the perfect reason to get the "band back together". And boy did we ever! The shower was lovely. I was in charge of games. She is so tiny (even at 8 months) so I didn't think she would mind the ribbon game. We had each guest guess the size of her belly with a ribbon. Everyone over estimated!

It was really cute. The 2nd game was a bit of a dud--we took the labels off 8 jars of baby food and had each guest guess the main ingredient by sight, taste, and smell. The turkey & chicken were putrid! Just awful. :)

I flew back from DC on Sunday and left early Monday morning to travel for work. Returned home late Thursday night, worked Friday and then left for Tampa for the concert of the year....U2 360 Tour! And let me tell you it did not disappoint! Bono looked great in his leather jacket and yellow tinted glasses. They played all my favorites and then some. Check out the play list.

Setlist:
Breathe
Get On Your Boots
Mysterious Ways
Beautiful Day / Blackbird (snippet)
I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For / Stand By Me (snippet)
Stuck In A Moment You Can't Get Out Of
No Line On The Horizon
Magnificent
Elevation
Until The End Of The World
The Unforgettable Fire
Mofo (snippet) / City Of Blinding Lights
Vertigo
I'll Go Crazy If I Don't Go Crazy Tonight / Thank You (Falettinme Be Mice Elf Agin) (snippet) / Don't Stop 'Til You Get Enough (snippet)
Sunday Bloody Sunday / Get Up Stand Up (snippet)
MLK
Walk Onencore(s):
One / Amazing Grace (snippet)
Where The Streets Have No Name
Ultra Violet (Light My Way)
With Or Without You
Moment of Surrender

It was awesome. High octane energy from start to finish. The photos don't do the set justice.

After the craziness of the past two weeks, I reflected on all the awful things my body had endured and wanted to make a change. I had read about doing a detox cleanse many, many times before but never really felt it was right for me. After two weeks of eating out almost every night and making poor food choices, I had enough! So I'm doing a short (5 day) cleanse to rid my body of all the gross toxins. I decided on the Master Cleanse Detox Plan http://themastercleanse.org/. Its the first detox plan that I have ever tried. So we'll see how it goes. I'm on day 2. My first day, I weened myself off solid foods living on oranges, water, and soup broth (and boy was I hungry) today, I'm drinking the crazy lemonade concoction and feel full (well, not starving). The concoction consists of fresh lemons, organic maple syrup and cayenne pepper. Crazy I know. The recommend you do the cleanse for 10 days but I have read that you can see good results in 5 days. If I like it and feel all the great health benefits detox touts, I'll try it again sometime after the new year. So far, no great health benefits just a dull headache but that is to be expected!

I keep picturing the mucinx commercial in my mind -- you know the one where the mucus guys living in the lungs are just hanging out watching tv and then like a vacuum comes and sucks them right out! That's what I hope I am accomplishing in this...all those little toxins stuck in my cells, tissues, intestines, lymph nodes, time to pack up, get your bags and leave!

Wish me luck. Tell me if you've done a cleanse or even buy into the whole "detox/cleansing" fad?

Either way, I'll let you know!

Washington, D.C. - BABY!!!

I'm so excited about this weekend, I can't even see straight! One of my bestest bestest friends, Adrienne, is expecting and this weekend is her baby shower.


It's going to be so weird and exciting to see her beautiful protruding belly. Adrienne and I met my freshman year at FSU. We rushed the same sorority but neither of us really went to anything (at first) but we always went to Leach (the school gym) at the same time. So, day after day, I would see this super cute athletic girl running in front of me. It was a really small track on the top floor of the building so you were always sort of running on top of people. So one day, I think I finally had the guts to go up to her and say something totally dorky like "Hey, I think you're in my sorority..." well we hit it off and spent the next four years by each others side. Frick & Frat. Tweedle dee & Tweddle doo. Through it all.



I was there the day her niece was born, we have the same love of movies and tv shows where we can watch them 1000 times and never be sick of them, Friends, Fools Rush In and Mickey Blue Eyes were some of our favorites, she cried on the phone with me when my dad died and I knew her heart hurt just as bad as mine, and today I get to go be with her to help her celebrate this new life that is just beginning and will forever change hers and Danny's.

As happy as I am, I must confess it is a little surreal. I'm sure I'll feel that way when I see her too. In a way, she's sort of like my Guinea pig. If she can do this thing they call motherhood then I'll know I can too.


Off to the airport. I'll post pics when I get back.

Namaste.

Namaste blogland,

This week I've been working on becoming a healthier version of me. My cousin Christine has been motivating me to get out there and like Nike says..Just do it. Whatever it is...just get out there and move. So Monday night, I decided to give up the MNF game and go to my favorite yoga class (that in itself was a huge break through- it is football season people!~).

I am so glad I went -- I just love this class. First of all, I love our teacher. She's young, fun, alumnae of FSU and most of all energetic and inspiring. And she's one of those people that are truly beautiful inside and out and I want to be just like her. Anyway, she makes the class so much more than just stretching and poses. It is a high octane power yoga class that incorporates the spirtuality and self awareness that is sometimes missing from power yoga. Let me tell you, this class is hard. You sweat, you hold for what feels like an eternity until your arms and legs feel like hot lava, you fall out of your pose, you push yourself beyond your self imposed limits and I love every minute of it.

Each week she teaches us a little bit more about yoga and the deeper meaning, correct way to do and move through asana (poses), why its important and the health benefits.

I'll just share a little of what I learned:

The gesture Namaste (hands touching in front of your heart and bow)represents the belief that there is a Divine spark within each of us that is located in the heart chakra(I'll get to that another day but for now- it means your heart's energy). The gesture is an acknowledgment of the soul in one by the soul in another. "Nama" means bow, "as" means I, and "te" means you. Therefore, Namaste literally means "bow me you" or "I bow to you."... As my teacher put it best..."The light within me honors the light within you." Gosh, wouldn't the world be a better place if people really focused on that. Ok, so I guess I went a little John Lennon & Yoko on you- sorry but for a moment....Imagine. (it was too perfect...had to go for it).

I'm sure I will write more on my journey with yoga but I hope you will take this with you today...

"The light within me honors the light within you."

Namaste.

xoxo

Friday- I've missed you!

Does anyone else love Friday's as much as I do? I'm sure we all do in some way but I seem to get overly excited for Friday's. The most awful things can happen to me- like getting a speeding ticket, get caught and soaked in the rain, having a tough day at work and it all just rolls off my shoulders all because ITS FRIDAY!!!


I'm extra excited about today because for the first time in over a month, Mook & I don't have any plans! I know lame right!! Its been a crazy few weeks for us and so I think we're both looking forward to a camp night. Where we camp out on the living room floor with the movies we've been dying to see, movie popcorn (not the healthy kind) and ice cream! It's the best date night ever! On Saturday, my brother Rob and his girlfriend Sandy aka Dolores are flying in (she is the most talented graphic design star- she created my blog heading!). I'm having Rob and Dolores and my other brother Mark and his girlfriend Jen aka Appache Rose ( I didn't make these up people-- I'll have to have a whole post on the person who did!) for Taco night. See, they are leaving on a cruise on Sunday with the rest of my fam. And I hate, hate to admit it but I am insanely jealous of them. I know I'm supposed to want people to be happy and I really do but I want to be happy and celebrating with them! So its a darn good thing its a FRIDAY or this might ruin my mood!


This video always makes me laugh hysterically so I thought I would share with you.


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cevs63S5XLo


Hope you enjoy!

xoxo

Home Sweet Home!

A messy home, but we're home! We came back from our european extravaganza almost 2 weeks ago and I'm still trying to get the house back and order, laundry done, give the house a good scrub, pictures downloaded, then uploaded, then organized and edited...I now really understand why they say you need a vacation from your vacation.

I finally have some photos to post and thought I would share with you. As it is still a work in progress, I will post the last leg of our trip first. Sweden.

To give you a little background on the purpose of our trip, I must go back to my brother and sister-in-laws wedding (March 06). Mook's cousins, Hanna & Amanda, traveled all the way from Sweden to Tampa for their wedding. Then in October of 2007- they did it again for our wedding. So, when we heard Amanda was engaged to Albert--Mook & I started saving for the big trip. It was one of the memorable trips I've ever had and will always remember it and I hope in some way this little unspoken of family tradition will continue. I dream of sending my children over to spend a few weeks with Hanna or Amanda & Albert and happily taking their children around America.

With out any further adue...

They say you have to kiss a viking for good luck.
(ok, I completely made that up..I just wanted to)

Sandhamn- a little island off the coast of Sweden

You have to take a ferry to get there.

.

Mook staring off into the archipelago

contemplating life. (or maybe he had to tie his shoe?)

A full moon in Sandhamn.

p.s. I love this photo because I actually figured out how to take a semi-quality night photo! :) yeah me!

Chapel in Sandhamn

I love the simplicity and romance of this chapel.

Mr. & Mrs. Ackerman

More later... xoxo

Taking the Plunge!

Hello Blogland,

After countless hours of reading my favorite blogs that often inspire me to live a more simple life, truly taking the time to appreciate the little things in life that make this wild ride so special, I decided to take the plunge and share my life with you, my fellow bloggers.

It's not that I feel I have something eager to share with cyberworld but I hope this format will hold me accountable to living a more simple, happy and fulfilling life. I think this will be a great adventure...hope you're up for the ride! After all...as Norm in Key Largo always says..."We're not here for a long time, We're here for a good time!"

Mego