"Make A Wish" Weekly Wisdom

Who is celebrating a birthday this month?

I may have shared this before, but some of my favorite people celebrate birthdays in August. And you know how much I love celebrating other peoples birthdays - it is one of my favorite things. There is a very special birthday this month and that is my moms birthday. 

Now I am guessing my mom is not very excited about her birthday because it is a hard time of the year for her. My parents have birthdays very close together and a lot of the times we would celebrate them together. My mom also shares her birthday with her parents wedding anniversary. This year, is the first year my mom celebrates her birthday all to herself. It is a little sad, not having her favorite people around to celebrate with. It is not the same and will never be the same. I know this will be very hard for her. I know she will carry them and all their memories of celebrations past with her on these days ahead. 

But I hope she finds it within herself to feel worthy of celebrating HER special day. I hope she knows every day is a reason to celebrate her life, not just her birthday. I hope she knows there is a lot of life ahead and she gets to choose what that life looks like. I hope she knows she is loved and celebrated by her friends and family still on this earth - as well as those residing in heaven. I hope she knows I am excited to share another trip around the sun with her. 

And finally, I hope she keeps her eyes open when she makes a wish as she blows out the candles on her birthday cake, because wishes do come true and might be happening at that very moment. 

Happy Birthday Mom!  Cheers to many more! xoxo

#embracethehellyeah

AE

 

August "Embrace the Hell Yeah" Nutrition Noshes

Nosh One. Wisdom.

Have you done any DNA testing? Why or why not?

I did 23 and Me a couple years ago and it kind of scared me. I added the health component and I remember when I got the email saying my report was ready, I was kind of grateful they asked if I really wanted to view "those tests" which freaked me out. I found the traits results interesting like if I am more likely to have a unibrow or like the taste of cilantro. And of course I really enjoyed the ancestry part of it and where my family originated from. A lot of information I am still going back to read from time to time. 

It did get me thinking more about personalized nutrition and health care. How is this testing going to change the landscape of how people are medically treated?  

There is no answer as of right now. I don't think any of this testing is necessary to live a happy and healthy life but I do appreciate a little more insight of what the future holds based on our lifestyle choices and what kind of environments we live in. After my test, I realized a few things I could pay more attention to and talked a little but more about my experience in my podcast this week. 

The 20% hot mess does describe my results in way but ultimately describes me too. I don't think anything I do with my food, fitness, stress levels, environment or mindset is going to alter the 20% much. Therefore, I shall embrace it and do the best as I can, DNA and all. 

Nosh Two. Weekly Conversation.

Conversation 141:  August #EmbracetheHellYeah Conversation

What makes you say “hellyeah” at the end of the day?  For any question I am asked or I ask myself, if I cannot 100% say hell yeah as my answer then it is a hell no. I want you to embrace saying yes with your whole heart and soul by enjoying every part of your authentic life. At the end of each month, I want to get more up close and personal with you all on the other side of the airwaves and share with you more about how my podcast guests are I are doing our best to #embracethehellyeah.  This month I’m chatting about my current personal experiment with DNA testing and functional nutrition. 

Connect and let me know what you think by emailing me or connecting with me on Instagram, Facebook and Twitter

Nosh Three. Monthly Hell Yeah!

Oh August, you crept up really fast and blew by just as fast. Kind of like the crazy thunderstorms we have been having lately. I kicked off the month with my yearly trip to the Iowa State Fair to eat and judge the Iowa Farm Bureau's Cookout Contest. But first, I had to stop and visit the butter cow. 

And Big Bird, Oscar, Bert and Ernie...

And Cookie Monster, Elmo and characters that existed wayyy after I watched Sesame Street. How cool though?  I loved Sesame Street so this was very fun to see. 

Then it was time to eat. All of this delicious food. 

I had the Combo group and judge with Josh who is the Executive Director of Iowa FFA. We had a blast together. The Combo group combines 2 or more meats. We had a lot of bacon, and beef with some delicious venison (the kabobs) and tender chicken thighs. 

Scott was our winner with his Smoked Meatloaf Cupcakes with Garlic Whipped Mashed Potatoes and sides of smoked Sweet Corn and homemade corn bread with butter. There was also this delicious smokey and sweet glaze and candied and smoked bacon bits on top. Scott's campaign was "Making Meatloaf Sexy Again" and mission accomplished. 

At work, I have such a sweet friend Bonnie who brings me beautiful flowers from her garden. This month she brought me not one...

but two pretty bouquets. This brought me so much joy that she took the time to pick them and arrange them for me. 

It was her birthday on August 20th. The 20th is also my Dad's birthday, so we celebrated with this easy Strawberry Angel Food Cake. All I did was slice a pre-made angel food cake into three and layered it with Cool Whip and sliced strawberries. Semi-homemade fancy eats. 

Birthday #2 was for this sweet lady. I am always so lucky to live close and get to spend my Mom's special day with her. The weather was amazing so we had cocktails on the patio. 

And of course, CAKE!  White cake, which is one of her favorites. When my sister and I were growing up, Mom would come in our room, open the blinds and say "Sunshine, Happy, Feel Good."  I catch myself saying it all the time, even at work. We kind of laughed this weekend how it was of course always suppose to be a positive way to wake up but boy there were days Kate and I may have put pillows over our heads and weren't loving the sunshine. 

Nosh Four. Monthly Mixtape. 

August's 2019 Mixtape is inspired by my summer walks and all the stuff I see as well as motivate me to keep moving. Find it on Apple Music and Spotify. 

Nosh Five. What I Love Right Now. 

You may remember my bada bing t-shirt I got last month from Sound Bites Nutrition, well she also sent me these adorable cards. I have had my eye on them and what a treat for Lisa to send them to me. If you are looking for a cute notecard, make sure to go to her shop and get a set of your own. Perfect for the foodies in your life or favorite dietitians. 

~AE

*All views and opinions on products, food and businesses in this blog post are my own and are not sponsored in any way. I just love to share great things!

"Reason for Being Grateful" Weekly Wisdom

Do you have a person you love born this week?

August is one of the wildest birthday months with a slew of humans I love so much and am beyond grateful for their entrance into this world. Most importantly, my Dad and my Mom were born this week (a few years apart, wink, wink), my best friend Jennifer from childhood, my best friend Carlena from adulthood, my sweet co-worker Bonnie and a few other friends along the way whom I never seem to forget their day. 

Birthdays of special people are a reminder of the many gifts we receive in a lifetime. We have no idea what gifts we got at our 7th birthday party, but we sure remember who was there:  the people who you love and love you back. I could live without almost all of my possessions (except a set of clothes because no one wants to see that) as long as I have these connections in my life. 

I am sooo grateful for all my human gifts. I will celebrate their special day in-person with as many as possible or make the time to remind them I love them and I am thinking of them. Do not let a birthday go by without being grateful for these irreplaceable gifts and shower them with all the sweetness in the world. Your life would be different, or in my case, wouldn't exist without them. 

#embracethehellyeah | #lessstuffmorelife

~AE

#WeeklyWisdom and Top 5 Nutrition Noshes

Nosh One. Wisdom.

What was one of your favorite birthday celebrations to date?

Birthdays are THE BEST holiday. It is the day you came into this world to make your mark. That day started a lifetime of endless possibilities, learning experiences, challenges, hopes, dreams and developing meaningful relationships. It is your day. It deserves to be celebrated. You deserve to be celebrated, every year of your life. 

I love to celebrate my family and friends birthdays, more than any other holiday on the calendar. I always had lovely birthdays. My Mom would make the most beautifully decorated cakes by hand. One that sticks in my memory is a big pink heart with her famous chocolate cake in the inside. I can still remember blowing out the candles on that special cake and having my parents, sister and grandparents sweetly singing Happy Birthday to me. 

I hope you have memories like this of your birthday and I also hope you are able to create more of them in the future. The day you were born is an important part of history.  No matter what your age, you are never too young or too old for others to sing to you while you blow out your candles. 

Nosh Two. Weekly Conversation.

Today’s conversation is with Jen Plaggemars, a registered dietitian who fulfilled a dream to go back to culinary school and become a chef.

Do you ever scroll through social media to find a recipe for something but you’re not quite sure what that something is?  Then you come across photos that start to make you hungry and you must know what the recipe is? Insert Chef Jen. Jen and I worked for the same company for few years, but we really didn’t know each other until I saw a photo of these gorgeous fried plantain chips with a chipotle pineapple guacamole dip and I wanted, no...needed, to be her friend.  She is a dietitian and is now following a dream of being a personal chef and has created a pretty delicious life that I am excited to share with you.

Please enjoy my conversation with Jen

Connect with Jen on her website, Facebook, Instagram, and Pinterest.

Nosh Three. Weekly Inspiration. 

Being able to celebrate the birthdays of people we love and care about always inspire me. It reminds me another year has passed and each birthday I celebrates reminds me to reflect on what I have accomplished over that past year. I review all my goals: personal and professional. It is a quarterly check in to see where I am at or what I have forgotten about. I am also inspired greatly by the humans who I celebrate these birthdays with.  I am a big card person, so I spend time picking out the perfect card for each of them. In the card, I tell them how they inspire and influence my life in a positive way. I also make sure to remind them of why they mean so much to me. Who know other people's birthdays could be a source of personal and professional inspiration? I was fortunate to have another year to celebrate 2 fabulous ladies, my Mom and my frista (friend from another mista) Carlena. 

Nothing says pure joy like a birthday donut with sprinkles and coffee of course!

It is always fun to celebrate my Mom on her birthday.

The sweet little cake the ladies at the Hy-Vee on Fleur made for her. We really have
the best bakery in Des Moines. 

Happy Happy Birthday to Carlena. We spent the night under the red lights of Parliament Pub West

Had to take a break from cutting a rug and soak it all in. 

Nosh Four. Weekly Music Inspiration.

When I went home to spend the day with my Mom for her birthday, I had to have a playlist to start the day with donuts and coffee on "The Patio."  Hope you enjoy my birthday beats on Apple Music and Spotify.

Nosh Five. What I Love Right Now. 

A few years ago, I went on this fantastically amazing trip to St. Helena and Napa Valley California. At almost all the restaurants we dined at, there were roasted shishito peppers on the menu as an appetizer. I loved them. As I was perusing my favorite Hy-Vee on Fleur Drive, I found a bag courtesy of Melissa's Produce and I immediately grabbed some. I am so glad I did. I roasted the whole bag and munched on them for lunch. According to the Melissa's website "shishitos are traditionally served in Japanese cuisine roasted and tossed with sesame oil and a dash of soy sauce." They are mild but lively, sweet and have a hint of smoke to them especially when roasted. Until you get a orange mature one, then the lively factor skyrockets. You might choke a little and your eyes might water, I cannot confirm or deny this happened :).

Roasted Shishitos: Preheat oven to 375 degrees, clean peppers, pat dry and lay in a single layer on a sheet pan. Drizzle with olive oil and generously sprinkle freshly cracked pepper and course salt. Bake until peppers skin start to brown slightly, 3-5 minutes, turning once.

Next time, I am trying it with sesame oil, toasted sesame seeds and light soy sauce for dipping.

~AE

*All views and opinions on products, food and businesses in this blog post are my own and are not sponsored in any way. I just love to share great things!

Weekly Wisdom and Only Getting Better Top 5 Nutrition Noshes

Nosh One. Wisdom.

Have you heard the breaking news?

Being a human is hard. We put so many things on our plate at one time and try our hardest to harness our superhero powers to make it all happen. Each time we conquer a task, a new challenge arrives. How we address and attack the challenge is all on ourselves. Do we take the "whoa as me" approach or do we take the view of "I got this?" The ultimate question is are we even putting ourselves out there for the challenge?

Things don't get easier, no matter which approach you choose. This is why is it called a challenge. I challenge myself, get out of my comfort zone and try new things to get better. I want to be better. I want to be better at all the things that scare the crap out of me. I want to get better at being a great human. If things seem easier, then I know I am getting better. 

And knowing is half the battle. 

Nosh Two. Weekly Conversation. 

Today’s conversation is with Liz Dunn, a registered dietitian with a passion for sports nutrition, being active and wheelchair rugby.

This is another episode of where I sing the praises of Instagram and how it brings people together. I started following Liz last year and I remember the first photo of hers I saw. It was of her with holding her paper stating she had passed the RD exam. But what really caught my attention was she said in the caption “I may not be where I hoped to be at this point, but that’s ok.”  I remember thinking, neither am I and you know what, it is ok! There is so much more to Liz’s story and I am happy we were able to have such a great conversation.

Please enjoy my conversation with Liz

Connect with Liz by email, her website Adapting Nutrition and follow her on Instagram

Nosh Three. Week in Review. 

How can I not have a great week with a food this delicious and a sign this adorable?  It is really fun being a retail dietitian. I get to be around food and people and fun all the time. Every month, we have a dietitian pick in the store and this month is a really great one. Avocados are really popular right now but there are still people who are scared of these green balls of goodness. I get the opportunity to educate everyday but the best part is getting the opportunity to have people of all ages taste food where food means the most. The most rewarding part of my job is seeing the face of someone who thought they didn't like a food, give it another try and tell me they liked it. It is the best. 

This past week, we finally got to close out my March Birthday celebrations with my friend Ryan's 40th year on this earth. 

Kevin threw a great get together to celebrate this special milestone in Ryan's life. 

We of course had Cocktail Club with a Sloe Gin Fizz, which I have never had before.  Anything with a cherry on top is something I knew I would like. It was very refreshing and not too sweet. I liked the combination of the fresh lemon juice and the soda addition for bubbles. I will have this again.

Kevin decorated with photos of Ryan all over the house. It was fun to reminisce the years since I have known Ryan and the years I hadn't. This is a kick ass idea for a future birthday of someone special in your life. Collect photos of who you are celebrating from different people like family and friends. Place them in different areas of the space you are holding the party. Kevin had them on balloons, hanging from doorways, on the refrigerator and in the space by the food. Each time you changed locations, you caught a different and fun photo of Ryan. 

The theme of the evening reminded us all we are never to old to enjoy anything you want in life. Including your own Magic Tracks Mega Set and being able to watch Wrestlemania and just be a kid again. Not everything has to be so serious all the time and we don't have to act our age all the time. It's only a number. 

Nosh Four. Workout Playlist of the Week. 

I am only getting better week by week with my workouts too. It is all about being consistent and working hard. It doesn't get easier, I just get better and stronger. I love noticing that as each week goes by and enjoying this weeks playlist on Apple Music and Spotify. 

Nosh Five. What I Love Right Now. 

I am very excited (and nervous) to have the opportunity to travel this week to Wisconsin and speak during their Annual Conference this year. I love Registered Dietitians and at this conference, I am getting the opportunity to speak to future Registered Dietitians, RD2Be's. Speaking is something that scares me and it never gets easier, I just get better. I get better because the people I am with at each conference I go to, make me WANT to be better. The Registered Dietitians and RD2Be's I meet along the way get me fired up to be a part of something greater than me.  WAND here I come!

~AE