Beach Vacation & Christmas = Interesting Combo

It's finally time!

Time to take off to Varadero, Cuba. I won the trip about a month ago and at times I think time slowed down and crawled backwards but at the same time, I can't believe it's the end of November already.

Doesn't look to shabby to me?! - img via

We are leaving early Saturday morning and have a quick layover in Calgary. We should be getting into Cuba around 9pm, just in time to grab a drink at the bar. I've got to be honest, I never considered going to Cuba as I had heard from so many people how bland the food was. I never even spent a minute to investigate it on my own. Well ever since we won the trip I've been googling and flipping through pictures of Varadero. People!! Why didn't you tell me they had gorgeous beaches?! Food, who cares about food when you have gorgeous white sand beach and crystal blue ocean waves sparkling at you. All I need is a drink in hand and I'm good. Jeeeez.

I'll definitely be reporting back on my opinion of Cuba compared to other Carribean destinations. I've heard that the people are quite charming and nice like in Dominican Republic. Sweet news to my ears.

We get back into Vancouver on December 2nd. It's going to be strange going from pretty much no Christmas activity in our town to boom, Christmas season galore. I'm excited to start decorating our place. It's our first year in our new condo and our first Christmas living together. Our place is far too tiny to have a fake or real tree so I've scanning the web and Pinterest (of course) trying to find some alternatives. Any ideas anyone?

A little Christmas tree this year - img via

I've been having a craving for pomegranate's this past couple weeks and gave in the other day and bought Scott and I a big one. I couldn't believe that it cost $5.00 just for one but I just had to get my fix. I haven't been having any sugar treats so this was going to be my splurge treat. I tried out the under water method of opening it up. It works so well! It was alot easier then tearing at it while all the pomegranate juice squirts on your hands, eyes and clothes. Come December I'm going to try creating a Pomegranate Martini. Any recipes you could suggest??

A simple pomegranate martini - know of any great recipes? - img via

Well folks, until December....
Have a great holiday Thanksgiving and talk to you soon. xo

-Michelle

Weekend Warm-Up : Getting Close

It's almost time...

Time for me to escape the hectic stressful days (positive thoughts, positive thoughts) and lie on the beach for a week. This weekend I'm tieing up all my loose ends before I leave for Cuba next weekend. It's amazing all the little things you remember you have to pack. I wish I was one of those travelers who could bring the bare minimal. I always decide to bring the "just in case" items. Hey.... you never know when you might need a different pair of shoes.

Over the past couple weeks I've been amping up my workout routines and scaling back my "treats". I've barely ate any salt lately and have only had one glass of wine this week. I'm craving a nice bowl of ice cream right about now lol. I feel amazing though and I don't think I'll change too much in regards to my diet, once I get back from Cuba. I feel Cleeeeeeeeean.

 Some lovely links from around the web:

img via Lululemon

• For my American friends: How to NOT eat too much at Thanksgiving

• Have you heard? Starbucks is trying out the Juicing Business now.

• I was wandering the bookstore last night and found these amazingly comfy cozy throws and blankets.

• With cold rainy season in full swing, it's time for a new waterproof jacket from Lululemon.

Have a wonderful weekend!

-Michelle

I won I won! : Trip To Cuba

I'm baaack! I took some time away from my computer and the internet while I was on my stay-cation. I'm happy to be back and get back into providing health tips and stories.

The Announcement in the newspaper.

While I was on my stay-cation I got some exciting news... I won a trip to Cuba! Can you believe it? I couldn't! I had entered a contest through 24hr newspaper to win an all inclusive trip. I had totally forgot about entering. I was driving along in my car and missed a call, so I checked my voice mail once I stopped and was listening to the lady from the paper talking about how I won a contest. All I could think was "oh that's cool, I probably won a gift card to a restaurant or something". She didn't mention that it was a trip to Cuba till the end of the message, just slipped that in at the end. I started freaking out by myself in the car. People around me thought I was crazy. I instantly called the newspaper back and claimed my prize. We are able to travel whenever we would like and the travel agent is calling us this week to book the trip. The prize includes: flight, 7 night accommodation at the all inclusive - 5 star resort, Sandals Royal Hicacos (Varadero).  Scott and I can't wait to go. We have been wanting to get away for over a year now.

My hot chef in the kitchen, celery rose, sunset and hockey - perfect combo!

During my time off we had the pleasure of celebrating Thanksgiving at Scott's parents house and the food was excellent! Stuffing, sweet potato casserole, broccoli and cauliflower gratin, all were yummy. The weather was mostly sunny during my time off and I was able to relax and enjoy the beautiful sunsets from our condo. I was also able to catch a hockey game that my cousin was playing in.

All in all it was a great time off and I was able to rejuvenate and prepare for the upcoming busy months. I also had a chance to try out the Vega Sport Pre-Workout Energizer and I'll be posting my review of it this week - stay tuned!

Hope you all have a wonderful week!
-Michelle

Weekend Warm-Up : Labour Day Long Weekend

Did you read that? woop woop it's another long weekend! 
What do you have planned for this lovely long weekend?



The last of the Summer Flowers

 I'm taking this weekend to rest and go with the flow.. mostly. I think I will be heading out on Sunday for a very early morning adventure to the beach to listen to the waves and smell the sea. I'm really looking forward to it.

I also plan on taking this weekend to read a large part of my book "The Charge" by Brendon Burchard. I've always been interested in how the brain works and how to get the most of it. So far the book is great.

Photography - a must for this coming weekend. I don't know what has been holding me back from getting out there and taking some photos (which I love doing). Maybe I'm bored with what is right in front of me. It's time to go roaming and appreciate the little things. Hopefully I'll have some awesome pictures for you guys next week. I want to brush up/learn new skills - anyone have some awesome YouTube tutorials they would recommend?

• WestJet airlines proposed a question: Where would you take 135 of your friends if you had a jet? I said I would take everyone to one of my favourite resorts in Punta Cana. We would celebrate family and friends.
• I've been lazy at cooking this week as I'm a bit tired. This would be perfect to throw together on the BBQ and ta da it's done and ready. Dinner is served!
• And the talk of the town.. FALL. It's just around the corner. You can sure feel it's colder in the mornings and evenings. Time to get a new jacket. This one is perfect for keeping warm while active.
• Diner En Blanc -Vancouver took place last night. The pictures posted on Twitter were gorgeous. It was a beautiful summer night for them. I would love to go next year. I just found out about it last night. Oops a little late.
• Beautiful performance and song! How will you leave your mark on the world?

To leave you with a quote to ponder.
It's shown up in couple places in my life this week :

"Ask not what you are getting from the world but, rather, what you are giving to the world"

Have a wonderful weekend!
-Michelle

Healthy Food Recipe : Paella

I first tried Paella when I was in the Dominican Republic and they had it in this massive pan over an open BBQ pit and they had to use a paddle to stir it. I was hooked instantly!

Paella is a rice dish that originally came from Spain. I love how versatile it is by adding whatever seafood you like and subtracting the meat.  It also brings the whole family together to enjoy. I recommend having it at lunch time due to the starch and carbohydrates content in the recipe. This gives you more time to burn off that energy (carbohydrates) from the food. You can also remove the chorizo sausage (I would recommend), which can have a lot fat in it. If you can find a lean sausage that would be fine. We put the sausage in the Paella as my BF enjoys meat but I ate around it.

My BF is in the midst of trying the recipe out using Quinoa in place of the rice. He's still fine tuning it so it has that moist texture like the Paella. As you might tell over time here on my blog, I'm not the cook in the family anymore - he's taken over. He's a big meat and carbs guy while I'm a pescaterian who loves fruits and veggies. We are learning to meet half way. Together we are coming up with ways to make a recipe healthier. A learning process we are excited about.

Seafood & Chorizo Sausage Paella

• 1 pound of mixed seafood - chopped in 1 inch chunks. We use scallops, shrimp, snapper and salmon.
• Small touch of fresh parsley - chopped up
• 1/2 pound of chorizo sausage
• 1 medium onion
• 2 cloves of garlic
• 2 litres of chicken broth (can use veggie)
• olive oil
• 2 cups of arborio rice
• 2 handfuls of frozen peas
• 2 lemons

Place a large skillet/frying pan on high heat and add small amount of olive oil (enough to lightly cover the pan). Add the parsley, onion, garlic, chorizo sausage to the pan. Cook for about 5-7 minutes until onions become soft and the chorizo sausage is fairly cooked.

Stir in the arborio rice and season with salt and pepper. Add in the boiling broth until the pan comes to a boil. Make sure to stir so the mixture does not stick to the bottom of the pan. Put a lid on the pan and bring the heat down to a simmer. Occasionally stir up the paella. Lots of rice is different so read the package of your rice for cooking time.

When rice is nearly done, add in the seafood and peas. Gently stir in the seafood. Squeeze the juice of one lemon on top. Cook for another 5 minutes. If the rice seems a bit dry then add in a bit more water. You want the rice to be more moist than dry. Have a taste and season with salt and pepper to taste.

Bring the Paella pan to the middle of a table and everyone can dig in.

Serves 6 people.

Enjoy!



Chef Hard at Work



Have you made Paella before? What did you include in yours?

I would love to hear your version of the recipe in the comments below. Or you can send me a link via Twitter.

-Michelle

Let's Be Real & Authentic: Dreams & All

So lately I've been thinking about my blog and how it wasn't sitting right for me. It felt like I was trying to be someone else. There were lots of elements I believed in but it wasn't coming from my soul. As you might have noticed I changed my subtitle of the blog from "Holistic Life Coach" to "Health & Wellness". I decided that being a "health coach" was more my style then anything else. I love to give advice on life and overwell being but I have a passion for Health & Fitness more than anything and want to help people change their lives for the better.


{via}

I'm planning to start school to become a health coach at the Institute for Integrated Nutrition beginning in July or September. I'm super excited to start this as I had originally found this program 3 years ago and at that time didn't know if it was the right thing for me. I've tried many different avenues (career wise) in these past 3 years and found that my true passion is to help people with their health and wellness. Help them create new habits in the way they think and approach life (positivity). I believe positive thinking is a major factor in helping people stick with their new diet & exercise routine and new way of life. My idea is that it's done through:   Diet - Exercise - Positivity - Attraction. I want people to create new habits that stick around with ease in their life.

What do I plan on doing with this? :
My plan is to start coaching people 6 months from now. I already have the knowledge but I would love to have the credentials to ensure people feel comfortable coming to me for help/guidance. Eventually I would love to start taking on one on one consultations with people on the Internet and in person. Creating a health and wellness PLAN personalize for them. I'd be there for them every step of the way, giving them all the support they need.

Now the big DREAM:
This is something that has been uneasy to bring up in the past because it meant I had to vulnerable with people and let them know the "real" me and be open to judgement. Now who really wants to be judged?! The thing is though... I'm ready now!

My partner (boyfriend) and I have decided that we would like to open a Health & Wellness Retreat - B&B in the Caribbean. Clients would be able to spend some of their time that they have off work (vacation time), resetting their life from unhealthy to healthy. They will be able to create new healthy habits which they can then implement back at home. I would be helping them create the plan in the beginning and teaching them each day while they are there on how to improve their health & wellness and fitness (mind, body,soul).



Guest Room {via}

 My boyfriend is an amazing cook and will be going to school to learn more skills. At the retreat he will offer cooking courses on healthy cooking. It will be great to show people how you can take an unhealthy recipe and make a few changes/substitutions and it can still taste good! The basics of healthy cooking will be offered too.

The retreat offers rest & relaxation too - it is your vacation/holiday after all! Enjoy the sand, sun and beaches aaaand maybe some wine ;)
Check out my Pinterest board : Health Retreat- B&B on how I envision it so far


Phew! That felt good to get out. The exact details may change a bit in the future - you just never know but the main goal/idea will stay the same. We've already started making changes in our life for this to happen. It's a super exciting time now that we have a dream out there in front of us.

What do you think of our dreams and goals? Would you go to a health & wellness retreat in the Caribbean?

-Michelle xo