Dietary Quirks - My Cleansing Journey

Hello there, bloggy buddies! I know this isn't an entertainment related post, but I wanted to get some feedback and talk about the new dietary journey I've been on these past few weeks. I've made some big changes in the way my family is eating, and it's pretty interesting to analyze the resulting effects.

So what inspired this change? Tony Horton. I don't know if any of you are fitness buffs, but Tony Horton is the creator of P90X, which is one of the most popular at-home workout programs in America. He's insane. He's in his 50's and in better shape than I've ever been in my life. The man is a beast, and my husband follows his fitness stuff like gospel. He is intent on owning anything and everything that Tony Horton has ever touched. So, when Mr. Horton wrote a book, he had to have it the week it hit shelves.

I may be older than your dad,
but I look fantastic!

Tony Horton's book, Bring It!, features a 30-day diet cleanse to get you off of sugar, processed foods, gluten and animal products that was pioneered by Karma Chow (whose founder is also Tony's personal chef). The second my husband read this, we were committed to do a serious diet cleanse. And, boy, was it serious.

In the first week, we gave up soda. This may not seem like a big deal, but most of you haven't met my husband and his twice-daily Super Big Gulp. We also let go of all processed foods, which wasn't so bad since I don't really like the stuff anyway. Just from that change alone, I lost four pounds. Four pounds from soda! I was amazed.

Pretty sure my husband could kill this in an evening.

The second week, we gave up all products containing gluten. This was rough. I don't know if you know this, but gluten is in everything that contains wheat. Almost EVERYTHING contains wheat! No more pasta. No more bread. No more flour tortillas. No pastries of any kind. I was terrified of this step! But I went a-searchin' on Google and found out a lot of delicious gluten-free alternatives for things. I learned about quinoa and amaranth, which are super-tasty, ridiculously healthy grains that you can use to give variety to a gluten-free diet. I made my own gluten-free portobello ravioli with a combination of soy, rice, potato, tapioca and corn flours that was incredible. I found some great rice and quinoa pastas to replace wheat noodles. I have to say, I'm not really missing the gluten. And I lost another three pounds from giving up the gluten! So that's seven pounds in two weeks, without changing my workout routine (read: not doing anything, aside from chasing my kids). Incredible! Maybe this Tony Horton guy knows a thing or two.

Quionoa. OMG, is this stuff tasty!

I'm about midway through week three of the cleanse, which is dairy-free week. This wasn't too difficult, since I don't really eat dairy products, but I do miss being able to use milk in my cooking and cheese on certain things. I got some tasty rice "cheeze" for the enchiladas I made last night, and it was just fine as a substitute. We'll see what pulling dairy from the diet does at the end of the week.

If only I could say that was me under that tape measure.

Next week is the final week, and it's the one where we give up all animal products. Full blown vegan. This one makes me nervous because my husband is a candidate for the poster boy of carnivores, and because vegetable broth just doesn't work as well as good old hearty chicken stock. As tough as this will be, I'm going to stick with the commitment and give it all up, at least for a little while. I figure, it can't hurt to try something new to get healthier. Who knows how much weight I can drop from this!

What about you guys? Any special dietary considerations you're making? Anyone with a gluten intolerance or living vegan? Tell me all about it and let's talk food! If you're interested in taking on a big time cleanse like this, you can pick up Tony Horton's book from my Amazon A-Store below, or you can visit Karma Chow's website to sign up for a group cleanse.

Thursday's Picks Will Have to Wait

I know that you guys are probably fed up with me not posting this week. I'm so sorry! My internet had a "scheduled outage" all day today, which made it impossible to post Thursday's Picks today. I'm pretty upset with Comcast about this "scheduled outage" because no one told me it was happening.

Comcast, you failed me today.

So, now the husband is home and he hates it when I have to do anything on the computer while he's home. He's a bit of a whiner.

Why are you on the computer AGAIN, Liz?! *sob*

So, Thursday's Picks is going to be postponed till next week. I hope you guys will accept the little comments contest I posted yesterday as amends for this week's lapse in blog awesomeness. I still love you guys!

Bear with me, I promise I'll get better with the posting.

Blogging Fail Made Better with Bribery

I have failed this week, big time. Time Travel Tuesday was neglected. Will you guys ever forgive me? I hope so.

I have treats to make amends with!

I'm going to have a little giveaway for you guys, just to let you know I still love you all. I have a couple of crocheted book marks set aside for you guys, and I figure now is as good a time as any to give them to you. All you have to do is leave me a comment on this post telling me how you follow the blog and your email address. If you don't feel comfortable leaving your email in a comment, click the "Contact" tab to get my email and shoot me a note to let me know. I'll pick two winners by random number generator. You do have to follow the blog for all my contests, and this will be verified. Contest is international, so get your entry in!

I made this! And I have crazy eyes.

The tassel slips right through a little notch
in the bookmark, so you never lose it.

Doesn't it look great, nestled between the pages of this glorious book?

It fits perfectly!

These bookmarks are an original Things Liz Makes design, and you can only find them in my Etsy store (currently, I'm out of stock because I'm giving the couple I have on hand to you guys, but there will be more for purchase soon!). This is a big show of my love for my bloggy buddies, and I wish all of you good luck! Leave an extra comment for an extra entry if you spread the word about this little, through Twitter or Facebook or blog post. Just be sure to leave me a link. I'll end the contest a month from today, on February 19th. Have fun!

Stephanie's Friday (Saturday?) Movie Pick: The Green Hornet

This Week's Pick:
The Green Hornet
Release Date: January 14, 2010
Rated PG-13 (Sony Pictures)
Starring Seth Rogen, Cameron Diaz, Jay Chou, Christoph Waltz and Tom Wilkinson


Summary (Courtesy of Moviefone):

Britt Reid (Seth Rogen) is the son of LA's most prominent and respected media magnate and perfectly happy to maintain a directionless existence on the party scene -- until his father (Tom Wilkinson) mysteriously dies, leaving Britt his vast media empire. Striking an unlikely friendship with one of his father's more industrious and inventive employees, Kato (Jay Chou), they see their chance to do something meaningful for the first time in their lives: fight crime. But in order to do this, they decide to become criminals themselves -- protecting the law by breaking it, Britt becomes the vigilante The Green Hornet as he and Kato hit the streets.

Using all his ingenuity and skill, Kato builds the ultimate in advanced retro weaponry, The Black Beauty, an indestructible car equal parts firepower and horsepower. Rolling in a mobile fortress on wheels and striking the bad guys with Kato's clever gadgets, The Green Hornet and Kato quickly start making a name for themselves, and with the help of Britt's new secretary, Lenore Case (Cameron Diaz), they begin hunting down the man who controls LA's gritty underworld: Benjamin Chudnofsky (Christoph Waltz). But Chudnofsky has plans of his own: to swat down The Green Hornet once and for all.

My pick for this week is The Green Hornet, starring Seth Rogen and Jay Chou. Based on the radio series from 1936, The Green Hornet tells the story of professional slacker Britt Reid (Rogen), the son of newspaper owner James Reid. After his father's untimely death, Britt takes over the paper and moves into his father's home. There, he meets Kato (Chou), the most kick-ass assistant ever and they take on the criminal underground.

I'm a total sucker for the classics, so this will, hopefully, be a great throwback. The previews give me hope for a fun-filled adventure which would probably have been better suited for (and initially was) a summer release. The teens of my household have been asked what they would see this movie for. The answers ranged from Kato to the car, Black Beauty. I want to see Seth Rogen get gassed. It really does have something for everyone.

Nifty New Swagbucks Feature

I don't know if you guys have checked out Swagbucks, but it's pretty sweet. Basically, you earn Swagbucks for doing a bunch of random stuff on their site, and it's stuff you may already do anyway, like web searches and watching videos. I like to earn free things, so Swagbucks is cool for me because I can build up bucks and use them to buy things like Amazon gift cards for contests on the blog. They have all kinds of sweet stuff you can cash in for, and getting bucks is really easy.

The reason I bring up Swagbucks is because they started a new program for earning bucks. Do you play Flash games? Do you like free games that suck you in and keep you from working or doing anything productive? I know I do. Well, you might as well get something for playing games. Swagbucks now lets you earn buck just for playing games on your computer. Games you would probably already be playing anyway. Puzzles, word games, arcade games, you name it. And you can earn tons of bucks if you let Flash games suck your day away, because you can play these things all day. I did yesterday, and I earned a couple hundred Swagbucks. They are fun and addictive, and you can't beat getting something for doing what you're already doing anyway.

Sound like fun? Go on over to Swagbucks and check out the Games program. It's in beta right now, so I'm giving you guys the inside scoop that not every Swagbucks member gets. Just follow this link and sign up for a free Swagbucks account. You even get some Swagbucks just for joining! Also, joining Swagbucks is going to be a way to earn extra entries in upcoming contests, so go ahead and do it in preparation for the next big giveaway coming up. Remember to use the link I provided to get the extra Swagbuck bonus.

Note: this is not a spam post. I'm just really excited about what Swagbucks has going on and want to share the wealth with my fabulous followers!

Thursday's Picks (16)

Welcome back to Thursday's Pick, where I give you the skinny on the best upcoming releases to book, film and DVD! You know how it goes: I tell you what's coming out that I'm excited about, give you some tasty tidbits about why it's worth checking out, and you tell me what you think! Leave me some comments, I love them! You can even snatch the idea and do your own Thursday's Picks, just grab a button from the sidebar and have a blast!

Now it's pick time!

This Week's Movie Pick:
The Dilemma
Release Date: January 14, 2011
Rated PG-13 (Universal Pictures)
Starring Vince Vaughn, Kevin James, Winona Ryder, Jennifer Connelly and Channing Tatum

Summary (Courtesy of Moviefone):

A lifelong bachelor struggles with the decision to tell his best friend that his wife is cheating on him with another man in this comedy from director Ron Howard and producer Brian Grazer. Inseparable since college, best friends Ronny (Vince Vaughn) and Nick (Kevin James) have recently gone into business together by starting their own engine design firm. Meanwhile, Ronny has begun dating Beth (Jennifer Connelly) and Nick is happily married to Geneva (Winona Ryder). The four friends couldn't be more happy together until the day that Ronny catches Geneva with another man (Channing Tatum), and tells her that he can't keep the news a secret from Nick. But when Geneva fires back that she will deny everything and shift the blame to Ronny, the decision over how to handle the sensitive situation becomes all the more difficult. Subsequently attempting to gather irrefutable evidence of the affair, Ronny uncovers a few secrets about his old pal Nick as well. And the timing couldn't be worse either, because in just a few days Ronny and Nick are scheduled to give the presentation that could make or break their company. With the weight of the truth bearing down on Ronny's conscience and no simple solution to his pressing dilemma, it all comes down to one crucial, defining moment that could make or break his friendship with Nick forever.

This week was a tie between The Dilemma and The Green Hornet, but I figured I would let Stephanie take the lead on the Green Hornet for tomorrow's weekend movie pick. The Dilemma is no short straw as far as picks go, however. It's got Kevin James, who is one of my favorite comedians of all time, and Vince Vaughn, who makes everything hilarious. The two together seem to have great comedic chemistry, and I really think it will make for some riotous screen moments. Also, Channing Tatum's hot self is in this one, being all hot and stupid and adulterous as the other man to James's wife, Winona Rider. PS, why does Kevin James always land waaay hot chicks as his significant other in every movie or show he's in? It's the funny, I think. Check out the trailer and see if you find yourself inexplicably drawn to him.


This Week's Book Pick:
The Weird Sisters
Written by Eleanor Brown
Release Date: January 20, 2011
Publisher: Kirkwood (A Penguin Group Imprint)


Summary (Courtesy of Barnes and Noble):

A major new talent tackles the complicated terrain of sisters, the power of books, and the places we decide to call home.
There is no problem that a library card can't solve.
The Andreas family is one of readers. Their father, a renowned Shakespeare professor who speaks almost entirely in verse, has named his three daughters after famous Shakespearean women. When the sisters return to their childhood home, ostensibly to care for their ailing mother, but really to lick their wounds and bury their secrets, they are horrified to find the others there. See, we love each other. We just don't happen to like each other very much. But the sisters soon discover that everything they've been running from-one another, their small hometown, and themselves-might offer more than they ever expected.

I know, shock! It's not an urban fantasy young adult pick! I can read grown up books too. And they don't even have to be supernatural or science fiction-y for me to read them. This book seems like a really heartfelt story about sisters trying to find a bond that they should have, but never had. I can relate to that. My own sister and I weren't close for a while because we lived with different parents, so when I moved to Utah to be closer to my mom and siblings, it was tenuous at first. We had a pretty hard time getting along for a while, but now we're closer than ever. I think I'll be able to relate to this book in that sense, which will be pretty interesting. I also think the other elements of the story will mix nicely and make for a great read. Plus, the main characters are all named after Shakespeare characters. How much win is that?


This Week's DVD Pick:
Buried
Release Date: January 18, 2011
Rated R (Lionsgate)
Starring Ryan Reynolds, Ivana Miño, Stephen Tobolowsky, Samantha Mathis and Diane Farr


Summary (Courtesy of Moviefone):

Paul Conroy is not ready to die.

But when he wakes up 6 feet underground with no idea of who put him there or why, life for the truck driver and family man instantly becomes a hellish struggle for survival. Buried with only a cell phone and a lighter, his contact with the outside world and ability to piece together clues that could help him discover his location are maddeningly limited. Poor reception, a rapidly draining battery, and a dwindling oxygen supply become his worst enemies in a tightly confined race against time-fighting panic, despair and delirium, Paul has only 90 minutes to be rescued before his worst nightmare comes true.

 This movie just looks like it would creep me out. I hate hate hate confined spaces, and the mere thought of being buried alive makes it hard to breathe. I have a feeling this movie will really dig at the scary part of my brain and give me buried alive nightmares for a while. Here's hoping it's not one of those unhappy ending movies and I don't have to watch Ryan Reynolds die...he's the sexiest man alive, after all.

Time Travel Tuesday: Childhood Career Choices

"What do you want to be when you grow up?" A question all of us were asked several times as kids, and one that received ever-changing answers. Even as an adult, I don't have a concrete answer to this question. As you can tell from the constant evolution of things I do, my interests are constantly evolving, as are most of yours. We never really stay in one place as people. Looking back at the things we loved to do and wanted to be when we were kids is always fun and helps remind us of interests we may have otherwise forgotten.

So what did you want to be when you were a kid? My answers were pretty consistent as a child. I always wanted to be a singer and an actress, as far back as I can remember. I held onto that dream all the way up through high school, and still entertain the thought from time to time. I was blessed enough to be born with musical and acting talent, so it was really easy to hold fast to the idea that I would do that with my life. I would occasionally pop up with other interests that I felt might be a good career choice: writer (hmm...), artist, designer...it depended on what I was into at the time. I remember drawing clothing designs in a notebook in 3rd grade that were a hit among my elementary peers. I have several pictures I drew when I was about 12 on my DeviantArt profile from when I wanted to become an artist. And I've always toyed with the idea of becoming a writer (obviously), which is what I technically ended up doing.

I pursue other interests, of course...crafting has become a big deal to me now (NOTE: The Things Liz Makes store has items for sale now! Check them out by clicking the Things Liz Makes tab!) so it takes up almost as much of my time as reading and writing do. I even entertained the thought of opening my own restaurant because of my love of cooking. So even now, I still see the possibilities in interests and want to make a go at a business. I know I'm not the only one, either!

So tell me about your childhood career choices. How often did they change? Did you live your dreams and make a go at one of your childhood job picks? Have you figured out what you want to be when you grow up yet, or are you still dabbling in a little of everything? Leave me a comment so I can check it out!