Made a wish & blew out the candles - Cheers to a new year!

Birthdays - They come once a year and end as fast as it takes you to blow out your candles. It's the one day that's all about you, that celebrates you... Who you are, what you've accomplished, your past, your present and, of course, your future. 

It was my birthday yesterday. Every year I look forward to spending the day doing things I love to do with people I love - Last night's festivities included attending Billy Elliot at the Canon Theatre, followed by dinner. Billy Elliot was fantastic and I recommend it to all!

I find that birthdays are also a time to evaluate ourselves and our lives. A time to think about all the things we've learned, the experiences we've had, and the hopes and dreams we have for the new year.

I thought I would share some of the things I've learned over the years...

Embrace who you are and what you stand for. Loosing you is a great loss to everyone you know, will know and could know.

Sexy means never trying too hard - Salma Hayek Pinault

It takes way too much effort to be mad & upset. It's just so much easier to confront the problem, deal with it, smile and, finally, laugh it off.

Change is wonderful - Stop fighting it, embrace it!

Tears are your heart's way of telling people you care.

Love comes when you least expect it. Always keep your heart & mind wide open.

Trust yourself. No one knows you better then you. Learn to listen to that ache/knot in the bottom of your stomach; it always means something.

Good friends are hard to come by... Keep them close.

God has a sense of humor - Roll with the punches and expect the unexpected.

Life's not suppose to be fair, so why expect it to be?

Hard work always pays off.

Open your eyes. What you're looking for & what you need tends to be close by.

Fashion is what you make it. Don't loose yourself by following cookie-cutter trends. Add pieces of you to stand out amongst the crowd.

Everyone needs a 'Me' day!

Take care of your body. It's the only one you get & it's with you forever - Eat well, hydrate, meditate and exercise.

Never regret the past. It's made you who you are today.



Stay healthy!

Healthy Birthdays - A New Fad or Here to Stay?

"Action and reaction, ebb and flow, trial and error, change - this is the rhythm of living. Out of our over-confidence, fear; out of our fear, clearer vision; fresh hope. And out of hope progress." - Bruce Barton 

This weekend was my beautiful cousin’s eighth birthday. Her talented mother put together a ‘Hawaiian Hula’ party. Aside from the wonderfully themed décor and the adorable company, the food was delicious and nutritious… Well except for the chocolaty ‘Hula’ sensation of a cake she made!

The menu included a variety of salads, chicken stir-fry, beef patties, shrimp curry and salmon. Surprised?!?! I was!!! Especially since pizza, burgers, fries and chicken nuggets tend to be the menu of choice for birthday parties.

I was thrilled to see that there were so many healthy options and that the children were enjoying the food without a single complaint. This made me think about two articles I read on obesity in North America.

"One in four Canadian children is now estimated to be overweight and 1 in 10 is clinically obese," Carolyn Abraham, Globe and Mail.    

Check out Fat Nation: Canadians are heavier, wider, weaker and Childhood obesity.

Since obesity has become such an ‘epidemic’ shouldn’t we be paying closer attention to what we're consuming??? I think it’s time to kick this ‘epidemic’ in the behind and change our eating habits.

Trade fatty nutrition-less fries for antioxidant rich baked yam ‘fries.’

Start by making a nutritious change a week. Take it one day at a time… Before you know it making healthier meals and choices will come naturally!

What do you think: Are healthy birthday parties just a trend or are they here to stay???

Thanks 'Everyone Needs a Little PR' for the wonderful Detox critique! 

Stay Healthy!