Welcome to my new blog!

Okay, so maybe I did this "basackwards"...but I wouldn't want to mislead you on my proven track record of doing most things any other way!  I try to do better, but I operate differently than most people when it comes to order.  Point being, this should have been my first post, but it will have to come second. 

I am excited to finally start my blog.  I love to write but need to learn more about condensing a lot of information into a small piece.  Forgive me if I ramble, especially when it comes to my passions in life, that being God, nutrition, my kids and jewelry making.  This blog will focus primarily on how I came to this place in my life, and my journey towards health and wellness.

Nutrition is where I wish I had started my educational career, but more importantly, I wish students were required to step out into the real world before they start their college careers.  Why?  Well, the Bureau of Labor Statistics says they can't adequately state the number, but I've often heard that the average worker changes career paths 7 times in his or her lifetime.  I have talked with someone who has changed 5 times in a 10 year period, & she is and always has been a successful woman, so that is not to say it is a bad thing to change career paths!  It is however, a lot of time and money when you consider educational costs, etc. to reach new career goals. 

That being said, at the age of 18, I did not know what I wanted to become, but I knew I had to get a Bachelor's degree.  Because I learn differently and the educational system has a "one size fits all" learning style, I was too preoccupied with getting through each test, rather than understanding and knowing my true passion.  My drive was passing and getting a degree, and needless to say, I had a lot of test anxiety.  I'm proud of obtaining a Corporate Communications degree, but I needed a narrower focus.  I guess I thought if I got my degree, that narrow focus would come flying out of the bushes & hit me upside the head!  Nooope...it has taken many more "hard knocks" to get it into my thick head!

Furthermore, I think I have felt the final "hard knock" & now I can look forward to pursuing a career in health and wellness, while helping others achieve their goals.  It's so exciting when someone asks me for advice on this topic.  I enjoy helping people who want to help themselves, and I find it rewarding to see them want to learn from me!!  Yeh!  I finally feel I can give back to this world!

Lastly, now I know my passion, so I will proudly boast I have finally figured it out, even though it may seem "basackwards"!  Thank you for allowing me to share my journey with you!

A pretty cake without artificial dyes?

We all know that the juice from blackberries & blueberries will make purple, and that beets will make pink & red, right? Well, consider this your ***TIP if you did not know! Today's mommy challenge is this...my son, Patrick, wants a Titanic ship cake. ***tip alert: Christina, his sitter, presented a wonderful idea of breaking a toy ship in half & making it "sink" into a cake! My dilemma with that? My son will want the art on it! You know the kind...with all that refined sugar in traditional birthday cakes...yeah, the stuff that I personally eat in the closet some nights...yes I AM human too!  I LOVE this stuff!  SHHHHHHH!  My kids can't know!!!  And although I refuse the artificial stuff, I might have to give a little on sugar this time...for the sake of having a nicely decorated cake! 

And shame on me for doubting my own tenacity last year, as I accomplished the impossible...I made a gluten & dairy free chocolate cake, and the best part?  It didn't taste like eating into an O-Cel-O cleaning sponge! The first gfcf cake was dubbed the "sugar daddy cake" because why? Well, it tasted like one! The sad part? I wasn't blogging & saving recipes so it's been misplaced! Big sad face!

Case in point...I made it happen and I DID include my "sneaky chef" ideas to that cake! It had no refined sugars, and it included blackbeans in the cake part & blueberries inside the icing...and yes you are still reading a blog post about making dessert! Stay tuned as I figure out this year's birthday cake adventure...you might learn a thing or two!

And oh...since a picture is worth a thousand words....by the look on Patrick's face, & Sydney's messy one, I think they liked it!