Yep.  I made it through day 3 of the juice fast.  I felt 75% better than I did on day 2.  Yay!  Now it's time to laugh.  Here's your top pins from Pinterest this week!

Honey Badger.  Misunderstood.

So dumb it's funny.

Right?  Handing you my phone is not license to look thru it.

What does day 2 of a juice fast feel like?  Like a hangover.  Except not as good as a hangover 'cause you didn't exactly have a great time the night before.  

Woke up with a headache which was sucky.  I'm not a headache person.  It was definitely not the way I wanted to start my day.  I figured a walk with the dog and some fresh air would clear up my pseudo hangover.  It didn't.

When I got back extreme nausea set in.  I kept telling myself,  "This is the toxins leaving my body.  This will pass."  I felt like throwing up (maybe I drank the beet juice too fast?) but I didn't.   After I layed down for an hour, most of the nausea subsided.   But I had a stomachache and the headache remained.  

I did it!  For one day I drank only freshly juiced veggies and fruit.  I'm now on day 2.  I've eaten a wide variety of stuff...you could say colorful.  Here's a few things I've learned in 24 hours.

Morning isn't so bad.  Got up and drank two cups of hot lemon water.  I'd prefer coffee but the water isn't bad.  I've got this.

First juice of the day: Carrot, Orange, Beet.  Not horrible.  Beets taste like dirt though.  I even washed and peeled most of it.  Apparently not enough though 'cause it still tasted like dirt.

Mid-morning.  I'm supposed to drink 16oz of unflavored coconut water.  I've never had it before. It tastes like a$$.  Seriously, like dirty water.  I chilled it and drank it though a straw as fast as I could.  Horr-i-ble.  I have to do this 4 more times?  Oy vey.  And do you know how much it costs?  OMG.  4 waters are $9.  It will not be in my regular diet plan after this fast.  

Can't totally remember my lunch juice but think it was spinach, celery, cucumber, and more. I was starving.  It was good.  I'm liking celery and cukes a lot.  They make a lot of juice.

Started to feel yucky in the afternoon.  Decided to take a nap.  Woke up 2 hours later. Wow that was productive.  

I am about to embark on a health adventure that I can scarcely believe.  If you would have told me two weeks ago that I would do this, I would have been convinced you'd been smoking some wacky weed or had lost your eva lovin' mind.  

But alas, this is all true and about to happen to me.  I'm going on a 5 day juice fast.  Yes I just said juice and fast.  In the same sentence.  I have never fasted in my life.  Never.  I mean, that's nuts right?  Who conciously makes the decision to not eat "regular" food for longer than an hour?  Well me.  I can hardly believe it myself.  I guess you'd like a bit of an explanation for this kookiness.  So here you go. 

Hi Everyone.  Here's some super hilarious Pinterest pins that I found this week.  Love to laugh!

True.  Not necessarily funny.  But true.

Ya'll know I adore him.  I guess this isn't funny either.  Ha!

Anyone that knows me, knows that I tend to get excited (read: obsessed) about lots of stuff (cameras, house decorating, reading, and so on).  I'm happy to say I'm obsessed for the first time in my life with healthy food.  I can't get enought information via book, video, or internet (or you guys!) about juicing, organic stuff, and all-things-healthy.  

Let me say, that until now, all this kind of stuff ANNOYED me.  I considered it silly chatter that was of little interest to me.  Suddenly, A LIGHTNING BOLT HAS STRUCK and I want (no, I HAVE) to be healthy.  

Yesterday I ate more fruits and veggies than I have on any other day in my life via juicing and regular meals.  I posted this on Facebook and, naturally, everyone worried about me pooping myself.  I worry about that too.... but I'm ok people!  

I woke up this morning energized and HAPPY.  I can't tell you the last time I felt this way.  

First let me say that this is not becoming a food or health blog.  I'm just sharing my journey trying to make some improvements in my eating and overall health.  So if you're getting all excited that "this blog is talking about food and stuff all the time", don't worry.  I have other things to say.  

But first I have to tell you what I did yesterday.  With Christie.  She's along for the ride of healthy living.  Let me back up for a sec.  Monday night we watched Healthy for Change. Holy cow.  Awesome movie.  Which, of course, leads to more movies and books and blogs and websites and OMG!!!  I'm overwhelmed with health.  No worries.  I'm not jumping off the deep end.  I'm simply going to make some changes.  We'll see how that goes.  Then maybe I'll make more changes!

So here's what I did yesterday.  A story in pictures.....  (Don't get excited.  I only took three pictures.  And they aren't good.)

After posting my food is poisoning me I got a lot of great comments on my blog and on Facebook.  You all know a lot about this bad food stuff!  I feel like I've been unconsciously (or consciously) ignoring the rumblings about where our food comes from and why I should pay attention.  I know I've heard eat organic, stop eating processed food, etc, etc, etc.  I just haven't really been interested.  Until now.  Watching just one movie, Food, Inc, shifted my thinking.  Watching that one movie made me interested to find out more.    I feel empowered to go to the grocery store and make a conscious, healthy decision and not just grab what's easy.  

I'm all about easy (I'm so LAZY when it comes to food prep!).  I think that's how I ended up addicted to fast food and the ease of the drive thru.  That's not even a joke.  Too lazy to make a sandwich?  Why don't I just head to Mickey D's for a value meal.  Lawd have mercy.  I keep thinking about what my arteries must look like.  NOW is the time for me to start reversing the damage I've done over the years.  While I enjoy good, real food, I haven't made the time to make it.  That is changing now.

I got lots of terrific suggestions from you all about books to read and videos to watch. Here's what I just got from Amazon.

Let's start the weekend right!  Here's the funniest pins from Pinterest this week.  Enjoy!

 'Cause everyone loves Nutella.

Mind. Blown. 

I definitely have one of these. 

On Monday I wrote a blog post called A Fork Stuck in the Road, which you can read HERE.  The gist of the post was to lament about my difficulty with eating the right things.  I know what to eat and all that jazz.  I just don’t do it. 

In a weird way, I feel like the food I’ve been eating has been passively poisoning me.  I know the word poison is a strong one, but it accurately describes the impact certain foods have on my body.  I haven’t been feeling energetic, healthy, or rested in some months.  That could be for any number of reasons but for today’s post, I’m gonna focus on the food.

A bunch of you wrote some GREAT comments on my blog and on my Facebook page. THANK YOU SO MUCH.  I got suggestions for foods, books, and even videos.  All the suggestions I got were awesome.  I was very excited to order some books and/or videos online so I could learn more about nutrition, food, and health.

Now you’re probably thinking, “She doesn’t know about all this already?”  Yes and no.  I have a general knowledge of about nutrition and the way our bodies work.  What I confess to being ignorant about, is where my food comes from.  Over the years we’ve all heard about eating organic, buying local, grow your own garden, and so on.  I will tell you, until TODAY, I didn’t really pay attention.  I mean, I’d heard some of the arguments for and against different grocery shopping and eating practices, but I never really took it seriously. 

On Sunday, we packed a picnic lunch, the kids, and the dog and headed out for a hike in Susquehanna State Park.  Almost everyone had a great time.  (12 year olds generally don't enjoy hiking for 2 hours.  In case you were wondering.)  There were so many pretty things to see.  The bluebells were out so there were miles of bluish purple flowers.  So amazing! Here's some shots from our afternoon.

Perfect picnic spot 

 Ballet is everywhere!

Good hanging out tree 

Every Sunday I have the same conversation with myself.  Like EVERY Sunday.  It goes something like this:  

TOMORROW is the beginning of your new healthy life.  It’s Monday and it will mark the start of eating right and exercising regularly.  No more fast food.  No more Tastykakes.  No more skipping your run.  Today will be the last day of dining out and making bad food choices.  Tomorrow your body and brain will only want delicious fruits and vegetables and will be repulsed by the idea of French fries and bacon. 

Sometimes this conversation with myself is very deliberate and conscious.  I think about what my plan of attack (read: diet of the day) will be.  I make out my grocery list and feel ready to start my new healthy life.  Other times, the conversation is more a part of my stream of semi-conscious thought.  “Tomorrow I’ll just eat better and make sure I take the dog for hike."

Sorry for the day delay in your Friday Funnies.   Enjoy this week's best finds from Pinterest.  

Ahhhhcccckkkkkk!

Impressive.

Love the shirt.

A few weeks or a month ago, I decided I needed a blender with capabilities beyond what my awesome immersion blender can do.  To be perfectly honest, I wanted to get healthier by making green smoothies.   The ticket to my extreme healthiness was a standard blender.  (Spinach and kale are too big and crazy to be chased around by the immersion blender.)

So I began my usual research, when I want to buy a new kitchen appliance.  I turned to Facebook of course.  You all remember that I have a kitchen appliance fetish right?  If you’re new to the blog, you might want to check out this little post HERE. ‘Cause you all are my experienced product testers.  I appreciate that, you know?  So I asked the thousands of On My Own Nerves followers (ok, millions) about blenders

I also noticed that people were talking about the Vitamix blenders here and there and I was curious. What makes them amazing?  I was schooled by a few of you that the Vitamix was the mack daddy of blenders.  Very cool.  I immediately wanted one, especially after visiting the Vitamixes at Williams & Sonoma. Who wouldn’t want one of those mega pulverizers with the best motors?  Amazeballs. 

Last Thursday night my 12 year old asked me if she could walk home with a friend after school.  Her friend lives about a mile away from school and walks back and forth every day.  My first reaction (in my head) was “oh heck no”.  Walking?  2 cute girls walking alone through town?  Um.  NO.  My overprotective parenting claws wanted to dig right in.  I calmly said “Your dad and I will discuss it and let you know.” 

Later when Greg and I chatted, I told him Claire wanted to walk home with Angie after school.  I didn’t even get to tell him I was feeling nervous before he said “Sure.  No problem.”  What?  Are you kidding me?

I told him the whole idea made me feel anxious. This would be first, letting her independently walk across town.  Doesn’t sound like a huge big deal.  After all, I was walking around town when I was 11 or so.   I remember feeling like the big cheese and oh-so-cool when I was allowed out on my own.   (I also remember the first time some creeper whistled at me when I was 12.  Yuck.)

But I also feel like the world is different now.  Complete paranoia would accurately describe my state of mind.  Anything could happen.