bin there, compost that.

You can ask any of my former room mates, I love recycling! And composting organic waste is even more exciting to me! It feels good to contribute to green projects that honour our home – this beautiful planet.

As of January, a new green bin collection has started for most residents in Ottawa – aiming to reduce the amount of waste going to the landfill by 45%! Almost half of the residential waste we produce is made up of organics: food scraps, soiled paper, kitty litter, or leaf and yard waste. But organic waste isn’t garbage— it’s a valuable resource!

I love that the green bin system makes a difference to the City and the environment. It can extend the life of our landfills, and turns waste into a usable product (compost) that enriches the earth!

See my pics on facebook: http://bit.ly/dbQyLu

It feels good to contribute in a positive way. To me, organic recycling represents the opportunity to bring something valuable to the end of my driveway. I love it!

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it's a feeling journey

The most profound discovery I’ve made over the past year is that we are the creators of our own reality. Our inner experiences (thoughts, emotions, feelings) really do affect our experience in the outer world. Cool.

Most people have heard this, many people believe it, and some even know it. I have come to believe it, know it, and NOW is the time to live it. As human beings, we tend to be action-oriented – believing we need to work really hard and often struggle to make things work. But when you are a 'deliberate creator' (when you consciously choose how you feel in every moment), you come to know that life is a lot more fun than that...

Over the past day and a half my computer had a virus... and I now recognize it as a gift (my techy brother may think otherwise..). The circumstances made me step back from so much 'doing' and it reminded me of the importance of my focus on my feeling journey.

The Law of Attraction says, 'that which is like unto itself is drawn' – a Universal Law. And we offer our vibration to the Universe with our feelings in every moment of every day.

How you FEEL is an indicator of the vibration you’re offering, and the vibration you’re offering is what the Law of Attraction is responding to. Sooo, that means: how you're feeling, and what is manifesting into your experience is ALWAYS a vibrational match. Whoa.

So the 'secret' is to find and practice the feeling place of what you'd like to see in your life (well-being, financial security, abundance, love, joy, success, etc.).

You can start by thinking - what does the alignment with what I want FEEL like? And then practice that feeling as often as you'd like.

Almost everything we want in life is for the reason that we think we will feel better in the having of it. So I choose to feel grateful, feel love, feel joy... feel good! And I know that the more I practice feeling good, the more I get to feel good about!

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new meal and snack ideas, checking on CVs, and YCK

Lots of new Body Ecology friendly creations and foods to introduce! I've added some pictures of the meals and snacks described below.

Snack ideas:
- half of a small avocado, cultured veggies and almond mayo. mix. enjoy.
- unsweetened almond milk, cocoa, stevia, ice (optional).
- kefir, cocoa powder and carob powder (usually sweet enough from carob).
- green tea (with BE tea extract - adds antioxidants and polyphenols to your diet!).

Some new meals I've enjoyed in the past few days (note- even if cultured veggies aren't in the pics, I either ate some beforehand or added them to the meal):
- millet with broccoli, kale, onion.
- millet, red cabbage, spinach, onion.
- buckwheat with spinach, onion, red and orange peppers.
- tuna, spinach, celery, red pepper, cultured veggies.

More ingredients listed with the pics. http://bit.ly/9CLHpb

I checked on my cultured veggies yesterday. They were on day 3 and coming along beautifully. The ones with red cabbage were a dark pinky-purple. They'll become a little brighter pink over the next few days (I usually leave them for a week). I noticed that the veggies and juices were creeping up to the lid. There wasn't a lot of space left for the veggies to keep on expanding, so I took out a few tablespoons from each of the big jars, and put them in smaller jars.

My young coconut kefir (YCK) and pudding were ready yesterday! Now they're in the fridge and ready to drink and eat - any time of day. I often have a few sips in the morning, or with meals to help digestion.

Mmmm...

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thanks coach.

Gratitude is one of my favourite topics. I’ve come to learn that unleashing gratitude feels amazing. And when you take the time to appreciate someone special in your life, you often end up inspiring gratitude in them as well (bonus!).

My first thank you note is dedicated to my 'Life Coach', Heather. I started working with Heather a few years ago and it's easy for me to say that she has been an incredible guide, an amazing support, and one of my biggest cheerleaders along my journey!

Heather introduced me to the idea of the amazing power of our thoughts. She inspired me to live more consciously. Throughout our sessions, we talked about shifting habits, accepting what is, owning my power, cultivating balance, trusting my energy, creating a vision, committing to self-care, and going forward with love and gratitude. I still refer back to our emails for encouragement, guidance, amazing information, and fun ideas!

She introduced me to Darren Weissman (and the Power of Infinite Love and Gratitude), Eckhart Tolle, Louise Hay, and Donna Gates and the Body Ecology Diet – all significant influences and huge inspirations along my Spiritual journey (and still a huge part in my everyday life!).

I know that my time with Heather completely changed my life. I became more grateful for everything that came into my life. I valued the importance of being able to choose the way I responded to whatever was happening in my experience.

Last year when I received the surprising diagnosis of an aggressive tongue cancer, my initial emotions were shock and fear. But thankfully - because of what I had learned from my sessions with Heather over the year - I was able to quickly shift my thoughts to love.

On the day of my diagnosis I was able to say 'Thank You' to my body, knowing that this was an important message and a huge opportunity for me. Wow – my thought choice WAS huge! And it all started with the help of Heather.

Needless to say, I am continuing on my love-inspired journey (that keeps getting better and better!), and I’m happy that Heather still plays an important role in my life. I will always consider her to be the first big stepping stone that guided me toward a more incredible, joyful life experience!

Thank you Heather (and Happy Birthday!) - you are amazing!

Infinite Love and Gratitude,
Julie
xo

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rebounding and walking and hockey, oh my!

When I think about how active my body is, it's easy to feel appreciation and love for it. I enjoyed a fun assortment of moving around today.

It started this morning with one of my favourite activities: 'rebounding' or using a mini trampoline. It's a newer and revolutionary form of exercise that's even been referred to (by NASA) as one of the most efficient forms of exercise. Cool!

I love rebounding because I know about its benefits (even from 5 minutes), it’s totally convenient (I keep my rebounder behind my love seat in my living room), and most importantly - it’s really fun to bounce around to feel-good music (today I chose 3 of my favourite bouncing tunes – Collie Man, I’m Yours, and Mushaboom).

To list a few awesome benefits: it’s an aerobic workout (good for the cardiovascular system), stimulates the circulation of lymph, supports your immune system, improves balance and coordination, reduces body pain, increases energy, improves mental performance, and strengthens every cell in the body!

This afternoon I bundled up and ventured out on a beautiful sunny walk - inspired by the need to drop off a movie rental. What an awesome reminder: I love going on walks!

Today is Thursday – meaning I had a floor hockey game! Over the past few years, floor hockey has become one of my favourite team sports. It’s social, an amazing workout, improves coordination, and it’s fun and exciting! We were in a huge gym tonight = lots of running! It inspired me to make plans with a running partner to potentially rediscover my love for running. We’ll see!

Ok, it’s time to rest this amazingly active body of mine! Goodnight!

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young coconut water - minus the sugar!

I made young coconut kefir (YCK) and ‘pudding’ this afternoon - Body Ecology's most creative super-foods!

Coconut water is becoming a hot commodity - known for it's abundance of minerals... but unfortunately, it also has a lot of natural sugar. Body Ecology found the perfect solution! If the coconut water (and/or meat) of the young coconuts is ‘cultured’ (with kefir starter), beneficial microflora flourish, the sugar is removed, and an even more amazing health food is created!

Many people have found that YCK eliminates sugar cravings, helps with digestion, tones intestines (flattens abs!), cleanses the liver and endocrine systems, contains an abundance of minerals, improves complexion, and gives you energy! Need I say more?

I’ve added pics (and more details) to my Body Ecology Diet photos folder on facebook (http://bit.ly/a4CVoK). And btw, even if I don't write about my meals during the day, I'll keep adding pics of some of them each day (including a list of the ingredients I use).

Let me know if you have any questions (or check out the Body Ecology Diet website for TONS more info)! I'm off to soak some millet and to throw some ingredients in my crock pot so a new creation will be ready by the morning!

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telly joy. an unusual suspect?

What experiences bring you feelings of joy? Today has been fun - I’ve been contemplating the concept of ‘having joyful moments as often as possible'. One of my biggest sources of joy today was the tv – a bit of an unusual suspect.

I loved starting my day with Ellen. She’s all about having a good time. The show is uplifting, fun, silly, and I find myself smiling and laughing throughout the hour. It sets a feel-good tone for my day and gives me the opportunity to chill out, enjoy my green drink, and cook up a nice breakfast (this morning it was a red quinoa pilaf – mmm!).

After running a few errands (including picking up some grains at bulk barn - where millet is only $0.29/100g, btw), I came home and started watching the show Modern Family. If you haven’t seen it, check it out! Fantastic writing, hilarious characters, fascinating relationships. I found myself laughing out loud a ton! It's definitely the most entertaining show I’ve seen in a while. Each episode is 22 minutes of pure amusement (I ended up watching 4 episodes in a row!). Phil is definitely my favourite.. with the combo of Mitchell and Cameron not too far behind!

So today I watched a little more tv today than I normally do, but I was totally ok with it – because I was inspired to keep it on. It’s nice to find shows that encourage joy and laughter. The tv can play and exciting role in our lives – and can even provide a sense of connection. Having the opportunity to watch the Olympics and other international events is another bonus that many people are appreciating right now.

If it inspires you and if you’re loving the moment, then I say keep up the great (feeling) work!

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culturing veggies and Body Ecology goodies!

Today was jam-packed with Body Ecology love! It started this morning when my doorbell rang. A package filled with my favourite BE products had arrived on my doorstep. I was SO excited - it felt like Christmas morning! The box had 8 love-inspiring presents for my body. As per my request, this was part of my compensation for writing a Body Ecology article last month. Amazing!

So far today, my favourite meals/snacks:

A millet pilaf with broccoli, zucchini, onion, olive oil, roasted garlic, lemon juice, sea salt, and cultured veggies. Mmm. Delish.

Yummy salad: romaine lettuce, celery, grape tomatoes, pumpkin seeds (soaked for 24 hours), sesame oil, lemon and herb spices, and cultured veggies. Tasty!

Chocolate kefir drink: kefir, cocoa powder, carob powder, stevia. Amazing!

And fitting for my first BE entry – I made cultured (fermented) veggies today! Cultured vegetables (CVs) have become a staple in my diet. They’re a Body Ecology signature food and a ‘super-food’ that heals your digestive tract and builds your inner ecosystem. Similar to pickling, I shredded up veggies (today I used red and green cabbage, carrots, and collards), mixed in the Body Ecology culture starter, and put it all in jars (to allow the healthy bacteria to flourish), and now I wait for a week. Fermenting foods makes it more nutritious, delicious, and digestible! I could write a TON on how much I love CVs... and I’m sure I will!

I have posted some awesome pictures in the body ecology diet photos folder on facebook (http://bit.ly/d9eApN). Feel free to ask questions!

Off to make something with my quinoa that's soaked and ready to go!

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getting my sweat on..

I did an amazing 60 minute Moksha yoga class this afternoon. I found this studio by exploring different yoga classes around Ottawa with the Passport to Prana (where you get to do up to 16 yoga classes for $20!). After my awesomely sweaty experience there, I ended up purchasing their one month unlimited pass. It’s a beautiful studio – one big hot room, gorgeous cork floor, green electricity, an amazing workout, filtered water, all around a good feel and bonus that they’re an environmentally conscious business!

Throughout the class this afternoon I felt strong and appreciated my body for working through all of the poses. I love being reminded to connect to my breath. My body moved well and I loved seeing it bend and stretch in amazing ways (the heat definitely helps with that!). I remember looking down at my shin and noticed that it was covered in sprinkles of sweat – wow! I love that my body knows how to adjust to the environment and detox - without any sort of conscious direction from me. Cool.

A great experience – and the best part is – the good feelings last! I feel energized and peaceful - my mind is more clear and my body feels amazing.

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I'll take 'Self-Love' for $1000, Alex...

Starting something new is exciting! I love the process of creating. It provides an opportunity to make deliberate choices, every step of the way. I've decided that I’m going to enjoy every moment of this experience.

As of tomorrow, I’ll start to share my thoughts, ideas, and experiences - organized into different categories or segments - making it easy for all of you to connect with whatever topics spark your interest. Here are the main subjects that will come up:

The Body Ecology Diet (BED): a system of healthy eating that heals our bodies from the inside out. I’ll be sharing my favourite (delicious) recipes as I create them each day (including pictures), tips and tricks that make healthy eating fun, benefits of going low-sugar or sugar-free, new discoveries in the produce section, talks about ancient grain-like seeds and fermented foods (probiotics!), and all of the reasons I’ve found BED to be the healthiest, most inspiring diet on the planet!

The Universe and our experience: planet earth, the now moment, quantum physics, energy and vibration, reality (and how we contribute to it), our words, thoughts and feelings, the stars, time and space (is it an illusion?), expansion, and being in the mystery of it all. Oooh.. this will be fun!

Gratitude: thankfulness, appreciation – no matter what you call it, it’s one of my favourite topics. I’ll be sharing the benefits of grateful thoughts, my connection with Unleash Gratitude, fun and easy gratitude exercises, notes of appreciation that I create along the way, gratitude-inspiring videos, and how gratitude supported me through my experience with cancer.

Feeling Inspired: I’ll be sharing inspiring experiences and sources of inspiration - connecting with inspiring people, words of wisdom, music, youtube videos, movies, life-altering experiences, websites, news, articles, books, companies, etc. I love deliberately choosing to feel inspired. It will be fun to pull it all together!

Physical Activity: I love moving my body! I’ll be writing about yoga classes (and yoga at home), floor hockey, rebounding (using a mini trampoline), walking, hoola-hooping, stretching, surfing, water sports, and other fun activities that really move me!

Self-love: a new passion that I’ve really started exploring. There is definitely over-lap with most of the other categories, but this section will provide me with an opportunity to share the fun ways that I take time to deliberately love and pamper myself. I'll also be talking about how incredible the human body is - healing, digesting, breathing, moving, thinking, growing, etc.

Abundance: this is a newer topic for me – and one that I get really excited about and look forward to including in my thoughts more often. I plan to find and write about new ways that I’m encouraging and bringing more abundance into my life. Money, love, well-being, parking places.. I love finding new ways to encourage it all to flow to me, at just the perfect time.

Misc: anything else I’d like to share.

I love benefiting from talking about what IS working in my life – how I’m having fun and enjoying my journey, keeping the positive vibe flowing, making the deliberate choice to feel as best I can in every moment, and talking about what I am looking forward to.. and that’s what I’m excited to do here. And I intend for this space to inspire good-feeling thoughts in others along the way!

How you feel is ALWAYS your choice... I love choosing to feel as good as I can from wherever I'm at!

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here I am.

Today was amazing. Love was inspired all over the planet with valentines delivered, Chinese New Year festivities, and Canadians proudly celebrating our first Olympic gold on home turf. So many people are feeling the love! The perfect time to welcome love inspiring love to the world of blogging.

As someone who has recently lived through some amazing life experiences, learning from some of the most incredible teachers of self-love (sugar addiction, cancer), I know that it's important for me to start sharing my inspiring messages and discoveries I've made along the way. So.. here I am.

I’m not here to convince anyone of anything. There is great value in the diversity of our thoughts. My notes will be here to uplift and inspire anyone attracting this love! I look forward to sharing my experiences and thoughts on what makes me tick: self-love, nourishing my body, this incredible universe and all of it’s mysteries, gratitude, quantum physics, inspiration, physical activity, vibration, energy.. with the hope that these words will inspire a loving dialogue with anyone interested in sharing!

I look forward to this creative new experience. I love knowing that this provides me with an opportunity to connect with the right people at the perfect time. I love finding more love and inspiration as I continue on this amazing journey of life. And I love knowing that I've already started living happily ever after.

Thanks for having me. I look forward to it all.

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