You said it Patrick Star!!

Spongebob: What's wrong Patrick?

Patrick: I just realized that my whole life I've been

eating and sleeping,

eating and sleeping,

eating and sleeping,

WITHOUT A BREAK?

And I laughed so hard because I can relate.

And thus,

that is why I am happy to be doing the

30 Days to Feeling Fit and Fabulous.

(Coconut Blueberry Smoothy with Arbonne Vanilla Protein Powder)

By the time you read this

little blurb it will be 

Day 9.

I feel slimmer,

more energetic,

and I'm noticing that I look less puffy.

That is a strange thing to notice 

and I would never expect 

anyone else to notice,

but I do.

I noticed where my watch and bracelets sit,

that there was always a puffiness to my wrists

and it's gone!

So there's hope for the puffiness 

under my eyes.

I do not crave sugar

and I'm not climbing up the walls.

The hardest part so far was meandering the

Farmer's Market on the weekend 

and not tasting all the happiness

that was shoved in my face.

On my plan,

I do not snack between meals

because I'm letting my blood sugar dip to 

a normal hungry spot before I eat,

rather than keeping it elevated

by eating all day.

I love it!

And Oh, can I relate to Patrick Star?!

I'm taking a 30 Day vacation 

from indulgence

and it feels 

really 

good.

Hummus Heaven

Hummus Heaven is a new favorite find of mine

 and since I am

on day EIGHT of my

30 Days to Feeling Fit and Fabulous,

this find is especially dear to me.

Hummus Heaven is a local based company in 

San Leandro and they whip their beans in 

such a way that they don't use as 

much oil as in most hummus.

Well, that's great, but not only is it 

lighter and healthier,

but it tastes fantastic!

I have always referred to myself as a

"junky for variety"

and 

I am pleased to say that this junky found

that Hummus Heaven has

SEVENTEEN

varieties of hummus.

Also they make spreads.

My favorite,

the Tomato Basil spread,

has only tomato, oil, basil, garlic, salt and pepper.

It tastes like pizza!

It's light and fluffy and I can enjoy it in plenty

on this program,

or any program for that matter.

Unless there's something out there that 

villainizes tomatoes. 

Saturday, when I took the kids to the Farmer's Market,

I let them pick out a bunch of their 

favorites after tasting seventeen varieties.

They chose:

Avacado Cilantro Hummus

Pesto Hummus

Roasted Garlic and Chive Hummus

Black Bean w/Chipotle Hummus

Spicy Harissa Hummus

Just to name a few of the delicious flavors. 

They claim that their Artichoke Hummus

is their best seller.

So, for lunch Sunday, I had already had a Recovery Shake

I decided on a small snacking style lunch.

I put the leftover roasted butternut squash from the other night,

sliced up some cucumber for dipping

and put a drop of Avacado Hummus

and a drop of Tomato Basil spread.

It was so refreshing and lovely.

Now, 

although I have a lovely Farmer's Market,

just a mile and a half away,

I did go out of my way to shop the market that

carries this item.

On the 30 day plan, when I am extremely limited

on what I can indulge in and when,

I found it worth the drive to the

Shadeland's Farmer's Market 

to get it.

Perhaps if we all start nudging Whole Foods to 

pick up this brand,

we won't have to drive so far.

For me, it's worth it for the Tomato Basil Spread alone.

My family puts it on everything.

They are going to have to package it

in bigger tubs to accommodate our love for this product.

So, I thought I'd share it with you!

In November, I posted a Butternut Squash Pizza recipe,

which will show you how to roast butternut squash if you need to know.

It's very easy and a very acceptable carb on this plan.

I LOVE IT!

And all of these dips can be added to recipes

to enhance flavor, 

cut down prep time,

and 

let's not forget the old stand by--

forget the recipes and just eat by spoonfuls right out of the container! 

P.S. Hummus Heaven is not the same as Heavenly Hummus.