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The Power of Routine (and Starting the Day with a Whole30 Tuscan Frittata!)
Habits and routines often have a bad reputation. Especially on the surface, many people consider it dull, tedious, or monotonous to do the same things consistently each day or week. However, I beg to differ, agreeing with British writer, Arnold Bennett who said “the pleasure of doing a thing in the same way at the same time every day, and savoring it, should be noted.” Although it’s exciting and beneficial to go new places and try new things, a routine can also contribute significantly to our happiness. And it certainly does to mine. I love traveling in general, especially the time recently spent back in the States with my family,…
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Distinguishing Between Resolutions and Goals :: Whole30 Hazelnut Crusted Tilapia with Lemon Butter Sauce
I know that at this time of year especially, there is no shortage of motivational quotes, inspirational advice, and “fitspo” photos flooding all media outlets. Conservative estimates say that at least 40% of people start their new year off by making some resolutions and goals. And although developing a new good habit or dropping an old bad one is something which can be done and beneficial at nearly anytime, there is something quite psychologically powerful about the start of a new year. I wrote previously about Katherine Milkman’s fascinating work related to fresh starts and how her research shows whenever we go through a change of season, literally or metaphorically…
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My One Word Theme for 2018 :: Prepare and a Whole30 Chili
I love words. Ever since I was a little girl, I have been passionate about learning, especially when it comes to reading and writing. Building a more expansive vocabulary continues to be a goal of mine and therefore I spend what I would consider a considerable amount of time consulting thesauruses and dictionaries to find the most impeccable, consummate, or quintessential means of conveying my message. Succinctness is not necessarily my strength, but I do actively strive to find the best fitting word to do the job. And in light of my affinity for words – it may not come as a shock that I am a big fan of…
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Act the Way We Want to Feel (and Whole30 Chicken with Almond Butter Satay Dipping Sauce and Coconut Cauliflower Rice)
Causality dilemmas (most famously, the question of which came first – the chicken or the egg), represent situations of potential infinite regress, in which it is not clear which of the two events, situations, or phenomena is the cause and which is the effect. And while it may seem to be a deeply philosophical or fruitless concept, we are actually faced with such scenarios quite regularly in our lives. When I first moved to Ireland, it was a struggle and long process to get everything in order – finalize visas and registration, lease an apartment, open a bank account, switch phone service providers, hire an accountant for taxes, etc. Everywhere…
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Happy Birthday Coco: Lessons Learned From My Dog and a Whole30 Chicken Fajita Salad
Today is a very special day for a teeny tiny member of the Vasquez family – it’s Coco’s second birthday! For those who may not know, Coco is a miniature Yorkshire terrier with the breed’s characteristically BIG personality. She is endlessly full of energy, friendly to a fault and completely oblivious to her diminutive stature and the fact that she is not human. As I am someone who works from home alone during the days, she has been the perfect companion (sleeping curled up on my lap as I write this now) and adds so much joy and liveliness to our home. We didn’t have any while I was growing…
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Whole30 Lemon Pepper Salmon and Lemon Thyme Roasted Cauliflower
In my recent reading, I have been made ever increasingly aware of how much we tend to stick with what’s familiar or what we know. Much of this is entirely subconscious and affects us in ways which are imperceptible even to ourselves. We tend to make sense of things and experience the world through our own lens based on what we have a basis of understanding or framework for and we often rely on heuristics or mental shortcuts in our daily judgments and decision making. However, more obviously, the tendency towards the familiar not only applies to our subconscious thought patterns and biases, but also to the overt choices and…
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The Precious Resource of Time and a Whole30 Slow Cook Tuscan Chicken Dinner
Today is my turn to pose one of those infamous hypothetical questions: what do you value more highly – time or money? I generally tend to overanalyze this type of proposition with thoughts of all the many tradeoffs to consider. If I had more time without money, what would I do and would it bring as much satisfaction as other activities, events or hobbies which do require some type of financial investment (travel, theatre, shopping, dining out with friends, etc.)? Conversely, if I had more time, could I use it to find new or better ways to generate additional income? Of course I don’t want to end up with more…
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Silly Questions and Whole30 Spaghetti Puttanesca
A few years ago, I remember going out for lunch with my sister and the youngest of my brothers, who at the time was probably about 10 or 11 years old. Sam has always been quite chatty and inquisitive by nature and LOVES to ask relatively random hypothetical questions. We might be folding laundry together and he decides he must know whether you would prefer to be blind or deaf. We could be packing our bags to head out for one of his soccer practices when he asks if I think it’d be better to know how to fly or to be invisible. Once he and I drove 6 hours…
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Heuristics and Healthy Fish and Chips
When you think about “healthy food” what comes to mind? The thought might conjure up particular words like organic, raw, kale, superfood, or vegan, or perhaps images of bland steamed vegetables with boiled chicken or a #saddesksalad pop up in your head. Although there are nearly as many different definitions and opinions of what actually constitutes “healthy” as there are people out there, we all have some construct or idea what “healthy” looks like. The majority of people may not know how they learned or exactly why spinach is more healthy than a Boston Crème Doughnut, but somehow they know. This is possible because we have we have established what…
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Magnifico Milano and Whole30 Paleo Lasagna
Buongiorno from Milan! I am currently traveling back from a fantastic and fashionable anniversary weekend. Both Jonathan and I love to travel and over the past two years of living abroad, we have taken advantage of the opportunity to do so quite frequently all throughout Europe. It is always fascinating to see the dramatic uniqueness of each place in juxtaposition with the many similarities both nearby and otherwise. This trip, like our tour through southern Germany this summer, was a good mix of city and smaller towns and villages with a boating excursion on the stunning Lake Como and stops in Como and Bellagio. We had full days of sightseeing,…
