Tuesday, May 27, 2014

oh, great, she's blogging again?!


So,  it's been a while.......

I've heard before that writing is like a muscle- if you don't use it, it gets out of shape and it forgets how to work the right way. I'm totally feeling like an out of shape muscle with these first few sentences. How long has it been since I've written more than a paragraph at a time?! I can't even remember that far back (maybe my memory muscle is weak too....).

I used to be on a weekly blogging schedule, posting pictures and little blurbs of memories about the adventures I'd had the week before. Looking back, that was one of the best ideas I have ever had, because any time I want to I can go to my old blog and remember that period of my existence that seems like lifetimes ago, back when I was "living the dream" and touring with bands, first with Fifth on the Floor and then with Shooter Jennings. Even as I type that I have to step back and have one of those "Do what?!" kind of moments. I toured with bands?! I lived on a tour bus (ON A TOUR BUS)?! How is it even possible that that was real life? I can remember way way back (mostly because I wrote blogs about it) when all I could think of was how in the world I could find a job as a merch girl and get on the road and leave my boring, normal life behind. And then I actually did it. Do what?!, indeed.

For a year I did that, crossing the country, going to venues in almost every state. It was amazing while it lasted. But it was also hard. It put a huge strain on my relationship with my family and on my financial standing- my parents were far from fans of me being the only girl with a bunch of guys living on a bus (understandable from their point, but in actuality I couldn't have picked better groups of brothers who were always looking out for me) and I made little to no money. I missed my family and I hated not being able to be part of things going on at home, but I was ok with being broke and made the most of the time I was home. Really, I think I could have done it forever had these been the only factors. But I met another factor right as the Shooter tour was winding down, and everything kind of changed. There was a whole other part of my existence that I had pushed to the back of my mind as I was out having fun, and meeting him made me realize that maybe it was time to think about heading in that direction now.

So I unpacked my bag for the last time and settled, slowly, back into "normal" life. It was hard. And there are still days now when it gets hard. Last week, to be quite honest, I pulled up my blog and was looking at old pictures and reading stories and I cried like a baby, right at my desk. I missed (miss?) the fun, the carelessness, the freedom, the adventure. But when the adventure and the freedom came with those same big baby tears every time I had to leave, it just wasn't worth it as much anymore. So in short, I fell head over heels in love with the bf, got a job (just a part time one though, no need to jump in too quickly), settled back in with madre and papa bear, and now I'm here, looking forward to a future and a different kind of adventure that I can't wait to embark on.

I'm not sure that any of this post was necessary information for you, the reader, but for me the writer it was a necessary step. Almost like spring cleaning for my mind-- I had to get all that out before I could turn the page to the next new chapter! What is the new chapter? Well, I'm so glad you asked:
I present to you......

Pampered Paleo

I have to write. It's almost like an illness, I won't have a fulfilled existence without it. I love to cook, and I love sharing recipes just as much. Recently, I've taken my love of cooking and tied it into a new business venture by becoming a Pampered Chef Independent Consultant. Buttttt with all the cooking love and Pampered Chef recipes and the readjustment to living at home with the parents again (whoopee! not.), I had to find a new diet lifestyle to stop my fast track to my own TLC show, "600 Pound 20-Something."  After a lot of  research (i.e. pineresting diet plans) I stumbled across the "paleo" (pronounced pay-lee-o) diet. I'll explain more about what that is in a later post. Basically, it's a way of eating that involves lots of veggies and protein, fruits and nuts, and eliminates processed foods, sugars, grains, legumes and dairy, leaving you to eat in a style similar to how the cavemen would have eaten, hence the name paleo- short for Paleolithic. I really liked the paleo diet, and as I would search for recipes, I kept coming across the term "Whole30 and eventually I looked into that. (More on the Whole30 later, too.)

The Whole30 Challenge is basically a 30-day no cheat paleo diet. You use it to really get to know your body and how it reacts to food. I decided to take the challenge, and loved it. I felt better than I ever had, with more energy, better sleep, and overall better feeling.

After finishing my Whole30 I've gotten a little off track quite a few times. I have a very unhealthy psychological relationship with food- I'm a bored eater, a stress eater, a sad eater--and when I'm feeling feelings, I don't turn to a carrot for comfort. I want cake! And chocolate! And fat fat fat. So, due to this inability to eat like a normal sane human, I started the Whole30 again.

A lot of people have asked me questions about recipes and paleo how-to's, so that's what this blog will be. Recipes and meal ideas that not only follow the paleo/Whole30 rules, but also are made using fabulous Pampered Chef products. I know it's nowhere near as exciting as seeing pictures of cool venues and different cities and semi-famous people. But if you're interested in a new way of cooking and eating and products that can help you do that, then I hope you'll come along on this adventure :) My new blog address is http://pamperedpaleo.blogspot.com/ Come visit!