Author: The Galavanting Gastronome

Love writing about food and travel (www.thegalavantinggastronome.com) and my conversations with God (https://gitanjali.yoga). Born and raised in India. Sailor's daughter. Travel is in my DNA. Married to a scientist, who is a chemist professionally and in every other culinary way. Food, coffee, cocktails, BBQ, smoked meats, rubs, sauces...he experiments with it all - with way more wins than misses. We love the outdoors. Hiking, kayaking and camping make us happy. We are equal opportunity foodies. We love hole-in-the-wall little mom and pop places, and multi-coursed Michelin star meals as well. And, we love talking about what we love about the food, drink, coffee and anything else we get to try.

Thank You doesn’t begin to cut it

by The Galavanting Gastronome, posted in Inspiration

This is a very special day to me. Not only does it honor the hundreds of thousands of men and women who have and continue to sacrifice their lives and their freedom so that I can have mine. They spend time away from their families, so I can be free and enjoy time with mine. It is no coincidence then that 10 years ago, my husband Jason and I bonded ourselves in marriage this day 11.11. In full transparency, at the time I was a bit clueless that it was Veterans Day – even though I had lived in the US for 11 years by then. I chose it because he proposed to me on 1.11 and I wanted to keep the number pattern.

That year, we realized the significance went beyond the number pattern. Not only was his grandfather a Veteran, but my grandfather too albeit in India where I was born and raised. Naturally we had to have two weddings – one here, in the beautiful Central Coast so that it would honor our beloved Gpap, and in Agra, India to honor my Daddy. Both of whom served in the Air Force and rose to the rank of Lieutenant Colonel. Today, I am blessed that Daddy is 99 years young; Gpap left us 3 1/2 years ago 27 days before he would have turned 90. We buried him in Arlington with Military Honors. I was privileged to be there and receive an Eagle head from one corner of his tombstone. A day doesn’t pass by that I don’t think of him, and I have never made it through any Veteran’s Day celebrations dry-eyed. This year was no different.

Gpap
Gpap on our wedding day 11.11.2004
Daddy
Daddy

I am privileged to share my celebration on this incredible day and I don’t ever take it for granted.

From my heart to yours. Thank you for your service, for your sacrifices and for your love for our great country.

Discovery

by The Galavanting Gastronome, posted in Inspiration

A cyber friend of mine wrote this very interesting story– it’s a cliff hanger and it totally enthralled me. The idea of being able to read minds is intriguing. The applications endless and could be oh so deadly if they fell in the wrong (or right) hands.

How does it land on you?

davecenker

36919406G-6RMsGavin stared at the blue flame stretching from the base of the Bunsen burner. The contents of the test tube above it began to bubble in protest. Leaving its solid state, his latest concoction was reluctantly transforming into its liquid state. Gavin remembered conducting simpler experiments as a young boy in his makeshift home laboratory. Chemicals were lined up along his shelf in alphabetical order awaiting the opportunity to react in a magical and mysterious way with its perfect complement.

Gavin’s love of chemistry had remained a mainstay in his life. He still wore a lab coat and safety goggles. They just happened to be a few sizes bigger than the ones he wore in his younger days. For the past three semesters, Gavin had been working with his graduate school professor on exploratory research into the workings of the human brain. The recurring nightmares that haunted his sleeping hours…

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Why I Am Happy

by The Galavanting Gastronome, posted in In Their Words, Inspiration, Meditation, Quotes and Thoughts

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Now has come, an easy time. I let it roll. There is a lake somewhere so blue and far nobody owns it. A wind comes by and a willow listens gracefully.

I hear all this, every summer. I alight and cry for every turn of the world, it’s terribly cold, innocent spin. That lake stays blue and free; it goes on and on.

And I know where it is. – William Stafford

Where’s your blue lake? When times get tough, or when you’re in a state of overwhelm where can you retreat to? Even if only in your mind, even if only for a few moments? Do you have a sanctuary? A place that is yours and yours alone? One that you can’t share with anyone because you feel like you’ll get laughed at or ridiculed?

Yes, I have a blue lake. A place where I retreat to for safety and to regenerate. A place that sets me free and strengthens me. It’s a place of my own construct. I laid every brick, nailed every nail, painted every wall and flawlessly and lovingly furnished every room. My blue lake is a home…with a view of the ocean, with a room for me- painted white, elegantly appointed with rich upholstery but minimal furnishing. This room is where I meditate. It offers unobstructed views of a deep blue ocean! I can see dolphins beckon- and after my meditation I join them. I’m free, strong and completely One with the universe. I Am.

The iPhone harp tune is hard wired in my brain

by The Galavanting Gastronome, posted in In Their Words, Inspiration, Quotes and Thoughts

We all have read and are familiar with the concept of thinking positive thoughts, the law of attraction, The Secret and countless other books tell us just how to manifest our wildest desires. Napoleon Hill’s “Think and Grow Rich” has been on my bedside table for a decade. I love the quote “what the mind of (wo)man can conceive and believe, the mind of (wo)man can achieve.”

Oftentimes though when we get caught on the hamster wheel of life, we forget to exercise the mental discipline needed to keep these affirmations and visualizations at the forefront of our thoughts and we slip into old habits of negative thinking. I’m guilty as charged. When life gets busy- and the days get long- something’s got to give- and until now- it’s been my affirmations/visualizations. During the Winter Olympics this year- one of the young athletes of the United States (I don’t watch TV usually- I happened to have walked into the family room where my husband was watching) was talking to a reporter after she had just done her run- and she said although she was happy with it- but that if she had to stand a chance of a medal she was going to have to up her game – and that tonight she was going to go visualize the run for tomorrow’s competition. We know that the difference between athletes at the elite level is not physical- it’s mental!

Yes, I’ll get to my title in a moment. I know you’re wondering what the connection is!

A couple years ago I made a conscious commitment to start to wake up earlier than I needed to. I did it in baby steps- setting my alarm clock for 10-15min earlier. I allowed myself slack if I hit snooze too many times- I had a little baby in the house who wasn’t totally sleep trained — it took me a year to sleep train him–(that’s a post on perseverance for another time!). I even wrote my ideal calendar scene in my journal– hour by hour- minute by minute I put down what is like a day in my life to look like. And it started with me wanting to wake at 5:00am.

Now here’s where the title will make sense– I use my iPhone as my alarm clock and so as to not wake my husband who is usually a very poor sleeper and gets into his deepest sleep after 4am- I set the alarm tone to harp and the volume down to the lowest setting. So for the past year or so, the ever so soft sound of that harp is what I have woken to 95% of the time– the other 5% is my little one’s cries!

This week is spring break so I’ve allowed myself some slack and instead of 5:00am– I’ve been waking up at 5:45am. Today however at 3:30, my some woke up crying– so I crawled into his bed (no kid ever allowed in our bed until after sun up!) and fell back to sleep. I was cognizant enough that my alarm would go off so unplugged the phone from my bedside and took it with me to my kids’ bedroom as i stumbled into his bed. I’m not sure what time it was, but before my scheduled time of 5:45am— I started hearing sounds of the harp alarm. I didn’t wake up- and it felt like I was dreaming it- but very clearly- I could hear the very familiar sound of the iPhone harp alarm sound. I finally woke up to my alarm at about 6:15am (yep- I snoozed a bunch) to the sound of CHIMES because my daughter switched my alarm sound when she was playing on my phone last night.

So here’s proof positive that if you listen to something/want something/believe something badly enough– it will become your reality. It will become so ingrained, so hard wired into your brain, it will literally be imprinted; it will shift you on a cellular level!

So I invite you to do this for yourself. Take one thing– anything that you want to change about yourself for the greatest good of yourself and others around you (The Universe will only work for good) and focus on it. See yourself changed, doing the thing that at the moment seems completely undoable. Write a couple sentences describing yourself doing exactly that- (be sure to write in the present tense) and say it daily– whether you believe it or not. Over time, say it enough and it will become your new reality. It may take days/weeks/months or as in my case a couple of years– time isn’t relevant- it will take the time it will take- most likely- I believe that if I didn’t have a baby at the time when I made this commitment- this change would have happened sooner for me. But the Universe knew my impatience and my type A attitude – so the timing was perfect- there were bigger lessons I had to learn- lessons of patience, trust and letting go of the outcome! I am now a recovering type A— most of the time.

I got pulled over by a policeman today

by The Galavanting Gastronome, posted in Family, gratitude, Inspiration, Meditation

Yes I did. I was driving home with my 7yo after dropping my 3yo off to school so we could have a ‘girls’ day off’ while on Spring Break. I turned down a street, just one turn away from my home, doing a California Roll (barely stopping) at the stop sign and in the microsecond that I made that turn and saw him, I just knew he was going to stop me. I looked him squarely in the eyes as I drove by, watching my rear view mirror to see if he would turn his car around…he did.

Now first off – in the past, whenever I have been stopped (just about 3-4 times in my life) my heart would race and I would get really nervous – this time, I was calm. Curious!

Anyway, he probably ran my plate then came up to me and I was handing him my license and registration before he asked. He said what I knew he would say, that I didn’t stop; (I did tap the brakes, I just didn’t stop long enough) – I looked at him and said that I knew the moment that I saw him that he would be pulling me up for this. He took my stuff back to his car to do whatever it is they do. And in that moment, as I waited to receive the ticket (I saw him pull out a pad and start to write something) I remembered my meditation class from last week. It had been such a good teaching that I pulled out my iPhone and started taking notes, making sure to tell the teacher after the fact, that that’s what I was doing, lest she think I was texting in the middle of her teaching.

What she said was profound yet so simple as profound statements tend to be. She was talking about the effort that it takes to train your mind and that it is as important to clean our mind as we clean our bodies, our homes and our cars. The statement that I went to, in that moment waiting for the policeman to come back and give me a ticket for the California roll was that of finding a spiritual practice in every mundane act that we do. In my case sitting there, I thought of this: ‘thank you Universe for one more sign that I should slow down. I receive this message with humility and a sense of acceptance of whatever the consequence is for my action.” And I actually found myself smiling at that moment.

So Mr. Policeman with a very sweet Eastern European accent returns to my side and asks me for my home or cell phone number. (is that usual? Don’t remember that from my last pull over from over a decade ago) He asks me what I do – I tell him I am self employed. He asks in what? I say I am a Wellness Coach. I am figuring he’s filling out details on his triplicate ticket that he’s about to rip out and give me. He then says he isn’t going to give me a ticket this time…rather let me off with a warning – that I have a child in the car and that I am in a residential area and that I should be more careful. I thank him out loud, bless him in my heart and make my way home basking in the love that has just been shown to me by The Universe, by way of a very thoughtful police officer.

So my invitation to you is to consider what ordinary activities do you engage in everyday that you can transform into a spiritual practice. Here are some thoughts to ponder:

  1. Food cooked with love and consciousness is an expression of love and kindness.
  2. See the potential in every activity you engage in – whether that be cleaning your bathroom or doing your taxes
  3. Develop a mind of compassion in everything you do
  4. Recognize that even an intention to control your mind and develop peace causes a karmic event. No action is ever wasted.
  5. You’ve created the cause, you will experience the effect.

Think of negative thoughts as ‘bad weather in the blue sky of your mind’ turbulence is momentary – blue skies ahead!

Let me know how I can assist you on your journey. I’m in your service and sending you light & love

SLOW DOWN! SLOW DOWN! SLOW DOWN!

by The Galavanting Gastronome, posted in Inspiration

In email etiquette it is said that ALL CAPS is screaming. Well that’s what the Universe has been yelling at me! How do I know? Ok so here’s what’s happened with me in the past few weeks – and you can tell me if you disagree.

  1. I bought Quickbooks 2014 to migrate my business books over – for three weeks I waited until I received the QB file from my CPA (I wanted to wait because I wanted to have as much time with the limited tech support as possible) – well I received the file from her, but then I could no longer fine the QB 2014 disc in my house. I have looked EVERYWHERE! And I know it never left my house – but I can’t find it.
  2. I was vacuuming cobwebs with my powerful vacuum cleaner’s telescopic wand and instead of powering it off before retracting the wand I started to slide it back into place – well the suction retracted it super fast, pinching my thumb skin at the joint very very painfully into it!
  3. I was dropping my daughter off to her school in my usual 5″ wedges – we got out of the car and stepped funny onto the curb – lost my balance (easy to do in 5″ wedges) and practically did a face plant – my hands went down to protect my fall – and they did – except my fingers were bent under, and I scraped a big chunk of flesh off two fingers on the second joint. (I now wear flats for drop off!)
  4. I cut my other thumb while cooking – again at the joint.
  5. Then two days ago, I sprained my ankle while sprinting – just 5 days before my first race in over two years.
  6. For most of last year, I would see my ankle brace lying around the house – now that I really need it – I have no idea where it is.

So – what do you think? Can you relate? Is life just SOOO busy that you would lose your head if it wasn’t attached? 

I realized this week that as much as I have thought that I am doing self-care (some yoga, occasional meditation) I haven’t been loyal to my recipe for success. If anything I have been depriving myself of the things that help me be the best version of myself. I have found myself short with my husband and kids on a couple occasions and even been less patient with my 3yo. 

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When you work for yourself, your personal and professional lives tend to blend together. There’s no 9-5. You’re always ON, always thinking about your work and how you can serve your clients better. But if you’re not careful about it, the blend of personal and professional can skew heavily depending on what’s going on in your life at any given time. As an entrepreneur, time management is critical to the successful blend of personal/professional life. 

So now that my body is forced to slow down due to the recent spate of minor injuries. I HAVE to slow down and this is giving me time to really think about what I want to focus on. It is going to give me a chance to helicopter above the runway and see things at the 50,000 foot view. I attended a productivity seminar today conducted by Sara Caputo of Radiant Organizing – and one of the many nuggets I walked away with was about Urgent Vs. Important. Urgent is the stuff that takes over our day – emails that we are bombarded with, that we are programmed to respond to asap, versus important – the things that typically do NOT have a deadline but will be make a huge difference in your life or business if you do spend time and attention on it. It is imperative to block out time to spend ON your business and your life – just as you spend time IN  your business and your life. 

So here are some of the things that I plan to do to implement this and to create time to work on the IMPORTANT and not just the URGENT.

  1. Something that I learned early on in my Arbonne career by my ENVP Donna Weiser – chunking my time. Block time for everything – rest, spiritual renewal, exercise, sleep, family time, work etc. and do this consistently. If you spend an hour on a Sunday night to put this into effect, on an on-going basis, every Sunday, it won’t take more than 20min.
  2. Friday 45 – this I learned from Sara today. Take 45 min on a Friday afternoon and close loops and put things in place that you need to for the week ahead. 
  3. Triple D – Dig Down Deep – Sara didn’t call it Triple D – I did…but yes, go deep – this is really getting down to the root of what you need to spend your time, energy and focus on – the IMPORTANT stuff vs. the URGENT stuff. Do this for at least an hour a week. Sara said 90 minutes every week. If that seems too much – start with just 30 minutes – do this consistently and you will find yourself wanting to spend more time on this and undoubtedly your income producing activity will take care of itself.
  4. The final nugget I want to share from Sara is when she said – Stop Saying that You’re Busy! If that’s what you keep saying, then that is in fact what the Universe will continue to give you..MORE BUSY-NESS. Lets change that self talk – how about when someone asks you how you are…instead of saying I’m so busy – say I’M SO PRODUCTIVE! 

I could write more on this – but I am going back to focusing on my Recipe for Success – and being good about my sleep time is one of those items on my check list. So I’m off to bed!

PS: I am working on some very exciting new programs which I will be unveiling soon. Stay tuned for details.

For details on chunking your time, or recipe for success please message me and I am happy to share. 

Also, if anyone has a license for QB that they aren’t using and would want to donate to me – I would be eternally grateful!

Inner and Outer Problems

by The Galavanting Gastronome, posted in gratitude, Inspiration, Meditation, Quotes and Thoughts

I attended a Buddhist meditation class last week. The teacher talked about inner and outer problems in a way that really resonated with me. Outer problems are the ones we have no control over- the ones that happen to us as a part of living our lives- our car breaks down or someone cuts us off on the freeway, an accident backs up traffic and makes us late to an important meeting or job interview, people talk to us badly or any myriad of things– these all comprise outer problems and there’s not a whole lot you can do about it.

The inner problems are the ways we chose to deal with these outer problems. We can get super aggravated, retaliate by cutting off someone else or chase after that person to flip them off, get really upset and develop anxiety or have sleepless nights and really make ourselves and those around us miserable because of how badly we are being treated by someone in our lives whether it be a co-worker, a boss, a parent, a spouse or a friend or anyone else for that matter.

This really got me thinking about this topic because I can certainly relate to this. In the past year I had a situation going on with me where for months I was in what I felt was a ‘stuck’ place– I didn’t feel like I had a way out with this person’s behavior and I couldn’t understand why I was being treated this way. I started sleeping badly, getting into fights with my husband Jason, and my 7yo started acting out which made things worse– only in hindsight after I extricated myself from that situation (and things at home went back to normal) was I able to realize that my husband wasn’t trying to ‘be controlling’ my daughter wasn’t ‘acting out’ rather it was ME! They were the mirror for my thoughts and actions and were merely ‘doing’ what I was…except they weren’t really doing anything– I was!! This was such a huge realization to me.

How you chose to let this affect you is in your hands. Typically when someone treats you badly or says something that hurts it’s them using you as a mirror that reflects how they feel- and because they dislike how they feel and they don’t know how to articulate it so they lash out against those that are closest to them- usually family and people they care for and interact with on a regular basis. You can’t change them, but you can change you!

I decided that my self-worth wasn’t tied to this person’s treatment of me, that no one gets to treat me this way- and that I ALWAYS have a choice! ALWAYS!

There are two types of suffering in the world– the one is where you learn from it and never go through the same experience again– and then the other where you didn’t actually learn and implement your lessons and so the way the Universe works is that you continue to experience the same lesson over and over– what is it that we are taught in school at an early age? Repetition is a pillar of learning! Life lessons are no different. It took me 10 years and three different experiences to learn this particular self-worth lesson. I consider myself blessed to have had such great ‘teachers’ because without the angst they caused- I’d never have had these breakthroughs.

So what can you do when you find yourself in what feels like and untenable situation?
1. Remember that we give words a lot of power. We can take that power back.
2. By being hurt/offended/upset by someone’s actions or words against us we are giving away our power to that person- and we can TAKE IT BACK!!
3. You always have a choice! Extricate yourself from the situation as quickly as your time, situation and resources allow.
4. Mentally disconnect from that situation and remind yourself that you control how you think and feel. And YES you can control your mind.
5. Surround yourself with positive people who believe in you! Use them like an AA sponsor and ask to connect with them when you’re feeling low! There’s no better feeling when your mentor, well wisher or biggest fan tells you how great you are because they truly believe that!
6. Affirm daily that you are strong and that you are in control of how people behave with you.
7. The world’s greatest thought leaders and humanitarians all shared the same message- Love and Forgive. Mahatma Gandhi, the father of the nonviolence (Ahimsa) movement in India is noted for literally ‘turning the other cheek’ and he’s not alone. I’ve never read the Bible- but someone once told me that the word Forgiveness appears more often than the word Love.
8. Most of all love yourself above all else. Love yourself the way you love your children. Imagine how you would respond if someone hurt your child, said mean things or physically hurt them- that pain would be unbearable — it is that emotion and feeling that I want you to tap into when you love yourself. When you do that– nothing and no one will be able to say or do anything negative to you because you will have taken away their power to do so!

Make a decision today that you will not let your feelings run away with you. That you’re in control and that you can’t be hurt by someone else because their words/actions have no power over you. It’s your time to shine!

Sending you light and love

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Lifestyle DIVA Top 10 Arbonne faves

by The Galavanting Gastronome, posted in Health

I often get asked what my absolute favorite Arbonne products are. After all I have been a huge fan of the pure safe and beneficial philosophy and have incorporated as many products into my house as I possibly can. You might say my home is ‘Arbonnized!’ When I do a wellness presentation I am often asked – what are the few products that I can absolutely NOT do without…so I thought about it a bit, and came up with my favorites! I am not going to give you the company speak about the products – after all, you can get that by reading up on the website – rather, I want to share with you MY personal experience, and why I choose to use these products. These are by the way in no order of importance – rather they are in the order that they popped into my brain as I thought about this post.

  1. Chocolate Protein Powder – with 20 g of Vegan protein powder with THE BEST TASTE on the market – this one is a no brainer for breakfast! I am a busy mom of two very active kids under the age of 7 and my daughter’s school is 20 minutes away from our home; prior to dropping her, I drop my son off at his school – so I have to build in that detour time to my morning. There is no other way for me to get done all that I need to get done in the morning – run or ride, meditate, clean kitty litter, get dressed (with full makeup and hair done because I often meet clients and go to networking events first thing after drop off), get two kids up and make sure they’re getting through their morning regimen, pack lunches and feed THEM nutrient dense breakfasts. After all this, there is no room for me to sit and eat breakfast – so I semi-prep this protein shake the night before with whatever raw vegs I have in the house, flax seed, couple berries, teaspoon of almond butter and then in the morning, I add the powder and almond milk, couple ice cubes and my breakfast to drink in the car is ready! I really don’t know how to survive breakfast any other way. This is afterall the single most important meal of your day – your body has starved for more or less 12 hours from last night’s dinner onward – you owe it to yourself to eat/drink a healthy energy-filled breakfast!
  2. Energy Fizz Drinks in Citrus or Pomegranate – This is actually a new addition in my household – I try not to consume caffeine even if its from Guarana which is a natural caffeine – except for the little that I get from my decaf almond milk lattes that I indulge in once or twice a week. One day it occurred to me that I should try this as my exercise hydration drink instead of FRS which is the brand my husband prefers. And holy cow, not only did I feel great during the workout, but the whole day went well – I wake up at 5.15 (inching my way up to 5:00) so that I have an hour to myself before I have to start the household. I often don’t get to bed till 10.30 – and lately it has been 11pm. I did not drag.
  3. Chocolate Protein Bars – with only 7g of sugar, these are the least sugary bars on the market today! Arbonne re-purposed the texture so they no longer taste like the texture of cardboard! (Thanks Arbonne!) I always carry this in my purse, because I never know where I will be during lunch time since I no longer work out of an office outside the home. (Thanks Arbonne!!)
  4. RE9 Advanced facial cleanser – Ok, so this cleanser is incredible at removing makeup. I have done full on stage makeup (not for stage, just because I wanted to REALLY doll up for an event I was attending) and this cleanser did such an awesome job of taking it all off without me feeling like I had stripped my skin of its natural oils. My husband with eczema even on his eyelids can use this without issue.
  5. Revelage SPF 30 day cream – This one is specially awesome because its a two-fer – day time moisturizer and UVA/UVB protection SPF 30 sunblock all rolled into an incredibly natural, not-to-thick-to-apply moisturizer with a really lovely barely there naturally occurring fragrance. (remember no synthetic fragrances!)
  6. Arbonne Baby Care (ABC) hair and body wash – this is the rock star in our house because not only do both my kids use it and I don’t have to be careful around their eyes with this – it is truly NO MORE TEARS unlike another brand that shall remain unnamed. I also use this as a hand wash at every sink in my house including in the kitchen. It is gentle yet effective for my husband’s eczema-stricken hands. (as a scientist he washes his hands a million times a day)
  7. FC5 Skin Conditioning Oil – My daughter had a spot of eczema on her face when she was 5 years old. I washed the affected skin with the baby wash mentioned in #6 3-4 times a day and followed with this oil. It cleared it up in no time. This also worked wonders for my poor calico cat Zeta who had serious dry skin issues and whose scratching would wake us up at night. She had scabs the size of peas by her ears and around her neck – this miracle oil cleared those up as well as soothed her skin. PS: If I had a dog, i would probably wash him/her with the baby wash too!! Cats of course can sense that I am even THINKING of bathing them and will go so deep into the recesses of my Eastern King bed, that there’s no way to fish them out.
  8. Ginger Citrus Body Butter – this is a seasonal favorite that I stock up on when it hits the Arbonne shelves on September 1. It’s usually out of stock by mid November! This body butter has become the hot favorite of any client or friend who I gift it to! It has the lightest scent that is so subtly elegant and the silky feeling on my arms and legs lasts anything else I have ever tried – except maybe the Shea Butter lotion which is pretty darn awesome.
  9. Primer – The Arbonne primer goes on like a lotion and dries to a powder finish! The texture of this product is so incredible – the feeling on my face ever so luxurious. I love the way it prevents my eye shadows from creasing, how my foundation stays on true all day long and as I pointed out already, my days are long. On a Sunday morning, I often use this alone – without following it with foundation…perhaps just a dusting of mineral powder.
  10. Pencil Eyeliner – Ebony – As an Indian, I like to ‘kohl’ my eyes. I have for as long as I can remember lined my eyes in black all around. The thing is – pencils usually don’t last 12 hours and I have such long eye lashes (yes I know, cry me a river!) that liquid liner smudges…I used to use the MAC gel pot, but I had the hardest time removing that at the end of the day – even after using two cotton pads per eye with eye make up remover – I would still have a residue look of eyeliner from the day. I hated how much I had to rub the gentle/sensitive/1/4- thinner-than-anywhere-else skin under my eyes to get it all off. Enter Arbonne’s Ebony 5 years ago and my eyes, the skin under my eyes and I have all been a happy customer! Ebony is pitch black, smooth and long lasting…and yet comes of easily with Arbonne’s ever so gentle eye makeup remover, making me feel truly free of makeup at the end of the day!
  11. It’s a Long Story Mascara – yes that’s actually the name of the mascara and yes, I realize I ran out of the 10 spots…but I HAVE TO leave you with this – there’s not a single woman that I know that doesn’t wear mascara. Remember I mentioned that I have long lashes…well these make it so that I not just sweep but even mop the inside of my sunglasses! It’s the one thing we all buy every three months (if you don’t do that – start NOW!) because the pump action introduces airborne bacteria into the tube and do you really want to mess with your eyes for a $36 product? (if you’re using an $8-$12 mascara off the shelf…here’s my question to you…do you know what you are putting that close your eyes? Read the labels!)

So there you have it! I use over 45 Arbonne products in my house daily – from skincare for men, women and children, hair care, baby care, makeup, vitamins, supplements, etc. These are products that I would buy anyway. So the fact that I could buy good quality, superior-ingredient products delivered to my door for an amazing price appeals to me a lot. That’s my story and I’m sticking to it!

Biggest Loser Challenge launch in Santa Barbara

by The Galavanting Gastronome, posted in Health, Nutrition

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Yesterday IM=X Pilates, Lolë Atelier and I (Arbonne) came together and offered an amazing program to those who signed up! 20% discount on shopping at Lolë, $350 for 30 days of unlimited classes at IMX on upper State Street and 30 days of breakfast, lunch and meal planning (shopping lists, menus, recipes) to transform your life and put you on the path to 1. Eat clean 2. Support elimination organs 3. Increase nutrient uptake 4. Balance blood sugar and 5. Eliminate allergenic, acidic and addictive foods from your diet!

Benefits include:
1. Weight loss if you need to
2. 100% increase in energy
3. Reset metabolic thermostat
4. Mindset shift and mental discipline that will transcend to all areas of your life

The program starts 2/10/14– so there’s still time to get in on it!

Comment here or email me for details!