nicu friends ARE the best. 

~ritual cleanse amazingness~

RiTuAl ClEaNsE.

two weeks ago i decided i would do a three day juice cleanse. yep, that's right. no food for three days...just amazingly fresh, organic and healthy seasonal fruits and vegetables juiced for three whole days. c was going to be away for a while for work and i knew that it would be something that would help pass the time, reset my body before celebrating my 30th bday this month and remind me of the importance of feeding your body healthfully with tasty treats provided by our earth!

i had heard about this cleanse on facebook and twitter. everything everyone was saying convinced me that it was worth the expensive price tag because the way you feel during and after is priceless. they were right. i would do it again and plan on doing it again very soon. 

the directions were pretty simple, as you can read. drink them in order #1-6. wait about two hours in between each one. if you work out drink the pre shred before you work out and the post shred after you work out. you should finish your drinks about two hours before bedtime. not too hard to understand....i was excited and looking forward to trying all the drinks. after each drink i emailed my mom and sister who were anxiously awaiting my thoughts on each drink. 

ritual cleanse makes this process so easy. their website is also really informative. i signed up online the week before, paid with my credit card and chose where i wanted to pick up my 24 juice bottles! i picked them up at 630 am at a local yoga studio in this really neat eco friendly cooler bag and began drink #1.... easy as that. 

in my email to my sister and mother....."smells like fresh cut grass tastes like it too but with green apples. and i'm burping up celery". i'm not a huge fan of green drinks so i had a little trouble getting this one down. i think it took me an hour to drink it while walking utah on the beach in cardiff first thing in the morning. 

here we are in the car headed to the beach.....and luckily there was a public bathroom because the common theme of the cleanse began...having to pee my brains out. a lot. 

i have to say it wasn't easy finishing drink #1 because it was filling. but, after seeing what my next drink was i hurried up and finished it so i could start this heaven sent wonderfulness that was drink #2.

i described this one in my email to holly and grace as "aaahhhhmmmmaaaazzzinnnnggg"....as i drank it on my drive home from the beach. i probably drank it in a few minutes. and drove home really fast because i had to pee...yet again!

and that's where the hunger began. i started to feel hungry when i got home but i knew that the next drink was coming up soon so i did some laundry, vacuumed and played with the dogs to keep my mind occupied and my body busy! i was watching my friend kate's golden retriever for a week so the three dogs kept me on my toes!

these are the two things that pretty much took up their time for the entire week. going nuts....and sleeping....

i unpacked my cool new bag (which i am now using as my lunch bag for work because it's insulated and our refrigerator at work is repulsively disgusting and dirty...) and put them in the fridge all neat and tidy. i love the look of the juices and the colorfulness of the fruits and veggies that are packed inside of them.

while utah slept i drank #3...again, green drink...eekkk but i did it. described to mom and sister... "ok this one straight up tastes like gr-asssss"....

after a few more trips to the bathroom it was time to go for an hour swim so i was looking forward to my pre shred workout juice.

i took it with me in the car ride to the pool and drank about half and decided i wasn't going to force it down because i didn't want to pee nor get sick in the pool. maybe it was the beets or the fact that my teeth turned the color of the drink but it just wasn't happening. i was hungry going in to the swim and swimming usually makes me work up an appetite. but i was going to do it anyways. 

this drink was everything i hoped it would be and more. the almonds, cinnamon, vanilla...icing on the cake (which i was craving). tasted like a chi tea latte minus the dairy : ) this drink was incredible and i can't wait to replicate it at home. super easy, drank it in under a minute and it curbed my hunger and i felt great after my long swim. really...posting this pic is making me salivate because this was so good. 

home to shower...drank this one. so good!!! spicy and tangy but it makes you want to drink more and you can't put it down. the lemon with the cayenne with the agave. so good!!!! finished it very quick...still peeing my pants but looking forward to my last two drinks of the evening before getting a good night's sleep for an early day at the hospital tomorrow.

i have to admit. this one was hard. i didn't want to drink another thing. and green is not my thing. i struggled for a long time and was burping...no bueno. but, i knew my treat for the day was coming up...i'd heard it was divine....#6!!!

can i explain to you that i dream about this drink. like every day. and i made it for myself after the cleanse was over and it's super easy and to.die.for. i promise. since all the juices were liquid this one was a special treat- there were little pieces of cashews in it that i could kind of chew! not only was it the best flavor ever, but there was substance to it. and my version that i home-made later in the week was spot on! this kept me full, i slept well and felt great when i work up for work the next morning.

the next two days went by fast...i won't bore you with the details but day #2 was interesting. i worked a 12 hour shift in the NICU and to top it off it was nurse's week. therefore we were bombarded with food, goodies, treats, cakes, pies, food, food food food...so i didn't even tempt myself with going into the break room. i took my drinks outside every two hours, drank them and than promptly returned to my patients and tried not to think about the fact that i was hungry and jealous but also that i felt really good...i usually struggle through a 12 hour shift with being tired but i truly felt great. probably a lot better than my co workers who were eating all that crap. until about 5pm...i still had 3 hours left in my shift and it was a busy shift. i had to make myself a cup of warm organic low sodium veggie broth. i had to. i was feeling dizzy and it was exactly what i needed to push myself through those last few hours and make it home so i could enjoy that last drink... #6. 

i came home from work and enjoyed these three nuts...and my cashew nut drink and called it a night!

the third and final day went well. utah and i climbed cowels mountain while nalu and rhett held down the fort back in santee!

i drank my pre and post shred before and after the 2 hour hike. i started meal planning for the next two days which included a broccoli puree soup, a butter nut squash and carrot puree soup and a cauliflower and onion puree soup. thank you pinterest. i love you. i wanted to make sure my transition into real foods was kind to my body. 

all in all, ritual cleanse was great. it was so easy to just grab the next drink and go. effortless, tasty and filling. i'm not going to lie...there were times when i was hungry. but i kept reminding myself of how great i felt, how good this was for my body and how it's all mind over matter. 

on day #4, after the cleanse was finished i felt great. really great. it's so true that fruits and veggies, especially in liquid form, are so great on and to your body. 

i will do this cleanse again soon. i want to get c to do it with me. i think i have him curious...my mom started to get back on her juicing kick and might start bartering juice for personal training sessions with her trainer....sounds like a deal to me! 

if you're thinking about doing it i highly recommend it : ) some things that helped me through it though was making a plan. i intentionally did the cleanse when c was out of town so that i didn't have to see, smell or crave any food that he was cooking. i also made sure i was very busy those three days so that i wasn't sitting around thinking about food. i planned my workouts on day #1 and #3. I also made a plan for how to avoid food at work in the break room and during nurse's week. 

i don't think you have to do this exact cleanse because there are so many out there...this one is just amazing, and easy and tasteful! i think you have to choose the one that is right for your lifestyle, body and pocketbook. i did a lot of research and compared many different cleanses. many people make their own juices and cleanse on their own at home which i am very jealous of and hope to be able to do someday : )

"Let food be thy medicine" (hippocrates)

i wish my friends brooke and brian love as their due date comes upon them. what a lucky little bundle to be born into their lives! i'm sure this little missy will have a life filled with family, travel, triathlon, love for many countries and awe for her amazing NICU nurse mama and MARINE papa! enjoy these shots of this beautiful couple on this awesomely overcast day in encinitas!

meet sarah and her beautiful family. sarah and i were "newby's" together.....her as a neonatology fellow (md for those of you non-medical type) and me as an RN in the NICU. We spent many long nights, laughs, memories, tears and a lot of learning together for three years. sarah is smart. real smart. and with her strong personality i understood what she was teaching and wanted to learn more from her. i think she always saw that so she always asked me questions, made me think and i can honestly say that she had a very imortant role in nurse i am today!

thank you sarah.

sarah's a great mom too. her girls are sweet and smart. when editing these photos i kept thinking how beautiful they both are. but they don't look alike. they both have such uniquely gorgeous qualities about them. 

this february day was breathtaking at sunset cliffs in san diego. we spent some time down in the cliffs and than i followed them up the hill through windy streets and than a hidden path to this secret spot with a beautiful swing. all you can see is the glorious ocean backdrop. living here in san diego once again leaves me without words....