Green Smoothie Recipe: Tropical Treat

This has been one of my favorite green smoothies so far.

You Will Need:
 2 cups of water
1 mango (approx 1 cup)
1 cup of pineapple
1 cup of spinach
1/4 cup of parsley
a splash of lemon juice

Put all ingredients in the blender, fruit first. Blend for a good 45 sec. Enjoy!

My Green Smoothie/Juicing Detox Plan

After watching Fat Sick and Nearly Dead, I decided I wanted to start juicing too. Well, blending anyway. I do not own a  juicer, but I have found a blender works just fine. Why? Many reasons: to detox, for better health, more energy, weight loss and feeling more well overall. It's also a challenge. How long can I go without eating? I am going to try 15 days. Today is Day #2. So far, so good. I feel good. I slept really well last night. I did feel some hunger pains yesterday, but I would just make another batch of juice. I think the more I do it, the more my body with get used to it.

If you haven't seen the doc, you should check it out. It really hits home and shows you how successful juicing can be. There is also an online community to help you should you decide to juice, Join the reboot. There are different programs. Choose the best one for you. The best part? It's free!

Even with changing my eating habits and eating more clean, I still wasn't eating enough vegetables. Juicing makes it so easy to do. You don't have to sit down and eat a big salad or worry about making healthy veggie side dishes. Cooking also destroys some of the nutrients in food. Juicing is more effective because it tears up the cells in the fruits and veggies, enabling a much quicker uptake. Plus, the chlorophyll resembles our blood cells. It's like recharging your blood-making it healthier and more natural. What's not to like??

Portlandia

What an amazing vacation. Truly relaxing and fun, as a vacation should be. I love this city so much. It feels like home. Here are some photos from my trip:

Aerial view of Mt. Hood.

Waterfront park.

Gorgeous day.

Burnside Bridge.

A Warning To Older College Students W/ Transfer Credits

I wanted to share this information with you because it's something I wish I had known when starting school. I am an older adult student, starting school this fall for an AS degree. I have attended college before, and came with 55 transfer credits on my record. These were basic gen ed courses, as I switched my major a few times. I never thought these courses would hinder me, as I needed some of them to count toward my AS degree. I was totally unaware of the SAP policy my school has in place. (Check your school, as every one is different.) SAP stands for satisfactory academic progress, of which there are two main components, grades and time frame. If you don't meet a certain GPA or finish your degree withing a certain number of attempted credits, you will be disqualified for financial aid.
Like I said, each school is different. My school has a cap of 93 credit limits. So I only get 93 credits at an "attempt" of finishing a degree. All of my transfer credits are included in that. So with my 20+ credits I have taken at the current school while waiting to start the program, I am nearly at 93.  This does not seem fair to me. I wasn't attempting a degree at my current school when I took these 55 credits. So now I have to appeal this policy in the fall so that I will be eligible for aid. I am not looking forward to it.
My point being: check your financial aid policy and know what you are getting into. I would have done some things differently if I was aware of this. The major blow for me? I was approved for the first time ever for a pell grant. Now I might risk losing it because of the maximum time frame. I was so upset when I found this out. I don't have extra money for college, and I really need financial aid, even if it is a loan. Sometimes life can just really suck. Plus, the decision of the appeal is final. I still have two more years in school that I have to figure out how to pay for.