Yummy Yummy Smoothie

I have always struggled to be a breakfast eater. We all know it IS the most important meal of the day. 
 1. It kick starts your metabolism 
 2. It helps you maintain a healthy weight 
 3. It provides energy and prevents a mid morning slump (keeps you from being really hungry and have the munchies throughout the day) 


It is not only important to eat breakfast but it is important to eat a healthy breakfast. One of my favorite things to have for breakfast is a smoothie. You can add whatever you want, sneak in protein powder and flax seed to kick-start your diet and they are easy and quick to make. Here are a few of my favorites! 

 Citrus Smoothie:

Ingredients

1 cup Ocean Spray® 100% Grapefruit Juice, any flavor
1 cup fresh or canned pineapple chunks (if canned, drain first)
1/2 cup vanilla frozen yogurt

Directions

Put all ingredients into a blender. Cover and blend on high speed until ingredients are thoroughly combined

Bluberry Flaxseed

Ingredients

6 ice cubes
1/2 cup fresh blueberries
2 teaspoons organic agave nectar
1 tablespoon ground flaxseed
1 cup cold water
1 scoop vanilla protein powder, such as Designer's Whey Protein Powder
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 banana
1/2 tablespoon flaxseed oil, like Barlean's Omega-Twin Oil

Directions

Place all ingredients in a blender in the order listed. Blend on low for 10 seconds or until smooth. Serve immediately.

Nutrition Score per serving:

314 calories, 10 g fat, 0 g saturated fat, 24 g protein, 5 g fiber, 16 mg sodium

Peanut Butter Smoothie

Ingredients

2	medium-size ripe bananas, frozen and peeled
1 1/2	cups nonfat milk
4	tbsp natural, unsalted, smooth peanut butter
1/2	tsp pure vanilla extract
	Chocolate syrup (optional)

Directions

Break the frozen bananas into several pieces and place in blender.

Add milk, peanut butter, and vanilla. Blend until smooth. Garnish with a swirl of chocolate syrup if desired.

Nutrition Score per serving:

363 calories, 41g carbs(41%), 17g fat(42%), 4.8g fiber, 16g protein(17%), 3.4g saturated fat

Cherry-Vanilla Smoothie

Ingredients

1	cup nonfat milk
2	cups unsweetened frozen cherries
2	cups frozen raspberries
2	cups frozen lowfat vanilla yogurt
1/2	teaspoon vanilla extract
2	cups ice

Directions

Combine all ingredients in a blender and pulse until smooth. Serve immediately.

Boost Nutrition: Stir in 1/2 cup silken tofu before blending to add 23 calories, 32 mg calcium, 1 g fat, and 2 g protein. Sprinkle in 1 tablespoon of flaxseeds before blending to add 8 calories, 2 g fat, and 1 g fiber.

Nutrition Score per serving:

184 calories, 1.5 g calcium, 33 g carbs (72%), 3 g fat (15%), 2 g fiber, 6 g protein (13%)

Find more smoothie/breakfast ideas here!

Yahweh Borey (LORD Creator)

"In His hand are the depths of the earth; the heights of the mountains are his also. The sea is His for He made it, and his hands formed the dry land" 

-Psalm 95:4-5

Have you ever taken time to really focus on creation, to learn about it and reflect on it? We all have those moments where we are driving and the sun is setting in the distance and we think, "wow how beautiful". Or when the sun is hidden behind the clouds and its rays are peeking around the edges and seem to touch the ground. We have had those moments at the beach where we realize how big the ocean really truly is. When you experience those moments, what do you do? 

I recently researched the blue whale. I was studying God as creator and his mighty power. This is what I found:

1. The blue whale is the largest mammal and the largest animal on the planet. 

2. It ranges from 90-100 feet long.

3. The blue whale weighs 100 tons (that is aprox. 15 elephants).

4. A baby blue whale weighs 3 tons at birth. The baby consumes 100 gal of milk per day

5. The baby blue whale gains 200 pounds per day or 8 pounds an hour and grows 1.5 inches a day.

6. The blue whale eats 4 tons of food each day.

7. The blue whale even weighing 100 tons, can swim 30 mph.

8. The heart of a blue whale weighs 100 lbs and has 14,000 lbs of blood circulating

9. The heart is the size of a volkswagon bug car and a human could crawl through the aorta of a blue whale

10. The blue whale can dive down to 350 ft and stay there for about an hour. It breathes through its blowholes that shoot a stream of water 40-50 feet into the air. 

Mind blown yet? Mine was. It's crazy how just a little bit of research will give you an entirely new perspective on the creativity, genius, enthusiasm and power of God. 

Blue Whale word game!!

Read more on Blue Whales

Read more on Blue Whales

The Blue Planet: Blue Whale. @ Yahoo! Video

Know Him....by name

intent?

General ed requirements. I have a hard time putting effort into these classes. They are things such at your random dance classes or art classes and histories that are required to graduate college. Didn't I already go through at least 9 years of learning those? (3rd-12th grade) Other countries spend the four years they are in college studying their specific major. No wonder we seem to be a step behind. However, since I am an american citizen, I must sign up for, pay, attend and pass every last one of them. So I decided to find out exactly why I have to take them, because let's all be honest, if we know why we have to do something then we usually do it more efficiently. 

After doing some research here is why we are required to study these classes:

1. We must understand the interaction of many systems that hold the global community together such as: politics, economy, organizational, scientific and cultural systems.

2. We must understand communication.

3. We must develop the ability to evaluate, verify, test and apply knowledge in a broad spectrum of solutions we face every day.

4. We must develop or refine our conscious value system that directs our behavior.

5. We must learn about diversity within the world.

I can understand the idea that we must learn about our culture and those around us, and we must understand how to adapt to the ever changing world. However, generations seemed to manage just fine as the world turned.

http://www.hpu.edu/index.cfm?contentID=9562&siteID=1