Take a Tumble by kristin

Oddly enough, I started this New Year off (close to my birthday) by taking a tumble – I tripped and fell at a local store, and besides being embarrassed, I was forced to sit still for a few days and take stock of what the New Year means. Part of the gift of having a January birthday is that you are starting your New Year just as the New Year is starting itself. As it turned out, on my actual birthday (Sunday), I was able to take calls from friends and family without the distraction of having to run off someplace and “have fun.” Don’t get me wrong – I love to have fun on my birthday, and I appreciate all of the niceties -gifts, cards, flowers, candy, and the like (my friend Lesley here at work made the most adorable little cake – it reminded me of Alice in Wonderland). So I found the gift in the tumble- to remember to count your blessings and appreciate all the love you have in your life. What could be a better birthday present?

At Living Light, the New Year brings us many gifts, not the least of which is a brand new group of excited, enthusiastic students. Reports from the teachers are that this group of students is the BEST EVER. We are so lucky. They are currently in the Associate Chef and Instructor part of our curriculum, and are doing their demos -remarkable! In just a few short weeks they can go from complete novice to teaching a raw food demo with all the bells and whistles. We’re proud, we’re happy, and we know that our students make a difference wherever they go.

Destination Known by mary elizabeth

I have this little card up by my desk which reads: My destiny is mine to control.  It’s from one of those pretty little boxed sets of inspirational cards, this one courtesy of Dr. Wayne W. Dyer.  The wording may be a bit tricky for those of us with control issues, but I get it.  I can do anything I want.  I don’t need permission.  I don’t need to wait till everyone else in my life has secured their destinies first.  It’s a powerful and necessary affirmation and I’m glad it’s there and I’m glad it’s true.

Twice a year, Living Light offers this great class called Advanced Raw Culinary Arts Instructor Training.  Jennifer Cornbleet teaches it and it’s all about expanding your business as a raw food instructor.  If you want to see someone who’s made a success for herself in the raw food world, check out Jennifer. Her first book, Raw Food Made Easy for One or Two People, is wildly popular and I would say that when I worked in the Living Light Marketplace, it was the book most mentioned when people spoke of their conversion to raw food.  Anyhow – one of those two times is now!  We are about done with our first certification of 2012 (wasn’t it just Christmas?) and it’s followed by this exciting opportunity to make your business thrive.  Take control of your destiny!

Rawk It by mary elizabeth

So – guess what?  It’s time to watch the videos and vote for the next Hot Raw Chef.  Living Light‘s  having another Valentine’s Day themed contest, so I presume most of the entries will be sweets, but maybe not.  I have yet to watch, but I did watch this super fabulous little ad our Terilynn made to kick off the voting called Rawk the Vote.  Check it out!  I wonder if I’ll vote in time this year?  That is my one and only resolution for 2012, by the way: vote in a timely manner for all Hot Raw Chef contests.  But as always, whether my vote’s counted or not, I always enjoy watching the entries and who doesn’t want to pick up some fun new recipes?

I suppose that doesn’t sound like a very strident or lofty New Year’s resolution, but I’m not much of a resolution fan.  I try and live a life of honesty and balance and make my daily goal to be the woman I want to be – the one the universe intended.  My success rate varies dramatically, but not as much as it used to.  Like everything else worth doing, living up to my own potential takes practice.  The more conscious of my inner health I am, the more natural that consciousness becomes.  Fortunately, I have no idea what size the universe wants me to be, so I don’t have to worry about any pesky weight goals.  That being said, some low-glycemic treats wouldn’t hurt.  So – I’m off to watch some Hot Raw Chef videos.  I hope you’ll do the same.

All New: Are You Ready? by kristin

I hate to keep bragging about the weather here in Fort Bragg, but honestly, I’ve been here for nearly 7 years and it’s the best winter ever. I know pretty soon people are bound to start complaining that we need more rain so that we’ll have water during the dry season, and I know that’s important, but at the same time, it’s so darn hard not to just love a sunny, mild winter. I went walking on the Haul Road by the ocean this morning and the waves were gigantic! Even though January has just started, I know how it is. The year just flies by, with lots of things to do and think about. I love the feeling of the very beginning of the year, when the slate is swept clean and the world is full of possibility, and somehow it just feels like everything will be positive. At Living Light we have visioning meetings at the beginning of the year, where we think about what we want to accomplish, and how we can all pull together to make it happen. Like Mary Elizabeth said, we already have a full schedule, including a new Hot Raw Chef Sweet Valentine Video Recipe Contest. See what I mean? It’s only January, but we’re already thinking about February! Deadline to submit your videos for the contest is January 17. You could be a winner like Cristina Archilla, who will be teaching Food Styling for Photography at Living Light!

Enter 2012 by mary elizabeth

Happy New Year!  We’ve landed safely in 2012 and January is shaping up to be an exciting month at Living Light.  This Friday we’ll be checking in students for our very first Instructor Focused Package which consists of our Associate Chef and Instructor certification followed by Jennifer Cornbleet’s Advanced  Raw Culinary Arts Instructor class.  If that’s too much for you right now, were also taking our FUNdamentals of Raw Living Foods class on the road this month!  We’re heading down to San Diego on January 28^th for all our southern California fans who want to take this class without traveling north.  FUNdamentals is the basic cornerstone class of all we have to offer and is a wonderful day full of information and samples and FUN!

Landing safely in 2012 is no small accomplishment for me and mine. Not only have I semi-successfully moved my work space due to a flood in our dear old admin. office to a temporary spot in the science room, I’ve moved myself and my kids into a new home.  And by “I” in both instances I mean me and some very dear, very helpful people.  Thanks people and thanks universe for supporting me once again in change and challenge.  I’m excited for 2012 and can’t wait to see what’s in store.  My daughter starts high school this year and my son starts middle school and I may be starting graduate school.  Lots of new beginnings – just like the exciting new beginning for our Living Light students.  Bring it, 2012!

It’s 2012! Sweet! by mary elizabeth

Well – we made it.  All that’s left is New Year’s and at my age it’s not the pressurized deal it used to be.  Yay!  I’m happy to report I had absolutely lovely winter holidays this year.  I was skeptical for a while there and even wrote a mean spirited blog about being newly single for the holidays which dear Kate, Living Light receptionist, suggested I hold off on publishing.  Wise woman. By the time they actually happened, all was well.  I wound up feeling a lot more grateful than wistful and focusing on abundance rather than lack.  Good for me.

So – no more gifts till Valentine’s Day.  Speaking of which, have you been checking out our new Hot Raw Chef Video Recipe Contest?  It’s a Sweet Valentine contest, just like last year, only this time the recipes have to be low-glycemic and gluten free.  I’m looking forward to watching the videos and am bound and determined to make 2012 the year I remember to vote for my favorite.  Keep an eye on our Hot Raw Chef site to be a part of this fun and healthy way to start the New Year!

Here Comes the Sun by kristin

As the year draws to a close, it feels like we’ve been through a lot. We are all crammed into a little office after our flood, and our desks are all in different places. Most of our files are in boxes, and someone might give a shout of delight to find something – there’s a phone book! Makes you appreciate the simple things in life, and makes me think of the people around the world, and in our own country who have suffered great upheavals, challenges, trials, and tribulations. This year of 2012 holds a lot of promise, as all new years do. For a few golden moments everything is swept clean in our consciousness, and the world seems full of inspiring possibility.

Let’s keep that in mind. What can we do to make the world a better place? Keep our thoughts positive? Be more mindful of others? Be kinder and gentler, even to ourselves? Should we make resolutions, or just resolve to do our best no matter what the circumstances?

At the very least, we can be hopeful: Peace on Earth, Goodwill towards All. Every year as the sun begins to take hold again, we have this opportunity. And most years we see a lot of people who can’t quite seem to hold that thought. Let’s do it – let’s be the best we can, and take good care of each other in the coming year.

I Heart the Holidays! by mary elizabeth

Happy holidays, everyone.  It’s Christmas Eve and I’m here at my desk writing one last blog of the holiday season.  I can remember some frantic, last minute type Christmas Eves in my life, but this one’s pretty mellow.  All my gifts are bought and wrapped and I’m looking forward to spending the next couple of days with old and new friends and, of course, my sweet children.  I’m feeling loving and balanced and supported by the universe and appreciative of these sparkly winter holidays that distract us from the cold and dark and remind us to love one another.

But let’s not get carried away.  Is it too early to think about Valentine’s Day?  Not here at Living Light, it isn’t.  We’ve just launched our Hot Raw Chef Video Recipe Contest – Sweet Valentine style.  These contests are a lot of fun. The contestants are eligible for all kinds of super fantastic prizes and we voters are treated to tons of raw recipes!  And guess what?  This one’s all about sweets, but the recipes have to be low-glycemic and gluten free.  So come on, all you hot raw chefs!  This Christmas, write a  Valentine’s recipe dedicated to the one you love.

Frosty Days and Hot Raw Chefs by kristin

Tis the season…it’s actually happening, and we’re coming to the end of our holiday blogs. Mary Elizabeth and I always enjoy doing them, because it’ s something special and personal that happens only once a year. This holiday season has been a little daunting – everything from 50,000 emails in my inbox, to a flood in our administrative office (we’re all cozy in the abundant health classroom, temporarily.) But you know what they say – change is good. So we’ve shifted the energy, and after we get the new carpet in and all of our desks moved back, everything will be fresh and ready for 2012. Seems auspicious in a way – at least I choose to look at it from that perspective. Meanwhile, this season, we’ve had glorious sunny days, frosty mornings, and starry, starry nights. And 2012 is supposed to be a pivotal year for all of us, when we step into the new paradigm of how the earth can be. We are a little microcosm of relationships here at Living Light, so we have opportunity. Speaking of opportunity, we’ve just launched our latest Hot Raw Chef Sweet Valentine Video Recipe Contest. Mary Elizabeth is going to fill you in on more details tomorrow. It’s going to be fun seeing all of the great contestants, recipes, and this time the contest is low-glycemic and gluten-free, so it’s quite timely. Who doesn’t want to enjoy guilt-free raw food recipes that make you feel good? More than that, the contest is open to both professional and amateur chefs, so no matter what your skill level, you have a chance to win. And we are giving over $4200 in prizes this year.

Over the River by mary elizabeth

My children have successfully past another solar return, so I’m cleared to let the winter holidays begin.  We’re all just about to leave for four days of holiday fun with my mom and stepdad.  She lives in suburbia so we get to get our fill of malls and giant movie theaters and big national chain stores.  We’d like to squeeze in some holiday music, too.  And we get to experience the bustling Kristin was missing here in our little hamlet of Fort Bragg.  Even though I don’t have much money to spend on gifts this year, I’m looking forward to people watching and arguing with my kids about how much they can spend.  Of course, we’ll be having our  holiday dinner and gift exchange a little early, but the kids and I like to spend the Christmas holiday at home .  Ahhh….holidays.

How are you at keeping yourself focused on what’s really important this season versus slipping into a commercially driven frenzy of spending?  No matter how careful you are, or broke, it’s hard not to get caught up in the “spirit of giving”.   But, as long as we all agree it’s unavoidable to some extent, why not satisfy the urge to spend at the Living Light Marketplace.  You can come in or order on-line.  We have some great deals right now for all the raw chefs on your list.  Happy shopping and happy, happy holidays.