I can’t help it…

I Like Feeling Really Good!

(I was recently asked to give a 5-word bio, and that’s the bio I sent in!)

And guess what?

I made a video (my very first one ever!) with some of my best tips for feeling really good.

It’s part of an amazing event called The World’s Biggest Summit and it’s hosted by my friend Goddess Leonie.

She’s brought together over 100 inspiring, and super-bright minds to share their best tips for health, wellness, business, happiness, abundance, and more during this huge event…

All for free…

And all through the month of October.

It’s so cool!

And since my friend Jen Hoffman over at Inspired Home Office, suggested I’d be a good fit for it, I went for it!

I made a video about How To Feel Really Good and it’s full of practical tips you can start using right away.

They’re the same tips I use all the time to feeling really good myself…and the tips I share with my clients and help them practice when they want to get really good at feeling really good too.

My video will be part of the World’s Biggest Summit…

But the only way to watch it is to sign up for the World’s Biggest Summit (it’s free!)

And then you’ll also get emails so you can hear from lots of other wonderful people that I’m proud to be presenting along side with…

Positive changes and radical transformations in our lives all start with one seemingly small nugget that gives us a new insight which can ripple out into other amazing shifts in our lives…

And with so many incredible presenters, I know you’ll find a gem that will support you along your path.

So enter your name and email for the free World’s Biggest Summit…

And then watch your email for the day they announce that my video about How to Feel Really Good is LIVE!

Woo-hoo!

Woo-hoo!

This weekend I’ll be doing a raw food at an open house for a new yoga studio in Aurora, IL.

It’s at the Yoga Gyan Jyoti, Center for Yoga and Ayurveda, and I’ll be showing you how to make my raw Omega Level Tacos. Yum!

Here’s the Schedule of Free Events at the Open House

1:00-1:45pm: Yoga
2:00-2:45pm: Massage Class (Practice on yourself or a friend!)
3:00-3:45 Raw Food Demo with Mona Grayson
4:00-5:00 Kirtan: Chanting & Singing. Bring your favorite instrument

Additionally, these activities will be going on all afternoon:

• Many Moons Rising will share information on healing stones & help you make your favorite piece of jewelry.
• Get a 15-minute Reiki session for $10
• Live Music!

It all happens Saturday, October 8, 2011

Location: Yoga Gyan Jyoti, Center for Yoga and Ayurveda, 481 N Commons Dr, Aurora, IL 60504 (map it)
Time: 1-5pm (Raw Food Demo is at 3:00)
Phone: 630-885-6068

Will I see you on Saturday for my raw food demo? Leave a comment below and let me know!

We had some tremendous dishes at our Raw Food Potluck Picnic in the Park…

Yum yum yum!

This one comes from Dee – who not only has great taste in raw food, but also in food presentation!

Isn’t it beautiful!?

She said that her Bruschetti is a very popular dish whether she’s bringing it to a raw food potluck or a party where there’s mostly cooked food.

In other words, this one is a crowd pleaser all the way around. Gotta love it!

What you’ll need to make this dish:

• 3 large cucumbers (to place the bruschetta mixture on
• 6 to 7 plum tomatoes, chopped and seeded
• 1/2 mango skinned and chopped into small chunks
• 1 clove minced garlic
• 1 to 2 TBSP extra virgin olive oil
• 6-8 fresh basil leaves
• Celtic sea salt & fresh ground pepper to taste
• 1 to 2 tsp date sugar or coconut sugar for sweetness
• A sprinkle of dulse and/or kelp for flavor
• And any extra seasonings to the bruschetta mixture to taste.

Directions:

Mix by hand all of the ingredients(except for the cucumber). Place a scoop of the mixture on cucumber slices cut 1/3 of an inch thick. Score the cucumber slices on all sides and remove the seeds from the cucumber. Arrange on a platter with kale leaves beneath them, if you like, for a beautiful eye-catching presentation. Enjoy!

Thank you, Dee, for coming to the Raw Food Potluck Picnic in the Park and bringing this delicious dish and sharing the recipe with everyone!

Thanks to Willy Wonka, I bet more people have heard of Snozzberries than have heard about Happiness Coaches…

Snozzberries are obviously for licking off wallpaper…

But what’s a Happiness Coach for?

I mean, come on!

We tend to think that things make us happy (having kids, losing weight, running a 5K, having a romantic partner, making lots of money, seeing the sun shine, getting up close parking spots…)

But why not just skip the process of trying to get THINGS so we can (maybe) be happy…

And go straight for the kind of happiness that isn’t dependent on whether other people do what we want, or whether life cooperates with our plan for how things should be?

How about we empower ourselves to take charge of our own happiness so we don’t have to keep blaming our happiness (or lack of it) on others?

Why We Need Coaches

Good coaches teach us skills and then help us practice those skills.

Baseball coaches teach kids how to hit the ball, catch the ball, and run around the bases, right?

Then they have practices several times a week to reinforce those skills.

For people who haven’t practiced their batting, catching, and running skills, baseball will seem really, really hard.

But for those who are practiced, it’s much easier and can be really enjoyable too!

The Same Thing Applies For Happiness

If we haven’t learned skills that lead to happiness…

And haven’t practiced those skills over and over and over…

Being happy seems really hard.

It seems elusive.

It seems temporary.

But when we learn some skills for being happy, and practice those skills that lead to happiness…

Being happy and feeling good is easy…and it’s also a lot of fun!

We Are What We Do Repeatedly

If we’re not happy, it’s not actually because our partner left us, or because the weather is bad, or because we’re not making as much money as we think we should…

If we’re not happy it’s because over and over and over again, we’ve chosen to focus on things that we don’t like; things that have worried, scared or upset us, and that have made us feel bad.

In order to experience something different in our lives…

In order to start experiencing happiness more of the time…

We need to repeatedly focus our attention on the Good Stuff in life.

Easier Said Than Done

I know, I know…

It’s easy to say that happiness comes from focusing on the good stuff in life…

Just like its easy to say, “Well just hit the ball when it’s pitched to you!”

But to be able to do something well, and do it consistently, requires help from a coach and it requires practice whether you’re talking about baseball or happiness.

That’s where I come in as a Happiness Coach…

I know some really great skills that lead to happiness when they’re practiced…

I know them because I found my way from depressed and anxious to happy and joyful!

People were shocked at my transformation and wanted to know what I’d done…

So I started coaching them through it…and they started getting happier too!

So if this is making sense to you…

If you’ve been wanting to get good at feeling good…

But in the past have only experienced happiness in fits and spurts…

And now you’re ready to get REALLY good at feeling REALLY good…

Send me an email so we can get on the phone and chat about how we can get your happiness skills seriously upgraded!

Something You Should Know…

I spent years and years feeling depressed and anxious. And honestly I had pretty much given up on the idea that I could ever feel better than I did.

I mean, I’d tried SO many things over the years to heal what I thought needed healing; workshops, self-help books, anti-depressants, therapy, hypnosis, you name it…

So I know it can sound hard to believe that it’s possible to feel better…when we’ve

But when I consciously chose to be happy and I became willing to practice being happy, I finally started feeling better.

It was a gigantic baby step.

And as Sant Kirpal Singh Ji Maharaj has said, “What one man can do, so can another.”

So if I can do it, you can do it! And maybe we’ll even be able to do it together.

So are you ready to get happy and feel that way more of the time?

Let’s talk and find out if you’re up for some happiness coaching.

(Only 2 coaching slots available. Thank you!)

This past weekend, on a beautiful Saturday afternoon, 30 amazing raw food enthusiasts joined us at Herrick Lake for my first Raw Food Potluck in the Chicagoland area. Thank you!

Having potlucks was something I loved doing when I lived in California, so I was super happy to start up the tradition again now that I live here.

The idea for this potluck started as a follow-up to the raw food demos I did at Veggie Fest in early August to full tents of folks curious about how they could eat healthy with a raw food diet.

By having the potluck a month after Veggie Fest, my intention was to give everyone a chance to experiment with making raw dishes and then come back to the potluck and get re-inspired to continue on the path of incorporating more fresh raw foods in their diets.

Not only were we blessed with incredibly wonderful weather and an awesome picnic site right by the lake…

But seriously, the people who came were so sweet! Everyone was so friendly, supportive, and generous in sharing their raw food dishes and their experiences with eating fresh raw foods.

There were people who were healing themselves from health conditions and losing weight, people who like to host other raw food events in the community, people new to raw foods, people who’d been enjoying high raw food diets for a while, people who just heard about raw food at Veggie Fest, and people with all sorts of wonderful stories and interests in eating fresh food and staying healthy.

Then We Enjoyed a Raw Food Feast!

Thank you to Frankie for this fantastic photo of our raw food feast!

Our picnic tables were covered with incredibly delicious and beautiful raw food dishes!

I asked that everyone would bring a raw food dish made with as many organic ingredients as possible…and that it be made with fruits, veggies, nuts and seeds.

I also asked that everyone would bring a list of ingredients so that those with food sensitivities or special food preferences could know what was in each dish.

It was obvious that everyone put a lot of thought and care into making their raw food creations. There was so much LIFE and LOVE on the tables!

And everywhere I went I saw smiling faces and heard wonderful conversations as we enjoyed our lunch of fresh, living, raw foods.

Here’s a list of just some of the amazing raw goodies that showed up at our raw food potluck picnic in the park:

• Raw organic chopped salad
• Raw pea chowder, sundried tomato chowder, and corn chowder
• Raw lasagna
• Raw pizza bites
• Raw chocolate chip cookies
• Raw almond spice balls
• Raw lettuce wraps with walnut pate
• Raw stuffed tomatoes
• Raw bruschetti on cucumbers
• Raw tomato salad (made from the garden!)
• Raw Eggplant on Fire
• Raw broccoli salad
• Fresh organic watermelon, cantaloupe & grapes
• Fresh strawberry lemonade
• Raw shredded
• Mango Avocado salad
• And so many other delicious creations made with LOVE!

And Yes, Recipes Will Be Coming Soon!

Many of our friends who came to the potluck shared their recipes for their dishes and I collected some (but not all!) before I left.

I’ll be creating separate posts with the recipes that were shared at the potluck, so if you were at the potluck and don’t see your recipe listed or shared (and you’d like to share it) use the contact form here to send me your recipe and a pic of it and we’ll let others know about your wonderful creation.

When’s the Next Potluck!?

It was wonderful to hear from so many who came that they’d like me to have more potlucks…so rest assured we’ll definitely do that! Raw food potlucks are so special to me and it’ll be my privilege to invite you to the next one I organize.

Make sure you’re on my mailing list by entering your name and email in the form on the top right of this page.

In the meantime, make sure you check out MeetUp.com and search for “raw food” in your area.

There are people all over the country meeting to have raw food potlucks and get-togethers of different kinds so you can be around like-minded people and enjoy fantastic raw food creations. And if you’re in the Chicagoland area, there are definitely some active groups that meet at different times and places around where we live – so check ‘em out!

Were you at the Raw Food Potluck Picnic in the Park with us?

Use the comments section below to:

• Tell us about your favorite dishes from the potluck
• Share your experience of the potluck in general
• Connect with others who were at the potluck
• Share inspiring stories and encouragement for those of us on this path of healthy living
• Say hi!

Thank you for you contribution at the potluck and here in the comments section. I’m so grateful that you’re part of my loving raw food community.

Earlier in the month I did two super fun raw food demos at Veggie Fest in Naperville, IL.

Hundreds of health-conscious folks attended them to learn more about raw food and I shared as much as I could with them during my 45 minute time slots.

But I didn’t want it to end there!

So I announced that I’d be having a Raw Food Potluck Picnic in the Park so we could meet again, eat some more tasty raw foods, and have a great time!

All are invited – and I’d love for you to join us!

Here are the details:

Raw Food Potluck Picnic in the Park

Date: Saturday, September 10, 2011
Time: 12-3pm
Location: Herrick Lake in Wheaton, IL under the South Shelter

At this Raw Food Potluck Picnic in the Park you’ll get to..

• Taste a variety of raw food dishes. Yum!
• Practice your raw food preparation skills!
• Collect new raw food recipes you can try at home!
• Connect with others interested in staying healthy with raw food!
• Get answers to your questions about the raw food lifestyle!
• Share stories and successes from your raw food adventures!

What should you bring?

• A raw food dish that will serve at least 10 people.
• A note card listing the ingredients of your dish.
• The recipe for your dish if you’d like to share it with others.
• Your own beverage. (Note: Alcohol is not allowed at the park.)
• Your appetite and a smile!

What kind of raw food dish should you bring?

Everyone is welcome at this raw food potluck no matter what kind of food you normally eat. We only ask that you prepare a vegan raw food dish for this potluck with the following guidelines in mind:

• No dairy, meat, fish, poultry, eggs, or other animal products.
• Make it with raw vegetables, fruits, nuts, and/or seeds.
• The more organic ingredients you use the better! Thank you!
• If you heat or dry any foods, keep it lower than 120 degrees.

If you need help thinking of a raw food dish to bring, Google “Raw food recipe” and look for something that sounds good to you!

Whatever you decide to bring, make sure you’re enjoying the experience and having fun!

Remember to LOVE your food and all the ingredients too. So good!

Note: If you’re wondering what’s happening after the potluck, here’s what I’ll be up to and you’re welcome to join me.

4:00-5:30 Toastmaster’s meeting just up the street. We’re having a speech contest and it sounds like fun!

5:30-6:30 Dinner at Whole Foods if we’re hungry.

6:30-7:30 Spiritual program and silent meditation at the Science of Spirituality Meditation Center (where Veggie Fest was held.)

These activities aren’t part of the potluck, but since I’ll be doing things in the local area afterward, I thought I’d let you know in case you’d like to hang out together some more.

Will you be joining us for the Raw Food Potluck Picnic in the Park?

RSVP in the comments below, or on the Raw Food Potluck Picnic in the Park page on Facebook.

See you Saturday, Sept. 10 from 12-3pm!

When you want some pasta, but don’t want all the carbs, this rich and flavorful entree will do the trick.

This is a great dish to make when your family is eating cooked food and you don’t want to be eating just a salad.

I made this at my raw food demo at Veggie Fest 2011 and it was a huge it!

Raw Creamy Garlic Alfredo Noodles

Ingredients

• 1 cup raw macadamia nuts
• 1 cup raw cashews
• 1 cup water
• 2-3 cloves garlic
• 1 lemon (squeezed)
• 1/2 tsp Himalayan sea salt
• black pepper to taste
• 1 package raw kelp noodles
• 1 1/2 cups chopped broccoli

Instructions:

1. Soak the nuts overnight in water.
2. Drain and rinse the nuts in the morning
3. Blend nuts, water, garlic, lemon juice, salt & pepper in your Vitamix.
4. Pour over chopped broccoli and kelp noodles. (You’ll probably have extra sauce – unless you want your noodles *really* creamy. So save it for a dip for veggies, salad dressing, kale chips, or a spread for raw crackers!)
5. Let sit for at least an hour so the noodles can soften.
6. Enjoy!

Sea Tangle Kelp Noodles can look like either of these packages and can be bought online or found in local Asian grocery stores.

Hope to see you Aug 13-14, 2011 in Naperville, IL!

Okay, ya’ll! It’s time to reignite your veggie lovin’!

My demo at last year’s Veggie Fest demo had such an incredible turn out that they’ve invited me back again this year to do TWO demos!

Check out the raw food recipes I demoed at Veggie Fest 2010.

This year I’ll be making 3 different dishes that are easy to make and are so tasty that even your friends and family who aren’t huge raw food fans will totally dig ‘em.

Here are the details for my demos:

Saturday, Aug. 13, 4:30pm: Eat Healthy with a Raw Diet.

Sunday, Aug. 14, 4:30pm: Eat Healthy with a Raw Diet

 Check out the full schedule of vegetarian demos here.

There’s a ton of other cool stuff happening at Veggie Fest this year too (including free parking and free admission!) Check out their site to see what other kinds of fun you’ll be able to have.

So will I see you at Veggie Fest this year?

Leave a comment and let me know!

(Or What To Do When You Don’t Like Celery & Cucumber Mixed in with Your Apple Carrot Juice)

There are a lot of health benefits to giving our bodies cucumber and celery juice…

Especially for inflammation, getting our bodies more alkaline, and even reducing blood pressure…

But ick!

Even though I am a huge fan of fresh juice…

I’ve never really liked the flavor of  juices with celery or cucumber in it.

For years I’ve just avoided making juice with celery and cucumber.

What did I drink instead?

I drank BOLGA juice. I drank Green Lemonade.

I drank any combination of greens, carrots, apples, lemons, carrots, beets, zucchini, garlic, pears, tomatoes, ginger, pineapple, watermelon that tasted delicious to me. But no celery or cucumber was allowed in.*

*Exception: Celery with tomato is killer good. It’s like a virgin bloody Mary if you get the proportions right. I only make this during tomato season when organic ones are inexpensive.

So even though I was drinking juice that I really enjoyed and that was super tasty and delicious and good for me…

It bothered me that I wasn’t getting the great benefits from juicing cucumber and celery.

So I tried something that changed everything.

Instead of putting cucumber and/or celery in my juice with all the other ingredients…

I made juice with ONLY cucumber and celery.

And instead of hating it, I loved it!

I realized that it wasn’t that I hated the flavor of cucumber and/or celery juice…

It was that I liked to drink them alone and then leave my other juices to have other distinct flavors.

Now my body gets the great benefits from the cucumbers and the celery…

And I get to stay happy and love every fresh juice I drink.

Total win.

If you’ve been struggling to enjoy multi-ingredient juice with cucumber or celery in it…

Try letting them play together on their own to see if you like it better.

Here’s how I make it:

Juicing Recipe: Cucumber Celery Duet Juice

• 1 bunch of organic celery
• 1 big organic cucumber (or 2 smaller ones.)

Juice it all up and enjoy!

The chia in this refreshing raw food recipe gives this “green smoothie” a thicker consistency so you can enjoy it in a bowl with a spoon.

I had it soup-style for dinner tonight. Mmm…

Green Ginger Soup

• 2 cups water
• 3 leaves organic Swiss chard (don’t include the bottom part of the stem)
• 1 organic apple (cored)
• 1 frozen banana (peeled)
• 1/2 inch organic ginger
• 3/4  cup plain chia pudding*

Blend on high until all ingredients are mixed together thoroughly. Serve in a bowl or drink it like a smoothie. Whatever makes you happiest!

*To make plain chia pudding: Soak 1 part chia seeds in 6 parts water. (Example: 1/2 cup chia seeds with 3 cups water) Stir vigorously for at least 30 seconds to make sure all the seeds are coated in water – otherwise they’ll stick together and make a hard film. Let this mixture sit over night on the counter so the seeds can absorb the water and become gooey. Use the chia seeds in the morning then store them in the fridge with a lid for up to 5 days.