Constant Change

As you can tell, it has been a very long time since my last post and several things have changed in my life. I moved from Indiana to California, started a new job, bought a new car and went back to school yet again. I am sure several other things changed, but these are just to name a few. All of these changes started me thinking it was time to start blogging again, but this time with a different focus. Previously, my blog was geared only towards food allergies, but I decided it was important to reach a larger audience in the hopes of helping more people. My focus will be on ways to live a physically and mentally healthy, balanced life, as well as food allergies now. I also created a new look for the blog and a new web site, kristicheek.blogspot.com. I hope you like all the changes and please feel free to comment on them.

I want to take a moment now to talk about change and how it affects our health. Change is the only true constant in our lives. It can be perceived as positive or negative. Both can create enormous amounts of stress and fear of the unknown. Related emotions are experienced that manifest in our bodies in a variety of ways and we become ill or exhausted. For example, when we experience emotions related to fear, it is common to have gastrointestinal (GI) upset and colds are related to too much going on in our lives. These are messages our bodies are sending us that something is unbalanced in our lives and needs attention. It's a reminder to slow down, listen to your body and take the time to nurture it. Do you listen to your body? What is it telling you right now? What do you need? What was happening in your life the last time you had the common cold?

Another change in my blog is the incorporation of Healthy Challenges. As mentioned above, we all face challenges in our lives related to change, but lets create a new healthy change together that will support our body. The first challenge, for the next month, try a new recipe each week that will provide the nutrition and love your body needs. I will post a new delicious and simple recipe each week if you need some ideas. Be sure to check back!

My first recipe is great for the Fall! It is quick, easy and can be made ahead of time.

Winter Squash Stew

1 winter squash, peeled, seeded and chopped (butternut, acorn or pumpkin)

1 onion

2 cloves of garlic

32 ounces of stock

2 teaspoons of curry powder

1 ½ teaspoons of cumin

Directions:

1.    Peel squash.

2. Cut and remove seeds.

2.    Chop the squash into cubes. 

3. Saute finely minced onion and garlic in 1 tablespoon of olive  oil.

4.    Place squash in a large pot and cover with the stock.

5.    Boil for about 20 minutes until tender.

6.    Mash or blend in a blender until smooth or desired consitency.

Other ideas: Can add chopped, fresh cilantro or parsley and/or toasted pumpkin seeds for garnish.  

Calories 101, Total Fat 1g, Carbs 25g, Fiber, 1 g, Sugars 7g, Protein 2g