High Country Hike + Simply Straws (BPA Free) Giveaway Winner

Happy Saturday, peoples! My workout today was a huge organizational project in preparation for something really fun that I'm looking forward to next week. :=) I'll have to see if I can dish up some pictures to share the upcoming fun with you . . .

Thursday I went hiking at Moses Cone, taking the Flat Top Tower trail. It was a beautiful walk (about 2.5 miles there and back but I took "shortcuts" through the woods, just for fun, so I know that cut a little off).



Picnic lunch in the grass with friends. :)

Even being out of town this past week, I still managed to get in a green smoothie most days. :) My motivation? They make me feel better! Plus, it's kind of like the domino effect - one healthy choice encourages you to make the next one. 

Cheers! {Chocolate banana green smoothie}

Supper tonight was delish! I made an easy veggie sandwich on honey wheat bread with tomato & olive oil mayo. On the side, I had an organic apple with sun butter. :)

And, since it's the weekend - it's time to pick a winner for the Simply Straws giveaway!
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Congratulations, Meridith! Please shoot me an e-mail at realfoodrunner@gmail.com with your address and I'll pass it along to Simply Straws and they will ship you your BPA free glass mug and straw!

Hiking Grandfather Mountain

I was up bright & early this morning ready to do some backcountry hiking on Grandfather Mountain!

My sister (Allie) & me with a pre-workout green smoothie before we left. I added a little coconut oil to this shake for extra energy. I figured the extra fat would help keep me from feeling hungry, at least for a little while. :) 

We got a couple family photos before we hit the trail! This is me with my sibs :) 

And, one with Dad so we officially have all the hikers in one picture! 

Two of my sisters and mom posing for a pretty pic. :) 

Thanks Mom for dropping/picking us up! You're the bomb. :) 

Headin' off!

This was a pretty dramatic trail - one moment you'd be walking through the woods and the next your standing on a cliff over a 100-ft drop scrambling up a rock. On most of the "scary" parts I was too interesting in standing alive to let go of the rock I was hangin' onto - LOL!!!

We took a few breaks along the way. :)

Replacing electrolytes. :) 

Bear country! My uncle actual came face-to-face with a bear on this same trail years ago - no joke.

Lots and lots of ladders - a little scary but total fun!

Hooray for trail snacks! This Nut, Fruit & Spice Cliff bar was really good and I choose it because it was one of the only Cliff bars that doesn't have soy (GMO) listed in it's ingredient list.  It was very disappointing - my sister (Kristen) and I were shopping and had picked out the delicious looking peanut butter Cliff bar when we discovered it's made with soy . . . Click HERE to read some reasons why soy isn't the best choice. 

Crossing one of many boulders. :) 

We made it to the end! Posing with my ruggedly handsome brothers . . . sorry - a little bias there but I can't help it :P 

I love banana chips! Picked these up on special so they were extra sweet - oh yeah! I was thankful to have stuck them in my bag to snack on for when mom picked us up after the hike. 

Part of my post-hike recovery snack :P

Okay, time for some fabulous food catch-up . . .

I mixed up some fluffy whole wheat pancakes before church Sunday morning. The secret? Sour cream!

My little bro expressed his thanks with a hearty appetite!

After hearing a convicting sermon taught from the book of Acts, I enjoyed a lovely little tomato/mayo sandwich with organic pumpkin seeds. :)

We brought homemade chili (meat-less) along on this trip so that was last night's supper. It makes you feel all warm and cozy!

This was me well after 10pm the other night :p Not used to shopping this late but it was fun . . .

Obviously, I'm enjoying my time here in the mountains to the fullest :P

I passed this sign today and since I've up here in the mountains for a few more days . . . I have to go see what they're offering!!! I'm headed here shortly to curl up on the couch and watch the Presidental debate this evening . . .  So, how was your day? Do you like to hike?

BPA Free (Glass Mug & Straw Giveaway)

I'm really excited about hosting this giveaway for y'all and I think you're gonna love it, too! 

Have you heard of BPA? What is it? Why all the concern? I know, I had all the same questions so I'll try and give few answers to get us started: 

BPA . . . 

1. stands for Bisphenol A
2. used to make plastics hard. 
3. is found in plastic containers and even some metal cans which then leach into our foods and absorbed into our bodies. 
4. is a derivative of petroleum. 
5. depending on what you read and who you choose to believe, BPA is considered a toxin. 

So, in light of all that - I couldn't be more excited to be throwing a giveaway for a BPA free product! SimplyStraws.com is sponsoring this giveaway and they sent me this adorable glass mug and straw to review and recommend for all of you. :)  

I used my BPA free glass mug for the first time with my breakfast green smoothie this morning after an invigorating kickboxing workout and 2.25 mile run. It works perfectly and I'm thrilled to have this easy option now. For the longest time, I've know that I've needed to start moving away from BPA, particularly since I'm a straw lover . . . :)

I'm looking forward to using this glass mug for when I want to add a drop or two of essential oil to my water. I put lemon essential oil in a styrofoam cup once and it started to eat away at the cup!

Pretty much the only thing I think I'm really going to have to get used to is how the glass straw doesn't bend. :P Since I'm used to plastic straws I think this might take me a little while to get used to, but it isn't bad. :-)

So, sign-up for your chance to win! I will be announcing a winner next weekend!!! Happy Friday. :)

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Spanish Mackerel

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Fresh Juice (Food Blog-- Last Sentence ;)

Fresh juice is packed with nutrition! Today was "stock the frig day" for fresh juice, and carrots were definitely a main ingredient. :) Carrots have lots of vitamin A - a great choice for cancer prevention and  fighting it, too!

{10 pounds of carrots = 64 oz of juice}

Carrots are rich in beta carotene, essential for the human body to function optimally. 

I went for a 3.25 mile run before a breakfast banana/protein green smoothie. :) {Aaahh - can't believe it'd been a wk since my last run!}

I made some pumpkin muffins (gluten-free) for my Granny this morning. I hope she enjoys them! The "health nut" title comes legitimately for me. :) My great-grandmother was a juicer and my grandmother is into Yoga and healthy food, of course! What can I say . . . inherited?

I had some of my mom's leftover vegan bean soup for lunch today. :) I need to do a recipe share on this one - I think you guys would really love it! It's an excellent source of protein, and it's a complete one at that because it has both brown rice and beans in it. 

And, now for the exciting news! Our sweetie pie Australian shepherd had her first litter of puppies!!!!! They are SO cute and tiny, too. Bonnie is such a good mama. :) 

Tonight's dinner was a lovely spinach salad, homemade muffins and leftover chicken & rice casserole. :-)

So, how about you - do you juice or hope to make fresh juice apart of your future? I'm interested to hear what you guys think about juicing, who's into it, and who wants to get into it. :) 

And, as much as it looks like all I do is make and eat food-- that isn't so.... This is a food blog so I'm sticking to the topic! Lol