Hi, Creative Friends-

Happy Belated Thanksgiving! If you indulged in pie, took a second helping of buttery mashed potatoes, and then nestled in for a long nap after the big meal here are ideas to feel a bit better after a day full of delight…

Feel Wonderful After A Big Holiday Meal With These 3 Brilliant Creative Ideas.

1. Sip Soother: Try sipping this festive digestive drink Lemon Ginger Tea the morning after Thanksgiving to calm the stomach and soothe the soul. It’s an easy way to help our bodies gently absorb a big meal and feel wonderful.

2. Fantastic Friendsgiving: Make a plan to connect with a friend the day after Thanksgiving to catch up and check-in. Meeting up can be as simple as having a virtual cup of tea or taking a walk. Reconnecting with others is a simple way to tap into our emotional health and give thanks to the people who make our lives better.

3. Find a Forest: Do you know that just taking a walk in the woods or a local park reduces stress by up to twenty percent? Walking also helps with digestion. After a holiday meal, slip in a pair of headphones, and listen to a walking meditation. Feel joy abound as stress slips away and you start to feel wonderful after the big delicious meal.

Drop me a message and let me know what you are working on or what you will do to feel wonderful after a big holiday meal.

Also, thanks for reading along. This newsletter takes some time to pull together. Consider showing your support by forwarding it to someone who might need some inspiration or buying some of my artwork at INPRNT or Society 6.

If you are seeing this newsletter/blog for the first time and want to keep seeing content subscribe here.

Keep going, creative friends!

xoxo,

Andra

Day 11. Recipe 11.

Weeknight dinners can be plain, boring and downright dull. Sometimes we get caught in an endless cycle of same old same old. Trying something new seems just too much to handle.

And let's face it, sometimes we are just too chicken to try the new chicken.

Well, this recipe is guaranteed to make us all less of a chicken.

These rice bowls inspired by Ev Eats are pretty easy. The only hard part is the recipe requires three different pots or pans to whip up dinner.

Most of my family loved this recipe. It, however, did receive a one "Oh, barf!" rating. In the future, a little pineapple addition might go a long way to making these bowls delicious for a whole crowd.

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Caribbean Chicken & Rice Bowls

Chicken

• 2 tablespoons ground cumin
• 1 tablespoons chili powder
• salt and pepper to taste
• 3-4 garlic cloves
• Zest and juice of 1 orange
• Zest and juice of 1 lime
• 2 large chicken breasts, diced
• 3 Tbsp. vegetable oil

Black Beans

• 2 tsp. vegetable oil
• ½ yellow onion, diced
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 2 cans black beans, drained
• 1 tsp. smoked paprika
• salt and black pepper to taste

Cilantro-Lime Rice

• 1 ½ cups brown rice
• Zest and juice of 2 limes
• ½ cup cilantro, chopped
• salt and black pepper to taste

Chicken

Step 1: In a blender, combine the ingredients for the chicken marinade. Add the cumin, chili powder, salt and pepper, garlic, orange zest and orange juice, and lime zest and lime juice to the blender. Blend on high until smooth.

Step 2: Add the chicken to a ziptop bag and pour all the marinade over the chicken. Move the ingredients around to coat and allow the chicken to sit for at least 30 minutes, or overnight in the refrigerator.

Step 3: Heat a large nonstick skillet with vegetable oil over medium-high heat. Once the pan is hot, add the chicken and cook, 10-12 minutes or until browned all over and fully cooked. 

Black Beans

Step 1: Heat the vegetable oil in dutch oven or skillet over medium-high heat. Add the onions and garlic and saute for 4 minutes, until soft and golden.

Step 2: Add the black beans and paprika. Cook for 5-10 minutes. Add salt and pepper if desired.

Cilantro Lime Rice

Step 1: Cook the rice according to the package directions. Once the rice is ready, add the lime, cilantro and season with salt and pepper, to taste.

Divide the rice, chicken and black beans in bowls, top with avocado, tomatoes, and lime juice. 

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Let me know how you like the chicken, little chickens.

Until tomorrow friends.

Hello. We are going to keep this post short and sweet today because the holidays haven't officially started and I am already pooped. That is to say, I'm already feeling the overload that comes with the holidays. There are cards to be made, cookies to bake, parties to attend, photos to take, friends to celebrate, presents to wrap, food to prepare, lists to be made, stockings to stuff, trees to adorn, tables to set and life to celebrate. It will be lovely time and I am filled with gratitude for all the special experiences and times ahead. Yet, the holidays are like a jolly, robust Santa sitting heavy on one's shoulders. 

That's why today we are going to gear up for the holidays and create some downtime. Go crawl onto the couch, turn on the television, curl up with a good book or call a friend. Relax and take time before holidays have you doing a humongous holiday hustle. 

That's it for today! Until tomorrow.

Hey there kids. I'm stirring things up around here and trying to teach my 3 year old how to ride a bike. It's interesting seeing him struggle with the fear to ride. He's a pretty adventurous and brave little one. It's, therefore, surprising to see him struggle with something new. What is it about something new that bubbles up anxiety and fear? Why can't we just take the training wheels off and go?

In the spirit of trying something new, I signed up for a Zumba class last night. If you haven't heard of Zumba it's a high energy dance class usually set to latin music. I kicked off my training wheels and gave Zumba a whirl. I specifically picked Zumba because it's something that created tension for me. Could kicking off the training wheels dance the fear right out my head? well, I looked 100% like an over caffeinated marionette but felt 100% proud that I tried something new.

Today, pick an activity that is new for you. Go bowling for the first time. Try karaoke. Pick a new yoga class. Sign up for Improv. Create tension by trying something new. Stretch yourself. Stretch your mind.

I'm going to get back to stumbling over my feet to master the samba. Let me know if your training wheels fly off and see you tomorrow kids!

Day 71 - Oh hello there. Who else has been overdoing it these days? Maybe it's indulging in too much Guinness or corn beef? The new years resolutions have worn off right? That coffee habit has gone from 2 cups to 9 per day. Yes. I feel you.

Personally, I have been eating chocolate like it's my last week on earth. This mode of living might be kinda ok if it wasn't for the fact I never drink water. As in, I'll go the whole day without drinking a sip. Nothing. Not a drop. Yes, I do realize it's a horrible way to treat my body. Will I change. Let's see.

After a little research, I have developed a delicious green concoction that might help us drink up and flush out all that indulgence. Let's get started on today's "Go Go Green" project.

Let's start with a bottle. Select a bottle that makes you swoon. I picked up a $5 glass bottle from the dollar bin at Target. However, it would be wise to select a bottle with a wide mouth so ingredients can be maneuvered in and out of the bottle. Clearly I didn't think of this and was more persuaded by the hot pink handle.

"Go Go Green" Ingredients:

• 1 lime - 2 wedges
• 1 granny smith apple - 2 wedges
• 1 bunch of parsley - 3-4 sprigs
• 1 bunch of mint - 3-4 sprigs
• 1 fresh ginger root - 1" peeled
• 1 cucumber - 2 slices

Each of the ingredients below have been said to have detoxifying properties. Parsley is cleansing, green apple has polyphenols (whatever that is but it sounds healthy, mint helps with digestion, ginger reduces inflammation, cucumbers provide antioxidants and lime is just dang delicious. 

Wash all the produce. Slice two thin wedges of the apple, lime and cucumber. Chop and peel 1" of ginger. Snip off 4-5 sprigs of mint and parsley. Now place all the sliced, chopped and snipped produce into the new bottle. Add water. Place in the refrigerator and let sit for at least 15 min. Drink your Go Go green juice all through the day. When the water gets low add more. After 12 hours, throw out the produce in the bottom of the bottle and start fresh.

Report back how you feel? Did this Go Go Green water create a change in you? And Folks, if you won't do it for yourself, do it for the chocolate for goodness sakes.