Category Archives: Uncategorized

With calories posted…are you going to eat that?

My husband and I were traveling this weekend to attend a family friend’s wedding. We had a layover in Philadelphia, and while there we stopped into an Au Bon Pain. You’ve probably been in one before – soups, salads, sandwiches, coffee, and bakery goods. In this one, the self-serve bakery case took up one entire wall. As I walked into the store, I saw a woman standing in front of the case. She wheeled her suitcase from one end to the other and back again no fewer than three times. Three times! She hadn’t selected anything, and honestly she looked a little frantic. She looked at me, wide-eyed, pointing to the case, and said, “They put the CALORIE COUNTS next to each item! By every one of them! I started out by the cookies and worked my way down there and by the end of the case I was at pastries that were more than 500 calories each! I came back to the cookies but now I think maybe I should just leave. That’s what I’m going to do. I’m going to just leave. I’ve gotta get out of here.” And she left!

Restaurant industry executives, if you are wondering if prominently posting calorie counts on menu items will help people make healthier choices, I offer this as Exhibit A.

Are there times when a 500 calorie pastry is a worth-every-yummy-morsel indulgence? I certainly think so! But I’m intrigued by how more transparent communication of nutrition information can help to influence consumer behavior. Menu labeling? Bring it on.

This entry was posted in Uncategorized on by .

Organically Organized

I was leafing through an issue of O magazine while drying my hair this morning (because really, when ELSE does one leaf through magazines?) and came across this quote from Peter Walsh, better known as Oprah’s Organization Guru. You’d recognize him as the guy who helps hoarders unearth their homes from years of accumulated clutter. That Peter Walsh.

His quote was “The words organic and organize have the same root. Organic makes me think of things that are fresh, natural, whole, and healthy—and organization brings the same mood into a space.”

I couldn’t have said it better myself! I often find that when people decide to get healthy, they simultaneously decide to get organized. It’s as if the two go hand in hand. When you begin to bring order to one aspect of your life, you’ll start to seek it in others. This natural gravitation to organization can be a catalyst to complete projects that have been languishing on your to-do list for quite some time.

Closet overhauled? Check.

Junk drawer emptied? Check.

Fridge shelves cleaned? Check.

Spice rack alphabetized? Check.

It’s hard to be healthy amid a pile of clutter. Have you ever seen a messy yoga studio? No, right? And don’t you feel healthier just by walking in the door? Yes! So, make that spa environment your inspiration for getting your surroundings in order to support the healthy habits you are trying to maintain.

Step back and assess your home environment. Look for messy places that drain your energy just by looking at them. Where can you eliminate some clutter and get organized in support of your organic lifestyle? You’ll be grateful for the space to sip that glass of fruit-infused water in your newly zen surroundings.

This entry was posted in All blog posts, Featured on Home Page, Lifestyle, Uncategorized on by .

Picture Perfect…or not

I received a Christmas card this week from a dear friend and the picture was so beautiful it literally stopped me in my tracks. She and her husband and their two gorgeous little girls were perfectly arranged on a blanket, smiling into the camera, with a fence and a host of trees in full autumn glory behind them. I sat with that card for a good long while just loving them! Then, setting aside my twinge of envy, I decided to send her an email telling her how beautiful they all were and what a lovely picture they’d taken which they’d be sure to treasure for years.


She responded with this.
Subject: It’s a farce!

“Perfect picture – Ha!  The funny part is our 4 year old was completely misbehaving, the 1 year old cried almost the entire time and my husband and I were both VERY frustrated.  The photographer somehow got a few good pics and I was ready for Moe’s and a margarita afterward to calm down a bit! Anyway…thanks!”
I loved how honest she was with me; the scene she described was exactly what I’ve experienced in photo sessions and it made me feel better to know I was not alone! She got a great result despite the chaos it took to get there, but I was only viewing the end result.

How often do we do this to ourselves? We judge our own chaotic process against everyone else’s picture-perfect result. It’s crazy-making. How much kinder it would be if we’d all own up to the days when the kitchen isn’t clean or the laundry isn’t done or the workout never happened or the lunch wasn’t so healthy. Our friends might realize they are not alone…and maybe we’d all be just a little more gentle with ourselves, especially during this incredibly busy season. 

Try it. Own up to the little imperfections in your own life. Let someone peek behind the curtain of your own “perfect picture” – the honesty just may be a relief to you both.
This entry was posted in All blog posts, Lifestyle, Uncategorized on by .