Raw Food Recipe: Omega La la latte'

They may be tiny, but they are mighty MIGHTY! : Flax and Hemp! While it’s not technically a grain, the flax seed has a similar vitamin and mineral profile to grains, while the amount of fiber and antioxidants in flax leaves grains in the dust. Additionally, flax seed is very low in carbohydrates, making it ideal for people who limit their intake of starches and sugars. And its combination of healthy fat and high fiber content make it a great food for weight loss and maintenance -- I have found that flax seed has been a key to feeling satisfied after healthier and lighter meals.

Hulled hemp seeds have an ideal balance of Omega 3 and 6 for sustainable human health, it has a full amino acid spectrum meaning it provides complete protein, and it has a massive trace mineral content - truly one of nature's superfoods at 33% protein.

Flax and hemp are both rich in Omega-3 fatty acids which aid in development of the baby's brain and nervous system as well as mother's well being. Omega-3 fatty acids are long-chain polyunsaturated fatty acids, which are indispensable for human growth and development, yet are not synthesized by humans. These must be obtained from the diet, specifically from either fish or flaxseed oil. However, a "standard American diet" is severely deficient in these critical nutrients.

This deficiency in omega-3 intake is compounded by the fact that after a woman's first pregnancy, her maternal stores become depleted, rarely returning to pre-pregnancy levels. Subsequent pregnancies continue this depletion.

This frothy warm beverage I came up with in hopes to get in large amounts of nutrients without sacrificing flah-vah! Often I am not hungry for a meal, yet a power packed drink is just the thing my body needs to keep up with the demands of breastfeeding! Enjoy!

Omega La-LA Latte' serves 1 momma

1 bag of Decaffeinated Good Earth Herbal Tea. (Sweet & Spicy)

1 1/2 TB Morning Jing powder by Shaman Shack

3 big and juicy medjool dates pitted

1/2-1 TB golden flax seeds

2 TB Hulled hemp seeds

1 tsp vanilla extract

tiny pinch of pink salt

Step 1: Steep tea bag in 2cups of hot water for 5 minutes, pour tea into blender.

Step 2: Grin flax seeds in coffee grinder.

Step 3: Place all ingredients into blender and blend for 30 seconds.

Recipe Note: The flax in this recipe will thicken the drink. if you are weirded out by thicker drinks, just use 1/2 TB flax seeds. Also, be sure to grind them fresh for optimla nutrition!

Pour in your favorite cup and enjoy! I like to drink my hot beverages in this snazzy coffee cup that is NOT paper! This fantastic cup is ceramic with a flexie lid and can be used again and again and again!

Enjoy 112 raw vegan recipe in Melissa's E-book HERE

Morning Jing: Get the best protein powder out there with Ho sho Wu and other super foods HERE

Birth. In the movies.....

A few nights ago I went to a movie hosted by the Birthing Network of Santa Cruz called Born in the USA. Bruce Springsteen is not who I saw wailing and sweating throughout this flick, instead it were women giving birth, using various methods practiced today. In the film you meet three birth caregivers—a obstetrician, a nurse-midwife, and a licensed home birth midwife—each with a dramatically different idea about what constitutes best care for birthing women. The film show how these women see their work and what factors—medical, legal, and cultural—influence women's choices in the birthing room. In general the film was very informative and "neutral", letting the viewer truly see what happens in these different circumstances under various forms of care offered to pregnant women today. Al thought there was a lovely home birth that took place that was so fluid and relaxed compared to the birth that took place in the hospital, what made my stomach turn was the fact that women today in my opinion are "brainwashed" when it comes to birth. Now I am just generalizing here.....most women today have this perception of birth as painful, stressful, and potentially dangerous procedure! A procedure that our bodies may fall apart during and desperately need intervention! We have movies, media and of course our culture in general to thank for this warped and twisted view on one of the most beautiful events any human can experience or be apart of. What would be different if we taught our daughters what a blissful experience it is? and prepared them from a more positive and encouraging outcome?

Born in the USA, features on the Oxygen channel, was insightful as to what is really going on in the birthing rooms of the general public. It got me fired up! I instantly had the desire to share more natural and less stressful forms of birthing with women all over the planet. Women shouldn't have to enter into pregnancy with fear, worry and doubt just because someone else experienced that "version". Our society is being programmed to accept the tv shows and movies's version of birth. A women will enter into the birthing process with fear right off the bat if showed nothing but other women's massive freak outs, scratching, screaming, agonizing pain and intervention to the rescue. This false picture of what birthing really is and what could be, leaves little room for another "outcome" to be the "norm". Actually enjoying birth or the potential that HEY! maybe she can do this natural after all and feel loved and nurchured in the process IS infact a reality Heck! We were built for birth and dang it...we've been at it since the beginning of time with no sterile face masks, gloves, needles, and certainly not flat on our backs in a stiff bed not able to move!

I noticed in Born in USA with the exception of the home birthing momma, not a single laboring women was in the squatting position which happens to be a very helpful position to help guide the baby's head on through the mother's pelvis with gravity. Why didn't the doctors suggest this to the laboring women? I was hoping they did and just not film it. However, there they were on their backs, stuck on the bed and hooked up to monitors, IV and other equiptment. (One women was concidered low risk and still connected to all this crap) Of course the position and all the cords would not help cope with the sensations of birth! How could any women relax and let go? The movie mentioned that some culture's find it offensive to be on all fours odd to tone with their voices, and un-lady like to squat for birth. ARE you SERIOUS! So you mean to tell me the obvious position of being upright in a squat so gravity can help is viewed as not so nice, but laying flat on your back, legs strapped into stirrups and 5 people peering in on your vagina with plastic shields over their faces is totally fine and normal?? wow. That "picture" is the picture given to us in the "movies" our whole lives and it does happen in real life! I was upset and I felt sadness for the women in the documentary which represents a hugs number of women that deal with this as "normal" everyday in the USA!

Momma Mango's Manifesto: I would love to see truely empowering birthing classes that dig into the "untraditional" methods and offer it to every single pregnant Goddess. These classes would teach breathing techniques, beautiful movement and that it is natural and OK to sway those hips, squat, vocalize, visualize and be primal in the birthing process. I see a birthing class where instead of concentrating on all the drugs they an be doped up on, they concentrate on all magic their bodies are designed for and encourage ways the body can relax and truely birth naturally. I believe that cultivating these somewhat lost yet basic natural instincts would lift the layer so that all women would realize that maybe, juts maybe they can do this and they are this rightous and most gorgeous goddess in the birthing process!

From a young age, if we were all taught that birth is sacred, poweful, magical and yes full of sensation that may be intense at times.....I believe we would have a very different world! A world where more women stepped into their power and other women rejoiced in lifting one another up!
mmm...that feels so good!

Raw Recipe: Carrot cake shake

“C” is for cake! Carrot that Is!

I have been big into smoothies lately mostly because I prefer to drink my food rather than sit down and eat it, being so close to my due date! There is little room in there these days, but there is always room for carrot cake shake!
With fall and winter flavors making their ways into my daily foodie routine I craved a morning smoothie that would deliver the nutrition I have been used to as well as boldly take the place of my orange-banana green smoothie. Mmmm…who can say no to cake first thing in the mornin’? This smoothie is the real deal! Delicious, nutritious and very simple to make! Enjoy!
Originally from Asia, the mighty carrot is easily assimilated by our bodies even left raw; with numerous health benefits. (Why am I not surprised that ever fruit or vegetable has amazing health benefits!) Chinese practitioners say that carrots are not only a tasty sweet root vegetable; it is good for the health of spleen and stomach. It is also believed to improve impotence (lower sexual drive), sexual dysfunction, night blindness, long term cough (or call hundred days cough in Chinese medical prescription) besides strengthening kidney and eliminating excessive wind and cold in our body. Can you turn orange from too many carrots? Sure…but that would take A LOT!
When picking carrots, try shopping at your local farmer’s market and seek out the organic, smaller, more “rustic” stubby and fat carrots. Over the past 150 years of modern day agriculture, carrots have been hybrid (altered genetically) to be the size of walking sticks! Most if not all hybrid produce is a far cry from what nature intended, yet still fine to eat. No need to completely avoid hybrid produce like carrots, juts be aware that these foods should be enjoyed minimally and that if you have a choice for the OG (Original) v.s the perfectly nubby carrots: go that route! Hybrid foods do contain a little more sugar than the non hybrids. Again, awareness is fine. Fanaticism isn’t. Now, back to the cake part!

Get 111 more recipes in Melissa E Book HERE!

Carrot cake shake Serves 1
1 c ice
1 small ripe banana (Frozen is suggested for thicker texture)
½ c fresh carrot juice
½ c almond milk OR: ( ½ c water + 1/3 c soaked cashews)
1 tsp vanilla extract
½ TB Pumpkin pie spice
3 big, juicy medjool dates pitted
Place all ingredients into a blender. Blend until smooth
Garnish with ground pecan pieces and cinnamon

* Optional health-nut kick: Add ½ tsp of Spirulina if you need a boost of protein. This may slightly change up the flavor, but deliver the nutrition you deserve.

To nab a copy of Melissa’s Amazing E-book Click HERE!
A total of 112 delicious recipes! Nut free & agave free options!

xxMelissa

Due date, doc visit and food cravings update

The visit with our OB/ Midwife yesterday went well. I saw her on the 17th of Nov. on the day she gave me as my official "due date". The due date is an interesting topic for me, I am so glad you brought it up! I remember when I first went in for care and the nurses were trying to calculate my due date based on the last day of my period. Apparently this is just how they do it. Funny thing is and I hope you don't mind me sharing this bit with you: The due date they were giving me I was resistant to accept for the simple fact that one needs to have sex in order to become pregnant right! As the nurse was calculating the date for me, I was explaining to her that she can not count my "last period dates" because I was not sexually active at that time, so how could I possibly be pregnant???

The two different nurses I saw totally ignored my comments almost as if I was speaking Japanese or a total idiot. It was too funny. I was upset and annoyed at first because I do in fact think it is silly to count days of pregnancy when there couldn't possibly be a fertilized egg! Then I just laughed at the ridiculous of it all. Why am I counting a week or two of pregnancy that couldn't possibly of happen? Oh well, Ill let then play their game and calculate away on their Iphones.

Nov 17th was the due date they gave me and I knew better so I made my own date based on factual-sexual contact! =)

The rest of my check up yesterday went well. My midwife told me that I am currently dilated to 2 cm! She said that this means my body is preparing yet it does promise I will go into labor anytime real soon. She did mention that it is common for women to dilate from 1-3 cm and stay there for 2 or so weeks! Before our time was up, she said there was no need to book anymore appointments. Hint hint....

The past few days I have preparing the house for guests and baby, sunbathing, sleeping and working on my new ebooks! People often ask me in these final days of waddle

"Are you nervous?!

Truthfully, I am not nervous eventhough I joke about it and make scary faces when asked if I am getting an epidural. I am more excited about my own body's birthing process and curious about how it will all go first hand. In preparation for this great unknown, I have read many uplifting birth stories online, viewed home videos on YouTube of women laboring in their bathtubs and beds, watched movies on water birth, orgasmic births and conscious birthing techniques. Over the past few months I have read all kinds of interesting articles from Elimination Communication, to A Lotus birth all part of the many facets of natural child birth. I know that all of this information has been wonderful and encouraging resources, however my experience will be all its own! Yeah! So excited!

FOOD!? YES! New developments in the topic of food and my pregnancy has taken place.

A few months into my High Raw-Vegan pregnancy I began to crave eggs and raw-goats cheese in a major way. I made the decision to eat these foods and to my initial suprise, felt absolutely amazing as a result! I am guessing it was due to the combinations and the frequency I was eating these new foods, as well as the other fresh foods in my diet. For example, I would poach one or two eggs and enjoy them over a nice green salad instead of toast or pancakes. I would typically do this once or twice a week. This felt very balancing for me personally and I let go of my personal judgements I had about incorporating non raw-vegan foods into my diet. I had fully intended on having a High Raw Vegan Pregnancy and was excited to write about it and share it with the world! I learned I had to go with the flow and love myself as well as my process no matter what changed or shifted from my origional "plan" and expectations. What can I say? The additions to my diet just felt right so I sought out high quality local eggs and prepared these foods with much love coupled with amazing fresh greens!

When I first introduced these foods in, I didn't share that info with anyone except family and my OB for fear of not living up to my "raw status" as a coach and chef in the movement. I quickly realized that I was being too hard on myself and that it was ok! Whatever I was doing was A-OK.

To my relief I found there were and still are many "raw women" out there that once they became pregnant..everything changed. They too added foods like fresh eggs, raw goats cheese and other whole foods such as quinoa and steamed veggies. Some of these women have shared their stories to encourage other mommas and some have chose to keep their pregnancy dietary "changes" to themselves due to the risk of being judged by the Raw World. Sadly I think this is mostly because men or women who have never been pregnant could not possibly understand a mother to-be's reasons for adding certain foods that are not in the raw-vegan category during pregnancy. and who wants to have to explain themselves when being a role model in the raw food realms? This topic I will go into at a later time. <3

For my entire pregnancy, almost like clockwork, I religiously enjoyed green smoothies every morning that had spirulina, fresh kale from our garden, local oranges and a ripe banana. I also for the first time ever- craved fresh nut milk drinks from cashews, almonds and sometimes brazil nuts. I chowed down lots of other various raw salads/dishes throughout the day. I felt excellent! I felt strong and awesome! Then shift happened!

Sometime last week I noticed a shift in my food cravings/needs. It started with a dream I had where my baby boy told me something like "momma...I have had enough eggs and raw cheese, I don't need it anymore."

I woke up from this dream, and was grinning! There was a noticeable shift inside me that I could not ignore. From that moment I had no desire for eggs nor cheese so I followed that feeling.

I have also noticed a drop in my appetite in the sense that instead of say 4 to 5 small meals and snacks a day, I only eat two meals and a snack. I feel fine, I feel satisfied. I feel different! YES!

I feel as though my baby inside is fully developed and ready to hatch therefor his needs nutritionally have shifted and my body is responding. I am so grateful for my body's intelligence!

Other amazing high raw conscious mommas I have been in contact with have shared with me similar stories about food I am excited to see how my body shifts once I begin breastfeeding! I hear it's a gunna be a fun ride!

Oh goodie! Ill let you know how it goes!

xxMelissa