HUGE post - Christmas Cruise Vacation Recap!

Hey everyone!!

Here is the long awaited Christmas cruise recap!  This was a FANTASTIC vacation – lots of hot sunny weather, spa time, snorkling and gorgeous beaches!

We flew down to Ft. Lauderdale and cruised around the Honduras, Belize, Mexico and Florida for 7 days.

5:30am - Coke for breakfast anyone?

Here we are getting  excited to board the plane! And yes, my dad really was drinking Coke for breakfast.  He absolutely loves it and used to have a couple of cans a day so I am really proud of his current once-a-week habit! 

Anyone have tips/scary statistics about Coke or pop to get him to stop completely?? I would love to hear!

I was so impressed this little cafe had Thomas' whole wheat bagels! with squeezable cream cheese!

Something about those Thomas bagels – soft, chewy and slightly sweet.  I love love love them and wish they would come to Canada! Their nutritionals are awesome -

so please, don’t deprive yourselves of bagels – they’re delish with cream cheese, pb or if you’re feeling crazy, mix the two!  It actually tastes SO good!!

 And then we were off!

Of course there was a TON of food.

awesome salad with fruit on the side!

Every kind of vegetable they offered ended up on this plate - this plate included pureed sweet potatoes, grilled mushrooms, asparagus and salmon!

I made amazing salads just like this one every day for lunch!  It isn’t too hard to eat healthy on a cruise; just hit the salad bar, leaving just enough room for this:

the notorius midnight CHOCOLATE BUFFET!

This, my friends, was definitely TO LIVE FOR:

Chocolate cheesecake with pecans - oh my word delicious.

For dinner, we ate at the formal, sit down restaurant.  We were all blown away by the food every night!  This was my favorite -

Grilled mahi mahi with roasted potato wedges and sweet potato mash

The fish just melted into my mouth and the perfectly roasted potatoes were phenominal! 

I feel like we often turn away from white potatoes in favor of sweet taters but nutritionally, they are both loaded with good stuff!

Reading from this site, http://www.juicing-for-health.com/potato-nutrition.html, I learned that these magical white tubers can help with…

Anemia:  Potatoes are excellent sources of both iron and folic acid, which are essential for the production of red blood cells. For this reason potatoes can be used as a natural aid in the prevention or treatment of different forms of anemia.

Arthritis: Like rheumatism, arthritis is an inflammatory condition. The high minerals, potassium and organic salt content in potato makes it one of the best anti-inflammatory food. Slice a potato together with the skin and soak in a glass of distilled water. Drink in the morning before meal.

 

Burns, rashes and other skin irritations:  When applied on the skin, raw potatoes (cut into slices or juiced) have anti-irritating, soothing and decongestioning properties.  It can be used to treat a wide variety of skin irritations and conditions, including burns, rashes, as well as skin redness, itching and dehydration.

 

Constipation and hemorrhoids: Boiled or steamed potatoes promote the formation and passage of soft, hydrated stools. So they can be effectively used as a natural remedy to treat constipation, eliminate bowel straining and prevent hemorrhoids.  

Gastritis and gastric ulcers: Perhaps the most common use of raw potato juice is to treat gastritis, colitis, gastric and intestinal ulcers, due to its anti-acid and healing properties. In these cases, to get the maximum benefit from potato juice, it is advisable to drink a half glass of it 3 to 4 times a day, for at least one month.

High blood pressure:  Potatoes are excellent sources of potassium, which helps lower and stabilize blood pressure.

Joint and other types of pain: The regular consumption of raw potato juice is a valuable remedy in relieving pain associated with arthritis, gout and even headaches.

Rheumatism: The juice extracted from raw potato is an excellent remedy for rheumatism. It is very detoxifying for a toxic condition. Take 2 teaspoons of the juice before meal for best effect.  

Tired eyes: Raw potato is really a useful aid for tired eyes.  Apply thin slices of raw potato on the eyes at least twice a day, eyes dark circles will miraculously disappear!

And even if you don’t want to drink potato juice, you can always roast, mash or bake some up the next time you have a hankering for potatoes and get the same benefits!

Now for some vacation pictures!

 

Mexico shoreline!

 

Being silly...and our ship in the background!

Beach bum

And I hope you guys don’t think I’m creepy because I didn’t know these kids at all.  But they are precious, no?

Kodak moment

Hamming it up

 

Beautful Key West

Prime tanning real estate

I love new friends + toga parties!

 And thats a mini recap of my Christmas Cruise!  My parents have the other camera so more photos will be coming your way soon!

Plus, a NEW YEAR’s recap that is half a month late already…here’s a sneak peak!

 We went to the New Year’s party at the Inn at Blue Mountain.  700 people, midnight fireworks and a couple of gin and tonics later…

 

But its back to reality school now!  It is summer recruiting time so I have been super busy doing cover letters, applications and going to company mix and mingle sessions!!

A really great thing about these companies recruiting at our school is the SWAG they bring!  Companies like S.C. Johnson, Kraft, General Mills, and Unilever have come and brought us tons of goodies like Old El Paso fajita kits, Glade candles, Ziplock bags (!!), Fibre One ceral, salad dressing and lots more!  It’s a lot of fun.

Another great thing about being back at school is getting back into my regular schedule and routine.  I have missed my hummus sammies and yogurt messes!  At home, I eat mostly what my parents eat, and end up eating out a lot! 

Do you find that it feels SO good getting back into your “regular” diet and routine?

This morning’s breakfast and part of lunch,

 

Sliced strawberries and banana, plain yogurt and Optimum cereal with extra cinnamon

Hummus and halved grape tomatoes on my favourite 12 grain bread

So as you can see, not too much has changed with me! I’m still eatin’ my plain yogurt and lovin’ on the hummus.  And doing monster catch up posts!

 I know this month is super busy but I WILL find time to post once a week so please check in!

 Off to host a fajita party!

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