a little bit of this, a little bit of that

hi folks, 

so i've not been around as much lately

about a week and a half ago

i challenged myself to unplug a bit:

spend more time with my family, less time with my screens (computer, phone, etc)

i thought i'd have a hard time with it, 

but it actually ended up being a breath of fresh air;

something i needed more than i thought i did

at the same time, i drastically changed my diet

and decided to try going paleo / primal for a couple weeks

in an attempt to level out my crazy blood sugars,

which left me a bit more lethargic than usual

(read: unable to do anything more than the bare necessities) 

"why a just couple weeks," you ask?

because we'll be off to Florida in T-minus two days (!!!)

and i don't want to stress out about food 

while sharing meals with eight other people

even so, i think i've already benefited from the sugar / carb detox

and the main point was to sort of hit the reset button on my system

then revisit whether or not i want to adopt the lifestyle after our holiday

anywway, during my time away from my computer

i came up with this recipe that i've been dying to share

i make it when i'm having a hard time making it to supper

or if i need a late night snack

or anytime, really

it's actually pretty healthy,

includes natural protein plus a bunch of other goodies (from the hemp)

and it tastes just like a chocolate shake!

i have to warn you, though, every time i make one of these, 

i end up having to make more

because the kiddos practically breathe it in

chocolate coconut protein shake

1 cup light coconut milk

1/2 cup ice

1 tbsp cocoa

2 dried dates

2 tbsp organic shelled hemp seeds

- dump all ingredients into a blender or food processor and blend until ice is crushed

and there you have it - naturally sweetened, paleo friendly, delicious chocolatey goodness!

oh, and one more exciting thing happened recently:

i got to do a mini-photoshoot with my sister and her little family

to announce to the world that she's having another baby!!!

i've been dying to spill the beans,

and now, finally, we don't have to be all hush-hush about it

if you follow me on facebook or instagram, you'll have already seen these,

but i thought i'd share some favorites for those of you in the blog-o-sphere:

alright, i think i've rambled long enough

what have you been up to the past couple weeks?

p.s. it might be quiet around here for a while yet - this will probably be my last post before we leave, and i don't know if i'll get a chance to update while we're on vacation, but i'll try!