Hi, I’m Natalie! thank you so much for visiting my site!
I’ll start off by mentioning the award-winning author Shauna James Ahern who in my opinion says it perfectly… “Food writing is a wonderful, weird passion”. It enables you to write about what you love, even if it’s what you had for breakfast!… how crazy is that?!?
Discovering the world of food blogging came to me approximately 2 years ago when I decided to dedicate myself to a clean-eating, active regime so that I could look and feel my best for my wedding day. Checking out healthy recipes on Instagram became something I started doing on an hourly basis… which lead to me quickly becoming obsessed with all of the “foodies” online and there amazing “drool-worthy” food photography. I also came to a realization that the food blogging community was filled with amazing, passionate, beautiful, big-hearted people and I wanted so badly to be apart of it all! Every morning I would wake up (literally just opening an eyeball!) and before I even thought or did anything whatsoever I would be scanning my phone for an inspiring, healthy, clean, delicious dish to make my day, whether it be breakfast/lunch/or dinner.
Fast-forward to October 17th, 2015, after marrying the man of my dreams & my best friend…. who for the past year has told me over and over again how much our healthy, happy, simple lifestyle has changed his life for the better… Without him I wouldn’t have this opportunity, so thank you babe for your love and support and for cheering me on as I enter this new path in life.
As I mentioned, over the past couple of years I have found within myself my passion and devotion for cooking and preparing nutritious meals, maintaining a balanced and active lifestyle and last but not least continuing to be myself in hopes of inspiring others to do the same.
In saying this, you will find on my blog an abundance (in-time) of real food recipes most of which are plant-based, gluten-free and dairy-free. I do not categorize myself under a specific diet ie (vegetarian, vegan and paleo) however I strongly believe that healthy-eating is extremely important and if you are dedicated and determined I can guarantee you, it will change your life completely. I also believe in fueling your body with foods that make you feel your best. So from week to week this blog will be a place where I will share what inspired me to make a certain “feel good” recipe that can and should be modified with whatever ingredients you feel suits you best.
Ranking just as high as healthy eating is maintaining an active and balanced lifestyle. I definitely consider myself to be a very active woman, who loves her country runs, circuit & weight training, biking, hiking, yoga, and well… really anything to do with a good sweat! Because I am very consistent and really have no problem motivating myself with staying active I have struggled for years and years to balance out my hard-core workouts with body conditioning and meditation. Just recently I have put together a “health and wellness” plan for myself in hopes that giving my body what it needs and deserves I will begin to feel much more balanced on a day to day basis. As we really are our own worst enemies I hope this blog can reach out to the ones who struggle with body image and the demon in there minds that just never seems to disappear and remind them to love themselves for who they are, inside and out.
Lastly, in my “Live” section I will share inspiring quotes, life experiences, thoughts, ideas, and even some everyday reminders on how life can be lived with so much content just by doing the simple things. Yes! those simple little things that are so important in our day to day lives.
Before I finish I would just like to send out a HUGE thank you to the people that helped to make this happen for me. Without them I wouldn’t feel as confident and excited as I am today to take this plunge, to make these discoveries and step in a new direction with my head high. So thank you so much to the to leading ladies who held the EFC in Salt Lake City Utah this year, Kami Kilgore and Sabrina Westbrook! The two of you beautiful women gave me such inner strength & motivation to take this on, thank you so so much! And to the ever-so-talented & may I say ever-so-wonderful, Laura Wright (of The First Mess) thank you for giving me courage, comfort, hope and most of all for reminding me to follow my heart so that one day my dreams and ambitions can become a reality. All three of you have made an imprint in my heart and I cannot thank you enough.
So have a look around and enjoy yourself! Share your smile with me and I promise to do the same 🙂
“Where there is love there is life.” Mahatma Gandhi
Natalie ♡