As an honored member of the Today Show food club, Mr. Charming and I were asked to share our story of how we cope with our dietary differences, (me with many restrictions, him with none.) Our story was published on the Today Show this week and I wanted to share our story below, along with some added tips to supporting a loved with with food sensitivities.
I was worried that our drastically different diets would put a strain on our marriage, as I'd heard so many stories of relationships hitting bumpy terrain when one persons health forced such change. However, my loving best friend, partner and supporter embraced the change with me and for the most part eats gluten-free and dairy-free with me. When we travel we stay in timeshares where we have access to kitchens and visit local Farmers Markets in nearby cities. He occasionally eats whatever he wants, which I support 100%, because if I could, I would too, but this road has been such a blessing, to not only healing me, but teaching us what's really in our food, and in the end we are both much healthier because of these challenges. Next see my top 7 tips for being the best partner / friend / family member when a family member has food restrictions.
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It was late 2011, and most of you know my story, I had to change my diet completely. Completely. Which was a shock to not only me, but to my family and new husband. So much of our relationship in the beginning was based on experiences. Travel & culinary sampling was a big part of our adventures and I was terrified to how I, and we, would adjust. My health of course came first and having a wonderfully supportive best friend as my spouse made it all do-able. You can see our story of how we work with different diet here. Our story was featured this week on The Today Show Food Club and below I share seven tips of how to make loving someone with food restrictions a little easier and a little more understandable.
I'm pulling out all the acronyms today, folks. Last night was epic. My husband's work gifted him suite seats to Tran Siberian Orchestra so we turned it into a double date night event with his sister and her husband. We had a suite just to the four of us and our own waiter who brought us drinks. I loved the intimacy of not being in a huge crowd of people. I think one of the things that made this evening so special was that this is a show my husband has always dreamed of seeing. A little behind on our holiday advent calendar, it was an awesome way to schedule in a Christmas-related night out. The show was INCREDIBLE. The light show, the story and the music were all phenomenal and I'm so glad we went.
Now, before I break for lunch today, I come to my third and final acronym. Today's most important one and that is the EWG. The Environmental Working Group is a fantastic organization of people who work hard to keep us alert of what is in our food, beauty and skincare products, and I'm not sure if you've yet been made aware, GMO-Salmon has been federally approved. Which means it's just one more unsafe food that the government is now regulating. More information is located here, with actionable steps we can take to help get our food in the U.S. rightfully labeled, as it should be.
Make sure to eat clean this holiday season, shop local, shop organic, and if you get a chance, check out Tran Siberian Orchestra when they come through your city, because entertainment is good for the soul. Who doesn't love spreading Christmas cheer? If you raised your hand, I'm sorry, and I send you hugs & loves & gumdrops to warm your heart. This month, along with the beautiful Ludavia of Nifty Betty, Julia of The Quiet Grove, Ariel from Keys To My Life and my record label NVE/Universal, we thought it would be fun to bring back Christmas Caroling to the digital age. So, let's go caroling! As Ludavia stated on her website when she started this movement... "Every Saturday in December at 2pm PST, we are going to fill social media with #caroling by posting a video singing our favorite Christmas carols. You can film yourself singing, have someone film you and some friends, have strangers join in, and if you are really shy about it, simply post a video from YouTube. We are spreading Christmas cheer; so, if you are off key, who cares! We will be jolly doing it."
Simply post your video on Twitter, Instagram or Facebook (or all three!) every Saturday of December at 2pm PST and use the hashtag #caroling. Then watch some people sing their songs, comment, share, and tell everyone about it. My record label, NVE Records/Universal will be choosing the best of the best to feature across their social media. Won't you join us in bringing back a long-lost tradition, building community and spreading joy? Christmas is just a short 36 days away, which means crunch time for all of the holiday planning. Mr. Charming and I are sitting down this weekend to create our December Advent Calendar that we make every year. This year includes a mix of volunteer work, movie nights by the fire, church and celebration events. And yes, my halls are already decked. This is my favorite time of year. As I've grown up, my Christmas wish list and my gift lists to others have changed drastically. Not a huge lover of gift cards or gifts that are impersonal, I like to try to create something special. Whether a nature lover, techie, beauty fanatic or foodie, I like to give gifts that speak to what they love and who they are. And holiday baskets are the BEST way to give multiple gifts that speak to the same theme. Holiday Basket Tip #1: Don't Overfill. I like to space things out so that you can see what's inside. Once my food items were placed I added a couple of homey touches. I am an affiliate for Wild Foods Co. | I adore their market & products, all opinions & photos are my own. One of my favorite types of people to shop for are the foodies in my life. (No shocker there, right?) Instead of buying the pre-made food baskets that are laden with sugar and processed ingredients, I like to make them using high quality products. From organic fruit (which always looks beautiful in baskets) to fine wines and homemade baking mixes to my favorite recipes, it's fun and easy to be creative. This year, I'm putting little "market" baskets together using products from one of my favorite shops! Based in Austin, Texas, Wild Foods will ship products internationally, (except for their coffee, which is U.S. only) and offer a wide variety of specialty teas, chocolate, coffee and protein items. Holiday Basket Tip #2: Themes are good. Since I shopped at a specialty market, I used a vintage market basket as the basket instead of a holiday box or traditional wicker or wood basket. For this years basket I chose a pack of Wild Coffee and paired it with mugs I knew would match my friends kitchen. I added in a pack of Wild Sweet Nibs, which are high quality pieces of chocolate that can be used in trail mixes, on ice cream or as a garnish on baked goods, as well as a pack of Wild Chocolate which can be used for cocoa, in smoothies or in baking. I finished it off by adding some information on Wild Foods, so that she would know where to go if she wanted to order more and I tied a Christmas ornament that would match her home to the basket as a finishing touch.
Holiday Basket Tip #3: If you include pre-made goods, or goods for a particular market, its good to add a recipe card or a store info card so your gift receiver can make or buy more if they enjoy it! Have you made holiday baskets or are you planning to this year? I would love to know the ones you are creating, especially for the foodies in your life! \It is such a beautiful Wednesday. The weather is a cool 70 degrees, a little overcast and just wonderful. My husband is on a rare business trip, so I am trying to keep myself busy while he's away. We always travel together, so it's been kind of a weird week. Our new neighbors have become good friends of ours and I've been spending time with them, celebrating new jobs and cooler weather. Yesterday morning we walked three miles and this morning we got in another two. Later I am headed to a Fall festival and may catch up with another friend over dessert. So it's been good to get a lot of girl time in. With me & me Mr. Charming starting our strict fertility diet again when he gets home, it feels good to be getting in some cardio along with the yoga I've been doing. It also helps me sleep better when I'm totally worn out. Aside from working out I've also been cooking some yummy meals for myself. Last night I cooked a huge batch of my Sweet Potato & Broccoli soup to have leftovers for days and today's lunch was a veggie packed pasta dish with a cold glass of blueberry juice because we are cutting out grains again as we move forward with a new fertility path. Even though it's hard to miss your spouse while they're away, I love being able to celebrate his accomplishments. One of the reasons why we've always worked so well together is that we are both go-getters. Very goal oriented in all areas of our lives. And we both know who we are and exercise our independent paths while working as one. When we have a dream, passion or purpose we work hard at it. Never holding each other back. I believe that's crucial in marriage, letting the other person be uniquely who they are and who God made them to be. When we were first together and totally falling in love, music took me away for a month. It was supposed to be six long months in Europe, but it worked out in our favor that I just did a month in the Caribbean and got to come home. And he supported me. Through every 3,000 a mile away phone call, email and in every dream I've chased since. In return, I love showing him how I appreciate him. And I take so much joy in it. Whether it's simply caring for our home while he's working, cooking healthy meals for us, planning getaways or buying him special gifts, it's important to make your spouse a priority, always. When Mr. Charming started his new position, I wanted to gift him with something that he could take with him. Something that kept him connected with God and with me while traveling and at the office. The designer of Knox Thomas Designs helped me to create something really special for him. He usually uses the general plastic collar stays, but I wanted him to have something nicer that he could use that reminded him of God's message for how we should work, and a note to let him know I love him. With us moving up in our careers, something that is such a blessing, it's important for us to always remember from Whom it all comes and to stay grounded in His purpose for us. Remembering it isn't about our position, our growth, our worth, our success, but about His purpose, His Kingdom, His glory. Colossians 3:23 ||Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for human masters, I would love to hear the special ways that you appreciate and support your spouse. It's not just the holidays and anniversaries when it's important to show our love. It's in the every day, the random days and the little moments where it matters most.
1 // What's the silliest thing you and your significant other have needed to compromise on? We don't really have to compromise on a whole lot, but our movie selections. I'm more of a horror/action/documentary kind of guy. While she is more of the comedy/romantic/love movie type. 2 // If you were stranded on a deserted island, what 3 must haves would you bring with you? My wife, a 440HC survival knife and a magnifying glass. 3 // Talents aside, what is your dream job? Oh, wow. Traveling the world with my wife and photographing our journey and the amazing things that we would see. 4 // What are three things on your bucket list? Hm. Going to Egypt, seeing Europe and being a parent. 5 // What kind of date is your favorite to go on with your significant other? Picking up steaks and cooking together and snuggling up in our theatre and watching a movie. That, or going to play pool because it reminds me of when we first met. And Staycations! It's no secret that I am an avid music lover. Coming from a background as a touring singer for over 10 years, I believe music is life. It is joy and pure emotion expressed in a beautiful way. It's also no secret (to those that are lucky enough to be dragged to movies by me) that Pitch Perfect was one of my favorite movies ever to hit the big screen. Everything from the delightful charm of Jesse and the Treblemakers, to the hilarity of Fat Amy and the amazing vocal arrangements from the Bellas, what WASN'T there to love? Seriously, I dare you to try to find one thing, because it's movie gold. And then came the sequel. And I got to "squee!" about aca-perfection all over again. Since Mr Charming put in the theatre, I had yet to have a true "girls night" in the house taking advantage of the space. Luckily that all changed this week because Pitch Perfect 2 released on Tuesday and Walmart is offering a Limited Edition gift set complete with blu ray, DVD, HD digital copy and CD of the films songs, so I had to pick that up. I also grabbed some chips, dip and popcorn to keep us energized for karaoke and put the word out to my girls. OF COURSE, karaoke. Because what is a Pitch Perfect 2 viewing party without a little singing of our own? Tips For Throwing An Epic Pitch Perfect 2 Worthy Karaoke Party: 1.) Provide plenty of hydration. Vocalists need plenty of water to keep their chords hydrated. Do you remember what happened to Chloe in the first movie? Ain't nobody got time for nodes. 2.) Set up a specific corner. Preferably where acoustics and lighting are good. You want your karaoke star to shine. 3.) Set up a good P.A. or sound system and make sure you have a laptop nearby to play the lyrics. Forgotten words are a singers worst nightmare. 4.) A rehearsal or sound check never hurt anyone. Let your guests find their sound and sing a few songs. 5.) Remember to cheer for your fellow singers and most importantly, HAVE FUN! After snacks and singing, we settled in to enjoy the movie. Hands down my favorite movie of 2015, we sang, we danced, we laughed, we cried (because seriously, some of it is so fabulously awkward) and got to spend some great girl time together. It was much needed after a crazy busy week proceeding an even busier week of travel coming up. It is always important to take time with your girls. To unwind, to laugh, to sing, to play, to dance and to remember to connect. Plan a girls night with your favorites. Head to Walmart to grab the exclusive Pitch Perfect 2 Blu-Ray/Soundtrack combo pack. Soundtrack includes some of your favorite songs from Pitch Perfect and Pitch Perfect 2 (while supplies last) And I'd get in on that. If you're just hearing of Pitch Perfect 2, check out more information on the film, it's stars and to watch the trailer visit their official site, or find them on social media through Twitter, Facebook and their aca-awesome Instagram. This post is part of a social shopper marketing insight campaign with Pollinate Media Group® and Universal Pictures Home Entertainment, but all my opinions are my own. #pmedia #ThePitchesatWMT http://my-disclosur.es/OBsstV And a little clip of the nights karaoke by yours truly, because, singing. As Mr. Charming and I prepare to celebrate our fourth wedding anniversary next week I wanted to share our wedding story. I've shared our story of how we met & fell in love & I shared his amazing, romantic and whimsical proposal story - I've even shared our engagement photos, but our wedding... a day that was so special, blessed & magical beyond words I had yet to share that all here. It was a day that was personal & shared with our closest family & friends and I guess I just held on to that for a little while. I'm beyond blessed to call myself Mrs. Pimental and the morning of our wedding was not short on butterflies. And love. And excitement. And that magic I spoke of earlier. Lifestyle blogger Summer Telban of Coffee With Summer wrote about her wedding & divided it into many posts. I loved that she did that because it allowed readers to linger a little longer and feel like they really got to sink into her special day. So that is how I've decided to tell our wedding story. The morning began waking up in a hotel suite with my maid of honor & sister, Ashley, and my bridesmaids Jessica, Amber and Katrina. The boys had a room on the same floor. Our rehearsal and rehearsal cocktail party had happened the night before so we all stayed in the same hotel as it was just minutes from the venue. I awoke to my husband-to-be delivering a love note to one of my bridesmaids to deliver to me and I began the day so calm. Calm - with happy butterflies all a flutter in my stomach - so when our room service was delivered (I LOVE room service, its one of those little luxuries I adore about travel.) I couldn't eat much of my omelette or fruit. I did however, manage to have some champagne with the girls that morning though. Once we started getting ready we sunk into the rhythm of the morning and time just flew by. We put on a mix of wedding tunes I had loaded into my iPhone for this special occasion (think every romantic comedy wedding soundtrack blended with traditional wedding songs and that was our eclectic wedding mix, haha) My bridesmaid Jessica took me to the salon to have my hair done once breakfast was complete and my vows were finalized and on the way back to the hotel we bought out every cake pop Starbucks had (pre-gluten free days) and of course I got my "Bride" latte for the day. Once back in the room, my sister Ashley did my makeup and I finished it off with a pale pink gloss. Then it was time to get into my dress! My dress was super special. as it was one of the first things we bought for the wedding. And it was totally not planned that way. After Mr. Charming proposed in October 2010, my mom wanted to take me wedding dress shopping when I got back from Florida for fun and to "just look". Well, as an emotional, in love, newly engaged woman, I knew just looking was going to be hard, but I also knew I wanted to take the time to find the right dress. I'm one of the Monica Geller-wedding binder-dreamer types from way back so I thought I knew everything I wanted to a T. But then, your real wedding day approaches, and as I prayed for God to guide our day and not plan it by my own visions, it transformed from everything I thought I wanted to everything I didn't even know could exist. It was picture perfection and God's presence was in every little detail. Back to the dress. My mom took me to a dress shop Fall of 2010 (our wedding was September 2011) and I tried on a few dresses, one or two maybe, and then I put it on. The dress. As I stepped out of the dressing room in the dress I would be married in, my mom and I looked at each other and instantly started to cry. This was it. This was THE dress. My dress. Problem was, I hadn't even sat down to begin the budget with Mr. Charming as we planned to pay for the wedding ourselves. And then, my mom looked at me and smiled and said that she had planned for a "just in case moment' just like this and bought me my dream dress. It's what movies and bridal reality shows are made of people. My mom is one classy lady and I am forever grateful for her. Dress or no dress, she brought my wedding so much joy. I loved every detail about my dress.From the corseted top and intricate swarovski beads to the special moment my sister and I had as she tied me into it, I felt like a princess. It had a long train, covered in sparkling beads and I decided to go without a veil and just use accessories in my hair. I wanted to SEE my groom at the end of the aisle so I went again the veil tradition. And best of all - it was COMFORTABLE! I also loved every detail about that morning. From time spent with my girls, to visiting my niece who I hadn't seen in almost 20 years, to just the love that surrounded us all in those moments. We laughed, we cried, we sang, we danced and we celebrated that I would soon be walking down the aisle to my HUSBAND! My girls wore chocolate brown satin strapless gowns and my sister, my MOH, wore a mocha colored one that was gathered and gorgeous. When choosing our colors my "dream binder of the past" showed crimson and silver. But God led us to a natural, rustic palette that celebrated the earth and His creations. Brown, white, sage and mocha just fit then and it still fits today with the path God had led us on and who He has led us to become. Stay tuned for the following posts in the series.
If you are married what was your favorite "getting ready" moment? I ADORE FALL. So much so that it must be screamed in all caps. Just a few of the reasons I love fall:
My friends & I were just talking about how this season we are intentionally setting our hearts on community. Time with friends. Celebrating and doing life together. This weekend, to celebrate the Fall kickoff, Foster Farms was kind enough to sponsor a little party for us! This allowed me to enjoy many of my favorite Fall activities, like good food, fashion and spending time with friends & family. A friend of ours just had a baby, so a big group of us got together for games, grub and loving on little baby C. This is a sponsored post. I received free product & monetary compensation from Foster Farms in exchange for writing this review. Although this post is sponsored, all opinions, as well as the photography, are my own. Since we attended a Kick-Off to Fall Fall/Football party I found it fitting to do a fashionable spin on a referee ensemble, and baby C (along with my brother in law, aka, the Baby Whisperer) looked adorbs in his Purdue jersey. I'm excited for Fall for Nosh & Nurture as well, as we will be taking a lot of travel writing adventures & getting elbow deep in gluten-free flours as we bring you all some delicious new recipes. Mr. Charming even has a few up his sleeve he's been wanting to experiment with that are grain-free, gluten-free, everything-but-deliciousness free for all of us. So I'm excited to see him don his proverbial apron (because real men don't need real aprons) and whip up something yummy. The food serves was a delicious mix of gluten-free entrees, appetizers and desserts as most of our crew is either gluten-free, dairy-free or other dietary challenge so its always nice to have a lot of options. One of the most popular treats were the Foster Farm's gluten-free corn dogs we cooked up. Though not grain-free (hence, the corn) they are gluten-free and kid-friendly for those who tolerate corn. For mom's looking for other gluten-free lunch & dinner ideas for their kiddos, Foster Farms also makes gluten-free chicken strips and nuggets, available at select stores. The adults loved the crispy golden batter and sweet honey flavor and appreciated the high quality hotdogs that Foster Farm uses. The kiddos couldn't tell they were gluten-free and loved them as much as the real thing, and for the tinier fingers we cut the corn dogs into rounds for easy eating & dipping. I rarely eat potato, because me and nightshades aren't the best of friends, but sometimes I will splurge. Usually once a month I'll get a side of fries when we go to a gluten-free eatery on our travels or I'll nosh on coconut oil kettle chips. Which is what we had at the party. #nomnom I made little snack bags into "footballs" and the kiddos thought it was a fun way to serve up their corn dog side dish. I was also proud of my DIY-ing, as I'm not the usual crafter. But you know, tape & bags... not that hard. haha. If you enjoy gluten-free Foster Farms at any of your fall festivities make sure to tag @NoshandNurture and use #FFGlutenFree so we can see all your yummy creations! I'm looking forward to many more parties this season & would love to know your favorite dishes to serve! Or recipes you'd like to see this season! Leave it in the comments below & have a fantastic fall! |
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