It’s that time of year again – where we round up and reminiscence about the past year. Instagram started this a few years back and they collate your #BestNine pictures based on the number of “most liked” But this year, there was a change in the algorithm and let’s just say I wasn’t in agreement with Instagram’s “top nine”. So I created one of my own. While I value all of my followers on Instagram and their “likes” I really feel like some pictures were more important and I wanted to highlight them here with a story. Additionally, there was one picture that was featured twice in their top nine and it was only used as a second post with a compilation of other photos – so maybe it was a liked picture, but maybe it was the other pictures in that post that you all really liked. Right? Who knows? What I do know is that I kept the featured pictures the same – a few sceneries, a few of me, and a few of my food. Did you agree with your “top nine”?
It also happens to be that time of the year when people make resolutions for the new year. I heard somewhere that “losing weight” and “going to the gym” were the two most popular resolutions. The diet commercials and ads are definitely popping up. Not here to spoil things, but your body detoxes on it’s own. Really. No fad diets are needed. Instead your aim is to eat consistently, and give your body what it needs. As a dietitian I teach people how to make lifestyle changes, NOT encouraging people with all those ridiculous elimination diets and weight loss gimmicks. Nope, not my sch-tick. Nor should it be yours either. As a dietitian, I want everyone, me included, to make changes towards better health. Here’s my year in review and instead of resolutions, my intentions for the new year. – all things to make me healthier, mind, body, and soul.
Dietetics. – This past year with work, everything has been status quo. We’re still doing #BaptistHealthy videos, although moving forward we’ll now be calling them #EasyEats. #BaptistHealthy will now incorporate other components of health and not just the food. I’m still doing presentations left and right. And we just wrapped up our first year of the Diabetes Prevention Program, a program near and dear to my heart. We have one launching again next year – message me if you know someone that has prediabetes and that could benefit from the program. And this past year I did a FB Live on Diabetes. You can watch it here:
The most exciting thing within the field of nutrition that happened this past year was that I was appointed to be an Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics Media Spokesperson. Talk about honored and humbled at the opportunity to represent dietitians all over the U.S. to help give accurate and sound nutrition advice. I’ve had quite a few print articles over these past six months and look forward as my journey continues. Excited to learn, grow, and have even more opportunities in the year to come!
I’m still loving what I do and doing what I love, but I must say over this past year I’ve been in the kitchen more and more. I’m creating recipes and also trying to style my pictures a little bit more. Which leads me to my next reflection/intention for this past year/year to come:
Baking/Cooking/Food Photography – I took an online food photography course this past year. I was quite busy at work over the summer when it was being offered, but I still took the plunge. It’s something I’ve been wanting to do for awhile and knew I needed a few tips/tricks in order to do so. I edited a few pictures and know that it’s going to take some time in order to improve. For the most part I still take pictures with my phone, although I did upgrade and get a note 10 that has the wide angle and close up, but regardless I’m going to need to take some time still to practice. It is true what they say, practice makes perfect. Or in my case, practice simply helps me improve. This is one of the best photos I think I’ve ever taken and sadly it didn’t get enough “likes” to make it to the top nine. Clearly it needed to be included:
I’m still on the “everything homemade” journey. I think one of the toughest things I’ve made this year was the kouign amann – it’s a cross between a croissant and caramel roll. I’’m still more determined than ever to master laminated dough. It’s a must try this next year sometime in the winter preferably and not the summer here in Miami. I also made rugelach, malasadas (fried type doughnut), homemade ice cream sandwiches, banana pudding, dacquoise (dessert cake made with meringue and buttercream layers)! And while my homemade journey has included many sweets, I also made homemade ricotta, homemade french onion soup, dumplings and more! The ricotta made IG’s top nine. And when I tell you homemade ricotta is so simple to make that you’ll never buy store bought again, believe me. It’s a must make!
And while my journey of all things homemade led to really difficult creations, I also stepped up my game and tried to bring you all tried and true recipes via the blog for you to start, with the simple: perfectly hard-boiled eggs, brown rice, sauteed kale, sugar snap peas, and more! If you’re looking for a few simple veggies and/or a salad dressing, there’s that too! Hoping to continue to create new content this next year! I spend a lot of time in the kitchen and it’s finally paying off for me to create some of my own recipes!
Travel – I looked back over my pictures for 2019 and hadn’t realized how much I actually did travel. Chicago, Sanibel, California – PCH highway, NY, Philly, the Keys – I was a traveling women! I love that it wasn’t really planned but yet really did happen. I do love to travel but at times it’s hard to do solo. But I will say I have the traveling bug, so more to come in 2020!
Chicago was one of the most memorable trips only because this kicked off my Academy Media training. I traveled there in early April but yet I couldn’t disclose that I was selected because the appointment didn’t happen till June of this year. Running along Lake Michigan was epic and definitely something I’ll look forward to again this year (yes, I’ll be going back for more training!)
Sanibel – my dad’s birthday is in April and we went for a weekend trip getaway. He loves collecting seashells and the west coast of Florida is known for their shells. I hadn’t been to Sanibel since I was a kid. The west coast beaches are definitely where it’s at. Sunrises are amazing and the seashells are too – talk about walking along the beach and losing track of time. Great quick getaway.
California – San Francisco to San Diego along the PCH highway. I planned this trip super late. And while I wanted to do a trip to Paris and Barcelona, the prices were just too steep. Enter a local trip in the U.S.A. and the PCH highway drive has always been on my bucket list. Consider it checked off! Every city had something to offer along the way – whether it was the sights or the food, this trip was truly memorable. I secured my rooms and that was it before leaving. Each night I would plan what I would do the following day – I consider this a little spur of the moment for me (normally I’m more organized and have a plan) but it turned out to be the best thing for me, teaching me that the best things in life can be unplanned. Epic trip I will forever remember.
NY/Jersey – one of my good friends moved to New Jersey this past year. And while I had good intentions of visiting her sooner, it ended up being almost a whole year later (I blame that on my friend Sam who took forever to coordinate. Love you Sam!) We visited NY each day and Rachel really did have an itinerary that allowed us to see most parts of the city and not making it too much all in one day. While the sights were epic – the Brooklyn bridge connects to Manhattan Sam (inside joke) – the best part was catching up with Sam and Rachel. While distance might separate us, I know we’ll be friends forever.
Philly – our annual nutrition conference was in Philly this year. The last time I went to the conference it was actually in Philly. This time around I didn’t do as much exploring as I had a few more events with the Academy – the days are jam packed with learning, dinners, and socials. But this trip was great to network and also include a little exploring. Looking forward to Indy next year (although I’m not sure what there is to do in Indy? Any recommendations are welcomed).
Philly – our annual nutrition conference was in Philly this year. The last time I went to the conference it was actually in Philly. This time around I didn’t do as much exploring as I had a few more events with the Academy – the days are jam packed with learning, dinners, and socials. But this trip was great to network and also include a little exploring. Looking forward to Indy next year (although I’m not sure what there is to do in Indy? Any recommendations are welcomed).
I heard someone say the other day that they didn’t pick their camera up at all during some of their trips because they were being present. I beg to disagree with that. I took pictures on my trip and had my phone/camera with me at all times. But what I didn’t do? Log onto email, social media, etc. That allowed me to be present and not worried about posting a new picture. I take my pictures so I can remember (I have a bad memory and pictures help me to remember being in that very moment). So here’s to more travel in 2020 and more adventures (& learning) along the way!
We used to have an ongoing competition in the family to see who could eat more exotic fruits and veggies – we would total the number and see who had the most at the end of the year. I’ve let that competition fall to the wayside but as I was looking back through my pictures for this past year I realized I had tried some fruits that I never thought I would ever try. So maybe 2020 I’ll try to compete against myself. It’s always my intent to include more fruits and veggies, but living here in South Florida we have so many different tropical fruits available to us, I made it my aim to try to include as many as possible. Guanabana, mangosteen, black sapote, canistel – definitely going to have to see what new ones there are to try!
I mentioned earlier that I took an online food photography class. I have a professional camera and I upgraded my phone, so now all that’s left is to find time to practice using the tools. I additionally got a few background props along with a few props to use for the photos. I also have a tripod now (still in the bag, but waiting to be put to use!) I’m always trying to improve and grow along the way. And while my own official podcast never happened, I have been on a few podcasts this past year – I can’t share them here as they were shared internally with the companies I partnered with (thanks Ultimate Software!) but still am toying with the idea of starting my own. We shall see. But the other area I’m working on is still all of my recipe development. I’m spending more and more time in the kitchen trying to up my game if you will for recipes to release in the new year. Any requests, let me know! Trying to keep the simple simple and get more people cooking and in the kitchen!
The other pictures I noticed in my feed from this past year were all about the trends: probiotics, mushroom everything, and plant-based “burgers” which got me thinking – what will the trends for 2020 be? I’m thinking it will still be more about the “all things plants” movement and definitely hoping another vegetable will make it’s way to being more popular than cauliflower. While I do love cauliflower I’m not loving that it’s now been turned into a flour. Let’s leave the cauliflower whole and as is, no need to start processing it. Please and thanks. What other food trends do you think will appear in 2020?
So as you can see, my intentions for 2020 do not involve the gym or weight loss. And while I know that these are actual resolutions that people choose, I like to think that they’re choosing these as an intent to become healthier. For me health involves the mind, body, and soul. I intend to work on my food photography, recipe development, travel and be present in the moment, and continue to taste more exotic fruit! You will see me discussing developing healthy habits in some of my blog posts – so to those choosing the resolutions of “weight loss” make an actual goal of how you want to become healthier by losing this said weight – maybe it’s that you’ll start cooking more at home and eating out less. Maybe it’s that you’ll commit to walking at least 10 minutes at lunch every day (and see if you’re able to do more after work) – all with the intent to become healthier (and maybe the end goal will be weight loss). I’ve said it again and again, I think we put too much weight on weight. Hopefully you’ve perused my page and you can be inspired by some of the things I say, have support from the posts that I make and who knows, even make a recipe of mine in the new year.
It’s hard to limit my intentions to just one word. But as I’ve been writing this blog, this quote is what came to mind:
““Never stop learning; for when we stop learning, we stop growing.”
— Loyal ‘Jack” Lewman”
As 2019 comes to an end and 2020 begins (a whole new decade!), it’s a great time to reflect. I look back on the past so that my view going forward can be that much clearer. Be present. Breathe it all in. Enjoy the ride and keep growing.
