IT IS OFFICIALLY 2018!
HAPPY NEW YEARS EVERYBODY!!!!
Can you believe it? We’ve made it a full year, a full orbit around the Sun, 365 days. What a blessing!! What a blessing to be here currently in this time period…A time where we can make fun activated charcoal smoothies, pack it in with antioxidant rich blueberries, fiber filled bananas, creamy almond milk, and nutrient jammed kale, and call it ‘The Dark Side’ on a vegan blog that can be reached anywhere in the world via the internet. I know I’m being a tad funny/sarcastic, but it is Truly amazing the time that we live in. Praise God.
Meanwhile, my friends and I had a super fun New Years Eve party at our place. We played Uno, my own version of ‘Adulting’ Scattergories, Apples to Apples, and Brawlhalla. We watched the Time Square concert live, and I set up a photoshoot with a professional lighting set up 5 minutes prior to midnight and got an amazing shot of us all at the midnight celebration while we shot off confetti cannons and rattling noise makers. See below 🙂
Bomb Cyclone Snowday:
Then after this, we got a ‘bomb cyclone’ a week later, aka a lot of snow and a lot of wind, kind of like a mini blizzard. And this was fun, because both Tim and I got to take a snowday, seeing as how we physically could not move our cars or drive anywhere…they did not plow even the main highway until sunset, it was literally covered in white snow, I don’t even think you could tell where the sidewalk started or where the road ended. And it was COLD! I mean like 6F and 25-60mph winds! It was brutal! We tried sledding with Ashka in the backyard, but it was not the right snow consistency to really enjoy it properly, although Ashka was more than happy to pull us down the hill. Tim did some snowboarding down the driveway all the way down to the main road (because it was Covered in a few inches of snow!). So that was cool to be able to do, but still oh so cold to withstand the temperatures and the wind gusts! If you want to see videos, I posted some on my personal Instagram: ninamariegirod. Here is one of Ashka playing with a stick in the snow, here is one with me trying to sled with Ashka, this is tim snowboarding, and this was the current situation.
Here are a few pics of Tim and I with Ashka on the first snowfall ever, right after Thanksgiving:
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The Dark Side Smoothie:
Well back on topic, here is a delicious recipe that was inspired by By Chloe’s ‘Black Out’ smoothie. Except I added some crunchy Kashi cereal, coconut whipped cream, and goji berries on top! So good!! It helps to hide the taste of the healthy Kale or Spinach I added in too ;P.
Technically, activated charcoal is not ideally suppose to be taking with food because charcoal has the ability to take out certain toxins (which is amazing for poisonings, like a snake bite, or alcohol overdose), but it is also known to remove the antioxidant properties of things like garlic, and antibiotics. So it is great if you are feeling an upset stomach, or if your dog has diarrhea (I’ve used it plenty of times on Ashka and it has worked noticeably well), it is pretty helpful. Tims father uses it when he feels a cold coming on. Normally, a small spoonful in fresh squeezed lemon juice and water will do the trick for us humans (just charcoal and water for dogs though, no lemons!). But regardless, once in a while it is fun to make a black smoothie with charcoal! It still can be helpful in clearing out some toxins in your system. I hope you enjoy it! Feel free to change it up with some new toppings too 🙂
Ingredients
- SMOOTHIE:
- 1 Banana
- 1 Handful - Kale or Spinach
- 2 Tbsp - Activated Charcoal
- 2 Tbsp - Honey
- 1 Cup - Almond or Coconut Milk (chilled)
- 1/2 Cup - Blueberries
- -
- TOPPINGS:
- Coconut Whipped Cream
- Sprinkle of Goji Berries
- 1 Handful - Cereal
Instructions
- Add all of the smoothie ingredients into a blender, and blend until smooth and creamy. Add more milk or other ingredients as needed.
- Top with toppings, and enjoy chilled 🙂