Diary of a Juice Cleanse

So the juice cleanse is complete (complete as in finished, not complete as in properly executed and fulfilled). Here's my report:

Day 1:
7:30am- green juice. Trying hard to finish the 16 oz bottle, that seemed more like a 64 oz serving since it took an hour to finish, and a lot of deep breathing and encouragement from friends.

8:30am- starving and caffeine withdrawal headache already setting in.

9:30am- yellow juice. Tasty, refreshing and pretty energizing.

10:00am- hungry again, delicious yellow juice already a distant memory.

12:00pm- spicy lemonade. Odd, reminiscent of guacamole with an unpleasant after taste, yet the will to cleanse kicks in and I finish it.

2:00pm- foul mood. Stomach churning, cubes of cheese calling to me from the fridge. I eat one, then two. Damn it.

6:00pm- white juice. Smells good, tastes sweet, then cashew grinds come to the surface and its like drinking chalk. 7 ounces in and I'm done.

7:00pm- 6oz glass of Clos du Bois Reserve Cabernet (2008- not as good as 2007, but it will do).


Day 2:
7:00am- cant do the green juice. Drink the yellow juice instead.

9:30am- fight through hunger, drink spicy lemonade while gagging.

12:30pm- Greek salad is the special in the work salad bar. Sold.

1:00pm- 2 more cubes of cheese to wash down the delicious Greek salad.

7:00pm- more wine. no more juice.

Day 3:
Total abandonment. Extra large latte. Bacon and egg and cheese. Next time I'll invest in a new pair of boots instead of spending $225 on juice.

Color-Fall

Summer calls for bright colors, and the Little Black Dress gets pushed toward the back of the closet. Then comes September, when the burnt-orange quilted vest and sage green cords step back into rotation, and you can go many weeks without a pedicure thanks to disappearance of sandals from the daily lineup. (Vests and cords alone make me want to drive east and spend the day at Duck Walk or one of my favorite Long Island vineyards, sipping wine and enjoying the sight of women in their weekend hats). Though I love wearing my LBD, I love jewel tones and mustard yellow even more. And this includes accessories more than ever!

A pop of  fall color updates a classic Louis Speedy Bag

And finally, its cool enough to wear my new yellow Vince Camuto loafers!

Color-fall is off and running.

DIY

After spending Tucker's nap time reading interior design magazines this weekend (such a luxury I took for granted in my pre-baby days) I decided my den was not complete. Some ideas from the Right Bank helped me with execution and color. Once I start a project, everyone knows I wont stop until its finished (this includes the 100+ piece wine rack I mentioned last month, which required working into the night, and then caused such adrenaline that even upon completion, sleep was not possible). After dabbling with gray and green in the living room, it seems to have emerged in multiple spots throughout the house now.

 Sherwin Williams paint in Lazy Gray, Pottery barn candle holders, Harper's citron dress picture, Home Goods frames

Ambre Diptyque candles

Target zebra rug (Zebra reminds me of my grandmother), Amazon citron pillow covers, Pottery Barn couch lamp & tables

Some of my college friends are coming to see the house for the first time this weekend, having company always adds energy to a new home that remains after the guests have left. Good company is the best way to decorate.

Print to be Tied

Unlike many people who buy things that they know will pair with most things in their closet, I like to buy spontaneous pieces, that I have no idea exactly what I will wear with, but that catch my eye and make me excited upon mere sight. Case in point: these Dolce Vita loafers.

I have a diagnosed weakness for loafers- driving, smoking, oxford, spectator, the list goes on. So the navy canvas print with cognac leather trim and tassel didn't require much thought upon sighting at Bloomies. If you like the menswear style but shy away from print, these are another nice option from the new fall arrivals. (The DV line, akin to Michael Kors' 'Micahel' collection, (known in the biz as diffusion lines), is a nice alternative with styles all priced near or under $100). And these are much more practical for daycare pick up!

Aged and Confused

At Starbucks with Tuck, I happily sipped an iced latte while he napped in the stroller. An older woman smiled at the sight of me, a phenomenon this article so accurately explains, and couldn't help herself. 'What a cute baby!' she exclaimed. I smiled politely, continued enjoying my beverage. 'He can't be yours,' she stated, more to herself than for my benefit, but of course requiring me to respond (in law, there is a rule of evidence that allows lack of a reply to be used against you to prove guilt, if a reasonable person in your situation would have replied to contradict the assertion). 'Yes, he is mine,' I said politely, not lingering with my eye contact to convey the sentiment that I am enjoying a rare moment of peace, and do not wish to engage in further conversation with you. She looked surprised, ruffled, and then could not take a hint and be on her way. 'But you're so young,' she countered, not to compliment me, but more to buck at what she now was beginning to find unbelievable, and perhaps deviant. She forced me to pause, sigh, and look up once again. 'I'm 30' I stated, without elaboration, at which point she seemed satisfied that she was not witnessing a filming of some disturbing reality show or whatever atrocity she thought might be going on (she clearly does not watch MTV's 16 and Pregnant). She smiled politely, and continued away to order her coffee concoction.

I suppose the drug store brand eye cream I've been forced to substitute for my beloved Clinique in recent months does a good enough job. (However it's also quite possible that the woman has not upgraded her eyeglass prescription all that recently and is perhaps due for a visit to the nearest optometrist.)

Bare Necessities

While gearing up for the juice cleanse, I've tried to par down on those foods I consider daily necessities. I have been able to eliminate very little (frozen yogurt, my afternoon cube of cheese, Friday night pizza (still on the fence on the latter, lets see how tonight goes)), and have come to accept the following as staples I am unwilling to part with to make for an ultra effective juice cleanse:

1. Coffee with half and half (I loathe skim milk and would rather drink the green juice all day long).

2. Splenda (it goes on everything from my morning grapefruit to my afternoon hibiscus tea).

3. Wine (try raising a baby and giving up alcohol. I don't recommend it).

Going to the gym more than twice a week is a physical impossibility, so I've taken to activities that I can do without getting up an earlier than Tucker dictates, or lying to get out of work early to hit the treadmill. (This week I dug up and replanted shrubs for 2 hours one day after work while Tucker dug his own hole along side of me. Afterwards, my triceps and forearms ached for 3 days and I felt satisfied).


Life is short so smile today, and do something that makes you happy. My heart is with my dear friend and Gamma Phi big sister Sam Schmitt for her loss, Peter Schmitt will be remembered always by not just his close friends and family, but by all his constituents that he worked so hard for.

A Letter for you, Tylenol

Dear makers of Infant Tylenol,

Well now we're not even calling it Tylenol anymore, right? Anyway, thank you for making something that helps the screaming stop when its 2:00 am, mother works full time, father is crippled with exhaustion from being on call all week, and the beautiful wood floors (that seemed like a great idea upon home purchase) make the wailing reverberate throughout the house with fury.

However, since your product is designed for babies in pain, you can anticipate it will be administered by frazzled parents, growing desperate for relief as they approach your bottle. The nifty 'accurate dosing' suction function is not such a great idea at all. Where there is suction there is pressure, and this only increases the chances of releasing the syringe too soon, spewing medication all over the bathroom and screaming baby. Nor is the purple dye you use to make it appear like juice a clever addition. Again, knowing the condition poor parents will be in when using your product, you might imagine it being dark, desperation over taking proper motor skills, and the high likelihood that your purple liquid will end up squirting out of this suction hole, onto new granite counter tops (and all over mom's $35 American Apparel t-shirt she was forced to sleep in because she hasn't had time to do laundry and all her 'sleep' shirts are actually dirty) and leaving stains only discovered in the light of daybreak, which at this point is too late to clean thoroughly. (Not to mention if your medication can stain granite, what does it do to my baby's stomach? We will leave that thought for another time, for I am too exhausted to add worrying about the health hazards of Acetaminophen to the list this morning).

Thank you,

Working Mom of teething infant