Eudaimonia: A Contented State of Being Happy and Healthy and Prosperous

Do you ever have days that are so busy that they seem to be over before they even begin. I recently had one of those days, and I, seriously, went to bed in the same outfit that I had woke up in. I remember asking myself, "Is this really what life is all about? Is life just an endless amount of things to get done? Days that go by in a blur of bussy-ness, and then end, unintentionally passed out on the couch. I was sick of all the guilt and uneasiness I felt. As a mother of 3, life can be extremely busy. Normal, everyday tasks such as trying to get my work outs scheduled seemed nearly impossible. But that's when the guilt crept in because I felt morally torn between the little time I had to spend with my family or my over all health and wellness. The uneasiness showed up in all aspects of my life. When I got too busy with work I felt guilty that I wasn't spending enough "quality" time with my kids. Heck, then throw in trying to find alone time with my husband. Between all of life's chores and caring for the children, this all seemed to be, pretty much, impossible. The thought of taking what little time I could find for myself, instead of using it elsewhere, brought on a sense of guilt. As all you mothers can relate, after getting everything I need done, I was lucky if I was able to wash my hair. So I found myself asking, is life just an endless amount of things to get done? I refused to believe this was it. So the next morning I went in search of a solution to find joy in even my craziest of days. It seems that the the older I get the faster my days pass me by. 

People always ask me how I am able to get everything I get done in a day. Honestly, I don't get everything done. I will never get everything I want to get done in my days, but what matters is that I attempt. Doing what I can, when I can, and setting high expectations, puts me WAY further ahead than if I procrastinate just because I know it's going to be a struggle to get all these things finished. The truth is, life is far too short. I want to get the most out of my life. So I went in search of how to find joy in the chaos of being so busy.

It was then when I found a video by Tai Lopez, where he explains about integrating your life. I've put it into play in my life and found it to be very beneficial. The theory behind it is to stop compartmentalizing your life and integrate it. Who made the rule that we had to set aside specific times to work out, to spend time with our kids, to go on date nights, to prepare meals, to dedicate to self development, to go to church on Sundays etc... Don't get me wrong, I understand that all these things are very important and need to get done. But if you schedule out specific times and places for each thing in your life then you are isolating your potential for happiness.

Why can't we integrate our life. I love the concept of making every aspect of my life part of who I am. I never understood why people say not to work with friends and family. Why not surround yourself, everyday, with the people you enjoy being around? Some of my favourite jobs were because of the people I was surrounded by. I have begun to integrate many things in my life. I often, work out with my children so that I'm spending quality time with my kids while taking care of my own over-all health, instead of leaving them for hours everyday to go a class.  I go for walks while listening to an audio-book (sometimes I actually read while walking). I cook supper with my husband as a date night, or with my kids as hang-out time. Why does it matter what your doing for date night, isn't it about the time spent with that person. One of Jason's and my favourite things to do together is cook. At night we sit together, he reads to me while I fold laundry. These are the times I cherish with my husband. I long for time with him not the things we are doing. 

So I challenge you guys to try changing your perspective around compartmentalizing your life. Personally, this has allowed me to bring joy to every aspect of my life. I hope you choose to bring it to yours. In the comment section below, I would love to hear how you integrate things in your life.

Yellow Thai Curry

Seriously, who doesn't love Yellow Thai Curry. It's creamy, coconutty, sweet and savoury.  And , yes, I realize that coconutty is not a word, but i think it should be, lol. This curry can be made spicy or not depending on the curry powder you choose. Making curry is always so much fun. The bold flavours in this dish can make it intimidating to make, but I think the bold flavours make it much more fail-proof. lol Most curries are, usually, made from curry pastes, but who has time to make curry paste and then a meal. I like to keep my cooking times down to about 30 mins. So here is my easy, vegan, fail-proof Yellow Thai Curry. Easy as pie, yellow thai!

What you will need:

• 1 large sweet potato
• 5 medium carrots
• 1 medium onion
• 1 to 2 inch piece of ginger
• 1 shallot
• 5 cloves garlic
• 2 stalks lemon grass
• 8 oz can sliced bamboo shoots
• 2 cups coconut milk ( I used canned, I find it creamier)
• 2 cups water
• 2 tbsp coconut sugar 
• 3 tbsp yellow curry powder
• 2 tbsp grapeseed oil
• salt and pepper

The how to:

1. Peel and small-dice the garlic and ginger. In a mortar and pestle crush together the garlic and ginger into a textured paste. If you don't have a mortar and pestle just mince them together.
2. Peel sweet potato and cut into bite size pieces.
3. Cut onion in half and then into sixths.
4. Small-dice shallot 
5. Cut ends off of lemongrass and with back of chef knife bruise lemon grass (see picture above). Bruising releases the aromatic oils. Cut into 5 inch pieces. Be sure to keep these larger because they are not meant to be eaten. The lemongrass is there to add flavour and is to be taken out after curry is cooked. 
6. Drain and rinse bamboo shoots.
7.  Heat grapeseed oil on medium/high heat, add onion and shallots, sauté until lightly caramelized.
8. Add ginger and garlic paste. Sauté for about 2 mins.  
9. Take pan off heat.  Stir in yellow curry powder until you smell a strong aroma.
10. Bring pan back to heat. Add coconut milk and stir until blended. 
11. Add coconut sugar, potato, carrots and lemon grass. Add just enough water so everything is almost covered and stir.
12. Cover and reduce heat to a steady simmer for 10 mins.
13. Add bamboo shoots and recover until potatoes are fork tender. Approximately 5 minutes.
14. Add your salt and pepper to taste. 

Eat by it self or served on a bed of rice. I personally love it on cauliflower rice.... Yummy!!!! If you like this recipe please like and share. Feed back is greatly appreciated in the comment section below. Have a fantastic day!