Raising Raw *Puppies* ;)

OMGoddess, the Monarch tribe keeps on expanding - we just received two tiny puppies into our fold in the last week, bringing our four-legged population to 6 horses and 2 puppies now ;) The puppies are two 9-week old brothers called Baloo and Gypsy Boots, some kind of black-lab mix it seems and they are ridiculously gorgeous and loveable :)
Everyone seems to be getting on well so far, though the horses were a little apprehensive about the sudden appearance of two carnivores at their home... ;) Personally I am amazed how much I'm learning from these little guys already - extra-present presence, compassion, love, gratitude all flowing... ;) Here are some pictures from the day when the little pups arrived:

We are so blessed ;)

On March the 21st I was blessed with:

1 quart water
cup of orange juice
3 cups watermelon juice
little fruit salad of strawberries, banana and mango
shared cucumber salad with Mr. M; salad stuffed into nori sheets or spread on raw "bread" with a little Sea Clear and fresh almond butter, followed by a few pruuuuuunes
mug of herbal tea
water of a young coconut

Good news today for anyone who isn't able to be at the Longevity Now Conference in person in April - you can now watch the whole thing by live webcast and then watch the playbacks for free for a full three months after the event - wow, it's like being at the event without being at the event - much more chillaxed ;) ...and there's currently a $50 discount on the full four day webcast package, valid until March the 28th... You can check out the details and get signed up for this webcast service HERE.
The Longevity Now crew also say they have a handful of tickets left for the actual event in Costa Mesa - if you'd love to snatch one of those up last minute, jump on over to LongevityTickets.com and ENJOY :)


on March the 22nd I enjoyed:

1 quart water
½ cup orange juice
little fruit salad of strawberries, banana and mango
35 chlorella tablets
shared cucumber salad with Mr. M; salad stuffed into nori sheets or spread on raw "bread" with a little Sea Clear and fresh almond butter, followed by a few pruuuuuunes
mug of herbal tea
water of a young coconut


on March the 23rd I appreciated:

1 quart water
½ cup orange juice
1 quart greeeeeeen juice mixed with pineapple juice
½ cup carrot juice
a mango and a little "finger" banana
shared cucumber salad with Mr. M; salad stuffed into nori sheets or spread on raw "bread" with a little Sea Clear and fresh almond butter, followed by a few dried Hunza apricots
mug of herbal tea
water of a young coconut

We have a very fun radio interview set up for later today - our dear friend Kate Magic is going to be "Demystifying Unusual Raw Foods" for us - have you ever wondered what to do with chia seeds, lucuma, Etherium Gold or shilajit? Well wonder no more ;) Ms. Magic shall help bring us clarity about all these foods and more on this call that starts at 6pm Eastern, 3pm Pacific - get the call details over at http://www.TheRawFoodWorldRadioShow.com and enjoy :)

All love,
Angelalalalalaaaaaaaaa. xxx

Hitting Rock Bottom...

In case you missed the article in my newsletter this week on "Hitting Rock Bottom", here's a recap ;)

It's that time of year when many people are considering "New Year's Resolutions"... Yet as most of us recognise, the majority of these well-intended "Resolutions" seem to fall by the wayside a few days or weeks further down the line... I was considering this pattern recently and there are a few thoughts I'd like to share on this topic.
It seems to me that many people find perceived "big" shifts in their lives very challenging to navigate, or even small shifts for that matter ;) Let's say for example that someone wants to shift to eating raw from a Standard American Diet (SAD)...this can seem like a *HUGE* leap in lifestyle on so many levels and even if the person takes steps forward such as removing processed foods from their house and stocking up on raw items, carving those new neural pathways to actually begin to consistently consume those raw items instead of going back to the old favourites can seem like a massive leap and oftentimes just "too" draining in the wider context of a busy modern life.
If someone is already feeling stressed, wrung out, fatigued, unfulfilled in their working life and/or their relationships and so on, the perceived *EFFORT* involved in finding the willingness and energy to engage in what seems like a totally new way of life can feel like WAY too much to manage and so people throw up the flag and scurry back to their nearest fast food restaurant, sliding through that oh-so-familiar neural pathway instead, satisfying those twisted tastebuds, numbing themselves out with those processed food choices...and so the cycle continues...


on January the 3rd I enjoyed:

1 quart water
water of a young coconut
3 cups watermelon/orange juice
a dragon fruit
3 cups greeeeeeeen juice mixed with pineapple juice
a papaya
water of 2 young coconuts
handful of chlorella tablets
mug of reishi/shilajit/ormus tea
1 cup water


Physiologically and psychologically there is often SO much tying us to our food choices, as discussed at length in my book "Raw Emotions". What I find interesting to observe is that for so many of us, it seems to take us hitting "Rock Bottom" before we are finally willing to access the energy to make sincere shifts in our lives...e.g. if someone who has been eating SAD for decades and consistently struggling with any attempts to improve their intake suddenly learns that they have developed cancer in their body, they may *finally* be willing to direct their energy into improving their intake, making some healthier choices, taking some of those supplements and herbs that have been sitting on their shelves for months and so on...(though of course, many people won't even find the willingness to initiate shifts in their lives despite facing a health challenge such as cancer...)
Hitting "Rock Bottom" can frequently give someone the impetus to finally shift...and *yet*, how much easier life could be for so many people if they would choose to direct their energy into embracing healing shifts in their lives *before* they ever reach Rock Bottom... I do feel that as the raw food movement and health awareness in general keeps on expanding, people can potentially find it easier to find the motivation and support to eat more healthily - there are so many groups to connect to, books, DVDs and other resources to refer to these days - we can collectively inspire each other into taking action NOW rather than allowing our collective health to steadily slide into a pit before we're willing to direct energy into making shifts - together we are so much more powerful than when we are each in our own little bubble of concerns and patterns ;)


on January the 4th I loved:

1 quart water
3 cups watermelon/orange juice
3 cups greeeeeeeen juice mixed with pineapple juice
2 tbsp bee pollen
3 cups greeeeeeeen juice mixed with pineapple juice
water of a young coconut
little bowl of zucchini pasta with basil/cilantro sauce (avocado, lime juice, basil, cilantro, sea salt, garlic), followed by half an AMAZING banana :)
2 cups water


on January the 5th I appreciated:

1 quart water
3 cups watermelon/orange juice
3 cups greeeeeeeen juice mixed with pineapple juice
a dragon fruit
water of a young coconut
little bowl of zucchini pasta with basil/cilantro sauce (avocado, lime juice, basil, cilantro, sea salt, garlic)
mug of reishi/shilajit/ormus tea
2 cups water


SO, how can *you* help others today on a "preventative" path to boosting their health NOW, rather than watching them slide into a pit before dragging themselves out...? Reaching out to help others can of course be very tricky territory to navigate, as we can encounter huge resistance, anger, negativity and more...my suggestion would be to start with someone who you can clearly see is trying to improve their intake and struggling in some way - it might be someone at your local potluck group, maybe someone at your place of work, a family member, whomever comes to mind - see what kind of little offerings of support and assistance you might be able to extend to this person, or co-create together - maybe you plan to have a day making raw goodies together, you invite them over for a meal, lend them a book, take a visit to their house to see how you could together set things up to make it easier for them to make healthier choices and so on - for someone who is struggling, these small acts of support could mean ALL the difference in terms of them feeling more inspired and on track. Then, if they start to really integrate shifts in their own lives, imagine how much they can then go on to help others and so on and so on - the ripple keeps spreading...
Some of us may think "I don't know enough myself to help anyone else" - to this I would suggest that we all, always have *something* to share with others, even if you've only been on a "healthier" path for a week, you're further down the learning curve than someone who just heard abt raw foods today... ;) So, I would love to suggest that we all take a deep healing breath, think of someone in our lives who might LOVE a helping hand on their path today and reach out to offer that support - together we can help to make major shifts feel fun while simultaneously helping so many people in our networks to sidestep the pattern of ever hitting "Rock Bottom"...

Here's to vibrantly healthy beings everywhere - Happy New Year :)

 

All love and vibrations of joy, 

A. Stokes-Monarch. xxx

30 More Participants Wanted for Raw Food Study... ;)

Our dear raw friends Susan and Philip Madeley from the Tree of Life center in Arizona are in the closing stages of completing their Masters programmes in Nutrition under Gabriel Cousens and they could use *YOUR* help :)
They are conducting a study into the health of raw/vegan children under the age of five, for their theses and so far they have 70 participants - they would LOVE 30 more participants...

One lovely intended outcome of this study is to provide a vegan recipe for nursing mothers and babies without access to breast milk - wow :) They have a simple survey that they are asking people to complete to help finalise this work - if you or anyone you know is a vegan parent, please hop on over to http://livingveganchildren.com and fill in the 5-10 minute survey to help support this research and important info on breast milk alternatives in challenging situations.


on July the 8th I loved:

1 quart water
mug of horchata tea
1.5 cups Monarch special: passion fruit, granadilla, mandarin juice
2 cups greeeeeen juice with pineapple juice
2 cups greeeeeeeen juice mixed with pineapple juice
cup of orange/mandarin juice
½ a papaya, a dragon fruit
water of a young coconut
small bowl of energy soup with spirulina coconut crunchies sprinkled on top, followed by a little hand-stirred 'yumpot' of tahini, coconut nectar, chocolate extract, maca
2 cups horchata tea
1 cup water


I just put up a new set of pics from our *beautifully blossoming* garden :) I am SO excited to see the okra flower, the sesame blooms and the gorgeous patch of sunflowers too - we are so blessed - hope you enjoy the pics too :)

http://www.flickr.com/photos/29292390@N08/sets/72157624335706383/

on July the 9th I appreciated:

1 quart water
2 cups greeeeeeeen juice mixed with pineapple juice
a yummy papaya
2 cups greeeeeeeen juice mixed with pineapple juice
2 cups greeeeeeeen juice mixed with pineapple juice
a yummy papaya
2 cups water
little bowl of avocado mushed with sauerkraut and dulse, stuffed into nori sheets, followed by a hand-stirred yumpot of tahini, coconut nectar, chocolate+vanilla extracts, maca
mug of reishi/shilajit/ormus tea
1 cup water


on July the 10th I enjoyed:

1 quart water
mug of horchata tea
½ a papaya
1 cup water
water of a young coconut
2 cups greeeeeeen juice mixed with pineapple juice
yummy shared raw 'taco' meal with neighbours and friends, followed by raw halva balls and samples of dried pineapple
mug of horchata tea
2 cups water


In case you missed the live "2012 and Beyond" interview I did yesterday, you can catch the replay at this link below - it was a fun and interview, covering diverse topics from raw food, world shifts, indigo/crystal children and crop circles to ETs and more - lol ;) ENJOY...

http://www.vimeo.com/13223523

All love and abundant declarations of joy :)
Ms. Stokes-Monarch. xxx

Happy Mamma Earth Day :)

Mmmmmm, so it's the 40th anniversary of "Earth Day" today...how will *you* be celebrating your love of Mamma Earth...? I'll be getting out into our garden planting up lots more lovely veggie seeds... (the leguminous plants are already coming up and so far I've also planted melons, cucumbers, red peppers, tomatoes, nettles, spinach, tatsoi, dill, parsley, fennel, komatsuna, kale, borage, carrots, cabbage, celery root, endive, beetroot, lavender, cornsalad, green purslane and two kinds of salad leaf mixtures - VERY excited :))))
I was reflecting this morning on what I would do if I had access at this point of the game to limitless amounts of money - what would I do with that flow to best aid our planet...? The answer that comes for me is that I would use that money flow to buy up huge tracts of land, then give hectare parcels of land to whoever would *love* to be on that land, growing food, connecting to the Earth, co-creating eco-friendly dwellings and so on...just as outlined in the Anastasia books...this feels to me like it would be *such* a beneficial use of money energy at this juncture - to translate money into land energy, hand stewardship of that land over to those who would *LOVE* to be there and...see how we collectively flourish from there... I am willing to hold energy into that vision and certainly welcome anyone else to join me who sees the value of this possibility too... :))) Here's to Mamma Earth and all who love her :))))


On April the 18th I enjoyed:

1 quart water
water of 1.5 young coconuts
cup of sugarcane juice with lime juice
handful of grapes with a yummmmy cherimoya
2 cups greeeeeen juice with pineapple juice
2 cups greeeeeen smoothie with Mr. M, a delicious dragon fruit
2 cups water
little bowl of avo/banana 'pudding' with maca/ashwaganda/dulse
mug of reishi/shilajit/ormus tea
1 cup water


on April the 19th I loved:

1 quart water
water from a young coconut
slice of pineapple
1.5 cups greeeeen juice mixed with sugarcane juice
cup of greeeeeeeen smoothie: banana, mango, cilantro, lettuce, nettles
little handful of *amazing* home-made coconut 'jerky' strips - WOW :) ½ an avocado with dulse, lime juice and cumin powder
3 cups water
2 cups greeeeeeeen juice mixed with sugarcane juice
amzing Monarch masterpiece meal of some kind of fruity guacamole stuffed in lettuce leaves, with more coconut 'jerky' strips on the side :)
mug of reishi/shilajit/ormus tea
2 cups water


After the two recent raw-friendly festival round-ups I've posted, there's been a final little handful of event notices coming in this week - enjoy ;)

* April 29th * One Day Wood * Hertfordshire, England *

Join 14-year-old Francesca who is on a fabulous mission to plant a whole new wood in one day, with a little help from anyone who'd love to join in - see more at http://www.onedaywood.com.

* May 22nd * East Side Raw - Raw Party * London, England *

Join Kate Magic and other raw yumsters in London for food demos, live music, canapes, elixir shots and more: http://www.raw-action.net/?page_id=198

* August 1st to 22nd * Fruktifest 2010 * Brittany, France *

A 'free' festival celebrating fruits, prana and all things juicy...see all the details at http://www.fructivore.org

...and a little reminder that another wonderful place to see raw event listings is over in the 'Raw News You Can Use' section on Thursdays at The Daily Raw Cafe... ;)


on April the 20th I appreciated:

1 quart water
water of a young coconut
2 cups greeeeen juice mixed with sugar cane juice
2 cups pineapple/grape juice
water of a young coconut
fun shared picnic with friends: chia pudding with fruits, avocado with lime and salt, fresh coconut meat, dried Incan berries...
2 cups water
handful of crazy-yummy coconut 'jerky' strips: spirulina and curry flavours, followed by a beautiful red banana
mug of reishi/shilajit/ormus tea
3 cups water


on April the 21st I enjoyed:

1 quart water
2 cups pineapple/grape juice
slice of watermelon
2 cups greeeeeeen smoothie, handful of grapes
2 cups water
1.5 cups greeeeeen juice
bowl of yummmmmy green 'pudding': avocado, frozen mango, cilantro, lettuce, love
mug of reishi/shilajit/ormus tea
2 cups water

Mmmmmm, as some of you already know, a while back I initiated a raw-food-orientated 'OA/12 Step' list. This list is free for anyone to join and is aimed at those who are interested in both raw foods and 12 Step programmes, such as Overeaters Anonymous (OA). Recently some of the members of that list began holding weekly telephone meetings together on Fridays and they would love to invite any of you who feel drawn, to participate too. The calls are on Fridays at 12 noon Eastern time, 9am Pacific time and there is no cost to participate, other than any standard call charges you may incur. If you'd like to join in, the number to dial is 712-432-3900, then use access code 186262# when prompted. ENJOY :)

All love, light and bright blissings,
Angelalaalaaaaaaaaaaa. xxx

A List of Raw Food Festivals in Summer 2010...

Wow, it seems like it's gradually starting to warm up all over the northern hemisphere now...time to plant seeds, get ready for yummy stone fruits and berries galore aaaaand maybe think about which raw food festivals *you* might love to attend this summer...???

Here is a little summary of all the raw-friendly festivals we've heard about so far for this year - do let us know if there are others you'd love to recommend... :)


* Ongoing, Monthly * LA Raw Bazaar * Los Angeles, California *
Monthly ongoing eclectic raw gatherings in LA with booths, food demos, speakers, live music and more... http://www.larawbazaar.com

* Apr 30th-May 2nd * Space of Love Harvest Festival * Greyton, South Africa *
A weekend of song, dance, harvesting, gardening, learning, visioning, prayer, thanksgiving and celebration. http://spaceoflove.co.za

* May 1st-14th * Raw Food Gathering * Vilcabamba, Ecuador *
This is a 'free' gathering, no entrance fee, no 'structure' - just turn up, meet the tribe, enjoy ;)
http://rawinecuador.ning.com

-------

on April the 9th I enjoyed:

1 quart water
mug of apple/cinnamon tea
3 cups coconut water with phytoplankton and chocolate extract drops
chunk of watermelon
2 cups greeeeeeen mango smoothie from Mr. M with a little spirulina on top
mug of reishi/shilajit/ormus tea
2 cups water
1 cup intense green juice
2 cups greeeeeen smoothie
mug of reishi/shilajit/ormus tea
bowl of yummmmy broccoli salad: broccoli, dulse, tomatoes, avo sauce (avo, oregano, cilantro, lime, salt) with flax crackers, followed by a couple of sapote 'dry-ies'
2 cups water

-------

*May 9th-16th * Eco-Skills Celebration * Hampshire, England *
Eco-skills workshops, music, yurts and tipis, community gathering and fun ;) http://www.ecoskillscelebration.co.uk

* June 11th-13th * Yoga and Raw Food Expo * New York, New York *
Held at the "New Yorker" hotel in NYC, this is an action-packed urban raw event with speakers, yoga classes, booths and more: http://www.nyyogaexpo.com

* June 19th * Simply Raw Festival * Ottawa, Canada *
This fabulous free festivals is one of our favourites ;) An all-day park-based event with talks, booths and lots of love... http://www.simplyraw.ca

* July 2nd-4th * Fresh Food Festival * Lolland, Denmark
Fresh fruits and greens, exercise outside in the sun, talks, food demos and more :)
http://freshfoodfestival.com


* July 24th-25th * Raw Food Health Expo * Santa Rosa, California *
This will be the second year or this vibrant little festie hosted by John Kohler. Speakers, booths, farmers' market and more... http://www.rawhealthexpo.com


* July 30th - August 1st * RåkostFestivalen * Jarna, Sweden
Speakers, workshops, food demos, live music and more in the beautiful Swedish summer ;)
http://råkostfestivalen.se

* July 31st * Bliss Fest * Parkville, Missouri *
A celebration of conscious living, music, food, vendors, speakers in a beautiful park setting :) http://www.blissfestkc.com

* August 16th-22nd * Ronora Juice Feast and Raw Fest * Watervliet, Michigan *
A fresh and juicy raw celebration in the mid-west: a 4-day Juice Feast followed by a 3 day raw festival - fun :) http://www.RonoraLodge.com


-------

on April the 10th I loved:

1 quart water
2 cups greeeen juice mixed with pineapple juice
chunk of watermelon
2 cups greeeeeeen mango smoothie from Mr. M with a little spirulina on top
mug of reishi/shilajit/ormus tea
2 cups water
2 cups greeeen juice mixed with pineapple juice
2 cups greeeeeen smoothie
2 cups water


on April the 11th I was blissed with:

1 quart water
1 cup greeeeeen juice at the market
water of 2 young coconuts
2 cups greeeeeen juice mixed with pineapple juice
½ a papaya, 2 cups greeeeen mango smoothie from Mr. M
2 cups water
water of 2 young coconuts with marine phytoplantkon and chocolate extract drops
3 cups green smoothie
chunk of pineapple
2 mugs reishi/shilajit/ormus tea
2 cups water

--------


* August 26th-29th * Raw and Living Spirit Retreat * Molalla, Oregon *
Raw food talks, camping, food demos, community, drum circle, wild food walks, live music, reiki, laughter yoga and more... http://www.rawandlivingspirit.org

* August 27th-29th * Vibrant Living Expo * Fort Bragg, California *
The 6th annual celebration of all things raw and beautiful at the Living Light Culinary School in N. Cal... http://www.rawfoodchef.com

* Sept 24th-26th * Raw Spirit Festival * Prescott, Arizona *
The 6th Annual Raw Spirit Fest is centred back in AZ this year and will surely be a raw mixture of talks, demos, food, music and fun... http://www.RawSpiritFest.com

* Sept 25th * Festival Of Life * London, England *
The 7th annual Festie of Life in London - vendors, live music, amazing food, talks, packed house, lots of love :) http://www.festivaloflife.net


WOW - I hope there's smthg in there for everyone to enjoy...we're not sure if we'll be at any of these gatherings yet, other than the one here in Vilcabamba - we'll see how it unfolds ;)

Please note that some of these festivals were so recently announced that they may not have (m)any details available yet - check their sites for more info as it becomes available... ;)
Also please feel free to share this list with friends...and remember, if you know of any other raw-friendly festivals that aren't listed here, do let us know on angela@rawreform.com and we can do a second round-up - enjoy... :)

All love,
Ms. Stokes-Monarch. xxx

Introducing: The "Profoundly Raw" E-Book :)

Very Special Announcement:

I am absolutely THRILLED to say that my new project is ready to share with y’all :)

Introducing: the Profoundly Raw e-book :)

This FREE ebook contains 12 chapters, contributed by 12 well-known raw food authors, combining to offer an inspiring overview of a raw food lifestyle...
I asked 12 raw author yumsters to contribute one of their favourite chapters from one of their books for this free ebook and here is the resulting selection on offer:

Alissa Cohen on Protein, Calcium and Fats

David and Katrina Rainoshek on “Deep Food”

Angela Stokes-Monarch on Emotional Eating

David Wolfe on The Sun

Jinjee Talifero on The Yoga of Nursing

Gabriel Cousens on Vitamin B12

Kate Magic on Raw Magic

Kevin Gianni on Overcoming Potential Stumbling Blocks

Shazzie on How to Start a Child on Raw Food

Matt Monarch on Sensitivity and Stabilizing Out

Tonya Zavasta on A Perfect Bowel Movement

Paul Nison on The Daylight Diet

I’m SOOOOOO excited to share this ebook with you all – it is ready now and you can download it for free HERE...

I have always LOVED giving people special gifts, especially at Christmas time...I remember one yuletide for example hand-making a unique, customised Christmas gift for every one of my classmates at school ;) lol...I LOVE gift-giving, so please consider this free ebook a little Christmas-time offering from me to you – ENJOY :)

I really hope you DO enjoy it – there’s some wonderful information shared in there, generously offered by all the lovely authors...I have had such a GLOW in my being, piecing this together for the last 10 days or so...

In fact this whole project started to manifest a couple of weeks back when I asked the Universe one night to show me a way I could give a valuable, lovely gift to everyone at once...and this ebook is what it IMMEDIATELY suggested back to me...and here we are now with this 118 page ebook to enjoy as a result – it all just floooooowwwwwed as a beautiful co-creation – capped with a gorgeous original piece of artwork as the cover, specially designed for this project by the lovely Dustin Kellogg...and his wife Meredith wrote a very sweet little poem to open the collection too :)

So...there’s a LOT of love in this book...please enjoy hopping over HERE right now to collect your free download of “Profoundly Raw” and enjoy your OWN unfolding into this glorious path… ;)

Happy Holidays :)

All love,
Angelalalalalaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa. xxx

The Raw Mom Summit is BACK :)

I'm excited to say that The Raw Mom Summit is BACK :) If you didn't get a chance to enjoy this fabulous series of free talks earlier this year, then tune in from this Wednesday, Dec 9th, 'cos the raw mama is back in the house ;)
There are some truly outstanding interviews in this collection - I think I've listened to nearly all of them now, while we travelled our way around the USA this summer - I recall finding Daniel Vitalis's interview to be excellent, as were the talks with Jean Liedloff, Elena Tonetti, Katrina Rainoshek, Shazzie, Kate Magic and many other yummy mummies and magical men :) There's actually even an interview with me in there (once again, I am NOT a mother yet, nor am I pregnant or intending to become a parent anytime very soon - I was talking about emotions and food in this interview ;) There are apparently some NEW interviews being added into this free re-run too - exciting :) You can check out ALL the details and sign up to listen in to this wonderful re-run HERE - enjoy...

on December the 4th I enjoyed:

1 quart water
mug of herbal tea
2 Tbsp bee pollen
3 cups greeeeeen juice: celery, cucumber, parsley, spinach, lemon, ginger
30 chlorella tablets
bowl of energy soup with Lydia's luna nori crackers on the side, followed by an apple
1 quart water
mug of herbal tea
2 cups water

I'm delighted to say that the ever-lovely Katrina Blair of Turtle Lake Refuge is on a mini-tour right now, giving wild food walks/talks all over the west...we were due to go on a walk here in Ojai, California today - it has been postponed until 2pm tomorrow (Monday) though, so perhaps we'll see you there if you're in the area? Katrina is also leading a raw food hike/talk on Dec 9th at the Go Raw Cafe in Las Vegas from 4pm, then on Dec 10th at 'Health Nut' in St. George, Utah. You can contact Katrina on 505-709-0015 if you want more info. If you're not familiar with Katrina's work, she is a major wild foodie/forager, wildlife refuge caretaker, singer and all-round bundle of raw yumminess - enjoy :)))

on December the 5th I loved:

1 quart water
mug of herbal tea
3 cups greeeeeeeeeen juice: celery, cucumber, fennel, Jerusalem artichoke, spinach, parsley, endive, ginger, lemon
2 tbsp bee pollen, 20 chlorella tablets, 2 tbsp goji powder
bowl of energy soup with Noniland coconut crisps on the side, followed by an apple and new raw bar samples (bluh)
mug of peppermint tea
3 cups water
mug of herbal tea
3 tbsps bee pollen
2 cups water


on December the 6th I loved:

1 quart water
mug of herbal tea
amazing fresh fruit at the Ojai Farmer’s Market: satsuma, strawberries, baby persimmons
3 cups INTENSE, dense greeeen juice with farm-fresh veggies straight from the market (PHEW ;) – fenugreek, sunflower greens, nettles, dandelion, tat soi, parsley, spinach, celery, romaine, endive, fennel, ginger, lemon
2 apples, bowl of YUMMY grawnola with coconut milk
mug of spicy tea
2 cups water

OoOOooooo, The Tree of Life Rejuvenation Center just announced a variety of 'Holiday' discounts for upcoming retreats at their centre, including $200 off our New Year's 'Renew Yourself' Retreat :) NICE :)
You can see all the retreat details and call to claim the $200 discount HERE - we look forward to renewing ourselves in unison with you... :)))

All love,
Angelalalalalaaaaaaaaaa Stokes-Monarch. xxx

Happy Thanksgiving :)

Happy Thanksgiving/Day of Gratitude to everyone :)

I certainly feel there's a lot to be thankful for right now...we are recovering well from our car crash three days ago - fewer aches and pains each day, increasing integration of the experience...and yesterday Mr. M bought a lovely second hand green jeep, so now we have wheels again, to get back to California...our friends in PA, Jody and Joey Allen have been SO gracious and helpful the last few days to get us back on the road...I am enormously grateful too for all the amazing healing/loving vibes everyone has been sending our way the last few days - I truly feel this healing, uplifting energy and appreciate it so much - it is really helping to speed the recovery process, along with Juice Feasting, so sincere gratitude to you all for helping the healing process... :)
Sending you all major blissings for a day of gratitude and appreciation of the wonder of life...we truly are blessed to be here to play - brushing so close to the veil this week clearly reminded me of that and I trust you too will enjoy reflecting on the beauty of our opportunities here...there is so much to be grateful for... :)

on November the 24th I enjoyed:

1 quart water
3 cups greeeeeeeeeeeeen juice: celery, cucumber, fennel, parsley, spinach, ginger, lemon
3 tbsp bee pollen, 30 chlorella 'nuts'
1.5 cups pomegranate juice
1.5 cups beet/apple juice
30 chlorella 'nuts', 3 Tbsp bee pollen
3 cups water
3 cups fennel/spinach/carrot juice
2 cups water
3 cups celery/cucumber/fennel/parsley/spinach/Jerusalem artichoke/ginger/lime juice
1 tsp bee pollen
2 cups water

I'm excited to say that I recorded a new raw Christmas song this week (before the crash ;) - you can check it out below - it's 'The12 Raw Days of Christmas' - I hope you enjoy it :)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JEk3FM_LNZw

on November the 25th I loved:

1 quart water
1 quart greeeeeeeen juice: celery, cucumber, fennel, parsley, spinach, Jerusalem artichoke, ginger, lime
1 cup celery, spinach, fennel, carrot, ginger juice
1.5 cups beet/apple/celery/ginger juice
3 Tbsp bee pollen
4 Tbsp goji powder
3 cups water
2 cups greeeeen juice: celery, parsley, spinach, cucumber, zucchini, Jerusalem artichoke, ginger, lime
3 Tbsp bee pollen
2 cups water

...and if you didn't hear via our newsletters already, Mr. Monarch has some very special deals going on over at TheRawFoodWorld.com for this Holiday Season - until Monday, you can access ALL of the November AND December at-cost and below-cost specials (16 of them in total), INCLUDING Vitamineral Green AT COST :))) From Tuesday, just the December specials will be available...

AaAAAaAAaaaaand, we decided to do smthg extra special this year...if you're in the flow of gift-giving this season, you might be excited to see the all-new, super-shiny selection of inspiring raw gift packs Mr. M and I just co-created over at TheRawFoodWorld.com. We put on our spangliest elf hats and got to work creating over 30 packs to hopefully suit various interests, tastes and budgets :)
You can see all the gift packs HERE and let us know if you have any requests/suggestions for other packs along these lines - we have new raw foodie intro packs, a diabetes pack, chocolate lover's pack, cookies pack, superfoods pack, snack packs and many more - we even have an 'Angela Picks' pack and 'Mr. Monarch Picks' pack (...his pack contains only the 2 things Mr. M seems to find appropriate to give as gifts...can you guess what they are? ;)
You can see all the new Gift Packs and even get them gift-wrapped, HERE...ENJOY :)

All love, gratitude and appreciation,
Angelalalalaaaaaaaaaa. xxx

p.s. Don't forget to tune into the LIVE interview we're doing tomorrow night with Victoria Boutenko, from 6pm Pacific time (9pm Eastern time), Friday Nov. 27th. Click HERE for details if you're not signed up already ;)

How Much do YOU Chew...?

We were out walking in nature recently and I was struck by the realisation that so many of the plants we were walking past are most likely fantastic food for humans, yet we don't even recognise them as such because we've never had any modelling for eating that way...we can of course take cautious, intuitive and/or educated 'guesses' at what might work for us as food – it just struck me as very odd in comparison to other creatures that we have very little idea what suits us as food out there...I imagine that butterflies, grasshoppers or otters are seldom found scratching their heads in the wild, wondering what to eat – they just seem to know or get natural modelling of what to consume, from their wild kin...whereas most humans in western societies seem to get modelling of how to go to a supermarket and buy cans/boxes/plastic packages...most of us humans are chronically disconnected from nature and this little observation of my own disconnection from what I could potentially eat out in the forest/meadows really underscored this for me...more foraging for the Stokes–Monarch, please ;)

on July the 23rd I loved:

1 quart water
1.5 cups goji water with Marine Phytoplankton
2 cups greeeen juice: celery, cucumber, spinach, carrot tops, ginger, lemon
big bowl of blueberries with almond butter
3 cups water
2 cups water with marine phytoplankton, 25 chlorella 'nuts'
fresh fruits: plum, few cherries/grapes, blueberries with tahini
3 cups water

While we're on the subject of the contrasts between wild animals and most humans, I got a very interesting little link in my inbox yesterday all about chewing...now, those of you who have heard me give a talk will know that I often speak about the importance of chewing our food very thoroughly as a key to vibrant health and that most people seem to not chew very much at all (more like inhale ;)...
Well, it seems one researcher, Richard Wrangham, went off to closely study our friends the chimps in Tanzania and imitate their lifestyle and one of the main contrasts he noted was the LARGE amount of time apes pass daily chewing their food. In the article it states that the average person in 'civilised' western societies chews food for around 36 minutes a day or 5% of their time, whereas to match the chimps' chew rate, we'd be chewing more like 42% of our time, or around 5 hours a day... ;O WOW...
Chewing raw food really thoroughly is KEY for accessing the nutrients and assimilating better...you can read all about the 'power' of raw food and the importance of chewing in the classic old raw food text 'Raw Food and Health' by Dr. St Louis Estes...
I think this is smthg that is overlooked repeatedly by all people, raw foodies or not – and it seems it is especially key for those of us who choose to eat raw, so this is one reason why I speak about it so often... ;)
Now, Mr. Wrangham seems to not at all be in favour of eating raw, which is of course his own bag'o'beans to rattle – I do like the chewing stats shared in that article though, so that's why I wanted to share this and I hope it gives you smthg to 'chew' on... ;)


on July the 24th I was blessed to enjoy:

1 quart water
pot of pineapple chunks
romaine wraps stuffed with avocado, dulse, tomato, mixed sprouts, sauerkraut, kim chee
3 cups water
1.5 cups goji water with marine phytoplankton
bowl of blueberries with almond butter
3 cups water


on July the 25th I savoured:

1 quart water
1.5 cups green smoothie from Mr. Tim Van Orden – plum/banana/spinach – yummmmmmm :)
1.5 cups goji water with marine phytoplankton
2 oz wheatgrass juice
1 cup mint/honey water
2 cups water
2 Tbsp bee pollen
2 oz wheatgrass/sunflower greens juice
chunk of AMAZING cultured lemon cheesecake, with fresh blueberries and almond butter
3 cups water
2 curry noriwraps
2 cups water


Un petit reminder, my dears – the current RawReform Giveaway Contest to win a free bag of our yummy chlorella 'nuts' closes on August the 5th...if you'd love to green up your gnashers chewing some chlorophyll–rich greeeeens, then here's a reminder of the contest details:

We're giving away a bag of our SUPER-popular, SUPER-tasty Chlorella 'Nuts' - one of my absolute favourite raw food snacks :) (I usually can't STAND the taste of chlorella, yet these crunchy tasty little tablets of pressed chlorella powder are delicious - to my taste buds at least, lol ;)
Chlorella is a yummy algae with massive amounts of chlorophyll, protein and B vits to share with you...eating it is also a great way to get the classic raw food 'green mouth' look - see evidence to the left.
To be in with a chance of winning a bag of these yummable munchables, we'd love you to send in your best creative raw green mouth picture; yes, get out your spirulina, your blue-green algae, your green smoothies, your wheatgrass or whatever other greeeeeeens you love to green yourself up with and show us your most outstanding green face...here is another favourite from my personal album:


You can send your entries in to rawreform@gmail.com before August the 5th to be in with a chance of winning the chlorella tablets - enjoy ;) The winner will be drawn at random and with a giggle around the start of August. We look forward to seeing your entries...

With love, gratitude and green teeth,
Ms. Sto–Mo. xxx

Raw Food Employment and Events :)

Here's a fun job opportunity for anyone looking to join a fabulous, young, expanding raw food company in Patagonia, AZ: the gorgeous people at Vivapura are seeking to hire a full-time, switched-on, dynamic office angel or wizard ;) The role includes handling phone and internet orders, packing and sending out orders, managing the in-house retail store and providing general office assistance...9am-4pm Mon-Fri, starting now ;)
Vivapura owners Ivri, Chris and Chris would love to welcome someone with the following kind of energy:

"Joyful spirit, happy to receive guidance and feedback from others, knowledge & enthusiasm for raw superfoods, great personal communication skills, willingness to learn, enjoyment of “handling the details.” Recreational drug (“medicine”) free, aligned with the “Live Pure” lifestyle. Experience working in an office environment. Good customer relation skills. Proficiency in general computer skills. Ability to multi-task. Organized & efficient."

You can find out more about their products and company at www.vivapura.net and if you're interested in the position, contact Ivri on 520-394-0096 or ivri (at) vivapura.net - trusting that this may be divine alignment for one of you lovebugs out there... ;)

on May the 21st I had:

1 quart water
2 cups coconut water blended with Greener Grasses
pot of yummy seaweed salad with half an avocado and flax/veggie cracker samples
1 quart water
40 chlorella ‘nuts’
1 quart water

PHEW...the last three days were FULL–ON ;) Mr. M and I just did three speaking events in three days – Kansas, Tulsa, St. Louis – thanks to ALL the wonderful people who came out to play and share the evenings with us – it is SUCH a pleasure to connect with all you vibrant beings :) You can check out videos of some of the lovely people we have been meeting recently over on The Raw Food World TV Show HERE.
We are now settled into a gorgeous little private cabin in the woods for a few days before our next events – YAY :) We’ll be in Chicago next Tuesday, the 26th, then enjoying a full yoga/raw food expo over in NYC all of next weekend – 29–31st. As ever, you can see all of our upcoming events on Mr. M’s page HERE – we hope to see you somewhere along the line :)


on May the 22nd I had:

1 quart water
pot of yummy seaweed salad with half an avocado and 5 brazil nuts, followed by three yummy little oat/apple cookies
1 quart water
30 chlorella ‘nuts’
romaine wraps stuffed with avocado, dulse and clover sprouts, followed by a Tbsp of Goji Bliss
3 cups water


on May the 23rd I had:

1 quart water
3 cups green juice: kale, apple, lemon
romaine wraps stuffed with avocado, dulse and baby greens, with red bell pepper ‘chips’ on the side, followed by 1 Tbsp Goji Bliss
3 cups water
20 chlorella ‘nuts’
romaine wraps stuffed with avocado, dulse, tomato, kim chi and baby greens, with flax crackers and baby carrots on the side, followed by 1 Tbsp Goji Bliss
mug of cranberry–apple tea
3 cups water

OoOoOooooo, fun news for anyone in the UK/Europe eager to get their fingers wrapped around a copy of Raw Emotions – I had a stack of 15 of them sent out to the UK and you can order them NOW, if you’d love to get one without ordering from the US ;) They are £23 each and we also have a nice little stash of other goodies in the UK you might like to delve into – here’s the current list:

'Raw Emotions' by Angela Stokes - £23 each
‘Raw Success’ by Matt Monarch - £10 each
‘Raw Spirit’ by Matt Monarch - £8 each
‘How to Go Raw for Weight Loss’ by Angela Stokes - £5 each
‘Revealing the Physical Changes’ by Angela Stokes - £5 each
‘A Juice Feaster’s Handbook’ by Angela Stokes - £5 each
'Become Younger' by Norman Walker - £5
‘Absolutely Abeba’s’ raw cracker recipe book - £5 each
'Raw Foods for Busy People' Book - £8
'Raw Foods for Busy People 2 - Green Magic' - £8
'Raw Greek' by Gina Panayi - £10
'Fresh' by Sergei and Valya Boutenko - £9
'Detox Delights' by Shazzie - £5
Nut Milk Bags - £6 each
Chia Seeds, 454g (1lb) bags - £7 each
'Raw Food Made Easy' by Jennifer Cornbleet - £11
'Sprout Garden' by Sproutman - £8
'Ani's Raw Food Kitchen' by Ani Phyo - £12

Be warned - with some of these books there is only one copy left and it’s going to be a case of first come, first served, so if you’re in the UK/Europe/that side of the world and would love any of the above, just email angela@rawreform.com asap with your list of desired goodies and an address to send them to and we can get things moving on over to you... ;)
(If you’re unfamiliar with any of the products above and would love to read more about them first, you can always do a check for them on store.rawreform.com ;)

All love and wonderment,
Miss Stokes. xxx

Raw Living in Las Vegas... ;)

WELL...we survived Vegas ;) We actually had great fun, even if it is the scariest place I’ve ever been ;) Aside from exposing our beings a little to the lights, crowds, enormous buildings, colours, smells, astro–turf lawns and base chakra energies of ‘The Strip’ and beyond, we also enjoyed some choicer adventures... We had a lovely visit to the abode of Steve Pavlina and his wife Erin for an enlightening lunch (you can see a little video of our visit on TheRawFoodWorld.tv HERE).


on May the 14th I had:

1 quart water
little glass of orange juice
2 Tbsp E3 Live
a sweeeeet little honeydew melon with a chunk of watermelon
1 quart water
30 chlorella ‘nuts’
a couple of durian pods, water of two young coconuts with a handful of rawnola cereal
1 quart water

We also went to see the fabulous aqua-spectacular show ‘Le Rêve’/’The Dream’ (similar to a Cirque de Soleil production) – WOW :O I always absolutely LOVE seeing shows like this as it is SO amazing to me to see what the human body is capable of doing, with some training ;) There were around 50 people in the show and they all seemed to be astonishingly fit and supple...totally awe–inspiring – the dancing, the acrobatics, the lifts, turns, drops and dives...I love it...you can see a little preview of the show HERE – absolutely jaw–dropping...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=45SW5LdYGZ0

on May the 15th I had:

1 quart water
2 cups veggie juice: celery, cucumber, carrot
yummy raw meal with the Pavlinas: different salads with ranch dressing and flax crackers, plus pineapple/raspberry/banana fruit salad with a slice of strawberry/coconut pie
1 quart water
2 cups young coconut water blended with Greener Grasses powder
‘pina colada’ chia pudding meal: chia/maca powder soaked in water, mixed with fresh mulberries, pineapple chunks, young coconut ‘noodles’, goji berries
3 cups water


on May the 16th I had:

1 quart water
3 cups coconut water with Greener Grasses powder
mono–meal of a yummmmmy durian
1 quart water
water of one coconut with Greener Grasses
romaine wraps stuffed with avo, dulse, tomatoes and masses of sprouts, followed by half an oatmeal cookie :)
3 cups water


We also had WONDERFUL fun in Vegas staying at the home of Mr. Markus Rothkranz. WOW ;O Now, I have travelled all over the world and stayed in countless hundreds of houses...and I have NEVER seen a place like this ;)
Markus is truly an extraordinarily talented person. If you’re not familiar with his work, you might like to check out his ‘GoRawNow.com’ site to start with – I was impressed seeing his ‘Hollywood’–style raw videos a couple of years back – however NOTHING compared to actually being at his house and directly encountering his artistic creativity...his house is literally like an art gallery or museum, with stunning photo–realistic paintings lining the walls, 4–foot long model galleons with moving parts, scaled models of movie sets and a whole collection of DVDs – ALL made by Markus... One of his latest DVDs is an inspiring documentary showing how to make your own Solar Power system for your house (which is the power source for Markus’ own place) – we actually sell that DVD on our site HERE.
Markus worked as a special effects artist on many big films such as ‘Total Recall’ and ‘Die Hard’...he says he has been painting since before he could walk...plus he has just finished his first book (which spans 20 years of health research)...and he’s also just launched his own product line of cleansing/nutritional items...he is truly a creativity powerhouse...
We were extremely blessed to get to play in his costume department – you can see some of the results below ;) LOVE this ‘Renaissance Wench’ outfit – I want to dress like this all the time, please :) Thanks, Markus for such a fun visit :)







All love,
The Renaissance Wench and The Pirate. xxx

Raw Food Gardening - Grow Your Own :)

WELL, after the Equinox on Friday, it truly feels like Spring is here now :) LOVING IT :) It also happens to be Mother’s Day here in the UK today:

Happy Mother’s Day to all the Mummas :)

In honour of all this, I feel it’s prime time to get out in the garden, give gratitude to Mumma Earth and get planting some food for the coming months – which is precisely what you can see me and my mum doing in today’s episode of ‘The Raw Food World TV Show’ HERE.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I3PIvCPwfG8

on March the 20th I had:

1 quart water
mug of pau d’arco tea
2 cups greeeen juice: celery, cucumber, fennel, parsley, ginger, lemon
2 cups energy soup with okra and tahini
mug of spicy teaaaaaa
3 cups water
½ a delicious pineapple
3 cups hemp milk with cardamom/cinnamon
1 cup water

While we’re on the subject of gardening, I was absolutely DELIGHTED to receive news from a couple of readers this week that it seems Michelle Obama is indeed starting to grow food on the White House lawns :) :) :) How wonderful :)
Remember in this post HERE a few weeks back, I mentioned the 'Eat The View!' campaign from Roger Doiron, to encourage the Obamas to grow food at the White House? Well, it looks like it’s all falling into place, according to these newspaper reports:

New York Times: Obamas to Plant Vegetable Garden at White House

and

MSNBC: First lady breaks ground on 'kitchen garden'

Local schoolchildren have been helping Michelle plant over 55 varieties of veggies and fruits, all raised organically :)

Check out some of these quotes from the articles:

“There’s nothing really cooler,” Mrs. Obama said, “than coming to the White House and harvesting some of the vegetables and being in the kitchen...and actually experiencing the joys of your work.”

“You can begin in your own cupboard,” she said, “by eliminating processed food, trying to cook a meal a little more often, trying to incorporate more fruits and vegetables.”

“Mrs. Obama led a cheer with the children, shouting, "Let's hear it for vegetables!" and "Let's hear it for fruits!"”

:O
It really seems there is a raw-friendly lightworker in the White House :) Thank you, Michelle... May your garden flourish and spread inspiration far and wide :)


on March the 21st I had:

1 quart water
mug of pau d’arco tea
½ a pineapple
2 cups energy soup with okra and tahini
3 cups water
3 cups greeeeen juice: celery, cucumber, fennel, endive, parsley, ginger, apple
½ an apple with 3 cups of hemp milk w/cinnamon/cardamom
2 cups water

...and it seems the inspiration and joy of growing food is indeed spreading rapidly at the moment – check out another article sent in recently by one reader – Lynn:

Dollars from dirt: Economy spurs home garden boom

You can read the whole article HERE. It’s an insightful and interesting look at the current movement to work with the land, in the wibbly economic climate :)
There are some very cool little stats in this article, such as:

* "The National Gardening Association estimates that a well-maintained vegetable garden yields a $500 average return per year. A study by Burpee Seeds claims that $50 spent on gardening supplies can multiply into $1,250 worth of produce annually."
* "Community gardens nationwide are also seeing a surge of interest. The waiting list at the 312-plot Long Beach Community Garden has nearly quadrupled -- and no one is leaving, said Lonnie Brundage, who runs the garden's membership list."
* "Seed companies say this renaissance has rescued their vegetable business after years of drooping sales. Orders for vegetable seeds have skyrocketed, while orders for ornamental flowers are flat or down... Harris Seed's Web site now gets 40,000 hits a day."

WOW :) I am SOOOOOOOOOO thrilled to see all these amaazzzzzing shifts...we truly are SO blessed :)

Well, I hope this has given you some inspiration to get out there and get planting, if you haven’t got anything in the soil yet this year ;)
ENJOY :)
All love,
Miss Stokes. xxx