In the spirit of Thanksgiving, Nneka Kelly, over at Balanced Life Center, is running a 30-day Season of Gratitude Project. Cultivating an "attitude of gratitude" allows you to focus on what's positive in your life and enjoy the abundance that you already have.

My Personal Gratitude List

• I am thankful for my holistic dentist, who refuses to use almalgam dental fillings in his practice. Thank you Dr. M.
• I am grateful for my family, for my partner, and for my friends who are always great sources of love and support.
• I am grateful for the organic CSA that I belong to, and for the organic fruits and vegetables that I have access to. I appreciate the hard work and manual labor that goes into producing fresh food, grown naturally from the earth.
• I am thankful for inventors, entrepreneurs, and people who pursue "impossible" ideas. You move the world forward, and I am grateful.
• I am thankful for healers, for naturopaths, for compassionate people, and for all who genuinely seek to help others.
• I am grateful for everyone who has helped me along the way, and especially for E.D., F.K, and G.H.
• I am grateful for the internet and for the massive amount of information, knowledge and opportunity we have available at our fingertips.
• Perhaps most importantly, I am grateful for good health and a strong mind.

I hope this post has inspired you to give thanks for what you have. Think about what you're grateful for, and if you have a blog, please consider participating in Nneka's "Season of Gratitude" Group Writing Project.

This year, I will be spending Halloween at my sister's house, and since she lives in a subdivision, we will be passing out "tricks and treats" for a couple of hours. I can't—in good conscience—pass out candy that will wreak havoc on little kids' bodies and cause cavities, so I've been thinking of alternative options.

After some thought, I've come up with 17 healthy treats that…

1.) can be purchased in bulk
2.) come pre-packaged or wrapped.

17 Healthy Halloween Treats To Give To "Trick-or-Treaters"

• Organic fruit leathers
• Organic bananas ("wrapped" in their skins)
• A handful of walnuts & pecans, still in their shells
• A handful of change (pennies, nickels) from a large fishbowl/change jar.
• Art supplies including…
• Crayons
• Markers
• Stickers
• Colored pencils
• Colored chalk
• Erasers and pencil toppers
• Individually wrapped sticks of modeling clay
• Silly putty, slinkies, or mood rings
• Toothbrushes
• Rulers
• Noisemakers & other party favors (i.e. whistles)
• Bubbles and wands
• Pony Tail Holders (for girls)

Any other ideas?

I have neglected this blog for the past 4 weeks. Apologies to my readers, but I have good reason… Over the past 4 weeks, I have been working with a programmer on a software program (unrelated to raw food/health/nutrition) and it has been eating up my free time.

On top of the software development, I'm participating in a "30 Day Challenge" (also unrelated to raw food/exercise/nutrition). So, I've got my hands full–until probably the second week in August. On another note, I will be transitioning this blog over to Wordpress, probably in October or November.

Have really been loving all the summer fruits and vegetables. I've purchased organic watermelons from Whole Foods, organic nectarines from Kroger, fresh cucumbers and tomatoes (from local farmers who do not use pesticides or chemicals), and on Sunday I will be picking organic blueberries from a local farm. I plan to pick about 10-12 pounds (maybe more). I will store the majority in the freezer, so I can eat blueberries during the fall.