The Total Wedding Show- The Planning and Set Up

I know that my blog entries have been less about good healthy recipes and more about my little business, coco mado, and the Total Wedding Show these past few days... it kinda took over my life for the past 2 weeks. So now I am going to share with you some pictures of how I had to rethink of the whole weekend. In the past, snacks and meals were just second thoughts and I would just buy food at the show or eat all the free wedding cake samples. Well this year was different... I planned all the healthy foods and snacks that I was going to bring to the show so that I could feed myself and my booth babes very healthy foods.

Here you have it- the grocery list:

• Apples (didn't eat)
• Homemade Low Fat Banana Dark Chocolate Chip Muffins
• Carrots
• Pretzels (didn't eat)
• Lindt 70% dark chocolate
• Dried fruit and nuts (didn't eat)
• Raw Almonds (didn't eat)
• Margaret's Artisan Bakery Organinc Flour Crisps - Cranberry Pumpkin Seed
• Extra Old White Cheddar (finished by the cheese monster... Noelle the Booth Babe)
• Brookside Dark Chocolate covered berries
• Whole Grain thin buns
• Delicious natural raspberry jam
• Peanut Butter (made delicious BP & J sandwiches)
• Kashi Granola Bars

These granola bars are delicious and good for you. Seven Whole Graind and Almonds and Trail Mix are the 2 different kinds we enjoyed.

1 bar has 4g of fibre and 150 calories. Not bad for a snack on the run.

You know I don't like to buy too many packaged items now, but these are one of the only granola bars out there that I don't mind eating. They are filled with good for you ingredients, and unlike Fibre 1 bars, their first ingredient is not sugar... in fact they use brown rice syrup and cane juice molasses.

So now that I was all prepared with my food, Friday morning I loaded up my car, my Mom and Dad put a few things in their car and we went off to the wedding show.

This is a fuzzy picture of the booth before we set it all up. Pretty ugly right!!! Well except for my pretty purse.

And here is a nicer picture of the booth after setting up. A lot nicer right???

The best part of this whole experience was that for the first time in the 4 years I have been doing this, "I" am the one who loaded my car with all the heavy tables and bins and things. "I" am the one (with a little help from my Mom and Dad) who mostly emptied all the stuff from my car and brought it into the show. Since starting this New Healthy Lifestyle, the side effects of me losing weight and exercising is that I am a lot stronger and have a lot more stamina. I guess that is what 35 lbs off can do for you. Also, my body is not filled with crap, junk and garbage... so during the show I had a lot more stamina, I wasn't as tired and was able to stand up for a lot longer than I have in the past. What a success in deed! 

Another example is that a few weeks ago, we had a little snow fall... maybe 3 cm, so I got home after work on a Friday and the driveway had enough snow there to be shovelled... now usually I would let Brent shovel it, it's always been a 'Man's job', but this year was different. Brent was sleeping and was going to work that night, so I went and got the shovel and did the whole driveway by myself. Since we have moved into our home (almost 10 years), I have never shoveled by myself at all... and when I have helped out previously, I thought I was going to pass out or die of a heart attack.  This time, I was strong, not out of breath, no heart racing, the only thing was I wished I had a hat!!!! I did it all in about 30 minutes. What a triumph and a great big pat on the back for me!