I first knew I wanted to be healthy at age seventeen. I was brought up in a family that consumed a lot of fast food meals, frozen meals, and processed foods that lasted forever in the pantry. When I decided I wanted to live a healthier lifestyle I had no one to direct or educate me. The first things to go were soda and fast food. Gradually I learned what to eliminate from my diet and what worked for my body.

Baking and cooking with my grandma as a child and teenager were two things I loved. Gramma always made our time in the kitchen fun, and the people we cooked for were always happier after the meal. Our food wasn't the healthiest, but the positive feeling food brought to everyone was the deciding factor when choosing my career. I began to research nutrition on my own. And that is how my journey to Happy Food Cookbook began. In 2008 I graduated from California Culinary Academy, Le Cordon Bleu in San Francisco, where I learned my skill as a chef.

I stopped eating processed sugar in 2008 to see how I felt, and the results were amazing. I stopped having crashes during the day. I felt energized all day long, my cravings for sugar and carbs went away, and I wasn't as moody. In 2013, after being diagnosed with a gluten allergy and reading Wheat Belly by Dr. William Davis, I challenged myself to remove gluten from my diet. Now I get incredibly sick when I eat or come into contact with gluten.

In March 2013, I graduated from a 200-hour Yoga Teacher Training with Yax Yoga Concept, and I am a registered 200-ERYT with Yoga Alliance. I learned some things about nutrition during my courses and a lot about the importance of clean water. I also got my Personal Nutrition Diploma from Shaw Academy in September 2015. I opened my restaurant, Nourish Cafe & Market in June 2016. It is organic, local and free of gluten, soy, corn, and processed sugar. We make our own almond and cashew milk from scratch. We make cold pressed juices and smoothies. We bake all of our baked goods from scratch. We also prep all our produce and make all of our sauces from scratch. I am very proud of how high we have set the bar for healthy food in America at Nourish and have yet to find a restaurant that is comparable to it anywhere in the country.

I don't agree with the way animals are processed commercially from pasture to table, so I've stopped consuming all meat products that are raised with these cruel practices. I am alarmed by the toxins and hormones used in preparing bulk meat for stores these days. I eat seafood, venison, chicken, and beef when I know where and how it has been raised and processed, which can be tough at times if you don't have local farmers that have grass-fed and grass-finished animals. I do not eat pork, because it is the only meat that holds toxins in its fat cells.

Since changing my diet, I have lost forty pounds and dropped ten pant sizes. I know first-hand how lonely it feels to be overweight and unhealthy. But we don't have to be alone in this fight. We can unite and make this country supply our demand for healthy food through our choices at our markets. Never forget your power as a consumer with every dollar you spend and your power with your thoughts. Believe in yourself and others, and you can do and be whatever you want to be.

I am just here as a guide to help you on your journey.