Gluten Baby

For about nine months or so I took gluten out of my diet and I have never felt better! Ever since I was little my stomach would bloat occasionally after I ate. It would get so big that I remember people would say that I looked like I swallowed a watermelon. I never understood why so I just figured I had a big stomach and would live with it. Recently I went to my aunt who is a nutritionist. She did some tests on me and said I was allergic to wheat (gluten), corn, and soy. At first I was super good and took those all out of my diet. Since all I could pretty much eat is a carrot, I decided to add corn in slowly, and sometimes soy. Wheat is in pretty much everything so it was super hard at first, but now I have come up with a lot of alternative so it's a lot easier.
My dad made home made pizza the other night and since I have been so good I decided to cheat and have a few slices. Worst idea because I woke up looking 9 months pregnant and couldn't even shave my legs because my stomach was in the way. At least I'll know how it feels to be pregnant and will think nothing of it when I'm actually pregnant some day with a real baby and not a gluten baby (as my dad calls it)! I have now accepted I am going to have to be gluten free for the rest of my life unless some miracle happens and I'm cured. If anyone feels extremely bloated or has stomach pains after they eat try taking gluten out of your diet. It changed my life! Here's some healthy snacks that you should try that are gluten free!

<3 Sunny

Kale Chips. You can make your own or find them at Whole Foods. Get a bag of Kale and put a tiny bit of olive oil and salt on it and put it in the oven for around 15 min until they're crunchy.

Mango Chunks. I get mine at Trader Joe's.

 
Bean chips. So good! I found them at Vons.

Seaweed chips. I found them at Trader Joe's and Costco. They taste weird at first, but give it a few tries because you'll become obsessed!

Pro biotic yogurt. Sooo good!

Favorite Gluten free bread. Found it at Trader Joe's

Make french toast with it. Skip the syrup and use honey instead!

Shawna's Birthday

Yesterday was Shawna's  birthday and we were too busy celebrating to wish her a Happy Birthday on here!!  We wanted to give a shout out to the most generous, nicest, prettiest girl any of you will ever meet! Shawna is our go to girl if you ever need any advice, any help out of a pickle, or just anything in general.  Every time she comes home to be with us (which is pretty much every weekend) she comes walking in with those stick legs with bags of gifts for us. She works hard for her money, and not a cent ever goes to herself, she's constantly giving money to charities, our church, and bums walking past her work!  People that do not know her think she is just some drop-dead gorgeous dumb blonde but she is the most talented and kind person you will ever know and we all wish we could be more like her! On top of that she is hilarious, we all look forward to hearing her crazy LA stories and the way she tells them makes them even more funny. And if it wasn't for her we would all be absolutely hideous because she does all of our hair and the second we get roots we are chucked on the chair and she is stuck doing hair all day on her only days off! Pretty much we are obsessed with her and we can not say enough good things about her.  Happy Birthday Shoo Shoo we love you!!

Gurell Girls Favorite Work Outs

Growing up, my parents had us in every activity there could be. When we were young our day consisted of school, gymnastics, dance,  piano and tennis. In junior high, it then was school, cheer, swimming, dance, gym, synchronize swimming, diving, competitive cheer, and even Irish dance. In High School, Marleau started cheerleading and then we all followed in her footsteps!
After High School, I didn't know what to do with myself because all these sports came to an end. I then got  into turbo kickboxing at 24 hour fitness. It reminds me of cheerleading in a way and I feel like it's the most fun workout there is! I would do it everyday if I could, but since I am so short I worry about getting bulky and would end up looking like Ronnie or Snookie, so I try to stick to once or twice a week! I recently got into hip hop hustle and it's so fun!! I recommend all you ex cheerleaders to try it out..it's so fun! For anyone who wants a variety of workouts and is on a tight budget, 24 hour fitness is the way to go! Jonnie and I switch out our workouts daily with Pilates, yoga, kickboxing, and hip hop. You really never get bored of the same work out!
Shawna recently started pole dancing! ha! Not real pole dancing, but pole dancing in an actual studio. Even though its pricey, she definitely thinks it's worth the money.
Marleau likes to stick to walks on the beach and finds cool trails to take Mako on. She is super into Wii Fit too! Her Wii dancing is unbelievable..we're actually pretty jealous of her moves.
Autumn likes to walk with the girls, but who wouldn't living in beautiful New Zealand?
Summer is our work out girl! She knows so much about fitness and healthy eating. She will run a marathon without even training. She runs long distance and does hot yoga. She is definitely the most in shape and we pretty much just copy what she eats since she knows so much and has the perfect body!
We all have different interests in our workout routines and we like to stick with what we like to do! I encourage everyone to find a workout they actually like to do, so it does not feel like a chore. Whether its yoga, kickboxing, running, or walking... anything is great! Not that we are the most in shape people, but we do like to keep active.


Here's some videos of Jonnie and my fav 24 hour workouts!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5_FUBobAHxw&feature=related

 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8OBESwTb1ug

 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hQ42OVhUuio


<3 Sunny

skincare: the importance of step #2

Everyone knows the 3 steps for healthy skin: 1.wash, 2. tone 3. moisurtize. Morning and night. Often times step number #2 is skipped, because many don't realize its importance. Throughout the day our skin builds up dirt, oil, pollution and dead skin cells. If not properly removed before bed it will result in pimples and dull skin. The ultimate goal is clear, bright glowing skin, right? Toning isn't my reasoning for placing so much importance on step #2. It's using the toner on a cotton ball to actually remove the dirt, oil, dead skin cells and makeup. Soap alone does not clean the skin efficiently enough. Over and over, when I worked in skincare I heard the same complaints "I have breakouts", "my skin is dull" or "my skin is dry". All can be solved with the same solution.. Incorporate step # 2 into your daily routine. Breakouts are caused by either clogged pores or  bacteria. Use a toner with either salicylic acid or glycolic acid. These ingredients not only kill acne causing bacteria but they also unclog pores and wipe away dead skin cells.  Try clinique clarifying lotion or Clearasil rapid action pads.





      Dry skin can occur simply by your moisturizer not obsorbing into the skin. The colprut... dead skin cell buildup!! So often, people (espicially stubborn old ladies) wash their face and pile on the moistuizer day after day. Their skin is never quenched with the moisture because it is laying on the top layer of skin. The moisture can't make its way through all the build up to actually penetrate into the epidermis. For dry or sensitive skin a gentle toner will be great. Try Kiehls cucumber toner or Kiehls calendula herbal-extract toner. Pour onto a cotton ball and wipe the entire face. You will be amazed with the filth on the cotton ball every night.



-Shawna

Our Beautiful Girls in New Zealand

We are so excited because Autumn, Richard, and the girls are coming to visit for a month this Summer. We are now living for their arrival! Honestly we are going to be the happiest aunties in the world! Here's some recent pics of these beauties! The count down begins until we all get to be together as one big happy family!

Fav Tanning Products

Summer time will be here before you know it! I don't know about you, but I am nerdy white right now and wouldn't be caught dead on the beach in a bathing suit. I feel like when I look albino extra fat rolls appear somehow and it's just not cute. Being tan is so much better!
Since Shawna has worked in the skin care industry she literally has freaked us out about how damaging the sun is for our skin. I now cake on sunscreen when I am in the sun and use tanning sprays during the winter. Here's some of our fav tanning products that actually won't make you look like an orange oompa lommpa.

Clinique/ Loreal self tanner- apply daily and you will notice a nice golden tan.

Airbursh Self Tanner- (find it at Sally's). It's only around $10.00 and it lasts for about 3 uses! This is really intense and you definitely notice a tan right away. It tends to get on your clothes so stand naked for at least five min. ha! Also, spray it at night and sleep in it. Make sure to spray it in the garage, shower, or somewhere you can clean off the extra spray because it will get everywhere. The mess is worth the tan afterwards though, and it will keep you looking fab for five days or more!

<3 Sunny xo

3 Fashion Tricks We Love

This weekend us girls got to together and thought it would be fun to dress me in less than two minutes. First, Shawna grabbed a maxi dress from last summer and used the belt as a headwrap. Then Jonnie tied a knot in the dress at the bottom to freshen the look of the dress and to show off my black motorcycle boots. I quickly tied my hair in a messy fishtail braid and pulled at some pieces to make it look unfinished. We all ran outside for a quick photo right in front of our house. Below is the finished product. Three Gurell brains work better than one. Haha! I hope you like our 3 fashion tricks in under two minutes!

Marleau

wrist.ring.bracelet

I love the look of wrist/ring jewelry. Here's some cool ones I found online. 

I decided to make my own. Just take an old necklace and wrap until you make the design you like! Mine looks different every time I wear it, mainly because I can't remember how I did it. ha! The one I wear doesn't look perfect, but it didn't cost me anything so it works! Try it with an old necklace you don't wear anymore. 

This is the one I made...

Shawna-Sexiest Vegetarian!

Hi Guys!

Shawna is up for the Sexiest Vegetarian Next Door 2012!! She definitely is the worlds sexiest vegetarian so go to this link and vote for her!!! This could be a great opportunity for her to do what she loves...helping animals and spreading the word of how others can help as well.  If she wins she will get to do media and educate people about saving animals. Thanks a ton! 

PETAs Sexiest Vegetarian Next Door 2012

Yehaw..Our trip to Texasss

This past weekend Jonnie and I got to the spend it in Dallas and Austin celebrating Brittney Austin (now Freeds) wedding! We had such a great time and we were so excited to spend the weekend with our high school group of friends. It really made us realize how we need to keep in touch more because there is no one like these girls. We just love them! We laughed so hard the whole weekend and it really was like we were back in high school...definitely just as immature. One of the best parts of the trip was laying the hotel room (like Willy Wonka grandparents) looking gross and laughing about old times. Really nothing has changed, and it is so great to know that we're all still best friends after all these years! After Dallas, Jonnie and I drove to Austin with Jessica and her finance Adam. It was so great getting to know Adam because now I know I couldn't find a more perfect guy for my friend. We also got to see Leslie, which was the highlight of my trip. I love her even though she makes me feel like I'm as big boned as Lamar. (that's for you Mont!).  Jonnie and I absouletly loveddd Austin! So green and pretty.
The only bad part of the trip was Jonnie and I can both say we left Texas trowing up at some point. haha! Since I have horrible stomach issues I was so surprised I was going to leave without feeling sick...but nope that didn't happen. The last day in Austin Jonnie, Adam, Jessica, Adams dog, and I were on a walk. I felt a little weird and starting throwing up and it continued on until the airport. I was running like a psycho to find the bathroom and ending up ralphing all over the family bathroom because I couldn't make it to the toilet..so embarrassing. I told Jonnie that it is not OK to be acting like this at 25, but I really couldn't help it...it was a bad flu. I prayed the whole flight and I actually didn't throw up the whole rest of the time. Jessica dropped us off with barf bags and towels and I had to apologize to her for being gross. ha! Besides getting sick, it really was the best trip ever. I love Dallas, Austin, and all my best friends. Thanks for having a wedding Britt! One down, 6 to go! : ) Here's some pics....