Sleepy-time yoga and good morning ginger smoothie

I tried a different set of bedtime stretches last night, this 8 minute yoga routine. It felt nice and I liked that I could do the poses with my sweetie already in bed (the other one I tried takes up basically the whole bed) but I’m not sure I agree with the last pose. It starts as a lay on your back with knees tucked to your chest pose, but then you rock yourself into a sitting position, then back down, repeat for 2 minutes. I may have done it incorrectly because in practice it was a pretty lively action, not the kind of thing you do RIGHT before drifting off to sleep, which is the sequence’s intention. But hey, read the description yourself and give it a whirl.

Then this morning I made this berry beet smoothie, minus the apple and adding a few blackberries. I didn’t make a whole huge batch so I guesstimated on all the quantities. I happened to have a ton of roasted beets in the fridge from yesterday’s beet tart, so I used a couple slices of that instead of raw. The ginger and orange juice cut right through the sweetness of the beets, banana, and strawberries, and it is quite the zesty little pick-me-up. This one will have a spot in my weekday morning smoothie rotation for sure–YUM-YUM!

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Blackberry Lemonade

This is maybe the yummiest, easiest treat ever. The main barrier is the cost of blackberries, but the ones I used today were courtesy of a scantily ravaged chunk of abandoned railroad, a plucky last-gasp heat wave, and determination, with the small extra cost of minor abrasions and sweaty-helmet hair.

Anyhoo, get yer paws on some juicy sweet blackberries!

Throw ’em in your blender for a while. Add puree directly to your favorite tart, and already-chilled, lemonade and stir briefly to combine. I went with about a 1:2 ratio for outrageous berry goodness. If you’re feeling fancy, strain the seeds out before mixing with lemonade. Either way the taste is magical. And that color! What a great way to celebrate summer’s last hurrah and toast to the coming season of darkness and death. 🙂

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