A few years ago, Ted (my husband) went off to teach some pro cyclists how to do yoga at their training camp in Spain (aka his idea of Disneyland), and I stayed home with one goal:

To write and publish my first cookbook before he got back (aka my idea of Disneyland).

It was a big, hairy, audacious goal, or rather, a BHAG as my former employer, lululemon, used to call it. But I, an over achiever since birth (and that’s not an alternative fact), happily moved forward with the challenge. I recruited a talented photographer who was astute in graphic design, and we worked our tails off to create and publish the book in two weeks flat.

Publish it we did: in January of 2015, A 14 Day Nutrition Reset was released to the world. Some of you may have a copy. Some of you may have even used said copy and experienced some amazing shifts in your body (and hopefully even some long lasting changes in your diet). Some of you may have just purchased it in order to support me. No matter your reason, I am eternally grateful to all of you who bought it, and especially to my dear graphic designer and photographer, Ali, who helped me bring it to life.

With spring cleaning on the brain, I wanted to remind you of the book because as you clean out your homes, so too should you consider cleaning out your body. Could it use a tune up? A good oil change? Maybe some new spark plugs? Or how about a shiny wax and a buff? I know mine certainly could.

Ok – here’s the shameless plug, as my friend, Steve, likes to call it: If you’re into eating good food, not starving yourself, and teaching your body how to function for more optimal health, then please consider purchasing a copy of my book, or else dusting off the one you already have and giving it another whirl (I know it’s digital, so you can’t technically dust it off so much as you can just pull it up on your computer. I just like the way that sentence sounded. Sorry. Literary nerd over here. What can ya do?)

With that said, I’d like to share with you three other goals that I have been working on for a few years, mostly because I need you to hold me accountable to them (and because I hope that they will directly benefit you and your healthy bod eventually too).

I posted on Facebook a few months ago about the children’s book I wrote called The Adventures of Chef Maddie. To quote my query letter to an agent (thanks for the help with that, #malibudana!!), the book is “a satisfying feast for every child’s curiosity and for every parent who has ever tried to make their child eat their greens. Harnessing the playfulness of Ratatouille and the wonderment of Dora the Explorer, the narrative focuses on Maddie McDonald, a capricious 9-year-old who loves her dessert and loathes her vegetables. While sitting at the dinner table unwilling to eat her veggies, Maddie falls into a deep sleep. When she wakes up, she finds herself in a bustling Parisian kitchen greeted by an eccentric chef. Maddie quickly discovers a passion for cooking (and for broccoli!) she never knew existed within her. When Maddie rises the next morning in her own bed, her vivid dream has evaporated until she discovers a delicious twist that leaves her forever changed.

The Adventures of Chef Maddie marks the first in a series of adventures that takes Chef Maddie around the culinary world. My dream is to ignite the passion for healthy cooking in children while exposing them to diverse cultures and ethnic flavors. Each book will contain an envelope of select recipes and a collectible binder in which to store them.”

I intended to launch a Kickstarter campaign to print the first round of books, but when an author friend suggested I hold off so he could introduce me to his agent first, I followed his lead.

Unfortunately I haven’t heard back from the agent yet, which my friend assures me doesn’t mean it’s a pass. But my patience is weaning. I blame my type A personality. I want to get this book out to the world! I have had it reviewed by some tough critics (aka some fierce 7, 8 and 9 year olds), as well as some elementary school teachers, and have applied their valuable feedback. I also signed up for the Society for Children’s Book Authors and Illustrators’ annual conference which takes place here in LA in July. I have a session with a publisher who will review my manuscript and give me even more feedback (gulp). After that, I intend to unleash Chef Maddie out into the world, whether it be with an agent or by publishing her myself.

Why am I telling you this? Because I need your help in holding me accountable to it, that’s why!

But I’m just getting started (did I mention I’m an over achiever?).

As you also know, I have a hit (haha) cooking show on Youtube that features my many recipe tests over the course of the last few years (only the hits, none of the flops. And while I’m speaking in parentheses, if you haven’t already subscribed to my channel, will you please do me a solid and subscribe?). I’m proud to report that I now have about 2600 subscribers (2565 at the time of this writing, to be exact), and I’m growing at a subscription rate of about 100 per month. As a result of that and the recipes on this site, I have an overflowing cookbook in the works. And like Chef Maddie, it’s time it too spread its culinary wings. So goal number two is to collaborate with a photographer and bring that cookbook to the shelves for your purchasing and culinary pleasure.

And finally – in my third and final entrepreneurial goal – I have written a cookbook called Veggie Baby, which serves as a guidebook for parents on what to feed their child for the first year of solids. Though the recipes are designed for babies, they are adult-worthy, and I intend the book to be a collection of beautiful photographs that will leave any viewer salivating and hungry to dive in.

So to sum up….in one word…..

Heeeeeeellllllp!!!!!!

Will you please keep me accountable to these goals? And if you have any advice, will you also give that to me as well?

I really and truly can’t do this alone. Some days I get super fired up and believe in myself wholeheartedly. Other days I can’t seem to find my motivation, and I deem myself an imposter, a phony, and a complete quack for thinking that I could possibly have anything new to add to the culinary world. Those are the days when I need you the most, people!

So Delectable You friends and supporters, hear my plea:

Check in with me. Ask me how it’s going. Don’t let me succumb to my self destructive thoughts. Demand that I follow through with my goals. Because this I know: the worst thing that can happen is that I fall on my face. And I’ve done that before. Not always gracefully, but I’ve done it. And I know I can get back up again. What I have yet to experience is the kind of success that – by lighting up the hearts of the world – also lights up my own. And that is the kind of success I strive to someday experience.

So (here comes that shameless plug again): buy A 14 Day Nutrition Reset (it’s only $9.99). Tell a friend to buy it too. Subscribe to my YouTube cooking show (and feel free to haggle me in the comment section all you want too!). After that, make sure I have three new books to add to your purchasing decisions within about a year’s time.

Ok. I’m shutting up now. Thank you for lending me your ears, but especially, your hearts.

In good food and in good health,

Your crazy friend,

Lauren
xxx