Father’s Day is this weekend, and there will be plenty of cookouts, picnics, and barbeques. Treat the special men in your life to this delicious frozen dessert.

The watermelon roll requires advanced planning and preparation – it needs time to freeze. Kids and teens will love this dessert as much as adults.

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Watermelon Roll
Yellow * Serves 8-10

1 quart plus 1 pint vanilla flavor non-dairy frozen dessert (try Soy Dream, Soy Delicious, Rice Dream, or Coconut Bliss), softened
Green food coloring
1/2 cup dairy-free chocolate chips (try Tropical Source)
3 pints raspberry non-dairy frozen dessert or sorbet (try Soy Dream), softened

In a large mixing bowl, blend 1 quart of vanilla non-dairy frozen dessert with several drops of food coloring. Using a spatula or large spoon, spread the “ice cream” up the sides of a rounded 3-quart bowl. Freeze approximately 1 hour, or until firm.

With a clean spoon, spread the softened pint of vanilla non-dairy frozen dessert over the top of the green layer. Freeze another hour.

Mix the chocolate chips into the softened raspberry frozen dessert. Fill the center of the bowl with the raspberry mixture and freeze until just ready to serve (at least 2 hours).

Before serving, turn over onto a large round serving plate. A towel moistened with warm water can be rubbed on the outside of the bowl to loosen the dessert, if necessary.

Optional – Dip a pastry brush in a small bowl of food coloring mixed with water, and “paint” the watermelon stripes on the outside of the dessert. Cut into slices and serve. A sharp knife dipped in warm water may be helpful.

There’s a lot of conflicting information out there about health and healthy habits.

One thing almost everyone agrees on is that daily exercise is necessary for a long and healthy life. Our recommendation is to break a sweat every day, and then continue your workout for at least 10 more minutes. It’s an easy guideline – break a sweat, and sweat for 10.

Start now – stand up, click on the green arrow, and get moving. Chase your health.

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Remember our member Kim in IN who shared the directions for making a hula hoop?

Kim is industrious. And smart. She’s created a Healthy Life Bag, which is basically a portable fitness program with reminders on healthy eating and healthy habits.

During vacation season we get a lot of questions about taking healthy living and the Total Health Makeover® on the road. Or in the air. Or on a boat. Or to a campground. You get the idea. Healthy traveling is not hard; it’s just different from what you may be used to. Look over Kim’s bag – what would work for you? What would you change to make it work for you? (No excuses – look for ways to make it work – thank you Tim Gunn – not ways it won’t work.)

In Kim’s bag, which is a yoga mat bag *

• Yoga mat
• Resistance bands
• Jump rope (doubles as a yoga strap)
• MP3 player (with her own exercise playlists)
• Reminder cards (see below)

Reminder cards *

• 10 steps of the Total Health Makeover® (avoid chemicals, avoid caffeine, avoid sugar, avoid red meat, avoid dairy, food combine, eat healthy fats, exercise, sleep, gusto!)
• Personal healthy living habits (these are often discussed in classes – Kim’s list includes skin brushing, flossing, drinking enough water, taking her supplements, a 12-hour food fast from dinner to breakfast, prayer and meditation, and Bible reading)
• Power plate (what Kim eats in a day – “eat a rainbow” reminder, fruit x1-2, veggie x5-9, nut/seed x2, bean x1-2, grain x2-3, plus 1 mini-Luna bar – your list may vary)
• Daily exercise (30 minutes of walk/bike/hike + mini-workouts of yoga, push-ups, jumping jacks/jump rope/rebounder, hula hooping, stairs – your list may vary)
• Lower body strength training for Mondays and Thursdays (the exercises change every two months for variety)
• Upper body strength training for Tuesdays and Fridays (the exercises change every two months for variety)
• Core strength training for Wednesdays and Saturdays (the exercises change every two months for variety)

Now get busy and make your own Healthy Living Bag. You’ll be ready for any travel adventure, and you’ll have everything you need in reach even when you’re home.

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Confused about the 10 Steps? Check this out, and ask questions on our message boards. If you need help implementing the 10 steps, we have a great 30-day online class with amazing coaches to help you each day. All recipes and menus provided, along with tips for healthy living. Become a member and take the 30-day class any time.

You don’t have to give up all your sweet pleasure foods on the Total Health Makeover®, but you do need to choose the ones made with the healthiest sweeteners.

Here are our favorites.

• Raw Honey * Extracted from flower nectar by bees. Look for different “flavors” based on different flowers – for example, clover, buckwheat, lavender. These aren’t added flavors; just what the bee ate. Honey is 20-60% sweeter than sugar, so you can use less.
• Maple Syrup * Drawn from the sap of a maple tree. Look for Grade B (less processed, contains more minerals). Use organic to avoid formaldehyde and additives.
• Maple Sugar * The dried (crystallized) form of maple syrup. It’s expensive, but can often be found in bulk bins, so you only need to buy what you’ll use. Try it for half the sweetener in oatmeal cookies or pumpkin pie.
• Barley Malt * Made from sprouted barley. This has a strong, distinctive flavor. Best in savory dishes that need a little sweetener. Store in the fridge (keeps for a long time).
• Brown Rice Syrup * Made from brown rice and various enzymes. Mild flavor that works well in desserts. Store in fridge (keeps for a long time).
• Fruit Juice Concentrate * Grape, peach, pear, apple, and pineapple juice concentrates can be used as sweeteners. These are especially good in fruit-based desserts.
• Molasses * A byproduct of sugar cane in the processing of refined sugar. Light and Barbados molasses have a lighter taste than sorghum or blackstrap molasses. The latter two have more minerals. Mostly used in conjunction with milder sweeteners.
• Date Sugar * Ground, dehydrated dates. Available in different size crystals/particles. Use the finest date sugar for baking.
• Sucanat * Crystallized cane sugar that has been minimally processed, never having the molasses removed. The flavor is a bit like refined brown sugar. Crystals are not shiny or consistent in size. Sucanat stands for SUgar CAne NATural.
• Rapadura * Similar to Sucanat. More commonly available in Europe.
• Stevia * From a perennial shrub of the aster family. Available as a powder in small packets, or as a liquid. Extremely sweet. Often used to sweeten beverages. Find specific recipe substitutes for baking, as the volume required is so different.
• Agave Nectar * From a cactus. Look for organic agave for the best quality.

Sugar is not your friend. At least not when it’s in your food.

Here’s what sugar does for you *

• Depletes the body of B vitamins
• Leaches calcium from hair, blood, bones and teeth
• Interferes with the absorption of calcium, protein and other minerals
• Retards growth of valuable intestinal bacteria (the bacteria that aids in digestion by breaking food down)
• Overstimulates and causes dramatic mood swings in children, making them unruly (Marilu calls sugar “kiddie cocaine”)
• Increases opportunities for diabetes, obesity, rheumatism, gout, hypoglycemia, acne, indigestion, arteriosclerosis (hardening of the arteries), and even mental illness
• Ferments in the stomach, stopping the secretion of gastric juices and inhibiting the stomach’s ability to digest

In summary? Keep the sugar in your love life, not in your kitchen.

And for those of you who may not know the song this post title is from…

Grilling season is officially here (when it’s not raining), so let’s try a meatless burger! This mushroom ‘burger’ has a meaty texture so it will please many of the people who think they want meat. It’s also easy to take along to a cookout where you know your options are limited. Your burger goes right on the grill with no extra work for your host.

You can also grill the mushroom on a tabletop grill (like a George Foreman grill).

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Portobello Burger Dijonay
Blue * Serves 1

1 portobello mushroom cap, stem removed
1 teaspoon Vegenaise or Nayonnaise (mayo sub)
1/4 teaspoon Dijon mustard
1/2 teaspoon capers, rinsed
tomato slice, optional
lettuce, optional
1 whole grain burger bun

Preheat a grill or a grill pan over medium high heat. Gently clean the mushroom cap with a damp cloth. Grill the cap approximately 3 minutes on each side. Mix the Vegenaise, mustard and capers to make the Dijonay sauce. Place tomato, lettuce, mushroom, and sauce on the bun. Enjoy!

Look for beauty today, wherever you are, whatever you’re doing.

So often we focus on what’s wrong instead of what’s right. That’s not just true when we think about the world, but also about ourselves. As you look for beauty in the world, also look for your own beauty. What about you – inside and out – is beautiful? (Yes. You are.)

See, notice, celebrate the beauty.

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This month Marilu.com Members are enjoying a program called Summer Fit and Style ~ A THM® Wardrobe Class. It’s all about revamping your wardrobe and redefining or defining for the first time, your own personal style. And it’s a lot of fun!

Marilu’s on the set right now and she’s defining her new character’s personal style with her wardrobe. Check out this all new video shot in her trailer!

Want to take the THM® Wardrobe Class? There’s still time to sign up! Click here to find out more and sign up now.

That’s right – ketchup and relish (no hot dogs, thanks).

Ketchup (catch up) on the things that you’ve lost track of this past week. Are your bills paid? Mail sorted/filed/recycled? Laundry done and put away? General clutter under control? Dishes clean and put away? Garden weeded? Bathroom cleaned?

Then add a layer of relish. Relish your family with hugs and time together. Relish your home by enjoying the work you’ve put into it. Relish your friends with an impromptu party. Relish your free time and your ‘me’ time with a little relaxation.

Member Kim in IN recently shared directions for making your own hula hoop. We’ve found that the inexpensive ones from discount stores crack easily, so we’re looking forward to making our own hoops this weekend – crafts and fitness put together!

Hula hooping is good for your abs and core muscles, as well as good for your legs. Spin the hoop on your arms, and you give them a workout, too. Work your way up to 5-10 minute sessions, and do several sessions a day for a cardio boost, a mental break, and a bit of fun!

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Homemade Hoops

Materials *
(check the plumbing section of your local home improvement or hardware store)

• 11 feet of 3/4-inch diameter 160 psi (unless you are petite, then use 100 psi) pex pipe
• 1 plastic pipe connector, 3/4-inch diameter
• handful of small pebbles
• blow dryer
• duct tape
• electrical (vinyl) tape in your favorite colors
• gaffer tape

Instructions *

1. Pound connector into one end of pex pipe.
2. Pour in the pebbles.
3. Use blow dryer to soften other end of pex pipe and then pull pipe over remaining end of connector.
4. Secure with a bit of duct tape.
5. Wrap the whole hoop with vinyl (electric) tape in any color you like, or multiple colors.
6. Finish with a spiral of gaffer tape.

Now GET MOVING! And have fun.