Vita-Mix

For quite some time I have been debating whether or not to purchase a Vita-Mix. I have gone to several demonstrations, but I think I have gone to ones where the demonstrator was new and couldn't answer most of my questions. Sunday, I went to Costco in a neighboring town. I don't normally go there and I rarely ever shop on Sundays but because of the post Thanksgiving shopping, I had avoided stores. Eventually food runs out and you go to the store! Well, I honestly think that I was meant to be there. I should also back up and say that the night before, I couldn't get to sleep and I was praying about the idea of going gluten free and whether or not this was necessary for me or if I was going against my own advice and taking bigger than baby steps! I asked God to make it clear to me.

So, I go to Costco and I walk towards the produce section and there is a Vita-Mix demonstration. I decided to stay and listen even though I doubted there would be any new information. Wow, this gal was really knowledgeable and without me even asking, in the course of her demonstration she answered all the unanswered questions that I had. I could tell that she really knew what she was talking about and not just regurgitating company information. It turns out that she is a sponsored athlete (runner) and a personal trainer, including strength training for Navy Seals (she is in San Diego).

After her demonstration, she switched off with her partner and spoke with me. We talked about it for awhile and she said that as soon as I could give her half down, she would mail one to me, postage free and take payments, because the cost is going up a good chunk on January 1st. She also talked to me about what I was doing for my health and I explained the steps I have taken. Without missing a beat, she said, "Well, I think your next step should be to eliminate wheat and possibly all gluten." You could have knocked me over with a feather. Now, I am not saying that she is the voice of God, but I do believe that God uses people, books, the web and all types of different resources to teach us. I am continuing to pray about it but I think that is the answer I was asking for.

So, I go home and talk to Tim about it and he agreed, it would be a good deal and we should do it now to save the money. It was such a generous offer too. So, I emailed her and confirmed the information and told her I would send the payment on Friday when we got paid. She wrote back and said she had a "good feel" about me and she wanted me to come to Costco today for their last showing and pick it up. Now, my mouth really fell open! Shocking! So, the kids and I went back out to Costco. She just took my contact information and I walked out with a Vita-Mix 5000 and the dry blade container too.

As a token of my appreciation for her more than generous gesture, I took some of my photo greeting cards to her. This really blessed me. She told me how her father was injured a year ago tomorrow in a mountain biking accident in Mexico. His neck was broken and he is still in a hospital on a ventilator in San Diego, trying to recover. She is going to frame the card, seen above in low resolution and frame it for her Dad to look at in his hospital room since he loves to camp and be in the outdoors. Maybe everyone who reads this could stop and pray for this man's healing!

So, that was another long entry, but it was hard to describe succinctly and I'm more than just a little excited, having just drunk my first smoothie...orange, banana, frozen strawberries and frozen blueberries that I had already in the freezer. It was soooo good.

I appreciate the input that people gave me on the Vita-Mix, both the pro and the con. It helped in my decision making. I have about 3 feet of usable counter in my kitchen, on which I already have a Kitchen Aid mixer. The Vita-Mix will do the work of a couple different machines, so in that sense it is a good choice. It goes both slower than and faster than a blender, which allows it to do some food processing and grain grinding, mixing bread and dough and juicing. I like that you can use all of a fruit or vegetable as opposed to a juicer which leaves pulp. My husband told me that he would much rather drink some vegetables than eat them and it is a good way to get some veggies in for the kids. As a matter of fact, the kids loved the sorbet that was made with carrots and my son, the pickiest of all my eaters, said it tasted better than ice cream!

So, we shall see what happens. This is part of a new step to try and eat more fresh foods. Tonight though, I will be practicing on hubby making the delicious tortilla soup which I had at the demo. It's a good way to use up some more of those turkey leftover! :o)