One head of cauliflower Half a head of broccoli Boil cauliflower and broccoli till soft, don’t overcook (you loose the nutrients the more you cook!)

1-2 cups of Veggie broth (switch half coconut milk of you want creamy)

1/2-1 cup of organic tomato sauce (I used “Field day” organic Italian herb pasta sauce)

One garlic clove (or more if you like)

Add your favorite Italian herb, or you could go Thai!

Dash of sea salt if need

Blend in blender or Vitamix

Thanks to an an organization called Dream Factory I got to take three rad kids surfing! Dream factory is the 2nd largest “wish” granting organization in america.

A young girl named Emily who had endured some hard stuff in her life but I had no clue what had happened to her until I met her. Emily had a sweet spirit, tender heart and she really wanted to learn to surf!. She also had extensive burn scars all over her body with her fingers stumped making it hard to grab hold of things. I also had Zoe and Colt two grommets who have cystic fibrosis, they where adorable and have so much to endure at their young age.

With the help of my surf coach Russell Lewis all three enthusiastic kids got surf lessons for the first time! I had confidence Emily could learn to surf even though I’m not sure she did. And I knew Zoe and Colt would catch on just fine! It was a ton of fun to see all of them get up and surf at the beach where I learned to surf. They all did great and I was really proud of their enthusiasm to go for it wave after wave!

What really stuck out to me through out the entire day was what happened after surfing. We were all enjoying a BBQ lunch on the beach. As some of the Dream factory guys where throwing a football around, I was kinda watching trying to figure out how they throw the football with that cool spin on it. In surfing, technique is really important, I’m sure its the same with throwing a football. I was too shy to just ask them to show me how to throw it and just remained sitting. Soon enough, Emily got up and joined in throwing the ball with the boys. It certainly was not easy for her but she went for it anyway. I thought that was awesome! So simple, yet complex and beautiful in my mind!

Watching Emily, Zoe and Colt taking on new challenges that many of us take for granted reminds me to be thankful for what I have and to take on new challenges!
I ended up throwing the ball around, not quite with that fancy spin on it but I gave it my best shot…

Thanks Emily, Zoe and Colt for being so courageous!

So here’s how we’ll do it:
1. You need to copy these statements below & paste them into a response* to this blog post.
2. Tell me what you love about your mom by completing the statements in your response.
3. 10 people will be chosen who will get a signed copy of my mom’s book to give to their mom for Mother’s Day!
*If you are selected to receive the book, you will be notified via email (which will be required when you post your comment)!

Be creative, be funny, be serious, be heartfelt, but most of all just take a few minutes to think about how great your mom is and share it with the world!

Even better share this with your mom. Print it out for her and put it in a card for mothers day!

Copy and past the following:

MY FIRST NAME IS ______
MY MOM’S FIRST NAME IS ______
OUR FAVORITE THING TO DO TOGETHER IS…
I LOVE WHEN MY MOM…
SOMETHING SHE TOLD ME THAT REALLY IMPACTED ME…
BEST ADVICE SHE EVER GAVE ME…
FUNNIEST THING MY MOM EVER DID…
THE BEST THING ABOUT MY MOM IS…
I KNOW MY MOM LOVES ME BECAUSE…
MY MOM IS EPIC BECAUSE…

So I’ll start:

MY FIRST NAME IS: Bethany
MY MOM’S FIRST NAME IS: Cheri
OUR FAVORITE THING TO DO TOGETHER IS… play tennis and swim!
I LOVE WHEN MY MOM… tells her “serious” funny stories!
SOMETHING SHE TOLD ME THAT REALLY IMPACTED ME… to forgive others; and to understand the difference in each individuals personality and it will help you get along with everyone!
BEST ADVICE SHE EVER GAVE ME… to follow Jesus!
FUNNIEST THING MY MOM EVER DID… I have no clue, but shes constantly making me laugh!
THE BEST THING ABOUT MY MOM IS… she is one of my best friends!
I KNOW MY MOM LOVES ME BECAUSE… she’s always praying for me.
MY MOM IS EPIC BECAUSE… she’s unique and really cares for others.

Thank you Regal Books for donating the “Raising a Soul Surfer” books. Follow Cheri Hamilton on Facebook.

We ventured to Exmouth, Australia to swim with the Whale Sharks, which are known as the biggest fish in the sea! Technically whale sharks are actually sharks, and they are absolutely beautiful! “These plankton eating gentle giants visit the waters of Ningaloo Reef each year around the coral spawning event on the West Coast,” says Ocean Eco Adventures. “Although they can dive to depths of 1500m the whale sharks found at Ningaloo Reef are generally swimming on the surface and travel at about 3-5kms per hour.”

We boated out to deeper ocean where a spotter plane locates the whale shark then directs us where to go. The first person in the water was my mom, she was so excited! Then I followed. I was in awe when I saw our first whale shark. It was beautiful, and definitely one BIG shark. It was a little scary, but after a bit I realized how graceful and peaceful it was. We swam along side of it keeping 3 meters away.

“One of the bigger whale sharks was slow cruising and then turned around and came right at me with his huge mega mouth 4-feet away,” recalls my mom, Cheri Hamilton. “I fumbled my camera in panic as I struggled to get out of his way. Bethany was nearby but laughing too hard to be of any assistance.” It was pretty funny. My mom wrote a great blog post on her website SoulSurferMom.com which shares loads of interesting information about Whale Sharks and more about her perspective of our adventure! She concludes, “This was the experience of a lifetime recommended for any bucket list!”

According to OEA’s website, they have seen both male and female Whale Sharks up to 14m (about 45 feet) in length, although many of the juveniles they see are around 4-6m in length. We swam with 3 different sharks for a total of about 6-8 swims. The sharks we saw were around 3-5 meters.

I filmed a little with my GoPro but I was too busy looking with my eyes that I didn’t get very much footage.

My personal favorite swim was near the end when everyone was getting tired and it ended up just being me and the staff photographer swimming with the whale shark!

Whale sharks are gorgeous creatures and sadly they are finned and killed.
To support the stop of finning and killing whale sharks and other sharks, please check out-
PEW Environmental Group and Heart for Sharks Australia

The company that we went Whale Shark snorkeling with: Ocean Eco Adventures

Timmy Hamilton pre-marital surf sessions

In a celebration of bachelorhood Timmy Hamilton from Triad Bodyboards and Boogie Nations does his thing at Pipeline and beyond during the IBA 2012 Pipe Challenge waiting period. The next time we release a video of Timmy, he will be a happily married man.

Song is “Time is love”
Artist is Josh Turner
Dedicated to Kyah

Filmed by David Phillips, Ryan Vandever, Sean Deverian, Jason Lee, and Manny Vargas, and Hugo Lani

Edited by Monix

If you know a woman who is making a difference in the world, HLN wants to hear about her. Nominate a Morning Express with Robin Meade “Breakthrough Woman” today!

There’s so much junk out there that people consume. With beverages there’s “fruit-flavored” drinks, soda, and more which have no nutritional value and some even can cause harm to our bodies.

It breaks my heart that these types of products even exist and that there is not more emphasis on educating people how & why to care for their bodies. So many people these days eat & drink based on “what they feel like having” rather than what their body actually needs to be strong, healthy, and fight disease.

Like me, though, some people are learning and seeing the importance & benefits of properly eating & caring for our bodies. That’s why it’s cool to see companies like ZICO Natural coconut water coming out with simple, convenient beverages that taste great (naturally!) and that have positive health benefits!

Bethany powered through her first & second heat, making it into the Round of 12. By that round, the surf had dropped & the winds had changed. She ended up not getting the waves she needed to really shine, so she lost that heat.

Overall, Bethany was pleased to have placed the best competition result that she’s had in about two years! As she told Tyson Alger from The Garden Island newspaper, “It was a pretty exciting contest due to the good waves we got. I can’t remember a heat I have had fun in in so long. Margaret River has power similar to Hawai‘i so I’m a little more at home here.” Read more

FINAL RESULTS: 9th place, 920Pts, U$900

2012- Drug Aware Pro: Women’s RD 60, Heat 3 from Surfing Western Australia on Vimeo.

TDAP 2012: Women’s R48 Heats 4-6 from Surfing Western Australia on Vimeo.

TDAP 2012: Women’s R12 Heats 1-2 from Surfing Western Australia on Vimeo.

Want to win a Damon System smile makeover? All you need to do is go here and tell us why a new Damon System smile would change your life—in 250 words or less. I’ll then review the submissions and pick the winner! There’s also additional prizes up for grabs (including a Damon System surfboard!) so hurry and enter to win by April 30.

Season 13, Week 12
A trip to the island paradise of Hawaii includes a lesson with soul surfer Bethany Hamilton!