I hope everyone is having a wonderfully, relaxing holiday week surrounded by loved ones -- or curled up in front of the fire with a good book! This weekend I plan on doing all of these things and am so grateful for where this crazy year has led me.

This year I earned my master's degree, started my first full-time job and moved to the big city -- and those all happened within the same month! While these all seem like the biggest changes of my year, another step I took this year is to better my health. During college it is hard to keep health in mind, but I always "did my best." I could count how many times I cooked a meal (including ones from a box) on one hand during graduate school, so obviously my best was not enough. Now that I entered the real world I cracked down on my own terrible habits with the help from my physical-trainer-in-training best friend who sent me a juicer for my birthday.

I will skip over my ranting and raving of how HEALTHY and DELICIOUS juicing is to start in on some of my favorite juicing recipes so far. Confession: I only started juicing in July and have not been very consistent the past 6-months -- so I am not an expert. On the other hand, I have been slowly educating myself through books like The Complete Book of Juicing and The Funky Fresh Juice Book and have learned to not be afraid to experiment with ingredients. This post is meant to be a beginning of a journey to better health and keeping a consistent juicing diet is only the first step!

Green Refresher

• 1 Apple
• 1 Pear
• 1/2 Cucumber
• 1 1/2 cup Spinach
• 3/4 inch Broccoli Stem
• 1 Lime
• Ice Cubes

Juice all ingredients (except ice), then pour into a glass with ice cubes! Peel the lime for a less tart taste.

Pineapple Ginger Ale

• 1/2 Pineapple
• 1 inch Ginger

Peel* pineapple and ginger, juice and drink. Ginger is great for digestion and adds a little kick to the sweet pineapple. 

*this depends on preference, if you have a strong juicer no need to peel

Tangy Carrot Juice

• 1 lb. Carrots
• 1 Orange
• 1 Grapefruit
• 1 inch Ginger

Peel orange and grapefruit, juice the bunch. I just started juicing with carrots last week and fell completely in love with the thick, carrot taste. If you aren't a huge carrot fan, no worries because the orange and grapefruit will balance it out in this recipe.

Enjoy your holiday season with family, friends and food -- but do not forget about your health! While the new year is a great time to reflect on ways to better yourself, nothing is like the present to put your own health first and foremost.

What are some of your favorite fresh juices (or smoothies!)? Share your juicing experiences or questions below in the comments or tweet me @naturallycay.