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The Queen...Annie Lee Ruff Woodard was born in 1920 and raised 12 children with my grandfather King David Woodard (That's his real name). I spent much of my youth with her and subsequently in the kitchen. We had small farm animals, fresh fruit trees, and a garden that had all the veggies you'd love to see. She cooked a homemade breakfast every morning for my grandfather and it was often ready by sunrise. Now let's be real lol That's highly unlikely for many people right now but it was a great foundation of my culinary beginnings. I remember her asking me to get her a glass of water and I held it by the rim and BOYYYYY did she give me a lesson! It wasn't a rude lesson but she taught me about cleanliness, where to place my hands, and how the 'white people' viewed it when you placed your hands too high. It's super weird because this was a lesson in my Serv Safe class I just took. Crazy huh?! Not about when she worked cooking for the white families lol Honestly, I struggled for many years with one question. 'Am I a real chef because I'm not classically trained like most people?' I hesitate to call myself a CHEF. I typically say I'm a cook. I've been thinking about my grandmother a lot lately and I was trained generationally. She taught me skills I could never learn in any school. I've been cooking for over 30 years and I am trained, i am skilled, i am enough. So, going forward I'll refer to myself as a chef. It's who I am. Who God has called me to be. It's who my grandmother always saw me as. I am unapologetically a chef. Love you grandma! Your granddaughter, Chef Shay

Saturday, May 16th I fried 6 pieces of bacon and ate them all. I mean it was grass-fed and organic soooo it was very good! lol I made homemade pancakes in abundance to get ready for the work week. Sunday, May 17th 12:00 noon I started a raw food cleanse/fast. Now with these things there are many variations but I'm only eating raw fruit and veggies. I'm also using olive oil sparingly because I can't eat a dry leaf...I mean how sway lol Man, I can't eat bacon, chocolate or any sugar for that matter, no RICE (How am I gonna make it?!), and the fruits and veggies can't be cooked. Interesting right?! So, why am I doing this for 7 days?! For the last couple of years I've been reading about the link between depression/anxiety and the food we eat. Now I'm no expert but I have read quite a few articles during that time. Some of you may or may not know that depression has been a pain in my life for about 6 years. Probably more to be honest. Things have actually been better over the last 18 months....like a lot better however there's this feeling of being sluggish, lethargic, not being able to focus, moodiness, and more. These things come in spurts. So in doing the reading all of those things can be linked to food. I mean at this point what do I have to lose?! Obviously it's can't hurt right?! Soooo...How'd did day 1 go? Surprisingly well. I knew I was going to have to be mentally strong and prep my meals. At the minimum mentally plan what I'd like to prepare for the next day. I've been going to the bathroom a lot! Is that normal?! Lol I guess so because of the water content in fruit and veggies. I can say that being a chef has helped me because my brain has been going into overdrive with creativity of the meals. I've been eating a lot of fruit and not as much veggies other than spinach. I wish I would've gotten some raw oats and chia seeds because being hungry after an hour is not the vibe! Other things I've noticed: My mood was positive and consistent. I didn't 'feel' stressed. I saw 1/2 ab return so I'm on the right track. I didn't miss wine as much as I thought. Look at God! I've been wanting to sleep but not like an exhausted sleep but more of a 'resting' sleep. Day 1 meals: Zucchini noodles with a spinach, red onion, and cilantro sauce. Chilled spicy mango lime soup, mixed berry and nuts, and strawberry, mint, and lime water. <--That actually sounds good. I also want rice and gravy and I've been craving blueberry muffins from Panera lol We'll see how day 2 goes :) Love, love, Shay

I remember the day I purchased the domain rights to have #AllDayShays! I was beyond excited, beyond elated, beyond hype! I reached out to my brother Dave with the exciting news and he was equally happy about the next steps. Immediately I began editing and creating content for the website. I was confident I could create what was needed and have the website 'go live' by January 1, 2020. So what happened? My need for perfection happened. I wanted everything lined up perfectly. I had a vision of the website and what I wanted it to be and the 'little' bit of info I had didn't seem like enough. In all honesty, that didn't deter me because I know what I saw. I knew what it would be. So what happened after I got over the perfectionist ish? FEAR. FEAR. Ugh...I hate that word but it's the truth. It's crazy how fear creeps in our minds when we takes steps towards greater. I could elaborate however I feel that we all know the feeling! Our thoughts are super powerful and sometimes the unknown feels unknown but here I am. Typing, sharing, and publishing. I realized I can't get to where I want to go until I take ONE STEP. So this is what this blog is.....One step towards greatness, one step closer to dispelling fear, and one step closer to the website I envisioned. Message to self: Do not trip. Humble beginnings lead to humble endings. You'll see the vision when you start doing the vision. Day ONE, #AllDayShays