It's The Weekend | Number Seven

Prego Belly & Sidewalk Chalk 

This weekend I hope to finish our little gal's new pink room. We still need to build a bookcase and get her rug in her room. It's very pink and it's very fun. After that project is finished, I get to move on to the little boy's nursery. I am officially in my third trimester and I keep realizing how quickly time is flying. Holy cow, we have 12-ish weeks left!!! I feel like I was just starring at a positive pregnancy test at the end of October, while on vacation.

Here are the places I've been clicking this week. Lots of it has to do with food because I feel like I'm constantly hungry. Some links are about parenting because I've obviously had that on the brain. Some are about paint. Food, family, and home. Those are the things on my brain lately. You can look forward to a post on Marin's new big girl room and some more mom guilt rants in the near future. I'm sure of that.

Someday our kids will probably share a room. These bunk bed ideas are pretty awesome. I would sleep in them.

I've been thinking about this a lot lately | Why Kids Need Real Play

Lunch can get boring. Here are ten sandwich free lunch ideas.

15 tips on how to be a successful parent.

I'm all about white trim in my house. But, painting things black can also be awesome. 

This chocolate banana smoothie is right up my alley right now. This cobbler looks awesome as well. 

Speaking of food, Joy the Baker Over Easy: Sweet and Savory Recipes for Leisurely Days and Food, Health, and Happiness: 115 On-Point Recipes for Great Meals and a Better Life are my current reads.

I also just started reading Chasing Slow: Courage to Journey Off the Beaten Path and I am loving it.

Have a great weekend! 

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WHOLE ME | Whole 30 Week 3

I only have about one more week until I have officially completed my first Whole 30. It feels like it's gone fairly quickly and I feel like I could eat like this on a continued basis, with some alterations. I haven't been nearly as hungry this week. I've snacked less, which is good because that's one of the things they stress about in the book: minimal snacking. I've landed into a routine of cooking the same meals over and over again, but I really don't mind. I've found a few that I really enjoy and I just keep going back to them. 

I am now starting to research my reintroduction into the world of food once my 30 days is over. I haven't completely decided what I will bring in to my diet yet or not. I know that I will be way less strict at family get togethers or when we go out to eat. I want to still be able to enjoy my life with food. But, I also am realizing how certain foods make me feel and I don't know if I will reintroduce certain things back into my life. 

The reintroduction process from Whole 30 looks like this....You can find this list here....

Here is what I ate this past week. Some of these don't look very glorious, but I assure you, these meals were all delicious. 

B: Banana, Blueberries, Almond Butter, Coffee

L: Lots of Veggies, Ground Beef, Compliant Tomato Sauce, Tomatoes, Garlic, Spinach, Mushrooms

D: Snack Tray. HB Eggs, Plantains, Dates, Guac.

B: Sweet Potatoes, Chicken Sausage, Fried Egg, Hot Sauce, Coffee

S: Strawberries, after my workout

L: Same spaghetti sauce creation and veggies

D: Chicken, some paleo mayo with hot sauce, guac.  

B: Sweet Potatoes, Chicken Sausage, Fried Egg, Coffee

L: CHIPOTLE!! My favorite thing ever. 

S: Grapes and Turkey

D: Prosciutto-Wrapped Chicken, Asparagus, Fried Eggs, Hot Sauce

B: Smoothie with Mixed Berries, Pineapple, Spinach, Almond Milk

L: Chicken Sausage, Spaghetti Creation, Veggies

D: Snack Tray: Grapes, Turkey, HB Eggs, Guac, Plantains 

(Sunday Morning, at work) 

B: HB Eggs, Larabar, Banana, Coffee

L: Shrimp Stir Fry w/ Coconut Aminos 

D: Birthday Dinner at FIL's. Chicken, Salsa, Salad, Grapes, La Croix. (He grilled me special chicken for the occasion. Everyone else had really good looking burritos...) 

B: Sweet Potatoes, Yellow Bell Peppers, Fried Egg, Coffee

L: Spaghetti Creation, Chicken Sausage, Lots of Veggies

D: Snack Tray (again.) Snap Peas, Grapes, Guac, Plantians

B: Sweet Potatoes, Chicken Sausage, Coffee

L: Shrimp Stir Fry w/ Coconut Aminos, 

S: Grapes and Coffee while working at a coffeehouse

D: Lots of Veggies, Spaghetti Creation, Prosciutto-Wrapped Chicken. 

What I'm Learning This Week: 

1. I have been having insane dreams lately and sleeping like a rock. 

2. I'm snacking less, which is good. 

3. I haven't been nearly as hungry as before. A lot of dinners are just kind of snack trays. It's probably so I don't have to cook something. 

4. My spaghetti sauce creation is delicious but I'm pretty sick of it now. 

5. I can't wait to go to COSTCO today and restock on a ton of stuff. 

6. My allergies have been super bad but I think that's just how it goes for me. 

7. I can't wait to weigh myself next week. 

8. I've been pinning a lot of recipes for moving forward on Pinterest.

Super Simple Roasted Sweet Potatoes

Now that I have a small child, being able to take an afternoon and cook is pretty much a thing of the past. I am always looking for ways to still eat healthy and well but also save time. I would much rather be hanging out with my kid instead of standing over a stove top all day. I do love the therapeutic mind-space cooking puts you in, but my life is taken over by smashed bananas and baby bottles. When it's nap time, I cook. 

I have been making a batch of these sweet potatoes about once a week. I put eggs on top of them for breakfast. I place them in salads. I eat them just by themselves. I add a little bit of cheese and greek yogurt for a loaded baked potato. 

Also, if it's your sort of thing, these are paleo. I go back and forth with eating paleo and I hope to commit to the Whole30 after the holidays. Cheese, man. I miss my cheese! 

I added some mushrooms to this batch as well because I needed to eat them up before they went bad in the black hole that is our fridge. 

Ingredients: 

3 or 4 large sweet potatoes

I added mushrooms this round 

Coconut Oil

Ghee (I use this one) 

Sea Salt

Red Pepper Flakes

Freshly Ground Pepper

Preheat oven to 400 degrees

Scrub sweet potatoes and peel

Cut into bite size pieces

Warm a few spoonfuls of coconut oil and Ghee

Mix coconut oil and Ghee into a bowl with the sweet potatoes

Sprinkle see salt, pepper flakes, and ground pepper generously

Spread out sweet potatoes on a cookie sheet

Bake for 45-50 minutes

About half way through, toss potatoes

Let cool, enjoy! 

Currently Clicking: Week #26

Each and every week (aside from the week I skipped last week....), I gather links of all of the places I have been perusing in the great, grand internet. There are plenty of people out there doing big things and small things. Some of these are practical, some are inspiring. This week I found some really cool new bibs for the kiddo. I clearly am thinking mostly with my stomach because most of the points below involve food or grocery shopping. I stumbled upon a couple of great home renovations and makeovers. I was reminded of how great it is when we print our photos and don't just keep everything digital all of the time....

1. As Marin grows older, her amount of drool increases because of the lovely process of teething. Here is an awesome monthly subscription, called Fresh BiB, that sends you adorable bandana bibs that are stylish, practical, and reversible! You have the option of a one time purchase or they can send you bibs monthly. I think this is awesome! It sure beats the normal bibs that she wears most of the time. These ones are adorable. 
2. Emily Henderson is a designer that I follow fairly regularly. Her family purchased a house and have been renovating it ever since. Here is a sneak peek of the house so far. I love her style. I love the colors. I love everything about this. 
3. I would like to make a point to cook more. That isn't always the easiest thing with a 7 month old in the house, but here are a few recipes that caught my eye this week. Spaghetti Squash Lasagna Bowls. Baked Peaches with Cheesecake Filling. Homemade Pizza Bagels. Yum. 
4. I normally don't shop at Whole Foods, especially because my husbands works for King Soopers, but I am always interested in how people cook and prepare meals for the week and for what price. This is a great post on cooking for the week on $125.
5. Since I am clearly on a grocery and food kick, we purchased a Costco Membership from Living Social. Costco is coming to our town and I am stupidly excited about it for some reason. I have been researching ways to make Costco trips really work for us and our budget. Get the most bang for your buck at Costco. Shopping for real food at Costco. What to buy from Costco. I believe our store opens at the beginning of October. 
6.  A reminder for women everywhere. Let's stop torturing ourselves when it comes to food. Eating: A Manifesto. 
7. I love a good kitchen remodel/makeover. Here's one. Here's another. 
8. This is a great idea. I need to print more of our photos in general. It's a great way to capture all of the little moments that we capture with our cellphones, which nowadays, the cameras on our phones are pretty unreal .

Prep During Pregnancy: Freezer Meals

I am planner. Most people that are close to me know this to be true. Most people that aren't even that close to me probably know that to be true as well. I plan. I make lists. I like to be prepared so I don't end looking like an idiot somewhere down the road. It's how I've always been. 

While pregnant, I became fairly obsessed with planning out certain areas of our lives once baby arrived. (I know all of you seasoned parents are probably laughing at that...) I constantly was on Pinterest (follow me if you'd like: here), pinning freezer meals and grocery lists, what to pack in my hospital bag, the minimal necessities for a newborn, etc. The list goes on and on. Seriously, what did we do before Pinterest? 

A few weeks before Marin arrived, I gathered up some recipes from Pinterest and from my normal cooking routine and planned a day where I would create as many freezer meals as possible. I knew that once baby arrived, the last thing I would want to do is cook a bunch of stuff. I also knew that I needed these meals to be decently healthy and clean because I would love to actually fit into my pre-pregnancy pants at some point in the next few months. 

I made a list. Ryan and I went to the grocery store and bought all of the supplies, which ended up being quite affordable. I wish I would have kept the receipt as a reference. 

The next day, we got home from church, and I placed all of my cooking ingredients and supplies out on the counter and went to town. I created freezer meals for about 3 hours but ended up with probably one or two month's worth of freezer meals. 

My feet hurt. I sweat up a storm. I rocked out to Pandora in my kitchen while my cat tried to avoid the kitchen and the crazy, list-making, pregnant lady. 

Here are the meals I made this time around. If I found the meal elsewhere, I will link to the recipe I used. 

Tortellini Bake: (my own creation) 

Jar of Tomato Sauce

Chicken Sausage

1 Bag of Frozen Broccoli

Shredded Mozzarella (Reduced Fat) 

Shredded Sharp Cheddar (Reduced Fat) 

1 bag of Frozen Tortellini

Italian Seasoning to taste

Directions: 

In a glass baking dish, place tortellini in dish. 

Cut up the sausage into bite size pieces, place over tortellini. 

Spread out bag of frozen broccoli, layering over tortellini and sausage. 

Do the same with the jar of tomato sauce. 

Add italian seasoning

Cover with mixture of mozzarella and sharp cheddar. 

When ready to eat: 

Let thaw

Preheat over to 400

Cook for 20-30 minutes or until cheese is melted

Enjoy! 

Chicken Broccoli Alfredo

1 ½ pounds chicken breasts

1 (16 oz) bag frozen broccoli florets

2 (16 oz) jars Alfredo sauce (I use light)

1 large green pepper, chopped

Directions:

Place all ingredients in a resealable gallon-sized freezer bag and mix together.

When ready to eat, remove from freezer and thaw in fridge for 24 hours. Cook on LOW for 4-6 hours. 

Serve with cooked fettuccine noodles and green salad

Hearty Beef Stew

1 pound beef stew cubes

4 carrots, sliced

4 red potatoes, cut into large cubes

1 package dry onion soup mix

2 cans 98% fat-free cream of mushroom soup

1 (8 oz) can tomato sauce

1 (10 oz) package frozen green peas

Directions:

Place all ingredients in a resealable gallon-sized freezer bag. Mix together and zip bag closed. When ready to eat, remove from freezer and thaw in fridge for 24 hours. Cook on LOW for 7-10 hours (or HIGH for 5-6 hours).

Both of these recipes are from Six Sisters Stuff. 

Chicken and Sweet Potato Stew

4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into bite-size pieces

2 medium sweet potatoes, peeled and cubed

2 medium Yukon Gold potatoes, peeled and cubed

2 medium carrots, peeled and cut into 1⁄2-inch slices

1 can (28 ounces) whole stewed tomatoes

1 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon paprika

1 teaspoon celery seeds

1⁄2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

1⁄8 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1⁄8 teaspoon ground nutmeg

1 cup nonfat, low-sodium chicken broth

1⁄4 cup fresh basil, chopped

Combine ingredients minus broth and add to gallon Ziploc bag. Freeze. Thaw add broth and cook on LOW for 6 to 8 hours or on HIGH for 3 to 4 hours. Serve over hot rice. Serves 6-8 people.

This recipe is found at Loving My Nest. 

Chicken Enchiladas 

3 chicken breasts

1 cup chopped onion

3 cups shredded cheddar cheese

10-12 flour tortillas {medium}

2 cans of red enchilada sauce

1 can black beans

How to Make It:

Take the raw chicken breasts and place them in a pot of water, boil for 20-25 minutes or until cooked through.  

Once the chicken is cooked remove from pot and shred {I use two forks and pull it apart}. Set aside.

Drain and rinse the can of black beans.

Mix the beans, chopped onion, shredded chicken, 1 can of red enchilada sauce, and the shredded cheddar cheese in a bowl.

With a spoon fill each flour tortilla, roll them up, and place them with the seams down in an 8x8 baking dish {don’t forget to spray your pan so you don’t stick!}. There should be enough to make three 8x8 pans.

Pour the second can of red enchilada sauce over the top and sprinkle some cheese over it.

Thaw when ready to eat. 

Preheat oven to 350

Bake for 25 minutes.

For the life of me, I can't find the original link to this recipe. So sorry! 

Chicken Taco Chili 

1 can No Salt Added Black Beans

1 can No Salt Added Kidney Beans

1 can Rotel (tomatoes/green chilies) 

1 can tomato sauce (the smaller can) 

1 packet of taco seasoning (try to find one that isn't packed with sodium.) 

1 bag of frozen corn

A few frozen chicken breasts (I use the smaller tenderloins) 

A few dashes of chili powder

A few dashes of Cumin 

Directions: 

(This is the original recipe, not already frozen. Just toss the contents of the freezer bag into the crock pot.) 

Place beans, corn, tomato sauce, and rotel in the crock-pot. Stir in the packet of taco seasoning. Add chili powder and cumin. Stir, stir, stir. 

Place as many frozen chicken breasts that can fit on the top of the chili. Don't stir it. Put the lid on and cook on high for about 6 hours or so. You want the chicken completely cooked. 

Once the chicken is completely cooked, remove the chicken pieces from the crock-pot. 

Shred the chicken. Once that's done, dump the chicken back in the crock-pot. Stir the chicken thoroughly into the chili. Let it simmer for a while longer. 

Serve and enjoy! We usually put a little bit of cheese on top and dip corn chips in the chili.

I blogged about this recipe already. It is adapted from a Weight Watchers recipe. Read my post here. 

Turkey Burritos: (my own creation) 

Lean Ground Turkey

2 Cans of Pinto or Kidney Beans

2 Cans of Black Beans

1 Can of Rotel

Reduced Sodium Taco Seasoning

Chili Seasing

Whole Wheat Tortillas

Reduced Fat Shredded Mexican Cheese

Directions: 

In a pan, thoroughly cook the ground turkey. 

Once cooked, add cans of beans and can of Rotel

While simmering, add seasoning. 

To assemble burritos, scoop contents of pan into individual burritos, add some cheese, roll up in tin foil and free. 

Let thaw a bit before reheating when you are ready to eat! Add salsa if desired. 

Pre-made Smoothies 

I also created individual ziploc bags for smoothies. 

I added some frozen fruit (low sugar) which included mangos and pineapple. 

I sliced some strawberries and whatever other berries I had on hand. 

Add a few spoonfuls of greek or low fat yogurt. 

Add a few handfuls of spinach.

When you want to enjoy the smoothie, just add a liquid of your choice: Milk, Water, Juice, etc. 

Blend thoroughly. 

This idea was from A Beautiful Mess. 

Alright then! That is a very long post but now I know that we have quite a stash of meals waiting for us in our freezer in our garage. Good luck! 

Wish List Wednesday: Cookbooks

I really like cooking. I wish I did it a lot more than I do. I also really love having a few cookbooks floating around my kitchen. It's good eye-candy and on the few and far between chances I actually cook something, I've got some great resources right in my kitchen. These are few that have caught my eye as of late.

Source

Home Made blew away readers with its stunning package, delicious recipes, beautiful photos, step-by-step instruction, and Yvette van Boven’s own hand-drawn artwork throughout the book. Van Boven’s passion for great food and good humor could be felt on every page in the book. Now, in the follow-up Home Made Winter, van Boven’s heartfelt work is presented again, this time with recipes intended for the winter season. Inspired by her childhood in Ireland and her frequent sojourns in France, she has created a collection of recipes that will warm your heart. Chapters include Breakfast, Brunch & Lunch; Pies and Sweet Things for Tea Time; Beverages; To Start; and Dessert. She focuses on simple recipes for classic dishes such as apple cider, BBQ pulled pork, ricotta cheesecake, and more. Step-by-step, she explains how to make butter, beef sausage, and baileys. She also features her favorite winter holiday recipes. This book is sure to become the next must-have for home cooks.

Source 

Sara Forte is a food-loving, wellness-craving veggie enthusiast who relishes sharing a wholesome meal with friends and family. The Sprouted Kitchen features 100 of her most mouthwatering recipes. Richly illustrated by her photographer husband, Hugh Forte, this bright, vivid book celebrates the simple beauty of seasonal foods with original recipes—plus a few favorites from her popular Sprouted Kitchen food blog tossed in for good measure. The collection features tasty snacks on the go like Granola Protein Bars, gluten-free brunch options like Cornmeal Cakes with Cherry Compote, dinner party dishes like Seared Scallops on Black Quinoa with Pomegranate Gastrique, “meaty” vegetarian meals like Beer Bean– and Cotija-Stuffed Poblanos, and sweet treats like Cocoa Hazelnut Cupcakes. From breakfast to dinner, snack time to happy hour, The Sprouted Kitchen will help you sneak a bit of delicious indulgence in among the vegetables.

Source

After spending more than a decade as an art director working for some of the top design studios in Ireland, the United States, and Australia, Katie Quinn Davies refocused her creativity towards food and lifestyle photography and created a blog called What Katie Ate. An Internet phenomenon, What Katie Ate has received international attention and was even dubbed one of the best food blogs in the world by GOOP. Showcasing her extraordinary eye, this debut cookbook is a unique combination of food diary and how-to, with tips and tricks, photographs, recipes, and stories.

Sharing more than one hundred simple culinary recipes drawn from Katie’s travels, dinner party cooking and foodie haunts, What Katie Ate emphasizes seasonal ingredients and irresistible flavors. Featured dishes range from Wild Mushrooms on Toast with Parmesan and Herbs to Roasted Pork Tenderloin with Apple, Prune & Pine Nut Stuffing and Cider Cream Gravy. What’s for dessert? Temptations include Coffee Hazelnut Frangelico Cake and Honey Baked Peaches with Vanilla Bean Créme Fraiche.Perfect for entertaining, this gorgeous cookbook minimizes the time spent in the kitchen and maximizes the time spent enjoying the meal with friends and family. Bringing together easy-to-cook recipes (using standard American measurements) with gorgeous world-class food photography, What Katie Ate will indulge all of your senses.

Source 

I also love, love, love her blog. 

Joy the Baker Cookbook includes everything from “Man Bait” Apple Crisp to Single Lady Pancakes to Peanut Butter Birthday Cake. Joy's philosophy is that everyone loves dessert; most people are just looking for an excuse to eat cake for breakfast.

All of these cookbooks make me want to put an apron on and make a mess of my kitchen. 

I'm hungry. 

Another Step

Some of you may know this and some of you may not. Last fall I went on the HCG diet. Highly controversial and fairly insane, but I still did it. I lost a lot of weight in the process. Was it worth it? In some ways -yes, in some ways- no. Have I kept all of the weight off? Most of it. Will I ever take myself through that torture again? No way. The second round I became so sick and I feel like my body still has damage from that diet. 

*If you're on that diet, go for it. If you're not, that's probably a good thing. It works, but it sucks. (That's my two cents.) 

So, I've taken another step to reach my goal. Weight Watchers. I tell you all this to hold myself accountable and to also state that the first week I've been on it has been wonderful. For those of you that don't know what the diet entails, you can eat pretty much what you want as long as you stay within your daily points. My OCD mind loves the ability to track everything online or on my phone too. This feels much safer. I feel much healthier and fully believe I will make these results stick this time around. 

Breakfast is still my favorite meal ever. 

I also plan on posting some recipes during my endeavor to the change the way I eat and take care of myself. I made this one on friday. Piece of cake and only 5 points per serving. Awesome. This recipe is specifically from Weight Watchers.

SLOW COOKER: RED BEANS, SAUSAGE, and RICE SOUP

Ingredients

	1 clove(s) (medium) garlic clove(s), minced
	1 medium red onion(s), chopped
	1 stalk(s) (large) celery, rib, chopped
	1 medium green pepper(s), chopped
	15 oz canned kidney beans, dark-variety, rinsed and drained
	14 1/2 oz canned diced tomatoes, undrained
	9 oz cooked chicken sausage, andouille-style, cut into bite-size pieces
	1/4 tsp dried thyme
	1/4 tsp black pepper
	6 cup(s) fat-free chicken broth
	1 cup(s) uncooked white rice, converted-variety recommended

Instructions

• Place garlic, onion, celery, bell pepper, beans, tomatoes with their juices and sausage in a 5-quart slow cooker. Add thyme and pepper; stir well.
  
  
• Pour in broth and rice; stir again. Cover slow cooker and set on high power; cook for 4 hours. Yields about 1 1/2 cups per serving.

Notes

• We recommend converted rice because regular long-grain rice can become mushy in slow cooker recipes.
  To turn up the heat, add 1/8 teaspoon of cayenne pepper with the thyme.
  Season to taste with salt and pepper.
  
  
  
  
  
  
  It turned out to be quite good.