Baked Apple Chips

I love having Laurie here! Last week when she got here, she started helping me search for recipe ideas that would work well for our Little Man's diabetes. These baked apple chips came right off the American Diabetes Association website, they were super easy {well, I am assuming... Laurie did all the work ;) }, and Bucky had some for his bedtime snack. Can't beat that!

INGREDIENTS: 

• Parchment Paper
• Honeycrisp apples
• Cinnamon

DIRECTIONS: 

1. Preheat oven to 200 degrees. 
2. Lay parchment paper on two medium baking sheets.
3. Slice apples thin to make round chips. {Discard seeds.}
4. Lay the apple slices on baking sheets without overlapping. Sprinkle cinnamon over apples.
5. Bake for 1 hour. Flip the apples. Bake for another 1-2 hours, flipping occasionally, until the apple slices are no longer moist. 
6. Cool and enjoy!

You could totally do this same recipe with pears or some other fruit. It would be fun to experiment. Let me know if you do and how they turn out.

NUTRITIONAL INFO:

{Serving Size: 1/2 an apple}

Calories - 50

Carbs - 13 g

Sugar - 9 g

Dietary Fiber - 2 g

Healthy Peanut Butter Cups

Do you need a treat for your Labor Day Weekend? You have to give these PB Cups a try! Not only are these a healthier treat option, but with Shakeology thrown in this recipe, you are getting all the benefits from that... vitamins and super foods!

Shakeology Peanut Butter Cups
(Makes 2 servings)

Total Time: 40 min.
Prep Time: 10 min.
Cooking Time: None

INGREDIENTS: 

2 tsp. unrefined coconut oil, melted
2 Tbsp. powdered chocolate peanut butter (like PB2)
2 tsp. Chocolate Vegan Shakeology
2 Tbsp. water

DIRECTIONS:

1. Combine oil and powdered peanut butter in a small bowl; mix well. Set aside.
2. Combine Shakeology and water in a small bowl; mix until it has a pudding-like consistency. Set aside.
3. Coat two foil muffin liners evenly with half of peanut butter mixture. Top evenly with Shakeology mixture and remaining peanut butter mixture.
4. Freeze for 30 minutes, or until firm.

Nutritional Information (per serving):
Calories: 64
Total Fat: 5 g
Saturated Fat: 4 g
Cholesterol: 0 mg
Sodium: 50 mg
Carbohydrate: 3 g
Fiber: 1 g
Sugar: 1 g
Protein: 3 g

My Daily Eating Plan

One thing I have found since starting my healthier lifestyle is that it is so important to eat six small meals everyday, making breakfast your largest meal of the day. Eating smaller meals more often keeps your blood sugar levels steady and your metabolism going. You want to eat breakfast within one hour of waking up. Breakfast is the most important meal of your, so do not skip it!

If you are struggling with weight loss, be sure that you are pairing complex carbs with protein at each of your meals. It could be a reason for not seeing results.

What I eat on a daily basis is pretty simple. I wanted to share it today, because it is a question I get asked. I am pretty repetitive with my eating. That doesn't bother me at all. Once I find something healthy that I love, I tend to stick with it.

BREAKFAST
Before I eat breakfast, I drink one large glass of water. This helps cleanse my body, remove toxins and aid in digestion.

My breakfast is almost always Vanilla Shakeology. If I don't have my Shakeology for breakfast, I will eat oatmeal with cinnamon, fruit, and chia seeds.

SNACK #1
Two to three hours later, I have my first snack. This is usually an apple with one tablespoon of natural peanut butter.

Some other great options:

• Baby carrots and celery with two tablespoons of hummus
• 1/2 cup of plain Greek yogurt with fresh berries, honey, cinnamon, and 1/4 cup slivered almonds
•  1/2 - 1 cup of grapes with a low-fat string cheese

LUNCH
Again, two to three hours after my mid-morning snack, I will have lunch. This usually is a salad. I will take one chicken breast and put that on my bed of lettuce. I will toss on any veggies I have on hand, carrots, tomatoes, peppers, slivered almonds, and one tablespoon of a low-fat balsamic vinaigrette dressing. I make sure to have another big glass of water with my meal.

Here I have a creamy homemade Greek yogurt dressing.

SNACK #2
I have 12 whole almonds and a cup of fresh fruit, along with a glass of water.

SUPPER

This varies depending on our weekly meal plan, but it usually consists of a protein and veggie. We eat a lot of venison at our house, and if we aren't having that, we are eating chicken or fish. We have sweet potatoes and quinoa or brown rice quite often here.

SNACK #3
If I am still hungry in the evenings, I will have a bag of air-popped popcorn or Greek yogurt with berries, along with a cup of tea.

This is my daily eating plan. I have found what I need to fuel my body and meet my caloric needs. I strongly suggest figuring out what your daily calorie intake should be. If you have any questions or need help with this, I would be happy to help. You can contact me by messaging me here.

My Costco Stop

Happy Thursday! Has this week flown by for all of you like it has for me?! I can't believe we are at the end of the week already!

Not much to post over here. Monday I mentioned how I was going out alone for the afternoon because of a doctor's appointment I had. While I didn't make it to Target, I did decide to stop at Costco because we needed a few things. Thought I would share what I picked up on this trip for those interested. :-)

I opened the bag of almonds after loading the vehicle up with all the groceries. I think I could have sat there forever eating these in complete silence, haha! Love my kids, love my life, but I am not going to lie when I say it is a treat to have a few hours alone!

This first group is some of what I picked up. You will see the granola I so often eat... daily? You should definitely try it! 

The kids like the bars as an afternoon treat, so I picked more up for them. 

I love, love, love getting fruit from Costco. Buying that in bulk is a must around here since we got through it so quickly, especially bananas with my little banana monster I have living here. ;) 

Have you ever tried the "Food Should Taste Good" multigrain chips? A great option if you like to snack on chips and salsa or throw them in your chili for that little crunch like we have been doing this week.

I am not into pickles, but the rest of the family likes them, so I make sure to keep these in stock.

Picked up some craisins this trip. I love adding these to my salads and the kids enjoy these as a treat too.

Chocolate chips are a must in our house! We add them to our Greek yogurt, which makes it like a little dessert for us. Totally satisfies my sweet tooth without me going overboard.

Love this fish. When I don't feel like cooking, it is nice to have this in the freezer. I have even baked it up to throw on my salad before, which was really yummy.

My all-time favorite veggie is green beans, so if you came over, you would definitely see these in our freezer. I either steam them up and add a little Mrs. Dash seasoning or I will put them on the stove top drizzled in some olive oil. Mmm!

And, probably no surprise here that I got a couple containers of this. ;)

There you have it. My little Costco stop. My sitter even stuck around and played with the kids while I unloaded and put away! Mini vacation day for me! Love those!

Questions for you:

• Where do you do most of your grocery shopping? 
• What are the staples at your house?

Workouts and Meals for the Week

Home from church and set the timer for 30 minutes to force myself to get this menu done. Having a time limit helps me. I really should do that more often. ;)

My meals are so repetitive and simple, but as My Hunter said, I am busy and need to keep it simple.

So here is my plan. Excited to get back on track.

{Click to Enlarge}

After yesterday's intense Insanity workout, I am excited to have a rest day today.

I am now off to meal prep... chili is going to be thrown together and in the crockpot so I can have it in the fridge all set for the week.

Tonight's supper is leftover from last night, Chicken BBQ Beer Sandwiches. You can find that recipe here.

Thanks Laura and Jill for the link-up!

Have a great Sunday, friends! :-)

High-Protein Chocolate/Vanilla PB Bars

On Sunday, my 5-year-old daughter and I decided to try making the protein bar recipe that came in my 21 Day Fix book. We had to improvise a little, because I only had a little Chocolate Shakeology on hand and no peanuts on hand. I am known to just mix and match recipes with whatever I have in my cupboards. ;)

Super easy to make and they have been a great snack to have on hand during our week.

High-Protein Chocolate Peanut Butter Snack Bars
{Makes 24 servings, 1 bar each}

Container Equivalents {per serving}: One Yellow Container

Ingredients:
4 Scoops Chocolate Shakeology {We used 2 scoops Chocolate & 2 scoops Vanilla.}
2 cups quick-cooking old-fashioned rolled oats
1/3 cup chopped raw peanuts {We used almonds.}
1/2 cup golden raisins {We used raisins.}
1 cup unsweetened almond milk {We used vanilla flavored almond milk.}
1/2 cup all-natural creamy peanut butter

Directions:
1. Combine Shakeology, oats, peanuts and raisins in a large mixing bowl; mix well.
2. Add almond milk and peanut butter; mix well.
3. Press mixture into 8 x 8-inch baking pan; cover and refrigerate for at least 3 hours.
4. Cut into 24 bars.

3-Day Shakeology Cleanse // Explanation & My Results

Last week I decided I was going to do the 3-Day Shakeology Cleanse. You can see a bit about my day one here, day two here and I will be updating you on how my last day went in this post. :-) I know those of you that followed me on this may be wondering if I survived and stuck to the plan on that final day!

Before I give you that update though, I want to share why I chose to do this and go into more detail on how this cleanse works. I did not do this with the intention of losing weight. My main reason was because I needed to detox from the sugar I put in my body over Easter. I still can't get over how having sugar just made me go crazy wanting more and more.

What is the 3-Day Shakeology Cleanse?

The main purpose of the 3-Day Shakeology Cleanse is to jump-start your fitness, break a plateau, or shred pounds fast and effectively in a healthy way.

The Plan

• 3 Shakeology Shakes a day
• 2 Green Teas a day
• 1 or 2 pieces of fruit a day (optional for those needing additional calories - I chose to have one fruit each day... why not? ;) )
• 1 salad for dinner (only white grilled protein in salad)

No:

Dairy or extra sugars

Only low fat dressings 

You can put your snacks before or after any of your major meals (breakfast, lunch or supper).

This cleanse is not for pregnant or nursing women.

Example of how my days went:

Start: 

Drink one cup of green tea to start your day.

My girls joined in one of the mornings.

Breakfast: 

Make your Shakeology (140 calories) with ice and water. You can have 1/2 cup of fruit at this time too (60-90 calories). Like I said above, I chose to have my fruit all three days. I love to eat, so if it is an option, I will take it.

Snack #1: 

One piece of fruit (85 calories)

Lunch: 

Shakeology (140 calories) with ice and water and 1 cup of green tea

Snack #2: 

Shakeology (140 calories) with ice and water

Supper: 

Salad... this thing ended up monstrous every night. I was full afterwards, no issues there! You put three servings of greens in your bowl, top with 2 tablespoons (no more!) of non-dairy dressing, and then add 4 ounces of grilled white meat (fish or poultry). 

I mentioned last week that I tried to do this cleanse back in November and failed from the start. I was worried I wouldn't make it through this time, but I stopped those thoughts in their tracks after My Hunter reassured me that I *could* do this. So, day one and day two, as you read earlier, were followed to a "T" for me. I couldn't have felt more proud or better! 

Now, let me catch you up on how day three went. My Hunter got home at 5:00 pm so that I could get out the door and get to the church for setting up my conference. This was the end of my day for eating. The cleanse had been followed to a "T" again. YAY! A success!

I have to share this next part though. I thought some of you would get a good laugh. On my drive to the church, I had to stop by and pick up the rosettes and verse cards that a friend put together for me that I needed for the event gifts. I was chatting with her real quick, with my hand on the door ready to jump back in my van to keep moving when she said, "Oh! I made an awesome dessert for the conference tomorrow. You have to try it!" {This is where I should have just told her I was doing this cleanse and I really, really did not want to eat anything outside of my plan, but do you think I did that?? Nope. Silly me! Worrying about what other people will think again.} 

She pulled me into her kitchen and handed me the dessert. I just held it in my hand thinking about what I was going to do now, while she stared at me waiting for me to take a bite. And I waited for her to turn away, but she watched, smiling, waiting for me to eat it. So... I did, because what else could I do?! And it *was* good, but I hated that I had a bite! She then turned her back to close the fridge and I quickly shoved the rest in my sweatshirt pocket saying, "Mmm! That was *so* good!" And, it really was, but I wasn't going to eat the rest of it, and I was certainly not going to let her know I hid the rest in my sweatshirt. {Sorry if you read my blog, Carla. I know you will laugh and wonder why I just didn't tell you! :-)}

Here it is, the dessert with a small bite missing that caused me from saying I had a "perfect" cleanse.

The only other slip-up I made was at church. We were working until midnight, and my friend had brought me a coffee. It smelled so good, and I honestly could have gotten by just fine without having any, but throughout the night I had 5 or 6 small sips just because.

So, other than those two small bumps in the road, my cleanse was almost followed to a "T".

Now, let me share how I felt and what I noticed while doing this cleanse.

My Results:

• I felt clear-minded and focused! No foggy-brain.
• My digestion got a restart! {Oh yes it did! They don't call it a cleanse for nothing! Sorry if this is T.M.I., but I am an honest gal. ;) }
• I slept so much better!
• My metabolism got a boost because of the green tea!
• I kicked the sugar cravings!
• The plateau that I was on was kicked! 
• I was not starving at all!
• I challenged myself and proved I could do this; the biggest, and by far my favorite, result of this whole adventure!!!
  
• I lost 4.2 pounds in three days! I have never felt better... honestly! I SO, SO, SO wish I would have taken measurements beforehand, but I wasn't trying to lose weight, nor thinking I would ever possibly lose that kind of weight in three days. My legs, stomach, arms... everything felt slimmer and more toned, so I am certain I lost inches. I am planning on offering this cleanse in a challenge group setting sometime in the future, and you can bet I will be making my challengers take their measurements beforehand.

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Questions:

• Have you ever done a cleanse? 
• What do you think would be the hardest part for you with doing a 3-day cleanse like this?
• Do you think it would be fun to do something like this in a group setting with me coaching you now that I have gone through it successfully myself?

Keep That Salad Healthy

I love salads, and I love getting adventurous and creating new ones, with different toppings and flavors! You have to be careful though, because these healthy greens can quickly become unhealthy when you mix extra-large portions of too many toppings. This morning I wanted to share three tips in helping you keep that salad good for you. Grab your bowl of greens and let's toss up a balanced meal for you.

First, you want to pick your protein. Many salads are loaded down with chicken, bacon and cheese, which is just too much extra fat and calories. You just need one protein; that's it. Choose a 3-ounce serving of meat, fish, beans or cheese and place this on your greens. {3-ounces is about the size of a deck of cards.}

Second, add some crunch. Skip the croutons, tortilla strips or noodles and go with peppers, carrots or celery instead to keep it healthy. According to the American Dietetic Association, people who eat a salad-a-day are more likely to meet their important vitamin intake, including immunity-boosting C and E.

Third, add a little fat. Monounsaturated fats help you absorb carotenoids found in veggies like carrots and spinach, which are also super important for eye health. If you want to try something other than the common oils, try out one of these options instead {which are all the fat equivalent to 1-2 tsp oil}:

• 10 olives
• 12 almonds
• 7 walnut halves
• 1/4 avocado

Some other ways that I like to keep my salads fun and interesting:

• Add raspberries and almonds
• Squirt with lime juice
• Toss in some red onion
• Sprinkle on some sunflower seed
• Drizzle with blueberry {or another fruit-infused} vinegar
  

Questions:

Do you eat a lot of salads?

What is your favorite salad topping?

Day 1... DONE!

Tuesday night I decided I needed to hit the reset button! I was slipping on my eating habits and starting to gravatate to all those sugary treats after having some Easter weekend. Isn't it funny how once you get that sugar back in your system, your body craves it just like that again?!

What I am doing to get back on track is the 3-Day Shakeology Cleanse. This isn't about weight loss for me, but already since completely day one yesterday, I am down a little over two pounds! Not going to complain since I had put about four pounds on recently. For me, this is more about getting back on track physically and mentally.

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I will do a complete recap post on the cleanse next week, so pop back over to check it out. But right now I can already say I feel fantastic!

For now, I off to enjoy my green tea, followed up by my Shakeology for breakfast and a lot of water so that I can stay hydrated.

My workouts for the next few days are just going to be light recovery days. Since I am cutting back the calories for this cleanse, I want to keep those lower impact because my energy will definitely not be there to get through my regularly scheduled Insanity workouts. {Sorry Shaun T! I will be back Saturday morning to work out with ya. ;) }

Hope you all have an amazing Thursday!

Questions for you:

• Have you ever done a cleanse before?
• If so, how long and what did you think?
• What was {or would be} the one food/meal you couldn't wait to have afterwards?

Mini Peanut Butter Oat Cups

Hey guys! Wow! It's Friday already! I don't know about you, but this week flew by for me! And we are looking forward to this Easter weekend!

Yesterday I had a friend come over to visit, so beforehand the girls and I made up a snack to share with her.

This is a no bake, healthy option. And, super easy to make considering my 7 and 5-year-olds made it by following my verbal directions. 

I think these would be good to make ahead during your meal prep day, put them in the freezer or fridge and have on hand when you are looking for something a little sweet to tide you over or for a quick grab-and-go breakfast option.

Ingredients

• ½ cup chopped dark chocolate
• ½ cup raisins or dried cranberries
• 1½ cups oats
• 1 cup Natural Peanut Butter 
• 2 tbsp agave syrup or honey
• 1 tbsp ground flax, chia seeds, or wheat germ
• cinnamon to taste

Instructions

1. Melt the chocolate in a microwavable bowl or on the stovetop over low heat for 2-3 minutes, stirring frequently until melted.
2. After the chocolate is melted, mix it together with the other ingredients in a bowl.
3. Press the dough into lined mini muffin tins.
4. Refrigerate until firm, about 1 hour.
5. Makes 24 mini bites.

We loved them! Bite size, fun and yummy! Let me know if you try them out!

Any Easter plans for you and your family this weekend?

What's Going in Our Easter Baskets?

Hey everyone! How is your week going? I honestly can't believe Easter is in a couple days. How is it mid-April?! The good news is, spring is here! Hope you have been getting some spring-like weather in your area! The kids have been outside everyday this week, and Sunday is supposed to be sunny and almost 70, which will be perfect for getting out looking for those eggs.

This year I wanted to come up with some stuffers other than candy for the kids' Easter baskets. I'm trying to avoid all that extra sugar. They will get enough of that from the big egg hunt. ;)

We honestly don't get them a whole lot for the kids because, well, they don't need it. So, I try to be logical but still put some things in there they will be excited about.

First up, let me share what I bought for my 1 1/2 year old little guy. I know he won't fit into his swimming trunks from last summer, so I thought it would be the perfect gift for his basket, along with the shirt and hat. We will also tuck this little board book in there because he absolutely loves trucks so much!

Baby Boy's Basket

My daughters' baskets will be pretty identical. {I wonder if that will bother them someday? :-)} They both get a new swimming suit. This year we chose tankinis for them to make it easier to use the bathroom while we are living at the pool for the summer. I will also throw in some underwear. You can never have too much underwear, right?! ;) I wanted to get them Frozen bedding, but I think the price on all the Frozen attire is a little ridiculous right now! Yikes! I may pick up a book for each of them to tuck in their baskets as well.

We can't go without some sort of treat. We picked up the lemon almonds last weekend while we were at Costco, so those will go in some of their eggs {As long as I don't eat anymore!}. We also picked up some of Justin's Organic Peanut Butter Cups. {I don't feel as guilty because these are a cleaner candy option. :-)} We will also fill some of their eggs with money. They have already asked if we will be doing that again because they remember us doing it last year.

Can't leave My Hunter out. I don't know that I got him anything last year, but on Tuesday one of my friends shared with me a plant I may be able to keep alive {Thanks Mel!}... bamboo! With My Hunter's love for plants, I thought this would be a cute gift for him. The kids and I picked this up for him when we were out Wednesday and will surprise him with it on Sunday. :-) And, if I can't keep this alive, I think this relationship I am trying to create with plants is over.

Need other non-candy ideas? Here are a few:

• Coloring Books & Crayons
• Stickers
• Bubbles
• Sidewalk Chalk
• Jump Ropes
• Sandals & a Fun Nail Polish
• Sunglasses
• Lipgloss/Chapstick
• New Tableware (Cup & Plate)
• Bracelets
• Books
• Cleaner Candies:
• A Homemade Goodie
• OCHO Bars
• Yummy Earth Brand Candies
• Surf Sweets Jellybeans

Do you do Easter baskets? If so, what are you putting in them this year? 

What is one thing you would like in your Easter basket?

Oatmeal Cookies with Chocolate Chips & Almonds

Sometimes you just need a good treat, am I right?! Thankfully, my 21 Day Fix still allows goodies. My motto... all in moderation! I definitely can't give treats up for good. I would totally fail at this lifestyle if desserts weren't allowed. I have too big of a sweet tooth! ;)

Over the weekend, I made up these super yummy, extremely easy cookies to have on hand for my week when I craved that sweet little something.

Have to share with all of you, of course!

Oatmeal Cookies with Chocolate Morsels and Toasted Pecans

Serves: 8 {2 cookies each}
Container Equivalents {per serving}: One Yellow Container

Ingredients:
Nonstick Cooking Spray
1 cup old-fashioned rolled oats
1 tsp. ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp. sea salt
1 cup unsweetened applesauce
1/4 cup semisweet chocolate morsels
1/4 cup chopped raw pecans, toasted {I only had almonds here, so I used those; tasted great!}

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. 
2. Lightly coat baking sheet with spray. Set aside.
3. Combine oats, cinnamon, and salt in a medium bowl; mix well.
4. Add applesauce, morsels, and pecans; mix well.
5. Drop by heaping Tbsp. onto prepared baking sheet; flatten with a spatula.
6. Bake for 14 to 16 minutes or until firm.

Enjoy!

Meals & Workouts for the Week

Happy Sunday! It has been a gorgeous weekend here! We played outside quite a bit of the time. Hope you all have been enjoying your weekend as well.

I laid out our meal plan yesterday and now today, after church, we will run to the store to pick up any needed items and come home to meal prep for the week. I love having this all laid out, with as much of our meals and snacks prepared ahead of time. It makes it so much easier with everything we have going on once the week's activities begin.

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I have a new group of challengers starting on the 21 Day Fix tomorrow, so I figured I would join in {my third round} with them. I am absolutely loving the program, the simplicity and results of it all so I figure why not.

When My Hunter is home to work out with me this week, I will join him in whatever Insanity workout he is on, just because I really enjoy working out with him and I am finding that I really like working out with Shaun T. He is TOUGH but totally pushes and motivates you as you go through the workout.

I am planning my May challenge group now, and am looking forward to starting something new. I love variety in my workouts, and it is good to keep your muscles guessing. ;)

Enjoy your day with family. We will be relaxing and playing with the kids in between church, meal prep and before they have AWANA tonight. Busy day! :-)

Thanks, Laura and Jill for hosting again!

Meals & Workouts for the Week

I am on the final week of my round 2 plan with 21 Day Fix! This week includes a 3 Day Quick Fix, which I will be sharing more about in a post coming up in the next day or two.

As for workouts this week, there is an option to double up. This is for anyone looking for more dramatic results. The second workout is to be done at a different time of day. This will help rev metabolism, burn more calories, and just get you closer to reaching your goal. I do plan to do both workouts each day this week.

Here is a look at my plan:

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We had a great weekend over here; I hope you all did too. My Hunter ordered Insanity, which came last week, so we pulled that out and did workout one on Saturday

and workout two on Sunday.

There's a reason Shaun T called the program what he did! It is definitely not for the faint of heart! ;)

Have a great start to your week, and thanks to Jill and Laura for the link-up. :-)

Staying Healthy on Vacation

Spring break is around the corner. It's already next week for us, and with spring break brings vacation.

One of my challengers is leaving for her vacation at the end of the month, {Can I squeeze in her bag?! A vacation sounds glorious!} and she asked me the other day to help her so she didn't lose all the way she had come.

I happen to have some tips for her, and I wanted share here too because I know she is not alone. I know for me, I can sometimes tell myself, "It's vacation; I'm going to eat anything and everything because we don't do trips like this everyday!" And while it's fine to enjoy yourself, you don't want to throw away all that time you spent sweating, pushing yourself, saying no to that cookie, etc.

• Pack Your Own Snacks - For the road trip or plane ride, be sure to have healthy snack options in your bag so you are not grabbing something at a gas station or only left with the option of having cookies or chips on the plane. Apples, pears, unsalted raw almonds, raw veggies with individual hummus cups are all great options.

• Fill Up on Healthy Foods - When eating from the breakfast or lunch buffet, make sure to choose fruits, veggies, oatmeal, etc. That way if later in the day you are left with a less healthier option, at least you got in a couple servings of your fiber and produce.

• Ask Server How Meals are Prepared - When eating out, don't be afraid to ask this or make special requests. Modify the meal by asking for baked or boiled instead of fried. Have them make it using less oil or butter. Ask them to not add addition butter. Choose the low-cal or low-fat options. 

• Share Your Meal - The serving sizes at restaurants can be ridiculous! Consider ordering a half-order or an appetizer as your meal. If you are with a group, share your meal with one of your friends. Before you even start eating, ask the server for a box and put half of your meal in there. 

• Water is Your Best Friend! - Drink a glass of water before every meal and snack. Keep water with you at all times and continue drinking it throughout the day. You are supposed to drink half of your body weight in ounces, so be sure you are still getting that in while relaxing. 

• Focus on the Company - Vacation isn't just about food and splurging! It's time to enjoy the people you are with! Focus on them. Engage, laugh and have fun! Find activities that you can do to fill your day.

A Couple Green Recipes

How was your weekend? Ours was pretty marvelous! We had our normal Friday night movie night, a relaxing Saturday, and yesterday involved some meal prep on my part while My Hunter took the girls out to enjoy the gorgeous 60 degree weather we were having.

In honor of St. Pat's Day today, I thought I would share a couple of green recipes with all of you; both involve avocado.

The first one is our guacamole recipe. I didn't have it added in when I took this picture, but we threw in some of my mom's homemade salsa with and it makes it that much better! Try it!

Guacamole Dip
Ingredients:

2 ripe Avocados, peeled and pitted (I ended up using 5 avocados and just added more of everything else.)
Juice of 1 Lime
1/4 Cup minced Red Onion (Probably my favorite ingredient, and to think I was going to leave it out! I am famous for that, if I don't have something, I am kinda like, uh, oh well, it'll be fine w/o it! Drives MH NUTS!)
2 Tablespoons minced Cilantro 
1 small clove Garlic, minced
1 teaspoon Kosher Salt or 1/2 teaspoon Table Salt
1/2 teaspoon Pepper
1 Tablespoon minced Jalapeño 

Directions:

Halve the avocado and remove the pit. Remove the avocado from the skin by scooping it out with a spoon. Place the avocado in a bowl and mash it gently with a fork. Mix in the remaining ingredients.

Serve immediately. The recipe also says you can cover and chill for up to 3 hours, but I would just leave everything prepared and put it together in the last minute.

Makes 3-4 servings, but it will go so fast you should double it!. 

This second recipe is for all you egg salad lovers. Adding avocado to it not only has some health benefits, but it makes it that much tastier!

Avocado Egg Salad 

*adapted from Skinnytaste

Ingredients:

• 8 large hard-boiled eggs (You will use 4 whole and then 4 of the whites only.)
• 1 medium avocado
• 1 tbsp light mayo
• 1 tbsp Greek yogurt (You can use plain, and that's actually what her recipe called for, but we only had greek here, so I used it.)
• Celery 
• 1/2 tsp salt
• dash of pepper (We love pepper, so I put more on.)

Directions:

1. Chop up your 4 eggs and 4 egg whites.
2. Cut your avocado into small pieces.
3. Slice up your celery stalks.
4. Combine all ingredients. Add more salt and pepper as needed. 

Serves: 6

Serving Size: 1/2 cup

Calories: ~155 

I would love to hear if you try these out! Hope your St. Patrick's Day is filled with luck and lots of Irish blessings! Have a marvelous Monday!

Thanks, Katie, for the link-up!

Meals & Workouts for the Week

I have gotten back in to a regular routine of planning and prepping my meal plans {and hello!} it just makes life so much easier! I need to stop falling off that wagon. ;)

I am in the midst of prepping now, but I wanted to take a quick break to pop over and share what I have planned for eats this week.

You will see that I am a pretty repetitive person. It works for me. I cook up a bunch of a few things and just re-eat them all week.

For those who are not aware, I am on round two of the 21-Day Fix, so that is why all my food groups are color-coded.

{Click to Enlarge}

Thanks for hosting this link-up, Laura and Jill! It's always fun to see what others are eating.