Busy Mom- A Satisfying Saturday

Last night I totally went to bed at 8:30 and Shane made fun of me for it! Oh it felt so good though I don't care. I woke up early today and got my workout in- weights and cardio! 2 for 1 special!!! I checked in with my awesome challengers, showered, and started to make a grocery list.

Taylor and I cleaned after her breakfast while my awesome hubby cleaned all of the windows! It wasn't even 10 am and look at us go!

After drinking the healthiest thing of the day, Shakeology, I decided Taylor and I needed to  do a project. We were going to use up some of our saved toilet paper rolls to make pretend binoculars. I never throw them away. I just keep them in our art container until we use them for some type of craft like today. Taylor got a hold of the scissors while I wasn't looking and cut a hole in her shirt. Other than that and the fact that our binoculars turned out lopsided, we had fun!

I kept my grocery list under budget AND managed to get some additional fall decor for the house. Go me! This week's meal plan:

Tonight- chicken and veggie tin foil dinners
Sunday- steak/broth fondue
Monday- BBQ chicken & healthy coleslaw
Tuesday- panko chicken salad
Wednesday- Chicken Noodle Soup
Thursday- Tilapia, cooked veggies, rice

While Taylor napped, I started planning her birthday party! Yes, I'm crazy because it's not until December. I put up the rest of our fall decor right before it started raining! I may be the only house on my street ready for fall, but I don't care. "The cold never bothered me anyway"...

Now, how to spend our evening? A long walk, snuggles while we watch a movie, a museum maybe? It's always so nice to work first and then have the rest of the Saturday to play! Shout out to Melony Warner for the great tin-foil dinner recipe!!!

Day 24- My Favorite "Go To Meals"

I've been asked about this a lot lately so I'm putting together a list of my favorite food ideas that I've loved since the beginning of the year. Some of them require a recipe and some of them don't! I'm not a strictly clean eater but I've found some regular meals that are liveable, realistic, and delicious! We can still eat healthier and modify our meals without feeling like we're "dieting". It's about finding ways to make a better choice....

BREAKFAST FAVORITES

• Oatmeal
• Shakeology
• Honey Chia bread toasted (Costco)
• Eggs (vegi omellete, hard boiled, or scrambled)
• Special K with Red Berries and  Almond Breeze milk
• Grapefruit and Plain Greek Yogurt
• Any Greek Yogurt for that matter with fruit.... :) 

LUNCH FAVORITES

• I pair sandwiches with a small pile of kettle cooked chips and fruit (apples and plums are my favorite with sandwiches!)
• Turkey sandwich with avocado, tomato, lettuce
• Turkey sandwich with lettuce, tomato, pickle
• Leftovers from the night before (chicken/rice, soups, chicken tacos, and steak are all still good the next day!)
• Anything curry... really hits the spot! During the school year I look to buy the curry meals in the organic freezer section. 
• Dole Cesar Salad kit with rotisserie chicken from Costco. 
• Eggs
• Tuna over sliced tomatoes
• Arugula and spinach salad with feta, mandarin oranges, walnuts, and balsamic vinaigrette
• Spinach salad with dried cranberries, almonds, and poppy-seed dressing 
• Chicken with a slice of ham and a slice of swiss cheese on top- baked- vegetables on the side
• Vegi burger with a Thinwich for a bun, dressed with avocado slices and salsa.(TRUST ME)
• Fruit salad (berries, grapes, banana, apple) on the side of a lean protein
• Turkey roll ups- place feta or goat cheese with avocado inside a slice of turkey and roll up! 
• Open fajitas- cook steak strips, peppers, and onions with fajita seasoning and olive oil. Place a little cheddar cheese on top at the end. Use one small tortilla and tear into pieces and throw it on top! 
• Orchard Chicken Salad- "Our Best Bites" Cookbook/Blog

Dinner Favorites

• Rotisserie chicken pieces mixed with Dole Cesar Salad
• Grilled Baja Citrus Chicken with a mango/avocado salsa on top, served on rice- Life As Mrs. Larson Recipe
• Tin Foil Chicken Dinners- Recipe
• Grilled chicken tacos- with either lettuce or broccoli slaw, fat free sour cream, fresh salsa, pinch of cheese
• Lemon Pepper Tilapia- frozen tilapia cooked in electric frying pan with evoo, lemon juice, and lemon pepper.
• Whole Wheat Spaghetti with EVOO and Parmesan cheese
• Tortellini Soup- (with or without sausage) Our Best Bites Recipe
• Steak- (marinades, bbq, rub)
• Chicken breast stuffed with feta and pesto- slit the side, insert filling, bake
• Grilled Chicken/Steak Skewers- pieces of steak or chicken on skewers with zucchini, peppers, onion
• Grilled Pineapple Chicken Skewers- pieces of chicken, drizzle of soy sauce or teriyaki sauce, and pineapple chunks

SIDES

• Green Salads
• Cooked Zucchini
• Avocado/Mango/Red Pepper mix
• Baked potato slices with EVOO, garlic, salt, pepper
• Asparagus
• Grilled pineapple
• Fruit salad- berries, banana, apple, melon
• Green beans
• Cubed orange squash- baked
• Corn on the cob
• Rice
• Whole grain pasta with marinara, evoo, or homemade mushroom sauce
• Tomato slices with fresh mozzarella and basil on top
• Sauteed mushrooms with garlic and onion
• Cooked carrots with evoo and parsley
• Cooked broccoli
• 
  

Day 18- My Favorite Job of All...

So while I was busy at school today thinking about all the things I needed to do this week to get my classes ready for their final tests, what I needed to do to clean and organize my classroom, and what I needed to start doing to prepare for next year's classes- I started thinking about my FAVORITE JOB OF ALL!

I love being a mom and wife! I love grocery shopping, making dinner, giving Taylor a bath, the satisfaction of a clean house after a deep clean, going on walks with my family, reading with Taylor, family scripture reading on weekday mornings when I'm on a school break, folding laundry, planning meals, planning our week, planting flowers, watering the flowers, wiping Taylor's hands after a meal or snack, teaching her and showing her something new, hanging out with Shane, improving myself, educating myself, working out, inspiring others, taking pictures, and writing about my life and family.

Yes, I enjoy teaching and my students. I love business/marketing and DECA. My favorite job of all is being a mom and wife though. I am excited because I have found a new passion which combines teaching and nutrition/fitness- coaching! This summer I will get to stay at home and be a full time mommy while I continue to coach and help others reach their fitness and health goals.

I'm going to love what I do every day this summer! It also makes me look forward even more to when I switch to part time or completely leave teaching to raise my little ones.

I feel peace and comfort about this decision. I just can't wait!!!


Tonight's dinner was pretty good and would make a great dinner for a camp out!

Chicken Foil Dinners-
raw chicken breast, cut into strips
red pepper, chopped
onion, chopped
thyme
sea salt
black pepper

Wrap completely in foil! Bake or grill for 25 minutes!

Day 9- sprinng break 2014 woo hoo!

I feel so productive today! We started out our morning with prayer and scripture reading! I worked out to Turbo Fire for 40 minutes and then Taylor and I got ready to go to the park! She loved it so much! She cried when we had to leave. We did laundry together, made an art project with buttons, made some freezer meals, cooked Hawaiian Haystacks, read many books, played, repaired some broken picture frames, and even practiced going to the potty (not me, Taylor)!

It was such a good day. After Shane got home we ate (he said my Hawaiian Haystacks were delicious!) and then headed back to the park! I've  noticed a real difference in our home since we've been regularly reading scriptures and praying individually and together. The Spirit is stronger in our home and we are loving each other with a more Christ Centered love.

Above- Taylor relaxing after a long hard day of fun!

Day 10- We went to a park up north to meet up with some old friends of ours from where we used to live. Those moms are wonderful friends and I've really missed them! It was nice to see how their kids are growing and what they're up to! One of the friends at the park is my Beach Body Coach. She too has plateaued. For me, I think it's because I haven't been advancing in my workouts or in my nutrition. Change makes change. What I'm doing is maintaining. I don't want to maintain though. I want to change and continue to lose. Back to tracking calories tomorrow and working out hard even though it's supposed to be my rest day in the program.

I went back to IMC today about the IUD. Thankfully they were able to take it out... with a lot of yelling on my part. It really hurt! Hopefully my body will heal quickly and will be back to its regular scheduled programming in a month or two. My good neighbor watched Taylor while I had the appointment. When I went to pick her up she was all dressed up. Turns out her own little girl loves to dress up and had quite a fun time dressing up Taylor. I love having a girl because I too loved to dress up when I was younger.

I made cheeseburgers for dinner and should have made a salad with it but I didn't because of time. I should always prep a salad and eat it while I wait for dinner to finish. That used to work really well for me but I became complacent  and didn't think that it was necessary to continue that habit. I was wrong... I love learning lessons along this journey!

Days 6, 7, 8

Day 6- Girls Night!

I did my Turbo Fire workout right when I got home from work. Shane watched Taylor while I went with my best friend to meet up with our old friends that we lived with in college. We went to my favorite place- "Red Iguana" I ordered the same thing that I order every time. I know that it is a lot of calories but it's worth it! That's how I look at food now... some food definitely is not worth it. We had a lot of fun catching up and laughing!

 Day 7-  I love Saturdays!

We started our day right! Playing with Taylor, Shakeology, and working out to Turbo Fire! I made a budget and health friendly grocery list and then headed off to Costco with Taylor. I love Costco! We stocked up on canned fruit for our food storage, items for freezer meals, and lots of fruits and vegetables for the week! That evening, Taylor took a long drive up to Evanston WY to join my brother-in-law and his family for a BBQ. Shane stayed home to study for his CPA. He's working towards taking his first test later this May. It's a lot of work so we've been trying to make time for him to study.

Taylor and I loved seeing her cousins and spending time with their family. When it comes to cheeseburgers, I've learned to have just have one bun. I use the  same bun for one cheeseburger and one hot dog. Salad on the side, yes please! Water to drink, yes please! It was delicious and fun! My sister-in-law and I talked about making freezer jam sometime this summer! We both haven't done it before so I'm excited! In the fall, I want to learn how to make grape juice with my grandma.

Day 8- Sunday is a Special Day!

I've decided that I love working out in the morning and I end up being in a better mood the rest of the day. I'm wondering if I'll be able to wake up early enough to work out in the morning before Taylor wakes up...

I love going to church and feeling the Spirit. I love being able to hear the testimonies of others and to partake of the sacrament. Taylor is starting to run away now at church so that's a new adventure for us.  It's hard too because we have 1pm church and so we're there during the time that Taylor would take her afternoon nap.

I made a delicious dinner for tonight! It's a recipe from "Our Best Bites". I've made their Cheesy Chicken Enchiladas before, but tonight's was definitely my best version of it! Yes, I love mexican food and anything spicy. I know Taylor is my daughter because she ate half of one the spicy enchiladas! She's only one! She kept saying "more! more! more!".

DAY 3- Enjoying the sunshine!

It was so nice outside today! It was wonderful! My teaching scheduled got finalized for next year! I'm super excited to teach IBCC, Internship, Accounting, and Marketing! It does give me mixed feelings though, because I can't wait to spend summer with Taylor... but sad that it will end so quickly.

Today was the perfect park weather! When I picked Taylor up from daycare she was so sad to leave. She used to crawl or wobble towards me with excitement. Now, she's upset to leave because she wants to play with the kids. I feel bad that we don't have regular play dates with neighbors. That's something that will definitely have to change for the summer. So I brought her home, started to marinate the chicken for tonight's dinner, and walked with her to one of the near by parks. She loved it! We stayed for about an hour. When it was time to leave to go home and make dinner. Taylor kept scrambling out of the stroller and then crying because she'd get stuck. Finally I strapped that little girly down. I hadn't used those straps since she was just a little baby. 

I made grilled chicken and mango/avocado salsa with a side of asparagus for dinner. Yum! Then after Shane came home from work and ate, we headed to a different park! Taylor loved hanging from the monkey bars and trying to do the climbing wall. She's definitely strong enough, but not quite tall enough. It'l be nice this summer to go to a different park every day. 

We played a little longer together and then said our prayers and she went to bed. Since Taylor has started walking, I've noticed a stronger willed little person. She wants to be independent and be in charge. She is becoming more vocal though which helps us understand her better. It's funny though because she talks A LOT but we can't understand a lot of what she says. I'm starting to think that some of it is in spanish since her daycare teachers are all spanish and speak spanish with the kids. Taylor know several phrases in spanish. I love that!

Cool experience today while reading my scriptures- I was in charge of monitoring a hall by the gym during an assembly today. The assembly was at the other end of the school so there wasn't supposed to be a lot of traffic over where I was. I decided to take a book instead of taking all my grading or laptop over there. Sitting on some steps in the hall, I read my scriptures while I kept an eye out for students wandering. A young man started to hang around the hall and was marking dance moves while he quietly talked to himself. I asked if he was ok and he said he finished his run early for gym. I was then realizing that he was practicing a routine for dance company. He asked what I was reading. I said "Scriptures". He asked which one. I simply told him "The Bible". He said "Cool!" with a big a smile on his face. Then he went on with what he was doing. I first felt almost worried about a student knowing I was reading my scriptures while at school. But, a lot of teachers bring a reading book with them to monitor the halls during an assembly or during a dance. My book was the Old Testament. After the student had a positive reaction to my response I felt good that even if a student had different beliefs that at least in that moment I was saying something about who I am and that what I believe is important to me. 

My goals for today:
Water- check!

In bed at 9- check!

Work out by 8- got distracted by skittles and by Sheldon Cooper. Decided today (instead of tomorrow) will be my rest day.

Taylor's goals for the year:
First tooth- CHECK!!!!