Friday Favorite: My BFF Jess

So, I know you guys know a little about Jess. But did you know she is about to have a birthday?!

Yes, that's right, my BFF is having a birthday this weekend and I wanted to share with you all a few of the reasons why I am so glad she was born.

A list of 10 things I love about Jess:

1. She laughs at A LOT of the same things I do. There aren't many people who laugh- and I mean really laugh- at randomness, so to find someone who appreciates the same things as I do is wonderful. Our 3rd BFF, Lauren, completes our trio. We are all each others lobsters.

51. She introduced me to Tom's. #lifechanger

10. She is one of the most driven people I know. Her ambition is inspiring. Many of the healthy things I have shared with you all here are inspired by her. Many of the "mom" things I share are inspired by her. She is an inspiring person. No lie.

67. She surprised me after Little Miss was born by coming to visit. I'm not sure how she and Lauren pulled it off, but no one has ever done anything that special for me!

42a. Her nick name in college was "Miss Health Promotion". If there was a crown given out for our degree she would have won it. She is passionate about health, y'all. But she's not someone who makes you feel unhealthy, it's awesome, she can share healthy messages and it makes you think you can do that too.  {aaaaand that's why we have a blog}

42b. I probably would have had bad grades in college if she hadn't made inspired Lauren and I to study. She also found me my internship... so I probably owe her some of the credit for my degree. Thanks for that Jess!

23. She loves S'mores. She even pins S'more recipes to share with me. How sweet is that?

73. We make a long distance friendship work. That's talent, people.

138. She can quote Friends as well as I can. This is a big reason why we are friends. For example, she pinned this and it made me laugh out loud:

30. She has been my friend through thick and thin, ups and downs, and through it all we have grown, matured, started families, and I have learned the meaning of friendship. I'm so grateful to call her a friend. A best friend. 

 H A P P Y     B I R T H D A Y     J E S S!

Healthilicious: 5 Fab Smoothies for Summer (or Anytime!)

I mentioned last week that ever since I quit my morning coffee ritual, that I've been making smoothies. The funny thing is that when it comes to coffee, I basically stick to one way and one way only. Smoothies, on the other hand, are another story. I need change and no two days can ever be the same... at least in the same week.

So, today I'm sharing my 5 favorite smoothie combos (no measurements because I never measure. ever.) and since I'm kind of obsessed with nutrition, don't be surprised if you get a little education on the side. ;)

1. Strawberries, mango, pineapple, almond milk (unsweetened), a spoonful of plain greek yogurt, a small handful of ice.

2. Strawberries, pineapple, simply lemonade, handful of ice

3. Strawberries, blueberries, raspberries, blackberries, 1/2 banana, handful of fresh spinach leaves, almond milk (unsweetened), spoonful of greek yogurt, small handful of ice.

4. Mango, Pineapple, 1/2 banana, almond milk (unsweetened), spoonful of plain greek yogurt

5. Strawberries, peaches, 1/2 banana, almond milk, 2 spoonfuls of plain greek yogurt, small handful of ice


As you can probably tell, I use almond milk and greek yogurt in most of my smoothie recipes. Both of these ingredients rock and really pack a punch when it comes to nutrition.

Almond Milk: High in Vitamin E (an antioxidant important for your skin), low calories (mine has 60 calories per cup), and low in carbohydrates- so it won't spike your blood sugar. The amount of sugar found in almond milk is known as "low glycemic", so your body will fully digest it and use it as energy instead of storing it as fat. Sweet, huh? (of course, making your own is better than store-bought, but I haven't tried it!)

Plain Greek Yogurt: High in protein- mine has 23g protein in an 8 oz. serving, so even using a large spoonful in your smoothie will give you a good source of protein!  Low-carb (again, won't spike your blood sugar), and packed with live and active cultures for good digestive health. My favorite is Chobani Plain Non-Fat- all natural ingredients and no added thickeners. Be aware that all greek yogurt is not created equal- check the label to be sure thickeners, like corn starch, are not being used.

I also use strawberries in basically all of my combinations- I just love them! They are in season now, so I'm stocking up and freezing them to use later. Not to mention, they are loaded with Vitamin C (immunity boost, anyone?), packed with antioxidants and phytochemicals which fight against inflammation and protect your heart, and are a great source of folate (essential in the early stages of pregnancy).

My mommy machine secret for making a quick smoothie is to cut and freeze fruit ahead of time, and  I usually do this in conjunction with my weekly snack prep. You can also make a big batch of smoothies and freeze them. Just thaw out in the refrigerator overnight- easy peasy!

Tip for Tuesday: Trash Bowl

This may seem too simple. But it is amazing what a difference this tip makes!

Rachel Ray is the person who had this tip and as soon as I saw it I knew it would be a great thing for me to try!

I always use a trash bowl. It saves time:

• Before I even start cooking- in the morning, I placing the meat or chicken I will need for dinner in the bowl and then cover it with water, this speeds up the thawing time
• While cooking so I don't have to go back and forth from my prep "station" to the trash can
• Cleaning up because I don't have trash all over my counters

Any bowl can be a trash bowl. Any trash can go in the bowl. I use it for food scraps, wrappers, paper towels from washing my hands, you name it.

When you are cleaning up after dinner you can sort the trash into recycling containers and dump the rest right in the trash can! I highly recommend you try this little gem of a tip.

Thanks Rachel ;)

she's got no clue who I am

What's your favorite time saving tip for the kitchen? Share it with us!

Bake Outside the Box: Breakfast Favorites

Breakfast food is my favorite food to make. Oddly enough, I prefer to have breakfast for dinner rather than in the morning. I think this has something to do with me not being a morning person- I need to wake up to enjoy my food.

Anyway, in an effort to feed my family healthy, breakfast foods are things I bake on a regular basis. I try to make one breakfast item per week (usually on Sunday) and then freeze extras so we can eat them throughout the week. If we have to eat cereal or pop-tarts one or two days- I'm ok with that. We are shooting for the majority of our breakfasts to be homemade and we are able to do that most of the time.

Jess mentioned that she plans her breakfast item weekly. I usually just see what sounds good on Sunday morning :) However you make baking from scratch work for you- go with it!

I have posted my tip for freezing pancakes, this little Mommy Machine Secret works for all of these recipes!

One thing I love about these recipes is that they allow for variety. If I have blueberries- I throw some in. Bananas go great with the oatmeal pancakes. I've even been known to put a few chocolate chips in between 2 pancakes when I heat them up in the microwave in the morning. You can change little things to make all of these recipes work for you!

The last tip I have for baking breakfast outside the box is to add whole wheat flour. You can usually substitute 25% of the all-purpose flour for whole wheat and not notice much difference in taste and texture. The fiber that this easy switch adds is totally worth it!

Here are the links to my favorite breakfast recipes, I have also created a Pinterest board called Baking Outside the Box where I have added all of the recipes I share in this series!

Pancakes *can easily be doubled and extras frozen
Oatmeal Pancakes
Waffles *can easily be doubled and extras frozen
Blueberry Muffins
Biscuits (these are great with strawberry preserves!)
Coffee Cake *cut into squares after cooling completely and freeze unused portions for later
Banana Bread

I hope you enjoy these recipes. What is your favorite thing to bake for breakfast?

The first post in the BOTB series can be found here.

Friday Favorite: DIY Outdoor Storage

Isn't it amazing what spray paint can do?

I did this project a couple of years ago and these buckets still look great! Back then Little Man was starting to accumulate outdoor toys and we had zero storage. I needed outdoor storage for things like trucks, balls, shovels, etc.

I picked up a couple of galvanized buckets at Lowe's and some spray paint.

I used painters tape to tape off stripes on the red one. I decided to leave the blue one solid, but stripes would have been cute there too.

After taping off the stripes, I spray painted both buckets different colors. Once the paint was COMPLETELY dry, I took the tape off and, voila! Super simple, cute storage.

The kids can carry these buckets with them all around the yard. They make play time and clean up easy peasy. That's why they are a Friday Favorite.

Healthilicious: Frozen Peanut Butter Banana Sammies

Once the summer heat settles in here in Minnesota, I'm always thinking of and searching for healthy snacks for the kids that will cool them off after an afternoon walk or time at the playground.

Last summer I started making these frozen peanut butter banana sammies, and they were a huge hit with my kids. I was even able to make them gluten-free for Speedy with "S'moreables"- a great gluten-free alternative to graham crackers!

I should warn you that these are ridiculously simple. Like, even my husband could do this... and that's saying a lot. ;) Three ingredients, 10 minutes of prep, about an hour or so in the freezer, and you have a super yummy treat! I usually make them in bulk when I prep our weekly snacks- such a time saver!

Frozen Peanut Butter Banana Sammies

10 graham cracker "sheets" (s'moreables, if you're gluten-free)
2 bananas, mashed
natural peanut butter (we love Jif brand)

1. Break each graham cracker sheet in half, set aside.
2. Peel bananas, and mash with a fork.
3. Spread peanut butter on the underside of each graham square.
4. Spread banana mash on top of peanut butter (just one square) and top with the other square.
5. Put them on a baking sheet or plate and stick them in the refrigerator for 20 minutes or so. Take them out and wrap in foil. Store in freezer for up to 1 week.

Your kids will love them, and you probably will, too...so make extra.

Tip for Tuesday: How to Freeze Fruit for Smoothies

Ever since I broke my daily coffee habit (oh, how I miss it so!), I've been drinking smoothies. While they are super yummy, they're kind of a pain in my you-know-what to make. Who wants to cut up fresh fruit every single day? Ok, I guess not everyone makes smoothies on a daily basis, but I do! ;)

It's super easy to cut up a bunch of fruit to freeze- you could even do this in conjunction with your weekly snack prep. Two birds, one stone!

There is a method to freezing fruit, though. To be sure it doesn't all clump together in the freezer bag, lay the cut up fruit on a parchment lined baking sheet. Stick the sheet in the freezer for 30 minutes or so and THEN put the fruit into a freezer bag.

Super simple, right? Now get to it!