What I Ate Wednesday + Coconut Whipped Cream and A New Slow-Cooker Recipe! December 5, 2012

Peanut got into Keenan’s legos this morning! Again, Keenan wasn’t pleased with her playing with his legos and immediately asked me to put them away, since he couldn’t reach them (she was sitting on the ledge of our china hutch)!

On another note, I can’t believe it is already Wednesday! This week is flying by (which is a good thing, because I can’t wait to get my CrossFit competition over with!). I’m excited for the competition, but already nervous…UGH! Since it is Wednesday, I am linking up with Jenn again at Peas and Crayons for her fun What I Ate Wednesday link-up!

Before I talk about my eats from the past couple of days, I want to tell you about a new recipe experiment that my husband and I tried this morning: coconut whipped cream! I have been seeing more recipes and uses for coconut whipped cream on other blogs, so I thought I would give it a try, especially since coconut is loaded with healthy fats and is SO good for you, compared to regular cream. We made it to add to our coffee this morning, which I have to say was REALLY good! We used a can of coconut milk (all natural, no additives in it), Xylitol and vanilla. We whipped everything in the mixer until we had some resemblance of stiff peaks, but after mixing everything for several minutes, it didn’t have the consistency we were hoping for (what you see on the internet). Don’t get me wrong, it was still thick and lofty and had a great flavor when added to my coffee. The only thing I can think of as to why it didn’t form stiff peaks was there were no additives, thus no emulsifiers in the coconut milk. I’m going to get a can of regular coconut milk with additives to see if it makes a difference. Either way, the cream was still tasty! Here is the recipe, if you are interested!

So creamy and rich!

Coconut Whipped Cream:

Ingredients:

– Solidified fat of 1 can of coconut milk (refrigerated for 24 hours)

– 3 tbsp Xylitol

– 1/2 tsp vanilla

Directions:

1. Open can and scoop out all of the fat at the top (save the liquid for Asian inspired dishes such as curries or even add to smoothies) and place into mixer bowl.

2. Add Xylitol and vanilla and mix on high with wish attachment until stiff peaks form.

3. Add prepared whipped cream to your morning coffee, hot chocolate, on top of muffins, baked goods or even No Oat Oatmeal and enjoy!

*Notes: You can store the leftover whipped cream in a container in the fridge and use the next day.

Before mixing it all together.

Onto the past couple of days of eats:

Breakfasts:

– Paleo Pumpkin Pie Muffins with strawberries

So yummy and such a great pumpkin pie flavor!

– No Oat Oatmeal with leftover butternut squash

Such a good combo!

– Cheesy eggs

Enjoying his cheesy eggs!

Lunches:

– Turkey wraps

Perfectly balanced lunch!

– Egg whites in a mug over a bed of spinach, topped with tomato, avocado, roasted pumpkin seeds and pasta sauce

This is still one of my favorite things to eat for lunch!

-For Keenan: Homemade mini pizzas on a sandwich thin with pasta sauce, chopped chicken and cheddar cheese

Keenan loved his pizza!

Snacks:

–Paleo Chocolate Chip Protein Cookies

A new batch that Keenan and I made yesterday!

Dinners:

– Crock Pot Pork and Apples with roasted butternut squash (sorry, I forgot to snap a picture!)

– Green beans sauteed with Italian sausage

So good, thanks to my husband for preparing!

– Slow-Cooker Eggplant Caponata with Chicken (see recipe below!)

Should be good!

Slow-Cooker Eggplant Caponata with Chicken: (serves 3)

Ingredients:

– 3 frozen chicken thighs or breasts

– 3 medium size eggplant (cut into small/medium size cubes)

– 1 large yellow onion (chopped)

– 2 cans no-salt added chopped tomatoes

– 1/2 cup pasta sauce

– 1 clove garlic (minced)

– 2 tsp Italian seasoning

– 2 tsp garlic no-salt seasoning

– pinch of salt and pepper

Directions:

1. Place frozen chicken at the bottom of your crock pot. Sprinkle salt and pepper on top.

2. Add eggplant, onion, garlic, tomatoes, sauce and seasoning on top of chicken and mix.

3. Cook on high for 4-6 hours. Serve on top of a bed of fresh spinach, pasta or whole wheat couscous topped with a sprinkle of feta or Parmesan cheese. Enjoy!

Today has been a fun today. We met a friend and her son (Keenan’s best buddy!) at The Bounce Spot in West Sacramento this morning for some play time, since it was raining. The boys had so much fun bouncing, climbing and going down the slides. It was the perfect activity for a rainy day, and it only cost $5.00, not too bad! Though it was a little far out, it was well worth it and something we will definitely do again. Keenan definitely burned off some energy this morning, because by the time we got home, he was tired (rather, cranky) and quickly ate his lunch and went down for a nap (a successful morning in my book!).

It is time to get ready for CrossFit, for my last WOD before my competition on Saturday. Tomorrow, I’m just doing a little bit of cardio and then I’m off on Friday. So far (keeping my fingers crossed), my piriformis and rhomboids are feeling good!

Enjoy the rest of your Wednesday!

Questions: What have you eaten today? What is your favorite slow-cooker/crock pot recipe? I’m looking for some new ideas!

A Tough Tuesday and An Easy Crock Pot Recipe! November 14, 2012

Well, today was just one of those days! This morning, while I was making breakfast, Keenan was “helping” me make coffee and as I was getting ready to put the coffee in the French Press, it tipped over and broke into a hundred pieces! Glass was EVERYWHERE and Keenan and I were in the middle of it (not a good situation!). Keenan started crying and all I could think of was making sure he wasn’t cut and cleaning up the glass. Luckily, Keenan was fine and I was able to clean everything up. But, we were extremely late for our play date with our friends in Roseville, Giselle from A Healthy Happy Home and her cute little guy, Ayden.

Once we met up with our friends, we had a great time! Giselle is so sweet and her little guy is adorable. We walked through the farmer’s market, played a bit and even went on a little train ride (which Keenan absolutely loved!). As we got closer to lunch time, Keenan was getting tired and cranky, so we headed to Whole Foods to pick up a quick bite to eat before heading home. As we were getting food, Keenan was so tired that at first he wanted something and then he didn’t, getting more and more cranky. So, I got something quickly for him and we ate outside before getting in the car to drive home. Since he was so tired, he ate very slowly and took forever to swallow his food. I kept telling him to swallow, but  he just kept his food in his mouth for the longest time!

Having fun on the train ride! Keenan supplied our “sound effects,” because he kept saying “Choo Choo” during the entire ride!

Enjoying the train ride together!

As I expected, Keenan fell asleep as soon we drove out of the parking lot. Thinking that he would transfer well (he usually does), I transferred him to his crib, but after a few minutes, he woke up and didn’t go back to sleep. I let him sit in his crib (in hopes he would fall back asleep), but it didn’t help. He kept talking to his animals and then eventually calling for me. Needless to say, today wasn’t the best! I definitely don’t feel like I’ve earned the “best mom” award. I can’t help but feel bad about the whole day: broken glass everywhere, staying out too late this morning, thus causing Keenan to act out in frustration, and keeping him in his crib in hopes of him falling back asleep while I got some work done. The lesson learned is I need to learn to take a step back and reevaluate the situation and let things go. I also need to not worry about getting “everything done,” and just appreciate these moments (good or bad), because they go by so quickly.

Well, on another note, I survived yesterday’s extremely challenging WOD, “Murph“, yesterday. I finished in 49minutes and 24 seconds! I was SO relieved when it was over! I have to say that was one of the most mentally challenging WODs I have done. It was  hard to stay focused when there were so many reps to do! At least today’s workout wasn’t too bad. We had a small WOD of 15 hang clean and jerks of 65 lb and 15 box jumps, completing as many rounds as possible in 10 minutes. It was a nice change from yesterday! In addition, I did 100 burpees after class, as extra work our coach is having us do in preparation for our upcoming competitions (and for being a few minutes late…).

Before I forget, tonight we made Kabocha squash for the first time! We quartered it, added spices and roasted it in the oven for 45 minutes. When it was ready to eat, we just scooped it out with a spoon. It was really good! I’ll definitely be buying it again!

So yummy!

To go along with it, I made pork with apples and onions in the crock pot, a recipe I found online. It was good, though a little too acidic. I accidentally added too much apple cider vinegar. With a little less vinegar, it would be much better. Here is the recipe. It is super easy, since you throw in frozen pork chops or country style ribs!

Good (though it doesn’t look that great)!

Crock Pot Pork and Apples: (serves 2-3)

Adapted from Frugal Foodie Mama

Ingredients:

– 2-3 pork chops or boneless country pork ribs (frozen)

– 1 medium red onion, chopped

– 2 medium apples (any kind), cored and chopped

– 1/4 cup apple butter

– 1/4 cup apple cider vinegar

– 1 1/2 tbsp whole grain Dijon mustard

– 1 tsp salt

– 1 tsp pepper

– 1/2 cup apple sauce

Directions:

1. Mix apple butter, vinegar, mustard, apple sauce, salt and pepper together in a small bowl.

2. Place apples and onions at the bottom of the crock pot.

3. Place pork on top of the apples and onions.

4. Top with mustard mixture, cover and cook on low for 6-8 hours.

After a day like today, it is time for a much needed hot shower and heading to bed early. Have a good night!

Question: What kind of “bad mom” moments have you had? What did you learn from them?

**The winner of the Fiber Gourmet giveaway is: Heather! Congrats!! Please email me your address at fitnwellmommy@yahoo.com

More Birthday Fun! November 12, 2012

I hope everyone had a great weekend (or is still having a great weekend, if you are off today)! We had a wonderful weekend with my birthday celebration part 2!

On Saturday, we spent the day at my in-laws. My mother-in-law made an AMAZING brunch for my birthday that included:

Quiche made with swiss chard and mushrooms

YUM!

Cinnamon Rolls

SO worth the splurge!

Deviled Eggs (made by Patty, their good family friend and neighbor)

So good that I ate three!

Cafe Bon (the yummiest coffee drink ever!): made with coffee, chocolate, Amarula liquor and whipped cream!

Best coffee drink ever!

Keenan enjoying Patty’s whipped cream in her Cafe Bon!

My birthday cake: A dense and gooey sweet potato cake with whipped cream and white chocolate frosting!

One of the best cakes I have ever eaten (and I’m not much of a cake fan)!

Everything was delicious and left us all stuffed, to say the least! When we got home that evening, my husband and I were still so full, that we just munched on a few carrots, a slice of turkey and some popcorn.

Yesterday, my husband planned a wonderful day of wine tasting with our friends in Amador County (while Keenan stayed with some friends). We started our day at Amador Cellars with some tasting and then a nice picnic with sandwiches and baked goods from Andrae’s Bakery. Everything was delicious, especially their yummy rosemary brie bread! If you are ever in the area, I highly recommend stopping at Andrae’s for lunch!

SOOO yummy!

After lunch, we made our way to four wineries, including Vino Noceto (one of my favorites!), Story (a new favorite!), Convergence and Helwig (least favorite). It was such a beautiful (but cold!) day, that we were able to get some good pictures! On our way home, we picked up some pizzas and salads from Hot Italian in midtown Sacramento for dinner (a yummy way to end the day!). All in all, it was a great day and my husband did well! He planned the perfect birthday celebration. I’m so blessed and thankful for having such a loving and supportive husband!

Our first stop at Amador Cellars!

Great friends!

The girls and our boots!

Well, today, has been a “semi-lazy” day, since my husband has the day off (though, he isn’t feeling too well). Keenan had his last music class of the year this morning (we start again in January) and we stocked up on groceries on the way home.

After Keenan wakes up from his nap, we are going to CrossFit to complete “Murph,” a hero WOD that consists of: run 1 mile, 100 pullups, 200 pushups, 300 squats and run 1 mile. I’m SO not looking forward to it and trying to think of every excuse NOT to go.  But, I know my body needs a good workout, especially after consuming so many calories this weekend!

Enjoy the rest of your day!

Question: How was your weekend? Did you do anything fun?

*REMINDER: There is still time to enter the Fiber Gourmet giveaway! Contest ends tomorrow, Nov. 13th at 8 p.m. PST!! To enter, click here!

Oh, what a busy weekend! October 22, 2012

I can’t believe it is already Monday. I need one more day to rest and get things done, since we were so busy this weekend. Did anyone else feel that way? Either way, we had a good weekend, spending some time as a family, running our usual errands, including a trip to our farmer’s market and Costco, as well as seeing some friends.

On Friday and Saturday nights, my husband and I enjoyed our “at home date nights.” On Friday, we made a yummy antipasti dinner of eggplant rollatini and bruschetta (using some ciabatta bread we had in our freezer) with tuna. To top if off, we also enjoyed a nice bottle of wine. We ended up just talking and not watching any of our TV shows, as planned. It was a nice evening!

The eggplant rollatini recipe is from my cousin who lives in Tuscany. When my husband and I traveled to Italy the summer before Keenan was born, we stayed with my cousin Tony, and his wife, Vanda, for a couple of days. While we stayed with them, Vanda made us some AMAZING dishes, one of which was her eggplant rollatini that she served as part of her antipasti the first night. It was SO good, we knew we had to try and replicate it at home (which comes close, but it is not the same). Just thinking about her cooking is making my mouth water! Here is the recipe:

Eggplant Rollatini: (serves 4-6)

– 2 large eggplants

– 1 package ricotta cheese

– 1 large handful of fresh basil (finely chopped)

– salt and pepper to taste

Directions:

1. Slice eggplants in very thin slices, using a mandolin kitchen slicer (if you have one).

2. In a nonstick pan, cook the slices of eggplant, for 2-3 minutes on each side or until browned. Let cool.

3. Meanwhile, mix ricotta cheese, basil, salt and pepper together.

4. Once the eggplants are cool, put a dollop of the ricotta mixture in the center of the eggplant and roll.

5. Chill in the fridge for at least 1 hour before serving. Serve as an appetizer or a part of your meal!

*Notes: If you are in a hurry, you can skip the refrigeration step and serve the eggplant rollatini immediately. When chilled in the fridge, the flavors have a chance to blend together and the ricotta sets.

On Saturday morning, I made a new creation for part of our breakfast, a baked paleo pancake. We each enjoyed a square of the pancake topped with pumpkin butter, along with my husband’s “cheesy eggs!”  The pancake turned out pretty good, though a little dense, but the flavor was great. For my pancake recipe, see below:

Prior to being baked.

Baked Paleo Pancake: (serves 3-4)

Ingredients:

– 1/2 cup almond flour

– 1 banana (mashed)

– 2 eggs

– 2 Tbsp any milk

– 2 Tbsp flaxseed (ground)

– 1 tsp vanilla

– 1 tsp cinnamon

– 1 tsp honey

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees and prep an 8×8 pan with cooking spray.

2. Mix all ingredients together and pour into pan.

3. Bake for 15-20 minutes, or until slightly brown.

*Notes: cut into squares and serve with coconut butter, pumpkin butter, nut butter, maple syrup or honey.

Fresh out of the oven!

For Saturday night, we started off our evening with a wonderful goat Gouda cheese that we picked up at Costco, with some Fiber Gourmet crackers (look for a review and giveaway coming soon!), and a nice bottle of wine. Since I had some broccoli that needed to be used up, we roasted it with cherry tomatoes and a red onion, topping it with a drizzle of balsamic vinegar and a sprinkle of feta cheese. It was delish! Since we ate so much of the Gouda cheese, we didn’t feel we needed any other protein. Since we didn’t watch anything the night before, we had a TV marathon and got caught up on all of our shows that we missed last week. “Parenthood” had me in tears and “Revenge” is getting SO good!

Wine and cheese, the perfect pair!

On Sunday, we enjoyed a nice breakfast of french toast (using the leftover ciabatta bread from Saturday night), thanks to my husband! Of course, we had pumpkin lattes to go with it! After breakfast, we headed to a local CrossFit competition in Elk Grove, the WarriorZ Throwdown, to watch our coach compete. Some of the top CrossFit athletes from Northern California competed, so it was really inspiring to watch!!

After the CrossFit competition, we headed to our neighbor’s son’s birthday party (he turned 1). Keenan was SO tired, because he didn’t have a nap yesterday, so he was wired at the party. He enjoyed playing in the bonce house and having his fill of sugar! The theme of the party was from the book, “The Very Hungry Caterpillar,” and they had cake pops in the shape of a caterpillar; it was really cute! I have to say that the cake pops were some of the best that I have ever eaten; they were SUPER moist and very chocolatey! Keenan devoured his in seconds and my husband and I shared one. I could have had another one all by myself, because they were so good! 🙂

Today, has been another busy Monday with Keenan’s music class and finishing up some things around the house that I didn’t get to over the weekend. I also made a batch of Italian Carrots for Keenan, since he was all out of his cooked carrots. Since he still can’t eat raw carrots (I thought he could a while back, but when he had them over the weekend, he just spit them out, since they were too hard for him to chew), I like to keep some cooked ones in the freezer for easy additions to his meals. I just microwave a few carrots for 20-30 seconds and they are ready for him to eat, so easy! Here is the recipe, if you are interested in making some for your toddler, or if you just prefer cooked carrots:

So good, I like eating them, too!

Italian Carrots: (serves 6-8)

– 1 bag baby carrots

– 1 tsp butter

– tsp Italian seasoning

– 1/2 tsp pepper

– 2 tsp Parmesan cheese (grated)

Directions:

1. Steam carrots until tender with a fork.

2. Toss carrots with all ingredients in a large bowl and mix until all are well coated.

3. Either eat the carrots freshly cooked, or store in a zip-lock bag in the freezer for up to 3 months. When ready to eat, heat as many carrots as desired in a microwave-safe dish for 25-35 seconds.

*Notes: When re-heating carrots, you might want to microwave for 20-25 seconds at first, to check to see if thoroughly heated, since all microwaves are different.

Well, Keenan should be waking up soon, so it’s time to get ready for CrossFit. I’m helping out with the beginner’s class tonight, so that should be fun! They are a great group of people! On the menu for dinner is a roasted beet salad with goat cheese and pine nuts! I haven’t roasted beets before, but I love ordering a roasted beet salad in restaurants, so I’m excited to try it out. I’ll keep you posted!

Questions: How was your weekend? Did you do anything fun? Did you make or try any new foods/dishes? If so, what new foods/dishes did you try?

**REMINDER: There is still time to enter a chance to win a box of goodies from Go Raw! Contest ends tonight at 8 p.m. PST!! To enter, click here.

Round and Round and Two New Recipes! October 9, 2012

My husband and I were talking over dinner last night about routines and how they are important, but also how it is good to venture away from them from time to time.  I am a person of routine, thus Keenan is definitely a child of routine. As we were talking last night, I realized how so much of my day–including what I eat and when I workout–is a part of my routine. i.e. my “usual” breakfast and going to CrossFit every afternoon. Having a routine in my life is just who I am, though it may seem mundane to others, I thrive by it! Don’t get me wrong, I LOVE to travel, experience new things and see what the world has to offer (all while throwing the routine out the window!), but I enjoy coming home and getting back into my daily routine (I’m sure my husband’s eyes will roll as he reads this!). Having a routine makes me appreciate new things and experiences. It also helps me maintain a healthy lifestyle for myself and for my family. Without my routine of eating healthy and going to the gym every afternoon, I don’t know where I would be. A routine is vital for establishing healthy habits, such as going to the gym at a set time everyday, packing your gym bag and setting it by the door every night before you go to bed, packing healthy lunches for you and your family the night before, or planning your family’s meals for the week every Sunday. All, in all, routines help you adhere to a healthy lifestyle that last a lifetime. But (a BIG BUT), it is important to try new things and break out of your routine every once in a while. You need change in order to grow.

With that being said, I am going to try my best to break out of my “routine” here and there, not always eat and/or post about my “usual” breakfast or that we always go to CrossFit after Keenan wakes up from his nap. I am going to do my best to mix it up a bit and keep things fresh for you and me!

Speaking of mixing things up, I made Keenan and I “No-Oat Oatmeal” for breakfast this morning. It was perfect for our Fall-like morning! By the way, I’m SO excited that Fall is finally here (or at least it is appearing to be!). I love anything pumpkin, so I can’t wait to make more pumpkin muffins, bread, pancakes, soups and lattes with pumpkin pie syrup! Look for some new Fall inspired recipes with pumpkin to come soon!

Back to our breakfast…I love “No Oat Oatmeal,” because it is loaded with protein (egg whites), so it keeps you full for a long time! You can pretty much add anything to it, as far as what kind of flavor you want and it still tastes great. Since I had a little bit of leftover pumpkin, I threw that in, along with a little pumpkin pie spice and topped it with sliced strawberries and a dollop of almond butter. It was yummy!

Perfect for a Fall morning!

No Oat Oatmeal (serves 1)

Ingredients:

– 3/4 cup egg whites

– 1 Tbsp flaxseed (ground)

– 1 Tbsp chia seeds

– 2 tsp vanilla

– 1 tsp cinnamon

– 1/4 cup milk (any kind, i.e. non-dairy is fine)

– 1 tsp honey

– 1 banana (mashed)

Directions:

1. Mix all ingredients together in a bowl and transfer to a small sauce pot.

2. Cook on the stove on medium heat, constantly stirring, to make sure the bottom doesn’t burn.

3. Cook until it reaches a thick consistency like oatmeal.

4. Top with fresh berries, chopped walnuts, almonds, a scoop of almond butter or peanut butter and enjoy!

Cooking it on the stove.

*Notes: This usually cooks in 5 minutes, but if you want to save time, you could make this the night before, let cool and refrigerate. In the morning, just warm it up in the microwave for a couple of minutes and you are ready to go!

After breakfast, Keenan and I met Giselle and her little guy from A healthy Happy Home at our local park. It was so nice to meet her in person and talk “blog shop,” but also just to get to know each other. Her little guy is adorable and she is so nice. We have a lot of similarities, so it will be great to get together with them again!

Playing with the water fountain at the park (as always)!

For lunch, we ventured out of our routine and made egg sandwiches! I made Keenan an egg sandwich with cheese and tomato spread with Costco’s yogurt jalapeno dip and avocado pieces on the side. I made my egg sandwich with spinach, tomato and avocado, spread with the jalapeno dip, too. In addition, we shared a peach. It was a delicious lunch and something we will be doing again (see, it’s great to break our of our routine sometimes!).

Keenan’s lunch! Sorry for the poor picture quality, I’m not sure what happened.

My lunch! Again, sorry for the poor picture quality!

For today’s workout, we are doing one of the benchmark WODs, Fran: 21-15-9 of thrusters (65 lb) and pullups. The last time I did it was at my CrossFit Level 1 Trainer Cert and I was able to shave off 2 minutes and PR (my personal best) at 8 minutes and 12 seconds. I’m hoping to shave off another 2 minutes and finish in 6 minutes today. We’ll see! I’m a little nervous, but I’m excited to do it again. I just hope my left shoulder holds up, because it is still pretty sore, especially from yesterday’s workout.

Yesterday, we did another benchmark WOD, Elizabeth: 21-15-9 of squat cleans (95 lb) and ring dips. Since I don’t have full ring dips yet and my shoulder was sore, I used the band for them (the lightest band). I was able to finish in 9 minutes and 17 seconds! I was pretty pumped! We are going to do these benchmark WODs again in 6 weeks, so it will be great to compare and see how and if we improved!

On the menu for dinner tonight is Chinese long beans sautéed with onions, Italian sausages, sun dried tomatoes, garlic and sprinkled with feta cheese. I thought I posted a recipe for this a while ago, but apparently I didn’t, so look for this to come tomorrow!

Before I forget, here is the recipe for my roasted brussel sprouts that we had for dinner last night:

Soooo good!

Roasted Brussel Sprouts with Pine Nuts and Parmesan Cheese: (serves 3-4)

-2 lbs brussel sprouts (washed and trimmed)

– 1 large yellow or red onion (large dice)

– 1/4 cup roasted pine nuts

– 2-3 Tbsp Parmesan cheese (grated)

– 2-3 Tbsp olive oil

– 1 Tbsp Italian seasoning

– 1 Tbsp Garlic no-salt seasoning

– 1 clove garlic (minced)

– pinch of salt and pepper

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

2. Combine all ingredients in a large bowl. Toss to make sure the brussel sprouts and onion are well coated with olive oil and spices.

3. Place brussel sprouts and onion on a large cookie sheet and bake for 30-40 minutes, until golden brown.

4. Sprinkle roasted pine nuts and Parmesan cheese on top of brussel sprouts when serving. Enjoy!

Ready to go in the oven!

Question: What do you do to maintain healthy routines? Does it work? Do you function better with routines or without them?

REMINDER: There is still time to enter the Drink Chia Giveaway!! To enter, click here!

Weekend Recap and Drink Chia Review and Giveaway!! October 8, 2012

Happy Monday! We had a good weekend, though not enough relaxation. I’m looking forward to a weekend when we don’t have any plans (if that is possible!). Anyhow, before I talk about today and Drink Chia, here is a little bit about our weekend.

On Friday, we had our “at home date night,” and enjoyed some roasted spaghetti squash seeds with some wine as we were waiting for the spaghetti squash tomato bake to be done. My husband offered to roast the seeds and he did a really good job; they were yummy! We are definitely going to do this again when we make any winter squash, because the seeds make a great snack or addition to homemade trail mix! After enjoying our scrumptious spaghetti squash tomato bake, we watched a couple of our favorite TV shows, i.e. “Up All Night” and “Parenthood.” For dessert, I didn’t end up making the microwave cookie like I had planned. Instead, we enjoyed a scoop of vanilla ice cream with some of my husband’s cousin’s famous fudge sauce…SO good!

Yummy roasted squash seeds!

Delicious spaghetti squash tomato bake with chicken right out of the oven!

On Saturday, we went to our local farmer’s market and loaded up on produce for the week,  followed by running a few errands. Before I forget, my husband made a very yummy breakfast: eggs benedict (well, a pseudo eggs benedict: poached egg on top of toast with tomato, avocado and Costco’s yogurt jalapeno dip)!  In the afternoon, we headed to our friend’s son’s birthday party (Keenan had a blast playing with all of the kids and eating a chocolate cupcake!) and then to my parent’s house. My husband and I helped out at an event for my hometown’s school, since my parent’s couldn’t be there. While we were at the event, my cousin babysat Keenan, so it was a nice “night out” for my husband and me!

Eggs benedict thanks to my lovely, husband!

Yesterday, we made a nice breakfast of eggs, oatmeal pancakes and fruit for my dad (since my mom was out of town) and headed to church. After lunch, we headed home for Keenan’s nap. Once he got up, we enjoyed a chocolate peanut butter milkshake (minus the milk) with flaxseed added for a snack and got our groceries for the week. Keenan was SO excited to drink his milkshake, in fact, he pretty much sipped every last morsel in his cup!

Milkshake time!

Now, on to today and Drink Chia! Keenan and I enjoyed our “usual” breakfast this morning of Fage Greek yogurt, flaxseed, chia seeds, strawberries and Kashi cereal (I know, boring!), since we had to get out the door quickly to go to his music class. Tomorrow, I’m thinking chocolate protein oats or no-oat oatmeal for breakfast…we’ll see! Anyhow, after class, we played in the park with some of the kids and Mommies from his music class before heading home for lunch. I made Keenan a turkey and cheese sandwich with avocado and a glass of milk. I enjoyed a peach and walnut salad with dried cherries and chopped chicken tossed with some balsamic vinegar and olive oil. It hit the spot!

Using his fork as a “microphone” as he was eating his lunch!

My lunch!

This afternoon, we are headed to CrossFit and then home for dinner: grilled country style boneless pork ribs with roasted brussel sprouts topped with pine nuts and Parmesan cheese!

Drink Chia:

Before I go into my review, here is a little background on Drink Chia: it is based in Florida and was founded by Chandra Davis, a mother of two young children, who was training for a marathon and wanted to enhance her nutrition. She researched different things and went to her local health food store and bought some chia seeds. After many hours in the kitchen experimenting with chia seeds, mixing them into different fruit juices and adding various sweeteners to get the perfect beverage, thus Drink Chia was born. She drank her concoction everyday and noticed a difference in her energy and she experienced less aches and pains in her knees and ankles from her training. Chandra co-founded Drink Chia with her fitness trainer, Mark Theisen.

Drink Chia’s lineup.

The kind folks at Drink Chia generously sent me some of their drinks to sample last week. They have four flavors: Mango Tangerine, B Meyer Lemon, Honeysuckle Pear and Strawberry Citrus. The first one that I tried was Strawberry Citrus, which was excellent (all flavors were great)! The flavor was great and I hardly noticed the seeds (but, before drinking, it needs to be chilled and you must SHAKE it, otherwise the seeds could clump up). Prior to trying Drink Chia, I have to say, I was not a fan of chia beverages, due to the seeds clumping up (with or without shaking) and the feeling in my mouth (more of a texture thing than flavor), but Drink Chia proved me wrong! They were definitely able to make a great tasting drink with chia seeds and without the funny texture like other chia drinks. Another nice thing (or added bonus) about their drinks, is that they are only 40 calories and are loaded with Omega-3 fatty acids, lots of B-complex vitamins, zinc, selenium and only 4 grams of sugar. It is a great drink for a quick afternoon “pick-me-up,” prior to your workout or part of your post-workout snack. Instead of sprinkling chia seeds in your food, you can just drink them and still gain the same nutritional benefits (or more!). I love chia seeds because they are so beneficial for your health, thus I try to put them in everything I can (yogurt, baking and sprinkled in salads), but I will definitely be drinking more of Drink Chia! They can be purchased online, through Amazon.com or you may find them at your local grocery store.

Such good stuff!

Since Drink Chia was so generous, they offered to send one lucky reader a half case and a t-shirt!!

To enter the giveaway, please follow the steps below:

1. Leave a comment on this post stating when you would drink your Drink Chia, i.e. part of your post-workout snack, part of your breakfast, after lunch, etc!

Earn an extra entry by:

1. Like Fit ‘N’ Well Mommy’s Facebook page

2. Like Drink Chia’s Facebook page

3. Post on YOUR Facebook page or Tweet, “I want to win some Drink Chia from Drink Chia and Fit ‘N’ Well Mommy at http://www.fitnwellmommy.com.”

*Make sure to leave a second comment on this post with your Facebook post, Tweet or Like, in order for your extra entry to be counted!

The giveaway ends this Thursday, October 11th at 8:00 p.m. PST. Good luck!

Just Another Tuesday October 2, 2012

Today is one of those days…I have been dragging since the moment I woke up. It definitely didn’t help that my husband and I stayed up late watching the first episode “Revenge” (of this season) last night, but it was SO good! In addition, my body just feels tired and somewhat rundown, so I don’t know if I am fighting a bug or coming down with something (hopefully not!). Needless to say, I’ve loaded up on vitamin C and started Zicam! I am planning to head to bed early tonight and hopefully feel better tomorrow.

Before I talk about our day, I have to share this picture of Keenan. He had SO much fun playing in this box last night that we received from Target, for my friend’s baby gift! I am thinking of making it into a car or train for him…any other ideas?

Enjoying his box!

As promised, here are the recipes for the almond flour flaxseed pizza crust and pumpkin muffins:

Our beautiful pizza before it went into the oven the second time!

Almond Flour Flaxseed Pizza Crust:

(Adapted from the Paleo Plan)

Ingredients:

– 1-1/4 cups flaxseed (ground)

– 1 cup almond flour

– 1 tsp salt

– 2 tsp baking powder

– 1 Tbs honey

– 1 tsp Italian seasoning

– 1 tsp garlic no-salt seasoning from Costco

– 3 large eggs, beaten until smooth

– 3 Tbs olive oil

– 2 Tbs water

– toppings of choice

Directions:

1. Heat oven to 425° F.

2. Combine flaxseed, almond flour, salt, baking powder and seasonings until smooth.

3. Beat eggs, oil, honey and water until smooth.

4. Pour liquid mixture into dry ingredients.

5. Press into desired shape and poke a few holes in the dough with a fork.

6. Place on a pre-greased or non-stick pizza pan or on parchment paper on a pizza stone.

7. Bake for 15 minutes in the center of the oven until cooked.

8. Add your favorite toppings, return the pizza to the oven and bake an additional 10-15 minutes.

*Notes: Remember to poke holes in the dough before baking, otherwise your crust will have large bubbles, thus making it hard for the toppings to stay on (this is what happened to our pizza!).

Mixing the ingredients all together to form the pizza dough.

Forming the pizza crust prior to baking it.

Pumpkin Almond Flour Muffins:

(Adapted from the Paleo Plan)

Ingredients:

– 1 cup almond flour

– 1 cup canned pumpkin

– 2 eggs

– 1/4 cup almond butter

– 1/4 cup honey

– 1 tsp baking powder

– 1 tsp cinnamon

– 1/2 tsp pumpkin pie spice

– 1/4 tsp salt

– 3/4 cup chopped walnuts

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350*F.

2. Combine all ingredients in a large mixing bowl and blend well.

3. Coat muffin tin with non-stick cooking spray and divide batter among six cups.

4. Bake for 32-35 minutes or until muffins are cooked all the way through.

*Notes: Oven baking times vary, so set your timer for 27-28 minutes to check and then (if needed), bake for an additional few minutes. My muffins were done in 28 minutes. Also, this an easy recipe to involve your kids! Keenan was my “baking assistant” and loved putting the ingredients into the bowl and mixing everything all together.

Fresh out of the oven!

This morning, Keenan woke up requesting to watch “Elmo’s World” on my nook in our bed, so we spent some family time cuddling in bed watching Elmo! It was nice because my husband and I were not quite ready to get out of bed yet. But, I have to say the past few mornings have been nice nice because Keenan has been waking up at his usual time again, 7:30! Anyhow, after we got out of bed and made our way downstairs, we had breakfast, our “usual” and then played with legos, before getting dressed and heading to the park with our friends.

His lego house!

The boys were SO excited to see each other, it was too cute! After playing at the park for a while, we headed home and had lunch. Keenan had his favorite: peanut butter, honey and banana sandwich with a couple of baby carrots and a glass of milk. Yesterday, he ate a baby carrot without spitting it out, so I think with his two top molars, he can now eat raw carrots! I’m so excited because it makes my life easier! 🙂 For my lunch, I made myself an Egg White Florentine in a Mug topped with some pasta sauce and a side of leftover grilled zucchini. I craved something sweet, so Keenan and I shared a small peach. A little while later, I also enjoyed an iced coffee, since I didn’t have time to make a latte this morning.

After Keenan’s nap, we are heading to CrossFit (as usual). Yesterday’s workout was tough. The WOD was 3 rounds of: 21 deadlifts of 95 lbs (not bad), 15 pullups and 9 hang cleans (95 lbs). I didn’t have time to eat a snack prior to going to the gym, so I was “out of gas” before starting the workout (not a good thing!). I was able to finish in under the time cap at 12 minutes and 37 seconds (the time cap was 20 minutes), but it wasn’t a great. Lesson learned: I need to make time for a pre-workout snack, no matter what! Today’s workout should be interesting. My husband went to the morning class and told me about it, so I am already dreading it! The WOD includes a mile run followed by as many rounds as possible of 26 over-the-box burpee jumps, 16 grasshoppers and 6 back squats (135 lb). We’ll see how it goes…

After dinner, I’m excited to pick-up the book, “Paleoista,” at the library. I requested it a couple of months ago, so I can’t wait to finally read it. I have heard some good things about it, especially the recipes it contains. For dinner tonight, I am trying something new in my crock pot: chicken topped with chopped tomatoes, onions and garlic, followed by chopped kale. I placed frozen chicken thighs at the bottom and poured a can of chopped tomatoes on top, along with an onion (chopped), some garlic, spices and a lot of kale (as you can see from the picture below). I am hoping the kale will be nice and soft and the chicken will be tender. I am planning to serve the chicken, tomatoes and onion over a bed of the cooked kale. I’ll let you know how it turns out!

Tonight’s dinner experiment!

Oh, I forgot to mention that my TOMS and Reebok Nanos arrived the other day! I’m SO excited to start wearing my TOMS, once the weather starts getting more fall-like (I can’t believe that we are still having 100 degree weather in October!). I’m going to wear my Nanos to CrossFit today, so I’m curious as to how they will do.

My TOMS!

My Nanos 2.0!

Enjoy the rest of your afternoon!

Question: If you are coming down with something, what do you like to do/take? I don’t like taking a lot of medicine, so I’m a big proponent of taking more vitamin C and zinc, along with drinking plenty of water and/or tea.

My First Foodie Pen Pal and Weekend Recap October 1, 2012

I’m excited about today, because it is my first Foodie Pen Pal Reveal Day!

A few weeks ago, I received my first Foodie Pen Pal box from Claire, in Chapel Hill, North Carolina. She sent goodies from her local co-op grocery store, Weaver Street Market. It is located in Carrboro, a small town right in the middle of North Carolina’s Research Triangle Park. From what Claire mentioned, Weaver Street Market isn’t just a market, it has a wonderful bakery, morning hot breakfast bar and a restaurant. It definitely is a one-stop shop!

On to the goodies that were in my box: “Everything” hamburger buns, YAWP bar, sugar toasted pecans, peach, valencia orange and apricot jam, along with Burt’s Beeswax chapstick and lotion, all local from North Carolina!

My goodies that I received!

“Everything” hamburger buns: These looked SO good, but unfortunately, they didn’t stay fresh and had some mold on them. I wished I could have tried them, because they looked delicious (minus the mold) and had so many wonderful things in the ingredients, i.e. seeds, nuts and different flours!

YAWP Bar: This was good, very crunchy, like granola. I liked that it was all natural and only contained almonds, dates, sunflower seeds, pumpkin seeds, sesame seeds, cinnamon and salt. It was loaded with protein, so it made for a nice pre-workout snack!

Sugar Toasted Pecans: I’m a sucker for any sugar-coated or glazed nuts, so these were AMAZING! My husband and I munched on them while we were cooking dinner for one of our “at home date nights!” I could have eaten the entire bag myself!

The pecans were so good, that they were addicting!

Valencia orange, Apricot and Peach Jam: This was good and a perfect topping for almond flour pancakes! I’m not much of a jam person, but this was really tasty, not overly sweet. Keenan and my husband really enjoyed this and practically put it on everything! 🙂

Burt’s Beeswax: I never knew Burt’s Beeswax was from North Carolina! I have always loved their lip products, so it was nice to have another chapstick. This was the first time that I tried their hand lotion and it was really nice, too! I will definitely be buying their lotion again!

It was a lot of fun receiving my box and trying all of these new things, in addition to sending a box to someone else (you can check out what I sent here!). I can’t wait to do it again this month! If you are interested in joining the Foodie Pen Pal program, find out how to join here.

Since this is already getting to be a long post, I’ll try and keep our weekend recap short.

On Friday night, we we enjoyed our “at home date night,” making pizza with an almond flour flaxseed crust topped with grilled peaches, prosciutto, spinach and goat cheese. The crust was SOOOOO good! It was very flavorful and crispy like a regular pizza crust. It certainly was a pizza that you could eat with your hands (unlike the cauliflower pizza we made a couple of weeks ago). This will definitely be one of our “regulars!” As you can see from the picture below, our pizza looked amazing, but as my husband was taking it out of the oven, the parchment paper split in half (yes, it wasn’t on a pizza stone or cookie sheet) and the pizza went crashing to the floor. My husband didn’t want to take out the whole pizza stone, he thought he could just pull it out from the parchment paper. Next time, we need to get a pizza mat! Anyhow, aside from our pizza looking like slop on a crust (which is why I didn’t take a picture of the finished product), it was wonderfully delicious! I wish I could have shown you what it looked like before we took it out of the oven!

Our beautiful pizza before it went into the oven!

On Saturday, we went to our farmer’s market to stock-up on fresh produce for the week, bought Keenan some red converse that were on sale at Kohl’s and headed to the grocery store to get our groceries for the week. After lunch, my friend and I got pedicures and coffee, which was SO needed! The guys stayed home to clean the oven door from my husbands mishap, while Keenan napped. That night, we went to a gymnastics class sponsored by our gym and had a blast! It was the first time I have done a round-off back handspring since high school! I was SO close to getting my standing back tuck again, but my body was  freezing up. The next time I go, I should be able to get it again. I can’t wait! Oh, for dinner, we grilled some prosciutto wrapped zucchini (the first time we tried it) and they were really good! Since we had so much zucchini, we spiced up the rest with Costco’s all-purpose garlic no-salt seasoning, pepper, a pinch of salt and olive oil and grilled them to use for lunches!

Yummy!

SOOOO good!

Yesterday, we had a lazy morning; I made pumpkin muffins with almond flour and my husband made some scrambled eggs. The muffins were so good, that we all ate two! I am going to double the recipe next time, so I can freeze the rest for quick mornings. In the afternoon, we visited some friends, who live in the bay area, who are expecting their first child later this month. We had nice visit. Keenan was terribly shy at first, then completely warmed-up and was saying “hi” to the baby and asking when it was ready to come out and play…too cute! For dinner, we went to this wonderful Puerto Rican restaurant called, Sol Food, in San Rafael. I had the Pollo al Horno, baked chicken marinated with oregano and garlic served with black beans, rice, salad and fried plantains. It was SO delicious, my mouth is watering just thinking about it! Keenan certainly enjoyed it too, because he inhaled his black beans, my chicken and the plantains.

Today, we headed to Keenan’s music class after a quick breakfast. Keenan enjoyed the last of the pumpkin muffins and some strawberries, while I ate my “usual,” Fage Greek yogurt, strawberries, chia seeds, flaxseed and Kashi cereal, along with a latte. For lunch, I enjoyed my chicken that was leftover from last night with some grilled zucchini and a tomato over a bed of spinach drizzled with some olive oil and balsamic vinegar! It was delish! Since I was craving something sweet, I also enjoyed a pluot!

After Keenan’s nap, we are heading to CrossFit and then home for dinner. On the menu is either spicy eggplant with chicken and spinach or grilled chicken and eggplant over a bed of sauteed spinach. We need to use up our spinach and eggplant that I bought last week (both are kind of limp), and I am not quite sure how I want to prepare them. I’ll keep you posted. Also, look for the almond flour flaxseed pizza crust and pumpkin muffin recipes coming tomorrow!

Question: Any suggestions on how to cook my eggplant, spinach and chicken tonight? Since we got home late last night, I haven’t had time to put much thought into our dinner tonight and for some reason, I am just not coming up with good ideas. I want to try something different…

Thank goodness it’s Friday! September 29, 2012

Good morning!

I don’t know about you, but I am SO happy it is finally Friday! This week was a long one, so I’m ready to have some relaxation time this weekend!  To kick off the weekend, we are having an “at home date night” tonight making pizza again, but with an almond flour flaxseed crust topped with grilled peaches, prosciutto, spinach and goat cheese. Of course, we will also be sharing a nice bottle of wine! I think I am also going to try making some almond butter brownies, pumpkin cookies or a pumpkin microwave cake for dessert. I have been reading a lot about microwave cakes, so I am very intrigued. I’ll definitely keep you posted! Also, look for the recipe to the almond flour flaxseed pizza crust coming soon!

Tomorrow, we are going to head to our local farmer’s market in the morning (hopefully ride our bikes there) and then I’m meeting up with a friend for some coffee and pedicures in the afternoon. In the evening, we are heading to a class at a local gymnastics center, as part of our CrossFit box, to improve our gymnastics skills. Tomorrow should be fun! On Sunday, we are visiting some friends in the bay area, who are expecting a baby next month. We definitely have a busy, but fun-fill weekend planned!

This morning, after breakfast of our “usual,” Fage Greek yogurt with flaxseed, chia seeds, Kashi cereal and a banana, Keenan and I headed to our MOMs Club monthly social. At the social, an estate planning lawyer talked to us about making plans for our children, if something happened to us. It certianly made me think about who would take care of Keenan, if something (god for bid) happened, so I think my husband and I are going to set-up a time to meet with him. You just never know what could happen, so I feel it is better to be prepared.

After the social, we headed outside to play at the park for a bit (of course, we had to play with the water fountain, too!) before heading home for lunch.

Playing!

Having fun with the water fountain!

For lunch, I made Keenan a turkey and cheese sandwich (I was able to sneak in some tomato and lettuce for the second time this week, whoohoo!) with some avocado on the side. Since my husband bought chocolate milk last weekend for a treat/post workout snack for him, Keenan has been asking to have it all week. We have been giving it to him as a special treat after he finishes his lunches or dinners (making sure he eats all of his veggies). It has worked really well because he has been sucking down his veggies faster than normal, so he can have a small glass of chocolate milk!

Enjoying his chocolate milk in a “big boy” cup!

Speaking of food, I have received a couple of questions in regards to some of the items that I add to my yogurt or recipes, such as flaxseed, chia seeds and Xylitol, so I thought I would address them here:

What is flaxseed and why do you use it?

Flaxseed is a nutritional powerhouse that is full of omega-3 fatty acids, lignans (which contain antioxidant qualities) and fiber. Researchers are finding many cancer fighting properties in lignans, such as inhibiting enzymes that are included in the metabolism of various hormones and stopping the growth and spread of cancerous cells. Omega-3 fatty acids are good for your heart and may help prevent heart disease. Americans don’t typically get a lot of omega-3’s in their diets, because they are mostly found in fish, such as salmon, so flaxseed is a great way to fit them in! You can buy flaxseed in most grocery stores,, either in the bulk or natural foods section. You can buy it ground or whole (small seeds). You can use flaxseed in your baking, subbing it for eggs (it is a great binder), just adding it to your recipe for more nutrition, mixing it into your yogurt, smoothies, protein shakes, or using it as a crispy coating for baked sweet potato or zucchini fries. In addition to the health benefits, I personally love the nutty flavor of flaxseed, so I try to add it into as many things as I possibly can!

What are chia seeds and why are they so beneficial?

Chia seeds are considered a “super food.” They are very high in omega-3 fatty acids (even higher than flaxseed), antioxidants and fiber. They also contain calcium, phosphorus, magnesium, manganese, copper, iron, niacin and zinc. Chia is very similiar in its’ antioxidant properties and cancer/disease prevention as flaxseed. In addition, chia also helps to decrease inflammation in the body. Chia seeds can be purchased at most grocery stores and they are usually sold in whole form. Some brands are even incorporating chia seeds into their cereal, crackers or beverages. The easiest way to eat them is to add them to your food, such as yogurt, cottage cheese, smoothies, shakes and baking.

What is Xylitol and why do you use it instead of regular sugar?

Xylitol is a natural carbohydrate that tastes like sugar and looks like it, too. It is a sweetener that comes from any fibrous plant material, thus being completely natural. It is mostly extracted from corn cobs and hardwood. In addition, it is also made in our bodies during normal metabolism. Researchers are finding many health properties to Xylitol, such as fighting/preventing cavities, thus you will see it in many toothpastes or gum. In addition, Xylitol can help prevent bacteria that causes respiratory illness, thus you will see it added in nasal sprays. Xylitol contains zero calories and its’ ratio to sugar is 1:1. I use it in my coffee and baking as I would normally use sugar. I find that the taste and sweetness is the same as sugar. I use Xylitol because I don’t like to consume too much sugar, if at all, due to the health consequences and calories. I’ve tried other alternatives, such as Stevia, but Xylitol seems to taste better to me, as well as provide the same level of sweetness as sugar. On the downside, Xylitol is a little harder to find. You can get it at  health food stores and some grocery stores (in the natural foods section) or order it online. My local grocery store fortunately carries it.

After Keenan’s nap, we headed to CrossFit. Since it was a partner WOD, my husband and I teamed up. The WOD was 6 rounds of 20 medicine ball cleans to the wall, 50 m wheel barrel carry and 40 v-ups. The time cap was 25 minutes and we finished in 23 minutes. It was a fun WOD for the end of the week! Tomorrow evening should be fun at the gymnastics center! I am looking forward to it, since I haven’t tumbled since high school!

Well, its time to do Keenan’s bath and bedtime and then it is date night! Have a great evening!

Questions: What are your plans for the weekend? Do you use flaxseed or chia seeds? If so, how do you incorporate them into your food?

Healthy Living Tuesday September 25, 2012

It was nice to get up early again this morning and have a little bit of quiet time checking emails before Keenan woke-up. I’m really liking this, but we’ll see how long it lasts!

Before I forget, since it is the last Tuesday of the month, I am linking up with Healthy Living Blogs today for Healthy Living Tuesdays with my article that I posted a couple of weeks ago: Health Lessons Learned Lately: “We eat our way, the way that works for us.” If you haven’t checked it out, I encourage you to do so!

Keenan woke up a little after 7:00 a.m. this morning and was in a silly mood! He asked me to get in his crib with him and go “sleepy sleep!” We also read a couple of stories. My husband climbed into his crib a couple of weeks ago, after he woke up from his nap, and Keenan loved it! Since then, he loves having us climb in with him and pretend to sleep or just read stories; it is too cute! Next time, I will have to take a picture!

After we both got out of the crib and I changed Keenan, we headed down stairs to have a quick breakfast of our “usual,” Fage Greek yogurt with strawberries, chia seeds, flaxseed and Kashi cereal. I don’t know why, but I have craved yogurt the past few days! But, I have something different in mind for tomorrow’s breakfast, so I think we will change it up a bit!

After breakfast, I took my latte to go and we headed to our local firehouse for a tour, an outing that was planned through my MOMs Club. I told Keenan about this yesterday and he was SUPER excited, especially since he is all about being our little “Firefigther” these days! During breakfast, I asked him if he remembered where we were going today and he quickly replied in a loud voice, “The Firehouse!” He was SO excited that he ate his breakfast in record speed and was ready to get dressed and head out the door (with his fire hat and boots on!) quicker than I’ve ever seen him!

My little Firefighter!

Buddies!

As soon as we got to the firehouse, he was excited, but apprehensive. At first, he didn’t want to walk, he wanted me to carry him and he wasn’t sure of getting into the fire trucks. I’m not sure why he acted that way, especially since he loves everything that has to do with Firefighters! Since there were a lot of kids there, I think he might have felt a little overwhelmed. As soon as he climbed into the Fire Truck with his friend, he was all smiles! He listened intently to what the Fire Captain said and took everything in. But, as soon as the Fire Captain slid down the fire pole, Keenan started crying. I’m not sure what made him scared! After that, he didn’t want to take a picture with the Fire Captain, he only wanted to give him a high five (with me carrying him). All, in all, it was a great experience (I even learned something!) and Keenan definitely enjoyed himself, because on the way home and during lunch, he only wanted to talk about the firehouse!

For lunch, I made Keenan his favorite: peanut butter, honey and banana sandwich with some applesauce and a glass of milk. He devoured everything in minutes; he was hungry! I made myself a turkey sandwich with lettuce, tomato and some yogurt jalapeno dip from Costco (they finally have it again!). In addition, I had some baby snap peas, carrots and a small peach. It was very satisfying!

Once Keenan wakes up from his nap, we are heading to CrossFit (they moved into their new space today, so it will be great to have more room!). Yesterday, we had a challenging, but good WOD. I surprised myself on how well I did! The WOD consisted of: run 400 m, 21 chest-to-bar pullups (I was finally able to string 5 in a row!), 15 thrusters, run 400 m, 15 chest-to-bar pullups, 12 thrusters, run 400 m, 9 chest-to-bar pullups and 9 thrusters. The prescribed weight for women was 65 lbs and the time cap was 16 minutes. I completed it as prescribed in 14 minutes and 8 seconds! I was so thrilled! It was probably one of my best WODs! So, we’ll see how today goes!

After CrossFit, we are heading home for dinner of leftover cheesy pasta bake with a salad. After Keenan goes to bed, my husband and I have a date on the couch to catch-up on a few of our favorite TV shows!  As promised, the recipe for my cheesy pasta bake is below. I think this was the best batch that I have made because it was so gooey and flavorful (even my husband agreed!). Keenan even loved it because he ate all of his portion in minutes! Sorry, we were so hungry that I forgot to take a picture of it, after it came out of the oven!

This is the cheesy pasta bake (prior to being baked) that I made for a mom in my MOMs Club who recently had a baby.

Cheesy Pasta Bake (serves 6):

Ingredients:

– 1 box of whole wheat or brown rice rotini or elbow noodles

– 6 Italian pre-cooked sausages (diced)

– 5 roma tomatoes (diced)

– 3 cups spinach

– 2 cups mozzarella cheese

– 1/2 cup feta cheese

– 1/2 cup bread crumbs

1/2 cup Parmesan cheese (grated)

– 4 Tbsp garlic no-salt seasoning from Costco

– 2 Tbsp Italian seasoning

– 1 tsp pepper

– pinch of salt

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees and spray a 9X13 glass dish with olive oil or cooking spray.

2. Cook pasta according to package, making sure to add a pinch of salt to the boiling water. Once cooked, drain and place into a large bowl.

3. Add all ingredients, except for bread crumbs and Parmesan cheese, to the pasta and mix well.

4. Place pasta mixture into prepared dish.

5. Mix bread crumbs with Parmesan cheese and sprinkle on top of the pasta mixture.

6. Bake for 30-40 minutes, until brown on top and bubbly.

Notes: If you don’t have fresh tomatoes, you can use two small cans of diced tomatoes. You can also use different seasonings, especially if you don’t have Costco’s garlic no-salt seasoning. If you want to store this meal for later, you can prepare it as directed above, cover it with plastic wrap, then foil and freeze until ready to bake. When you are ready to bake it, take the plastic wrap off, but leave it covered with foil and bake at 350 degrees for 45 minutes. Lower the temperature to 325 degrees and bake for an additional 20-30 minutes, uncovering it the last 15 minutes so it can brown.

Question: What health lessons have you learned lately?