Hawaiian Pulled Chicken Sandwiches

Apparently, summer has decided to show up a little early to the party this year! Instead of the frigid temps of last year, we've already managed to hit 90 degrees a couple of times. 

For my outdoor little girls, this is nothing but good news! Hot temperatures means grilling out and Cades Cove and hikes and parks and, the best yet: water fun. (Admit it. They're pretty much the cutest ever!)

But, I digress. On the food front, Madelyn feels that summer means endless hot dogs.

Endless. 

Hot.

Dogs. 

Don't get me wrong, I'm all about some all-beef franks  every now and again. But, this kid is asking for them every single day! (The plus side is I no longer hear the words 'Momma, want a roll-up!'. Those things were getting old, quick.) The downside is that I'm ready for a break from hot dogs. That being said, Sunday is our crockpot meal day. Since my husband and I work in the two year old class during second service at church, we get home a little past our normal nap time and still need to have lunch. If I don't want to go out and buy something on the way home, the crockpot is about my only option. 

I decided that this Sunday, I would try something a little outside our norm: a pulled chicken sandwich. It would be ready when we got home, and, hopefully, could become a new toddler favorite, which would grant me a blessed reprieve from hot dogs. Did I mention that she wants them every day? I did? Well, go figure. 

I'm pleased to report that these sandwiches were a hit!! We put them on Hawaiian rolls, and they were delish! We ended up getting two meals out of it! Score! Madelyn even asked for them today for lunch, instead of hot dogs!! Miracle!! 

Now, I will say this isn't the healthiest meal option that we've had in a while. It's got processed sugar in it(eek!), the rolls certainly don't make it low-carb, and we definitely had to tweak some things to control the salt content. But, if you're looking for something summery, easy to make, and toddler approved--this is definitely for you!! 

http://www.lemontreedwelling.com/2016/07/slow-cooker-hawaiian-chicken.html

Couple of notes, as always:

First, credit where credit is due: this picture isn't mine. It belongs to the creator of the original recipe (link above).

Secondly, due to my oversleeping, I cooked this on high for four and a half hours as opposed to low for six to eight. Third, I didn't add the teaspoon of salt, I used low sodium soy sauce, and I cut the Worcestershire sauce to 3/4 tsp instead of 1 1/2 tsp, all in the name of lowering the sodium content. Finally, I used dairy free butter instead of the "real" thing. 

I do intend to try this and cut out some of the sugar, whether by just cutting it down, or replacing it with a healthier option. 

Overall, I've got to give this dish two thumbs way up--the girls loved it, I loved it, Matt loved it...it's definitely earned its way onto our regular meal rotation! 

Give it a try, let me know what you think!! 

And, just because I can, one more picture of my summer-lovin' babies!

Oh-My-Goodness-Swallow-Your-Tongue Pancakes

You guys.

I'm kind of a breakfast addict. And, by that, I mean breakfast foods. I can't think of a time when breakfast food is a bad idea. I love it all: eggs, omelettes, bacon, sausage, pancakes, waffles, breakfast bakes, muffins...whatever you want to throw at me, I love it.

That being said, most of the breakfast foods that I like aren't super great for you. Lots of sugar, lots of grease. And, since we're dairy free--I'm now running into the dairy issue. Even still, I occasionally get the urge to play around with a new breakfast recipe, instead of sticking to my new-found tried and trues.

Today was one of those mornings. Over the past six months, I've tried several different pancake recipes. I never can get quite happy with them. Something is always missing. I should mention that the one breakfast thing I don't like is syrup. Yuck. Yuck, yuck, yuck. Consequently, my pancakes need to be AH-mazing. And, so far, every recipe I've made has fallen flat. When I announced to my kids I was making pancakes this morning, Madelyn looked at me for a moment, then said, "No. No pancake. Eggs. No pancake." That's how flat they've fallen. Even Lilah looked disinterested.

"It's ok," I assured them. "This time, they're going to be amazing. Girls, you're gonna love 'em! Just wait. Give Momma half a chance, huh?" Another long heartbeat of silence. Then, Madelyn gave her customary little shrug, "Okkkkkkkaaaaaaaayyyyy," she said, dragging it out like she does when she doesn't believe you.

Undaunted, I whipped out the ingredients for yet another dairy free pancake recipe and tugged my beloved Kitchen-Aid front and center.

And, ya'll. This. This is the one. This is the dairy-free pancake to beat all pancakes. I will never go back.

They were fluffy. They were delightfully cinnamon-y. They practically begged for a little drizzle of honey and a topping of tart strawberries. They were (relatively) healthy comfort food at it's very best. And, better yet--it called for one third the amount of sugar most recipes I've seen use. ONE THIRD. (I am really preferring to sweeten things more naturally--honey is my fave way. See above: honey drizzle as opposed to syrup. A grand idea.) These pancakes didn't call for you to cook them in leftover bacon grease. (I've seen that on a ton, and why? Why would you do that?? No judgement here if you like that, but I just can't imagine it.)

And, look at them. Just look.

 (One of these days, I may quit taking pictures on paper plates...) But, they're still amazing, even on a rather plain canvas. Here's the link back to the original recipe: http://delightfuldelicacies.blogspot.com/2010/01/easy-peasy.html


As always, a couple quick notes:
    First, I used my organic coconut sugar for the tablespoon of sugar. I find it lends more of a--caramel?--taste, which I prefer.
    Secondly, when it calls for a smidge of cinnamon, I went a little happy and put in a tablespoon and a half.
  Third, to butter the griddle, I used dairy free butter.
  And lastly, I mixed my dry ingredients in the Kitchen Aid, used a bowl to mix all the wet ingredients together, and then created a well in the middle of my dry. I then added the wet to the dry and mixed it together until I got the right consistency. That was instead of adding the dry to the wet and whisking it all by hand.

All in all, I've got to give this recipe five stars and then some. It was absolutely delicious. The kids ate theirs with no topping as fast as I could them off the skillet. I waited and topped with a small drizzle of honey and strawberries. Yum.


 These pancakes were so easy! From start to finish, the whole thing was completely done in less than thirty minutes. Give them a shot and tell me what you think!!!

Sesame Chicken and Veg

Uhm, yum.

Seriously, guys, this stuff was delish. Usually, when I cook, the kids like it, but pick and choose what they're feeling. Matt eats it, I eat it, and there's still some left over.

Today, so not the case.

(Granted, we were all starving after an impromptu trip out to the runner's market. And, after an Insanity workout, a smoothie to tide you from breakfast to almost two o'clock--just not going to cut it.)

Anywho, I digress. The point is, I almost didn't make the planned lunch. We almost cheated huge and went out to eat, because it was easier and would at least feel faster. Thankfully, the kids were already crying for a nap in the backseat, so we decided going out would be too risky and instead headed straight home.

This meal--sesame chicken with rice and vegetables--was super, duper easy. The ingredients were simple, the steps were well laid out--from start to finish, it's thirty minutes of cook and prep time. So, all in all, not so bad.

And, I mean, seriously. Just look at it. It's delightful. It's got just a little bit of kick and a hint of tang and...yum. Go make it. Seriously. Like, today.

In fact, here's your link:

http://sweetpeasandsaffron.com/2016/10/honey-sesame-chicken-lunch-bowls.html

That being said, a couple of notes I'd add:

First, this recipe is not laid out to cook for a meal right then. (Obviously, right? It's a meal-prep lunch bowl.) I didn't think about that, though, and so my veggies were just a hair on the cool side. Next time, I'll use two pans and make it at the same time so that everything is hot and fresh.

Secondly, I reserved a little of my sauce and stirred it into our rice for added flavor. You can choose not to, but I think it really made everything go together well.

Lastly, I didn't add salt and used low sodium soy sauce and chicken stock. Trust me, this stuff doesn't need it. (And, of course, we're trying to watch sodium intake.) It's still got quite a bit of salt, and, personally, I think adding salt to any part of it would make it a little like licking a salt lick. Without added salt, it was perfect! (I did put some Mrs. Dash Southwest Chipotle Seasoning on the veggies.)

And that's it! Give it a shot! Tell me what you think!

Better Together

You guys. I've said it before, I'll say it again:

My husband rocks.

Absolutely rocks.

Over the last several months, I've developed something off a passion for getting more healthy and more fit. (I mean, you guys have seen the posts: the billion recipes, the new-found love of green and growing things, the Insanity workout program. I'm not-so-secretly obsessed.)

And, various things have given me little "highs" that keep me reaching for that goal--not necessarily a body weight goal (though I have one), but that desire to be healthy and fit and strong. When I see results, it keeps me motivated.

In this one week of Insanity, I've lost several inches off my body. In a week. That'll keep you going back for more!!

When I started, I couldn't make it through the very first part of the warm-up without a break. Doing some push-ups was right up there with being placed on a torture rack, and, though I've never thought of myself as a heavy sweat-er, my daughter picked my bra up out of the floor while I was showering and asked, "Mommy, why's this so wet?" I, still gasping for breath, informed her that was Mommy's sweat. She nodded sagely: "Yeah. That's shoo. Shoo." And dropped it back to the floor. Yesterday, I made it through the first AND second parts of the warm up without even a pause. Heck, yes!

My kids are another little shove in the right direction. I have spent most of my life worried about my weight. Sometimes I was up, sometimes I was down, but I don't think there has been one day that I was comfortable in my own skin. I want pictures of myself with my kids, but I wind up deleting most of them because I can't handle the way that I look. I hate to go clothes shopping anyway, but especially when I go and everything on the rack looks like it was made for one of Madelyn's dolls in comparison to me. I do not want my kids to suffer with body image like I have. How miserable!

And yet, the only real way to do something about that is to show them, every day, what being comfortable in your own skin looks like. It's to show them that working out is as much a part of our routine as breakfast or combing their hair. It's to live out exercising as a joy instead of a drudge. It's being excited in front of them about healthy foods and good, clean sweat, and changing, stronger bodies.

Nothing makes me prouder, of myself and of my girls, than having them squat down on the floor beside me and attempt to go through motions that they've watched Mommy do. When they succeed, Madelyn jumps in the air, laughing, and yells, "I DID IT! Li did it, too! Yay!" ( I assure you, sometimes the girls do it better than I do!) When I love my exercise and I love my good, clean foods, I'm teaching them that those things are of value and something to find pleasure in. It's not something that we do to approach a number on the scale, or get a certain look--it's joy in taking care of the body that God blessed us with. It's remembering that, though my "temple" has gotten saggy and a little rough around the edges, I can whitewash it and sweep out the cobwebs and patch up some boards. And, then, watching my kids get excited right there with me--what a thrill.

You guys, I've even caved enough to let Mads help me cook. This is a huge step, and I wash her hands up to her armpits first and am still really paranoid, but once she helps cook it, she's excited to try it. And I want veggies to be exciting for her! So. Big deal there.

Anyway, I digress. The point is, that I'm LOVING this life-change. It's not a diet, and it's not one exercise program: when I'm finished with Insanity, I plan on looking into Insanity: Max 30 and TurboFire. I love the push, the intensity. I. Love. It. And, my wonderful husband has watched me love it.

He's graciously allowed me all the freedoms in the kitchen that I want, to change our whole family's eating habits.

"What? You don't want to buy soda anymore?...Ok, we'll drink water."

"Cutting back on carbs and processed sugar? Alright, sounds like a plan."

"No dairy?? Uhm. Well, if you think so. I trust you."

Guys, who does that? Who literally says, whatever huge changes you want to make in the kitchen--even though when we got married you couldn't so much as plate a grilled cheese sandwich--you go for it. I've got your back, I'm great with whatever you want to do. ???? Is this man trying to apply for sainthood or what??

And,then, the kicker.

Insanity.

"Matt, if I finish Insanity this round, will you do another round with me?"

"Why?"

"I want our kids to see healthy living as something we both do and love and are excited about...." Cue about a thirty minute long discussion, which was mostly me rambling about all the reasons I've become passionate about this subject. (Hint: There are a lot of reasons. I'm keeping this post relatively short. He patiently listened to them all.)

"Ok," he said when I was finished, "But, if I'm going to do it, let's do it together from the start. You're already a week in. Would you mind starting over with me, so we can do it together?"

WHAT? Uhm, YES, totally!!!

So, today, instead of being the start of Week Two for me, is going to be the Fit Test to start Insanity for both of us. I love my husband for a million reasons, but not the least of them is that he takes my passions, and he doesn't just encourage them from a distance. He grabs hold and helps me succeed. He stays alongside me
to make goals seem achievable. He doesn't complain about the logistics. He just finds a way to make it happen.

We're going to get healthier, fitter, more active, together.

We're going to be good examples to our kids, together.

We're going to fall in love with being healthy and fit and strong, together.

We're just better, together.

Tuscan Chicken: DO IT

Ok, so another killer recipe.

 Because. Hello? Food.

Like I mentioned before, we've started being dairy free. Honestly, (I know we're only about a week in), I haven't found it just terribly difficult. In fact, Matt told me just yesterday, "I think I had a harder time switching to eating healthier foods, when we first started that, than just cutting out the dairy."

Now, I don't know if we'd still feel that way if we weren't trying new, delicious stuff all the time, but...so far, so good!

The other day, I stumbled on a recipe for Tuscan Chicken. I know that, traditionally, this recipe is fairly heavy on the dairy aspect. In fact, the blogger that I jacked the recipe from started her post with:

              "There are some original recipes that are so laden with dairy, that I wonder if I’m a pure lunatic to even try replacing them."

But, trust me, here, guys. This recipe is a definite win. 

It has sun dried tomatoes, swimming in a (miraculously dairy free) cream sauce, along with spinach, and tasty chicken. Garlic gives it another little boost of flavor, and that SAUCE. Gravy sakes, that sauce is out of this world. 

Madelyn, who I never expected to care much for tomatoes as everything new is a challenge--actually picked them OUT to eat them first. Shocker, I know. 

Lilah didn't have a favorite part, she just dug into everything in front of her with gusto. She loved every bite.

Matt insisted that this recipe be in our usual rotation, almost as soon as the first bite hit his tongue. 

I LOVED it. 

And, it was super easy!! (In fact, it was easier than the side I paired it with--Scalloped Potatoes. Though, those were delish, too!! You honestly never even missed the cheese!) 

Isn't it gorgeous?? And, to think, it tastes even better than it looks!! Quick note: That picture is not mine. That is courtesy of the original author. No copyright infringement intended, all credit where credit is due!  

The only thing I changed with this recipe was that I used low-sodium chicken broth. And, I opted for their optional choice of spinach instead of romaine. Oh, and I used about a fourth of a cup of the sun dried tomatoes instead of a half, on the grounds that they aren't cheap and I have other recipes I want that bottle for!

Here's the recipe:

http://www.allergyawesomeness.com/30-minute-dairy-free-creamy-tuscan-chicken-gf-df-egg-soy-peanut-tree-nut-free-top-8-free/?platform=hootsuite

You guys have got to try this one. Dairy free or not, it doesn't matter. This is straight up gold when it comes to feeding your family something that makes their bellies smile. It's easy and straight forward and delightful--no excuses!! :)

 Let me know what you think after you've given it a shot!!

Insanity

   Around Easter, quite a few years ago, my husband and I got engaged. I looked down at myself and decided that I needed to lose some weight--fast. In my search, I stumbled on the Insanity program. It looked like an effective means to lose, so I started.

I lost alright. But it was a beast. I mean, killer. I didn't finish the full sixty days, but I did it fairly consistently until not far off of our wedding day.

Now, back then, I worked out, but I never changed my eating habits. I still drank soda, ate a ton of processed sugar, and vegetables were unidentifiable oddness that took up an unreasonable amount of the grocery store--space that would be better spent on Oreos and Hot and Spicy Potato chips. These days, I'm losing slowly but surely, even without consistent exercise, just by cutting out the crap. But I'm ready to move it along!

Fast-forward. I'm considerably larger than I was back then(as in, a good fifty pounds bigger--EEK!), and my gym visits have been somewhat sporadic, related to kids' illness, general busyness, that sort of thing. Today was one of those days where it was going to be difficult to carve out enough time to drive over there, workout, and get back in time. Then, I remembered.

Insanity.

(The name is so, so apt.)

Excited, I threw on some ok-to-sweat-to-death-in clothes, cleared a good space in the living room, and put the Fit Test video on. Madelyn wandered over and sat on the couch, Lilah not far behind.

"What'cha doin', Mommy?" she asked me.

"Mommy's tired of being fat, honey," I informed her. "I'm going to exercise! Eating right has helped, but Mommy wants to get fit and healthy again." She didn't look noticeably convinced. In her sweet little drawl, she said,

"Oookkkaayyyy." I nodded, taking that as encouragement, and hit play. By the middle of the warm up, I was ready to collapse into a puddle in the floor. Both girls stared. Then, Madelyn hopped down off the couch.

"'Mon, Lilah! Exer'ise with Mommy!" And, the next thing I knew, Mads was jogging in place, jumping, and giggling her way through the various exercises.

At one point, I paused, doing all I could to draw breath. I swiped a forearm across my sweaty head, shoving back unruly hair. I dropped my hands to my hips and sucked in air as best I could.

Beside me, Madelyn used a palm to push back her--still in place--hair, put her little hands on narrow hips, and let out a breath in one big gush. "Whooooooo!" she said, mimicking my panting. Then she laughed, little rotten thing! If she were any older, I'd think she was making fun of me!!....I'm still not totally convinced she wasn't!

I dropped down for plank obliques. Madelyn laid face down on the floor, cheek pressing up against the cool hardwood and watched me. Lilah laid on her back, then scooted underneath me, so that her nose was an inch from mine. She clapped and laughed and thought my struggle was so funny--what new game was Mom playing with her, here in the floor? (I didn't have the heart to tell her that Mommy wasn't playing--she was dying.)

When the workout finally finished, a mere million years after it began, I laid on the floor myself for a few minutes. When I almost had my breath back, I sat up.

"Well, girls," I told them, "I think that deserves a high-five." Both of the kids obliged. "Let's hit the showers!" Madelyn nodded.

"Hit shower, Mommy!" And we were done.

For today.

Tomorrow, be watching, here we come! I've got cheerleaders/helpers, now!

It's Finally Here!

Guys, this is it.

Today is the day.

Today is the going-all-the-way-dairy-free day.

For the last several weeks, I've tried out some recipes, not used as much milk, as much cheese--basically, we've been nervously dipping our toes in the water, checking it out.

But, today, March the first, is the day that we quit that nonsense and cannonball on in!!

I'm super excited about the switch; I really, wholeheartedly believe that it will be a game changer for us. As I've studied up on it, I've found the health benefits to be amazing and the literature to be absolutely inspiring.

Already, we've found some recipes that we've loved: Ham and Potato Soup with Leeks, for one.

Some recipes that will probably be even better with some modifications: I'm gonna have to put Butternut Mac (As a replacement for Mac and Cheese) pretty firmly in this category.

And some recipes that we will never, ever try again: Creamy Lemon Asparagus Pasta--wow. Matt said whatever we did to that dish caused it to kill flavor. No matter what you added, no matter how much spice, and even with the pretty powerful taste of asparagus, that dish pretty much tasted like straight up wet cardboard. It never developed a flavor at all. Which was sad.

But, I digress.

Wish us luck, and send us your recipes!! (Or jump on the bandwagon with us, and I'd love to hear about it!!)

"Girls, Mommy's Maced Us!" or Delish Mexican Quina Dish

Sooo....

I basically pepper-sprayed my house the other night.

Don't worry, the end result was still delicious, and, once we opened the doors, we all quit coughing and choking fairly quickly. My eyes stopped watering a few minutes later, and all was well.

And all of this in my quest to find healthy, wholesome foods to feed the fam!!

Matt is a pretty easy to please guy when it comes to food. Really. Pretty much, I can say, "Matt, I'm going to try ___", or "I think we should cut _____ out for a while and see what happens" or even, "I know this doesn't LOOK good, but I got the stuff to try it at the store..." and he's all, "Ok. I'll give it a shot."

That being said, he does have some preferences--one of them is Mexican. Which is pretty unfortunate because that's one of those foods that I just don't like. Not even a little bit. But, since he's always sooo agreeable, occasionally I get a wild hair and want to try something special that he'll really like. Such was the case with the Mexican Quina dish from DamnDelicious.

When I looked at it, I thought, "Ehh...we can see how it goes. Matt would dig it. And I can just close my eyes. Remember, you like everything, now. You. Like. Everything." So, I pinned it to give it a shot.

It called for you to start the dish by cooking a jalapeno and garlic in hot olive oil for one minute. We're a family with a great love of spicy foods, so I thought to myself: "I'll see your jalapeno and raise you one habanero!"

Funny thing about that. When you cook those ingredients in oil that way, the steam/fumes/whatever that they give off is...well, it's intense.

Choking, eyes watering, even-the-dog-is-coughing kind of intense.

We opened all the doors and desperately tried to air out the kitchen(let's be honest, in my tiny home, the whole house!).

Matt declared to our coughing, hacking girls, "Girls, Mommy's maced us!"

Thankfully, in the aftermath, it was actually pretty funny. (Mostly since, again, due to our house's size, it aired out close to instantly.)

And, the food? Delicious. (I still had to close my eyes, because my brain was reminding me that I don't actually like: jalapenos, corn, tomatoes, or avocados. But, when I didn't listen to that and just put it all in my mouth and chewed--my tongue was singing a different story!)

I am LOVING the versatility of quinoa! From breakfast to dinner in one fell swoop!

Note: I modified in the following ways:

I left out the salt, and instead doubled the cumin.
I used the juice of 1/2 a lime, instead of a whole one.
I was out of cilantro, so I just nixed it.

You guys, this is totally not my picture. It belongs to the creator of the original recipe. But, isn't it gorgeous and bright??

As always, here's your link:

http://damndelicious.net/2014/04/09/one-pan-mexican-quinoa/

Give it a go, and let me know what you think!

The Super-Hero Hiding on Your Dryer

     First off, let me start by saying that this post isn't about food. I know, I know, I was shocked, too, considering that's my newest obsession.

   It's about the miracle weapon you hoard on top of your dryer. (At least that's where mine sits. You might keep them on a shelf, under a counter, how would I know?) You may innocently toss this weapon in with a load of laundry to dry, not understanding its true, unbelievable powers.

So, I'm here to educate you.

This weapon?

It's a bounce dryer sheet.




I know, my mouth fell open the first time I was faced with this fact, too. But, I assure you, this knowledge is life-changing. (Especially if you're like me, and housekeeping is a daily battle.)


Off the top of my head, I can name three unbelievable feats of house-cleaning prowess I can attribute the Bounce sheet.

The first is the microwave. My mom is a microwave saint, I suppose, and she never forgets to cook her food with a cover. Thus, she never has a mess. I can't claim the same. And I had gotten to where I dreaded putting anything in there, because, hello: huge mess that takes forever and a lot of elbow grease to clean up.

Then, came the Bounce sheet. (And, in this case, Bounce's trusty side-kicks.) I learned that if you pop a Bounce sheet into a bowl of water with a sliced up lemon and a dash of vinegar and cook it for three minutes, then let it sit for one minute, the gunk wipes off. No elbow grease, and hardly any time.

Like, it literally wipes off.  Miraculous.

Not too long after that delightful discovery, I was informed of another grease-cutting miracle that the Bounce sheet was capable of.

First, let me say that I really do try to wash my dishes every night. That keeps the job from getting overwhelming. However, sometimes, I just don't. Or, I use my crockpot for things that cook to the sides, and I'm left with a bear of a dish to scrub. Or soak--for hours and hours, and then a little bit of a scrub.

Enter Bounce.

Fill your dish with warm water, a little bit of Dawn dishsoap and a Bounce sheet. Let it soak for 1--that's right, only ONE--hour, and the nasty pours right out of the pot! Go figure! No scrubbing required!! (Obviously, I still wash the dish after, but it's super duper easy. And since I hate house-keeping, I prefer the super duper easy way.)

And, thirdly, the biggest wonder of all--

Meet Bounce's third Super-Hero Identity: Bounce, The Soap-Scum Buster. My personal fave.

My shower doors are glass. And yuck.

Like, super yuck. You couldn't even see through the bottom.



I've tried Soft Scrub.



I've tried Windex.



I've tried a lot of scrubbing.



In fact, I've tried a lot of things.



And, nothing made a noticeable difference.



So, I gave up.



Then, lo and behold, I heard that a damp Bounce sheet could remove the soap scum from my shower doors....





"Could it be?" I asked myself. "Could it really be?"


I mean, I'm not the best house-keeper, but I at least like to fake it well. And with yucky, gunky shower doors, a really clean looking bathroom is rough to come by.

Armed with hope, a few damp dryer sheets, and a little bowl of water, I tackled the shower door.

And, would you believe it??

It worked.

Like, really worked.

Clear as a bell worked.

Guys, if you don't already have some Bounce dryer sheets, go to the store and get some.

Don't walk.

Run.

These things are game-changers.

Back to My Roots (AKA Chicken Nuggets Are The Bomb)

   Growing up, I was a  big believer that there was pretty much one edible meal: chicken nuggets. I didn't particularly care where they came from, but if we were going out to eat, fast food or otherwise, I wanted chicken nuggets.

   For that matter, I still get chicken at most restaurants. Go figure.

   But that's beside the point.

  The point is that chicken nuggets is always a pretty safe bet for a tasty meal. Except it's normally not something I'd throw in the particularly healthy category. A lot of recipes for them require a deep fryer and powdered sugar.


  Whut. There's sugar in my chicken nuggets?? No wonder I love( ahem, loved--you knew what I meant) them!



  The other significant piece of information for this post is that my grocery shopping day is Friday. And, I shopped on Wednesday last week due to odd circumstances
, so I'm getting to the scraping the bottom of the barrel for meals stage by yesterday and today. When thinking about dinner yesterday, I opened my fridge and took stock.

Broccoli? Nope, used the last of it Monday.

Cauliflower? Finished it off Tuesday.

Zucchini? Forget it, I mixed it with tomatoes and basil for a snack for the kids the other afternoon.

Cucumber? I have one. One. What the gravy am I going to do to feed four people their veggies with one cucumber?? Pointless.

Bell peppers? Onions? Bananas? Cheddar cheese? ---seriously?? I'm out of cheese??

I did have carrots, though, which is kind of a plus. I say "kind of" because it's one of the few veggies the girls outright refuse to eat. Hence, it's survival in the fridge.

So, after much thought, I took to Pinterest and searched for something I could do with the ingredients I had. And, lo and behold:

Chicken nuggets. Seriously. I was going back to my roots. Chicken nuggets for dinner. The more I thought about it, the more I liked it.

I went through quite a few recipes until I found one that fit our fairly low carb, low sodium, no processed sugar needs. And, guys.

Guys.

You can't even understand. You've got to try these. ASAP.

Not kidding. These will change your life. Here's the link:

http://damndelicious.net/2014/12/26/parmesan-chicken-bites/

Of course, I omitted the salt and replaced it with a little more garlic powder.  Honestly, you could probably cut it out without any replacement and not notice. Parmesan cheese is PACKED with sodium, so it doesn't really need any extra help in the salt department.

These things got GONE. In record time. And, since there was no added salt, no added sugar, it wasn't super high in carbs, it wasn't something I felt even remotely bad about feeding my family.

(Even if we skimp on watching the carbs and sugar, salt has a huge impact on Lilah-Bear. We have to be super careful about it. If she eats too much sodium--which is in everything, if you read your labels--she swells the next day like a water balloon. And it takes a couple days of REALLY watching and increased water intake to get her back to her normal self.)

Ooh, one more little side note about those: I knew I wouldn't have time to chop up the chicken, do all the dredge work, etc. in the afternoon, so I did all the prep work while the kids napped and stored them in a Ziploc gallon bag until we were ready to cook them. I didn't cook them six at a time, either; I just dumped half a bag in at a time and did it in two batches. Coconut or olive oil either one works beautifully to cook them in. Once we got ready to cook them, dinner was ready in about ten minutes. This is a great prep-ahead meal. Great.

Now. What to do for a side? I've never really cared one way or the other about sides, but Matt really loves them. He doesn't believe a meal is complete without a side. I returned to the fridge and stared at it until inspiration struck.

What goes with chicken nuggets?

French fries, obviously. Delicious, high sodium, starchy french fries... I nearly drooled thinking about it.

It's probably just as well that I didn't have any potatoes on hand, honestly...but, I did have...carrots? Could it be? Pinterest assured me that carrot fries were, in fact, a thing. Score!

And, the Nutrition Twins gave me a good introduction to them!

Again, here's your link:
http://nutritiontwins.com/spicy-carrot-fries/

We liked them, but a couple quick notes: First, these are not crunchy. If you're looking for crunchy, well...don't look here. They're cooked carrot. So, they're tender. And delightful for dipping and we didn't have any of those left either, I didn't even get a good picture. But, not crunchy. Consider yourself warned.

Secondly, they have a little bit of an afterburn. I mean, we're a family who's two year old bit into a habanero and did ok with it. So, we liked that. But, check these ingredients: chili powder and cayenne pepper. It's got some burn. But, they were super tasty, and come highly recommended!!

Especially if you look in your fridge and you only have carrots left...

But, seriously, guys, this was a rockin'-gone-in-no-time with no left overs at all kind of meal. Give it a go, and tell me what you think!!

Vanilla Chai Breakfast Quinoa Bowl--Baby Steps to a Healthier Us

I can't say I've ever been a particularly healthy eater. Throughout my life, if I had a desire to diet or change eating habits, it was more about loss than anything else. You know the feeling: instead of looking up good ways to improve your eating, you look at what all needs to be cut out of your daily life.

Cookies.

Coke.

Cake.

Sugar-laden delicacies that made up my entire list of favorite foods.

Creamy mac and cheese, with more cheese in one bite than you normally have all day.

Chicken and dumplings.

Chicken pot-pie with a warm buttery biscuit perched on top.

(Are you noticing that all the tastiest treats start with a 'c'? Weird.)

Anyway, over the past several months, a few things happened that have slowly started to overhaul, not just my diet, but the whole way I look at food.

First. In the last two years, I've had two babies and I'm still a big ol' girl. I'm actually as big now as when I delivered my first daughter. That's embarrassing to think, much less to admit out loud or in text. I wouldn't say I've ever had just stellar self-esteem, but my weight issues are putting it squarely in the toilet. I need a change. For me. To feel good, both physically and emotionally.

Second. My youngest daughter is one and is already weighing in far more than they would like. With the family histories all the way around, the doctor wants us to keep a close eye on what she eats. Now, I've always been fairly careful with what I feed the girls. Less so with what I feed Matt and I. And, now, the girls are old enough to see the difference. We can't continue eating junk and then trying to convince them that veggies are the new Twix bars. We, as a family, needed a change.

At first, I tried an overhaul the way I had in the past--no carbs! No sugar! No ANYTHING THAT MAKES LIFE TASTE GOOD. Nothing! Forget it!!

And, ya know what? That sucked. Thoroughly. So, like the addict that I am, I hit up Pinterest. All of a sudden, I had a wealth of recipes at my fingertips that...well, they actually looked pretty good! Fruits, veggies, healthy cooking...that could be...good? I could eat something and not feel deprived if I didn't follow it up with a cold soda and warm, gooey cookie? (Cutting out soda has still been my least favorite part of this whole thing, not gonna lie.)

No way.

And, yet...it's true! I've found my journey to discovering how to eat and cook healthier liberating! To not automatically discount a recipe because I didn't think I liked the ingredients frees up A LOT of recipes for me. And, my husband is a saint who doesn't care at all what weird things I want to try. His general response is, "Yeah, I'll give it a shot." I don't think he's said no to a single thing so far. (Even though I may have tested him this morning by sending him a Pin to a hot pink beet soup.)

And, if I intentionally "forget" that I don't like something--take peppers, for example--then when I cook it, it's like trying it for the first time. Some recipes still don't work for us. I can think of a couple that have fallen totally flat. (I find that many of those have been because they've been touted to be similar to some sweet treat that I love. I like spinach a lot. But, you can't have it be the base of a smoothie and call it a thin mint and swear it tastes just like a girl scout cookie. That's blasphemy.)
But, some recipes have been an absolute delight! The whole family has enjoyed them, and we'll definitely be adding them to our monthly cooking rotation.

I've actively enjoyed sitting down and reading up on various ingredients, and what they can do for your body. How nutrition affects our bodies and even our mental state is absolutely fascinating! Lilah is far more receptive to trying to new things than Mads is. I read an article on the words "You don't have to eat it" that changed my life, though. (The gist is that you can say, "You don't have to eat it", and without the pressure, they usually are more willing to give it a shot. Thus far, it's proven true. Of course, that's followed up by the I'm-not-making-you-a-separate-dinner statement.) And, with the understanding that it's what everyone is having and there isn't another choice, she usually comes around fairly quickly.

Plus, knowing more about what we're putting in makes me more excited to try new things--especially when I've had some successes throughout the week. This morning's WONDERFUL success was a Vanilla Chai Quinoa Bowl.  (See how it sort of starts with a 'C', too?? You know it's bound to be good!)

For those interested, the original recipe was obtained from Flavor the Moments, found here:
 http://flavorthemoments.com/vanilla-chai-breakfast-quinoa-bowls/

Oh. My. Gravy.

The thing was delicious.

Admittedly, I made a few small changes. For one thing, I didn't choose apples for my topper. We had some blueberries and strawberries that were going to need to be frozen or eaten in the very near future, so I went that route.

I also didn't have any yogurt that wasn't already promised to other recipes, so I didn't use it. It was still filling to the extreme--I doubt very much if I could have eaten yogurt if I wanted to! I didn't even finish my whole bowl, and, here I sit, hours later, still full as a tick. Nor did I have maple syrup, as I really don't care for maple as a taste in general--so I used raw organic honey. It was wonderful!


Doesn't it look AMAZING? (Even prettier picture is the one Marcie at Flavor the Moments posted on the recipe. I never thought of food as gorgeous before.)

Seriously. Go to her page. Look at it. You'll be running to the kitchen to try it out.

Couple of notes about this: 1.) It takes nearly a half hour to make. Be prepared for that. I didn't read far enough ahead and ended up being VERY ready to eat by the time I got it finished.)  2.) My blueberries were frozen, but after about fifteen seconds in the hot quinoa, they were the perfect addition to each bite!

All in all, I loved this recipe--I can't wait to try it out on the husband!

That being said, I wanted to start posting more on my blog again anyway--and since the food aspect is such a part of our life as a family right now, I figured I'd include it! (Especially since I can't actually keep blowing up Facebook with recipes you all NEED to try.) This way, if you want the recipe, I'll link to it in the blog--give credit where it's due and all that--and note any modifications we made.

Try this, though--enjoy it--and, if you liked it, let me know in the comments below!! (Especially if you modified in any way, I'd love to give your way a shot!)

Thanks for walking through this whole "baby steps to a healthier us" post, lol!

Fear and Peace

I didn't understand fear before kids. I mean, sure, I'm scared of things. I dislike large bodies of water, I'm not fond of spiders or dark streets, and I go out of my way to be sure and triple sure that our doors are locked before I go to bed, because, hey, home invasion just isn't my cup of tea.

But I didn't understand fear. The gut-wrenching, powerless kind of fear that makes your heart hammer and steals the breath from your lungs. That was something I didn't get. And, though the kids have given me some frights over my time as a mother, Lilah about took the cake Saturday night.

And, it was through my own fear and helplessness that I gained an even deeper grasp of the Lord's protection, His grace, and His love.

Thursday evening, I got the distinct sense there was something off about my sweet one year old. I couldn't put my finger on it, and there really weren't any symptoms, but she just didn't seem quite right.

Friday, I spent the night with my very dear friend, and, though I had an absolutely stellar time, I was plagued by worry for my girl. I enjoyed my time away, and I definitely believe God used that to rejuvenate me for the ordeal we were about to go through. Still, I didn't stay long on Saturday--I was home by 12:30. By that point, Lilah had a fairly low-grade fever. She seemed to be feeling poorly; all her sister's attempts to play were rebuffed firmly, she was fussy, and she just wanted to be held. Not long before six, she asked to go Night Night. We held out until close to 6:30, then put both the girls to bed.

Matt and I stayed up til closer to nine before we went to bed. When Madelyn woke up screaming, it seemed like we had just closed our eyes. Her cries were insistent and shrill, so we jumped up and ran in there. Her foot was tucked between the bars, but she pulled it out and smiled when we opened the door. She was perfectly willing to go back to sleep. Lilah was fussing, wakened by her sister, so we popped in to check on her.

"She's really warm," Matt commented, so we took her temperature.

103.8.

Tylenol, a cool bath, and some frozen snacks and cool milk later, her fever was unchanged.

Though I don't usually ascribe to having the kids in our bed--that's a place for Mommy and Daddy, after all!--we had Li laying between us, discussing how to proceed. Having brought up the possibility of a febrile seizure, we cobbled together a game plan. It never occurred to me that, really and truly, we would need it.

No sooner than the final component--who would ride in the ambulance and who would drive--was finalized, Lilah leaned over to me and began shivering. She'd been shivering a little off and on throughout the night with fever chills, so Matt patted her gently.

"Poor little nug," he said, rubbing her back. "She's shivering--I know she feels like she's cold."

I felt my stomach sink and tilted down to look closer. Sure enough, her eyes were rolled back, her jaw clamped tight around the finger she crooks and sucks to sleep.

"I don't think she's shivering," my voice shook. "I think she's seizing." Without further discussion, we did what we'd just spent the last few minutes planning for. He called 911, I called my mother to come tend to our other daughter.

The ten minutes it took for the ambulance to arrive may have been the longest of my life so far. Matt and I took it in turns, one of us getting dressed, while the other sat with Lilah, pulling her out of the puddles of drool spreading from beneath her face. The ambulance was there quickly, considering how far from anything we live, but I just kept asking where were they? Because watching her seize for ten minutes was ten minutes too long.

Matt was calm and steady as a rock--he grabbed diapers, wipes, met the ambulance, helped them get the car seat out and strapped to the gurney. Point of interest: when rushing young children to the ER, they get your car seat and strap it to the gurney. Did you know that? We didn't.

I watched from the side of the bed while they propped her up and tried to fit an oxygen mask around her hand to get to her nose and mouth. While they gave her a shot of something up her nose to try and bring her out of it. While they measured her feet against a chart and dubbed them "purple". They checked her blood sugar, asked for allergies and how long she'd been seizing and all the other questions that are vital to know.

My mom arrived as they were getting her into the car seat. My mom is terribly good in a crisis, and, even at three in the morning, she was prepared with a spare diaper bag and a blanket--she turned white when she saw Lilah, still shaking uncontrollably, her eyes rolled so far back in her head you could barely see them.

They wouldn't let me ride in the back of the ambulance--she wasn't under control enough, so I climbed in the front and tried hard to ignore the sounds of them working on her in the back. I felt my gut clench when they decided she needed more medicine, and that she still hadn't come out of it. I glanced at my phone. 30 minutes in.

I'm pretty unfamiliar with seizures, but that seemed like a super long time to me. I prayed most of the drive up there, and it's a blessing that the Holy Spirit translates for you when you are at  a loss for what to say, because I was. There was a brief pause where I assured the ambulance driver that he could tell the cops NOT to chase the white Corolla, because that was ours.

She came out of her seizure as were pulling into Children's parking lot, nearly 45 minutes after she'd started. There was the flurry of motion and information and checking her and all the things before they left us sitting in the room, alone for the first time since the whole mess had started.

We'd have a couple days more of exhaustion and frazzled nerves and tests and meetings with various doctors, but it was at that point, holding her and rocking her on the pale blue sheets of an ER bed, that I was totally struck by how completely God had this.

I wasn't even home the night before. It didn't happen then.

Madelyn, who has been sleeping through the night for over a year, woke us up. We would have slept through the whole thing.

I am SO not a fan of kids in the bed, but I'd been anxious about the thought of leaving her alone. She was laying right beside us.

We had literally just talked about what all we'd need to do IF it would happen, despite not ever believing that it really would. There was no pause, no need for discussion. The whole event went as smoothly as it possibly could.

My Mom heard the phone and answered and was there not ten minutes after the ambulance arrived. I mean, seriously, if you know my Mom, the woman goes to bed at 7. She answered the phone.

Through one of the most terrifying events of my life, God was so obvious. His protection and grace was so evident. There was not one step of the way that He wasn't in total control of.

I've never known fear like I felt Saturday before having kids. That saying that they are your heart walking around outside your body? So true.

In that place, I've never known peace like the one that comes with the complete knowledge that God was in every little detail like I did Saturday and all the days that have followed.

Praise God again and again and again for His omnipresent LOVE and grace and presence and peace and protection. He's so good.