Tick Tock Tick Tock

What am I doing to get ready for the Gold Slipper Challenge??  Bwahahaha....absolutely nothing.  I am so behind but it kicks into gear on October 1.  That is officially the start of the 10-week training program to get prepared for the 10K and Princess Half.

While I thought I would have so much free time with Connor at school all day, I was completely fooled and am scrambling constantly to juggle everything on my plate, let alone get my workouts in.  The plan is to do some rearranging and make sure I am at the gym 4 times a week during the 10 training weeks to make sure I am ready to rock and roll in February. 

Say wha?!

Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday I have rocked out the WOD.  Want to know what I did today??  Handstand push-up's.  30 of them.  Yep, I did and my arms and lat's and shoulders and back are KILLING me to prove it!  Now, if only I hadn't enjoyed that pumpkin french toast for dinner ;)

WOD

WOD is a term Crossfit followers use as a "Workout of the Day."  I have never been a "crossfit" person, probably because I have never really understood it. 

I walked back into the gym yesterday from my little sabatical and a girl walked up to me asking if I was there for the Functional Fitness class (The YMCA's version of Crossfit).  I said, well no because I don't know what I am doing and need to keep running on my cardio days and blah blah blah.  She had this amazing presence about her and said, "Just come try it out."  So I put down my notebook and joined in....and had a blast!!  What a workout...I was smoked!  My arms were so shaky and weak, I couldn't believe it.

I went early enough today to join the class and again....holy smokes- literally!  It was a 50 minute weight lifting circuit class that was a scorcher.  I think I have found a new love at the gym!

What a Mess!

Let's rewind about 2 weeks.  I was so excited because on Wednesday I ran my first 5K.  Keep in mind, it was in the treadmill but I was so proud of myself for running an entire 3.1 miles from start to finish....and it was in a decent time too.  I was eating really healthy, feeling really good, feeling myself getting stronger and then...

Connor, Alaina and I went in a bike ride to get the mail from the mailbox.  Here at Fort Drum, our mailboxes aren't in front of our houses but in a communal area instead.  It is enough of a distance to warrant a nice little "round the block" bike ride.  Connor came to a dead stop at the mailboxes directly in front of my bike (where I had Alaina sitting on the back) and my front tire hit his rear tire, Alaina wobbled enough that I lost my balance and the entire bike came crashing down on my left ankle.  Aye aye aye.  I was certain I had broken it.  I couldn't move at all to lift the bike off myself and poor Alaina was strapped to the back of the bike screaming her head off.  Luckily, some neighbors heard the screaming, came out and got Alaina up and out of the bike.  Connor went and got Ben and I hobbled back to the house.  I went about the normal "RICE" routine but when I was giving Alaina a bath that night I felt a pop and started getting really nervous.  Off to the ER I went and thankfully, it was just a Level 1 sprain.  I suffered through one of those aircast things for a couple days but don't want to worsen the injury so I have been taking it easy.

Diet, yeah, forget that one too.  Company visiting, school starting, football (really really messes eating healthy for a loop), among just plain laziness and the excuses are endless on my end.

Slowly getting back on track this week.  Went grocery shopping yesterday and my menu is not only planned, but my entire daily food intake is planned for the week.  Slowly getting back to the gym as well, taking it a little on the easy side.  Time is ticking and the days are just falling away getting closer and closer to the Princess.

Chipotle's Revenge

Welp, you all know that my family is competing in a family-style edition of the Biggest Loser.  I was feeling so great by Wednesday.  Did all my workouts, was following my eating plan and when I stepped on the scale, I was down well over 1 pound (which when we calculate body percentage as opposed to pounds lost, I would have been doing okay).  Then comes the curve balls.

What I have always been fascinated by with the Biggest Loser is the bubble concept they use with the contestants.  For much of the beginning weeks of the show, the contestants never leave the ranch.  They have to workout, eat what their fridge is stocked with and don't have the distractions of the "real world."  It isn't until the show releases the participants back into the wild, if you will, that you watch them struggle and fight.  Yep, totally understand this concept.  I had a babysitter come over on Friday in the early afternoon.  I went into Watertown and did some shopping, just for me.  Without kids, I flew through everything I needed to do and then it all came cumbling down for the remainder of the weekend.  I had to go to Target....which means I had to make a pit stop through Starbucks.  I needed to pick up dinner because as soon as I was finished with my "me time," I was working the Augustinian Academy Parish Fair.  I picked up Chipotle.  Of all my fast food options available, I did feel like Chipotle was the best possible choice.  But it didn't end there.  Oh no, my friend, the downslide continued.  A highlight was when the lady who was in charge of the volunteers walked around handing us food vouchers and I very smartly chose the fried dough.  I worked most of Saturday afternoon and the fun didn't stop with more fried dough, pulled pork, strawberry shortcake...

Needless to say, I am sitting here on Sunday evening not feeling great.  In fact, I feel miserable!  I stepped on the scale and if I am not over weight at my weigh-in, it's going to be a miracle.  I feel bloated, lethargic, just...gross.  I enjoy crap food.....sometimes in moderation but more than a lesson in portion control I have learned this valuable nugget that I am going to put into practice this week.  One- the more I keep up on my water intake, the less I want to indulge in garbage as well as I want to eat less, in general.  Second- I can NOT eat things (especially garbage things) late into the night.  I wake up already feeling blah and it feels like it just sits heavy on me. 

So I have two things to work on this week but like my sister keeps saying....this process is a marathon, a long-slow constant evolving learning process.

The Glass Slipper

Run Disney introduced the Glass Slipper Challenge for this year.  It will include the annual Princess Half Marathon as well as the new to 2014 Enchanted 10k.  Yep, you read that right....16.7 miles in two days through the most magical place on the planet.  I am pretty sure I am crazy.  Thankfully, excitement overtook crazy long enough to hit the "yes charge my credit card" button and sign up because the Glass Slipper Challenge sold out in less than 7 hours.  Insane!  

People who don't "get it" have never experienced it before.  I am a Disney brat.  Born and bred...my parents are Disney people too.  My siblings all share the same love for anything Disney and we are passing that love to our children.  (Although Connor tried to tell me a few weeks ago that Disney Junior was for babies and it just about broke my heart.)  You only have to speak the word and I am down for anything that involves going to Disney World, even if it does mean running at zero-dark thirty with 40,000 of your closest Disney Princess loving compadres.  Some people don't understand the coolness of Run Disney.

First of all, Run Disney has events almost all year long from the Wine and Dine Marathon weekend during Epcot's Food and Wine Festival.  (I haven't done this one yet but the Food and Wine is AMAZING and when you run you get the have a little sampling so trust that this race may be on my future to do list).  The Tinkerbell Half Marathon.  The Expedition Everest Challenge.  The Twilight Zone Tower of Terror 10K and the queen bee of them all...Endurance Marathon Weekend.  Jo and I participated in this one a few years back.  We ONLY ran the half but let me tell you the level of running insanity for this weekend.  There is a 5K, a half and a full marathon.  If you run the full and half, you have participated in the Goofy Challenge and you get a rocking medal but this year, Run Disney is also offering the Dopey Challenge...yep, running all 3!!  How crazy is that?!  But that is the love and obsession of these events.  They are awesome.  I mean, you run right through the middle of Cinderella's Castle!  

So now it is prep time.  I have been going to the gym three times a week and started prepping sloooowly.  One of the biggest mistakes I made last time was that my excitement (again) overtook sanity and I started full throttle.  By the time we actually got to the month of the race, I was pretty much done.  I have a 5k in August so I am working on that with the plan to just run the entire thing.  For you runners, I know this sounds hysterical.  I just signed up for a half marathon with a goal to run an entire 5K.  Oh ye of little faith.  I will get there, I promise.

Family Challenge

I was walking through Lowe's with dad John and I get this very strange text from my sister.  It says something to the effect of, "are you still trying to lose weight..if so, how much?"  After I shook off the peculiarity of this I answered that was planning on losing more, what my goal weight was and how many pounds it would take to get there.  Of course, I promptly followed it with a "why do you ask?"

Jo had this brilliant idea to make a little contest out of losing weight...the Biggest Loser, family edition.  There are 7 of us competing.  It is pretty simple- there are two categories.  Percentage of weight loss and inches lost.  Each week for 8 weeks we email our weight and measurements to Jo who plugs them away and announces the weekly winner.

I will be honest here, I highly doubt I will be a winner.  I don't have a TON to lose but I am giving it a real, honest valiant effort.  I am highly competitive so I couldn't let this pass me by without giving it my all.  More than my desire to win, however, is my desire to live a much healthier lifestyle.  After a lot of researching and trying to figure out what I could incorporate into my family's lifestyle, I have started to take a shot at clean eating.  For anyone who isn't familiar with clean eating, the principles are fairly basic:

-eat things from the farm.  Fruits and veggies are key as well as grain-fed beef and chicken

-avoid processed foods.  If you can't pronounce something in the label, it doesn't go in your body

-eat 5-6 meals a day every 2-3 hours

Seriously, that is basically it.  You can, of course, research and find more info.  I have just broken down the basics super quickly for you.  Finding recipes is actually fun and I couldn't have picked a more perfect time to start this part of my journey.  I mean, the farmer's markets are just opening up and fresh produce is all around! 

Enjoy this recipe....it was my afternoon snack and it was super yummy!

Green Smoothie

2 c. spinach

1/2 c. blueberries

2 bananas

1/2 orange

1/2 c. coconut milk

1 Tbsp. flax seed

Put blueberries, orange and bananas into a blender.  Blend and then add spinach, flax seed and coconut milk.  Blend and enjoy.  This made enough for 2 cups worth so I had one today and saved one in the fridge for tomorrow.

A Little Backstory

My sister and I ran the Disney Endurance Half Marathon in January of 2010.  It was actually that training process that began this blog.  It journaled my progress from starting as a non-runner to running a respectable 3.5 hour 1/2 marathon.  (In all fairness, we would have finished sooner except my bladder and bowels INSISTED I find a bathroom mid-way through!). The training was sometimes grueling but overall, I enjoyed it.  I found peace running mile after mile and it was an awesome way to drop left over baby weight from when Connor was born.  I was smaller at Endurance Weekend than I was for my wedding...and this is saying something since I wore a size 2 wedding dress.

I distinctly remember feeling blessed as I prepared for Endurance Weekend.  This blog (my sister had one that journaled her journey as well) was a chance for Jo and I to connect on a different level than we had before as sisters.  We were supporting, encouraging, motivating, inspiring each other to continue to push and do better from a thousand miles apart.  The day of the half was early and it was COLD.  As in, sleeting rain and freezing temps in Central Florida, cold!  We trucked, we did awesome!  We did it together.  We crossed the finish line holding hands and bawling our eyes out and I remember thinking, "I did it!  That was amazing!  I will never do that again!"

Sure enough, things happen.  Not 2 months later we moved from Savannah to Columbus, GA.  2 months after that I was pregnant with Alaina and her pregnancy and first year was very difficult for me. I, literally, didn't have the time to find time for myself and it started to show.  Flash forward to this past February.  Something the Northeast part of the country does that is completely foreign to me is this "winter break" thing.  The children in school get a week off each February but no one is sure why.  They get their time at Christmas and another week at Easter, so just for giggles, they get ANOTHER week during the coldest, snowiest part of the year as well.  On Tuesday of this dreaded winter break, I called my dad who lives in Orlando and told him, "put us on the calendar for the end of February 2014, I will not be spending another week in February alone in the North Country with kids home from school."  I noticed pictures being posted of the Princess Half Marathon during this same winter break and my wheels started turning.  Almost like an inner turmoil, "I really want to.  I remember the pain last time.  It would be so cool.  My lips were blue for hours after the finish.  Who would watch my kids while I run?  Would dad and Cheryl be willing to watch them?"  Back and forth and back and forth until I got a random text from my sweet sister that said she was considering running it.  THAT was my sign.  That was what I needed to say, yep, you got this...again!  

So here we go...again.  My blog turns back into my journey.  From beginners running 101 and prepping for my Color Run 5K in August all the way through the Princess 10K AND half marathon.  Yep, we are crazy enough to do both back to back all for that beautiful glass slipper medal!  

It is the training, it is the new family challenge I accepted for my family (I will share that tomorrow), it is life and all the struggles that go along with trying to do something for myself in the middle of doing the single mom thing and deployment challenges.  All I ask is that if you chose to read and follow along, be kind.  There are so many people that want to hold you down when you are trying to rise above, change your life and be better and I ask that all negativity stays out of my world.  Thanks and enjoy!

T

1000 Books

Ben and I are quite avid readers.  Ben can plow through a book in no time flat.  For me, I take a little longer...usually because I just don't have the time.  I love to read in bed at night, but let's be honest, aftr I get the kids to bed and spend some time with Ben I sometimes just collapse on my pillow!  My goal is to read 12 books a year, one per month.  Sometimes it is a challenge, other times I become so engrossed I can whip through a few in a month.

We have passed on this trait to our kids, who also love to read.  Connor will ask to read 5 or 6 books each night during our bedtime routine and he is starting to get into chapter books, which is cool.  At least it is better than some of the "little" kid books we are still reading with Alaina.  And the little peanut will trot herself off to her room by herself (she gets away for quiet time on her own) and when we got in to peek at her, she is surrounded by board books, completely amused.

It got me to thinking about the importance of developing a love for reading (and reading comprehension) at a young age and I started researching "books for kindergarten," "reading challenges," etc.  I came across the 1000 book challenge.  Quite a few libraries hold these challenges in their local communities.  Of course, I couldn't find one close to us but it didn't mean I couldn't hold a little challenge of my own....and now the 1000 Book Challenge has begun.

I created a couple excel documents.  One is a 2-columned page with about 30 blocks in each column, providing enough space to write down the book, the author and the date.  I used a hole punch and hooked them all together for one big packet we keep in Connor's bedroom.  I also started researching books for his age group and made another excel document of books to make sure I grab to pick up.  If he (and by "he" I mean "we") read 1000 books before his first day of kindergarten we will do something super special together.  I am not sure what we will do yet, we certainly have time to figure it out and honestly, if I were to tell Connor the reward now...ha!  He would nag me about when we are going to go constantly!!  I was thinking something along the lines of going to a water park (it will be the right season up here)...who knows, but more than anything, I love that I am challenging him to read more.

If you are interested in a copy of the reading list (it currently has about 300 books on it, some we have read, most we haven't and does not include any we have in our current bookshelf) or the reading log, please leave me a message with your email address or you can PM me on Facebook.

Happy Reading!

Movie Night

It's back! Movie Night! We were slowing starting to implement this months ago but then football season happened, Ben's weeknight schedule was completely unpredictable and I wasn't organized at all to undertake a full-fledged memory making movie night. I spent the last couple weeks researching, planning and preparing movie nights to cover us for the next 6 or 7 months. Tonight was our first night and we watched The Little Mermaid.

Normal movie nights will have a craft or activity that kind of matches the movie and the dinner is movie themed. Tonight, for example, we had peanut butter and jelly(fish) sandwiches, seashell pasta and starfish fruit (clementine oranges.). For dessert we had mermaid tails (pistachio pudding), which Connor thought was hysterical.

Another fun one is for Tangled. We have long haired spaghetti (buttered spaghetti noodles), roasted butternut squash and for dessert we have blue jello with an orange slice on top (kind of like the boat on the water).

Anyway, Connor is really getting into it and I am so excited for next week- The Fox and the Hound. It is all about friendships....unlikely friendships, at that and in perfect timing for Valentine's Day. Stay tuned, I will actually take pics next week!

Snack Genius

Changing my lifestyle hasn't been as hard as I thought it was going to be.  I don't know if it was because I was so ready to get healthy but I do firmly believe a part of it was when Ben and I allowed ourselves a "fat Tuesday" day.  We have done the Fat Tuesday day once before and it really allowed us to get into the mindset that we are shifting gears and enjoying that last really  "bad for you" meal.  I am not a strict to the book girl, all-or-nothing in my eating habits.  If I am really craving something sweet, I will grab a little mini reese cup.  The goal is to not go overboard, but snacks are definitely my challenge.

Right now I am having a much harder time than I ever remember having in the past.  With temperatures topping out in the negatives, I am always looking for ways to warm up but most of my snacks are cold.  Most of the "go to" snacks I love are yogurt with granola (cold), cheese stick with apples (cold), carrots (cold), protein shake (cold)!  Ugh!!  I want something as an option that is NOT chilled!!

By luck I stumbled across this chili lime roasted chickpea recipe.  I happened to have everything in my pantry to try it out and see.  Now, I can not handle spice, at all so I was a little nervous but it turned out to be fantastic!!  There was no heat but a little kick, if that makes sense.  I added some extra lime because I really love the taste of limes but it is definitely a keeper as a really good snack option- especially a good snack option if I am on the go with the kiddos.

Chili Lime Roasted Chickpeas

1 can chickpeas, drained, rinsed and towel dried
1 Tbsp. olive oil
1 tsp. chili powder
1 tsp. cumin
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. lime juice (I ended up using 1 1/2 tsp.)

Preheat oven to 400.  Line a baking sheet with tinfoil and spread out chickpeas.  Drizzle with olive oil and roll chickpeas around to coat.  Bake 35-40 minutes.  Transfer to a bowl and add remaining ingredients.  Toss to coat and transfer to an air tight container.

One Step At a Time

The last few days post "fat Tuesday" have gone really well.  Ben and I celebrated our "fat Tuesday" on Wednesday with insane cinnamon roll waffles drenched in icing syrup, bacon and cheesy eggs.  Ohhh....it was divine, but Thursday had to roll around and that meant better choices, healthier eating and making the effort to get to the gym more frequently.  The kids and I went grocery shopping Thursday morning and stocked the cart with fruits and veggies, better snack options and absolutely NO sweets!  Well, that creates a problem for me.  My diet has been great for 3 days and I have been working out but I m in the mood for something to satisfy my sweet tooth.  I have oodles of brownies mixes I stocked up on when I found them on sale for $0.50/box.  The deal was great and they are awesome to have on hand if you need to make something super quick or need to bring something to an event.  The only problem is, they sit out there and tempt me.  To get something sweet, I have to make an entire box of brownies and then after I have my small sampling and am satisfied, the pan sits there and I take a bit EVERY.TIME. I go into the kitchen.

The perfect solution- an individual serving of brownie in a mug.  Here's how you do it:
1/4 c. flour
1/4 c. sugar
2 Tbsp. cocoa (we tried a coule different options and our favorite is still Nesquick powder)
a pinch of salt
2 Tbsp. olive oil
3 Tbsp. water

Put your dry ingredients in the bottom of a coffee mug then add the oil and water.  Stir until well combined.  Cook in the microwave (AHH!  this is just the icing on the perfection cake) for 1:40 (Yep, you read that right....1 minute and 40 seconds!!).  The top will look undone but trust me, it's not.  And also trust my burnt tongue....the inside is VERY hot.  I stirred the brownie a little to release the steam and allow to cool slightly then topped it off with a dollop of fresh whipped cream.  Now, the consitency isn't the same as your typical brownie but this is delicious!!  Just enough and no temptation left tomorrow morning eyeing me with my morning coffee.

And because I am in a foodie sharing mood, here is an amazing chicken recipe that my kids devoured! 
Baked Paprika-Parmesan Chicken
1/4 c. flour
1 egg, beaten
1/2 c. grated Parmesan
2 Tbsp. milk
2 tsp. paprika
4 skinless, boneless chicken breasts
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. pepper
1/4 c. butter, melted

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Coat a shallow baking dish with nonstick cooking spray.

Combine flour, parmesan, paprika, salt and pepper in a bowl.  In  seperate bowl, whisk together egg and milk.  Dip the chicken in the egg, then dredge in the flour mixture.  Place in the baking dish and pour the melted butter evenly over the chicken.

Bake for about 1 hour and 15 minutes (we baked this long, next time I will cut down slightly), until the cheese has browned.

Because the kids loved it so much, I think next time I will double it up and cut my chicken into bite sized pieces before coating and cooking and create a twist on chicken nuggies.

It's All in the Planning

Nervous.  Overwhelmed.  Intimidated. 

I am so looking forward to getting healthy.  When I walk into a gym, I know where to start.  I was actually blessed to have a best friend who is a personal trainer.  While we have lived several hundreds of miles apart for years, she is amazing at passing on tricks and tips and ideas whenever I ask for her help.  I would ENCOURAGE anyone who can to invest in a personal trainer, they are invaluable, but I have learned quite a bit from her that I am fairly familiar with a gym of any size and what to do in it.  I know cardio.  Oh Lord, have mercy do I know cardio.  After training for a few 5K's, a 13K and a half-marathon, the treadmill and I have a love/hate relationship.

I was told once that getting into shape is 3 components.  Cardio, strength training and diet; cardio making up 20% of that ratio with diet and strength training splitting an even 40% and 40%.  I think that's probably true.  So if I am comfortable with cardio and strength, all I have left is what I put in my body to fuel it.  This is where I am overwhelmed.

There are so many blogs, sites, links, pins about paleo, clean eating, vegetarian, vegan, gluten-free.....ahhh!!  It's like brain overload!!  I don't even know where to start!!!  Well, here is what I've got.  I start small.  We don't have the finances to throw out our entire freezer, outside freezer, fridge and pantry but I can start with the little things and work from there.

I am a planner, by nature.  I like lists, things planned out and organized.  I am awesome at dinner meal planning and our dinner meals are usually well rounded and health-concious.  Breakfast, I do fine but my kids are still eating toaster streudels and frozen waffles every morning.  Lunches I can definitely improve upon but more often than not, we are eating leftover dinners and since they were pretty good, I feel okay eating them for myself or giving them to the kids.  Where I FAIL miserably is snacks!  Snack choices, on the go snacks, last minute snacks, snack portion size....across the board, I fail.  And the old saying goes, "Failure to plan is planning to fail."  So that's where I start.  I pulled out some of my Biggest Loser cookbooks and started making a list of good snack options as well as surfed around a bit to see what I could find that would satisfy myself and 2 children.  Luckily, neither one of my kids are picky and I like to experiment so this is a good trial situation.

I have a long list now hanging on a cupboard.  All the "go to" snack options so the minute Connor walks in the door from school and immediately asks for a snack before he can even take off his coat, I can say, "would you like a homemade granola bar or crackers with hummus?"  Here are some of the snack options on my list....enjoy.

granola bars (search around, you can find a ton of recipes that fit your tastes)
apple slices (cross-wise slice with a little peanut butter, oats and chopped nuts)
Trail Mix (not store bought but you can find a ton of recipes out there)
apple slices with sliced cheddar cheese
hard boiled eggs
chili roasted chickpeas
veggies with hummus (again, hummus has a huge variety of options, try one!)
banana freeze (dip a banana in greek yogurt and roll in coconut flakes.  freeze and enjoy)
fruit leather (you can find this all over pinterest right now)
jello
ants on a log (can spice it up with a little granola thrown on top too)

Back to Basics

I have been tossing around, researching, searching for information on "clean eating."  I have been really intrigued by this concept lately.  Since the move, living in a hotel for 3 weeks and eating fast food almost every single meal of those 3 weeks left me feeling, well, let's just say I put one rocking split in the leg of my jeans yesterday and now I am on a commitment tour to change my lifestyle.  Of course, this would be the moment I decide to change in the middle of a birthday celebration weekend for Alaina.

"Clean eating" is essentially only putting in your body things that are natural.  I have seen a multitude of variations on this but I think for my family what clean eating will entail is as as few as possible foods that are processed in any way.  Loading up on fresh fruits and veggies, lean proteins, and whole grains.  But this is also meaning stepping away from the "convenience" items.  I have already been making my own taco seasoning and taco sauce but now I am on a missing to get rid of all the "packets" that we use.  I found a recipe for homemade mac and cheese (more similiar to the kraft box [without the additives] than your traditional hearty side dish of mac and cheese.  I am on a search for fruit snacks.  I tried one Pinterest recipe that fell flat so I am looking for something a little different.  We make our own granola for cereal and toppings for yogurt.  We are already buying farm fresh eggs.  If Ben was a hunter, our freezer would be stocked with fresh meat, but we are blessed in this region to have many opportunities to buy fresh, certified and organic beef, chicken, lamb and deer at a reasonable cost.

I am really not posting this out there to brag about all the ways we are changing out lives.  For me, it has become more than just fitting back into my size 4 pants (which, is a goal but not my focus).  Did you realize 17% of this country's children ages 2-19 are considered obese?  This is not a little baby fat, people....this is obesity.  Being unhealthy has become a national epidemic.  It is costing our health system millions of dollars in medical issues caused by a failure to take care of ourselves.  Our kids are being taught by example and we are continuing the cycle.  I want to do more for my kids.  I want them to learn to make good choices.  Ben and I have health issues that run in our families and while we can't safegaurd against anything bad every happening to us, we certainly can do our part to be the healthiest we can be. 

I am not against birthday cake, as will be evidence by Alaina's Very Hungry Caterpillar party tomorrow afternoon.  I am not against reese cups, as will be evidence come Easter when the Reese eggs hit the shelves.  I am not against girl scout cookies, no worries GSA I have already done my part and ordered my thin mints.  But having something sweet or a nice treat should be exactly that, a treat, not a nightly post-dinner necessity.

So here are a few of my favorite at home changes to share:
Taco Sauce:
8 oz. tomato sauce          1/4 c. water
1/4 tsp. chili powder        1 tsp. cumin
1 Tbsp. onion, chopped   1 Tbsp. vinegar
1/2 tsp. garlic powder      1/4 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. paprika                1/4 tsp. sugar
1/4 tsp. ground red pepper

Mix all in a blender until smooth.  Pour sauce into a pan and cook over medium low for 15-20 minutes.  Freeze in small batches.


Cooking Spray
1 part olive oil
5 parts water
1 misting spray bottle

Mix in your spray bottle.  Shake well.  Store in a dark, cool place.


Hamburger and Fry Seasoning
1/4 c. paprika                   1/4 c. salt
1/8 c. garlic powder         1/2 Tbsp. chili powder
1/2 Tbsp. cumin               1 Tbsp. black pepper
1/2 tsp. celery salt             1/2 Tbsp. basil

Mix together and store in an air tight container.


Dry Onion Soup Mix
2/3 c. dried minced onion                 3 tsp. parsley flakes
2 tsp. onion powder                           2 tsp. tumeric
1 tsp. celery salt                                 1 tsp. sea salt
1 tsp. sugar                                         1/2 tsp. ground pepper

Mix and store in an airtight container.  (4 Tbsp. equal one packet of onion soup mix.)