Relaxing Peppermint Latte

7 Replies

Hello friends,

Happy Friday. I am so glad it is Friday.  The past 10 days have been pretty rough.  Starting with last Tuesday I finally got my MRI results back and I officially have a torn meniscus.  So sometime in the next few months I will be getting surgery.  I was pretty bummed to hear that news, but I am thankful the surgery & recovery process are pretty mild.  I digested that info for a few days and came to peace with all of that.

Sadly on Saturday one of my dear friends passed away while she was waiting a kidney transplant.  She left behind her wonderful husband and son.  It is all so heartbreaking and it hurts my heart so much for their family.  Then on Monday of my husband’s great nephews passed away.

Other random little things happened, like the washing machine at work filling the laundry room with smoke, fighting a nasty cold, a fellow instructor breaking her leg and needing me to fill in for her classes and just lack of sleep in general. Needless to say, it has been a bit of a stressful week.

When dealing with stress and grief, I have learned what I need to do to process and work through the stress I feel.  Taking care of myself with proper food, exercise, sleep and warm drinks.  This week my sleep has been struggling and one things that helps me is having a warm drink before bed.  I tend to go for peppermint tea when I am feeling stressed and worn down.

Peppermint can be helpful when feeling stressed, fatigued, nausea, headaches, and can be refreshing and relaxing and more! So you can see adding a hot peppermint drink can be helpful for any who are stressed out or dealing with fatigue.

I am linking up with my fav Foodie Friday gals, Farrah from Fairyburger and Annmarie from the Fit Foodie Mama for hot drink recipes.

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Ingredients

  • 2 cups milk of choice (I used almond)
  • 1/2-1 Tbsp organic maple syrup
  • 2 servings collagen
  • 1 drop peppermint essential oil

Makes 2 servings.

 

Directions

  1. Heat milk on the stove in a medium sauce pan for about 5 minutes or until milk is your ideal temperature.
  2. Whisk in the collagen and maple syrup.
  3. Add in the drop of peppermint and stir.
  4. Enjoy when feeling stressed.

 

Make sure you check out the amazing ladies and their awesome mouthwatering recipes!!

Do you have an awesome recipe you’d love to share? Link up with us on Fridays for our weekly Foodie Friday posts! (Co-hosted by Annmarie, Farrah + Esther )

  • Please link back to the co-hosts, and comment/share at least a couple other Foodie Friday posts! Don’t just leave your link and run away! :O
  • Please only link up recipe posts! 🙂Join us February 8 for some hot breakfast recipes.

https://fresh.inlinkz.com/party/e938109fb9cd4614805eb054e290369e

 

May you be filled with joy and health!

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Creamy Veggie Soup

20 Replies

Hello friends!
It has been a little quiet over her on the blog for the start of 2019.  I have been slowly easing into the year.  I have had a lot of things going on with health and just life, so I will be giving more of an update soon!

This week is national soup month! I don’t think there could be a more perfect food for these colder winter months than soup! I LOVE soup, but have always had a hard time finding soups I can eat with my food allergies.  I can hardly ever order soup when I am eating out, so a few years ago I began to make my own at home!

A few of my favorites over the past few years are taco soup, black bean soup, broccoli cheese soup, roasted red pepper soup, and chicken veggie & rice soup!

I am linking up with my fav Foodie Friday gals, Farrah from Fairyburger and Annmarie from the Fit Foodie Mama for soup recipes.  Just a little note in case you missed the last post, but Foodie Friday is now going to be on the second and fourth Friday of each month! Feel free to still join us then 🙂

This week we started out in the 70s and then the temps dropped into the 30s! Needless to say, with the colder weather I was def all about making some yummy soup!  I have been on a zucchini kick lately and had a ton in my fridge and decided to make that the star of the soup!

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Ingredients

  • 1/4 c ghee
  • 4 cups shredded zucchini
  • 2 cups shredded carrots
  • 2 cups broccoli slaw
  • 1/4 cup gluten free flour
  • 1 1/2 cups chicken broth
  • 1 cup organic half & half
  • Spices: Pink salt, pepper, garlic, paprika, turmeric & red pepper flakes to taste

Directions

  1. Melt ghee in large pot. Add in all veggies, sauté till soft.
  2. Sift flour over veggies and stir gently till coated.
  3. Add in liquids and gently stir.
  4. Bring to a simmer and let the liquids thicken for about 10-15 min.
  5. Add in spices to taste.
  6. Enjoy on a chilly winter day

Make sure you check out the amazing ladies and their awesome mouthwatering recipes!!

Do you have an awesome recipe you’d love to share? Link up with us on Fridays for our weekly Foodie Friday posts! (Co-hosted by Annmarie, Farrah + Esther )

  • Please link back to the co-hosts, and comment/share at least a couple other Foodie Friday posts! Don’t just leave your link and run away! :O
  • Please only link up recipe posts! 🙂Join us January 25th for some hot drink recipes.

https://fresh.inlinkz.com/p/bc33c6d3ec7447ceb9c370994fe9c138

May you be filled with joy and health!

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Best of 2018 recipes!

12 Replies

Hello friends and happy last Friday of 2018! How is it so close to the end of the year? I am really not sure where the year went! I feel like yesterday it was June, and last week was February! I am always reminded of a phrase my late Great Aunt used to say, “time goes faster the older you get!” I never really understood that until I was in my late 20s and I would often remind her that she was so right!

As the year comes to a close I have been focusing on spending time with my husband and the family and close friends we have in the area! To be honest, I have not spent much time in my kitchen this week, even though I have had the week off! It has been nice to have a little break from all the normal cooking and baking I do during a normal week!

So today there is no new recipe for Foodie Friday, but I am sharing a few of my favorite recipes from the year. As always, I am linking up with my fav Foodie Friday gals, Farrah from Fairyburger and Annmarie from the Fit Foodie Mama for Best of 2018.
Also, starting in 2019, we will be moving Foodie Friday to the second and fourth Friday of the month! We will still have themes that you are welcome to join with if desired!

That’s a wrap! Looking forward to 2019 and some yummy recipes coming your way!
Have a blessed end of 2018 and see ya in 2019!!

Make sure you check out the amazing ladies and their awesome mouthwatering recipes!!

Do you have an awesome recipe you’d love to share? Link up with us on Fridays for our weekly Foodie Friday posts! (Co-hosted by Annmarie, Farrah + Esther )

  • Please link back to the co-hosts, and comment/share at least a couple other Foodie Friday posts! Don’t just leave your link and run away! :O
  • Please only link up recipe posts! 🙂Join us in January for some new recipes.

May you be filled with joy and wellness!
Cheers to the end of 2018!

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Peppermint Sugar Cookie Truffle

8 Replies

Happy Friday friends!
It really is the most wonderful time of the year! I love this time of year, although it has been a little more tough some days when I think about it being the first Christmas with out my gram. One thing that has helped is seeing the joy on the faces of others through this season! Giving gifts is one of my love languages, and you could say wrapping gifts is a close second 🙂

 

Another part of the season I really enjoy is baking! I love to bake and give tasty treats to my friends and loved ones! After my Christmas party 2 weeks ago, I had a ton of left over sugar cookies!

 

I didn’t want to just throw them away, so I decided to reuse them for a different dessert!
I am linking up with my fav Foodie Friday gals, Farrah from Fairyburger and Annmarie from the Fit Foodie Mama for another new recipe!

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Ingredients

  • About 8-10 sugar cookies, crushed
  • 6 oz cream cheese, softened
  • 1/4 tsp vanilla
  • 1/4 tsp peppermint extract
  • 3/4 cup enjoy life chocolate chips
  • 1/4 cup white chocolate chips
  • 3/4 tsp coconut oil
  • Sprinkles of your choice

Directions

  1. Whip cream cheese with a mixer until fluffy.
  2. Add in the vanilla and the sugar cookie crumbles, blend well.
  3. Scoop the mixture into 1 inch balls and place on a baking sheet covered with parchment paper or a silicon sheet.
  4. Chill for 15-20 min in the fridge. While the balls chill, melt the chocolates.
  5. Melt the dark chocolate with 1/2tsp coconut oil in a double boiler.
  6. Add in the peppermint until the desired flavor.
  7. Melt the white chocolate with 1/4 tsp coconut oil in a double boiler.
  8. Remove the balls from the fridge.
  9. Cover each ball in the dark chocolate and return to the baking sheet.
  10. Drizzle the white chocolate over each truffle and add sprinkles if desired.
  11. Store in the fridge.
  12. Enjoy!

What are some of your favorite holiday activities that bring you joy?

Make sure you check out the amazing ladies and their awesome mouthwatering recipes!!

Do you have an awesome recipe you’d love to share? Link up with us on Fridays for our weekly Foodie Friday posts! (Co-hosted by Annmarie, Farrah + Esther )

  • Please link back to the co-hosts, and comment/share at least a couple other Foodie Friday posts! Don’t just leave your link and run away! :O
  • Please only link up recipe posts! 🙂Join us next week for some best of 2018 recipes.

 

May you have a very Merry Christmas!

May you be filled with joy and wellness!

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Certifications on the way!

12 Replies

Hello friends and happy Monday!
Whew, I am tired! It has been even crazier than usual the past week!
The past 10 weeks of hard work came to a bit of a conclusion over the past week.

In early October I signed up and began to study for my AFAA fitness instructor certification.  I was hoping to spread the studying process over the 10 weeks before I had a deadline with one of the gyms I work at.  Well, life happened and I really only had 3 weeks to fully study for the exam! I felt like I was studying non-stop.  Working, teaching and studying was my life.  I will write a little more of a post about my study process, but for now, I just want to share my outcome!
The actual exam was held at a testing center at an airport! It felt totally weird driving close to a runway to park! I had a set time and I arrived early.  The testing center opened up and I got started right away.  As soon as the first question popped up, I grew concerned.  The format of the questions seemed much different and more of technical emphasis than the study guide and practice exams!
When it was over I was nervous to see my results! I was SO thankful to see a PASS on my paperwork! Even the testing center lady said it has been a more challenging test for many people!

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This past weekend I attended my second Les Mills training to get my Sprint coach certification.  It was a HARD and LONG weekend, but oh so worth it!
I had a fantastic time and met some wonderful people who inspired me to do my very best to rock this weekend!

After 2 very challenging days working hard and learning a LOT, I am SO proud that the entire group PASSED our training! Now all that is left is to make my video and pass that and them I will be certified in another Les Mills program!
Cheers to a less stressful week!

I am linking up with Wendy and Holly for their weekly wrap

WWSki-Green

May you be filled with joy and wellness!

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Baking Cheer!

7 Replies

Happy Friday friends! One full week of December has already flown by! I am sure you are just as busy as I have been! Lots of fun things, but also a few stressful things.
After hearing great news about my heart, I have been fighting with my insurance to cover a MRI for my knee.  They claim it is not medically necessary, yet I have had pain for over 5 months, had a few other tests done and been working on physical therapy and no real progress! Back to the dr on Monday to hopefully get things finally approved!!

But, happier things to think about this December is time with family and friends, delicious meals together and of course, baking! I love baking all year long, but there is something special about the holidays where baking is extra fun!

I am linking up with my fav Foodie Friday gals, Farrah from Fairyburger and Annmarie from the Fit Foodie Mama for some Holiday Cheer recipes!

To be honest, I have not been able to create many new recipes over the past few weeks, so I am sharing today my ALL time favorite sugar cookie recipe, and a few other recipes that would be enjoyable during this festive season!

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Gluten Free Sugar Cookies

Ingredients

  • 1 1/2 C organic butter, softened
  • 5 cups gluten free flour
  • 2 tsp baking powder
  • 1 tsp pink salt
  • 2 cups organic cane sugar
  • 4 organic eggs
  • 1 tsp gf vanilla extract
  • Organic powdered sugar for rolling dough

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Directions

  1. In a large bowl, sift together the flour, baking powder & salt.
  2. In a stand mixer, cream the butter and sugar together till fluffy, then beat in each egg and the vanilla.
  3. Add the dry ingredients to the wet and mix just until the dough is mixed and pulling off the side of the bowl.
  4. Divide the dough into 2 parts and wrap in parchment paper, place in the fridge and chill for at least 2 hours.
  5. Preheat oven to 400
  6. Sprinkle powdered sugar on a clean flat surface.
  7. Let dough set for 3-5 min and then roll it out on the powdered surface 1/4 to 1/2 in thick (I went a little thicker with this dough)
  8. Use any shape cookie cutters to make the cookies.  Place each cookie onto an silicon covered baking cookie sheet about 1 inch apart.
  9. Bake 6-8 min (more if thicker- Checking on them every 60 seconds after the 6 min mark)
  10. Let the cookies cook completely and then decorate as desired.

You can also check out the Chocolate Almond Butter Blossoms, Chocolate Covered Kiwi Bites, Chocolate Avocado Pudding, Chocolate Protein Fudge Bites, and Chocolate Pumpkin Truffles.

 

What are some of your favorite holiday baking traditions?

Make sure you check out the amazing ladies and their awesome mouthwatering recipes!!

Do you have an awesome recipe you’d love to share? Link up with us on Fridays for our weekly Foodie Friday posts! (Co-hosted by Annmarie, Farrah + Esther )

  • Please link back to the co-hosts, and comment/share at least a couple other Foodie Friday posts! Don’t just leave your link and run away! :O
  • Please only link up recipe posts! 🙂Join us next week for some food prep recipes.

Happy Holiday Baking!

May you be filled with joy and wellness!

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Activ Motion Bar in Action

14 Replies

Hello friends and happy Monday!
Thank you all for your lovely comments and prayers last week!  It you didn’t see the news about my heart yet, I am SO thrilled to report I got the all clear from my Dr.  She said I am normal! Well, at least my heart is normal, LOL! The abnormal things I have been experiencing are very minor overall (less than 1% of my heartbeats), and my heart is structurally good as gold!  Just knowing that has helped a ton with the anxiety I have been feeling over the past few months!

So you read last week that the past few weeks have been a little crazy and stressful! One thing that really helps me manage my stress is staying active and setting time aside each day for some sort of workout. I typically workout at the gym.  Between teaching my classes and taking other formats, I am really good about staying consistent.  With all that has been going on, I was not getting to the gym everyday, but I was still able to workout in my little home garage gym with the Activ Motion Bar.  Thanks to a partnership with Fit Approach, I received my very own Activ Motion Bar and I have been loving it!

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So what exactly is an ActivMotion bar?  It is a bar about the size of a barbell and it is filled with free moving steel ball-bearings.  The bars are hand built and come in different sizes.  They have different options for the bars from 3-18 lbs!  They even have a special bar you can see into, that is 4.5 lbs! When I was given the choice, I opted for the 10lb bar.  I knew this would be a weight I could use, but would also be challenged with depending on the exercise.

I have been able to use some of the videos that AMB created as well as some of the physical therapy I have been doing for my knee.  It has been a wonderful tool to use to help increase my balance skills and it has been working my core like no other!

Not only has ActivMotion bar upped my workout game and aided in my physical therapy, the company stands behind their products and also has values I can support!

If you are interested in getting your own ActivMotion bar, they are offering 25% off though January 7th with code fitapproach25. What are you waiting for?

I am linking up with Wendy and Holly for their weekly wrap

WWSki-Green

May you be filled with joy and wellness!

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A little catch up

21 Replies

Hello friends! It has been a while since I wrote a proper blog post.  Life has just been CRAZY!!

Let’s start back in October with a lighthearted topic, my hair.  You probably saw when I changed my hair color to pink for my birthday in August.  Since then, the color faded out, and I was left with unicorn hair and then pretty much all the color fell out. My hair has never held color very well, but I needed a change.  Back to my stylist who gave me some gorgeous fall color.  It has faded a bit already, but still a pretty color and I am ok with that!

A few belated birthday gifts arrived, new fun shoes, and my gorgeous t-shirt quilt that my sister and I started this summer.  Most of the shirts are from 2014 when I challenged myself to 33 races in a year in honor of turning 33.  It has been fun looking over all the shirts and reminiscing about the different races, as well as the good, bad and ugly stories about each run.  My sister also made me a set of beautiful chair cushion covers! They go perfect in our house!

In the middle of these fun things, I have also been facing some health and personal challenges.  I have mentioned before that I was having some concerns with my heart that started last spring and issues with my knee since the end of June.  I saw my Dr again in August and then had a follow up in September.  I was still having the same concerns so she sent me to a cardiologist and an orthopedic.  The orthopedic did some tests and x-rays (to rule out tumors due to my history) but didn’t find anything significant.  He sent me for a MRI, but my lovely insurance decided to deny the MRI until I do more physical therapy.  I had been doing at home PT, but that didn’t count towards anything.  Both my ortho and PT think the knee issue it is meniscus related, but we won’t know for sure until I can get approved for a MRI! And they wanted to charge me an arm and a leg for PT, so I had to go as a self-pay patient to not have to take out a bank loan!!

When I saw the cardiologist, I got another EKG, which didn’t show anything.  My flare ups are always in the evening, so I wasn’t surprised by this. He ordered a heart echo test as well as a halter monitor.  My echo was kind of neat since I was actually able to see my heart beating on the screen.  The halter situation was a but frustrating.  I have allergies to adhesives so they gave me hypoallergenic adhesives to stick on the sensors.  Well, I have gotten even more sensitive and I broke out in welts within the first few hours.  I had to wear the halter for 24 hours and my skin was a mess at the end of that time.  Even a few days later I still have irritated skin!

 

In the middle of all these dr appts and therapies, I flew up to Chicago for a bittersweet weekend.  It was very sweet to see some wonderful friends, visit my old stomping grounds, see the school I used to teach at, attend my old church and have some yummy Chicago food.


The bitter part was saying goodbye to a wonderful lady who was like a second mom to me since I was 6.  I am so thankful she is no longer in pain, but she is so very missed.

img_5354Losing her along with my gram earlier this year seemed to compound the levels of grief I have been feeling and dealing with.  I took some time away from the blog and social media and focused on taking care of myself.  I have been doing my best to stay positive in the light of all that has been going on, but there have been days where it has been plain hard.  I am SO thankful for the wonderful friends and family in my life who have been so supportive and encouraging and allowing me to just be.

Over this past week for Thanksgiving, it was wonderful to bake and spend time with the kids. My heart needed some rest time away from the normal routine. Good baking and some good reading has been good for my soul!

Well, that is a wrap for what has been going on the past 2 months or so.  Life never seems to really slow down, but I am doing what I can to be present and positive in the midst of it all.  I am getting some results on my heart tomorrow, so stay tuned for an update!

I am linking up with Wendy and Holly for their weekly wrap

WWSki-Green

 

May you be filled with joy and wellness!

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Basic Roasted Brussels Sprouts

6 Replies

Hello friends! It has been a while.  I am still here, just have had a LOT going on these past few weeks.  You may or may not have seen on Instagram a little bit of an update.  You can check it out here, or wait till I write a more detailed update soon!

Welcome back to Foodie Friday! I am so glad to have had time to actually cook a little this week! I am linking up with my fav Foodie Friday gals, Farrah from Fairyburger and Annmarie from the Fit Foodie Mama for some Old Recipe Revival recipes!

It is no question that I love me some roasted veggies! It took me a long time to realize just how simple it actually was.  For some reason, I had in my head for years that it was a challenging process!  One day I finally got the chance to try it out and I have not stopped roasting them since! No more steamed veggies for me! Haha

I also did not realize how amazing Brussels sprouts were until a few years ago! I have made them several different ways.  A few that we still make are spicy Brussels, holiday Brussels (perfect for the upcoming holidays), and smashed Brussels. 

As much as I love all those recipes, I have been craving some more back to basic Brussels! So I pulled back to just a few simple ingredients, and these came out perfect!

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Ingredients

  • 1 lb whole Brussels Sprouts
  • About 1 Tbsp avocado oil
  • Spices to taste- Himalayan salt, Parmesan cheese, Italian seasoning.
  • Parchment paper

Directions

  1. Pre-heat oven to 425* F.
  2. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
  3. Rinse off Brussels sprouts and slice them in half vertically.
  4. Place Brussels on the baking sheet.
  5. Drizzle avocado oil over the Brussels and add spices to taste.
  6. Toss gently with hands until fully coated with oil and spices.
  7. Roast in the oven for about 15-20 minutes or until the Brussels are crispy on the outside and soft on the inside.
  8. Enjoy while hot!
  9. Side note- I tend to make a double batch to use for lunches or toss into some eggs for a quick meal.

Make sure you check out the amazing ladies and their awesome mouthwatering recipes!!

Do you have an awesome recipe you’d love to share? Link up with us on Fridays for our weekly Foodie Friday posts! (Co-hosted by Annmarie, Farrah + Esther )

  • Please link back to the co-hosts, and comment/share at least a couple other Foodie Friday posts! Don’t just leave your link and run away! :O
  • Please only link up recipe posts! 🙂Join us next week for some Pinterest curiosity recipes.

Have a wonderful Thanksgiving week!

May you be filled with joy and wellness!

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Chocolate Covered Kiwi Bites

12 Replies

Happy Friday friends!
It has been another super busy week. Between teaching, taking extra classes, work projects, tons of work on the Hubs music business, trying to get back to more sleep, it has a little crazy!
But not too crazy to do a little experimenting in the kitchen! October is better known as Choctober! What a better combo of my favorite month and my favorite food group!!
I love adding chocolate to other yummy food, especially fruit! It is a delicious way to add some bonus nutrition to lovely treats! This time I added another bonus of some collagen for some bonus protein.

I am linking up with my fav Foodie Friday gals, Farrah from Fairyburger and Annmarie from the Fit Foodie Mama for some choctober recipes!

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Ingredients

  • 4 kiwis
  • 3/4 c dark chocolate chips
  • 1/2 Tbsp coconut oil
  • 1 Tbsp collagen
  • Toothpicks

Directions

  1. Cover a baking sheet with a silicon sheet or parchment paper.
  2. Peel and chop the kiwi into bite size pieces.
  3. Using a double boiler, melt the dark chocolate.
  4. Add in the coconut oil and the collagen till well blended, then remove from heat.
  5. Place a toothpick in each piece of kiwi and dip it in the dark chocolate.  Use a spoon to cover each piece of kiwi.
  6. Once covered, place each piece of kiwi on the baking sheet.
  7. Once all the kiwi is on the baking sheet, place in the fridge for at least 20 min to let the chocolate harden.
  8. Store in an airtight container in the fridge- they will last 2-3 days.
  9. Enjoy!

Make sure you check out the amazing ladies and their awesome mouthwatering recipes!!

Do you have an awesome recipe you’d love to share? Link up with us on Fridays for our weekly Foodie Friday posts! (Co-hosted by Annmarie, Farrah + Esther )

  • Please link back to the co-hosts, and comment/share at least a couple other Foodie Friday posts! Don’t just leave your link and run away! :O
  • Please only link up recipe posts! 🙂Join us next week for some free for all recipes.

May you be filled with joy and wellness!

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