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Healthy Living ~ recipes and workouts

Hey there! I have been trying to eat healthier since the start of the year, it is an on an off again struggle though.  The toughest part is at lunch, we go out to eat for lunch at work pretty much every time, and when there is a bowl of queso sitting in front of me, I really can't say no, ya know! Then comes the weekend, and I never cook on the weekends, we are always doing something or want to just relax and not clean up a mess in the kitchen, so we eat out again.  I am really lucky that my husband is such a healthy eater, because he is the one that ususally talks me out of Taco Bueno or pizza ;)
So even though we eat out on the weekends, I try to make our meals during the week healthy, I thought I would share some of the things Ive made the past couple of weeks.  These are all quick and easy since I don't want to be stuck in the kitchen for ever when I get off work!

These stuffed peppers from Martha Stewart were really good.  I added cooked ground beef into it as well. Jamie said he liked the stuffing even without the pepper, but I liked the pepper's texture with the soft filling.   Definitely will put these into the rotation.



I made this oven baked okra for a side one night, it was really easy to just shake frozen okra up in a bag with seasonings and corn meal, then pop it in the oven.  Fast and tasty, my favorite! We liked how they turned out, I love fried okra and this was a nice substitute.


I've made this Santa Fe Crock Pot Chicken a couple of times, it is really good.  The recipe is from Skinny Taste, she has so many great healthy recipes. With the leftovers I made Mexi-tatos the next night, by using it as a topping for a baked potato.  Delish! 


So I have been trying to make it to the gym as well, I'm doing a solid once a week, oh yea! lol but honestly I can tell a difference just by going that one time a week, and it's better than nothing eh?  Have you heard of the Tone It Up girls?  The are so cute and motivating, and always post free workouts, here is one that I have been incorporating into mine... Although, I do feel a little self conscious thrusting my pelvis into the air at they gym, so I might just have to start doing this one at home. haha

Even though I don't eat every single meal as healthy as I can, at least I am trying to incorporate some fun dinners and workouts to keep it interesting.  I know I feel so much better when I eat better, so it just makes sense to stick with it, but, there are times I MUST have a cupcake, or sugar, or chocolate and nothing will stop me. lol Moderation is key and I have learned that, just cutting back and not restricting myself is easier than quitting cold turkey. 
 You can follow my food board here 
and my motivation board here

We have nothing planned this weekend, so hopefully we can make it to the annual Oklahoma City Arts Festival, I only go for the food! But saying that pretty much cancels this whole post out, but hey, it only comes once a year, and I have all those heathy dinners saved to make up for it.  :)

Have a great weekend! 


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fun in the sun ~ summer gift idea

Last weekend I went to a friend baby shower.  She and I have been friends since before we could drive and it is hard to believe that we have our own kids now?! It seems like only yesterday we were passing notes in the hallway about boys in our class, and now we are talking about breast feeding and birth stories! lol!  So anyway back to the gift, I started thinking about what to get her, I thought back to my shower and the things that I received.  I knew she would be getting a lot of the usual stuff, like blankets, and onesies, so I figured I could do something different.  I really loved getting things that were personalized with Carter's name on them, and since my friend and her family like to spend a lot of time by the pool in the summer, I thought that it would be cute to do a summer fun gift!  And what is cuter than a baby in a swim suit and sunglasses???

So for this gift, I found a plain tub at Hobby Lobby, and went to Target to grab some essential baby pool accessories. :)  Swim suit, sunglasses, towel, and toys! Other things that would be great to add would be sunscreen, swim shoes, hat, floaties, etc... the possibilities are endless.


Once I got all the loot, I simply drew the baby to be's name on the front of the tub using these paint pens. 




After the name dried I filled it up, going largest in the back to smallest in the front.  It took a little arranging and re-agrraning to get it to look how I wanted.

Then to finish it off I used a clear cellophane to wrap it up! I think you can put just about anything in cellophane and tie it with a bow and it will look cute.. ok maybe not everything, but you get the idea! 

I stuffed some tissue in the top to give it a little more color and then tied it off with some toile.  I glued on a little turtle to the front that came with the toy pack, to make it complete!

As I was putting this gift together and dreaming of sunshine and days at the pool, we were under a tornado watch all weekend! Luckily it only rained and never got severe around us.  I've lived in Oklahoma my whole life, and I will never get used to tornado season! ugh! 
I'm glad I had this little gift to take my mind of the weather so I could daydream about laying on the beach instead! :)

This was so fun to put together, and would be great for any age kid who has a birthday in the summer as well!  

Thanks for stopping by! Have a great day! 

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life lately ~ spring


I don't know what it is but Spring just makes me happy.   I know I have mentioned that a few times, but it really does.  I love having the windows open and feeling the cool breeze sweep through the house.  We have had a lot of fun with family these first few weeks of Spring soaking up the sun and the nice weather!  I love this time with Carter, he is growing up so fast.  Every day is more and more fun as he learns and becomes himself.  He is so sweet, and cracks us up all the time. I remember writing a long time ago, before he started to talk, and thinking how funny he was then, and wondering what he would be like once he began to say things.   His imagination is so big already, we already call him an actor because he will imitate things so well.  I just wanted to share a little bit of what has been going on in our lives the past few weeks, I never want to forget a second of this time in Carter's life, because I know it will fly by before we know it.

The last weekend in March we were in Dallas for my nieces birthday.  It was a princess party, so Carter dressed up as the Frog Prince.  I found the instructions for this here.  It was really simple and cuter than any other prince outfit I could have bought I think.  I really lucked out and found exactly what I needed at Target, a green hoodie. I thought for sure it would be impossible this time of year, but they had some, in his size no less! Score! It had a little patch on the front that said something, so I just covered it with felt and a crown.  The eyes for the frog are a ping pong ball cut in half, thank you Martha Stewart for the great idea! ;)

The princess party was so adorable my sister made everything so cute, Cinderella even came by to play games, and paint their faces.  It was a great time celebrating my little nieces birthday! 
The next day we went to the Dallas Arboretum, which is a huge landscaped place with beautiful flowers, we tried to get some cute pictures of the grandkids together, but it was not happening! They would much rather run up the hill and roll down, I mean who wouldn't? lol We even stopped and had a picnic under the shade, it was a beautiful day in the morning and the kids ran and rolled for a while.  Then the sun began to warm up and we headed home.  It was a relaxing morning before heading back to Oklahoma.
Over Easter weekend my sister and her family came up and it was great seeing them 2 weekends in a row!  My nieces came over for a sleep over, to which we died eggs in the backyard.  Carter loved throwing the eggs into each bowl, making the colored water splash up onto the girls, I don't think he has the patience yet for fine egg coloring. lol.  After they each got their eggs the exact shade they wanted, we played outside until it was dark. Oh and Carter also refused to wear pants that night, so it added to the excitement. lol! We only stayed in the backyard though, so don't judge. ;)
While they were here we went to an egg hunt, at a local family farm, they had a petting zoo, a maze, that we almost couldn't figure out how to get out of, and lot's of candy! The weather wasn't that great, but we had fun anyways.  Carter loves his cousins so much, it breaks my heart for him when he has to say goodbye when they leave. 
On Easter Sunday we went to church then had a big feast at my mom's, then we played outside even more.  While the guys napped inside, the the kids blew bubbles, and made up obstacle courses, pretended to be bears and alligators, it was a perfect afternoon of doing nothing but swinging on the porch and watching them play! 

 I am so thankful for the reason we even celebrate Easter! And am so thankful that my family all know the Love of Christ and that he died for us so we would have hope. I just pray that I can be a great example of God's love for Carter as he grows up. 
We have had an awesome beginning of Spring and have made some great memories so far.  Now we have to prepare for our family vacation this summer for even more fun! :)

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