yumm

this is what i’ve been eating for breakfast/mid morning snack/mid afternoon/mid night snack :)

{granola, yogurt, and fruit}

i’ve been making my own yogurt. it tastes just like store bought kind, only way cheaper! check out how to make your own plain yogurt at my friends blog here. its soooo easy.

i’ve been slacking lately so i’ve been getting my granola at fresh & easy. but this next week i’m going to start making my own again since brig and i are both eating it WAY too fast! my friend has an awesome recipe for granola.

top it off with berries, bananas (my fave), strawberries, or any other fresh fruit!

and if you’re not into tart stuff, add a tiny bit of honey, maple syrup or agave nector.

even maddix loves the plain yogurt!!

and these are my new favorite indulgence. if any of you know me well enough, you know that i am obsessed with peanut butter and chocolate anything. these are perfect because i dont feel guilty eating them! they are healthy and so yummy! oh and even Brig loves them which is huge.

check out the recipe at my friends blog here.

picture also from here

thanks kami for all the yummy healthy recipes!!

new favorite snack

this is one of our new favorite snacks. yummy and super healthy!

cracker+hummus+tabouli=complete yumminess

you can buy these at walmart

all you need is some flatbread, some hummus, and some tabouli!

Simple tabouli recipe {from my awesome madre!}

• parsley
• olive oil
• lemon juice
• green onions

chop up some parsley and a few green onions, pour in a little olive oil, squeeze in a little lemon juice, and you have it! it’s so simple and delicious with the hummus.

i had this for lunch, an afternoon snack, and a midnight snack :)

healthy dinner success

healthy dinner #2=success and delicious!
tonight for dinner we had salmon tacos and steamed broccoli. for dessert we had homemade coconut milk chocolate chip banana ice cream! it was so healthy and so good.

image here, here, & here

salmon tacos

• salmon
• lemon pepper
• seasoned salt
• corn tortillas {i buy the uncooked costco kind then cook them on the stove. they are amazing!}
• lettuce
• salsa
• lime juice

cover salmon in lemon pepper and seasoned salt and grill for 10 minutes. cut up the salmon and put it in the corn tortillas along with shredded lettuce and salsa. squeeze some lime juice on top and enjoy!

steamed broccoli

steam broccoli until tender, then pour a small amount of olive oil and lemon juice on top and eat! this is incredible. i used to eat it for breakfast in high school :)

coconut milk chocolate chip banana ice cream

• 3 c coconut milk
• 6 Tbsp agave nectar or honey
• 1 tsp vanilla
• 1 banana
• semi sweet chocolate chips

combine all ingredients and blend together, then pour in ice cream machine {i have the cuisine art automatic ice cream machine}

pour in a few chocolate chips once the ingredients are all in the ice cream maker if you like the chunks :)

turn on machine and let it freeze til it looks smooth creamy {about 15 minutes}

this is a sweet, yummy & healthy treat!

motivated by money

brigham is in a competition at work with a few other managers. they are trying to see who can lose the most body fat %. i am excited for this..not because brig needs to lose the weight, but because now i get to cook healthy simple meals without any complaints {and if he wins, he gets lots of moneys} :) i told brig that our grocery bill WILL be a lot cheaper the next couple of months. i will buy a large bag of chicken breasts, lots of veggies, fruits, and healthy snacks like almonds.
dinner #1 {we ate tonight}:

• grilled lemon marinated chicken on top of a salad
• roasted sweet potatoes and zucchini

forgot to take a pic of our dinner, but this is what it looked like :) image found here and here

lemon marinade

• 1/4 cup of olive oil
• 1/4 lemon juice
• 1/2 Tbsp kosher salt
• 1 tsp ground black pepper
• 2 cloves of garlic, chopped

put all ingredients in a food processor or blender and marinade chicken in it for 4-8 hours {i did 4}
i also made the marinade for the salad dressing. mmmmm. we also put grape tomatoes and feta cheese on the salad. so good!
roasted veggies
“Put two tablespoons of your favorite seasonings (thyme and corriander are great for this recipe) into 1/8 cup olive oil and let it sit while you're preparing the veggies for the oven. When you've finished chopping, whisk in 1/8 cup of vinegar (balsamic or wine vinegar give a great flavor boost) and pour it over the vegetables in the roasting pan.
Preheat your oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit. Whatever roots you've got, dice about two pounds of them into one-inch cubes (you can leave carrots round). Be sure to remove the skins, as these will turn tougher and bitter when you roast them. Spread the cubes in a roasting pan and pour the oil and vinegar mixture over them.
Bake your sweet potatoes and whatever other veggies you've included for 45 minutes. Take the pan out and give it a brisk shake every 15 minutes or so to roll the cubes and redistribute the coating.”
recipe found here
this dinner was very delicious, filling {even for brig!}, and pretty simple!
i could eat like this every night :)

yummy breakfast

lately i’ve been feeling bad that i havn’t shared my delicious breakfast with you all :) here is what i eat pretty much every single morning. brigham can attest to this. and sometimes i eat it a couple more times each day for a snack…yummmm
moms granola

• 3 c oats
• 1/2 c instant milk
• 1/2 c slivered almonds
• 1/2 c chopped pecans
• 1/2 c natural coconut
• 1/2 wheat germ {i do 1/4 c wheat germ & 1/4 c flax seed}
• 1/2 brown sugar {or applesauce}
• 1/2 c oil {i use coconut oil mmm.}
• 1/2 c honey {i like using 1/4 c agave nector & 1/4 c honey}
• combine all ingredients, pour onto a cookie sheet, and bake 325 for 20-25 min.
• {my oven only requires me to cook for like 15 min..so just start out low & keep an eye on it!}
• {also, my sis gave me an awesome tip. if you want it chewy then mix it with your hands. :)}

i double this recipe & can easily go through it in a week..thats with brig eating only a couple bowls of it. its sooo good. oh, and i like mixing cereals..so i usually mix a half of bowl of this with a half a bowl of honey bunches of oats with pecans :) delish in a dish!
the last couple of days i decided to try making a strawberry spinach smoothie! this will now accompany my granola breakfast each morning. it was the best smoothie i’ve ever made! you gotta try it.
shelby’s strawberry spinach smoothie

• 1 frozen banana
• 3 frozen strawberries
• 3 ice cubes
• handful of spinach with stems cut off
• 1/2 tsp honey
• 1 tbps flax seed
• dash of raw stevia {organic sweetener, opt}
• 1 c orange juice
• fill the rest up {to the top of the fruit} with milk
• BLEND.

ENJOY :)

{not mine..image from here}

mr chubbs turns 5 months old

maddix is huge! seriously tho. he has some major thunder thighs! he is rolling everywhere & scooting slowly but surely. {not sure if im ready for this whole crawling thing to happen!} he is still not sleeping through the night…which means i’m not either..or brigham. oh well. who needs sleep anyways ; ) maddix enjoys grabbing faces, sucking on his toys, drooling, kicking or pushing you away if you’re in his space, staring people down, keeping his parents up at night.. & possibly the neighbors, being outside..yes, even in the sweltering heat, rolling onto his belly in his crib {which keeps him from falling asleep}, making us laugh, sitting in his bumbo, popcorn popping {the song of course}, closing his books while being read to, caressing the wall during diaper changes, spitting up {mostly just on hid daddy though}, sucking on his toes {no, he did not get that from me. or his dad}, melting my heart with his smile, holding hands, & cuddling with me at night. i havnt started him on solid foods yet..but i did try giving him a taste of an avacado the other day :) he enjoyed it! i am so excited to start him on homemade rice cereal when he turns 6 months old. overall, maddix is such a good baby!
so in celebration of maddix turning 5 months old today, i decided to try a photo shoot {by me of course}. however, the combination of no sleep yesterday, teething, still waking up at least 3 times in the middle of the night & possibly catching sickness from me, the photo shoot wasnt as successful as i imagined. {not to mention the not so amazing camera}. instead of a perky, smiley, happy baby…i got a tired, not so happy & into this as much as i was kind of baby. but of course the pictures are still ADORABLE because after all..they are of mr chubbs :)
 

  {yes. his shorts are to small. and yes. i still put them on him..just for pictures.maybe}

and basically this was his way of saying that he was done for the day.

i still love you maddix :)

ps. yesterday allie & my mom watched maddix while i went to a dr’s appt. while i was gone, i texted allie to see how “mr chubbs” was doing. her response: “nate is doing great!”
i had to laugh at this :) i love my “little” brother & sister. they can be entertaining..sometimes. plus they’re pretty cute if you’d ask me.

pss. last week i got to see my sister mel! she was in town with a family from boston that she works for as a nurse. she’s amazing & i love her!! plus she had a birthday a few weeks ago. mel is sooo talented. she is a nurse, she can do like 5 back hand springs in a row, she plays the organ, piano, sings, is super fashionable, gorgeous, the sweetest girl ever, so smart, & just super loveable!! love you mel!!

havin a rough day?

go to sprouts and buy blueberries {6 ounces for $1}.

then make these.

Moist & Fresh Blueberry Muffins

i promise you will have no regrets.

however,

if you aren’t much of a blueberry fanatic

and don’t care to blow a whole bunch of calories in one sitting…

try these.

a.ma.zing.

seriously the best, most moist muffins {try to say that ten times} that have ever been introduced to my mouth

Cinnamon & Sugar Muffins

comfort food indeed!