For many years, I thought that eating butter and extra fat was “bad” or at least unhealthy. Thankfully, I understand more about eating healthy and making better food choices. Today we are going to talk more about why you should eat butter and how it is actually good for you!
Steps to a Healthier You
I have shared easy steps you can start today towards a happier and healthier body. We have already covered drinking more water each day and cutting out the sugar. Now we are going to focus on adding something back in – healthy fats! read more
We learned in Cut the Sugar, that we need to make changes to reduce the sugar in our diets. I am so excited to see more and more Stevia products on the shelves. This is great news for people wanting a zero calorie, healthy sugar alternative.
What is Stevia exactly?
Stevia is actually derived from a plant. It is related to a daisy and ragweed (I’ll take the daisy, thank you!). The Stevia plant can be found in Paraguay, Brazil, and Argentina and it is cultivated in China. You can even grow it yourself if you want! Stevia has zero calories and is 200 times sweeter than sugar without affecting blood sugar. Since it is sweeter than sugar, a little goes a long way! You also don’t want to over do Stevia because there can be too much of a good thing, then it will taste bitter.
Stevia is more than just a sugar substitute: Livescience.com says that “stevia also served as a treatment for burns, colic, stomach problems and sometimes as a contraceptive.” Pretty neat stuff here!
Is Stevia Safe?
100daysofrealfood.com explains that not all Stevia is created equal. read more
This is not a new idea. Lots of popular diets have come to the conclusion that our sugar is out of balance in our Modern diet and this is the cause of our expanding waistbands.
Management of your Sugar and Carbohydrates is crucial for weight loss and your general health.
We know sugar is so important to get under control.
A low glycemic diet in general is healthier than a diet focused on lots of carbs. When our system gets overloaded with too many sugar and carbs, our cells start storing extra carbs as fat in our cells.
Our cells love to store carbs, so they are very eager and ready when we over eat our carbs. If we eat a moderate or low carb diet, then we can burn those carbs before they get the chance to be stored as extra fat.read more
New Years is next week! I know you are already thinking about what you are wanting for 2014. Some of you make the same resolutions every year and by February they are already a thing of the past.
This year will be different. This year you will make a change and stick to it!
How? You may ask. Because We are all going to be a part of New You New Years!!!
So lets talk about what New You New Years is going to look like. Every week, a new challenge will be presented to focus on the whole week. It may be to eat one vegetable at lunch and dinner. Or maybe it could be focusing on eliminating white sugar for the week. Maybe we could even focus on adding a 20 minute walk in or another exercise each day for a week.
Every week, we will focus on one single step… and take this one bite at a time (wink, wink).
This is YOUR time! This is THE time to choose to be the person you want to be in 2014. A healthier you, a better feeling you!
Our first week’s challenge will be simple… We are going to be aware.
Awareness is the key to change a habit.
In speech therapy, when we would work with people who stutter, most of the time they wouldn’t even realize they had just stuttered in conversation. We would replay their speech, and help them identify the problem areas, then they could back and restate the phrase or sentence and fix the stutter.
I want you to be aware about your food choices you are making each day. Read ingredients. Read nutrition labels. Figure out what you are actually putting in your mouth… You really ARE what you eat.
1) So look for the number of ingredients listed, and also can you pronounce or identify every item listed.
2) How many grams of carbs and sugar are you eating in packaged items?
3) How many items have something with soy, the word hydrolyzed or hydrogenated, or corn?
Now I want you to comment or write onmy facebook walland let me know how you are doing during the week.
What foods are you surprised to see sugar in or High Fructose Corn Syrup? How many carbs are in your favorite foods? Keep me posted!
After I had my baby, I started searching for exercises to heal your abs and how to heal Diastasis Recti. These tips will show how to bring abs back together after pregnancy.
Diastasis Recti is the separation of the abdominal muscles. Most commonly occurs as a result of pregnancy.
Before I was pregnant, I had no idea how my body was going to change to bring in this little person into the world. Once she was here, I felt like I had to learn how to be me again. I found out that during pregnancy my body had developed Diastasis Recti.
Some women are just prone to this abdominal separation, but there are some factors that increase the likelihood of it occurring:read more
and everyone is making lists for toys and gifts to get their kids. Here is a list of my pick of Craft Kits that I know would be so much fun for the little toddler in your family.
These Craft kits are also good for learning and creativity. So instead of a new toy, think about getting your toddler some art supplies or one of these all in one craft kits. I know Aidalyn loves working on crafts on a rainy day or when we are having a slow morning.
1). Sticky Mosaics:
You can purchase here:
These mosaic sticky crafts are great for matching shapes and colors, plus following simple directions. You end with a pretty colorful piece of art that you can hang on a wall. They are sturdy and really a great activity! Aidalyn loves these so much!
2) Do a Dot Markers
Purchase here:
I’m not sure a toddler’s art supplies can be complete without Do-A-Dot markers. They are so wonderful! Aidalyn loves the Do A Dot Art Markers and I love that she can play with them virtually mess free! We bought a coloring book to go with the markers:Tales of the Mermaid Do-a-Dot Creative Activity BookThe colors are so pretty and bold. They also are labeled really well for sight word recognition.
3) Paper Bag Puppets
Purchase here:
Creating Paper Bag animal puppets is a wonderful activity for language development and following directions. I can just see Aidalyn telling wild, imaginative stories using the paper bag puppets. So much fun to decorate and put them together, then you can play for hours after.
4) Tissue Art
Purchase here:
We bought this for Aidalyn and I think her favorite part is putting on the googly eyes. She loved the tissue art so much, I bought just a pack of tissue to play with and contact paper.
5) Giant Busy Box
Purchase here:
This set is much larger and has 16 activities in one box. Tons of learning opportunities. If you wanted an all in one set, this would be the way to go. It’s on sale right now (November) and seems like a great deal!
I hope the toddler in your life is ready to get creative and start exploring the little artist inside.
*** This post contains affiliate links. Your price stays the same, but I get a small commission for referring you that helps me keep this site running. These are all products that we love and play with all the time. I hope you enjoy them as well.
It’s Christmas Time! This is the best time to create lasting memories for you and your kids. Here are my 5 top Christmas Activities for making this Christmas season special.
Tip Junkie has a great idea for your family! Each day you take off an ornament and you do an activities on the back. This is our Advent Christmas Tree. I used green felt from hobby lobby and cut out the shape of a tree. Then I just used yarn, clothes pins and tape to put everything together.
We are lucky that there is a cute little outdoor church play right down the road from us. They sang Christmas Carols and served hot chocolate and cookies afterwards. It was such a treat last year. What a good reminder of the reason for the season. read more
Cranberries are in season! I love cranberries for many reasons.
They are tart and add a nice flavor to turkey and dressing on Thanksgiving. They are great paired with pumpkin in muffins and breads. And they make a great No Sugar Added Cranberry Sauce!
Hey there, incredible moms-to-be! Are you navigating the journey of gestational diabetes and searching for ways to manage it naturally, all while ensuring the health and well-being of you and your baby? Well, you’ve come to the right place! Gestational diabetes may seem daunting, but with the right approach, you can take control of your health and enjoy a smooth pregnancy journey. In this blog post, we’ll dive into some practical tips on how to manage gestational diabetes naturally through diet and exercise. From making mindful food choices to staying active and finding balance in your daily routine, we’re here to support you every step of the way. So, grab a cozy seat, mama-to-be, and let’s embark on this empowering journey together! read more
I still can’t believe it. We found out 3 days ago and I’m still pinching myself.
We are having a girl!!!
She looked so perfect on the ultrasound. We saw her little legs kicking, her heart pumping… it all made my heart melt.
This pregnancy has been much different for me emotionally than with Aidalyn. With Aidalyn, we were just so excited about adding this mystical thing called a baby into our lives. Neither of us really had much experience with babies. We didn’t know what we were getting into, but we were thrilled!read more
The colors are so pretty and bold. They also are labeled really well for sight word recognition. 
