Easier Peanut Butter Stirring

One of the switches we made to help our clean eating journey was that from your typical processed peanut butter with sugar an junk in it to organic peanut butter made from just peanuts and salt. We've tried lots of brands and my absolute favorite is Field Day Organic. It is the yummiest and smoothest and most like those unhealthy versions most of us were raised on.

So, on to the reason you are reading this! ;) The downfall of the pure made-from-peanuts-only peanut butter is the dreaded stirring! Even my strong husband hates doing it! We've tried everything, even dipping it out into a bowl and using a hand mixer! That was a huge mess to say the least! Enter my greatest discovery! Storing the peanut butter in the pantry UPSIDE DOWN until you are ready to use disperses the oil and makes stirring MUCH easier! You still have to stir, but the oil doesn't spill down the side of the jar, make a huge mess and make your biceps sore the next day! Now you can enjoy your peanut butter without spending a ton of time prepping it!

Healthy Ranch Chicken

Need and EASY, healthy, and delicious recipe for a week night even the kids will eat? Seriously- 2 ingredients! It just doesn't get any easier and it has so much flavor and is super juicy.

Ingredients:
Greek yogurt (I prefer Stonyfield Organic)
Ranch Mix* (I use simply Organic since it doesn't have all the added junk)
2-3 Chicken breast depending on size

*I normally do not encourage using packaged mixes, but have yet to find a yummy Ranch mix I can make myself- I would love recommendations if anyone has a recipe you love!

Directions:
Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
Line pyrex dish with tinfoil.
Coat tinfoil with Greek yogurt.
Lay chicken in dish.
Coat tops of chicken with Greek yogurt.
Pour 1/2 ranch packet over chicken.
Bake covered at 375 for 35 minutes.
Uncover and bake another 15 or until chicken is done.

I love any type of roasted veggies as a side with this chicken. My go to is either green beans or Brussels sprouts. Enjoy!

Meal plan 1-12-15

Here's my plan for this week! Planning is KEY to reaching your goals. Getting back into it!

Several of these recipes are from the blog:

Perfect salmon
Lemony green beans 
Banana coconut pancakes
Roasted brussels sprouts

Let me know if you have any questions!

Removing that poopy onesie

As most of you know, I am a proud mom to a beautiful 2 1/2 month old baby girl. Most of life is beautiful. Then there are those moments that are less than glamorous! We've been dealing with several blowouts lately! No fun, but luckily we learned a little trick and I have to share it with all of YOU!

Did you know these typical onesies are actually designed so they can be pulled DOWN over the legs instead of UP over her head each time? I had NO idea until recently. I just thought they were designed to look cute! Thank goodness I realized it before the last few clean-ups we've had!

So that's not the best pic ever of my littlest, but shows you that it really does work. Just pull her arms out and pull it down over her shoulders- at least the mess doesn't get on her hair and face! We just did this last night! And isn't her onesie adorable?

Hope this was helpful! Feel free to share any tips you may have on making life easier with an infant! XOXO

Dream BIG

DREAMS... You just never know when they will come TRUE!

I started as a Beachbody coach in March of 2013 with little expectation, really just doing it for a discount on products that I 100% BELIEVED in! I quickly learned the potential with this amazing opportunity and decided to go ALL IN! I am a dentist by trade, and at the time was practicing dentistry at a non-profit clinic. While very rewarding work, I was still faced with the reality of having a BOSS! Someone still told me what to do, where to be and dictated my time. That is not what I wanted for my life. I had bigger goals and aspirations. Then, I had a baby boy so I yearned to be home more and started to dream BIG! 

I started setting GOALS. As a dentist, people would think I set big goals and really had a path set to achieve that. Honestly, I floated through life, with no real direction other than an end goal when I was on a track with few detours.  Instead of watching HOURS of TV each day, I began READING and LEARNING. What an impact that made on my outlook on life! I became more POSITIVE and could actually envision my life getting BETTER and becoming the life I have always dreamed of!

Since that time, I have become a FULL TIME Beachbody coach from HOME and added a beautiful baby girl to our family. I AM the boss! I am living my life by design and have an amazing team taking the journey with me! I am so thankful for all this opportunity has given me and it is just the BEGINNING! Big things happening in 2015!

30 Days of Insanity MAX:30

So today was my 30th day of Insanity MAX:30! I am loving this program so far! It will definitely test you and push you to your limits in a good way! I have done the workouts religiously throughout the holiday season but did NOT eat very clean so I could have done a lot better. That being said, I'm starting back at day 1! I'm gonna push myself and clean up my diet! Meal plans will be coming your way regularly!

I lost 4 3/4" and 2 lbs- not bad for eating whatever I wanted! At 2 1/2 months postpartum, I still have a long way to go, but I am proud of myself for committing to this program! I will not quit! 2015 is gonna be AMAZING!

BEFORE photo... AFTER baby

THIS is my BEFORE. It will NOT be my AFTER. This is me 8 weeks postpartum. It looks pretty good when I'm wearing clothes that fit well, but I will NOT be buying an entire wardrobe to fit my post baby body.

I started Insanity MAX:30 one week ago and I WILL have my body back! I was in great shape before my pregnancy and will be in even better shape soon!

I LOVE what my body has done for me which means I am going to treat it with RESPECT. My before picture reminds me where I've been. It reminds me of all those craving I've given into, the exercise I chose not to do, but also the beautiful baby I brought into this world. This photo is not just about showing all my flaws. It is to remind me to make an effort EVERY day to be BETTER and STRONGER than the day before. I am sharing this picture to show you that it is not just the ENDING that matters but the JOURNEY. We ALL start somewhere. This is my beginning AGAIN. You are not alone! Begin NOW. I can't wait to share my journey as I work toward my AFTER!

And here is why my body looks like it does and why it's OK, even wonderful to look like this...

Miss June was born on October 15, 2014 at 9:48 AM after about a 12 hour labor, 8 of those being in the hospital. After just five pushes, we welcomed our 8 lb 4 oz, 21 inch princess into the world to complete our family.

Thanks to Lindsey and Ryan at Pure 7 Studios for the beautiful photos of June.