Green Thumb

Every year the hubs and I have a goal to have a beautiful, bountiful garden. Each year we are disappointed. We always have been so busy that we neglect our garden. I have always worked, and he has always had the kids (which is a job in itself) during the summers. But. Not this year. We are taking gardening to a whole new level and making it part of our daily routine. We want nothing more to enjoy fresh veggies and fruits that we grew ourselves. How liberating is it going to be when we pick our first strawberries for breakfast, or our zucchini for dinner, or the kids grabbing a carrot if they are hungry while playing outside. The possibilities and gratification are endless!

So, we decided to start planting early. I'm a few weeks late in posting these because of course, as always, my excuse is that we are just so darned busy. But alas, I am here to start documenting our journey to living off the land just a wee bit more this year:

The kids love their gloves from Nana:


It's indescribable when you see your kids working together for the same results. Especially if those said kids are 4, 2, and 1.

Noah sure wanted to wear Bria's gloves, and the good sister that she is, she let him:

Bria put the seeds in so delicately and whispered "please grow pretty for me":

Bailey, oh my sweet Bailey Ann. She is just a go-get-'em type of gal. She just poured the dirt without thinking having faith it'll all just go where it's supposed to go:

and it did :) 

We have been watering and watching the flowers grow daily. I have been in charge of watering the soil everyday for our outside garden. We have planted the following: 

kale, spinach, lettuce, carrots, cucumber, zucchini, tomato, radish, onion, potato, basil, cilantro, parsley, rosemary. I hope we get at least a few from each crop! 

We will be documenting them on the blog, but for now it's a waiting game trying to be patient. Trying to keep the little fingers from digging up the dirt. 

No more Bloating! No more excess weight! No Cravings!

It wasn't until recently that I stopped and watched a youtube video which asked these questions that focused on the positive instead of the negative:

• Why am I so healthy? 
• Why do I love my beautiful, healthy body? 
• Why am I happy when I look in the mirror? 
• Why does my body treat me so well? 
• Why did my ____ heal and get better so fast? 

Even though I couldn't answer these questions yet. I wanted to. So I set new goals. My goal was to be able to answer the above questions. There were a few key steps I took to achieve my first 5 pounds I lost within the first 2 weeks! 

STEPS I TOOK TO MANAGE WEIGHT AND CURB CRAVINGS

STEP 1: KEEP A PLANNER JUST FOR HEALTHY LIFESTYLE

I have a filofax with different sections to keep me accountable. My sections include:

• Goal Page : This is where I list my top 3 most important goals of my diet/fitness plan. I make it colorful and nice to look at because 1) It's the first page in my planner and 2) It will make me want to use my planner. 
• Movtivation: Do you have a health/fitness board of some sort on your pinterest board? Like most women, I did as well. How many times did I look at it though? Never! I wanted somewhere I would look everyday for motivational quotes, pictures of women I admired for being healthy, and most importantly pictures of myself. 
• Fitness Log: This is where I write down every day what I did for my fitness. I write down what I did, how long I did it, and my thoughts if I was really working hard or just wanting to complete the workout with as least amount of effort etc. This helps me figure out when and why I am not really motivated! 
• I also have a bucket list (list of things fitness wise I want to accomplish: go to an actual yoga class, run a half marathon, actually finish Insanity and T25., hike all trails in Ketchikan, etc). 
• Food Journal: This is where I track all of my calorie intake. Having to write it down makes a huge difference in how often I eat and what I consume. I have writing down that I had 3 mini size chocolate bars, but it also allows me to check what I was feeling like that day in correspondence with my workouts, etc. 

STEP 2: TAKE MY SLIM AND SASSY OIL

• I fill veggie capsules with three-five drops of oil and take one capsule three times a day. 
• I put 3-5 drops of Slim and Sassy in with my water 3x's a day and drink at least a gallon of H20 ( I also use lemon and wild orange with my water) 

STEP 3: USE MY SLIM AND SASSY TRIM SHAKE 

I use the Trim Shake for a meal replacement during lunch. I blend it together with 1 banana 1 cup spinach and some almond milk. When I am in a rush and we are headed out the door, I will simply put a scoop in my shaker bottle and go. The taste is amazing and it's all natural no chemicals or additives. 

They also have a vanilla option and you can get that here.

There are also some very good recipes on pinterest and the blogosphere just google "Slim & Sassy Shake Recipes" 

I will also be sharing the ones that I use on a regular basis. 

STEP 4: None of this will help in aiding weightloss or manage cravings unless there is a lifestyle change with healthy eating and regular (that means daily) exercise. These products are not to cure, prevent, or diagnose anything but are simply products that compliment a healthy lifestyle. 

If you have any questions about anything or how I'm finally able to get back on track and feeling great about myself again, I am always happy to answer or chat about anything! 

Kid Approved Juice Recipe

When we go out to birthday parties, potlucks, or out to dinner (which is very rarely) our kids choose to drink water. It's the only option at our house. When our kids don't know what a Capri Sun is, I smile and think to myself, "at least we did one thing right." I am a proud mama!

Lately, my husband and I have been juicing every morning. To get the good enzymes and vitamins from the fruit and veggies we love. It's an instant pick-me-up and more gratification than a cup o' joe. Although, I can't wait for the sweet peppermint mochas during Christmas time...

Anyway, I have come up with a juice that is not only good for you but it's delicious and kid-friendly! I have comfort knowing exactly what I am putting in my little nugget's juice.