Whole 30 Round 2 - Week 3

We've made it to week 3 and that hasn't been without a lot of day dreaming about cold beers and rosé that's for sure! I think we've made it through the hard part. One of the things I love about Whole 30 is that it 100% makes us more responsible and disciplined about using all of the food we buy at the grocery store. I don't know if I even want to tell you how much food we would throw out on a regular basis. So without further ado let's jump into an iPhone dump from last week and a look at the week ahead.

Beef and Broccoli Stir Fry over Cauliflower Rice

Super yummy salad!
Grilled Chicken marinated in Tessemae's Zesty Ranch

Chipotle Beef & Avocado Bowls - delish!

Applegate hotdogs, coleslaw and sweet potato fries
I made up the coleslaw and it was awesome!
Leftover bagged coleslaw, compliant mayo, rice wine vinegar, dash mustard

So, let's see what's on the menu this week...

Breakfast and lunches are pretty much the same as the last few weeks. Frittatas for Mr. B and some version of eggs and bacon for me plus these buffalo turkey meatballs with roasted broccoli for lunches.

We started the week off  last night with Zuppa Toscana soup which I love and it was kid approved, so win win! For dinner tonight we had Shrimp and "Grits" or mashed cauliflower in our world and it was delish! I usually make this Southern Living recipe and just modified it to make compliant.

The rest of the week we'll be having pork chops with these green beans, peanut-free chicken satay with baked sweet potatoes, hot dogs with parsnip fries and probably burgers with grilled sweet peppers and this amazing sweet potato salad. Seriously, this may be my favorite thing right now.

A few related food things.. First, I thought this was a good article for those considering Whole30 and considering how it will affect your grocery budget. Second, this was a great documentary about eating whole foods and how it will and can affect your health. It is focused on Paleo which is very similar to Whole 30 minus a few things (sugar!), but still a great look at the benefits of eating whole, real foods.

Lastly, unrelated but how sweet is this little nugget?? Where did my baby go and when did he get so big??

Cheers to feeling good on the INSIDE this week!

Whole 30 Round 2 - Week 2

We've made it through week 1 - YAY! The image above is a reminder of the general outcomes you should be feeling while on the Whole 30 and it was pretty accurate for us. Mid week we both had headaches that felt like hangovers! I'm ready for the tiger blood to set in - so much energy!! Let's do a phone dump for Whole 30 inspiration and a look ahead of this week...

Buffalo Turkey Meatballs, Roasted Broccoli and Tessemae's Ranch

Herb Crusted Salmon with Roasted Brussel Sprouts and Apples

Banana, Raisins and Almond Butter

Leftover Herb Salmon and Egg Scramble

Gotta make it fun somehow!
Lemon La Croix mixed with Pineapple Strawberry La Croix

Saturday Dinner
Grilled Steaks, Roasted Tomatoes and Mushrooms and Carrot and Parsnip Mash

So, what's on the menu this week??

Breakfast | I tried a new breakfast casserole for Mr. B this week. It looks tasty! I'm still obsessed with my hard boiled eggs with hot sauce.

Lunch | The buffalo turkey meatballs from last week were really good, so we're keeping that the same again this week as well. Super yummy!

Dinners | We started the week off last night with this compliant meatloaf and baked sweet potatoes. We love this recipe! Also on the menu this week... Beef and Broccoli Stir Fry with Riced Cauliflower, Grilled Chicken Salads, Chipotle Beef & Avocado Bowls, Pork Chops and Roasted Asparagus, Compliant Hot Dogs and Sweet Potato Fries

Extras | Additional items in our fridge to keep us on track... raisins, bananas, avocados, almond butter, grapes, baby carrots

Cheers to feeling good on the INSIDE!

Why Whole 30?

It's a good question, right? Why restrict myself from that amazing homemade lasagna that I've raved about 300 times and that crisp Blue Moon on a beautiful sunny day along with my fave coffee ice cream to top off an otherwise fantastic weekend?

Let me count thy ways...
heartburn, lack of sleep, dull sunken skin, sluggish, moody, acid reflux... to name a few.

Eating whole nutritious foods shouldn't make your heart feel like it's going to beat out of your chest or swing your moods high and low without sending a notice! Whole foods shouldn't send your blood sugars into the depths of the lands waiting for you to respond by sweating full bullets and crashing down to the floor because your knees gave out just before you were going to stuff your face with a giant sub to calm you down and get back to equilibrium. None of that sounds normal right? No, unless you're eating a truly American diet. Which we are! They don't call it the afternoon lunch slump for nothing! And on top of the physical issues, I swear by Whole 30 because I don't believe there is another diet out there where a clear mind is a result. Thinking clearly alone is reason enough to rid yourself of the processed toxins.

So, we're in 2 full days and I can already tell a difference in my sleep and inflammation. I tell ya it's magic! Rid yourself of the processed sugars, sulfites and junk and you will sleep like a precious little baby. 100% guaranteed. No need for a warranty. 

What is your why? Maybe it isn't the Whole 30, but what gets you up in the morning knowing that you're feeding your body the way it's always needed?

Whole 30 Round 2 - Week 1

Yes, you read that right! Mr. B and I have started our 2nd round of Whole 30 and thank goodness. We were both in need of a reset and the timing is perfect. Today is day 1 and my personal goal is 60 days, but we'll see. Ideally, I see that as a strict Whole 30 for the first half and then a mash up of Whole 30 and Food Freedom the second half straight into the summer months. Here's to hoping it works out that way!

So, what's on the menu this week? And like last time, this is really for my benefit because typing it out makes me accountable for sticking with it. So, thank you to my 2 readers for the accountability group - haha!

Breakfast | Frittatas for Mr. B (quick and easy for on the go) and hard boiled eggs with Franks Red Hot Original and Pederson's compliant bacon for me. I owe my sister for my new obsession with eggs and hot sauce. Go ahead and awake your senses first thing in the morning - you won't regret it!

Coffee | about the only thing that stuck from our first Whole 30 is our Silk Unsweetened Almond Milk. And trust me, this was a big deal for Mr. B! He was a huuuge french vanilla creamer lover to the end, so yay for him!

Dishes | the following will be used for dinner and leftovers for lunch: 
Lemon Garlic Herb Baked Salmon with Roasted Brussel Sprouts
Buffalo Turkey Meatballs with Tessemae's Ranch and Roasted Broccoli
Chicken Tenderloins, Roasted Fennel, Apple, Sweet Potato Sheet Pan Dinner
Egg Roll in a Bowl - duh! a family fave!
Grilled Pork Chops with Tessemae's BBQ Sauce and Roasted Asparagus
Grilled Burgers with Marinated Onions and Parsnip Fries

Extras | Other items in our fridge to keep us on track: celery, raisins, almond butter, bananas, apple slices, baby carrots

So, nothing crazy on our menu this week and for good reason. I want us to be just as successful this time around as we were last time. I already felt overwhelemed with coming up with a menu so I kept it on the straight and narrow while we're getting back into the swing of things.

Is anyone else doing a Whole 30 or just completed one? Let me know down below!

Cheers to feeling great on the INSIDE!

Curious George

Late, but not forgotten!! Wayyyy back in December our sweet George turned 1 and I took it upon myself to create his Curious George invitation and party sign. I searched high and low for something cute online that was already done, but coudn't find it so I did it myself. Hopefully this will help the next sweet little George out there somewhere!

Invitation | I started by buying a group of high res Curious George images from Etsy and went from there using Adobe InDesign to create the 5x7 invite. Simple and sweet! I ended up printing them at FedEx on a cream colored cardstock. *Disregard the black border!

Party Sign | Same with the invitation I wanted to keep George's 1st birthday sign simple and sweet, but I drew inspiration from the 1st birthday signs you see all over Etsy as well as his invitation. Again, I printed this on 11x14 white cardstock at FedEx.

I'm not very DIY or crafty, so the only other thing that I did was make a little highchair banner out of ribbon. Siiiiiiimple! 

Lastly, our menu...

Italian Antipasto Skewers

Piggies in a Blanket

Party Meatballs

#1 shaped Rice Krispies

Mini Individual Banana Puddings

And, that's what I call a 1st birthday party!