If I’m being completely honest, I’m also a bit overwhelmed.

Even though I’ve only just begun and still have lots of good ideas and posts already lined up, I’m worried about the proverbial well running dry.

What if I run out of ideas?

What if I make meals that some people don’t consider to be “clean enough”?

How am I possibly going to make the same old chicken and veggies seem new and exciting week after week?

What if I’m the only person who even thinks this series is a good idea?

What if people visit my blog after they see the series graphic on Pinterest boasting “TONS” of recipes and they get here only to find the six recipes I have so far?

What if? What if? What if?

What if it’s ok that I don’t have it all figured out yet!

I think I need to take a deep breath and cut myself some slack…

I love to cook and I love to eat and I’m really excited about how good I feel when I eat “cleaner” foods and I want to share that with other people in the hopes that it will make clean eating seem more accessible to all of the busy people out there.

I should probably just take one day at a time.

I really need to remember that, “Life is more than food and the body more than clothing.” (Luke 12:23)

While there is nothing wrong with being excited about this endeavor, there is something wrong with becoming consumed with it.  All of our best intentions can easily become twisted into obsessions that distract us from our Heavenly Father and the peace He offers us.

I’ve been blessed to have a couple of amazing women in my life that have been willing to pour their time, love and prayers into me in a mentoring role.  They offer me such perspective and godly counsel when I get all worked up about things that really don’t matter in the scheme of eternity.

One of them (hi Donna!) is a living, breathing testament to the power of God’s word being alive and active.  This woman knows her Bible and has a wonderful way of offering up scripture verses like sweet antidotes to the poison that seeps into my thinking.

She has encouraged me to pray for a hunger for God’s word and I think she’s praying for me to get hungry too because it’s starting to happen!

Today when I started feeling excited and then overwhelmed and then anxious and then defeated, I made a decision to stop that cycle of thinking and pray that God would give me some verses to meditate on.

This is what came to mind…

For life is more than food, and the body more than clothing.

Consider the ravens: they neither sow nor reap, they have neither storehouse nor barn, and yet God feeds them.  Of how much more value are you than the birds!

And which of you by being anxious can add a single hour to his span of life?

If then you are not able to do as small a thing as that, why are you anxious about the rest?

Luke 12:23-26

and then it continues a couple verses down…

And do not seek what you are to eat and what you are to drink, nor be worried.

For all the nations of the world seek after these things, and your Father knows that you need them.  Instead seek his kingdom, and these things will be added to you.

Luke 12:29-31

BOOM.

That’s some living bread that I needed to hear today.

And now that the sermon is out of the way, I’ll share the recipe!

As an aside, I feel compelled to walk through some of my crazy thought processes here on the blog in case anyone else out there stresses out about this stuff like I do.  I read lots of food and faith blogs and neither type seem to address this issue directly which has inspired me to be open and honest about my struggles with the hope that it might help even one person.

The tastes of India come together fast in this eat.clean.quick dinner!

Tandoori paste brings the whole dish together and packs a punch of flavor that’s the perfect blend of tangy and warm.  It’s got a short list of understandable ingredients too which is something I always look for in jarred sauces.

I picked up a jar of Patak’s brand a while ago (at Meijer I think!) and I’m sure other brands are quite similar.  Your local grocery may carry a tandoori paste in the ethic food section, but if not you can purchase it online at the English Tea Store.  I only used about 1/3 of the full jar for this dinner that serves 4, so a little bit goes a long way! (I divided the remaining sauce into 2 ziplock bags and popped them into the freezer for later use).

If you are adverse to Indian flavors you could always marinade your chicken in a good barbeque sauce and serve it with the same sides :)

Thank you for making Daily Rebecca a part of your day!

The post 20 Minute Tandoori Chicken with Veggie Skewers & Garlic-Infused Quinoa appeared first on Daily Rebecca.

I’d never heard of the place before, but my friend Rochelle (hi Rochelle!) read about it and suggested that we check the place out.

I literally went into the playdate not knowing at all what the place was.  I thought it was somewhere downtown in the basement of a museum…no idea where I got that notion! LOL

So when we pulled up and saw that it was a coffee shop, I was surprised but excited to see what it was all about.  We saw a stroller sitting outside the door, and that clued us in that they weren’t permitted inside.  I was glad that I brought our Ergo carrier, but my friend took her sweet baby boy inside in his carseat carrier and that worked out fine too.

We were greeted right away by a friendly guy in a mechanic-style shirt bearing his first name.  He gave us a rundown of what to expect (admission charge, craft and story time) along with a short disclaimer sheet to fill out.

I noticed immediately that all of the employees were young, friendly guys and I thought that was a cool concept.  So many kids spend nearly every waking moment around women and other kids.  There’s nothing wrong with that, but I think it’s great for them to be around good men too.

We arrived about 45 minutes after the place opened, so it was still relatively quiet inside.  We walked along the “city street” to a couple of adult-sized benches.  They were situated right in the center of the city, so we had a good view of the area the girls were going to be playing in.  The whole place was no bigger than most Starbucks, but it certainly didn’t feel crowded despite all the options for the kids.

The girls quickly scoped the place out and we snapped a few phone pics before getting our chat on :)

Throughout the morning I saw the guys tidying up areas that kids had moved on from.  How fun to leave an area only to find it all put back together when you wander back to it later?!  The grocery store bins got put back together, the postal uniforms were hung back up and the kitchen was re-sorted occasionally so that each one would seem fresh and fun for the next round of play.

I know that Grace’s own toys all seem more appealing when they are cleaned up and organized rather than mimicking a tornado’s aftermath, so I loved that they thought of this as a part of the process there.

When we checked in at the door we were given this paper bag with cut-out pieces to make the Father’s Day craft.  They had a craft area set up with paint and glue sticks and kids could make their craft at any point in the morning.

Story time started at 11:00 and after some quick Q&A with the kids about their playtime so far that morning, one of the guys read 2 short books to the kids in the “back woods” area.

I just scratched the surface of the city with the pics above.  There was also a recording studio, a grocery store, a car manufacturing plant and more.

So if you’re like me your main question at this point is, “How much was it?”

Regular admission is $10 per child over 12 months old and parents are free with the purchase of a drink.

Because I didn’t realize it was a coffee shop, I guzzled my cup of joe on the way over, so I wasn’t itching for another beverage.  My friend and I didn’t get drinks, but no one was policing that and when we checked in they charged us for our two girls (not the babies) and didn’t even mention us having to buy drinks.

I will say that they have an impressive menu of organic coffee drinks that are all under $3.50, so I wouldn’t hesitate to get a drink next time.

Each of our girls had a snack part way through the morning and it was only $1 for a small bag of Annie’s Organic bunny crackers which I thought was totally reasonable.

This would obviously be kind of crazy if you have 3 or 4 kids over the age of one because who want’s to drop $30 to $40 for a morning of play? But if you’re like Rochelle and I and have a baby and a bigger kid, it’s really perfect.

Memberships are available and run $100 for a month of unlimited access for up to 5 family members.  If you live in or near Southfield and have a few children this could be a good investment.

I also saw something about a summer (3 month) membership for $125 which is a $175 savings and would be a great option for rainy summer days.

Overall, I was pretty impressed with the place.  It was a different and fun thing to do with Grace and I enjoyed the adult conversation that Rochelle and I were able to have while the girls played and the babies chilled out.

If you’re in the metro Detroit area you should check it out.  Let me know if you have any other questions and I’m happy to answer them in the comments!

Thank you for making Daily Rebecca a part of your day!

The post Detroit Kid City: A Newbie’s Review appeared first on Daily Rebecca.

This is one of my favorite clean meals by far!

The flavors and textures in this dish made me swear I was eating delicious Chinese takeout, but I knew that I was loading up on veggies and lean meat.

That’s what you call a win/win.

I whipped this dish up after a playdate last week.  We rushed home with only about a half hour before Andy was due home, and I knew he’d be ready to eat right away.

I’d tossed around the idea of mashing the cauliflower and grilling up the steaks (which I totally plan to do!) but I just couldn’t get motivated to cook and mash the cauliflower and once I saw the red peppers in the fridge, it was all over.

This idea took root and I didn’t look back!

Veri Veri Teryaki is delicious and has a pretty decent ingredient list (although it’s not wheat free). I buy mine at Kroger but have seen it many other places.

Thank you for making Daily Rebecca a part of your day!

The post 20 Minute Steak and Veggie Stir-fry Over Cauliflower “Rice” appeared first on Daily Rebecca.

Pun totally intended.

This just might be the longest recipe title ever, but I guess that’s what happens when I start making up recipes and naming them too.  I’ve never been known for being quiet, so this looong recipe name should come as no surprise to those who know me :)

Even if you’re not a big mushroom fan, I’d still recommend that you try this dish.  The baby portobellos were very mild and blended really nicely into the background of the spinach-artichoke filling and tomatoey sauce.

This dish was the perfect size and substance for lunch, but would also be great as a vegan or vegetarian (add cheese!) dinner or alongside grilled steak or chicken as a paleo entree.

You could even add some crumbled sausage to the spinach-artichoke mixture for a paleo alternative (assuming it didn’t contain soy, refined sugar, MSG, milk powder, cheese, vegetable oils, or grain-derived ingredients).

Adding meat to round out this meal would obviously add some time to the original 15 minutes, but not much if you started cooking the meat when you begin prepping the shrooms.

Just some extra ideas to play around with :)

This recipe is part of my Eat.Clean.Quick. series so you’ll be able to access it from that tab along with the other fast clean meal ideas I’ve shared.

*Note that the recipe provided is for only two portobellos.  You can easily double, triple or quadruple it without adding too much extra time  In fact, I’d argue that making 4 caps would also take only 15 minutes.

Just so that you can see how quick and easy this recipe is, I’ve included some extra pictures of the ingredients and prep work.

I was just making lunch for myself so I only used 2 of the mushroom caps and several handfuls out of that giant bag of spinach.  I plan to use the other mushrooms to experiment with other clean eating ideas, and the spinach will be juiced, added to salads, and cooked up in scrambled eggs.  You don’t need to buy such a big bag!

It was actually a very easy recipe despite it’s complicated name.  Try it out and let me know if you decide how you decide to serve it!

Thank you for making Daily Rebecca a part of your day!

The post 15 Minute Spinach-Artichoke Stuffed Garlic Balsamic Portobellos appeared first on Daily Rebecca.

Thing sounds so much better than preoccupation, doesn’t it?

Hardy har har.

But really.  This girl likes to eat but also wants to mainly consume foods that are wholesome fuel.

My quest has lead me from Weight Watchers to Atkins to South Beach to Weight Watchers to Vegan to Paleo to here.

I think I’ve finally come to a place where I feel confident about what I’m going to eat and what I’m going to generally pass on.

What I’m going to eat…

• quality lean meats (i.e. grass-fed beef, Amish/organically raised chicken and turkey)
• fish (preferably not farm-raised)
• lots and lots of veggies
• fruit
• nuts and seeds
• sweet potatoes
• healthy fats (i.e. olive oil, coconut oil, avocados, etc)
• coffee, tea, water and home-made juice
• occasional whole grains
• occasional legumes (i.e. peanuts, beans, etc)

What I’m going to usually pass on…

• conventionally raised and highly processed meats
• refined carbohydrates (i.e crackers, bread, cereal, pretzels, chips, etc)
• white potatoes and white rice
• dairy (i.e. milk, cheese, yogurt, ice cream, etc)
• sugar
• juice, pop (soda) and sugary drinks

It may sound like this new plan is no fun, but to be totally honest, I haven’t felt this good since I was a teenager so I hardly care about all of those “pass on” foods!

Seriously, I have energy like whoa.

And it kind of sneaked up on me…

Yes it’s “sneaked” not “snuck”.  Trust me on this.

I started noticing that I wasn’t experiencing my usual “afternoon crash” anymore.  I had energy to dance in the living room with Grace and take walks before dinner.  I wasn’t ready to crawl into bed the minute the girls were asleep.

Instead, I generally maintain a steady level of energy until bedtime when I fall asleep quickly.

It’s wonderful!

I’ve been joking with my sister that I feel like I could go climb a mountain at 9pm!

I’ve been kind of flirting with this way of eating on and off for a few years now.  Mainly since Lent 2011 when I gave up dairy, grains and sugar for 40 days.  But after recently reading the book Made to Crave and an inspiring post written by a fellow blogger (Molly), I made up my mind that I wasn’t going to think about it anymore, I was just going to start doing it.

The positive changes that Molly has experienced are incredible!  Be sure to check out her post and leave her some love :)

All that being said, I’m eating clean and I’m starting a new series on the blog!

Eat.Clean.Quick.

Feel free to Pin this image on Pinterest! It will take you right to the recipe tab here on the blog.

I’m still passionate about cooking and eating good food, but I don’t want to spend my whole summer in the kitchen making extravagant meals.

I want to be more creative in making things up on my own.

I want to be able to shop the markets for what looks fresh and awesome and make meals around those items rather than choosing all my recipes for the week and then scraping the bottom of a produce bin for the last straggling, bruised veggies that I need for my particular recipe.

I want to be able to pull these meals together quick.

It was thoughts like these that inspired this series!

I still plan to post more traditional recipes from time to time because I love a good cheesy comfort food and ooey gooey dessert as much as the next person.  Those recipes can still be found on my Recipes tab.

I’ve created a new tab for this Eat.Clean.Quick. series, and you can find it right up at the top next to the Recipes tab.

So that’s it!

I’m super excited to share these breakfast, lunch, dinner and snack ideas with you :)

Thank you for making Daily Rebecca a part of your day!

The post Eat.Clean.Quick. appeared first on Daily Rebecca.

That realization kind of smacked me in the face like a 2×4 after spending day upon day being hurried and frustrated.

I kept waking up with a mental checklist, and I’d grow increasingly frustrated when it wasn’t getting it checked off fast enough or at all.

Praise God for teaching us beautiful lessons despite ourselves :)

In the four weeks since that post I’ve come to the realization that I might not be getting all the items checked off my To Do list, but what I am doing is reaping eternal dividends.

I may not be getting to the produce market on Monday like I planned, but I’m getting there on Tuesday afternoon after slowing down on Monday to play more puzzles with Grace and snuggle Avery just a little longer before nap time.

I might not have all the laundry washed, dried and put away by Tuesday, but I somehow wrap it up before Friday night anyway, and I think back fondly to the time I spent laying on the floor in Avery’s room playing with the girls and all the baby toys that Aves is just now discovering and that Grace thinks are brand new even though they’ve just been packed up since she was a wee one.

I’m not blogging as much as I used to or as much as I’d like to, but instead of sitting in front of the blue hue of the computer monitor, I’m staring into the blue eyes of my precious little girls and I’m soaking up the moments that will be gone before I know it.  I’m letting them know that they are more important than my social media status.  They are more important than whatever words I’m itching to pluck out on the keyboard.

I spend a lot of time in the kitchen prepping food, making meals, cleaning up.  Usually surrounded by a sweet tiara-clad princess who loves to watch me work and a precious little butterball baby who vacillates between watching me and following the every move of her big sister.

The things I’m spending my time doing are not glamorous.  They are often unnoticed or taken for granted.  They won’t win me any accolades or popularity contests, but they are eternal.

Caring for my husband and my children is the primary mission that God has called me to in this season of my life.  And it’s one that I joyfully accept.  I had a fantastic career for 10 years, and I’m so proud of my accomplishments and the gift I was able to give my family by working full time to support us until Andy was able to join the Navy and start medical school.

But this chapter of my life is one that beckons me to die to myself every day.

To encourage and cheer on my husband as he ferociously chases his dream.  Whether it be by packing his lunch each night, making sure the oil gets changed or mowing the lawn, I feel privileged to be his help-mate and to make sure the pesky little things are taken care of so that he can give his attention to his studies and spend his free time enjoying us :)

To love and care for my girls, making sure they are kissed and hugged and disciplined and encouraged.  To make sure they are nourished with good, healthy foods and that they are given opportunities to explore and grow.

But the secret of dying to myself each day is this…

If you cling to your life, you will lose it; but if you give up your life for me, you will find it.                                                          Matthew 10:39

Sure I could probably push and strive harder to accomplish more and even look like I’m doing it all, but something would have to give.  It always does.  And I refuse to let my family be the thing that gives.

So I might be putting some of my desires on the shelf for now (or at least until bed time :), but if this is the season of life that I believe God has called me to, then it is worth it.

So worth it.

He sees every meal that I make and every bottom that I wipe and every shirt that I wash and every dish that I scrub.

He knows when my heart is tuned to Him and how it’s those times that it all becomes a form of worship.

And I know that there will be plenty of time when my children are grown.  Time for me to invest in all of the things that I want to do.

I also know that the seemingly mundane things I’m choosing to focus on now are paying eternal dividends.

And that gives me the encouragement to let go of the rest :)

Thank you for making Daily Rebecca a part of your day!

The post Eternal Dividends appeared first on Daily Rebecca.

Honestly, I adore fall weather, but I prefer it to happen from September to November, not early June!

Never would I guess that I’d be bundling Avery up in a sweater at this point in the year, but it’s been downright chilly lately!

On Friday we met some friends at the playground for an hour or so before dinner.  Again we had to get bundled up, but it was nice to get out of the house.  Grace had a really fun time, but you’d never guess it from these two pics I managed to snap on my phone!

After our park date we headed home and I whipped up dinner using my imagination and the ingredients we had on hand.  I’m generally a recipe kind of girl (even though I’m known to tweak most recipes a little) but I’ve been trying to get a little more creative.  I’m also trying to be open minded about making up new recipes rather than trying to convert my old stand-by’s into dairy and grain free meals.  It’s been fun to tinker around and make up new things!

Earlier this week I “invented” a really yummy shrimp marinade (olive oil, fresh garlic, lime juice and a splash of tequila) and then grilled the shrimp and served it with a tex-mex type of salad with avocado-lime dressing.

And on Friday I made a steak stir fry over cauliflower “rice”.  It had red bell peppers, broccoli, and onions with a teriyaki glaze.  I think I might start posting some of these dinners even though they are usually me just throwing things together.  I bet I could come up with pretty good estimates of the quantities…

After dinner we got the girls ready for bed and then chilled out in the living room.  Andy cozied up with a novel and I cozied up with the laptop.  I’m a technology girl, what can I say? :)

I was basically browsing Amazon for food books and drooling over this food spiralizer which I just might have to order today.  I was also snacking on some sugar snap peas that my sister recommended.  They’re pretty good!  Crunchy and refreshing for sure.  They won’t stave off any junk food cravings but they were a nice snack.  That pic also may be strategically showing my nail polish too :)  The rose gold color is Rage by Orly and the light pink is Ballet Slippers by Essie.

On Saturday morning we lazed around after breakfast and Avery was hamming it up for the camera :)

Later that morning my sister came over and we headed downtown to check out the new Whole Foods.  She had the idea to get “big sister” and “little sister” pictures :)

It was a little crowded for being a Saturday, but overall I was impressed with the store.  They pretty much had me at Free and Accessible parking! And it’s nice to see good businesses cropping up in Detroit and making our down town area a little brighter.

After Whole Foods we still had a lot of energy so we headed over to the Detroit River Walk with hopes to walk by the river with the girls, but they were setting up a big event down there and we were also deterred by expensive parking.

Instead we hopped over to John King bookstore (which is a HUGE used bookstore that I love) but Avery was getting hungry and Grace wasn’t as thrilled with the kids section as I had hoped, so we decided to come home for lunch and nap time.

While the girls napped, Ellen and I got crafty and made a bunch of cards to have on hand.  We’ve both been finding ourselves needing cards at the last minute so it’ll be nice to have some available.  I snapped a pic of this simple one she made so I can copy the idea later :)

Sunday was a celebration at church.  We heard from people throughout the congregation who were celebrating what God has done in their lives this year.  I was one of the video clips featured and as soon as it popped up on the screen I got totally uncomfortable and just wanted it to end!  Something about seeing myself on camera makes me so uncomfortable.  Kind of like hearing a recording of my voice.  I’m always like, “do I really sound like THAT?”

But it was encouraging to hear all the stories, watch all the baptisms and cap things off with a church-wide picnic on the lawn.  We were one of the last families to leave because it was so nice catching up with people and watching Grace have fun in the bounce house.

Last night we rented a couple of movies.  We picked Brave for Grace….boy I loved that character’s crazy red curls and all of the great accents :)  Silver Linings Playbook was our pick and we both really enjoyed it.  I’m a sucker for movies about messy family dynamics and throw in a love story and you’ve got me.  Coming from a family with a history of mental illness, I found myself nodding along with many of the scenes highlighting the character’s bipolar disorder.  Overall it was fantastic and totally deserved the Oscar buzz.

What did you all do this weekend?

Thank you for making Daily Rebecca a part of your day!

The post Weekend Round Up appeared first on Daily Rebecca.

This morning I saw a lone, ripe banana in my fruit basket and it practically begged me to turn it into a banana nut mug muffin!

So I had to oblige :)

I really enjoyed yesterday’s blueberry mug muffin and knew that I could change a few things around to make a banana version. Turns out I was right!

In fact, I like this version even better.

It’s still not very sweet, but something about the banana flavor tricks your tastebuds into thinking it is somewhat sweet!  Adding chia seeds gave a nutritional boost and a tiny crunch that paired really well with the bigger crunch from the walnuts.

The whole thing had much more of a “cakey” texture than yesterday’s muffin and I think that’s due to the extra moisture from the banana and the magic gel properties of the chia seeds.

Give this a whirl and let me know what you think!  If you’re really hankering for extra sweetness, but want to keep these truly paleo, mash up the other half of the banana and spread it on the top of each muffin :)

Thank you for making Daily Rebecca a part of your day!

The post {Paleo} Banana-Nut Mug Muffins appeared first on Daily Rebecca.

I had forgotten how much I love to post recipes.

I love the cooking part, the photo editing part, and the sharing part!

Of course I love the eating part most of all :)

On my quest to shed a few pounds and eat clean to have more energy, I’ve been on the lookout for things to make that will give me plenty of variety.

As much as I love scrambled eggs for breakfast, I also like a good “carby” treat from time to time too.

Enter these muffins!

I made a paleo mug muffin a few months ago and while I did enjoy it, overall it was a little too “eggy” and “almondy” to really feel like I was eating an actual carb treat.

Before you get too excited about these muffins, let me warn you that they are not sweet.

It kind of cracks me up to see people posting “paleo” recipes that call for sweeteners.  Honey, maple syrup and agave nectar are all sugars.  Yes they may be less processed and more “natural” but they are still sugar.

I’m trying to keep sugar (other than what I’m getting from fresh fruit) to a minimum.

My reason for this is simple.

Lack of self-control.

The more sugar I eat, the more sugar I want to eat.

Like, one sweet muffin for breakfast could totally throw me into a downward spiral that includes handfuls of chocolate chips and M&M’s.

For real.

I recently finished reading Lysa TerKeurst’s book Made To Crave , and man alive did it change the way I think about food!

I’m not going to get into all of it, but I’d highly recommend this book to anyone and everyone who struggles with food in any way (eating too much of it, not eating enough, eating it for comfort, eating it period).

So anyway, it made me realize that there are some foods I should really just stay away from and one of those is sugar.  I haven’t sworn it off and I haven’t gone cold turkey, but I’m trying to avoid it as often as I can.

So I repeat, these muffins are not sweet.

I’m ok with that, but I wanted to make sure they didn’t let you down if you were going for sweetness :)

You could always experiment with adding mashed banana or sweeteners to the batter.  I may give blueberry banana muffins a whirl next time.

You could also top these with butter and honey to sweeten them up.  I won’t even tell the Paleo Police :)

One more disclaimer before I get into the recipe…

These are made in the microwave.

::hangs hippy head in shame::

Way back in 2008 I posted about the less than desirable aspects of microwave cooking and for the most part we totally avoid using our microwave.  In fact, it permanently resides in the basement and is only used for leftovers if we’re in a hurry or too lazy to use the stove or oven.

But all of the mug muffin recipes I’ve browsed through online call for microwave baking so that’s what I did this morning.  I’m thinking about making up a bigger batch of these and determining the correct time and temperature to bake them in the oven.

When I do I’ll update the recipe, but for now I’m posting it with the microwave instructions.

Thank you for making Daily Rebecca a part of your day!

The post {Paleo} Blueberry Mug Muffins appeared first on Daily Rebecca.

So I want to blog but I’m not really sure what to blog about.

We’ve been home from our vacation for almost two weeks and life has been pretty good.

Mostly ordinary.  Lazy days.  Soaking up time with Andy before he goes back to school.  Trips to Target and Ikea.

You want me to EAT this kid friendly food? How dare you…

I’m just not sure what to think of this taste of mashed potatoes…

Relaxing and maxin’ all cool…

Seeing some family and friends we haven’t seen in ages.

Going on a date night thanks to a sweet friend who offered to watch our girls for the evening :)

I haven’t had one of these since high school. Probably a good thing!

Strawberry margaritas all around. Yum!

We worked in the yard and finally dealt with all of the leaves, weeds and overgrowth that I ignored in the fall.

Note to self….spring will be much easier if put a little work into the gardens in the fall!

Of course the day after we did all that work, we were hoping to spend time outside on the patio enjoying the fruits of our labor, but it was a cold, gray, rainy day.  Oh well.  At least it’s all prepped for the summer!

It is probably the most obvious thing in the world to lay mulch down around the plants in your garden, but for the past 7 years I’ve battled dry, crusty looking dirt and a myriad of weeds instead of looking at rich, brown mulch around my plants!

Avery has been changing so much lately!  It’s awesome to see her interact more with Grace.  She’s also discovering her “voice” and every time she makes sounds Grace says, “She’s talking, mommy!”

Now that the weather is warming up, I love to eat summery dinners.  Fresh salads, lots of fruit and anything I can think of to put on the grill.  Last week I was loving watermelon, Amish brats, sauteed peppers and onions as well as a chicken and avocado salad.  I’m on the lookout for healthy summer dinners so I hope to be posting a lot of them in the coming weeks.  I miss blogging my dinners!

You may notice an absence of dairy and grains on those plates.  Like I’ve said before, I’m not going 100% paleo, but I am definitely trying to lean more in that direction.  I just feel so much better (more energy, lighter) when I eat paleo foods.  I can’t help but notice that the scale is a fan of me eating that way too.

Speaking of the scale, I’ve been finally working to get the excess pounds off and so far have lost about 20lbs since before Lent.  My next goal is to lose 20 more which will get me to where I was when I turned 29 and made peace with my body.

And I’d ultimately like to lose 15lbs after that to get to my wedding day weight.

I’ve never wanted to be the woman who looks so different from her wedding day that her kids say, “Wow, mom used to look so good.”  I never wanted to be a woman who “let herself go” after being married for 10 years.

And this summer will be 1o years that we’ve been married, so there’s no time like the present.

I won’t be blogging my way through this weight loss journey though.  My whole “Weigh-In Wednesday” series was such a joke last time.  In fact, my sister and I laugh about it every time we think about it.  I was always down two pounds and then up three.  Talking about how determined I was and then sheepishly posting the following week about how I fell off the band wagon.

No more of that.

Just eating healthy and exercising for this girl.

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