Meal Prepping

Living in a small town doesn't lead to many options for eating out. We basically eat breakfast, lunch and dinner 7 days a week, 4 weeks a month, 52 weeks a year at home. I love planning the menu for the week and luckily, Dusty lets me have full reign on what we eat. He likes being surprised with what fun dishes and foods I come up with each week.

Charlotte 3 Month Update

Hard to believe it but my little girl is already 3 months old! Over the past month, she has really started showing us her personality and it's so fun. Here is what has been going on with Charlotte over the past month....

Huckleberry Lemon Muffins

I've made lemon poppy seed muffins or other lemony baked goods before in the past and I always struggled with getting enough lemon flavoring. I'd add a butt load of zest and still it wasn't to my satisfaction. I recently discovered in a recipe from Sweet Peas Meals (I'll talk about my love for that a little later), that you need to rub the lemon zest into the sugar to create a "lemon sugar" for the muffins. It makes a huge difference! The muffins are bursting with lemony goodness! Plus my toddler had a blast helping me and playing in the sugar like it was the sandbox (don't worry! He washed his hands!).

Thin Mint Iced Coffee

You guys! For the first time in years, I resisted the temptation and did not buy Girl Scout cookies. You have no idea how huge this is for me! It took so much self control, it was painful. Last week I went to the grocery store and Shopko, and they were set up at both locations....it was like the devil was tempting me to give in and buy a dozen boxes of cookies! I am proud to report I walked past and resisted the urge to buy all the Thin Mints and Samoas. Last year I bought 8 boxes from a co-workers daughter and ate them all in less than a week....yikes :/

Air Fryer/Baked Tostada Shells



After Charlotte was born and I rejoined Weight Watchers 6 weeks postpartum, I treated myself to an air fryer....and I love it! 

New Member of the Family {Charlotte Reed}

Yet again, I've taken a long pause and stepped away from the blog. My excuse this time? I got pregnant and had another baby! Let me introduce you to little Miss Charlotte Reed...

Try the Grey Stuff....It's Delicious!

To celebrate my mom's birthday last week, Nolan and I drove down to spend the weekend and celebrate my mom, Disney-style! We went all out with a Beauty and the Beast themed birthday dinner and had a blast the entire time!

Tangy Thai Broccoli Slaw {Fix-It Fast}

You guys, I'm back as a consultant for Tastefully Simple and I couldn't be more excited! I took a couple years away from TS because I wanted to focus on balancing work and being a new mom. Now that I have my groove back (maybe?!?!) I couldn't wait to get back into Tastefully Simple and promote their delicious products that add so much fun and convenience to meal time.

Crab Cake Benedict with Avocado {Cravings}

I own quite a few cookbooks, but there are few that I actually reach for time and time again. The Pioneer Woman and Ina Garten cookbooks are my absolute favorites. Those ladies can do no wrong in the kitchen. Lately I'm finding myself reaching for Chrissy Teigens book, Cravings, as my new favorite cookbook as I have been using it non-stop for the past couple of months.

Chocolate Covered Strawberry Smoothie

Last week for Valentine's Day, I made this festive smoothie for the whole family as a fun way to kick off the day. It was a big hit, especially with my toddler! Who doesn't love chocolate and fruit for breakfast!?!?

Our Valentine's Day Dinner

I hope you all had a wonderful Valentine's Day this week! I know we sure did :)

We didn't go out on the town, because Lord knows how fun going out to eat with a toddler can be! This year we dined in and I pulled out all the stops to make up for the fact we were eating at home and not going out.

Glazed Pumpkin Donut Holes

This past weekend I surprised my boys by waking up early and making them these fun, somewhat healthy donut holes. We have been eating healthier over the past 6+ months, but sometimes you just gotta have donuts on the weekend. These baked and glazed donut holes definitely hit the spot!

Handy Helper

My little man is going to be 2 years old in a couple of weeks! How did that happen? It feels like yesterday I was writing a blog post about different type of food purees that I was making for Nolan. Craziness. Now I'm living in a world revolving around Mickey Mouse Clubhouse, PAW Patrol, Little Blue Truck and Llama llama books. Chicken nuggets, macaroni and cheese and Goldfish crackers are my life you guys. Haha!

Little dude has become quite the helper in the kitchen and lover of sweets! He may be super picky in the majority of foods he eats, but he will not turn down a single treat. Nolan has inherited his fathers sweet tooth, that's for sure!

Starbucks date with my little buddy last week. He had a cakepop and fancy chocolate milk. I had an iced mocha and stole bites of his cakepop :)

 

Nolan especially loved Christmas time a whole lot more this year now that he could partake in all the Christmas baking. We decorated sugar cookies.....

Made lefse with the great-grandparents....

And enjoyed licking every spatula, spoon and whisk!

 

We will see if he becomes one of those kids on Food Network with their developed "culinary styles" by the age of 8. Right now his "culinary style" is instant mac n cheese, fruit/veggie pouches, crackers and fruit snacks. Doubt the Food Network judges would be too impressed with that! ;) 

Pumpkin Pie Smoothie

Growing up, I use to loathe pumpkin. Like, seriously hated it! At any family Thanksgiving or Christmas dinner, I was the kid eating apple pie (that I specially requested) all by myself while the rest of the family enjoyed pumpkin pie with a tall dollop of whipped cream. For some weird reason, I can't explain it.....everything changed and now I really enjoy pumpkin. I'm not pumpkin and pumpkin pie spice obsessed like a lot of people during the fall/winter seasons, but I have really come to enjoy it over the years. My favorite new fall treat since joining Weight Watchers.....pumpkin pie smoothies!

 

Chocolate Banana Nut Smoothie

Remember back in April when I was bragging about how my son wasn't a picky eater???? (Throws head back a laughs) Apparently I spoke waaaay too soon because my child has become the pickiest eater on the Hi-Line! If it's not Eggos, chicken nuggets, carbs or cheese, he ain't having it. When it comes to fruits and veggies, I still rely on food pouches or he will eat apple slices, but other than that....nope, nope and nope! Oh the joys of parenting! As a food blogger and lover of food, it hurts my soul when my little one refuses to eat the deliciousness I have prepared for him. Please tell me this is a phase?!?!

 

I love making smoothies for breakfast and I've found out that my picky eater enjoys smoothies as well! They are quick to whip up, not much clean up and so versatile. Smoothies also provide me with a sneaky portal to adding fruits, veggies, dairy and protein in my sons diet without him realizing it. I love it! Hehehe! 

Toffee Cracker Crack

I'm not even kidding in the title when I say this stuff is "crack." This treat is highly addicting and freakishly easy to throw together in a moments notice. Who doesn't have saltines, brown sugar, butter, chocolate chips and pecans in their pantry!?!? I know I always have these 5 ingredients stocked in my pantry. This is now become a problem because of my addiction to crack!

 



Egg White Breakfast Sandwich

One of the most difficult parts about working nights is finding a way to balance my natural internal clock. After sleeping from 7am to 12pm, I find it confusing to my system to whether or not I should have breakfast since I just woke up, or go ahead and have lunch? I usually make something that is a mixture of both (avocado egg toast, quinoa breakfast toast, smoothie, etc.). One of my favorite breakfast meals that travels well and keeps fresh all night at work are my egg white breakfast sandwiches. It takes all of 5 minutes (or less) to whip up and tastes great when reheated in the microwave. You can even make a huge batch of them and freeze for later! From personal experience I can to tell you they taste exceptionally great at 4:00 am! ;)

 

Buffalo Chicken Bite Skewers with Blue Cheese Yogurt Dip

We are Montana Griz and Dallas Cowboys fans in this household. The Grizzlies because Dusty and I went to the University of Montana (it's where we met!) and Cowboys, because I married into it. I didn't ask to be a Cowboy, but it happened anyways. All in all,  I really could care less about the game itself when it comes right down to it (don't tell my husband!). I'm only at the tailgates and parties for the food.

What is winning this football season are these spicy buffalo chicken skewers served with this cool creamy dipping sauce! When I think football, I automatically think buffalo wings. These skewers are a less messy but equally flavorful tailgate snack.

Weight Watchin'

Hey Everyone! How was everyone's summer?

Fun? Relaxing? I hope so!

Can you believe we are almost through September? Crazy! Today is the first day of Fall by the way and I've jumped on the pumpkin spice train hardcore this year. Lord help me!

What have I been up to, you ask??? Harvest is over and seeding is nearly over (yay!). Basically I've been working nights at the hospital, playing with my 18 month old and spending the past couple of months improving my nutrition, diet and overall health.

Greek Cucumber Sauce

....Also known as Tzatziki sauce. Although when I order my favorite "grilled chicken pita with tzatziki sauce" the high school kids at the local drive-in look at me like, huh? Tat-zi, what?!?

Then when I say, the cucumber sauce, all makes sense in the world! I'm pretty sure I'm the only one in town who orders their grilled chicken pita this way too. Whenever I ordered it, my mother-in-law (who works there) will look at the food order ticket and then look out the window to say hi because she knows it's me! Then she will write my name on my food bag with hearts on it, which is my favorite :)

I love this sauce on chicken and salmon. It's also great for dipping veggies. It's super fresh and tastes similar to the cucumber sauce I order with my pita at the local drive-in. It's perfect for those nights I feel like making my own grilled chicken pita at home!