1) Facetime with Granny and Papa!!!
Sometimes when I see pictures of my family, I kind of freak out at how we just keep growing and growing!! These 3 little people didn't exist 5 years ago...and now there are three of them!!!! It's really kind of cool.
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2) I caught Leo and Roman watching The Avengers together. Leo made sure Roman had a Superhero action figure to play with during the show. Then I caught him telling Roman the longest and cutest story involving soldiers, princesses, Oma's house, superheroes, pooping on the potty and, of course, chocolate.
After this extremely long and involved story, Roman was all tuckered out. Leo knew exactly what to do. He sang our "Go to sleep" song (complete with arm movements)
Go to sleep. Go to sleep. Go to SLEEEEEP little Roman.
Go to sleep. Go to sleep. Go to sleep my little boy!
Within a few minutes of his song, Roman was out :)
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3) I'm back on the "weight-loss" train. I do this after each child. The weight never just "falls off" for me! But after a couple months of "dieting", I lose interest and can't keep up with it. In an attempt to eat healthier, I have decided to consciously eat more veggies and more protein. Rather than focus on what I can't eat, I'm adding all sorts of good stuff to my daily diet to fill me up. (I'm also on myfitnesspal.com as "lelesmama" so come be my friend!) One super awesome problem with breastfeeding is that you have to eat an additional amount of calories each day, and I tend toward foods that are high in carbohydrates to fill those calories. So I tried to make a few snacks this week that are low in carbs so I can snack to fill my daily calorie needs.
But before I post the recipes, I think that a few of you might look at my recipes and say "She'll NEVER lose weight with all that fat in her food!!" But you will never find me eating something that is low-fat ever again! And I think the proof will be in the pudding when I am successful at losing weight eating full-fat milk, butter, oils, cheese, etc. (Speaking of pudding - are you addicted to chia seeds yet??)
Here are some resources for why I eat the way I do:
Here are some resources for why I eat the way I do:
Also, this is a long-term way of eating. I watch The Biggest Loser and get SOOOO frustrated when they brag about eating low-fat cheese or sour cream, etc. YUCK!! These foods are simply not meant to be low-fat!
Fact: Just eat the real stuff and I guarantee you won't leave the table hungry.
Fact: Restaurants don't carry "low-fat" anything. Parties with friends don't include recipes made with "low-fat" ingredients. The low-fat diet is completely unsustainable long-term for me.
Fact: The low-fat option of anything tastes like water and leaves you unsatisfied.
Fact: The rest of your family will hate your cooking if you add anything that is "low-fat".
Fact: If it has fat, and you don't want to eat the fat, just don't eat it. Don't pay the same price for a processed half-product!!!
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| Lunch: Pastured-eggs, local-grown spinach, local-grown mushroom, full fat feta scrambled in unsalted butter |
It's simple math: Calories in = Calories out. For weight loss: Calories in < Calories out. Still not convinced you can lose weight while eating full fat foods? Then stay tuned for my weight loss progress :)
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4) My first fun recipe was just to redeem myself. Remember the Baked Donut Hole Fail a couple weeks ago? I decided to buy some real Coconut Flour and try them again. I made them with Coconut Sap Sugar and they turned out pretty tasty!! I found the original recipe on Tropical Traditions website.
Ah yes - THAT is what they were supposed to look like coming out of the oven!!
These bad boys are DENSE!! You can only eat one, maybe 2, before you are at your limit. But they are a really fun treat if you have a sweet tooth and need something every now and then. And only 75 calories each. Check out the recipe here.
The kids were so excited they couldn't even sit down properly before they dug in!
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5) The next high-protein, gluten-free recipe I tried was the Coconut Flour Banana Muffins from Heavenly Homemakers.
Coconut Flour Banana Muffins
1/2 cup Coconut Flour
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
6 medium eggs (or 4-5 large eggs)
4 tablespoons Coconut Oil, melted
1/4 cup honey
2-3 small ripe, mashed bananas (use 2 if they are larger)
1/2 cup nuts (optional)
Directions: Preheat the oven to 350 and put the coconut oil in a dish to melt in there while you prepare the rest. Mix all the ingredients together and pour into a well-greased or paper lined muffin pan. Bake for 20-25 minutes. Makes 12 muffins
When I am making a treat, I make muffins with my fresh-ground whole wheat flour. But when I am looking for a snack that is higher in protein, I'll keep a few of these in my fridge! Making gluten-free baked goods is tricky. I used too much banana and too much egg (my eggs from the farm were extra large this week), so fresh out of the oven they were too gummy. But straight from the fridge they are delicious!!
Coconut Flour Banana Muffins
1/2 cup Coconut Flour
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
6 medium eggs (or 4-5 large eggs)
4 tablespoons Coconut Oil, melted
1/4 cup honey
2-3 small ripe, mashed bananas (use 2 if they are larger)
1/2 cup nuts (optional)
Directions: Preheat the oven to 350 and put the coconut oil in a dish to melt in there while you prepare the rest. Mix all the ingredients together and pour into a well-greased or paper lined muffin pan. Bake for 20-25 minutes. Makes 12 muffins
140 cals/14 carbs/8 fat/4 protein/3 fiber/104 sodium per serving
When I am making a treat, I make muffins with my fresh-ground whole wheat flour. But when I am looking for a snack that is higher in protein, I'll keep a few of these in my fridge! Making gluten-free baked goods is tricky. I used too much banana and too much egg (my eggs from the farm were extra large this week), so fresh out of the oven they were too gummy. But straight from the fridge they are delicious!!
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6) And even though this one isn't so low in carbs, this one is my new absolute favorite! Initially, I tried to cut out the sugar from my diet. But I don't actually eat that much sugar. My coffee is black, my oatmeal is plain, my yogurt is unsweetened, etc. But I am a mess if I have a sugar craving and I do believe that most foods in moderation are okay. But I would usually opt for an insane amount of chocolate or cookies. So this is my best substitute.
Homemade Kettle Corn made with Coconut Sap Sugar!!!!
Ingredients:
- 1/3 cup Organic Popcorn
- 2-3 tablespoons Expeller Pressed Coconut Oil (high smoke point)
- 1/3 cup Coconut Sap Sugar (why not just use granulated sugar??)
Heat coconut oil on med-high heat with 3 popcorn kernels. When the kernels pop, take the pot off the heat. Add the sugar and stir it to mix. Then add the rest of the popcorn kernels and let it sit covered for 30 seconds to allow the kernels to heat up. Then return it to the heat, crack the cover to let some steam out and all the kernels will begin popping. But please be careful!!! The sugar burns bad if it hits you!! When there are 2-3 seconds between pops, pour the popcorn into a bowl and enjoy! Even Jason thought this was an excellent treat despite it being a healthier version :)
7) I made these bad boys last night and I am their new number 1 fan! Even Jason (who stated they probably wouldn't be something he could get into) was digging on them all night.
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| Photo Credit: thekitchn.com |
Per serving: 235 cal/35 carb/8 fat/11 protein/12 fiber/126 sodium
The math looks pretty high when you are trying to stay within a certain calorie limit each day. However, I had one serving last night and was FULL! Jason said they tasted like little mini potatoes. They satisfy the potato chip craving, the salty craving, and even a french fry craving (for me anyway). It was easy to stop after just one serving. I can never stop after one serving with potato chips!
MAN it feels good to talk about food again!!! Pregnancy kills any desire for cooking or eating healthy for me. I am usually too tired and sick in the beginning to think about food. And I'm too uncomfortable to stand in my kitchen in the end. But I'm glad to see that my love affair with food has returned :)
Bonus) Check out this new Etsy shop!! A 12 and 17 year old learned how to sew and opened their own Etsy shop where they will custom-make any Saint doll for you!! We are past birthday and holiday season, but I have my sights set on a doll for Elena! St. Helena is going to be beautiful :) Aside from being really cute dolls, the fact that young girls make them is so rockin! (And the faces are actually pretty, not creepy!!)
Mother Theresa and St. Therese of Lisieux
Awesome awesome awesome. I totally agree with you on the food. I've had to stick to a lower-carb diet thus far, and I have found that when it comes to whole foods, the higher the fat content (usually) the lower the carbs (e.g. whole milk has fewer carbs per serving than skim milk). I'm not on this "diet" for weight control necessarily, but I noticed that I gained far more than I should have last pregnancy, but this time I'm doing extremely well in that department, even whilst eating "full fat" foods. So I've definitely jumped onto that "bandwagon"! And my thoughts were the same as yours in that first picture -- how awesome to see a family growing like that!
ReplyDeleteI am excited to see your progress! We've been eating lots of chicken, turkey, eggs and veggies over here. Two fruits and two yogurts a day, and no carbs after 2 pm. And drinking lots of water and green tea, and the results have been awesome!
ReplyDeleteWay to go, Lisa! I agree--low fat counterparts simply don't cut the mustard and you do feel unsatisfied.
ReplyDeleteThere is nothing like good, whole foods! Thanks for the recipe share. I have used coconut flour before, but have not searched for recipes. Some of the ones on that website look delish!
ReplyDeleteYes! I love your diet philosophy and subscribe to it myself. The low fat and "sugar free" stuff is so, so, so terrible. Plus, there is no way I'm going to have different foods for myself and for my children, and there is no way I'm feeding them that processed weird stuff.
ReplyDeleteCan't wait to keep up with your progress!
You know, my 89 year old grandmother drinks whole milk (and has) every day of her life. She has taught me your above philosophy so well over the years :) I completely agree with you!
ReplyDeleteAlso...um...that popcorn looks yummy! Thanks for the recipe!
Very wise. Don't waste your calories on crap instead spend them on something you will truly enjoy.
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