Salad, fruit, and smoothies OH MY!

Salad

Who doesn't love a salad bar? Having everything washed, chopped, and prepped will make choosing a salad an easy choice.

Lettuce: I buy the big pack of romaine hearts from Costco, The key for me is to finely chop the lettuce so the pieces are small. This makes it way easier to eat. Wash and chop the whole pack and place in gallon sized ziplocks.

Veggies: This really varies according to your tastes, but I always keep cucumbers and carrots on hand. I chop them small and store them in containers in the fridge. I will add other seasonal veggies but these are the musts,

Other toppings: I like to keep hard boiled eggs, shredded cheese, craisins, corn(open the can and dump it in a container for easy access), nuts, and croutons (my kids will eat anything if croutons are involved) on hand. Keep everything in easy access containers so that tossing it together is as easy as opening a bag of chips.

Fruit

This is sort of an obvious one, but I love keeping a variety of fruit on hand. The key here is to have stuff washed and chopped so its super easy to choose over other snacks. I can't tell you how many pineapples have gone bad in my life simply because cutting it felt like too much work. Getting it all done at once is way easier than cutting it in the moment you want it. We eat a lot of berries, pineapple, apples, oranges, bananas, and grapes. We eat it plain, but my whole family also loves tossing it together with some Greek yogurt and granola. My favorite "clean" granola recipe can be found here.

Smoothies

Smoothies are my favorite way to get my kids to eat a lot of good stuff. This green smoothie is an afternoon snack go to around here. I shared the recipe over here a bit ago.

Protein Prep: Salmon, Tilapia and Eggs

FISH! There is so much good stuff in it. Put it in your rotation!

Salmon
You will notice I don't use any oil or butter. I like it without so I see no need to add the complexity to it.

Salmon filet- I get the big fresh one from Costco
Lemon juice
Lemon pepper seasoning (I love Trader Joe's)

Preheat oven to 500 degrees. Place whol
e filet in a bowl and cover in lemon juice. Let is soak for 10-20 minutes. I find this helps cut that "fishy" flavor. Place filet on a cookie sheet lined with foil and coat generously in seasoning. Place in oven and immediately lower the temp to 225 degrees. Cook for 20-25 minutes. Cook time will vary depending on filet size. The fish will easily flake/pull apart at the grain when done.

Allow fish to cool then place individual portions in sandwich size ziplock bags to freeze.

Tilapia

8 tilapia fillets
Lemon juice
Lemon pepper seasoning
Salt and pepper

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Place fillets in bowl and cover in lemon juice. Let soak for 10-20 minutes. Place fillets on a foil covered cookie sheet lined with foil and coat generously in seasoning. Cook for 30 minutes.

Allow fish to cool then place individual portions in sandwich size ziplock bags to freeze.

Hard Boiled Eggs

Place desired amount of eggs in a pot and add enough water to cover them. Place a lid on and bring to a boil. As soon as the water boils turn off the heat but leave the covered pot on the burner. Allow to cool, strain water, and store eggs in fridge.

Protein Prep: chicken, turkey, and pork

I have protein three times a day. It isn't always in the form of meat, but having a freezer stocked with cooked, portioned meat drastically simplifies day to day meal prep.

Chicken Thighs

Thighs have more fat than breasts, which not only makes them taste better to me, but I feel they also retain flavor and moisture better when frozen. I buy boneless, skinless thighs at Costco. They cost more than breasts, but the drastic difference in taste is worth the money for me. I have also prepped breasts this same way and it works just fine, I just don't love the taste. 

8 chicken thighs

Salt and pepper to taste (I also love Trader Joe's Every Day Seasoning when I remember to have it on hand)

Preheat oven to 375 degrees

Prepare cookie sheet by lining with foil and placing a cooling rack on top of the foil. Lay out the thighs on the rack. Generously coat with salt and pepper.

Place in oven for 20 minutes. 

Take out, flip the thighs, season the other side.

Cook for 20 more minutes.

Allow thighs to cool, then portion them out how you like. Place individual potions in sandwich sized ziplock bags and place in freezer.

It really is that easy.

Ground Turkey

Basically everything that calls for ground beef I substitute ground turkey. It is cheaper, and helps if you are watching your red meat intake. I most often season mine like taco meat, but I also love it with curry powder. I eat mine plain with my veggies and grain, but it could also make a great salad topping.

2 lbs ground turkey

2 tbsp cumin

1 tsp garlic powder

1 tsp onion powder

1/2 tsp crushed red pepper flakes

Mix all the seasonings together in a small bowl. Brown the turkey on the stove top then drain the juices. Dump in 1/2 c water along with the seasoning mixture and simmer until water is absorbed, stirring regularly.

Allow turkey to cool, then portion it out how you like. Place individual potions in sandwich sized ziplock bags and place in freezer.

I admit this isn't my favorite of the meats I prep, but it is cheap and adds variety.

Pork Shoulder

Hands down the easiest, cheapest and most versatile meat. I eat mine prepped as I will list below, but I often add BBQ sauce to my family's to change things up. We also make carnitas with this meat, which I will share another time. I buy the large pork shoulder cut from Costco then cut the big hunk into 5 smaller portions, wrap them in plastic wrap and place each one in a gallon sized ziplock. I prep one of the 5 smaller chunks on food prep day then stick the others in the freezer to grab and cook individually throughout the month when I need it. 

2 lbs pork shoulder (this is a rough estimate, but exactness isn't necessary)

salt and pepper

2 onions, quartered

2 tbsp minced garlic

water (you can also use broth but water is free and always on hand)

Place pork in crock pot and coat generously with salt and pepper. Place onions around pork. Add garlic. Slowly add enough water to almost cover the meat. Think ice berg, with only a small portion of the meat above the water level. Cook on low for 6-8 hours or high for 3-5. It can remain slightly pink when done, but will easily pull apart with a for when done.

Use tongs to remove all the pork from the liquid. Allow pork to cool, then portion it out how you like. Place individual potions in sandwich sized ziplock bags and place in freezer.

To Use:

Every night I grab the portions I need for the next day and move them from the freezer to the fridge. They thaw over night and you simply microwave as normal to reheat them when the time comes. Mission protein accomplished! Tomorrow is salmon and tilapia! See you then!

Simple food, simple life: FOOD PREP INTRO

Let me start by explaining my philosophy behind food prep. If you are looking for the most delicious recipe for the best meal you have ever had, this is not for you. If you are looking for simple tips to get healthy food on your plate three times a day, you are in the right place. I love fancy food blogs with complex yet delicious recipes, but I just can't maintain that level of effort. I get overwhelmed, frustrated, and throw in the towel. I don't love to cook, and complex menu planning is really just setting myself up for failure.  Clean eating burn out is REAL. Our world is all about pleasure seeking and the food we eat is no exception. The fallacy that every meal you eat needs to be the best you've ever had needs to be put in check. The bottom line is that you need food to live. Food is fuel. Don't get me wrong, I like my food to taste good, and I sincerely feel that it does. But in order for me to feed myself and my family healthy food consistently long term, it has to be easy. Here is my guide to successfully stocking a fridge/freezer well enough that healthy options are always readily available, with little effort on your part. I will share what I keep on hand and how I prep it. There is definitely a learning curve but I can honestly say now prepping this way feels effortless. Food is ready when I need it and I don't live in the kitchen.

Food List: What I prep and keep on hand.

• hard boiled eggs
• string cheese
• cottage cheese
• plain greek yogurt 
• washed and chopped fruit (berries, pineapple, melon etc.)
• salad bar supplies (washed and chopped lettuce and veggies ready to grab)
• granola
• chicken thighs
• pork shoulder
• ground turkey
• tilapia
• salmon
• potatoes/sweet potatoes
• jasmine rice
• assorted veggies to steam/bake

Getting Started: Supplies

Aside from groceries there are some tools I really rely on. My kitchen is tiny and not well equipped, but that's another perk of simplifying, Keeping food close to its natural form and preparing it in basic ways doesn't require a lot of fancy stuff. 

• Gallon sized, quart sized, and sandwich sized ziplock baggies.
• 2 cookie sheets
• foil
• cooling rack
• Various sizes of containers. I like this set. I use containers for fruit and veggie prep, not for prepackaging whole meals for a week, I like my food to feel fresh.
• Rice cooker with veggie rack. This one is my FAVORITE. Being able to prep a grain (quinoa/rice) while steaming veggies by the flip of one switch is a huge time saver. You don't have to watch over it like on the stove top, freeing you for other things. Like life. #teamstayoutofthekitchen
• Stove top dutch oven. I bought this one for Ryan years ago and it continues to be my FAVORITE kitchen item I own. There is no end to what I use it for. Carnitas anyone? I also love it for soups, frying, and literally anything I can think of to cook on the stove. Seriously I'm obsessed with it.
• Crock pot. Nothing fancy,
• Knives. You can spend a lot of money here, and maybe someday I will get to... but for now this set is serving me very well. I chop a lot folks.

Procedure: How I do

• I prep all my meat in one day, then portion it out into individual servings. I put each serving in a sandwich sized ziplock bag and stick it in the freezer. Every night before bed I pull out what I plan to eat the next day and allow it to thaw overnight in the fridge, then I simply microwave it to warm it up when I am ready to eat it. I have found chicken thighs, pork shoulder, salmon, ground turkey and tilapia all freeze quite well. They taste fresh and great when reheated. 
• I wash and chop lettuce, carrots, and cucumbers and put it all in containers and ziplocks so that making a salad is as simple as dumping stuff in a bowl. 
• I wash and chop fruit for easy snacking, or to use with yogurt or granola. Again, making it as easy to grab something healthy as it would be to bust open a bag of chips.
• I wash and chop veggies in preparation for baking/steaming. Broccoli, cauliflower, carrots, all breeds of squash, and mushrooms I am only willing to eat a day or two old. This means I am having to cook them regularly, but by having them chopped and ready all I have to do is toss them in the oven or steamer and I am set. 
• I also usually make a few pans of enchiladas and a few soups to have on hand for my family. I freeze these and pull them out the night before to reheat the day of. 

Stay tuned this whole week for all the specific recipes and details for each category of prep. Here is the line up:

• Chicken, pork and turkey
• Salmon and tilapia
• Salad bar in your fridge, fruit and granola parfaits, and green smoothies
• Cooked veggies and grains
• Food prep day schedule

The disease of more.

*A lecture to myself, so when I say "you", I am actually talking to myself.

I put a full plate in front of my two year old for lunch. She glanced at it and before she had even taken a bite she yelled, "more please!" It stopped me for a moment and I had to ask myself, how often do I yell for more when I have a full plate right in front of me? I have struggled learning to find sincere gratitude for what I have, and to not allow what I lack to destroy my happiness. I also know my tendency to always want more of anything good. If it makes me feel good, I want more. As the wise Britney Spears sang to me in junior high, "I can't get no satisfaction." (calm down, I know The Rolling Stones sang it first, but my loyalties remain with Brit.) Always wanting more destroys your ability to develop gratitude, and in turn kills all potential for lasting peace.

When you always want more, you don't see what you have. Focusing on the deficits in your life creates such a vacuum of negativity. You literally become blinded to all good, because you manage to turn it into bad. Sure it's fine, but it could be better. No thing, person, or experience is ever enough. Cue the downward spiral of relationships. People thrive from feeling like they are enough, like they are truly accepted. You aren't able to give them that approval when you only want more. 

When you always want more, you procrastinate happiness waiting for something that will never come. You might think you will be happy when you get a house, make more money, lose more weight, get to take a vacation, have a better wardrobe, or get more naps, but you won't. You could be handed your every desire on a silver platter and guess what? It wouldn't be enough, you'd still. want. more. (I highly encourage napping at every chance though.) This is the biggest issue. Convincing yourself you will be happier when a circumstance changes is simply a lie you tell yourself to justify ungrateful behavior.

When you always want more you get yourself in trouble. The advertising industry thrives from people like you. They play to your areas of dissatisfaction, and tell you they have a way to fix it. You buy it. The craziest part is that you can actually fully convince yourself that you need x,y, or z to be happy instead of looking inward to see peace and satisfaction are intrinsic traits that can never be achieved through circumstances. There aren't enough donuts in the world to change your happiness. There is no vacation long enough to bring you peace. Nothing will ever be enough for you.

When you always want more, happiness is fleeting, So you finally get what you want, and you were right! It feels amazing. For a minute. Then you quickly find a reason why is just isn't enough. You move on through your list, wanting the next thing, or sometimes just the bigger, better version of what you just got. For some reason you can't see the pattern of wanting, getting, and still not feeling happy or satisfied. The moments of fleeting happiness convince you that getting what you want IS what you need. It DOES make you feel better. When that feeling quickly fades you blame it on needing more, rather than recognizing you simply can't acknowledge the full plate in front of you.

When you stop wanting more, even an empty plate somehow becomes enough. You start to see everything differently. The world looks different, life looks better, but reality hasn't changed. You have. The people around you suddenly become inspirational and amazing rather than lacking and unreliable. You start to feel sincere, authentic gratitude for what you have, and you quit entertaining thoughts of what you are without. You set goals and work for them from a place of positivity. You still hope for houses, vacations, and naps, but your happiness doesn't depend on them. You take responsibility for your behavior and your happiness. You no longer allow life to control you. You find a place of unwavering peace. You learn to turn what you have into enough, whether it actually is or not. 

xoxo Julie

How to love yourself.

I haven't always hated myself. I have vivid memories from my childhood of thinking I was about as cool as it got. Somewhere through the years those feelings slipped away and were replaced by intense feelings of self hatred. Hating myself really became my normal for a lot of years, and became magnified and intensified when my depression hit. For a while I associated all my self hate with my appearance. Then one day a little over a year ago the realization came to me that I could be handed my ideal body, and I would still hate myself just as much. This was a big wake up call for me. It is what lead to me starting to fight for myself.  Today I like myself. It didn't happen overnight and requires daily action to maintain. Like most things worth having in life, self love isn't something you can kick back and wait for (except for Kanye maybe, seems to just flow with him). It takes work, and it takes action.

1. Acceptance. Accepting yourself today, right now, as you are, is the first step. You don't have to like it (yet) but you do have to accept it. Accepting your reality will give you a strong base to build upon. This means throwing out all the "I will be happy when..." and,"I would like myself if..." kind of talk. No conditions, no procrastinating. For me this was hard. I didn't want to see things as they were, because my reality was ugly. Acceptance doesn't mean you are deciding to live this reality forever, it only means that today you can see things as they are, for better or for worse.
2. Stop the negative self talk. Right. Now. There are many tactics to help with this. Old habits die hard, and this is a tough one to break. It takes conscious effort and a lot of practice. Anytime an abusive comment pops in my head now I combat it with something I like about myself. I do the same when I look in the mirror. Then each night I make a little list of the things I liked about myself that day. Sometimes it is a short list of seemingly insignificant things, but it keeps me consciously working on changing my thinking. Searching for the good to silence the bad. 
3. Separate your behavior from your identity. You are going to do things you aren't happy with, and you are going to make mistakes. You can be unhappy, disappointed or upset about your behavior, but that doesn't mean you have to hate yourself. Sure, our actions make up our identity, but we all do the wrong thing sometimes. If you pin all of your feelings about yourself on your behavior, you will be upset with yourself almost constantly. When I lose my patience with my kids that doesn't mean me, my identity, my life, and my whole personality suck. It means I made a mistake. Keeping these separate allows you to identify and correct your behavior without slipping to self obsession over it. Hating yourself over shortcomings, failures, or bad choices will only throw you deeper in the pit and strengthen the cycle of bad behavior and self hate. When you can see them separately, you will be in a place to generate change. It is also key to remember that hating yourself in essentially just a form of self obsession. (You and Kanye are seeming alarmingly similar now right?)
4. Take positive action. Like I said, you can't sit around and wait to love yourself. When you have accepted yourself, decided to stop verbally abusing yourself, and can see yourself separate from your behavior, you will be in a place that fosters self improvement. You will be able to identify the things that need a little work and take action to fix them without ever having to slip into hating yourself over it. You can work on becoming the best version of yourself. The difference is you will be doing it from a positive place. A place where you are already good with yourself, but can see ways to improve. You will have more clarity and self awareness. You will encourage yourself and celebrate successes rather than dwelling on your failures. This in when self love fully blooms and you start to become the person you always wanted to be. The problem is had you waited to love yourself until getting here, you never would have made it. It takes loving yourself to become a person you want to love.  
5. Remember that relapse isn't failure. Self love and self improvement are life long journeys. You are going to relapse into your old ways every now and then possibly for the rest of your life. But the frequency and intensity will lessen with time, and it doesn't have to break you. One bad day doesn't rob you of your progress. Give yourself a pass, allow yourself to be a human. 

I never wanted to have daughters because I felt incapable of teaching them to love themselves when I hated myself so intensely. You might think you are the only one who suffers from your self abuse, but the ugly truth is that everyone around you feels it. Loving yourself releases your mind from thinking about yourself constantly and in turn allows you to learn more, love more, and deepen your relationships with everyone. Loving yourself is how your dreams will come true. I wouldn't go to that level of cheesiness if I didn't believe it SO MUCH. 

xoxo Julie

Please stop telling me to love my stretch marks.

I like myself. I'm new to liking myself honestly. But the truth is that I do. I don't always love my behavior, but I do always love myself. I also love my body. It is nothing short of a miracle. It enables me to do so many amazing things and really, gives me life. I have never loved my body more than in the process of delivering my kids. For the first time I saw by body as a miraculous tool with a divine purpose rather than a vessel to hold all my imperfections and insecurities. That feeling has always stuck with me and reminded me to respect my body in times when I could only see its flaws. I love my body, I respect my body. I love my body, but that doesn't mean I adore everything about it.

Comparison is always a deadly game, but especially when it comes to bodies. Even more so when you take it to the postpartum body level. The truth is that pregnancy just doesn't impact everyone's body the same. We all gain different weight in different places, stretch out in different ways, and are left with varying levels of destruction afterward. As someone who was once told by my doctor that I had one of the worst cases of stretch marks he had ever seen, it felt a little more than unfair to see women with smooth, tight torso skin post baby. If stretch marks must be a thing, they should be a thing for everyone. Misery loves company I guess. 

I know I am not alone in struggling to accept my post baby body. In reality, I was never good at accepting my pre-baby body so it really isn't shocking. I started noticing articles popping up all over telling me to embrace my new body, and to wear my stretch marks with pride. Telling me I should focus on the gratitude for what these scars represented. No shame, only love and celebration. I get it, but for some reason I felt like they were missing something. 

This is my body. I only get one. This is me. Suddenly I am looking in the mirror at something completely foreign to me. Experiencing such rapid weight gain accompanied my permanent scarring is rough. In that moment, I didn't need to hear that I should be grateful. I needed to mourn. I needed to mourn the loss of my body as it was. I needed time to accept  what had happened to me. Give me a minute to process this change. A permanent change to your body is a big old deal. 

I realize weight gain and stretch marks seem trivial in the grand scheme of things. I know how blessed I am to have a healthy, strong body. I obviously feel my kids were worth it all. But please allow me to adapt to getting comfortable in my skin. I have come a long way. I hardly notice my stomach now, mostly because I have simply been able to accept it as part of me, as part of my story. I have a respect for it almost. I would be lying though if I claimed to wear them with pride or as a badge of honor. I don't. They aren't my favorite. I still get jealous of those who "bounce back" beautifully post baby. But they do not define my body, and they surely do not define me. I love my body, and I accept it as it is now. I had the right to mourn my loss, and the right to take my time processing and accepting the new normal. It isn't something you can force. Understanding that loving my body didn't require me to love every detail, but rather to accept and respect it as it is has brought me to a place of peace with it. 

xoxo Julie