What Time of Day is Best for Working Out?
By · May 17, 2012 · CommentsIs there a time of day that is more beneficial for working out? Does working out in the morning prove to be a more effective exercise time than working out later in the day?
Those are questions Jen, from Getting Fit With Jen, hears often. Here’s what she has to say about it:
There are a variety of studies that “prove” different theories on the subject of what time of day is best for working out. Most studies will tell you that working out in the morning is better and more effective. The thought behind this is that early morning exercise will energize you, get your day started right, and boost your metabolism.
Is this true? Sure, working out in the morning can be beneficial in these ways. But what if you’re the type of person who is groggy in the morning? What if getting up extra early for exercise just doesn’t work for you? What if you simply do not have time to work out first thing in the morning?
Occasionally some find that working out at night before bed makes it hard for them to sleep because of the endorphins that have been released during the workout, pumping them up and giving them extra energy. Some people find that working out at night doesn’t affect them negatively and that, in fact, they actually sleep better immediately following a good workout.
I say: Exercise during a time that works best for you. If morning works for you – great. If afternoon works for you – great. If night time works best for you – great. As long as you are finding time to exercise, no matter what time of day it is, you will reap the rewards!
Read more of Jen’s thoughts on this subject in her post: Finding Time to Exercise. If you’re interested in having Jen set up a personalized work-out program for you, read more about the services she provides here. I have benefited so much from having her as my “personal trainer”. :)
Lilla Rose Giveaway
By · May 17, 2012 · Comments
Unlike the past two times I’ve shared about Lilla Rose, I don’t have any ridiculous stories to share about how my piano ate my Flexi-Clip, or about how my Flexi-Clip fell into my boot. You should all be very proud of me. For the past few weeks, I have kept very good track of my clips. In fact, my very favorite one is in my hair right now – the best place I have found to keep it so that it won’t get lost!
Now, I do have to say that yesterday, I proved to myself how much I love my Flexi-Clips. Apparently, I have begun to take them for granted. I am so used to wearing them every day and being completely comfortable, that I forgot how nice they are on my head.
Yesterday, I pulled my hair up into a regular ol’ hair rubberband, just to get it out of my face, because all of my Flexi-Clips were in another room, and I was much to lazy to take the extra steps to go get one. I figured I’d swap it out once I went downstairs – but nope. I forgot. I then left to go out of town for the day, and was then far, far away from my Flexi-Clips.
I kid you not…all day long I was wishing I had a Flexi-Clip. My hair kept slipping out of the band, plus the band kept pulling my hair. Ouch! My Flexi-Clips never pull my hair. And they always stay in place.
Never again will I be too lazy to take the extra steps to go get my Flexi-Clip. I knew I loved them, but yesterday proved this to me once again!
Paula, from Lilla Rose, is offering to give away three Flexi-Clips (or any other item worth $15 or less). Leave a comment here for a chance to win one. Join Paula’s Facebook page for an additional entry, leaving a second comment here letting me know that you did. I’ll draw three random winners on Monday, May 21. Please watch for a post stating the winners as you will be responsible for contacting me if your name is chosen.
Last Day for Deliciously Organic Sale – and – Check Out My Boys’ Incredible Salad!!!
By · May 16, 2012 · CommentsI have been out of town all day long doing some much needed shopping and visiting a friend who just had a baby (yay!). Matt and the boys have been on their own, finishing some projects and a few final pages of math.
On my way out the door this morning, I suggested that maybe they open up the Deliciously Organic cookbook and create one of the salads featured. After all, we have a lot of of beautiful spinach coming up in our garden, and I knew that Deliciously Organic would have great ideas for how to use it.
Well, not only did they find a great recipe to make, they took some beautiful pictures to show me when I got home. (They also saved a few bites of the salad for me to eat when I got home - it was awesome!)
Let us all pause a moment to reflect on the fact that my family understands and appreciates the need to take pictures of food before practically every meal, whether Mom is home or not. Have they been living with a blogger for several years or what? Love my fam!
Check out this lovely “before salad” shot:
Matt was excited to find a recipe that uses such simple ingredients – ones we typically have on hand. And, for such simple ingredients to create such a flavor-packed salad…we were very impressed!
Next, we have pictured the final product:
Then, as if they were on a roll…they placed some of my Mother’s Day flowers by the salad to add even more color. How sweet are these men in my life?
You may also be interested to see that I also came home to pictures of lego projects that Malachi has been working on:
It appears that we have a Lego Blogger in the making. :)
I couldn’t be more pleased with the Deliciously Organic cookbook. Thursday, May 17 is the final day to purchase this cookbook and Carrie Vitt’s menu plans at a big discounted price. Be sure to check out the details here and don’t miss out on this fantastic deal!
Cook Once, Eat Twice (or more) {Eat Healthy ~ Save Time}
By · May 15, 2012 · Comments
When I make a lasagna, I must cook some meat, add some sauce and spices, layer the noodles with the meat sauce and cheese, then wash a few dishes.
When I make two lasagnas, I must cook some meat, add some sauce and spices, layer the noodles with the meat sauce and cheese, then wash a few dishes.
When I made three lasagnas, I must cook some meat, add some sauce and spices, layer the noodles with the meat sauce and cheese, then wash a few dishes.
I’ve even made up to eight lasagnas at one time. Even then, my job was to (all together now…) cook some meat, add some sauce and spices, layer the noodles with the meat sauce and cheese, then wash a few dishes.
Whether I’m making one lasagna or eight, I dirty the same number of dishes while preparing the food. I take barely any extra time to make extra lasagnas, so for me, it’s a no-brainer. Why would I just make one lasagna when I can make three (or eight)?
(And by the way, I typically only make eight lasagnas at once when I’m feeding a big soccer team. While my boy-filled family does eat a lot, we are not up to eating 1.333 lasagnas each…yet.)
The same “Cook Once, Eat Twice (or More)” concept applies to almost everything I make - Cheesy Beef and Rice, Corndog Muffins, even these Whole Wheat Waffles. Scroll through all of my Make Ahead Meal posts to get some ideas and recipes that will help fill your freezer with healthy convenience foods.
You do realize what will happen though, if you start participating in this “Cook Once, Eat Twice (or More)” system? You will then have a nice supply of healthy, homemade meals to quickly pull out of your freezer and heat up for your family – with little to no effort. Putting a hearty, healthy, delicious meal on the table will become extremely easy. You will no longer be able to use the “I don’t have time to eat or cook healthy food…” excuse.
Just so you know. ;)
Have you tried the “Cook Once, Eat Twice (or More)” kitchen efficiency method? What are some of your favorite healthy foods you like to make for your freezer?
Raspberry Almond Muffins from Deliciously Organic
By · May 15, 2012 · Comments
Yesterday’s new recipe try-out from the Deliciously Organic cookbook was Raspberry Almond Muffins.
How did my family like them? Well, the recipe made 18 muffins. I pulled them out of the oven, left to go take a walk, got back, and there were only 5 left. I guess we now know how my family liked them. ;) At least they left some for me to try. (I loved them too, by the way!)
Be sure to read more about Deliciously Organic here and take advantage of the great deal Carrie Vitt is offering us here for just a few more days.
Gratituesday: My Gift
By · May 14, 2012 · Comments
Ever since I lost my mom to ALS in July of 2004, Mother’s Day has been difficult for me. I miss her every day, but Mother’s Day is always harder.
Matt has always been so considerate each Mother’s Day – spoiling me and making the day special, yet acknowledging and understanding that it is a day that I tend to feel sad. I love his strength and compassion.
We don’t tend to give each other gifts on Mother’s Day or Father’s Day. We’ve never felt much need, and instead, fixing special food has always been our fun tradition. That is why I was so surprised to be presented with this on our way to church Sunday morning:
Receiving a gift at all was surprise enough. Seeing that he picked out a Bible with a cover described as “Pink and Chocolate” – well, does that tell you how well he knows me or what? And did you see what he had engraved on my new Bible?
Isn’t he the sweetest?
My husband shows me great honor in how he continually treats me like his queen. He had all of our boys sign the inside of the Bible, letting it be a gift from all of them.
I feel empowered to rise to the occasion and be the kind of Heavenly Homemaker they deserve and desire. I am honored to be the one God has chosen to make our family’s home more heavenly.
Share how God is working in your life on your blog, then come link up with us here. If you don’t have a blog, be sure to leave a comment letting us know what you’re grateful for! Please read through the Gratituesday Guidelines so that you understand what kinds of posts you can link up to share here. Posts that are linked but do not fit our Gratituesday theme will be deleted.
If you are linking up a blog post for Gratituesday,
please copy and paste the following sentence into your post! Thanks!Join us for Gratituesday at Heavenly Homemakers!
Mother’s Day Cake Update – Finally
By · May 14, 2012 · CommentsMy apologies that it took so long to give you an update on what in the world my family was baking for me while I was shut into my office yesterday afternoon. As soon as the mystery dessert was finished baking, we headed out to play some “Mother’s Day Soccer”. My choice. As in, I actually chose playing soccer over taking a nap. Go figure.
By the way, if you would have told me a year ago that this year I would suggest that we play a family game of soccer in honor of Mother’s Day, I would have laughed. But indeed, now that I’m getting fit and learning to enjoy playing with my kids, I just can’t get enough. Soccer on Mother’s Day just seemed like the perfect idea. And it was.
So back to the dessert you’ve been waiting to hear about.
Oh, but another reason I couldn’t update you on this mystery earlier is because after we played soccer, we had a nacho and movie night – with popcorn. Yes, didn’t you know that it’s always good to have nachos and popcorn together? Eh, it worked and it made everyone happy.
We are pretty good popcorn makers around here, always using coconut oil to make delicious popcorn. But this time, we used a fun new recipe from the Deliciously Organic cookbook. It was fantastic. However, we did have a wild ride in the kitchen while I was making it because I didn’t use a big enough pot. You know what happens when you don’t use a big enough pot when you’re making popcorn on the stovetop? The popcorn just keeps popping, and the lid comes off the pan, and popcorn goes absolutely everywhere. Jen was over hanging out with us, and Matt was in the kitchen too – both of them being very supportive while I was standing at the stove feeling rather helpless while popcorn started overflowing and flying. Matt offered some suggestions. Jen handed me a bowl for the flying popcorn, but with it, I only managed to make a bigger mess. Oh, you should have been there to witness the madness. ;)
This is the popcorn that managed to make it into the bowl.
But really, back to the dessert you’ve been waiting to hear about.
If you can believe it, the dessert recipe they picked wasn’t chocolate. I know, shocking. But wow, was it good.
They picked a “Hot Milk Sponge Cake” recipe from my old, worn out Better Homes and Gardens Cookbook. Then, like good children, they figured out how to adapt the recipe to use healthier sugars, fats, and flours. Is that not impressive? More on that in another post.
So apparently that’s what all the beating was about. Sponge cakes take a lot of beating. Thus, the beaters were running for minutes on end. :)
Then, if you can believe it, they made a “Broiled Coconut Topping” to go on top. I’m telling you, they outdid themselves. Talk about tasty!
This cake was delicious. My family is the greatest. And without a doubt, I will look up the recipe, ask them about their adaptations, and post it for you so that your family can make it for you sometime. Or so that you can make it for them. Or whatever. ;)
Menu Plan for the Week – {and a little bit of Mother’s Day mysterious dessert making play-by-play}
By · May 13, 2012 · Comments1:25 pm Well, I am currently shut into my office right now, and I don’t have permission to come out until the mysterious dessert my boys are working on has come out of the oven. I can hear the beaters running and if my family knows me at all, I expect to smell something chocolatey any minute now… ;)
Matt and the boys have been doing a great job spoiling me today, making Mother’s Day super special. Check out the lunch I just feasted on:
1:46 pm Matt just snuck in with a smirk to say, “Apparently the eggs were supposed to be beat separately before adding the other ingredients. Therefore, they have a bowl with 1 cup of flour, mixed with some baking powder and two eggs. Can you figure out something to do with that tomorrow so we don’t have to waste it?” I have two things to say: I am both excited and afraid to see my kitchen after today. And, I think I’ll be making pancakes tomorrow from that flour/egg/baking powder mixture. It just makes sense. :)
And now, back to the menu plan for this week:
Sunday, May 13
Cereal
Grilled steak, spinach and mushroom rice florentine, cream cheese corn, mystery dessert ;)
Nachos and a movie
Monday, May 14
Whole wheat pancakes (apparently)
Chicken nuggets, peas, baby carrots
Cheesy beef and rice, green beans
Tuesday, May 15
Fried eggs on toast, strawberry coconut smoothies
Creamy mac and cheese, steamed broccoli
Lasagna, tossed salad
2:01 pm I hear beaters again. I can not wait to find out what those boys are making. And I also really hope that I taught everyone well enough not to pick up the beaters before turning them off first!!
Wednesday, May 16
Chocolate chocolate chip muffins, apples
Crunch ranch chicken, stir fried rice and veggies
Roast, carrots, potatoes, gravy
Thursday, May 17
Scrambled eggs, hashbrowns, oranges
Pigs in a blanket, green beans
Creamy crockpot chicken and rice, carrots
Friday, May 18
Mini apple pies, turkey bacon
Easy noodle stir fry, milkshakes
Homemade pizza, fried okra
2:07 pm The beaters are still going! What are they making in there????
Saturday, May 19
Whole wheat cinnamon rolls, bananas
Leftovers
Chicken alfredo, steamed veggies, asparagus
2:12 pm Seriously, the beaters…still. How long can beaters run without burning out the motor?
2:13 pm If they don’t hurry up, I’m going to have to sneak out because um…I need to potty.
2:14 pm Ah, the beaters are off! Can I come out yet?
Apparently not.
While I’m still here in the office, I’ll show you a picture of Carrie Vitt’s (from Deliciously Organic) amazing Loaded Baked Potato Soup that we made yesterday.
Wow, that soup was good! Matt added some dehydrated red peppers in his bowl and loved the kick. The rest of us loved it with sour cream and cheese. It was easy to make, and everyone in the family devoured it. I liked that it called for chicken broth, giving me a meatless meal and a new option for stretching a chicken for six meals. If you haven’t yet, be sure to look into the deal Carrie put together for all Heavenly Homemakers readers. Get her amazing cookbook along with some healthy and family friendly meal plans at a great price!
2:18 pm Elias just came in to ask, “I can’t tell you pacifically, but if you were making frosting, would you use brown sugar or sucanat?”
I told him, “Brown sugar, and there’s organic brown sugar in the pantry”, but are you sure it doesn’t call for powdered sugar?”
And ‘pacifically’? Be still my heart. The cuteness abounds.
2:20 pm Elias came back in to say, “If you smell that burned smell, don’t worry.”
Okay, I’ll try. ;)
2:28 pm Beaters again. What in the world???
I’d say this post is “to be continued…” I’ll be back later with an update on what the boys made for my Mother’s Day dessert.
Hope you’re having a blessed day. There’s no doubt that I am. Even if I do have to ignore that burned smell coming from the kitchen. ;)
Saving Money Online – Healthy Deals
By · May 11, 2012 · Comments
~ I am so excited about this deal from Tropical Traditions!! Through Monday, May 14, extended through May 15!! they are offering FREE SHIPPING when you use the code: 14512. AND – their awesome Palm Shortening is 42% off, selling for just $23.59 for gallon sized bucket (through May 13). I love their palm shortening and use it often to make chicken nuggets, chicken fried steak strips, french fries, whole wheat pie crusts and much more. This is a great time to stock up!
~ A few have asked where I purchased Coconut Milk to make the Strawberry Coconut Smoothies this week. I had purchased a case of Thai Kitchen Coconut Milk from Amazon and love it!
~ Talking about the Strawberry Coconut Smoothies reminds me to mention again the deal Carrie Vitt has put together for us with the big discount on her Deliciously Organic cookbook and menu plans. Read the details here. We’ve got her Loaded Baked Potato Soup in the works for tomorrow after a soccer game – can’t wait to try it!
~ I see that Amazon has Nature’s Way Organic Virgin Coconut Oil priced at $14.43 for a quart with subscribe and save. I haven’t tried this brand. Anyone know anything about the quality?
~ This isn’t the healthiest of deals, but if you’re needing to eat out soon, here are some coupons you can get for Quiznos – a much healthier eating out option compared to some fast food places.
~ While this isn’t a food coupon, it does relate to being healthy! Since deciding to make fitness a priority, I learned that good shoes are a must. Here is a great coupon you can print to receive 20% off your entire purchase at Famous Footwear.
This Week’s Giveaway Winners
By · May 11, 2012 · CommentsThe winner of the Wildtree giveaway is:
Sarah: eagle_one_theatre_chick@
The winner of the More Than Alive Mother’s Gift Package giveaway is:
Diane: mccoppin@
Ladies, email me and I’ll forward your info on for your prize.
Be sure to check out Wildtree and More Than Alive, two of our great sponsors here at Heavenly Homemakers!
