My How Time Flies...

This little itty bitty

is now a whopping 16 months old!

She loves to help me "vacuum" and

 

she loves to try on all her different shoes and listen to them on the tile floor.

It's a whole different world around here these days

we do hair!

She is SO much fun!

Her and Reno are best buddies.

She is so very loved 

by her brothers,

me

and of course her Dad (she is quite the "Daddy's Girl") 

Pancake Fun

I NEVER, EVER leave the house without a good breakfast under my belt.  It was a habit I had to get into.  It wasn't easy and some mornings start early, but it is so worth it.  Breakfast will make or break my day.  You better believe my family isn't allowed to walk out the door without it either.

We love pancakes and I LOVE to experiment with them.  I have a base recipe that I use, but I will play around with different fruits and stuff to switch things up.  My sweet boys are always so good about trying my experiments even when they turn out funky colors (like the raspberry lemon pancakes I made, delicious, but funky).

Pancakes


1 C Whole Wheat Flour
1 C Oats
2 Tbls Ground Flax
1 Tbls Baking Powder
1 Tsp Baking Soda
1 Tsp Salt
2 Eggs
2 C Low Fat Milk (sometimes the amount varies, I always start with 1 & 1/2 then add more if needed)

*You can top them with whatever you'd like.  I use a little bit of agave and what ever fruit I put in them.

Extras

Peanut Butter Banana:

1/4 C Peanut Butter (heaping)
1 Banana pureed or mashed
1 Tsp Cinnamon
1 Tsp Vanilla

Raspberry Lemon:

1/2 C Pureed Raspberries
Zest and Juice of 1 Lemon
3/4 Tsp Almond Extract
2 Tbls Sugar

Yes, these come out a fantastically, awesome blue, not sure why, but they are delicious!

Strawberry Orange:

1/2 C Pureed Strawberries

Zest and Juice of 1 Orange

3 Tbls Almonds

3/4 Tsp Almond Extract

Apple Pancakes:

1 green apple with peel; Grated

1 Tsp Cinnamon

3/4 Tsp Nutmeg

1 Tsp Vanilla

There are so many different, fun variations to try!

I Have So Very Much To Be Thankful For

It has been way to long and I have so much to share that I don't even know where to start.  I regret my year and a half hiatus, BUT I refuse to dwell on things I can't change.  Besides there are way to many new and exciting things going on, to dwell on anything else.

First and for most...

Meet my dear sweet baby girl, Zoey.

She is our absolute miracle baby.  She is the sweetest little thing and I thank the Lord everyday for allowing me to be her Mama.  Her story is so sweet and so amazing that I do need to share it.

When Hunter was about two we had some miscarriages and then other health issues came into play that scared us enough that Jon had a vasectomy done.  We thought that that was the end for us...

For six very long, difficult years, I tried everything in my power to get Jon to consider adopting a baby and battled some severe depression.  I knew there was a baby girl waiting to come to our family, but for reasons of his own he was very reluctant.  Then, about week before Christmas in 2010 he told me he was ready to adopt.  We filled out all the paper work and were ready to turn it in when something just didn't feel right.  After A LOT of pondering and even more prayer we decided to have Jon's vasectomy reversed.  He had it done in January of 2011 and by February, I was pregnant.  It has all been a very surreal experience, one that I am so amazed by and thankful for.  A true test of prayer and faith.

After a long, stressful pregnancy

this 5 lb 3 oz little itty bitty decided she was ready to make her grand entrance on October 30, 2011.

I honestly can't believe how long it had been since I had felt true joy.  Not since the births of my boys.  She is so incredibly loved

there is nothing that these boys won't do for her and

you'd better believe she's got this one wrapped around her tiniest, itty bittiest little finger.

A Healthy Comfort Classic

I love cooking, I always have.  I think I might have a small addiction to cookbooks. . .

I found a new book that has been SO fun.  It's "Now eat This!" by Rocco Dispirito.  He has an awesome story that he tells in the cookbook.  Long story short, he was challenged by the producers of, my all time favorite show, "The Biggest Loser" to remake the contestants favorite foods, their absolute weaknesses.  They wanted him to make them healthier and still taste good.  He didn't think it could be done.  He took on the challenge ended up losing 30 pounds, getting into triathlons and writing a book dedicated to these recipes, and they REALLY are good!

This is one that my boys absolutely love.  I hadn't made it in a very, very long time because I just couldn't stomach feeding it to them in it's classic version.  The age old classic:

Macaroni and Cheese with a Crusty Crunch

Nonstick cooking spray

4 oz. whole-wheat elbow macaroni

1/2 Onion-Garlic Puree (recipe below)

1/2 tsp dry mustard

Pinch of cayenne pepper

1 C shredded reduced fat or fat free cheddar cheese

1/3 C nonfat Greek yogurt

Salt

1/4 C whole-wheat panko breadcrumbs (I can't find whole-wheat)

1/4 C grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese

Preheat the oven to 425.  Spray an 8x8-inch baking dish with cooking spray, and set it aside.

Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil.  Add the macaroni and cook according to the package directions, 7 to 9 minutes; drain.

While the pasta is cooking, bring the Onion-Garlic puree, mustard and cayenne to a simmer in a small saucepan over medium heat, stirring often.  Whisk in the cheddar until it has melted.  Remove the pan from the heat and whisk in the yogurt.

In a medium bowl, toss the cooked macaroni with the cheese sauce to coat thoroughly.  Season with salt to taste.  Pour the macaroni into the prepared baking dish, and sprinkle the panko over the top.  Top with the Parmigiano-Reggiano.

Bake until the cheese has melted and the macaroni is hot throughout, about 10 minutes.  Serve immediately.  

Onion-Garlic Puree

1 large Vidalia onion, roughly chopped

9 garlic cloves, roughly chopped

1/2 C water

Salt and freshly ground black pepper

Combine the onion, garlic, and water in a microwave-safe bowl.  Season with salt and pepper to taste.  Cover the bowl tightly with plastic wrap,and microwave on high for 10 minutes.

Pour the mixture into a blender and blend until it is completely smooth (I use a food processor).  Season with salt and pepper to taste, if desired.  Store in a covered container in the refrigerator for up to 72 hours. 

I put it with whatever veggies I have on hand at the time.  I did this with some steamed carrots, tossed in olive oil, a little bit of brown sugar, dry parsley flakes and a little bit of salt.

St. George for the Marathon

The day before the Marathon we went into Snow Canyon and played in the sand

 they buried Zack,

then they buried Hunter

clearly they loved it. . .

St. George Marathon

 The boys made signs. . . 

 I have the cutest boys EVER!!!

I'm not gonna lie, this was probably the hardest race I've ever run. Physically, psychologically, mentally and emotionally.  I had completely checked out at mile 13.  I was ready for it to be a half.  It was an awesome first half too.  I got really lonely the second half and just wanted to be hangin with my family.  I don't think the record high temps that day helped very much either. . .  

Spiced Pumpkin-Gingerbread Waffles

My apologies, this one is a little late.  It's more of a fall recipe, but I love it all winter long and my boys LOVE these, they don't care what time of the year it is.   I don't know if Jon is a big fan, but the kids and I LOVE them.  They cook up so big and fluffy and they're really filling.  One waffle goes a long way.

Spiced Pumpkin-Gingerbread Waffles

3 C all-purpose flour

1 Tbls baking powder

2 tsp ground ginger

1 Tbls cinnamon

1 Tbls nutmeg

1/4 tsp salt

1/4 C sugar

1/4 C brown sugar

1 egg

3 egg whites

1 1/2 C canned pumpkin

1 C nonfat milk

1 Tbls vanilla extract

In a large bowl, stir together flour, baking powder, ginger, cinnamon, nutmeg, salt, and sugars.  In another bowl, add the egg, egg whites, pumpkin, milk, and vanilla: stir to blend.  Combine dry and wet mixtures, stirring gently.  Pour  about half a cup of batter into a standard 8-inch waffle maker.  Cook for about 3 to 4 minutes.  Makes about 8 waffles.

Calories: 298,  Fat: 2,  Carbs: 62,  Protein: 9,  Fiber: 5,  Sodium: 56 mg

My, How Time Flies. . .

It's been quite a crazy, busy and fun last couple of months.  We've had some big things happen and we have some big things in the works.

In October we went to California which is a whole different post.  We had some major victories that need to be documented.

In November Hunter turned eight and was baptized.  It was a very proud moment. . .

Jon and Hunter in their matching ties

I'm SO proud of my boys, all of them!

Christmas was quite eventful for us this year. . .

We made gingerbread trees. . .

Santa got milk and cookies.  The reindeer got carrots. . .

Christmas Morning. . .

The boys got desks and. . .

Roller Blades!

(They love them!)

And I got an extra, super special surprise that I hope to have more info on a little later.

It was a good year!

Crock Pot Turkey Chili

I love, love, love crock pot meals!!

This chili is SO good!  My boys have serious bean issues and they both asked when we could make this again.  The recipe makes a lot so for me it's really nice to put half of it in a big zip lock bag and freeze it.  Pull it out stick it in the crock pot to thaw it out.  Or, you can just half the recipe.  This is one of those meals that, I think, is better the next day (Jon does too).  It has time for all the flavors to sink in and mmmm, it's good.

Crock Pot Turkey Chili

2 lbs 93% Lean Ground Turkey

1 large Sweet Onion

2 15 oz. cans Great Northern Beans

2 15 oz. cans Kidney Beans

2 10 oz. cans Tomato Soup

1 10 oz. can Diced Tomatos & Green Chilis

1 8 oz. can Tomato Sauce

2 tsp. Taco Seasoning

2 tsp. Ground Cumin

2 tsp. Chili Powder

Salt to taste

Directions

1. Brown ground turkey in large skillet and drain.

2. Combine turkey with all other ingredients in large crock pot.

3. Cook 6-8 hours on low, or 3-4 hours on high.

4. Serve hot. Add cheese and/or sour cream if desired. These are not figured into calories.

Number of Servings: 12

Cal. 299, Fat 6, Carbs. 38, Fiber 10, Protein 25

A Two-fer!

So. . . as I'm sitting down tonight, getting ready to add a new post about a major victory, I was listening to Jon and the boys discussing what treat they wanted to eat while they watched their movie.  I wasn't really paying attention, but I did hear ice cream mentioned among other random things.  The next thing I know, this is what I found...

Jon and Zack opted for celery with peanut butter and

 Hunter decided to go with grapes.

How awesome is that!

It's one of those small victories that shows me my efforts aren't all in vain.

And now, victory/proud moment number two. . . 

We rode a mountain bike trail as a family, all of us!

There's Z!  This kid is amazing on a bike.  It's effortless for him and it has been since day one.

There's my monkey man, Hunter.  He made me so proud.  He was so brave.

And. . .

Oh yeah, that's me, on my mountain bike, on an actual mountain bike trail! 

I'm pretty happy with my two-fer. . . 

WWF Lowe Family Style

The boys decided they wanted to wrestle tonight. . .

Poor Reno gets nervous when they wrestle

Zack has some camo-spidey-ness goin on, a little something I like to call awesome-ness!

This was Hunter's Halloween costume when he was ONE, that's all I have to say about that!

Applesauce Muffins

These muffins are really good.  You'd think it was Christmas morning over and over again with how excited my boys get when I make these.  I make these and a fruit drink.  I throw what ever fruit we feel like in the blender, frozen or fresh.  We use berries, peaches, apples, bananas (I ALWAYS put in a couple of bananas) whatever we feel like and then put in a packet of instant breakfast and orange juice or milk.  Breakfast of champs.  It's a favorite at my house.

The muffins I got from the Deceptively Delicious cookbook.  I use pureed carrots for this one.

Applesauce Muffins

Topping
2/3 c old-fashioned oats
1/4 c firmly packed brown sugar
1 tsp cinnamon
2  Tlbs margarine, melted

Batter
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 c old-fashioned oats
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp cinnamon (I put more in, I also put nutmeg in)
1 c nonfat or low-fat milk
1/2 c butternut squash OR carrot puree
1/2 c firmly packed brown sugar
1/4 c vegetable or canola oil (I use flax seed, use it as a 3 to 1 ratio. 1/4 c oil = 3/4 c flax)
1 large egg

Preheat oven to 400.  Coat a 12-cup muffin tin with cooking spray or line with paper baking cups.

To make the topping, stir together the oats, sugar, and cinnamon in a bowl.  Stir in the margarine.

To make the batter, combine the flour, oats, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon/nutmeg (if you want) and the flax seed, if are using it, in a large bowl and stir.  In a second bowl, mix the applesauce with the milk, vegetable puree, sugar, oil (if using) and egg with a wooden spoon.  Add the flour mixture slowly, stirring until just moistened.  Do no overmix - the batter is supposed to be lumpy.

Divide the batter evenly among the muffin cups and sprinkle with the streusel topping.  Bake until the topping is lightly browned and a toothpick comes out clean when inserted into  the center of the muffins, 18 to 20 minutes (they cook quicker when you use the flax, about 5 minutes or so).

Wasatch Crest Trail

I woke up Thursday morning dreading my run.  In training for the St. George Marathon I have run the same streets more times than I can possibly count.  My text to Jon that morning was:   "So. . . do I need to run today or is there a chance that u will take me on a mountain run tomorrow?"  Of course he said yes, he loves me like that.  He was giving me options of where I might want to go and started talking about Wasatch Crest.  He tells me "It's not the most difficult trail, but you will love it.  It's so pretty.  We can get you about 10 miles out of it."

Really!?!?!

Long story short, we decided that you don't truly KNOW a trail until you have gone out and back.  He had only ever ridden the trail one way before today.  It was a whole new adventure.  It ended up being 12.5 incredibly challenging miles.  Usually, when you start a trail run it's all up hill and you get to come down at the end.  Not today, Zurg!  The END was all uphill.  It was a great way to finish off 12 miles.  St. George has nothin on what I did today!

Green Pizza!

This one is awesome!  It has broccoli and spinach on it.  Zack, my super picky eater, loves this one.  I'm not sure what it is about it, but I'm pretty sure he would eat an entire pizza by himself if I let him.  It's been very popular among friends as well.

Green Pizza

1 pound prepared pizza dough, preferably whole-wheat
2 cups chopped broccoli florets
1/4 c water
5 ounces arugula (about 6 cups) again I use spinach because I have yet to find arugula in the stores by me.
   salt and pepper
1/2 c prepared pesto
1 c shredded part-skim mozzarella cheese
 (Jon and I like to put a little bit of feta on there too)

Position oven rack in the lowest position; preheat to 450.  Coat a large baking sheet with cooking spray.

Roll out dough on a lightly floured surface to about the size of the baking sheet.  Bake until puffed and lightly crisped on the bottom, 8 to 10 minutes.

Meanwhile, cook broccoli and water in a large skillet over medium heat, covered, until the broccoli is crisp-tender, about 3 minutes.  Stir in arugula (spinach) and cook, stirring, until wilted, 1 to 2 minutes more.  Season with salt and pepper.

Spread pesto evenly over the crust, top with the broccoli mixture and sprinkle with cheese.  Bake until crispy and golden and the cheese is melted, 8 to 10 minutes.

Frustration

Do you ever wonder what ever happened to YOU?  Sometimes I wonder if everything I do is a product of everyone around me.  I wonder if the only reason I do some of the things I do is because someone else thinks that's what I should be doing.  I have decided to go on a self discovery quest!

Right now I'm training for the St. George marathon, wondering if it will be my last. . .

I had a really big start to my summer with the Little Red Century, Rockwell Relay and Ragnar.  I've had a hard time keeping my body out of recovery mode, not to mention I found myself eating fudge stripe cookies and peanut butter for lunch (yes Mom, that's what I had for lunch today).  I tend to feed my stress and then beat myself up for it later (my dear, sweet husband LOVES it when I do this, bless his heart. . .).  I'm hoping that if I can find myself somewhere then I won't have as much stress to feed. . .

Rockwell, what an experience!

Soooo. . . I did it and I cannot tell you how fun it was!  Our team was so fun!  It was Jon and I, my friend, Melanie Stewart and Eric Jensen.  Eric was the innocent bystander.  What a great guy.  The people alone, have made these experiences awesome.  I have met the nicest people ever doing these races.

This race was challenging, it was a very humbling experience.  It leaves that "want" in me to go out and train harder.  I didn't complete all my legs, no one on my team did but we tried and we had so much fun doing it.  To not complete it, is gonna eat at me.  I want more than anything to really prepare and come back with a vengeance.

Little Red

Well, I did it. . . I rode my bike 100 miles!  It was so fun, a little scary, but so much fun.  I'm not gonna lie, there were times that I really questioned my mental health.  My longest training ride, before the actual 100 was 28 miles, I had only been on my bike three times since September, AND I'm really quite scared of going down hills (the big steep ones) on my bike.  I always have these thoughts of losing my breaks or just losing control of the bike.   I have high anxiety when it comes to trying new things which causes me to nervously eat, but that's a different subject for a different day.  I'm extremely excited that I did it, this is a very proud moment for me.  It was 100 miles and 6 hours of overcoming my bike fears.  I won that battle!

I'm heading down to Moab this weekend to do the Rockwell Relay with Jon.  I'm so excited, it will be our first event together.  Again, I'm a little nervous, but I sure am glad that I did Little Red, it really helped me to feel much more comfortable on my bike (Jon made some adjustments to my bike as well, that really helped me feel more stable, he's so good to me).  I guess we'll see how this one goes.  Oh, and Ragnar, that's the weekend after Rockwell.  Wow, again, I find myself questioning my sanity. . .

Rockwell Relay

So, I have decided to take on biking. . . talk about baptism by fire.  Jon and I are part of a four man team that is riding from Moab to St. George.  It's called the Rockwell Relay.  It's a total of 516 miles spread out between the four of us.  Each one of us rides three different times and each individual ride averages out to about 44 miles.  Jon, bless his heart, is out on the course right now.  He is with Dan Stewart (who put the race together) and two other guys giving the route a trial run.  I'm extremely excited and nervous.  Not to mention Ragnar is the week after.

To train for this I'm going to do the Little Red century bike ride (which is 100 miles).  This has been very spur of the moment.  It was an opportunity I just couldn't pass up.  We'll see how it goes.  Talk about taking on my fears of the bike. . .

Our "Date Nights"

We don't really have a typical "date night".  My sweet husband, Jon, has Fridays off, so we send the boys off to school and we hit the mountains.  Jon on his bike and me, on my feet (I'm still working on mountain biking, it scares me, a lot).

We love, love, love the great outdoors.  Today we went to Ogden to the Shoreline Trail.  This, I have to say, is one of my absolute favorites.  It is so pretty.  It has rolling hills winding in and out of small canyons.  It has trees that bend over the trail, so you're running (or biking) through this beautiful, leafy tunnel.  It's awesome!  

Deep breaths. . .

Please bare with me, I need a minute to vent. . .

I went with Zack (my nine year old), on a school field trip.  I love going on the field trips and watching him with all his friends, it's so cute.  I usually second guess my decision to ride the big, yellow bus with them by the time the day is done, but what do ya do, right?

My irritations come from lunch.  When we sat down to eat I was floored.  These kids had cinnamon rolls and other pastry items instead of sandwiches, with candy and chips.  To top it all off, they had big, 16 oz bottles of Coke and Dr. Pepper. . . what the. . . are you kidding me?  It's a bunch of 8 and 9 year old kids, why is that okay?  Needless to say after lunch, the kids were all over the place, bouncing off the walls.  How do we expect our kids to learn anything when their insides are a shaky, jittery mess.  And our poor teachers, that's just not even fair, really it's just rude.

I was watching Dr. Oz the other day, research that he has been a part of, is showing that if we don't change what we are feeding our kids, by the time they are our age, 85% of them will be, not just overweight, but obese.  Don't know about you, but it doesn't give me warm fuzzies.

Making Pizza Healthy

Pizza is a favorite at our house, so I had to figure out how to make it healthy and tasty enough that my boys would actually eat it.  Thank you Runner's World.

Caramelized Onion & Fig Pizza

Pizza dough for one pizza
1 Tbls olive oil
2 yellow onions, chopped
1/2 tsp salt
1 Tbls brown sugar
1 Tbls balsamic vinegar
1 C arugla leaves, packed (I use spinach)
6 dried figs, sliced
4 oz goat cheese, crumbled

Roll out dough to fit baking pan.  Preheat oven to 450.  Heat oil and saute onions with salt until brown.  Add sugar and balsamic vinegar.  Cook for 10 min.  Spread onion mixture over dough, leaving an edge for the crust.  Top with arugla (or spinach, I can't find arugla in my grocery stores), figs, and crumbled cheese. Place in oven for 15 minutes or until crust is golden.  Remove from oven and drizzle balsamic vinegar on top.  Slice into sixths and serve.

Calories: 190, Carbs: 24g, Protein: 6g, Fat: 9g