mamas13minutemile

If you thought I was stretching the truth that I am a blogger fanatic then you were wrong my friend.  Here are some more bloggers that I love.

Healthy Diva Eats is another great blog.  Healthy Diva posts great recipes and has a feel good aura all about her.  She also comments back on your comments which can make you feel like instant besties!  In my dreams right? 

I am not a vegan.  I am not even a vegetarian but Mama Pea makes me want to be one.  Yummy recipes, a great sense of humor and another one of those women that make you feel like the mom of a century.  Love Peas and Thank You!

Great workouts can be found on Sweet Tooth, Sweet Life and My Food and Fitness Diaries.  Love em both for workout ideas.

Two great cooking blogs that I check out every day are Averie Cooks and Annie’s Eats.  Yum!  Yum!

And I love me some Stuft Mama.  She just cracks me up and her recipes are spot on delish.  I never thought I would love baked broccoli slaw but I eat it! 

I will have more installments of My Inspiration down the road but tune in for something different tomorrow.

Shaunna

I can’t remember the first blog I came across but it wasn’t long after that I was subscribing to a million blogs and getting excited about all the information I was learning.  I soon wanted to be just like these blogging celebrities and here I am.  Maybe someday I will be as cool as these bloggers.  Here is a little shout out to some of my blogging inspiration!

One of my first blog finds was meals & moves.  I basically want to be best friends with Janetha but for now I will continue to be her blog stalker.  She has great recipes, does fun stuff and has 2 cute pooches.  Hers is one of the few blogs that I read every single post rather than skim through it.

Lindsay shares tons of workouts on her blog and she also coordinates Foodie Pen Pals that I look forward to each month.  You do not have to be a blogger to participate!

When I want to feel great as a person, a lover and a mother I read Lindsays List.  She has a way with words that make me cry almost once a week and she also hosts the tuesday trainer which is great when you are looking for a workout.

I wish I did more adventurous cooking than I do and I wish I made time to cook all the recipes that The Pioneer Woman shares on her blog.  These are definitely indulgent recipes but look oh so tasty.

Clare at Fitting It All In is incredible.  She was kind enough to do some shopping at Whole Foods for me!  She posts workouts, foodie info, and she posts pictures of her daily outfits which is helpful to an unstylish lady like myself.

This is just the tip of the iceberg of my blogging obsession folks.  I will be sharing more of my inspiration later on.  Check these fabulous ladies out! 

Shaunna

Remember my June goals?  I do….kinda.

I am just gonna check in, then ramble, and then ask for your help in sorting my rambles.  Sound good?

1.  I have been eating snacks after 8pm.  I like night snacks and I have decided to enjoy them.  Sometimes I feel guilty and sometimes I truly set aside calories and am not naughty.

2.  I haven’t been running twice a week every week but I have been running at least once.  I need to get on track.  It truly takes less than 13 minutes out  of my life.  Get with the program Shaunna!

3.  I have been slacking on the water….even at work.  Not sure what the issue is here because it is like 900 degrees outside.

4.  I barely tracked my calories last week.  Part of it was because I was lazy and part of it was because I wanted to eat 4 pieces of cake in one day and not have the high calorie count staring me in the face.  I truly believe that I eat healthy 80% of the time and counting calories is daunting to me.  But I am pissed at myself because I am participating in the fitmixer bootcamp and am not putting forth the work I need to be incredible.  That makes me feel crappy.  I hate feeling guilty at the end of the day.  Ew.

5.  Aside from special occasions I have been really good about not eating out.  Yay!

6.  Uh oh!  I have been slacking on the push ups but I do alright.  If you have my phone number and are reading this right now….text me!  I will drop and give you 10!

7.  My sister hasn’t been helping me as much but I do the sit ups 4 nights out of 7 so that isn’t too bad.

8.  I can do a 30 second plank no problem.  I bet I could do 1 minute but I truly haven’t tried.

9.  I do feel like I have lost some bulk in my tummy and I feel totally awesome about my arms so I think my thoughts on my body have gotten better.

10.  I’m blogging y’all.  Tell me what you want to see more of.  I really kind of putzed (is that a word?) through June but want to make my blog something special going forward.

So here are my rambles.  Help me make sense of them.

1.  I am coming to terms with my body and am liking it.  But why do I still feel guilty if I skip a work out or if I don’t track my calories.

2.  I have been working out at least 5 days a week but don’t feel like I am pushing myself anymore.  I need to quit telling myself it is okay not to work hard because the fact I am doing it is enough.

3.  Calorie counting.  I hate doing it and for totally stupid reasons.  Mostly it is because I get so down on myself if I get off track.

And that is all.

I really need a push and my willpower and self motivation aren’t there.  Can you help me?

Shaunna

I got a groupon for admission for 2 to Zoo Brew at the Blank Park Zoo in Des Moines.  I had always heard good things I mean beer, music and animals is always a perfect combo right?

The Zoo Brew happens on Wednesdays through the summer in the evening.  Only adults can come and enjoy the festivities.  Things get wild during the Zoo Brew.

They had Iowa breweries on June 20th when we went.  We waited in line for about 5 minutes to try a couple samples from Olde Main Brewery.  They were pretty yummy.  Kevin and I are too old (seriously…we just don’t drink very often anymore) so we didn’t wait around for any more samples but we did see Peace Tree Brewing Co. where we went for a tour in May for Kevins birthday.

We decided to check out the animals.

It is like the 3 billy goats gruff here .

There was a storm later that night and it was super hot so a lot of the cool animals were put away but we still had a great time.

It was a great date night!

Shaunna

It’s my 30th birthday y’all.  I will forever act like an 8 year old about my birthday.  I want cake, I want attention and I want presents.  Yahoo!

I decided that I would follow suit with what many other 30 year olds do on their birthday and make a list of the 30 things I want to do in my year of 30.  One day I well learn to make my lists pretty like Calee but I am not smart enough yet.

1.  I want to run a 5K.  I signed up for the Color Run in October….so now I just have to do it.   Calee was cool enough to let me join her team.

2.  I want to take some type of Sugar Detox Challenge.  There are a lot out there….so maybe this one?

3.  I want to volunteer somewhere.  Suggestions?

4.  I want to keep a journal and at least jot down things I am grateful for on a semi-daily basis.

5.  I want to read 12 books.  I am struggling to get through the final book in the 50 Shades of Grey series (I am totally bored of it!) and once I am done I am ready to go full force into something else.  Suggestions?

6.  I want to take some type of art class.

7.  I want to take a cooking class…maybe like 5 cooking classes

8.  I want to save some money and go on a shopping spree for a new wardrobe WITHOUT FEELING GUILTY!

9.  I want to take our first family trip outside of Iowa.  Just a weekend thing.

10.  I want to visit a medium.  Like the Long Island Medium but a little closer to home.

11.  I want to learn to can.  I want to make salsa, applesauce, and can stuff from my garden.

12.  I want to read the bible.  I want to understand what I read when I read the bible.

13.  I want to try my hand at craft fairs this winter around Christmas time.  I want to make some money.

14.  I want to meditate….and enjoy the benefits.

15.  I want to have a dinner party.  A successful and fun one.

16.  I want to cook at least 2 new recipes a month.

17.  I want to get married to the man of my dreams.  August 18th is coming up fast!

18.  I want to eat clean.

19.  I want to do big girl push ups….like more than 3 in a row.

20.  I want to scrapbook at least once a month.

21.  I want to try out for a play.  I was a pretty big deal in high school and had so much fun.

22.  I want to get 50 followers on this blog. 

23.  I want to make and follow a budget.

24.  I want to reconnect with my girlfriends.  After having Stella I kind of forgot it was okay to have girl time.  Friends….call me

25.  I want to have a working office.  I procrastinate soooo much!

26.  I want to take another pole fitness class here.

27.  I want to make my kitchen more functional.

28.  I want to truly ignore my kangaroo pouch.  Maybe wear a bikini again

29.  I want to fulfill my summer bucket list.

30.  I want to go to a bloggers conference.

Holla!  I am going to eat lots of cake and not feel guilty.

Have a great day!

Shaunna

1.  I didn’t blog yesterday.  I was busy.  Have I mentioned that I am planning a wedding?  It is hard and busy work.

2.  Ugh.  This is my shirt I wore to work today.

Yeah.  We use those little smell good sprinkles in our laundry.  Apparently these didn’t dissolve properly.  Embarrassing.

3.  My kid doesn’t know how to put a bra on.

Close Baby Belle….so close.

4.  I need to get blogger dishes.

This Halloween bowl from the dollar store is just plain ridiculous!  I used this big old bowl to make my apple cinnamon pancakes which I will share with you today.

Here is what you need:

1 apple

2 cups flour (I used white…it was all I had!)

2 eggs

cinnamon

milk (I used almond milk)

1.  Core and slice an apple.  I have this gem from Pampered Chef that is totally rad and I used the biggest setting.

3.  Make your pancake batter.  I will be honest and tell you I didn’t measure anything.  You can use a pancake mix or use your go to recipe.  I just used what I mentioned above using enough milk to make it slightly liquidy.  Check out the consistency in that crazy Halloween bowl.

4.  Get your pan or griddle nice and hot and use an oil spray to lube it up.  Plop that apple down and then spoon pancake batter so that it coats around the apple slice.

5.  Wait for the bubbles.  When the side facing the pan is done it will start to make bubbles.  Then flip.  Voila.

Baby Belle loved these and I didn’t even use syrup!

I finally remembered to take pictures this weekend like a good blogger does.  I still feel like my blog has no point and I am just randomly vomiting crap on here but I am fine with that for now.

So let me vomit you my weekend….which was fabulous by the way.

I will start with Saturday.  I made breakfast for Kevin and myself while Baby Belle was staying with my aunt Kimmy.

That is Kevins breakfast and yes that is a cube of butter in between 2 pieces of bread.  I am slowly converting my family into clean eaters and we just got rid of the last of our margarine.

Here was my breakfast.  An open faced egg sandwich.

I clearly blog vomit and take horrible blog pictures.  I can only get better right? 

My friend Merd graciously invited me to a spa day on Saturday.  We went to Finesse in Ames to get pampered.  It was divine.  We both got a 30 minute massage and mani/pedis.  BEST DAY EVER!

With our spa day package we each got lunch brought in too.  I had pizza and Merd was a good girl and had a wrap.  The best part of lunch was the dessert.  Merd got 3 soft doughy bread pillows sprinkled with cinnamon and sugar and icing to dip it in.  Sooooo good.  Aren’t her nails pretty?

After our spa day I went to pick my kiddo up at my aunts.  She wasn’t feeling well and had a low fever.  Got her home to cuddle with her daddy and I went to my cousins bachelorette party dinner at Dos Rios in downtown Des Moines.  I was worried about finding parking on a Saturday night so I left super early and was the first one to arrive.  I bellied up to the bar and had their low cal margarita.

Others started showing up shortly after.  It was a really great time!

My cousin Selena is one of the sweetest people I know.  I am so happy for her and her hubby to be Raph!

My cousin Jenni was the only other person I knew there but the girls I sat next to were really nice and I had a great time although I pooped out at 9:30 and went home after dinner.  I am such a grandma.

(Jenni, Selena and me!)

Sunday morning I made breakfast again.  We all ate something different.  I made the babe cinnamon apple pancakes which I will share the recipe sometime this week.  She loved em!

Baby Belle and I met my mom and sis at Ledges (summer bucket list!!!!)on Sunday so Kevin could take naps all day for Fathers Day.  We had a blast.  I had Stella in my Ergo carrier but after we got up most of a big hill she was fussing to get out.

Once we got done climbing rocks and hills and stairs we walked around the bottom in the water.  She loved it and we played in there for about an hour!

We wrapped everything up with a picnic lunch and some kisses!

I chipped my nails but totally worth it!

Had a great weekend and I am looking forward to a great week!

Shaunna

Sorry for the missed post yesterday.  I ran around like a chicken with my head cut off for most of the day. 

I did however remember to take pictures of everything that I ate.  I have been struggling with staying in my 1200-1300 calorie range for the fitmixer boot camp so I sent out an SOS to the other participants to share what they eat for a day so I can get some ideas and encouragement.  So if you are a fitmixer bootcamp participant you don’t need to read on as I am going to post this on our hub as well.

I start off every morning with the same three drinks.  Coffee with cream, my aminos for my workout and then follow up with a protein shake.

I use the myfitnesspal app on my phone to track my calorie intake and keep in mind some of the food I post, like my supper may not be completely accurate but it should be fairly close.  My morning cocktails usually equal to about 230 calories.

We are supposed to eat 5 to 6 small meals a day to keep our metabolism up.  I work in an office and snack a lot out of boredom.  I kind of graze all day.  That may not be what I am supposed to do but I feel if I am grazing on good foods its all good right?

I had a teeny bit of almonds as a morning snack.  I ended up having more later so I had an entire serving during the day which was 160 calories.

Then I had some of the overnight oats I made the night before in a old PB Wonderful jar.  I didn’t eat all of it because I wasn’t hungry.  I guessed the amount I had because I didn’t measure.  :\  I figured I ate 205 calories worth.  I included almond milk, Chobani non fat plain greek yogurt, steel cut oats and regular oatmeal, and then of course the peanut butter I left on the sides of the jar.

For lunch I had buffalo cauliflower bites.  I found the recipe on Pinterest and make it all the time.  When cauliflower goes on sale I buy several heads and make a bunch and then flash freeze them and put them in the freezer.  Throw it frozen on a baking sheet for a while in the oven and they cook and crisp back up.  I also used about 1 1/2 tablespoons of full fat ranch because with these I need the real stuff .  I totaled lunch to be 262 calories.

For an afternoon snack I had the rest of the serving of almonds and about a cup and a half of watermelon.  The watermelon was 68 calories.

For dinner we had a chicken alfredo lasagna that I made a long time ago and threw in the freezer.  The cream sauce base was tofu though and not some creamy jarred stuff.  I truly guessed on what was all in there and came up with dinner being 360 calories.  I forgot to take a picture of the lasagna until it was all gone.  I ate my steamed carrots too quickly too.

Later that night I made some cinnamon peanut butter raisin cookies (recipe to come) and tested one out at 80 calories.

So I went over at 1365 but didn’t do too bad.  I truly have been doing a great job this week but the weekends are what get me.  I am going to take pictures through Sunday and hope the tedious task helps me stay on track.

Have a great weekend y’all.

shaunna

Thought I would share a couple of pictures of my little running buddy.

Here we are after todays jog.  I use the map my run app on my iphone and it jacked up today.  It told me that I hit a mile at 9:32 and I jog the same route every morning and I wasn’t even close.  I think it was because my running buddy stopped to take a crap in someones yard and I ran in place while she took care of business.  Anywho….no stats for you but I jogged the mile and then did my fitmixer boot camp workout immediately following.  I am basically a bad ass!

Here is another picture of MJ (short for Michael Jackson):

and I am just creeping in the back ground.  She is a sweetie.

Have a happy day!

Shaunna

So I thought I would share some with you today that I found while being addicted to Pinterest.

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I feel a little better.  Do you?

Until tomorrow,

Shaunna