Well, I’m still going strong with my “no treats” challenge (7 1/2 weeks now!) Woo hoo!
However, even though I’ve been staying away from treats, I’ve sure been struggling with all the rest of the “healthy living stuff” the past couple weeks. Oy. Life has been crazy and I’ve found myself frazzled, a little stressed out and sleep deprived.
It’s amazing what a dramatic effect sleep deprivation and craziness has on the body, health, mental state and stamina!!! My motivation is down the tubes and I’ve been craving every carb and sugary thing in sight! It’s interesting how the body craves quick energy when it’s worn out. It’s also been hard for me to consistently exercise!! I’ve still been getting in some good workouts, but I’ve also been missing far too many of them. Auuughh!
I’m still happy and everything’s “all good,” I’m just worn to shreds. I feel like I’m seriously running out of batteries.
Okay, enough with my whining. I’m determined to get a decent night sleep tonight and start off fresh tomorrow! I’m going to get my oomph back and hope to feel more energized and motivated soon. Oh, and I think it goes without saying, but I haven’t lost any more weight. I haven’t really gained any either, so I’m okay with it! I’ve just been living in survival mode for now.
Moving on….
I hope all you mothers out there had a fabulous Mothers Day! I really love mothers day!!! It’s such a nice, relaxing day and usually all my kiddos get along and are pleasant (which is rare, lol!) On Friday night, Kev and I went to see the movie Mother’s Day.
For some reason it got terrible reviews, but Kev and I both enjoyed it! It wasn’t the greatest movie ever, but it was entertaining and we both laughed and laughed. I loved the star studded cast too!
On Sunday morning, Kev made me a wonderful omelet!
I’ve said this before, but he is the omelet pro! Sooooo, if he ever offers to make me breakfast, this is what I request. My cute little 8 year old made me the toast too. 🙂 Such a sweetie.
Kev also got me some beautiful flowers…
I actually picked them out myself, which I know is weird. Ha ha. We were out shopping at Costco (they have the best, most beautiful flowers for amazing prices!) and Kev asked if I wanted to pick my own out?? I said, SURE! I actually picked out two smaller bouquets; A beautiful spring mix and some gorgeous hydrangeas!! Oh, how I love hydrangeas! I think I need to plant some in my yard.
He also picked me out a bunch of fun random gifts….
It’s always fun to get some surprises!! I felt spoiled and told Kev he didn’t have to do all that for me!!! Seriously. Oh, and I guess I should mention that as I was trying to take a picture of all my fun stuff, the baby could not leave it alone! I finally just decided to keep him in the picture because…this is my life! Hee hee.
I also took a picture with all of my kidlets after we got home from church….
I’m so glad we snapped this picture because I have very few pictures of me with all the kids! Maybe I’ll make it a Mother’s Day tradition! Oh, and my sweet little 6 year old is a character! We took several pictures and he pulled a face in every one!
Case in point..
What a card! He’s actually my “calm child” too!
I even noticed that the dog was making faces as well…
Ha ha ha! Love my kiddos…and puppy!
It was a great Mother’s Day!!!
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Well, I wanted to share a few things with y’all that I’ve been enjoying lately.
First and foremost, I’ve been loooooving this protein powder!
I already shared this picture on Instagram and Facebook a couple weeks ago, but I wanted to make sure to share it on the blog too!!! Ya know, when I first got into healthy living, I thought all protein powders were healthy! I would just buy the big ol’ bags at Costco and didn’t think much of it. I soon learned that a lot of protein powders out there have a whole bunch of chemicals and artificial crap in them. Soooo, I started buying vegan protein powders because they were super clean! I really enjoyed Vega, Orgain and Sunwarrior brands.
However, since I entered the “Macro counting world,” I kept noticing this PEScience protein! It’s supposedly the perfect protein (yada, yada, yada) for building muscle and leaning out. It’s higher in protein and lower in carbs and fat than the other protein powders I was using too.
For example, the Vega protein I was using had 110 calories, .5 g fat, 6 g carbs and 20 g of protein per serving. The Orgain protein I was using had 150 calories, 4 g fat, 13 g carbs (yikes!) and 21 g of protein per serving. The Sunwarrior protein I was using had 100 calories, 1.5 g fat, 4 g carbs and 16 g of protein per serving.
The PEScience protein I’m using has 110 calories, 1.5 g fat, 1 carb and 24 g protein. It doesn’t seem like that big of difference, but when you’re counting macros every gram adds up! I bake a lot of things using protein powder too, so it just makes it easier to get enough protein, yet still keep the carbs and fat in check. I don’t think this protein is quite as squeaky clean as the vegan powders I was using, but it’s not bad either. It seems decent.
I like changing things up sometimes too and I’m happy to be back on whey protein again. I don’t have an issue with dairy, in fact my body seems to do well with it! There are several other great protein powders out there that I want to try, but for now, this is my fav. 😉
I also want to talk about that shirt I’m wearing in the picture above. Here’s a better pic of it…
Oh, Hamilton how I love you!!! I told you guys how I saw the the Broadway show, Hamilton last month while I was in NYC!!! I bought this shirt after the show and I’ve pretty much been listening to the music daily. I’ve even been listening to it on my runs, lol!!
It’s not your typical Broadway musical, but it’s definitely grown on me! I’ve become a full fledged history buff too. I bought the ginormous 700+ page Alexander Hamilton biography that the play was based on and I’m determined to get through the whole thing! My life is insane, so it seems like I can only get through a few pages at a time (and I have to look up the meaning of every other word on Google…ha ha), but I’m hooked. It’s so fascinating to me! I love our country and our Founding Fathers.
I’m also so glad I was able to see the play in NYC because after my friends and I bought our tickets (in January), the prices doubled because of all the gagillion awards it’s won and all the publicity! I’m thrilled I got to see it with the original cast too! Eeee.
Anyway, moving on….
I’ve been loving cashew milk lately…..so much!
I really love Silk brand because the ingredients are all legit (no carrageenan) and it’s ony 25 calories per cup! It makes my protein shakes more thick and creamy. Love it! They also make unsweetened vanilla flavor, which is good too!
I’ve also been loving making personal pizzas on Flatouts lately (I also shared this pic on Instagram/Facebook.)
It’s just a really yummy, filling, quick, easy meal that fits the macros! The light flatouts have 90 calories, 1.5 g fat, 14 g carbs and 9 g protein. Awesome! I usually top mine with a little marinara, some mozzarella cheese (if I’m being really strict I just use some Parmesan), chicken and veggies! I cook them in the oven on 350 for 10 minutes and then broil it for 2-3 minutes to crisp it up. Soooo good!
I’ve made these for lunch or sometimes for dinner! If I make homemade pizza or tacos for the fam, I make mine on a Flatout. Also, sometimes I’ll make a dinner for the family that isn’t really macro friendly (casseroles, pasta, potatoes, etc.), and I’ll just make me a quick pizza. It’s simple and it works! Yay Flatouts!
I’ve also been loving running lately! I love running in the spring and fall weather. It’s the best! I’m still keeping things simple and only running 2-3 times a week, 4ish miles each time. I intend to ramp up the miles just a bit, but like I said, LIFE has been INSANE and my batteries are dead! Soooo, I’ve just been keeping it to 4ish.
I went on a run with the baby the other day. It was like 9:30-10:00ish in the morning and he still crashed…
It’s impossible for him to stay awake on our runs! It’s darling, but kind of messes up his nap schedule, dang it. I really don’t love pushing a jogging stroller, but I’m grateful I have the option. I like to think of it as my “weighted vest.” Ha ha. Whenever I get the chance to NOT run with the stroller it always feels a lot easier!
I gotta share this beautiful double rainbow picture that I took a few days ago…
Soooo pretty! We’ve been having some crazy weather this past week. We’ve had a lot of rain and even a crazy hail storm! I’ve loved it.
Well, I think that’s all I’m going to share today! I’m exhausted and hope to get my mojo back up and working again soon! I really love macro counting and KNOW that it works! It’s a great, realistic lifestyle. However, it ONLY works if you actually do it. Ha ha! Soooo, that’s what I intend to do…get back at it!
Have a great night! xoxo
Your six year old and my younger son have that making faces thing in common. Every family picture we have from the time he was five until about two years ago has a goofy face. He wasn’t a class clown type, I think he’s just not crazy about having his picture taken and that was how he expressed it. These days, he just does this cool, half-smile. I hate it.
On Mother’s day he and my mother in law were together and I asked for a quick picture, and they BOTH SMILED. She’s a cranky-looking half-smiler too. It was a Mother’s Day miracle.
Ha ha!! I love it! I’m glad you got a good Mothers Day pic, lol!
I tend to really LOVE the movies that get the terrible reviews- which is why I think I would love the movie MOTHER’S DAY!! HA! But I think I will just wait til I can watch it at home at this point! A great Friday night, chick-flick night! 🙂
I really didn’t expect much out of that movie, but was excited to see the stars in it. I was surprised how much we both enjoyed it!!
Happy Mother’s Day ! You are so lucky to have such a wonderful family. You seem to be such a great mom. Sometimes life gets in the way and you need to give yourself a break, so be kind with yourself… you are doing great on your challenge !
Thank you so much Karen! You are the sweetest. I really am trying to learn how to relax and take a break! It’s actually hard for me to do that, which I know is weird. Ha ha!
Happy belated Mother’s Day. Those pictures of your 6 year old and his faces are precious and hilarious.
Thank you so much Abby! I laughed so hard when I realized my 6 year made a face in every single picture! Ha!