The begining

So here I am, February 29th 2016, leap year.  4 years ago today, my wonderful husband and I were enjoying ourselves at Disney's extra day celebration at Magic Kingdom.  We arrived bright and early, eager and young, to ride all the rides.  We would probably never believe if someone told us that on the next leap year, we would be living back in Colorado.  Renting from my in-laws, and still trying to figure out life.  Our vision was much different at that point.  We envisioned our selves owning a house in Florida, having at least one kid, me working in the entertainment industry, Josh with the theme parks, and loving life.  But here we are, 4 years later, in Colorado, not homeowners, not parents, and both in the Grocery industry.  I'm not saying that our lives are horrible or bad by any means, just much different than we ever imagined they would be!  We are both very sucessful in the industry, me being a Divisional Technical Trainer for King Soopers and City Market, making a fairly decent pay, and Josh is a Deli Assistant manager for King Soopers, also making decent money.  We're both in decent health, despite a few problems here and there, but nothing horrific.  We have family and a few friends.  Our two dogs are our lives, and we get out and enjoy life as much as we can.  But, what happened to those dreams and aspirations?  How did we get so far away from them?

It all started on June 10th 2012, around 2:00 in the afternoon.  I had gotten off work early, and eager to get to Target, to buy a few grocery items needed to make Josh's Birthday cake!  I was planning on working on it the next day since I was off, and we were going to go to Sea World's new water park for his Birthday!  We were both very excited.  Unbeknown to me, life had other plans.  I was rear ended on my way to Target, and not just a light tap, but full speed of 45 mph, while I was dead stop.  I had stopped for a Police vehicle going through the intersection with their lights on.  That right then and there, is what started our journey to where we are today.

I ended up with 4 herniated discs in my neck and a torn rotator cuff.  Doctors had a hard time figuring out exactly what was wrong and how to help.  We ended up having to get a lawyer involved because the other insurance company was not agreeing to pay my medical bills.  Life started wearing on us.  All of our days off from work were spent back and forth to Dr. visits, and lawyer visits.  Work was going down hill for me, because I got stuck in an industry I did not want to be a part of.  I only took the job back in March to be temporary, as I worked my way back into entertainment.  I was in constant pain, and on and off so many different kids of medications.  Money was getting tight from all the driving we were having to do, and all the work being missed from doing so.  We saw no light at the end of the tunnel, and everything was closing in on us at once.  We made the decision to move back home to Colorado, to be around family for moral support, and to try to find our way again.

Over the next few years, we had to fly to and from Florida for the lawsuit, which finally settled September of 2014!  Yes you read that right, two years after the accident.  While out here I found a back Dr. that was amazing.  After a few failed tries with steroid shots, we finally found that working out is what helps my back the most, but that I would have to live with the pain.

Both of us ended up in a couple of dead end jobs, with companies and managers that did not respect, nor treat us correctly.  At one point in time, we were sinking so bad that we applied for Food Stamps.  We got denied, even though we were both jobless.  All seemed lost.  We both found a couple of jobs that ended in complete disaster, but I finally got hired on with King Soopers as a Front End Supervisor.  Finally! A company that not only did they treat their employees well, but also paid well too!  Eventually I convince Josh to also apply, and he too got hired on!

I just celebrated my one year anniversary with King Soopers back in December.  Life seems to be treating us pretty well.  So why am I still not fully satisfied?

One reason I know is my weight/health.  I've been overweight forever it seems, and have always yo-yoed with my weight.  Heck, even last year towards October I was the fittest I'd ever been!  I was down 20 lbs, down to 165!!  A number I hadn't seen since my internship with Disney.  After that initial car accident I had gained quite a bit, due to lack of movement, and well depression.

But then life happened, and I got into another car accident in November.  Not nearly as bad, but I ended up with a nasty concussion, and I let my self fall again in the health department. I kept using excuses for gaining weight, but now it's time to end that!

Here I am 177 lbs, 5'2".  Yes, do the math, that means I'm obese in society's eyes.  I know that we are all to love our selves and our bodies, but I want a healthy body.  If I truly love my self I will treat my self right, and keep this body healthy.  I need to do this, not only to look good, but to keep my back feeling good, and to work towards our dreams and goals.  I need a healthy body, so that I may have healthy, happy children!  I need a healthy body, so that I can travel and ride my roller coasters that we want to do.  I need a healthy body so that I can climb that 14er this summer!!  But a healthy body also has to come with a healthy mind.



That's what this blog will be.  It will be my new Journey in life that I am setting out to take.  Towards a healthier body and mind.  I need to figure out what it will take for me to be successful, not only in my goals with health and fitness, but also my goals with life and business.  Please join me for this wonderful journey.  There will be a lot of ups and downs, but I'll get through it, one day at a time.

Gluten free, dairy free quiche

So my hub and and I are doing he 30 day Arbonne detox and loving it! Having awesome results so far!! I'm having to get festive with the whole gluten and dairy free but doing pretty good! I came up with this recipe because one of my favorite things is breakfast!! It turned out awesome and I've learned to love goat cheese!!! Hope you all enjoy it as well!

Quiche

1 White sweet potato

5 eggs 

4 slices turkey bacon

3/4 cup spinach

3 T coconut milk

Oil

Salt to taste

1/2 cup shredded sharp cheddar goat cheese 

Heat oven to 425

Peel and shred up the sweet potato. I used like 3/4 of the shavings and froze the rest. Toss in some oil if your choice and salt. Press into a pie plate coming up the edges to make a crust. Make sure that it is covered pretty well so your egg doesn't seep through

Bake in preheated oven for 25 minutes

In the mean time five up bacon and sauté until crispy. Mix in spinach and sauté until wilted. Make sure to taste and see if there is enough salt.

Beat 5 eggs and add coconut milk, salt and pepper. I also threw in some green onion. 

When crust is done baking lower oven to 400 degrees

Place the bacon and spinach mixture in the crust then top with the egg mixtures.

Too the whole thing off with your goat cheese.

Bake for 20-25 minutes until set!

And enjoy!!!

Gluten Free Skinny Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Muffins

Fall is defiantly in the air here in Colorado, and there is nothing better than your whole home smelling like pumpkin.  Come to think of it, there's nothing better than pumpkin spice well....everything haha.  It just screams fall.  I am always looking for an easy breakfast to take with me to work and this week I had such a craving for some pumpkin chocolate chip muffins.  My family has a recipe for some fabulous pumpkin chocolate chip muffin, but truth be told...they're full of oil and sugar.  So bad for you, but oh so delicious.  So it got me to thinking of what can I do to make some that are gluten free, and well all-in-all healthier.  After looking around on pinterest for a while I found a few recipes that I really liked, and kind of just combined and made some changes to make them what I wanted.  I also love to make mini muffins, as opposed to the normal sized ones.  I think they just end up way more connivent.
So make your self a nice cup of coffee and enjoy these wonderful muffins on a crisp fall day :-)

Gluten Free Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Muffins

1 1/2 cup gluten free flour blend
1 1/2 cups old fashioned oats
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
1 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
3/4 cup coconut sugar
1 can pumpkin
1 whole egg
1 egg white
1 teaspoon vanilla
1/4 cup milk (any variety)
3 Tablespoons canola oil
1/2 cup mini semi chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 375.
Combine all dry ingredients in a bowl (excluding the chocolate chips)  Whisk all the wet ingredients together making sure they are mixed well.  Add the dry ingredients to the wet, and mix thoroughly, but do not over do it.
Either line your mini muffin pan with liner or spray really well
Fill muffin tin about 3/4 full
Bake for 12 minutes if you are doing mini muffins, or for 15-17 mins if you are doing large muffins
Be sure to check for doneness with a toothpick.
Cool on a cooling rack, and be sure to store in an air tight container

Now the Best Part.... ENJOY

Paleo Gluten Free Crock Pot Cashew Chicken

So generally on Fridays my husband is off while I work during the day then we have the evening together.  There is nothing more I hate then having to go to work for 10 hrs, then come home and have to cook.  So I am always trying to come up with something easy for my husband to make (he's really not that great in the kitchen, but he tries :-) )  So I was craving some Chinese food, but what could I possible make that is both paleo and gluten free? Well Cashews were on sale at the store so I had picked up some of those then it came to me.... Cashew Chicken!  This couldn't be that hard in the crock pot!  And all Josh would need to do is throw it all in the crock pot and turn it on! SIMPLE!!!  One thing to keep in mind if you are gluten free is that Soy Sauce is FULL of GLUTEN!!!  But there are gluten free soy sauces out there, so just keep an eye out for it! I get mine at Sprouts, which is our local health food store.  I believe Whole Foods has it as well.
I then ran into the problem with the brown sugar needed for the sauce, this is not Paleo...now what to do... Then I stumbled across coconut sugar.  After researching all it is is processed coconut flesh to be very fine.  It's pretty delicious too, and it reminds me of brown sugar! Perfect!!  Alright enough blabbing, here we go!

Crock Pot Cashew Chicken

2 chicken breasts, (leave whole)
1-2 cups frozen broccoli 
1 cup carrots, chopped into bite sized pieces 
1/2 cup cashews 
1 tablespoon canola oil
1/2 cup gluten free soy sauce
4 tablespoons rice wine vinegar
3 Tablespoons ketchup (try to get sugar free for paleo)
1 Tablespoon coconut sugar
1 Tablespoon garlic powder 
1 Tablespoon ginger powder 
1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes
salt and pepper to taste
1/2 cup chicken broth

Layer chicken, and vegetables in the crockpot
Combine remaining ingredients except water and cashews, and pour over chicken in crockpot
Add water or broth if necessary so that the chicken and veggies are almost completely covered
Cook for 5 hrs on low
Take the chicken out and dice into bite sized pieces, throw back in the crock pot and add the cashews and cook for another hour on low.

You can enjoy this on rice if you are not Paleo, or if you are Paleo you can do riced cauliflower (which is pretty amazing).  Best part of cooking the meal...ENJOY

Kale Chips

Kale Chips

I adore Kale!!  It's so incredibly good for you it's not even funny!  I know a lot of people out there hate it, and I just cannot understand why!!

Now it's not something that I love just eating raw, or just in a salad..then I say yuck.  But the best thing ever is when I'm craving something salty and crunchy...Yes most people would reach for the chips or popcorn...but remember we're Paleo!! Neither of those things are a go.  So my favorite thing?  Kale chips!!  What is even better is you can flavor them however you want! If you're feeling spicy add some chili powder or red pepper flakes. If you want more those fall flavors do some cinnamon and nutmeg (not sure how that would taste...)  Or you can do just plain salt and pepper!  The possibilities are ENDLESS!  Ok I'll stop rambling!

Kale chips

4 Kale leaves

1 T oil

1/2 t salt

1/4 t garlic powder

1/4 t onion powder

Preheat oven to 300 degrease.  Take leafy parts off of the kale leaving the stem behind.  Break up into bite size pieces (remember when they are cooked they shrink some) Toss the kale bits with oil, and seasonings.  Lay out flat on a foil lined cookie sheet.  Bake for 10-15 minutes, careful to not let them burn!  I start checking at that 10 minute mark and 2 minutes at a time from there.  Take out of over and transfer to some paper towels to pat off excess oil.  And...ENJOY!

Paleo Burger with Egg on top

Paleo Burger with egg on top and sauted spinach

So a couple of weeks ago, before venturing into the world of Paleo, my husband and I tried a new trendy burger, one with a fried egg on top.  We were pretty reluctant to try it, but wow! Was it good!!! I got to thinking about using this with the Paleo diet, just without the bun, but wanted to incorporate some kind of veggie with it.  Then it dawned on me...spinach goes excellent with eggs!  So, here are! Hope you enjoy it as much as my husband and I did!!

Paleo Burger with egg on top and sauteed Spinach

1/2 lb hamburger meat
1 tsp salt
1 tsp pepper
1 tsp onion powder
1 tsp garlic powder
1 T Worcester sauce
1 bunch of spinach
1 tsp apple cider vinegar
salt and pepper to taste
2 eggs

Take and mix the hamburger meat with salt, pepper, onion and garlic powder, and the Worcester sauce.  Do not over work the meat and it will fall apart easier.  Shape into 2 patties.  Cook patties on a screaming hot skillet, until desired doneness.  (I like mine medium rare, which takes about 4 mins each side)  Set hamburgers to the side to rest and cover with foil.  In the same pan place the spinach and apple cider vinegar along with salt and pepper to taste.  Saute for about 3 minutes.  Remove from pan
Spray the pan with some non-stick spray and fry your eggs until done the way you like :-) I love still having the yolk runny!  Place the spinach on the plate and top with your hamburger followed by the egg.
Now ENJOY!

Paleo Crock Pot Beef Stew

Paleo Crock Pot Beef Stew

Ahhhh there is nothing better than on a cool fall day to have the smell of beef stew cooking away in the crock pot.  So homey, and relaxing.  That would be perfect for a day like today here in Colorado.  It's currently 52 degrees out and I'm stuck at work until 4:30 pm.  The greatest thing about beef stew is that it really cannot be over cooked haha.   You can leave it in the crock pot on low allllllllllllll day long. Going Paleo means giving up a very important part of beef stew, potatoes.  How was I ever going to come up with a stew that still tastes that amazing with out it?!?  Well lets add another favorite veggie, green beans.  Yes, yes, this will be perfect!!  And yes there is wine in the stew, is wine Paleo?  Well people argue it both ways.  All I know is I'm not ready to give up my alcohol...so yeah...I will be drinking wine and cooking with it haha. So here we go!

Wish it looked a little better haha, but trust me it tastes wonderful!

Paleo Crock Pot Beef Stew

2 lbs stew beef (cubed or not cubed doesn't matter)
5 slices of bacon
1 large yellow onion (diced)
4 cloves of garlic (I love garlic)
4 large carrots (chopped into bite sized pieces)
1/2 lb green beans (trimmed)
Can of beef stock
1 cup red wine
1 bay leaf

Cook up the bacon in a pan until nice and crispy. Let cool and set aside reserving the leftover grease.  Take and brown off the stew meat, weather it's whole and you wanna shred it later or the individual cubes.  Place in crock pot.  Saute the onions in the bacon grease until tender, and add the garlic to cook for a couple of minutes.  De-glaze the pan with the onions and garlic still in it with the red wine.  Let reduce for about 5 minutes. Pour everything into the crock pot.  Add can of beef stock, veggies, bay leaf and the bacon crumbled to the crock pot.  Cook on low for 8-10 hrs.

Now the best part... ENJOY!