Cucumber Peach Salsa Recipe

August Favorites

Well, just like that, August is GONE! Who’s ready for fall? Yay or nay? I’m always ready for the coziness fall brings, but I also hang on to these late summer days. Summer will always have my heart. Shall we get to the August recap?

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Family

August was another great month at Casa de Happy Healthy Mama. For starters, the kids went back to school! It was bittersweet, for sure, but I must admit I like having my working freedom return when school starts.

Meghan started 4th grade and Luke started 1st.

Luke and Meghan are at the same school this year! YAY! Finally! They’ll be at the same school for the next five years, which makes me so happy.

Even so, watching my baby boy walk through those doors was TOUGH. I’ll admit, I made my way back to my car trying, unsuccessfully, to fight back tears. I didn’t fight them as I made the lonely drive home.

Something about him being in first grade really got me. Way more than when either of them started kindergarten. Weird, right?

Books

I love memoirs, and Educated is the best one I’ve read in years. (I actually binge-listened to this on Audible…) I don’t even have the words about how much this impacted me. Several times I had to stop and remind myself: This was someone’s real life. This isn’t fiction. The author, Tara Westover, grew up in a survivalist family in Idaho and didn’t go to school because her father mistrusted the schools. No homeschooling, just no school. Her family also doesn’t believe in medicine or anything that has to do with the government. Getting out of this situation seemed impossible, but somehow Tara managed to escape and goes on to earn a PhD from Cambridge University, even though she was 17 the first time she stepped into a classroom. You must read it to get the whole story of what Tara had to do to overcome the most insurmountable of odds. And you’ll never feel ‘whoa is me’ about your road blocks in life after reading it, I promise you that.

Since this is the only book I finished this month, I thought I’d share what we read with Meghan and Luke, too.

Chronicles of Narnia is one of my favorite series for kids. After reading The Magician’s Nephew (which was written later, but the one C.S. Lewis intended to be read first in the series.), Meghan and I read The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe. Meghan really loves adventurous books, so this series is great for her.

Luke normally picks nonfiction books and there haven’t been many fiction books that keep his attention. Something about Winnie-the-Pooh captivated him, though, and we read through this book and then he wanted to start it over and read it again. We went on a mother-son date to see Christopher Robin after reading this, which was a great movie.

Products I’m Loving Right Now 

Sun Basket

I wrote about Sun Basket back in May and told you how much we loved it. Well, we took the summer off from it since I am less of a meal planner in the summer months. Now that school is in session, though, I need my meal plan structure back, so I started using Sun Basket again!

We had this Spicy Harissa Tofu and Quinoa Bowls for dinner last night and it was amazing. I just had to keep the spicy sauce off of the kid portions and everyone was happy! Tim and I loved the heat and found this to be a very filling meal. 

I just love having two of our dinners planned for me and all the ingredients portioned out and ready to go. Takes some of the pressure off of me.

Right now I’m doing the Vegetarian plan for two nights a week. (They offer a number of different plans for every dietary need, from classic to Paleo to gluten free to vegan. All healthy and 99% organic.) Three nights a week I plan the dinners myself and meal prep using the Conquer Dinner method. The other two nights we wing it and either eat leftovers or I create a pantry meal.

Speaking of Conquer Dinner, it’s my dinner recipe ebook that has six weeks of meal plans, grocery lists, and step-by-step meal prepping instructions that helps you take the stress out of dinner time. It’s getting a major update VERY SOON! The good news is, if you’ve already purchased it, the update is FREE. If you haven’t purchased it yet, I would do it now as the price is going to go up just a tad with the update.

Keeping our family dinners in tact as much as possible makes me a very happy mama!

My Favorite Lunch Boxes

When I share Meghan and Luke’s lunches on Instagram, I always get questions about their lunch containers, so I thought I’d better devote some time to tell you about them!

It’s really important to me that I don’t use plastic to store my kids’ food. These PlanetBox lunch containers are my absolute favorite.  They are made of stainless steel and have built-in compartments for separate foods. Forgive the blurry iPhone photos, but here are their lunches from today so you can see them in action:

This is Meghan’s lunch of a Banana Peanut Butter Sandwich, apples, a Banana Oatmeal Muffin Cup, and carrots, snap peas, and cucumbers. 

Here’s Luke’s lunch which was a salad with feta cheese, apples, cucumbers, and extra virgin olive oil, peaches, a Banana Oatmeal Muffin Cup, and carrots and snap peas.

The size PlanetBox we use is the Rover and it comes with two containers for dipping sauces or “wet foods” that might leak. For example, if you’re going to send applesauce or yogurt, you’d use on of the extra containers it comes with. It also comes with a magnet set to decorate them.

These stainless steel container are very rugged and made to last. Meghan is going on her fifth year using the same container and I can’t tell the difference between hers and Luke’s, who is going on his second year. (Her magnets look more worn, but that’s it!)

These are the lunch boxes they fit in.(You can purchase separately or as a set. I recommend as a set because the containers don’t fit in other lunch boxes well.) There is a place to slide an ice pack, for keeping utensils, as well as a pocket for a water bottle and another pocket for extras.

Beautycounter

Now it’s time for the fun stuff! When Tim said “Hey, you need to order some more of that Beautycounter body wash.” he didn’t know I heard, “…and get a few more things if you want!”

So, yeah. I splurged a little a got two new eyeshadow palettes. I am in love!

This is the Velvet Eyeshadow Palette in Classic:

And this is the Velvet Eyeshadow Palette in Romantic :

Aren’t they both so pretty!? I’m obsessed.

In case you haven’t read me rave about Beautycounter before, they are my favorite safe beauty brand for makeup and personal care products. They only use safe ingredients and have 1,500 ingredients on their NEVER List that most other beauty companies use.

I should also update you on the Overnight Resurfacing Peel I told you about in the July Favorites post. All I can say is this stuff is LIFE CHANGING. I know, dramatic. But it’s so true. I feel like my skin looks way better at 40 than it did at 30. That is saying a lot. This product WORKS and it uses SAFE ingredients. It has over 1,000 5-star reviews and it’s only been out a few months. You just need to try it for yourself!!

Recipes

Whew! I finally made it to the recipes section. It’s always SO HARD to pick a favorite recipe from the last month. I really like ALL the recipes I post. But….here are my top 2 from this month.

Instant Pot Roasted Red Pepper Pasta

I loved this because it was quick, easy, and tasty. And in a world that shuns carbs, I do still love my pasta.

Freezer Breakfast Burritos

I am definitely smitten with these breakfast burritos. They don’t take a ton of time to prepare and my freezer is stocked! I had one today, actually. They are super tasty.

That’s all for this month! If you want to keep in better touch more than just once a month, please follow me on Instagram or sign up to join my weekly newsletter:

 

xoxo Maryea

 

The post August Favorites appeared first on Happy Healthy Mama.

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Vegan Corn Chowder

White Sangria Recipe

Breakfast Burritos (Freezer-Friendly Recipe)

Instant Pot Roasted Red Pepper Pasta

Apple Peanut Butter Snack Bars

Low Carb Keto Zucchini Bread

Smoky Black Bean Tacos (With Feta and No-Mayo Coleslaw)

Healthy Banana Split Smoothie

Apple Peanut Butter Overnight Oats

Perfect Rice Pilaf with Vegetables

Sweet Green Juice Recipe (That Even the Kids will Drink!)

July Favorites

I don’t want to start every ‘Favorites’ post with a declaration of the disbelief that another month has passed. It’s so cliché. So tired. So overused.

Yet. Every month I have the same thought.

WHAT HAPPENED? Where did that month go?!

And here we are again.

July is over. August is starting.

And I just can’t believe it.

Better not to dwell on it, I guess, and just reflect on what fun memories July brought us.

Life

Taylor Swift Concert

Meghan is one of the biggest Taylor Swift fans you’ll find. We got her tickets for Christmas for the show at Ohio Stadium in Columbus. It was a loooong wait from December to July, but it was well worth the wait.

The show was incredible, and Meghan’s joy made the price of the tickets worth every cent. The picture above shows her face when Taylor first came on stage. It was almost too much for her she was so happy! Meghan sang along to every single song, dancing and not sitting once during the show. I can’t really put into words how special of a night it was. This is probably my favorite memory with Meghan to date.

Family Vacation to Little Compton, Rhode Island

My husband, Tim, grew up spending a week or two in Little Compton every summer, so he loves going back and reliving those childhood memories.

Turns out, my kids love the New England beach life as much as their dad. They spent the week in the waves for hours. Even through the rain, they stayed. Using boogey boards to ride the waves, as I huddled under the beach umbrella, shivering.

When they weren’t in the ocean playing in the waves, they were building sand castles on the beach. They loved it all.

They embraced the ocean and also the fresh seafood. They loved eating fresh shrimp, scallops, fish, and lobster.

Family vacations really are the best.

Birthdays

Tim turned 42 in July! Whhhhaaat? The 40s FEEL much younger than they sound. We celebrated with a store-bought cake. Womp womp. I usually make a cake from scratch, but this year I had a huge deadline the day after his birthday and just couldn’t swing it. (More details on that soon!) I bought these cute gold candles that ended up being sparklers! The 2 burned out before I could get the 4 lit–haha!

I made a solo, quick weekend trip to my hometown in Michigan to celebrate a dear friend’s 40th birthday. This is my group of close high school friends, minus one who couldn’t make the trip. Two of these girls I have barely seen in the last decade, but when we get together it’s like no time has passed. Priceless.

Recommendations

Books

I brought two books to read on the beach and I really wish I would have brought three. Both were really quick, easy reads that were perfect for vacation.

Hello, Sunshine by Laura Dave– This is the story of Sunshine Mackenzie, a YouTube culinary star with millions of followers, two published cookbooks, and a Food Network show in the works. All is well until she is outed for making up just about everything about her life and not using her own recipes. Being in the online space made this even more interesting to me. A really good beach read!

all we ever wanted by Emily Giffin-If ever a book made me dread having teenagers, this is IT! It delves into the scary world of teens, social media, and the devastating results of posting the wrong pictures on the Internet. A cross between a whodunit mystery and chick lit drama, this was a page-turner that keep me interested the whole book. Highly recommend!

Podcasts

I love listening to podcasts. I listen when I’m developing recipes and photographing for the blog, in the car, and when I’m folding laundry. It’s a great way to consume content while I’m doing other things. Here are a few I’ve been digging lately that you should check out.

The Doctor’s Farmacy with Mark  Hyman, M.D.

“Your fork, the most powerful tool to transform your health and change the world.” -Dr. Mark Hyman

This podcast has deep conversations about health, wellness, and food. It’s a relatively new podcast, just coming out in May, and I look forward to new episodes every Wednesday. The topics are wide-ranging, from finding your purpose in life, to the future of medicine, to the great debate about protein, to exploring the Blue Zones and longevity. Check it out!

The Healthy Moms Podcast 

I’ve followed the Wellness Mama blog for years, but I only recently started listening to Katie’s podcast. It’s filled with great information about health, wellness, and natural living from a mom’s perspective.

Bloggity Blog Blog Blog

July was such a busy month with family and travel, I felt like I neglected the blog a little bit. (Okay, a lot…but that’s the beauty of this occupation! The blog is always here waiting for me when I return.)  Even so, I look back at these recipes and realize it was a delicious month! Did you miss any of these recipes? (starting at the top left and going clockwise)

Greek Yogurt Frozen Banana Pops  A healthy treat that can be made with no added sugar, depending on the toppings you choose!

Sweet Potato Fritters with Avocado Dipping Sauce- You know I don’t like picking favorites, but this recipe takes the top prize for July. I could eat these every day!

Quinoa Caprese Salad You must make this before summer ends! It’s perfect for a light lunch or dinner side.

Chocolate Peanut Butter Nice Cream This got me through the No Sugar July Challenge with my Facebook group!

Banana Bread Date Bars This is another no-added-sugar treat that satisfies my sweet tooth!

Grilled Brussels Sprouts They are crispy and perfect for your grilling menu!

Chocolate Zucchini Muffins Your kids won’t notice the zucchini!

Facebook Group Challenges

In the Happy Healthy Mama private Facebook group, we’ve been completing monthly challenges. In June we did the Salad Everyday Challenge and in July we did a No Sugar July Challenge.

I did really well until vacation! We were gone for 11 days, so it was no easy task to remain totally sugar-free during that time. I did have three desserts and a few margaritas. Even though I didn’t conquer the challenge, having no added sugar the rest of the month felt really good. It’s MUCH harder to cut sugar in July than it is in January!

For August, we are doing a Fitness Challenge! We’ll be supporting each other as we set personal fitness goals each week and there will also be daily challenges to complete. We keep track of points and there are prizes. It’s fun and motivating! Join us! This month’s challenge starts this Sunday, August 5th. Click here to request to join the group and I’ll get you approved within 24 hours.

Instagram

Guys! My Instagram account just passed the 10K follower mark. I was late getting into the Instagram game, so all the other bloggers are rolling their eyes at me right now. That’s okay–I’m so happy to have finally passed this milestone. I’d love to have you follow me on Instagram if you don’t already. 

That’s a wrap on July! My heart is full and ready to take on August. Thanks for reading! If you like reading personal posts, check out my June Favorites and May Favorites.

 

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