What to do when the days are long

We often find ourselves alone with out little ones while Daddy is working, out of town and for some Mommas, out of the picture. The days can be long and lonely. We get tired and impatient. One of the most important thing for us Momma's is to teach and find joy in the monotonous tasks everyday. Here are a few practical ideas to implement when you feel like you just can't do it anymore and it needs to be bedtime at 4pm!


1. Take a long bath with your baby or throw all your kids in the tub. I draw a hot bath with lavender and bubbles, no matter what time of day if I feel like I need a break. Annabelle and I can sit and play for an hour easily. We sing funny songs, make bubble hats, learn the colors of all the bath toys and count them when we put them away. We learn the names of the human anatomy and learn to brush our teeth.

2. Play outside or go for a long walk. It sure would be stressful to keep our kids clean all the time. I get my cup of coffee and let Annabelle play outside. She picks up little flowers, vines, rocks, plants and we pull them apart and count the seeds. We water the flowers and watch them grow. It's very relaxing to play outside and if kids are restless they should go outside and play more often.

3. Have a picnic. I like to have meals at the table with Great Granny so she learns to sit and be patient, but sometimes its good to have a picnic on the floor with all your stuffed animals. Boiled eggs, plain yogurt, toast with nut butter and bannanas make a great, easy and healthy breakfasts for children with little prep and quick clean up.

4. Go to an indoor play place. Some days I feel like I just have to get out of the house after a long day of whining. Go to Chic Fil A and enjoy the indoor play area with other kids. By the time you get home, it will be time for a bath and bed.

5. Clean something together. I think this needs to be implemented very young and should always be fun with singing and praise. Small children can help vacuum, dust, put away dishes, wash the floor, really anything! Many hands will make light work and the children will see they have a part and responsibility in your home.

6. Cook and bake together. We count the eggs as we crack them in the pan, shake in the spices, stir the soup and whip the potatoes! Sometimes we make a big mess, and I never get upset about that, because then afterwards, we have fun cleaning it up.Newborns can be worn and involved as well!

7. Have a dance party. We put on music, I hold her hands and snuggle my little girl and dance!

8. Have one date night a week and or a planned outing with no kids. Its important to nurture your relationship, and also have some sanity. You do exist outside your children. What did you enjoy before children? Make a scheduled date night you'll look forward to all week, or a time out of the house with friends. You'll come back feeling refreshed and ready for a new day.

9. Take time for yourself everyday. Whether its closing your eyes to pray, call your mom, Workout, draw, yoga, meditation, listening to an audio book while you do the dishes, or all of the above, you can find time to care for yourself in busy motherhood.

The best way you can take care of yourself is to choose joy.


What activities do you make part of your everyday life to help with the long days?

Meal Prep HACKS and Meal Prep 101

Lifestyle Change 101 by Rebecca Byers
70-80% of your results are what you EAT!

Eating out HACKS!

The “I haven’t slept in a week, my baby pooped on the carpet and my rabid dogs are missing meal plan” This is ok to follow once in a while, not ideal for your wallet.

Breakfast
Dunkin Dohnuts
Black Coffee with Skim Milk, hold the sugar
Turkey sausage and egg white on Flatbread (2, eat only one flatbread, hold the cheese)
Snack
RX bar
OR
Fruit and nuts
Lunch
Chic Fil a
Grilled Chicken nuggets (8 count)
Kale superfood salad
Fruit cup
OR
Chipolte
Burritto bowl or salad bowl
Chicken or tofu with all the veggies, pico de gallo, lettuce, about 1-2 TBs of beans, ½ cup BROWN rice
Hold the sour cream and cheese. Eat half your guac portion.
Dinner
Chili’s
Spicy southwestern salad Add Salmon or chicken
Fajitas on a salad
Steak with sweet potato

Busy working Gal’s meal prep Hack

Pick one night that works with your schedule. Make meal PLAN. Write down all ingredients you need to buy and what night you will eat what(use the chart I gave you of allowed foods). I usually grocery shop FRIDAY and meal prep SUNDAY night. I boil, peel and bag eggs, cook chicken, chop veggies, make tuna for breakfast and lunch…it only takes an hour. As far as prepping for dinner, I always PULL out of the freezer whatever meat we will eat the night before. You can even assemble the whole dish and store in the fridge until it is ready to cook. I also love the crock pot and dutch oven! You can also pre-prep dinner by precooking your dishes. (add 2 hours to meal prep, no more cooking the rest of the week!)

It is THIS simple:
Pick a protein
Pick a veggie
Add a carb
Add a sauce and seasoning
I always google or pinterest for cooking temps and different spice and sauce recipes.

Breakfast

A. Boiled eggs (salt, pepper and bag two at a time)
And overnight oats
OR
Whole wheat Toast/bagel ½, English muffin ½
OR
B. Plain, lowfat yogurt layered with fruit, oatmeal, seeds, nuts
Snack
Apple and peanut butter
or
Carrots and hummus
Lunch
Turkey Lunch meat slices on romaine with veggies
or
Tuna salad on Whole Wheat
Or
Quinoa Pasta Salad (oil and vinegar, TONS of your favorite veggies and turkey lunch meat! )

Dinner
Crockpot Meal!
Pulled chicken, beef or pork tenderloin (cook on high for 4 hours with a sauce recipe below!)
Add a Veggie and Sweet potato or brown rice (if you have carbs left!)
Or prepare sheet pan with veggies, meat, potatoes. Cook at 325 until veggies are tender and meat is up to temp!
Dessert
Frozen plain yogurt and strawberries


Oh Baby Barbeque Sauce
Prep time: 5 minutes
Cook time: 10-15 minutes
Yields: 12 servings
Serving size: 1/4 cup
Ingredients
2 cups tomato paste
1 cup water
½ cup apple cider vinegar
5 Tbsp Molasses
½ Tbsp ground black pepper
½ Tbsp onion powder
½ Tbsp ground mustard
1 tsp garlic powder
1 Tbsp lemon juice
1 Tbsp Worcestershire sauce

Asian Awesome Sauce
¼ tsp. sea salt
1 tsp. sesame oil
2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
1 thin slice fresh ginger, peeled, finely chopped
2 Tbsp. reduced-sodium soy sauce (I use and prefer Liquid Aminos! Soy sauce substitute)
1 Tbsp. rice wine vinegar
2 Tbsp. tomato paste, no added sugar
2 tsp. hoisin sauce (optional)
1 tsp. pure maple syrup

1 Tbsp. toasted sesame seeds (optional)

Skinny Alfredo Sauce
Ingredients
• 2 tablespoons butter
• 1½ teaspoons garlic powder
• ½ cup milk or water (I used fat free half & half)
• ¾ cup of plain greek yogurt (I used 0% fat)
• ½ - ⅔ cup shredded parmesan cheese
• salt and pepper to taste
• optional: ½ teaspoon dried parsley (or 1 teaspoon fresh)
• 8 ounces of your favorite pasta noodles, cooked
Instructions
1. In a medium sauce pan, melt butter over medium heat. Stir in garlic powder. Stir in milk (or water). Remove from heat and allow to cool for 2-3 minutes. Gradually whisk in greek yogurt.
2. Add parmesan cheese to sauce and stir until melted. (If the cheese doesn't melt completely because the sauce is too cool, return to stove on low for a couple of minutes) Add salt and pepper to taste and toss with your favorite WHOLE WHEAT cooked pasta noodles.



Don't forget to measure and Track on a paper how much of what you've ate! I always forget if I had a piece of fruit, or miss veggies!!

Designer Drug: Doritos. How to beat a junk food addiction.

It’s 9pm, you put the kids to bed and sit down with Netflix and your new favorite show to binge watch. You just ate a delicious dinner and the cabinet is calling your name. You know there is a bag of Doritios in there. The bag is calling your name. You sit down, eat half the bag and then go to the freezer. You pull out the ice cream! Sound familiar?
How about, you sit down to a delicious homemade meal and rather you were biting into a melty, cheesy, crunchy Crunch Wrap Supreme.

Numerous studies have shown eating junk foods and sugar flood you with dopamine. Dopamine is a neurotransmitter that helps control the brain's reward and pleasure centers. Dopamine also helps regulate movement and emotional responses, and it enables us not only to see rewards, but to take action to move toward them.

Sugar also has some effects in the brain, the same way the brain is manipulated by drugs like heroin and morphine.
This is why highly processed, sugar-laden foods can lead to over eating. They take over the brain pathways the same way drugs do.

The food companies KNOW they are doing this. Almost all packaged foods are laden with MSG. Monosodium Glutamate is put in food causing you to eat more and never feel satisfied. This is why you may crave foods like chips, flavor blast goldfish, pretzels and fast foods.
People often confuse cravings with hunger. They are not the same thing. This is because cravings are not about satisfying your body's need for energy, instead it is your brain calling for "reward."
When you crave a sugary, salty or fatty snack, it is your brain driving you towards that dopamine/opioid signal, the same way drug addiction works.

In a study, lab rats were given a diet full of sausage and sweets for 40 days—even though regular lab rat chow was available. When the high fat and augsr foods were taking away the rats would refuse to eat their standard chow for an average of 14 days.

Steps towards breaking your food addictions and overeating:
1. Cut out all junk foods and sugars completely. If you just cut back, your brain can't recover from the addiction.
2. Replace old habits with new habits. Replace chips and ice cream at night with frozen plain yogurt and fruit, or veggies and dip.
3. Remind yourself how you will feel after you eat the junk food. Unsatisfied and guilty. Once you understand the way your brain is working, it will be easier to say no.
4. Don’t be afraid to ask for help. Food addictions and overeating are as powerful as drug addictions. You are not alone and counseling is available!

Stay tuned for more health and fitness posts! Comment below!

Resources Used:

https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/addicted-to-fat-eating/

https://experiencelife.com/article/beating-food-addiction/

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2805706/

http://www.healthline.com/nutrition/10-similarities-between-junk-foods-and-drugs#section11