Favorite Things- Natural Edition

I've been trying to use less and less beauty products and less and less processed foods. Here are a few things I've been doing lately:

1. Honey and Brown Sugar face scrub.
I went to my first farmer's market this weekend and I didn't find what I was looking for, but did get some locally grown honey. I found it fascinating that honey could taste different because of what type of flowers a bee "feasted(?)" on. I chose a local honey called Spring Blossom, meaning the bees had feasted on Spring flowers, as opposed to fall flowers. Anyway, I added a small amount of brown sugar to a jar, then added honey until I liked the consistency, and voila, a natural face scrub! Honey can help with inflammation and helps to wash away impurities without stripping skin of natural oils (of which I have plenty). The brown sugar mixture has a pleasant scent and the granules are small so it is not irritating on my skin. I noticed a lovely post shower glow after I used this and I plan to use it 2-3 days a week. I should also point out I don't wash my face often and I typically do not wear much make up. I've found the more I wash my face, the worse it gets.

2. Baking soda in my shampoo. I don't use much product in my hair, but i've found occasionally adding baking soda makes my hair feel "extra squeaky clean." I tried the "no poo" method for awhile, washing my hair with just baking soda and water, and an occasional apple cider vinegar rinse, but it just wasn't cleansing enough for me. I needed more because my hair is very fine and gets oily very easily.

3. Natural Body scrubs. I've been big in to this lately- I made my friend Danielle a body scrub that didn't have too much scent because she is pregnant and I didn't want anything to make her nauseous (I used: white and brown sugar, grape seed and almond oil, vanilla and lavender). I made myself a body scrub of white sugar, olive oil, almond oil, grated clementine peel, and a few drops of orange blossom essential oil. It has been really fun trying new things and the fact that I know exactly what goes in them is nice too :)

4. I've been making my own sauce for the last few months, and every time I make it, I change it up a bit. I found an original recipe on the Mind Body Green website (I highly recommend this website, so awesome!) and I've tweaked it to make it how I like it. Typically, I use: Pomi Strained Tomatoes (I've had a tough time finding the diced ones lately), a can of diced tomatoes, no salt added- ghee (another favorite new thing!) onions, sometimes garlic, spices to taste. I throw everything in a pot, let it simmer for 45 minutes, the last ten I add in all the spices, taste and add as needed. let it cool, then puree it, because you know this girl CANNOT handle chunky food. :)

5. I make my own tomato soup- Take one tablespoon of olive oil and 1 garlic clove, cook for 1 minute on med-high heat. Then add tomatoes (I use Hunt's diced and unsalted) and 1 cup broth (I use Kitchen Basics Unsalted vegetable broth), reduce heat and cook for about 20 minutes. Add spices after you turn off the heat, let sit until cool, puree with immersion blender (or food processor or blender). The version I make has about 60 calories with nothing added or I add in fresh mozz or morningstar veggie crumbles and some parmesan cheese. I also sometimes add in baby spinach. A delicious and quick lunch or snack!

Hope you are all well.

xoxo

New Recipes

Some more great recipes I've made over the last few weeks:



Chocolate, Almond, Dried Cherry, Coconut Bites. A great snack, and it's nice to know exactly what is going in them:

http://www.fitsugar.com/Paleo-Holiday-Treats-26285810

Gnocchi with Tomatoes and Goat Cheese (RIDICULOUS!)

http://www.foodrecipeshq.com/skillet-gnocchi-in-rich-tomato-and-goat-cheese-sauce/

Eggplant Parmesan - I've made eggplant before but this recipe was perfect. I use Pomi strained tomatoes and add garlic and spices so it's very light, I also go light on the cheese.

http://deliciouslydeclassified.com/2011/10/13/eggplant-parmesan/

Zucchini Cakes- I've made these a bunch of times!

http://blog.yummly.com/blog/2012/07/healthy-zucchini-recipes-that-taste-like-guilty-pleasures/

A similar recipe, yet equally delicious and good for kiddos:

Zucchini Tots:

http://leankitchen.com/2013/06/20/zuketots.htm

Healthy Chocolate Peanut Butter Fudge. I was very skeptical about this one but they were very good! I bought organic coconut oil on Amazon and it wasn't very expensive. There's a slight coconut taste but it's not a bad thing:

http://creatingnaturally.com/healthy-chocolate-peanut-butter-fudge/

A Day in the Life Of

Nick and I had a wedding last night (yes, on a Thursday, and yes, it was awesome) so I kept forgetting that today was Friday. Nick took the day off so it was great for all of us to be together.

Here's the day, in pictures. I failed to take pictures of the delicious dinner (Brussel sprouts, whole wheat pasta, lemon, parmesan, garlic, butter) and muffins (fresh pears, whole wheat flour, almonds, etc) I made, but lets just say they rocked.

Food of Late

I've tried to make a new recipe at least once a week, whether it be dinner, a snack, or a dessert.

A blog that I am currently in love with is www.detoxinista.com

I've been trying to eat less "diet" food and more real food. I have been eating right, I haven't been drinking, and although I haven't lost weight, I feel a lot better.

Check this website out for great, natural (paleo if you will) recipes. Many of them require very few ingredients. My current favorites are the "Dole Whip" (I'm not sure if that's what it's called on the website but it's basically fresh frozen pineapple and almond milk and blend blend blend) and "Flourless Peanut Butter Blondies", both of which I found through Pinterest.

Here's another recipe that I've had for a very long time, and finally got around to making:

http://www.health.com/health/recipe/0,,50400000122274,00.html


xoxo

Grilled Chicken with Pasta and Zucchini

I have been trying to cook more lately - I really like to do it and I'm actually kinda good at it, so here is something I whipped up for dinner last night

A side note- before I got pregnant, I was eating very clean - virtually no meat, a lot of fruits, veggies, tofu, etc. When I got pregnant, those things made me very ill. All I wanted was anything that wasn't healthy... And then I got gestational diabetes and couldn't eat much of anything.

Lean Cuisine makes a chicken caesar pasta meal that I really love. It is of course full of preservatives and sodium, so hear is my homemade version

4 servings

2 cups pasta (I use whole wheat or vegetable - ronzoni spiral pasta)
Thin sliced chicken (cutlets or tenders are fine) ( I just used a package - about a pound)
6 T caesar dressing (I used Maple Grove Fat Free)
2 T parmesan cheese
1 large zucchini

The day before I marinated the chicken in a few tablespoons of Paul Newman's Lite Caesar Dressing. ( I ran out of this so used Maple Grove for the finished product)

Clean and chop zucchini (I cut it into circles then cut the circles in half)
Toss with olive oil, garlic, salt & pepper, onion powder, to taste.
Cook at 350 for about 20 minutes (I like it a little crunchy and 20 mins did the trick)

Cook grilled chicken at 400 for 10 minutes, flipping once halfway through.

When the chicken was just about done I put the zucchini on top of it so the juices could mix together a bit, and left it on warm in the oven.

Cook pasta according to package directions, drain. Cut chicken into bite size pieces, toss with all other ingredients. I then added about 2 T of parmesan cheese, 2 T of caesar dressing, and a dash of crushed red pepper.

I was very happy with the finished product and would definitely make it again!

If you like watermelon...

you must make these!


http://www.growingagreenfamily.com/homemade-organic-watermelon-ice-pops/

I didn't use organic watermelon and used store bought orange juice - but these were so good! Simple and easy, and you know exactly what's going into it.

I bought these ice pop molds on Amazon last year and finally got around to using them - they work great (and are the same ones pictured)!

http://www.amazon.com/Tovolo-Groovy-Ice-Molds-Yellow/dp/B000G32H3Y/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1346444514&sr=8-1&keywords=ice+pop+molds

One comment - I don't think my watermelon was super ripe, so it probably would have benefited from a little bit of agave or honey.

Can't wait to have Nicholas try one of these next summer :)

xoxo

Favorite Things (Mostly) Food Edition

Food!

Caramel Apple Crunch Pak

I stumbled upon these at Market Basket and they’re a great little snack. It’s a pack of pre cut green apple slices and a small bit of caramel. It’s only 80 calories and a great (and half healthy) treat that really hits the spot!

Nature’s Earthly Choice Heritage Grain Blend – 100% Whole Grain Red and Gold Quinoa, Amaranth, Brown Rice, and Wild Rice

This stuff is so good – you have got to try it. I’ve been trying different grains/sides to try and expand what I eat, and this has so many different flavors and textures, I really like it! I typically cook it in chicken broth and then add a few teaspoons of parmesan or feta cheese. A perfect accompaniment to grilled chicken!

Frozen Kiwi Pops

Yep, as simple as it sounds. I saw this on Pinterest and thought – what a great alternative to an ice pop. You just slice a kiwi, insert a lollipop stick, freeze it for a bit (I usually do an hour or so), dip it in chocolate (I use dark ) and then freeze until hard. I usually let it sit out of the freezer for a little while before biting into it, because it gets very hard. But tasty and so easy! I plan on trying homemade watermelon pops soon and will let you know how that goes.

Cooking Light.Com's Banana Bread

I have made this recipe too many times to count - I actually made it a few times in the last few months. Nick and I both love it (I use Whole Wheat Flour instead of white and add dark chocolate chips).

http://www.myrecipes.com/recipe/classic-banana-bread-10000000549764/

Jason’s Vitamin E Lotion

This stuff is a great moisturizer, inexpensive, and has virtually no scent. I use very little perfume/scented things now that the baby is trying to eat me all the time :)

Bejeweled iPhone App

This one is just plain silly – a great time waster to take my mind off things when I need a break.

xoxo

Good Friends= Good Times

We had a small group of friends over yesterday and had a blast. It started early in the hopes that the party wouldn't run too late. Mama needs her sleep ;) We grilled and had some delicious food, and it was an overall great time. Nicholas was on his best behavior and had very few cranky episodes. He didn't sleep much through out the day, and only woke up once at night (he slept 7pm-1 am, then 2 am until about 5:30).

Here are some pics from the day:

Caroline and the babe

Caroline's fiance Jon

Danielle, Caroline, and I - along with the kid who falls asleep halfway through a bottle

Nick's friend Joe - it was great to see him as we haven't seen him in forever - he was traveling abroad a lot for work, and we're yet to meet his almost 1 year old daughter Keira - hopefully soon!

Auntie Lexi and the babe - she looks more fabulous every time I see her! (and more tan - heehee)

Me and the muffin man!

Chips Ahoy Ice Cream Cheesecake - Super easy and super delicious. Here's the recipe:
http://www.kraftrecipes.com/recipes/chips-ahoy-ice-cream-116062.aspx

The only down side is that I'm sick now - I sound worse than I feel, but not feeling so great. I've been fighting a dry cough for a few weeks and it's now developed into laryngitis and a runny nose. Cough drops don't seem to help and my stomach is starting to hurt from the coughing. But I know it could be worse. It's so hard to not kiss and smush the babe, and I'm really hoping I don't get him sick!

xo

Favorite Things...

Although nowadays I don't have much time for me...thought I'd post a few things I'm digging.

1. The hospital lotion with almond oil - haha...sounds funny, but the lotion that I was given at the hospital is unscented and very light, and I mix it with pure almond oil and use it on my whole body, including my c-section scar and stretch marks. It is very absorbent and light, and I use very little/no fragrance now since the babe is alway close.

2. Oatmeal - original flaxseed with no flavoring from market basket. A packet is only 100 calories and I mix in some cinnamon. Maple Brown Sugar oatmeal is one of the grossest smelling things ever - I felt that way even when I wasn't pregnant. This is much simpler and quite delicious. :)

3. Sleep. 'nuff said

4. Yoga- what little I can do of it, feels fantastic.

5. Shea Body Scrub from The Body Shop - virtually unscented, light, and makes my skin super soft.

Weekend Pics

This weekend was a pretty nice and lazy one, especially so close to the holidays. I had the baby shower Saturday, but other then that, I managed to sleep late and my dad and I did a little bit of shopping. I did a little bit of baking too.

I bought this tree on Friday at Target. I work with quiet a few Scrooges in my office and work has been a bit frustrating lately. I thought this tree was silly when I bought it, but every time I looked at it during the day on Friday, it made me smile. So, it was well worth the $5 :)

The BEST Christmas scent at B&BW

The peanut

Success, he liked them!

So simple - 70% cocoa chocolate (I used two 3.5 oz lindt bars) and chopped pistachios, and a dash of salt. Rich and delicious!

xoxo

Favorite Things

My favorite things of late:

1. Argan/Moroccan Oil. Technically, I'm not sure if these are the same thing. I've chosen to stop coloring my hair- I colored it almost three months ago and went darker with brown highlights, and so far it is growing out really nicely. I did it primarily to save money, but as you know I've been making a conscious effort to be cruelty free with my beauty products, and hair color (other than Aveda and Henna) is mostly not cruelty free, and I know the one my hair dresses uses is not. Nick bought me a new flat iron for Christmas and I found out (accidentally, haha) so he let me have it. It came with a small sample of argan oil and I am in love! It smells great and makes my hair super soft and shiny. I purchased organix brand "moroccan oil" shampoo and deep conditioner a few months back (inexpensive!) and my hair has never looked better! I have fine hair that gets easily oily, so if you share the same hair type as me, give it a try!

2. The Body Shop's tea tree oil line. I use the blackhead clearing scrub in the morning with the day moisturizer and the cleanser at night with my clarisonic skin care brush and follow with the night moisturizer. I also use Juice Beauty's night time moisturizer occasionally if my skin feels a little dry - which is very rare!

3. Iced decaf tea/green tea. I am making a conscious effort to stay away from diet soda (although I do have it once in awhile) and this is a nice replacement for water. It's got a little bit of flavor and hits the spot...although it makes me have to pee even more than normal.

4. Amazon.com. I've been obsessed with this website for as long as I can remember, but I've had such great luck finding Christmas gifts here so if you're looking for something strange or particular, give this website a try - be sure to choose the "free" shipping option if you don't mind waiting a few extra days for the package.

5. The Walking Dead. This is a show on AMC and it is amazing. I am a big horror movie fan, so if you're not, don't watch this. But if you are, this show is well worth it!

6. The baby kicking. I know..this should have been first on the list! It really is pretty awesome. I'm not always conscious of it but I really notice him when I wake up and right before I go to sleep, probably because it's a bit quieter. I smile every time I feel him. When in Mexico I was in the room alot resting and he was "bopping" around as I like to think of it...I'm pretty sure he liked it there. :)

7. Lady Gaga. At any given moment, I bust out in song with some of her lyrics. She's amazing. Yes, she's out there, but she's her own person, does (and wears!) what she wants, many of her songs are meaningful (whether it be to others or something personal to her), and she actually has talent.

8. Family. Even though they make me crazy, I'm really glad to be home, on a longer than normal trip. I'll be home in January again for a small baby shower my mom is throwing for me, but other than that once the baby comes I'm not sure when I'll be back.

9. Cheese. Any. Kind. I can't get enough of it.

xoxo

Wiped!

Tomorrow is the 3rd annual Tutela Family Gathering. I started the tradition the year after we bought the house (the first party was in 2009) and I'm hoping to keep it going. It is a TON of work, but it means alot to me that every single family member has come every year. Tomorrow there will be about 30 of us. I'll take alot of pics, but here is what's on the menu:

Tortellini bites
Chicken Tenders
Mini Grilled Cheese Sandwiches

Buffalo Chicken Dip
Cheesy Artichoke Dip
Pizza Dip
(using my new 3 station crock pot...woohoo!)
Veggies/Fruit/Boursin, etc. Chips/Goldfish...

Desserts:
Oatmeal Cookies
Pumpkin Cheesecake (Tami picked it up at the Cheesecake Factory awhile back)
Chocolate Bundt Cake with Chocolate Glaze (from scratch...yum!)
Peanut Butter/Pretzel/Milk Chocolate truffles

I made way less then I've made in past years, and I tried to stick with food I could just set out and then relax, since I tend to spend most of the party running around. Nick's family is full of amazing cooks and almost everyone contributes something as well.

I've made regular sangria and then a fun non alcoholic one for us pregos. :)

This morning we had a new sliding glass door put in, and it is GORGEOUS. Our old one opened on one side, settled into the house wrong so it was difficult to lock, and was just a major eyesore that's basically bothered me since we moved in - the screen door would always fall off and I couldn't enjoy a nice breeze in the summer. The door is BEAUTIFUL. A major thank you to Nick's friend Matt and his friend Paul who installed it for us very inexpensively. I couldn't ask for one better! Here's a pic-

Hope everyone is having a beautiful weekend!

Just some pics...

My Halloween Cupcakes -they came out so cute!

Dexter in the snow - I didn't necessarily want a picture of him peeing, I just think it's funny that he pees about a foot from the house (on the deck) and runs back inside instantly because he hates the cold.

A tree in our backyard weighed down by the snow.

Dexter and my mom, when he finally took a break from driving her crazy.

Where does the time go?

I can't believe I'm almost at the halfway point of my pregnancy. I feel like I just found out yesterday that we were having a baby. It's really very crazy. That's the only way I can put it.

One thing I never thought I'd do? Drink milk. Like, milk out of a glass. I know I never got enough calcium. I like cheese, I like ice cream, but only so much. So, I try to drink a glass or two a day to make sure I'm getting enough. I don't like it, but I do it. I drink low fat organic, and it's ok. I was drinking soy milk, but I have it in my head that cow's milk is "better" although the doctor said either is fine. By the way, I did also have some delicious ice cream tonight. It's made by Hood and it's actually low fat frozen yogurt - PB cups and fudge swirl. Try it if you can! I'm good about sticking to the serving size (I don't know how I do it...but I think eating really slow helps), but it is hard to not go back for seconds.

This weekend was a very busy one. Saturday I went to the gym for the first time in about a week. I have been exercising at home, but have been a bit tired so it's been difficult. I try to stretch for a few minutes each day because my hips, back, neck and shoulders have been achy. My neck and shoulders usually ache anyway, so now I've added hips and back to the fun. I'm glad it doesn't seem to be nerve related, and hope it stays that way. I haven't experienced any leg cramps/charley horses yet, and hope those stay away too! I'm honestly not complaining, because I know how bad some people have it! I feel very lucky to be feeling this good.

We registered at Babies R Us Saturday, as I talked about in a prior post, and I think I'm about done with touching the registry. I think I'll make myself crazy (as if I'm not already ;) and we can always buy anything else we need as we go along. A VERY special thank you to my friend Paula for giving a ton of input and help. My registry wouldn't have looked nearly as good without her! And thank you to my cousin Amber too - she recently had an adorable baby girl named Katie and she just emailed me some ideas as well. My friend Jen from high school already emailed me about a few items she is going to purchase elsewhere, so now I'm starting to get excited. Maybe this baby thing isn't so bad after all...heehee.

Sunday was another busy day. I woke up very early and went grocery shopping, then met my friend Jenn at the movies and then lunch. We saw Paranormal Activity 3 - I know I am in the minority when I say I LOVED the first two. I own them both and love the anticipation of being scared, and thought both of them had very satisfying endings (the ending of the second was awesome in my opinion). But this last movie should have never been made. The background was not well explained and I was left with way too many questions, and it was set up for a 4th movie, which I am not interested in at all. Major disappointment!

Saturday afternoon we went to Nick's cousin and his wife's house, Sam & Aisling. They recently moved from a townhouse in Arlington to a house in Wakefield. The house is great! Lots of space and very homey. A great backyard and a screened in area that will be so much fun in the summer. Their son Nicky is 3 1/2 and he is so smart- he already reads well and is such a cutie. Aisling was also a great help - she and I are very similar - blunt, straightforward, to the point - no BS :) So we get along great! She also talked to me about baby stuff in general and gave me a bunch of clothes - very excited! Now we just need to start working on the nursery so I have somewhere to put them. When we got home I cooked food for my friend Katy who just had a baby and also made Halloween brownies for my co-workers. I have a Betty Crocker calendar up in my cube at work (only me...hey it was free) and there was a picture of these brownies we have talked about every day in October. I managed to resist eating any, but were told they were delicious - and very easy!

Here's a pic:

And here's the recipe:

http://www.bettycrocker.com/recipes/trick-or-treat-brownie-cupcakes/e60918bc-0554-41c2-816d-4372a63bccd4#?st=7&term=halloween%20brownies

I couldn't find the small snickers or whatever they were using, so I used Rolos...and it went like this: one for the top of the cupcake...one for my mouth.

One more simple and delicious recipe? Nick's cousin Sam made this for dessert: 15 oz can of pumpkin (not pumpkin pie filling, pumpkin) and a box of chocolate cake mix (dark chocolate if you can find it). Mix and put in a bundt pan. Bake until done. You'd be AMAZED at how good it is. You can do the same with a box of spice mix and pumpkin - perfect for fall.

And...I just addressed my Christmas cards. Yep, Christmas. Let's hope no one moves before December.

Apparently I wasn't as tired as I thought...I'm very chatty tonight. Off to take a bath and lay around now!

xoxo

Crystal

Slacking already!

I'm already slacking on the baby bump pics, I plan to have Nick take a picture tomorrow morning for the 3 month bump and I'll post it as soon as I can. I just copied over all of the pics from Brooke's wedding and I looked at them and realized again what a great time it was. I can't believe it was already 3 weeks ago!

My friend Lauren posted a picture of her Boston Terrier Jackson hugging her baby bump when she was pregnant, and I honestly found it to be one of the cutest picture I have ever seen. My pic isn't as great as Lauren's was, but you can't help but love Dexter's face. :)

People have asked if I have strange cravings, but I've always been kind of a weird eater. As a kid I'd eat pizza but take off the cheese (my aunt would joke and say she should have made me a ball of dough, which sounds like heaven if you ask me). As an adult I've been much more open to trying different foods. For the past several months I was a vegetarian, but once I became pregnant I had no interest in any food at all, least of all fruits and vegetables. I force feed myself fruit, but can't get to the vegetables just yet. I've been trying to eat animal meat (chicken) because I need more protein, but just the thought makes me a bit sick to my stomach. I'll eat it probably once every few days, if that. I've always loved lemon, and I order lemonade now if we go out to eat. I also love when I go out to eat and they have "mocktails" - I went to Not Your Average Joe's last night and had a delicious mocktail which consisted of pineapple, lemon, lime juice, and coconut water. Yum!

Favorite Things

Since there's not much to do other than sit inside today, I thought I'd post a few of my favorite things of late.

1. Yankee Candles. My favorite scents of the moment are Clean Cotton and Pomegranate Cider. It doesn't really make sense, but the smell just makes me smile. I don't get it, but I like it.

2. Fiber One Bread. First of all, it's one of the few breads I've found WITHOUT High Fructose Corn Syrup. I used to always eat "lite" bread which tasted like cardboard - and was less substantial then a cracker. Fiber One Bread has 100 calories per slice, but it is so filling and thick and delicious, it is well worth it. I put a thin layer of peanut butter on two pieces, have a protein shake with soy milk, and it's a perfect breakfast that keeps me full until noon.

3. This weather. Well, not today's weather (silly Irene), but it's been cooling down as the fall is getting closer. People at work complain that "the summer is over", but I think the fall is quite beautiful as well. The winter is another story ;)

4. Free weekends. I was pretty bummed on Friday that we decided not to head down to New York, but a weekend of "nothing" has been wonderfully relaxing. I woke up super early yesterday and today, probably because I was in bed at about 9 at night.

5. The Body Shop. It's a small store in the mall and I don't get there often, but when I do, the service is always impeccable and the employees are always incredibly helpful. It's a bit pricey, but it's cruelty free and has some amazing scents (Satsuma...heaven!) Check it out if you can. Yesterday I bought a grapefruit "flavored" lip gloss and it is to die for!

Hope everyone is safe and with the ones they love.

xoxo