7 Ways to Be Proactive When It Comes To Health For You and Your Family

This is a sponsored conversation written by me on behalf of Counsyl. The opinions and text are all mine.

As a 2- time cancer survivor, I am always looking for ways to be proactive when it comes to the health of myself and my family. I try hard to stay balanced and find simple but effective ways to embrace health. Since my diagnosis 7 years ago, I have settled into a balanced approach to health that feels very good for me and my family.

I’m always trying to take small proactive steps to improve our health, without becoming overwhelmed by all the things one can do! There is a fine line between being obsessed with health which leads to fearful living, and being too relaxed and falling into ignorance. I try hard to stay in the balanced middle!

Here are a few simple tips that one can take to be proactive when it comes to health:

7 Ways To Be Proactive With Health:

1. Water

Let’s start super simple. You cannot get more basic than water! I rarely have anything in our home to drink besides water…okay…coffee, tea, and water. I guess I should say I rarely have anything sweet to drink in our home. It just is not necessary. Even 100% juice has a lot of natural sugar in it and can spike blood sugar because it does not have the natural fiber of the fruit in it to keep it balanced. Juice can also be hard on the teeth!

My Todd is an exception to our rule. He embraces a ton of healthy habits, but what he drinks is not one of them. He is a cola-lover, but the rest of us stay away from it. We know that Dad’s cola is Dad’s cola…especially when he is known for drinking out of the bottle! He does not keep it in the refrigerator, which is great so the rest of us are not tempted by staring at it every time we open the refrigerator.

I drink a ton of water thanks to my double-insulated, 24-ounce tumbler. It stays super cold all day and has a large straw. I find I drink WAY more water each day when it is through a large straw. I also love adding a some lemon!

2. Vitamins and Supplements

I have my girls on a multi-vitamin, vitamin D, and fish oil. I’m on the same, plus a few more. Vitamins are a great way to be proactive with your health. They supplement a healthy diet and give me peace of mind that we are all getting the nutrients we need.

I am a big Vitamin D fan, as it is great for so many things, especially immunity. My Oncologist has me on high dose vitamin D, and I get my levels checked regularly. Studies have shown most women are low in Vitamin D, so it might be a good idea to ask your doctor about getting your levels checked

Turmeric is my favorite supplement that I take daily. There are so many studies that talk about the power of this supplement, and I find that it takes care of joint pain that I have due to a cancer medication that I take daily and its side effects. It is a natural anti-inflammatory and a nice bonus is that it seems to give my skin a bit of natural color from the inside out. I will be sharing my favorite Golden Milk (aka Turmeric Tea) here soon, so if interested, subscribe to my mailing list so you won’t miss a post.

3. Balanced Living

We work very hard as a family to keep busyness to a healthy level. It is not always possible with 3 teenage girls, but even on days where everyone seems to be going every which way, Todd and I are learning to keep a slow mindset even during those busiest days. Often that looks like taking a deep breath, recognizing that most of life is not an emergency and that rushing about does not help us get anywhere any faster. I have worked hard on this one, as I am not a naturally calm person.

I do a lot of small things each day to keep stress at a minimum and a slow, balanced living mindset to a maximum. Chill music, candles, a daily walk, yoga stretching, journaling, meditation…the list goes on. On days where there is only time to do a few minutes of one or two of these things, it is still so very worth it! Anything to chisel away stress even for a short time is a great way to be proactive in embracing health, and it also is a great example to your kids, whose eyes are always watching.

4. Screening

Because of my history with cancer, I am passionate about early detection, awareness, and screening. This is National Hereditary Breast and Ovarian Cancer (HBOC) week—September 24-October 1—so it is very fitting to talk about hereditary cancer screening. 10% of the time cancer is linked to a single change in a gene, or mutation, that has been passed down from generation to generation. This is called “hereditary cancer.”

I waited until the worse time to get screened for hereditary cancer, and that was when I was diagnosed with cancer. I remember being apprehensive as we waited for results. I had my sisters and especially my 3 little lovelies on my heart and thought a lot about what it would mean for them if I tested positive. Even though I worried about the outcome, knowledge is empowering, and it did bring peace to be proactive. Testing felt like the right, most loving thing to do.

Fortunately, I did not test positive. It was such a relief to know, and I have taken much comfort in that knowledge all these years. If you want that same knowledge, you can be proactive, too! There is a DNA testing and genetic counseling company that will help you understand your DNA and inform important health decisions called Counsyl. All it takes is a small sample of saliva or blood to look at up to 36 different genes associated with an increased risk of certain cancers. Counsyl’s Reliant™ Cancer Screen is a physician-ordered test, so you can ask your OBGYN about it at your next visit.

5. Sleep

Our bodies love and need sleep. Sleep seems so simple but it is one of the most important things we can do for health! I do several things to make sleep a priority and prepare my body for the best of sleep. I have a cooling-gel pillow which keeps my hot flashes (another lovely cancer medication side effect) to a minimum. I take melatonin and I roll lavender oil on my temples right before bed. I set my kindle to ‘night shade’ screen if I read before bed. I also use an app called Sleep Cycle that can sense my breathing rhythms and tells me how many hours of sleep I get each night and the quality of that sleep. I try very hard to fall asleep and wake up at similar times each day. Remember…when Momma’s rested, the whole family benefits!

6. Walk

Movement is so important for health, and a simple walk can do wonders! It moves the joints, can get the heart rate up if brisk, moves lymph systems —which is very important for cancer survivors and health in general—and gets you out in nature which is always positive for health! As soon as I finish this paragraph, I’m going to take a quick break and take a walk. I’ve been enjoying walks so much lately. I’ve let go of having the perfect amount of time to get all my steps in, and just get up and walk for however long I have, whether it be for 10 minutes or 45 minutes.

I have a pair of shoes (Keen’s) that I can just slip on and go. I used to care about having a whole workout outfit on, which hindered my motivation in walking for short amounts of time, but now I just slip my shoes on with whatever I’m wearing, then get up and go! I may look ridiculous but I feel great! I love listening to podcasts (this one being my favorite right now) or jabbering away on Voxer app to my friends while I walk.

7. Know Your Numbers

There are many numbers to know! Blood pressure, cholesterol, vitamin D levels, iron levels, vitamin B 12 levels (if you are a vegan), blood sugar, and more! Be proactive in your health by knowing your numbers. Even weight is a good number to know. There are many diseases where rapid weight gain is a symptom, so know those scale numbers…just don’t obsess. If you keep up on physicals, most of these numbers will be available to you. Make sure to ask your doctor for your test results and levels. I always ask them to mail results to me so I have a paper form to refer back to and for personal records.

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What about you?

Do you tend to get obsessed about health or ignore health?

Do you have any tips in finding the balanced middle?

What about screening? Have you been screened or thought about being screened?

FAMILY/ Kids/Family/ Simplifying

10 Awesome Back-To-School Hacks For Moms

These 10 back-to-school hacks are to help Moms survive the back-to-school whirlwind that is taking place in many of our homes right now! You will find a few specifically for Moms of teens, as that is the season I am in right now. If you don’t have teens, you will before you know it–don’t blink!

Ice Cold Water Bottles

My girls love taking water bottles to school and like them ice-cold. To keep them cold until lunchtime, fill half way with water and place the water bottle on its side in the freezer over-night, then fill the rest with tap water in the morning.

Snapshot School Schedule & Locker Combo

Learning a new schedule can be easy if you keep it front and center on the first day. Have your teens take a snapshot of it and use it as their phone or screen saver. Have them take one of their locker combination, too.

Use Google In A Unique Way

Google is amazing, but to research information for school essays, try using scholar.google.com for more relevant information. When your kids are finished with an essay, have them copy and paste it into Google Translate, and listen to it. This is an easy way to find mistakes.

Refrigerator Chia Oats To-Go Breakfast

If you have not ever had chia oats, back-to-school is the perfect time to try them. They are filling, healthy–and if made in a mason jar–portable!

Keep School ID Or Library Books In Back Pack

Encourage your high schoolers to put their student ID right into a side pocket of their backpack when that take it off. It is usually in the care when they discover they forgot it, and it will be right there in their backpack, ready to put on. The same trick will work for those library books. If they are always stored in the back pack after reading, they will always be ready to be returned!

Protein After School Snack

Hard boiled eggs are a great way to get some protein into your kids as part of their after-school snack. They would also make a great addition to an easy breakfast. Have you ever tried to bake your hard-boiled eggs? I have not but I keep seeing that it is a thing!

Freeze a Wet Sponge

Sponges are an inexpensive way to keep those lunch boxes nice and cool. Icepacks can produce quite a bit of condensation, which can leave things soggy. Instead, freeze a wet sponge. Because the sponge absorbs liquids, it won’t leak while in the lunch box.

The Good Sandwich Guide

Tired of overlapping lunch meats with edges hanging off the sides of the bread? Use this trick to reduce overlapping and allow for a good bite even in the corners! Cut 2 slices of circular lunch meat and cheese and cheese in half. Lay on top of a piece of bread with rounded side facing in, so the straight edges fill the bread. Top with another piece of bread and slice down the center. I personally don’t buy circular lunch meat, as most of those have nitrates in them, but we do buy circular cheese, so I like this hack!

Pomodoro Method For Studying

Help your older kids take the most of those studying sessions. Encourage them to follow this guide.

~25 minutes hard work

~5 minute break

~Every 3rd break = 15 minutes long

Use PayPal App

If you need to pay a tutor on the spot, want to school supply shop while laying in bed, and donate to your favorite charities with a click, you must use PayPal.

We use the PayPal app all the time, and I truly don’t know what I’d do without the convenience it brings! We use it to pay our tutor, with just a push of a button I can hear her phone ding right when I send it, which makes us both smile, knowing she is getting her payment before she even leaves our home.

PayPal One Touch:

When Back-to-School shopping on an app or website that allows you to pay with PayPal, there is no need to type in credit card information or re-enter usernames an passwords. Personally, the fewer passwords I need the better life is, and I am always relieved when I see a website allows you to pay with PayPal, which I find on many sites! You can log in and then are given the choice to opt-in to “stay logged in” for the same device and browser combo, across eligible PayPal merchants. Easy shopping, paid with a click, while lying in my bed? Yes, I will take that.

Charitable Giving

I just learned that with the same easy click of a button, PayPal helps support our favorite causes with the in-app donation feature called the PayPal Giving Fund. 100% of the proceeds go to selected partnering charity organizations, such as Let Girls Learn, YMCA, and Boys & Girls Clubs of America. My Todd works for a non-profit charitable organization, so I know how amazing this feature is both for the charity and for the giver.

You can donate to your favorite charities, whether responding on the spot to a natural disaster or simply supporting a local cause, in-app donations is a quick and secure way to discover and donate to certified charities around the world with just a click using PayPal.

During back-to-school season, and donations made through the Pay Pal Giving Fund will receive a 1% match from PayPal! Pay Pal is partnering with select charities dedicated to providing access to education and extracurricular enrichment to children from August 12-August 31, 2016. Learn more about the PayPal Giving Fund & how to donate by going to paypal.com/givenow

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Are YOUR kids back-to-school yet? Do you have teens?

Do you shop for school supplies online? Are you familiar with the PayPal App?

I was selected for this opportunity as a member of Clever Girls and the content and opinions expressed here are all my own.

Meals/ RECIPES/ Sponsored

Creamy Tomato Cauliflower Alfredo Pasta With Arugula & Topped with Crunchy Breadcrumbs

I loved gathering my family around the table for this good-for-you but oh- so- creamy pasta dish. They never guessed by looking at it that the creaminess of the tomato alfredo sauce comes from cauliflower & avocado! When they saw pasta with creamy sauce and crunchy breadcrumb topping, they were ready to dig in.

I’m finding it hard to believe that my girls are growing so quickly. I feel almost frantic to get them to the dinner table every day, just to hold on to the moments of us all being together as a family before they are all grown up and out of the house. I’ve found myself mentioning this quite often on the blog lately, but boy, with 2 of my girls already in high school, reality has hit that they are growing up fast and that time flies.

Thankfully it does not take more than pasta & a great sauce to make my girls happy to come to our family dinner table, and Ragu has made it really easy to obtain a great sauce with just a twist of a jar.

For this recipe, I did a little bit more that twist a jar open. I’m participating in the Ragu Ready. Set. Cook! contest, which is a contest that challenges home cooks to create new and unique recipes featuring a product from the Ragu line, plus a set list of other contest ingredients.

Ragu Ready. Set. Cook! Contest

Would you like to enter this contest? I will give more details at the end of the post, but the grand prize is $5,000, runner-up gets $1,700 & people’s’ choice gets $750. How fun would it be to win some cash while getting creative in the kitchen & feeding your family a great pasta dish?

To align with the contest, your recipe must include 4 of the below ingredients + Ragu. You may also use ingredients outside of the list in your recipe as well.

Here is the list of ingredients you must choose from:

Italian Sausage
Black Beans
Garbanzo Beans
Eggs
Feta Cheese
Goat Cheese
Breadcrumbs
Arugula
Cilantro
Pine Nuts
Bacon
Shrimp
Polenta
Pasta
Corn Tortillas
Cauliflower
Spaghetti Squash
Avocado

For my recipe, I chose pasta, cauliflower, avocado & breadcrumbs. I decided to keep it meat free as I am always looking for a hearty pasta dish for our Meatless Monday nights.

I love that you can now find pasta that has protein in it. The pasta I used in this dish had 17 grams of protein per serving in it, all from plant sources (lentils, chickpeas, flaxseed, barley, oats & spelt).

Between the protein in the pasta and all of the veggies that create the sauce, I did not serve this pasta with anything but a few sliced tomatoes, the last from our garden. We didn’t even need a salad as the arugula greens were right in the pasta! It was such an easy, hearty meal.

The sauce starts out with an entire head of cauliflower. This is the key ingredient to making a creamy, vegetarian alfredo sauce. You simply cut up the cauliflower, put it in a pan with some garlic and water, cover & let cook until very soft. It must be soft if you want your sauce super creamy!

When I saw that avocado was an ingredient in the contest list, I knew it would add some good-for-you fats into the dish while upping the creamy factor even more! I added lemon for 2 reasons–to keep the avocado from browning & also to add some acid to the dish, which is always pleasing to the palate.

While your pasta is boiling & your cauliflower is getting nice and soft on the stove, prepare your avocado with lemon by smashing them together with a fork.

This is also a great time to prepare your crunchy breadcrumb topping. This topping takes the recipe to a whole new level! Putting just a couple of butter into breadcrumbs and adding just a bit of parmesan cheese makes such a great cheesy & crunchy topping to the creamy pasta. This is so much better for you than having cream, butter and cheese in large portions in the sauce like most alfredo sauce recipes call for.

Pictured above are all the components to the recipe that I prepared while the cauliflower is cooking.

Ragu sauce adds a ton of rich flavor & aroma to the sauce. Ragu has been an Assunta secret recipe since 1937 & is made with vine- ripened, slow- simmered tomatoes, garlic, and herbs. I love that there is no artificial color, flavor, or high-fructose corn syrup added to their sauces. They let us smell, see & savor their long-standing tradition of fresh taste, and they even offer an organic sauce!

The cauliflower should be cooked soft enough to easy break up with just a spoon. Look how amazingly creamy it is after blending! That is just cauliflower, garlic, water, salt & pepper. This alone tastes amazing, but for the contest, I wanted to kick it up even further.

I added the smashed up avocado & jar of Ragu sauce, then blended some more.

Isn’t that a beautiful, rich, creamy dreamy sauce? Can you believe there is no dairy in it?

I mixed the hot pasta and sauce together in a large pan, added the arugula and stirred until it wilted.

I then put it into a baking dish and topped it with the prepared breadcrumbs.

After just a few minutes under the broiler, the topping becomes a beautiful crunchy, golden brown & the parmesan cheese sizzles and smells SO good!

My family had no idea that the bread crumb mixture is the only place there is cheese in this recipe! They ate it up and asked for seconds.

So what do you think? Do you think you would make this recipe for your family? Do you want to participate in the Ragu Ready. Set. Cook! contest too? If so, keep reading for instructions after the recipe.

Creamy Cauliflower Tomato Alfredo Pasta with Arugula & Crunchy Breadcrumb Topping

1 tsp olive oil

2 cloves garlic

1 head of cauliflower – cut up

1-1/2 cups of water

1 lb pasta

1 avocado

juice of half a lemon

1 jar Ragu Sauce, Traditional

1 cup arugula

1 cup breadcrumbs

2 tablespoons of butter

1/2 cup grated parmesan cheese

salt & pepper

Directions:

Saute the minced garlic in the olive oil in a small saucepan over low heat. Allow to cook for a few minutes, until the garlic is tender and fragrant, but not browned. Add 1 cup of water to the saucepan, along with the cauliflower, and bring the water to a boil. (The water will not cover the cauliflower, and that’s okay.) Once the water is boiling, reduce the heat to a simmer and cover the pot for 8-10 minutes, until the cauliflower is fork-tender and very soft. You may need to add a bit more water if it evaporates completely before cauliflower is tender.

Bring a large pot of water to boil and cook pasta to al dente according to instructions on the box. Drain and set aside in the large pan it boiled and keep warm.

Meanwhile:

Smash avocado with juice of 1/2 of lemon. Set aside.

Mix breadcrumbs with melted butter & parmesan cheese. Mix well and set aside.

When cauliflower is finished cooking, transfer all contents in the pan to the blender. Blend until very creamy. Add salt and pepper to taste. Season well!

Add avocado & lemon mixture. Blend again.

Add jar of Ragu sauce. Blend again.

Add sauce to the pasta & toss. Add arugula. Heat gently and stir until arugula is wilted.

Put pasta into a 9×13 pan, top with breadcrumb mixture.

Broil for just a couple of minutes, until the breadcrumbs are toasty brown.

Serve immediately while hot.

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Ragu Ready. Set. Cook! Contest Information:

Ready. Set. Cook! challenges home cooks to create new and unique recipes featuring a sponsored ingredient, plus a set list of other contest ingredients.

Recipe Contest Elements:

Entry phase –4 weeks from 11/2 – 11/30- (you can enter on Food.com/Ragu page. Live on 11/2)
Rate and review phase –2 weeks
Judging phase –2 weeks
Winner announcement
People’s choice award

Prizing:

Grand prize $3,000
Runner-up $1,250
People’s Choice: $750

This is a sponsored conversation written by me on behalf of Ragu. The opinions and text are all mine.

FAMILY/ Kids/Family/ Marriage/ Sponsored

Reclaiming Date Night

Todd and I have had date nights as long as we have been married, which is going on almost 20 years! We were super faithful with date nights before the kids were born, going out once a week and having at least one elaborate date once a month. We lived in the Chicago during our first 2 years of marriage, so there were plenty of places to go to & choose from for date night. Once we started having kids, we moved back to Nebraska and date night turned into every other week, as paying babysitters got expensive. Grandparents were awesome with helping watch the kids, so some months we got to go every week. Whether it was every week or every other week, it was a priority for us.

The past year or so we have found it more of a struggle to get out on a date night on a regular basis. Having teenagers keep us very busy on the weekends, and my health issues this past year really kept us from going out much.

Now that I am feeling more like myself, we have started going out on date nights on a more regular basis. It is still hard with teenagers, but keeping our dates short so we can run them around town is better than no date at all!

We keep our date nights pretty simple. We both are foodies so we always go out to eat.

Here are reasons date night is important to us:

~It allows us to really ‘see’ each other. There is something quite romantic about sitting across from my man and seeing the one I committed to spending my whole life with. Life can pass so quickly, so slowing down to really look my Todd in the eyes, connect with him, and listen to him with no distractions is important and time very well spent.

~It causes us to pause and ‘be’ instead of ‘do.’ We are together every day doing all that life brings our way. It is so important to just be together and slow the hustle that life brings.

~It is fun. Life can bring some pretty heavy things along the way, so taking the time to have some fun is important to us. Fun for us means connecting emotionally & of course, eating great food!

We love LOVE food. My Todd especially loves sea food, so recently I initiated a date night and took my man out to Red Lobster for their Endless Shrimp. He is usually the one who initiates and takes me out, so this was quite fun to change things up a bit and take him out. We had the BEST time.

The evening really was perfect. The weather was in the upper 70’s and the sun was just starting to set as we drove to dinner. I wore some new booties that I just got and threw on some jewelry to add a little sparkle to my casual outfit. Gotta look good for my man!

We were surprised at how busy Red Lobster was, and worried that the wait would be long, but despite all of the people who were there excited to eat some sea food, we were seated within minutes.

Red Lobster is the world’s largest seafood restaurant company, headquartered in Orlando Florida, with over 700 restaurants in the United States and Canada. Red Lobster is focused on delivering freshly prepared seafood at reasonable prices. It was obvious on this night that Red Lobster is where their guests come to satisfy their craving for great seafood!

Our waitress was super sweet and immediately took our drink orders. We ordered two of their new beer-based cocktails, that are available exclusively during Endless Shrimp & paired perfectly with our Endless Shrimp dishes. One was called the Seaside Shandy and the other was the Angry Lobster. Hands down my favorite was the Angry Lobster. Bold and spicy, the Angry Lobster features Anger Orchard Crisp Apple Cider, tropical fruit juices and a kick of Fireball Cinnamon Whiskey. I had no idea I was about to taste a drink that was so good that I would be thinking about it a week later. It was so good I had to text my sister to tell her to go to Red Lobster and order one ASAP. It was like tasting fall in a drink — the cinnamon apple flavor was so delicious! To. Die. For.

Both cocktails are served in a beer can-shaped commemorative glass with the Red Lobster logo & are sold with the purchase of a cocktail.

When it was time to take our order, the waitress was really great at her job and answered my questions before I even asked them! We knew we were going to order their Endless Shrimp, which is going on now and for a limited time at Red Lobster. This year, you can choose two out of 5 shrimp preparations for your initial order, and then you can enjoy as much shrimp as you would like, any way you want it, and can mix-and match different preparations.

These are the dishes that are only available during Endless Shrimp:

~NEW! Pineapple Habanero Coconut Bites — coconut shrimp bites tossed in pineapple habanero sauce

~Teriyaki Grilled Shrimp — classic guest favorite and back by popular demand, grilled shrimp brushed with soy-ginger glaze

~Hand-Breaded Shrimp– Hand-breaded shrimp friend to a golden brown.

~Garlic Shrimp Scampi — Oven-broiled shrimp in garlic, white wine and butter

~Shrimp Linguini Alfredo— tender shrimp in a garlic Parmesan cream sauce on a bed of linguine

I started out with the Pineapple Habanero Coconut Bites, and the Teriyaki Grilled Shrimp. I loved the sound of the Pineapple Habanero Coconut Bites, but was worried it would be too spicy for my wimpy palate. Our waitress told me they could put the sauce on the side, but that it was not overly spicy. It ended up being my favorite of all, and it did have a bite, but boy, was it good with the sweetness of the coconut shrimp. I also loved the Teriyaki Grilled Shrimp. My first 2 choices ended up being my favorite.

Todd started with Shrimp Linguini Alfredo and the Hand-Breaded Shrimp. He got a refill of the Pineapple Habanero Coconut Bites, and I got a refill of Hand-Breaded Shrimp, but I was getting super full by this time. We had already enjoyed the Cheddar Bay Biscuits that Red Lobster is known for. I also had a salad which was really fresh and green, topped with their Blueberry Balsamic dressing–yes, it was as good as it sounds.

Todd and I were enjoying conversation when a couple of familiar faces walked up and greeted us. My Todd is Programs Director at a non-profit organization called City Impact. He works with young people and 2 of the students we have worked with were there working the room as host and hostess. They were so professional–they were dressed sharply in all black and were communicating discretely with other team members through their headsets. They were busy with things like setting up tables, seating people in a timely manner, & bringing a high chair to a family with little ones. Todd and I were so happy that they stopped by to say hi and we beamed with pride at the way they owned the room and made service flow so wonderfully. That was a fun surprise.

We did save room for dessert and ordered the Chocolate Chip Lava Cookie as suggested by one of Todd’s students. It was really yummy. I can’t ever have dessert with out a cup of coffee, so I ordered a cup of decaf and it was delicious paired with our dessert.

It was so nice to just sit and enjoy great food with my husband. We had great conversation, just catching up on life and even setting a few goals for our family in the future. We ended up super satisfied and headed home to snuggle up and watch some of our favorite television that we had recorded earlier in the week. I love finishing date night curled up together in our cozy home!

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What about you?

Have you ever eaten at Red Lobster during Endless Shrimp? If you do go during Endless Shrimp, use the hashtag #EndlessReasonsContest on social media to share your reasons for loving Endless Shrimp and be entered to win daily prizes throughout the event.

What about date night? Do you need to reclaim date night? How often do you and your significant other go out on a date? What do you like to do on dates?

I was selected for this opportunity as a member of Clever Girls and the content and opinions expressed here are all my own.

Brunch/ Healthy Eating/ RECIPES

Hashbrowns, Spinach & Tomato Pie

Call this Hashbrowns, Spinach & Tomato a pie, a quiche, or omelette–whatever you call it, call it good!

I love taking traditional meals like this one and figuring out how to make them smarter, with the right ingredients at the right price!

DO IT SMARTER

There are several things I do that makes shopping, menu planning and dinner -making smarter.

First, I look for recipes that I can revamp with ingredients that are better for my family. I use organic whenever possible, especially when it comes to dairy, and look for ways to swap ingredients for smarter ingredients.

For example, in this Hashbrowns, Spinach & Tomato Pie recipe, I use shredded potatoes instead of pie crust, vegetables instead of bacon or ham, and olive oil instead of vegetable oil.

Another thing I like to do is use ingredients that I know will last throughout the week. Organic eggs are a great thing to buy and use all throughout the week. I buy 2 cartons and hard boil one whole carton for snacks and to top salads.

I also buy a large bag of Hashbrown potatoes most weeks, as they are great in breakfast recipes and also as a quick side dish to many other non-breakfast recipes. I make sure the brand I buy is just plain old shredded potatoes, with no additives or extra oils or salt added.

A bag of shredded cheese is another ingredient I buy at the beginning of the week and make sure it stretches all week. If we have tacos, we do not load on the cheese like we used to…just a sprinkling will do. If I make a casserole, most call for 2-3 cups of cheese which is usually not necessary. I use half that amount and it rarely makes a difference except for fewer calories & more my pocket-book! I will say, it the cheese is organic like the Horizon Organic Shredded Mozzarella cheese that I used in this recipe, I am more likely to pile it on!

The last thing I do that is pretty smart is make one day a week a ‘breakfast for dinner” day. Breakfast food is so easy to make, and recipes like this one that has eggs and organic dairy & veggies can be a healthy & hearty meal.

HASHBROWN, SPINACH & TOMATO PIE RECIPE

Let’s talk about this recipe. It was a snap to throw together and was super flavorful. The colors in it are so pretty & the browning of the hash brown crust just adds to the beauty of the dish. Organic Horizon Whole Milk adds extra creaminess to the egg filling. It is really a great dish with lots of texture.

We had this for dinner last night and I really enjoyed it. It will be a recipe I make often, in fact, I am making a version of it as I type for my girls for breakfast, with no garlic or veggies. They just wanted plain for breakfast, just plain hash browns, cheese and eggs. It smells great as it is baking right now and is making me hungry!

Feel free to use whatever veggies you want. I think sliced zucchini squash or roasted asparagus would be great!

Hashbrowns, Spinach & Tomato Pie

2 cups shredded hash brown potatoes (I used frozen, straight from the bag)

1 cup Horizon Organic Shredded Mozzarella Cheese, divided

3 tablespoons olive oil, divided

2 cups packed fresh spinach

1 garlic clove

1 cup grape tomatoes

4 eggs

1/4 cup Horizon Organic Whole Milk

pinch of nutmeg

Salt & freshly ground pepper, to taste

Preheat oven to 375 degrees
Spray or grease a 9 inch pie plate; put the shredded hash brown potatoes into the pie plate. Drizzle with 1 Tablespoon olive oil. Toss to coat. Press down into pie plate and push them up the sides of the plate a bit.
Bake for 8 minutes; remove from oven & top with 1/2 cup Horizon Organic Mozzarella Cheese & set aside.
Heat olive oil in a skillet
Add spinach and tomatoes; cook for 3 minute sort until spinach is wilted, stirring frequently.
Add garlic & continue to cook for 1 minute.
Remove from heat and spread over potatoes.
In a mixing bowl, whisk together eggs, Horizon Organic Whole Milk, nutmeg, salt and pepper until thoroughly combined.
Pour over spinach & tomatoes.
Sprinkle the remaining shredded cheese over the pie
Bake for 30-35 minutes, or until top is golden brown.
Let cool for 10 minutes before cutting.
Cut & Serve.

…………

Would you like to know more about Horizon Organic products? You can follow them at these places:

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This conversation is sponsored by Horizon. The opinions and text are all mine.

Brunch/ RECIPES/ Sides/ Sponsored/ Sweets

Vegan Pumpkin Bread With Brown Sugar Streusel Crust

We have been enjoying Meatless Mondays around here for quite a while now. It has been much fun creating or finding meatless & dairy free meals and desserts. It causes us to eat more plant-based & gives me excuse to mix up my recipes & pour over my Vegan board on Pinterest. I found a couple of recipes for Pumpkin bread and remixed them to come up with this better-for-you Vegan Pumpkin Bread with Brown Sugar Streusel Crust recipe. It is now a favorite! It is so very good that I won’t ever go back to my usual non-vegan, double-the-sugar pumpkin bread recipe.

It is also Monday night football season, so I’ve had extra fun finding meatless meals and desserts that we can enjoy as a family while having the game on. Notice I say “having the game on” instead of “watching the game.” That is because my husband is really the only one who watches Monday night football. He is in a house of girls who are not too interested, but I must say, I love the fun fall atmosphere that a football game brings to the house. It causes me to light fall candles, plug-in my fun lighty- up pumpkin & even use it as an excuse call up my friends and have them over during the week if I’m feeling social. If not, I just cozy up in the corner of the couch with my fuzzy blanket and fuzzy socks & listen to my husband cheer on his team. He is an extremely quiet guy until it comes to sports…then he gets quite animated and I find myself chuckling at him. It can be very entertaining. Oh how I love my man!

This Vegan Pumpkin Bread recipe is anther something that I just love. It pleases both the girls & guys, and is the thing to make when having people over. It is nice and girly & tastes great with a cup of coffee or tea, but also is sweet & special enough to pass as a dessert with the guys, enjoyed with a pumpkin ale.

The bread is soft and moist, you won’t miss the whole milk, butter or eggs one bit! Creamy Silk Almondmilk, thick pumpkin, and vegan butter alternative is what this bread so moist. The streusel top is a buttery brown sugar concoction that is nice and hearty, not dry & crumbly like most streusels. It seeps into the bread a bit while it bakes and the result is just—MMM.

This recipe mixes up in a snap. All ingredients except the flour and baking powder are combined together in one bowl. You then simply wisk in the dry ingredients, pour in a pan, and top with streusel.

It is a great way to keep things simple on a Monday night. Serve with a crockpot of vegan chili & call it good. Your home will smell, taste, look and sound like fall while eating this if you make it on a Meatless Monday Football Night!

Do you have any recipes that can be remixed for #MeatlessMondayNight?

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Silk’s plant-based beverages & yogurt alternatives are super versatile and can be used as substitutes for dairy products. Using them is a great way to make delicious meat & dairy-free versions of your normal go-to Monday Night Football recipes.

Silk’s products are lactose free, cholesterol free, high fructose corn syrup free & no artificial colors, flavors or preservatives.

Vegan Pumpkin Bread With Brown Sugar Streusel Crust

3/4 cup pumpkin puree (not pumpkin pie filling)

1/2 cup brown sugar (or coconut sugar)

1/3 cup coconut oil, melted (another plant-based oil can be substituted)

1/4 cup Unsweetened Silk AlmondMilk

2 tablespoons molasses

1 tablespoon vanilla extract

1 teaspoon cinnamon

1 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice

pinch of salt

1 cup plus 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour (can use wheat)

2 teaspoons baking powder

Streusel Crust

1/4 cup of vegan buttery spread or butter if you are non-vegan, softened

1/4 cup light brown sugar, packed

1/4 cup all-purpose flour

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Grease & flour one 9×5 inch loaf pan. Set aside.
Bread- in a large mixing bowl, combine all ingredient through salt & whisk to combine. If coconut oil re-solidifys, no worries, a few small white clumps are ok.
Stir in the flour and baking powder until just combined, don’t overmix. Batter is quite thick.
Turn batter out into prepared pan, smoothing the top lightly with a spatula.
Streusel Crust – in a medium bowl, combine butter, brown sugar, 1/4 cup flour & toss with a fork until mixture combines and crumbs and clumps form. This is a moist streusel, but if your seems very moist and is paste-like, add another 1-2 tablespoon flour, as needed to dry it out.
Evenly sprinkle the streusel topping over the top, using your fingers to break up large clumps in necessary.
Bake for about 40-44 minutes, or until center is set and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean, or with a few moist crumbs, but no batter.
Allow bread to cool in pan, on top of a wire rack, for at least 30 minutes before turning out onto the rack to finish cooling completely.
Slice bread with a serrated knife in a sawing motion, going over any stubborn patches of the crust a few times, taking care to be gentle to not compress the loaf. Bread will keep airtight at room temperature for up to 1 week.
To freeze, wrap completely cooled loaf in plastic wrap, then place loaf inside a gallon-sized plastic zipped bag. Bread will keep airtight in the freezer for up to 6 months

Enjoy!

This conversation is sponsored by Silk. The opinions and text are all mine.

HOME/ Organizing/ Simplifying/ Sponsored

Organize Your Phone In 10 Easy Steps

I get bitten by the organization bug much harder in the fall than in the spring. The cool, crisp fall weather makes me want to just hunker down in a cozy home, and there is no cozy if there is clutter! I love sitting under a warm blanket with a fall scented candle lit, scrolling through my phone and doing all the things our amazing phones do these days! I was doing this just the other day, about to instagram my yummy cup of Pumpkin Spiced Chai Latte, but, then…in the midst of my insta moment…the annoying ‘out of storage’ screen pops up.

How many of you have gone to take a photo with your phone, only to get the dreaded little screen that pops up letting you know that you are out of storage? Ugh, this has happened to me so many times! Well, no more. It is time for some fall organization of my phone, starting with photo storage in Amazon Cloud Drive

Phone Organization

Step One:

Get photos off my phone and onto the cloud with Amazon Cloud Drive.

Todd and I have been Amazon Prime members for a few years now, and love it. The free 2-day shipping is great, and we also love Amazon Prime Video. What we didn’t know until recently that if you are a prime member, you already have access to Amazon Cloud Drive with Prime Photos, which provides unlimited, secure photo storage as part of your Prime membership!

I was very excited about the unlimited photo storage, especially when I found out there is a handy Amazon Photo App for my phone. What this means for me is any photo that I take with my iPhone can easily be stored in Amazon Cloud Drive. This can be done by setting it to automatically store every photo you take, or choosing them manually. I no longer have to take up precious space on my phone and see that dreaded warning screen telling me that I have no space left to take another photo!

As a blogger, this is especially exciting. I take most of my blog photos with my phone, and before discovering Amazon Cloud Drive I had over 2,000 photos on my phone! Many of them were photos taken for my blog, some I had already used, and some I had not. They are were all screaming to be organized! I had access to another type cloud storage, but it is also being used by my whole family and all of their devices, and is one that is not unlimited, so it stressed me out to upload all my many blog photos to that specific cloud storage.

I plan on using Amazon Cloud Drive for my own personal iPhone photos, my Kindle photos, and my personal laptop photos, paying specific attention to my blog photos. I can’t believe I will finally have all of my blog photos in one spot, accessible from all devices. Talk about Fall Organization! This is something I have desired for a long time. Once I get all of my personal & blog photos organized, I will then see to the rest of my family’s photos, which will probably end up on Amazon Cloud Drive, too, since it is unlimited!

Don’t have Amazon Prime? No worries, I will explain at the end of this post some amazing deals offered for you from Amazon Cloud Drive for non-prime members.

Now that photos are off of my phone and I have freed up a ton of storage space, I can organize the rest of my phone.

{my sweet screensaver…can’t believe they are teenagers now!}

Step Two:

Update Apps

I had not been able to update my apps due to lack of…yep…storage space. Now I can! I had 37 updates just waiting there for me, and now my phone will work with efficiency.

Step Three:

Voicemails –Listen to & delete all voicemails. I had listened to all of mine, but had not deleted them. They were starting to pile up! I also went in my settings and set them to automatically delete after a certain period of time.

Step Four:

Messages — Read, respond to, & delete all messages

Step Five:

Voxer –(I’m assuming you all have and love this app as much as I do) I listened to and deleted all old messages (these were taking up a ton of space!) I use this awesome walkie-talkie type message app everyday. It makes driving in the car so much more fun when I am alone. I blab to friends or listen to my messages and just love how it turns car time into connecting time!

Step Six:

Reminders–I took a quick peek at all of my reminders and clicked off items that were finished, and deleted lists that were outdated.

Step Seven:

Frequently Used Apps –I put frequently used apps on front home screen. This is my personal preference, then I use folders on the second home screen. There are several ways to organize apps. Some like to do it according to color, some like to alphabetize them. On my front page I do a combination of color and type.

Step Eight:

App Folders–organize rest of apps in folders on 2nd home screen. I saw a great idea online recently where you organize according to action word:

~look up (yelp, contacts, safari, contacts, weather)

~listen (music, spotify)

~talk (message, FaceTime, ichat)

~shop (amazon, walgreens, iTunes)

~share (snapchat, twitter, vine, periscope)

~photograph (photos, instagram, Amazon Cloud Drive)

~navigate (maps, around me)

~read (amazon reading app, mashable, Bloglovin’)

Step Nine:

Contacts–Go through contacts and update information.

Step Ten:

Notes – clear out notes. Delete unwanted, file the rest into Evernote

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Oh my goodness I can’t tell you how much better using my newly organized phone is!

What made the biggest difference is dealing with my boatload of photos. It took quite awhile to move over 2,000 pictures using the Amazon Cloud App, but that was to be expected with so many photos. Now that the bulk of my photos are moved over, doing just a month at a time is super fast. I find myself keeping about a week’s worth of photos on my phone, as I like to share them on social sites like instagram, so that gives me some time to do just that while still staying organized and on top of my photos.

Want to know more about Amazon Cloud Drive?

Photos and files can be shared via private links from within the Amazon Photo app or by selecting a folder or file to be shared using the web interface on your computer. Love that! This would be super useful for holidays or vacations, to share with your friends and family.

If you are already a prime member, you have access to Amazon Cloud Drive with Prime Photos, which provides unlimited photo storage as part of your Prime membership. In addition, Prime members get 5 GB of additional storage space for videos, movies, music, and files.

If you are not, Amazon recently announced two unlimited storage plans, both start with a free 3-month trial:

Unlimited Everything Plan ($59.99 per year—equivalent of less than $5 per month): Store an infinite number of new and existing photos, videos, files, documents, movies, and music in Cloud Drive.
Unlimited Photos Plan ($11.99 per year—equivalent of less than $1 per month): Similar to the Prime member benefit – non Prime members can also store an infinite number of photos in Cloud Drive without worrying about taking up space on phones, cameras, or other devices. This plan also includes 5 GB of additional storage for videos or other documents and files.

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What about you? Do you store your photos in the cloud? Do you find yourself annoyed when your phone photos take up all your storage space? Do you have any more phone organization tips for me?

I was selected for this opportunity as a member of Clever Girls and the content and opinions expressed here are all my own.

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