No-Bake, Guilt-Free Cookies

If you are like me, you have a major sweet tooth. I try not to bake much, because I know I will just want to eat whatever I bake. It's a vicious cycle, you see, especially trying to eat clean. Here's a recipe that allows guilt-free sweet eating.

No-Bake Shakeology Cookies
Serving Size is 1 cookie

Ingredients:
- 1 cup Chocolate Shakeology
- 1 cup nut butter (I used almond butter)
- 1 cup quick cooking oats
- 1/2 cup agave nectar

Preparation:
- In medium-sized bowl, combine all ingredients, stirring well.
- Roll mixture into 20-24 balls, each about 1-inch in diameter, and place on cookie sheet lined with parchment paper.
- Press a fork into each cookie, creating a criss-cross. (I touched the back of the fork to flour before each press to make this step easier/cleaner.)
-Store in air-tight container, and enjoy!
*If you are doing the 21-Day Fix, one cookie = one yellow container*

If you don't have Shakeology, the healthiest meal of the day, no worries--you can get it here!

4th of July

As always, another holiday weekend at the bay did not disappoint. While I have time in the summer off, most of my family does not get to enjoy that luxury. But, this weekend, we did. The whole gang was there by Thursday evening, and we enjoyed 3+ days of sweet summer together. 

One of the highlights for me was definitely getting to spend some time working on a project with Matt. My parents had brought an old gate from their old house down to the bay a long time ago with the intention to use it in some way. But, almost two years later, and it was out by the trash, waiting to be picked up. I moved it from the trash and into their garage a few weeks ago, only to find that it was back by the trash. Thankfully, it still had not been picked up, so this was the weekend something had to be done, or it would be a goner. 

When the rest of the family went on an afternoon fishing trip, we stayed behind and got to work. In true 4th of July fashion, an American Flag. 

I had painted the entire fence white the day before, so that we had a blank canvas. First thing we did was use measuring tape to decide how thick the stripes should be. I wanted the stripes to be as authentic-looking as possible, since I knew the stars would be... less than authentic-looking. Once we decided on a thickness, we began placing painters' tape in place of where the white stripes would be. 

Above is a picture of what the flag looked like after it had been completely taped. Then, I started spray painting the red stripes. Once I was about three-fourths of the way finished, Matt sweetly asked if he could finish the red stripes. I had gotten so in my zone that I had forgotten that he was there to help. :) So, he finished up the red stripes.

Once we removed all of the tape (see above), we re-taped/covered what we needed to be covered in order to paint the blue section.

I wish I had taken a picture of this next step, but I got too excited and forgot. But, I took an Exacto knife and cut out a star shape in a piece of cardboard. Then, we used that as a stencil, and sprayed white paint into the stencil to create stars in various spots of the blue section. And then after letting it dry....

It makes me so happy to DIY with my sweet hubby. He is very creative and enjoys a good project, too. 

So, what else did we do this past weekend? Well, we hung out in the canal- floating, kayaking, paddle-boarding, AND Avery got a new life-jacket. Yes, she can swim, and actually maybe a little TOO much. Since my parents' house is on the canal, there is always a chance she could go in purposefully or accidentally and no one is right there to pull her out. Therefore, the life-vest. It calms my nerves, and she looks adorable in it! 

Don't you just want to hug her?

My mom always overdoes herself on food. She made this red (and blue) velvet cake. It was delicious! And look how pretty it was!

              

     

This is one of the reasons I am currently hosting a 5-Day Clean Eating Challenge group right now. I have over 20 people who have committed to eating clean this week, and today is just Day 1. Just look at all of those bright colors?

Don't worry if you missed this 5-Day Clean-Eating Challenge. I'll be doing it again in August. But if you are really interested in getting healthy and making a positive change for you and your family, 21-Day Fix is where it's at! Commit to 21 days with me!

Fitness + Nutrition + Accountability = Success.

We can do it together! Comment below or send me a message if you are interested in knowing more!

I just finished my first round of 21-Day Fix and drinking Shakeology and am LOVING how I feel. Today, I am still doing it, but I'm looking for people who want to join me in this journey!

I will leave you with one last picture from the weekend with my family.

I hope you had a wonderful 4th of July, as well! 

Happy Monday!

Strawberry and Blueberry Trifle

Have you started planning your holiday menu? More importantly, are you trying to plan your holiday menu while also trying to "watch what you eat" at the same time? Hey, it happens. I have you covered for dessert. 

For the Fourth of July last year, we made this festive, light, but oh so delicious dessert. Best part was how easy it was! The hardest part (which was really just time-consuming, not difficult) was slicing the strawberries the way I wanted them to look. But really, I was just being a diva...nothing new. With ingredients so pretty, you can't mess it up! You also don't have to feel too guilty about indulging in a small somewhat oversized bowl of this yummy goodness. I found the recipe here.

Strawberry and Blueberry [God Bless the USA] Trifle

Ingredients:

- Angel food cake, cut into 1 inch cubes

- 2 pints strawberries, sliced to your liking :)

- 2 pints blueberries

- 6 tablespoons fat-free sweetened condensed milk

- 1 1/2 cups cold water

- 1 package sugar-free white chocolate instant pudding mix

- 12 ounces fat-free frozen whipped topping, thawed

Preparation:

- Bake angel food cake according to instructions, and set aside to cool, then cut into 1-inch cubes
Note: I did not use any of the "crust" of the cake, only the insides. And, if the cubes are more like crumbles, perfect :)
-Wash your fruit and slice your strawberries.
- In a medium bowl, whisk together the condensed milk and cold water.
- A little at a time, whisk in the pudding mix (until mixed well), and let sit for about 2 minutes, or until soft-set.
- Fold in the thawed whipped topping.
- Arrange half of your cake at the bottom of a 14-cup trifle dish.
- Sprinkle the cake layer evenly with a layer of blueberries.*
- Spread half of the cream mixture over the blueberries. *
- Top the cream with a layer of strawberries*
- Then repeat with layers of the remaining cake, then the blueberries, and the cream.*
- To finish off the top, arrange your strawberries and blueberries in a pattern (or not) :)
- Cover with plastic wrap, and refrigerate.**

* When spreading each layer, be mindful as to how your cake looks on the edges. It's the most important part, aside from the top :)
**Refrigerate at least one hour before serving.

The last step... and most importantly, ENJOY!

Enjoy the dessert and enjoy your holiday!

Holiday Happenings

Saturday is the day we move! We have been non-stop packing for the last couple of weeks, and we cannot wait to finally be moving this weekend. I had no idea how much stuff could fit into a one-bedroom apartment. Even with all of the packing, we had a wonderful weekend. The closer we get to Christmas, the better these weekends are getting! They are so busy, but oh so fun! Saturday, we had a marathon day of packing boxes and organizing furniture into one room to make it easier on moving day. Here is what our apartment currently looks like... We like to call it "an organized mess..."

Right in the middle of all of the packing and work, we look over and realize that our little helper was of very little help... what a stinker!

In other news, my classroom got an Elf on the Shelf last week.  My kids named him Fabio Phillipe Mathematic and call him Fabio. He has been very busy this week finding new places to hide around the room. The kids get a big kick out of it! Here are a few of his hiding places so far...

This past weekend, we had four Christmas parties in two days. It was awesome. Christmas is my favorite season. I made Christmas Funfetti Truffles for one of the parties. They were delicious. I ate too many. They are way too easy and yummy not to make for yourself! See the recipe below.

[Eggless] Christmas Funfetti Cake Balls
Ingredients
- 1 cup white cake mix
- ½ cup all purpose flour
- ½ cup sugar
- ¼ cup butter, melted
- ½ teaspoon vanilla
- 3 tablespoons milk
- 2 tablespoons red and green sprinkles,
     plus extra for decorating
- 1½ cups almond bark
Preparation
- In a large bowl, whisk together the cake mix,  
  flour, and sugar.
- Add in the melted butter, vanilla, milk, and
  sprinkles.
- Using a cookie scoop, create even-sized balls,
  and place on cookie sheet lined with wax paper.
- Refrigerate (or freeze if you're in a hurry) cake
  balls for about 30 minutes to harden the mixture.
- After 30 minutes, melt the almond bark according to package.
- Using a fork, dip each cake ball into the melted almond bark.
- When completely submersed, take it out and place on wax paper.
- Decorate with sprinkles, as desired.


To wrap up a great weekend, I addressed Christmas cards... that still have yet to be sent. I was so on top of sending them last year, but I am totally being a slacker this year. And once again, my little helper was of even less help... again.

Can't wait to send out all these bad boys. Man, I love this time of year :)