1 Reason to Use All-Natural Make-Up... Toddlers

 

We have recently learned that big sisters should never leave their purses unattended.

 

Especially when toddlers abound.

This is also one of the reasons my 12 year old only uses all-natural lip glosses, balms and lotions.

 

 

One reason of many.

 

You can't really blame a two year old for wanting to be like the big sister she loves so much, can you? Look at that sweet face. You would think she didn't know there was anything wrong with going into her sisters purse and taking out her lip gloss.

 

And then something happens.

 

 Big sister comes down the stairs.

 

Uh oh...

 

 

 

Busted!

 

*No make-up was ingested in this little mishap, but if it would have been I feel pretty certain that the damage would have been minimal. If you're looking for an all-natural brand of make-up check out 100% Pure. It's what I use and love!*

Hamburger Helper Cheeseburger Macaroni THM Style (S)

I was blessed to grow up in a home where my mom cooked homemade Cajun meals from scratch. Even still it was inevitable that at some point in my life I would be introduced to the world of Hamburger Helpers. My favorite was the one with the potatoes. (or at least that's what they were supposed to be) I have yet to figure out how to make that THM since I don't eat white potatoes. I do have a friend on FB that recently made a version of it with cauliflower that I might just have to try. That night hubby will have a homemade burger or something. The man gags at the thought of cauliflower. It's a bummer but we have an understanding. lol

Cheeseburger Macaroni was my second favorite and if you're like me and you kind of miss that weirdo box stuff every now and then, you will love this recipe!

• 2 lbs. ground meat (I use ground turkey but you can use beef if you prefer)
• 2 Tbsp. Homemade Taco Seasoning (recipe below)
• 16 oz. package of Dreamfield's pasta of your choice
• 2 cups shredded cheddar cheese
• Seasonings of choice (normally I will use Tony Cachere, a little salt, garlic powder and black pepper. Now that my littlest is eating with us I omit the Tony Cachere due to the spiciness)
• 1/4- 1/2 cup Unsweetened almond milk

1. Boil pasta.
2. While boiling pasta brown meat. Drain. Return to pan and add the taco seasoning. Mix well.
3. When the pasta is done drain it and then add the meat, cheddar cheese, and add just enough almond milk to make a sauce. You could also use water instead of the almond milk. Stir gently until the cheddar is melted. Add your seasonings of choice while you are stirring.

Homemade Taco Seasoning:
(I did not create this recipe. I found it on the internet years ago and have used it ever since. It's wonderful!)

• 1/2 cup chili powder
• 1/4 cup onion powder
• 1/8 cup ground cumin
• 1 Tbsp. garlic powder
• 1 Tbsp. paprika
• 1 Tbsp. salt

Mix and store.

*Three Tbsp. homemade taco seasoning equals one 4 oz. package of taco seasoning mix.*

SF Peanut Butter Cheesecake (THM S)

The other night we were in need of a quick dessert and this mama wanted to try something different. I stumbled upon a recipe for peanut butter cheesecake and thought I'd give it a try. After all, it looked yummy and was really easy to make. I can't find the website where I got it so I can't share the website where I got it with you. Just know, it wasn't this mama who created this rich dessert. IT's just this mama who is sharing another mom's recipe so that you too can share in her creation.

Each serving I split into two since it was so rich. If you're trying to lose stubborn pounds you might want to do that too If not, more power to you. Get ready, this little dessert will have you feeling like you had real New York style cheesecake peanut butter style. It's rich I tell you!

• 3 Tbsp. 1/3 less fat cream cheese
• 2 Tbsp. No sugar peanut butter (I use Adams)
• pure white stevia to taste
• sugar free chocolate chips to top (optional) For the girls I used mini semi-sweet chocolate chips, not sugar free

*Update* Fast fwd. a day and you'll find me wanting a snack. It's nap time, the house is quiet and I don't want to make much noise. So... I decided to try to make this little treat even better for me. Low and behold it's even yummier than when I first had it. Here's what I used. :)

• 2 Tbsp. no sugar peanut butter
• 2 Tbsp. 1/3 less fat cream cheese
• 1/2 scoop Swanson's vanilla SF whey protein
• pure white stevia (to taste)
• just a little unsweetened almond milk (this will make your protein snack really nice and creamy. I didn't use much because I wanted to keep the cheesecake feel.)

Yummo!!

Next time I think I will replace 1 Tbsp. peanut butter with peanut flour and add a little more almond milk for less calories. Yummy... yummy... yummy.

 

Mix together well in a bowl and enjoy.

SF, LC Moist, Protein Packed Vanilla Cake (THM Friendly)

Typically I'm a chocolate girl. The more chocolate the better, but one day last week I really wanted white cake. A nice, happy piece of moist white cake. This posed a problem for me since I know of no recipe that doesn't include beans. At least not as of yet.

It was the afternoon and I was starving! If you're a stay at home mom I'm sure you know that time of the day. It's right before the kids get up from their nap and before you know it you will need to start dinner. Somehow you spent yet another afternoon working around the house losing track of the time while you made the most of 'quiet time'. Suddenly you realize you need to stop and eat a snack. This was me! Hubby was home and I had no snacks pre-made.

Sometimes I make my Mama's Little Secret Energy Drink which I love! This day though I was starving!!! My mind began to mentally go over recipes I knew from my THM book and I remembered their Muffin in a Bowl page 258.

I prayed as my stomach growled and I changed up their recipe to make myself a protein packed mini-white cake.

*THM Mama's: I'm not sure whether this would be a light S because of the one scoop of coconut flour or not. To be on the safe side, I eat it as an S.*

Praise God, it was delicious!! I just made another one for my girlies to snack on together.

• 3 Tbsp. Oat Fiber
• 1 Tbsp. Coconut Flour
• 1/4 scoop Swanson's Vanilla Protein powder
• 3/4 tsp. Glucomannan
• 1/2 tsp. baking powder
• 4 tsp. Truvia
• 1/3 cup of carton egg whites
• 1/2 tsp. vanilla
• 4 Tbsp. water

Mix all dry ingredients together well in bowl of your choice. I use a small Pyrex one. Add your wet ingredients and stir well. Microwave for one minute. I topped mine with some yummy FP vanilla pudding and a little FF Ready Whip.

It was delicious!!!

I-Hop who? THM Pancakes S... yep, I said S! (Sugar Free and Low Carb)

Gosh, I don't even know where to begin with this post. If it weren't nap time and I wasn't on day 3 of a Ttapp bootcamp I might actually be inclined to stand up and do a happy dance. That is how happy I am to be writing this post.

Seriously!

So, I love THM. What I didn't love was losing pancakes from our Saturday morning brunch. My hubby is a brunch man. And when I say that, I mean it. It's kind of a go big or go home thing with him. Well, maybe not go home... more like go cranky or to I-Hop. *snickers*

*note* I'm just going to post pictures off and on as I type so you can swoon and get excited!

If you're like us and you've missed pancakes with your scrambled eggs and bacon then you are about to experience something to make you fall in love with life all over again. Or at least your THM Saturday brunch!

I won't lie, I was a wee bit nervous about trying this recipe which isn't unusual for me when replacing something typically made with white flour. It tends to weird me out at first. I'm a southern girl. What can I say? lol My people use a lot of flour. They also die from heart disease and type two diabetes, sadly.

Moving on to happy land again! :)

A single batch of these gives you 3 good size pancakes. Not I-Hop huge pancakes, but good size. I can eat and these were perfect for me!

Look how pretty.

One thing the recipe creator tells you is that these are delicate and must be treated as such. You will not want to flip them until they have cooked some.

The waiting process is no different than making pancakes with flour. I was careful when I flipped them and had no issues.

Just take a whiff... I mean look. lol

Just looking at the pictures has me getting excited about Monday! Hubby will be off after a 7 day work week.

Are you hungry yet? I am. lol

I had what some southerners refer to as a 'hankerin' for maple syrup on mine. I made some sugar free mixed berry syrup last night but my morning had maple syrup written all over it.

This is what I used. It is made with xylitol and tastes the most like real maple syrup. I'm weird about most sugar free syrups using stevia. I haven't found one that I liked just yet. This syrup however is super yummy!!

So now the time had drawn near for me to top my beautiful breakfast. I heated my syrup and drizzled some over my 3 mouth watering pancakes. Then I added a little butter. I sat back and watched it melt in awe.

I had to ask myself. Those pancakes seriously couldn't taste half as good as they were looking.

Or could they?

Yes, yes dear friends.... they sooo could!

Now let's see if I can get this link right. lol

Hop on over to Glen's Nest for the recipe.  Low Carb Pancake Recipe THM S

Enjoy!!

Fire Cider! The newest member of my cold and flu arsenal. (THM friendly)

I first saw this recipe floating around the web last year. I made it and threw it away once it was done. I admit it. Fear got the best of me. That and a person's negativity. Ugh... I'm not a fan of being wasteful, or fearful for that matter. It was a sad time for me.

This year I did some more research and was determined to try it again. The negative person is no longer in my life and I knew what I had to do. I had to squish fear where it hurts and I'm so glad I did!

This stuff is awesome!

 It does take weeks to reach its proper potency but when it's done, in the words and inflection of my 7 year old, "It's awesooooome!" lol

I have kicked one sickness already this week by taking this every hour for a day and a couple times the next two days. Praise God for a break from all that garlic cutting!!

And... it's THM Friendly!! You can even drizzle it on a yummy salad as a dressing.

Here's the recipe...

• 1/2 cup grated Horseradish
• 1/2 cup fresh grated Ginger
• 1 medium Onion, chopped
• 2 tsp. Cayenne Pepper (I love me some cayenne, cher. For those of you wondering what I just said, I'm Cajun French and cher is a French people term of endearment ;) It translates to "dear.")
• Zest and juice (or juice only) from one lemon
• 1 Tbsp. Turmeric powder
• Braggs Apple Cider Vinegar

1. Cut it all up and place in two large jars. Fill bottles with Apple Cider Vinegar. Use wax paper to keep contents from touching the metal lid.
2. Shake daily. Store 4-6 weeks.

*You can also add honey to yours when its done. I didn't and we all love it! (well, not hubby, but I never thought he would. lol) My 2 and 4 year old beg for it! They love the kick it gives you. lol

The Best Sugar Free Brownie ever! (THM S)

As a lover of chocolate and a Trim Healthy Mama I have tried a lot of THM friendly brownies. None of which I liked.

None.

Sorry, I just can't hang with the Secret Agent bean brownies.  I wish I could. I know lots of women like them and more power to them. When I made them the consistency just wasn't brownie-like to me. I also didn't like the idea of having bean brownies. Maybe it was a mind over matter sort of thing.

Either way, I walked away from those brownies and the others I tried, sad and discouraged.

And then, as if the heavens opened up I stumbled upon a brownie recipe from Stacy Makes Cents on Pinterest.

Oh my...

I knew as I stirred the chocolate and the butter together that Stacy was a genius and boy was I right! These were so darn good that we had them 3 times within one week. My girls were all hootin and hollerin.

These are little girls, mind you. Chocolate loving, sugar lovin girls that can't be fooled by bean brownies.

If you're looking for a yummy, sugar-free brownie recipe, God has just smiled upon you. Take a walk over to Stacy Makes Cents and make her recipe. It will curb any chocolate craving you might be having.

Stacy Makes Cents Brownie Recipe