Healthy Choices #FrozenFacts #Spon

This whole no dairy/no soy diet, or the jailbird diet as our pediatrician referred to it, is tricky but not totally impossible.  And, thankfully, it is forcing me to eat healthy which is really a pretty great side effect. 

The only thing is, that it cuts out the majority of “convenience” foods (blue box mac & cheese, for one!) but it doesn’t TOTALLY limit my options. ConAgra Foods, makers of Healthy Choice and Marie Callender’s foods, provide GREAT options, as I have come to find out.  I didn’t realize that these brands, specifically, use fresh vegetables and meat in their preparations – I was always under the impression that all frozen foods were highly processed.  Since most of what I eat right now is “clean” it’s great to know that there are still “convenience” options available!

 

(yay top chef!)

In fact, my lunch was ready today in 4 minutes.  How’s that for convenience?

I have also never been a huge fan of prepared/packaged frozen meals because I just assumed they were going to taste terrible.  Not true!  The Healthy Choice meal I had for lunch today was seriously SO GOOD.  I could really taste the freshness and I can’t tell you how happy I was about this.

Also, it was really easy to prepare – the directions were simple – and the packaging was sturdy that I wasn’t worried that my food was going to fall on the floor the minute I took the thing out of the microwave!

I mentioned that eating healthier is something that has happened by default with my “forced” diet change – but something that is really nice about the Healthy Choice meal is that it is one serving.  No worries about portion size or wasting food – and I was truly full when I was finished.  We all know portion control is a huge key to weight loss and healthy eating, so it’s nice that not only are the ingredients fresh, the food is tasty but the portion sizes are perfect.  Healthy Choice and Marie Callender’s have more than 80 meal options under 400 calories!

A little background on the video below from ConAngra:

Healthy Choice and Marie Callender’s created a video that follows two women on the adventures of their daily lives, imagining how new technologies will impact their routines, especially in the grocery store. From apps that store your grocery list to recipe research on Pinterest, the landscape of shopping is quickly changing. With various resources available to consumers, they are now, more than ever, interested in learning where their food is coming from.

And just in time for National Frozen Food Month (March), these brands are helping shoppers to predict the future of shopping for frozen food!

 

I am absolutely going to add Healthy Choice meals in to my work lunch and quick-dinner rotation!

ConAgra Foods frozen meals give families access to real ingredients like crunchy, freshly cut vegetables, homemade pasta and ripe fruit year-round. Just like most people blanch veggies before freezing them – ConAgra Foods does too – to help preserve color, texture and keep them fresh!

Give it a try sometime! Marie Callender’s hearty pot pies are filled with tender meat, freshly cut vegetables and Marie’s authentic golden, flaky crust. And Healthy Choice recipes use chef-inspired ingredients like, apples instead of sugar for tart sweetness and a splash of red wine for a punch of flavor instead of added salt.

This is a sponsored post written by me on behalf of ConAgra Foods.

Who needs cheese anyway

Like most people, I SWORE I had parenting all figured out before I actually, you know, was a parent.

My family gives me crap all.the.time because I swore I would never do approximately 98% of the things that I do regarding parenting my kids. (I still find it really strange to type kidS!) 

One of the things I could never understand was how or why anyone would EVER want to give up dairy to continue breastfeeding.  Formula is fine, why put yourself through that nonsense especially when breastfeeding can be hard enough.  Ice Cream, Cheese, all amazing foods in my book.  And let’s be serious, what good is an oreo without milk?  (remember I had a baby with MSPI and reflux once who survived just fine on Alimentum and Prevacid!)

And then, I had another baby who I decided to breastfeed.  Who appears to have a big issue with dairy (and soy, I think).  Not a huge surprise since her sister did too – but here I am shoving my foot in my mouth again.  Because I gave up dairy last week. Without even really thinking twice about it because my baby is hurting and I would do anything to make sure she is happy.  And, while I don’t LOVE breastfeeding – I do enjoy it enough not to quit it just because I can’t have a milkshake.

Aleesia is less gassy (that girl had some horrendous smelling gas!) and her skin is much less red and blotchy.  She still has a lot of reflux that quite obviously makes her uncomfortable but it is slightly improved from what it was this time last week. 

I did cut out dairy totally but have still been eating some soy (in stuff, like soy milk in my coffee at Starbucks) and I think that the soy has to go also.  Which is a lot harder than just dairy, but that’s okay.

It is not easy.  And I never really paid any attention to food labels/ingredient lists.  But it is enough to make your head spin – and your stomach churn a little – when you look at the list on something you think should be so simple and there are about a million things on there that you can’t even pronounce.  I already don’t eat “enough” so not being able to calorie-load on ice cream or greek yogurt is crappy but I am finding some (not necessarily as satisfying) other high-calorie non-dairy alternatives.  And I really like almond milk, so that’s an easy switch!   There are also so many great resources out there of what is good/not good to buy and good recipes (that I haven’t yet tried).  I think the change in diet, while maybe or maybe not forever, will be a good one and hopefully will help “clean up” some of the junk we tend to eat out of convenience. 

The hardest part is just waiting to see a change.  and not comparing this experience to the one we had with Gianna.  I have been considering putting her on a probiotic as well, there is a lot of information out there that supports their use in babies.

While I am morning the loss of ice cream and greek yogurt and cheese – I am just keeping my fingers crossed that we are on our way to a happy baby.  and add another thing on to the “I had no clue what the hell I was talking about when I said that” list.

Cooking One Handed with Minute Ready-To-Serve Rice #LoveEveryMinute

I am in the stage of newborn-hood that involves a lot of forgetting.  Forgetting to brush my teeth (you’re welcome), forgetting to shower and/or change my clothes (you’re welcome again) and forgetting to eat.

I have grand plans of getting meals prepared ahead, using my crock pot and serving food to my family that doesn’t require a toaster.  But then you know, the baby doesn’t want to stop eating, or stop being held, or stop eating long enough to make those plans a reality.  And it’s okay, if you don’t mind eating waffles and pop tarts for days on end. (Gianna has not complained, in case you were wondering!)

Then I was reminded that there are other convenient, healthy and EASY ways to make dinner (or lunch).

Minute® Ready to Serve Rice has been a staple in my food pantry drawer at work for over a year.  There are more than 10 different varieties and anything that tastes good after only being in the microwave for 60 seconds is a winner in my book!  So I picked some up at the store when I was out this week. (I got mine at Target this time, but you can get it at any major retailer/grocer)

So I put my thinking cap on.

And my baby (because, really, she dislikes sleeping a lot unless she is laying on me).

And made some dinner.

I decided on the brown rice variety and some grilled chicken with teriyaki sauce.  I cooked the chicken on my handy George Foreman grill, so it took no time at all to prepare the entire meal.  (although, to be totally honest – I wanted to make this with fish that I thought we had, but didn’t! so rice and fish is a yummy, easy, combo also!)

Easy, fast and most importantly TASTY!

As I was cooking the chicken, I checked out the inside of the Minute Rice packaging – look at this you guys!

So many yummy, different ways to make this rice – what a great way to add some variety to what can be boring brown rice.  And how much easier can it get?

And, my favorite part, a coupon to go get MORE rice.  I clipped that bad boy right out of there and will be picking up some more next time I hit the grocery store.

Gianna made it very clear that she wanted to be involved in the food preparation. 

But not really the food eating (surprise surprise).

I give the Minute Rice Ready To Serve Rice two great big thumbs up – it’s easy, yummy, and I can easily eat it with one hand! 

Minute® Ready to Serve Rice is an ideal portable solution for lunch or breakfast because you can eat it on the go, straight from the cup. In just 60 seconds, you have fully cooked rice for any meal or snack. You’ll never get bored with your lunch since there are 10 flavorful and wholesome varieties. If you’re looking for a healthy option, Minute® Ready to Serve Rice provides easy portion control since it’s conveniently packaged in two individual single-serve cups.

Visit http://www.minuterice.com/ for recipes, including Minute® Ready to Serve Stir it Up recipe ideas and more information about the Minute® Rice family of products.

This is a sponsored post written by me on behalf of Minute® Ready to Serve Rice.

frugal. or something.

When I was unemployed I ROCKED at coupons. Seriously – I had a mad stockpile of tampons, razors and toothpaste. I would save more than $50 each grocery trip and generally felt awesome because I could get diapers for so cheap sometimes I felt like I was ripping the store off.  I was also awesome at meal planning when I was home to actually make a meal.

But using coupons and checking sales, it’s all kind of a lot of work. and I basically just ran out of time/energy/ambition to keep doing it when I started working full time again.  Meal planning has also pretty much gone out the window.  We were doing pretty good at first, but with the insanity that is our lives and schedules these days, it was the first thing to get forgotten.

Also, we discovered the magic of Aldi’s. So I was still saving on food but my razor supply quickly diminished. And we didn’t need diapers anymore, so that wasn’t a big deal.

But now we are out of razors, the tampon supply will need to be up and running again before I care to admit and we really should start stockpiling diapers & wipes again because we will be changing a little itty bitty baby bootie again in less than 90 days!

I love a good sale. And a coupon. But I don’t love the work that goes with preparing to use the coupons with the good sales.

Do you have a good method to this madness? A particularly quick and dirty way to match up what you need with what’s on sale and what you have a coupon for? I am mainly interested in toiletries, paper products, and baby stuff – food sales are always good, but you know, Aldi’s rocks so I rarely head anywhere else.  CVS is my usual go-to with RiteAide in second place. And Target on occasion (for this stuff, Target is not a rare occasion generally speaking).

And with Christmas coming up faster than I choose to admit, I will be looking for some awesome frugal gift ideas. And you know, any awesome frugal-ness that has developed since the last time I had a little itty bitty baby living in my house is also appreciated!  I also need to know how people keep up with the whole meal planning thing – we aren’t big meat eaters and frozen meals are not really our friends – which I suppose could be part of the problem with that whole process!

Picking your brain

I need some advice on a few things from my favorite internet comrades.

First topic: Blog

I mostly blog for myself, but sometimes I feel like I should blog about SOMETHING. With a little bit of myself thrown in there. Thoughts on that? Do you prefer reading about peoples everyday nonsense? Seeing pictures? Knowing that if you read blog ABC it will actually be about a THING in most cases? I can’t decide. 

I know what annoys me when reading blogs (too many pictures, too many MYBABYISSOCUTEANDSMARTERTHANYOUTOO posts, colored fonts, constant reviews of stuff I can’t win etc) and I know what I like (pictures that go with words sometimes, updates & actual thoughts)

But what about you? What is most annoying? What is most enjoyed?

Second topic: Shoes

We are going on a big vacation in October that will involve lots of walking. I need to get new shoes, that are NOT tennis shoes. I have narrowish feet with small bunions. Recommendations? I normally don’t wear socks, so shoes that look cute without socks and can be worn with jeans or skirts/dresses would be STELLAR!

Third topic: 3 row vehicles

One of the blessings that will come along with my new job is the ability to purchase a new (okay, new to us because we are so NOT buying new) car sooner than we expected. I would ideally like a vehicle with 3 rows – and am opening my narrow little mind to the idea of a van (I can’t believe I just typed that). I DESPISE car shopping, know NOTHING on the topic and need LOTS of hand holding and real life recommendations. So give it to me straight.  Also since I am planning WAY ahead with this purchase, if you have a vehicle with only 2 rows that fits more than 2 car seats COMFORTABLY I would love to hear about it. (greater than 25mpg would be a huge bonus!)

and since I am totally needy right now –

Fourth topic: Lunch

I need some good ideas for work lunches. If it doesn’t involve mayonnaise or a salad that is any thing other than lettuce or pasta based, I will probably like it! Also good ideas of breakfast on the go? My commute is about 40 minutes, and while I am not a “breakfast” person, it would be good to be able to eat something on my way.

I know I can count on you, friends – don’t let me down!

Adventurous eats

I have to combine days 6 & 7 of summer camp because well, yesterday was spent poolside with my peanut!

Day 6: When was the last time you tried something new? What was it and what was the result? Have you ever done something just so that you could blog about it?

I feel like I try new things all the time – the newest was potty training! The result? FAIL! for now, we’ll get there.  I also tried AboutOne – and I did blog about it!

I really want to try a green smoothie (learned about them through my LeanGreenYOU lifestyle bootcamp) but have yet to build up the courage to do it!  When I do, I will SOOOO be blogging about it.

I really enjoy documenting new things, my brain is usually quite dusty so it helps if I ever want to reference an event or product or experience.

How about you? What adventures have you gone on lately? How do you remember them?

Day 7 – What’s your favorite thing to eat for breakfast, lunch and dinner? Do you read food blogs or would you ever consider writing one?

My favorite foods are so basic, probably because I am not really awesome at cooking and have 2 incredibly picky eaters in my house. I try to meal plan but that has been a huge challenge with the summer being so busy.

Breakfast foods could (and often are) eaten at all hours of the day. I LOVE pancakes. Probably  more than I should. 

Lunch is usually something easy, my favorite lunch foods are pb&j and mac & cheese.

Dinner? Pasta made by my mom! Or this awesome bruschetta chicken dish that I make – it’s really super tasty.

I don’t think I have ever read a food blog, but maybe I should. My menu ideas are getting a little stale. I would probably never write one, unless I figure out how to feed a houseful of picky eaters and not have waffles, chicken nuggets or pizza at every meal.

Do you read [or write!] food blogs? I would love some referrals!

not-so-extreme couponing

Since about the 1st of the year I have been making a really big push to do my part in helping us save money.

I kept hearing all this hype about how people save hundred’s of dollars at the store by using coupons and to be honest, I thought it was a bunch of crap.  How in the world is that even possible?

So I tried it. And failed miserably at first.  The reason for my failure? I was so overwhelmed and disorganized that it wasn’t working.

I decided to regroup and get a newspaper subscription.

Then I did a little bit of research and found out that there are a LOT of people in the blog world who matchup coupons with what is on sale at pretty much every store you can imagine.  They take all of the stress out of the whole thing, they even link to printable coupons.

All I do is cut the coupons and look at the matchup’s after I make our menu for 2 weeks. I do take in to consideration catelina deals that offer coupons for cash back when you buy certain products, our local grocery store does these a lot.

I take out only the coupons I am going to be using and paperclip them together with my list.  I do take my little coupon holder with me, just in case, but I normally don’t deviate from my list. (helps me stay on budget and not buy Oreos)

I am that girl that will split up her transaction to get the most savings, so if I buy some toothpaste and earn $3 back, I buy that first and apply the $3 to my next transaction.  If I don’t do that, I forget about the cash back and it expires.

Typically I save what I spend, which is between $50 and $70 every two weeks on groceries.  Drugstore couponing is a whollleeee different ballgame, but I do the best at CVS – I usually walk out of there paying only tax (or slightly more) with cash back. It’s pretty freaking awesome.

My secret though is to only buy what I need, will use, and what I have room for. Just because something is free doesn’t mean I need to get it – especially because we do not have the space to store 1,000 tubes of toothpaste or 50 boxes of cereal.  I do have enough body wash, razors, toothpaste and toothbrushes to last us a good while – all of the extras I get I donate to a missions trip my sister is going on.

If you “coupon” (so weird that people use that as a verb these days), what are your secrets? Favorite sites? Organization tips?

I have heard, many times, that people don’t think it is worth it – and I didn’t ever think it was either until I HAD to start cutting back. To me, it is worth the hour a week I spend preparing. I equate it making about $50 an hour, since that is how much I am saving each time I shop. Hoping to get better and more efficient at it, but I feel like this is a good start!

Picky Picky Picky

I know I have talked about how picky my kid is.

And I really do get that it’s a sort of normal toddler thing.

ButbutBUTTTTTTT

This is just ridiculous.

I have tried serving her food on big people plates, in muffin tins, in silly shaped dishes. with silverware. without silverware. With dips, without dips. In her highchair and at the table. 

She won’t be swayed by  my creative tactics, people.

I mean, she will eat. Crackers, chicken nuggets, fish sticks, oatmeal, waffles, pancakes, muffins and fruit.  Sometimes she’ll eat pizza and grilled cheese. She devours yogurt and applesauce.  anything else? I get an adamant NO!

She doesn’t even touch the food. Getting it to her mouth is a HUGE accomplishment.  It happened once with a carrot stick. But she took one bite and spit it out.  If she eats her whole meal she gets a cookie.  She gets a cookie about once a week, when we have breakfast or chicken nuggets for dinner.

I SO understand why people just give in and feed their kids what they want to eat. 

I don’t fight with her over food (I don’t have the energy for it!) If she doesn’t eat, she doesn’t eat. she has to sit at the table until everyone is finished (not always fun) with their meals. She doesn’t get anything else to eat.

And you guys? SHE DOES NOT CARE! She’ll just be hungry (or maybe she isn’t?) and stubborn and WILL NOT TOUCH THE FOOD NO MATTER WHAT.

It makes a girl dread meal times. I love meal planning and all. But it feels pointless to come up with new meal ideas, because I am the only one eating usually.

Ooof. I hope that with year 2 comes reasoning skills…..

Pickiest toddler on the planet

You might remember this post from July when I complained talked about how little my child will eat.

And I was reassured by you awesome folks that all is well in the world of feeding small children, because, behold! They all eat like starving prisoners.

I am here to report that, Gianna actually gained 2 pounds (and 2 inches) since her 15 month doctor visit. So it is true, you can sustain life on muffins and fruit.

(she is totally obsessed with muffins, not sure why but she asks for “muffff-in” all.day.long and will eat multiple muffff-ins if I let her)

But here’s the deal – she has limited her diet even further since July. Totally eliminating all forms of sandwich/bread except on rare occasions.  So that leaves us with her beloved muffins, pretty much all breakfast foods minus the meat, yogurt, fruit, chicken nuggets and pizza on certain days.

Pair that with a new calcium supplement (we still can’t do milk) and a regular multivitamin and I suppose she is fairly nutritional-ized….

Here is my issue: how do I incorporate other foods into Gianna’s food pyramid of fruit, muffins and chicken nuggets?  I need some inspiration as I am extremely challenged in the kitchen – I can cook from a recipe just fine, I just can’t come up with a recipe on my own!

I want her to eat healthy as much as possible (read: with as little non-essential ingredients/sugars/words i can not pronounce in the product) – just not sure how to do that all the time.   Also, what to do about fruit in the winter time?

Honestly I am frustrated and overwhelmed at what to give her.  Sure I CAN give her grapes and waffles for every meal, but that will not do either of us any favors in the future. I want her to at least try stuff, but you can’t reason with an 18 month old in case you didn't know… 

My next best idea is to trick her into eating new foods. But guys – she is a wise little bugger – she doesn’t give in to the novelty of silverware, airplane sounds, peanut butter stuffed in pita bread, eating off of her mothers plate. Clearly she knows that what I have is not all that awesome.

Give me your best tricks, tips, recipes, assvice – whatever you have  on feeding the stubborn toddler.

what's for dinner

It has been brought to my attention that I am no Betty Crocker.

Duh.

My husband does most of the cooking in our house. I am not complaining.

Here's the problem - we eat the same rotation of food all the time. And that isn't saying much. We are two of the pickiest eaters you will ever ever meet.

Considering we have a fresh little mouth to feed, who will eat anything you stick in front her, we need to change up the rotation. Add some pinch hitters into the line up.....

(enough with the baseball analogies. i don't really even like baseball.... anyway)

A few of the other mommies and wives that I know meal plan. I always thought it looked like a lot of work, so I didn't do it. Am lazy. But now, I feel like it is a lot of work to think of something to make for dinner every single day and figure out if we have whatever I need to make said dinner. Cereal it is.....

I would like for the peanut to try everything, and hopefully like it too. Then she won't live the life of a picky eater like her parents. (is a pain in the arse) I have been enjoying trying things with her, and, surprise! I like (some) of it. Except green beans, still not a fan.

Back to this idea of meal planning. I have gotten some ideas of where to go for good, healthy, EASY recipes. But how do I know they will taste good?

Give me your favorite's!

And, if you meal plan, how do you do it? Weekly? Every two weeks? Based on grocery store adds? Coupons?

Do you have a separate calender? I use google calendars, but I know I won't look at it enough to use it for this. I need these things in my face. Or I will eat cereal. Again.

Pour on the ideas/tips/tricks etc. I promise to share with the group.

annnndddd go!