Ok remember the other day I said about finding joy even in the little things..Well I found more joy today! I have had a yearning for popcorn for what seemed like months, however I can't eat it because of digestive issues. Won't go any further with that conversation..lol. anyway I knew one thing I could eat was hulless popcorn. I have searched high and low to no avail. I have found what they want to call hulless but in all reality it is nothing more then a glorified popcorn flavored cheese puff! Not what I wanted. Can you believe even Walmart does not sell hulless popcorn! What is wrong with these people!
So today my Daughter April and my Grandson Ryan are out on an adventure and we go to Rural King (I was there the other day so I felt like the official spokesman for the store telling her where everything was) Anyway, as we are looking at all the different foods there in all it's popcorn beauty with it's big orange and black sticker I see it!! Is it true? Amish Country popcorn! Medium White Hulless! And it is GMO Free! It can't get any better! I think I skipped to the counter to pay for it. I could be wrong though. Now for the stop at Walmart. Just what I have been looking for there. Himalayan Pink Salt and Kernal Seasons kettle corn seasoning. Made with real cane sugar and nothing artificial! It had to be my lucky day! So tonight I shall pop me some popcorn, find a good movie and relax with a smile on my face. And I think to myself what a wonderful world..Till we meet again..Mama Carol
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If you are looking for a perfect time saver here is one of them! You put everything in the crockpot let it cook for 6 hours and voila! Dinner done! There is more of these recipes coming so make sure you come back! My house has been a test kitchen for the last week or so..hubby's not complaining though since he knows he's getting dinner..lol Recipe is listed above :) Till we meet again..Mama Carol Hi everybody! If you are looking for a delicious soup recipe you have come to the right place! Full of flavor! Full of antioxidants! Good for your eyes..You never seen a rabbit wearing glasses have you? Perfect for an upcoming fall evening..You can substitute naan bread as well for the tortillas or throw some Pepperidge farm goldfish in there. Whatever you choose to do it will be delicious! Till next time.. Mama Carol I had been juicing for the last few months off and on. I noticed after a few days a lots of the aches and pains disappear, My focus is better, My energy level is much higher and a plethora of other things. However as with everything else I get bored after a few days and wind up stopping. However when I decided last month to change my lifestyle to healthier eating I decided I would also make a commitment to myself that I would juice everyday. So far so good. I keep changing up the recipes so I don't get bored so easily..I have literally hundreds of them written down but this one is by far my favorite! My day starter.. Till we meet again..Mama Carol
Spinach Supreme Starter 2 Handfuls of fresh spinach 1 cup of frozen or fresh pineapple cubes 1/2 apple Tbsp Chia seeds Chia Seeds contain more Omega -3's then salmon! They also help with weight loss because they reduce food cravings making you feel fuller. They are some awesome little things! Today I was thinking about all of the little things we take for granted. And how we overlook some of the smallest things in our life that make our life easier. This is why I am going to talk about my omelet maker. My daughter actually had one when she was living here and I was just amazed at the ease of making a 3 minute breakfast! Then she moved out and with her went the best invention since sliced bread! Now I had to drag out the frying pan, spray it with some kind of chemical in a can unless I wanted to melt some butter or margarine. Watch the heat unless my eggs burned and if you add spinach that can burn as well. Adding tomatoes made the eggs watery and depending on the cheese you have a scorched mess! And flipping forget it!
Now after being frustrated over the whole mess I'm not really hungry anymore, now I have to scrub the pan, clean the top of the stove from the spilled egg mess and scorching on my glass top stove. Oh where is an omelet maker! I checked Publix, Walmart, Big Lots, K-Mart and a few other stores. I think everybody knew I was looking for one for they suddenly all disappeared off of the store shelves. What am I to do. And of course my daughter is telling me oh I made a sausage and egg omelet for me & ryan, Oh I made a veggie omelet for me and Ryan..Rub a little more salt into the omelet maker blues wound. But then one day a few weeks ago I walked into Dollar Tree and off to the right was a display in all it's white plastic glory a remake of the original melamine plastic an omelet maker! I don't think I stopped smiling for what seemed like hours. I have one! I can now make a 3 minute breakfast again! Sausage and egg omelets, veggie omelets, cheese omelets the world is just one big egg paradise! Life is good...So what is the one item in your house you can't live without? Until next time...Mama Carol. Hello everybody! Sorry I lost you for a few days it has been a chaotic busy week! I am finally getting this recipe up for you..These jars help me tremendously through the week when I am looking for something quick to grab for lunch. If they are not in front of me I have a tendency of grabbing something not quite so healthy. So even though I had a very trying week I was still down 4.4 pounds. Yay me! lol.. So here goes the recipe and remember it's all about the layering otherwise you wind up with a very soggy salad. Also this will keep for up to 7 days in the fridge, not like you would keep it in there that long..just sayin..I double and triple the recipe so I get a few days out of it. Southwest salad In A Jar In a Qt mason jar layer as followed: 2 Tbsp light Chipolte Dressing 2 oz sauteed chicken breast cut into pieces 1/2 cup whole kernel corn (canned, frozen or fresh) 1/2 cup black beans 4 pepper rings (red, yellow or green) 5 slices tomato 3 slices avacado 2 cups chopped lettuce After you have layered all of your ingredients just screw the top on put in your fridge until you are ready to eat. It's that easy! Watch this coming week as I am going to be doing complete, yes I said complete crockpot meals! Everything in one pot! Meat, potatoes and veggie! I'm on a taste test week..Hubby is going to love it! Until next time remember..It's so much more then just a jar..Mama Carol.. I was washing dishes and every so often glancing up at the T.V this evening when a commercial came on for a well known buffet chain came on over the airwaves, tempting images of delicious wings, ribs dripping with BBQ sauce, and butter melting tantalizingly on a hot yeast roll flashed across the screen, I've seen this commercial about 100 times if not more, and I always find myself enamored with the food. For me commercials like this are the equivalent of pornography, they pervert my relationship with food. They tempt me to give up the healing natural and healthy foods the nourish my body for foods that taste good for the moment, but do little more the make my mouth do a happy dance for a short time and then spiral me into days of guilt, shame, and the feeling of defeat. However this time something else caught my eye.... The tag line at the end of the commercial that said "Find Your Happy." and for a moment I thought " Oh yeah wings, ribs, hot buttered rolls, cotton candy, and chocolate fountains ARE my happy!" Which is exactly what this company intended to make me think. As I thought about it more, I shook my head and realized that my thoughts weren't true. While I enjoy their food, in the end it really doesn't make me happy. So that lead me to start thinking more, "What Makes Me Happy?" I started to list all the things that TRULY make me happy...My son..my husband...my family...God...when just the right song comes on the radio at just the right time... I am putting myself to a challenge this week to find 7 things every day that make me happy, and I want to encourage you to do the same..Sometimes taking a few moments to "Find Your Happy" can change your world. Let me know...What's your happy? "Like" our facebook to see tips, ideas, and my 7 "happies" daily. MASON JAR MAMAS ON FACEBOOK So you've heard from Mama Carol and Mama Dawn. Now it's my turn! If you haven't noticed by our photos or the things we've said we all have a weight problem. I can't remember a time in my life when I was thin. I was in and out of the hosptial with asthma attacks, and pretty much survived on steriods in pill and inhaler form, which left me ALWAYS feeling hungry. Pair that with a family that LOVES to eat and you are pretty much destined to become overweight if you don't watch what your doing. So here I am 100+ lbs over weight and struggling to find my motivation and my fight.
The truth is I love food, and I love to cook, but having a 16 month old it's not always easy to cook the savory meals that I imagine setting on the table eat night. That's why I am so thankful for Publix Apron Simple Meals, So many of my go to recipes are either directly from or inspired by them. The other day we were out into the early evening doing some shopping and as I glanced at the time my first thought was "ugh, I don't even feel like going home to cook", So I grabbed ahold of the racecar cart in which my son sat playfully steering with his feet and munching on a rainbow sprinkle sugar cookie (side note: I adore rainbow sprinkles, they have the magical ability to make a bad day, seem a little brighter) headed over to the bakery and got my hands on some premade pizza dough, then gathered the rest of the ingredients. To be fair, there were only 3 total and I just grabbed the dough. I love making pizzas,they are quick and easy and making my own gives me the ability to split it into 3 or 4 sections to suit everyones tastes, and even get a good dose of veggies in. Luckily I rarely have to hide veggies in food as my son has grown to love them. I have yet to find another child who would give up his cookie for a mushroom, and happily sit in his high chair and much away on lettuce. And he is willing to try anything once. As time goes by I will be sure to include my recipes for toddler friendly freezer meals that you can just pop into the microwave or throw in a lunch box and let thaw til lunch time. Buffalo Chicken Pizza (Publix Apron Simple Meals) 1 Publix Pizza Dough (or any dough if you can't get your hands on publix brand) 1 Container Publix Buffalo Style Chicken Breast Dip (I didn't use it all I still have about 1/3 of it sitting in my fridge) 1 Bag Sargento 4 Cheese Pizza Cheese Roll or Toss dough Spoon and smooth Buffalo Style Chicken Breast Dip Over Dough (leave enough space on the edges for crust) Sprinkle with Sargeto 4 Cheese Pizza Cheese Bake according to dough directions or until bottom is golden brown and top cheese is melted I paired this with a simple side salad and it was amazing. The left overs are calling my name as I sit at my kitchen table and type this out, but it shall wait til lunch tomorrow (that is unless my hubby gets to it first). Hi I'm Mama Dawn. I know I will be doing recipes, kids crafts ect but first I wanted to talk a little about me.I wasn't always chunky, from about 6th grade,I started packing on the pounds..I maintained 160 lbs for years,then I had my kids, one by one the weight just added and added on. Now here I sit with an apron I never knew would be so big.Honestly,I think I have the opposite of body dismorphic disease, I have never seen myself as that big,until I look at pictures of myself.
Today I was sitting on my bed, and looked in my mirror, I seen my apron was now spilling over the top.Not the best site to see. All I could think in my head was seeing those people on tv that were confined to there beds. A wave of horror went through my mind, as I am headed in that direction. I remember growing up I was always surrounded by food. Butter would always be sitting on the table at my aunts houses.Crackers with butter, or buttered rolls were always available. There were parties all the time,we came together every week at my grandmas house, for dinner, there was always Entemanns on the top of the fridge,most times she would tell us it was no good, secretly, I think my grandma was saving it for herself. lol. We are a food family, we all love our food. We are starting this mason jar thing for people who feel just like we do. We all love food, we all need food in our bodies to survive,we are learning how to eat to live, not live to eat,and its hard. I ain't gonna lie the journey sucks! Its not fun, it make you mad, and upset,the body does not like to go without. I have never really gone on a quote, unquote diet, but I have watched what I was eating,and exercised. My downfall is potatoes. Any kind, fried,baked,french fries, hash browns, chips,anyway,anyhow. Night time is the worst!!! I get this furry ravenous little beast inside me that makes my tummy growl, and eat whatever is not nailed. So,this is why I am here...to get into that real fitting Apron that I see in my mind. I hope to touch lives,and see others who are in my same boat connect with someone.People are so busy these days doing nothing, but there always busy, sometimes we just need something uplifting,or someone in our side of the court for once, someone who says hey..that sounds just like me. Welcome to my crazy life...that of a Stay at home mom,that of of a home maker,that of the mom of 2 teens, 1 princess,and a silly little 4 year old. You will get to know my other love, my other addiction but that is another story. So Stay tuned :) I spent the entire day thinking about exactly what my first blog was going to be about, whether I wanted it to be all happy or to make the first one about truths. I chose truths. As long as I can remember I have had a weight problem. It was back in the 6th grade I remember one day telling my Grandfather one day about how the kids were teasing me and he told me be happy with who God made you to be. I think I carried that with me for many years being happy with who I was until later years when I realized yes, God did make me however he did not make me to be obese. It was then I believe I tried every diet known to man.
Nutrisystem, Weight Watchers, The Carb Diet, Pasta Diet, Pineapple Diet, Juice Diet, Banana Diet, Rice Diet and a plethora of many others. Yes, I did lose weight up to 85 pounds on one of them, Probably lost hundreds total but the same thing keeps happening I gain it all back and then some. Until one day I realized something..Something that for years I thought about but never realized it with food. I was an addict. A food addict. The same way someone craves drugs or alcohol I crave food. And I can be doing well along my journey and all it takes is a bowl of homemade macaroni salad to put me right back where I was. Unfortunately there are a lot of people who don't understand that food is an actual addiction. I have heard my share of don't eat so much and you will lose weight. Even that is a moot statement because even if you didn't eat so much if you are not eating healthy you still will not lose weight. Food addiction starts from the moment you open your eyes until you close them at night. Your day is consumed with thoughts of your next meal, snack, ect. Your day revolves around food and how can it not be? You are planning out your day with breakfast, lunch, dinner and snacks. Then if you are TV watcher Good Lord! You see the never ending pasta bowl, all you can eat shrimp and lobster, all you can eat pizza buffet, and the new chocolate wonderfall! At night before bedtime is the worst! So...This is why I am here. I am looking to break this addiction in my life. I am going to try this once again. I told my daughter I feel like I'm on that conveyor belt in the old Jetsons cartoon when George says Jane stop this crazy thing. ( some older people will remember that one..lol) I feel like I am doing the same thing and I'm yelling to myself Carol stop this crazy thing I want to get off! So like I said that's why I am here. I hope to be able to touch some people who may feel the exact same way I do and we can do this together. I hope to build up a family of followers who can be on this journey with me. I will be putting up many, many low calorie recipes and tips to help you as well as me. So I think before this turns into a novel I will end here for today. I'm not sure if tomorrow is Mama Dawn or Mama April but whichever one it is you will be blessed! It's So Much More Then Just a Jar... Mama Carol |
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