Spaghetti Squash + Chocolcate Clouds

I've had spaghetti squash on my list to try for some time now. Honestly, I've been a little bit scared to knowing it could in now way taste indeed like spaghetti and that I'm not a huge fan of squash in general.

I see recipes for it everywhere.

I found a few recipes on Pinterest for a while that I actually thought sounded good, so I picked up a squash at the grocery store a few days ago and last night finally cracked it open!

My first choice, Baked Margherita Spaghetti Squash.

There's not much to the recipe, which makes it super easy to follow and relatively fast to through together.

Although the recipe doesn't call for much cheese, I added an extra 1/4 cup. For my first try with spaghetti squash, I'm a fan! Definitely loved the fresh tomatoes, fresh basil and saltiness of the mozzarella cheese together. I will make this again and try another recipe!

Source

Baked Margherita Spaghetti Squash

Ingredients:

• 1 large spaghetti squash
• 2 tbsp. olive oil
• 1 large Roma tomato, finely chopped
• 2 tbsp. finely chopped fresh basil
• 1/4 cup shredded mozzarella cheese (I used 1/4 cup on each halve, I like it a bit more cheesy!)
• 1 tsp. each salt & pepper
• 1 tsp. garlic powder

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Slice the spaghetti squash in half lengthwise down the middle. Scoop out the seeds and center strings. Drizzle each halve with olive oil then sprinkle with salt, pepper and garlic powder.

Place the squash, open side down on a cookie sheet and bake for 30 minutes. Remove from the oven, check to see if the squash is soft and easily comes up with a fork into a spaghetti like texture. If it’s too hard to remove, cook for another 10 minutes. Once soft, remove from the oven, scrape and fluff the squash with a fork which will look like spaghetti noodles.

Turn the oven up to broil. Add the tomatoes and basil into the squash, stir and top with the mozzarella cheese. Place in the broiler for 3-4 minutes, until the cheese is melted and slightly browned. Allow to cool for 5 minutes before serving the squash.

Madden has followed in his mothers footsteps with a major sweet tooth. Hence why he asks for "cookies" for breakfast :/

Instead of making a big batch of butter and sugar fill cookies I found this SkinnyTaste recipe for a somewhat "healthier" cookie alternative. They are still loaded with delicious chocolate chips and some sugar but not white flour, butter or egg yolks so I'm calling it a win.

These are flight, fluffy and chocolaty delicious. I could definitely probably still each the entire batch like a regular batch of chocolate chip cookies but I haven't yet!




Sorry for the crappy blurry picture, it was the only one I took.
Source 



SkinnyTaste Chocolate Chip Clouds

Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup egg whites (room temperature)
• 1/8 tsp cream of tartar
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 2 tbsp unsweetened cocoa powder
• 1 cup chocolate chips

Directions:
Heat oven to 300°F. Cover cookie sheet with nonstick silicone pad. Using a mixer, beat the egg whites and cream of tartar together in large bowl at high speed until soft peaks form. Gradually add sugar a little at a time, then vanilla, beating well after each addition until you get stiff peaks, the sugar is dissolved and the mixture is glossy. Sift cocoa onto egg white mixture; gently fold until combined. Fold in chocolate chips. Drop mixture by heaping tablespoons onto cookie sheet. Makes 30 to 32 cookies. Bake 34 to 40 minutes or just until dry. Cool slightly; remove from cookie sheet. Cool completely on wire rack. Store covered, at room temperature.

Madden Approved!

20 Month Update

20 Months!!!

That means only four months until that little three letter word, t-w-o...whomp whomp whomp.

 

Love this kids surprised face

  I don't know if everyone elses kids are like this but this kid has the most animated facial expressions ever!

He is always making such dramatic faces from surprise, shock, excitement, pouting, and just goofy. It kills me I love it so! I should really make a collage of them all to show his little corks. I hope he never looses this part of his personality.



Mommies ocks

Swimming lessons have been a disaster this month so far.

He will cry practically the entire time. Usually yelling for the other parent not in the pool to come save him. He'll cling to the side of pool and try to climb out or keep a death grip around your neck to not let him go or move him in any way. He did pretty well last month I don't get it!

 

The rest of the this month has been pretty quiet. We are anxiously awaiting some warm weather and any potential sign of Spring would greatly be appreciated. We're tired of being cooped up inside.

Refusing that bath time is over.

Monthly Highlights

• Swimming lessons at the YMCA, hating them
• Celebrating buddy Jackson's birthday
• Daylight Savings time, actually "slept in"
• First time at Monkey Joe's to met all his daycare buddies
• Hanging out with grandma and grandpa
• Fell out of his crib! - yeah that happened, not cool
• Learned to climb on top of the coffee table
• Celebrated St. Patrick's Day
• Grandpa and grandma Gorsh brought dinner over and played
• Went to the park even with snow and ice still on the ground, loved the slide
• Family dinner at Old Chicago, twice
• Played/fought with cousin Stella at grandma and grandpa's house
• Went to financial appt with mom and dad, cried for cookies (see "Favorite" Moments)

SO EXCITED to be outside!

Age: 20 months old
Weight:  At 18 month appt 28 pounds
Length: At 18 month appt. 33 inches
Size: Size 5 diapers. Wearing 18M and 24M/2T clothes, 18 month pants are becoming high waters on him but 2T are too long still.
Hair: In need of another haircut!

Our hands are our best tools (see Favorite Moments)

Health: Another fairly healthy month. Although a few days after we visited Monkey Joes he has been fight a runny nose for the past week. Aside from snot everywhere he's been good. He's learned or picked up the habit to wipe his mouth or nose on his sleeves or give mommy a hug to wipe it on her :) thanks dude!

Temperament: Someone is starting to become Mr. Independent! At daycare he barely gives me a kiss, or a cheek to kiss, then takes off ready to play with his friends and will wave and say bye as he is walking away. He's still a very observant little boy and loves watching people. He will say hi and wave to everyone and their mother while out store. There are still times he is shy like when we first go over to someone else's house. He watches everyone first before warming up and then he's gone, off and running to play. Or at swimming lessons, where is wants nothing to do with anything especially swimming. He just wants the other parent not in the pool to come save him.

Teeth: I think he's got all the teeth he needs right now, a full set of 16.


Fun at Monkey Joe's with daycare buddies

 Sleeping: Sleeping is staying the same! He takes one nap a day, usually between 12:30-1:00pm and will sleep for 2-3 hours. At night he typically goes to bed between 7-8:00pm. He sleeps with his pacifier that be calls a boppy and his little blankie that he calls a BB. The week leading up to Daylight Saving he actually started waking up early so it was an easy transition to losing an hour, however he still didn't want to go to bed at bedtime and just wanted to play. He refusing ti give goodnight kisses and squirms in your arms. When we put him in his crib he immediately pops up and tries running from end to end laughing. If he refuses to lay down for us to tuck him in, we just say "Okay fine, goodnight Madden we love you" and leave the room. Luckily so far, if he fuses it's only for a few minutes and then he lays himself down and eventually falls asleep without another peep.

 

Eating: Eating is still off and on. Some days/meals he eats really good, sometimes not at all. He really prefers to feed himself with this spoon or fork but will ask for help toward the bottom of the bowl/container. Usually every morning starts with half a banana. A lot of the times we share scrambled eggs with one whole egg, 3 egg whites, splash of almond milk and a slice of cheese. Sometimes he'll have toast with peanut butter or jelly, yogurt, homemade bread or muffin, or breakfast bar. For lunches on the weekends and dinner I try to feed him what we have but the majority of the time he won't try or eat it. He gets lots of fruit/veggie pouches. PB & J, grilled cheese, macaroni, waffles with syrup, chicken nuggets, and grapes are usually his go to foods.

Whose a Lucky Charm? This guy!

 Movement: This kid is a non-stop ball of energy that rarely sits still. Aside from getting caught up in something on tv or watching about 20 minutes of a movie, he is go, go, go. Loves to run around the house like a wild man. He actually runs and it's so cute. He's also learned to jump, hop and march.

Milestones:  Learning/trying to jump, hop and march. Putting 2-3 words together, such as "Where daddy?", "Where doggy go?", "What's that?"

Football!

Favorite Toys/Activities: Baths. The dogs, still loves taunting them with food. All balls. Brushing his teeth. Snacks, especially cookies. Running laps around the kitchen island and table. Chasing and getting chased. Being naked. Escaping from a diaper change and running like hell from you half nakie. Slides. Balloons. Getting his hands on things he knows he shouldn't have and running from you while he laughs. Hearing himself making really loud noises. Playing in the basement.

Dislikes: Diaper changes are still fifty-fifty, he either lays there without a fuss or cries or needs to be wrestled in order to get a diaper on. He's done a lot better about getting dried off after bath time but would still rather air dry. When bath time is over. Swimming. This kid loves baths but hates swimming. Big dogs. Bouncy houses/jumpers.



Blowing on his food because  "its hot"

Words: New words this month include cold, jump, hop, march, down (to the dogs), Maddux, brush, teeth. Putting 2-3 words together such as "Where go?", "Where daddy?", "Where doggy go?", "What's that?", "Cookie please", "More please"


Sounds: Moos like a cow, meows like a cat, rufffs for a dog, roars for a bear or lion. Tries to howl like a wolf, hoot for an owl, ribbit for a frog, neigh like a horse, oink for a pig, cock-a-doddle-do for a rooster, makes monkey noises.

Watching for the doggy together.

Favorite Moments

• For breakfast one morning MJ had a container of Greek yogurt, he didn't completely finish it but there wasn't enough left to keep it so I just threw it away. Later that night I had changed his diaper and he did his new big boy duty of throwing it away all by himself. I always wait to hear the cabinet door shut so I know he's not just standing there looking into the garbage or worse playing with garbage. This time I heard it but he didn't come back right away. Finally after calling him a couple times he walks over from the kitchen holding that container of yogurt and eating what was left with his hand!! And he was loving it :) Yup that's the picture from up top of my child eating food from the garbage.....and yes I hook multiple pictures before taking it away, it was just on the top not like he dig through the trash and pulled it out.
• Not a really a "Favorite" Moment but a memorable one....We had a meeting with a financial planner a few weeks ago that I met Dave at right after work. He decided to pick up MJ early and bring him along to the appointment. We met with two gentleman, one older and one younger, not sure if either one had any kids or grand kids yet. The secretary put us in the office to wait for them which included a plate full of homemade chocolate chip cookies.....and no place to hide them. Of course MJ saw them during our meeting and wanted nothing else but to eat a cookie...or two....or three. After four flipping cookies I tried to cut him off with the snacks Dave had packed (sugar fulled Fruit Loops yay!) but he wanted nothing to do with them. I did everything I could aside from getting up and taking the damn plate of cookies outside the office. We had a full stage meltdown on our hands. Neither of the guys that worked there would do anything about the cookies. The younger one said "It's okay he can eat the whole plate, "so and so" makes them homemade every week and she just brought them in this morning. Apparently finance guy you don't have kids, I don't need my 19 month old eating an entire batch of cookies for his dinner, his current meltdown is enough to handle without an upset tummy and sugar overload. Just move the damn cookies!!  <----yep but="" irritated="" li="" nbsp="" still="" this="">

Video Friday

Because I can't resist how cute this kid is....my most recent favorite videos!

Cleanse Review

Last week I wrapped up the 10 day Advocare Cleanse.

Ten days seems like no big deal, until your in the middle of those ten days and can't drink your morning coffee...or have any chocolate... and everyone at work is eating out.
But then ten days is over is over in no time and you think that was no big deal.

Breakfast I had no problem with.
The first 3 days the fiber drink I didn't think was that bad, just gritty and thick.
Definitely took other peoples advice to drink it fast and follow up with at least another 8 ounces of water.
My typical breakfast everyday is one whole eye with 2 egg whites, a splash of almond milk, and a half slice cheese (Madden and I split it!). Sometimes I'll add turkey sausage, spinach or other veggies. For the cleanse I kept my typical breakfast but just skipped the cheese.

For lunch I planned ahead. I took time both Sundays to prepare and prep my lunches for the entire week. I portioned and weighed out all my food. Lunches consisted of 6 ounces of baked chicken breast and 1 cup of roasted or cooked vegetables which surprising was really filling. I kept with my mid-morning snacks to my Quest bars and my afternoon snack was an orange or apple with PB2.

Dinner and being home was much harder. Making Dave and MJ dinner then making sure to sticking with my cleanse diet was much more tricky, especially with a pantry fill of chips and girl scout cookies. For dinner I alternated between homemade chili or lime quinoa with black beans, corn and veggies or baked chicken/salmon with veggies.

 In place of coffee I drank grape Spark first thing in the morning at work and again in the afternoon. As well as a crap ton of water, over 100 ounces per day. It wasn't until the last 3 days the fiber drink sucked! I also suggest as soon as you mix it with water to drink in ASAP, if you let it set for even a few minutes it gets thicker and thicker....which makes it even harder to get down.

Even with the Spark, I never felt like I had more energy than before. I really missed my morning coffee!!  However overall I felt great. No bloat. No water weight. Trim and lean. It wasn't easy but it was definitely doable and I would do the cleanse again.

My results...
Starting weight at Day 1: 140.2
Ending weight Day 11: 137.2
Overall for inches I lost -3.75 inches. 

Eat ALL the mini eggs!!

This weekend consisted of a bit of a sugar overload.

The most sugar I've had in months, aside from Valentine's Day :-/

I decided to try out Advocare's 10-day cleanse, starting Monday!

I've debated between the cleanse and the 24-day challenge, but since the challenge is longer (and more expensive) I thought I'd start with the cleanse to see how I like it and if I can make it 10 days.

I know it's only ten days, so I should be able to handle it no problem but I hear those fiber drinks suck. I've already been eating pretty healthy anyways so it won't be that much of a change. Dinner with the fam will be the most difficult as well as the weekend, when we tend to eat out the most.

I plan on posting updated on how it goes.... 

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I've been totally slacking in the working out department the past 2 weeks.

Most days I didn't even hit 5,000 steps on the Fitbit...whomp whomp.

However I did complete one workout with a JM dvd and afterwards, while stretching I found out I can finally touch my toes!!!

 Non Scale Victory!

I've never been able to touch my toes while stretching with straight legs. I didn't even realize I had done it until afterwards and then had to do it again to make sure.

Proof I'm getting more flexible!

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I posted this pic on Instagram (BMDEX) just the other night, I love this kids facial expressions!

He makes this surprised look ALL.THE.TIME. So glad I finally captured it on camera.

After bath hair