[healthy summer snacks]

In my quest to be healthy and still enjoy my life, I've been really trying to eat better lately. It's hard though, considering I don't have much time / patience for meal prep and my schedule is incredibly irregular. I also get really bored eating the same things over and over again, so coming up with fun new ideas is very hard. Here are a few snacks I've been choosing lately, as part of my snacking through the days instead of bigger meals.

I love hummus, so I eat it with tomatoes and carrots. 

I love Bolthouse Farms smoothies and protein shakes. I typically have them as a mid-morning snack to help break up the day. It's really more of a meal but it's always an on-the-go thing.

I also like to throw in some kind of trail mix every once in a while, but I've been trying to eat more fruits and vegetables lately. So far it's been a few days that I've been refocused and I definitely feel a bit better. And my digestive system is back to normal!

Everyone have a happy fourth!

"no great thing is suddenly created."

- epictetus

[skyebird]

I've always considered myself a food lover, but lately I'm trying to be a bit more adventurous. On a recent trip to Orlando, I decided to do some exploring and came across this delicious little place called Skyebird. They call themselves 'a juice bar and experimental kitchen,' which is super accurate. All you can see are raw ingredients and juices and the cooks were just trying new things right there. After perusing through their menu and coming to a decision, I ordered the Romaine Heart Tacos with Cheesy Kale Chips and a Strawberry Lemonade to drink. Soooo good and surprisingly filling! It's lovely too because Skyebird is located inside of East End Market, which is a big building with several different vendors inside. It's like an indoor farmer's market, with a bread shop, a meat shop, a cheese shop, a coffee shop, a wine shop and a small nursery. There was even live music playing outside! Every shop looked delicious too; it was hard not to stop and order from each one.

I would definitely suggest stopping by if you're ever in the Orlando / Winter Park area!!!

"people who love to eat are always the best people."

- julia child

[drunken monkey coffee]

Anyone who knows me knows I love coffee. My friends and I literally joke that I just need an IV and I'll be good to go. So when I was in Orlando, I decided to look for a local spot rather than go to Starbucks or Einstein's. What I found? Drunken Monkey Coffee. Yes, the weird name did make it more appealing to me. The place itself is very simple, with mismatched furniture and dish ware. They had a small area for a DJ to spin, and couches reminiscent of college house parties. It was a charming place with a small, simple menu of coffee and some sandwiches and snacks. If the food wasn't made in-house, it was made locally and most of it was organic or gluten free or something like that. Unfortunately, I couldn't get pictures of the place itself, but I was able to photograph my food. I had an american coffee with a baby breakfast burrito.

If you're ever looking for a low key, local coffee joint, you should definitely stop by Drunken Monkey Coffee. You won't regret it!

Happy Monday! Have a great week!

"all happiness depends on a leisurely breakfast."

- john gunther

[new favorite thing]

I've been trying new recipes lately, so you can expect lots of new recipes on the blog (get excited!!). My absolute favorite new thing however? SPAGHETTI SQUASH. It's not exactly a new thing, I know, but it's new to me.

THE SQUASH:

You're supposed to cut it in half, but mine rolled off the counter and cracked this way. Oops! Then I spooned out the seeds and other stringy things.

Placed upside down and put into an oven, for 40 minutes at 375 degrees.

What it looks like once it's done. The half on the left is untouched. I ran a fork along the edge of the half on the right, basically making the 'noodles' come out.

While it cooked, I made shrimp with spinach, tomatoes, goat cheese and some shredded parmesan. The tomatoes were mostly a base for the 'sauce,' which was later absorbed by the squash noodles.

THE FINAL PRODUCT!!! 

"health requires healthy food."

- roger williams

[food i'm loving]

I'm going on this health food kick and trying to really keep at it. Of course, it's a struggle to stick to it and then definitely hard to keep things from getting boring, but I'm trying. It's also hard what with my work schedule to be able to eat regularly and well at the same time.

New favorite salad:

Raspberry Vinaigrette Salad:
(spinach, cucumber, tomato, carrots, raisins, sunflower seeds, and grilled chicken)

Midnight snack (because I get home from work at midnight):

Cucumber slices with lime and Tajin (a chili lime powder)

Also: who even eats chips anymore? I've started buying English cucumbers and cutting them in thick slices. I use them as chips for dipping all kinds of things. (I don't have a picture but that's pretty self explanatory.)

"change is inevitable. growth is optional."

-john maxwell

[monday motivation]

By no means do I plan on doing a Monday Motivation every week, but I felt like sharing something that motivates me. I follow two bloggers on Instagram and they have positively influenced my life (and eating habits) so much in the past few months. They both post amazingly delicious, clean recipes that are easy to make.

These are screenshots of their blogs, but definitely make sure you follow them on Instagram as well!!!

Deliciously Ella

Ella used food to improve her life (read her story, it's crazy) and now she basically shares her recipes with the world!

Nutrition Stripped

McKel is a health and wellness coach and dietitian who also shares her recipes and knowledge for free with the world. I would pay her to be my dietitian but can't afford it, but even just her recipes are an amazing help!

"take care of your body. it's the only place you have to live."

- jim rohn

[meal prep & food organization]

I think one of the most important things about being healthy and staying in shape is what we eat. Obviously there has to be a balance of diet and exercise, but you can't out-workout a poor diet. So today I'm going to show you the step before meal prep: food organization.

Unless you live on your own and have only the foods you eat in your refrigerator, then your fridge likely has some food that you don't even need to touch or think about (like mine). To make it easier for me, I've organized my refrigerator so cooking will be easy and convenient and to keep the bad-for-me things out of sight.

This is what my fridge looked like before I organized.

 

This is what it looks like now. If you notice, beforehand I couldn't really tell what vegetables I had in the drawers and things were very messy. Now I know exactly what I have just by taking a quick glance!

 

           


These are most of the things I threw away. (Thousand Island dressing?!? Parkay?!? Bean dip?!?! I don't know who bought those but they are horrible for you!)

These are things I kept (but only for the sake of those I live with.) I've discovered I need to limit my cheese-eating; it really messes with my digestion.

Now the next step is going to be going shopping for what's missing and then beginning meal prep!

"If you fail to plan, you are planning to fail."

- benjamin franklin