What I'm Loving Part I

A lot of my favorite blogs do these monthly wrap-up posts called "What I'm Loving". These are my favorite posts to read because they give me new ideas for recipes, workouts, decorating and all things life in one single source. Here is a snapshot of my current favorite things! Hopefully I can do the same for you and pass along some good ideas! I would love to hear yours as well! :) 

Moo Cards

Aren't these cute? I have decided to try to take my blog and all things health, family and wellness to the next level (or at least keep it updated more frequently) so I made these online. They are tiny little cards with my contact information. So cute. (www.us.moo.com)

You can check out my new FB Page here: www.facebook.com/hollyhayneshealth

Patio Party

We are working on getting our patio ready for summer and I am obsessed with sitting outside. So far we have been able to have a few fires and the girls seem to be content climbing up and down the stairs a few hundred times to keep them busy.  

Here's a few more of my favorite patio sites....

New Tank Tops!

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Everything at Loft is on sale and these tanks (along with 100 other colors are $8!). I was given some as a gift and I am addicted. I also just realized is the Nordstrom half annual sale. YAH! (If you are looking for great workout gear try their Zella brand, the creator is an ex-lululemon designer. I also love the brand NYDJ. Their jeans seriously make you look a size smaller. I could write a whole post on Nordstrom! :))

More Tanks!

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I just bought this yesterday as I kept seeing it in the my fitness magazines and was convinced I need it. I just love the back. These tops are great for wearing everyday and for working out in. (Scott thinks I need a new hobby besides shopping for tanks! Lol). 

This Life

Confession. I have a small obsession with photos. I ran out of space recently on my computer and calculated that I have over 8K since digital photos were in existence. Oops. I have done a bit of research and finally landed on organizing them on "This Life". Its by Shutterfly (which I have another obsession with), but it literally took me 5 minutes to setup and is amazing at organization. It even does face recognition. Its getting a little confused with the girls, but its easy to start a project, save and come back. I feel much more "together" with my 8,000+ pictures now. 

Staycation

Last but certainly not least I have taken a mini staycation over the past week and kind of love being home with the amazing weather. Its awesome to feel caught up, rested and get to spend some quality time with the family. 

Miss Katherine. 

Miss Savannah. 

Any weekend favorites? Have a great Memorial Day!

Sunny Side Up!

I just wrapped a 5 day Breakfast Club Challenge (aka recipe exchange) and was so excited about some of the recipes I wanted to share! These are a fun twist to those morning eggs or cereal... 

p.s. If you enjoy these recipes and are interested a fitness / meal planning challenge let me know. Another group is starting Monday, May 25th!

First up, Overnight Oats!

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I love making this and especially in cute mason jars. Its sure to get your week of to a great start. The best part, you can make it the night before! Great for a busy schedule.

Ingredients:

1/3 cup rolled oats
1/3 – 1/2 cup milk [depending on how thick you like it]
1/3 cup plain yogurt1/2 banana1/2 tbsp chia seedsPinch saltPinch cinnamon

Stir everything together in a bowl. Place in fridge overnight. In the morning top with something crunchy and something with healthy fats – like nut butter or nuts.

#2 Green Monster Smoothies!

Smoothies are a great breakfast treat, but what really changed the way I made smoothies was an article on the "Green Monster" smoothie movement. What is this? A simple step to add spinach (or greens) to your smoothies. I swear you can't taste it. For every smoothie I make I use the following base.

- 1 banana (1/2 if you are on the 21 Day Fix!)

- 1 cup Almond milk (water if you are on the 21 Day Fix!)
- 1 cup of Frozen Spinach

You can add additional fruit, protein powder and even peanut or almond butter to this, but this base is sure to give you a great smoothie every time! 

#3 Frozen Yogurt Bark

This is the best breakfast ever. Frozen yogurt bark 

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Ingredients
2 c. plain greek yogurt
1/3 c. honey
1 tbsp vanilla extract (I used vanilla paste)
2 c. blueberries, washed and stray stems removed

Instructions:
In medium sized bowl, stir together the yogurt, honey and vanilla.
Gently stir in the blueberries and mix until all combined.
In a parchment lined 9x13 pan, pour in the yogurt mixture and spread out evenly making sure blueberries are evenly distributed.
Freeze overnight and cut into desired serving size

#4 Open Faced Banana Sandwiches

This is one of my new favorite recipes because its so easy! You can mix it up with different nut butters, add toppings, fruit etc. The possibilities are endless!

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#5 Breakfast Cupcakes

Last but not least we have breakfast cupcakes 

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Ingredients:
1 egg
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cups applesauce, unsweetened
1 banana, mashed
1/4 cup honey
2 1/2 cups, Old Fashioned rolled oats 
1/8 cup chai seeds (optional)
1 tablespoon ground cinnamon
1 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 1/4 cups milk 
Optional toppings: blueberries, raisins, walnuts, chocolate chips, pomegranate seeds.

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Mix eggs, vanilla, applesauce, banana and honey together in a bowl.
Add in oats, chai seeds (if using), cinnamon, baking powder, salt and mix well with wet ingredients.
Finally pour in milk and combine.
Line a 12 cup muffin tin with paper liners.
Divide mixture evenly into muffin tin cups. I used a 1/4 measuring cup, measure just a tad under 1/4 cup to make 12 servings.
Add the toppings...Bake 30 Minutes.

April Showers Bring May Flowers!

I got the best Mother's Day Gift today...Our 18th month pictures of the girls. I just can't stop smiling.

 They really do capture each of their personalities, from Savannah's intense blue eye's to Katherine's loveable hugs. 

(Katherine is on the left in the picture with both of them. Savannah's individual pics are first below). 

You can view the entire album here. I just want to go wake them up and squeeze them! (Mommy should really go to bed now!)

Happy Early Mother's Day! Hopefully these will bring you a smile this week.

Breakfast Club!

Happy Monday!
As part of my goal to eat healthy and lost a few more pounds I have been part of an online challenge group to help with motivation, sharing tips, trick etc. (as well as goals to help keep all things work / life in balance). One of the big tips is keeping yourself accountable and the best way to do that is to share what you are doing.

So for the month of May, I am following the 21 Day Fix program with the diet taken to the next level (i.e. no wine, processed carbs or sugar! oy!) I also decided to spice up my breakfast (the most important meal of course) with a fun little challenge.

You can read about it below. To kick things off, I thought I would share one of my favorite go to recipe sites for Brunch. (It really is my favorite meal). I use Skinnytaste (www.skinnytaste.com) for about everything but lately I have been on a quinoa kick and this is SO good!

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Recipe: http://www.skinnytaste.com/2012/10/apples-and-cinnamon-breakfast-quinoa.html

You can check out Facebook for more Breakfast Club Info or email me if you want to join!

18 Month Snapshot

18 Month Snapshot!

"It's tornado season and we have two F4's ready to hit Grandmas...." This is what Scott said as we were packing to go visit family this weekend.

These two little munchkins turned 18 months a few weeks ago and they are ON THE MOVE!

This was a year ago. And this is today :) 

We just had their 18 month pictures taken and this was one of the previews. I can't wait to see the rest!

Here are a few from around the house and playing around! They are talking, jumping, dancing, yelling etc. You name it, they are into it and repeating it!

1. Reading Books in our Room

2. Cars with Daddy!

3. Playing in the park!

4. Climbing on the Couch. (So proud of herself)

5. Celebrating Spring

6. Fashionistas! (They seriously love accessories!)

Our typical days these days include sleeping until 6:45am (the girls, not us!) and if we are lucky a 2 hour nap. (I probably jinxed myself as I typed this...) I am currently trying to convince myself that getting up at 4:30am would be reasonable to "fit" everything in...usually its 5:30am. lol. We are headed to see the Grandparents this weekend to celebrate Mother's Day a little early so hopefully we will have some fun pics to share. 

...And enjoy the awesome weather!  Yay Spring!

Have a great weekend!