Silly Pictures

Here are a few funny pictures of Olivia and I from the past week.

Olivia trying to bundle Buddy up to go outside....


















Me channeling Lincoln with Olivia's President's Day craft....


Olivia reading a Valentine card from her Aunt....this one played the Disney princess song and she was just captivated by it!


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Food Experiments

I continue to experiment with various recipes with hopes of developing a rotation of meals and snacks that fit my dietary goals. Lately I have just been, well, depressed. There really is no other way to put it. I am having trouble leaving junk food and fillers (high carb sides like rice, pasta, potatoes) behind so I have gained back the weight I lost and my blood glucose levels have been elevated. Meal planning, which has always been hard for me, has become impossible but I press on.....

These Coconut Flour Pancakes were definitely not like my usual Bisquick box version but they were not horrible. Mine came out thin, not at all like the picture on the website, but the flavor was okay. I had them with regular maple syrup since I have not yet found a lower carb alternative.


These Zucchini Chips were a tad spicy to me so
I will lessen the smoked paprika next time. They also shrink considerably after baking.


This Feta Stuffed Meatloaf with Cucumber Sauce was surprisingly a winner. Mark and I both liked it....Olivia wouldn't touch it but she is a little on the picky side right now. I did make a Greek Pilaf as a side to this which defeats the purpose of making a low carb meatloaf but I didn't have enough time to research another side option.  This side was a favorite of ours from when we used to participate in a monthly frozen food exchange so it was easy at the last minute.


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Snow Bunny

Here in North Carolina we do not necessarily get snow every year. The weather station often calls it wrong as well which can lead to massive pileups at the grocery store and school closings with not a drop of snow. It's comical to those who move into our state from other parts but to me, it's part of our charm. A few weeks ago the weather station said we would get 2-4 inches and we had barely a sprinkling of snow. Then this past week they called for 0.25 inches, instead we probably had 5 inches. Here are some pics of my snow bunny enjoying the unexpected snow when it first started and then a day later once it was getting slushier.









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New Cereal Option

I found this recipe for Grain Free Hot Cereal on my favorite food blog these days. I have made it twice and both times found it surprisingly good. It looks scary, at least to someone new to these ingredients! The only con to it is that it does not stay warm very long and I do not like it as much once it cools so I have to eat it quickly. I took a few pics so you could share in the scary.

This is of the initial ingredients mixed together - chia seeds, ground flax meal and Swerve.





And here it is after mixing in the hot water and letting it sit. The chia seeds get gelatinous which means they are kind of slimy.





Here is how it looks after I add heavy cream and a few pecans. I am looking forward to adding berries when they are back in season.





There are 18 grams of fiber in this so it is a very filling breakfast despite how quickly it goes down the hatch!

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Taco Shells and Dinosaur Eggs

I had some leftover taco meat from our dinner so I decided to experiment with the low carb taco shell alternative I saw on Pinterest. I was pleasantly surprised at how yummy this was (lesson learned, never doubt cheese!) and how much it really was like a taco shell. I don't think it is feasible to make these in bulk on the night we eat but I definitely can see eating a couple of these with leftovers for lunch like I did.



Olivia's preschool class did a unit on dinosaurs recently and she had her first paper mache experience - making a dinosaur egg. When she tore it apart there was a tiny dinosaur eraser inside, like a baby dinosaur. So cute! I love preschool art/crafts!


After my post a couple weeks ago about my frustration with Blogger I decided to invest a few dollars in another app. I read about the various options here and decided to go with BlogPress. Here's hoping for easier blogging going forward!

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In The Kitchen

After receiving my supplies I was eager to get started.  For my second low carb baking experience I decided on the Cranberry Orange Scones from Carolyn Ketchum's All Day I Dream of Food blog.  I love reading food blogs because the pictures are all so pretty but I am not a food blogger so I will keep it real!  Here is what it looks like when I work in the kitchen....

And here are my scones ready for the oven...

While I was busy with the scones Olivia decided to make playdough pancakes.  She really puts her whole body into rolling them out.

Baking Supplies

I mentioned in a previous post that I would be starting a new adventure in low carb baking once my supplies were all here.  I have decided that I still need one additional item, Swerve Confectioner, but in the meantime I have bought everything else I need to get started.  Here is a picture of my investment.  These supplies are an investment in my health and an investment in the true sense of the word.  I think these came to approximately $140.  The almond flour alone was close to $50 for 5 pounds.  Yowzers!!