Making Banana Ice Cream Using 3 ingredients

I love ICE CREAM!

It seriously used to be a staple in my grocery cart.

I had a craving for late night ice cream, well then a big bowl would make it into my hands!

But, then I started to realize that it probably wasn't the BEST food staple to have in my house.
So, I stopped buying it and in doing so I STOPPED WANTING IT ! Crazy how that works !

Anytime I see a recipe for ice cream- I am all over it ! Especially for HEALTHY kind right !!

I took
2 bananas ( cut it up and place in bag and freeze for at least 4 hours or longer )
2 spoons of cocoa
1 dollop of peanut butter ( however much suits your fancy !)

Place it all in the blender and mix that puppy UP !
Seriously ! That's it !
Enjoy!
Even my husband who is a sweet tooth lover enjoyed this !!
Will make it with other mix ins' !!

Making PROGRESS ...

I'm SUPER excited over the progress that I have been making. Yes, this is the 2nd week into my cutting back on processed foods, BUT I can already feel my stomach flatter. And my jeans are feeling LOOSE!

I will be weighing myself this Saturday to see how far I have come along.

As long as I am fueling my body with veggies and proteins then I stay full thru out the day. I'm also making sure to amp up my water intake!! I'm getting enough sleep at night, YES I go to sleep at 9:30 pm,  BUT I have been able to get up at 5am!!

To me that has been my dream, go to bed early and wake up early, but I struggled so much with it because my son was coming to my bed at night and messing up our schedules. I'm glad that I finally bit the bullet and eliminated that habit !!

I'm also reaching out to other people and sharing this opportunity with them. Sometimes I wish people could see my excitement with doing these challenge groups! I love the atmosphere and supportive community that comes with these workouts and what Beach body stands for.

I want to so badly spread the joy that I have from be able to work out from home and learning to change my eating habits. I really think people just need to give it a try, but I mean really try and see if this is something that will change the way they live !

To a HEALTHY 2015 !

Success !

This past week I have been diligent and focused on eating properly.

Because for two months I allowed myself to pretty much eat it all. And in doing this I have gained 10 lbs ! Wowzzer! That seriously creeps up on you !

So, it brings me with great excitement when I jumped on the scale and saw that I lost 2.5 lbs !! Not only have I had more energy thru out the day, BUT I feel lighter! Funny how it happens by just being diligent.

If I stay on this track it should take me about 5 weeks to loose the weight I gained. Anything extra would be icing on the cake !

Honestly my mind is always swirling with either what to cook, what to clean, who's happy and who's not. That just looking at my sheet to see what I can and should eat has made my life sooo much easier !!

I don't even count calories! I mean I pick a color from the container and just make sure that I am staying on track with how many colors it says to eat! it's not hard at all.

I did stick to many of the same foods
- salads
- fish
- turkey sandwich
- my meal replacement shake  just to name a few

Here are some pictures so you can see for yourself !

Being silly with my selfie- yes straight up carrots are yummy to crunch on !

Seriously, my eggs always stick !

I cooked some other foods that my kids enjoy such as mac n cheese ( my son said it was THE BEST MAC N CHEESE EVER) I kind of enjoyed hearing him say that.

And for Saturday night I made pizza/ pretzel rolls ; which they also LOVE ! Seriously cooking from home is one of the best things ever!  I did enjoy a pizza roll because well it's homemade and then I ate my portion of fish.

I know that indulging in other foods is fine on an occasional basis, but it's that OVER indulgence that will get to your GUT!

Hope you know "if there is a will there is a way!"

Raise your HAND if...

You fell off the wagon of eating healthy… ME

You stopped working out ….ME

You developed bad habits…ME

You gained weight… ME

You need a KICK in the butt to get going … ME

Ok, so it's the NEW Year, Happy New year! And now what ?? Everyone is making goals, talking about losing weight, paying off debt and I'm sure it sounds overwhelming !!!! Shoot, I tend to sit back and just observe. It takes me some time before I commit to making the changes I want in my life.

Here's a little secret … just because you don't start at the beginning of the year doesn't mean YOU CAN'T START TODAY. Don't let that intimidate you. Realize that you can change ANYTIME you want TO.

But, with everyone making all these changes it makes you want to change as well!  Kind of like join the party and NOT get left behind. And since I'm here to push you to make yourself feel better and lose weight , WELL let's HOP to it !!

So…. here's a little story about what has happened to me. As soon as November first hit I was like BOOM… I got into this mood of wanting to indulge a little more, bake a little more and just let LOOSE. ( are you with me ??)

And, guess what ??? I was A- OK with it !! But, it wasn't until the very end of December that I noticed some changes occurring … like my pants getting tighter, my face had acne that wasn't going away and I felt more sluggish. YES, that easily in the span of over 2 months those changes came and it didn't look like they were going anywhere!!

It was like the uninvited guest that wouldn't leave, but guess WHAT … I DID invite them ! Yup, all me!  Taking accountability is the FIRST step.

Kind of sad, kind of discouraging. Especially when I just came back from my cousin's wedding where I had so many compliments " Rose you so good " " Rose good job on working out"  True story. It felt GREAT !! So, I guess I thought I was invincible.

But, here is the TRUTH .

We are not and I as HECK am not.

So, back to the drawing board of kicking those bad habits out!

So HOW the HECK do you start ??

Numero UNO- Get dressed ! Yes, that means put your workout clothes on. It can either be in the morning or in the evening when you decide that you want to workout out, but just decide and  commit !

Which leads me to my next one

Number 2 - pick the time when you will workout, if you can do it in the AM then even better. I have tried to workout in the evening BUT… well my energy is defiantly lower and i don't feel that committed. If that means you need to get up earlier to give you enough time to get your workout in then so be it, GO TO bed early enough so that you can GET UP !!  Put that alarm far away from your bed. And when you get up have your clothes picked out so that you can just get dressed. See. Easy so far !

Number 3 - Make sure you eat something - can be anything. Such as fruit, toast, cottage cheese, or yogurt. Keep it light, but make sure it has protein to keep you full during your workout.

Number 4- Start off small, don't get all crazy on me and think that you are going to be able to conquer this difficult workout, you will set yourself up for failure. And we want you to succeed !! Yes, you CAN !

Number 5- Play some music to get you into the mood! Pick something and start hopping around. It will do wonders for your mood.

I know it's hard at first.

But, ASK yourself WHY?

And KEEP that WHY in your mind alive!

To a HEALTHY New Year !!

Recipe : Sweet potato fries

These sweet potato fries  are the yummiest and easiest way I get my kids to eat more healthy foods.

Not only are sweet potatoes amazingly good for you: packed with vitamin A, C and calcium, but they are so versatile. Here are a variety of different ways that I have implemented them in my foods.

- Instead of pumpkin puree I use sweet potatoes to make muffins
- throw some in your smoothie instead of bananas
- make yummy pancakes
- throw some in your chili
- or just serve it as a side dish

For these sweet potatoes you will need 
-2-3 medium to large sweet potatoes ( preferably the same size )
-Olive oil for savory
-coconut oil for sweet ones
- cornstarch 1- 2 tbsp
- Favorite seasonings for savory
- Raw sugar and cinnamon to taste
- parchment paper / cookie sheet


1) Preheat oven to 415 F - Peel sweet potatoes and cut them julienne style. Make sure that they are all cut the same size

2) sprinkle your fries with corn starch ( use a ziploc bag for easy clean up ) Then shake out the excess using a colander. Very important to get out the excess because when I left the extra on there it was NOT a yummy taste.

3) Toss your oil of choice approx 2 tbsp.

4) Add your seasoning and place on your cookie sheet that is lined with parchment paper

5) Make sure that they are evenly on the cookie sheet, if not and this is something that I recently learned   they will steam instead of get crispy

6)  Start baking for 20 mins

7) Take out and flip

8) bake another 20 mins

Depending on the size that you cut them then these should turn out perfect. IF you cut them too tiny then they will blacken and get yucky.

I have also cubed them up and added the savory seasoning - sort of like mini tater tots - My toddler ate all these up !

Enjoy !!!

5 things you can DO TODAY to HELP with STRESS

I was having a conversation with someone about stress eating. They were so frustrated that they had packed on some extra pounds due to stress and turning to food for comfort. If this sounds like you then  trust me... you are not alone!

Perhaps, it's a salty food item that draws your attention, or maybe it's a warm piece of bread. Heck, maybe anything and EVERYTHING tastes good to you when you are stressed. So, what can you do when you head to the kitchen? Well, here are 5 actionable items you can tackle today.

1) Go for a walk-  Yes, go outside and get a breath of fresh air. Weather not cooperating ? Then pop open the garage and start doing jumping jacks, and lunges. No garage? Then try your front porch. Find a way to change your environment.

2) Clean something- if this is what ends up helping you relieve stress, then you will have one clean house! Or purse or car! What you are doing is forcing yourself to focus on something else aside from food. Scrub, vacuum, dust  or wipe it down. Just try it and see how you feel after.

3) Call someone- I didn't say text or Facebook someone, BUT actually pick up the phone and vent your frustrations to someone you trust. This is a great way to see if what you are stressing about is really worth it.

4) Do some deep breathing - Take the time and do deep breaths that reach deep into your belly. Focus on this for a few minutes and even try playing relaxation music on. If you have essential oils then place those on your temples and wrists. Do some self talking such as " Is it true ? Then let it go "  my friend gave me that phrase which was helpful to me during a stressful time and also try " I am a good person" many times I guilt myself to thinking that I am the bad guy or at fault. Repeat positive affirmations and the negative thinking will have no place in your mind.

5) Write your feelings out- there is something so therapeutic about putting pen to paper and just writing your feelings and frustrations. Write what you are really feeling, and then start listing 5 things that you are grateful for. Aim to write for 15 minutes, and if you catch yourself writing longer than that just keep going !!!

Stress is a real emotion that we all experience, just know that eating isn't the only way to appease those emotions. Try these 5 actionable things and put them to the test. You can overcome it! Don't let food control you !

4 ingredient Ice Cream - that's HEALTHY and Low in calories !!

One of my most favorite things that I would buy and indulge in was- ICE CREAM. Seriously, it was a staple at my house. Walking thru the cold aisle I would automatically scan thru all the yummy flavors. Almost always stopping to pick up Cookies N cream. And my indulgence would begin, after dinner. preferably when the kids where in bed. It was the bowl and I … oh and my husband would almost always have to enjoy several scoops for himself.

It was after some time that I came to the realization that eating ice cream before bed was not good for my waistline. So, my trips to the freezer section became less. And this so called must - HAVE was no longer a priority.

Yes, I still do enjoy ice cream, but the bowl of yummy creaminess is much more enjoyable.

So, when I stumbled upon this recipe that has 4 ingredients from mywholefoodlife.com and there is NO MILK! Say WHAT !

I decided to give it a whirl !

So here are the ingredients

-1 can of coconut
- peppermint flavoring extract- 1/2 tsp
- Maple syrup 2-3 Tablespoons
-Chocolate chips 2 T of

Pour the can of coconut into a bowl - I should have chilled the can of coconut or the mixture after, just an after thought.

My son was eager to be my little helper.

He had to help me and of course dump the maple syrup! I think I would add a little bit  more next time. 

Mix it all up! Make sure to add the extract as well !

Now pour it into your mixer and set it for 18 minutes.

Add the chocolate chips at the 15 minute mark.

Here is my soft serve mixture. Doesn't it look like ice cream !!

He ate it all up! He did make a funny face at first, it threw him off but he was happy !

I had to add FRESH rasper berries to mine !! 

Give this a try and you may be surprised at how much you do like it !!