Shopping List For The Weekend

Fruits:
Strawberries- 1 box Sprouts
Blueberries- 1 box Sprouts
Raspberries- 1 box Sprouts
Blackberries- 1 box Sprouts
Fuji Apples- 5 Sprouts
Pears- 5 Sprouts
Cherries- 1 packet Sprouts
Avocados- 3 Sprouts

Vegetables:
Cucumbers- 2 Sprouts
Peppers- 3 Sprouts
Spinach Sprouts
Carrots- 1 pack baby carrots Sprouts
Zucchini- 2 Sprouts
Squash- 2 Sprouts

Meats:
Ham and Turkey- One Packet each Fresh & Easy
Chicken- 2 packets Sprouts
Ground Turkey- 1 packet Sprouts

Dairy:
Sandwich cheese- 1 pack Fresh & Easy
Greek Yogurt plain- 3 individual cups Sprouts

Canned and Packaged Food:
Black Beans- 3 cans Fresh & Easy
Canned Tomatoes- 3 cans Trader Joe's
Oatmeal Plain- Fresh & Easy
Almond Butter- Fresh & Easy
Hummus- Fresh & Easy

Colorful Tuesday

Today the hubs and I decided that we were going to go back to our Meatless Monday routine, but seeing as it's really a Tuesday that just feels like a Monday, I dubbed today "Colorful Tuesday." I had plenty of veggies in my fridge that I really needed to cook or use so that I wouldn't be wasteful, and somehow I made it all work together.

Before I get into dinner, let me give you a quick rundown of the rest of my day:

Breakfast: Oatmeal with a dash of cinnamon and raspberries
Snack: Banana

Lunch: Spinach with chopped strawberries and one medium fuji apple, topped with a drizzle of cinnamon pear balsamic vinegar

Snack: Orange

Dinner: Explosion of Color

I cut what was left of some red, orange and yellow peppers I had in the fridge into long strips. Then I tossed them in a bit of olive oil and seasoned them with paprika, lemon pepper seasoning and a bit of sea salt. Then I grilled them on my grill pan. 

While those cooked, I chopped up some tomatoes and half of an avocado and mixed them together with a bit of salt and pepper and lime juice. 

Then I toasted two slices of Ezekiel Bread and smeared a bit of roasted red pepper hummus on each slice. I sprinkled a bit of goat cheese on my toast, and Josh put a slice of pepper jack cheese on his. Then we added a layer of spinach and topped it off with the avocado and tomato mixture. 

On the side we had our grilled peppers with a bit of hummus for dipping. It was fresh, colorful and perfect for summer! 

I Got It From My Momma

When I was growing up, I remember that my mom would take every ad from the Sunday paper, and she would sit at our dining room table and dedicate at least two hours to cutting and organizing her coupons. Once she was finished, we would head out to at least 5 different stores to purchase our goods for the week.

The first store was always Sam's Club, because they close the earliest on Sundays. Then we would make our way to Walmart, Food4Less, Stater Brothers, and maybe Kmart. As a kid, I had no concept of money, budgeting or the cost of groceries. I just knew that I HATED grocery shopping like this. I swore up and down that I would shop at whatever store is closest to me and that would be IT! 

So here I am 28 years old... and I am so my mother's daughter. I may not shop at the same stores as she did, because it's just my husband and I, but I have three stores that I go to for everything, and none of them are my local grocery stores. 

My favorites are: 

 I love their produce and prices. I can walk out of there with a week's worth of fruit and veggies at around $20! I'm also huge on the environment of the stores I shop at. Sprouts is so vibrant and open and colorful. (I'm weird... I know...)

I come here to buy my sandwich meats, canned items, breads, cheeses, oatmeal, and waffles. I also really like the friendliness of their staff. Trader Joe's associates are generally very helpful, which makes shopping there so much more enjoyable. 

I love Fresh & Easy, because they have fabulous quick prep items like ready-to-grill veggie packs, steamable veggie packs, quinoa and brown rice bowls, and they have a wonderful variety of F&E brand sauces. Their Chipotle glaze sauce is a staple in our home, and these items make dinner a breeze to put together! They also have a great rewards program where you can take your points and convert them to cash points to use in a future purchase.  

I may not sit and clip every coupon like my mother did on Sunday nights, but I definitely learned how to plan my week food-wise and stretch my dollar like a pro!  

Pow!!

Thanks to Bob Harper's "The Skinny Rules: The Simple Non-Negotiable Principles For Getting To Thin," I have opted out of adding Splenda to my daily coffee, and I have to be honest... this is going to take some getting used to. I LOVE coffee! I love the smell and taste of a great blend and just the overall comfort it brings to my morning schedule.

Prior to the Skinny Rules, I would add some unsweetened almond milk and two Splenda packets to my coffee. I made the transition from creamer to almond milk, because I discovered that creamer was not sitting well with my stomach and it never failed that after I finished my coffee, I would end up in the restroom. Almond milk doesn't make it as creamy as I used to like it, but the Splenda at least made it sweet and enjoyable.

My first taste of coffee sans sweetener was like a bitter slap in the face, but I was determined to turn the other cheek. Now that I know what to expect, it's not too bad, but it's definitely an adjustment. Today's blend was more of a punch in the face thanks to the IT guy's heavy hand with the coffee grounds and the "KAPOW" that is the Starbucks Bold blend. Gooooooooood Mooooooooorning!!!!

Patriotic Fresh Berry Delight

Happy Memorial Day! I hope everyone had a great weekend. This morning I was thinking about what I was going to bring to my family barbecue, and as I was working out, I decided I would pick up some fruit and make a fruit salad. Then I remembered a picture I saw on Twitter of a flag made out of fruit and cheese, and I knew that I could make it and put my own little twist on it and everyone would love it. (Especially the little ones!) I grabbed this cute white platter out of my cupboard and headed out the door to Sprouts. I love how inexpensive the produce is at Sprouts!!

I bought one container of blueberries, two containers of strawberries and one container of raspberries. Everything looked so ripe and plump, and I just really loved the idea of serving something fresh and colorful. When I got to the dairy section, I was a little disheartened to see that they only had a soywhip, because I really wanted to use a light whip like a Cool Whip to serve as my white stripe. Just as I was about to give up hope, I spotted a whole bunch of containers of Cool Whip in the freezer section!! Yes!!!

This platter was so easy to put together, and it is the perfect dessert for a hot summer day, because it is fresh, vibrant in color, light and best of all: CUTE! My cousin, Sophia, even asked me to please make it again for the 4th of July. :) Win!!!