Getting healthy don't come cheap.

I've recently signed on as a BeachBody independent coach and I've been trying (unsuccessfully) to follow the eating plans that they have on the Team BeachBody website. I determined that my problem was that I never actually went grocery shopping for my Menu Plan so, I decided to go a head and plan in my menu plan from TBB (team beach body) with the family menu and just go out and use the shopping list that TBB provides you with. Here is my review of Team BeachBody's "Customized" Menu Plan .

Shopping Day:

Pros -

1. I had very little list prep (normally I spend a good 3-4 hours planing my meals and grocery list)
2. I can add and remove things from the shopping list as I please.
3. Meals are easily and clearly laid out on the web site, I did copy them over to my dry erase board because I need to have that big visual to remind me that I have meals planed.
4. For the most part the meals they set up for you are pretty "clean" or, in other words, very few processed/convenience foods
5. There is a good of foods, especially if you like seafood. 
6. You can exclude the foods you don't like (like seafood for example.)
7. You can choose to view your menu either by the week or by the day, that's nice, and you can print your menu a week at a time.

Cons -

1. They call it a customized menu plan, and I guess technically it is, just not very easily.
2. It's not all that user friendly. I find that if I want to input a new meal or use my own recipes it can be quite challenging. 
3. It's set up for single servings. Since I am of the mind that a family who eats the same food together helps keep mom from going crazy together, I think that it's vital for a menu planning service to have a multiple servings option. Now, that being said, most of the food you buy wont come in single
4. Another problem is that when viewing your menu in week format you can't chose which day to start your week on. This is an inconvenience for me because I go grocery shopping on Wednesdays and the menu starts on Sundays. Now, I know what you're thinking "Just use their Sunday as your Wednesday" but that just can't work! Sunday is Sunday and Wednesday is Wednesday!
5.  It's expensive. When I went shopping today I spent $205 for one weeks worth of food! Of course I had to buy somethings for the girls, but still. I have budgeted about eighty bucks for grocery's each week. I'm no mathematician, but I'm pretty sure I blew the budget. 

So there you have it, my honest review. I knew eating clean was going to cost me more, but honestly I'm not sure if I can handle dropping this much dough on food.

May your tummy always be full. 

What are your tips and ticks for eating healthy and clean on a budget?

Sometimes I get a little lazy...

So, I was going to post about these yummy chicken fajita's I make. I would have mentioned how they are a healthy and super delicious dinner that the whole family loves, and they are quick and easy peasy! But, then on our way home from running errands I drove past IHOP and could not resist the call of their Buttermilk Pancakes.

While we sat there eating, I with my steak lovers omelet and triple stack pancakes, my oldest girls sharing the chocolate silly face pancake, the baby throwing her silver dollar pancakes onto the floor, and the hubs enjoy his chicken fried steak and eggs, I began to wonder why it is I love going out to eat so much. I've decided that it's not necessarily the quality of food, because honestly I can replicate it at home and most of the time I get frustrated with how my food has been prepared when I go out to eat (for example, the I had omelet was over cooked and as I'm sure you know over cooked eggs are almost inedible) , and it's absolutely not a money saver! No, I believe that the reason I LOVE going out to eat is because I don't have to clean up ANYTHING except my daughters faces, and it was something that when I was growing up we did very rarely so I feel extra special and happy when dining out. I love being able to just leave the dishes to be washed by the employe's,  I love the feeling of fun and excitement I get while we're sitting on our booth while we make our orders and wait for our food to be served to us. 

But, as I sit here typing a thought just occurred to me, by going out so often the Hubs and I are kind of setting our girls up to fail. We're establishing habits that are expensive and tend to be unhealthy. Instead of going out when ever mommy feels like it, I know we should be sticking to our guns and telling our selves that the budget for going out to eat has already been spent, and force our selves to not steal from other portions of the budget. I've become addicted to the convince (which is really an illusion because, if you think about it, it's not convenient at all to get all the kids prepped and ready to go out and then to sit there while they scream and act a fool during the wait for the food.) of being able to just drive to where ever I feel like and get exactly what I want, and if it takes more then 30 minutes to fill my order then I have the right to be irritated.

I wish I could end this blog with a firm commitment to staying home for dinner every night and making sure I cook and prepare my family healthy and fantastic meals but, I'm just not capable of that kind of commitment. Instead, I am here by fully committing to cooking all my meals at home and in advance, much like the way I do for my Personal Chef clients, and reserving going out to eat for date nights and evening when we have someone coming by to view our home.

I know it won't be extremely hard work, because I have the right tools, the hardest part with be resisting the call of all those restaurants. I'll post my family's dinner menus on my recipes page if you're interested on following along with us.

Me and my Magic Pot (sorry for the bad picture, I've upgraded my camera since)------------------->

May your tummy always be full!

P.S.

What are some bad habits you need to break? Comment below.

I've come to the realization that it might be in my best interest to take a blogging course, or hit up some of my friends who run successful blogs (if you read my other blog "...Our Mothers Knew It..." you know why I say that). I'm also realizing that if I'm going to blog it should about something that that ignites my passion. I am passionate about my religion, my children and my marriage but, lets me honest, I'm not ware near as passionate about these things as I am about FOOD!

I mean, food is amazing! It can be nourishing or detrimental to your health, it can energize you or sedate you (think of how you feel after a big turkey meal) Food can be as beautiful as one of the masterpieces of Van Gogh ----> See! (BTW I did not make that stunning cake. I found the image on swagbucks here is the source http://indienutjelly.com/post/86502327/van-gogh-cake-ohwayuphigh)
or it can be completely gross looking but taste like heaven!

It seems to me that food is the ultimate canvas, as an artist you can create your masterpiece, photograph it, and then devour it so that it becomes a part of you! OK, maybe that last part was a little on the creepy side but, you get what I'm saying?! Food is one of the mediums that you can receive instant satisfaction from.

Another thing I LOVE about food is that I can give other people pleasure through it. I tend to be an awkward person, and food gives me a social outlet. People can think "Yeah, she's a little weird but, chick knows how to cook! I will be her friend!" and I LOVE people! When I make something amazing I want to share it with everyone I know, that go's for anything I make that I consider to be amazing. Food gives me a chance to truly share who I am with the people I love.

I know blogging about food isn't original but, nothing now-a-days is. I'll also be blogging about health and fitness because that is another passion of mine. And don't be surprised to read the occasional religious post due to the fact that my religion is a huge driving force in my life.
I'll be attempting to update daily (I WILL!)

May your tummy always be filled.