Simply Sugar & Gluten-Free

My Favorite At Home Salad Bar (and postpartum weight loss…)

Amy — Wed, 16 May 2012 20:10:15 +0000

I packed on 46 pounds when I was pregnant. Yes. That’s right. Everything I ate clung to my body. I still exercised and ate well. But my body clearly wanted that extra weight to help grow a healthy baby.

Giving birth took away 16 pounds and I’ve lost 10 more since then. So, I still have 20 pounds to go. I’ve heard about women who are able to get back in their pre-pregnancy jeans in two weeks. I secretly envy them.

I haven’t had 20 pounds to lose in over 8 years.

I’ve never had to think about losing weight with a 12 week old baby to care for either. Everything is different. I used to love getting up early and going for a long power walk with the dogs. Now Nate eats first thing in the morning. And, I haven’t slept through the night since he was born. Sleep deprivation makes morning workouts a little less appealing.

The other big challenge is time. So much of my time is spent caring for Nate. And there’s just more to do – feedings, dishes, laundry, diapers, cleaning.
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Slightly Indulgent Tuesday; 5/15/12

janel2011 — Tue, 15 May 2012 01:00:57 +0000

Welcome back to Slightly Indulgent Tuesday everyone! I hope you had a wonderful weekend celebrating the special women in your lives or being celebrated.

Thank you all for sharing your recipes with us last week – we had over 115 healthier recipes to browse!

Last Week’s Healthier Highlights

My Picks

Kale and Basil Pesto from The Adirondack Chick
So Good Mandarin Salad from Yummy – Healthy – Easy
Italian Bean Salad from Architecture of a Mom

Reader Favs

Grain-Free Blender Brownies from Small Footprint Family
Dairy-Free Chocolate Pudding from Real Food Forager

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KIND Bars Give-Away!

Amy — Mon, 14 May 2012 02:01:27 +0000

Today I’ve got KIND Bars to give you! I’m always excited to share products with you when they already make their way into my shopping cart on a weekly basis.

It was actually Joe who started bringing them home en masse. He showed me the package and said, “These are healthy, right?” Of course they are! KIND Bars are perfect for stashing in your purse (or diaper bag) for a snack when you’re out running errands in the middle of the day. I pack them in Joe’s lunch, too, and he eats one as a late afternoon pick-me-up.

Here’s what you can expect from KIND Bars:

They’re made whole foods including nuts, seeds, and dried fruit.
KIND Bars are gluten-free.
Nearly every bar is refined sugar free. (The bars with chocolate and yogurt have sugar in them.)

Give Away Details

Three (3) SS&GF readers will win a KIND Bar Combo Cube which consists of:

One package each of:

Peanut Butter Whole Grain Clusters – these also just won an award in Prevention’s Healthy Food Awards
Maple Walnut Whole Grain Clusters with Chia & Quinoa

Two of each of the following bars:

To Enter

Leave a comment!

Bonus Entries

Follow SS&GF on Twitter and/or Facebook
Follow KIND on Twitter and/or Facebook

Give Away Details: This give-away is open to continental US residents only. Contest closes on Sunday, May 20th at 11:59 pm CST.

This give-away is sponsored by KIND Bars.

Mother’s Day Desserts

Amy — Fri, 11 May 2012 13:00:48 +0000

With Mother’s Day just two days away I thought I’d share some desserts that will definitely be appreciated by all the guests at your celebration, including the moms!

It’s going to be my first Mother’s Day as an mom and honestly I’m looking forward to a laid back day with my two favorite guys. I would be lying if I said that I’m going to cook up something spectacular. I’m not. It’ll just be the three of us and Joe will agree that we would both rather get some rest.

Regardless of how you choose to celebrate this Mother’s Day, I’m sending special wishes to all moms for their constant love, care-taking, and selfless giving. And, for all of my mommy friends (you know who you are!) who have nurtured me through the transition to new Mommyhood, I send you very special love. Thank you for helping me to be the best mom I can be for Nate.

Chocolate Strawberry Layer Cake

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Maggie’s Quinoa & Adzuki Bean Veggie Burgers

Amy — Wed, 09 May 2012 13:00:49 +0000

If you’ve been reading my posts lately, you know I’ve been working on getting more plant-based foods into my diet. No, I haven’t sworn off eggs, dairy, and meat. But I have been much more mindful about eating lots of phytonutrient packed fruits, vegetables, and beans especially since I learned about their disease-preventing characteristics.

I was poking around Maggie’s site looking for something healthy to make because:

I adore her.
We talk every week on Skype.
She is a smart cook and I trust her nutrition sense.

It just so happened that I was at Whole Foods the day before (no, they didn’t pay me to say that…) and brought home some organic adzuki beans. I wasn’t sure what I was going to do with them until I happened across Maggie’s recipe for Adzuki & Quinoa Veggie Burgers. Serendipity.
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