splendid spoon

Holiday Gift Guide | What’s On My Wishlist

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While there really isn’t much that I need this holiday season there are a few things that are on my wish list. Most are consumable as I work to have less things but of course there are a few things like my favorite notebook that I just can’t give up and a few fun items that would be fun to add to my collection. So here it is my wish list – ENJOY!

Wild Friends Sugar Cookie Peanut Butter. I recently purchased a jar of this peanut butter at our local grocery store and our family polished it off in less than four days because it is just that good. That being said I wouldn’t hate to find my very own jar in my stocking along with a few of Wild Friends new Nut Butter Oats that I have been dying to try. 

Conscious Ink Tattoos.  While I would love to get a new tattoo that just isn’t in the cards right now but these temporary tattoos are the perfect alternative. Conscious Ink Manifestation Temporary Tattoos consist of a dream list of positive words, inspiring quotes, healing affirmations and empowering invitations. I just love that when I look down at my wrist (where I tend to place these) I can be reminded to Be Present, Breathe, Love, Laugh and so much more. I also love to share these with Edith who is all about the temporary tattoos right now. 

Leuchtturm 1917 A5 Dotted Notebook. I am obsessed with notebooks and these are my absolute favorite. I have a handful of these books already that I have filled up with blog ideas and journaling and used for bullet journaling. Some people want bags or shoes in every color – I want notebooks. 

Oat Mama Lactation Tea and Bars. Oat Mama was kind enough to send me a variety of their bars and their Chai tea and I have fallen in love. The bars are delicious and perfect for a busy mama like myself. The Chai tea is perfect with a touch of vanilla almond milk and I have been enjoying it most evenings. The problem is however I am almost out so if anyone wants to fill my stocking with tea and bars that would be great. 

Splendid Spoon Cleanse. After the holidays I could use a Splendid Spoon Cleanse. I know I share about these all the time and it’s for good reason I love the soups and drinkable soups. I love to keep the fridge and freezer stocked with them so that I can have something easy to grab for breakfast or lunch (seeing a trend? Mom of three = need for quick, easy and healthy food options). While I usually have a few soups on hand I could really use a full week of cleansing for the new year. Also this is the perfect gift for someone who has everything or is more of a minimalist because it’s truly consumable (and delicious). psst you can save $20 on your first box with my link.

Sappho New Paradigm Liquid Foundation. I recently purchased the Alima Pure Liquid Silk Foundation and while I like it fine and will use it up I don’t love it. Prior to purchasing the Alima Pure I had been using samples of the Sappho New Paradigm Liquid Foundation and while I loved it the price tag was a bit higher than I was prepared to spend but now I am having a bit of buyers remorse. I loved the way the Sappho felt on my skin, how light it was in feeling but how great the coverage was  and overall I just wish I had waited, saved a few extra dollars and purchased it for myself. So now I am doing just that… unless of course someone wants to buy me it for Christmas in the color Rachel. psst this foundation is natural, vegan and you can purchase your own sample here.

Savage Seeds – Moon Mama T-Shirt.  If you know me you know how much I talk about my kids and parenting in relationship to the moon. So obviously this is the perfect shirt for me and I would love kid and baby versions for my littles. 

Fresh Milk Made Here.  I don’t have much to say about this besides the fact that I love it and need it for my office area. It’s just amazing. I also want this one as well which pairs well with the Moon Mama shirt above. 

Honey Mama’s Chocolate. Last but not least I would love a package or stocking filled with Honey Mama’s chocolate. It is easily my favorite chocolate in the world. My entire family is in love with it so much so that we purchased four bars at the farmers market last week and all four were one within the week – oops. 

What is on your holiday gift list this year? 

This post is NOT sponsored however it does contain an affiliate link. Purchases you make through these links will help fund the work I do here on Running With Tongs at no extra cost to you. Thank you sincerely for your constant support.

Setting Intentions For The Day & Low Sugar Morning Challenge

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Life has been hit with a state of chaos. The change of the seasons, new rhythms for the day and of course the weekly changes that come with a new baby. This month I am focusing on setting mindful and healthy intentions each and everyday to help calm the chaos. Setting small intentions each morning can translate into a calmer, more positive day.

This week instead of heading to the kitchen and opening the fridge and cupboards 10x trying to figure out what I’ll have for breakfast and end up gulping two mugs of coffee and eating the crusts of my kids toast I am making my life easier and starting my day with a Splendid Spoon smoothie.

For the next five days I will be enjoying a Splendid Spoon smoothie that I can easily grab from the fridge and sip without having to do any of the work. Instead of chaos I am being intentional with my choice to have a breakfast that is low in sugar, filled with fiber and rich in protein and healthy fats. 

What do I hope to get out of this challenge?

  • Steadier Blood Sugar Levels. Have you ever been around me when my blood sugar plummets? You have a cranky mama on your hands. 
  • More Energy! Being a mama to two small children and a baby is exhausting (especially when the baby doesn’t want to sleep) so I can use all the energy these days. 
  • A More Intentional Day. Did you know just by starting your day off with positive intentions you are setting the stage for your entire day. So positive, intentional morning means that you are more likely to make healthy, positive decisions throughout your day. 

If you’d like to join me in 5 Low Sugar Mornings leave me a comment below! I’d love to hear about your experience and why you want to challenge yourself! 

You can follow my entire journey over on my Insta-Stories and I’ll be sharing my full challenge experience on the blog next week. 

Save $20 off your first Splendid Spoon Plan. 

This post contains affiliate links. Purchases you make through these links will help fund the work I do here on Running With Tongs at no extra cost to you. Thank you sincerely for your constant support

Weekend Links & Three Things I’m Doing For My Health

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It’s finally the weekend and I am planning on catching up on  some sleep and enjoying the only date night that Neil and I have all month. This week while good has been exhausting and I can’t wait to relax. Hope you all have a wonderful week! 

Three Things For My Health

  1. I am doing barre3 for 10 minutes per day. Also I am attending a free class next week to push me out of my comfort zone (aka home) and to meet some new moms/women! 
  2. I am challenging myself to start my day with a Splendid Spoon Smoothie next week. I am focusing on keeping my breakfast protein rich, full of healthy fats and low in sugar. I’ll be sharing more Monday. My hubby is doing a Splendid Spoon cleanse next week – would you like to have him share his experience in a guest post [not sponsored he purchased his own cleanse]? 
  3. I am taking my vitamins/supplements everyday and committing to turning to my essential oils to boost my immune system, combat feelings of stress and boost my mood. Why essential oils? Because they work. They enhance my quality of life and I notice a distinct difference when I use them myself and with my family. 

Weekend Links

  • You should make this lasagna this weekend because it is amazing!
  • If you need something new to binge watch this weekend I recommend – Manhunt.
  • Ready to green up your home? Marley’s Monsters just released their holiday line. I love the facial rounds and will be stocking up on napkins and un-paper towels soon. 
  • This sweatshirt is my absolute favorite because it’s super soft, easy to nurse in while not being a nursing top and comes in regular women’s sizing and plus size. I may have just ordered two more. I have been wearing it a lot with these jeans which are super soft, the perfect rise for a mom who bends over all the time and they are fun to dress up or down. 
  • I have been hiding the bags under my eyes with this RMS Un-Cover Up and it works like a dream. Would you like to see an update makeup and/or skincare routine?
  • Needing a great red lip? I highly recommend this one from ILIA. 

Share a link to something you are loving or lusting after right now; or something great your have read, watched or ate!  

 

This post contains affiliate links. Purchases you make through these links will help fund the work I do here on Running With Tongs at no extra cost to you. Thank you sincerely for your constant support.

The Postpartum Meal Service You Need To Try

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After birth our digestive systems are slower and weaker so it’s important to focus on foods that are easy to digest. Ideally you would be enjoying warming soups, stews and broths that help to heal the body and replenish the body of liquids. As we all know the ideal and the reality do no always aline especially postpartum. We are sleep deprived, riding a wave of hormones and often just trying to survive so food is often whatever is easiest to grab in a hurry. If you’re lucky you’ll have a group of friends or family who can set up a meal train for you so that you are well fed and can focus on healing and bonding. 

When it has come to postpartum periods I have learned not to rely on others to help feed us. While we had a few friends drop by food for us [thank you to those two families who did] we were mostly on our own. To prepare I made a number of freezer meals and stocked the pantry with healthy snacks and essentials. I also went in search of a meal service that offered foods that were plant-based, nutrient dense and involved little to know preparation and that is when I found Splendid Spoon. 

Okay so Splendid Spoon isn’t specifically a postpartum meal service but it checks off many of my personal postpartum meal “requirements”. Splendid Spoons meals are vegan, gluten free, high fiber, low in sugar and nutrient dense. The best part they are ready to eat so all I have to do is quickly heat them up on the stove (or microwave if you have one – we don’t) or grab straight from the fridge to enjoy. 

The Splendid Spoon Program 2.0 has been perfect for my postpartum recovery because it provides 4 smoothies,  4 drinkable soups, 1 breakfast bowl and 6 plant-based bowls. If you were to do the Program 2.0 as a cleanse you would do five days of smoothie or the breakfast bowl for breakfast, a plant-based bowl for lunch and a healthy dinner of your choice. You would end the program with a soup cleanse day which would be all of your drinkable soups and a plant-based bowl – see more here.

Since I am not doing the program as a cleanse I have have done a oats for breakfast, a smoothie as a snack, a plant-based bowl for lunch and a drinkable soup as an afternoon snack along with a healthy fat such as half avocado with a bit of salt and pepper, a handful of nuts or a scoop of nut butter. For dinner I usually had a grain bowl, salad, or pasta.  

Let’s get on to what you really want to know….

So how does it taste?

I have been so impressed with how everything tastes. The plant-based bowls have all been really delicious. I absolutely loved the chipotle black bean chili and could have eaten it everyday. I also was so impressed with the drinkable soups and those where by far my favorite off everything. The cauliflower coconut and the celery plant where my favorite drinkables. For the drinkables you can drink them without heating but I chose to heat mine on the stove and then drank from my giant mug- seriously the perfect afternoon snack.

Lastly, there are the smoothies which ranged from delicious to meh. I loved the blueberry coconut smoothie and the cacao almond  but the two that included greens just were not great. I found the texture to be a little off for me so I ended up putting them in a blender with a frozen banana and almond butter which resulted in a delicious nutrient dense smoothie filled with the extra calories I needed for breastfeeding. A side note on that you make sure you are eating enough calories throughout the day and are not just relying on these soups and smoothies [when doing the Program 2.0 as a pregnant or postpartum mama]. Add healthy fats like avocado, coconut and nuts to your meals to help increase calories and keep your milk production up. 

and the other thing you want to know….

Is it worth the cost?

Based on my experience it is so worth the cost. I felt at peace when it came to food because I didn’t have to worry about anything. I knew that I was going to have healthy, nourishing meals and snacks and I didn’t have to plan, cook or really do anything I could just grab and enjoy. It also meant my husband could focus on our two older children and all he had to do for me was heat meals up for me. I left the first weeks of my postpartum feeling nourished and my digestion and healing was on point. This has seriously been the easiest postpartum period of my three and I completely attribute that to dedicating the early weeks to rest, bonding, having little to worry about (like making my own meals) and eating foods known for healing and nourishing the body. 

Use my link and save $20 off your first Splendid Spoon Plan. 

 

This post isn’t sponsored by Splendid Spoon, but I am a brand ambassador for them and the links are affiliate. Thank you for supporting brands that make Running With Tongs possible. As always all opinions are my own.