Tuesday, July 22, 2014

Paleo Meal Plan


So for those of you who dont know, I had a baby eight weeks ago yesterday. And I noticed that certain things (dairy, beans, etc) were really affecting Thomas. So I set out to find out exactly what it was that was affecting him (he was being extra fussy and not sleeping well), as well as what triggers I had for my digestive health. I had tried the Whole 30 challenge before I got pregnant, but had to stop because of nausea. I set out to do it again, but I realized that if I tried to deprive myself of things that I really wanted, I would binge and do more harm than good. So I am attempting to do a Paleo approach, but cheating when I want to (within reason). The only exception to this is dairy, because Thomas is not tolerating that at all. I am not doing this to lose weight (although I lost 8 pounds last week!), but am doing it simply as a way to help my baby and me as we adjust to new mommyhood. 

One of my favorite things to do is to peruse Pinterest for yummy recipes. I have had several pinned already that fell into the Paleo category (check out my Paleo board here!), but spent some time finding new ones and carving out a meal plan for the week. If you are interested in what I ate, check out my pictures and the link to the recipes that I used!

Day One:
Breakfast- Paleo Bacon, Egg, and Kale Breakfast Casserole and a few tomato slices.
This recipe is super yummy! I made it then cut it up and put each piece into a zip lock in the fridge so I would have an easy option for a tired morning. 
Lunch-Buffalo Chicken with a salad topped with red and green peppers, celery, carrots, avocado, and homemade Paleo Ranch Dressing (made with homemade Paleo mayonaise, which is also in the Ranch recipe). I used this recipe for the chicken, which is not Paleo friendly. To make it Paleo, I simply swapped out the butter for Ghee to make it Paleo.
Dinner- This Herbed Salmon with Dry-Roasted Spaghetti Squash was super yummy. We prepared the salmon and spaghetti squash exactly according to the recipe, and prepared extra for lunches. A side of sugar snap peas completed the meal.
Day Two:
Breakfast" I made a simple scrambled egg (a little bit of Ghee in the pan, 3 eggs, salt, pepper, and paprika), cut up a whole tomato, and half an avocado. Simple, yummy, and filling!

 
Lunch- I used the leftover salmon from dinner the night before and put it on a salad with avocado and homemade Paleo ranch.

Dinner- I dont have a picture because I was starving. But we made eggs, bacon, and tomato for dinner. I was too hungry to fix anything else!

Day Three:
Breakfast-more breakfast casserole. No picture-I forgot to take one!
Lunch-More leftover salmon salad
Dinner-Honey Soy marinated Chicken thighs with Sweet Potato fries and broccoli. This was super good. I am making this again, for sure! I just swapped out the soy sauce for coconut aminos to make it Paleo.
Day Four
Breakfast-Breakfast casserole (I'm getting boring, I know!)
Lunch-My typical salad with leftover chicken thighs and Paleo ranch dressing.
Dinner-I cheated. I was tired and didnt feel good, so Ben and I went to Del Taco. I actually had a hamburger. And it was amazing. But I felt it later after having eaten clean all week!

Day Five:
Breakfast-Yummy eggs, sausage, and tomato. I added a little Frank's hot sauce to the eggs and it was GOOD.

Lunch: Salad with Salmon. Boring. I was so over it at this point.
Dinner: I didnt take a picture for some reason. But I made this Paleo Slow Cooker Pad Thai. It was really good, but I had to add a good bit of salt. Ben ate it over rice and seemed to enjoy it.

Day Six:
Breakfast-I cheated and had cinnamon rolls from Hardee's. SO WORTH IT.
Lunch-Leftover salad
Dinner-We marinated some chicken breast with the marinade from the steak salad (from Day Seven). We threw it and some Cajun Okra on the grill and cut up a giant tomato on the side. The marinade was AWESOME.

Day Seven:
Breakfast-I actually skipped breakfast this day. Sue me. It was Sunday and I was running late for church!
Lunch-My usual salad with leftover grilled chicken and a bowl of fruit.
 Dinner-Asian Marinated Flank Steak with a Summer Salad and squash.
What do you think of what I ate last week? I am having so much fun picking out recipes and cant wait to continue to cook different things. I am definitely noticing a difference in how I feel, and cant wait to see how that progresses the longer I eat this way.








Monday, July 21, 2014

Herbal Essences Naked Voxbox Review

I have been a member of Influenster for quite some time now, but just recently got selected for my first Voxbox. If you don't know, Influenster is a company that partners with other companies to promote brands through social media. They send out boxes with free product for bloggers and other social media users to review. It's a pretty cool program-if you want to check it out for yourself, sign up here! I The box I received (for free, for the purposes of this review) contained three products from the Herbal Essences Naked line-Herbal Essences Naked Moisture Shampoo, Moisture Conditioner, and Dry Shampoo.
The new Naked line from Herbal Essences boasts that it is free of parabens and dyes and comes in three different lines-Moisture, Shine, and Volume. I received two products from the Moisture line (the Shampoo and Conditioner) and one from the Volume line (the dry shampoo).
The Shampoo and Conditioner has a light, minty scent and a thick texture. I checked the ingredients, and it does still contain sulfates. I am not super happy about that (I switched to a sulfate-free line a few months ago and have seen a noticeable difference in the texture of my hair) but I decided to give it a try anyway. After using the Shampoo and Conditioner, my hair felt very clean and soft. I live in the South, so humidity is a major problem for me and my curly hair. One of the things that I loved most about these products is that my hair held the style, even after being outside in the heat and humidity for about an hour.
Verdict: I really loved how my hair looked and felt after using these products. However, I couldn't work them into my daily routine because they contain sulfates. If they changed up the composition to remove them, I would probably actually switch to this line because I love the scent and the feel.

The Dry Shampoo is definitely something I was excited to try as a new mom. It is awesome to be able to fully fix my hair one day and still look presentable for AT LEAST 2 more days. The shampoo and conditioner also lengthened the amount of time that my style would hold. It also helped hold the volume in my hair that will usually fall flat after a day of my hair being straight.
Verdict: This was a great dry shampoo. I will definitely continue to use this product-I am so excited use it in the future!

Disclosure: I received these products complimentary from Influenster for testing purposes.
Disclosure: I received these products complimentary from Influenster for testing purposes.  - See more at: http://www.trishalyn.com/2014/07/herbal-essences-naked-voxbox/#sthash.NiXf9qcu.dpuf
Disclosure: I received these products complimentary from Influenster for testing purposes.  - See more at: http://www.trishalyn.com/2014/07/herbal-essences-naked-voxbox/#sthash.NiXf9qcu.dpuf
Disclosure: I received these products complimentary from Influenster for testing purposes.  - See more at: http://www.trishalyn.com/2014/07/herbal-essences-naked-voxbox/#sthash.NiXf9qcu.dpuf
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