New Product Review: Eating Healthier from Simply Nourished

New Product Review: Eating Healthier from Simply Nourished

I’ve already professed my love for Simply Nourished in Clear Lake.  If you haven’t read that post, you can find it HERE! And I thought a product review would be fun because one of the things I love most about shopping there is getting the opportunity to try new products/foods that are healthier for me!  Here are some of the things I’ve tried in the last couple months!

Things That Make Me Say “eh”

Not everyone is going to love every new product they try!  And while none of the products I’ve purchased from Simply Nourished have been terrible, they all haven’t been my favorite!  So, I thought I’d share the products that make me say “eh” first!  This means, they weren’t terrible, but they aren’t my favorite.

Continue “New Product Review: Eating Healthier from Simply Nourished”

Homemade Sparkling Strawberry Green Tea – No Sugar Added

Homemade Sparkling Strawberry Green Tea – No Sugar Added

It’s summertime here in Iowa and it’s been super hot!  This Homemade Sparkling Strawberry Green Tea is a great refreshing drink to enjoy during this hot months!

I struggle with drinking lots of plain water! I drink plain water while working out, but throughout the day, I need flavor in my water!  And, I’ve never been a tea drinker, it’s too bitter!  But, throw some flavor in there and I’m game!  I mean, who isn’t with that syrupy sweetened flavor?!  However, since I’ve cut sugar dramatically in my diet, I’ve ruled these types of drinks out.  I’ve followed Simple Roots Wellness for some time and when she posted her recipe for Strawberry Mint Green Tea the other day, I knew I needed to try it! I didn’t have mint green tea in my house, so I made it with plain green tea and enjoyed it, but knew I could do what was needed to take it to the next step!

Continue “Homemade Sparkling Strawberry Green Tea – No Sugar Added”

Tupperware Pressure Cooker Review & Mexi Pasta – A Recipe

Tupperware Pressure Cooker Review & Mexi Pasta – A Recipe

If you’re looking for a fast, weeknight meal, this pressure cooker mexi pasta is sure to become a regular on your meal plan!

I’ve been a faithful Tupperware user for many many years now.  So, when my Tupperware dealer, Mary Hopper, asked me to test out the Tupperware Pressure Cooker and compare it to my Instant Pot, I was more than willing!

My Love for Tupperware

I had my first Tupperware party about 9-10 years ago and have been hooked ever since!  I’ve actually had two different parties in my adult days and I’m always finding something new that becomes my favorite item!  I featured a few of my favorites back in February!  Check them out here!

Make Roasted Shredded Chicken in Your Instant Pot!

Continue “Tupperware Pressure Cooker Review & Mexi Pasta – A Recipe”

Garden Update: 6/18/2018

Garden Update: 6/18/2018

My flower gardens are blooming so amazingly that I thought I’d just take you on a visual tour of my gardens for this update!  I hope you enjoy!

An Update

The last two weeks have gone so fast!  It’s been incredibly hot and humid here in Iowa.  The plus is that my flowers thrive.  The downside is it takes a lot of watering, but when they reward me with such blooms, it’s worth it!  As far as our lives, work has been busy for both T & I.  M is in the middle of a crazy baseball season, and R is working a lot!  We keep busy somehow, even when the calendar doesn’t have a lot written on it!

Foxglove blooming in the wild beds!

Continue “Garden Update: 6/18/2018”

National Eat Your Veggies Day: A Vegetable Recipe Round-Up

National Eat Your Veggies Day: A Vegetable Recipe Round-Up

Did anyone else grow up with your parents making you eat your veggies?!  Do you make your kids eat their veggies?  I’ve compiled this vegetable recipe round-up of amazing veggie recipes to help you out!

Eating Your Veggies

I remember when I was growing up, my parents always had vegetables at every meal.  We had the staples of green beans, corn (which I now know really isn’t a vegetable), and carrots!  I HATE cooked carrots.  When I was little, my  mom would put carrots in with the potatoes and roast on Sundays for dinner after church.  I always had to eat two bites of cooked carrots, it was the rule in our house.  Same with beets, yack!  However, now I love eating veggies and usually can’t get enough of them!  My favorites are broccoli, asparagus, & chopped salads with cabbage and more in them!

Recipe Round-Up

The older I get, the busier I am and I appreciate recipe round-up posts so I can have links to SEVERAL posts all in one place.  Since it’s National Eat Your Veggies day, I thought what better reason than that to create this round-up!  Several of my fellow Iowa bloggers have shared their very best veggie recipes with me to share with you!  There is a big variety and I’m sure you’re bound to find something everyone in your house will love.

Continue “National Eat Your Veggies Day: A Vegetable Recipe Round-Up”

Ride the Rolling Prairie Trail in Franklin County, Iowa

If you’re looking for a fun activity in North Iowa and don’t want to spend a dime, head to Franklin County and hop on the Rolling Prairie Trail!  Franklin County is so lucky to have a fantastic bike trail that is free to use and family friendly!

When the boys were younger and not so independently mobile, M and I would frequently go on bike rides together!  Our favorite place was to head the short jaunt to the Rolling Prairie Trail.  On this trail, you can walk, jog (which I’ve done many times), bike, or Rollerblade!  You just can’t take anything motorized on it!

Continue “Ride the Rolling Prairie Trail in Franklin County, Iowa”

Garden Update, 6/3/2018

Garden Update, 6/3/2018

Two weeks has passed already and we’re back for another garden update! I swear the weeks are going faster each year!  The past two weeks here have been surprisingly busy!  School is wrapping up, T is busy in the field, and we just keep moving along!  But, let’s get to what we’re all really here for, the garden update!

The Flower Gardens

Thanks to incredibly sunny and hot weather the past two weeks, my flowers have really taken off, no thanks to all the watering we’re having to do due to lack of rain!  Isn’t that how it is?!  We went from an incredibly wet spring to a very dry summer thus far!  *sigh*  But, anyway…here you go!

Continue “Garden Update, 6/3/2018”

Exploring our Backyard: Community Bowl in Dumont, Iowa

Exploring our Backyard: Community Bowl in Dumont, Iowa

What does one do with two teenage boys when its 95+ degrees on a holiday weekend? And you can’t go far from home due to the hubby’s job? You take them bowling of course! And, that’s exactly what T, M, & a friend did on Saturday night of Memorial Day weekend, we headed to Community Bowl in Dumont, IA.

Community Bowl

Dumont, Iowa is a booming town of 637 (according to the 2010 census), however they do have a gas station, lumber yard, bar & grill, antique store, grocery store, and a bowling alley!  Community Bowl recently reopened with new owners at the helm and for a sleepy small town bowling alley, they are doing a fantastic job!  This small, but clean bowling alley features 6 bowling lanes, a jukebox, arcade room, bar, and PIZZA!

Continue “Exploring our Backyard: Community Bowl in Dumont, Iowa”