WB Meal Plan ~ I {heart} Summer

Summer is a time I am more chill. More laid back and lazy, I guess you could say. Are you similar? 

I wrestle with wanting things perfect, but I am thankful for when summer comes because we aren't ruled by schedules and alarm clocks and I tend to shrug off my perfectionism. 

I do love this kind of living. 

 photo credit

In my opinion, healthy eating really can't take too much of a vacation. While we have enjoyed a few donuts this summer, brownies with cousins and fudgsicle pops from Aldi... I still desire to cook up a healthy dinner. We can't be perfect in our eating all the time, but if I keep healthy dinners coming as much as possible through the week, then splurging here or there isn't so terrible. 

So as I slow-fully pull out the laptop and gather some thoughts in my wandering mind, I finally put together our week's dinner menu. 

Side note: I had a request from my friend, Jozan to start doing meal planning for breakfast, lunch and dinner... would you too be interested in this? I jumped the gun and told her yes right away, but soon found out it was going to take more planning then my lazy, summer mind had in store. Jozan, it is coming... hopefully, soon!

{monday}

lemon basil chicken with carrots over gluten-free spaghetti

roasted broccoli... otherwise known as "the best broccoli of your life" and it is!

sliced green apples with red grapes and yogurt flavored with cinnamon for dipping

{tuesday}

turkey & mushroom sloppy joes 

carrots with yogurt ranch dip

reduced fat, kettle-style organic chips

{wednesday}

curried chicken with coconut rice

quick pickled cucumber salad

cubed pineapple

{thursday}

spaghetti with turkey meatballs in spicy tomato sauce

sliced English cucumbers

cantaloupe

{friday}

pizza bianca (using Udi's gluten free pizza crust)

blueberry-coconut popsicles

what's your favorite thing about summer?

How to Soft Cook an Egg

Since going gluten-free, one's mind has to venture out and try new things. I have always loved eggs... mostly scrambled or fried in coconut oil. I do enjoy a hard-boiled egg and around Easter, deviled. But I had not tried soft-cooked until vacation. It was perfect and did not disappoint.

So venture out and try one too.

what you'll need...

1-4 eggs, preferably, range-free & farm fresh

small saucepan filled 3/4 full of water

large spoon

instructions...

1. Set water-filled saucepan on stove and bring to a rapid boil.

2. With large spoon, lower egg(s) into boiling water.

3. Lightly toss/pour boiling water over egg for 1 minute.

4. Turn heat off and set saucepan on different burner. Place tight fitting lid on pan.

5. Let sit for 6 minutes.

6. Drain hot water and rinse with cold water for about a minute.

7. To eat, use a knife or egg-cutter to take the cap off the tip of the egg and eat it straight from the shell, preferably with plenty of toast for dipping. All soft-cooked eggs should be eaten immediately.

what's your favorite way to eat eggs?

12 Tips to a Toxic-less Home

On average, we will spend half of our lives inside our homes. And unfortunately, there are thousands to tens of thousands of chemicals inside the average home that are linked to diseases. Many of those diseases take years to manifest. 

There are now 85,000 industrial chemicals now registered in the United States that are slowly finding their ways into our homes and eventually our body's systems. These chemicals are targeting major systems such as the immune, neurological, respiratory and more. Children, with still-developing bodies and immature immune systems, may be the ones most vulnerable to their effects.

When I start to research all the ways that chemicals can infiltrate our lives, I am left feeling overwhelmed, frightened and usually discouraged. But when it comes to the safety and well-being of my (four) children, I'm ready to fight... mentally, that is :) 

Although we cannot do everything to avoid toxins in our homes, there certainly are ways to minimize our exposure to them. Here are just a few ways we can. 

1. Ventilate often... daily if possible.

2. Be educated on your family's exposure to VOC's ~ you can learn more about VOC's here.

3. Establish a "no shoe" rule in your home. By doing this, you can cut down on bringing toxins in by 60%.

4. Keep the temperature and humidity low. 

5. Drink filtered water.

6. Rethink your cookware. Teflon pans release at least six toxic gases, including two carcinogens, two global pollutants, and MFA, a chemical lethal to humans at low doses. 

7. Stop using air fresheners, including fabric softeners.

8. Avoid anything "anti-bacterial"... embrace your dirty side. Read more here. 

9. Try to cut down on your use of plastics... and please don't microwave your food in plastic containers. 

10. Google phthalates and dioxins. Get to know where they show up and avoid them. 

11. Invite toxin-reduce plants into your home.

12. If your cleaning products have a warning label on it, then it's probably not good to use. I stopped buying commercial household cleaners awhile ago and have never looked back. I love making my own laundry detergent... found here. One thing I do invest in is my Seventh Generation dishwasher detergent. It is hands down the best. I tried making my own and it didn't work.... maybe because my dishwasher is 15 years old, but regardless, Seventh Generation has made my life much brighter and shinier :) 

The one thing I do make and love is a general, household cleaner. I use this on my toilets, stains, faucets, stainless steel appliances, sticky messes on the floor and more. The vinegar may take your nose a little getting use to, but there definitely won't be any toxins to affect you or your children's health. 

Here's the simple, easy recipe for an All Natural & Toxic-free household cleaner:

Equal parts of water to white vinegar. 

20-30 drops of tea tree oil

1 tsp of natural dish soap (I love Seventh Generation Lavender Floral and Mint)

Shake and use.

What other ways do you keep your house free from toxins?

WB Meal Plan: Gluten-Free & You'll Love It!

 photo credit

Being married to a web and magazine editor, I get blog advice/wisdom frequently (because I ask for it). He has done very well with his website and so I know his advice is valid. His # 1 bit of advice regarding Wholesome Bits is to blog at least 3-5 times a week. Well, if you look back at the last post that definitely has not happened!

I guess I can say that life, children, home duties and family come way before this blog. I do intend to get back on my blogging feet now that vacation and other big summer events are over. So as I wrote out my meal plan {what's that?} for this week, I thought I'd pull out the laptop and share some gluten-free meals with you!

Tuesday... {it's summer... I'm a little behind!}

Gluten-Free crepes with fresh berries

Wednesday... 

Cajun chicken stuffed with spinach & pepperjack cheese
{I will substitute the breadcrumbs with crushed puffed brown rice cereal}

garden salad

watermelon

Thursday...

Cuban rice and beans from Kohl's Cares Crockpot "Busy Family Recipes" Cookbook

tortilla chips

pineapple

Friday...

Steamed salmon with asparagus and new potatoes in parchment

Saturday...

Honey-Lime chicken skewers with rice

cantaloupe

Sunday...

Spaghetti with sauteed chicken and grape tomatoes

{I will use brown rice spaghetti from Trader Joe's instead of a wheat-based spaghetti}

steamed broccoli

fresh mango

You will notice I went ahead with the plan until Sunday. Our family has been on the go most of the summer and now that we are home... we are home! No eating out. If you plan it out, buy your needed ingredients, you will most likely follow through. So there you have it!

The "Get Healthy" Cash Giveaway

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 Statistics show that about 2/3rds of American adults are obese or overweight.

1 out of every 3 people will have cancer sometime in their life.  By 2020, the estimated ratio increases to 1 out of every 2 with cancer.

795,000 people suffer from strokes each year; 1.5 million suffer from heart attacks.

Heart disease is on the rise, thyroid problems, panic attacks, depression, fibromyalgia, IBS, ...and the list could go on and on!

 These facts make US citizens one of the most unhealthiest groups of people in the world!

What do you need to help you get healthy?  

A juicer?  
    A grain mill?  
     A rebounder?  
        Organic Groceries?  
          Healthy Supplements?   
            Visits to your local naturopathic doctor?  

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