script async src="//pagead2.googlesyndication.com/pagead/js/adsbygoogle.js"> google.com, pub-0949974396517105, DIRECT, f08c47fec0942fa0

Simplify Your Weight Loss Plan – #SimpleStart

I was given a free one month subscription to Weight Watchers to try their new Simple Start plan and write about my experience. Though I was compensated for my time and commitment, all views, positive and negative, are my own.

Motivational quotes - "We cannot do everything at once, but we can do something at once."

Weight Watchers Simple Start Plan – Free App

“We cannot do everything at once, but we can do something at once.” – Calvin Coolidge This quote comes from the Weight Watchers Simple Start plan app, and I can’t agree more. It’s similar to one of my all-time favorite quotes, “How lovely to think that no one need wait a moment, we can start now, start slowly changing the world.” And by changing the world, that doesn’t have to mean the whole big ol’ world – it can mean your world. I know that I have a bad habit of thinking I’ll make a change “tomorrow,” “next week,” or “next month,” – “when I have time.” But man, isn’t “tomorrow” the busiest darn day of any given month? Instead of thinking of something like getting in shape, eating healthier, and losing weight as a great big giant project – what if I told you I have a great way to just get started? Don’t worry about all of the details – joining a gym, overhauling your pantry, buying workout clothes, and counting calories. Just get started. Easy peasy. That’s where I’m at and I’d love to introduce you to what I’m up to. I think it’ll help some of you other busy ladies too. Check it…

Small healthy swaps lead to HUGE results

Start Simple – Healthy Ingredients and Delicious Meal Ideas

If you’re reading this, I’m gonna guess that you’ve at least thought about losing weight a time or two. {But really, who hasn’t, right?} If you’ve followed this blog for awhile, you’d know that I’ve been struggling a bit with my weight for the past few years. I’d never ever given much thought to my weight until I got pregnant – and gained over 70 pounds. Woah. I’ve been making simple swaps {like adding an extra veggie to every meal}, and a having “slow and steady wins the race” type of attitude – Which is why I’m very excited about the new Simple Start plan from Weight Watchers. I’ve never tried Weight Watchers, but know friends who have. I like that it’s not a diet – it’s a lifestyle. It teaches you healthy eating habits – YOU choose your foods, and it helps you realize how eating better foods means getting to eat more food.

Well, the Simple Start app eases you in to the program, so that it doesn’t feel like a burden, sacrifice, or obstacle. It’s a free app that guides you along, and helps encourage you, as you switch from chips and cookies for snacks, to things like fruits and veggies. And trust me, it is so seriously easy. Even if you don’t plan right now to join Weight Watchers, I cannot recommend the app enough – you will LOVE the healthy recipes and helpful tips.

Weight Watchers Recipes

Download the Free Weight Watchers App Today – Simplify Weight Loss

To get started, just take a minute to download the free app. You’ll get a huge list of free foods you can eat, with no portion restrictions. {Why? Because they’re total rockstar foods. Filled with nutrition, filling, and yummy.} Then the app gives you great recipe ideas using those foods, like the uber yummy ones above. Breakfast pizza, grilled cheese and veggie soup, roasted turkey and potatoes – plus TWO snacks a day? Sounds do-able to me :) You can use the app to create your own meals, track what you eat, get recipes, and more. It gives you a list of foods to buy at the grocery store, and so many other totally free tools – to give you a two-week jump start towards your new weight loss goals, without a huge commitment or crazy sacrifice. It rocks my socks – and I know you’ll love it too!

Don’t take my word for it, check out what other awesome women have to say about the plan by following the #SimpleStart hashtag on all of your fave social media. And then be sure to follow Weight Watchers for new products, promotions, and cool ideas – Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, and Instagram.

 

signature

How to Prep for Holiday Guests in 30 Minutes or Less

This post brought to you by Bed Bath & Beyond. All opinions are 100% mine.

We’ve all been there. It’s the holiday season, and you find out on super short notice that you’ve got friends or family showing up. You not only need to round up some fun drinks and appetizers – maybe even dinner and dessert! – but you’ve also got to get the house presentable in a flash. Well, like a super hero who shows up right when you need saving – I’m here to help. Keep reading to get my best tips for hosting guests in 30 minutes or less.

Prep for unexpected guests - How to make your home look clean in 30 min or less!

First of all – automate and delegate everything that you can. If the kids are home, they can do a lot of simple tasks – wash windows and mirrors to make them sparkle, spray air freshener, replace candles in all of the holders, fluff throw pillows. So put ’em to work! Then automate other tasks – use life-saving gadgets like the Roomba to get to work vacuuming for you, to save you tons of time. [Read more…]

signature

25 Days & 25 Ways to Enjoy the Holidays

A few days ago I introduced you to a really fun way to help yourself remember to slow down and enjoy the holiday season. It’s a holiday countdown calendar, on Facebook, from Chateau Ste. Michelle Winery. I was already a fan of Chateau Ste. Michelle, since they’re located here in Washington Wine Country, in Woodinville, about a two-hour drive from where I live. I’ve been on a couple of wine tours here locally, and have Chateau Ste. Michelle on my “to-visit” list for this summer.

Chateau Ste Michelle for the holidays [Read more…]

signature

How Do You Slow Down and Enjoy the Holidays?

What does the holiday season mean to you? For me – and probably most of you – it’s all about friends and family, and celebrating. We love to entertain, and nothing makes me happier than having all of my favorite people together in one place – filling the house with good food, lots of laughter, and creating great memories. I get so excited to shop for presents to make the kid’s faces light up on Christmas morning. I love to make handmade gifts and cards, I have tons of fun decorating the house, and it’s a great excuse to bake too many treats. But on top of all of that joy and celebration – there can also be a big layer of stress. Whether it’s due to tight budgets, overly-busy schedules, or family conflict – it’s so important to slow down, savor the moment, and appreciate the joy of the season. And I’ve got a great way to help you do just that… Let me introduce you to #MyChateau…

Take a holiday break - just for you!

The MY CHATEAU Holiday Calendar

What is My Chateau? It’s a place where it’s all about you. And Chateau Ste. Michelle wants to help you take daily breaks to shake off the holiday stress and find a way to enjoy more of the season. Every day leading up to Christmas, you can visit their online virtual Advent calendar to get a fun daily tip – just a small bite-sized action, perfect to fit into any woman’s busy schedule. Want to see my favorite tip so far? [Read more…]

signature

How do You Juggle it All Each Day?

This is a Sponsored post written by me on behalf of VTech Communications for SocialSpark. All opinions are 100% mine.

Are you a multitasking mom?… Bahahahaha. That was funny, right? Is there any mom out there who’s not a multitasker? I mean, we take care of kids, work inside or outside the home, do house work, run errands, cook, clean, organize, plan events, host parties…. And every once in awhile, we get the chance to take a 3 minute shower while the minions bang on the door repeatedly asking what we’re doing in there. I mean, motherhood definitely has it’s perks, for sure. But it is a challenging job – and any tip or trick that can make it a little easier is worth sharing. Which is why I’ve got a great “Tech Tuesday” product to share with you guys today…

Busy mom tips [Read more…]

signature

Everyone Loves a Good Handyman, Right?

The holidays can be stressful enough—the last thing you need is for your refrigerator to shut down or the TV to crash while you miss the big game. And not all of us are lucky enough to have a handyman around the house to fix things in a hurry. And even if you are lucky like me, and have a Mister who is a carpenter, there are still times you need some quick expert advice. Luckily, The Family Handyman—The #1 in DIY Home Improvement—has delivered the ultimate tip app, filled with clever ideas and pro secrets that will save you time, money and anxiety.

Handyman app

This app rocks any time of year, but especially right now at the holidays!

It’s a time where life moves faster, the house if filled to the brim with friends and family and out of town guests. You’re appliances are working longer hours than the clerks in retail, and there’s no time for anything to go wrong. So, thanks to The Family Handyman, I’ve got some awesome tips to help solve some basic issues that might come up – be sure to pin this post to reference later if needed! Then download the app for yourself, to have your own personal handyman any time of day or night. [Read more…]

signature

Weight Watchers “Gets” Busy Moms – Launches MomFeeds & it Rocks My Socks

Thank you to Weight Watchers and The Motherhood for sharing Weight Watcher’s new digital magazine – MomFeeds – with me, and allowing me to share it with you guys as part of this sponsored post. I received a 3-month trial subscription to Weight Watchers Online, love it, and know you will too.

You know what I need? A time out. A mommy time out. Where someone sends me to my room – and I have to sit, quietly, and no one can come and “play” with me. But, as a mom we don’t even get to pee alone, right? So I have to try and carve out little bits of me time during the day. And one of my favorite ways to kind of zone out and un-stress {is that even a word? Well, in my world it is..} is to sit down, grab my iPhone, and browse some cool stuff. I’m a total social media junkie, so I love catching up on news and gossip, picking up clever new tips and ideas that make my crazy mom-life more manageable, or finding new recipes for busy weeknights. Which is why I’m crazy excited about a new app that helps me do all of those things in one super cool place. The app is called Flipboard, and then you add MomFeeds to it for the total awesomeness. And it’s all going to rock your socks.

Free App for Busy Moms - MomFeeds MomFeeds is a brand-new digital magazine from Weight Watchers that features content geared towards moms. It’s all displayed on Flipboard – an app I’ve been hearing about forever, but just haven’t made the time to check out until recently. For moms who don’t always have time to read their favorite magazines cover to cover, Momfeeds has recipes, tips, deals and news, all served up in bite-sized portions – or as I like to say, “mom-style.” Because everything we do all day is bite-sized, right? We cut meals we cook into bite-sized portions, we get to watch only bite-sized portions of our favorite shows as the kids interrupt us 237 times, we get bite-sized minutes to do housework. A mom’s life is hectic – no matter what type of mom she is. So, a bite-sized piece of entertainment is often all I can get :)

Love it, right? It’s like, everything we’re looking for, in one place. Because – you never know when your 5 minutes of peace will come. You don’t have time to run to grab your favorite magazines to browse – but you always have your smartphone at the ready, and can browse cool stuff on MomFeeds instead. In the carpool line, waiting at the doctor’s office, or during the kid’s naps. Cool stuff.

Mom Makeover: Fab hair tricks that make a big difference

First of all – the techy in me is really in love with the way this app flips with the flick of a finger, almost like a real magazine. Very clever. Second, I love the topics covered. As I literally flipped through the app for the first time, I found SO much good stuff. This is one – Mom Makeover: Fab hair tricks that make a big difference. She has some amazing suggestions that are totally inspiring me for my next salon visit.

Funny face kid's recipe - funny face burgers

I also found really fun kid’s recipes – like this one for funny face burgers. Abby isn’t a picky eater – she loves almost everything. But she’s a stubborn eater – she gets bored having to sit still and finish a meal. So I’m always looking for fun ideas like this!

Easy oven fries

I also found “mom treat” recipes – just for me :) I love carbs. {You can tell when you see the size jeans I buy… Lol.} And there’s nothing you can do to a potato that I don’t love. {Ok, except scalloped potatoes. I don’t hate them, but I don’t love them. It’s the only potato-ness I don’t love.} Anyway – this delish recipe for Easy Oven Fries looks perfect. Thanks for the great find, MomFeeds!

Make the most of your clothing budget by analyzing your colors

Speaking of great finds – this is my fave that I came across on MomFeeds today – Make the most of your clothing budget by analyzing your colors. Such a smart idea! It links to an awesome site where you go through a mini-quiz, and it tells you what your “color season” is. Then, if you know that, it’s easy to only pick clothes in that range, which means everything in your closet co-ordinates. Plus, it means you’re only buying shades that are flattering on you too. I’m admit it – I’m now totally addicted to MomFeeds. And I’m not at all surprised that this super smart site comes from Weight Watchers. I’ve seen some fantastic results from friends who’ve followed the Weight Watchers program, I love their products, and I really love the way they’re not just a diet, they truly teach you better lifestyle habits. And they “get” the busy lifestyle that we have as moms, and create their products, programs, and cool features like MomFeeds to fit that lifestyle. LOVE.

Ultimate Chicken Cookbook

And… It’s not just me with the love here, guys. Weight Watchers loves YOU too. They’re so excited to have you guys join us all on this sweet new app, that they want to give a big thank you by giving a couple of you ladies their {seriously amazing, by the way} their cookbook: Weight Watchers Ultimate Chicken Cookbook: More than 250 Fresh, Fabulous Recipes for Every Day. {Weight Watchers provided the prizes but did not design and is not administering the giveaway.} And – if you guys want to find a seriously H-U-G-E amount of rockin’ Weight Watchers recipes, I have a friend who has put a few really cool lists together. Why? Because moms stick together, right?

Use the easy peasy Rafflecopter form below to enter – have fun, and good luck!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

signature