Getting spray paint off your hands

Last weekend, my husband and I decided to spray paint our mailbox. Our crazy heat from last summer and our spring weather left our mailbox seeing better days. It was a windy day; however it was the first day in a number of weeks with no rain in the immediate forecast. So we got to sanding and spray painting.

The wind cause a bit of a blow back and my husband's hands looked like this:

Soap and water would not get the paint off his hands. I knew mineral oil would work; but of course we were completely out of mineral oil. Not wanting to run to the store, I decided to try coconut oil to see if it would help clean off his  hands. It worked like a charm.  After a few minutes with some coconut oil and a paper towel, his hands looked like this: 

Yet another wonderful use for coconut oil:)

Ditching Sugar and a Meal Planning Update

This is a transition week for us. My husband and I are going on a sugar-free/wheat-free diet of sorts. We are trying to break my husband's sugar habit (he loves lots of sugar in his coffee). I don't keep junk food in our house expect on rare occasions; however, my husband gets to eat a lot of not-so-good-for-him food at his office. He also has a habit of adding lots of sugar to his 4-6 cups of coffee a day.


We are not following a specific diet plan. I would like to do a completely grain-free, sugar-free. legume-free, dairy-free diet, but that would be too overwhelming for my husband and too expensive for our budget. Our main goal is for my husband to move completely away from his daily sugar habit and only consume natural sugars from fruits, maple syrup, and honey once or twice a week.  Since he is trying to break from sugar, I thought eliminating wheat for 30 days might be helpful as well. We also plan to limit grains as much as our budget will allow.

Our 30 day plan:
No refined sugar at all.
No white flour, wheat flour
Limited grains
Plenty of healthy fats, protein, and veggies.
1 sweet made with honey, coconut palm sugar, or maple syrup per week
Dairy for my husband/ I'm going to try and limit my dairy

After the 30 days:
1 cheat meal a week  like a slice of pizza, hamburger with bun, etc
Occasional sugary treat

We are starting CSA season around here. I kind of abandon meal planing during the summer. However, I plan to share pictures from our CSA/shopping trips so look for those posts in the coming weeks.

Our basic meal plan is something like this:

Breakfast: Omelet, made with plenty of greens and other veggies
Lunch:  Large Salad with beans and/or lean meat or soup with plenty of veggies
Dinner: Lean Protein, Veggies

Snacks:  Veggies/Hummus, Fruit, Nuts,  Plain Yogurt with fruit, Smoothies, popcorn

Treat: Grain Free-Pancakes, Grain-Free Muffins or Grain-Free Chocolate Chip Cookies

This diet is not about deprivation.  Our goal is to help my husband break his sugar addiction and improve our health as a family.  It's important to note: that I am not making my husband do anything he doesn't want to. He asked for my help in finding a more balanced diet.

What's on your meal plan?

Cheese Stuffed Burgers

This is such a simple recipe.  Change up the fresh herbs and toppings to spice up burger night.

You will need:

1lb of ground beef

1/2 medium onion, grated

1 Tablespoon of fresh dill, cilantro, or parsley

1/4 cup shredded colby jack or mozerella

Pinch of garlic salt

Pinch of ground black pepper

Optional: cheese, grilled onions, grilled jalapenos, salsa,etc for topping

Directions:

In a large bowl, combine the ground beef, onion, dill, garlic salt, black pepper and cheese. Don't over-mix. Divide into 4 patties and grill.  Top with your favorite toppings. We serve ours on french bread. Or serve without a bun for a gluten free option.

Do you have a favorite burger recipe?

Free Health Screening at Sams Club

Free Health Screening at Sams Club on May 11:

Blood Pressure, Body Mass Index, Dermascan (limited clubs, indicates skin damage from the sun), Cortisol, Weight, Height, Waist Circumference, and Vision.



For more info, visit Sams Club.

Meal Plan

What we are eating this week:

Pantry Pancakes, Eggs, Apple Sausage
Bean and Cheese Nachos
Pulled Pork Taco Salad

Oatmeal
Pulled Pork Taco Salad
Vegetable Fajitas

Oatmeal
Vegetable Fajitas
Ham and Pineapple Pizza, Salad


Oatmeal
Ham and Pineapple Pizza, Salad
Bacon Chicken Subs, Salad

Oatmeal
Bacon Chicken Subs, Salad
Vegetable Fried Rice

Oatmeal
Vegetable Fried Rice
Tuna Salad Wraps, Roasted Broccoli

Eggs and Apple Chicken Sausage
Turkey Melts, Veggies and Hummus
Smoothies and Popcorn

My Favorite Recipes for Cinco de Mayo

BBQ Chicken Tacos
Black Bean Soup
Chicken Tortilla Soup
Mexican Pizza

Sopapillas
Stuffed Jalapenos
Flour Tortilla I
Flour Tortilla II
Tortilla Chips

Do you have a special menu planned for Cinco de Mayo?

Our Meal Plan

What we are eating this week:

Eggs and Cheese Biscuits, fruit
Mediterranean Steak Salad
Leftover Salad, Smoothies

Blueberry Pancakes , Fruit
Spicy Burgers, Buttered Corn,  Salad
Leftovers: Spicy Burgers

Eggs and Bacon, Fruit
Vegetarian Nachos
Vegetarian Taco Salad

Oatmeal
Vegetarian Taco Salad
Vegetable Curry, Garlic Naan

Oatmeal
Leftovers from the freezer
Re fried Beans, Spanish Rice, Salad

Oatmeal
Leftover: Re fried Beans and Spanish Rice
Tuna Mac and Broccoli

Eggs and Cheese Biscuits
Pizza and Salad
Leftover Pizza or Smoothies

What's on your meal plan?