Butternut Squash time of the year!!

If you've only had Butternut Squash with butter or tomato sauce, you are truly missing out!! It took me 10 minutes to prep and then it baked in the oven for 30 min. All-in-all, a very simple meal to make. I never knew Butternut Squash could actually be an entire meal!! Give it a try. Let me know what you think if you do!

Spaghetti Squash I Recipe - Allrecipes.com

Carrot, Banana, Walnut Muffin Recipe

The Fall season seems to be the best time for Baking and Cooking homemade goodies! I usually start by making a few different soups for the week and then I begin experimenting with new Muffin or bread recipes. This time I came across a truly delicious and HEALTHY Muffin recipe! I decided to give it a try when I looked at all the ingredients and saw there was no need for Sugar!!!! The ingredients were very basic and I had them all on hand.

After these were done, I began dipping into the pan, night and day, for a little treat. (You may not want to make the bite-sized versions, as it was much more conducive for snacking on throughout the day.) These are truly hard to resist! I think next time I will return to making the large muffins that can be eaten as a meal or a FULL snack-on-the-go! If Tyler were already in school, this would definitely make a great snack to include with his lunch!

If you decide to try out this Carrot, Banana, Muffin Recipe, please leave a comment letting me know what you thought. If you didn't like, or altered it in any way I'd love to hear about that too!!!

~ Here are the list of ingredients I used that may have changed the flavor or the quality slightly.

- Aluminum-Free Baking Soda

- Gluten-Free Sorghum Flour

- HimalaSalt

Butternut Squash

Butternut Squash recipe

I have to say this is very simple and delicious!! Great that we'll have some warm, soothing, comfort soup for this cool Autumn week ahead! Try it and let me know what you think. (This is another example that homemade cooking can be simple and stress free!)

Full-time working mom & home-cooked meals?

Is it even possible to be a Full-time working Mom, and a FULL-time cook at all meals? Well, in order for my son and me to have the best nutrition, I had to give it a try to find out. So far I will tell you that it does require a whole lot of planning. I'm thinking that may get easier as time goes by and I learn how to fully adjust to the cook ONE, eat Twice plan.

I used to think that it was too much work to plan the meals for the week in advance, but now I see it's just too much work NOT to!!!! When I go shopping I already have a few meals in mind that I'd like to make for the week. Breakfast is pretty simple, as we cycle through the main meals and smoothies but dinners are always a little more of a challenge.

I've been making MORE servings of each meal and freezing in preparation for the days towards the end of the week when I am tired and don't feel like cooking when I get home. I've turned to my crockpot in the past for certain meals, but now I'm beginning to get more creative!!!

This morning before leaving for work I put Turkey Drumsticks in the crockpot, and when I came home I had a delicious dinner waiting for me!!! Here's the recipe in case you'd like to give it a try. IF you do, please be sure to post a comment and give me some feedback. Suggestions are always welcome too!

Barbecue Turkey Drumsticks

2 lbs of Organic, fee-range, Antibiotic free TURKEY drumsticks

1/2 cup Organic Barbecue Sauce

2 tablespoons of Steaksauce

1/2 cup of spring water

Put turkey and water in the crockpot. Pour the sauces over the top of the drumsticks. Cover the crockpot and set on LOW for 8-10 hours.

Split Pea Recipe

Okay, my friend Kellie shared this very simple recipe with me last year. At first I never dreamed of making, "Split Pea Soup" because quite frankly it didn't sound very appetizing to me. After a little convincing of how simple and sweet this soup was, I caved-in and gave it a try. It has become one of my favorite soups of all time- especially when served over PASTA!!!! SOOO yummy!!! Give it a try. You will NOT be disappointed! For all the busy moms, it freezes really well too!

Split Pea Soup

(Soak peas overnight) 1st Bring to a boil, then rinse.

1 package of 16oz of Organic Split Peas

6 cups of Filtered water

2 Organic Carrots

1 head of chopped Organic Garlic chopped

1 Organic Yellow Onion chopped

2-4 small Organic Potatoes

Himala Salt (pink rock salt) or Sea Salt & Black Pepper to taste

Cover & Simmer up to an hour. Once peas are broken, blend with an Immersion Blender (hand-blender or transfer soup into your regular blender) and blend until smooth and creamy.

Serve over Pasta or with pieces of homemade bread!!! Sooooo Delicious on a cool evening!

Homemade Deodorant

Try making this homemade Deodorant at home!! Easy, and non-toxic to your system.

1 tablespoon of baking soda

1 tablespoon of corn starch

1 tablespoon of olive oil

5-6 drops of tea tree oil

5-6 drops of peppermint oil

Mix together and it forms a paste that you can spread easily under your arms after a shower (it spreads easiest when skin is a tiny bit damp)

** Special Thanks to my friend Ashley for sharing this! **

GREEN, "Back to School Supplies?!?"

As a teacher with summers off from work, I certainly hate all the HYPE and RUSH centered around, "Back to School" marketing, but not this time! For once, I'm actually excited to read and share a site that has listed the best choices for "green" school supplies. While it may be a little more difficult to find these products, I've decided to post this now so Moms can start preparing for these purchases. EWG's Back to School Guide is here!

This will be the first year that I don't fill my classroom with Purell hand sanitizers and Lysol Wipes or sprays. Geeze, I've learned so much from becoming a Holistic Mom and Health Coach. I want to make the best choices for all my loved ones, including my students. I'm hoping my class parents will meet me with understanding and acceptance, and don't see me as being too extreme. It's my mission to now educate others in hopes of changing the world for our future generations.

Please let me know what your thoughts are on this issue. Would you support me or try to discourage me? Would you be willing to donate these items to your child's teacher? Maybe you'll even do so and report back on how it went.

Looking forward to hearing from you! Until next time... LIVE WELL!!!