Monday Motivation Quote:  “They can because they think they can.”  ~Virgil

*I’m going to try and do a daily recap of my workouts and eats each night so I can focus on other topics in my morning daily posts.  Every Monday, I want to look at my previous week goals and see how I did.  This is a great way to hold myself accountable for getting things done and hopefully inspire some of you to stick with you weekly goals as well!  I guess we’ll see how it goes!*

Today is the start of my weekly routine.  In my head, I start my weeks with Monday and end them with Sunday.  So, that means I have a fresh slate in getting all my weekly goals met with each and every Monday that rolls around.  I actually use a weekly to-do list that I print off each week to help keep my on track with everything from blogging to taking my vitamins to meditating on a daily basis.  Here is what I’m planning on getting done this week:

• 5 gym workouts (3 cardio and 2 strength).  I would love to do this Tuesday-Saturday so we don’t have to have such a rushed Sunday morning, but taking both Sundays and Mondays off back to back isn’t my favorite way to break up the weekly workouts.
• 3 yoga sessions.  I would actually like to get in more, but with my schedule and pregnancy tiredness, three is more than enough.  Plus I’m making great progress in some of the harder poses so I know three is enough to stretch out my hips and back.
• 5 dog walks.  Quincy is such a hyper puppy and should be walked everyday.  Not only does he need it, he also deserve it.  But, some days, life gets in the way and he has to settle for playing with his ball indoors.  So I think five is a reasonable goal for his walks. 
• Clean out and reorganize my bathroom vanity.  <— My nesting urge.
• Replace all our burnt out light bulbs.  I started this last night by ordering a hard to find expensive light bulb for an art niche we have in our house.  I’ve been to every store that sells light bulbs over the past few months and no one carries that type of light in our town.  Now I only have to replace light in three showers and one light outside.
• Get someone over to look at our fireplace.  Ever since we’ve moved into our house, the fireplace hasn’t worked.  With the holidays coming and company starting to come at the end of the month, I really want the fireplace to work.
• Order nursery furniture.  I can’t wait to order it.  It will be one less thing I need to stress over on a daily basis.  Once it is here, I’ll feel even better!
• Book Quincy’s appointment to get neutered for as soon as possible.  He turns one on Sunday, so he is past due!  Happy birthday little man! 
• My last goal is to finish up my hypnobirthing book.  I love reading it so I don’t think this one will be a problem.  I am excited to already reread it and start making notes and highlighting key items. 

My nesting urge is really starting to kick in full blown.  There is so much that needs to get done, and I just want it all done now.  I stress about it practically everyday all day long.  It will be such a burden lifted off my shoulders once we have almost everything in place before the baby comes.  I’m looking forward to letting out a big sigh!

Weekly Meal Plan

I usually plan out our meals ahead of time so I know what to buy at the grocery store.  This also helps me budget our grocery money as I’m not just buying everything that looks good.  Typically Monday- Thursday, I like having a protein and vegetable at dinner and the easiest thing to make are salads.  Keith loves salad, but he can’t eat them every night for dinner and prefers pasta or Mexican food during the week mixed in.  I try and plan out our meals so I can eat salads and he can use the meat to make other items such as tacos on Tuesday of this week.  That way, we are both happy! 

Our Weekly Meal Plan looks as follows:

• Monday-  Salmon and Brussels sprouts
• Tuesday-  Baked chicken breast and salad (Keith can make tacos)
• Wednesday-  Leftover chicken breast and a vegetable
• Thursday-  Grilled steak with a baked potato and salad
• Friday-  Out to eat

Workout

Today, Monday, was a rest day at the gym.  I did get in prenatal yoga this evening.

Eats

My Eats from the day looked like this:

• Breakfast-  Coffee with pumpkin creamer.  Tortilla with eggs (14g) and cheddar cheese (2g), plus 1/2 a grapefruit
• Am Snack-  2 small red apples
• Lunch-  Cliff Mojo (8g) bar with a small cup of Greek yogurt (16) with honey, chia seeds and almond butter plus a low calorie (10 calories) hot apple cider
• PM Snack-  Whey protein shake mixed with water (24g)
• Dinner-  Baked salmon with salad (20)
• Late Snack-  Hot chocolate with marshmallows or I might have candy cane green tea (decaf), I’m not sure what yet if any

Lunch

Dinner

Total protein for the day:  84 grams  <—yay!  I’ve been totally slacking on my protein and since my doctor told me to up my protein and skip sugar, I’ve decided to pay a little bit more attention to my intake.  Since I was seeing spots of lights, she thought it had to do with blood sugar since my blood pressure was super low.  I will admit I was eating way more sugar than my body is used too around Halloween and am happy to be kicking my sweet tooth habit and getting back to a more protein heavy diet instead of a sugar heavy diet!  It’s funny because before I got pregnant I would never allow myself to eat as much sugary foods as I have this past month.  I totally used my pregnancy card to indulge a little more than I should have.

Outfit of the Day:

It was snowing here off and on all day, so I just wanted to dress as cozy and warm as I would.  The word cozy picked out my outfit for the day!

Good morning Arizona!

Hello baby bump!  I still can’t believe I only have a week to go before the final third trimester!

• Leggings-  Old Navy Maternity
• Black Tunic Tank-  Hot Mama
• Blue Cardigan Sweater-  Hot Mama
• Red Skinny Belt-  Target I think, it is super old
• Boots-  Uggs
• Scarf- My mom gave it to me a few years back, so I’m not sure where it’s from

That is it for me tonight.  I’m off to watch last week’s The Biggest Loser, and cozy up on the couch! 

See you guys tomorrow after an early morning sweaty cardio session! 

~Kjirsten

Question:

• What is one thing you want to get accomplished this week?

Good morning!  Happy Monday to you all!!! 

Over the weekend, Keith and I decided to make homemade chili.  We knew we wanted it to be packed with protein and fiber, but didn’t want all the calories that can go along with it.  We came up with this recipe and it sure is a winner!  We finished off the crockpot of it in only two days and Keith is already asking when we can make it again.

Lean Homemade Chili

• Prep Time:  15 Minutes
• Cook Time:  4-6 Hours
• Servings:  6-8 (depending on the bowl size)

Ingredients:

• 2 tablespoons oil
• 1 1/2 pounds extra lean ground turkey
• 1 medium white onion, chopped
• black pepper, to taste (about 1 tbsp)
• garlic powder, to taste (about 1 tbsp)
• chili powder, to taste (2-3 tbsp)
• crushed red peppers (1 tbsp or more if you like your chili spicy)
• 1 can organic black beans, drained
• 1 can organic chili beans, drained
• 1 can organic kidney beans, drained
• 1 28 ounce can organic crushed tomatoes
• 1/4 cup chopped pickled jalapenos (or more if you like your chili extra spicy)

*If you want, you can season the chili with sea salt as well.  We didn’t use any salt and it turned out great.  Also, you don’t have to use organic beans, but since they are in a can, I suggest looking for BPA free canned organic products.  Also, if you wanted to make this chili vegetarian friendly, you can sub squash or mushrooms for turkey.  You can also sub buffalo or beef for the turkey as well depending on what your preference is.  This recipe is a great base recipe for chili, feel free to expand off of it!*

Directions:

1.  In a large sauté pan, add in the oil, turkey and chopped white onion.  Add in the spices to taste.  Cook the turkey and onion until the turkey is almost fully cooked.

2.  Turn a crockpot on high and add in the three cans of drained beans, the whole can of diced tomatoes and jalapenos.  Mix together.

3.  Once the turkey meat is ready, add the turkey and onion mixture to the crockpot.  Stir al ingredients together and finish up seasoning to taste.

4.  Cook on high for 4-6 hours. 

Serve with cheddar cheese, plain Greek yogurt (sour cream), tortilla chips or crusty bread!

Question of the Day:

• What is your favorite way to top chili?
• Do you like your chili extra spicy?