Sorry I've neglected you! The good news, I haven't neglected the challenge!

So, I may have been sparse on the blog lately, but I haven't abandoned the commitment I made to all of you! (However many that may be.) I have worked out EVERY day, and tomorrow is my LAST DAY of the Jillian Michaels - 30 Day Shred (See all Weight Training DVDs) challenge!!! WOOO HOOOO! I'm so pumped that I persevered, and even more pumped that I proved to myself that I can do it. I'm also excited to move onto other things, like the C25K program. And, oh, Zumba, how I've missed you! Jillian Michaels - 30 Day Shred (See all Weight Training DVDs) is an awesome workout, but it is not fun by any means. Zumba is also a great workout, but I have a lot more fun doing it. I'll still revisit shred though, especially on those days when I just don't have very much time to workout and I want to burn some serious calories in twenty minutes. I always feel good and empowered afterward.

Since this is my second to last day, I must remind you: Your own FREE copy of Jillian's 30 Day Shred is still up for grabs. I want to see comments. I want to see new followers referred by you. Plus, I now have a group on Facebook, so if you decide to follow that, you get a point, and if you add as many people as you want, you can tell me the number of people you added with a comment on the page and I will give you points for them as well. Of course, if you tell me you added 100 people and there are still only 14 in the group, I might be a little be skeptical. I really want to send this brand new, unopened, ready to be used copy of 30 Day Shred out to one of you, so get cracking! I will only take points earned before midnight tomorrow.

Last but not least, I will post some recipes soon, I've been behind, and some other fun things as well. So be watching.

I hope all of your journeys to un-frumpiness are still rolling. And that you're happy in the journey, and proud of yourselves.

Coconut Chicken Salad with Honey Mustard Vinaigrette

Ok. The last recipe was not my favorite. This is a winner though. My husband, daughter, and I fell in love with this tasty version of oven "fried" chicken. We've tried many variations, and this is our favorite. Plus, it's pretty darn healthy. And, did I mention, delicious? Skinny taste got this one right. Mmm hmm. This is my new go to version of chicken. Try it. DO it.

Boneless Skinless Chicken Breast, 18 oz, or 3
Shredded Coconut, 6 TBSP
Panko Bread Crumbs, 1/4 cup
Corn Flakes, smashed, 2 TBSP
Eggs, whites only, 1/3 cup, or two
Salt, 1/4 tsp
Salad, Spring/baby mix, 6-9 cups
Carrots, 2-3 medium, sliced
Tomato, 1 medium, sliced
Cucumber, Peeled, 1 medium, sliced
Olive Oil Cooking Spray, 2 sprays

Preheat oven to 375. Combine coconut, bread crumbs, and crushed corn flakes in a shallow baking dish. Separate eggs and put whites into a large bowl. Tenderize/pulverize/flatten chicken breasts. Lightly salt. Slice into strips. Dip in egg whites, letting excess drip off, then into breading mixture. Place on Silpat lined (or lightly sprayed) baking sheet. Spray lightly with olive oil spray. Bake for 15 minutes. While it's baking, prepare salad (and dressing.) Turn chicken to other side, spray, and cook another 15 minutes. Serve with salad and dressing of choice (it's delicious with the honey mustard vinaigrette listed below. Thanks again skinny taste.)

MFP nutritional info, 4 servings, each has: 240 calories 5 grams of fat 33 grams of protein 582 milligrams of sodium


Honey Mustard Vinaigrette

Honey, 1 tbsp
Basalmic Vinegar, 1 tbsp
Extra Virgin Olive Oil, 1 tbsp
Beaver - Sweet Hot Mustard, 3 tsp

Just mix them well and serve as a dipping sauce or lightly pour over the top of the chicken or salad. YUM!

MFP info, 4 servings, each has: 55 calories 4 grams of fat 0 grams of protein 34 milligrams of sodium

Cream of Zucchini Soup

I'll be fair. This soup is so cheap, easy, low fat, and low calorie. Now for complete honesty, of everything I've made off of skinny taste, this was the most disappointing. The sodium levels are SO much higher than the flavor. But, if you're looking for something low cal, cheap, and easy, this is all of those things. I served it with Pillsbury Crescent Rounds. They are also cheap and quick. I prepared this according to the skinny taste directions. You can find them on the link above. However, I really prefer pressure cooker to regular stove top. It's less worry and faster. I will probably return to my old pressure cooker ways with the next soup I make.

Zucchini, includes skin, raw, 3 medium
Garlic, 3 cloves, minced
Yellow Onion, 1/2 large
Chicken Broth, 4 cups
Low Fat Sour Cream, 2 TBSP
Pepper, 1 tsp

MFP nutritional info, 4 servings, each has: 56 calories 1 gram of fat 4 grams of protein 591 milligrams of sodium

Easter! Almost done with the challenge...

Last night, after all of the lovely Easter festivities, church, egg painting/hiding/finding, LOTS of food, and time with family, we finally arrived home pretty late, and it dawned on me that I had not yet done my 30 Day Shred workout for the day. I REALLY did not want to workout last night. In fact, I almost shrugged it off. I told my husband, "what if I just do two workouts tomorrow? Would that count?"

Ultimately, it was the whole idea of Easter that pushed me to complete my daily workout. Life. Living. That is what Easter is all about; the amazing miracle and gift that this life is, and that life can, and will, continue. It's about life, and the resurrection as proof of continuing life.

So, I decided that I needed to put more value in the gift that is my life. And be grateful for it. I did work out. It was hard, and more than a little awful, but I felt good after doing it. Easter inspired me this year in so many ways. But the biggest way it inspired me was by filling me with a feeling of how precious and wonderful the gift of life is. I want to take care of my body so that I can live my life on this earth to the fullest, however long that is, and take care of the gift of my body.

I hope all of you in reader land had a wonderful Easter. And if you don't celebrate Easter, I hope the sun was shining wherever you are, and birds were singing, and that the evidence that spring will come and life will be renewed warmed you up and made your heart sing. I know mine was singing yesterday!

By the way, after today I will be halfway through level 3. Only 5 days left until I've complete the 30 days of my 30 day shred challenge. It was hard, but I'm proving to myself that I can do hard things. Especially if it means getting healthy, and un-frumpy. Totally worth it. Watch for some tasty recipes to come!

Epiphany...and level 3!

All I have to say is, HO-LEE-MO-LEE!!! Level 3 is INTENSE! I only thought I got sweaty before. Good news, less plank positions than level two. Bad news, Jillian makes up for it with plyometrics. Ouch. In case you didn't know, that basically means jump training. It gets your heart pumping super fast. I can BARELY manage the modified version of the last minute of abs. It's hard. But, I just finished my second day and I feel like a conqueror.

I never updated you on my weight. I've only lost a little under a pound since last week. I was surprised, and disappointed, but I know I'm gaining muscle, so I won't worry too much. Also, I know I could be making better food choices and drinking much more water. I've stayed under my calories, but the foods I picked to fill those calories weren't always the wisest ones. Hopefully in these last eight days I can really pull off a miracle.

Other big news, I decided that I was losing my passion for my work (photography) because I wasn't really doing what I love. In this area, weddings and family/group portraits are where the money is, so that's most of what I was shooting. But every time I have a shoot I just feel sick and dread it for up to a week before. So, I decided, if I'm making over the rest of my life, why not that? I will focus my photography down and only shoot what I love, one on one portraits, like infants, children, senior portraits, and other one on one assignments. I don't even mind two or three people in a shot. I just hate big groups and lots of posing. I like capturing what's there naturally. That's why I only use artificial lighting when it's absolutely necessary. I like capturing what is there, and what is beautiful naturally. Natural light, natural expressions, natural poses. I figure if I can find passion and enjoyment in my work, it's worth more than any amount of money, and dreading work, can get me.

Depression...totally FRUMPY!

Hey beautiful people out there in (perhaps make believe) reader land. I've been debating and debating over whether or not to post this next little piece, but ultimately came to the conclusion that I should. The whole reason I started The Formerly Frumpy Mama was because I needed some positive change in my life, and I hoped that by sharing those changes I'd be more motivated to keep going. Even if I'm only writing for me, if it pushes me, I need to continue.

Well, onto the dirty stuff. There are so many things to overcome on the path to un-frumpiness, bad eating habits, laziness, messiness, etc. I've discovered though, that everything in life is intertwined. If I'm struggling with depression, it will effect every positive thing I'm trying to do in my life.

Depression has been an unwelcome houseguest in my life, off and on, for many years. Right after high school I was medicated for it, but found that I liked myself even less, and felt more crazy, on the pills, so I stopped taking them. (I was on Zoloft, in case anyone was wondering.) Over a year ago, I went back to counseling for the second or third time in my adult life. My counselor is awesome, and, as it had in past experiences, I noticed it helping me bring positivity back into my life almost immediately. I only need a few weeks worth of sessions and I started feeling like a much better, much happier, version of myself.

Well, the last few weeks have been rough. And in the last few days, it's really intensified. The other day the sun was actually shining and all I could do was stare out the window and hate it for shining when my insides remained bleak and stormy. It makes it hard for me to want to exercise, and eat healthy, and take care of myself, to be an attentive, and loving/patient mother. It's absolutely awful. The worst part is that I can look at my beautiful little girls, who I love so much, and my sweet, patient husband, and in my mind I know that I am SO lucky, and should be SO happy everyday, but I still can't swim out of the murkiness. It's not fair to them, or to me.

So, this morning, even though I REALLY didn't want to, as I sat in my baggy sweats all un-showered and wishing I could just stay in bed, I made a decision. I called and made an appointment with my counselor. Like I said before, this isn't something I'm excited to share. But I do think it's valuable.

With one of my former counselors, I developed an analogy that helped me figure out how I function well. I am like a car. I run on four wheels and tires. If one of those tires is flat, the car isn't moving. I have to keep up all the tires to keep myself rolling. My four tires are my physical health, my emotional/psychological health, my social health, and my spiritual health. If I'm really hurting in one of these areas, I won't be able to function in the others either. So it's time for me to pay a little more attention to where I'm "flat," and get it repaired so I can get rolling again.

If you are struggling with a flat, get some help if you need it, get it fixed, and get rolling again. There should be NO shame in wanting to run at your best. Take care of yourself. THAT is how you best become un-frumpy. Here is me wishing you luck, and hoping you will do the same in return.

P.S. I just got referred to an awesome site, and if you struggle like I do with this, I really suggest you check it out HERE.

Cream of Potato and Bacon Soup

I first saw this as Baked Potato Soup on Skinny Taste and made some changes. I am not a bacon fan, but I love potato soup, and using turkey bacon wasn't quite as bad as the real thing. I also decided to do it in the pressure cooker, leave out the baking part, and cook the bacon into the soup for more flavor. It turned out really well. My husband and daughter loved it. I love using cauliflower in potato recipes. I do it all the time with mashed potatoes to lower calories and up vitamins. Anyway, I hope you enjoy it!

2 Potato, diced
Cauliflower, 1 head, large, chopped
Chicken Broth, 1.5 Cup
1% Milk, 1.5 Cup
Low Fat Sour Cream, 1/2 cup
Sharp, Shredded, Cheddar Cheese, 1/2 cup
Chives - Raw, 6 tbsp
Turkey Bacon With Sea Salt, 4 Slice
Spices - Pepper, 1 tsp
Sea Salt, 1/4 tsp

In a pressure cooker, begin to cook bacon over medium heat. When it starts to brown, add potato and cauliflower. Saute with bacon for a couple of minutes. Add broth, milk, salt, and pepper. Turn up heat and bring to boil. Apply lid. Bring pressure to second red ring. Stabilize. Cook for 15 minutes. Let pressure release using natural release method. Add sour cream. Blend together using immersion stick blender. When smooth, serve with cheese and chives. YUM!

MFP nutritional info, 4 servings, each has: 271 calories 11 grams of fat 15 grams of protein 647 milligrams of sodium