A Thank You Note

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 You know what seems to be a forgotten gem nowadays? Thank you notes.  Like the handwritten kind.  This is something I need to be more consistent with for sure.  I have a friend who always sends them...like she NEVER forgets.  Thank you notes are so special because that person took precious time out of their busy day to say they appreciate you.  It makes you feel good right?

Well I just want to say thank YOU.  Thank you for reading.  Thank you for taking the time out of your day to comment and send e-mails.  I read everything that you send.  I even read those comments and e-mails from those of you who tell me you think I am a moron and you just ate the worst cookies of your life (haha true story).

If it wasn't for you this blog would be lamesauce and I would most likely not have continued writing.

Sometimes when I am feelin funky or I am being vulnerable and talking about ADD or hair loss, your comments, e-mails and support blow me away.


Thank you!  That's all for today :)

Flourless Low Carb Bagels

Training for a half marathon is no joke.  The more I workout the more I eat...and crave naughty things like everything bagels loaded with cream cheese.  Seriously though bagels are bomb diggity.  In fact if bagels made you skinny I would eat them every single morning (loaded with cream cheese of course). 

Anywhoo...the other day I was dreaming about stuffing my face with a real carby bagel and had to do some serious self talk in order to not do it.  For a small moment I thought, "It's worth it...DO it Lindsay...bagels are sooo good."  And then I remembered I was type 1 diabetic and I would feel like crap all day if I ate a bagel.  So I did a little googling and guess what?  Apparently people are not weird and do not attempt to make things that are supposed to remain just the way they were born.  I looked and looked and finally came across this video.  I made a few small modifications and this is what I came up with...

What you will need:

• 1 cup flax seed meal
• 3/4 cup almond meal
• 2 tbs coconut flour
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 2 tbs plain Greek yogurt
• 2 eggs 
• 2 tbs olive oil
• 3 tbs of water
• 1 tbs of honey

*For the topping I used poppy seeds and dried garlic flakes.  You could use whatever you want. 

Directions:

1. Mix the dry ingredients together.
2. Mix the wet ingredients together.
3.  Combine the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and mix well.
4. Take a small amount a dough (however big you want your bagels actually) and roll into a large ball.  Since I do not have a fancy bagel baker, I poked a hole in the middle of the dough with my finger and them formed them into a bagel.  I flattened the top of the bagels out with a spoon to give them a pretty bagel like physique.
5. Sprinkle your topping on.
6. Bake at 350 degrees for 22 minutes. 

I most definitely stuffed my face with two of these the moment they came out of the oven.  I cut mine in half and toasted each side with a little...cream cheese.  I know I am such a cheater.
These are best eaten straight out of the oven while they are nice and toasty.  I saved a few for later and they were not as good.  My suggestion would be to only make as much as you plan on sharing or eating...and save the rest of the dough for another day. 
  
Makes 5 bagels.  Each bagel has only 5 grams of effective carbohydrate! 

Skin Care Tip of the Week *How Often Should I?...*

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Many of you write me e-mails asking, "How often should I use this...or how often should I do that?" So let me break it down.  Here is a basic outline of what I would tell my past clients.  Please keep in mind this is a basic guideline and if you have a specific skin condition this may be more or less.

How often should you wash your face?
2 times a day is ideal.  If you over wash you can strip your skin of natural oils.  Always wash for a minimum of 45 seconds to make sure you are actually cleaning all the impurities off of your skin.  See common skin washing mistakes here.

How often should use you a toner?
This is a tricky one since every esthetician has a different opinion but my personal opinion is that a toner is not totally necessary if you are using a PH balanced cleanser.  BUT a toner will help  rejevenate your skin and can help set your makeup...and make you feel fancy ;)
See how to make my FAVORITE toner here.

How often should you use a mask?
2-3 times a week.  More than that and you will not see any greater benefit.
A few of my personal favorite at home masks are the DIY Green Clay Mask, DIY Revitalizing  Seaweed Mask and DIY Vitmain C Mask (only do this one once a week).

How often should you exfoliate?
2-3 times a week.  If you over exfoliate you can actually cause small scratches on your skin which can result in hyperpigmentation (little brown spots).  Try to stay away from scrubs that contain harsh exfoliants such as crushed walnuts, especially if you have sensitive skin.   

How often should you wear sunscreen?
Every day.  Even if you do not plan on going outside you can still get sun damage through car and house windows...I know I sound like a crazy nut job skin care lady but wear this EVERY day.

How often should you clean your makeup brushes?
At least once a month.
See how to clean your makeup brushes here.

And there you have it! Hope you found this helpful :) 

Feelin Funky

Lately I have been feelin funky.  Not awesome put your geometric print pants on funky, like funky in a funk funky.  Right now I actually just feel like typing blahhhhhhhh (there I did it).  These past few weeks I have been struggling to find a balance between Mom life,  managing my diabetes, making time for friends, a little "me" time (hello a solo shower without my two year old would be nice every now and then), answering and returning e-mails (sorry I suck at that) being a good wife and trying to stay sane with a hobby I truly enjoy...blogging.  To say that I have it all figured out some might even laugh.  I surely do not...but that's real life for you.

Some days the kids are so much work I end up staying in my sweaty gym clothes (covered in baby puke...I know I am awesome) ALL day long.  Do you remember that little series I started called "Gettin Your Groove Back?"  No you don't?  Oh me either.  As of this exact moment I feel completely groove less. 

Want to know something really awesome that just about sums up my week so far?  I just looked down and realized I forgot to put my little nursing pads in and I have two giant wet spots soaking through my green shirt.  Yeay.  

The Two Minute Pumpkin Pie (Paleo)

This was a completely accidental (awesome) recipe.  One day last week I was majorly craving something sweet.  I looked through my cupboards and we literally had NOTHING expect a few cans of organic pumpkin puree (yippie...not really) and some baking ingredients.  I followed the basic outlines of my chocolate Paleo mug cake recipe with a few modifications (obviously adding pumpkin) and stuck it in the microwave saying a little prayer that it would not completely suck.

HOLY pumpkin pie... in literally 2 minutes!!  I wish this did suck so I can stop making it.  Seriously.

What you will need:

• 3 tbs of almond meal
• 2 tbs of coconut oil
• 1 egg
• 1/2 cup of organic pumpkin puree
• 1 tsp of pumpkin spice
• 1 tbs of honey
• 1 tsp of vanilla extract
•  a dash of salt
• 1/2 tsp of baking powder

*If you are allergic to almond meal you can substitute coconut flour.  The consistency will change a bit though. 

Directions:
Mix everything together really well.  Place in a mug or a small microwave safe dish and microwave for 2 minutes (cavemen used microwaves I know it).  Hurry up and eat it all to yourself.  This is a tough one to share.

I made this for my husband again that same night (he is my official taste tester) and he took one bite and shouted "Dank!"  I actually looked up dank (before I put a word which I have no clue what it means in my blog) and it is an expression used by stoners and hippes, neither of which describes my husband ha...but basically he was trying to get across that this was pretty damn good.  This is going to be a regular treat around here this fall for sure.

On a side note: If you don't know what to do with the leftover pumpkin puree, you can always make a Pumpkin Enzyme Mask :)

Skin Care Tip of the Week *How to get soft and hydrated skin overnight*

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Sometimes the changing of seasons can mean changes in your skin.  My skin tends to get super dry and flaky once fall is in full swing.

My favorite little "secret weapon" is the good ole cooling humidifier.  If you run it while you sleep (next to your bed) you will wake up with the softest dewy-like skin!  The extra moisture in the air = extra moisture for your skin.

I have also used the humidifier to help heal my four month old's cradle cap and it worked like magic. 

So if your skin is feeling dry, flaky and in need some major moisture TLC...get out the cooling humidifier!

The humidifier that I personally have and use is the one pictured above :)

Things That Make Me Say Yeay

Low carb pumpkin bread fail turned awesome pumpkin pie bread like pudding that we topped with coconut ice cream.

Ronin's little feet that I want to eat, down by the street listening to a beat beat beat.  Okay I have had too much coffee and can not think clearly.  But seriously baby feet are the best. 

Confession: when the polka dot trend first started I thought it was the stupidest thing ever.  My thoughts were..."why would I want to look like a giant clown with a bunch of polka dots everywhere?"  Well, now I love it and can't get enough.  Found these cool little socks at good ole Target. 


Two new nail colors that I will be wearing this fall.  OPI- Don't Talk Bach To Me (cool name) and OPI- French Quarter For Your Thoughts. 

The BEST crock pot chicken that I had ever had.  If you like your chicken moist, juicy and literally falling off the bones, make this.  My hair gal actually told me about this recipe and I just want to kiss her for sharing with me.  All you do is take a whole small chicken (got mine at Trader Joe's) place it in the crock pot with 2 minced garlic cloves and whatever spices you like.  I added fresh rosemary, salt and pepper and Braggs seasoning mix.  I added a little coconut oil to the top and slow roasted it all day.  AMAZING and my husband thinks I am a little bit cooler now for making this.

Have a great weekend!

A few things:

• I recently did a fun little interview on my friend Andrea's blog. You can read it here. 

• I have my very first blogger blate (blogger date) this weekend and I am so excited!  If she really turns out who she says she is and is not a creepy middle aged older man then I will post pictures on Instagram (@delightedmomma) this weekend.  See you soon Alexa! xo