Fun Facts Friday

1.  I made vanilla cupcakes with vanilla icing and chocolate chips for my son's classroom birthday party today. Dairy free - check. Gluten free - check. Sugar free - not so much. But hey, it's a party! You still have to live a little!

2.  The Better Homes and Gardens brand of Pumpkin Vanilla Cream candle is AH-mazing. True story. My students love when I light it in my class!

3.  I have been reading a lot lately about the relationship between what's in your gut and your overall health (mental, physical, emotional). I've learned  A LOT about the GI tract - HA!

4. I need to actively read about nutrition - the how's and why's of it all regularly, otherwise I lose the vision. Is that weird??

5. I made a clean homemade applebutter the other night in my crockpot. It was amazing. It's not as sweet as the traditional kind from the store, BUT it's just as good. It was very easy.

Homemade Clean Apple Butter

3 - Honeycrisp apples, chopped in to 2 in chunks

1 jar - natural, no sugar added apple sauce (I used kroger brand)

1 small bottle - organic apple juice

Cinnamon (to taste)

Nutmeg (to taste)

All Spice (to taste)

1 tsp - lemon juice

Throw all of your ingredients in to the crock pot and let it cook for 12 hours on low. Your house will smell heavenly! After the chopped apples were soft, I used a potato masher to smash them. I also left the apple skins on for extra fiber. :)

It was a great addition to my oats this morning!

6. The stress of a new job and new enviornment has really wreaked havoc on my diet (the way I eat - not a special diet). Apparently teacher lounges are filled with goodies to nom-nom on. My waist line and tighter pants have noticed this, too. This has been humbling, though! It's a good reminder that I need to fuel my body properly. Our bodies are machines, we need to give them the proper fuel they need. I read the other day that our tummies are "delicate ecosystems." That really put it in to perspective!

7. For lunch today I had a protein shake mixed with blueberries, Arbonne Fiber boost, plain kefir, and almond milk. It was SO good! :)

8. I absolutely LOVE the fall weather. I love the fall in all of its boot-stomping, scarf-wearing, and sweater-dawning glory.

9. I did legs and back today for my p90x workout, then I had an amazing bowl of oats with my apple butter, peanut butter, and craisins. It made me happy. :)

10.  I have opened an Etsy shop. You can read about it on the "Heiress Designs" tab on this blog! :) I'm working on new projects to add to the site.

Happy friday, y'all!