Pretty Little Apron

banana

Sunrise Protein Smoothie

by

Hello and welcome back! I’m posting this Sunrise Protein Smoothie today to let everyone know I’m actually alive and well and still creating delicious recipes for my family. 🙂


So where have I been? You know, to sum it up I’ve been super busy with my family. We have four little boys to take care of and since the baby was born last September I feel like I’m in survival mode everyday. I also have a relatively new photography business that is taking up quite a bit of my time. If you are in the Central Pennsylvania area go ahead and check me out!  www.danacarvellphotography.com 

My business is specializing in newborn and family photography and things have taken off to the point where I feel like I’m ignoring my first baby, my 3boys blog! I got a swift kick in the rear when I realized that I still get thousands of hits a day and I’m so missing my foodie community. It almost was like a big wake up call:

“Hello Dana! There are thousands of people reading your recipes everyday! You are killing in in stats, where are you!?!?”

It kind of just dropped on my lap, honestly. So here I am! I not only love doing this, it is like a breath of fresh air!

So i’ve decided to try to dedicate a little time each week to still posting and doing something that I ultimately love to do. I’ve had such a positive experience here and I love it! And of course, by the way, since upgrading my camera, and getting A TON of experience in taking pictures of people I’ve also grown so much in my food photography. Gone are the days of super over exposed images. 🙂 I also really love taking pictures of food because hello! Food does not move! Most of the time I’m chasing around toddlers. Don’t get me wrong, I love a challenge, but a subject that is motionless once in a while is so fun!

As I mentioned since our 4th boy was born last year I’ve been in survival mode. Little by little we are getting back to our own “normal” but it has taken quite some time. Just because our baby is 16 months old doesn’t mean things have gotten a whole lot easier, just different. More of chasing mom around the house begging to be carried around all day so that mom can literally do nothing, including cook for the rest of the family! haha In order to get healthy, whole foods into my own body I have resorted to a lot of smoothie recipes because… again…survival mode ya’ll!

I hesitated to post this Sunrise Protein Smoothie recipe because it seems so simple. At the same time I thought, why not!?!? This is real, this is what I’m eating, and I should share it. It doesn’t have to be super elaborate for readers to find it helpful. So here it is! 🙂

How to Choose the Best Protein Powder

This is one thing that made me hesitate to post this Sunrise Smoothie Recipe because I don’t want folks to pick a protein powder that contains a ton of unhealthy ingredients. In the back of my mind I’m saying:

“I’ve seen some really bad ones. Will someone choose that?”

So here. I’m telling you straight. Read the ingredient list. Look in the “naturals” section, and choose wisely. Choose organic if you can, try to find the shortest list of ingredients, and stay away from soy. I’ve actually seen partially hydrogenated oils in GNC’s protein powders, as well as a bunch of others. Like really GNC!?!?! How dare you throw horrible ingredients into a powder that is marketed to people trying to be healthy. These are the things that just simply anger me because it is necessary and dangerous. I love Food Babe and she has a list here that will help you choose. While mine is not on her list, I would still highly suggest all Vega products as they taste great and have worked very well for me!

I use Vega protein powders that are the best I’ve found. Yes, they are vegan. No I’m not following a Vegan diet. However their ingredients check out and I will be eating non-vegan foods the rest of the day so it is a nice change.

Vegan Peanut Butter Banana Protein Smoothie

by

Ohhhh Heyyy There!!!

Being that this is my first post back after a few month hiatus from blogging to.. Oh I don’t know, HAVE A BABY I thought it was only fitting to talk postpartum weight loss and how horrifying, I mean awesome of an experience it can be!


If you haven’t been here before let me quickly bring you up to date. I’m 28, I have 4 boys, and my husband works a job that takes him away from home about 80% of time. I have a 9 year old who is currently in need of a ton of homework help, a 4 year old who is the easiest of the bunch, a strong willed 2 year old who is ever so cute/a raging emotional mess/potty training, and a breastfeeding baby who basically loves and needs Mommy almost 24/7. Needless to say I change a lot of diapers, deal with about 100 boogers a day, and by the end of the day I don’t even know my name anymore (give me about an hour after bedtime to remember it :)). Finding time to do things like exercise and meal plan is super challenging right now but I am feeling ready to think about what I’m eating and where I can make better choices (hello organic sourdough bread and butter, I’m staring at you).

Oh…and one more small detail.. I am going to a BEACH WEDDING in FOUR short months..Mic drop.

Yes. Beach Wedding. Me. In a bathing suit. On a beach. Not only am I attending the wedding, I am in the wedding (my sister is tying the knot). IN THE WEDDING. 80+ people looking at me walking down an isle (ok, I’m not the bride so let’s face it, nobody gives two hoots about me) however I’d prefer to be feeling a tad bit better about my body at that time. And… dun dun dun… I have a dress that doesn’t fit me. Ok, ok in all fairness I can get the dress on but I would need about 5 layers of Spanx to tame all the lumps and bumps under the dress. Me + 5 layers of Spanx under a dress in Mexico = Not happening! So I have a ton of motivation right now to make it happen.

On a really serious note before we dive into the recipe, I’ve always taken postpartum weight loss very lightly. I’m not very hard on myself about it, and I don’t feel super down about the way that I look. Sure, I’d love to take a selfie without that extra chin (wait a minute, I don’t selfie) but you know, I have a beautiful baby to care for everyday and that is good enough for me. I’ve always gained weight while pregnant and it has always taken me 6-9 months to shed the extra weight. I know my body did something incredible just 3 short months ago and I remind myself of that every time I feel “fat.” I will never compare myself to any other person or celebrity because all of us are working with a different deck of cards. Plus, now I have an excuse to buy a bunch of leggings and ponchos from Grace & Lace and basically never take them off. 🙂

VeganBananaSmoothie1 (1 of 1)

I picked up this Vega Protein Smoothie pouch at Wegmans after eyeing it up for a couple of weeks in a row. I’ll admit, I made a few really gross concoctions with it at first. I mean gag-worthy. Then I realized if I just kept it simple the results were awesome! Vega has a few different flavors but I settled on the vanilla and I really like the taste. My main goal in trying to eat healthier/think about what I’m eating/feed myself quickly is just to try to keep things realatively simple. I’m not following any type of meal plan, I’m just keeping myself in check with a food diary app, sticking to unprocessed foods, and incorporating more fruits and veggies into my daily routine. I know what works for me is routine, routine, routine. So instead of walking into the kitchen and ravaging through a loaf of sourdough bread I’m going to think about it first. Then maybe dig into some carrots and hummus, or make a delicious Vegan Protein Smoothie with my Vega protein. See where I am going with this?

Vegan Peanut Butter Banana Smoothie

I should also mention that my handy-dandy Ninja Master Prep is still going strong! I LOVE THIS THING! It isn’t the most high quality blender, but baby it gets the job done darn good. I’ve had mine for about a year and a half now and it is still blending like a champ. I use it almost every day. Yay for the Ninja Master Prep!

VeganBananaSmoothie5 (1 of 1)

Vegan Peanut Butter Banana Protein Smoothie

 

Frozen Banana Acai Bowl

by

acaibowl Breakfast can be a really chaotic time at my house, and with back to school approaching it is bound to get a lot worse. I am then going to be accountable for making sure another little human is well fed until lunch time. I sure don’t ever want to send my child to school with no food in his belly, but boy sometimes it is really tempting to whip out a box of crappy cereal and tell him to have at it! Then I would be able to get my last 5 minutes of sleep (does this qualify as a snooze button?) But who am I kidding, my son would be overjoyed if that happened! However, there is a healthy voice inside my head that says “Dana, it is time for breakfast, the most important meal of the day. It is now time to get up and make sure your son is nourished and energized to go to school and learn. Please get up and prepare something super awesome and nutrient dense for him!” Of course I always listen to the healthy voice because I know it is right! This year nutrient packed breakfasts might not be as hard as they used to be. I’m always looking for new ideas because let’s face it, when you don’t eat processed foods your options can be limited when time isn’t abundant. Most of our mornings contain eggs, oatmeal, or homemade whole wheat pancakes. Thankfully over the summer I found a new breakfast that my family has really been fond of to put into the routine….. acai (ah-sah-ee) smoothies and bowls! I know, it sounds really “health nut” of me, but I’m telling you… they are glorious! So, I have to throw this in here…I saw this “bowl” concept on Istagram and didn’t really get it. There were lots of colorful and nutrient dense foods on top but what was underneath? Well, I can’t say for sure that all of them are Sambazon Acai Smoothie Packs, but that is what I recommend and that is what this recipe contains. Essentially it is a thick, smoothie-like consistency that you put all of the beautiful toppings on. It is served cold, just like a smoothie. What makes this recipe I’m sharing a little different is the banana is frozen beforehand, so the consistency of the bowl is thicker, creamier, and even more delicious! Ok, I may or may not have gotten the frozen banana idea from Instagram too, but who is keeping tabs?!?! 😉 acaibowl1 (1 of 1) Let’s talk nutrients… this bowl is packed to the brim. Acai is loaded with antioxidants (2 times as much as blueberries) and also contains a heafty dose of Omega fatty acids. Hello awesome breakfast! Pair the acai with a banana, various other fruits, nuts, and oats, and you are set until naptime, I promise! My kids really loved the smoothies with watermelon and banana, and I really loved the bowls just like the ones pictured. Both are awesome options but you can really get creative and throw in what you have on hand. We don’t always keep the same fresh produce on hand so I tried a number of fruits in my Rio Bowl and all of them were great (watermelon was my favorite!!)

If you’d like to know where to find Sambazon Acai Smoothie Packs in your area their website can tell you exactly where to go! 2 stores in my area had their products and I don’t live in a huge city. They also have various other smoothies and health products in grocery stores as well. Also very noteable, their products are Non-GMO verified, USDA Organic, EcoCert Fair Trade, Vegan, and Gluten Free!!


acaibowl5 (1 of 1)