Simple Homemade Granola (Grain Free, Protein Packed!)

While we were on vacation earlier this year, I fell in love with the breakfast offered by our hotel. My favorite being their yogurt parfait topped with granola. I ate it every morning, very slowly, as I savored each bite. I had no idea granola could taste so good!

Imagine my delight (sarcasm) when I realized how much sugar and carbs most granola had be it homemade or store bought.

Enter low carb granola! Easy, delicious, and just as crunchy at traditional carb laden granola.

The real kicker, though? There are no oats involved! Now, I love me some oats, but when I tasted this almond flour concoction, I was fairly certain angels started singing with each bite. ;)

Recipe below!

Simple Homemade (grain free) Granola

1 Cup Walnuts, chopped
1 Cup Almonds, slivered
1 Cup Coconut, shredded & unsweetened
1/4 Cup Chia Seeds
1 Cup Almond Flour, blanched
Cinnamon to taste (I added approx. 1/2 teaspoon)
1/4 Tsp. Sea Salt Flakes (you can add a little more for a more sweet & salty mixture)
1/2 Cup Maple Syrup

Preheat oven to 325. Rub a little olive oil over a 13x9 Casserole dish to prevent sticking.

Mix all ingredients together until maple syrup has been fully incorporated. Your mixture will have clumps.

Bake for 16-20 minutes or until mixture turns golden brown.

Enjoy!

Summer Days

Our summer days have centered around lots of swimming, reading, ice cream, and a little hiking thrown in here and there. 

One of my favorite childhood memories was reading the Little House books. I read them all...probably more than once. The girls are still a bit too young for the full series, but I've enjoyed reading to them from the little chapter books.

Evie has been learning to swim this year. She can keep her head above the water, float, and has been working hard to swim under the water. It's amazing how quickly she has learned and she LOVES it!

Happy Wednesday!!

Sunflower Unit Study

Last week, I was inspired to a do a mini unit study on Sunflowers with the girls.

With music playing, they colored pictures, explored the texture of the sunflower, munched on honey roasted sunflower seeds, and listened while I read "From Seed to Sunflower".

Nature, art, music, and time together. It's exactly what this momma heart needed. ❤

Happy Friday!

It's been a slower paced week. So thankful for that. Yet, somehow, I'm still behind on laundry. ;)

We've been hiking, swimming, reading, and sipping iced coffee on these slow, hot days of summer.

I'm quite ready for fall. Soooo tempting to decorate. But, I'm holding off. I usually get started at the end of August. But, I can just smell the cool crisp evenings of fall.

Until then, I'm ready for another dip at the pool! Hope you are all staying cool. Happy Friday!

Stress Busters For the Weary Mom

Stress relief is one hot topic for many moms! Over the last few years, I've earned simple stress management tips for our home that have helped me tremendously. I'm sharing not because I've perfected stress busters, but because I've had so many people ask me how I deal with it!

Of course, my tips are coming from my life as a stay at home mom. I know that many working moms have their own stressors (maybe one of you can chime in!).

1) Get Help When my second was born, I constantly battled fatigue and anxiety. That led to even more stress on our little family. There were many other things going on in the background of our lives, but I realized at the beginning of this year, that something needed to give. I realized I needed to talk to my doctor. While being tired and facing anxiety can be normal parts of life, the depth of what I was feeling was NOT normal. My doctor keyed into the fact that I was low on vitamins, and worked out a game plan for me. I followed her instructions, and the constant fatigue went away almost immediately. Which led to less anxiety. Which led to less stress. It's amazing how our bodies work and rely on intricate details! So my first piece of advice, is to get input on WHY you are so stressed. 

2) Set Boundaries This has been the hardest lesson for me. While I love the idea of attending every event and get together we are invited to, I have realized that it's okay to say "no". There are times when we keep our calendar clear and simply spend time together as a family of four. This allows us time to rest, heal, and bond together. This is also important during your daily routines as a stay at home mom. It's easy for nerves to get frazzled on all accounts! We have a set time each day that we reserve for quiet time. The girls get a special snack and show that is reserved specifically for quiet time. That way it's something they look forward to doing. I like to break quiet time into three things for myself: rest for a few minutes, speed clean and read or write. And of course, coffee. ;)

3) Fresh Air It never ceases to amaze me how fresh air can change attitudes. If I notice the girls getting fussy (or lets be honest, myself getting fussy) we will often grab ice pops and head to the front porch. Sometimes, we all jump on the trampoline or the girls play with their toys outside while I read for a bit in the shade. Regardless of what we do, getting outdoors and changing our scenery helps drastically. 

These are the things that have helped me! What steps do you take to keep stress at bay?

Papaw

My Papaw passed away this morning. I will miss him so much.

I had my grandparents for 30+ years of my life...and it just feels so sad to think of milestones and holidays without them. They were there for everything, always.

Would you pray for our family? It would mean so much.

Our Cottage Farmhouse Living Room

We've been working on our living room for a few months, now. My goal was to incorporate a little bit of English Cottage and Farmhouse style. The biggest change that we've made since moving in was adding wainscoting to our walls. We opted to paint the lower half a solid, pure white. My hope was to lighten up our living room. I think my favorite decorative change, though, was buying buffalo check curtains. I'm kind of obsessed with buffalo check! A few things that helped pull the look together:

• Neautral  Colors as the base, fun colors for accents! I went with turquoise and light green.
• Adding buffalo check seems to check off both cottage AND farmhouse style!
• Adding a few rustic and vintage elements. Namely, the vintage window!
• And can't of course my Magnolia wreath that gives a nod to Fixer Upper!

We also added the wainscoting to our kitchen/dining and hallway area. It really changed the look and added to depth to each of the rooms.

I have enjoyed having fresh flowers in our home for the majority of summer, but with the heat waves, I think that is coming to a close. So, I'm snapping pictures of my hydrangeas as fast as I can. ;)

Shopping Resources:
Curtains: Bullard Designs
Table Lamps: Tj Maxx
Pillows: Tj Maxx
Scripture Signs: Hobby Lobby
Manolia Wreath: Flea Market
Rustic Frames: Mud Pie

Repin Love:

Also, I love all thing white & blue! Happy Monday, friends. :)