Because you know I'm all about that food....

...about that food, no gluten ;)
(Sung to melody of "I'm all about that bass.")
Well hey guys!
I've been gathering up a collection of different to share with you guys.
The last few weeks I have been making the greatest I could ever make: my body.
I've been eating mainly non-processed, natural or organic foods, LOTS of greens, fruits and vegetables, and less red meat. Tons of water has also been a huge staple in my new investment.
I'm going on week 4 of t25 and have lost an inch and a half off my waist and gained some arm and leg muscle. Not quite of how many lbs because I refuse to look at the scale. It's not about the numbers for me but rather how I feel. And I'm feeling strong! From the inside and out :) I, most absolutely, have a few week moments and cheat a little more then I want to but it's all about progress!
A lot of people who want to eat an organic and natural variety of foods complain about the price of it all. Yes, it IS more expensive then what I used to buy. I mean let's face it, a bag of organic apples is significantly different in price compared to a bag of M&M's but it's WORTH IT! I thank Jesus for the resources to be able to shop cheap and be blessed enough to eat such good quality food. Here's the first meal for you to check out:

Everything on the salad is organic. Instead of going to a healthy superstore like Whole Foods or 14 Carrot, where there produce is absolutely overpriced, I shop at Walmart or Target for organic goodies. This entire salad is organic minus the Swiss cheese cubes (I'm a beginner too!) and comes from target:

Spring mix lettuce leaves

Tomatoes 

Carrots

Vegan shredded cheese

Swiss cheese cubes 

Natural bacon bits

Edamames 

Italian dressing

The soup that you see in the picture is also from Target. It's organic tomato bisque from Panera! That's right! Target had it on sale for only $1.06 and I got 3! It's deal like that you have to look out for :) and this was so delicious! 

Another thing I hear, and an excuse I've used, is that eating so fresh and good all the time is super time consuming. In a way that's true but what better investment can we make then our own bodies??

 My FAVORITE tool in the kitchen is my crockpot! I can start preparing in the morning and have a delicious meal when dinner time rolls around with all that's left for me to do is set the table! 

For example:

(I'm sorry the picture is turned that way. I'm on my iPad and technology has never been my best friend!)

But anyway, this recipe was super easy, yummy and fast. 

This is called Crockpot Chicken Tortilla soup:

4 pieces of chicken (I trim the fat)

2 cans of organic black beans

1 can of organic kidney beans

1 spoonful of minced garlic

1 can of organic corn

32 oz of organic chicken broth

Cumin to taste

2 cans of organic diced tomatoes

I put all the ingredients in the crock pot on high for 6 hours and about 30 minutes before it was served I pulled apart the chicken with two forks. I sprinkled some vegan shredded cheese and organic, blue corn tortilla chips on top! 

I got ALL the ingredients at Wally World :)

For breakfast I love to do oatmeal (organic, gluten free, and from Target!) topped with cut up apples and a homemade smoothie, made from my nutribullet, on the side.

Sorry again for the picture. 

My smoothie consisted of:

Strawberry, banana Kefir

One banana

5 strawberries

A handful of blueberries

A tablespoon of flax seed

YUM! 

It's an effort to have a healthy lifestyle. It's so much easier to sit on the couch eating Milk Duds then a yogurt for desert or to get your body moving. But I have been seeing a change in my body. I have more energy and just feel stronger! I want to create a healthy environment for Makenna. 

Who by the way has taken a taste of some organic food herself for the first time! 

Don't let that face fool ya, she loved them.

See? :)

I'll be creating a special link on my page where I will more recipes like the ones I've shared so look out for it! Also, if you haven't already, make sure you go and like my Facebook page GFMama for more daily updates from me! Any questions or suggestions, you know where to find me! gfmamaj@gmail.com

Much love! 

P.S. I cannot get enough of mommyhood (if you couldn't tell) so here's some pictures I'd love to share with you

I just love her! For mom or moms-to-be, if you've never considered babywearing, PLEASE do! It's one of my top favorite things to do with Makenna and moments like these that make me love it more. 

Makenna is teething and loves to chomp on anything and everything. She ice cold celery sticks do the trick. (Supervised of course!)

I just love her to pieces!!!!

Look Ma, I've won an award!

Hey guys!
I'm so excited to say that The Life of a Gluten Free Mama has received an award!

The Liebster Award is an award for bloggers with 200 or less followers and a huge thank you to Morgan Lewis over at Yellow Door Diaries for the nomination :)
I've loved blogging these past 4 months and plan to continue for as long as I can! I thank all of you who follow and read my posts. I'm blessed!

There are a few rules that go along with this award:

I am nominating two blogs that I've started following:

Laura Waxmon at 

The Start of a Good Life

and

Ashley LaCross at

Nerdy Mama Noteables

Congratulations ladies! Make sure you check out their blogs and share some love! 

I will post your questions at the bottom but as for now I have mine to answer from Morgan!

1. Who in your life do you most admire? Why?

I would have to say my mom. She comes from rough beginnings and has not let her past dictate who she was going to be as a wife, a mother and a woman. I admire her strength, beauty, (her hair!!) and most importantly her heart. I hope to grow into half the amazing person she is! 

2. Name one new skill you'd like to learn.

I would LOVE to learn how to crochet. I would love to be able to make Makenna a blanket or myself a hat. I'm not crafty so I would need a lot of practice! 

3. What is your all-time favorite book? 

I have been and always will be in love with The Perks of Being a Wallflower. I love the book so much that I actually have NOT seen the movie. I have a perfect picture in my head of what I think everyone looks like and how the story plays out. I still have the same copy of the book when I first got it almost 10 years ago. Even after it fell in a lake ;)

4. Do you have any siblings?

Not by blood! I am an only child but have an amazing sister-in-law that I consider to be my own sister and a best friend!

5. Chocolate or vanilla? 

I love chocolate bars but detest chocolate ice cream. I've always have and always will be a vanilla girl.

6. If you could meet up with anyone for coffee, living or deceased, who would it be?

I have two answers:

First, I would have to choose my great-grandpa. Honestly, I would have Eric tag along with me. They never had a chance to meet before he passed and I know they would've had some great conversation since they are both intelligent and funny men!

Secondly, I'd choose Kari Jobe, the Christian artist. I love her talent, heart and love for Jesus. I feel like we'd be great friends.

7. Describe your perfect Sunday.

Lets see, a perfect Sunday would have to be a morning serving and worshiping at Newspring church to then be able to go home to a warm, home cooked meal (preferably tacos!) and spend the rest of the day outside in the sunshine with my entire family. 

8. What was your first email address or screen name?

Queendancer02520

Haha!!

9. Name one item you carry with you everywhere, all the time.

A love note that my husband wrote me for my birthday one year which includes one of my favorite life verses from the bible. It's one of my most prized "possessions" and I read it whenever I'm missing his company or need a pick me up.

10. Do you have a guilty pleasure? If so, what?

So cliche, but chocolate, chocolate and MORE chocolate! I was never huge into chocolate prior to pregnancy but golly, my hormones just triggered the most intense sweet tooth!

11. Why do you blog? 

I have WAY too many diaries scattered all over our little home; under the bed, in the closet, on the book shelf, etc. While I may not write about my deepest, most personal thoughts, the thought of connecting with other people on a personal level, through my own personal stories, is just so..cool and special to me! I've been able to hear from and connect with people all over the world! Plus I love taking pictures of my food to share and that inspires me to cook a lot more ;)

That was way fun! Now on to 11 random facts about me:

1. I cannot stand odd numbers. No reason, they just make me cringe.

2. I also don't like the sound of dogs licking their noses. The sound irritates me!

3. I was a vegetarian for over 2 years (maybe over 3?) in high school and have no plan on ever doing that again.

4. I've developed a really awful phobia for heights. Being up high anywhere scares the living daylight out of me.

5. I just started following my gluten free diet, religiously after being diagnosed at the age of 12, in December 2012. It took me 10 years...

6. I absolutely love Jesus with all my heart. This growing relationship I have with Him excites me everyday as I see where He is taking me and my life. I need Him more then anything that this world has to offer me. 

7. I want to be a worship leader one day.

8. I have donated over 1000 oz of breast milk to preemies at NICU's across the country.

9. My house must always be clean at all times but my car is an absolute mess.

10. I am in no way a cat person. I love one cat and one cat only. That's my cat and even THAT is questionable sometimes!

11. I've actually become quite shy the older I get. An outgoing introvert I think it's called? :)

Alright so now I have 11 questions for the nominees: 

1. Why did you start blogging?

2. What is your favorite holiday and why?

3. What is your dream vacation?

4. Winter, summer, spring or fall?

5. What is your favorite television show?

6. What is the best way to spend your free time?

7. Your first job ever.

8. What is your favorite genre of music?

9. Dogs or cats?

10. Is there a meaning behind your first name?

11. Favorite childhood memory. 

This was so much fun and thank you again, Morgan, for the chance to do this! Thanks to all my followers and make sure you check out my nominees :)

Much love!

I am NOT Supermom

And I don't have to be.
Nor do I WANT to be.
This all came upon me last night as my husband and I were tucking ourselves into bed at 8:30. Yes 8:30! We were asleep before 9 and I didn't wake up until 7:45 am when laughter from my baby alarm clock came blaring through the baby monitor.
Makenna is 5 and a half months old and while I feel like I'm being the best mother I can be, (thank You Jesus!) there is one thing I need to stop doing:
Putting so much pressure on myself. RELAX
Over the past few years my anxieties have grown beyond my control. It's been taking a lot of prayer and work on my part, through the direction and grace of God, to just relax. My, somewhat of a, type A personality means the house can never be a mess, Makennas room has be organized and God forbid if the shirts in our dresser get out of their neat, little stack. I start to sweat when Eric doesn't take off his shoes after coming in from outside and I see dirt all over a freshly swept floor. The dishes on the drying rack need to be in a specific order, as well as, the items in our refrigerator.
I've realized that trying to control every aspect of my life leaves me feeling exhausted, aggravated and defeated. After Eric and I said our nightly prayer last night and we both turned over to our sides to fall asleep, I started to pray on my own. I prayed to God that He would seriously move in my heart and help me relax. That He would seriously allow me to loosen to the, extremely, tight grip I have on my life and let Him take over the control. I've done this before and the outcome has been great but I always seem to get right back into that anxious state.
This side of me is spilling over into my journey of motherhood.
I feel like it's a personal race to strive to get Mama of the Year. I strive to give my baby only breast milk, which I've been able to do successfully, and feed her and our family organic everything, a home cooked meal for Eric and I when he gets home every night, the house being spotless, laundry done, lunches packed for the next day, meals prepped, make it to every mommy and baby play date there ever was in all the world  to keep Makenna socializing and make myself look presentable every day.
PHEW!
The list and the pressure goes on and on of all that I feel needs to be done on the daily.
So as we were laying in bed last night...
At 8:30 PM..
With dishes in the sink..
The cat liter not scooped..
And I'm praying to God to relieve some of this pressure, and to keep me from going into the kitchen and washing Erics chocolate milk cup..
He gives me my answer.
Just STOP. Turn off my brain for a SECOND and listen to Him. Stop trying to do it all. I am raising a little human, all day and everyday. It goes by so fast and I need to start enjoying the moments I have with her and my husband and not worry about all the little stuff. God was putting on my heart that I need to stop being the uppity, in control, super mom and super wife person that I've become. I'm missing moments and snuggles and time with my rapidly growing, little baby because the dishes NEED to be done the second the last bite from dinner reaches our mouth. I mean, come on!
I'm going to have my moments. I'm a woman and I'm human! But for the most part, I'm ready to let it go. I've surrendered my life to the One who wants to take all my burdens, worries and anxieties and handle them FOR me! So that I can enjoy life for all it's worth and not worry about the unmade bed. Or the fact that I had a 3 Musketeers chocolate bar instead of an apple for a snack.
 Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you.
-1 Peter 5:7
I going to spend a lot more time focusing and meditating on the verse above because it screams truth! 
I do not have to be a super wife!
I do not have to be a super mom!
I just need to do right for my little family, for others and most importantly, for God.
Like I said in my last post, I Am Learning.., I'm doing just fine. I CAN give myself a pat on the back sometimes (or like everytime I pump 20 oz of milk). I have so much love and happiness, in me, that I want to spread to so many people, especially my family, and I need just need to not get caught up and give my sole attention to the wrong things. I'm prepared for God to start changing my heart. 

Have something on your mind? Anything you need to get off your chest? You know where to reach me and I LOVE hearing from you: gfmamaj@gmail.com
Much love! 

I've loved doing life with these two and it's the most beautiful to watch how God moves through our lives.

I am learning...

I've grown up a lot in the past few years. I've grown up even more since becoming a mother. I still have so much growing up to do and maybe I'll never fully get there but I know one thing for sure, I'm getting the hang of life little by little. Here are some things that I have and still am learning about life:

1) Not everyone is going to like me.
And I don't have to like everyone. We are all different; different personalities, interests, spiritual beliefs, sense of humor, etc. And that's quite alright! I am learning to not be so offended when I just don't mesh with another human being. All I know is that that I still need to show the same amount of love for all those around me, regardless if we are the best of friends or not.

2) I do not have to change who I am. FOR ANYBODY.
I do not have to be somebody I'm not TO get people to like me. I've done this for a lot of my life and I am done. It's exhausting. I'm loud, crazy, fun, overly sensitive and just plain silly. God made me the way I am for a reason and to even question that as much as I have in the past makes me, well, kind of sad! Life is too short to walk around caring about every single opinion there is about me. I'm learning that I need to be bold and confident in the person God made me to be.  This is not easy but most certainly achievable!

3) Women don't have to hate each other.
It's true ladies, we don't. Women can be fierce creatures. We can be mean, spiteful, conniving, jealous; the list goes on. BUT GUESS WHAT! We don't have to be any of those. We are human; I know this. We get upset, let jealousy get the best of who we are but we can change that. I can change that. I used to be extremely judgmental. And mean. And spiteful. But mostly jealous and all of other women who had what I wanted. I dismissed my own blessings and focused on theirs. I disliked other women without even getting to know them first. I didn't like that and I didn't want to be like that. I didn't want others to look at my actions and get that vibe from me. My husband, who's actually heard most of the rude comments under my breath, is who really brought it to my attention (I LOVE his accountability! No sarcasm) and said I needed to work that out with myself. That side of me has improved in huge amounts but I'm just one person. Which leads me to my next point...

4) Mothers need to STOP with the harsh judgments...
against each other.
Like most of the mamas I come into contact with, we all want what's best for our sweet little babes. Some of us formula feed, or breastfeed or pump! Some of us co-sleep and some of us think that's nuts. Some of us believe in the cry-it-out method and some of us don't. It's OK that we all have different styles of parenting. What's NOT ok is judging others for doing or not doing something we may or may not do ourselves. We are all in this together. I believe it's in our best interest to come together as a huge community of mamas, support each other and help one another out. We are all doing ok and doing what's best for our own little families. There should be no reason to constantly have to defend our reasons for doing anything when it comes to our own children. Seriously.

5) Release the negativity.
There are just some people in my life that have not and do not belong there. This doesn't mean they are not in my heart and in fact it's these people I tend to pray more for. It can be a past friend, somebody you just met, a co-worker or even family. I am learning that it's ok to let the negative go. I cannot be the best wife, mother, daughter, sister, friend and most importantly, a servant to Jesus if I keep letting all this negativity get the best of me. This includes what's put on social media by my "friends" list. I cannot stand my addiction to Facebook and have been praying for the ability to either cut back or cut it out of my life. I am really learning to get rid of the negative sources and start breathing in the positive I'm trying to surround myself with.

6) It's ok to give myself a pat on the back.
I once wrote a post The 10 Things I Like About Me. It was about complimenting myself on things I liked about, well, me! I sometimes look back on that post when I'm having a bad "me" day; when I'm really down on something I may have done wrong and I need a pick me up. Sometimes I feel like I'm not allowed to tell myself I am doing a good job. That's not ok. I've learned that I need to love myself before I can really love anyone else. So I've started making changes to better my body, my mind and my soul. I've started a workout program called t25 and believe or not I feel great and can almost see results starting to form. I've changed my diet into an almost all organic and natural (Gluten Free, of course!) diet. I've started making myself say one positive thing, a day, in the mirror when I get dressed in the morning. I've gotten back into the musical side of me by joining the worship team at my church and singing a lot more in general. I tell myself I am a good mom and wife. I'm doing my best to be a faithful follower of Christ. I am allowed to say "Good job Amanda!" and recently that's just what I have been doing.

7) God really IS on my side and my past does not matter.
I am more then hard on myself. I beat myself up. (Not literally..) I am my own worst critic. It's taking me a long while to move past some things that have happened in my life, the mistakes I made and the people I've hurt. I have been drilling into my head: HEY, I'm doing FINE! I am growing closer to Jesus and He is my BEST support system. He has come through and has pulled me through so many trials. My past is making me who I am today and has opened my eyes to what a relationship with Jesus is really like. What Pastor Perry preached today about Gods grace, really struck a nerve. I AM MADE NEW! HE IS FOR ME! HE BREAKS MY CHAINS! He rights my wrongs. He is NEVER disappointed in me. My past DOES NOT make who I am as a person but instead tells a testimony of where I am going in life with Jesus already ahead of me. I am so thankful to have a relationship with Him. To find constant freedom, forgiveness and never ending love in Him. I am so blessed to have Him first in my life, for it is because of Him that everything falls into place.

Life is hard, messy, beautiful ,exhausting, wild and fun. But mostly beautiful. 

I will never have all the answers but the more I go through all these different experiences, good and bad, the more I grow. And that's what life is all about right? If YOU have anything you'd like to add to this list or even have a list of your own, you know where to find me, 24/7: gfmamaj@gmail.com

God Bless!

MUCH LOVE!

A letter to the high school Amanda

Dear Amanda,

You are amazing. 

Beautiful. Talented. Unique. Special. 

It's your senior year of high school; you're getting ready to venture out into the big world and you're feeling anything but those qualities I used to describe you. Hear me when I say your smile can light up a room and that singing voice you've been working so hard on to perfect really IS that good. 

You'll grow into your awkward chest, you finally discover what makeup is and no, your rump never gets bigger. Sorry. Oh and by the way, you are BY NO MEANS fat. There's going to come a time when you look back on pictures from this moment and pray to God that you could have that body back. Appreciate that body. Be kind to it. 

Ignore those that hold no real significant meaning in your life. I know it's hard to turn away from the whispers behind your back or the dirty looks in the chorus room but I promise that 2,3 even 4 years down the road those fellow classmates will be even further then a distant memory. Block it out the best you can because you won't see about 99.9% of them again after graduation. 

It's OK that your grades suck. Academics has never and will never be your "thing." Just keep singing. Pour your heart and soul into it! Try your best to be able to graduate and don't worry about the rest. Enjoy the memories of singing in all the different choirs you're in now, ALL State or performing in your last drama performance. It'll be the last time you're on stage for quite a while. 

Be prepared for the biggest heartbreak of your life. You will think he is your first love but I promise, he's not even close to what your first love really feels life. This boy will lead you to new and, what feels like, exciting places. You feel on top of the world. It doesn't last. The relationship is toxic and brings you to a place in your life that you never thought you'd be. When it ends, your heart is going to feel like the biggest rock came and crushed it. Pick yourself up. You're soon going to be in a new place soon and experience new things. which all leads you to meeting the man of your dreams!

This man will be your first love. This man is not looking for love when you meet and vice versa. But he sweeps you off your feet in an instant. You both fall madly in love with each other very quickly. He loves and adores you for who you are and doesn't take advantage or try and change you. He accepts all your baggage and does his best to mend your heart every day. He will change your world. He wants to marry, love and protect you for the rest of your life. So don't be jealous of the marriages your surrounded by. Don't go searching for him. Don't worry when it doesn't work out with anyone else. Your prince charming is on his way.  He is worth the wait.

You're going to lose friends and even family but don't sweat it. It's hard and to this day you will mourn the loss of some of those people from your life. But those that are meant to be in your life will stay around and the friends that you make down the road are simply amazing! They want nothing but to build you up, make you laugh and just love and support you! Keep the negative energy away from you even if that means ending friendships you thought would last forever. You marry into a wonderful family with a sister-in-law who becomes a best friend. These are the people worth sticking around.

You're going to question God. A lot. Keep chasing Him. Follow that feeling in your gut and, yes, change your college major to ministry. Keep building your relationship with Jesus. Trust in Him because the road is long and hard to get to where we are now. Things are about to happen in your life that will shatter your soul. Keep seeking Him. He has plans to save you. He has plans to bring a church into your life that will help move mountains in your heart. He has plans to prosper you and create miracles in your life that you never thought possible. 

Like a baby. Yes despite what you might have said in the past, you ARE going to be a mommy. It's going to be the sweetest time in your life. You are going to wake up every day, look at that baby and feel more then blessed. I promise! It will have taken a lot of time, patience and prayer to have her enter the world but she is more then worth it. She is one of the greatest things to have ever happened to you. She will help you grow up and love your husband even more. Enjoy every second, take a deep breath and know you're an awesome mom!

Lastly, give your mom and dad a break. Yes they get upset when you do something wrong, yes they have to discipline you but it's for the greater good. Cling tight to them because they love you more then anything in this world. A love that you will understand the second you have your own baby. Your relationship with them goes downhill and stays there for a while. It does get better. The hurt heals and the relationship begins to flourish again. Remain honest when you get there and you will all be ok. They will be your best friends and people you see every day. You will get told how much you look, sound, act like your mom and don't even try to act like that bothers you. Because you love it! :)

Take time to be happy, give yourself a pat on the back and know that the best is yet to come. Your life goes through so many ups and downs but it's worth it all to get to where you will be in 6-7 years. Be kind to others and don't lose your free spirit. Don't conform to what the world wants you to be. Be strong and hang in there for the ride. 

It's a beautiful one.

First day of senior year :)