Tuna Avocado Cucumber Sandwhiches

This year I made some new health goals, part of those goals were to figure out new ways to re work food. Ditching all the extras I don't need, reading labels and really taking a look at what I'm putting into my body. 

I've been wanting to do the Whole 30 for a while now, next month I'm starting Whole 30. My goal this month has been to find a list of foods and recipes that I can use next month while trying out Whole 30. 

Today I'm excited to share with you these easy and simple Tuna Avocado Cucumber Sandwiches. Here's what you'll need:

1 can Bumble Bee Tuna

1 Avocado

3 Green onions, chopped

Salt & Pepper to taste

1 cucumber, sliced

Drain your Bumble Bee Tuna place that in a small bowl. Add in your avocado and mash them together till blended well. Then add your green onions and salt and pepper. Do a little taste and make sure you have the right amount of salt & pepper. 

Then slice up your cucumber, I like to do not so thick slices but not thin either. Somewhere in the middle is good so you can make yourself a sandwich. 

Then start assembling your sandwiches putting the tuna mixture between two of the slices.

These are the perfect afternoon lunch, or quick snack. The avocado is a healthier choice than mayo, and the cucumber is a healthier choice than bread. Making this the perfect Paleo or Whole30 approved meal.

Surprisingly very filling and makes quite a few! I'm excited about finding healthier meals and snacks for this new year to take my health journey even farther this year. 

What are some of your favorite meals or snacks to make with Bumble Bee Tuna? I'd love to hear them in the comments below. 

I was selected for this opportunity as a member of Clever Girls and the content and opinions expressed here are all my own.

Zane's Second Birthday Party

Zane turned two just 9 days before Christmas, it's always a busy time when you throw a birthday party in before Christmas. Since my side of the family was here in AZ this year for Christmas we decide to throw him a small party just family. Our theme was football/sports. Zane is developing quite a love for football and it makes Daddy proud! Also his room is football themed so it just made sense. 

We kept things pretty simple for his party, I whipped up this cute invitation and sent it as an evite to our family. 

Simple beverage station for the party of sweet tea & water! I bought a sports themed paper pack from WeR Memory Keepers and used it to punch out cupcake toppers, place mats and signs around the party. You can see in the details below. 

He loved the signing of "Happy Birthday" and of coarse was fascinated by the candles!

We kept the food simple and just ordered pizza, and had other "game day" snacks like chips & salsa, veggies, football themed brownies and cupcakes. 

I found these football themed banners at JoAnn's last football season scooped them up for 75% off last year. I used them to decorate around the house. 

Zane had a lot of fun opening up gifts this year, it's always a little more interesting when they know what's going on. It's fun to see their reactions. 

Our little family with the birthday boy! I can hardly believe he's already two! Time just goes way to fast. He's turned into a little boy with lots of personality. We love you Zaney! 

My Favorite Podcasts.

I'm an avid podcast listener, I love to listen to them while I'm working out, working in my office or on long card rides through traffic. I love hearing people's voices, learning from them, and just listening for pure enjoyment. 

Today, I thought I'd share with you some of my favorites that I've been listening to for a while and why I love them. 

Let's get to it: 

01// Cross Point Church- I've been listening to their podcast since 2009. Located in Nashville, the Lead Pastor is also the author of Plan B, which sorta changed my life. I love listening to this church's audio and all the staff pastors. Great stuff here. 

02// The Influence Podcast- I've just been listening to this podcast only a few weeks but I love it. Each week there's a new guest that I love hearing from. Most recently Rachel Kindcaid's & Crystal Stine's have been favorites! 

03// Dollars & Roses Podcast- This is another one I've been listening to for a while. They do a marriage podcast full of wisdom for your marriage. They talk different aspects of marriage, family, intimacy and they have awesome 22 day challenges for you and your spouse! 

04// Happy Hour with Jamie Ivey- This podcast a friend told me about and I'm so glad she did! Jamie's is one that I look forward to listening to and can't wait for another episode. Each time Jamie sits down with a friend and they discuss anything and everything. Which I love the variety, and I love learning from other women. 

05// The Art of Simple Podcast- Tons of inspiring guests. Tish is an author herself and I love listening to her stories. Her family is currently traveling the world, and I love listening to their experiences this year.

06// The Sarah R Bagley Podcast- She talks about leaving perfectionism behind. Although I don't consider myself one, I do however consider myself a people pleaser to an extent so I really appreciate the guests honesty about embracing imperfections. 

07// Inspired to Action- Kat Lee's podcast has some great guests talking about motherhood and encouraging you where you're at. 

08// This is Reality- Ok, now if you're a reality t.v. fan and more specifically a fan of 'The Bachelor/Bachelorette' series you'll love this podcast. Jason & Molly every week chat about the week's episode and give great behind the scenes info and scoop that help you see the show in a whole new way. They are really fun to listen to, and I love listening to them on my runs. 

Those are some of my favorites! Do you listen to podcasts as well? I'd love to hear what you're currently listening to? Leave your favorites in the comments below! 

Ava's Big Girl Room

HI friends, I'm excited to share with you Ava's big girl room finally! We've lived in our current home for two years now, and her room has been finished for a while now. This room was done on a budget, which is probably why it took so long to complete. We bought things as we could afford them. Shopped for deals and bought both her dresser and bed on Craigslist. I've just been waiting around to photograph it and show it to you. 

She was two and half when we moved into this home. Her old room still had all it's nursery decor in it, I knew moving would give us a blank space to turn her room into a more little girl like space. We got rid of all the baby toys, and all her old nursery furniture (crib, glider & changing table) when to Zane's nursery. It was a good time to start over. 

We didn't buy a whole lot of new things for this room, we did have to get her a new bed however, and a few other decor related items which I'll go through. But most of the changes took place by way of paint. I love paint, you can really transform a room with it. So let's take a little tour of her big girl space. 

Both her and Zane's room's are next to each other, they share a wall and her's has an awkward entrance. It's really hard to photograph, but there's this small part of the closet wall as you enter where the pictures hangs to the left.

We did these bold grey & pink stripes on the wall behind her bed, they make the most dramatic difference to the over all look and feel of her room. I just love some stripes! We found her sleigh bed on Craigslist, such a great find! I love the romantic and whimsical feel to her room. 

The reading nook is one of my favorites, Ava's always loved books since she was little. We read to her a lot as a baby, in her big girl room I wanted to have a place to display books and a place she could sit and read if she wanted. The rocking chair was mine as a kid, she's had it in her room since she was a baby. I repainted it white and added some bows to the back of it. The print above it says "Be Still And Know" by Emily Ley. 

Ava's dresser was another Craigslist find we got when she was a baby but it's a dresser from Ikea. 

We placed a few momentos from her nursery like baby pictures and her hand print on the dresser. 

The art work above her bed is one of my favorite easy DIYs ever! I made them using some old canvas' I just painted over, you can see the full project here. I also made the tassel banner above it for her 3rd birthday and afterwards we just stuck it in her room. 

Her light fixture is one of my favorites, I'd been eyeing it forever at Ikea. I knew it'd be perfect here. We added a hook to the left of her closet, we pick out outfits the night before and hang them there for the morning. It makes our routine in the morning go much faster. We also use it to hold all kinds of necklaces from The Glitter Revival, she makes the best ones! 

I loved finding the perfect bedding for her. I found the ruffle devet at Homegoods and just went from there. The "A" pillow & the heart are designs from The TomKat Studio I used and then ordered from Shutterfly. The artwork on the opposite wall is from The TomKat Studio as well. 

I love how her room came together, Ava is pretty girly so it fits her nicely. I love watching her play in her room, and reading stories to her at night. 

For a list of sources see below; if you have any other questions just shoot me an email or leave me a comment below.

Sparkle Print, Heart Pillow + "A" Pillow: The TomKat Studio

Ruffle Duvet Cover: Home Goods

Grey ruffle pillow: DownEast Home 

Pink Pillow, art work canvas', tassel banner: made by me

Polka dot sheets: Target

Light fixture: Ikea

Hook: World Market

Dresser: Ikea

Mirror: Home Goods

Lamp: Target 

Book ledges: Ikea

Be Still Print: Emily Ley 

Dollhouse: Zulily 

Curtains: JC Penny 

READ:: For The Rights Reasons by Sean Lowe

Guys, I'm excited to share with you the latest book I finished on my reading list! I was able to get an advanced copy of Sean Lowe's new book coming out January 27th appropriately named 'For the Right Reasons.'

I've been a long time fan of The Bachelor series, I've been watching for far to long and it's my one guilty pleasure. 

I especially enjoyed Sean's seasons, one of those reasons was because he loves Jesus. And I knew that his season of The Bachelor would be different than other seasons before. I think he brought a freshness to the "type" of guy that is The Bachelor. He brought back some integrity to the show. I loved watching he and Catherine's wedding. It was one of the most Christ centered ceremonies I've seen. I loved that they glorified the Lord in the whole thing. Right there on live t.v. the name of Jesus was known. And Sean's Dad was adorable during their wedding. 

So anyway back to the book; 

The book gives you a glimpse into Sean's upbringing growing up in Texas. His college years and then eventually leads into his time on The Bachelorette and then becoming The Bachelor.

The book is filled with lots of great behind the scenes details about his time on both shows. Really gives you a great glimpse into how the show's production goes down. But, more than the juicy behind the scenes details I appreciated Sean's candor about his past, his failures and his honesty about his relationship with Catherine after all the cameras stopped rolling. You get to read about their struggle during his time on Dancing with the Stars and how they made it work. 

They go through things every relationship does, but they just had another layer of the public. And they handled it with God's grace. It's awesome to see his faith played out, and how his family's love and grace opened the door for his wife Catherine to know Jesus in an intimate way. 

This is the number one this I loved about this book, more than the juicy Bachelor details I loved that Sean's glorified the Lord in this book. He pointed it back to Him. 

If you're a fan of the show or even more so of Sean & Catherine you'll love reading this book. Who's excited to get your hands on this? Will you be reading? Order your copy here. 

As part of the street team I received an advance copy of this book for the purpose of a review. All thoughts and opinions are 100% my own.