Busy Homeschooling Moms--Let's Get Healthy Together!

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  • try2again
    try2again Posts: 3,562 Member
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    Good morning, everybody :)
    Great dinner last night! Crazy easy & I think it came in at about 340/serv.

    Beefy Kale Skillet Lasagna

    1 lb 85% or more lean ground beef
    1 large onion, chopped
    3 tsp minced garlic
    1 TB oregano
    1 tsp basil
    1/4 tsp pepper
    2 cans fire roasted diced tomatoes
    2 tsp honey
    4 cups chopped kale
    1/4 cup grated parmesan
    1 1/2 cups 2% cottage cheese
    8 oz pasta of your choice, preferably whole grain (I like rotelle or mafalda)

    Cook pasta. Brown ground beef and onion, drain. Add garlic & seasonings 1-2 min. Add tomatoes and honey, heat to a simmer. Add kale, cook @ 5 min. Stir in cheeses and pasta. Serve with a TB of finely shredded Italian cheese blend, if desired. 8 servings.

    This was so good and my 6 year old said, "This would even be good without the pasta!" I agree. Don't be afraid of the kale if you haven't tried it. I originally made this with spinach and was concerned I wouldn't like the kale as much- not an issue. Plus kale here is 99/bunch as opposed to 2.99/bag for the spinach.

  • Lounmoun
    Lounmoun Posts: 8,426 Member
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    try2again- Also in a small town rural area and collect recipes. :)

    I had the idea that I would not watch calories so much on Mother's Day but I ended up doing it anyway. I did go over a little but I had everything planned and logged in advance still. I took the day off of exercise though.

    My plan for today is to get dd to exercise with me. She was in a bad mood last night so maybe some more movement would help. Maybe I'll do some yard work if it is nice out.
  • try2again
    try2again Posts: 3,562 Member
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    Lounmoun wrote: »
    try2again- Also in a small town rural area and collect recipes. :)

    I had the idea that I would not watch calories so much on Mother's Day but I ended up doing it anyway. I did go over a little but I had everything planned and logged in advance still. I took the day off of exercise though.

    My plan for today is to get dd to exercise with me. She was in a bad mood last night so maybe some more movement would help. Maybe I'll do some yard work if it is nice out.

    Yeah, "if" being the operative word there! We're going on day... I don't even know... of gray and cold :(

    My kids (6 & 9) like doing the Leslie Sansone videos sometimes with me- what do you guys do?

  • kwfitgal
    kwfitgal Posts: 228 Member
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    try2again wrote: »
    Good morning, everybody :)
    Great dinner last night! Crazy easy & I think it came in at about 340/serv.

    Beefy Kale Skillet Lasagna

    1 lb 85% or more lean ground beef
    1 large onion, chopped
    3 tsp minced garlic
    1 TB oregano
    1 tsp basil
    1/4 tsp pepper
    2 cans fire roasted diced tomatoes
    2 tsp honey
    4 cups chopped kale
    1/4 cup grated parmesan
    1 1/2 cups 2% cottage cheese
    8 oz pasta of your choice, preferably whole grain (I like rotelle or mafalda)

    Cook pasta. Brown ground beef and onion, drain. Add garlic & seasonings 1-2 min. Add tomatoes and honey, heat to a simmer. Add kale, cook @ 5 min. Stir in cheeses and pasta. Serve with a TB of finely shredded Italian cheese blend, if desired. 8 servings.

    This was so good and my 6 year old said, "This would even be good without the pasta!" I agree. Don't be afraid of the kale if you haven't tried it. I originally made this with spinach and was concerned I wouldn't like the kale as much- not an issue. Plus kale here is 99/bunch as opposed to 2.99/bag for the spinach.

    Thanks for the super recipe--that does sound good, easy with what's at home, and healthy! :)
    My easiest go-to for exercise is do 15-20 min. of arm exercises w. 3lb. weights while going on a 20-30 brisk walk, usually w. a child or two. :)

  • runningsahm
    runningsahm Posts: 208 Member
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    Homeschooling mom of 3 (3rd grade, 1st grade and Pre-K). I also babysit two under the age of 2. I have to admit I sometimes look at the moms that send their kids to school and wonder what they do with all their time?! =) I tend to use homeschooling and babysitting as an excuse for why I'm so tired and sleeping too late to work out. But honestly, I'm just not making myself a priority (yet). Joining MFP again after a much too long hiatus. I had previously gotten very close to my goal weight, but now I'm nearly 30 lbs up. =( Love to see so many other homeschooling families on here!
  • try2again
    try2again Posts: 3,562 Member
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    Hi runningsahm! The 3 kids and babysitting is kind of boggling my mind! I don't know how I could focus :p

    The homeschooling moms are truly busy- not a lot of action here! We're sort of limping in towards the end of May- my daughter's pretty much done (and well ahead anyway), the boy's going to have a couple of subjects we need to finish up over the summer, so no rush. We had an experiment in our lesson on the water cycle yesterday that I was really tickled with- turning salt water into fresh water. I know I never did that in school, and I've read books before about people being lost at see and distilling their own fresh water and have wondered, "How do people just know how to do that?" Now I know how to do that! (oh yeah, the boy too.) Bring on the shipwrecks! Never mind we live about as far from the ocean as you can get and don't plan to be traveling on or near one in the foreseeable future. ;)

    I just sort of cobbled a dinner together last night that I thought would be easy on my tummy since I'd been under the weather, but it was awesome and we'll have it again. It was just a stir-fry with the rope-type turkey sausage, green pepper (I skipped that), snap peas, bella mushrooms, and onions (skipped those too) w/ a side of cauliflower mashed potatoes. One of those happy accidents :)

    Hope everyone is having a good week!
  • Iwkido
    Iwkido Posts: 53 Member
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    We are homeschoolers too (3 kids and 1 2yo), and I find it very hard to find the motivation to move, when I haven't energy anymore.
  • try2again
    try2again Posts: 3,562 Member
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    Iwkido wrote: »
    We are homeschoolers too (3 kids and 1 2yo), and I find it very hard to find the motivation to move, when I haven't energy anymore.
    I can certainly relate! There are those days (you know the ones) where my husband comes through the door and all I want to do is climb in bed. But I'm finding if I go in my room (lock the door), put a favorite CD on loud enough to block out the kids' noise, and get on my exercise bike for about 20 minutes, I feel about a zillion times better afterward. :) Still crash after dinner, but whatever...

  • Lounmoun
    Lounmoun Posts: 8,426 Member
    edited May 2015
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    try2again wrote: »
    Lounmoun wrote: »
    try2again- Also in a small town rural area and collect recipes. :)

    I had the idea that I would not watch calories so much on Mother's Day but I ended up doing it anyway. I did go over a little but I had everything planned and logged in advance still. I took the day off of exercise though.

    My plan for today is to get dd to exercise with me. She was in a bad mood last night so maybe some more movement would help. Maybe I'll do some yard work if it is nice out.

    Yeah, "if" being the operative word there! We're going on day... I don't even know... of gray and cold :(

    My kids (6 & 9) like doing the Leslie Sansone videos sometimes with me- what do you guys do?

    Dd will do Leslie Sansone videos, Jessica Smith videos off of You Tube, and enjoys Just Dance or Walk It Out games for our Wii with me. Today is rainy again here so we did the Just Dance 4 game.
    Homeschooling mom of 3 (3rd grade, 1st grade and Pre-K). I also babysit two under the age of 2. I have to admit I sometimes look at the moms that send their kids to school and wonder what they do with all their time?! =) I tend to use homeschooling and babysitting as an excuse for why I'm so tired and sleeping too late to work out. But honestly, I'm just not making myself a priority (yet). Joining MFP again after a much too long hiatus. I had previously gotten very close to my goal weight, but now I'm nearly 30 lbs up. =( Love to see so many other homeschooling families on here!

    I also have wondered what parents of school kids do all day but it seems like they spend a lot of time getting their kids ready to go, packing lunches, driving here and there for sports, errands, extra laundry because their kid has to wear something different every day, picking them up, helping/supervising hours of homework, trying to do chores, getting kids to bed early, dealing with teacher meetings, holidays, inservice days, kids getting sick all the time, trying to spend time as a family. It looks exhausting compared to what we do.

    Do other homeschool families here find that their kids get sick less often than the school families you know?
    Iwkido wrote: »
    We are homeschoolers too (3 kids and 1 2yo), and I find it very hard to find the motivation to move, when I haven't energy anymore.

    I found it difficult for years when I wasn't getting enough sleep because dd had sleep issues. You can lose without exercise if you stick to your calorie goal. This time I set my exercise goal for about 30 minutes 6 days a week because I can fit that in my day. I've felt much more energetic after losing 22 pounds.

    I see some of you are finishing up for the school year. Anyone else homeschool year round?
  • kwfitgal
    kwfitgal Posts: 228 Member
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    So much wonderful interaction! I've been off being busy for a few days.

    @runningsahm: welcome! Hopefully you'll get some good motivation here! You could probably log a few cals for running after the 5 littles! But besides that, if you can even start with just 15 min of some kind of exercise, you will actually have MORE energy. :)

    @tryagain2: Salt water thing sounds like a good practical expt.--I take it that it went well!

    @lwkido: I ditto trayagain2's idea, that a little dose of daily exercise actually feels better that skipping it! Esp. nice if you can find something you can enjoy with your children.

    @lounmoun: We've had our share of medical issues here too...yes, it saps one's energy!! Hope your daughter is growing out of the sleep issues!

    Well, now I need to try to faithfully get in MY exercise! Have a good evening!
  • try2again
    try2again Posts: 3,562 Member
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    [/quote]


    Do other homeschool families here find that their kids get sick less often than the school families you know?

    [/quote]

    My son went to kindergarten in public school- pretty much came home with a new bug every other week or so. This past winter, I think they had 1 cold and they both had a 24 hr virus a few weeks ago. It wouldn't be so bad if so many parents didn't send their kids to school sick. When mine were/are sick, they stay home from all activities.

  • runningsahm
    runningsahm Posts: 208 Member
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    Sorry I been missing for a couple days. Still getting used to MFP and checking the notifications and such. I forgot about this thread since I posted!

    My oldest has a heart condition that he had repaired at a young age, so I am grateful to keep him home and away from the germs at public school. However, it's ironic that my middle daughter (healthy heart) is the one who catches most of the stuff going around. My oldest is the last to get sick, or sometimes missed it all together.

    I agree I feel so much better when I can get some exercise done in the morning before the kids wake up. Lately my problem seems to be my mind. I feel almost depressed. Sleeping - can't sleep enough - don't care about keeping up with dishes or laundry (which isn't like me normally) and watching too much tv and movies after the kids go to bed. I have a half marathon on Sunday which I didn't properly train for, so just going to try and finish it walking or otherwise. After I recover from that then I plan to start my morning routine and not let this beautiful weather and early sunlight go to waste.

    My kids want to train for a 5K in the fall, so we'll be running laps around the block if nothing else. =)

    I'm TERRIBLE at drinking water. Seriously maybe 20oz a day. So I know that would help with my energy and my appetite. We should do a water challenge!
  • try2again
    try2again Posts: 3,562 Member
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    Busy homeschool moms- you still out there? :)
  • faithngoodworks
    faithngoodworks Posts: 8 Member
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    Is there a group for homeschooling mama's?
  • try2again
    try2again Posts: 3,562 Member
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    Is there a group for homeschooling mama's?

    I could be wrong, but I thought this was the group- just an ongoing thread- but clearly no one has visited in a while. Maybe we should try to search the group listings. I'll chat with you, though :) How long have you homeschooled? What are your weight loss/fitness goals?
  • faithngoodworks
    faithngoodworks Posts: 8 Member
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    I just created one....Healthy & Fit Homeschool Mama's!
  • try2again
    try2again Posts: 3,562 Member
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    I just created one....Healthy & Fit Homeschool Mama's!

    That was easy :)
  • runningsahm
    runningsahm Posts: 208 Member
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    @faithngoodworks can you post a link? I still can't figure out how to search groups on MFP.
  • Lounmoun
    Lounmoun Posts: 8,426 Member
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    I'm still around. A group sounds like a great idea!