Fit Friday...Skinny Strawberry Cheesecake Snack!

 

Welcome back to Fit Friday at Blue Skies Ahead!!  I know, I got you all excited about Fit Friday posts, did one...and then NONE since :)  I have continued my quest to get fit, and its going great!  I've dropped about 25 lbs and have 10 more to go before I reach my goal.  The hardest part is definitely waking up at 5 every morning (or earlier!) to get to the gym, but once I'm on the road I love it!

Today I wanted to share a really yummy snack I came up with the other day.  

I think snacking healthy is THE hardest thing for me when I am trying to lose weight.  I do great on my meals all throughout the day...but then dessert time hits and I want to eat that yummy stuff that everyone else is eating!  The obvious solution is to have EVERYONE in the house eating healthy stuff, and this quick, simple dessert was something the entire family enjoyed.

Skinny Strawberry Cheesecake Snack!

This is ridiculously simple.  I just made a box of sugar free, fat free Cheesecake pudding.  Then I added a few strawberries and a couple of graham crackers for the "crust" :)   The kids LOVED dipping the strawberries and graham crackers, and I loved feeling like I got a yummy treat like everybody else. Plus...cheesecake IS my all-time favorite, so this was a pretty good substitute :) 

For a 1/2 cup of pudding, 2 graham crackers, and a couple of strawberries you are just over 100 calories!

So please share...what are some yummy snacks you treat yourself and your family to when you are trying to GET FIT?! :)

King Benjamin Family Home Evening {Following the Prophet}

 Hello everybody!!

It took me a few months, but we finally got back to our scheduled FHE's, picking up where we left off in the Book of Mormon.  This week we learned all about King Benjamin and the things he taught his people.  We also used it as an opportunity to review one of my favorite talks from General Conference, and encourage the our family to strive harder to follow the prophet.

We started off with this fun printable I threw together.

Haha!  I know, the Keep Calm signs are totally overdone...but I still thought it was cute :)

Then we read the story of King Benjamin from the Book of Mormon Stories.  We really tried to focus on some of the specific things King Benjamin taught his people, like teaching them of the coming of the Savior, teaching the parents to help their children learn to be obedient and to not argue, and teaching them to serve.  We spent a few minutes talking about how as the people listened, they felt the Holy Ghost in their hearts confirming the truthfulness of these teachings.  Because of that feeling...they NO longer wanted to sin!  We talked about how we should be striving to feel that way, not only NOT sinning....but losing all desire to as well.

Then we talked about how back then, the families had to come all the way to King Benjamins tower to hear him speak and teach.  They came in their tents and turned them toward the King.  I told the kids we were going to be as the Nephites...and turn our tent toward one of our modern day prophets, and hear what we needed to be taught.

I think its time for a new/bigger tent! ;)

The kids all piled in and we pulled up Elder Scott's talk from the last General Conference.  It is entitled For Peace at Home...and it was one of my favorites!  I loved how he spoke to the children, and listed specific things we need to be doing to have a Christ-centered home...the true way to have peace.

After a long day of fighting, grumpiness and exhaustion from ALL of us, I am always searching for ways to have just a little bit more peace :)

After the talk we discussed how important it is to follow the prophets.  And the only way you can follow what they say...is if you KNOW what they have taught.  We talked about the importance of gaining a testimony of the prophet...and once you have it, to sustain him not ONLY with your hand...but with your actions as well.

Honestly, this was one of our tougher family nights.  The baby was screaming, the two-year old thought it was hilarious to run and jump on the outside of the tent squishing everyone inside, and the 8 year old was crying about her sunburn :)  

BUT!

The next morning the kids were fighting and Britton said..."Don't you remember what we learned last night?!  We aren't supposed to fight...the prophet said!" :)  So maybe, just MAYBE, its sort of working a little bit somehow :)