Rainy Day fun!!!

Potato Stamps!

This is such a simple,cheap,fun activity of mine! My own Mother introduced it to my brother and I when we were kids and then I carried it on through my years of babysitting,teaching,nannying....and as I was making potatoes the other day it dawned on me that Id never introduced it to my owm kiddos! So, when we found ourselves stuck at home today  on a gray rainy day, just perfect for some creativity...out came the potatoes! All you need for this is some potatoes,and some paint. The first part is for us Moms (or other adult).  Just halve your potatoes,  and then carve out some simple shapes into the center. I used a knife to trace out my shape and then hollow out the inside of the shape. I went with a heart,star,lightning bolt and what was supposed to be a flower,although the result was somewhat debatable. Thats the great thing about doing things with kids,they're very forgiving and easily impressed! Now,onto the fun! Choose a few fun paint colors,squeeze them out onto a paint pallet or even just right onto the paper you will be stamping on. Take your stamp,dip until the surface area is covered. You'll probably want to do a couple practice stamps to get the excess paint off...or just go with it! 😁 My kids favorite was using a combo of colors on one stamp. Hope you enjoy!

        I figured I would also share a couple of other simple fun ideas that cost little to no money while on the topic anyhow. Recently, in the dollar section of our local Target, we found this fun craft tape designed to look like a road. You can also find it at Craft stores. I did nothing other than stick two long, straight strips of the road tape onto my sons bedroom rug and then grabbed a couple of his matchbox cars and let the races begin!! It seems like such an obvious, old news sort of thing, but something about it being new made it so exciting to my son, and siblings can all join in of course! The laughter that ensued while racing Mommy was the best though....pure joy...worth the rug burn. 😂😂

Our all time top fav' though is DANCE PARTY!!!!  This is our go-to activity for sure! Ive always loved to dance,plus this way Mom gets a workout in while simultaneously entertaining everyone! All we do is turn Pandora or iHeart radio on the TV, find a good beat,crank it up and go crazy! Im sure we are quite the sight....and sound as we belt it out into our hairbrush mic's,but who doesnt love a good laugh right!? Its a blast! Its the ultimate way to get the energy out,burn some calories,pass the time and make memories that will not soon be forgotten. 😊 If you really wanna get creative,bring out the pots&pans&big spooons and start banging to the beat as you march in a parade. My kids like taking turns as parade leader and making our marching band parade upstairs and downstairs and in/out of rooms or on/off the couch! If the banging isnt your style, theres always simon says...dance version! Simon says "do the funky chicken" "now twist" and so on! Karaoke battle, pass the mic, lip sync contest, show your best moves, conga line, name that tune, the list goes on! If you have access to music you can pretty much be busy all day. 😁It entertains playdate friends as well. When it comes to dance party time its definitley the more the merrier! 

Of course being we homeschool Im always needing ways to keep learning happening in fun ways as well. For my youngest,he is still working on his preK skills,especially letter recognition and sounds. He instantly becomes much more into it if it involves a game,so we often do our "letter hunt" game. Choose a letter,or for us whichever letter his workbook is focusing on that day, and he hunts around the house for either the letter itself or items that begin with that letter. His sister likes to help out by following him around and making checkmarks on paper as he finds them. When we decide we are done he counts how many checks he got! Again, so simple and ordinary but they love it. 

We have so many more that Id love to share,but I dont want to make this blog post any longer! 😁😁 So, another time! Until then....keep it simple,keep it healthy and always keep it FUN!!

Grain free PB Muffins

Muffins!!! Ive always been a lover of baked goods,and Muffins top my list because they just make the perfect side kick to my morning cup-o-joe! But,sadly,as you know most premade,store bought muffins are full of sugar and other processed ingredients and preservatives. Even the gluten free versions some stores offer are most often the same. They simply swap the processed gluten containing grains for processed GF grains and still add in the sugar and preservatives. Plus,even when make yours with all fresh ingredients and cut the sugar and use alternatives,it just takes time,measuring,cleaning,etc. So,while thats fine once in a while, I also need a super quick,easy recipe using as few ingredients as possible that I can whip up in a pinch while still being grain free,protein packed,and HEALTHY!  This is just that! The simplest of all muffin recipes. 3 Ingredients!!

*Nut or Seed butter

*Bananas

*Eggs

These 3 ingredients are a solid base batter for any quick easy baked good. In The case of the muffins pictured above I went with Peanut butter chocolate chip! So I obviously used Peanut Butter. I personally used an all natural PB that already has flax amd chia seeds in it which as you all know....I love! Extra health and protein kick! The chocolate chips are optional,but I used super dark organic chocolate. 

I hate the clean up left after baking from using a bunch of seperate dishes and spoons to mix and measure and divide wet from dry. So.....I don't! I literally toss everything into my kitchen aid mixer all at once. For this easy a recipe I don't even measure anything!  The only measurement I will give you is to say that you will need at least 1egg for every 2 bananas you put in. Other than that it goes something like this: drop in 2 bananas, crack in an egg, scoop out "a bunch" of PB and mix! If I had to guess Id say I probably used about half the jar,but using more wont hurt,and using less will just make it a little more "gooey" and less bread like,but still tasty! 😁 Toss your Chocolate chips or whatever else you like in your muffins right in while mixing and you are all set! To avoid having to grease/scrub muffin pans I use cupcake liners. Simple! When Im done all I have to clean is my one Kitchen aid bowl...and a spoon! 

The variations of this recipe are endless so be creative according to your taste preferences. Using Peanut butter will definitley result in an obvious Peanut butter flavor,so if you arent a fan, I reccomend Cashew or Almond butter....or a combo of the two.If you dislike or need to avoid nuts all together you can use sunflower seed butter.  If you prefer things on the extra sweet side add in some honey or maple syrup.  For other flavors,try diced apple and cinnamon,or reduce the banana and swap it with apple butter/sauce. Berries are always delicious! Ive even done applesauce/shredded carrot & raisins with walnuts. Theres always shredded coconut and dried fruit....really whatever you can think up! Give it a try! 

(*As usual I bake at 350* until knife comes out clean)

Happy Muffin making to you!! 

Creamy PB-Banana-Chocolate popsicles

Creamy PB-BANANA-CHOCOLATE posicles

Sorry for the  delay in getting this recipe up here! In true "busy mom" style,I didnt have a free moment to sit down and type it out until just now. My trio of cuties and I had a great day enjoying the warm sunny weather we have all been longing for. Saying it was wonderful is an understatment for sure! We definitley made sure to take advantage of it today!!

Its actually this lovely weather that inspired the above frozen treats! I am a huge Ice Cream fan,and while I absolutely allow myself and the kids to indulge , if I can also make a healthified and delicious version to feel even better about eating than why not!? I also love that these are completely dairy free as well as having no refined sugar, which means my oldest daughter can partake of this yumminess as well without breaking her special diet!! Major plus! Ok,well enough chit chat....onto the recipe! The base of the recipe is nothing but Bananas...thats it....so simple! From there you can flavor as you like....I chose to go with Pb &chocolate because who wouldnt...right!? So, I started with the PB first by simply adding....you guessed it....Peanut Butter! Yep,just all natural unsweetened PB and some nice ripe bananas, blend/mix/mash together however you prefer (I used my kitchen aid mixer). I just kept adding in PB until I was satisfied with its flavor. Then I simply filled my popsicle molds about 1/2 - 3/4 of the way, leaving room for the chocolate layer. Next,I again used the base of bananas, this time adding in unsweetened cocoa powder and sweetening with a small amount of coconut sugar. You can just as easily use Raw honey,or maple syrup or stevia,or any.other alternative you like. I didnt measure....sorry I rarely do! Its the busy mom way...less dishes to wash and less steps to do. 😄 I just added,mixed,tasted...repeat until you are happy! Thats it!! Although, as usual I couldnt resist adding in just a little extra something healthy. I went with half an avacado and tossed it into the chocolate batch while mixing. This is entirely optional so do as you like! Just pop into freezer and by the next day you have yourself a decadent,creamy,rich and tasty treat you feel good about indulging in! I even rolled mine in Coconut today after it melted just a bit. Yummmmm..... My kids ate them all up in one day,so safe to say they are a keeper. 😉 As a side note,if popsicle style isnt your thing,this recipe works perfectly as an "ice cream" alternative as well. I put whatever didnt fit into my molds into a reusable plastic container with lid and actually ate it for breakfast. I find there is just never a bad time for IceCream! 😁😁

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Banana-Nut Date bread

   Today was a Banana bread day,seeing as how I bought a massive quantity of bananas during this weeks grocery trip! Plus, banana based baked goods are my favorite since they rarely ever need any extra sweetener, and are extremely simple to make. I can easily toss all the ingredients into my mixer,mix them all at once and then pour into my baking dish and pop into oven to bake while Im busy cleaning house or whatever else we have going on.
    I dont really have one specific Banana bread recipe I stick with, and I change it up often and usually adapt whatever recipe Im using anyhow depending on what I have in stock. Todays recipe was based off of a grain free recipe I have in a book and as usual I made my own changes in the flour used, doubled the bananas, changed the oil used, omitted the extra sweetener and replaced butter with avacado to make it dairy free,plus I threw in chia seeds for extra nutrients and protein. After all my changes the recipe is as follows:

1/4 cup Coconut oil
2Eggs
2Bananas
1tsp Vanilla
2Tbs Avacado
3Cups grain free flour (in my case it was half   cashew / half almond)
1tsp Baking Soda
1/2tsp Salt
1Cup chopped dates (I didnt measure,i just       chopped up a handful
*optional-couple handfuls of Chia seeds
*optional-chopped walnuts (I only sprinkled sliced almonds over top)
*optional- if you prefer things very sweet you can add raw honey. Original recipe calls for 1/2cup,but I omitted this all together! For me,by adding a second banana versus the 1 called for,plus the dates it is plenty sweet.

I baked it at 350 for probably 30min,just watch for the edges browned and test center with a knife.

Give it a try! Never be afraid to go ahead and make your own personal changes to suit your own taste and preference.

Choco-Coffee-Banana Donuts

CHOCO-COFFEE-BANANA Donuts
         Is your mouth watering already!? 😉 well, I won't keep you waiting..... The recipe,as it was shared with me is posted below, so go right ahead.....start baking! 😁
       In the meantime, I will share with you the slight variations I made to the recipe and baking method due to the fact that this Busy Mom was working with what she had so as to avoid a second trip out with kids in tow on this rainy,dreary,wear pajamas sort of day we are having here!
      So, first of all the recipe calls for Coconut flour, which not only did I not have, but,if you read my previous blog on baking favorites you would know that I personally have an aversion to Coconut flour. I'm actually betting based on the flavors in this recipe and the small amount of flour needed that I wouldn't mind the coconut flour for this, but being I didn't have it, I went ahead and substituted Almond flour. I did also add in just a small dash of Tapioca flour for texture, but if you are eating strictly Paleo style you can simply skip that. It isn't necessary.
      Ok, so made the flour swap,and then it was onto my next issue. I do not have a food processor! It's on my list of kitchen gadgets I desperately need to get, but for today all I had to work with was a cheap blender. To make this work, I had to ignore the directions given to process together just the dates,banana and honey. My cheap blender was not about to blend them up without the addition of some wet ingredients to get it spinning. No problem, I simply tossed in ALL the ingredients together, all at once, and then pulsed the blender until the dates chopped up enough to keep it going on low speed and let it whip into a smooth batter. It actually wound up perfect and even better than if I'd had the processer , because of my third and final issue......Donut pan! I don't have one of those yet either and the store I ran out to didn't have one either. However, they did have the most adorable little mini donut press. It's essentially a waffle maker that produces mini donut shaped treats versus waffle shaped. It's used the exact same way.    Now, being I had used a blender for my batter, it worked to my benefit because all I had to do was simply pour the batter right from blender pitcher into the donut press molds, close and wait. Due to the grain free gooey batter I found that I needed to leave them in for 2 cooking cycles before removing. I did this until all the batter was used up. For the donuts with edges that had overflowed a bit, I used  my handy dandy kitchen scissors to trim them up quickly.  This part is what took the most time as my donut press only makes 4 mini donuts at a time. I will definitely be investing in some large sized donut pans so that next time I can bake a couple large batches all at once,but I do love my cute little donut maker!
           Onto frosting time..... I just grabbed whatever dark chocolate bits we had left and used our make shift double boiler, a.k.a.- glass dish over a pot of boiling water! Let it melt and tossed in some coffee grounds.I only had French vanilla, but it gave it a nice extra flavor! I only dipped one side of my donuts since I was low on chocolate, but next time I'm definitely going for completely chocolate coated. One quick dip for each donut and then my son requested sprinkles, so while not Paleo friendly, we sprinkled some pretty blue sugar across half the batch. Sometimes a little sprinkle is just neccessary! 😉 They didn't last very long as they were most definitely kid tested and approved here. We Especially loved them after they had cooled in the refridgerator for a few minutes because the chocolate coffee dip hardened back up and made a delicious shell coating over top!
            Just as a side note, as a few other options. This batter would also make some super delicious waffles if you have a waffle maker, or pancakes in the frying pan,
or even mini bundt cakes, so just adapt it to whatever your kitchen is stocked with and ENJOY!!!

Focus on the positive...

  So, I shared this quote on my Instagram page a few days ago with the promise of an upcoming blog entry about how my unique journey has taught me how to do just as it says. Well.... Here it comes! 😀 Keep reading...

    I will preface this entry by saying that as I've mentioned before, I am usually, in all honesty, just winging it as I go. That's just my own personal style and what works best for my own Uniquely busy life! So, you may notice that I can be long winded, full of many words, and a tendency to ramble on. I am literally writing what I'm thinking at the very moment I'm writing it, and going whatever direction my thoughts begin to lead me. I am,in the very true sense, sharing my very thoughts and feelings out loud as I go. It's one of the reasons writing is in its own way always been a therapeutic outlet for me. I'm not one to often discuss my struggles out loud. I usually reason them out with myself, in my own head, give myself a pep talk and continue on with no one really being much the wiser. It's just my way. Don't get me wrong, I am an open book if one should start asking me about my life. I never mind sharing information that may in any way help those on a similar journey as my family or discussing how we have dealt with the negative aspects. It's just that I dont typically like to dwell on the negative aspects of our situation myself because as is quoted above, I do my very best to focus on the positive and not let myself get caught up in the things that are beyond my control. Those things are just small, though sometimes unpleasant, minor details that I refuse to let take control of my overall story. It doesn't mean they don't get me down at times, or that I never have moments of feeling  completely overwhelmed , but I do my best to take a breath, refocus and remember that one bad moment doesn't have to mean a bad day and one bad day doesn't make a bad week, and some bad times dont make a bad life.

     However, that being said, I am going to relay some details about a recent day, not necessarily all that uncommon,or even all that rough in comaprison to others, in effort to help drive home my point of how my unique journey has made those above quoted words so strong in me. I apologize for the unpleasant details I am about to share, but if I'm going to be completely raw, honest, and REAL....well, this is my life....some days, not all! 😜

      Last week, we will say Tuesday, though my brain has issues keeping days straight so who knows! Anyhow, Tuesday was just an ordinary day, with ordinary plans of breakfast, schoolwork, cleaning and play, nothing major. I woke up late because for some reason I've been having insomnia last couple weeks. It was fairly quiet when I awoke, which I chose to enjoy instead of dragging myself out of bed to go get the kids and start our day right away. This plan often backfires on me, and I should've known better ....really I did, but I chose to ignore it! My oldest daughter, as many of my readers already know has complex special needs due to diagnosis of Angelman Syndrome which has meant that many many skills and milestones have been extremely delayed due to motor control, balance and coordination, and processing issues in addition to being non verbal and dealing with difficult to treat seizures. This includes a delay in self help skills such as toileting. One of the largest victories our choice to begin homeschooling has brought is in that exact area.....3yrs ago we said goodbye to daytime pull ups  finally at the age of 7, and now only use nighttime pull ups for sleep because that unfortunately is a  little ways off still.....  though we WILL get there! Well, all this now explained, back to Tuesday morning
....I woke up late, and while having made huge progress, I'm aware that my daughter is still prone to some issues with "holding it" and this is especially true in the late morning as she requires me to come and get her out of her room and assist her downstairs. Well, basically upon my arrival at her bedroom door, I instantly knew it was one of those mornings, an accident had occurred and let's just delicately say that it was not all "contained." Sorry again, but that's our reality some days.  Anyhow, this isn't all too uncommon or new to me after many, many occurrences during younger years,although it is becoming much more infrequent,dare I even say very rare. I simply grabbed the sheet and blankets surrounding her (thanks to one of my Mom tricks of double layering the bed for such happenings)wrapped them around her and carried her downstairs to the tub where I unwrapped , threw the sheet and blankets into washer and quickly sprayed her down in the shower before letting her unwind and
relax herself (she is obviously uncomfortable when this occurs& I do me best to not embarrass her or make her feel guilt when she cannot always control it) in her most favorite Bubble bath! I washed myself up, and continued on as usual....onto breakfast making! The morning went by uneventfully as I got completely caught up in cleaning and organizing the kids rooms upstairs as they played. I should've been paying more attention to my daughters non verbal signals, but I was so distracted I didn't. I should've realized how much time had passed and made myself stop what I was doing and bring her to the bathroom regardless, but I didn't. (Looking back in retrospect, she had been subtly signaling me, but I thought she was just trying to trick me into stopping what I was doing and bring her downstairs to eat, as she does this often. It was not her fault, and I apologized profusely to her later on! )   So, much to my dismay I was called into my middle daughters room who had an idea what had occurred, and  discovered that another "accident" had happened  and shall I just say the carpet was slightly affected this time. (Again, I'm sorry to share these unpleasant details, but I'm doing so to express my point which I will soon share.) My cleaning project had to be put on hold for this new one, and I again simply carried her downstairs, into the bath for her and into the washer for the clothes. As for the carpet, nothing some detergent, baking soda and a shop vac couldn't easily fix. (try it! For heavy soils, simply wash as usual and then coat the area with generous amount of baking soda and allow it to sit for a couple hours before vacuuming it up. It absorbs all the moisture and odor for a deep clean!) The house at this point was full of a bunch of half finished cleaning projects as well as
new messes that had been made as I was attempting to finish the others, but it was lunch time by now so I made something quick for the kids, swept up beneath my daughter for probably the 5th or 6th time already that day as she leaves a trail of crumbs everywhere she goes. She still uses mainly her hands to self feed and I often allow her to roam about while doing so as it keeps her busy while I am busy! That's what brooms are for anyway right!? Since I'd been cleaning all morning, I decided we should probably get some school work done, so the half done projects had to wait a little longer, and we moved into our classroom to grab our books. My middle daughter sat and did whatever pages she could manage without my help, and my youngest sat tracing his letters, meanwhile I decided to try a fairly complicated multi step Math word problem with my oldest just to assess where she may be with that. Homeschooling has been an absolutely amazing, eye opening discovery for us when it comes to my daughters abilities and we are constantly left in awe and shock as we continue to discover how much is going on inside her brain all these years. I'm only just beginning to scratch the surface and find ways to let her finally show us , which will be an entirely seperate blog post of its own in the future. We have learned that she has processing issues and requires much more
time than an average person to sort through her thoughts and then control her body enough to express them. Well, fast forward probably half an hour after I read her the math problem aloud and explained what it was asking, I sat her back down with the same problem in front of her, and took out her iPad and pulled up the page on her communication app with numbers. I asked her to go ahead and answer if she knew it. I will leave the details of how this works for another time....the fact of the matter is she answered it! It was correct! At that moment the chaotic, mess filled day and feelings of disappointment and set back completely disappeared! That one single moment made the day amazing, awesome, worthy of celebration, and cause for joy!
     What does any of this rambling about my day have to do with you and your life or with anything really !? It's all back to that quote at the beginning " take life day by day, and be grateful for the little things. Don't get caught up on what you can't control. Focus on the positive." That's it. THAT is exactly what my Unique journey with my daughter has taught me. No, life is most definitely NOT
always easy, or pleasant, and it can be messy, chaotic, disorganized, disruptive and catch you off guard at times. Sometimes I'll admit these moments and days get the best of me and I feel
overwhelmed with setbacks and it seems as if everything Id been working on is lost and we have taken a giant step backwards. Often times the pressure of knowing I am the main one in charge of the teaching and caretaking can begin to weigh on me. But, the thing is if  stop and think about it for a moment I realize that
had we not come so far forward, we wouldn't have had any backwards steps to take in the first place would we!? Sometimes when days seem full of complaints, and rightfully so most times, I remind myself that the very things I am complaining about are among the very same things that I once only hoped for.  In my case, it may be complaining and being upset over the "accidents" that occurred  after so long without any. I stop and I remind myself that just a few years ago an occasional "accident" seemed like a dream and my daughter doing Math of any sort would've been met with complete disbelief and doubt. If I  were to only focus on the setbacks and the cant's and the bad moments scattered amongst all the wonderful ones, then I'd miss just that. I'd miss all the wonderful beautiful and amazing moments. Those moments are the moments that matter and the only ones that count in the end. I realize that sometimes the tough moments and set backs are not within my control. Often times they are not even within my daughters control as she deals with a body and brain that do not always cooperate together and seizures and medications that can sometimes impair her ability to think as clearly on certain days. My heart breaks for her for those reasons, but I do my best to teach her by example that it's quite alright to make mistakes and have a bad day,and to just move on and enjoy the good times! After all she is the very one who has taught me just that! The moments I am ever so grateful for. To be honest, if not for the difficult moments I might not be as grateful for all the others, and for that lesson learned I am thankful. I know, after having gone through what we have been through with our daughter, that an accident to clean, or a messy house, or a chaotic day of appointments,or even weeks full of setbacks, out of sorts children,cranky days, and the like are nothing in the big picture. They are in fact a far cry from even being counted among the worst times. Trust me, as cliche as it may sound, I am well aware that "it could always be worse." I've had worse! Yet even then I realize it still could've been worse. We have had many scares over the years, and because of them I appreciate just how much worse things could be, and how quickly it can happen. Its because of this that I know the value of taking things a day at a time, enjoying the good moments within each day, and taking a deep breath and refocusing during the bad moments.
       That's that! My wisdom for  today, my pep talk to myself mainly, but if sharing it aloud can help anyone else...than why not! Really, even though I applied it mainly to my journey of raising a child with special needs, it can be adapted to apply to any situation in life and not just for Moms, but for Dads, and even those without children. Regardless of what difficult moment you may be going through, always remember to take it a day at a time. Find beauty in each day. Focus on the positive and try hard not to worry too much about the things that are not within your control. There is nothing you can do to change some things, and worrying over them will only stop you from enjoying what you can!

Favorite Baking essentials!

These are a few of my favorite things! 😊
   Wednesday is Grocery Shopping day around here, and today was time to stock back up on a few of my favorite healthy baking essentials so I can start sharing some goodies with you all! 😉 Having gone pretty much Gluten free myself in addition to my oldest being Gluten free,dairy free and sugar free, Ive experimented a lot with alternative flours and sweetners and recipes. My younger daughter loves  to help me bake and all three love to help lick the bowl and eat the finished goods, so finding recipes that suit all our dietary needs and taste buds is a must! Most recipes I tried at the beginning were made mainly with Almond and/or coconut flour. Now,dont get me wrong,those are both wonderful options for healthified grain free baking,but there is something about Coconut flour that I have just never been a fan of. I am a huge Coconut crazy fanatic when it comes to everything else from coffee flavor to chocolates to drinks....you name it, but not the flour! Its a combo of the taste and texture and I find it difficult to bake with. Almond flour I do much better with, but still feel Almond flour used alone can crumble and sometimes have a noticeable unique flavor,which is a good flavor,but one that differs from regular flour. My goal is usually to produce a product that tastes as close to the gluten filled,less healthy version we all know! So.....Ill let you in on my personal opinion secret...Cashew flour!!! Yep,thats it,cashew flour is my very favorite gluten/grain free baking base of all!! Cashews themselves are a very mild tasting nut and therefore the flour basically takes on whatever flavors you bake with. The texture can tend to be a bit grainy, which no one here seems to mind much and I often use the cashew flour solo.However, I have found that if Im really going for the ultimate in texture,chewiness ,and a product that stays together best, my favorite go to flour combo is a mix of mainly Cashew flour,then some almond flour and then last and also least,just a small bit of tapioca flour, which is what helps in giving it a chewy texture and holds it together even better. I dont use an exact ratio,since winging it is just how I roll! I just simply use them in the order listed from most to least until it adds up to the amount of flour called for. I know there are supposed to be different amounts used when working with alternative flours versus regular flour, but Ive always just  used the same amount regardless. We often use regular ol' recipes and simply swap the flour for my GF flour of choice.Its really that simple! No need to find a special cookbook with GF recipes. As for where to find these flours, well as you can see in my photo I buy a bag of raw cashews (found easily at Shop Rite and Trader Joes) &I quickly pop them into food processer or blender! It only takes an extra couple minutes of your time. For the almond flour you can do the same,but I find this one much easier to find premade and usually go with Bobs red mill brand or find it sometimes at Trader Joes. The same goes for the tapioca. This one is actually super affordable so I buy Bobs red mill most often from whatever grocery store I'm at, usually Shop Rite, and since I use so little it lasts a long while. Nut butters can also be used should you run short on the flour. I usually have almond and/ or cashew butter on hand, which I find at Trader Joes most often. Peanut butter will work, but will definitely give a Peanut butter flavor, so is best reserved for delicious PB cookies! Almond butter works  amazingly well in brownie recipes! The oil in the butter leaves them super moist.                              
     So, now we have the Gluten gone and the perks of extra protein and health punch from the nuts....but, Sugar is always an issue when baking, and my oldest cannot eat processed sugar. So, I use a variety of other sweeteners and greatly reduce the overall amount as well. This can take some experimenting and getting used to,but is so worth it when you can enjoy muffins, cookies,breads and desserts without the guilt! Again, I usually find a combo of sweetners works best. When using a regular recipe book I will usually go with Coconut Palm sugar and put about half the amount called for and then add in a couple Tbs of either Raw honey or real Maple syrup as well. That usually turns out sweet enough for us! In many breads using Bananas I find that sweeteners arent even neccessary at all!
   Well, now we have no gluten,no processed sugar, and Im left with just the dairy issue. However, recently Ive started letting my daughter have small amounts of Grass fed butter when baked into things and she seems to be tolerating it just fine.This is a huge help because really,for some things,nothing beats butter!! I made the switch from regular butter to Kerrigold grass fed butter and the taste difference is amazing!!! The creaminess of grass fed butter in addition to its extra health benefits are just awesome.Im in love!! But,should you need to avoid dairy all together you can replace it with equal amounts coconut oil or avacado.
   Thats that! Those are the basics for how we healthify most of our baked goods, after that its all in the flavors added in as well as sometimes tossing in some flax,chia or hemp seeds, or nuts for extra health punch! It really doesnt require any extra special methods or time. It is a bit more costly,but once you are stocked up it lasts a while and you eventually find what stores have what for best deals. Ocean State job lot sells Bobs red mill brand often for decent prices and Trader Joes is great for many specialty products. Ive also heard many prefer to buy in bulk through Amazon or Thrive market which I plan on looking into.
    Being we are a family of 5 with big appetites and tight budget Im all about balance and just doing the best we can at the moment. So,that means its not always going to be organic and some things may sometimes come in cans and plastic, but I make it as healthy as possible given the circumstances.I get as close as I can,but Im not going to lie,as much as I love all things natural and am a health food  
fanatic,I also prefer to leave some room in the budget for a night out or two! I may love to cook,but
not every night. This busy Mom does enjoy eating out as well!😉😁
 I hope you found some helpful baking tips amd alternatives!! Stay tuned for some upcoming recipes too.
   

About me: The Uniquely busy Mom.

Hello! Welcome to my blog. I'm so very excited to be starting this up and hope in just a little time I have it mastered. Until then, please bear with me as I learn to navigate this blog site and editing process. I am literally learning this as I go.
   So, a little about me, I am a full time homeschooling Mom of three little ones ages 10,7&5. My oldest daughter Brinley has complex special needs as well as Epilepsy due to a diagnosis of Angelman Syndrome.(Neuro-Genetic disorder caused by a deletion on one of her chromosomes resulting in Lack of Speech, motor control and balance issues, global delays, and in most cases seizures.) Due to her special needs I became very involved in helping support her health through diet and nutrition by means of a GFCFSF diet style and learning how to implement this into our daily life.So, yes, life has definitely thrown us a few curveballs and taken us down quite a different path than we had anticipated, but never the less, my goal has always been to keep our Uniquely Busy life as close to average,everyday,typical Mom life as possible.
      Of course, being as BUSY a Mom as I am, I'm all about keeping it simple while keeping it healthy and always keeping it fun! I've discovered some great "Mom hacks" along the way that make you appear to be SuperMom while requiring nothing more than average ol' Mom skill.😜
     Most of the time, to be honest, I'm just winging it one day at a time and doing my best to enjoy our creative chaos as we go along in our own "healthified" style. I've always had a love of creative writing, enjoyed cooking,baking and nutrition since before I was a Mother, so I figured what better way to keep the creative juices flowing than to incorporate them into my daily Mom life! I am simply doing what I love and choosing to share it with all of you!  I look forward to writing about my many adventures on this Uniquely busy journey, easy recipes and tricks for "healthifying" everything, homeschool tips and project ideas, raising a child with special needs, and everything else pertaining to life here in the Mom hood. 😁I hope you enjoy!