Category: breakfast

breakfast, brunch, family, fitness, food, health, healthy, healthy food, life, motivation, workout

Birthday Presents, A Fitness Challenge Update, Some Exciting News, And Tasty Food

caffeinatedcarly

Hi, everyone!! How has your weekend been?! Mine has been great. Friday was my birthday and I was beyond spoiled!

I wanted to share some of the goodies I got.

A movie gift card and adorable shirt from my mom! She also treated me to half the cost of my hair color earlier this month.

My oldesr brother and his family sent me a huge gift basket full of snacks and other fun treats. It was such a surprise!

Glasses, candles, a bracelet, and a Starbucks gift card! These were from my girlfriends.

My middle brother paid for my winery meal last weekend.

The hubs is taking me to a Reds game (baseball) this spring! I’m pumped. He also got me the cutest card and cooked a delicious dinner!

On Saturday morning, I actually had an interview for Vipkid. The job is teaching English to kids in China. You set up a classroom and teach through a webcam.

Well, the exciting news came that evening…I GOT THE JOB! I am so excited to start!!!

After the interview and a workout, my husband and I had brunch at Scramblers. It was SO good!

Dinner was literally ice cream from Greaters. Not even sorry.

We watched Thor after our ice cream, then went to bed.

FITNESS CHALLENGE UPDATE:

I have been doing a group fitness challenge at my gym. Whoever has the most classes in a certain amount of time gets a gym bag full of goodies. I’m currently tied for second. Time to double up classes! I took yoga tonight and it was worth 2 points….score!

SUNDAY:

We went to church this morning, cleaned, and grocery shopped. I’ve also been getting things turned in for my new job.

My mother in law came over for dinner! It was fun catching up with her!

Chicken parm and a salad kit. YUM!!

Sorry for all of the ramblings! Haha.

Have a great week, everyone!

With love,

Carly

breakfast, coffee, cookies, date, friendship, life

Let’s Have A Saturday Coffee Date

caffeinatedcarly

Hello all you wonderful people! How is your weekend treating you so far? I am currently cuddled up with my kitties and drinking coffee. I always see people do the post “If We Were Having Coffee…” and I wanted to do my own version!

So…onto our coffee date!

  1. First, I would ask, “How are you doing?” Listening is just as important as sharing, and I consider myself an excellent listener.
  2. Next, I would tell you that it is almost my birthday! I am turning 29 on March 23rd. I am not 100 percent at the place I thought my life would be, but I am pretty darn lucky. I mean would you just look at this handsome guy I get to be married to! FB_IMG_1520688020538.jpg
  3. I want to share that I am struggling with where I am going in my career. I am considering going back to school, but for some reason the thought scares me a bit. I graduated college years ago, but since I want more out of life, I know it would be a good decision to get back at it. Ahhh!!
  4. I would tell you that my journey with pregnancy isn’t all I thought it would be. It has been hard, and filled with tears and MANY negative pregnancy tests. I never thought it would be this way, full of medicine and constant blood draws, but I will say that it is part of my journey, and I am learning to accept that.
  5. I would share a new friend with you!!! Blogging has become a passion of mine, and we should all lift each other up. I met a new friend, Elle, over at http://labeaute.org/ and her blog is seriously awesome. I have been going through her posts and I just love what she is about.

Just look at what her about me says…

“LaBeaute.org is your daily dose of all things beautiful. Not just in fashion and beauty, but it’s all about the beautiful things in life. My true passion is inspiring and empowering women, so by creating this blog, I hope to give as much inspiration and motivation to other women out there seeking confidence in life.”

We just celebrated International Women’s Day, and I hope to continue lifting my fellow bloggers up! Here are a few of my favorite posts:

http://labeaute.org/casual-spring-outfit-ideas/

http://labeaute.org/3-simple-ways-to-find-serenity-in-your-life/

I hope you check her out!

6. I would definitely share some of my healthy chocolate peanut butter protein cookies with you, especially because they go amazing with coffee. I made them fresh this morning, and had a yogurt and nuts to go along with breakfast!

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7. Last, I would give you a big hug (because I’m a hugger) and say goodbye!

Have an amazing rest of your weekend!

With love,

Carly

breakfast, food, healthy, healthy food, weekend

Weekend Wrap Up-Sweet And Savory Breakfast Pizza And A B-day Wish

caffeinatedcarly

Hey there, everyone! I hope you all have had a great weekend. Ours has been fairly uneventful, but there is nothing wrong with a low key weekend! I figured I would just highlight some things.

When I got home from work on Friday I had a package on my porch. It was a dress I ordered for our anniversary dinner. I loved it as soon as I tried it on! 

What do you think?!

SATURDAY:

When I woke up it was snowing! I swear our weather went from summer to winter, which bums me out. Still feeling a touch under the weather, I relaxed by our fireplace for a while. 

My husband and I went to the gym a little later in the day, then spent the rest of the day/evening at home watching football and Stranger Things. 

SUNDAY:

I was super hungry this morning so I decided to make a breakfast pizza! I did half savory and half sweet. 

To make the crust I used flatout bread sprayed with cooking spray and baked at 350 degrees F for 7 minutes. 

For the savory side, I topped it with sweet potatoes (cooked in coconut oil), pepperjack cheese, a fried egg, and hot sauce.

For the sweet side, I topped it with cashew butter, cocoa nibs, honey, and cinnamon. 

YUM!!!! 

The rest of the day has been spent cleaning and grocery shopping. We plan on carving our pumpkin before dinner, then we will watch more Stranger Things before The Walking Dead comes on.

Now, onto a super special birthday wish!! My dad would have turned 67 today. He passed away in 2012 and I miss him more than I will ever be able to write in words. He was strong, smart, funny, and just a hell of a guy.

Cheers to you, daddy. 

I love you to Heaven and back. 

Thanks for reading, friends! 

Have a wonderful evening!

With love, 

Carly

breakfast, healthy, protein waffles

Coffee Protein Waffles And Random Happiness 

caffeinatedcarly

Good morning, everyone!! How has your week been so far? I have been realizing lately how much the little things make me happy. I have been taking a step back and noticing a whole lot of blessings in my life. I am a lucky gal! I hope I can spread some joy to you all today!

HAPPINESS LIST

  • Our bedroom being all set up! My husband has worked so hard to get it together and I love it SO much!

Dinner with my mom and best friend. Great food and conversation with two of my favorite people.
Starbucks! Coffee, tea, and spending time with by best friend and her two little ones.


My cats. If you have pets you just get it. They are family and make me smile daily. I love them!!

  • Pool days with my niece and nephews 
  • Watching my favorite shows with my husband
  • Family 
  • Blogging 
  • Waffles…which leads me into the next big reason for this post…

I woke up with a craving for waffles this morning! I love using my favorite protein powder to make a ton a recipes and as usual, it did not disappoint!! 

INGREDIENTS:

  • 1 scoop of protein powder (I used idealshake chocolate peanut butter)
  • 1 egg
  • 1 packet of instant coffee (I used Starbucks via instant coffee)
  • 1/4 tsp baking powder
  • 2 TBSP of almond milk (or milk of choice)
  • Any toppings you like (I used honey and almond butter)

DIRECTIONS:

  • Heat waffle iron until hot.
  • Mix all ingredients in a medium bowl until smooth. 
  • Spray waffle iron with cooking spray. 
  • Pour batter into waffle iron and cook until fluffy (mine cooked super quick so make sure you check early)
  • Remove waffle and top with desired toppings!
  • Enjoy!!

I topped mine with honey! I added almond butter after I started eating because I love the taste of it mixed with honey!!

There you have it! Easy and tasty!!! I hope you guys enjoy! Also, please share what is making you happy lately! 

Have a great day!

With love, 

Carly 

breakfast, coffee, healthy, parfait

Coffee Almond Breakfast Parfait With Protein Cookie Balls

caffeinatedcarly

Good morning, everyone! I was woken up WAY too early today. My husband’s phone went off at 6am and I just could not go back to sleep. Oh well! At least I get to sit around for a while. That is the best part of Saturdays for me. Coffee, fun breakfasts, and laying around with my husband. Do you guys have any fun weekend plans? Today we are painting our bedroom, then we talked about going for a jog to the park by our house and playing some basketball. I love getting weekend workouts in with my husband, especially when we have some friendly competition.

I have so much to look forward to that I just have to share.

  • 9 days left with the kiddos and then it will be summer break! WHOO HOO! I truly will miss the kids, but I have to be honest and say that I am ready for summer.
  • My trip to Nashville! My co-worker and I are taking a mini, end of the year, Nashville trip to visit my cousin. I CAN’T WAIT. I am a country music lover, and am so excited to explore the city more. If you have any suggestions of what to do there, I am open to ideas!
  • Gun Lake! My husband’s family has a huge lake vacation in Michigan and we always have a BLAST! Boating, drinking, games, family, friends and so much laughter happen there and I am so ready! FB_IMG_1495287129220
  • Outer Banks, North Carolina! This is my family’s summer vacation every year and I must say it is one of my favorite places to be. We have so many irreplaceable memories there. My dad looked so forward to planning this every year, and he always did the best job. After he passed in 2012, we scattered his ashes along the beach. My husband proposed to me on the beach as well. Part of my soul is there.FB_IMG_1495287366212

Okay, so back to the reason you are here: Breakfast! I eat a lot of yogurt because it is filling and you can do so much with it. Having it plain is fine, but boring, so I came up with this delicious, filling parfait to fuel your morning. The parfait itself is so simple! The only thing that takes some prep is the cookie balls (but they are worth it)!!

The cookie balls are made from the same recipe as my cookie cups, just prepared a little differently.

INGREDIENTS:

For the parfait:

  • One container of Oikos triple zero coffee flavored greek yogurt
  • 2 Tbsp of almonds
  • 1 Tbsp of chia seeds
  • 3 chocolate peanut butter protein balls

For the protein balls:

  • 1 scoop of chocolate peanut butter protein powder (I used idealshake)
  • 1 egg
  • 1 cup of oats
  • 1/4 cup of melted coconut oil
  • 2 Tbsp of dark chocolate chips

To cook the protein balls:

  1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F
  2. Mix all ingredients into a bowl
  3. Form little balls with your hands and place on a baking sheet with cooking oil
  4. Bake for 10 minutes
  5. Remove from oven and they will be ready to add to your parfait20170520_09042520170520_090700

PARFAIT DIRECTIONS:

  • Place yogurt, almonds, and chia seeds in a small bowl or jar and mix together
  • Top with protein balls
  • Add anything else you desire
  • Enjoy with a cup (or 2) of coffee!

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This was such a great breakfast to start my day! I hope you all enjoy as much as I did. I am having trouble staying away from the rest of the cookie balls. Must resist!

I hope you have a fabulous weekend! I am off to read some of your blogs, then spend time with my hubby and get house work done.

Talk to you all soon!

With love,

Carly