Sharing tips on how to eat for your menstrual cycle and how to change up your nutrition throughout the month!

Hi friends! How’s the week going so far? Things have been non-stop lately, and today is triple 1:1 appointments and prepping for Total Body Reset. If you haven’t signed up yet, don’t miss out!

For today’s post, I wanted to share a post from Mia all about how to change up your nutrition during your cycle. She asked me if I would be interested in a plan for my personal use, and I knew immediately that it would make an awesome blog topic. I shared a post here about how to change up your workouts during the month, and a podcast here about how productivity changes during your cycle.

Here are tons of tips on how to fuel your body as your hormone levels change throughout the 28 days of your menstrual cycle!

How to eat for your menstrual cycle

Week 1 Low Estrogen

Choose to eat low-carb during the week of your period.

*Remember, day 1 of your period is the first day of blood flow.

Follicular Phase– On follicular phase days, when you’re on your period, aim to focus on anti-inflammatory foods such as fatty fish like salmon and sardines or take a high-quality vitamin E capsule to help balance out inflammation from oils and seeds. More inflammation is common during this phase of the menstrual cycle, as you shed your uterine lining, and anti-inflammatory foods can help significantly. Also, look for iron-rich foods like red/dark meat, legumes and lentils. Try to pair these with vitamin C-filled foods, like fresh fruits and vegetables for maximum absorption and bioavailability. Be sure to include many magnesium-rich sources such as dark chocolate, almonds and pumpkin seeds.

Note from Gina: I wore a CGM the week I started my cycle and was SHOCKED to see how high my blood glucose levels were during that 5-day span. I had to eat lower carb to stay within a healthy zone, and felt so much better. I will absolutely be doing this going forward.

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Easy 3 Ingredient Chorizo Potatoes

We went to Mexico a few year ago and these easy 3 ingredient chorizo potatoes had to be recreated for a savory breakfast or side!

We had the most amazing meals while staying in Mexico. Maybe the location helped a bit, maybe it was the sun, the pool at our side and the absolute peace of having nothing on our schedules to distract us from just loving and being together, but either way these Easy 3 Ingredient Chorizo Potatoes tasted like one of the most simply delicious things ever. We just had to recreate them!

Let me tell you a little bit about what I’m talking about. Cade and I did a speaking tour a few years ago. It was amazing. Have you heard of Time Out for Women before? It really is the most amazing weekend to go and fill up your tank to be a better person.

However, when you’re one of the speakers that comes with an extra load to carry as it means finding sitters to stay with your kids while you fly out of town. Praying and writing to come up with the best talk to give to the women who have sacrificed time, money and efforts to be there. It means staying up late and getting up early, worrying and working through nerves, etc.

It was the best experience of our lives, but by the end of the tour we knew we needed to get away as a family. And get away we did!!

San Jose Del Cabo, Mexico

We are going to be writing an entire post on why we chose the location we chose, where we stayed (Casa Mariposa is already being booked by our family for next year it was seriously that amazing!!!!) and what we did, but for now let me say this, it was everything you’ve always dreamed a vacation would be.

At Casa Mariposa there is a small staff to help you with what you need, the concierge is Carlos and Lupita does all the cooking. I’ll be honest with you, I thought for sure that we wouldn’t use them. Cade and I are so easy going and we love to cook and go out to eat so why would we need anyone?

We were wrong.

Lupita cooked breakfast and lunch for us every day, and it was not only delicious but made for an unforgettable experience. One morning she made us these easy 3 ingredient chorizo potatoes with simple huevos rancheros and I’m pretty sure Cade fell in love.

Easy 3 Ingredient Chorizo Potatoes

So what are Lupita’s papas con chorizo (or chorizo con papas)? Well, to be fair, we forgot to ask her how she made them, but I carefully ate them, savoring every bite and while our chorizo probably isn’t as good as theirs I’m pretty sure hers was the same as this recipe, or only slightly different.

All you need is 3 Ingredients:

1. Yukon Gold Potatoes
2. Minced, Fresh Garlic
3. Chorizo

How to Make Chorizo Potatoes

These potatoes are first pan fried creating a roasted, caramelized flavor on the potatoes, and then spicy chorizo is thrown in along with a little garlic to bring out everything you’d want in a simple Mexican breakfast. Here is a little more detail:

1. Place a large skillet over medium heat, add a drizzle

Crunchy, sweet and salty old fashioned Haystacks bring my Grandmother’s kitchen to mind every time I make them.

Haystack Cookies

Haystacks are a treat my Grandma used to make for us when we visited. They often appeared on her Christmas cookie trays and in our treat bags when she packed lunches for us.

Are they candy? or are they cookies? I never can decide! They’re certainly sweet enough to be considered candies, but they remind me more of no-bake cookies. Whatever you call them, they are much enjoyed.

Haystacks

Are you wondering exactly what these weird-looking cookies actually are? They’re little haystack-looking mounds of deliciousness that are made from either melted chocolate or butterscotch mixed with peanut butter and crunchy chow mein noodles.

I typically make mine, like Grandma did, with melted butterscotch chips. She often stirred a handful or two of peanuts into hers and I’ve seen them made with coconut too. They’re pretty adaptable little cookies.

The name of “haystack” is because they look a bit like haystacks as you drop them onto the baking sheet to cool. They’re super easy to make (a perfect kid-friendly recipe) and they have proven irresistible to snack on when they’re in our house.

We love the addition of a sprinkling of Maldon salt over each haystack. That salt balances the sweetness nicely and, as you know, I love a good salty-sweet treat.

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Pasta Primavera Recipe

This delicious and easy Pasta Primavera recipe is perfect for a weeknight meal. Loaded with fresh veggies, flavorful herbs and tossed in a creamy sauce, it’s a crowd-pleasing and healthy dish that the whole family will love.

This last weekend I really wanted something light, but still yummy, and this Pasta Primavera Recipe was perfect. We are huge asparagus fans so anything with asparagus gets us excited. Although the dish has no meat, I really don’t think you miss out on anything. In fact, the husband and I like having meatless meals every now and again as long as all of the flavor is still there. I bet you could throw in some grilled chicken or shrimp for protein and that would be sooooo good!

What Makes Something Primavera?

Primavera is an Italian word that means “spring”. In the culinary world, primavera means a dish served with a mixture of fresh seasonal vegetables usually paired with a pasta and creamy sauce.

Ingredients for Pasta Primavera

I’m going to give you a list of the fresh vegetables that we like to use in this pasta recipe, but this is definitely a dish that you can make substitutions with your favorite veggies. Here is what you will need:

• Penne Pasta: Any bite-sized pasta can be used, other good options would be orecchiette, rigatoni, farfalle or fusilli.
• Vegetables: Asparagus, Yellow Squash, Matchstick Carrots, Red Bell Pepper, Red Onion, Grape or Cherry Tomatoes, and Peas
  • Other options: Broccoli, Green Beans, Spinach, Brussels Sprouts, or Zucchini
• Sauce: Butter, Garlic, Lemon Zest and Juice, Pasta Water, Heavy Cream, and Parmesan
• Seasoning: Dried Italian Seasoning, Red Pepper Flakes, Fresh Basil Leaves, and Fresh Curly Parsley

The measurements and details for all the ingredients in this recipe can be found in the recipe card down below.

How to Make Pasta Primavera

1. Boil: Bring 4 quarts of water to a boil in a large pot and add a handful of salt.
2. Cook: Add the pasta and cook it until al dente. Do not drain! We will use the pasta water later for the sauce.
3. Sauté: Using a large skillet, add some olive oil and add the asparagus, onions and peppers and sauté until slightly tender and move to a plate.
4. Cook: Add the squash and carrots to the skillet, season it with salt and pepper and cook until tender but still crisp. Move the veggies to the plate with the asparagus.
5. Bloom: Add the butter to the skillet and add the garlic followed by the lemon zest, Italian seasoning to bloom the flavors. Add the tomatoes and cook until they start to brown.
6. Simmer: Add the pasta water and bring to a boil and then reduce the heat to a simmer until the tomatoes start to burst. Then add the peas.
7. Stir: Pour in the cream, lemon j

Since Beautycounter made it’s announcement yesterday, we’re not quite sure when they’ll be back in action. I’m grateful for the experience but am parting ways with the company and looking forward to the next adventures. 

Hi friends!

I hope you’re having an amazing day so far! This week has been a wild one. We all had to re-audition for next year’s symphony season (got my spot but was super nervous!), it’s photo week at dance, Mother’s Day tea at school (one of my favorite events for the year), a charity event with Liv, and the usual dance/basketball/homework scramble, in between client calls and some other exciting things (one will be annouced tomorrow!).

So I’ve been running around like a chicken, and in between everything, Beautycounter dropped a bomb yesterday.

Here’s a copy of the email that I sent to my clients:

I hope that you’re having a wonderful week. Just wanted to pop in with a quick note and update about Beautycounter. I shared more on IG stories a couple of weeks ago, but our founder, Gregg Renfrew, bought the company back from the investment group Carlyle. They didn’t seem to align with Beautycounter’s mission, and the company had been in a bit of a rough spot for the past couple of years.

I took a step back to watch and see what was going to happen, and was really excited to hear that Gregg was back at the forefront of the company. We launched the fragrance line – I loooooved it!! – and it felt like momentum was building.

Needless to say, I was surprised to hear the news that the website was going down in April with the transfer of the business. It didn’t seem like a good sign to me, but I remained cautiously optimistic. They’ve encountered some hurdles along the way that have delayed the re-opening of the website. They originally stated it would be up May 1, but it wasn’t ready to go. The latest news today is that they think that it will be back in Q4… just in time for the holidays.

I’ve been a huge fan of Beautycounter and their mission for many years. I originally joined 9 years ago – when P was a tiny baby. I think that clean beauty and skincare should be accessible to everyone, and I’m really proud of the products I’ve shared and the legislation they’ve passed for safer beauty. I’m grateful for the incredible women who have been on my team — at one point there were over 100 of us! It was genuinely a “women supporting other women” vibe and I am here.for.that.

I’m also beyond thankful to all of YOU. Thank you for trusting me with skincare recommendations, for enjoying these amazing products, and for directly helping to support our family. For many years, BC was a significant part of my income, and I feel grateful every day for my *jobs* and the ability to connect with all my virtual BFFs online 🙂

I can recognize that things have changed with the company, and that it’s time to move on. I’ve expanded my clean skincare and beauty horizons over the past couple