Hailey's Helpful Hints

  Two things I love: margaritas and the crock pot (or slow cooker). Oh wait - chicken too! This Make it Monday post combines all three of those to make Margarita Chicken. And guess what? Your kids can not only eat it, they will love it too! No worries - there is no tequila in the recipe. Thanks to Red Tricycle , I found this versatile, low fat chicken recipe from Crockpot Gourmet  that you can serve over brown rice, couscous, quinoa or over a bed of greens with veggies and a citrus vinaigrette. But let's talk crock pot though first. Four problems I see with the crock pot - 1) People don't use it enough. Hello....it's soooo easy. Throw in the ingredients (no thawing necessary), walk away and come back 4-8 hrs later to a homemade meal. Now why are you complaining about dinner again?!?!? 2) People think you have to be a "mom with kids" to use a crock pot. If you're single or a couple, just buy yourself a Food Saver and vacuum seal the lef...

  Carb cycling. Hmmm. I'm intrigued. You? Most of you reading this have been brainwashed to think carbs are the devil. Not so. If you know anything about anything you know that there are good carbs and bad carbs. And the right balance of carbs, protein and fat is imperative for your overall health. Chris Powell, trainer from ABC's "Extreme Weight Loss" swears by carb cycling to lose and maintain your optimal weight loss results. Powell explains that high carb days rev up your metabolism and low carb days maximize weight loss. The theory is that when your body keeps alternating between modes, you create the perfect balance to weight loss. So what is carb cycling? In the following paragraphs, you'll learn the basics of carb cycling, four different carb cycling plans - Easy, Classic, Turbo, and Fit - as well as the basics of how to execute this on a weekly basis. What is Carb Cycling? Carb cycling is an eating plan with alternating high-carb and low-carb ...

  Hello again!!!! My apologizes for going MIA on y'all. I thought I would give myself some grace during the transition from two to four kids...overnight. We are nothing but overjoyed with the addition of our identical twin girls, Reese and Rio, but I'd be lying if I didn't admit that it's friggin' HARD work!!! There is nothing like doing multiple babies at ONE time. On top of attending to two active boys, ages 5 and just turned 3. It is anything but quiet around my hood. Today however, I did have some time while my angels are napping and my boys are at school. I thought I'd log onto the blog and see what's shakin. Surprisingly, you're all still giving Hailey's Helpful Hints some love despite my absence. In fact - my one post "Tame the Tum - Spare Tire or Stress Bulge?" continues to get blown up on Pinterest! Who would have thought 4,946,000 people would be interested in such an article?? And no that's not a typo - 4 MILLION+ peeps. I t...

  Already feeling the winter flub creep up on you? Aka - the extra poundage from weekend after weekend of football tailgating and all day beer drinking. Fall comfort food. Seasonal drinks. Trader Joe's pumpkin bread. Most are. But most just pull out the oversized sweater to hide behind and carry on. If you're determined that this won't be you this fall/winter but have no idea where to start to target your trouble areas, I encourage you to check out this resourceful, interactive website that allows you to select the body part you wish to work on and provides you with easy at home exercises you can do to keep those unnecessary pounds at bay. To use the Exercise Finder, click HERE .

How genius and functional is this water bottle? It's almost as cool as my iPhone card carrying phone case with an added bonus of carrying a key. It's products like this that make me shake my head and wonder - why the heck didn't I think of this? I'm smarter than that. Perfect for the gym, long bike rides or to carry with you all day as you try to get in your 64 oz of water. Which I can't seem to master for the life of me. Tomorrow I keep saying. But for today, I sit surrounded by wine glasses and Diet Coke. Sigh. To purchase, click HERE .

Talk.About.Brilliant. I'm obsessed. Gorecess.com makes finding a fitness class and scheduling a time to exercise so much easier. Tired of your workout routine? Interested in taking a class such as Barre or Mat Pilates but your gym doesn't offer it? Moved to a new city and are unsure of where to workout? GoRecess helps you find the best class of the day, where you want, when you want, so you can be your best every day. Maybe you're in the mood for a certain type of workout. Maybe you want convenience and something that fits your hectic schedule. Maybe you want variety and the flexibility to try new places. Or maybe you just need the motivation of a good instructor and others around you to inspire you to push yourself. From spinning and yoga to pilates and boxing and more, GoRecess will help you find exactly what you're seeking.   Say goodbye to boring runs on the treadmill, mindless strides on the elliptical and excuses to skip a workout. Now get off yo...