As most of you who follow me know, I lost two best friends back to back this year. I feel like a broken record telling people over and over again, but it’s almost like I have to keep talking about it to even believe it really happened. It seems everyday a tag with one of them comes up in my Facebook memories to which I have a love/hate reaction. I love remembering, but it stings having to “remember.” It’s just plain unfair, you know?

In May of 2017, my friend, Chad Trout, was diagnosed with Stage 4 Neuroendocrine Pancreatic Cancer and was told it had metastasized in his blood. Very quickly, his condition became grave. Chemo treatments brought back his quality of life and extended his time here by a year. Over the last year of his life, Chad had some real moments of growth and strength. He shared his epiphanies publicly and so many were touched as a result. I wanted to share this post with my readers that Chad post just months before he passed away:

“Vanderbilt is holding me tonight & possibly tomorrow too!

So, after nearly 4 days in the hospital, I’ve learned a lot more about my health and situation. As most of my friends & family know, I have been fighting stage 4 pancreatic & liver cancer for 10 months. Against all odds, I kept getting better and making huge progress. In that time, I’ve been enlightened, found new identity, appreciated my existence, had the opportunity to make things right, and mend fallen fences. My marriage has gotten even stronger. I’ve searched for and discovered answers, been celebrated and saw the face of time. But, more importantly, I discovered the meaning of faith! Those are the good things that cancer has brought into my life.

The truth is – it’s been there the whole time. Being in crisis mode just forced me to make changes and become aware of those things a lot faster. Cause, the only other option is to lay down and give up. Only, I am not one to give up! Even in my darkest hours, I’ve kept the music and my dreams alive. Cause, without that there would be no hope. It’s such a privilege to share my talents and stories with others!

On the darker side of things, I have felt hopeless, scared, angry….. lost! Like, I’m fighting a never ending battle. Right now, I am in a hospital fighting a life threatening cancer, a blood infection, jaundice, chronic pain, exhaustion, needles, IVs, surgeries, procedure after procedure, chemo, oils– just to have or buy little more time. It seems bad news is always around the corner…. my dreams, my future, my life seems to all be slipping away from me, slowly. That shore seems impossible to swim too!

I’ve just painted two pictures and two versions of my life. Which of these scenarios do you like best? Which scenario, would you choose? Because, in reality they both are happening. My point is that we all have a choice in life to choose our own happiness. Despite it all, I am a happy man. I am a blessed man! I FACE my issues instead of running away. So, tonight I ask you look at yourself before bed and FACE yourself ( Find what’s working, Acknowledge it, Celebrate & Enjoy = F.A.C.E.) Look at whatever challenges or hurt you might carry around and let it GO! Set it free. It’s just to damn heavy to lug around.”

— Chad Trout

How’s that for perspective? A man staring down the end of his life at 41 years old can look at a situation holistically. If he can, you can. What things in your life are you focusing on the most? Whatever those things are will be the direction you keep heading. Granted, there are things out of your control. Chad’s illness was far out of his control. As I mentioned before, he passed away just two months after posting this. But, he fought to the end. His attitude and perseverance changed people – many of whom he didn’t even personally know! Had he conceded to his diagnosis, he would have missed the most powerful year of his life. He traveled, he loved, he hugged, he spoke, he sang, he cried, he fought. His attitude was hopeful until the day he passed. In fact, the day before he died, he was mumbling “fight the cancer, fight the cancer” in a drug induced sleep.

Maybe you are in the same situation as Chad where you have a terminal illness. My heart aches for you, and I hope Chad’s example will encourage you to make the very most of the time you are given. For those of you who are in the midst of hard times, I implore you to heed Chad’s advice above and find a way to acknowledge the positive things in your life that coexist with your struggles. Find gratitude in the simple fact that you have you opened your eyes to another day. Be grateful that you have food in the fridge, good friends, your health, or a car that runs. There is always something to for which to be thankful, so start there even if it seems so minute. What you focus on becomes your reality. Are your thoughts in support of who you truly want to be and the life you want to live? Perhaps shifting your perspective on your struggles may help improve your mindset and, in turn, your reality. Even in the midst of watching him pass before my eyes, Chad taught me to F.A.C.E. hardship head on and find the beauty in the moment. Let us all learn from his example.

We are back to school already in middle Tennessee. The first day was August 2nd! Growing up in Maryland, that is a mind bender for me. We always got out mid to late June and sometimes went back after Labor Day. August feels like it should be another month of summer fun, but that’s not the way we roll down here. Hard to believe, but I have a second grader and I am beginning to understand that overly recited phrase, “Don’t blink.” Time truly does move so fast.

With the start of school comes the start of soccer practices, gymnastics, homework, and schedule overload. Meal planning is truly the only thing that gets me through. I have to start leaning on quick, healthy meals to stay on track with nutrition and keep my sanity. Our tendency when things get hectic is to reach for the processed foods like jarred Ragu. When we do that, we are unknowingly reaching for spoonfuls of sugar and sodium too. Making wholesome food for your family doesn’t have to be hard. In the weeks to come, I’ll share recipes that are working for our family for both dinners and those pesky school lunches.

Deep breath, moms and dad. We can do this.

Here is a recipe for a fast and easy marinara sauce that you can have Instant Pot to table in 35 minutes. You can double or triple this recipe and freeze the sauce to use on a busy school night. Planning ahead eliminates some of the stress in the middle of two soccer practices and an hour of homework, trust me.

Serve over pasta (bonus points if you choose a whole wheat kind), zoodles, or try it over an eggplant or chicken parmesan. I served it here over Aldi USA Eggplant Cutlets which are breaded and frozen. I air-fried them for ten minutes at 400 degrees and they are oh-so-good and quick!

Check out this video to see a tutorial on how to whip up this sauce!

And, don’t forget – my monthly nutrition and fitness challenges are enrolling NOW! Fill out THIS form and I’ll contact you with more info!

I’m no expert on the subject, but my kids’ diet has been heavy on my mind lately. It’s an area where I have been slacking. Why? You know why. It’s HARD! Kids are picky and it’s easier just to reach for stuff you know they will like. That doesn’t make you a bad parent, by the way. But, we gotta keep trying to incorporate healthy foods into their diets. If we don’t, who will? Not them, that’s for sure.

Now, let’s get to these Sneaky Pizza Roll Ups. Why are they “sneaky?” Their mom (aka me) blended spinach into the marinara, that’s why! Now, let me tell you something about blending spinach into stuff. It makes the color of the food look… well, not very appetizing. This is not a concern wrapped up in the pizza rolls, but it might be when you set it out as a dipping sauce. Your two year old might not care, but your seven year might gag. If that’s the case, only make about half the sauce in the recipe, and just serve regular marinara as the dipping sauce.

Here’s what you need:

1 cup of marinara

1 cup of spinach

1 cup of cheese

1 refrigerated pizza crust (bonus healthy points if you can find a whole wheat kind)

2 TBSP Oregano

Here’s how you assemble or you might just want to skip right to the video because these directions write out about as clear as mud:

Blend the marinara and spinach in your high powered blender. Remember, if you don’t think the kids will eat an off-color dipping sauce, just blend a half cup of each and reserve another half cup of marinara for dipping.  Preheat your oven to whatever time your pizza crust directions state. (Mine said 400.) Roll out your pizza crust and pull out the sides to thin it out a bit. Spread a thin row of blended sauce across the crust. Leaving about 3 inches between, spread another row, and then another row.  Your pizza crust should look like it has stripes on it. Next, spread cheese over your rows of sauce, still leaving the empty spaces in between. Then, sprinkle oregano across the whole crust.  Starting on one side, gently fold over the dough over the row of sauce and then cut in between the rows. Fold the next section of dough over and cut again, and then do it again. You should have 3 or 4 long tubes now. Using a fork, press the sides of the dough together to seal up your “tubes.” Then, cut each “tube” into thirds. Use your fork to seal the ends to each roll-up.  Place each roll-up onto a baking plan. I lined my pan with foil and a little bit of Pam to prevent sticking. Bake until golden brown. My pizza crust said 8 minutes, but it really took closer to 15-16 minutes before they were cooked through.  Allow them to cool thoroughly! They get very hot in the middle and you don’t want your child to burn their tongue. Heat up remaining sauce for dipping, or just serve with regular marinara.

Clearly, when you watch this video, you will see that I am not going to win any culinary presentation contests. And, I’m ok with that. The idea here is “get the food on the table.” Plus, have you ever tried to cook with one hand while filming a video? Yes, I do have a tripod. Yes, I am too lazy to set it up most of the time.

Happy lunching!

xo Jaime