“Hey, hey, Mae: I’m busy and feel like I’m not getting enough protein in - recommendations for a somewhat clean protein powder?” Hey girl, i see you! Protein plays in not just your muscle gains, but also in your day-to-day happy feels and even blood sugar regulation…hangry, anyone?

As we’re creeping into fall and getting closer to citrus season and further away from that summer abundance, I like to start adding in different (and inexpensive) ways to keep my veggie intake high. Feeding myself a real meal at lunch can also be a little tricky when I’ve got two preschoolers to feed, too.

Listen up, ladies - did you know that we tip the scales on suffering more with insomnia than men? Stress (sleepless kiddos, anyone?) and traumatic events can trigger an acute case of insomnia, while longer struggles with difficulty falling asleep and/or staying asleep can be stem from some medications, substance use, hormone imbalance or medical conditions.

“Hey, hey, Mae: I struggle with getting my kids to even try new foods, so they're stuck on their favorites and those contain loads of what we may need to try an elimination for. How can I make this work for our family?” Implementing food changes can be easy...until our feelings and our kids’ opinions get involved, right?

“Hey, hey, Mae: What’s the big deal about gluten and why does it matter for our health and the health of our children?” What is gluten? Gluten is a type of prolamin found in wheat, barley and rye.

“Hey, hey, Mae: How exactly DO you eat and why? How did you go gluten-free and dairy-free with kids?” Grandma’s brownies, chips, family-recipe chocolate chip cookies and pouches of fruit punch Capri-Sun were the high, yummy points of my childhood.

Mindfulness can feel like a big mountain to climb, then you throw kids in the mix and it seems like a lofty goal: a far-and-away idea that is less than possible.