dessert|Chia Seed Me

Feb 9, 2011 Posted by candice on Feb 9, 2011 in inspiration, mental notes, our life, recipes, vegan | 14 comments

a few thoughts + vegan brownies

You all left some really great comments here yesterday, and I loved reading through every one of them. I really enjoyed hearing your perspectives on dealing with tough habits and emotional struggles. Thanks so much for sharing:)

This morning we woke up to another thick layer of snowy white…and once again the whole state is pretty much shut down. No complaints here, though. I was really happy that the husband was able to work from home today rather than commute to the city…I would have been a nervous wreck.

Yesterday was a great day of working from home. I was able to get a lot accomplished and even pack a few things along the way. I’m really focusing my energy on living fully in every moment more than ever these days, as my time with my students (both tutoring and yoga) and time working from our house is drawing to a close. Have you ever been in a moment and thought to yourself – I just want to live in this moment forever? I had a lot of those yesterday from taking a break to water our little plants to making a new healthy lunch to giving the husband a little massage on the couch last night.

I read a book recently that talked about how we all forget so much of our life…there is so much we just don’t remember. It’s like only the big milestones – graduating, getting married, having kids – are what we most remember. But what about the sweet little things that make up the majority of our time? I want to remember those things too, and I think one reason we don’t really remember many of them is because we don’t fully live them. We’re always focusing on and pressing toward the next big thing. And while it’s good to be working toward big goals and accomplishments, if we don’t really see and experience the mundane moments of the day-to-day, then we’re missing out on a large part of this life we’ve been given.

Lunch yesterday was that meal I mentioned a couple of days ago that I’ve been craving. One day it just popped into my head, and I thought to myself – why have I never made this before??

Prepare a nice big bed of fresh spinach

Pick your pasta and cook it – I used veggie shells that I got as a sample at HLS, but you can use any kind

Mix together about 2 tbsp hummus, 1 tbsp nutritional yeast and water to thin

After mixing pasta and the creamy sauce together, pour mixture over spinach. The heat will cause the leaves to wilt just slightly. Perfect.

This meal was every bit as tasty as I imagined it would be. I loved the combination of the creamy soft texture of the pasta with the slight crunch of the spinach leaves. And there was plenty of protein built right into the sauce.

In other food news, the husband surprised me last night by bringing home my absolute favorite meal from my favorite restaurant in the city – Pei Wei. It was a little cold by the time we got here, but a quick round in the microwave and it was as good as new!

And what made it even better is that while we were savoring every bite, the thick, mouth-watering smell of brownies was filling the air. I’ve been craving brownies for days, and all I needed was a good, cold snow day to do me in. I found this recipe and then used a few of the suggested tweaks plus a couple tricks of my own. They came out so delicious!

Chocolate Chocolate Vegan Brownies
adapted from here

Ingredients

1 cup all purpose flour
3/4 cup organic cane sugar
6 tablespoons cocoa powder
½ teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon sea salt
½ cup water
2 tablespoons olive oil
½ cup unsweetened applesauce
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
dairy free mini chocolate chips (or chips of your choice:)

Directions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees and grease an 8×8 inch baking dish
Sift together flour, sugar, cocoa powder, baking powder and sea salt in a large mixing bowl
Add in water, oil, applesauce and vanilla extract
Mix until well combined
Pour batter into baking dish and then sprinkle chocolate chips all over the top
Bake for about 26 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean. Allow to cool a bit before serving.

Serve warm with a glass of almond milk. Or if you really want to go crazy, serve with a dollop of banana soft serve on top.

I’m planning on packing some today, editing some papers for my students and maybe doing a little job searching online. I’m still as confused as ever about what I’m going to do as far as a job, but I’m trusting that it will work out and trying not to waste too much time worrying over it.

Happy Wednesday to you!

What is something you hope you never forget as time goes on, be it little or big?!
I hope I never forget the way the creaky wood floors sound as I walk through our house or the way the windows shutter just slightly when the heat comes on:)

cinnamon rolls!

Well, in true Candice fashion I was up until 2am last night baking away.

But first, let’s back up for a second. It’s time for a little honesty. Over the last couple of weeks I have really been slacking with my workouts and with putting energy into eating clean. My workouts have consisted mainly of the classes I teach and a couple sporadic short treadmill runs, and my eating has included a few too many Amy’s frozen burritos. There has been so much going on here as of recent, and I’ve been hanging on by a thread as far as taking care of myself. I’ve been getting an average of about 6 hours of sleep a night among other things….and it’s really starting to wear on me.

So this morning I got up with the best intentions of really making the extra effort to treat my body really well and start replenishing my energy. As many of you know, I believe that just because you slack a little in any area of healthy living for awhile, doesn’t mean that you should give up or be discouraged. It’s all about whether (and when) we get back on track. There’s no way I’m going to eat, sleep and exercise perfectly for the rest of my life, so I’m adamant about cutting myself some slack when life gets crazy. But there is definitely value in getting back on track when you feel like you’ve derailed a bit.

So, things started off really well this morning in regard to eating; I made up a bowl of oats cooked in water, and then added a few spoonfuls of soy yogurt and a sprinkle of Kashi Go Lean Crunch. It definitely was lacking a bit in the fruit and veg department, but otherwise made me pretty happy.

The rest of the day continued on a pretty good track, but then I started feeling a little crazy, oh…sometime after dinner. I got this serious craving for a cinnamon roll. How do these things happen? lol.

Even though it was nearing 9pm and I still had some tasks to complete before bed, I naturally started brainstorming how I could get some vegan cinnamon rolls stat. Oh boy.

After a few moments I suddenly remembered this recipe from Project Food Blog several weeks ago. At the time I thought it looked awesome, but I just wasn’t feeling cinnamon rolls. But this is the kind of thing that I tuck safely back in my mind to be pulled out on a perfect night such as tonight. While I realized that this recipe would no doubt be outrageously delicious, I didn’t realize just how involved the whole process would be. Let’s be real…do I ever?

But once I get started on an idea like this…there’s nothing that can stop me. And for the next 3ish hours I was mixing, chopping, kneading, sifting, stirring, rolling, flossing and of course baking. And man oh man was it worth it.

These rolls were like everything that is good in the world being wrapped up in a soft and doughy little spiral, baked at 350 degrees and coming out just the right shade of golden brown. They were chewy and hot, with the mingled flavors of pumpkin, cinnamon and butter baked into the inside. To. die. for.

I used this recipe…and only made a few changes like maple syrup instead of vanilla extract, organic cane sugar instead of regular white, soy milk instead of almond milk. I also replaced two cups of white flour with bread flour, and I did not put Earth Balance in the Pecan Cinnamon Streusel filling (I was buttered out!). It still worked just fine! Lastly, instead of the cream cheese frosting on the recipe, I simply mixed a little bit of powdered sugar with some soy milk for a nice, thin glaze.

Hey – at least I did have a green monster on the side this morning. I am trying to clean it up around here after all.

Obviously my biggest problem now is how to not eat the entire pan in the 48 hours. Thankfully, I do have a few ideas up my sleeve.

So, aside from sabotaging myself by staying up until 2am making cinnamon rolls, I am really trying to step it up and take better care of myself, even during these crazy times. Because when it seems that so many things in life have been turned upside down, my health is the one thing I can still control. The one thing I can still hold onto that makes me feel sane. And vibrant. And like I can take on anything.

So tell me, what are your tricks for keeping these things in order when life gets crazy?

Are you a cinnamon roll fan? What’s your favorite morning baked treat?

happy happy friday

Happy Friday!!

I’m so excited that it’s the weekend finally. Like I mentioned earlier this week - we are having Christmas with the husband’s side of our family. We’re heading out tonight and staying until Sunday. There will be food. There will be caroling. Enough said.

I had lots to do today to get ready, so I started off this morning with an energizing juice. I used more veggies this time than I ever have before, and I have to admit I was a little nervous for my first sip.

(don’t worry, the cucumber isn’t bad – the red spots are from the beet:)

The more veggies you use, the worse the color gets – this one had parsley, swiss chard, 1/2 a beet, 1/2 cucumber, 2 carrots, small piece of ginger and 1.5 granny smith apples. Honestly…it wasn’t good or bad. It was kind of a neutral taste, which I’ll totally get on board for because this thing was packed with vitamins and nutrients!

As soon as I guzzled it down, I headed out the door to PiYo. I came “this close” to not having any students show up today. I guess it’s just that time of year where everybody is busy and it’s cold outside so people don’t want to get out. Anyway, at about five after, 2 girls, whom I had never seen before in my life, walked in. Praise the Lord! It was kind of fun leading a class of two new people as opposed to my new regulars. I felt like I was kind of looking at my class through a fresh lens.

Anyway, after PiYo I met with HeyKyoung for tutoring and then I headed home to get some baking done!

For lunch I decided to break open this bag of dry soup that I randomly picked up at the store one day. It’s Bob’s Red Mill brand, so I figured I couldn’t go wrong. I added 1 cup of soup mix to 2 cups of water and 2 cups of organic vegetable stock.

I also tossed in:

1/2 tsp garlic powder
1/2 tsp onion powder
1/2 tsp oregano
1/4 tsp sea salt
1/4 tsp ground red pepper

I let it simmer for about an hour while I got busy on some cookies! And just as I was finishing up my last batch, it was piping hot and ready to go! I also dug out some leftover cornbread from earlier this week and spread some Earth Balance on it. Yum!

I highly recommend this soup for a quick and healthy meal. Even though it had to simmer for an hour, it took all of 5 minutes to throw it all in the pot…plus, you can make a big batch and have it for leftovers too! It was tasty:) I love soup in the winter.

Now back to those cookies.

I knew I wanted to make the classic Super Charge Me Cookies – they’re a no brainer because they’re vegan, healthy, energizing, delicious…and they have chocolate! What more do we need to say? Oh, also every non-vegan who has ever tried them has given them two thumbs up. Especially the husband. They’re his favorite:)

Besides the SCM’s I wanted to make a new and slightly different recipe as well. So, I cracked open my trusty old copy of Eat Drink and Be Vegan where I found a recipe for oatmeal raisin cookies. Perfect!

By the time I subbed in dried cranberries for the raisins and added just a sprinkling of vegan chocolate chips, they weren’t exactly oatmeal raisin anymore, but I think they were even better!

Dare I say I like these just as well – maybe even better – than Super Charge Me’s? gasp.

They are good. Really good. I can’t wait to see what the husband thinks.

Now that I’ve got all my baking done I’m off to get packed, do some last minute Outbox work and load up the car before we leave. We finally got all our wrapping finished up, and I just have to tie on a few last minute bows (the best part).

By the way, I’m still on a vegan sugar cookie mission, but I’m waiting on our health food store to get in vegan cream cheese. Oh, the joys of living in a small town. I’m hoping to have my first batch done by Tuesday. I’ll keep you posted:)

Have a great weekend everyone! And thanks for reading ChiaSeedMe:)

What is your favorite tradition that your family does during the holiday season?

getting back on track

Amidst the busyness of the last few days, there have been some really sweet highlights.

Yesterday I received a mysterious box in the mail. I always get so excited when an unexpected package comes, but usually I open it to find junk mail of some sort. But not this time. I opened the box, peered inside and saw this:

and this

My mom, step-dad and sister bought me this cute little scarf and mailed it to me as a surprise. How sweet is that? It totally brightened my entire day and made me feel so loved and happy. I have the best family:)

Another highlight came today when I finished a project that I’ve been working on. My friend, JJ, facebooked me about a week ago and asked me if I could make a couple of tag blankets for some friends of hers who are having a baby shower this week. I made a tag blanket for JJ’s baby right before he was born, and she says he takes it everywhere with him, so she thought it would be a great gift for her friends!

I of course happily obliged, but unfortunately my sewing machine was not quite as willing. Yesterday took all the patience I could muster as my machine jammed over and over and over. Finally, after about 4 hours of working, I finished them up!

tag blanket numero one

and numero two

If you’re wondering what a tag blanket is, allow me to explain. It’s a small, soft blanket for babies that has loops of ribbon coming off of it – it’s great for cuddling, pulling, chewing and just all around good fun:)

Anyway, regardless of my frustration with the sewing machine, you really can’t beat an afternoon of sewing while jamming out to Christmas music and sipping a hot latte on a frigid winter day. Can I get an amen?

Another thing you can’t beat?

baked apples with cinnamon and a splash of agave

and spinach lavash wraps with hummus, chia seeds and veggies. with a side of ceramic birds:)

So, I mentioned yesterday that I would be back to talk about getting back in a healthy groove after veering from it for awhile. The last couple of weeks or so I have just gotten a little lazy with eating clean. Between the stresses and busyness of the everyday and the extra craziness of the holidays, I’ve been eating a few too many chips and cookies, and not nearly enough veggies.

I definitely have my ups and downs when it comes to living healthy. I go through phases where it seems I just get on a roll of eating too much junk and not making it to the gym. And once I start slacking, it can be sooo hard to get back on track.

But no one can be perfect all the time, and the important thing for me is to focus on the fact that I do always get back on track. Instead of beating myself up and regretting what I’ve done, I am so much more successful overall when I just dust off my behind and jump right back in the game. Dwelling on what I’ve done in the past only serves to drag me farther down, killing any remnants of mojo I have left and leaving me feeling discouraged and sad.

Over the last couple of days, I’ve really stepped it up and gotten back on track with food and exercise. Tonight I was thinking through a few things I’ve done to help, so I thought I’d share them with you!

I re-read a book that has been motivating to me in the past. This renews my energy and refreshes my perspective of why it’s important to me to make healthy choices. This time around it was Tosca Reno’s Eat Clean book. Absolutely love this book – if you haven’t read it, put it on your Christmas list stat!
I took a few minutes to write out some goals/reasons why I want to do what it takes to feel great and be healthy. These change from time to time, so it’s really important to me to keep them fresh and current in my mind.
I got a partner! Turns out I’m not the only who has been slacking since the holidays started. Talking to someone else and sharing ideas, struggles and goals together really pumps me up to make some changes. Plus, I get instant accountability for my choices!
I wrote down a mantra and memorized it! Every time I start to fall back into bad habits, whether by skipping the gym multiple days in a row or by eating another handful of chips rather than some raw vegetables, I immediately repeat my mantra in my head. It focuses me instantly!
I perused blogs and jotted down some new fun meal ideas that I can get excited about! Sometimes I just get in a rut and become tired of the same foods I always eat. There’s no better place than blogs to get new inspiration for workouts and meals.
I pretended I felt better even before I did. Sometimes it really does work to “fake it till you make it.” Even though I felt sluggish and kind of weighed down, I began to act and think like I felt healthy and alive. This got me through for a couple of days until I really did start to feel better!

These are just a few of the things I did – nothing groundbreaking, but yet these never fail to help me get back on course when I seem to have strayed far away.

I’d love to hear any ideas you have for getting back on track after being in a rut. What do you do when this happens to you?!

Hope you’ve all had a great Wednesday! Onward!

food, family and lots of fun

Hello!

This week has been so crazy! Since we’ve been back home from visiting family for Thanksgiving, we’ve been so busy. I haven’t even had a chance to recap our Thanksgiving weekend…better late than never, though. Right?

I ended up making three different dishes to take to my family’s dinner. I’m blessed to have grandparents who are healthy eaters, so there were several great options on the table. I was really excited about cooking up some new recipes I’d been wanting to try, so I decided to take a few things anyway!

First up, I made this Maple Spiced Quinoa dish that Angela had posted awhile back.

This dish was delicious! Unfortunately the picture doesn’t do it justice. All I had to put it in was my mom’s Tupperware bowl, but i promise it tasted worlds better than it looks. The only negative was that I kind of wished I had made a savory quinoa dish for dinner, rather than sweet. This almost could have been eaten as a dessert!

I also made Angela’s healthy Sweet Potato Casserole. Let’s just go ahead and get something out on the table – I totally had an Angela inspired Thanksgiving dinner! Why not, right? Her recipes almost always amaze me, and I didn’t really have time to come up with something on my own. Plus, I had been drooling over these recipes since she posted them several weeks ago. What better time to try them out than on Thanksgiving?!

I totally scored big with this casserole…especially when it came to my baby cousin, Caroline. She was a big fan:)

This casserole was competing big time too because my aunt brought a delicious sweet potato casserole. I think it competed well, though it may not have won out in the end:( Except with Caroline that is.

For dessert I made Pumpkin Brownie cupcakes. Now these were a hit!

Every bit as delicious as they look and sound. How can you beat the combination of brownie + pumpkin + cupcake?! Seriously? I was so happy that everyone enjoyed these, and the recipe has already been sent out to the family. I could actually really use one of these about right now…

To top it all off, I made up a quick batch of Super Charge Me Cookies from Eat, Drink and Be Vegan. They were awesome, as always.

My plate: vegetarian, mostly vegan and 100% delicious!

After lunch, we spent the rest of the day playing games and just hanging out. I love holidays at my grandparent’s house – it’s so nice to just spend time together. It doesn’t happen nearly enough.

And don’t forget family picture time!

And all the grandkids…starting at 1 year and going all the way up to 30!

My sweet grandma on her birthday. Her actual birthday is today, but we celebrated it with her on Thursday evening after all the Thanksgiving festivities. Happy Birthday Grandma!

The rest of the weekend was spent shopping, hanging out with my mom, step-dad and sister, decorating our Christmas tree and then celebrating yet another birthday.

We had a surprise party for my sister’s 30th, and I was in charge of lying to her all morning, getting her out of the house and then getting her back to the house in time for the party. I don’t think she likes to be surprised very much, and she didn’t make it easy on me. I think she ended up being about 1/3 surprised. Fun was still had by all though:)

We came back home on Saturday just in time to get ready for the Bedlam game. The husband and I had to work in the suites taking pictures. It was definitely the most fun game all year – even though we ended up losing in the end.

On Sunday we spent the day catching up on work and the house, and then we decorated for Christmas! One of my favorite activities of the season! Pictures will be soon to come:)

That’s all for now! I’m so glad to finally be caught up on everything…now it’s time to get caught up on all of your lovely blogs:) Hope you all had a great Thanksgiving and are having a great start to the week. How crazy that it’s already almost December!

I’ll be back tomorrow to talk about getting back and staying on track during this chaotic season – it’s not easy, but it’s so worth it!

weekend recap and another trip!

Hello! Happy Monday:)

This morning has been crazy – I got up early to clean our house and then had to stop mid-clean to run and get my hair cut. I’m still technically not done cleaning, but I’m getting there. After not posting for the last couple of days, I’ve been itching to check in. Cleaning can wait!

But it can’t wait too long, unfortunately, because tomorrow morning we are leaving for another cross-country trip, except this time by plane!

We’re headed to Washington D.C.! Jon has a work conference there this week, and he’s going to let me tag along. I’ve never been to our nation’s capitol before, so I’m really excited!

We’re leaving early tomorrow morning and coming back on Friday night. It just so happens that this weekend is homecoming here in Stillwater, and my brother-in-law and sister-in-law are coming to stay with us Friday night. So, I’m trying to get our house ready for guests and everything plus getting us packed and ready to leave tomorrow – it’s going to be a busy day since I’ll be tutoring all afternoon. My excitement is serving as great adrenaline so far, though. Let’s hope it lasts well into the night:)

This past weekend, we were in my hometown celebrating my mom’s birthday. I made her a cake, and we took her out to eat and whatnot. I also led my mom through her first yoga class, which was really fun. We’ll call it birthday yoga:)

Then we went to church on Sunday and met my grandparents afterward for lunch. It was definitely a weekend well spent – I loved getting to just relax with family. One of my favorite things:)

I’m so thankful to have my grandparents in my life:)

Saturday morning I rose early to get a head start on baking my mom’s cake! Last week Jenna posted a recipe for a Bohemian Wedding Cake (full recipe here), and the minute I saw it I knew it was THE cake for my mom’s birthday. I mean, it had pumpkin in it – how could it be wrong?

Before I got started baking, though, I needed some fuel.

This isn’t just any green smoothie. I knew I’d need to be able to ward off my pumpkin cravings (and stay out of the cake batter), so I decided to have a green smoothie, fall style:) I added 2 big handfuls of spinach, 1/2 cup pumpkin, 1 tbsp molasses, 1/2 tsp pumpkin pie spice, 1.2 cup almond milk and ice.

Yes, I know it sounds gross, and I must admit I was a bit nervous with that first sip. But just like adding spinach to a banana smoothie, adding spinach to a pumpkin smoothie doesn’t alter the flavor at all! It was absolutely delicious, and I still got my greens in. Score!

I digress.

Back to the cake.

I started by mixing together all the dry ingredients – brown sugar, baking soda, whole wheat flour, white flour, pumpkin pie spice

Then mixed the wet ingredients – pumpkin, oil, vanilla, molasses, 2 eggs. I almost made this vegan by simply switching to flax eggs, but no one in my family is vegan and I didn’t really have time for experimentation. So, I stuck with 2 organic, free-range eggs. I also added a quick store-bought cream cheese icing at the end.

Next, mixed them all together…

And poured ‘em in.

Into the oven it went while I raced around doing Jillian’s 30-day shred DVD and packing!

After it finished baking and I allowed it to cool completely, I added the frosting.

Perfect.

Everybody at the party seemed to enjoy it. Everybody except my sister that is, who insists that she just isn’t much of a sweets person.

I always doubt my baking, but when my mom had another piece on Sunday afternoon, I knew they weren’t just trying to make me feel good when they said they liked it:)

And for the record, I thought it was delicious!

All in all the weekend was a success!

Now it’s just time to play catch up…and get ready for our trip!

Any suggestions on places to visit or sights to see while we’re in DC?? I’ll be flying solo one day while Jon is in meetings – so any recommendations would be great!

what’s in a name?

Hi!

Thanks for the support and encouraging comments on yesterday’s post. Honestly, after I hit publish last night I laid awake in bed for awhile feeling very unsure about my post. I really do try to always keep it real here, but being open is sometimes freaking hard!

I just don’t want to seem like a complainer, but guys…sometimes life is hard. On those days it’s kind of a challenge to find a balance between staying positive and uplifting while still being real.

And to be perfectly honest, there is nothing that drives me more crazy here in blogland than when people come across as perfect on their blogs. While I didn’t actually address this issue yesterday, it did come up in the comments. It seems that most of you feel the same way. Let’s just lay it all out there – there have been times when I’ve considered no longer reading some blogs because they just seem too perfect. And whether they are perfect or whether they’re not – it really doesn’t matter – it is a negative force in my life to read about it everyday. It’s extremely difficult to avoid the comparison trap when all you read each day is the perfection in people’s lives. I have to constantly keep myself in check with this issue – finding myself trying to measure up to someone else’s style, recipes, photos or exercise routine.

And speaking of exercise routines, this would probably be an excellent time to make known that the husband and I will no longer be running our November half marathon. You know, the one that was originally supposed to be a full marathon? After a lot of contemplating and discussion, we’ve decided to step back from racing for now.

With trying to get our own business off the ground + Jon working full-time and me almost full-time, there really isn’t enough time for training. We tried to make it work, but sleep was the main thing being sacrificed. We try every night to get in bed before 11pm, but when there are deadlines to meet sometimes it’s just not an option. And seeing as how getting adequate sleep is one of the most important parts of long distance running, it isn’t healthy or smart for us to keep pushing it.

Being the perfectionist that I am, this decision was really difficult for me at first. And to bring this full-circle, I realized that a lot of it was due to comparing myself to other bloggers. When you see countless bloggers running so many miles a week, it can make you feel like a failure if you’re not doing it too. In my quest to defeat perfectionism though, I was able to step back and realize that my life is not the same as anybody else’s…and therefore I have to make the best decision for my body and for Jon.

Besides, I’m not sure if I’ve mentioned this, but the husband designed the branding for the entire race – from the participant’s guide down to the finish banner. So, we’ll be running all over the place on race day, getting photos for our website (and cheering on all the runners!). I’m super stoked about it – I love races! Although I know I’ll be wishing we were running, I’m glad we’ll be going to support everyone and our business!

So that’s that.

Now that we’re through all the heavy stuff – let’s move on to the food!

Breakfast this morning was a green monster, per the usual. Oh, green monster, how did I ever live without you??

I spent the morning working on my yoga class for tonight and trying to get iPhoto and Flickr to be friends. The story of my life. They are currently on speaking terms, though we still have a loooong way to go.

About 10:30 I got so hungry, so I heated up one of my favorite whole wheat pitas and had a big blob of creamy hummus for dipping!

So, if you follow me on twitter, you may know that I had a major life experience this morning.

I lived through my first earthquake!

You have to understand, Oklahoma does not get earthquakes. Like, ever. I never would have dreamed that I’d ever feel one.

So, picture this. I was sitting on my couch with Olive looking up idioms for tutoring students and dealing with flickr when all of a sudden I heard a sound like the entire house rattled. I actually didn’t feel anything, but it was such a strange noise – I literally thought to myself “that sounded like how I’ve heard earthquakes described.”

I glanced at Olive to see if she heard it, and she was sitting up with her little ears perked looking around. However, here is a prime example of a downside of working from home. There are no other adults around to confirm that you’re not crazy when crazy stuff happens!

So what did I do? The only logical thing – I went on about my business and forgot about it.

About 30 minutes later, I went to check my phone and realized I had about 5 missed calls and 2 texts from the husband, and a text from my mom, wondering if I’d felt the earthquake and making sure I was okay. ha! I couldn’t believe it.

Anyway, apparently it was a 4.3 on the scale and was felt all the way from north Texas to Arkansas and everywhere in between.

With all that excitement I completely forgot about lunch, and suddenly I looked up and I had 15 minutes till I needed to leave for tutoring! Considering everything I still needed to do before leaving, I knew a lunch on the go was in order! So, I whipped up a brown rice cake sandwich with natural peanut butter and half a banana. It was delish. But somewhat messy. Have you ever tried to bite into a rice cake sandwich? Unfortunately I failed at getting a picture in all the madness. I lived through an earthquake – can you blame me?!?

By the time I got though with all my tutoring appointments and taught my yoga class I was starving for dinner. Enter leftovers of my favorite meal.

cooked spinach, vegetarian refried beans, rotel tomatoes and vegan (Daiya) cheese wrapped in a whole wheat tortilla a doused in spicy enchilada sauce. With a side of baked corn chips (corn tortillas) and homemade guacamole.

Dessert was simple.

two little oranges (only a portion is in the picture)

All in all I’d say it was a banner day – a nice way to balance out yesterday methinks:)

Oh, one last side note. I’ve told you guys how much I love meeting with international students, right? Well, I love it more and more everyday. Hanging out with them is so refreshing + I think I learn more than they do! Awhile back I mentioned one of my students, Nada, who is super sweet but also beyond talkative and a bit high maintenance. Well, she really threw me for a loop on Monday. We were chatting along just like normal when all of a sudden she said “blah, blah, blah…when the little one comes.”

Say what?!

“Little one?” I asked.

“Oh, yeah…I’m expecting. Did I not tell you that? I’m due in January.”

“Um negative on that. I would remember if you had told me that. I’ve been meeting with you for weeks – how can I not know you are pregnant?? So, is it a boy or a girl?” I asked.

“It’s a girl.”

“Aww, how sweet (beginning to get over my initial shock at this point). So what are ya going to name her?”

“Well, I have a couple of names in mind, but one I’m really leaning toward….Lupus.”

“Ahem. Excuse me?”

“Lupus. That’s what I’m going to name her.”

So, I then had to gently explain to my sweet little Egyptian student that Lupus might not be the best choice. I mean, sure it’s cute and all…but oh the pain it will cause for that poor child!

I felt bad to shoot her down, but I also felt it my duty to shelter the baby from a lifetime of humiliation.

Oh the joy of international students:) And I can say that because I was one.

Now that I’ve sufficiently talked your ears off! I’ll be signing off. I’ll see you all tomorrow!

G’night!

P.S. I can only imagine the google searches that will come forth due to this post!

$6 well spent + spicy chia black bean burger

This morning Jon and I slept in a bit, then got up and headed to the Farmer’s Market! We are really trying to stay on a strict budget these days, so I planned to only use the cash that was leftover from our trip last week….which was $6.

I repeat. $6.

We didn’t really need anything, surprisingly, so six bucks isn’t quite as ridiculous as it sounds. Last week I had picked up some fresh blackberries and they were so good! I was dying to get some more this week. The vendor I bought from last week was out, so I had to get them from another. Guess how much they were.

$6.

Ha. So, I spent my entire budget on blackberries!

Breakfast – decaf iced soy latte (by way of gift card!) with a bowl of berries

They have already been worth ever cent so far. Delicious:)

Now that we are crackin’ down on our budget, I’m really trying to utilize all of our leftovers. Hence, this salad for lunch.

chopped fresh spinach, broccoli slaw, corn, leftover black bean burger (recipe below!), vegetarian refried beans, salsa, a sprinkle of cumin and chias

This was just okay. I had let the second batch of black bean burgers cook a little too long the other night, so this was a bit dry and crumbly. It did the job, though;)

For our anniversary celebration (our anniversary was actually Thursday) last night, we went Cafe 501, a really nice little place in the city. Jon had been there once a really long time ago, but I had never been!

And enjoy we did. It was really wonderful.

free bread and garlic oil while we waited – we each had about a piece and a half

Appetizer – hummus with roasted red pepper and garlic. Served with warm pita bread.

I really could have just ordered this and been perfectly fine…and full. But of course I didn’t realize that until I had already ordered my meal and eaten about half of the hummus! eek.

I did thoroughly enjoy this salad, I’m not gonna lie. And all it’s sweet, crunchy, feta cheesy goodness. It was made up of a bed of fresh greens, feta cheese, spiced pumpkin seeds, granny smith apples and a lemon vinaigrette dressing. Dressing on the side as to avoid floating lettuce:) I ate about half.

After dinner we had planned to go to a movie…but alas, we were both tired, and it sounded much better to just head home and cuddle up in bed to watch something (Isn’t that always better anyway?). And that we did:)

Okay, now for the two recipes I promised yesterday!!

First up - Spicy Chia Black Bean Burgers

Ingredients

1 cup black beans, rinsed, drained and mashed
1 cup cooked barley
1 clove of garlic, crushed (minced will work)
1/4 cup onion, chopped
2 tbsp avocado (mashed sweet potato will also work)
1 tsp chili powder
1/2 tsp dried oregano
1/2 tsp dried basil
1/4 tsp ground cumin
1/4 tsp ground red pepper
1 tsp sea salt
1 tbsp chia seeds

Directions

Mix all ingredients together in a medium sized bowl.
Divide and shape mixture into four patties
Heat George Foreman grill (or skillet) and coat with olive oil
Cook patties until crispy

recipe adapted from The Eat Clean Diet Recharged

I made these once before, but this time I tweaked the recipe and cooked them on our George Foreman rather than the stovetop, and they worked quite nicely. They do tend to be a bit more fragile than your average beef/turkey burger, but these held together just fine!

We enjoyed them on Ezekiel buns; I only had the bottom part of the bun and ate it with a fork. Also added broccoli slaw, spinach, pickles, onions and hummus.

Hi husband and Olive. hehe.

We also had some baked fries on the side. I cut up one whole russet potato, spread the pieces on a cookie sheet, sprinkled with a little of this (seasoned salt, garlic powder) and a little of that (ground red pepper) and baked at 400 degrees for about 20 – 25 minutes, flipping them every once in awhile. Don’t forget to spray the pan really well before you lay on the fries! Not that I’ve had a problem with this or anything:)

Tasty!!

Okay, next up is a recipe that isn’t really a full recipe. More of a how-to of sorts.

As you all know, I participated in the Foodbuzz Ultimate Banana Split Challenge by making this baby

I wasn’t able to eat the entire thing (as no self respecting person would:)…but the three bites I did inhale eat were out-of-this-world! It tasted every single bit as indulgent as it looks.

To start, I used my food processor to make 3 different kinds of banana soft-serve. I added a small handful of strawberries to the first batch, about a tablespoon of cocoa powder to the second batch and a tablespoon of natural peanut butter to the third batch. Each batch contained one whole banana. All you do is process a frozen banana until you achieve a smooth, creamy consistency. Then add your extra ingredient (the possibilities are mind boggling) and process until mixed well.

I froze each flavor for several hours so it would be the right consistency for scooping.

Next I made the coconut whipped cream.

First things first – leave your mixing bowl and beater in the freezer for several hours so it is very cold. Next, poke a hole (or several) in the bottom of a can of Thai Coconut Milk (only the full fat version works). Let the milk drain out the bottom. Use a can opener to open the top, at which point you’ll see the thick coconut fat.

Scoop the fat out into your mixing bowl. Mix until smooth, but don’t over mix.

Next add about .5 to 1 cup of powdered sugar and continue mixing until it becomes a whipped consistency. Ta-da! Vegan whipped cream:)

recipe found here

I know I’ve been saying this a lot lately, but I have some big news coming up in my next post! Remember in this post when I said I have “a few other things up my sleeve?” Well one of those things is going down tomorrow! I am so excited…and I can’t wait to tell you guys.

Talk to you later!

Electrolux #splits: Classic Vegan Banana Split

Are you ready for this?

I have something exciting to share with you today!

As someone who has had one grandma pass away due to cancer and another grandma fight (and win!) a battle with cancer, I am passionate about contributing in the pursuit of a cure to this devastating disease.

I’m sure many, if not all of you have or know someone who has battled with cancer, and you probably possess just as much of a desire to fight back as I do.

For this reason, the moment I heard about this exciting opportunity to help raise money and tell everyone about the Ovarian Cancer Research Fund (OCRF), I knew I couldn’t pass it up!!

“…the mission of OCRF is very straightforward: to fund research to find a method of early detection and ultimately a cure for ovarian cancer.”

Not only does the OCRF fund research through four different grant programs, they also strive to educate women about ovarian cancer in an effort to make a difference in the lives of those who are at risk.

It is through the diligent dedication and commitment of people just like you and me that the OCRF is able to continue in this crucial pursuit.

In an effort to raise money and help spread the word about the OCRF, Foodbuzz is teaming together with Electrolux and Kelly Ripa by sponsoring a sweet summertime challenge and a Top 9 Takeover for Featured Publishers!

During these long summer months, when the air is so thick you could slice it with a knife, Foodbuzz knows that one easy and healthy way to stay cool is by indulging in your favorite summertime treats! That is why they’ve created the ultimate banana split challenge!

The best part is that for every banana split submitted by a Featured Publisher, Foodbuzz will donate $50 to the OCRF! Also, Foodbuzz will select the top 9 banana splits posts to be featured in the Top 9 Splits takeover!

To participate in the challenge, I have created the Classic Vegan Banana Split!

This split is loaded with homemade goodness. Three generous scoops of homemade vegan banana softserve in three classic flavors: peanut butter, strawberry and chocolate! Topped off with made-from-scratch vegan coconut whipped cream, sprinkled with carob chips, dusted with chia seeds (of course!) and crowned by two happy cherries!

I am so honored and excited to be a part of this challenge and to be involved with a company who reaches out to support cancer research.

Now go make your own banana split and stay cool!

this girl knows what she wants

So, I’m not the only one who knows exactly what I want in my food.

For awhile now we’ve been having trouble with Olive not being able to um….let’s just say “hold down her food.” It finally dawned on us yesterday that she might just be trying to tell us something. Maybe losing your lunch at least once a week for no apparent reason isn’t totally normal.

After a short visit to the vet, we decided to change her food. You can’t just change it overnight, though. You see, if we switch her cold turkey lamb, we’ll risk having problems at the other end. The trick is to sift in the new food just a little at a time and after about a weeks time be completely done with the old food. Well, that only works if the ahem person involved agrees to continue eating the old food. As opposed to only picking out the new food kernels of course.

Exhibit A. This is what we found after having incorporated the new food in with the old. If you look closely you can see that there are bits of food under her bowls. She also had trailed it all across the kitchen floor. So, we decided to do a little test to make sure it wasn’t a fluke.

Exhibit B. Olive is given an Olive sized bowl each of California Natural (the old food) and Prairie (the new food).

Exhibit C. When given the go-ahead, Olive immediately goes for Prairie.

Exhibit D (not pictured). Trickster Dad stops Olive mid-gulp and quickly switches up the bowls to see if she chooses the same one again. Of course she does.

Lastly, dad gives Olive the California Natural bowl and scowls as she turns her nose up at it. He then proceeds to give her the Prairie bowl, which she immediately devours.

Folks, we have a verdict. Now we’re left scratching our heads and wondering “has she been throwing up as an act of rebellion because she doesn’t like her food? or is she allergic?” We may never know.

Onward and upward. Today Jon and I proudly made it out of bed in time to get in a workout. We had planned to break our sweat at the gym because it is so dang hot outside, but we were pleasantly surprised when we stepped outside and it felt only like a cool 80 degrees. Without hesitation we abandoned our gym passes and headed to the street. After putting in a quick 20 minute run, we came back to get O for a walk.

Shortly after our run, I was reunited with this guy

2 big handfuls spinach
1 cup soy milk
1 tbsp chia seeds
1 scoop Amazing Grass
1 tbsp almond butter
ice

Because of vacation and a lack of groceries since, I have not had a green monster in a couple of weeks! It was a grand reunion. Tomorrow I shall be reunited with overnight oats methinks.

I spent most of the morning at the coffee shop working on some stuff and sipping on a nice iced soy latte.

Now I know how this looks. Let me explain. When Jon and I decided to commit to our “no eating out for a week and that includes coffee” challenge, we agreed that we could still get coffee drinks from The Daily Grind. Jon worked there for five years during college and we’re still good friends with the owner, so we have a prepaid card and we are only charged a dollar per drink. I know, I know. It still seems like we’re cheating, but technically no money changed hands, so I vote that we’re in the clear.

On a more honest and admirable note, I did pack my lunch so I wouldn’t be tempted to grab something.

Thank you Mister whole wheat tortilla broccoli slaw sprouts hummus and tempeh wrap. You saved me from making a decision I would later regret. Just a warning for tomorrow, though. A good friend whom I haven’t seen in some time asked me to meet for lunch tomorrow, and I agreed. Hey, life happens. And the point of the challenge is still being driven home.

And dinner…

Carrots, onions, bell pepper, squash and zucchini sauteed in Evoo and doused with Bragg’s Liquid Aminos and Nutritional Yeast. Served over a bed of Soba noodles. A go-to favorite.

Followed by banana soft serve with a bit of Maranatha Chocolate Almond Butter mixed in.

The rest of the day consisted of a long overdue phone chat with my college roommate, starting to clean out our office and chilling with my sweet husband.

I’m off to bed now! G’night!

a little of this, a little of that

Happy Wednesday night! I always enjoy Wednesday nights because it means the week is over halfway through, and we’re sprinting towards Friday!

Tonight I received my very first lesson from Jon about how to take care of the admin side of his business. One of my goals for our future is for me to take care of the all the admin side, so he’ll be more freed up to design. It may be surprising, but I’m really excited about it! I love having my own “gigs,” but there is nothing I love more than being with him, so doing business together totally floats my boat!

I’ve really been trying to clear my head lately. As I’ve mentioned before, I’ve got some decisions that I’m trying to work through, and it’s starting to really wear on me. I often have a hard time “shutting down.” The more I try to not think about something, the more I think about it! I just need a break, I think, so I can step away and try to see things from a new perspective. Any ideas on how to just relax and clear your mind of stress?

I had some seriously great eats today. It all started off with the usual GM (almond milk+spinach+Amazing Grass+1/2 banana+chia seeds+ice). Today was Pita Pit day at school, so I had my usual whole wheat pita with babaganoush, spinach, onion, bell pepper, mushroom, sprouts, pineapple, tomoto and hotsauce. Unfortunately they were out of avocado, so no healthy fats for me. Bah! It was tasty nevertheless.

Confession: I don’t take pictures of my food when I eat lunch at school. For one, I never take my camera, but also I haven’t told my coworkers about CSM. I’ve considered telling them, but I just kind of want to keep my private life a little bit separate. Do your coworkers read your blog? Do you feel weird about them reading about the personal side of your life?

On to dinner. Close

Closer.

Closest:)

Look familiar? Yes, that’s right. It’s the same exact meal from last night. Creative? No. Delicious? Most definitely! I couldn’t resist having it a second time. We’re not talking about leftovers either, people…a total remake…with the addition of chia seeds.

And dessert

Three little dried apricots.

I made it to the gym today to continue my pledge. I did a quick 2 miles on the treadmill followed by weights. I focused on arms today because my legs are so sore from yesterday! Then I finished up with another 1 mile on the treadmill. It was a pretty energizing workout, and I felt really focused. Yea!

Hope you all have a great night!

a happy weekend:)

Okay, so I’m off work AGAIN tomorrow. I just got the call that we are taking another snow day tomorrow because the roads are still not clear. This has turned into a 5 day weekend…crazy! It’s not that I mind having another day to stay at home and not have to commute, but I’ve got my classes on a planned schedule, and this is really cramping my style! I’m going to have to spend a few hours tomorrow working and rescheduling some things. I’ve got my fingers crossed that we’ll be back in session on Tuesday. As of today we’ve exceeded our built in snow days so we’ll be adding on a day in May. Blah. O’well, I’m just going to try to enjoy being home and get ahead a little bit with planning. I know I can’t complain about having a day off work!

Anyway! These last couple of days have been so nice! Jon and I have just been workin’ away on projects around the house.

First this:

This picture doesn’t even do it justice. I’m a little embarrassed to post the before pic because it was so bad. It feels so good to have that task done finally!

Then this:

What can we say? We love quirkiness;)

We’ve been needing curtains for our bedroom since we moved in last May. A few months ago we were at Wall’s Bargain Center and it just so happend that they had gotten a shipment of Anthropologie items in. We scored several things including this cool fabric. I knew immediately that I wanted to use it to make curtains for our bedroom. I’m so glad we finally made them, and we’re really happy with the outcome! What do you think?

And because I mentioned in a post about 3 weeks ago that we got a new bed and pictures were coming…

I also made a little blanket for my friend whose baby shower is next weekend. It’s a tag blanket, and the baby can chew/suck on the ribbons. I promise that moms really use these – any moms out there who’ve heard of a tag blanket??

Now for a list of tasty highlights from the last couple of days -

I made tofu for the first time! It turned out okay, but was a little tough. I need to find a different recipe to make the next batch. My problem is that most recipes I find for tofu marinade include high sodium sauces, which I try to steer clear of. Any ideas out there of low sodium sauces/marinades to use with tofu? Also, do you marinate your tofu before or after you cook it? My recipe said to marinate after cooking, but that just seemed weird to me. Here’s what I did for this meal:

sauteed brussels, broccoli, mushrooms and zucchini
added in some asian sesame salad dressing found in the fridge
heated up some pre-made brown rice
cut tofu into one inch slices and pressed between towels with books on top for one hour
threw the tofu into the pan with the veggies and pressed it with a spatula until brown on both sides
added the rice and a little more sauce and mixed it all together and heated through
garnished with sliced almonds

Overall this meal was really good, but I definitely need to work on my tofu making skills (or lack thereof:)!

Next highlight was dessert!

Banana soft serve with vegan chocolate chips/carob chips. Banana soft serve has floated around the blog world for a long time. I’m not sure who the original credit really goes to, but please let me know if you have any idea!

Breakfast this morning was oats of course!

I added:

sliced banana
dollop of soy raspberry yogurt
almond butter
sprinkle of Kashi Go Lean cereal – Kashi is my husband’s favorite cereal. I thought a small bit would complement my oats quite well – and I was right!

And last…today’s lunch. I had cooked up a batch of whole wheat couscous, but hadn’t yet figured out what to do with it. So, I ravaged the fridge and just threw in some things I had on hand.

leftover steamed green beans
steamed spinach
chick peas
black beans
corn
tiny bit of salsa
seasonings

This was pretty tasty. I love throwing together grain and veggie concoctions! I’ve been doing different variations for a long time, and you really can’t go wrong. If you make up the grain ahead of time and have veggies on hand, it’s super fast too!

What do you do for a quick go to meal? Sometimes I let myself get a little too hungry, and I just want something fast and easy, but healthy/vegan of course. I’d love to get some ideas from you guys!

Well, I hope everyone had a great weekend! I’m so excited that January is over, and February is raring to go:)

Oh, and tonight is the last chance to order Jay Robb Protein powder and get 10% off from Heather’s site. I just ordered mine, and I’m so excited to try it. I’ve been looking for a good protein powder.

let it snow, let it snow, let it snow!

Hi all! How’s it going? We have had a pretty low key but fun day around here. We got up fairly early this morning because Jon had a conference call for work, and neither one of us could go back to sleep! So we did a short ab workout to start the day off. It was so peaceful to be at home because it just snowed…and snowed…and snowed. I think we ended up getting about an inch of ice yesterday and about 4 or so inches of snow today. I just loved watching it out the window as we worked! Totally the highlight of my day.

This was our first time to get snowed in since moving into our house.
Aside from the couple of hours of work I did for school, we spent the rest of the day cleaning up our guest room and doing some more decorating around the house. I love working on projects together…it feels so good to get things done and see what we can accomplish.

For some reason, I can’t get my iPhone to email the before and after pics, so I’ll post ‘em tomorrow. I’m actually kind of embarrassed to post the before picture. Ever since Christmas, our guest room has just become the catch all, and recently it has gotten out of control! We finally took care of it though, and I feel so much better. So, feel free to give us a ring of you’re swinging through good ‘ole Oklahoma ‘cause we’ve got you covered! I definitely wouldn’t recommend swinging though anytime soon, though, because you might not make it out☺

Shall we move on to today’s eats? For breakfast, I had a nice and toasty bowl of oats.

“Gee, wonder how I can get my paws on some of mom’s oats?”

1/3 cup oats
¾ cup water
spoonful of soy yogurt
½ scoop chias
2 tbsp sliced almonds
sprinkle of granola

Because breakfast was not until about 9am, I didn’t eat again until lunch, at which point I had my favorite monster salad. This salad was so huge, and good to the very last bite.

2 big handfuls of organic field greens
2 artichoke hearts, chopped
¼ cup black beans, rinsed
¼ cup chick peas, rinsed
¼ cup corn (no salt/no sugar added)
chopped baby carrots
¼ avocado, chopped
a few tbsp balsamic vinegar

This held me over for several hours. I cannot get over this salad – it’s so filling and so tasty…I could definitely eat it several times a week for lunch, and sometimes I do!

A few hours later, I had a snack of the rest of my soy yogurt from breakfast (about ½ cup) with more almonds.
That’s it for meals – nothing too terribly exciting today. I haven’t even mentioned dinner because it was one of our comfort food staples, which we probably eat a little too often – spinach enchiladas. Dessert was a pear, sprinkled with cinnamon, and a teeny tiny bit of soy dream ice cream on the side. Yum!

One question I want to ask you all before I sign off for the night is how you feel about the price of healthy food. I have become addicted to certain “health” foods, namely chia seeds, amazing grass, almond butter etc., and they are majorly depleting our budget. I’ve decided I’m going to have to start cutting back on some of these items, but it’s so hard now that I’m used to having them. I figured up the other day that my green monster costs me around $4 a pop! Crazy, I know.

Have you had any struggles with affording certain foods that are a part of your healthy lifestyle? I know that I can eat healthy without buying “specialty foods,” and trust me, I love simple, clean food such as produce. But I just love the fun of trying new foods and having foods on hand that I know are really an investment in my health. I really do think of it as an investment, however, it’s got to end somewhere. Thoughts? Suggestions? The more time I spend in the blog world, the more it seems that maybe I’m the only one with this problem, but I know that can’t be true…right? I’d love to hear your insight☺

I hope everyone has a truly amazing start to the weekend!

“I love that man that can smile in trouble, can gather strength from distress, and grow brave by reflection.” – Thomas Paine

a “re-epiphany”

First things first, people. As I mentioned yesterday, I made Averie’s Vegan Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Protein Bars. They are TO DIE FOR. So good! They are gooey and soft, and for me the bitterness of the carob is the perfect compliment to the sweetness of the dried cranberries. All of the flavors mix together in just the right way. Her recipe is pretty flexible, so lemme tell you what I put in them.

- one ripe banana
- 1.5 cup oats
- 1/2 cup dried cranberries
- 1/2 cup carob chips
- 1/2 cup pure maple syrup
- 1/2 cup natural pb

- 1 scoop of the only protein powder (soy) I had on hand
- 3 tbsp sliced almonds
- 2 tbsp milled flaxseed – Walmart didn’t have whole flaxseeds. I think whole would do much better.
- 2 tbsp chia seeds
- 1.5 tsp cinnamon
- 1 tsp vanilla extract

I mixed it up just like Averie suggested. If you notice, I omitted the coconut, which may have made my bars more gooey – not that that’s a bad thing! I certainly have not skipped a beat in slicing off a piece each night;) Definitely try these out if you’re looking for a healthy, vegan sweet treat!

Today I had an epiphany. Funny thing is, this isn’t the first time I’ve had this epiphany. I’ve realized, though, that sometimes in my life I have to learn things over and over. Bad habits tend to come back randomly, and I have to relearn my new, good habits. Here’s the story:

Usually when I come home from work, I run in the house, change clothes as fast as possible and race to the gym. I like to get my workout in and get back home before Jon’s been home from work for too long. Today, as I was driving home I was realizing that my body…and mind, for that matter…were just not feeling a workout. Now, for me there is a difference between just not wanting to get on the treadmill or weights and me really needing a rest day. I could feel it in my bones muscles, and I knew that I needed to take a day off. Plus, I was completely mentally drained. This week has just been extra busy and strenuous, and I haven’t given myself a chance to recoup. So, I was going back and forth in my mind between two things: burn calories and get a good cardio workout in OR give myself a mental and physical break.

I started feeling guilty at the thought of not going to the gym. I was telling myself that I needed to go to the gym no matter what because I needed to burn those calories. Then Jon called. He was headed home early from work and would be home any second. Talk about making a hard situation harder for me. Now I wanted to stay home to be with him, really wanted to rest, but the guilt was warring inside my head. I haven’t done this to myself in a long time. I honestly thought I was past the point of feeling guilty over working out and focusing way more on calorie burning than mental, emotional and relational (when I’m feeling guilty it affects my entire attitude, even toward Jon) health.

So, to make an already long story a little shorter, Jon coaxed me into staying home and resting, but not without a lot of whining and “bad mood” from me. Because of him, I went to lie down for a bit. I started thinking about the whole situation with a little more clarity.

Our physical health is not more important than our mental or emotional health. Sometimes I make the mistake of putting more emphasis on my physical health because it’s outwardly evident. If I gain five pounds, other people will notice and my jeans won’t fit quite as well, however, if I completely exhaust myself, other people don’t have to know. It’s a lot easier to ignore. So, I decided I’m making a commitment to start focusing equally on each area of my life. I’m always striving to find that balance, and while I did have a setback today, I also took several steps toward becoming more balanced.

Do you ever have trouble finding balance between everything that is important in your life? Do you often feel that you don’t have time to take care of every part of your life? How do you try to maintain balance? I’d love to hear your thoughts.

Well, it’s about time for me to skidaddle (sp?:) to bed. Jon is trying to coerce me into staying up late with him, but I’m not sure how long I’m going to make it! See you tomorrow for a review of the homemade vegan black bean burgers we made tonight. Good night!

goodbye wednesday…helloooo thursday!

Happy Wednesday night everyone! I, for one, am so glad Wednesday is over. It’s my least favorite day of the week, and today it went so slowwww. That is, it went slow until I got home and had a million things I wanted to do. Of course!

I didn’t get to go to the gym today because I had a hair appointment at 4. So, I had to race home from school just to make it ten minutes late. Honestly, I just haven’t felt very good today. I’m not really sure why, but by the time I got home, I was starving and just really needed some comfort food. Enter vegetarian quesadillas made by the hubs and Averie’s Raw Vegan Chocolate Chia Seed Pudding.

The quesadillas consisted of a protein pita (more on this in a sec), veggie shreds cheese, and bell peppers and onion. Simple and comforting. Not the most nutrient dense meal I’ve ever had, but hey, sometimes you just gotta do what you gotta do. And it was tasty.

While I’m on the subject, I want to put a plug in for these awesome pitas I discovered on the shelf at Walmart (believe it or not). Now, I have to say I usually like to buy things with a few less ingredients, but overall these are pretty clean. They are Joseph’s brand flax, oat bran, and whole wheat flour. They are a great source of Omega 3s and are “super soft!” – as stated on the package:) These boast 60 calories, 8 carbs, 4 grams of fiber and 6 grams of protein. I seriously love them, and every time I go to Walmart I fear that they’ll be gone. Does this happen to you guys? I’ll just discover or start loving something, and the next time I go POOF it’s gone. Either way, check ‘em out if you get the chance.

Well, I’m off to have a bit of down time before I go to bed. Tonight has been extra busy because I had to do some work on school stuff. Need more time! Need more time!

Have a fantastic night! Oh, and more to come tomorrow on Averie’s pudding plus our new bed that should be arriving! Stay tuned…

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