Monthly Archives: January 2010

Two hands

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15

Good morning! First of all, I wanted to inform you all that comfy shoes definitely beat out heels with ya’ll. But it seems like a lot of you can appreciate a killer pair of heels as well. Also, I am wearing a lovely pair of flats today and my feet love me for it. They’d love a foot massage even more, but that’s neither here nor there.

Second of all, I believe that there are always two dynamics working in this world. The things that could have happened and the things that did happen. This post will be an exploration of those dynamics :)

On one hand, I could have cooked up a delicious meal last night – something along the lines of tofu cubes or lentil stew, both of which I have purchased all the ingredients for and need to make soon.

But on the other hand, I had 4 servings of leftover paella to eat up. So I went with that instead.

Even better than the night before, because the saffron had time to seep into the rice and veggies. Yum-o.

On one hand, I could have woken up at 5 a.m. this morning via the two alarms that I thought I had set and gone to the gym for a strength workout.

But on the other hand, I woke up at 6:15 a.m. with no memory of any alarms ever ringing.

I’m not sure if I slept through them, turned them off, or just dreamed setting them in the first place. One of the great mysteries of life.

So… on one hand, I could have decided to just give in a go back to sleep since I obviously didn’t have time to make it to the gym.

But on the other hand, I knew that I could still get in a BTN (better than nothing) workout if I got my booty out of bed. So I did, and I did some leg & ab exercises before getting ready for work.

On one hand, I could have had this measly orange for breakfast this morning since my BTN workout trumped my smoothie making.

But on the other hand, there were Panera bagels in the kitchen when I strolled into work. So I snatched up an Asiago cheese bagel, which is so flavorful  that it only needs the thinnest smear of cream cheese, and went along my merry way.

The orange will make a delicious snack later :)

On one hand, I could be stressed out about work today because it is going to be a super serious day.

But on the other hand, I’m choosing to revel in the fact that it’s Friday and busy myself with all the never-ending tasks at hand in hopes that the day zips by so I can enjoy another lovely weekend!

What’s one thing that could have happened one way in your day, but went in a whole other direction?

Lived to tell

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How’s it going dear friends? Well I made it through the day and lived to tell about it :) I need a serious break from heels though, as much as it pains me to say that. Ouch!

I started the day out with a Green Monster because I knew that the rest of the day would probably be a bit iffy. I’ve tried bringing my own food to these things before, but it never really ends up working out too well. Plus I knew there would be pizza provided and I’ve been craving pizza like crazy lately!

Sorry about the horrid iPhone picture, but I was rushed the whole day and it was the best I could do. I had that piece and one other later on. It was actually really good pizza! I loved that it had squash on it, not many veggie pizzas do. Yummers. I may or may not have also had a couple of cookies. Physical labor warrants such treats ;)

When I got back to the office I was ready to dig into something that brought sheer joy into my life.

I won Sana’s Chobani giveaway a few weeks back and it arrived today! I was beyond thrilled!

I tried the peach flavor!

I’ve been dyyyyyyyying to try the peach Chobani for forever and ever now, and it was definitely everything I wanted it to be :) I’ve entered about 546 Chobani giveaways and never won, so I am SOOO happy that I won. Thanks again Sana and Chobani :) Everyone at my work was so jealous of my loot, hehe. Added bonus.

I’m so happy I worked out this morning so I can just chill out tonight. I might do some Exercise TV stuff, just because it’s kind of fun. But other than that I’m just gonna relax!

I hope you all have wonderful and relaxing nights as well :)

Do you wear heels a lot or are you more of a comfy shoes kinda person?

Paella

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16

Good morning! I’ve got my game face on today. I hate going to these trade shows, especially when there’s more important work I could be doing, but there’s nothing I can do about it. So I’m just going to grin and bear it :)

Last night’s delicious dinner definitely got me pumped up and ready to go. It’s been a long time since I’ve really cooked anything, and I’ve been dying to get in the kitchen and put together a real meal. I made a Vegetable & Chickpea Paella out of the cookbook I got for Christmas.

This dish was just bursting with gorgeous fresh veggies.

I topped my portion with a some feta cheese and a whole wheat pita.

Amazingly satisfying meal! I did have to sacrifice the gym in order to make it and get everything done I needed to do, but I’m cool with that. I hate the all or nothing mentality, and all I can do is what I have time for.

I got all my stuff together for the event today, took care of some things around the house and went to bed at a decent time, full of Benadryl to calm my allergies or sinuses or whatever is going on.

Well, that was a bad idea! I was supposed to meet Lisa at Body Pump again this morning but I slept through my first alarm and didn’t get out of bed until almost 5:20.  I was bummed, but I still went to the gym and got in a good run before I had to head back home and get ready for work so I could be here early.

And now I guess I better get going, it’s going to be a long and busy day but tomorrow is Friday so it’s all good :)

Have a good day!

On the stress train

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14

Hey guys! Sorry I’ve been a no-post around here lately. Things at work have been really hectic and I had another birthday dinner last night that caused me to be too tipsy busy to post ;)

I didn’t take any pictures at the dinner last night, which is upsetting because it was definitely a delicious meal and a fun time. Everything else I’ve been doing/eating lately has been pretty boring compared to that. I was just really excited to catch up with Taylor that pictures and blogging took a back seat for an evening.

I’m still pretty pressed for time, and my sinuses are giving me hell, so I apologize for the rushed and unexciting nature of this post. :(

Lunch the past two days has consisted of my mom’s leftover butternut squash soup.

I loved this soup so much. I don’t like my blended soups to be completely smooth so that it still feels like I’m getting some chew in. My mom hit the texture spot on for me.

Other food items I’ve been enjoying would be my free Kashi Trail Mix Granola bar.

I love how Kashi sends out free products every quarter. Great marketing if you ask me!

I’ve also been eating a lot of cottage cheese lately, since I have a tub of it chilling in my work fridge. It’s infinitely more delicious with hot sauce on top.

And, of course, there have been several apple casualties in the past two days.

I like to eat really crunchy thing when I am stressed. Is that weird?

And stressed I am. It’s so funny to me how my work is so laid back 99% of the time, but then when one thing happens it snowballs and I have a million things to do. And since most of the time I’m used to being pretty relaxed, I do not handle the stress well at all.

I was hoping to leave work early today, so I could go to the doctor for my sinuses, but that doesn’t look too promising. I have to get in a workout tonight, cook dinner so all the ingredients don’t spoil and get everything ready for a trade show I have tomorrow and still somehow manage to get in a good night’s sleep. I’m so exhausted today and I know that’s only making the stress worse.

I know I just need to breathe and believe that everything will get done and stop whining. I guess I will give that a try :)

Have a wonderful day! We’re more than half-way through the week now, so it’s all downhill from here… right?!

Friends

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Hey you guys! Thanks again so so much for the kind birthday wishes yesterday. It meant a lot and each one made me smile. I had a pretty great birthday, and I even have one more birthday event tonight. Woo hoo!

Dinner at my mom’s last night was awesome, as usual. I didn’t take a picture of my actual plate but I did snap some shots of the different food components. Mom set up “mood lighting” in the kitchen and dining room so I had to use a flash :(

We started out with butternut squash soup and a simple salad.

I made that ;) One can not be expected to exert too much efffort on their birthday, haha. I didn’t get a picture of the soup, but I am having it for lunch today so it shall reveal itself soon enough.

There was a meat dish of pork tenderloin, but my main dish was acorn squash stuffed with a wild rice pilaf.

Of course this was right up my alley. Loved it! We also had some steamed broccoli and carrots in a brown butter sauce.

All together it was an incredibly fibrous dinner! When I first announced that I wasn’t really going to eat meat anymore (remember, I’m not a vegetarian I just don’t eat much meat), my Mom had a hard time with it. But now I think she’s starting to embrace it and have fun making meat-free dishes when we get together.

She even bought me The Kind Diet for my birthday. I was shocked because I’ve really wanted to read it but I haven’t said anything to her about it. She just picked it out because she thought it sounded like something I would enjoy.

And last but not least, we had Chocolate Raspberry layer cake for dessert.

That picture definitely does not do the cake justice. Dang darn flash…

Oh, and I got so many fun foodie/fitness gifts! The highlights included: The Kind Diet, a set of bakeware, fitness bands (I asked for them) and a gift card to Academy. My favorite gift though was a recipe card box from my mom with some of her mom’s recipes in it. I’ll have to take a picture of the box because it’s so darn cute!

After the obligatory stories of my birth and everyone commenting on what an adorable and perfect child I was, we had to head home. I never really got a great night’s sleep over the weekend so I was pooped when I got back to my apartment. After a quick shower and some streamlining, I passed right out.

I had to get my workout in this morning, since I have dinner with some friends tonight, so it was up and at ‘em at 5 a.m. I have to say, it was a little bit easier than last time!

I did a Pump Fusion class, which is like Body Pump but with cardio intervals added in. It was an okay class, but I was definitely the youngest participant by at least 20 years. The cardio intervals got my heart rate up and I was definitely sweating like crazy, but I didn’t enjoy the class as much as regular Body Pump. Not sure if I’ll do it again or not.

I rushed home after the class and managed to get ready (shower, dry & straigthen hair, apply makeup, blend Green Monster and get dressed) in 38 minutes, which meant I arrived at work 10 minutes early. Go 24-year-old me :)

Oh, and before I go, I wanted to introduce you to my cats. I still consider them mine, even though they now live with my Mom. I couldn’t take them with me to college, and now they’re so accustomed to their life with her that it wouldn’t be fair to move them in with me. I miss them though.

First, we have Phoebe.

She is the baby. I think we had her spayed a little too early, because she just never got very big and has a bit of a weight problem. She’s super sweet though.

There’s also Joey.

I found Joey while I was on a bike ride in high school. He was teeny tiny and about to starve to death. It took a long time to nurse him back to health, but now he’s as good as new :)

There’s also a Chandler cat, but he was camera shy last night. And yes, I named my cats after Friends characters. Best show ever. 

Okay, enough about my cats. I promise I am not a cat lady. But I do miss them!

Have a lovely Tuesday everyone!

Happy Birthday MLK!

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24

Happy Birthday to Martin Luther King! I feel very fortunate to share a birthday with such a pivotal figure in our nation’s history. I’d say compared to his, my birthday mine is about .0000000000000001% as important. ;)

Regardless, I am 24 today and birthdays are still a good time! Thank you to everyone who has given me birthday love, it means the world to me. I’m so happy I found all of you guys in this crazy world we call blogging!

I woke up this morning around 9 a.m. so I could be sure and get my trash outside and then I couldn’t fall back asleep, so I put in Marley & Me to watch. Sad movie, but hey it’s my birthday and I’ll cry if I want to ;)

For breakfast I had two egg whites and one egg scrambled on a whole wheat tortilla.

This was such a filling breakfast. That pita was stuffed!

I had really planned to go to the gym today, but I decided if there was one day of the year to be lazy and enjoy it, it’s your birthday. I did do 30 easy breezy minutes on the elliptical at home and two 10-minute Exercise TV segments focusing on legs. Nothing crazy, but just what I felt like doing.

The rest of the day was spent lazing in my pj’s, painting my nails, and eventually eating lunch.

I had a whole wheat La Tortilla Factory tortilla with a Morningstar chik’n patty, spinach and a sprinkle of cheddar cheese. Yum! So easy but so satisfying.

I have big plans of doing some actual cooking later this week though, I promise :)

I’m about to get ready to head to my mom’s for my birthday dinner, which is sure to be a culinary delight. It will be a lovely end to this long, birthday weekend.

I hope you all have a wonderful Monday!


AKA

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12

Hey guys! So sorry for going the whole weekend without posting. Truth be told, it’s been a crappy weekend. Some fun birthday events have occurred but last night after I got home and went to bed I was awoken by the telephone and had several hours worth of drama to deal with. It’s not worth going into, but it was just really disappointing to realize that some of the people I’ve considered friends for years have turned into people I no longer recognize. I’m just really sad about a lot of things, but I’m trying to keep my head up and believe that bigger and better things lie ahead.

I don’t have a lot of pictures from over the weekend. I managed to eat Mexican food TWICE yesterday at two different Mexican food restaurants. Yikes. But here are the pictures I do have.

Peanut butter/banana oats aka – Pure Heaven.

Godiva Chocolate Pearls aka – the solution for too much drama.

Avocado sushi roll aka – Adult Happy Meal.

Popcorn + hot sauce aka – something I am sure I’ll crave if I’m ever pregnant.

Del Monte Fruit Chillers aka – what you eat when all the chocolate is gone and you have no ice cream.

I’m currently chilling out and watching The Golden Globes (I <3 award shows!) and trying to focus on the positive. I’m challenging myself to not let the crap that went on last night bring me down and to continue to believe that 2010 is going to be a great year!

Have a wonderful Sunday night everyone! I’m super excited to get to sleep in again tomorrow and then get in a good workout before heading to my Mom’s to celebrate my birthday with the woman who gave me birth.

Goodnight!

Full

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15

Woo hoo! It’s the weekend! I’m really pumped since I have three days off and all, but the gloomy weather has definitely seaped into my mood a bit today. However, I just looked at the weather and it looks like we’re going to have a beautiful weekend here in OKC :) So it’s all gravy.

I forgot my camera at home, so all my pics are via iPhone today. :(  Friday Breakfast at work this morning was yummy and so filling! We had a Southwest Egg Casserole with fixins like tortillas, sour cream and salsa. I decided to just have the casserole by itself with a side of salsa.

It was delicious! I have been so much less snacky since I started upping my protein intake. I definitely appreciate that it stops me from mindless snacking, but I get sad sometimes just staring at the snacks I pack for work and not being hungry for them, haha.

I did eventually get hungry again, but it was way later than my usual lunch time. This might take some getting used to.

I had some leftover JBM on a tortilla (provided at breakfast) and topped with salsa.

I was so. full. again after eating this. It held me over until right before I left work. I did have this snack at around 4:30 though, because I don’t know what’s for dinner yet and I need some time to decide.

Plain Oikos, half a banana and Dylan’s Chia Granola. Perhaps the world’s perfect snack.

On the agenda for tonight is some light cardio to work out some of the soreness from Body Pump and then some abs. Not sure what’s going to happen after that.

Have a lovely Friday night! Hasta luego :)

Gloomy Gray

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G’ mornin’ ya’ll! I must say that I was quite shocked to hear that many of you have never had pad thai. You must try it! It is a delicacy. In fact, I can’t think of a better thing to do on a Friday (which is today!) than to eat some pad thai. I’m just sayin’…

The past two days here in Oklahoma have been warm but extremely gloomy. I can’t believe I’m saying this, but I’d almost prefer having the bitter cold back if there could be some sun involved. I hate gray weather.

Last night I embraced the gloom and the fact that I’d already worked out for the day by spending the evening on the couch, attempting to clear out my packed DVR. Tough job, I tell you. ;)

Dinner was a bit pathetic.

Spinach + falafel patty + 2% mild cheddar cheese + hot sauce. Tasty but just not enough to count as dinner in my opinion.

So I fixed it by having a big ‘ol protein-packed ”dessert”.

A chocolate Clif Builder’s bar (yum) with some milk. Delish. I really don’t eat as many protein bars as it seems, I just don’t have a lot of groceries at the present and they’re so darned convenient. I intend to do some heavy weight food shopping over the long weekend though.

Then, just to make sure I got my antioxidants in, I had a glass of red wine while perusing a cookbook I got for Christmas in an attempt to actually do some real cooking one of these days.

I loved that my cousin bought me this cookbook for Christmas. My family has spent a good amount of time poking fun at my meatless ways and trying to understand why I don’t eat it 3 times a day like they do. This showed me that they were at least trying to understand.

The rest of the night was spent watching lots of TV, taking a hot bath and going to bed way too late. Old habits die hard I guess.

I still managed to get up and out of the house a bit earlier today, which was good since it was incredibly foggy out this morning, causing traffic to be about as bad as usual. I actually got to work 10 minutes early. I’m think back on track now :)

Have a fabulous Friday guys! Any big plans for the weekend?

Tidbits

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13

Well, helloooo! Google Reader decided to be a beezy to me today, because it did not put my post up until almost seven hours after I published it. Hmmph. I hope this gets up there quicker, but to be quite honest this one isn’t going to be nearly as interesting as this morning’s was. I’s sleepy.

I feel like such a wuss saying that because I got 6.5 hours of sleep last night. But it was one of those sleeps where I was semi-awake most of the time having weird lucid dreams and worrying that I was going to oversleep. So… I’m worn out today. I’m assuming that waking up early gets easy with time, so hopefully my body will adjust super quick like.

Like I said this morning, my appetite kind of diminished after my workout. I forced my way through my smoothie because I knew I needed something in my belly and I wanted to get the protein in since I’d just done toning. I usually slug my GMs down in about 5 minutes but it took me two full hours today and I still left a little bit that I just couldn’t finish. It was strange. I’m definitely going to eat a small breakfast prior to working out in the mornings from now on.

My appetite came back in FULL FORCE at around 11 a.m. though, right before I had to go to a meeting :( I was soooo hungry during the meeting that I’m pretty sure I have no idea what anyone was talking about. I made the decision while sitting there that I wasn’t really in the mood for what I packed for lunch, so I picked up some major deliciousness.

Tofu Pad Thai! Pad Thai, sushi and Greek food are three things that I always have a craving for but I rarely end up eating it because it’s hard to find it done right. Well, I just decided to try a random place today and it was awesome! It was my first time ordering tofu with my pad thai because I’ve always been a little scared of restaurant tofu. However, it was so good. I will not even lie to you – I ate that whole portion in one sitting.

And then… I didn’t eat anything else all afternoon. I think my body was just shocked to have that much activity to deal with so early in the morning. When I do workout in the a.m. it’s usually just the elliptical or maybe a workout DVD. As a result, my appetite today has just been really weird. I’m really not even hungry for dinner yet, but I haven’t eaten in over 6 hours, so something needs to happen ASAP.

Okay, kiddos that’s all I’ve got tonight. Told you this was going to be dull. But I’ll be back tomorrow :)

Tidbits (fun word!):

Happy Anniversary to Brandi!!! Check our her awesome anniversary giveaway!

And for another great giveaway, check out Shelley’s first giveaway!