Clean Eating and Me

Happy Holidays

2010-12-26T16:27:00.000-08:00

Happy Holidays! I hope everyone had a great holiday and has a wonderful new year!

I have taken a break from blogging while I organize my thoughts and my life. The last couple of months has been rough for me for many reasons. I felt as if I had nothing to share on my blog and basically just lost the desire to communicate through my blog.

I am finally starting to feel like myself again. I feel excited to do the things that I enjoyed doing so much. For a while I was cooking only minimal, quick dishes. Food was not the only thing to suffer. I was in auto-pilot mode in all of my life.

But with the holidays came a rejuvenation for me. I feel happier and more satisfied in life. I feel ready to tackle things with desire. I cannot promise that I am returning to my blog indefinitely, but I will be blogging again. I have a lot to look forward to and a lot to be thankful for. I have finally figured out how to appreciate these things in my life and move past the negative.

I hope everyone had a great holiday and I hope to be able to provide some new clean eating recipes and some lifestyle for everyone in the coming year!

November, December, Vacation!

2010-11-01T04:29:00.000-07:00

Happy November! I cannot believe that it's November already. The holidays are approaching plus John and I are looking forward to our vacation in January. John suggested a great way to realize just how close our vacation is. He breaks the time remaining into smaller segments knowing that each segment will go faster than the whole. Here is the break down for us.
- Three full work weeks (including this week) until the week of Thanksgiving
- Three full work weeks after Thanksgiving until the week of Christmas
- Short weeks of Christmas and New Years
- 1 full work week after the new year
- Our vacation week!
Can you tell that I am excited?? My last vacation was in September 2009 and before that, it was our honeymoon in July 2006. Much too long between vacations!

This weekend was a good one. We got our bedroom painted from the bright green it was to a neutral coffee color. I love the coffee color generally. It is the same color as our living/dining room and now the office. But I really liked the green so I miss it already. I know it was necessary, but I still miss it. I will just have to wait to paint our new bedroom green.

We just have one or two more trips to the storage unit and I will be ready to post some pictures of the completed rooms. After that we will be ready to list our condo for sale after we return from our vacation in January. We are crossing our fingers for a quick sale and also hoping that the remaining units for sale by the association (apartment to condo conversion) sell quickly. There are three left and we really don't want to compete against them. They can offer more incentives than we can, obviously.

We are also considering the difference between renting or buying in Ohio. Honestly, the rents that I see posted online are not nearly as cheap as the house prices themselves. But our realtor here is working to find us a realtor in Ohio so that the realtor can show us properties, both rental and sales, out there. We need someone who has some idea of the area to help us pick where to live. We need to know where stores are and things like that. Hopefully there will be some news in this area shortly!

Sauce or Gravy?

2010-10-26T16:03:00.000-07:00

I finally feel in the mood to really, truly blog again! Today was a good day. The first good day in a few weeks. Finally!

John has a special love for meatball sandwiches and this week I added them to our meal plan to oblige his neverending request for them. Last time we had them, we got everything from the Italian deli near our house, including the meatballs. This time, I made the meatballs and just purchased the sauce and rolls at the deli.

Into my meatball mix went:
- 1 pound organic ground beef
- 1 egg
- About 1/2 cup bread crumbs
- 1/2 red onion diced
- Sprinkle of kosher salt

These were mostly clean, except for the bread crumbs. I need to make my own bread crumbs, but I've yet to attempt it. I dumped all the ingredients into a bowl and mixed with my hands. Then I formed the meat into even size balls and placed on a foil-lined cookie sheet. I baked at 350 for about 25 minutes.

While the meatballs were baking, I put the cold sauce from the deli into a sauce pan and began heating it through on a low temperature.

I also cut up some broccoli to make roasted broccoli. Once the meatballs came out of the oven, I put them in the sauce and threw the broccoli into the oven to cook.

I served them in club rolls and sprinkled a bit of parm cheese on top. It really hit the spot.

Ideally, I'd like to make my own sauce, but John is Italian. He is very used to his mom's sauce. Until I have the chance for her to show me, I'd rather just buy the sauce at the Italian deli because he likes it and it's easy. Someday I will learn and I'm sure it will be worth it then.

And this brings me to the title of the post. Obviously, I call the sweet tomato liquid "sauce." John also calls it sauce. Many people call it "gravy." I find it extremely interesting when people call things by different names. What do you call it?

Going Bananas

2010-10-26T04:14:00.000-07:00

I made a decision a couple of weeks ago that I would get a second job. With ethical considerations, I cannot really have a second job in the legal world. Not to mention that it's hard to find a legal job with hours. Instead, I focused on who I knew would be hiring right now with the holidays approaching. Retail. I haven't worked retail since I graduated from college almost 7 years ago. But I decided to literally go Bananas. Banana Republic that is. I applied there a week ago and yesterday I got offered a position.

Here are the positives:
- It's a job that pays! And it pays more than it used to.
- Extra money for Christmas gifts, our cruise, and moving. Even if it doesn't pay enough to help with my loan payment per se, it will still provide extra cash that we need.
- 50% discount in the entire store! This is a great perk because I need to stock up on suits for my clerkship. A slightly lower discount also extends to Gap and Old Navy. Both discounts will also be great for buying gifts as well.
- It's only 10-25 hours per week, which is probably only 2 to 3 nights per week. This is similar to going to school, but less strenuous because there's no homework associated with it.
- Having a job where I feel needed and am busy the whole night.

And there's always negatives. But they are limited. Obviously, the restraint on my time is the biggest negative. But I did it when I was in school and I can do it again. Dealing with the public is another negative, but I will be positive about it. I will attempt to enjoy the people rather than get frustrated. Finally, the job is just seasonal at this point, but they do keep some people past the holidays and I could be one of them.

I start work on Thursday with an introductory sessioon with a bunch of new hires for the holidays. I am excited and ready to go. Hopefully it will take some of the pressure of me with work. I can enjoy a second job and not feel like my life is all about my crummy job. While others in my position may feel depressed to take a second job, I am excited. I will know that I am doing all that I can to help pay my student loan and maintain our same standard of living. It isn't ideal, but it will work. I will make it work.

Attorney Candice

2010-10-21T04:31:00.000-07:00

I have really been struggling with daily life these last couple of weeks. It's hard to have an enjoyable life when I'm so unhappy at work. Honestly, when I'm not feeling happy, I have a hard time blogging, as has become obvious. I am really struggling with:
- Wanting to practice law now that I'm admitted and being told that I cannot by my employer
- Wanting to find a temporary position until I leave for Ohio and not finding anything
- Disliking the work that I am currently doing and the way that my current boss has been treating me

Yesterday was a big day for me though. I attended the ceremonial swearing in ceremony to be moved into the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania. My parents and John attended. I had to stand in front of the judges with my classmates and take the oath. I had already actually done the oath by way of notary public and my application was being processed. So when I got home last night, I found out that I was *officially* admitted to practice on October 18, 2010 and I now have a bar ID number.

Today, in an effort to circumvent my unhappiness at work, I already e-mailed Legal Aid to start doing some pro bono work. If my employer will not utilize me as a lawyer then I will find people who need a lawyer and donate my services to them. I am extremely excited to start practicing law and wish to start immediately. I am also considering becoming a child advocate, though I need to ascertain the time requirements. I do not want to commit to something and then leave in 10 months for Ohio. I need to find small things that I can do in the time that I have here.

With all this said, I am going to try to return to blogging my meals and struggles with food. A lot of the joy of cooking and eating food has been taken away from me as I struggle, but I am trying to find my happy place again. I'd rather not post depressing, unhappy posts, so I just stay away it. But bear with me and I will return when I have made peace with my reality for the time being.

Vietnamese Chicken

2010-10-17T17:24:00.000-07:00

Hi All! Did you miss me? I just needed a bit of a break from blogging. I did not have a good week at work last week. After blogging about asking for a raise, I was informed that I would not be getting a raise. I was prepared for that, but I was not prepared for being treated with disrespect and sarcasm. I was told that I got my "atta girl" and that was all I would be getting. Needless to say, I am searching for a temporary job until we move to Ohio.

Enough of the job talk, this weekend was jam-packed. On Friday night, I primed the office to remove the orange paint we had in there. On Saturday morning, we painted it a nice coffee color, the same color in my living/dining room and hallway. We also moved boxes into our off-site storage unit. Today, we removed the tape in the office, set up our new chair, and re-organized stuff. It is almost complete. Pictures will come soon, I promise! I want it to be complete first.

We have a super busy week coming with plans almost every night. I knew for tonight's dinner, I wanted something quick, yet good. My friend, Quang, shared his recipe for Vietnamese Chicken with me and I decided to make that, along with brown rice and roasted broccoli. The recipe only includes ingredients, not amounts. Quang said he just feels it out, which I did as well.
- Fish Sauce
- Hoison Sauce
- Ketchup
- Honey
- Garlic
- Black Pepper
I marinaded the chicken for about 2 hours.

Then I grilled it on my Cuisinart Griddler at a medium heat until cooked through.

Here's the finished product.

It was delicious, almost exactly like Quang's. Definitely a good attempt. I really recommend trying this recipe if you like Asian dishes. We loved it with the brown rice and broccoli as well. Simple, clean, and good. Perfect Sunday meal.

Go Phillies!

Getting Mine

2010-10-11T03:55:00.000-07:00

I want to step away from food issues and physical health for this post and discuss mental health. Many people assume that being healthy includes purely physical health. In actuality, it really includes mental health as well. Stress and unhappiness, mental issues really, take a physical toll on the body. All health is all interrelated.

For me, part of my mental health is having goals and taking steps to reach their goals. Many people are content, or pretend to be content, simply waiting around for those goals to come to them. Some are lucky. Let's face it. Some people will always get ahead by doing less. But the majority of us must work for our goals even when others believe we were simply lucky.

October 8, 2010 marked an important day for me- the day when my dream since 7th grade came to fruition. I became an attorney. How did I make that dream come true? How can I show it wasn't luck?
- Graduated undergrad in 7 semesters magna cum laude
- Began work in law firm because I was not ready to begin law school immediately after undergrad
- Worked my way in the firm from a data processor to a paralegal
- Applied to law school taking the time to adequately study for my LSAT's and paid for editing for my application essay
- Began law school and gave it everything I had which included spending hours upon hours reading, making outlines, and studying (i.e. giving up a personal life for four years)
- Took on activities at law school including Temple Law Review as a staff member and editor to pad my resume
- Graduated law school cum laude
- Incurred a crapload of student loans
Despite all this, I am still not an "attorney" meaning that I am not working as one or being paid as one. I went out and got the education, now I have to go out and get the job. Since I have my clerkship in less than a year, for me this means that I will approach my current employer for a promotion and a raise. This is something that I have never done. I have never needed to ask before. But ask I will. I will go and get mine. I have worked for this, I have earned it, and I deserve it. I just cannot wait for it to fall into my lap.

If I do not do this, then my mental health will suffer as I feel the pressure of not being able to pay my student loans. I will be stressed and unhappy. Therefore, I will put myself out there. I may not get what I want, but at least I will know I tried. And, I can always look for another temporary job to hold me until my clerkship begins in September. I will not settle, not now, not ever.

Chilly Willy

2010-10-10T16:20:00.000-07:00

I had such a whirlwind weekend! I found out about the bar late on Friday. We already had plans to go to my friend Quang's house to have dinner with his wife and three year old daughter. I went to school with Quang, but he started a year after me, so he has not yet taken the bar. He and his family were still happy to celebrate with me.

Quang is Vietnamese and he cooked some chicken thighs in a Vietnamese-style. They were so flavorful and delicious. I am actually going to ask for the recipe. His wife, Kristi, is Korean and made black rice (mixed with brown rice) and marinated cucumbers. We also had some seaweed sheets, which are similar to that used for sushi rolls, but is much thiner and salted. It's their potato chip!

We also some champagne that I brought to celebrate.

Plus I brought some chardonnay. Quang also made the most delicious margarita ever. It only lacked triple sec, but it was made with real limes, not a mix. It was strong, but good. Delicious way to celebrate.

On Saturday, we continued with celebrations by going out with my parents for John's birthday (we will celebrate my passing of the bar next weekend when my great aunt can come). We also met with our realtor and bought some paint supplies as I will be painting a few rooms next weekend. My bright orange and green walls will not show well when we list the condo for sale.

Today was a wonderful day of free time. We did our grocery shopping this morning. Then I went to the gym for BodyPump. After that, we attempted to catch up on Tivo- we're still behind. I also started taping off the trim to paint next weekend.

And I made a wonderful Fall meal. Chili. Chili always makes me think of the Chilly Willy song from Woody Woodpecker. "I'm always Chilly Willy. I'm frozen through and through...." Anyone remember that??

I used a chili spice kit from Carrol Shelby that rocked! Getting the spices right with chili is not a strong suit of mine. I loved that with the kit, the salt was in a seperate packet plus it came with masa flour to thicken it. I also made a few modifications to the box directions.

Chili
- 1 pound ground beef (I used 93/7 Laura's Lean Organic.)
- 1 pound Hot Italian Sausage, removed from casing (This was a co-worker's suggestion and it is awesome!)
- 1 yellow onion, diced
- 2 red peppers, diced
- 3 cans black beans, drained and rinsed
- 1 can tomato sauce
- 2 cans water to rinse tomato sauce can
- Spice Kit

The kit only called for beef and the tomato sauce. It was super easy. Brown the meat. Add the peppers and onions and continue to sautee. Then add the beans, tomato sauce, water, and spices. Cook for about 15 minutes. Then add the flour to thicken. To serve, I added some shredded habanero cheddar. It was perfection!

Off to watch the Phillies! My current state is playing my future state!

Esquire

2010-10-09T13:40:00.000-07:00

Big News! I passed the Pennsylvania Bar Exam and I am now officially a licensed attorney! Now I can add Esquire to the end of my name! Let the champagne flow!

Forbidden Foods

2010-10-07T03:44:00.000-07:00

I am a big fan of not forbidding myself any foods. Even though I eat clean, I believe that any food is allowed in moderation. That said, there are certain foods that I will not buy to stock in my house. There is a certain reason for this: I will eat them to excess without stopping. Most of the foods are not healthy, but some are. Here's some of my banned foods:
- Cookies. One time I got a free pack of oreo-like cookies and I think I gobbled them up in about three days.
- Ice cream. I can only buy the single serve or pint containers. I will eat a half gallon way too quickly.
- Nuts. I am a picker if there is a food in the house that is easily picked at. Nuts are way to easy to grab a few each time I pass through the kitchen. I stick to nut butter because it's easier to keep a spoon out of the jar.
- Chocolate Chips. I can keep a chocolate bar in my fridge and share a bite of it nightly with John after dinner, but once they take chip form, they become just like the nuts. I buy these only if I have a plan to bake with them immediately. No hanging around my house.
- Granola. I cannot make or buy this. I scarf it down way too quickly. It goes into my mouth without a thought just like the nuts.
- Home-Baked Goods. I love to bake but I have a hard time limiting portions when I bake. Neither John nor I need to eat a lot of goodies. I try to cut recipes in half or make mini-size portions that I can freeze. I try not to give foods to co-workers since I know most of the others I work with are also trying to limit goodies. Why sabotage them?
- Chips. Any type. I simply cannot avoid them and they will be eaten too quickly.

So how do I enjoy these foods then? Easy. I get them when I'm out. For example, if we get Subway, John and I will share a small bag of chips. It's easy to limit myself when I only have a few in front of me. Another trick is to buy the (more expensive) smaller portion packages usually found at convenience stores. I don't do this a lot obviously, but if I really have a craving, I use this method.

I realize that some people can have the foods in their house and still avoid them, but I am not that person. If it is there, I will think about it until I eat it. It's not healthy. Rather than fighting with myself about it, I have chosen to simply not keep them around. My thoughts become less food-related and more about life.

What foods do you keep out of your house? What tricks do you use to keep yourself eating foods in moderation rather than overindulging?

Intuitive Eating

2010-10-06T04:05:00.000-07:00

Sorry for my absence the last two days. I've had a bunch of stuff come up all at once. That's always how it goes, right?

The other day I discussed my snacking habits and now I want to discuss what intuitive eating means to me. In a perfect world, I would say that intuitive eating means eating when I feel hungry. The world is not perfect though and sometimes it is necessary to eat when I don't feel hungry. Some people disagree with this idea. But here's my case in point.

On Monday I was finally able to return to the gym after my surgery. I was very excited to do so and headed there right after work. I did 30 minutes on the elliptical and then took a BodyPump class. It felt so good. Except that I was starving about 10 minutes into BodyPump. Why? Because I did not eat anything before I went to the gym at 4:30 and had not eaten since 11:30 when I had lunch. I hadn't felt hungry before going, but I should have anticipated that I would be hungry and eaten a few bites of something substantial to keep me energized. I dion't need a snack if I'm not going to the gym, but I do need a snack if I am going to the gym.

In a situation like this, intuitive eating means anticipating future hunger and eating prior to actually feeling hunger because that is better for the body. My body struggled through BodyPump with zero fuel and it would have worked more efficiently during the class had it been fueled properly.

In the opposite situation, hunger can be ok. If I feel hungry and it's not time to eat yet, it is ok to feel hungry until the meal. I am not talking about an extended length of time, but rather 30 minutes to an hour. For example, if it is 11:00 in the morning and I am hungry, but I cannot take lunch at work until 11:30, it is ok to wait to eat until 11:30. 30 minutes of hunger will not kill me. I actually used to eat a snack if I felt hungry in this situation. I'd grab a yogurt or a piece of fruit. But I just ended up eating more than I probably needed in that way since I would still eat my lunch 30 minutes later. For me, it just is not necessary to eat as soon as I feel hunger. I can wait a bit and that is ok.

Those are my two key points to intuitive eating besides, you know, actually eating when I am hungry. What does intuitive eating mean to you and your body? How have you adapted the concept so that it fits you? Do the adaptations means that it is no longer intuitive eating?

Sliders

2010-10-03T17:11:00.000-07:00

This weekend just flew by! Yesterday was John's birthday and we spent the entire day with his parents. We told them about our move to Ohio and they were supportive.

Today I spent the entire day cleaning up our condo to prepare it for sale. We are packing up the extra stuff so that it looks like there is more space than there really is. We are fairly clean and clutter free in my opinion, but we still have a lot of stuff in a small space. Next weekend we will be renting a storage space and moving some boxes of stuff, plus a desk and office chair into it.

For a special birthday dinner for John, I made sliders! Wegman's has the small slider rolls available in whole wheat. I used organic ground beef and cut slices of swiss cheese into quarters. The rest was delicious sliders.

I also made some oven fries with potatoes from the CSA.

These were really good! We love burgers and I love anything that is smaller. I always feel like I get more even if I eat the same amount. Small foods are fun too!

We also got a new chair to help stage our office for showing. I will introduce shortly. But for now, here is Twister playing with some of the wrapping for it.

She was loving being able to put her scent on it!

Shepard's Pie

2010-09-29T16:47:00.000-07:00

John is a huge fan of traditional dishes and he requested Shepard's Pie. While the original version is less than healthy, I knew that I could turn the recipe into a healthy dinner option.

Shepard's Pie

- 1 pound organic ground turkey
- 1 pound frozen mixed vegetables
- 2 cups chicken broth
- 1 tbsp arrowroot starch mixed with few tbsps of hot water
- 3 quarts of potatoes cut into even size pieces
- 1/2 cup skim milk

First, I boiled the potatoes in a sauce pan. While they were cooking, I browned the ground turkey saute pan. After it was browned, I added the frozen veggies to thaw them out and soften them up just a bit. While they were steaming, I whipped the potatoes in my kitchen aid mixer with some salt and the skim milk.

Letting the potatoes sit for a bit, I added the chicken stock to the saute pan, let it heat to a boil, and then added the starch to the mixture and stirred until it thickened. After that, I layed the meat mixture on the bottom of a square baking dish and then followed it with the potatoes. I sprinkled a bit of paprika on top for aesthetic purposes. I popped the dish into the toaster oven at 350 degrees for 20 minutes.

After I served it, I mixed my portion up into a potato goodness.

I had enough leftover to put in containers to freeze without going into the oven at all. They will work nicely as quick meals another week when we are pressed for time. We also have enough for lunches tomorrow. Gotta love planning ahead!

Snacking

2010-09-29T05:23:00.000-07:00

In the past few months I have really been working at cutting back on snacks. I found myself eating less at meals so that I could eat snacks even if it was a healthy snack. I wasn't really eating intuitively by doing that. Instead I was packing a ton of food to take to work and eating every few hours throughout the day. I know that some people say mini-meals are the way to go. I felt, however, like I would eat them just because it was time to eat them. If I packed a mid-morning snack, then around 10 am, I'd absolutely eat it, whether I was hungry or not. If I didn't eat it then, when would I eat it? And I didn't want it to go to waste.

In an effort to remove eating in this fashion, the last few months, I've been trying to eliminate snacks. This doesn't mean that I'm left starving throughout the day. It just means I'm eating larger meals or more filling meals and I don't need the snacks. Many of you may have noticed that my breakfasts became larger. I increased the portion of oats (or other grains) I eat in the morning. I also increased the size of my lunches by taking leftovers rather than the diced chicken breast I used to make. I also eliminated the mid-morning yogurt and fruit and the mid-afternoon fruit or gnu bar that I'd eat.

I won't lie that part of my eating habits changed as a result of finishing school. When I was in school at night, I wasn't cooking every night and there were not leftovers to take for lunch. But I purposely started eliminating snacks.

The benefits of this are great for me. First, I tend to focus on food because I love it. Knowing that it's going to be several hours until I eat another meal, rather than just a couple hours, allows me to not focus on food quite so much. I actually have less cravings to eat just for the sake of feeling food in my mouth now than I did before. Go figure! Second, I actually feel my hunger signals in a way I never did before. When I eat meals now, I feel hungry, not starving, but hungry. I try to balance my meals to combine to carbs, fruits, and vegetables so that I stay satisfied for a long time.

But I am not perfect. I am having an extremely hard time giving up an after dinner snack. I am not usually hungry for one, yet each night I will have at least one thing after dinner. It is almost always a healthy snack, but food when I'm not hungry nonetheless. I am working toward eliminating it. I know that I don't need it, but sometimes it's hard to not get some frozen fruit or have a yogurt cup after dinner. Even though I am not eating them for hunger, I still question if it is bad. I am not gaining weight. I am not eating crap. There are worse habits to have. So do I really need to worry about fixing it?

Tell me your opinion. Do we need to worry about changing things that aren't really hurting us? Or is this just an excuse?

Movin' Up

2010-09-27T16:45:00.000-07:00

I got the call today from the judge in Ohio- I got an offer!!! And I accepted!

I was driving home when he called. I immediately called John. He was excited. I was excited. I already called and told my parents. They are not as excited as we are. I suppose they are sad, but they wished me congratulations. And we're all going to dinner tomorrow to celebrate. Saturday is John's birthday and we will see his parents. We will tell them then in person.

Now I get to organize a move! I love moving. I'm such a dork in that way. I love organizing everything, packing it all up, unpacking in a new place and buying a new house. Love. It. I do not start until about a year from now, so obviously there's plenty of time to do everything.

On a much less exciting note, after I made the pumpkin bread, I decided to use the rest of the can to make pumpkin overnight oats. I could not get this picture to upload on my work computer this morning, so I'm late posting it. Apparently, the new uploader for blogger dos not work on my computer at work.

Pumpkin Overnight Oats
- 1/3 cup oats
- 2 spoons plain yogurt
- 2 spoons pumpkin
- Splash of milk
- 1 spoon coconut butter

They don't look great, but they were delicious. I swear! Off to browse for houses in Ohio!

Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Bread

2010-09-27T05:12:00.000-07:00

Following my love of Fall mood and the return of Libby's Pumpkin to the grocery store shelves, (I bought 8 of the big cans!!) I wanted to make a pumpkin baked good. I decided to go with a pumpkin chocolate chip bread. I found a recipe that would make three loaves!! That was way too much bread for the two of us, so I halved the recipes and ended up with one large loaf. I also made some healthy changes to the recipe.

Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Bread
- 1 1/2 cups turbinado sugar
- 7.5 ounces pumpkin puree
- 1/4 cup olive oil
- 1/4 cup unsweetened applesauce
- 1/3 cup water
- 2 eggs
- 1 3/4 cup whole wheat flour
- 1 tsp baking soda
- 1 tsp cinnamon
- 1 tsp nutmeg
- 1 cup mini chocolate chips

First, mix sugar, pumpkin, oil, applesauce, water, and eggs until blended well. I just used a hand whisk, not my mixer, and it worked well for the entire recipe. Then blend in the dry ingredients; flour, baking soda, and spices. Then fold in the chocolate chips. Baked at 350 degrees for almost one hour- just slightly less. I baked it in my toaster oven and it worked well.

This was very simple to make and the batter tasted delicious. Yes, I taste batter with raw egg in it. It's good!

I've been trying to reinvent Clean Eating and Me. Just changing it up a little bit to make it more exciting. I've decided to post more recipes and try to be more detailed in how I prepare things. I'm trying to add more pictures (but struggling because blogger no longer will upload pictures on my work computer). Now I'd like to hear from my readers- What would you like to see more of on Clean Eating and Me? Post either in comments or send me an e-mail directly at cleaneatingme@gmail.com.

Pizza Rolls

2010-09-26T15:36:00.000-07:00

Football Sunday! John loves football and while I'm not a huge fan, I enjoy a day of just hanging around and lounging. It's my first football season since I graduated and I'm enjoying not just studying all day long.

Of course, we're Eagles fans and since the Eagles were on at 4 pm today, I knew I needed to make a fun dinner that would keep John watching the game, not sitting at the table. Usually, I like us to eat dinner at the table. It's a nice tradition to set the table and enjoy talking while eating rather than watching tv. But some days, it's equally nice to enjoy a moderately healthy dinner while watching football. Hence, the pizza rolls.

Pizza Rolls
- Whole wheat pizza dough- I used premade from Wegman's. It's our favorite.
- 1 jar pizza sauce
- 1 container turkey pepperoni
- Fresh basil

I rolled out the pizza dough into a large square, then I lightly spread some pizza sauce on it and topped it with pepperoni and basil. After that, I rolled it up and then cut it into two inch pieces, like so.

I placed them on a foil lined baking sheet and cooked for 20 minutes at 350 degrees. I served the pizza rolls with more pizza sauce on the side for dipping.

To get some veggies into our dinner, I also sauteed some zucchini and topped that with a little bit of pizza sauce as well.

Off to watch more football. Go Eagles!

Sweet Potato and Black Bean Enchiladas

2010-09-24T16:14:00.000-07:00

Today I was very inspired to cook a unique meal. Since we had so many sweet potatoes from our CSA, I wanted to use them up. I decided to make a twist on our favorite Mexican food.

Sweet potato and black bean enchiladas

- 4 sweet potatoes, cut into even-sized chunks and boiled until soft
- 1 can black beans, rinsed and drained
- 1 tsp each cinnamon, cayenne pepper, and cumin
- 1/2 cup shredded cheese- I used salsa jack that I shredded myself for something different
- whole wheat tortillas

After I boiled the potatoes, I smashed them using my hand masher. This left them slightly chunky, but you could also whip them for a smoother base. Then I added all the seasonings to the sweet potatoes. After that, I stirred in the black beans. Then I spooned the mixture into the tortillas, rolled them up, and placed them in a baking dish. Then I covered them with the shredded cheese.

These look huge, but they were small tortillas, so not as big as they look.

Covered with cholula hot sauce!

These were so tasty and we have a ton of the filling leftover. I cannot wait to have the leftovers in the coming days. Even John liked these but he was skeptical at first. The sweet and savory components really compliment each other. It is a bit like chocolate with salt or with cayenne pepper. It is both sweet and savory and bursts with flavor in your mouth. A definite winner and a great Fall meal!

Decisions

2010-09-24T04:31:00.000-07:00

Happy Friday! I am still not so patiently awaiting offers from the judges. I was feeling very apprehensive if I would be faced with a situation where I have to decide if I want to go to Dallas before I know whether I have an offer for Ohio. As I've mentioned before, my first choice is Ohio because it is two years and John and I can go together.

Last night, John and I were talking about it because I need to be prepared to know whether I can accept Dallas. We mutually decided that we will make it work no matter what. This may even involve John giving up his job and moving to Dalls with me. While we are not sure what is the best thing for us at this point, we both agreed that we will have almost a year to figure out the logistics and can make it work out in the end. Coming to this conclusion reduced my apprehension and has left me very excited. Before I was actually dreading getting an offer for Dallas, but now I can look forward to it, even though I'd still rather have Ohio.

I had planned on doing a dinner post last night, but my dinner just did not come out how I wanted. In fact, it was pretty bad. I decided to skip the post because it just wasn't worth taking the time to do it. I had intended to make a beef stroganoff, but it ended up being too watery and tasteless. I also steamed some type of squash, which ended up being gritty. The squash was from our CSA and I have no idea what kind it was. It was not butternut, spaghetti, delicata, or acorn. It the color of a butternut squash, but in a bell shape. Anyway, it wasn't too good. I ate it, but butternut and acorn squash are much better. After our not so satisfying dinner, we went to Dairy Queen for an end of the season blizzard. Brownie Batter for me and Reese's Pieces for John. Delicious!

Breakfast this morning was much, much better than dinner. I made it yesterday afternoon so it was ready and waiting for me today.
Overnight Oats
- 1/3 cup oats
- 1/3 cup milk
- 2 spoons yogurt
- 1 tbsp chia seeds
- 1 spoon coconut butter
And I cannot get blogger to upload my pictures this morning! I will try to post the picture later...

Fall Foods

2010-09-22T17:13:00.000-07:00

I love Fall foods like squash and sweet potatoes! Spring is my favorite season, but Fall is a close second because I love the food! I also love that it's getting cold outside. I hate the heat and absolutely adore chilly Fall nights and sleeping with the windows open.

Tonight for dinner, I wanted to use the sweet potatoes that we got from the CSA. We got a lot of them and I knew there was enough for two dishes with them. I decided to make sweet potato wedges first and save the mashed sweet potatoes for Friday. I cut up three medium size sweet potaoes, then I shook them in 1 tbsp of olive oil and some cajun seasoning.

To go with the sweet potato wedges, I made bison burgers.

An easy and delicious meal.

Leftovers for Breakfast

2010-09-22T04:22:00.000-07:00

Leftovers for breakfast? That's right. I used brown rice that we had for dinner last night and turned it into breakfast this morning. I just added some milk, PB, and sliced banana to the leftover brown rice to create a delicious breakfast this morning.

Rice for breakfast is a great alternative to oats. Plus it helps to use up leftovers- not that we need any help eating rice. I swear John could eat 5 cups of rice per day!

I actually didn't make myself any breakfast grains this week, so I've been winging it each day. The variety each day is nice. I am used to eating the same thing each morning of the week. So this week, so far, I've had spelt berries, traditional oatmeal, and now, brown rice. It's so tasty!

On another note, I'm planning a baby shower for my friend at work who is due on December 3, which is my birthday! I'm looking for cutesy cupcakes, appetizers, etc. that I can make and bring in to work for the shower- things like that. What are some fun and cute food ideas for a baby shower that keep in mind all the things that pregnant women cannot eat?

Potatoes Au Gratin

2010-09-20T16:28:00.000-07:00

I am hosting Thanksgiving this year, so I am already on the search for some delicious traditional dishes. John requested potatoes au gratin and since I had a ton of potatoes from the CSA, I decided to try a recipe for them yesterday for dinner.

Potatoes Au Gratin
- 2 Russet Potatoes, 1/4 inch slices (I used several small potatoes until I filled my casserole)
- 3 Tbsp butter
- 3 Tbsp flour
- 2 cups milk
- 1 1/2 cup shredded cheddar cheese
- Salt and pepper to taste

First, I sliced the potatoes and layered them in a covered casserole.

I purposely tried to make it look pretty. Then I melted the butter in a sauce, added the flour, and then milk, and heated until it started to thicken. Then I added the cheese and stirred until it melted.

Once it was melted, I poured the cheesey sauce over the potatoes. Then I baked it at 400 degrees for an hour and a half. It seemed like a long time, but they came out perfect.

I served them with baked chicken and sauteed asparagus.

These were really delicious. Both John and I loved them and agreed that they made the menu for Thanksgiving. The only thing I would change is to add bacon to make it a bit more special for the holiday. Next I want to try mashed sweet potatoes and I got a bunch of sweet potatoes from our CSA today, so I see a trial in my future.

Cuyahoga Falls

2010-09-19T12:04:00.000-07:00

Friday night we drove about 25 miles from Canton to Cuyahoga Falls, Ohio. We switched hotels from Thursday night to Friday night due to cost. I had points for a discounted night at the Sheraton, so it was cost effective for us to switch. We were glad that we did because the Sheraton in Cuyahoga Falls was beautiful!

We had a suite with a river view.

I took the pictures in the morning before we checked out, that's why the bed was unmade. It was a great room, very comfortable. Now check out our view.

Beautiful right? Before we headed to dinner Friday night, we walked around Cuyahoga Falls. It seemed like it would be nice, but everything was close. There was a nice walking area and we wish more would have been open in it.

We did see a farmer's market though.

For dinner, we ate the restaurant in the hotel. It was really good. I had a fabulous cup of lobster bisque which went unpictured. It was full of huge chunks of lobster and mushrooms and came with a piece of puff pastry. It was very, very good. For my entree, I had a half portion of cannelloni. It was very good as well. Just enough without being too much.

The next morning we headed out of Cuyahoga Falls and Ohio to John's parents in the Pocono Mountains. It was about 5 hours of driving from Ohio to their house. After visiting with them and enjoying a diner dinner, we headed for home. It was another 2 hours of driving but we finally reached home and hit the sack. We were both exhausted. Even today, I'm groggy and out of it. Hopefully I'll catch up on sleep tonight and be ready for the work week tomorrow.

Interview Update

2010-09-19T05:10:00.000-07:00

We are finally home! We got home late last night and it was good to sleep in our own bed again. It has been an absolute whirlwind since I last posted, but I will start with the interview.

Interview
The interview went very well. I was there for over 3 hours. An hour of that was spent interviewing with the judge's clerks. But after that, the judge spent more than 2 hours with me. He gave me a tour of the courthouse, drove me around Canton, Ohio, and took me to lunch. It was such a great interview and I'm really crossing my fingers now. He said he'll decide in about two weeks. I'm really not sure why my career planning office told me that the judges make immediate offers, since neither have done so.

I really enjoyed seeing a large part of Canton. Unfortunately, during the drive with the judge, I did not have my phone or camera. I had to leave them in the car because I could not bring them into the courthouse with me. So while I saw a lot of things to take pictures of, I could not do so. Sadly, John also did not get to see much of Canton because he was at the hotel during this time.

Pro Football Hall of Fame
After I got back from the interview, John and I headed to the Pro Football Hall of Fame. In a word, it was disappointing. I'm not a huge football fan, but John is, and even he didn't find it very exciting. It was basically just underwhelming and not very detailed or informative. We were glad that we had another reason to travel to Canton besides the hall of fame. I did take lots of pictures there though.

Basically, each team had one exhibit that was like this...

We thought that there would be a room for each time, or something more than this at least. These are the busts.

There are literally walls of them.

There was a small amount of old balls, helmets, and sneakers.

The Vince Lombardi Trophy. I like how you can see me taking the picture because of all the mirrors.

After the Hall of Fame, I drove John around downtown Canton to show him the courthouse. Then we had to head to our second hotel in Cuyahoga Falls. I will do a seperate post on Cuyahoga Falls and our hotel/food there. Stay Tuned!

Hi Ho, Hi Ho

2010-09-16T19:29:00.000-07:00

What's high in the middle and round on both sides? Ohio, of course!

Well, we made it to Ohio. Seven hours, two traffic jams, lots of rain, but we're here! I started out driving and lasted four and a half hours, most of the state of Pennsylvania. John took over around 6 pm and drove us all the way to the hotel. After quickly checking in to the hotel and bringing our bags in, we headed out for dinner. It was almost 9 pm so we just wanted to get somewhere quickly. We had passed Bravo Italiano and decided that Italian would work.

I got the Shrimp Fra Diablo Campanelle. It was shrimp and campanelle pasta with a spicy tomato cream sauce. It was delicious! Though anything would have tasted delicious after the traveling.

I also had some creme brulee for dessert. It was a good meal. Now I am heading to bed to rest up before my interview tomorrow. Then after the interview is the Pro Football Hall of Fame. 'Night All!

On the Road Again

2010-09-16T05:15:00.000-07:00

This afternoon, John and I hit the road again to head to Ohio. It's about a 7 hour drive. If all goes well, we'll check into our hotel around 9 pm. This morning at work I feel like it's Christmas Eve and I'm a small child. I cannot concentrate on my work. I just want to hit the road.

John has never been to Ohio. In fact, besides our honeymoon to San Francisco and Alaska, John has not been farther west than Harrisburg, Pennsylvania. I visited Cleveland as a young child to tour SeaWorld when it was still in Cleveland. As a teenager, my family drove through Ohio on our way to visit family in Iowa. But that is the extent of my experience with Ohio. We are both excited to explore Canton and the surrounding communities. And unlike Dallas, I don't have to explore Ohio on my own.

After yesterday, I got addicted to the chia seeds. I definitely had to add them to spelt berries again. This time I substituted coconut butter for PB. It came out like a banana daquiri. I love the texture that the chia seeds gives the dish.

After I leave work at noon, the plan is to get gas, sandwiches for lunch, finish packing, and then get on the road. Stay tuned for posts of Canton, Ohio!

Ch-Ch-Ch-Chia!

2010-09-15T05:50:00.000-07:00

I tried a new food today....Chia Seeds! Of course, I immediately pictured one of these in my head.

And so I found myself singing the "chia" song as I ate my breakfast this morning. I've heard so many good things about chia seeds and I knew I wanted to try them finally. I was able to find a small bag for just a few dollars at Kimberton Whole Foods. It was much better than spending more $$ and not liking them at all.

Last night I picked 1 tbsp of chia seeds and 1/2 cup milk into my spelt berries. I also added a spoon of PB. Then I stirred it all up. This morning, I heated it in the microwave and sliced a banana to stir in. I got the chia pudding that I've heard so much about! And I could not even feel the seeds in my mouth. Awesome texture!

Now I have to ask myself this question: Why, if chia seeds work so well to make natural gelatin, is most gelatin made from pig hooves? While I'm not vegetarian currently, I have been in the past and I did avoid gelatin because I felt I did not want to eat it even though it was not meat per se. It was my small movement toward veganism. I know the answer is money or convenience, but it still irks me.

I will definitely be eating chia seeds again very soon. I cannot believe I missed out on them for so long. If you eat chia seeds, what is your favorite way to eat them?

Dallas Recap

2010-09-14T16:35:00.000-07:00

First, I want to thank all of you for the good luck wishes and positive vibes! I am very optimistic that something good is headed my way. I'll update once I hear from the judges.

Next, I want to share some of my favorite photos of Dallas. This is apparently a "train" in Dalls. In Philly, we'd call this a trolley.

And this is an entire street devoted to a train station.

How about some McDonald's while heading to your condo?

Do you think I was in oil country? A building topped with a gas logo!

I love to catch light and shadows, and I love architecture.

Just to prove that everything really was closed on the weekend...

And that is seriously all I have to show for my 36 hours in Dallas. Now I'm off to watch some tv and relax finally!

Home Again

2010-09-14T04:29:00.000-07:00

What a whirlwind 36 hours I've had! Flying to Dallas, interviewing, and flying home again! My plane got in at 9:45 last night. John timed it just right and literally pulling up to the curb as I emerged from the terminal. I hopped right in and we were off for home. 45 minutes laters I was snuggled on the couch with John showing him my pictures of Dallas.

The interview went really well! I really, really liked the judge and her other clerks that I would work with if selected. (Apparently this judge does not make offers on the spot- I'm expected to hear from her by October 1. This is good because it gives me time to think.) The job sounds amazing and I know that I would love it. It is exactly what I'd love to do. Now I am very torn between going for a job I would love and leaving John and my life behind for a year.

I have an interview with a judge in Canton, Ohio on Friday. Honestly, I want this judge to make me an offer first. This position is a two year position, rather than one year. It is much closer to Philly. And John would move with me to Ohio. This would be ideal in our view. John will be traveling with me to Canton, Ohio and we have plans to check out the Pro Football Hall of Fame after my interview. We are both really excited for the end of this week and hope that it brings about something good for us.

On Saturday, knowing that I'd be traveling, I cooked up some of the spelt berries that I had picked up during the week. It's been so long since I had them. I didn't realize how much I missed them until I bit into the chewy spelt berry. I just left the berries plain so that I could doctor them up each day in a different way. This morning I just quickly added some milk (perhaps, a bit too much?) and a blog of PB. At work, I sliced banana into it after heating in the microwave.

I love this breakfast! The texture is amazing and it is so satisfying to have them chewiness. It makes me feel full on a lot less. Now I better get started on work. I have a lot to do this week and only 2.5 days to do it!

Wake Up

2010-09-13T06:41:00.000-07:00

Waking up in a strange city is always a bit exciting. I always have the urge to get up and get moving to go explore. I love just walking and taking in the sites. Thankfully this morning there was more to Dallas than closed shops. Business people are here! Parking lots are full now, not empty. And Starbucks is open! The world is right when I find an open Starbucks.

First things first. I got my free breakfast at the hotel buffet. These are not usually exciting, but today's was excellent. First, I got a waffle, sausage link, and lots of fruit.

The waffle was surprisingly good and the fruit was really ripe and delicious. Perhaps, it's the location?? Maybe it's local produce?? Well, it was really good. I also picked up a couple of danishes. I don't usually eat these, but I like them. Since I didn't eat much at all yesterday with traveling, I decided to grab a few today. Delicious!

After breakfast, I hit the streets. Apparently, a lot of things in Dallas are underground. To find a Starbucks, I had to head into an office building and then go downstairs. Then I was able to find large walkways and malls of stores and restaurants. It's a bit odd that life exists under the street. Maybe because of the heat?? It's a sticky 78 degrees right now. It only gets worse from there I guess.

While wondering around, I got this beautiful shot of the building next to my hotel.

And look at these strange stop lights.

That's nothing I've ever seen around Philly! I still have a few hours to go explore before I have to get showered and dressed for my interview. My plan is to go find the train station- I'm hoping to take the train back to the airport this afternoon. It's only $3.75 compared to the $19 shuttle which was more like the wild mouse ride and had me holding on for dear life.

Hello Texas!

2010-09-12T15:29:00.000-07:00

I am blogging from Dallas, Texas tonight! I need to add the exclamation point to get some excitement in my mind. I am completely underwhelmed with Dallas so far. I am here for my interview with the judge tomorrow. If I took this position, it's temporary- just a year starting in Fall 2011. And it would mean that I move here, by myself, for the year.

My flight here was uneventful and I made it to the hotel in decent time, I suppose. But now that I'm here in Downtown Dallas, it's a bit lonely. Seriously. I went out to walk around and everything is closed. There are no restaurants/stores open. I ended up getting Subway for lunch/dinner. I never ate lunch because I was on the plane, so I grabbed an early dinner.

Here is the view from my room.

And some other shots I got.

I am sure that tomorrow it will be jumping here. It seems like the business district and it seems empty because it's a weekend. But I seriously, seriously question whether I could move here and live here by myself for a year. If forced to answer immediately, my answer would undoubtedly be "no."

On the plus side, the first hotel room I was assigned had the noisiest air conditioner ever, so I went back to the front desk. I got a new room and I got a coupon for a free breakfast tomorrow. Plus I also think the sky and the clouds here today are beautiful. Looking back at my pictures, I realize how pretty it is.

Here is where my interview is tomorrow. The Federal Building.

I am toying with the idea of going back outside to walk around some more. I heard of several frozen yogurt places here. The first one I tried was closed. Should I try another? I may just venture back out and see if I can something open.

Grainy

2010-09-10T13:39:00.000-07:00

I desperately needed some grains, so yesterday I headed to Kimberton Whole Foods. It's not part of the Whole Foods chain, it's a small, local store. It has a great selection of grains and they're in small bags, so I can try new things without committing to a whole ton. I bought the following yesterday:
- Millet
- Spelt Berries
- Whole Oat Groats
- Chia Seeds
- Adzuki Beans

To use the new grains, I made a stir-fry for dinner last night and served it over millet. This was my first time trying millet and I really liked it. I cooked 1 cup millet with 1 and a half cups chicken stock. It cooks just like rice. It is a bit chewier than rice which I enjoyed.

In the stir-fry mix was baby eggplant, broccoli, and cubed chicken breast with soy sauce and chili garlic sauce.

Today, after work I headed to the mall to find a new suit since I have two interviews in less than a week and no time to get my suit cleaned in between. While I wasn't thrilled with spending money on a new suit, I'm glad I went. Somehow (and I'm still not sure how exactly) I scored a black suit with a jacket and pencil skirt plus a blouse from the Limited for $57! I did have a coupon, but it shouldn't have been that cheap. And the best part is that the girl originally rang it up for $34 and I actually told her that I didn't think it was right. The corrected price was $57. I didn't think I was obligated to correct her twice.

John and I are planning dinner at a new diner near us tonight. I love diner food! Happy Friday All!

Fall Desserts

2010-09-09T04:27:00.000-07:00

Like so many bloggers right now, we have apples, lots of apples! Our CSA gave us a ton of organic apples this week. While they looked good, they also looked like they needed to be eaten immediately. I knew we'd never eat all the apples plain, so I decided to whip up John's favorite fall dessert (besides Maple Pecan Pumpkin Pie): Apple Crisp!

For such a traditional dessert, I turn only toward the best for a recipe: Joy of Cooking. And of course, I make my own alterations from there. I didn't add any sugar to the apple filling because they were already really sweet. My filling was all apple and nothing else.

For the topping, I used all organic turbinado sugar (no white and brown), whole wheat flour, and 1/2 cup oats instead of 1/3 cup oats. I left out the nuts because I did not have any on hand. Yes, I used real butter. It's not the devil if used in moderation. Just watch the saturated fat. All assembled now.

And all baked to perfection.

This was one of the best apple crisps that I've ever made! The top was perfectly crisp and delicious while the apples were cooked perfectly, not runny, mushy, or still crunchy. John and I each had a huge bowl full. The only thing missing was some vanilla ice cream.
I love fall and pretty much love all fall desserts. I love how so many of them focus on fruits, like apple crisp, pumpkin pie (ok, vegetable, not fruit), and baked pears. They are easily made fairly healthy and are always delicious. I love baking in the fall and I plan to do lots of it this year. What is your favorite fall dessert?

Acorn

2010-09-08T15:54:00.000-07:00

My new food of the day: Acorn Squash. Believe it or not, I've never had it. We got one in our CSA this week and I decided to give it a whirl. First, I cut the squash in half and dug out the seeds. Then I laid the halves face down in water and steamed them in the microwave.

While they were steaming, I carmelized some shallots and minced garlic in a bit of olive oil.

Then I browned organic ground beef in the same pan as the shallots and garlic. I added some southwest spice and cayenne pepper, then stuffed the meat into the acorn squash.

This came out so delicious. I really, really enjoyed the combination of the sweet squash with the savory, salty beef. Again my eyes were bigger than my stomach because I ended up sharing a large amount of my portion with John. I will definitely eat acorn squash again now that I've had the opportunity to try it.

Queer Eye

2010-09-07T16:03:00.000-07:00

What a day! I have another interview scheduled for September 17 with a judge in Canton, Ohio! I don't really know anything about Canton, but I'm willing to go check it out. What do I have to lose, right?

In honor of my recommitment to healthy eating and living, I made quinoa. John came home and shouted out "we're having queer eye?" Queer eye is what John likes to call quinoa. Mostly because he cannot remember the name quinoa. John does not really care for quinoa as he typically finds it too mealy.

First, I cooked some white quinoa with chicken broth until it was creamy. I also browned some organic ground turkey in a wok pan. Then I added chopped red onion, garlic, corn, and some chicken seasoning. When everything was cooked, I mixed the quinoa into the turkey corn mixture. The result was a delicious hot quinoa salad. It could also be served cold as I will likely eat it for lunch tomorrow.

This turned out really good. The sweetness of the corn combined with the salty seasoning was a good combination. Even John really liked it. I see more quinoa in our diets in the future now that I finally found a way that John enjoys it.

Reflections

2010-09-07T04:26:00.000-07:00

I learned something about myself this weekend: I am stronger than I realize. I was nervous for the surgery. You remember all the questions that I had, right? Well, while they were well-founded, I didn't give myself enough credit. I am absolutely stronger than I realized.
- I was sure that I'd be confined to a bed all weekend. I wasn't. Just Friday- the day of the surgery. I was up and about the rest of the weekend. I didn't run a mile or anything, but I wasn't bedridden.
- I didn't give my body credit for its own strength. I'm at a healthy weight and I'm physically fit. I didn't factor that into my recovery. No doubt my body recovered quicker because it was strong to begin with.
- I didn't need pain medication. John filled the prescription, but I never took it. I took advil on Friday and Saturday, but only out of fear of pain. I never actually felt any pain, except if I laughed, sneezed, or coughed (even still- I miss laughing). My abdomen is mostly just tender and I've had a bit of discomfort, but not pain. Don't get me wrong, I would have taken that medication had I been in pain. But I don't believe in such strong pain medications unless needed.
- I don't care that I gained 5 (or more) pounds in water weight from the surgery. As of Monday, I was up 5 pounds. I didn't weigh myself Saturday or Sunday at all. (I actually meant to, but forget, so it was probably higher. I actually told John that I expected a 10 pound gain from fluids.) I know it's just all the extra fluids and my body recovering. It will come shed itself in the coming days.
- Rather than fret over a week (or more) without intensive cardio, I will relish the break from the commitment to the gym. I will take moderate walks with my camera and enjoy myself. The gym will be waiting when I can go back.

Seeing the success of my body with healthy foods and fitness, I am recommitting myself to a healthy lifestyle. This means that I am going to cook more foods at home and expand our range of healthy eats. I am going to try new healthy foods that I've not eaten before and re-try others. I am going to start today with dinner.
Breakfast today was just some simple overnight oats. I made enough for the week yesterday. Except I did not add any fats to them yet, so I can have flexibility. In today's, I added coconut butter. In the picture, I'm trying to illustrate the "magic shell" effect.

In other good news, I'm glad I booked the flight to Dallas on Saturday morning. When I checked yesterday, it was double what I paid for the same package. I'm never that lucky. Must be a sign...

Camera Time

2010-09-06T16:25:00.000-07:00

Today I spent a good amount of time just playing with my camera. For graduation, my parents had given me a Canon Rebel T1i. I played around with it some when I got it and have used it for most of my food pictures on here since then. However, with the bar studies, I never got the chance to really familiarize myself with it and learn to use it properly. I have taken photography courses, so I understand aperture, shutter, etc. It was just learning to use this camera.
I decided to shoot in black and white today after breakfast. So my breakfast is color and then the rest is black and white. I love black and whites and I'm thinking of posting more food shots on here in black and white.
Here are a few of my favorite shots of the day.

If you look close, you can see my reflection in the cat's right eye in the shot above...

Now I just have to get out of the house so I can shoot pictures of more than just my cats. But seriously, aren't they awesome? Most of the artwork in our house is my pictures. So I just may frame these as well and hang them.

Breakfast
For breakfast, I made John and I whole wheat pancakes for breakfast. I served mine with sliced banana and melted coconut butter. On the side, I had some organic pork and rice breakfast links. My eyes were bigger than my stomach, because I only ate about half of this plate.

Dinner
We ate breakfast so late that I did not eat lunch. Instead we had a quasi-early dinner. On the menu was pork burgers, which I made with self-ground pork tenderloin, red onion, oats, and frank's red hot. I served them on ezekial sesame rolls. On the side, we had sauteed zucchini with crushed red pepper and sweet potatoes.

I'm feeling good post-surgery! I've eaten some fat and it's going well. I also had a great relaxing weekend. I read two books on my nook and watched three movies. It was a great long weekend, surgery or not. Sadly, I cannot head to the gym until at least next week after I see the surgeon again. But I do plan to do some light walking in the evenings to keep some movement in my life. Until tomorrow...

Sleepy Sunday

2010-09-05T07:25:00.000-07:00

Well, it's Sunday already and I'm feeling good. I cannot believe my surgery was two days ago already. After sleeping most of Friday and all through Friday night into Saturday, I actually stayed awake on Saturday from 6 am until 10:30 pm! I didn't even want to nap during the day which surprised me. But I was happy about. I'm not really the napping person. I did take it easy though. I was mostly on the couch reading or watching tv.

I did manage to get a shower (yay!) and even got my hair cut. It sounds funny, but I was happy to go. I got my hair washed and dried and I didn't have to do it. I felt well enough to go so I decided to go. It was a good treat. John and I also went for dinner with my parents. They wanted to bring something, but I wasn't sure what to have them bring. I decided I felt well enough to go to Wegman's for the large salad bar. I love the salad there and it was good. I also had a piece of naan and some chinese food. Afterwards, we got some Rita's water ice.

Today I'm trying to eat my normal, healthy foods. I started with oatmeal with PB and banana. Just a bit less PB because I have to watch fats to see how my body handles it. So far so good. We'll probably go out for food shopping today and maybe to get something to eat. But other than that, it's just relaxing.

I also booked my hotel and flight to Dallas, Texas yesterday! The price dropped over $100 so I booked. I didn't want to see it go up again. And if it goes down again, then Orbitz gives me price protection anyway.

Hope everyone is having a great weekend and hopefully I'll be back with some food pictures today or tomorrow!

Guest Post- 5 Tips for Designing an Exercise Routine

2010-09-04T04:27:00.000-07:00

Yesterday was my gallbladder surgery. Everything went well. The surgery was laproscopic and did not have to become open surgery. I slept a lot yesterday, but last night I was able to watch a movie. This morning I'm feeling pretty good, but expect that I'll snooze in bits throughout the day. My food has included some vanilla pudding, fudgesicles, and water ice. All of which were way too sweet for my taste. I don't have eating restrictions, so I can try some more solid foods today.

I decided to ask Katie from Health for the Whole Self to write a guest blog post while I'm recovering from my gallbladder surgery. I love her blog and knew that she'd do a great post in my absence. Thanks, Katie!

Hello! I'm Katie from Health for the Whole Self, a blog about my journey to live a healthy life that balances the needs of my mind, body, and spirit. I believe that health is about more than diet and exercise; it also includes our mental, emotional, and spiritual wellness.

With that in mind, I think it's possible to design an exercise program that doesn't feel like a punishment, one that leaves you feeling energized and refreshed rather than depleted and drained. Because - let's face it - a workout routine that wears you out isn't one you're likely to stick with.

Here are some things I think are important to keep in mind when outlining a fitness regimen, regardless of whether you're a veteran or a newbie to the exercise world.

5 Tips for Designing an Exercise Routine

1. Determine Your Goals

What do you want to get out of your program? Do you want to finish a 10K road race? Increase your muscle definition? Lose 10 pounds? Lose 100 pounds? Increase your endurance and stamina? Your desired end result has a huge impact on what your routine will look like; someone who is training for a marathon exercises very differently than someone who wants to be able to do 50 push-ups.

Two points worth mentioning here. First, even if your aim is simply to "be healthier," it is still worthwhile to determine a more concrete, measurable goal. Having an objective target will lend your workouts more structure. Second, it is important to choose a goal that is both realistic and healthy. Dropping 20 pounds in a month? Not healthy. Dropping 5 pounds in a month? Healthy. Go from couch to marathon in 2 months? Not realistic. Go from couch to 5K in 2 months? Totally doable.

2. Create a Realistic Schedule

And by realistic, I mean flexible. It doesn't matter how many times you vow to exercise for 2 hours 7 days per week, it just isn't going to happen. Life gets in the way...not to mention your body gets tired and burned out. Consider your other commitments and priorities, and then determine an amount of time that is practical and fits your lifestyle.

3. Plan for Progression

Here's some good news: If you're consistent with your exercise routine, it is almost guaranteed that you're going to improve. You should take that into consideration from the beginning. For example, if you're brand new to exercising then you might want to start with 3 days per week. Then plan to progress to 4 in a month's time, and then 5 the following month. You don't have to go all the way right at the start; indeed, it's actually better to start off slowly and build up over time.

4. Include Variety

The number one reason people quit their workout routines is because they get bored. You can nip that possibility in the bud by planning to mix it up. For example, even if you want to become a runner, plan to incorporate other activities - like strength training, yoga, and bike riding - at least once or twice a week. You can also change the type of workouts that you do by some days exercising at a steady pace, while other days incorporating high-intensity intervals followed by short rest periods. Including variety not only keeps your mind interested and engaged, but also keeps your body challenged.

5. Vow to Honor Yourself

Too many people forget to include themselves in their exercise routines. By that I mean, they pick exercises they think they should do, rather than ones they genuinely enjoy. Or they stick to the schedule so rigidly that they refuse to rest even when their bodies need it. The fact is that no one else can design the perfect exercise routine for you; only you can know what works best, what feels best, and what helps you be the best that you can be.

What tips and suggestions do you have for designing an exercise routine? I'd love to hear from you!

And be sure to check out Health for the Whole Self for more of my musings on healthy living!

Coco for Coconut

2010-09-02T05:09:00.000-07:00

Happy Thursday! I have a guest post on Katie's blog, Health for the Whole Self. Go check it out!

A special product made a reappearance in my overnight oats today. Coconut Butter!

I love how this butter is liquid when I add it to my oats and then, since they are cold, it solidifies and becomes like magic shell! It's like having a sundae for breakfast!

You can see that there are clumps of the coconut butter mixed into the overnight oats. So good. While the nut butters are great, they don't get as solid when cold and definitely don't do this. This is a fun breakfast!

Tomorrow is my surgery and I'm not sure of my posting schedule. I have a few guest posts scheduled for the weekend and I'll try to pop in myself at least just to let you all know that I made it through it alright. Wish me luck!

Veggies Galore

2010-09-01T17:19:00.000-07:00

I definitely ate my veggies today. We had a bunch of CSA veggies to eat up in a short amount of time. I made a huge stir-fry to incorporate all them. I had already made the brown rice on Sunday, so I just needed to saute the chicken (I used diced boneless skinless breast) and the veggies. In the stir-fry was:
- Baby Eggplant
- Baby Bokchoy
- Broccoli
- Two Onions
- Button Mushrooms
- Soy Sauce
- Chili and Garlic Sauce
Look how delicious!

This was a great, satisfying meal. It was quick to throw together and was really nutrient-rich. Goodnight all!

Much Excitement!

2010-08-31T17:11:00.000-07:00

I got some great news today! I have an interview with a bankruptcy judge for a federal clerkship!! There is only one downside: the interview and position are in Dallas, Texas. While the position will not start until the Fall of 2011, John and I obviously have some potentially life changing decisions to make if I'm offered the clerkship. The clerkship is only for a 1 year term, so it more than likely would mean John and I living apart for a year.

Since my boss wrote letters of recommendation for me for the clerkships, I told him of the interview. He then contacted a couple of judges that he knows in the Philly area to see if they'd make me an offer so I could stay here. In a matter of minutes, I went from having a normal day to having a freaking awesome day! E-mails were literally flying back and forth between judges and my boss.

So what does this mean for me? One judge committed to hiring me for a one year clerkship for the fall of 2012, but he's committed for the Fall of 2011. I actually interviewed with this judge last year. SO I HAVE A FEDERAL CLERKSHIP NO MATTER WHAT AT THIS POINT!!! In terms of 2011, I'm not sure what it means yet. I'm just playing the waiting game. But in the mean time, I'm checking flights and hotels for Dallas for my interview on September 13. I plan to go regardless of other offers. I may decide it's in my best interest to go to Dallas and I won't know that unless I go. Exciting stuff!

Since most of you won't know this, federal clerkships are a golden ticket to pretty much any legal position you want. It opens a ton of doors for career options and is not an opportunity that I'd turn down without great consideration. Would you take a term position accross the country? Could you be that brave or daring? I'm still not sure if I can do that.

Serving Sizes

2010-08-31T05:42:00.000-07:00

I saw something shocking over the weekend with respect to serving sizes that I want to address. As I mentioned, I went to the movies. I don't usually buy concessions, but my friend was buying a drink and food, so I decided to purchase an unsweetened iced tea. First, I was shocked that a small drink was $4.75! But more importantly, I was shocked that a "small" was 32 ounces!! My friend got a medium and I swear it was a half gallon, but I did not see the exact size on hers.

So why does this upset me? Shouldn't I be happy that I only paid 15 cents per ounce? No way. Sure, I had unsweetened iced tea, so there was no calorie issue for me in that large of a "small" drink. But what if I had gotten Coke? 32 ounces of Coke packs 388 calories! All those empty calories would be ingested mindlessly while enjoying a movie. Further, because of the price, the purchaser is more likely to finish the entire drink so as not to waste it. Even more important, how many people purchase only a small? I normally purchase medium drinks. I only purchased a small this time because I saw my friend's super large "medium." Most people are probably buying a size larger than a small and ingesting even more calories.

The movies are not the only place where serving sizes are out of control. It's everywhere. One of the most important things that I learned during the weight loss process is that my servings were just too large. I didn't need near as much food as I thought that I needed. I almost never finish a restaurant serving of food. It is usually way too much food for me. With Chinese take-out, I can typically get 2-3 meals out of one "serving." And it's like that in most chain, main stream restaurants. The key is really to pay attention and avoid falling into the trap of "cleaning your plate." If not physically, then I visually divide my plate into a portion I plan to eat and a portion I plan to take home. This really helps me keep large portions under control. How do you keep your portions under control when eating out?

This morning's breakfast was a good one. I finally bought more Chocolate Amazing Grass and added it to my overnight oats. It doesn't look so attractive, but the taste was amazing. I love chocolate for breakfast! I also love the boost of energy that I get from the Amazing Grass.

In my overnight oats, I included one scoop of the Chocolate Amazing Grass and one tablespoon of Trader Joe's almond butter. I instantly fell in L.O.V.E. Have a great Tuesday all!

OOIAJ

2010-08-30T05:23:00.000-07:00

Just another Monday...It's a short week for me though since I have my surgery on Friday. I am not really nervous about the surgery itself. I am more nervous for what recovery will be like. How will I feel the day of the surgery? The day after? A week after? How will it affect my exercise, my diet, and my weight? What will the scars look like?

While this sounds completely random, this is what I'm concerned about. Not because I'm vain, but this is where my thoughts are. People recovering from gallbladder surgery have a wide range of results that influence exercise, diet, and weight. I may have to eat much-less fat, even healthy fat, after the surgery. I may gain weight or I may lose weight. I may not be able to exercise for a while or at least lift weights. And let's admit who wouldn't wonder what scars would result from a surgery. I am not going to be exposing my midrift in public surgery or not, so it's essentially irrelevant. But I still wonder.

I am also struggling from a lack of control. I cannot control the surgery and this I accept. I will trust my husband to make any choices necessary while I'm under. But what I should be able to control is who comes to the hospital with me. I just want my husband there, my partner in life. Yet my mom has pushed her way in. I politely told her she did not have to come. I told her to save her vacation time. Still she's coming and won't take no for an answer. This has me very upset. I know she's my mom, but I just feel that this is private. I just don't want a big deal made about it. However, I still cannot hurt her feelings and tell her straight forward to not come.

Other than that, I'm feeling good for a Monday. Happy to have a short week whatever the reason and excited for a nice pre-surgery dinner out on Thursday night. Yesterday I had the foresight to make Overnight Oats in a Jar!

This lovely breakfast contained 1/3 cup oats, 1/3 cup milk, blueberries, two spoons plain yogurt, and remnants of peanut butter. It was perfection except that I needed a longer spoon! This was a large size PB jar from BJ's, so it was really deep. I kept getting PB on my fingers trying to scrape out the bottom. Now it's time to work and then I'm off to the gym for BodyPump!

Stuffed

2010-08-29T16:35:00.000-07:00

Yesterday, I saw Eat Pray Love with my friend, Angie. I really loved the book and I thought that the movie was good. I really enjoyed it and thought that overall it was pretty true to the book.

I used my beloved rice cooker to make brown rice. I cannot stress enough how much I love my rice cooker. On weeks when we're planning to have rice, I will usually plan a couple meals with rice. Then I'll make one huge batch of Sunday and it'll go in several meals and lunches. It was the best kitchen appliance investment, second only to the toaster oven.

Tonight's dinner with rice was stuffed peppers. To go in them along with the rice, I browned some organic ground turkey and zucchini. Then I added some southwest seasoning and shredded cheese. After scooping out the peppers and microwaving them to soften them, I added the mixture to the peppers, topped with a springle of cheese, and baked for 20 minutes at 350 degrees. Perfection.

After this pictures, I added a ton of hot sauce and enjoyed. Now I have a date with the new Lauren Weisberger book.

Food Porn

2010-08-27T17:40:00.000-07:00

I warn you now. If you're hungry and may head for junk food if provoked, avert your eyes. Also, protect your keyboards from drool now!

When Groupon offered a special for a dozen gourmet cupcakes from Cupcakes Gourmet, I could not resist. I not-so-patiently waited to redeem it for a special occasion. I couldn't wait anymore, so I figured what better way to start a weekend than with a dozen cupcakes! What I love about Cupcakes Gourmet is that they are organic and without preservatives. So while they are not healthy in terms of calories or fat, I know that I am at least putting natural, chemical-free ingredients into my belly.

They have a large selection of flavors, but it varies according to the day of the week. They also ship their cupcakes, so be sure to check out their website if you're interested.

I got there a bit late in the day in a baker's world and so some of the flavors were gone. I still made out good in my opinion. Here's what I got:
- Three Milk Chocolates (for John, because he's a simple chocolate guy)
- Classic Vanilla (the last one!)
- Two Red Velvets
- Two Coconuts
- Zesty Lemon
- Zesty Lime
- Dark Chocolate Orange Ganache (yes, that's right- they cover the buttercream frosting in ganache!)
- Double Dark Chocolate Ganache

And what you've been waiting for, the pictures. I took a ton and I'm going to share them all.

The above ones are the coconut, the lime and lemon, the dark chocolate ganache and red velvet.

These are the milk chocolate, classic vanilla, red velvet, and dark chocolate orange ganache.

The owner also told me that they should be eaten within 24 hours or frozen and they will keep for months frozen. They only need 45 minutes at room temperature to thaw. John and I each selected one to have tonight, then froze the rest for another time. We'll see how long these last in the freezer! Who wants the over/under for 24 hours?

After much deliberation, John and I decided how we would split these. Obviously, we're getting six each (no sharing with others!). I pretty much got the first tray and John got the second tray. Except for the ganaches, we switched those. John got the double dark chocolate ganache and I got the dark chocolate orange ganache.

We both decided to eat the ganache ones tonight because we weren't quite sure how they'd freeze. Plus, I was most excited for multiple layers of icing!
Here's John's.

Yes, that was one big bite for him. And a thank you to John for stopping after a bite for the photo opportunity. His was just the ganache on the chocolate cake. He looked at me mid-bite and I knew it was good. He's not a huge sweets person, so when something sweet gets him, I know it's good.

Now here's mine.

Yes, that is orange buttercream icing covered with dark chocolate orange ganache. Even the cake had orange flavor in it. It reminded me of the chocolate orange candy where the chocolate is in segments like an orange. The cake was moist and light. It was a really, really good cupcake. After the two bites it took me to get a picture with the buttercream, I ended up eating it with a spoon. It was too tall to get my mouth around it! John and I both give these cupcakes two thumbs up. Just wait until we eat the rest!

Onions!

2010-08-27T04:47:00.000-07:00

Last night's dinner was a quicky. Egg noodles, squash, onions, and groud beef with a gravy made from beef broth.

I layered the noodles on the bottom, then the beefy mixture on top. Then I stirred it together.

See that big chunk of onion in there? We have a ton of onions from the CSA (like 5 pounds or something ridiculous!) so I'm throwing them in everything. Good thing we like onions!

This week has been an emotional rollercoaster for me. I've had highs and I've had lows. Wednesday and yesterday were especially bad. It was extremely hard to get myself to work. I am feeling so depressed with my job and unfortunately it's carrying itself over into the rest of my life. I'm definitely glad it's Friday and also glad that next week is a short week for me (with my surgery on Friday) and then the following week is also short with Labor Day.

I was happy to make it to the gym both Tuesday for BodyPump and Wednesday for cardio. I really did not want to go, but I forced myself. I'm glad that I did because I felt better for having gone. Sometimes it's the little things that lift the spirits.

I'm excited for tomorrow because I am going to see Eat, Pray, Love with an old friend. I don't know the last time that I saw a movie at a theater. It's been months and months! I came into work early today so I could leave early. Come on 2 pm!

Struggling

2010-08-26T04:53:00.000-07:00

I haven't disappeared- I'm still around. I'm just struggling with some stuff and finding it a bit hard to get any words out for the blog. I'm just trying to gather my thoughts and recompose myself and then I'll be back.

Here was my breakfast.

Nothing special. Overnight oats again. I'll be back soon, just need a bit of a break.

Corny

2010-08-24T17:58:00.000-07:00

Let's get right to the point of food, shall we? Dinner was a forgotten favorite. Chicken cordon bleu easy style.
- 5 thin sliced chicken breasts
- Deli-sliced swiss cheese
- Deli-cut proscuitto
- 5 toothpicks
Lay out breasts, layer with cheese and proscuitto, and then rolllllll 'em up.

And just because I was feeling corny...

Three fresh ears of sweet corn. Perfect summer dinner. Quick, easy, and delicious.

I made it to BodyPump tonight and I'm feeling pumped up. I had an exhilirating run-in with a resident of the condo association. Unlike some people, conflict pumps me up. As president of the association, I field some complaints, but this one took the cake. Apparently, a box truck is not a commercial vehicle. I'm still laughing about it. And the truck is still getting towed this weekend. No sympathy from me. Read the rules, the rules are the rules, no exceptions.

Now it's time for yogurt, frozen by me (i.e. not frozen yogurt, the dessert). 'Night!

Short and Sweet

2010-08-24T05:16:00.000-07:00

Last night was extremely exhausting for me. I ended up not getting home until after 7 and I just grabbed some take out chinese for John and I on the way home. It's definitely not my first choice for dinner, but cooking was just not going to happen. I had my favorite, which is chicken with broccoli over brown rice.

After we ate John and I excitedly browsed the internet doing some research. My "fake it till I make it" motto may be working already, but I don't want to say anything to jinx it at this point. Then it was pretty much time for bed.

This morning was more overnight oats.

And since I could not go to BodyPump yesterday, I resolve to go tonight. It's not until 7:30 which is pretty late, but I need the class. I promise to post some food pictures besides breakfast tonight. See you then!

Fake It Till you Make It!

2010-08-23T04:47:00.000-07:00

Monday again! And guess what I'm eating? Overnight oats of course. I'm pretty boring with breakfast, I've decided. But it's just so good.

Today's overnight oats had almond butter from Trader Joe's. That stuff is packed full of flax seeds and big chunks of almonds. It's amazing. For a few months, my local TJ's was out of it and I literally danced in the aisle when I saw it back again.

I have a new motto- Fake it till I make it. And why not? Confidence is the key to success. So as a gentle reminder to boost my confidence, I've made a few resolutions.
- Starting in September when my work goes back to business casual (rather than summer jeans), I will dress for success in suits and other dressy outfits, rather than merely "nice" clothes. I should dress for the job I want, right? As a bonus, it'll keep my employer guessing if I have an interview or not.
- I will carry my briefcase that John got me and look like I have an important job.
- And I posted a not-so-gentle reminder of this new motto right on my work computer. Check it out!

Whatever keeps me going right? Maybe it won't be so long before I'm not faking it. I can only wish...

Good Weekend

2010-08-22T16:49:00.000-07:00

Another activity-filled weekend. I spent the majority of Saturday morning job hunting. After that we headed to my parent's house to feed their cats while they're out of town. Then we headed in the opposite direction to meet John's parents to celebrate his mom's birthday. We went to a small chain restaurant that his mom picked, Dawson's. I ended up with cajun salmon with a baked potato and a house salad. It was good, not great.

We also picked up a carrot cake, John's mom's favorite cake, for dessert from a local bakery. It was really good. It had the best cream cheese icing on it. It was also full of nuts, which was good. I did not like the raisins in it, but there wasn't a ton and I just picked them out.

Today was a good day. We started with grocery shopping and a quick breakfast out. I had a waffle with fresh sliced banana. After that we did some chores and I enjoyed an afternoon of reading for pleasure! Such a rarity for me and so enjoyable. I read almost an entire book on my Nook!

We were so full from breakfast that we never ate lunch. Instead we had a quiche for dinner. The quiche was crustless with squash and mushrooms. It was good. On the side, we also had some frozen waffle fries.

I was actually planning to put asparagus in the quiche, but it was old when I pulled it out of the fridge.

Now I'm off to fold some wash and watch a bit of television with it. Happy Sunday!

Let's Talk Happiness

2010-08-20T05:27:00.000-07:00

Happiness is something that has been weighing on my mind lately. It's funny how I can be completely happy in most aspects of my life, but being unhappy in one aspect can cloud everything else. That aspect is my career for me right now. I envisioned myself graduating law school and having a new job or at least being an attorney. Instead, I've graduated, taken the bar, and I'm still sitting here doing the same thing. It's not that the work is horrible, it's more that I want something to change. My employer hasn't even discussed moving me to an attorney position. Further, I've being given more and more menial tasks, rather than more important tasks.

Obviously, this means that the job search is on. I cannot wait around hoping for a position here. I have to get out there and find something new. It's clear that I won't be happy in life until I'm happy with my career. But job searching sucks. Seriously. The resumes, transcripts, and cover letters. Plus qualifications. Every employer wants a person to be completely and totally qualified for the position with prior experience. As a recent graduate, the only experience I have is with my current employer. But I don't want to limit myself to just bankruptcy. So many types of law are interesting to me. Then I have to make sure that I follow all the directions to properly apply. Some must have this and not that, or vice versa. It is seriously a nightmare and it is consuming all of my free time. I spend a few hours each night searching for documents and prepping my documents. And even then I can only apply for a few jobs per day.

I'm sure that a lot of you have experienced similar feelings about your jobs. I've read so many blogs where the blogger currently or in the past has felt this way. I know I'm not alone. But it is stressful and making me miserable. I just want to enjoy life!

Enough ranting and on to food. Breakfast today was hot oatmeal with PB and banana.

These were ok. Not as good or satisfying as overnight oats. They were also made with water which definitely does not make the creamiest oatmeal. I definitely should have used milk, but I needed to grab and go quickly this morning. Now it's time to work and that gets a serious "blah" from me today.

New Car!

2010-08-19T04:49:00.000-07:00

Many choices, a couple test drives, but John ended up picking a Scion xB!

It's black and he's always wanted a black car. It will replace his Saturn Aura which is also in the above picture. We don't have to turn that in for a few weeks though.

So quirky! And the space inside of it is so large. Plus, it has an digital speedometer.

It's a bit hard to see, but it says 26 mph. As you can tell, John was driving so safety was still first and foremost. It also has a back windshield wiper, which we've never had before. It's always fun to get a new car!

Last night after picking it up, we headed to Wegman's for a quick dinner from the bar. I made a huge salad topped with a pasta salad as dressing, plus dried cranberries, feta, cucumbers, and bell peppers. I also grabbed a few bites of some asian dishes and a piece of naan. I love having the ability to just grab a bite rather than having to order the whole dish at an asian restaurant.

This morning, it's back to work with overnight oats.

Off to work, work, work. Maybe the partner will actually come in today so that I might actually get something accomplished today rather than having a growing pile of stuff in my cube.

Home Improvement

2010-08-18T04:55:00.000-07:00

I love our condo most of the time, but space always ends up being an issue. It doesn't matter how much you have, you usually want or need more. Even though our laundry closet had one wire self, I wanted more storage. And storage that could be more easily organized into an efficient space. We headed to Lowe's and Home Depot to consider our choices and ended up buying a small set of storage cabinets to hang on the wall. After much bickering (because that's just how we work together) and a few lost screws into the area behind the washer and dryer, we finally got it installed. I organized my stuff on it and here's the result.

I love the extra space now! As a bonus, the paper towells that are on top of it were previously stored in another closet, so I gained extra space in that closet as well.

This morning was tough to wake up. I feel like it should be at least Thursday, not only Wednesday. I had my overnight oats again and I'm about to go buy coffee from our cafe at work. I always say I won't get it today, but I seriously crave coffee. It's not even the caffiene because I don't get a headache without. The warm liquid and the smell wake me up.

Tonight we pick up John's new car!

Strawberry Custard

2010-08-17T14:16:00.000-07:00

Here's the recipe for strawberry custard that I keep talking about. I got it from Clean Food, but I halved it. The parenthesis is the amount that I used.

Strawberry Custard
- 2 pounds strawberries, hulled (1 pound)
- 2 pounds firm tofu (1 pound)
- 2/3 cup maple syrup (1/4 cup)
- 2 tablespoons whole wheat flour
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1. Puree strawberries in a food processor. Remove from blender and strain through a sieve, discarding seeds. (I kept mine with the seeds. It's more natural that way.)
2. Puree tofu until whipped and without chunks.
3. Add flour, strawberry puree, and syrup.
4. Puree until blended well.

This is so good. It is fairly smooth for the blended tofu. John and I both really enjoyed it. Tonight I actually plan to try a bit frozen and see how it is as a frozen treat. I definitely recommend trying this especially for a summer dessert for a picnic or other get together.

Easy Ways To Lose a Few

2010-08-17T05:20:00.000-07:00

It's so easy for any of us to put on a few extra pounds. Summer is filled with parties, picnics, day trips, and other fun stuff. It's so easy to get off track of healthy eating with the result being some extra weight.

For me personally, I did very well this summer until the week of the bar exam. I was holding steady right around 128 pounds since I started maintenance in December. But the week of the bar exam, I ate very oddly for me. I didn't eat horrible choices, but I ate at odd times and ate odd things due to the logistics of being away from home and the pressure of the bar exam. Following the bar exam, I went into party mode and indulged a few too many times in celebration eats and drinks. Plus the gym was pretty much non-existent during this time as well. The result was a few extra pounds. I was hovering around 132. At first, I chalked it up to sodium and water retention. But when it stayed for a week, I said these extra pounds have to go. After working on losing again, this morning, I weighed in at 127.8. Here's what I did:
- Cut portion sizes. I think this is the most important thing. I cut my oatmeal serving from 1/2 cup to 1/3 cup. I didn't notice any extra hunger, but I cut a few calories. This also works for lunches and dinners. Slightly smaller portions really helps cut calories without knowing you're eating less.
- Reduce nut butter intake. I really love this stuff and it help keeps me satisfied. But it's high in calories and fat. I limited my intake to 1 tablespoon per day to cut calories.
- Focus on eating healthier foods and including more fruits and veggies. Instead of grabbing a gnu bar for a snack, I turned to fruits and veggies. This is basic, but something that I have to focus on doing. I'll naturally want the carby bar instead.
- Cut the treats. Everything that happens is not an excuse to have a treat! This is big for me. I love sweets, so I can always find an excuse to have one. I have to tell myself that there is no excuse available.
- Make a healthy dessert. Instead of making chocolate chip cookies this weekend, I made strawberry custard. It had fresh strawberries and tofu (recipe to come soon). It's healthy and can be eaten without guilt.
What do you do to keep your weight under control?

Last night was so hectic that I didn't even get to post! I rushed home from work and headed to BodyPump. After class, I quickly made and ate tacos in about 45 minutes. Then I headed to the pool for a meeting with the installation company for my condo's pool fob system. I was there for an hour and a half because the thing would not work. It's still not working either, which means more time on it once the installation company replaces some parts.

After that I walked home and got to work doing some more clerkship applications while watching tv with John. Before I knew it, it was 10:30 and time for bed. Craziness. I promise I will post my pictures tonight. I definitely want to show you the new cabinet, the strawberry custard, and some other eats.

Breakfast this morning was overnight oats.

Plus coffee.

Tomorrow we pick up John's new car! I'm excited and it's not even my car. Just wait and see what he picked!

Welcome Back!

2010-08-16T05:49:00.000-07:00

I took a bit of a break from posting this weekend. It wasn't intentional. I just never got the time to get on my computer and get much done. Here's a run down of the weekend events.
- Pedicure and prepping clerkship applications on Friday afternoon
- Dinner with my parents on Friday night
- Mailing 48 clerkship applications on Saturday morning. This required going to two different post offices and getting extremely rude treatment at the first.
- Building and hanging our new cabinet for over our washer and dryer on Saturday morning
- Test driving and picking a new car for John. We pick it up Wednesday night! But for now, his choice is a secret!
- Sushi for dinner and grocery shopping on Saturday night.
- Laundry and cleaning plus some well needed relaxation time on Sunday.
- Whipping up strawberry custard on Sunday afternoon.
I have a ton of pictures on my camera from the weekend events, but they are on my camera. I will post them either tonight or tomorrow.

This morning's breakfast was overnight oats.

I lucked out and got free coffee again at Wawa thanks to a local car dealership. My lunch is leftover pasta from last week. I definitely need to eat it up. My evening plans include BodyPump and a meeting with the condo assocation about the pool system.

I also have a question for you guys. What is the difference between a laptop and a netbook? My laptop is very slow and acts crazy a lot of times. I've been looking at netbooks because they are cheaper than laptops. I really only want to use it for word processing, internet, e-mail, and possibly iTunes. Is a netbook good for those things?

BodyStep

2010-08-13T05:38:00.000-07:00

I must be insane. Why did I take this class? I am the most uncoordinated person ever. Why did I think that jumping around on a step would be easy (and safe) for me? I was definitely the dork in class last night. I was a beat behind doing everything. It didn't help matters that there is apparently terminology for certain steps. When they would get called, I didn't know what it was and would get jumbled up. I eventually figured out the basic steps and managed not to break my neck. That's progess right? I also burned 400+ calories in the hour class and my heart rate was consistently in the 150s to 160s the entire class. I was sweaty and out of breath. Basically, it was a good workout. So maybe I wasn't insane. I just need to get past the initial learning curve. I needed something different and that it what I got. Will I try it again? Probably.

I am very excited for the new Les Mills class, BodyVive, that my gym is going to debut this Fall. The class apparently uses a bodyball and is low impact cardio plus strength training. Has anyone tried this class yet?

Breakfast this morning was more overnight oats. I made a smaller batch this time. Since I'm getting to work later, but still eating lunch at the same time, I wasn't always feeling hungry at lunch time. I figured I'd cut down the portion size of my breakfast to compensate. I used 1/3 cup oats (instead of 1/2 cup) plus 1/3 cup milk and one spoon of yogurt. I also added a bunch of strawberries plus one spoon of PB.

Check out my new sandals- FitFlops! I wasn't entirely convinced that I'd love these. I ordered them from Zappo's and they are really comfortable! I don't know if they will do anything for muscle tone, but they're cute and comfy, so why not try them?

It's hard to see the color, but they're a bronzy-gold color with some jewels on them. A fun summer sandal. As you can see, I knew a pedicure and I'm going for that after work. Now it's time to get to work!

Returning to Clean

2010-08-12T16:55:00.000-07:00

I've been meaning to discussing clean eating more often. It's not that I'm not eating clean, but more that I've lost focus of discussing clean eating on the blog. Time has gotten away from me and my posts have been more like a journal rather than containing clean eating content.

So let me recap what clean eating means to John and I.
- No more than 5 ingredients in a food. The only exception is if more than 5 ingredients makes sense. For example, with mixed nuts or trail mix.
- I must be able to recognize and pronounce all ingredients.
- No preservatives.
- I eat mostly plant-based foods. Fruits, veggies, and grains consist of the majority of food. I usually incorporate a small amount of meat into my dinner. This usually carries over into lunch because my lunches are typically leftovers from dinner.

- I eat only fat free dairy products, except for cheese where I usually choose 2%, mostly to avoid the unhealthy saturated animal fats.
- I eat as organic as I possibly can so that I can avoid the chemicals in non-organic foods. Certain things I will only eat organic, including all meat and all fruits and veggies on the dirty dozen list. In the past few months, I've made a few deviations from this rule due to cost prohibition. I now eat non-organic dairy and eggs.
- I eat intuitively. While I used to follow WeightWatchers and strongly believe in the program for weightloss and initial maintenance, I also believe that permanent maintenance is best done intuitively for me. I eat when I'm hungry and I try to balance my meals and snacks to meet my nutritional needs.
- Deviations are acceptable. Life is about living, not following rules all the time.

Tonight's dinner was a clean eater's dream. Corn and bean salad over spinach. In the mix was:
- 1 can black beans, rinsed and drained
- 1 can navy beans, rinsed and drained
- 1 bag frozen corn
- 1 red onion chopped
- 2 jalapenos, seeded and chopped
- 1 tbsp paprika

I just mixed everything in the pan together and heated it up. Then I served it over spinach. It was extremely tasty and a great summer meal. I cannot wait for the leftovers tomorrow for lunch!

Surgery is Set

2010-08-12T05:30:00.000-07:00

My gallbladder surgery is set for September 3. I am looking on the bright side and excited that I will have the whole Labor Day weekend to recover. I don't have any plans, except a picnic at my parents if I feel up to it. I can just relax and take it easy to recover. Having never had surgery or anesthesia before, I have no idea how it will affect me or how I'll feel.

My dad had his gallbladder out a few years ago and he was up and about fairly quickly. It is and outpatient lathroscopic surgery, assuming no complications, so it should be a fairly quick recovery compared to other procedures. But what that means for me is unknown. Everyone is different.

I need to find out what I can eat afterwards and what restrictions I will have with respect to driving, exercise, etc. Obviously, I cannot drive the day of the surgery due to the anesthesia. But other than that, I have no idea what restrictions I may have.

Other than these few questions, I'm feeling pretty calm about the whole thing. I think John is more concerned than me. I'm sure I'll get more nervous as the day approaches. But overall, I'm just happy to be getting it over with.

Date Night

2010-08-12T04:55:00.000-07:00

Yesterday was such a busy day at work that I didn't get to post anything at all. I had my normal overnight oatmeal for breakfast. Nothing out of the ordinary. My lunch was a leftover bison burger along with several small plums. Later in the afternoon, I had a gnu bar and some more plums for a snack.

Last night was date night for John and I. It's been months since we've been to Riverstone Cafe, but tonight we finally got to go back for buck a shuck oysters! Well, John wanted the oysters. I was not in the mood for them, but I'm always in the mood for tapas. I got the buffalo sliders.

These were really good. I love the onions and mushrooms on them. John and I also shared blackened chicken nachos and a flatbread pizza. These were ok and not the best I've had from Riverstone. The nachos weren't warmed all the way so all the cheese wasn't melted. Nachos aren't very good with shredded cheese on top of chips. The flatbread was good, but there was just something missing about it. We brought a good portion of it home as we were full. Maybe it will be pepper with some crushed red pepper or siracha added to it.

Breakfast this morning was more overnight oats. This is just such an easy and delicious breakfast. Plus it's filling and holds me until lunch time.

I'm excited because I am going to try BodyStep at the gym this afternoon. I've never tried it for various reasons. But I need some motivation to get to the gym for cardio. Bodypump is no problem, but I haven't been feeling the elliptical. So BodyStep it will be. Off to work. I wish today was Friday!

Pasta and Burgers

2010-08-10T17:16:00.000-07:00

Last night's dinner was a comforting pasta dish. I used jarred marinara and spiced it up with diced eggplant, onions, and garlic. Then I added it to whole wheat rigatoni and topped it all with some shredded pecorino. Pasta perfection!

Tonight's dinner ended up being the perfect Summer meal. Our favorite bison burgers made with diced red onion, oats, and one egg. I served it with fresh sweet corn from the CSA and pickled beets from the CSA.

Goodnight all!

Fruit!

2010-08-10T04:19:00.000-07:00

Finally the CSA comes through! Such a good week's worth of produce. Our veggie share included:
- 5 ears of corn
- 4 tomatoes
- 2 eggplants
- 1 bunch carrots
- 1 cantaloupe
- 1 watermelon
- 2 red onions
- 4 jalapenos
And the fruit share included a huge bag of small plums and another huge bag of peaches. Finally we have CSA success! All it took was an e-mail complaining about it.

Last night we had the eggplant mixed with tomato sauce, diced onions, and served over rigatoni. It was so good. The eggplant was perfectly ripe and had a good taste to it. I didn't get a chance to post pictures last night, but I'm planning to feature it tonight. We have a ton of leftovers, so I have it for lunch today as well. I also brought two of the plums for a snack today. They are very small, only slightly bigger than a large grape or cherry. But I know good, local produce is often smaller than the commercial version. I have high hopes for the plums.

Breakfast was more overnight oats.

Off to work, work, work. I finally got some real assignments again now that I'm not part-time!

Grocery Shopping

2010-08-09T05:14:00.000-07:00

Monday already? The weekend flew by, but I enjoyed it. I was happy to enjoy whole foods again this morning. The weekend was filled with way too many meals eaten out. I made overnight oats with:
1/2 cup oats
1/2 cup milk
2 large spoons plain yogurt
1/2-3/4 cup sliced strawberries
1 spoon PB

So good. I also scored free coffee. I stopped at Wawa for a cup and I was told that it was free courtesy of a local car dealer.

Grocery shopping has become such a chore lately. I love grocery shopping typically. Taking the time to pick out healthy, affordable food is enjoyable to me. Except when no one store has everything I need. And when stores are consistently out of at least one specific item I need. It's enough to frustrate even the most patient shopper. Yesterday's shopping adventure was just that. First, the blueberries were double the price than at Wegman's. Then, the organic ground turkey was unavailable. The non-organic ground turkey is actually more expensive than the organic, so that's annoying. The frozen fruit selection was horrible. But other things there are cheaper than at Wegman's. Plus there is Chobani, which Wegman's does not carry. It's hard to figure out which store is better to shop at consistently. I refuse to go to two stores every week! How do you handle grocery shopping among different stores?

Relaxing Whirlwind

2010-08-08T16:33:00.000-07:00

This weekend has been a whirlwind of errands and fun stuff but yet it has been relaxing at the same time. Yesterday, John and I went to Lowe's. We found cabinets to install about our washer and dryer for extra storage. We've decided to wait until next weekend to install them. After that we also hit up Bed Bath and Beyond for new pillows. We also grabbed a quick lunch- I had turkey and swiss on a toasted bagel.

The afternoon was spent reading and relaxing. When dinner time came, we decided to enjoy the beautiful weather and went to Black Lab Bistro. I love the atmosphere of Phoenixville and the restaurants there. It has a big city feel, but yet it's a small town. I started with a peach tart. It was grilled peaches over creamy chevre and puff pastry topped with argula, shaved carrot, and balsamic vinegar. This was fantastic! I jumped out of my comfort zone with this choice, but I was glad that I did. My entree was seared scallops with a pecan vermouth sauce, whipped potatoes and haricot verts. It was too dark for pictures though.

This morning was spent grocery shopping, doing laundry, and cleaning the kitchen. After that was done, John and I went out to scope out some cars while the dealers are closed. We decided not to test drive this week. That will be left for next Saturday. John's narrowed it down, without test driving, to the Scion Xb (yes, it's the box!) and the Honda Accord. If he likes one of those, then he won't really need to look elsewhere. But he has some others in mind if neither of those work out.

This afternoon, I made some chocolate chip cookies. I used whole wheat flour and olive oil instead of butter because I forgot to buy butter. The texture is different, but the taste is good. Next time I'll stick to the original recipe, but they're still good. I just used the recipe on the bag of Nestle Chocolate Chunks that I bought.

Dinner tonight was turkey stroganoff. It was just a simple combination of ground turkey, onion, and chicken broth thickened with corn starch, served over egg noodles. Easy, but delicious. On the side, we had sauteed zucchini.

Off to read and watch House Hunters!

Celebration Dinner

2010-08-07T06:32:00.000-07:00

Last night, I made a special celebration dinner in honor of John and I actually have free time together. John bought champagne, my favorite, affordable sparkling wine, Martini and Rossi Asti Spumante.

I made stuffed chicken breast with pepper chevre with some crushed red pepper and paprika sprinkled on top. I also made oven fries and sauteed asparagus with olive oil and crushed red pepper. We love spice!

Everything was delicious and I'm glad I was able to enjoy cooking again.

This morning we woke up early thanks to our cat's wake up call. She decided to climb on top of wardrobe and then jump, or as we call it splash land, onto our bed. It's a long way from the wardrobe to the bed and she always land with a huge thud. Since we were up, I got to work doing some intense housecleaning. Vacuuming baseboards and pulling everything out. I must have emptied the cup at least 5 times! And I thought we were clean.

After cleaning, I whipped up some whole wheat pancakes. I topped mine with fresh blueberries and some pure maple syrup. I would have put the blueberries in the pancakes but John doesn't like blueberries. I was going to add them to the batter after making mine, but decided just to top them instead. Still delicious.

Coffee was also had. Now we're heading out to Lowe's to hopefully find some cabinets to put in our laundry closet and to some car dealers for John to test drive some cars. I love having weekends free!

It's Coming Out!

2010-08-06T04:49:00.000-07:00

My gallbladder that is. I ended up leaving work early yesterday because my tummy was out of sorts. It ended up turning into another attack. I immediately called the doctor and got an appointment right away. She told me the next step is to have it removed and she referred me to a surgeon. I'm going to call for an appointment with the surgeon this morning. As much as I don't want surgery, I'm relieved that it's going to be done with soon. I've researched a lot about gallstones and there is not anyway to control it with food. It will either act up or not. Plus, there's no way to remove the stones or break them up without removing the gallbladder. While I'm all for holistic remedies, I just haven't found any that seem to work in this case.

After the doctor's, the attack was subsiding so I was still able to meet my friend and her family for a farewell dinner. They are so busy tying up all loose ends before leaving for Australia tomorrow! They sell their house today and they sold their cars yesterday. I'm just crossing my fingers for them that their 24 hours of travel to Australia goes well with three children.

After dinner, John and I stopped at Dairy Queen. I found out that Dairy Queen has a new Mini Blizzard! I was so excited when John pointed it out to me. I love blizzards, but I don't need even the small one to satisfy a craving. I always wanted a kid's size to be available. Now the Mini is just perfect. It's not the best picture, but here it is.

I had Reese's Pieces. The cup is about 3 to 4 ounces I would guess. Slightly larger than a bathroom cup. It was the perfect size. Enough to feel I had a treat, but not enough to stuff me. I love to see restaurants reduce portion sizes.

Today is Friday and I'm looking forward to a free weekend! Our plans include some cleaning and re-organizing, car shopping for John (his lease is up in about a month), and maybe even a movie (gasp!).

Moving Around

2010-08-05T05:32:00.000-07:00

I really want to buy a new house. I love moving! I know it sounds odd, but I love packing and moving somewhere new. It's so exciting. I even love doing all the legwork to get to the point of moving. There is nothing better than the feeling of moving somewhere new. Even though we've only been in our condo two years, I'm still ready to move on. Perhaps it's because the condo was always "temporary" that leads me to feel this way so quickly. All I know is I'm searching the listings and watching House Hunters again. Sometimes I think I should have been a real estate agent!

Tonight John and I are meeting up with my friend, Michelle, and her family. On Saturday, she leaves to move to Australia! As much as I love to move, I don't think I could move that far away! She's spent the last seven months on all the details of moving including gaining immigration status in Australia, physicals, fingerprint/background checks, etc. It's a lot of work to move to another country. Plus she has three children with the youngest being only 1 year old. And she took the bar exam and graduated law school in this time too. She gets some serious credit for that! I am going to miss her and I cannot wait for John and I to go visit her in Australia. How cool would that trip be?

Last night I had a board meeting for my condo association, so John and I just grabbed some food from the salad and asian bars at Wegman's. We originally were going to eat at The Pub in Wegman's, but wait staff never came around. We were in a time pinch so we just left and went to the food bars instead. I made a huge salad with veggies, dried cranberries, feta cheese, and a bit of a pasta salad on top. So delicious. I also grabbed a slice of naan and one lone piece of orange chicken. I love the ability to just grab a bite or two of an asian dish that I wouldn't typically order.

For breakfast, I had overnight oats. I ate the PB since my gallbladder hasn't been bothering. I'm still limiting fat intake but I need my PB too!

I didn't have anything to pack for lunch today, so I'll be buying something in our cafe at work. I never do this, so I am excited about it. Hopefully I find something good!

Rough Night

2010-08-04T05:57:00.000-07:00

I had a rough night of sleep last night. I woke up shortly after going to sleep with a gallbladder attack. It is a very intense heart burn feeling right in the middle of my chest under my rib cage. The pain also travels to my back and hurts very intensely in one spot in my spine. It will come on quickly, last for a few hours, and then go away just as quickly. I tried to stay in bed, but it was so uncomfortable. I ended up in John's recliner before it finally subsided around 5 am.

Now that I'm done with the bar, it's time to do the doctor thing and get this taken care of, which will likely mean surgery to remove my gallbladder. I started with it last November and immediately went to the doctor's. After an ultrasound and a cat scan, the doctor told me I had gallstones. Months later, she was still just sending me for blood work and I had only actually seen her once. The attacks had stopped and eventually the doctor told me that I was fine. The next time I had an attack was during finals in the Spring and I just decided to wait to do anything further until after the bar exam. Now it's time.

I wasn't sure what to eat for breakfast today. I cannot link any specific foods with an attack, but fat is typically related. So I skipped PB and went with some plain yogurt with blueberries, honey, and a crumbled muffin from yesterday.

So far so good. Hopefully it'll stay away. I'm dead tired today though and I have a busy night with a board meeting for my condo association. Coffee probably isn't a good choice this morning, but maybe I'll have hot tea.

Donut Holes

2010-08-03T16:50:00.000-07:00

I made donut holes. Ok, they're actually muffins, but they taste like donuts. I followed this recipe, but of course I made a few changes. I used whole wheat flour instead of white flour. I did not dip the muffins in the butter or cinnamon sugar at the end either. It just wasn't necessary. They taste delicious without it.

I ended up making mini muffins and a couple of muffin tops.

Delicious!

I'm Not Average

2010-08-03T08:22:00.000-07:00

Check out Mellissa's blog where she decided to feature me today! Thanks, Mellissa!

CSA Second Thoughts

2010-08-03T04:06:00.000-07:00

Our CSA has been a bit disappointing these last few weeks. The veggie share is usually good, but the fruit share has been very boring. All we've gotten for the last four weeks for fruit is one cantaloupe. They've been good cantaloupes, but the fruit share was supposed to be tree fruits. Melons and berries were to be included in the veggie share. Plus, did we really spend $175 to get one cantaloupe per week for 18 weeks? That's close to $10 per cantaloupe! I could buy a local one much cheaper at a farmer's market. I e-mailed the CSA last night with my thoughts and I'm hoping that we can start getting a real fruit share next week. I had been giving it time to get going, but time was up when John came home again with just one cantaloupe again.

Our veggies this week were also less than exciting in my opinion.
- 1 bag red potatoes
- 1 bag red tomatoes
- 2 heirloom tomatoes
- Red celery
- 1 bunch herbs
- 3 sweet peppers
- 1 bunch red beets
I don't like tomatoes so John will eat those. The peppers are long and look like poblanos- they're not bell peppers. I thought the red celery would be celery that is just red, but it's a bushy plant, like greens. I have been saving up some red beets so I'm going to make pickled beets tonight. But overall, there's not really any dinner veggies in there, aside from the potatoes.

For breakfast this morning, I had some overnight oats. Such a quick and easy to grab breakfast.
- 1/2 cup oats
- 1/2 cup milk
- 2 large spoons plain yogurt
- 1/3 pint blueberries
- 1 spoon melted PB

I need to stock up on different grains again. I just didn't have time to go to the special food store for them while studying. I miss my spelt berries. Off to tackle my work. Getting back in the groove now.

Pump the Siracha

2010-08-02T16:45:00.000-07:00

Today's BodyPump class was such a challenge! My advice: don't stop going to BodyPump for four weeks. I really, really missed it though. It felt so good to get back at it even if it did hurt like crazy. I was planning to do some cardio before class, but I was feeling pretty tired. I decided to just take the class rather than try to do too much my first day back. Tomorrow I will do some cardio after work.

John had a doctor's appointment tonight, so I quickly threw together some tacos for an easy dinner. It feels nice to actually be cooking again even if it was an easy dinner.

Last night, I made a turkey meatloaf. Guess what special ingredient I added to it... Siracha! Can anyone explain to me how I never knew about siracha before last week?? I love hot sauce. So does John. Neither of us knew what siracha was until about a week ago. We are now adding it to everything.

I swear we live under a rock sometimes. Off to read...a book...for pleasure.

Back to Work!

2010-08-02T04:25:00.000-07:00

Well, I'm back to work. Only 78 e-mails and most of them were just administrative stuff that don't require any time at all from me.

I'm also heading to the gym today after work. I have not been to the gym in 3 weeks, or it might be 4 weeks. I stopped counting, but I'm going back today and getting into a normal routine. Not sure yet what this will be. It depends on my hours at work. I think I'd like to start work a bit later so I can sleep a bit later. A 4:45 am wake up is just not working for me anymore.

Breakfast this morning was some delicious oatmeal.

I also grabbed a coffee at work as well. I slept so much this weekend, probably 9 hours a night. It was a struggle to wake up this morning and get moving. I will have to make some iced coffee tonight for the rest of the week.

For lunch I packed some leftover turkey meatloaf from last night along with some brown rice. I need a veggie, so I may buy some sliced peppers or a small salad at our cafe. Tonight we'll get our CSA share for the week and there are supposed to be some sweet peppers in that. Now I'm off to tackle my work, hopefully get some new assignments, and actually feel challenged at work again!

Living Again

2010-08-01T12:47:00.000-07:00

I've actually spent the weekend living again. What a great feeling it has been. I have been out of the house and busy. But busy in a good way.

I got my hair cut and highlighted. I got my engagement ring re-sized to fit my smaller fingers so I can actuallly wear it. I enjoyed some time just reading and lounging. I went to Ikea and got a new clothes tree.

So let's talk food for today. I started with oatmeal for breakfast. It has been a week since I had my beloved oatmeal and it did not let me down.

For lunch, John and I went to Minado's for the sushi buffet. It's considerably cheaper for lunch, but has pretty much all the same choices. Here's my plate.

Plus I had a soup-sized bowl of green tea soft serve ice cream.

After lunch, John and I drove around to different car dealers to scope out a new car for John. His lease is up on his current car in about a month. We got rained on about halfway through and had to come home, but we saw some good options. Maybe we'll test drive next week.

Once home, we broke into a customized six pack that we got at Wegman's. For some reason, I picked this blueberry ale.

Gross. I really don't like beer. Good thing I also picked a Woodchuck cider as well. John had a Sam Adams Summer Ale and it was good. I should have picked that one.

Now I'm off to read, shop for some lighting online, and just enjoy the rest of Sunday. Tomorrow is back to work for me. I haven't been there in weeks and it's going to be strange.

Freedom

2010-07-30T09:52:00.000-07:00

It's over! I'm done!!!!! And it went well. So well. I'm feeling confident that I passed both Pennsylvania and New Jersey. It was hard, but I think that I knew the majority of the answers. I didn't have a question where I had absolutely no idea and that's a good feeling. Scores aren't released until mid-October for Pennsylvania and mid-November for New Jersey, so now it's just time to wait.

I need to give credit to the Pennsylvania Board of Law Examiners who really ran the bar exam exceptionally well. It was organized and handled efficiently. With over 2,000 applicants, it could have easily been mass chaos. But it wasn't. I wasn't stressed about it because it was easy to know exactly what to do. New Jersey was another story together. It was mass chaos and I was happy to leave the garden state.

I have some pictures for you. I stayed at the Loew's Hotel in Philadelphia on Monday and Tuesday night. My room was on the 26th floor and had an amazing view.

For those who don't know the Philly skyline, in the above picture, the tallest building on the left is Liberty Place Two, to it's right, the building with the spire is Liberty Place One. John's office is directly behind Liberty Place One. The building with the clock and the statute on top is City Hall. The statute is of William Penn. The tall building on the right is the Comcast Center. It's the newest skyscraper in Philly.

Here's another shot.

And another...

I loved the Loew's Hotel. It was a great experience and I would absolutely stay there again. The room was clean, the staff was friendly and helpful, and the amenities were amazing.

On Wednesday night, I stayed at the Sheraton in Atlantic City. After the Loew's, it really didn't stand a chance. The room was clean, but I had an issue with breakfast. I had pre-ordered breakfast to be delivered to my room on Thursday morning. They waited until the time it was to be delivered to tell me that they were running really late. That's just unacceptable in my book. I was still able to grab breakfast, but I shouldn't have had to worry about it at all.

Today, John and I went out for breakfast. I had some comfort food. Belgian waffle and pork roll. In case you don't know what pork roll is, here's John's description: Cross between sausage and ham that looks like a slice of canadian bacon. It's found in the Jersey/Philadelphia area.

My plans for the rest of the day include relaxing, some outlet shopping (I'm getting a new purse as a treat for myself!), and dinner with my parents. I will be resuming pictures of food as well. So happy to be free!

Goodbye!

2010-07-26T03:55:00.000-07:00

I'm off! Cross your fingers for me. In a few hours, my dad is picking me up to take me to the train station to head into Philly. Tomorrow I will be sitting in Pennsylvania's essay portion of the bar exam. I am nervous, but confident. I am probably more excited than anything else. It feels like I'm going on vacation in a way. I have that excited element running around through me.

Here's my suitcase, packed and ready to go.

Last night I prepped all the food I'm taking. Plus I made John oatmeal for breakfast and pasta for lunch everyday. Here's a shot of my fridge packed with the containers.

Once I'm in the city, I'll check into my hotel and John will meet me there after he's done work to have dinner with me before he heads home. It's going to be a strange week for him. Staying in the city after work and sleeping alone at night.

I'll be back on Friday, at some point, resuming a normal posting schedule complete with food pictures and recipes. Until then, wish me luck and hope that in a few months, I can add "esquire" to my name! Goodbye for now!

Last 8 Weeks

2010-07-24T10:49:00.000-07:00

Here's where I've spent the last 8 weeks of my life...

Flashcards, books, and more books. I think I went through three packs of highlighters. I can't wait to pack the stuff up and say goodbye! And yes, my office is neon orange. Who else loves Rosie the Riveter?

It's Friday!

2010-07-23T16:37:00.000-07:00

I am so happy it's Friday. It means that tommorow starts the last weekend that I have to study for the bar! I am feeling so good right now. I am feeling confident, fairly relaxed, and prepared. What more could I ask for? Nothing I say. It's moments like this that I realize I have it all. I have had the time to devote to studying, I have had the intelligence to learn the material, and I have had the support from John to stay motivated and devoted. He has been awesome not just through the bar studies but through all of law school. I couldn't have done this without his support. Thank you, John!

Since I realized yesterday that I hadn't left the condo since last Saturday (yes, that is sadly true), I told John that we had to go out tonight. I could not stay cooped up any longer. So we headed to Bertucci's for dinner. I had an individual pizza with carmelized onions and mozzarella. So tasty! I brought half home so that I'll have a good lunch tommorow. Afterward eating, we stopped for some Starbucks as a dessert. Now I'm getting ready to just lay on the couch and enjoy some tv before an early bedtime.

4, 9, 3

2010-07-22T10:39:00.000-07:00

That's...

4 days left to study until the bar
9 (only) more practice essays to take
3 days of taking the bar

AND THEN I'LL BE FREE!!!!!!

One week from tonight, I'll be riding a train home from Atlantic City and feeling the most relieved I will ever feel in my entire life.

Loss of Appetite

2010-07-21T10:41:00.000-07:00

I really haven't had much appetite this week. Usually stress does not result in a loss appetite but this week I guess it is. I basically had to force myself to each lunch today because I knew I needed to eat. Anyone who knows me at all knows that I love food! Even with breakfast this morning, I really wasn't all that hungry- just made myself eat.

Today I finished the three day simulated exam and I'm feeling pretty confident. I don't have to ace this- I just have to pass. No one cares what percentile me score is in! Alright, well, I care. The perfectionist in me wants some record-breaking score. Of course, the rational side of me know that is just a silly pipe dream. This is a tricky test and those multiple choice questions are meant to screw with you.

On to corn and black beans! You really cannot go wrong with this combination. It's always good. I made it for John on Monday night but did not feel up to eating it myself. I saved my portion for lunch today. In the mix was:
- 1 can drained and rinsed black bleans
- 1 bag frozen corn
- 1 onion chopped
- 1 can sliced jalapenos chopped
- 1 tbsp paprika
Just mix everything together and heat in the skillet. In a few minutes, it's ready to go. It's a bit spicy from the jalapeno but we like it that way.

Sorry, no food pictures, but I'll leave you with this goodie. It's sort of a food picture I guess. Don't ask where I got it, but hopefully it will make you laugh today. It made me laugh.

I'm off to review outlines and go over multiple choice questions. Good stuff!

Pizza

2010-07-20T10:18:00.000-07:00

I was under the weather for most of yesterday so I didn't eat anything besides my morning oatmeal and some fruit and yogurt later in the evening. Today, I'm feeling better and I ate my normal oatmeal for breakfast.

For lunch I had the leftover pizza that I made Sunday with the stromboli. Heated it up in the toaster oven and came out almost like fresh. Very good!

I promise I'll be back to full posts soon! Just bear with me for another week and a half. (Is that really just 6 days until the bar??? Scary!)

Packing Up

2010-07-19T06:41:00.000-07:00

Only one more weekend to study! So close to freedom that I can taste it.

I got a bunch of food to have during the bar exam and started packing up the shelf-stable items so that it's ready to go.

I got some dates, individuall wrapped prunes, Kind bars, clif bars, a tuna packet, peanut and almond butter packs, and plastic silverware. And a pack of Biscoff cookies for a treat in the evening. I've never had these, but heard really good things about them.

Last night's dinner was really, really good. Homemade stromboli!

Simulated exam scheduled today- off I go!

Single Digits!

2010-07-17T12:23:00.000-07:00

Keeping this post short, sweet, and simple.

9 days till bar exam!

Friday Dinner = Sweet Corn plus Turkey Cakes

Saturday Breakfast = Oatmeal

Saturday Lunch = General Tso's Chicken and Brown Rice

Dad = On antibiotics but awaiting testing next week = Worry-free for now

And because this post needs at least one picture...

Cat's face = Smile!

Compartamentalize

2010-07-16T09:22:00.000-07:00

This was the advice John gave me this morning. Another whirlwind 24 hours for me and it's not over yet.

I had just gotten home yesterday and settled in studying and the trains are down again. Off I went to pick up John from another train station. Rather than try to get his car in rush hour traffic, we stopped for dinner at Seasons 52 and enjoyed a meal there. I like this place even though it really seems to draw an elderly crowd. And by elderly I mean the over 70 crowd, not merely just a little older than me. We split the spicy pork taco flatbread which was delicious. I recommend it. For my dinner, I had the BBQ chicken salad. The chicken had amazing flavor! I skipped the blue cheese on it because I'm not a fan, but I don't think it needed it. I was good as is.

After we got home, my dad called and apparently he's still having pain in his abdomen which is probably his diverticulitis acting up. Since he's had this several time, he probably needs surgery. So now this is weighing on my mind. He's having tests done today and I'm just waiting to hear from my parents about the results. This is why John told me to compartmentalize. I need to study especially if there's nothing that I can do about my dad right now anyway. If I push it aside, then I can focus on studying. It's hard to do, needless to say, but good advice nonetheless.

Breakfast was normal oatmeal. I just finished lunch which was leftover General Tso's chicken. I got some pictures for you!

Back to the books!

Last Day

2010-07-15T04:12:00.000-07:00

Today is my last day at work until August 2 and also my last to justifiably not study all day. From here on out, it's all studying all the time. Just 11 days!

Last night was full of getting logistics in place. It's quite a challenge to have everything that I need and be able to get it all on the train with me and then not have to take any "restricted" items into the exam. I have to be in Philly for the 27th and 28th and then I head to Atlantic City for the 29th. Those three days are going to go so fast!

After heading to Target to get a few things, we had dinner at Jannie's. I wish they had a website so I could advertise for them better- it's a great Asian restaurant. I had something that I never had before- General Tso's Chicken. John got it last time and I loved it when I tasted it. This time I got it for myself. It was so good. I ate about half and brought the rest home which I'll have for lunch at some point. Of course, we also got green tea iced cream- I love that stuff!

This morning was overnight oats again. I love them!

For lunch I packed another leftover bison burger and roasted potatoes. I promise that I'll get some pictures of my dinner tonight even if I don't post the pictures until tomorrow. I know the oatmeal only pictures are very boring. Off to finish my to-do list and then head out of here for a few weeks!

Steamy and Sticky Plus Stress

2010-07-14T04:31:00.000-07:00

It's like living in a sauna around Philly. It's the kind of humid that even at 6 in the morning I can feel the moisture on my skin and my glasses fog as I leave the AC of our condo. It's just plain gross. So that's the steamy and sticky of this post.

On to the stress. I'm starting to see physical manifestations of my stress. I'm picking at my cuticles subconsciously as I'm studying (haven't started nail biting yet though) and I'm biting my bottom lip. My mom ever so graciously pointed that one out to me on Saturday night. "What did you do to your lip?" Uhh...yeah. I'm biting it because I feel like there's a skid of bricks on my back right now. The top of my back is stiff and sore from constantly leaning over the desk to study. The books are literally as thick as telephone books and it's impossible to hold them up to read for more than a minute at a time.

What can I do to reduce the stress? Honestly, nothing. I'm used to making lists and checking things off the list which helps me feel accomplished and reduces stress. There's no list this time- it's study until it's over. If I stop to take a break, I just get more stressed that I'm not studying and losing the time. But I'm sleeping and sleeping well. I'm so tired that I'm just drifting right off at night and not waking until my alarm, or a cat, wakes me. And I'm trying my best to continue with healthy eating to provide my body with the energy it needs. It's all I can do.

Breakfast this morning was overnight oats. Quick, easy, and delicious!

For lunch I have leftovers of last night's dinner. No pictures- I was simply too exhausted to get my camera. We had onion bison burgers on ezekial rolls with roasted CSA potatoes and sauteed zucchini. Tonight's dinner is going to be a treat. We are going back to Jannie's, the Asian bistro. I'm excited not to cook or clean up. We are also running to Target for some things that I need in prep for the bar, plus other household things.

Feeling Squashy

2010-07-13T09:33:00.000-07:00

Time is just flying by anymore. I cannot believe it's two week until the bar exam. I'm almost there!

Dinner last night was quick and then it was right back to the books. Whole wheat penne pasta with marinara doctored with extra garlic and chopped onion plus at least 4 zucchinis diced and added. Sprinkled with some shredded pecorino.

So very, very good! I think we got about 10 zucchinis/yellow squash this week in the CSA. There is going to be a lot of squash in our meals this week.

This morning, it was the usual oatmeal plus some added blackberries from our fruit share of the CSA. The fruit share was a bit disappointing. We only got a half pint of blackberries, half pint of currants (how do you eat these?), and three peaches. We thought we'd get a lot more fruit for the price of it. We will have to see how it is in the future weeks. The good part is that the blackberries were the sweetest, freshest berries ever!

For lunch I had unpictured leftover pasta from last night, but I also ate the rest of the blackberries. John gets the peaches- that's a mutual agreement, but he's not a fan of blackberries and I'm not a peach lover.

Back to work!

The Last Monday

2010-07-12T04:04:00.000-07:00

It's my last Monday at work until August 2! What better way to celebrate than with overnight oats. I really love these things, especially the make ahead aspect. I've got them assembled for Wednesday and Thursday too. In the mix this week:
- 1/2 cut rolled oats
- 1/2 cup milk
- 3 spoons plain yogurt
- 1/3 pint blueberries (I used one pint for three portions)
- 1 spoon of PB

I also picked up a coffee since it was actually cool outside this morning. For lunch I packed leftovers of last night's chicken with lemon pepper wine sauce and veggies. I'm sure it'll be as good leftover as it was last night.

After work, my plan is to go directly to Starbucks to study. I'm usually a home study person, but I simply cannot sit in my office anymore. Hopefully a change of scenery will help keep me focused. As John said when I told him this morning, "whatever you need to do, babe."

Coming Up For Air

2010-07-11T16:44:00.000-07:00

What a weekend! It just flow by as I completely submerged myself in studies. I studied 12 hours straight Friday, Saturday, and today. And I'm exhausted. Work tommorow will actually be a break. So let's rewind to eats- I did take some pictures. I just didn't end up blogging anything until now.

Friday night I was just plain too exhausted to cook. When I finally came up for air, John and I decided to just head to Wegman's for a rotisserie chicken and their salad bar. I made the best salad and it was fairly inexpensive. We also got some stuff from their hot Asian bar- I got a couple pieces of sweet and sour chicken and John had some singapore rice noodles and a few mini eggrolls. No pictures, we literally woofed this down. I was so hungry by that point.

Saturday morning, I had the below- the norm for me.

Saturday lunch was leftover tacos- nothing new to see there. And Saturday, for dinner, we went out for my mom's birthday. We had Italian and I got chicken parm. I ate the entire thing! Something that I rarely do and even John commented on that.

This morning's breakfast was more oatmeal and no additional picture. Lunch was something different- a chicken ceasar salad. I just added a small amount of ceasar dressing that we had, not too much.

But dinner tonight was the best! It was diced chicken cooked in white wine with lemon pepper seasoning, asparagus, zucchini, and brown rice. It was absolutely delicious and so quick and easy! Gotta love that and not much clean up either.

The meals that I planned this week are all simply and very basic. Nothing fancy, many meatless meals. The CSA is great because I can easily plan around what we're getting with that. And our fruit share starts this week, so we're excited to see how the fruit will be. I will definitely do a post about the fruit this week.

I'm running out of time and energy to keep up with everything. John has been so great in helping out with my share of the chores. Yesterday, he cleaned the entire kitchen which it desperately needed. That grease buildup is just horrible. He's been my rock throughout law school and he's really stepping up now.

Last night at the grocery store, I bought a bunch of Kind bars and Clif bars and some peanut butter and almond butter packs to go with me to the bar exam. I also got our suitcase out so I can start packing now as I go along rather than being stressed to do it all later. This is where being a planner helps rather than hinders! It's going to help keep stress levels down and concentration high.

Ok, off to relax finally!

Quick and Easy

2010-07-09T09:32:00.000-07:00

First, let's rewind to last night. Dinner was super easy! Taco night! I used half pound ground turkey and half pound ground beef that I had previously cooked earlier in the week. I mixed that with a taco seasoning packet and brown rice that I also cooked earlier in the week. All I had to do was reheat and get the fixings ready which included:
- Shredded Mexican cheese
- Lettuce
- Greek yogurt
- Hot sauce
- Taco shells
This was such a great meal. I ended up having two tacos just like this one.

Plus I had some of the taco mixture over lettuce. What a great meal!

This morning it was time for hot oatmeal plus a new flavor of coffee! I got a great deal on Joe's Coffee from Groupon. For $15 I got a certificate for $35. I choose three different flavors and today, I tried the Burbon Pecan. It was amazingly good! I loved it. I also got Creme Brulee and Malibu Rum. Can't wait to try these as well.

Lunch was a leftover stuffed pepper. Back to the books!

Perfect Timing

2010-07-08T04:12:00.000-07:00

Just when I needed it most, here's the unprovoked e-mail that I got from my bar advisor:

"Panic Mode -- Stay calm, remind yourself that you are not alone in this process, and believe in yourself. You have the skills and knowledge to pass the bar exam, and panicking will not help you in any way, whether during the preparation stage or the actual bar exam. If you start to feel nervous and overwhlelmed, contact me and I will help you figure out a solution to your problem."

Thank you, Themis (this is the name of my review course)! That was exactly what I needed to hear and it came exactly when I needed it.

After a restful sleep, I'm up and at work. We have a big issue with a client today so it looks like at least one big conference call today. Plus I have to get everything done for the time that I'll be out. Thankfully I have some co-workers to help me. I started the day off with some overnight oats. I used strawberries this week, but I have to say that I think they're better with blueberries even though I'm usually a strawberry nut.

I also have a nice big iced coffee that I'm saving for a bit later. For lunch, I have leftover ground beef mix from last night and I brought some cantaloupe as well. Gotta love the fruit! Dinner tonight is going to be super, super easy. I've prepped everything on previous days so it's literally just a throw it together and eat dinner. Have a good day all!

I Think I Can

2010-07-07T16:50:00.000-07:00

I am definitely feeling calmer now than this morning or last night. I talked with my boss today and we agreed that my last day of work before the bar will be July 15. Then I won't be back to work until August 2. Since the bar exam is July 27, 28, and 29, I'll have a full week home to study. At least I'll know that I did everything possible to study this way.

I also decided that I'm not going to make it a requirement to go the gym. If I want to, I will, and if I feel my time is better spent studying or doing other necessary chores, then I'll do that. Three weeks won't matter either way in the grand scheme of things for an exercise routine. I'm putting no extra pressure on myself for anything.

That said, I came home from work today and studied for a few hours. Then I made and ate dinner, then studied some more. Nothing intensive, just looking over some outlines.

I think I forgot to mention my lunch today- it was a leftover stuffed pepper from last night. It was really good heated up. For dinner, John requested a ground beef mix including:
- 1/2 pound 93/7 organic ground beef
- 1 bag frozen peas
- 1/2 bag cooked egg noodles
- 1 jar fat free beef gravy
Just heat and mix together. This was the easiest dish ever.

I will return to more complicated meals post-bar when I have more time and energy for cooking and cleaning up. But for now, simple things like this will suffice. Plus it makes great leftovers. Now I'm going to relax a bit and try to maintain my calm feeling. I just keep repeating the following "I think I can" just like Thomas the Tank Engine.

Meals on the Go

2010-07-07T04:24:00.000-07:00

I need some help and suggestions from all of you! I have three days during the bar exam for which I need to pack food. I want to stick with clean foods that are healthy and my normal eats. I don't want my body to suffer any digestive problems during the exam. The first two breakfasts and the first lunch are easy. I'll have a fridge in my hotel room and can eat there. I'm planning on the following:
Tuesday Breakfast: Overnight Oats
Tuesday Lunch: Cold chicken with cut veggies and fruit
Wednesday Breakfast: Overnight Oats

When it gets tricky is Wednesday's lunch because I'll have already checked out of my Philly hotel room. I'll need a lunch that is completely unfrigerated. I'll also need an unrefrigerated breakfast for Thursday morning at my NJ hotel room and a lunch for Thursday. For the lunches, I can only pack them in a brown bag sack per exam rules, so no ice packs, containers, etc. It must all be disposable after lunch.

I think that the flavored tuna packs will work well for lunches. I've also decided to pack a variety of bars. But what can I pack to go with the lunch to make it well-rounded? I also need suggestions for breakfast. I'm used to a heavy breakfast and just going with fruit and toast from a continental breakfast will not hold me. I thought about bringing oats to cook, but I have no idea if the hotel will have the necessary amenities for that. And given the timing (arriving around 9 pm Wednesday and test beginning at 8 am on Thursday) I don't have a lot of time to find out. Please give me any suggestions you may have! I really want to get my food squared away so I can just pack it up before I leave without any thought to it.

Dinners will be eaten out with John who will come to see me after he's done work each night. I am so thankful that he works just blocks from my hotel. He's been, and will continue to be, my rock throughout this stressful time.

This morning I'm at work and wishing I was at home. I had overnight oats for breakfast. Plus a big iced coffee.

It was literally 106 degrees here yesterday and it's going to be just as hot today. I know some people will probably want to kick me for saying this, but I hate Summer. Give me a beautiful Spring or Fall day with that crisp air and bright sunshine, but no heat or humidity!

Under the Gun

2010-07-06T16:41:00.000-07:00

I'm really feeling stressed today. I don't think I've ever felt so stressed about any exam before. I worked straight from 6 am until 4:45 pm today only stopping to make meals, not even stopping to eat them. That is very unlike me. I usually take break times for the mental break alone. After dinner, I even went back to study some more and I'm still planning to look over at least a couple of outlines before bed. It's just hit me that this is it. It's time to step up and have no regrets on my studying. For this reason, my posting may become more sporadic as pictures of food (and the rest of my life) becomes secondary to the bar exam. But if you're wondering where I am, I'm just studying and on July 30, you can expect the most wonderful post of all.

Breakfast today was my normal oatmeal. It was good as usual. I didn't have any coffee today because I simply didn't take the time to make it.

Lunch (pictureless) was leftover Chinese from Saturday night. It was good leftover and I cannot wait to go back there again. John mentioned going this weekend and we just might have to do that! It was that good.

For dinner, I made Mexican stuffed peppers. In the mix was:
- 2 cups cooked rice
- 1/2 pound ground turkey
- 3 small zucchini, diced
- 1 can enchilada sauce
- 1 cup shredded Mexican cheese
- 4 green bell peppers, halved and seeded
I just browned the meat, then added the rest of the ingredients, reserving some cheese for topping, minus the bell peppers. Then I stuffed the mixture into the peppers and quickly broiled for 15 minutes in the toaster oven. I actually didn't bake the leftover ones since it's way too hot to have the actual oven on today.

Back to the books!
They came out really good and we both enjoyed them. I'm looking forward to leftovers tomorrow.

Breakfast for Lunch

2010-07-05T15:42:00.000-07:00

I have been craving pancakes so I took the opportunity today to have some for lunch. I whipped up some whole wheat pancakes with the following:
- 1 cup whole wheat flour
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 1 tbsp oil
- 1 egg
- 1 tbsp sugar

These are the easiest pancakes. Since they come out well for me, I decided not to venture outside the comfort zone. To go with the pancakes, we had some sliced strawberries and pepper bacon. It's been forever since I've had bacon. I forgot how good it is. And what a mess it is to cook.

Dinner was a quick and easy BLT (plus onion), using bacon that I cooked at lunch and tomatoes and onions from our CSA. It was perfect for a summer night's dinner. It was reaching 100 degrees here today, so a cool dinner was necessary. It was also nice not to have to actually cook anything. It made clean up a smash. That and the fact that I can fit a ton of dishes in the new dishwasher.

Tomorrow is back to studying!

Day Off

2010-07-05T06:47:00.000-07:00

I am officially taking today off from studying. I have off of work but I would normally work today. So I'm not losing a day that I would normally be studying. With only three weeks until the bar, I feel that I need this day to regroup and recharge, just relax. I already went to the gym and enjoyed 50 minutes on the elliptical. My other plans include a pedicure, reading, and picking up our CSA with John this afternoon.

Last night we met my parents for dinner at a local Italian restaurant. We were actually celebrating our anniversary with them, not the 4th of July. The place was close to empty because it was the holiday. John and I split an unpictured pizza. Half sweet peppers for me and half mushroom for him. I saved a piece of mine to bring home, but the restaurant never wrapped it up for me. They threw it away by mistake.

After leaving the restaurant with my parents, we headed to Dairy Queen because every 4th of July requires a little ice cream. I had a Reese's Pieces Blizzard with vanilla ice cream. I ate about a 1/3 there and brought the rest home which I ate later while we were watching fireworks on tv.

Going backward, yesterday's lunch consisted of a small turkey hoagie from Wawa and an iced coffee.

Off to relax and enjoy a day off!

Chinese

2010-07-04T11:50:00.000-07:00

Last night's dinner was amazing! John and I decided to try a new Chinese/Asian restaurant near our house, Jannie's Asian Bistro (no website, so I cannot share a link) that has gotten some good reviews. Even though the place was basically empty which gave us some doubts, we ended up loving it. Unlike a lot of Asian restaurants, the atmosphere inside was bright and cheery- so many are dark inside. I like that for a fancy meal, but not so much when it's just a casual dinner on a regular weekend. It was refreshing to eat and enjoy the nice sunshine at the same time.

I decided to go with the hot and spicy shredded chicken. It was shredded chicken, obviously, with shredded carrots, celery, and peppers covered in a spicy brown sauce. And I could actually taste the spice which I enjoyed.

I only ate about half and brought the rest home. I am looking forward to eating it for lunch this week. John had sushi for an appetizer (spicy tuna roll) and loved it. He thinks it's the best he's had to date and he tries it everywhere. His entree also was really good, but I forget what it was called. It was a crispy chicken in a sweet and spicy sauce.

I was planning to get an appetizer, but I spied the green tea ice cream on the menu before we ordered. So I opted to have dessert instead of an appetizer. I love green tea ice cream.

And this was place was cheap. I got the huge amount of ice cream for $3! And my entree was only $13. We will definitely be going back. Very soon.

Morton's

2010-07-03T10:07:00.000-07:00

For our anniversary, we went to Morton's last night. John requested no pictures and so I did not take my camera in. We had a great meal though. I had:
- Oysters Rockefeller
- Lobster Tail
- Button Mushrooms
- Grilled Asparagus
I also had the best champagne cocktail and I'm not even sure what liquor was in it. It was amazingly tasty though. For dessert, we split key lime pie which was fantastic.

I also missed pictures of breakfast and lunch- I'm not feeling that great today and I've been struggling just to get through my studies. I will be back full force with posts later today or maybe tomorrow. I figure everyone is having a fun holiday weekend anyway. Enjoy the weekend!