It's a Wrap!

Happy Tuesday to my favorite bloggie friends!  How awesome is it that we are already coasting through the week and so far from Monday?  It makes my heart all warm and gooey!
Thank you so much for the sugary sweet comments yesterday!  I guess we all want what we don't have- hair, shoes, clothes, appearance.  It's amazing that everyone is different and I think that's what makes us great!

Cake for Dinner
I take this healthy blogging thing seriously and decided that I needed to have cake for dinner.  Not any cake, but a pumkin protein cake!

Inspired most recently by Diva Katie I made my cake:

• 1/3 cup oats, 1/2 cup pumpkin, 1 eggwhite, 1/2 scoop vanilla protein powder, sprinkle of baking soda- all nuked for about 3 minutes.
• Iced with plain yogurt, applesauce, cocoa powder, and cinnamon

Lunch Prep
I cleaned my plate and set to work on this week's lunches!  First up- hubby's monster salad:

• Spinach, mushrooms, sliced red and yellow peppers, roasted zucchini, goat cheese, roasted cod, hardboiled egg, kalamata olives, capers, and pine nuts

Next up- mine!
Of course I took some time and made my food extra weird.  We found this eggplant spread at Trader Joe's.  If you see it, buy 10 jars because they disappeared for a while:

My hubby may or may not be known to eat this stuff for a meal with pita chips.  We bought a second jar and I jumped on using some before it was all gone!  I assembled it in a wrap:

• Trader Joe's whole wheat lavash
• Roasted zucchini and carrots
• Spinach
• Pepper Jack cheese
• 1 Tbsp of TJ's eggplant garlic spread
• Wrap, roll, and enjoy!

This is the kind of roll I used- the nutritional stats are good and this is vegan, in case you care!

 

This wrap was very filling and I would use half of the flat bread next time since it was so big!  I estimated this at about 450 cals- not too shabby for lunch!

I've got some more work to do (duh) and then I am going to hit up the gym tonight after work.  I'm still working towards my birthday push-up goal, so I've got some lifting to do, but more on that later!

Not Food-Related

As we look back on the last week, we have to acknowledge the tragedy that swept the people of Haiti and even those around us.  My mom's client was in Haiti during the earthquake and survived to tell his story and started a foundation in San Francisco to help the people of Haiti.  Please check out his compelling story and do what you can:

http://haitisurvival.org/angelos-story.html

Hope you all have a wonderful day!

In My Lunchbox

Hey Guys!  Happy Monday!  I have to say that it feels good being on the second half of my Monday- how about you?
The rest of my weekend was spent with friends and family relaxing and getting our exercise on!  The added endorphins are doing wonders for my attitude and outlook on life and it's cheaper than shopping or therapy. 

On Saturday night we went to dinner with some friends and ate some Middle Eastern cuisine.  They had everything!  I settled on some lentil soup and a hummus appetizer because I was not feeling too adventurous and one can never go wrong with hummus, right?  The pita bread was super fluffy and good.
I didn't take pictures of the food, but we did get a picture of us taken by a friend, courtesy of facebook!

(Side Note: Um, yes that is my natural uber curly hair all out and wild!  I think it makes me look like a different person!)
We also went to a hookah bar and hung out with friends and talked.  It was such a fun, relaxing night and much needed!
On Sunday, we woke up at our favorite B&B (that's what we call hubby's mom's house) and were spoiled with a nice brunch.  We loafed around and watched football and then we went to the gym for a training session with my MIL.  I was in charge of cardio and core and hubby was in charge of providing a strength training routine.  I gave myself a heck of a workout and ran 3 miles in 32 minutes while doing intervals with my new training partner :)!  I tried to summon my inner Jillian but barely mustered a Bob impression!  She did really well and I was impressed.  After our treadmill interval session, we did another 15 minutes on bike and then moved on to core:

• Regular plank
• Side plank
• Sit-ups on balance ball
• Sit-ups on balance ball with feet up
• Medicine ball oblique twists

I have no idea what hubby did, but he did a pull/push muscle splits with her and I walked at an incline for another 22 minutes and then did stretching and pushups.  Phew, was I wiped out!

After our workout we refueled with a healthy (and upside down) dinner:

Wild basmati rice, roasted brussels sprouts, mushrooms, roasted carrots, cajun seasoned wild shrimp!  It was all sooo good!  I nearly burned the house down by making brussels sprouts but hope I saved my reputation with the sweet potato fries I made for the group!
The best part? Leftovers for lunch:

We got salmon for lunch and it was really good!  I loved having my lunch packed for me.  I normally eat random things and it was so fun to have a full meal and a surprise.
I also had this bundle of fruit in my lunchbox:

It was glorious and gobbled up for my morning snack!

Housekeeping:
I've made some updates to my 'About Me' entry and my 'Weight Loss' entries.  Read 'em if you're bored or want to know all about me!  I'm also going to try to link them to my main page.
Does anyone else think of the movie Tommy Boy when they hear or read 'housekeeping'?

Questions:
1. What's your natural hair texture?  Do you fight it?  Ya'll know I do!
2. Do you ever work out with family?  See above- I do!

As always, if you have any questions for me, post 'em in the comments section or email me!

Confessions of a Meathead

Hey kids!  Blogging twice in a day?  I know- madness! 

This afternoon we took a nice walk to the ATM machine and to see hubby's grandma.  It was a nice walk and quite muggy since it was supposed to rain today.  I found it quite pleasant since I'm freezing all the time!  After our walk, we went to get hubby's haircut and I spent my time at H&M.  I may or may not have purchased a sweater, a pair of jeans, and a long bright pink tank top!  I feel like I didn't shop all last year while we were saving up for the wedding and now I am a shopping maniac and embracing it.  Yeah for consumerism!

After our field trip we drove straight to the gym and I proceeded to do something that is completely out of  character.  I watched football on the flat screens in our gym as I did cardio.  I have to give you a little background- I have never liked football.  I only started watching it for the same reason that my hubby watched America's Next Top Model- procrastination and avoiding grad school homework!  The crazy thing is that I actually got into it.  I don't know all the rules (boooooring!) but it has grown on me and I can not only tolerate games, but even give little cheers as I watch Mr. Bush score a crazy touchdown while I'm on the elliptical.  I looked around and I was the only girl in that section.  I observed the rest of the neckless meatheads and smiled because I was just like them now :)

I don't know how long I was on the elliptical- maybe 40 minutes?  I also ran for 15 minutes and busted out 3 sets of pushups- 15, 15, and 10.  That's 40 REAL pushups ya'll!
My post-workout snack was the fabulous yogurt my hubby graciously stopped for:

Plain tart, taro, and superfruit tart yogurt with blackberries, raspberries, lychee, coconut, a few chocolate covered pomegranates, and a sprinkle of graham cracker crumbs.  (Or my personal interpretation of rainbows, unicorns, and diamonds)

I don't know when I'll catch up with you next, but I'm looking forward to it!  I love reading your comments and being a part of this community.

Back!

Hey Guys!  I checked the 'ole blog and I can't believe I haven't posted since Monday!  That's insanity, if you ask me.  I've enjoyed reading all your comments on pizza and though it may seem that I may have vanished from a pizza overdose, I'm back and kickin!  I guess I can say that I am a pizza girl now!

First, a little explanation...
Besides chowing down on pizza, I've been extremely busy at work and it's also the first week back at school.  People have busy seasons and I think that I just have busy years given the industry I work in.  Unfortunately this week I have not been successful at balancing it all and it caught up with me.  I learned a lot this week and I have some work to do in stress management. I'm putting together an action plan to kick this whole thing's bootay and get back to my normal self!  I'm over it and that's all!

Now the Food...
Of course you know I've been eating.  It's what I do, yo!  Here are some highlights:
Butternut squash and ketchup lake:

Roasted veggies with a hardboiled egg (this same meal was eaten a thousand times this week):

Oats in a jar (with morning Cali sunshine):

New raw bar from Starbuck's:

 I was really interested in the company's story when I read it online.  Check out their site 2 Moms in the Raw and give them a try.  No, I wasn't paid to do this.  I'm not that big of a deal (yet)!
Another roasted veggie meal variation:

This time I had it with organic chicken and I hated eating the meat.  I have been fighting a meat aversion for months now, and although I'm not 100% sure, I just don't like meat.  I'll see how things go, but I might be making a lifestyle change that has been looming to becoming a veggie and occasional fish eater.  Does that mean pescatarian?  I dunno.  I'll let you know later :)

Pumpkin pancakes:

Workouts
With all the madness, I have only made it to the gym on Sunday, Thursday, and Friday.  Today will make my 4th workout for the week and I'm OK with that.  Four times works in my book and I'm not putting any extra stress on myself, so no reason to feel bad.

Randomness
My company is painting our office.  I sit next to the brightest green wall ever.  I tried to take a picture but it didn't even show how neon the color is:

I feel like I can shoot videos with this as the background and then put a Star Wars background on it. Hmm....I may have found a way to make some extra money!

New word of the week:
defenestrate: a throwing of a person or a thing out of the window source
My editor friend at work taught me and I've been practicing it in sentences all week long!  Give it a try!

I'm off to enjoy my weekend and I will try to check in with you soon!  I hope you have a glorious Saturday :)

Pizza!

I'm not a pizza girl.  I know this may sound like blasphemy but I am just not huge on it.  I have one memory of a birthday party I had at home when I was 6.  There were 3 of us and we were having a 'sleepover' in the middle of the day (yep, I was cool already).  We all wore our pajamas, watched a scary movie, and my parents ordered us pineapple and extra cheese pizza and it was the coolest day ever!  I don't get nearly as excited about pizza anymore.
I rarely crave it, but last night was an exception in my usual behavior.  I stopped by the store to buy some apples and bananas and I picked up a pre-made whole wheat pizza crust.  As I drove home I realized I had none of the 'normal' pizza ingredients- no mozzarella cheese, no pizza sauce (yes, I am used to canned sauce- perhaps why I am not huge on pizza) and no fresh basil.  I decided to do a spin-off of a pizza I saw on Hangry Pants and made my Mediterranean Pizza.

Ingredients:

• Crust of choice (I used Boboli Whole Wheat)
  
• "Pizza sauce" of 3 Tablespoons of Trader Joe's Sundried Tomato and Basil Hummus
  
• Baby bell peppers 3-4
• Kalamata olives
• Spinach
• Red onions (I quickly carmelized them on a pan before I added them to the pizza)
  
• Goat cheese
• Sprinkle of Parmesan 
• Chili powder, paprika, and cumin to taste
  

I topped the pizza with all the toppings and baked at 450 degrees for about 12 minutes.  It was gooey with a crunchy crust and had just enough kick.  I enjoyed it with the usual fiber:

I went back for another piece it was that good.  The hubby gave it a try and liked it too!  I think that variations can include different hummus (probably more than I added), different kinds of olives, feta instead of goat cheese, and fresh basil.

I'm eating it for lunch leftovers and it's awesome!  I just wish I could have had a scary movie to watch it with and wore my pajamas today!

Help Me Pick!

Hey Beautiful Friends!  I'm winding down from a fantabulous weekend and getting ready to brace myself for a new week.  I start grad school again this week with a mind-numbing schedule.  Would anyone like to take Managerial Accounting on Friday evenings for 4 hours?  Please raise your hand.  Oh, wait- I do!!!!  I can't believe that's my schedule, but it's worth it to graduate on time (hopefully)!  You can ask me again in a couple of weeks!

Last night we went to Baby Ben's 3rd Birthday dinner.  I was a bad blogger and forgot my camera.  Highlights of the evening included delicious eats, sitting under the dinner table playing with the birthday boy (his idea, kinda), playing a new baseball/bowling hybrid game we invented, and being directed to go 'right durrrrrr' by a little boy who has developed a St. Louis accent (who remembers Chingy?).  It was a great time for all!

Food Prep
Today I was a food prep maniac because I have school on Tuesday and Friday night this week.  I turned on the oven and roasted 3 huge trays of veggies for the family.  As a reminder, there are only two of us.

I kicked up the broccoli by using some TJ's taco seasoning on it:

I pumped up the brussels sprouts with s&p and chili powder:

I put the finished smellyness into a tupperware for easy access:

I packed up the butternut squash in a separate tupperware with roasted carrots for less stinky food lovin:

For my lunch plate, I broke into all the new goods:

I also had cottage cheese and blueberries to round out the high amount of fiber here with more fiber.  Yum!

My strategy for meal prep is to make the staples (veggies, protein and carbs) and then make a couple of meals combining them so that they are fresh, balanced, and ready to go.  I focus mainly on the hubby's lunches because I am a maniac and prefer to pick my meals out that morning.  This usually gets me through until Wednesday, when I can replenish the supplies and start all over again.  I'm no Martha, but this plan works for me and we save a LOT of money on not having to buy lunch, unless we really want to.
Here is a preview of one of hubby's lunches this week:

Brussels sprouts, roasted broccoli, parmesan cheese potato wedges, and parmesan roasted chicken thighs.

Workouts
Ever since my whine-fest on Friday night, I have been taking it easy on my lower body and adding variety to my workouts.  On Saturday I did a fun bike/elliptical workout and called it good after 30 minutes.  I followed it up with a lot of stretching.
Today I stretched a lot at home, did 20 minutes of bike and let myself run a slow mile to test out my knees and hips.  Some may call it masochistic, but I wanted to see if this would cause pain and I'm happy to report that I was able to go for one mile with very little pain. I decided to stop and not push it, although I felt like I could go longer.  The bright side of this frustration is that I am mixing up my workouts and adding more strength.  I had the pleasure of being trained by my own personal fitness expert.  Today's plan was to make my triceps cry- and they DID!  We did my favorite exercise, skull crushers and 2 more!  I felt so great and accomplished and the frustration I had going into the weekend has disappeared.  Let's hope it continues!

I'll be back tomorrow with a semi-homemade recipe for Meditteranean pizza.  I made it tonight and LOVED it!

For now, I have a question for you.  I'm making cupcakes for my nephew's 3rd kiddie birthday party.  I have decided to make chocolate, vanilla, and 1-2 other flavors.  If you were a pre-schooler, which flavor(s) would you eat?

• Lemon
• Caramel
• Orange
• Strawberry
• Banana chocolate chip
  

Babies are picky and bloggers aren't, so I don't have a good idea of what to make!  I'm staying away from anything with nuts so I don't poison the little guys!  I would love to hear what you have for me!  I need to start experimenting soon!
Hope everyone has a great week!

The Ballad

How do I love thee weekend?  Let me count the ways!  How are you doing today lovelies?  I slept in till 9:00 this morning and I've been enjoying the day ever since!

I started with a breakfast of a protein pancake, the ultimate indicator that it is in fact the weekend!

• 1/2 cup oats, 1/2 scoop flax, 1/2 scoop protein powder, 1/8 tsp baking powder, 1 eggwhite, new milk substitute
  
• My icing was plain nonfat yogurt with cocoa powder and mango on top
• Perfection

The new milk substitute I'm referring to is this guy:

Trader Joe's Organic Whole Grain drink.  
This drink is similar in calories and profile to almond milk and tastes like almond milk as well.  I don't have a high tolerance for dairy, so this is a great product to use in cooking.  I don't usually drink milk straight up unless I'm trying to fall asleep (it helps!), but if I did, I'd go for this guy.
Along with my breakfast I had a homemade Americano:

We spent the morning at Costco trying not to intentionally run people over with our carts.  I have to exercise my patience in Costco but it's worth it to get our goods.  A girl can't eat without the same exact vegetables she eats every day of her life!

Once unpacking and unloading, I set to work using some of my ingredients and had these potatoes in mind.  I swear I'm not stalking this blogger, but Miss How Sweet It Is knows her stuff!
Here is the finished product:

I modified the recipe by using fingerling potatoes (they make the perfect wedges already) and used paprika, cumin, salt and pepper for spice and threw in one diced clove of garlic for extra stanky breath.  They came out perfectly crunchy and will make a great side for the lunches and dinners hubby eats!

This recipe was not for lunch, I ate this instead:

I had leftover pumpkin spice puree from the ingredients I used to spike some brownies for extra fiber appeal.  Like dried fruit, I also think pumpkin puree will go bad unless I eat it right away.  I mixed some up with cocoa powder, cinnamon, and plain nonfat yogurt.  I also topped it with the rest of my granola.  Also, imagine spoonfuls of raw almond butter on my spoon.  Hubby told me that this looked too creative for his palate.  That means it looked nasty and I loved it.  More for me.


The Ballad
For hubby's lunch, I made an old favorite that doesn't really have a recipe but holds a special place in my heart.  Back when we first started dating, the hubby set out to train for a Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu tournament.  For those of you who don't know, this is a blend of submission wrestling.  He was already in crazy hot stud shape, but he needed to cut another 10 pounds for the tournament to get into the upper limit of the lower weight class.  Wrestlers do this to get a competitive advantage of being bigger than their opponents. 
One of our favorite meals to make together was Big Salad, a Bomb Salad, or The Ballad.  The Ballad is a distant cousin of the Mama Pea's Hugh Jass salad, but took on a life of its own and we basically used it to clean out the fridge and make enough food to feed a hungry wrestler and his sidekick (me).  The rules were simple- veggies and protein!

Today I got a request for a Ballad and I was happy to make it:

• Baby spinach
• Hardboiled egg
• Black beans
• Corn
• Steamed broccoli
• Baby bell peppers
• Parmesan crusted chicken
• Guacamole
• Onion cheese from Whole Foods
• Cashews
• TJ's pear vinaigarette dressing

In case you were wondering he kicked majuh ass in that tournament.  I take credit for for each and every Ballad he ate.