Brrrr

Since it was a chilly 79 degrees out this morning, I decided to start my day off with a run!

Well, technically I started my day getting my restless child out of his crib at 5:45, feeding him a bottle and a half while pumping, THEN I went for a run.

Before the run I had to get a little MOJO, literally.  Just half a bar, to help me make it through.

According to my Nike + on my ipod, I ran 3 miles.  In 20 minutes?  I don't think so.  So I went to www.mapmyrun.com to check it out, and Nike lied.  It was only 2.20 miles.  Oh well, better than nothing.  

I couldn't decide which dorky picture to post, so I did both!

After a nice cool shower, I put together a quick breakfast of 2 slices of zucchini bread and some pineapple Chobani.  

Haven't tried the pineapple yet, it was delicious.  Especially when I added a little shredded organic coconut on top.  It tasted tropical.

Lunch was a chicken taco salad: spinach, chipotle chicken (another frozen chicken breast made ahead of time), sharp cheddar cheese, black beans, salsa and some crushed tortilla chips.  

I got home from work and it was time to play hubby's favorite game.... hide the baby!  Don't worry, he doesn't ever put him in a dangerous place, and it takes less than 20 seconds to find him because Tyler gives it away.  

Haha... found you!!

It was pretty cute.  

Supper consisted of a yummy steak, salad and pasta.  I don't know why I've been eating so much steak this summer, I didn't think I even liked it very much.  I only had half the steak though. Spinach salad on the side, and some garlic pasta thing (not a healthy option).  

I also had a Bud Light lime.  I don't really drink alcohol a lot these days, but BLL tastes so good on a hot day.  And I also use the excuse that it helps with milk production.  It really does increase the production, just have to wait awhile after drinking one to pump.  And I need all the help I can get, since SOMEONE went from eating 5 oz at a time to 8/9 oz at a time.  He's a growing boy!

Just wanted to say thanks for reading this... Mom.  :)  Hopefully a couple other people are too.  I think I'm going to quit being scared and post a link to the blog on our Facebook page. Time to expose others to my thrilling, fascinating, everyday life. 

Tired Tuesday

Couple things about the last post... I didn't specify but we won, not lost, 20-something to 3.

I forgot to mention how much water I drank after the game.  2 of these bad boys:

Bubba keg from our Mexico trip.  Comes in pretty handy when it's super hot out and I want to keep my water and ice cubes cold.  Thanks Jessie and John!

Since I didn't go to bed until almost 1 and got up at 6 with Tyler, I was a little slow today.  I had two pieces of the tiny loaf of zucchini bread (from the farmer's market) at 7am while pumping so I didn't feel nauseated, then tried to nap a little.  I had a later breakfast, a piece of Ezekial bread with natural peanut butter and homemade raspberry jam.  Oh, and an apple.

I snuck out when hubby got home from work to get a couple groceries.  Here's the damage:

More Chobani, produce, Tyson all natural chicken breasts (not as good as Smart Chicken), other hunks of meat, and some shredded cheese to stockpile in the freezer.  Got a couple ingredients for my side dish for supper, which you'll see below.  

Didn't have much time for lunch, so I just had an open-faced sandwich- turkey, baby swiss, big handful of spinach and a little mustard on a piece of Ezekial.  And a couple Tostitos Jalapeno chips on the side. 

After a busy afternoon in the clinic, we sat down and listened to West Delaware play their first round game at the state softball tournament.  Nail-biter, they lost in extra innings.  Hopefully they can come back tomorrow in the consolation round.

So for supper, I bought a couple turkey broils which hubby grilled up.  Basically a lean cut of turkey wrapped in bacon.

I also made something new with some of the leftover spaghetti noodles.  Found the recipe on Epicurious, but tweaked it a little for two people, and made a couple changes.  

Whole-Wheat Spaghetti with Broccoli, Chickpeas, and Garlic

3 garlic cloves, chopped 

1/2 teaspoon dried hot red pepper flakes

3 T extra-virgin olive oil plus additional for drizzling

1 head of fresh broccoli- steamed slightly

3/4 teaspoon salt

1/2 can (15-ounce) can chickpeas, rinsed and drained

1/2 pound whole-wheat spaghetti, cooked according to package

Cook garlic and red pepper flakes in oil in a 12-inch heavy skillet over moderate heat, stirring, until garlic is golden, about 1 minute. Add broccoli and salt and chickpeas, and cook until heated through.  Add pasta to broccoli and chickpeas in skillet and cook over moderate heat, tossing, until combined well. Serve drizzled with additional olive oil.

I added some shredded parmesan cheese to top it off.  Again, I apologize for the crappy pictures.  If anyone can tell me how to take better pictures, I'd be happy to listen.  

Both of us thought it was great.  Haven't really used chickpeas (otherwise known as garbanzo beans) before, but they weren't too bad.  Chickpeas are known for their fiber.  I think they have a fun little shape.  

As for workouts, I didn't quite get the cardio in today.  Since it was about 110 out, I decided to just do a little yoga on my own this morning.  Felt good to loosen up a little.  We will see what tomorrow brings... stay cool!

Holy hotness

Today was so hot that I sweated just looking outside.  And of course we had to play softball tonight.

At 9:30. At night.

Pretty close game... 20-something to 3.

Needless to say I'm just now sitting down to write this, so I doubt I'll be making it up at 6 in the morning to swim.

Before I forget, here's a pic of the delicious kettle corn we saved from the game.  I enjoyed some of it while watching the season premiere of Breaking Bad last night.  Highly recommend it if you haven't seen it.

So let's see... this morning I started off the day with some vanilla Chobani and the rest of my blueberries.  I sprinkled some chia seeds on of course, but also some organic unsweetened coconut.  That yogurt bar yesterday inspired me!

Close-up!

 
Lunch was a leftover burger with some pepperjack on top- no bun, no carbs! I also used up the last of my organic spinach for a side salad with slivered almonds.  Back to bagged spinach.  :(

After working a long and late afternoon-didn't get in until almost 7, I didn't have a lot of time to get something to eat.  So I went with an old fav.  Easy quesadillas.

I used a spinach tortilla that we use for wraps, placed some cut-up chipotle chicken (we grill up huge quantities of chicken, cut it up and freeze it for meals like this), black beans, green pepper, and some sharp cheddar.

Heat up the skillet, spray it with Pam, then fold the tortilla in half.  Spray the top half with some Pam as well.

Let the bottom get slightly crunchy then flip and cook the other side until the tortilla is crunchy and the cheese is melted.

Cut into 4 pieces and top with whatever you wish.  I didn't take a picture after I added toppings but I used some salsa and chopped lettuce (which would usually be chopped spinach but I'm out).  If you want to use sour cream that's great, but plain greek yogurt would work as well.  Unfortunately I only had vanilla yogurt, which would probably be disgusting.  

This is actually a pretty big meal, I could have saved two pieces for tomorrow, but I finished it since I missed my afternoon snack of almonds/protein bar.

That's all for today, look forward to tomorrow- grocery shopping day!!

Twins win!

Well we barely survived the weekend.  I did wake up to work out at 6 on Saturday morning, but my workout partner did not.  I sucked it up and went out for a run.  Since it was not a billion degrees out, I decided it would just be better to go on a long run because that's my biggest challenge right now and it's harder to run out when it's hot than bike when it's hot.  Managed to get almost 4 miles in, then off to the farmer's market before we left for Minneapolis.

Here are the goodies:

The zucchini wasn't from the market- that was a patient's gift.  Purchases Saturday morning: farm fresh eggs, broccoli, zucchini bread, raspberry and raspberry jalapeno low sugar jam, and some cinnamon rolls for the family this weekend.

I whipped up some of those farm fresh eggs with some green peppers for breakfast.  Sooooo much better than eggs from the store- they even look better (even with my subpar photography skills).

So off we went to the cities for Tyler's first Twins game.  Good thing we picked one of the hottest days yet.  Not sure what the final temp was, but heat index was definitely over 100.  Poor little buddy did not do well.  It was plenty warm, but I think the noise scared the crap out of him.  Plus it was past his bedtime.  Not good combinations.  It was great seeing family, but it wasn't the best time for me.  I was so worried about Tyler I hardly got to enjoy anything.  Plus I was exhausted from running so much early that morning and then walking to the game and walking around with Tyler- and the humidity.  I know, whine whine whine.  The Twins did end up winning, much to hubby's dismay.  He made tons of "friends", with his cheering on the Royals.  At least no one threw anything at him.

Here's a sweaty tired self portrait of Tyler and I:

I forgot to mention meals, did NOT take any pictures because I didn't want to remind myself what I had.  We ate at Culver's in Clear Lake for lunch- had a single butter burger with sweet potato fries.  I was so busy at the game that all I had was a Bud Light Lime that got warm, a little bit of kettle corn and some ice cream that was so delicious because it was so cold.  Needless to say we all crashed that night.

Breakfast today was at our hotel- the Minneapolis Hilton.  Awesome breakfast buffet, since I didn't eat much the night before I was starving.  Had an omelet with green peppers, onions, tomatoes and ham, some breakfast potatoes, bran carrot muffin, fruit, and a small cup of vanilla yogurt with pecans, toasted coconut, golden raisins, cranberries and mini chocolate chips. They had a little yogurt/oatmeal bar that was awesome.  I think I'm going to start doing that at home.

Late lunch was at Taco Bell- Mexican pizza with softshell taco.  And that's enough crap for the weekend so I might have a little fruit tonight or just go to bed.  I did remember to take some pictures- Tyler turned 4 months this week!  Yes, babies get to have monthly birthdays the first year.  Such a lucky little baby.  He barely fits on the couch cushion anymore!

Busiest day yet!

No workouts today which is fine to me since I was up with Tyler again and we had our busiest day we've had since opening the clinic!  Feels so good to help people get well and realize their full health potential.  As for missing a workout, I'll make up for it tomorrow- biking and running at 6 AM!

Hopefully Tyler sleeps a little better tonight, we tried our first night of "crying it out" therapy.  Hardest thing ever. I think it was harder on the hubby.  I knew deep down that it would be good for him to go to bed at an early time so he could sleep more, but Lee wanted to call child services on me.  Sure enough, after 15-20 minutes of crying, he fell right asleep.  This was 2 1/2 hours ago, so far so good...

Breakfast was a bowl of vanilla Chobani with fresh raspberries and blueberries and chia seeds

Lunch was some pulled pork on a piece of Ezekial bread with some Sweet Baby Ray's on top.  I accompanied it with an apple.  We make a lot of pork shoulders in the crockpot because it's so easy and it makes a lot so we can freeze it for future meals.  We're pretty picky (literally) because we choose cuts with less fat and then when we shred it, we are pretty meticulous to get as much fat out as possible.  

After a super super busy day we treated ourselves to some burgers on the grill with pepperjack cheese.  I chose to support my burger with some healthy baked Cheetos.  Yes I realize they are totally devoid of nutrition but I wanted them so I had them.  Simple as that.  I also had a scoop of some steakhouse baked beans.  Dessert was one Nutter Butter (gotta get rid of those things!) and half a frozen banana.  Finished my notes for the day and off to bed before my early workout!

Poor little buddy

I'm writing this as Tyler is crying like a little baby, with Daddy trying to comfort him.  He's had a rough couple nights, think he might be getting some teeth in already.  You can see them about to come through on the bottom and he's a drooling machine.

On a happier note West Delaware won the regional final and is off to state!  Props to my girl Teri and her Decorah Vikings, if it weren't for their first inning they might have pulled it off.

Call me a slacker this week... I didn't get any workouts in yesterday.  I was going to get up early and run but with Tyler getting up in the middle of the night every night this week, not getting much for sleep.  Today I did make it to the track and did a 2 mile run then did just a little sprint work.  I read a good interview today, don't ask me who it was or what magazine it was in because I already forgot, but this woman who had lost a bunch of weight said that she doesn't beat herself up when she misses workouts because she strives to be more active overall.  So on a day she didn't get a workout in, she would walk the dog, clean house, etc. instead of lying around.  I thought that was a good outlook.

Now for the meals.  Doing this blog has made me realize how awful I am at taking pictures.  I am lacking in both quantity and quality.  Hopefully this will make me better- I always forget.

Yesterday- breakfast was some delicious lemon Chobani with fresh blueberries and raspberries and a sprinkling of chia seeds (don't know what they are? http://www.bobsredmill.com/chia-seed.html).

 
Lunch was the exact same sandwich as yesterday, except I only used one piece of bread. This is what I usually do, just have an open-faced sandwich.  Think I had a handful of my jalapeno chips again.  Just so good!

Supper was a li'l guy burrito from Pablo's in Cedar Falls. This is where I'm bad... forgot to take a picture.  It was a pretty good burrito- much like Chipotle but obviously nothing can compare to Chipotle.  I thought I made a somewhat reasonable choice, didn't get the regular sized one and didn't add any sour cream or guac.  Not so reasonable, however, was the idea to stop at Cold Stone Creamery after the game.  I did show a little restraint, instead of getting the oatmeal cookie dough that I love, I got the pink lemonade sorbet and added some pineapple.  "Summer in a cup".  The employee's words, not mine, but it pretty much was.  Oh, and that would be in a "love it" size.  It's only 40 cents more, how can you resist?!?!

Now today.  Breakfast was another energy bar from Hy-Vee with some bing cherries.  Somewhere in between breakfast and lunch I polished off the rest of the digestive health mix from planters.  Like I said, I won't post every single thing I eat, just worth noting that I polished off a whole can of nuts and stuff in a couple days.

Lunch was a tasty spinach salad with the same sesame ginger dressing (and blueberries/mandarin oranges/feta/almonds).  I just love that stuff.  I blame McDonalds.  They have an Asian salad out now that is phenomenal (can't believe I'm saying that about Mickey D's), and this is the dressing that comes with it.  One tablespoon is only 35 calories I believe.  I hardly ever put more than two on.

On to supper.  Used up the last of my smart chicken (no antibiotics/hormones/water added) to make some chicky chicky parm parm (Parks and Rec reference- chicken parmesan in the words of Tom Haverford) at the request of the hubby.  Cut up the chicken, breaded it with Panko crumbs, and pan-fried in a little olive oil.  Used some whole wheat spaghetti and some low sugar spaghetti sauce.  Probably a big much but we both had good workouts today.  Dessert was a little cup of leftover strawberry banana smoothie that I threw in the freezer the other day.  

That's all for tonight... better attend to my crabby baby.

Aaaargh....

Well I made it up to go swimming at 6am.  Wasn't too hard since Tyler woke up at 3:45 again, don't know why. Did not get the Shred in today though. :(  Couldn't get it in before hubby went to work and had a webinar over the lunch hour.  After work I spent some time with Tyler and did some laundry, so no workout tonight.  Guess priorities change once kids come, huh.

Food pics for the day:

Breakfast of one egg and one egg white with half a potato crisped up in the pan- all covered with a little hot sauce to wake me up.

I should mention that I went a little overboard on snacks today.  Hope you're not expecting me to write down every single little thing I eat here (although if you are serious about losing weight, that is the #1 thing you can do-write down food and exercise), but I will tell you that I had over half a can of the digestive health mixed nuts from Planters.  I just love everything in it.  Pistachios, almonds, dried cranberries, and dried cherries- even the weird little granola clusters aren't bad.

Lunch was a tasty sandwich, using Ezekial bread (check it out here: http://www.foodforlife.com/), Hormel preservative free smoked turkey, slice of baby swiss, and some avocado slices.  Avocado is a much healthier fat than mayonnaise or Miracle Whip- try it!  Would have been even better with a couple slices of bacon, but I didn't have any. By the way, bacon is not a healthy option- just in case you didn't know that.  I did have a handful of my Tostitos Hint of Jalapeno chips on the side.  No dessert though!

Supper was a salad, pretty much identical to the one yesterday for lunch minus the chicken.  For protein my hubby made a nice little hunk of sirloin.  Been making steak quite often lately, just tastes so good when you make it in a cast iron skillet.  Just have to watch portions.  Dessert was smoothie with fresh strawberries, banana and vanilla greek yogurt.

Not sure if I'll get around to blogging tomorrow night, depends when we get home.  Heading to Cedar Falls for the big regional finals for the West Delaware girls' softball team.  They're playing Decorah, who my friend Teri Olson- TO- from Luther coaches.  Should be a great game- go hawks!  I sure miss playing competitive sports.  Coed beer league just doesn't cut it sometimes.  One of my regrets is that I didn't work harder at sports in high school.  I just got so much better in college, kind of made me mad that I didn't take lifting weights seriously in high school.  I know if I had more power and practiced more I really could have done so much better.  Can't do anything about it now I guess.

In the words of Dwight Schrute, "Question".  What do you wish you knew back in high school that you know now?