Early to Bed

Have you ever been so tired that you weren’t even close to hungry when it was your normal time to eat?

That was me yesterday morning. I skipped an AM meal completely because I didn’t sleep well Monday night and was exhausted yesterday morning.

I snapped out of it around 10AM and then became a bottomless pit. First I ate some GenSoy cheddar soy crisps.

A little later, I had some dry roasted almonds and started chugging water from my new reusable Gaiam water bottle. Notice the lovely flowers brought to me by a coworker from her garden. Totally made my day.

The lunch I’m about to show you might disgust some and intrigue others. It’s called Corndog Casserole and the recipe came from a friend. It’s basically boxed cornbread mix, sliced-up hot dogs, shredded cheese, milk, plain yogurt and a bit of this and that. It really does taste like a corndog and it’s a bit healthier than its fair-time counterpart. Plenty of mustard on the side for dipping. (Sorry the pic isn’t rotated. Not sure if it’s wordpress or my iPhoto.

I was a little late to my workout at work because I was, well, actually working. The phone always seems to ring just about the time I’m headed to change clothes. Gotta love tax season! Yesterday’s session focused on back and legs which felt really good.

My afternoon snack was a yummy, under ripened, organic Chiquita. banana!

Confession: I always try to get the banana with the sticker and it almost always ends up being worn on my forehead.

I guess my body was making up for not being hungry in the morning by being extra hungry in the afternoon. My tummy got grumbly right around quittin’ time so I munched on a SoyJoy Pineapple Mango bar-like thing. I discovered these a year or so ago and this one is my favorite flavor. They’re a little higher in sugar than I normally prefer, but very filling.

It was cold and snowy (in APRIL!!!) and my husband sent me a text message saying it was a perfect night for soup and grilled cheese. He volunteered to do the cooking and I agreed because he’s a much better cheese griller than I am. While he slaved away in the kitchen, I fixed myself a POM+Perrier spritzer (aka “pregnant lady cocktail”) using the POM Wonderful Pomegranate Tangerine juice I picked up at the grocery on sale last weekend.

It tasted more pomegranatey than tangeriney, but the tangerine part added a yummy kick of extra tartness. It was fizzy, but the glass actually has bubbles molded into the plastic so it looks extra fizzy.

The chef’s soup of choice was classic Campbell’s Chicken Noodle. I had my grilled cheese on an Arnold’s Multigrain Sandwich Thin. In custard cups, I had small portions of lowfat cottage cheese and baked beans. I ended up not being able to finish my soup. Guess my eyes were bigger than my tummy.

To make up for my lack of sleep the night before, I headed to bed around 8:30. I was planning to “just relax” there while watching Biggest Loser, but I was out cold just after the reward challenge. I don’t think it was even 9:00! Guess that’s just my body’s way of telling me “YOU NEED SLEEP!”

Are there certain foods you eat or crave more when it’s cold outside? What about when it’s hot?

Read Full Post »

Picnic in the Park

One month until my next race! My sister-in-law, the wife of my husband’s coworker and I are signed up and confirmed for the Commit to be Fit 5k on May 2nd in Columbus, Ohio. I’m going to run when I can, walk when I can’t. This is by far the largest race I’ve ever entered and it should be loads of fun. There are DJs set up throughout the course so you can hear constant music without needing your iPod AND there’s free pizza waiting at the end. Holla!

Yesterday was GORGEOUS! Unfortunately, I was stuck at my desk most of the day. On nice days, I feel lucky that we have floor-to-ceiling windows and my cube is sort of in a corner so I have 2 window walls instead of 1.

Breakfast was 12-grain bread (swiped from my parents) spread with cream cheese. It doesn’t look like much, but it kept me full for a good long while.

Late morning I had some leftover organic whole wheat rotini sprinkled with a little Parmesan cheese & drizzled with EVOO. Yes. I do love me some carbs.

I had an appointment to drop my car off for an oil change during my lunch hour and pick it up after work since the place is only about 2 blocks from my office. My original idea was to go to the library after I dropped it off, but it was just too nice to be inside. I decided to walk to the nearby park instead for a picnic.

I finished up my homemade egg salad with some water crackers and sipped refreshing, cold water and True Lime from my reusable bottle.

The sky was the most beautiful shade of blue and the clouds were fluffy like cotton balls. Here’s a pic from my walk back to the office:

Afternoon snacks were a pear and a Chocolate Chip Clif Bar. I really like this flavor, but I think it tastes more like molasses (yum!) than chocolate.

As soon as I got home we went to sign our tax documents at the preparers house so he can efile them. We only owe $42 to the state and got lots more than that back from the federal. I’d like to say that we’re spending it on something fun, but most of it is earmarked to replace shingles we lost during the fall & winter wind storms. Just one of the many joys of home ownership.

For dinner, I threw together some enchiladas made with lean ground beef and whole wheat tortillas. We’re on a big “finish up partial boxes of stuff on the lazy Susan kick” so it was white rice on the side. When you’re used to brown or long grain, white rice just seems so bland.

Making Mexican food always reminds me of my trip to Morelia, Mexico when I was in high school. I studied there for two weeks in an intensive language immersion program and stayed with a family who lived near the school. The mother in my home away from home took me to the market with her every day after my classes let out and then let me help her prepare dinner. The whole trip was incredible and I learned as much about the culture as I did about the language.

I wanted veggies too so I had some leftovers from my stir fry dinner on Wednesday night.

Sorry about the lack of quality photos. I was starving.

In giveaway news:

Bobbi is offering up a fabulous Ultra Light Packable Pullover from Danskin.

Sarah will have FIVE winners of her Bob’s Red Mill contest.

Becca is giving away some CIA goodies.

Do you like to eat outdoors? Do you prefer to dine inside or outside?

Read Full Post »

Happy World Water Day!

• The average American uses 150 gallons of water every day.
• 1 in 6 people on Earth do not have access to safe drinking water.

How can you help?

• Drink tap water instead of bottled water. It helps our planet and gives you a really great excuse to buy a cute, reusable bottle. WIN-WIN in my book!
• Be conscious of the water you use and try to reduce your consumption.
• Share information about water conservation with your friend.

In honor of this special day, Nubius Organics (LOVE ‘em) is offering 20% off all reusable bottles, including those that are already on sale. Just enter promo code WWD20 at checkout. The offer is good through March 23rd, so hurry!

Here’s a recap of my eats from the past two days:

Friday

I woke up STARVING because I didn’t eat much of a dinner last night. Two Kashi waffles with a little butter and lite maple syrup filled me right up. I’d really like to start posting pictures of my first-thing-in-the-morning meals. It’s still dark when I leave the house so I can just never get the lighting right.

I ate the last bit of my strawberries after getting settled in at my desk.

I ate what was supposed to be my lunch about an hour and a half before workout time. Morningstar Farms Spicy Black Bean Burger, a wedge of Laughing Cow Light Swiss cheese and lettuce all on a La Tortilla Factor EVOO Tomato & Basil Softwrap. Here it is pre-rollup.

I was trying to decide what to do about being lunchless when my coworkersaid she was calling in an order to the fancy hotel bistro across the street and would pick it up after our workout. Clearly, it was meant to be.

Our workout at work today had tougher cardio stations than normal and I could feel the burn. My favorite exercise today was the BOSU trainer plank. I was grateful to have food on the way when I returned because I was hungry.

I had the spicy vegetarian rice rolls. All I can say is HOLY WASABI! They came with a veggie blend (tossed in balsamic vinegar) and their homemade chips. I ate everything except the onions from the veggie salad and about 1/2 of the chips. I’m a little worried that these will become an addiction. They were sooooo good.

I had an afternoon craving for something sweet, but the only thing available in the office was candy. I ran over to the cafe across the street for a chocolate chip oatmeal cookie and ended up with a cup of unsweetened raspberry iced tea, too.

It always feels so good to leave work on a Friday evening. There’s just something so exciting and freeing about knowing you have those 2 days ahead of you for fun. I called a few close friends and family members during my commute to share our baby news. Everyone was thrilled and offered lots of encouragement.

I wasn’t even a little bit hungry for supper. I had toast with butter and jam at some point, but no photo because I was really into the Ohio State vs. Siena basketball game. The outcome didn’t help my bracket any, but man that was a good game! I’m not usually a big fan of basketball on TV, but that’s changed a bit since I’m in the office pool this year.

Saturday

I slept in a little and was worried that the grocery would be crazy busy since I was going a couple hours later than normal. I ate some Kashi waffles and was out the door.

The grocery was actually quite peaceful. I had freedom to browse without being crowded or pushed along by the flow of cart traffic. This resulted in some new products which I’ll be reviewing here soon.

After the grocery, I stopped at the bank and then the local coffee shop for a light iced java chip frappe. It’s one of my favorites.

By the time I’d put groceries away, I was hungry for lunch. I tried something new and made my organic whole wheat couscous in the microwave per the directions from the box. It worked perfectly! Actually, I think it turned out even better than on the stovetop. I added some black beans and Tastefully Simple Mild Red Pepper Salsa.

I also had VeggiePatch Veggie Nuggets with mustard for dipping.

After lunch, I headed outside to do some reading for my Nutrition & Wellness Consultant at-home study. That’s where I spent most of the afternoon into early evening. The sunshine felt great! We didn’t have an “official” dinner. I just did a repeat of lunch because it was so yummy and then hung out with my husband until time for bed.

Just FYI, this is where I’m blogging and blog reading today:

I have some water (in my reusable bottle of course) and fresh iced sun tea for refreshment. Those are clothes drying on the line in the background. That’s one of my favorite parts of warm weather. I love the way they feel and smell. The real perk is that it’s more eco-friendly than the dryer. Plus, it cuts down a LOT on our electric bill.

Read Full Post »