One Week
Posted: May 18, 2011 Filed under: Breakfast, Delish Dinners, Mid-Day Yummies | Tags: almond butter, apple, chia seeds, lasagna, oatmeal, one week old, rain, salad, trail mix 32 Comments »It’s been gloomy outside today…rain, rain, go away. Adrienne (and Mama) want to play.
So instead, we hung out inside doing things like laundry, singing, dancing, reading, and watching TV. We also had some family come over to play with (hold) Little A.
Breakfast
½ cup oats, 1 tbs. chia seeds, 1 cup water, ¼ cup vanilla soy milk, plus almond butter and…
My 3 secret ingredients
Lunch – light and snacky.
Dinner
Turkey lasagna and salad – same as yesterday – even better on day two.
In the baby world…
Adrienne is one week old today! It crazy to think that we’ve only known her for seven days – it seems like she’s been part of our family all along. So far, her interests include eating and sleeping – both which she did a lot of today.
Happy birthday, Sweet One!
A Three-Parter
Posted: July 7, 2010 Filed under: Breakfast | Tags: coffee, peaches, push-ups, trail mix 11 Comments »I woke up to a rainy, cloudy, chilly Wednesday. To combat the dreary weather, I had a three-part breakfast that was sure to brighten the day.
Part One – coffee
A warm mug is always a surefire way to banish the chills.
Part Two – a peach
Even though the weather seems to have forgotten that it’s summertime, I can remind my taste buds with food. Peaches = summertime. End of story.
Part Three – trail mix
When all else fails, just eat one of your favorite foods. Trail mix is up there in my top 10 – so it did the trick.
All together…
Yup, still summer.
***
Push up progress: I am happy to say that I can do 4 REAL PUSH-UPS. I’m amazed at how fast I’ve gained strength. To build up, I’ve been doing a lot (like 50 a day) incline push-ups on my coffee table. It’s working!
If you joined in on the push-up challenge, how is it going??
If not, what are your favorite summer foods?
The next big thing
Posted: July 1, 2010 Filed under: Breakfast | Tags: coffee, push-ups, trail mix, watermelon 42 Comments »Whee!! Good morning! I started mine off with an incredibly sweaty spin class at 6 this morning. Now I’m feeling energized and ready to tackle the day. I ate a banana before spin, and then came home to shower and cool off/rehydrate with watermelon…
And trail mix and coffee. Neither of those helped with the re-hydration, but they tasted good.
Walnuts, almonds, PB Bumpers cereal, coconut, dried cranberries, sunflower seeds (on the bottom)
I love coffee.
***
Okay, so the last challenge I made for myself was running fast. Done. I can now run fast. However…
I have a confession: I cannot do one single push-up.
Sure, I can do them from my knees, and I can do a wimpy version from my toes where I only go about halfway to the floor, but I want to be able to do REAL push-ups. Like military style two-inches-from-the-ground push ups. So my next big thing is going to be a push-up challenge! I know Teri did one of these a while back, but I was to chicken to join in, so I’m doing it now.
I will be able to do at least 25 consecutive push-ups by the end of this month. (I’m scared just typing that.) When I accomplish that goal, I will up the number to 50. I’m really scared, but I’m going to do it anyway. Care to join?
Also, keep those questions coming!! What do you want to know about me??
Laze
Posted: June 17, 2010 Filed under: Breakfast, Delish Dinners, Mid-Day Yummies | Tags: chicken, green monster, roasted potatoes, salad, slaw, trail mix 21 Comments »It was bound to happen. Since school ended, I have been rather productive…but today I donned my lazy pants.
It started out well. I woke up before 7, ran 6 miles, went to Bible study, had lunch with the husband/in-laws…then when I got home – NOTHING. I fell asleep while reading. Then woke up and watched TV. Then read blogs. Then walked the dog. Then read some more. It was glorious.
Backtrack to post-run breakfast…
Green(ish) monster: ½ frozen berries, 2 cups spinach, ½ cup almond milk, ½ cup water, 2 cups ice
The said lunch with in-laws…
Vegetarian salad from Costa Vida – kind of meh
I snacked a lot in the afternoon, but my lazy pants prevented me from digging my camera out of my purse. One snack I did photograph: trail mix
Eaten while engaging in a staring contest with Bellatrix.
I finally rallied for dinner and grilled up some chicken, made a cabbage slaw (dressed with oil + vinegar), and roasted some ‘taters with dill from my brother’s garden (thanks Matt and Sheila!)
This is our go-to dinner for lazy nights…the grill and salad. I’m actually kind of impressed with my initiative to roast the potatoes.
That does it.
Hope you all are having lazy evenings! If not, keep your head up, tomorrow is FRIDAY! I’m doing the weekend dance for you all…
Leftover Salad Central
Posted: June 16, 2010 Filed under: leftover lunches, Mid-Day Yummies | Tags: avocado, leftovers, salad, salsa, trail mix 25 Comments »Wow…that spin class this morning was ridiculous! There were only six people in the class, and everybody was huffing, puffing, and dripping sweat for the entire 60 minutes. I loved it, and I love that it left me with a monster appetite for the rest of the day.
Before I left, I had a homemade energy bar.
When I came home, I had leftover falafel salad.
Lettuce, corn, carrots, celery, falafel, mustard + red wine vinegar dressing
I was still hungry after this beast, so I mixed up some trail mix. Love.
Walnuts, carob chips, almonds, dried cranberries
Throughout the afternoon I had milk, watermelon, about a gallon of water and some more almonds. Like I said, spinning left me with a monster appetite. When Meeker got home, I made him a broccoli + spinach + mushroom quiche…he devoured the the.whole.thing.
Crust made out of crunched cheerios and almond meal + sautéed onions, spinach, broccoli, and mushrooms
3 eggs + ¼ cup cottage cheese poured over and then baked for 10 minutes at 425* – I can’t attest to its success because I didn’t have any, but like I said, Meeker ate it all – which means it was probably edible. No guarantees, though. That boy will eat whatever I set in front of him.
For my din din, I wanted another salad. It was too hot for anything else…plus you all got me thinking with your taco salad toppings from last night.
Spinach, ground turkey, tortilla chips, avocado, kidney beans, salsa
And I finished off the night with a few bites of this….
This stuff has the best texture…it’s kind of chewy, which sounds weird, but is really heavenly.
Whee! Tomorrow is the best day of the week, and I’m off to watch So You Think You Can Dance. I definitely don’t think I can dance, but I like watching that show and pretending.
Broccoli and Chocolate
Posted: June 1, 2010 Filed under: Breakfast, cake, Delish Dinners, dessert, Mid-Day Yummies | Tags: broccoli, coffee, green beans, hummus, jicama, POM, salad, smoothie, spinach, sweet potato, tofu, trail mix 37 Comments »Another lovely summer day. I don’t mean to shove it in your faces that I’m on vacation for two months, but really…life is good. I wish you all had summer vacations.
I started the good life this morning with a super smoothie.
1 cup frozen spinach, ½ cup frozen blackberries, ¼ cup POM juice, ½ banana, water
Bellatrix was curiously investigating the mix…
I was a good housewife after breakfast and I walked the dog, did the laundry, cleaned the kitchen, and then had a snack and some coffee before heading to the gym.
I did a sweaty spin class this morning, and left feeling fantastic. When I got home, it was time for lunch.
I can’t stop with the salads lately. Let’s see if I can remember everything in this baby…
- lettuce
- broccoli slaw
- jicama
- ½ sweet potato
- red pepper hummus
- balsamic vinegar
- salt and pepper
I was sad when this was over, so I had another smaller salad with the exact same ingredients. Spin classes make me hungry.
I also had some of my favorite summer fruit (by the way, a lot of you are with me on the wonderfulness of watermelon, but peaches ranked pretty high up there too…I say they’re tied)
Eaten with a single chopstick.
I went to Target after lunch (got a cute dress and some new workout clothes!) then came home to start on dinner.
Baked tofu (at 450* for 30 minutes, flip halfway between), grilled broccoli and green beans, all dipped in a mix of ketchup + spicy mustard + worcestershire sauce
Yummy, edible shrubbery.
For dessert?
Chocolate cake balls. Much like fudge babies, this was a food processor product of walnuts, Medjool dates, cocoa powder, vanilla and a pinch of salt.
If you had to eat just TWO things for the rest of your life, what would they be? After today, I say broccoli and chocolate. The answer will probably change tomorrow.
Hello, Monday.
Posted: March 29, 2010 Filed under: Breakfast, Delish Dinners, Mid-Day Yummies | Tags: asparagus, broccoli, cashew butter, cheese, ham, kabocha, oats, pasta, penguin, salad, spinach, trail mix 37 Comments »(Say that title like “Hello, Newman”)
Eeesh it was tough getting up this morning, no? Well, I guess if you didn’t have a whirlwind spring break trip like I did, it might not have been so bad. I was seriously dragging this morning, but the day was surprisingly quick and painless.
Foooood…
Oats, kabocha, pepitas, chia seeds, pumpkin flax granola, cashew butter
Salad, kabocha, peas, roasted cabbage, balsamic vinegar
Yogurt covered raisins
String cheese rolled in deli sliced ham
Green stuff: asparagus, broccoli, spinach, garlic
Tomato sauce added and scooped on top of a little bit of pasta
¼ cup peanut butter cup trail mix
In the 3rd grade world…
A little boy walked up to me during math today and said:
Mrs. Unger, do you want to know the best part of my spring break?
I replied: “Of course! What was it?”
My uncle went to Antarctica and found a sick penguin and brought it back to me, and now I have a pet penguin!
Okay, so with lot kiddos, I would have dismissed this as a silly lie, and gone on with the day. However, a few things caused me to question the validity of this story. First, this boy’s knowledge of scientific facts far exceeds my own. He knows more about nebulas, reptiles, and our solar system than I know about cake. Secondly, he doesn’t lie. As a teacher, you know who lies and who doesn’t, and this student is factual and truthful. So I questioned him about his pet penguin for a good five minutes. He stuck to his guns. Apparently, his family bought out the salmon supply at our local grocery store. They also bought 100 cans of canned sardines for the little Antarctic bird. Finally, I straight up asked him: Are you lying to me??
He assured me he was not.
I’m very intrigued. This turned into the topic of conversation after school with my fellow teachers, and we ended up emailing his mom for confirmation because we were just so darn interested.
What do you think…could a 3rd grade boy from Colorado really have a pet penguin??
The Rocket
Posted: March 18, 2010 Filed under: Breakfast, Delish Dinners, leftover lunches | Tags: fried rice, green monster, oatmeal, soup, the rocket blender, trail mix 29 Comments »Geeez, you all sure know how to make a teacher feel good!! If only creating messes and playing tricks on my students was all it took to be good at my job…
This morning, determined not to give up on oats for breakfast, I took many of your suggestions and pulled out all the stops:
- KT said, eat more…duh! Don’t ask me why I didn’t think of this myself.
- Holly suggested whisking in an egg white
- And of course, Janetha’s yoats (yogurt + oats)
All combined…
½ cup oats, 1 cup water, ¼ cup water, 1 tsp. chia seeds, cinnamon, granola, peanut butter
Success!! My belly didn’t feel full afterwards, but as the morning continued, I felt satiated and didn’t get hungry again until 11ish (about 4 hours!). HOWEVER, I didn’t work out this morning, but instead saved my run for after school…so the lack of tummy rumbling could be attributed to that more than the yummy oats. I must do more controlled experimenting – I’ll get back to you. In the meantime, thanks for all your great oaty suggestions.
Leftover Lunch
Sausage broccoli Stoup, a la Rachael Ray
Snacky before run
Yogurt covered pretzels and some trail mix
Snacky after run
½ cup applesauce, ¼ avocado, 1 cup frozen spinach, ½ almond milk, 1 tsp. chia seeds, 1 banana, 2 clementines
Dinner – Fried Rice
Rice, broccoli, carrots, asparagus, onions, garlic, 2 eggs
I made this while thinking about the soy sauce that I thought was in the fridge, but alas, there was none. And let’s face it, fried rice sans soy sauce is lacking. But it was quick, cheap and filling – I can’t really complain.
In the 3rd grade world…
One of my favorite students is unfortunately leaving my class after this week. Before this year, she was homeschooled, and her family decided to try out our school this year to see if it worked for them. Turns out, it didn’t – and they are returning to the homeschooling lifestyle in a week. They have assured me that it had nothing to do with my teaching. To prove their love, they bought me a phenomenal “end” of school year gift.
Yeah, it’s like a magic bullet – so fantastic. The mom (Tona) follows my blog, and was aware of yearning for one of these bad boys. How incredibly thoughtful, right??! I will miss the student and her family tremendously, and I am so grateful for the chance I had to bond with them this year.
I’m curious to know, what are your thoughts on homeschooling?
What was I thinking?
Posted: February 23, 2010 Filed under: Delish Dinners, Mid-Day Yummies | Tags: carrots, coffee, kombucha, peanut butter, pita, salsa, trail mix, yogurt mess 34 Comments »Love that morning sunlight!
My breakfast was disgusting – so I’m not even dignifying it with a picture. For some reason, my sleepy tastebuds thought it would be a good idea to put eggs and salsa on top of a pancake. Yeah, what was I thinking? It was gross – as I’m sure anyone of you could have told me it would be. I had to eat a square of dark chocolate afterwards just to erase the taste.
However, I had breakfast redemption when I got to school and remembered a mom had sent in some walnut banana bread yesterday. So glad I saved it for this morning.
Absolutely delicious. Thank you Tona!
Then at lunchtime, I realized that I really hadn’t been thinking this morning. Here is what I packed for lunch:
Carrots (x5) +salsa
ww pita with peanut butter, cinnamon and cayenne pepper
Really? I thought this was going to keep me full for the 11 hours I’m at work??
It didn’t even keep me full until noon. So, when my kids went to music at 1:30, I went to the grocery store and picked up some goodies for my rumbly tummy.
Fantastic trail mix – cashews, almonds walnuts, raisins, pistachios – on sale at Sprouts! Plus, a kombucha – also on sale!
I had only tried this drink before – and I actually really liked it – very vinegar-like and tangy. This plus the trial mix kept me full right through dinnertime.
Dinner was anti-climatic, but yummy nonetheless. I was so stinkin’ tired when I got home, all I could muster up was a yogurt mess.
- Plain yogurt
- 1 scoop chocolate protein powder
- Cinnamon squares
- More sprouts trial mix from earlier
- Walnut butter
The walnut butter was from a very exciting package I got when I came home from work…
I bought the big walnut butter, and got some free samples (more walnut butter, tahini, cashew butter) for free with my purchase! Walnuts are my favorite, so I’m super excited about it. Be prepared to see this lot in the near future.
In the 3rd grade world…
This made me laugh.
The student was writing a report about Teddy Roosevelt. Not only did the spelling mistake make me chuckle, but this student wrote a whole paper about how Theodore Roosevelt (or Rosabelt) was a famous American solely because he invented teddy bears.
Things I Love
Posted: February 14, 2010 Filed under: Delish Dinners, dessert, Mid-Day Yummies | Tags: cookies, mashed cauliflower, snow, sweet potato, taco salad, trail mix, walks, yogurt covered pretzels 27 Comments »In honor of Valentine’s Day, here are some things I love:
Trail Mix + four yogurt covered pretzels for breakfast
Bellatrix loves all people food…including trail mix.
She ate the chocolate chips I left in the bowl
Plus coffee
Taco salad for lunch
Last week, I saw Angie bake her tortilla at 400* for 20 minutes, so I copied her. Genius.
Then a started in on the baking – first up, a recipe I made inspired by Averie’s raw donut holes!
(Almost) Raw Vegan Flax Cookies
I had to change it based on ingredients we had on hand, so you can find my recipe here.
Since Meeker LOVES his chocolate chip cookies, I whipped up a batch of those too.
I also love winter walks when the sun is shining…
and this stream by our house.
As well as this boy and his dog.
Then I ate some of my favorite foods for dinner.
Baked sweet potato rounds, dipped in peanut butter + mashed cauliflower
I thinly sliced the sweet ‘tater, sprinkled with cinnamon, nutmeg and salt, and then baked 15 minutes on each side at 400* – then dipped in peanut butter. There is nothing better.
For the cauliflower mash, I steamed one head of cauliflower, then dropped it in the blender, added ½ cup of milk, 1 tbs. butter, salt, and blended until smooth. Waaay better than mashed potatoes. I’m serious.
What was one thing you loved today?
