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!

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?

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??

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…

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.

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.

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 3^rd 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 3^rd grade boy from Colorado really have a pet penguin??

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 3^rd 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.

The Rocket!

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?

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 3^rd 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.

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?