Tag Archives: apple

Monday – Tuesday Afternoon

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Hello from sunny St. Thomas!  This will be the first of many recap posts since I only have computer access when I go to work with my mommy (my parents don’t have internet).

Things started up yesterday at 3:45am!! when we made our way to the airport.  The one benefit to leaving at that hour is we got to see the festive skyline in complete darkness.

Our flying day wasn’t so bad, we had 2 stops but at least everything went smoothly.  On stop #1 Adam bought Taco Bell at 8am!  I had one slice of his chicken quesadilla.

Our next flight was our long flight so I saved my eating for it.  I’m not gonna lie, I thought I was super clever to back a baggie of salad and a small container of Sabra Babaganuosh.

Yums, I think this is about as healthy as plane eats can get!

I also packed some sliced yellow bell pepper, cucumber, and Kerrygold cheese.

And I supplemented with a few buys from the airport store.  Dried bananas and cherries.

The price and nutrional stats on these were both pretty solid.

Any finally this 100 calorie pack of mini meranges.

They were super tasty and adorable.

I only ate about 3/4 of the pack though, for 100calories it was a LOT of food!

Our 2nd stop was Puerto Rico, which meant we had to take a teeny tiny Cesna Prop to get to St. Thomas.

I actually flew a plane that was just a little smaller for my last birthday so it was pretty fun; we were happy to be home though!

While we unpacked I ate a Dove Peppermint Bark candy.

And then we headed out to dinner at my parents’ favorite pizza spot.  It was dark, so you can assume the food was about 90% better than the pictures look.  Adam and I started by splitting a ceasar salad.

And then we all shared pizzas.  I ordered my half with – spinach, artichoke, pineapple, mushroom and no cheese.

Second piece.

Yums.

I was glad I went no cheese because I had room for a tasty snack when I got home.

Kona coffee with skim milk,

and two small pieces of 7-layer bar (Hello Dollies for you Southerners).

And……..bed!

This morning was supposed to start with a run but I was just to exhausted, I need to get myself on a proper sleep schedule this vacation!  I ended up waking up around 9 for breakfast.

Pom Chiobani and half a sliced banana.

We spent the day running errands with my parents; my family throws a huge Christmas Eve party so there was lots of shopping to do.  Here’s what I snacked on throughout the day –

An apple,

and a seasonal gingerbread Cliff Bar.

I also grabbed this package of trail mix as we headed out to school.

Now Adam and I are headed down to the school field for this morning’s belated run.  The next few days will be a whirl of baking and presents so hopefully we can fit in a little bit of fitness!  See you soon!

What’s the strangest plane food you’ve packed?

Gaga, Green Beans, Grapple, Giveaway*

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*If you could care less what I ate or how pt is going, skip to the bottom for a giveaway!

If you do care, I had my last pt session today!  I have a (long) set of exercises that I should plan on doing indefinitely.  Post-foot surgery in January if I’m having pain when I start running again then I’ll go back for another appointment.  For now, I plan on doing my exercises and enjoying the few weeks in December I have to run.

I warm up on the treadmill for 20minutes during pt so the gym was a logical next stop.  I had a quick snack at home to refuel first.  A tiny sliver of Kerrygold Aged Cheddar with Irish Whiskey.

And something I’ve been eyeing for months and months that finally went on sale – GRAPPLES!

The grape-apple hybrid caught my eye back in Brooklyn and I was so excited to finally try it.  The apples have a slight maroon tinge and smell a lot like grape soda.  The small is more noticable than the taste though, just a slight afterflavor of tang.  Still good though.

Fueled, I hit up the treadmill for a run.  My plan was to do 2minute run/1minute walk intervals.  That was what I did most of the time, but a few times I just couldn’t bear to stop running!  I did a few extended walks too so hopefully it all evened out.  In the end my stats were – 38minutes / 3.2miles / 395calories.  My music made the work out –35minute Playlist

  1. Into the Ocean; Blue October
  2. Every Ship Must Sail Away, Blue Merle
  3. Hot Blooded, Foreigner
  4. No Long Talking, Lady Saw
  5. Fearless, Cyndi Lauper
  6. I Know You Want Me, Pitbull
  7. Paparazzi, Lady Gaga
  8. Bad Romance, Lady Gaga
  9. Platypus (I Hate You), Green Day

It  was the perfect mix.  The husband (ahem) got me obsessed with Lady Gaga recently.  I hate her old stuff, but the two songs on the playlist are pretty damn catchy and you have to like her music videos – I love the styling and contrasts.

After a quick shower it was time for lunch.

Amy’s Fire Roasted Southwestern Vegetable Soup,

and green bean fries.

The “fries” were spritzed with evoo, sprinkled with salt and paprika, and baked at 450* for 20minutes.  They were delicious, but maybe could have used ten more mintues.

Yes, I ate the entire bag.  Yes, I know that is disgusting.  Yes, it was delicious.  The soup was tasty too.

I loved the flavor, but I left most of the broth.  It was a yummy lunch.

Now I’m off to study.  For the rest of the day.  Ugh.

*Now we are talking about the free stuff –

You can have a yummy lunch with Amy’s too!  1 Grand Prize winner will receive a variety pack of three soups.  Three runners up will receive free product coupons for any Amy’s product.

To enter –

  1. For one entry – leave a comment on this post.
  2. For a second chance – go to Amy’s website and sign up for the Amy’s newsletter.  Leave a comment telling me you’ve done so.
  3. For a third/fourth chance – link back to this contest from your blog and/or on Twitter.  Leave a comment(s) telling me you’ve done so.

The contest ends Friday at noon, Good Luck!

Breakfast Like a Local

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Good Morning!  And for once this post is in the actual morning, not my 11am morning/afternoon hybrid 🙂  I cancelled my pt this morning because my foot is super sore from the doctor’s appointment.  Nonetheless, I got up at 7, I took a nice refreshing shower, and got ready for a tasty breakfast.

A crispy gala apple,

and this amazing local find.

White Cow Dairy is right here in New York.

The apple got sliced,

and the low fat maple yogurt was eaten straight from its adorable glass jar.

Mmmn.  The yogurt was actually a bit tangy, so it was the perfect flavor combination with the apple.

The next week, basically until I go home on the 21st, is going be crazy busy but I’m making it my goal to post at least twice a day.  Hopefully it will help give me some balance.

What is your favorite local find?

Jam Flavored Stuffing

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The title is what I imagined when I put these two phrases together:  1.”Running around like a chicken with its head cut off;” 2.”Jam-packed.”  I guess you could pack the chicken with the jam?  Consequently, those phrases also both describe my day today.  It’s been go-go-go!

First, I went to my pt appointment.  Good news, I can run again!!!!  Only a few days a week and I have to start slow, but it’s great news.  I ran a mile during my appointment and it felt glorious!

I had some time between that appointment and my doctor’s appointment so I ended up killing an hour in McDonalds.  I bought some apple dippers to tide me over.

Yums.  And I loved most of the nutrition information on this packaged for kids item.

The only downpoint in my opinion is the zero grams of fiber – the apples had fiber to begin with if they’d just leave the darn skins on!  I guess I shouldn’t have nutrition outrage when I’m guzzling a diet coke at 9am.

I also started a new book – Under the Table, by Katherine Darling.

I’m loving it!  Darling is a good writer and culinary school is my ultimate dream.  I had to wait for more than an hour at the doctor’s office and normally I’d have been seething but today I was just glad to have an excuse to read!

I also got some news from this doctor.  2 out of 4 plantars warts are gone (for good hopefully!).  The other two I’m going to continue with the home-acid for, and I now have a prescription for an oral medicine that boosts your immune system – part of the reason I’m having such a problem is because mine isn’t responding properly.  I’ll take the medicine over break and I’m scheduled to have the wart cut out on January 4th.  This will most likely keep me immobile for a week or so, and could possibly keep me from running for up to a month.  It’s pretty devastating that training (which has barely begun) might break 2 months before my half, but it’s better than running the half with my foot hurting.

After that appointment I went to two separate pharmacies and then drove home for the quickest stop in ever.  I didn’t even take a shower, just washed my face!  However, I got two blocks from my house before I realized the reason I was in the car wasn’t in the car with me!  I left the giant bag of stuff that needed to be dropped off at Goodwill at home!

FYI – we designate a spot in our hall closet for things that can be donated.  Old clothes, free products, gifts that aren’t our style, etc.  Once we’ve got a sufficient pile we drop it off at Goodwill rather than throwing those things in the trash.  It’s better for the enviroment and our society.

When I went home to pick up the bag I realized I was clearly a bit distracted by hunger so I grabbed the can of soursop juice I bought the other day.

YUM!  Handsdown, sour sop is one of my very favorite things.  It is one of my favorite childhood taste memories and I was so excited to see some form of it sold here in Buffalo.

[I told you I didn’t shower!]

After Goodwill I went to Target for some Christmas-ing, and then finally the grocery store.  On my way out I hit up the salad bar.

I filled the small top halfs with yummy things – pesto pasta and mac and cheese.

And the larger bottom half with healthy things – baked tofu and brussels sprouts.

I didn’t say healthy isn’t yummy though, the brussels and tofu ended up being my favorite part!  The tofu was unbelievably chewy, I’m dying to know how they cooked it that way!

I gave myself some time at home to relax while I ate (and typed this post and watched some tv), but now it’s time to get back to jamming the headless chicken – lordy that sounded dirty!

Hopeful list of to-do’s from tonight

  1. put away laundry
  2. clean up the kitchen
  3. Chemistry reading
  4. e-mail regarding class scheduling trauma
  5. dinner?
  6. pt exercises
  7. go back to pharmacy
  8. shower – this one isn’t optional!

How do you say you’re busy?????  I usually go with busy beaver, but I’m also partial to “busy, busy, busy, busy*.”  *Said in the magician voice from Frosty  the Snowman.

*****Update – I managed not to do a single to-do.  I did, however, finish my entire 400+ page book!  And yesterday?  I watched Rose Red; a 4.5hour Steven King mini-series 😉

Reindeer Run 5k

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Forgive me physical therapy gods for I have sinned – I ran a 5k when I was told to speed walk.  But I didn’t run the whole time!  I’ll go back to the beginning….

This was the morning of the Reindeer Run 5k.  We signed up a  month ago, before my tendonitis diagnosis, so that I could have some race experience before my Half in March.  After my pt told me not to run we decided we would walk the course, so I could have the general experience and since we had already paid for our entries.  Adam was even super-husband and agreed to walk with me.  There was a little snow, but not much, so the setting was perfect.

The race was slightly themed, I saw several elves and one group went as Santa and all his reindeer.  We don’t have a lot of cold weather running gear, but I borrowed an old sweatshirt of Adam’s and did my best.

We picked up our chips a little late and ended up running to the start line from the pick up point.  And I just could not stop.  I love running so much.  I’m not very good and I’m not very fast, but it seriously fills me with joy.

We ended up doing some jog/walk intervals, and I always started walking whenever my leg hurt.  In the end we ran about half of each mile.  I don’t feel like I pushed too hard or set my recovery back too far and we had such a good time!  Here’s an action shot the husband snapped –

Our final time was 33:25.  I know most running bloggers are speed demons, and I’d love to keep up, but for jog/walking it and coming off a 1month hiatus that is pretty damn good!  And I’m feeling much more comfortable with the idea of my half now.

Afterwards we hit up the post race party.  They had hot dogs and pizza and cake.  Here’s Adam’s plate –

That just did not appeal to me.  My post-run breakfast was a little more my style –

But I’m not an angel, I did snag a beer!

All in all in my first race was a great experience.  I’m proud of my self for running, and I’m proud of my self for not running the whole time.  Everyone was super friendly and happy and the setting was perfect.  I had so much fun!

There was even more excitement on the drive home.  As we drove home from the Reindeer run 5k we saw a deer!

It was in a partially fenced in park.  Adam pulled over and I got out to take some pictures.  It go so close to me!

I’m not gonna lie, I was basically swooning, so fun!

Now I’ve got to hustle again so I can shower before Adam’s parents get here.  They are coming up to do a mass birthday/Christmas/anniversary celebration since we can’t connect with them later in December.  I can’t wait!

Have you run any races?  Which was the most fun and why?

Kitchen Warfare

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I didn’t get enough any studying done before class, but not because I was making an amazing dinner. 

I started  making an amazing dinner.  I even cut my own *onions!  *The husband has no sense of smell so he doesn’t cry when he cuts onions, therefore it is always his job.  Sadly, once my beautifully cut onions were sauteing the red pepper flakes killed their container to bring some guerilla warfare to onionville.

It rained fire and brimstone on the tear-makers and my kitchen filled up with smoke that could rival any tear gas.  My lungs felt like they were on fire and dinner was unsalvagable.

Once I was able to go in the kitchen again I knew it was time for a drink.  Bring on the stout! …….Kerrygold Dubliner Cheese with Irish Stout that is.

I tried some Kerrygold products at Foodbuzz and I am so glad to have the opportunity to try more, yum.

One ounce of the cheese,

with turkey pepperoni,

and a granny smith apple

made a tasty tasting plate.

Now I can head to class.  I am going to the gym after Chemistry so I’m sure there will be more food pics to post by the end of the day.  I have pt at 7:30am tomorrow (which means I have to wake up before 6:30) so feel free to post and tell me to get my butt to bed on time!

When was the last time you went through war in your kitchen?

Feeling Thankful

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Again, I’ll try to keep this quick, but it’s been a great Turkey Day.  I’m thankful for family, good food, and my wonderful husband.

We slept in until 10:30 this morning (I’m feeling sick again, boo!) and then woke up to the world’s tastiest breakfast.

My grandma is so cool, she had Greek Gods’ Honey Greek Yogurt waiting in the fridge for me!  I had a small bowl of fruit,

and honey Greek yogurt with berries and a sliver of homemade coffee cake.

Mmmmmmn!  I was in love with this breakfast!  If it wasn’t Thanksgiving I would have gone back for another bowl!  I think I’ve got my aunt hooked on Greek yogurt now too 🙂

We went to a family friend’s house for Thanksgiving at 1, so we headed out around noon to socialize.  Look how cute my grandparents are!

I’ve gone to Thanksgiving with this family ever year I’ve been with my grandparents and it’s always so much fun.  They have the best decorations, I wish I could have gotten more pictures.

I made a small appetizer plate with pretzels, honey raspberry dip, and crackers with dirty martini dip.

And I had a light beer to drink.

As I mentioned before, I am actually not much of a Turkey Day food fan!  I didn’t even eat any turkey meat!  I tried to just take a small bit of everything.

Clockwise from the top – stuffing and mashed potatoes with gravy, corn casserole, sweet potato casserole, roll, jello mold salad, cranberries.  I finished everything on my plate (except for the roll which I gave away).  I didn’t actually eat very much, but I didn’t do seconds because I knew dessert was coming.

I actually gave away that mini cake in favor of a second cookie!

It was great getting to catch up with people and Adam was definitely stuffed!  He took a fat nap before we even headed home, and hit the couch asap.  My grandmother and I wanted to take a nice walk but unfortunately it was raining.  The other disappointment was that there was nowhere for me to volunteer.  I really wanted to put in some time at a food bank or soup kitchen today but everywhere my grandma called had too many volunteers.

We ate dinner around 7, and I was actually hungry again.

Leftover sweet potato casserole,

and a yumtastic sandwich – turkey, cranberries, cream cheese.

Plus apple and celery salad on the side.

I was still a bit hungry so I went back for more salad.

We played cards after dinner.

I had a coffee with 2% and an amaretto stick,

a mini 7-up,

and a small handful of caramel corn.

We kept my grandparents up past midnight playing cards, I’d say it’s time for bed!

How was your turkey day?

French Toasty

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You’re not going to believe it, but we missed another movie this morning!  We were a combination of a little tired, a little hangover, and a lot cranky.  The plan was to see our movie at 10:30, but we were definitely still in bed at that time.  When we did finally get up we decided to go this afternoon and get started on breakfast!

I made my best french toast yet!

The toast was regular style – 2 slices of bread dipped in a splash of milk and an egg, cooked in a skillet with a bit of butter substitute.  The topping is what made it though.  Fruit topping, serves 1

  • 1/4 T butter substitute
  • 1/4 t sugar
  • dash of salt
  • apple, chopped
  • splash oj
  • 1/2 cup blackberries (I used frozen)
  1. Heat the first four ingredients over medium high heat until the apples are browned. 
  2. Add the juice and berries and cook another 5minutes.

I topped my toast with the fruit and a little bit of real maple syrup.

Delicious!

I have some errands to run and we are planning on (actually) seeing our movie at 4:20.  I’ll be back for dinner!

What is your favorite type of french toast?  I had amaretto and pecan at a restaurant that was great, and I want to try cream cheese and banana stuffed next!