Tag Archives: good idea

Ice Ice Baby

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It’s been a busy, but random.  I had plans of getting up early but the husband felt like studying until 1am last night which totally threw me off.  When we were in the city and my job was crazy he was always mad at me for staying up until 4am while he tried to sleep (especially difficult in our one room apartment!).  Here, where he is in medical school and I do nothing am not, the situation is reversed.  We have multiple rooms now but I’ve found I have a hard time falling asleep without him around – cheesy relationship moment alert!!!

When I did get up at 10 this morning I went straight to the phone for the next 3 hours!  I don’t know if I actually accomplished that much, but at least I got the ball rolling!  My hunger was totally off and I ended up eating the last serving of pretzels for breakfast!

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Unhealthiness aside, here is a healthy tip: buy a food scale!  I’m not saying you need to be obsessive and measure everything you put in your mouth, but things like pretzel nuggets add up faster than you think – a serving of those bad boys is ONE ounce.  Once you are eating pretzels straight out of the bag for breakfast, there is no way you are going to pull out a measuring cup.  But plopping the bag on the food scale?  Easy.  (P.S. My scale read 1 and 1/4 oz, so with the weight of the bag I had a perfect serving left)

At 1pm – once I had at very least left a message with every single number on my list – I set out for the gym sat on the couch and kissed Adam and stole some slices of his turkey pepperoni.  I ended up pushing the gym back to the end of the evening in favor of going to the post-office and being dropped off at the Spot.  I worked on Chemistry by myself for a while before Caroline met me for some group studying.  By myself I got a late lunch.

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A big diet coke and a turkey cajun  wrap (turkey, lettuce, tomato, pepperjack cheese, cajun sauce, ww wrap).

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The salad looked over-dressed so I didn’t even taste it, but I demolished the sandwich.

During my social studying I also had a medium pumpkin pie latte (pumpkin, vanilla, cinnamon; 1pump syrup, skim milk).

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Yums.

Caroline dropped me off at home at 9 and after so very brief glancing at the magazines I got in the mail we set out for the gym.  It was about time too, I’d been rocking this look since 10am!

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I always work out in baggy t-shirts but I went ahead and bought some running tank tops last weekend.  Somehow I feel more “official,” not that I look too fine in that picture!!  I’ll show you all of my new finds as I wear them; this one was $4 at Target.

On the treadmill I did 10minute warm up – 20minute run – 5 minute cool down.  In the end the totals were 3.25miles and 361 calories.  My legs are still crazy bothering me (my knees, hips, ankles often hurt but lately it is an intense pain in my calves!).  I did a lot of stretching when I got home and now I am trying icing them.

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We’ll see how it goes.

I can’t believe I’m doing such a late recap post but considering that dinner just kind of never happened I guess it’s not that surprising!  I got a lot done today, but tomorrow is still going to be jam-packed.  We just found out our in-laws are visiting this weekend which makes this week even busier.  I’ve got to go deal with my ice bags and take a shower, see you in the am!

Do you ice?  Any tips for me?

Savory Instead of Sweet

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Hello, lunch-eaters!  My morning has gone well; it looks like the notecards won’t be finished until tomorrow but my labs are totally up to date.  My pumpkin pudding smoothie held me over well but I did snack on a bowl of red grapes while I worked.

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By noon it was time for lunch.  When I received a Nature’s Pride sample as part of the Foodbuzz Tastemakers program I actually was sent two loaves.  I seem to hardly ever eat bread and I was worried that Adam would move too slowly and we’d develop a mold problem, so into the freezer one loaf went.  Once we were ready for more bread we simply moved the loaf down to the fridge and gave it a few hours to defrost.  This is a good solution if you find a bread(product) sale at your grocery store too.

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With 12 Grain I made a yummy french toast, so I knew that would be good for 100% Whole Wheat as well.  But I was feeling adventurous.  Which led to…….

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savory french toast!  I sanwiched sliced turkey, Crofter’s North American Superfruit Spread and dijon mustard between two slices of Nature’s Pride Whole Wheat.  Then I dipped the ‘wich in a mixture of egg/.5C chicken broth.  I cooked it for ~3minutes on each side in a pan with .5T Smart Balance Light.  Finally it got topped off with maple syrup, Chipotle Tabasco, and squeeze cheese.

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Mmmn.  I loved this mess mix of flavors!  Next time I would leave off the sqeeze cheese (which I mostly ate around anyway), but we had it and it looked fun.  I doused it with hot sauce the the spice/egginess combo was perfection.

I am watching an episode of “Mercy” while I eat my lunch and then it’s back to work.  I think I will cook dinner before I leave for class, but I’ll post it this evening.  All that really matters is that I remember my lab goggles!

Have you ever tried savory french toast?  What’d you think?  {I realize this is similar to a Monte Cristo}

I Didn’t See Its Shadow

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A successful evening, all around!  Lab went well and I got back my quiz from last week – 100%, woot!  That makes me feel much more confident about next week’s test.  Plus I made plans with a friend from class to study this weekend, so I know I won’t slack off.  And on the way in we made a new friend, my very first groundhog sighting!

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During lab recitation I snacked on this Perfect Pumpkin Boomi Bar.

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This was nice and crunchy, and perfect for the first day of pumpkin month!

When I got home I had a gourmet dinner in mere minutes –

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Moo Shu Stoup leftovers from August.  No one ever wants soup more than twice in a row and it freezes well so it is the perfect thing for long-term leftovers.  Plus it is easy peasy:

  1. Measure portions into ziplock baggies
  2. Lay flat on a baking sheet and put into the freezer overnight
  3. In the morning, remove the sheet and you have perfect frozen soup stacks

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All we had to do tonight was make new veggie dumplings, and Adam did that so for me it was easy 🙂

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I’m still super hungry, but I’m trying to have a drink and see if it passes.  We are watching Cold Mountain, so it’s possible I’ll get a snack in a bit.  ‘Night.

Do you make long-term leftovers?  What dishes work best?

*****Updated – We stayed up waaay to late watching Cold Mountain (which was super sad and sort of disappointing) and I did have a snack.

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When I made cookies the other day I reserved 2 pieces of dough and tonight I crushed them into some Purely Decadent Coconut Milk Coconut Ice Cream.  Good idea!

Sunday Joes

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This afternoon Adam I decided that ice-cream was in order so we headed off in search.  We found a local spot on Elmwood that had Cioa Bella gelato, so you know I was all over that.

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I had a small cup of key lime pie, yums!  I said at least 4x whilst eating how good it was.  The store was super-cute, I’m glad we found it.

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On his way home, Adam dropped me off at The Spot to do some studying.  I ate lunch #2 while I was there.

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Iced Americano with skim milk (they call it “skinny moo” on the dispenser which makes me smile),

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and a whole wheat black bean and cheese quesadilla.

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I liked the ww tortillas and the insides included some sort of spicy tomato so it ended up being pretty great.  I ate all of the salad, none of the toppings, and half of the quesadilla.

I studied from 2:45 – 5:15, so I ended up also getting an iced tea.

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Cinnamon Plum, might be my new favorite!

Once I got home I continued my Chemistry organization. 

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I already created a GoogleCalendar, but now that I have this todoist  list of due dates I feel fully ready.  When I was in undergrad I wasn’t aware of these online organization applications, but now I am planning on taking full advantage of them.  Seeing everything in black and white in front of me is the only way for me to truly feel comfortable.

Work finished, we got started on dinner.  I did a Rachael Ray recipe, from “The Big Orange Book,” Hot Wing Sloppy Joes.

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Apparently 30minutes only applies if your stove isn’t half broken!!! 😦  It was still good though.

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On the side I got to cook my new original eggplants!

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These white ones seemed so odd to me, but they are the original item, and the reason why the veggie is called an eggplant.  I sliced, sprayed with evoo, sprinkled with nutmeg and chili powder, and roasted them for 30minutes at 450*.

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And since I ate a bun for brunch I ate my ‘joes with a serving of Scoops tortilla chips.

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Delish.

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We drove to Target to pick up a few supplies for Adam, and now we are finishing up a Bones episode.  My goal is bedtime before 11 because I am hope hope hoping I actually get up early to study.  I have volunteering in the middle of the day tomorrow and if I don’t study first I feel like I’ll run out of time.  G’night.

Do you like sloppy joes?  One time when I was a kid, before I stopped eating red meat, I tasted them and fell in love!  My mom makes them pretty well with turkey meat and Rachael Ray has several ‘joe adaptation recipes that I’m excited about.

Bad Etiquette?

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When Adam got home we spent some time cuddling/discussing his day and then I made some business phone calls.  Among other things, calling Budget insurance which is being ridiculous; our mattress was ruined on the move due to a leak and making a claim has been impossible.

I decided to eat my Newman’s Own Organic 77% Chocolate bar as a pick me up before our run.

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I had half of it (serving size was the entire bar), and oh yes that is sunflower seed butter spread on those two pieces!

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Unfortunately, my pick me up was more of a weigh me down, as now I am having major tummy troubles.  I love love love Newman’s Own Organic products but the last time I had one of these bars I had stomach issues too so I have to think there is a problem with them.  Has anyone else tried these and had issues?

To be honest I was feeling pretty lazy anyways so I am (almost) glad to have an excuse not to exercise!  I very happily filled the time pouring through cookbooks and making a list of “to try now” recipes!

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Over the course of the evening I ended up looking through every single cookbook and now I have quite an exciting list.

In the middle of it all I drove Adam out to his event.  When I got home I walked to the gas station across the street to buy cheese for tomorrow and I ended up walking to Arbys for dinner on a whim.  I got flustered so I decided to do 5-for-5 but when I realized there was no chicken on that menu I got even more flustered and I ended up ordering this –

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Left to right: onion rings, curly fries, mozzarella sticks, jamocho shake, diet dr. pepper.  I ate a few bites of everything (except for the shake which I had 90% of and the pop which I had 100%) and then threw the rest in the trash –

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  1. I know that was a major waste of food
  2. I am aware that I am a totally fattie
  3. I realize this is totally against food blogger customs (which is kind of sad actually, I wonder how many readers look at some of the bigger name blogs and feel crappy because they actually eat fast food more than once a millenia?)

I wasn’t hungry for real food but I did manage to prep my ingredients for breakfast tomorrow morning.

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We are having (better) eggs tomorrow so I sliced 2ish oz of Hellva Good Sharp Cheddar Cheese and sauteed ~1.5C of kale in 1t evoo and 4-5T water.  Not only will things be quicker tomorrow but I am much more likely to get up and make a healthy breakfast if I know I’ve already done some of the work.

I’m going to hang out while I wait to pick up the husband and my goal continues to be bed before 11 – I’ve made it the past two nights, but hopefully tonight I’ll actually fall asleep then!  Sweet dreams.

How often do you eat fast food?  We do not eat fast food all that often (especially because other than Wendys it doesn’t do much for me, making it not a “splurge” but a waste) but we do rely on it from time to time.  There are places I will not eat at because of ethical issues – hello kfc – but other than that I don’t think it’s that big of a deal.  I grew up eating pretty healthy, but once a week my family would go out to dinner.  For a while when I was 6-8ish we didn’t have much money but we continued the tradition by going to McDonalds once a week.  Those 5chicken nuggets didn’t do irreparable damage and I have fabulous memories with my mom and dad.

Blue, Berry, Banana, Breakfast Bowl

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My alliteration obsession was the driving force behind this morning’s breakfast.  Brought to you by the letter B –

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led to –

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led to –

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Yum.  This bowl contained

  • 1/2 C blueberries
  • 1/4 C wheatberries
  • Stoneyfield Fat Free Strawberry Yogurt
  • small banana

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Some facts –

*Blueberries seem to be out of season now but I was still able to have fresh ones for this bowl.  A month or so ago, when they were super cheap, I bought a few pints, washed them carefully, put them back in the fridge for a day to dry and then poured them into baggies and put them in the freezer.  Last night I just poured from the baggie into my measuring cup, put the cup in the fridge, and this morning I had thawed fresh blueberries.

*Camile asked a question about wheatberries and they are pretty new to me too so I did some research

  • A wheatberry is a wheat grain stripped of its outer hull to leave just the whole kernel
  • They can be ground up to make wheat flour or you can cook them whole for use in dishes
  • Nutrition is equivalent to that of whole wheat
  • A cup of wheatberries has about 300 calories and is packed with protein, fiber, and iron

I think they are chewy and tasty, here are a few spots you can order them –

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Today is one of the last low-key days before we have to actually start packing for the move.  I am headed down the street to do some studying, I have to mail a box to my parents, we need to update our filing system and file our CPR certification, and we are planning on heading over to the Meat Packing District for lunch.

What is the best thing on your agenda today?

Wednesday Morning – Friday Morning

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Hello, vacation-style!  I hope everyone is having a good week, the vacay has been nice and relaxing so far.  I’m in a bit of a time crunch today so I’ll try to keep this recap pretty brief.  Just fyi – I only have internet when I go to work with my mommy so I’ll be doing a recap every few days until I get back home.

Wednesday – travel day

Our flight was at 8:15am so we had to get up nice and early.  We had to leave our car in long-term parking so we actually drove to the airport.  Thankfully, Mapquestgot us there in time to get breakfast, of sorts.  There were not many restaurants and those that were there didn’t have full menus.  I ended up with a Wendy’s Maple Baked Frescuit with egg and cheese.

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It actually tasted pretty good; I love the sweet-savory combo so cheese with maple syrup was nice.  And when I looked up the nutritional information online this morning I learned that it only had 390calories.

Being at airports always makes me think about having kids (not that it isn’t on my mind anyways!).  Adam and I have always discussed how important it is to make exercise fun for kids – the more you make movement into a game the better.  Even now, when we come to a moving walkway one of us will ride and the other will walk alongside and we will race!

We had a straight flight, which meant we were at my house before 2pm!  My mom always has a gift waiting for me on the bed.

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I wanted to get right into reading but Adam needed to go to his old doctor to do some forms for medical school so off we went.  I ate a baggie of baby carrots during the ride.

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The husband took forever so my father and I ended up taking a long walk on the boat docks.  I drank a Ting.

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My parents cooked us a great dinner.

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WW pasta with parmesan cheese,

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spinach and tomatoes cooked in toasted sesame oil,

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and broiled salmon.

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I also ate a slice of dry sourdough toast.

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They did a great job, everything was delicious.  Also good was my snack.

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Huge cup of coffee with skim milk,

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and homemade chocolate chip cookies.

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We played Pictionary and cards and by the time we were done I had actually eaten 4 cookies!  My cookie control was down a bit because of booze 🙂

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My favorite drink on earth is oj with cinnamon Stoli.  They actually stopped making this Stoli, my mom and I have 2 of the last bottles available, but it is equally good with Goldschlager. We each had one, yum.

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Thursday – “it’s so hot!”

In spite of not staying up all that late playing games (my dad is pretty intense about bedtime, he is my sleep role model) we could not get going Thursday morning.  I was supposed to get up and work out but that did not happen.  I woke up 3hours later than planned, ate breakfast, and went back to sleep for the rest of the day.  The husband and I think it’s because it was so hot.  At least I did have a great breakfast.

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A small chopped nectarine, half a banana, and ground flax seed.

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Plus a Low Fat Pineapple Chiobani.

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This was the first time I ever saw this flavor and it was awesome, I hope this comes to NY!

After my intense napping session I managed to drag myself to the shower and get gussied.  We ended up eating at the restaurant right near where we got married so Adam and I had to take some pictures!  This spot is exactly where we said our wedding vows –

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We had a fun time, it is hard to believe it’s been so long since December 28th, 2007.  1.5years, we are not even newlyweds anymore!

After some rememberings we headed to dinner, I slept through lunch so I was pretty starving.  I started with a beyond fabulous passionfruit colada,

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and my dad and I split a sandwich and salad for dinner.

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Fire roasted chicken paninni sliced chicken breast, roasted red peppers, sun dried tomatoes, goat cheese, and a garlic and basil ailoi.

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Key Lime Caesar Salad.

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I ate half of everything.  The sandwich was good but a little greasy and I loved the salad, the lime cut through the usual creaminess wonderfully.

After dinner we went home for more board games and cards – Monopoly and Gin Rummy – we are serious nerds about game night!  I drank an iced coffee with skim milk, along with some desserts.

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First, two homemade chocolate chip cookies,

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and even better – Greek Gods Honey Greek Yogurt,

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frozen,

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oh yeah, this was so good!  Freezing Greek Yogurt (I’ve only tried it with flavored but I imagine that plain would be a lot like Pinkberry) turns it into slushy, granita-like goodness, I highly recommend it.

Friday– wake up!

Today, I managed to get my butt out of bed!  I went with my mom to an 8am spin class so we had to get up by 7.  We left extra early because we dropped Adam off at the beach, with a bucket of beer!  I ate this Luna Bar in the car for breakfast.

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The class was 60minutes of spin and floor work.  I don’t know if it was the sugary breakfast, that I was feeling sick yesterday, or that I’m out of shape, but my butt was kicked!  I felt so sick I actually had to sick down and skip the lunges.  I chugged some water and I’ve been sitting so I’m feeling a little better but it sucked at the time.

Now I’m hanging out at my mom’s library, hopefully headed towards some studying.  The husband and I are getting lunch soon so we’ll see what happens.  I will most likely be doing another post on Sunday, hope everyone has a great weekend!

For now, I will leave you with a list of the songs I played while I typed, found on my mom’s i-pod!!!

  • Viva la Vida – Coldplay
  • Single Ladies – Beyonce
  • Boom Boom Pow – Black Eyed Peas
  • Low – Flo Rida
  • Blame It – Jamie Foxx
  • That’s Not My Name – The Ting Tings