Two Days, Too Many?

by Emily

My mom called to tell me that not posting yesterday ruined my 30 day streak. But my focus wasn’t so much the daily posting as the posting of everything from each day. I’ve decided that as long as I blog everything I eat it will count towards thirty days straight of blogging even if I have to do some recaps. Thoughts?

The past 48 hours have included some really tasty things, but they have also included too many missed meals and way too much sugar. I need to keep getting better about my sleep schedule.

I didn’t have breakfast together Tuesday morning so I just had coffee – half sweet, half regular – from the cafeteria.

Lunch was a fun assortment. An apple.

A Cascadian Farm Crunchy Oats & Honey Granola Bar.

And an Artisana Cacao Bliss packet.

I planned on eating the coconut butter as a granola bar topping, but that got too messy and I ended up just spooning it into my mouth with a knife. That stuff is so flipping good; like a coconutty chocolate frosting!

When I got home I ate two fun sized candies, <– so unnecessary

and a Müller Strawberry FrütUp Yogurt.

A friend and I are doing a Vegan 20 Day challenge soon and I just can’t stop buying yogurt!

Adam and I haven’t seen much of each other lately so we decided to make Tuesday night Date Night and make use of our King and I Groupon.

We split the Tofu Tod to start. //fried tofu with a sweet and sour peanut dipping sauce//

This is one of our favorite Thai appetizers and King and I did not disappoint. We both kept grabbing spoonfuls of the sauce!

I went with the King and I House Noodles, vegetarian and Thai spicy. //broad rice noodles with egg, vegetables, and ground peanut//

I wish my meal had come with more vegetables, but I was very impressed with the spice level.

Adam commented that he could *hear* how spicy my meal was so I must have been doing a lot of sniffling! Sadly, his dish was too salty and he didn’t really love it.

The husband went with a coconut sticky rice and custard dish for dessert.

I took a few small bites, but decided to have these gummi candies instead.

They came from Wegman’s bulk bins and were totally to blame for the headache that caused me to lie down while taking off my boots, and end up falling asleep on top of the covers, fully dressed!

I was still pretty out of it this morning and I left for the hospital without so much as a scrap of food in my bag. I bought this serving of Kashi Heart to Heart from the cafeteria.

And I got Wegman’s hot bar after work to eat while I was journaling.

Many veggies with some chicken (salad and dumplings) and pasta.

I ate a Honeycrisp when I got home.

And then I ate a bowl of gelato for dinner.

And did so with impunity; I topped it with a protein-rich Bare Naked cereal sample.

The Talenti Caramel Cookie Crunch was good and the combination was even better.

And it was exactly what I was craving.

In healthier news, I made it to yoga this evening! 60 minutes of hot yoga was amazing, every time I go I love it. But – if I go both days this weekend I will have officially gotten 4 uses out of my unlimited pass, whoops!

I took advantage of my (messy) high yoga ponytail to show y’all my current hair.

The bottom is still good, but the top has lost a lot of color and has white streaks.

I have to go back to brown for my next internship placement so I won’t bother refreshing it, but I am still love-love-loving the purple. FYI: It is very difficult to take a picture of your own hair!

31Dec2012

Resolutely

by Emily

2012 was a good year, but sadly that was in spite of my resolutions, not because of them. This was a year of good food, good time, good friends. A year of learning and professional growth. A year I got to spend with my favorite man and my favorite dog. It just wasn’t a year of goal achieving.

Let’s look at how I did. {I reordered my resolutions from least to most successful}

#1 – Work out a minimum of three times per week.

Fail. Wow, what a fail. I have no excuses and little in the way of explanations. I have to do better in 2013 because otherwise my freaking heart is going to stop.

#3 – Put the time and effort into my school work that I can be proud of each week.

Ish. I did pretty well this semester, but not A’s across the board and I certainly could have done that. This was my first semester in Dietetics with an outside job and with that addition I am proud of my performance compared with other semesters. I definitely should have worked less so that I could study more, but in the end we needed the money more than I needed slightly higher test scores.

#4 – Continue working on being a positive person.

Mostly Win. We went through a lot of bad(ish) stuff this year and it really helped me to appreciate all of the good in my life. This is an arena where you can always do better, but I think I made steps in the right direction.

#2 – Continue to read at least one book a month, for a minimum total of 30 books this year.

Total Win! Check out my list –

January

Death Du Jour – Kathy Reichs (f)

Deadly Decisions – Kathy Reichs (f)

Fatal Voyage – Kathy Reichs (f)

Grave Secrets – Kathy Reichs (f)

Bare Bones – Kathy Reichs (f)

Monday Mourning – Kathy Reichs (f)

Cross Bones – Kathy Reichs (f)

Break No Bones – Kathy Reichs (f)

Bones to Ashes – Kath Reichs (f)

February

206 Bones – Kathy Reichs (f)

Firefly Lane – Kristin Hannah (f)

Spider Bones – Kathy Reichs (f)

March

The Hunger Games – Suzanne Collins (f)

April

Catching Fire – Suzanne Collins (f)

The Surgeon – Tess Gerritsen (f)

May

Kitchen Counter Cooking School – Kathleen Flinn (m)

Flash and Bones – Kathy Reichs (f)

Postmortem – Patricia Cornwell (f)

Body of Evidence – Patricia Cornwell (f)

All That Remains – Patricia Cornwell (f)

How to Eat a Small Country – Amy Finley (m)

Mocking Jay – Suzanne Collins (f)

Cruel and Unusual – Patricia Cornwell (f)

June

The Body Farm – Patricia Cornwell (f)

From Potter’s Field – Patricia Cornwell (f)

The Wilder Life: My Adventures in the Lost World of Little House on the Prairie – Wendy McClure (m)

Service Included – Phoebe Damrosch (m)

Ice Cold – Tess Gerritsen (f)

July

The Heart and the Fist – Eric Greitens (m)

The Silent Girl – Tess Gerritsen (f)

Cause of Death – Patrica Cornwell (f)

Unnatural Exposure – Patrica Cornwell (f)

Point of Origin – Patrica Cornwell (f)

Sellevision – Augusten Burroughs (f)

Black Notice – Patrica Cornwell (f)

The Last Precinct – Patrica Cornwell (f)

Blow Fly – Patrica Cornwell (f)

August

Trace – Patrica Cornwell (f)

Predator – Patrica Cornwell (f)

Book of the Dead – Patricia Cornwell (f)

September

October

Talking with my Mouth Full – Gail Simmons (m)

November

Those Who Save Us – Jenna Blum (f)

Bones Are Forever – Kathy Reichs (f)

Scarpetta – Patricia Cornwall (f)

The Scarpetta Factor – Patricia Cornwell (f)

December

Port Mortuary – Patricia Cornwell (f)

Red Mist – Patricia Cornwell (f)

I missed September but read 47 books in total. Go me! This is a something I hope to continue.

I’ve decided not to make an resolutions tonight. 2013 is going to be a big year with lots of challenges already – graduation! moving! getting a big girl job! passing the rd exam! thinking about having a baby! adjusting to Adam’s residency schedule! Instead, I think I’m going to focus on my birthday list.

Are you making any resolutions this year? How did you do on your 2012 resolutions?

4Dec2012

Sunny Sunday Monday

by Emily

We had a high of 57* today, wheeeeeee! And tomorrow promises to be in the 50’s as well. I’m hoping to take the dog on a glorious long walk.

Today’s exam was thing 1-of-6 on the “big things left in the semester” list. So that’s where I’ve been.

Yesterday I was actually busy being sick. I woke up with a cough and a constantly running nose and even my boss said I looked terrible. I didn’t have it in me to make or eat food before my shift at noon. When I got home at 5, I had some spicy avocado inari.

So flipping good; I love how the tofu skin is a little bit sweet.

I also ate the best dipping plate I’ve had all year.

A sliced green dragon apple.

This apple variety – a hybrid cross between a Japanese Orin and a Golden Delicious was new to me and I loved it. Perfectly sweet! I have another one in the fridge and I can’t wait to eat it.

2 Tbsp crunchy peanut butter melted with 1 Tbsp Biscoff for dipping. Plus a spoonful straight from the jar.

The pb-Biscoff combo cannot be beat!

This plate was supposed to be dinner.

The roasted green beans were divine per usual,

but I was not a fan of the Tofurky Pepperoni Pizza. The “meat” was way too soft and the “cheese” did not melt.

I could only eat two bites of pizza before calling uncle. It is worth noting that Adam clearly thought it was fine because he ate the rest of the pizza!

I ended up supplementing my green beans with Chinese take-out.

Crab rangoon was the perfect one-handed dish for study-eating.

Soon after dinner, I realized that the only way I could study was if I had a constant stream of food going.

I also ate a bowl of baby carrots and these sugar-plum candies from Wegman’s bulk bins.

The sugar plums were quite good, I recommend buying some if you spot them at your store. There really was plum flavor, not just one note of sweetness.

Studying went about as well as could be expected when trying to cram with a sudden cold. But it was what it was.

P.S. Adam decorated the house for the holidays while I was at work because he is the best.

And then he decorated the dog.

Too awesome.

I got myself up at 6 this morning and {hallelujah!} discovered that I wasn’t actually sick any more. I don’t know where my cold went but I hope it stays there! {knock on wood}

I drank a mug of hot chocolate while I did some clear-headed studying.

And then I was off to take my exam. It didn’t go as well as I could have liked (do they ever?!) but it certainly could have gone worse. Phew!

After my classes I did something amazing…

I worked out! 60 minutes of hot yoga was heavenly. And the session was nowhere near as hard as I’d worried it would be after more than a month of no exercise. <– yikes!

I have a 2-month unlimited pass that expires soon so I had to go to yoga today, looming finals or not. I probably will only go once or twice more in the next two weeks though because I really do have to study. But as soon as break begins I am looking forward to making the most of my pass!

A Stinger honey waffle was consumed on the walk to yoga.

And a juicy apple was consumed on the walk to work.

My six+ hour shift went well, though I did have to deal with a bleeding lip since my body waited until the warmest day of the winter to rebel against the cold. I got a Starbucks Strawberry Lemonade Refresher while I was out buying emergency Chap Stick.

Finally home, I did eggs for a quick dinner.

– – Cooked 8 oz package chopped seitan in 1 Tbsp Earth Balance until crispy, set half aside for tomorrow. Add ~ 1 cup frozen spinach, chopped cilantro, 1 tsp evoo, 1/2 tsp sugar, salt, and a few dashes of Sriracha. Scramble in 2 large eggs and 1 egg white plus 2.5 oz Cabot’s 50% Reduced Sharp Cheddar. – –

I couldn’t get a single good picture, but this meal was out of control good! I adore eggs.

With a microwave chocolate chip cookie for dessert.

It was much tastier than it looks.

I didn’t get to study today (I needed a day to recover from my exam anyway) but I did put away a load of laundry, do the dishes, and organize my study materials. Now I’m off to read a book in bed!

Did your area get hit with unseasonably (fabulously) warm weather this week?

11Oct2012

It’s 10-11-12!

by Emily

I’m blogging a two-day recap from a blanket nest with a killer migraine, so please excuse any typos. I was hoping to be back on a “normal” blog schedule by now, but I’m not sure that’ll ever happen this semester!

Going back to yesterday… Wonder of wonders, I made it to the gym! 20 minutes on the elliptical; random level 6. The machine was out of water so I drank a fruit punch g2 while I worked.

It was embarrassing to have so much fuel for such a short workout but I ended up being very thankful that I had it. I guzzled most of it during my workout, then refilled the bottle with water and drank all of that on the drive home. I guess I came back from Philly a little dehydrated.

From my trip to the gym, I came back short on time. Thank goodness Adam had the day off yesterday; he drove me to school and packed my breakfast. FNCE expo samples were heavily featured. An iced coffee with skim milk.

A mini apple pie Larabar.

An apple it its true form.

And a serving of Cheddar Cheese Beanitos.

I was a big fan of the (pinto bean and flax-seed) chips. They were nice and crunchy with just a touch of spice.

I’m also a big fan of things working out in the lab. Look at what I made in Microbiology – spread plates and pour plates!

Adam’s undergrad degree was in Microbiology Immunology and sometimes it is downright embarrassing to show him my class-work!

I had several to-do’s after lab, but I made it home in time to make dinner before work. My mid-day meal was pretty lame. 2 small corn tortillas microwaved with ~1/4 cup shredded cheese.

Plus a 2% Fage with Peach.

And the last two Buttered Rum Raisin Cookies from the batch I brought my friend.

We are getting in all of our Christmas stock now and work was more like a workout; I carried boxes up and down the stairs for my most my shift. I was very glad to have dinner already finished when I got home.

Green Tuna Enchiladas; serves 4-6

1 tsp evoo
1 medium green bell pepper, finely chopped
1 medium red onion, finely chopped
(2) 10 oz cans tuna
1/2 cup plus 1 cup green tomatillo salsa
12 small corn tortillas
4 Tbsp light half and half
3/4 cup reduced-fat shredded taco or Mexican-style cheese

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Farenheit. Heat evoo in a large pan over medium heat.
Add onion and peppers to oil and brown, about 7 minutes.
Add tuna and 1/2 cup salsa to veggies and cook 2 more minutes. Remove from heat.
Spoon 2 T filling into each tortilla and place into a 8×11 inch casserole, seam-side down. Too keep tortillas from cracking and breaking, it is helpful to cover them with a damp paper towel and microwave for 30 seconds.
In a separate bowl, stir together the last cup of salsa with half and half. Spoon mixture over enchiladas.
Sprinkle cheese evenly over casserole and bake 20 minutes.

Dinner did not fill me up like I was hoping. I ate a huge spoonful of Skippy Natural Super Chunk with Honey; aka the very best peanut butter ever.

And I had dessert. I am working on a hot chocolate recipe so I’m not going to share the ingredients now, but I will tell you that this batch included a serving of Caramel Apple Milky Ways for funsies.

It was ridiculous good. Ridiculous.

Moving on to Tuesday… Today had a productive start but has steadily gone downhill. I had a difficult time getting out of my warm bed and ended up eating breakfast on the walk from my car to the hospital. A Sweet Tango apple,

and a Full Moon Brownie Z-Bar, which I actually hated.

I couldn’t put my finger on what the problem was specifically, but the taste of the bar was not good to me.

Today was my busiest day at clinic yet. I had a patient on my own in the morning, then worked on another in a group later in the afternoon. We had our first practice with tube-feeds today and it was both fascinating and frustrating. We’ve learned a lot in school but it’s all been in isolation; in the real world conditions overlap. For example*, you might have a patient in End Stage Renal Disease that has increased protein needs for wound healing and is also a Diabetic. *just an example, this wasn’t a specific patient that we worked with today

Also, my friend Janessa and I offered to turn-key some of what we learned at FNCE, so we did a short presentation on ketogenic diets for epilepsy. The group had to stay late so that we could present and I love them all for still being interested in what we had to say.

I ate a late lunch during my afternoon errands. Vegan pecan cornbread stuffing from the co-op.

Buffalo peeps – run to the co-op to get some of this stuffing, it had the perfect blend of flavors and textures.

Then hot bar at Wegman’s while I ran through my notes before shopping.

I did three types of vegetable stir-fry.

I am glad that I got in veggies and time studying, because both were in short supply when I got home. Minutes after walking in the door, I got an immense migraine. It came on much more quickly than they usually do and made me unbelievably nauseous.

Adam brought home pizza for dinner and I ate a big plate once I was able to get out of bed.

Now I have to go try to study for tomorrow’s giant exam. <– so screwed

What is your favorite store-bought peanut butter?

8Sep2012

Rocking Around The Clock

by Emily

The upcoming week is going to be busy, busy, busy and apparently today was the start of the craziness. It’s not a good feeling to leave the house at 8:10 on a Saturday and already be running behind!

While running errands I did stop in at Dunkin Donuts to use a coupon I had for iced coffee.

With skim milk and toasted almond syrup. The barista (are they still called baristas if it’s Dunkin?) gave me a giant sheet of new, exciting coupons so I’ll probably be back in the near future.

After running errands I ran to work (literally) in the pouring rain. I packed a Oikos Low-fat Pineappe Greek Yogurt for breakfast.

Holy crap, it was good! I couldn’t stop mmmmmning. It was so thick, creamy, and sweet that it almost reminded me of a piña colada.

Adam ate my last serving of eggplant (jerk!) so I got co-op hot bar for lunch.

1 falafel, sesame cashew noodle salad with tons of veggies, 2 grape leaves, and some chicken salad. The veggies in the noodles and the almonds in the chicken were my favorite bites.

When I got home from work, Adam and two of our friends were on the couch watching a movie. Patrick and Michelle brought pizza!

I had a veggie slice,

plus a simple salad of romaine, flax, and lite honey mustard dressing.

Buffalo people – the pizza was from Mister Pizza and it was great. The crust was somehow both thick and crispy and it was loaded with vegetables.

Our friends were over because we had purchased a Groupon together…

for rock climbing! We climbed for two hours and it was exhausting and so much fun.

This year has been a total bust in the workout department but I actually felt like I did a little better this time than I did the last time I tried. I mastered one fairly hard wall (ie not a kid’s wall!) and I was so proud of myself when I made it to the top. At one point my arms and legs were so wide I was practically into a split. <– bad ass

I’m going to make myself do a 4-minute workout and then I’m going to go pass out. Good night!

3Sep2012

Burgers and Boba

by Emily

I hope everyone had a nice Labor Day. We got the holiday off, which meant I had time to go on a date with the husband and catch up on school-work.

I started my day with a 0% lemon Oikos.

I was so thrilled to see the new Oikos flavors on our shelves! This was smooth and creamy with just a bit of tart flavor. I have the pineapple variety waiting for me in the fridge as well.

Plus the last of my Chameleon Cold Brew with skim milk and ice.

I’m not sure if it’s because I used a bigger ratio of coffee:milk today or if it’s an effect of the bottle sitting open for a week, but today’s cup was more bitter than my previous ones. Nonetheless, I’m still very sad to see the coffee go. I’ve marked it on the 9/23 week’s list in advance to celebrate the end of my retainers.

When we walked around the park a few weeks back, both Adam and I had a major hankering for a zoo trip. After running an errand this morning, we decided we should take advantage of the husband’s rare day off and go for it.

We were disconcerted by the wrap-around-three-blocks line,

but quickly got over it when we found out that Tops was offering special $1 admission for the day.

Score! They were hosting a few games on the premises as well and I won this cup of Mike and Ike’s.

I ate half during our visit and think that the sugar helped me make it through the heat.

We saw so many animals!

My favorite reptile is the Dab Lizard and I was thrilled to catch a glimpse of one today.

Do you have a favorite reptile.

I packed a big bottle of water in my purse but rocking jeans was a big mistake; I was dripping the minute we stepped out of the car.

Since a mid-day shower was required anyway, I tried my hand at this 4-minute workout –

Holy crap! I was basically dying by the end. The husband and I have decided to do it 3x/week. 4-minutes is always doable.

Lunch was sushi from Wegman’s.

Pssst, Buffalo peeps, this another item with money off from the student coupon packet.

This afternoon, I finally did something with these purchases from our trip to Toronto’s Koreatown.

Taro milk tea + rainbow boba = mmmmmmn!

It was too much fun (and a cross-off on a birthday list goal!) to have made these items from scratch.

I spent most of my evening hard at work, but did find time to make a great dinner.

Roasted green beans,

and a Reuben Stuffed Turkey Burger.

I ate mine on an onion roll with extra sauerkraut, Swiss, and 1000 island dressing.

Reuben Stuffed Turkey Burgers, serves 6

lb 94% fat-free ground turkey meat
1 cup sauerkraut, squeezed to remove as much liquid as possible
1 large egg
1/2 cup panko breadcrumbs
1.5 tsp dried caraway seeds
3 (1 oz)-slices Swiss cheese
2 Tbsp thousand island dressing

Slice cheese into quarters; you should end up with twelve 1inch x 1inch squares.
Place meat, sauerkraut, egg, breadcrumbs, and caraway seeds in a large bowl. Use your hands to mix until well combined.
Using a 1/4 cup measuring cup, divide the meat mixture evenly into twelve 1/4-cup portions. Flatten six of the portions into patties.
Place 1 tsp thousand island dressing and two cheese squares in the center of each flattened patty. Top with remaining portions, pressing on the edges to “seal” the patties.
Place a greased grill-pan over medium-high heat. Cook burgers until browned and fully cooked through; 5-8 minutes on each side.

I’m off to join Adam and Webster on a walk!

Are you a reuben sandwich fan?

27Aug2012

Stir-Fried Soup

by Emily

I made it through the first day of a new semester! I forgot what day it was and pressed snooze a couple of times this morning, but I did manage to make it to the gym for a quick workout.

25 minutes on the elliptical, level 6 random.

I cut it close but the husband offered to drive me this morning (both walking and driving myself eat up 30 minutes) so I had time to shower and grab breakfast to go. A Chocolate Dipped Coconut Luna Bar,

and an iced coffee with skim milk.

It wasn’t just any iced coffee. Do you remember when I blogged about wanting to try Chameleon Cold-Brew Coffee? They now sell it at Wegman’s!

It was even better than I had imagined. Smooth, not at all bitter, and I swear with the skim milk I tasted hints of chocolate?!

I breakfasted during my first class and the caffeine boost was much-appreciated. This semester is going to be hard. I’m only taking a few classes (the minimum number of credits versus having to petition to take extra credits almost ever other semester) but there is a ton of work and the concepts are all higher level.

Good thing I got some work done in the break between classes and my shift at work. I also made lunch.

A salad of romaine, flax, light honey mustard dressing, a little shredded gruyere, and a crumbled slice of turkey bacon.

Plus apple dippers.

A sliced Pink Crispin,

with a melted mix of peanut butter, Biscoff, and Heath bits, ~ 1 Tbsp of each.

Delish!

I worked from 2 -7 and then came home and wandered around all evening in a tired, sore-backed haze. That is not going to be able to happen as the semester progresses. But overall I think I did a good job of getting things done today.

I even pre-made some of the components for tomorrow’s dinner. I snacked on a serving of Barbara’s Baked Cheese Puffs while I cooked.

They were an impulse buy at the co-op that paid off; didn’t tasted “baked” at all.

Dinner didn’t happen until 9:30 but it was worth the wait. Super worth it. Did you make my Thai-Inspired Coconut Peanut Soup yet? I hope so, because if you did you are halfway done with this killer spin on it – Stir-Fried Soup!

Stir-Fried Soup, serves 1

1 Tbsp evoo
1 oz cashews
1 serving Thai-Inspired Coconut Peanut Soup
4 dashes Sriracha
1 large egg

Heat the oil in a large skillet over high heat. Toss in cashews and toast. Add soup leftovers and Sriracha and saute, stirring occasionally, until crispy. Scramble in egg. Serve and swoon.

It was the tastiest thing I’ve eaten in weeks, I swear to God.

What’s the strangest thing you’ve done with leftovers?

26Aug2012

Bok To School

by Emily

I’m heading back to school tomorrow (eek!) and I finally remember all my education on the importance of vegetables. Better late than never! All of my meals today included a veggie and two of them centered around bok choy (“bok to school,” hyuck, hyuck). Tomorrow I should probably work on including some fruits.

I did not get right into bed last night – and the neighbor’s dumbass friends ringing our doorbell at 4 am didn’t help my sleep either – but I did make it to yoga this morning. A 60 minute hot yoga class.

Breakfast made use of our bok choy gratin leftovers.

I scrambled a big serving into two eggs along with a few dashes of green Tabasco.

Hidden inside the eggs, this casserole actually wasn’t half bad.

Our afternoon entertainment was a walk through the Elmwood Art Festival.

We saw a few cool pieces but my main goal was lunch and I sadly didn’t see any food that appealed to me. I ended up eating at the hot bar when we went to the grocery.