I Dance For Food

Another gorgeous day!  This is turning out to be a great fall!

I was out the door early getting the daughters off to school and had every intention of heading to the gym, but took one look at my “to do” list and decided to get started on that instead.  I decided to keep my running training schedule to every other week for now and technically, today is a rest day, so I tried not to feel too badly about it!  “Running” errands is exercise, right?!

Before racing out the door, I grabbed a Triple Berry Bran Muffin…

Honestly, I didn’t like these so much today.  They are nice and moist, but there seems to be a bitter spice in there somewhere.  I can’t put my finger on it.  I didn’t detect it yesterday, but I ate it steaming from the oven.  Hmmm…

Then I was off  to conquer the grocery shopping which ultimately takes up half the day!  Not only was I shopping for our family, but I also had a list of things to buy to donate to needy families for Thanksgiving.  My cart was F U L L!

I stopped home to unload and dig up some lunch.  I heated up a serving of Black Bean Soup from the freezer…

And made a nice toasty crostini with 7 grain bread, a wedge of Laughing Cow Light Cheese and one of my favorite toppings…

Delish!

After more errands and picking up the daughters, it was time to settle in for homework and a snack.  I was really hungry…

I also dug into some of this…

I have seen this all over the blogosphere since I began blogging last year!  I have heard the oooh’s and aaaah’s of bloggers around the world singing it’s praises, so you can imagine how excited I was to come across this in my local Fresh Market!  I was doing the happy dance in the aisle.  Ridiculous, I know.  I need a bumper sticker that says, I Dance For Food :)

I danced, dug and spread it on a little banana and (wait for it)….

It was just okay! Barney Butter lovers might think I’m nuts -no pun intended :)- but I like my Homemade Almond Butter much better!  I am now the proud owner of a $9.50 jar of Barney Butter that is just ‘meh’.  *random dancing comes to screeching halt* :|

Dinner was a “cook like Mom and Gram” recipe – Chicken with Potatoes and Olives.  My Mom and Gram are so good at whipping up dishes without following a recipe;  just a little of this and a little of that.  I don’t always have the confidence to do that, but I think my skills are getting better as time goes on and if I have a basic idea of what I want something to taste like, I can pretty much wing it!

Chicken with Potatoes and Olives

• 8 boneless, skinless chicken thighs
• 2 cloves minced garlic
• 2 tsp. olive oil
• 2 tbsp. tomato paste
• 2 cans (14 oz. each) petite diced tomatoes
• 1/3 c. dry red wine
• 2 medium potatoes, peeled and diced
• 1/4 c. sicilian green olives

Season chicken with salt and pepper. Heat a large pot over medium heat, spray with cooking spray and add chicken.  Brown on both sides and remove from pot onto a warmed plate. 

Add oil and garlic;  cook about 30 seconds.  Add tomato paste and stir until paste begins to break down.  Add tomatoes, wine and stir until combines.  Add potatoes, olives and return chicken to pan.  Cover and cook on low until chicken is fully cooked about 30 minutes.

Easy peasy…

Thumbs up from the fam!

I made a side salad which included these addictive guys…

I know Italian and Asian don’t exactly go together, but I’m all about the fusion ;)

Be sure to come back tomorrow for the blogiversary GIVEAWAY!!!

Have an awesome day :)

I Play Sports Now!

Hi Everyone!  Hope you had a great weekend! I needed to unplug this weekend, although I miss not posting when I do! 

But, I had a fun time hanging out with the husband and daughters and the weather was beautiful so we got in a lot of outdoor activity.  I was able to get in both my runs – Saturday was 2 miles and Sunday was 3 miles.  After my runs, I joined the hubs and daughters for soccer drills and basketball. SO FUN!!! 

The best line of the weekend comes from the husband:  I can’t believe you play sports now;  this is great!!!

Yes, it’s true.  And I can’t believe it either!  I have never been one for playing sports.  Throughout my entire childhood, I hated sports.  With a capital H.   I especially hated gym class.  I always felt like the biggest, clumsiest and most uncoordinated girl in the class.  I felt embarassed and often feigned illness so I could sit on the sidelines.  It makes me sad to think that I may have missed out on so many good times, but I can’t get those years back.  Now, there will be no more sitting on the sidelines for me!  I’m not saying I will try out for some women’s sport team (I’m still laughably uncoordinated!), but I can run around with my family;  up and down the basketball court, back and forth on the soccer field and not feel like I’m going to die of a heart attack.  Being healthy and fit feels fantastic!

Before all of this outdoor fun, I started off with some tasty eats.  I have not been feeling breakfast at all lately.  Nothing seems to excite me and I'd happily eat a Chobani every morning, but I know that gets boring after a while.  I rummaged around and found this box of Triple Berry Bran Muffin Mix from Trader Joe’s and thought it would be a nice change…

These guys are hi –test!  One little muffin packs some serious fiber…

They contain a blend of whole wheat flour, wheat and oat bran, rolled oats, ground flaxseed, cranberries, blueberries, raspberries and some spices.  You need only add eggs and water and bake…

Perfect with coffee…

After church, we stopped home for lunch.  I was getting pretty hungry, but didn’t want to overdo it before my run.  I settled on a Health is Wealth Chicken Free Patty on an Ezekiel Hamburger Bun with a slice of asiago and spinach and a sweet Gala…

I let that digest a bit, then it was off to the trail/park.  The training schedule called for 3 miles and part way into the first mile, I was wondering if I was going to make it!  My legs felt weak and sluggish, but as soon as I hit the end of the first mile, I talked myself into the rest and finished stronger and faster than how I started out.  Why is that first 10 minutes so rough sometimes?!

We came home near dinner time and we were all starving from our outdoor fun.  Pasta was on my brain!  I made Angel hair with Ricotta, Zucchini and Asparagus.  My serving was huge…

Trust me, there was a ton of angel hair under those veggies!

I was full, but couldn’t help snagging a few more forkfuls while clearing the table because it’s pasta and I have a hard time with a “normal” serving of that!

Before I go, I wanted to share a few things with you all.  First, this coming week marks my One Year Blogiversary!!!  Wow, I can’t believe it’s  been a year!  I have a special GIVEAWAY planned of lots of goodies from my favorite place/home away from home (can you guess?), so stay tuned for that!  Also, I have some changes to the blog in the works.  It’s been a long time coming and I’m so excited about it!  There is so much more I would like to do here and I’m looking forward to being able to add more of my personal touches(recipes pages, FAQ’s, etc.) to the blog.  I am humbled by the fact that you all come here to read and as much as I blog for myself, I also try to provide information that you would be interested in hearing about or seeing.  As I’ve said before, I am always open to suggestions, so if there is anything that you would like to see more of (or less of – like my dopey attempt at trying to be funny!), please feel free to let me know!

Have a great day, everyone!