Better Day!

Oh man am I feel’n so much better today!!!  I woke up with a bounce in my step and the MOST EMPTY STOMACH IN THE WORLD!!!  I was absolutely ravenous ALL DAY LONG.  Nothing I’m gonna complain about of course…more for me to eat!

After breakfast I snagged a Banana and Chocolate Chunk Muffin before Whit and I headed out to the field so I could check a few things and had some awesome views of the light dusting of snow from last night:

And then check out what is located in one of the nearby towns! A singing road!!!  Can you name that tune?

Anyhow, on the way home we were more than starving so we snacked on some pb pretzel nuggets I had in my pack and had more of a real meal when we got home.  Sandwiches all the way, but lite since we had a long run to do!

I had a half sandwich with some hummus, marinara (seriously, having those two in one sandwich is the best!), cucumber, avocado and spinach with a pear.

And finished it off with two PB Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies.  My stomach is happy so I’m taking advantage of being able to eat chocolate with ease!  Yay!

Whit and I eventually headed out for our long run for the week at 8 miles (a new PDR for him!) and finished in about 1:17! Yay!  I made sure we were taking our time since he didn’t run much last week and it was a bit chilly to us…at 35*F!  Ouch to me!  I know, I’m a light weight!  I blame the wind, which was obviously making it colder…no doubt.

And I know you’re thinking, uh, weren’t you just sick for four days?  Well yes, but I’ve found that the best way to kick an illness in the toosh is to run it out of my system.  And since I woke up feeling so freak’n awesome I figured I’d give it a shot!

I cleaned up and thawed out first then was set on making dinner.  I was trying so hard to wait until our meal but my stomach was going to eat itself, so I snacked on an apple while getting dinner ready!

My Abundant Harvest box has been drowning me with potatoes so what better to use them to get in some potassium after that run!  They have more than bananas! I chopped up 3 med-large potatoes and seasoned them with some garlic powder, sea salt, pepper and fresh herbs!  I got those in my box this weekend and never thought I would use them, but they were AWESOME on the potatoes!  So much better than dried herbs!  I’m in heaven!

I know one that I used was definitely rosemary but other one…I have no idea.  There are three other kinds in there and usually I’m good and getting the scents, but the run made my nose runny…and couldn’t differentiate the herbs.  Oh well, for another day, hopefully!

Anyhow, to go along with the potatoes I heated up some veggie crumbles, mixed veggies, marinara, grated some super sharp cheddar cheese and diced the last of a very small avocado I had from my mom.  Delight!

Delight!

You know I piled that bowl high and devoured it!  Oh goodness am I full and satisfied now!

Time to foam roll and ice as I stretch and hit the hay early cause I have fun field work tomorrow!!  Yay!

Listen Up

I’m bored so I decided to jump on the bandwagon and do the Accent Vlog that everyone’s been participating in…

Please excuse my appearance as being sick means no contacts and staying in yoga pants and sweats for two days straight.  I took a shower at least…having fevers and breaking them does that to you.

(For some reason every time I view the video my voice is off from the movement of my lips…so get a good crack out of me looking like an idiot…PS Did you spot Honey!?!??!?!?!)

The Words: Aunt, Route, Wash, Oil, Theater, Iron, Salmon, Caramel, Fire, Water, Sure, Data, Ruin, Crayon, Toilet, New Orleans, Pecan, Both, Again, Probably, Spitting image, Alabama, Lawyer, Coupon, Mayonnaise, Syrup, Pajamas, Caught

The Questions:

• What is it called when you throw toilet paper on a house?
• What is the bug that when you touch it, it curls into a ball?
• What is a bubbly carbonated drink called?
• What do you call gym shoes?
• What do you say to address a group of people?
• What do you call the kind of spider that has an oval-shaped body and extremely long legs?
• What do you call your grandparents?
• What do you call the wheeled contraption in which you carry groceries at the supermarket?
• What do you call it when rain falls while the sun is shining?
• What is the thing you change the TV channel with?

~~

Hopefully I didn’t scare you all away with my rambling…what did you think? Do I have an accent?  Probably not…but I do adapt to them when I move places!  I suppose that means something, right?!  Hahah..

As much as my stomach is actually growling…which is a miracle in itself, I had a fever in the morning.  I did end up having one of my Whole Wheat Lemon Blueberry Scones this morning with a banana and some extra blueberries…it was pretty good and not too tart!  But the crispy burnt bottoms were something else…

I spent most of the day lounging around with this girl, when I really should have been doing my long run for the weekend…damned illness.

I didn’t eat much during the day other than some rice cakes, hummus, pear and a banana chocolate chunk muffin and slept the rest of the time.  I was trying to do research and respond to emails but I kept falling asleep.  Fail.

Since I wasn’t up to eating much for dinner, I settled on the same veggie medley stir fry for dinner, but this time filled with extras!  I used so much of my AH box and man were the flavors awesome!  This included: celery, carrots, leeks, spinach and two eggs.  I really am growing fond of leeks!  Sorry dinners have been a bore and the same thing everyday…

We finished off the night with a plate of two tangelos and two clementines…so juicy and sweet (and tart)!  Seriously no joke, local and organic taste so much better.

I finally woke up this morning pretty early and STARVING like a monster! I was so hungry that I actually felt sick!!!  Time to dig into food!  Whit brought some food last night from TJ’s along with some granola from him Mamma!!!

I love the simple ingredients…especially the walnuts!  They are huge quarter pieces!

I mixed up 2% Plain Greek Yogurt w/ some vanilla and cinnamon along with a small apple and some blueberries, topped with some Kashi H2H and the granola.  Fantastic!

And since I’m a bit chilly and guzzling down my favorite Australian Tea…this stuff is hard to get my hands on!! I’m a fruit tea lover!

What did you guys think of the Vlog? Would you want to see me on video more (or not, be honest; lol)?

Sick Day = Bake Day

First off, what do you think of the new blog header?!?!?!??!?!?  Mara was awesome enough to help me out and make me a new header!  I've been wanting one forever but have no talent for things like that!  THANK YOU SO MUCH MARA!!! <3 YOU!!!

I woke up late for my standards this morning, and even then, most of it was actually laying there and not asleep…since my brain has been up since 0230.  Ugg.
Luckily today was a rest day and chillax’n day so I got to take my time doing, oh, everything.  That includes breakfast.
As much as my appetite is non-existence I wanted french toast with bananas and berries.  But I had no eggs.  And no berries.  French toast fail.  So I kept to my very “un-upsetting” breakfast meal of oats, cinnamon, dried cherries, pb and a banana.  Didn’t upset the belly, thank goodness…

I had to drag myself off the couch a few hours later to pick up my Abundant Harvest Box with all my goodies!  Look at all the varieties of citrus!  You know I’m a happy clam now!

I was trying to find something other than a pb and banana sandwich to have for lunch so I had some toast with avocado, a very smidge of pepper and tomato slices.  I also had one of those oranges on the side…mistake…what was I thinking with the acid!?  Apparently I was still asleep.

I spent the afternoon getting my google reader down to zero, and dozing off more often than not, before getting stir crazy and heading to the scrapbook store in town to buy supplies for some birthday cards I need to make.

I think this girl knows I’m sick because she’s being obnoxiously nice and cuddly…

Maybe not…she looks like she’s about to contemplate attacking me.
I did do some baking during the afternoon also and tried one of the Banana Chocolate Chunk Muffins ala Snacking Squirrel with a few dry roasted cashews…but the chocolate hated me…oh whoa is me!   I haven’t had chocolate in days…this is sinister!  They sure are tasty though!  I followed the recipe except for the gluten free flour and had to use unsweetened applesauce instead of greek yogurt as I ran out with the recipe I tried before it…

Whole Wheat Lemon Blueberry Scones!

I may have left them in a little too long…the bottom is a bit, err, crunchy.

I haven’t tried them yet but hopefully will be able to tomorrow or the next day with my belly being the way it is!
Since I haven’t been able to get in many veggies throughout the day I’ve been sticking with the same combo of leafy greens and an egg for dinner…except I added in some mushrooms.  I love the flavors they give off when sautéed and mixed with other veggies.

I really wish I could have added some onions and garlic though…it would have made the dish!  And maybe tempeh instead of egg to give it some variety…although I am loving these greens!  They are so simple yet delicious!
Now I’m off to lay around with my heated blanket and watch Titanic…I’m channeling my inner Gabriela…
Happy Saturday!  How’s your weekend so far?!  And I’ve been seeing the accent vlog going around the blog world…would you want to hear me do it?  I don’t think my voice is anything exciting because CA people are well, boring voice wise…but I bet you’d be surprised by the pitch; most people are for some reason!  Haha!

Yo Tummy…

“Yeah tummy, I’m talk’n to you.  I’m tired of feeling nauseous and want to eat something more than bread, pb and bananas…

So do me a favor and get better soon…I’ve got a long run this weekend I don’t want to miss it. 

And I want to wipe this sad look off my face…

At least you can’t spoil a sunset!  I’ve got you there!

Oh, and since you’ve deprived me of vegetables for the past few days I defied you with eggs and some lightly sauced greens from my AH box…There was purple in there!  so cute!

I better be better when I wake up tomorrow morning.  I’m giving you enough ginger and lemon tea to make that happen.

(Source)

Thanks.”

Hope you’ve got a fun weekend ahead of you! I believe mine is going to be spent in bed…so indulge me with your exciting antics!!!

Oiy what a day...better post tomorrow since I'm currently contemplating paying my respects to the porclein gods...till then, Happy Friday and bday to Gabriela!

Do What You Can With It

In an effort to make the days seem so much better, I’m looking at what I can do during the day to make myself well, smile.  What made you smile today?

My trip to TJ’s last weekend sent me on a hunt for my favorite 0% Greek Yogurt but lo and behold…they only had 2%.  Years ago, even a few months ago, I would have totally tripped out.  Now?  Bring on the satiety baby!

Combine that thickness (seriously, so much thicker than 0%) with strawberries, a small apple, kashi h2h and TJ’s LF Vanilla Almond Granola and I was set for the morning, or so I thought.

A few hours into field work and I was feeling kinda off, belly a bit cinched and either needing some serious sleep or food.  Since I couldn’t sleep, I went for food.  I realized after I bought these pears that I didn’t know if they were in season…since that is part of the things I Want In 2011.  Luckily the internet led me to know that two kinds are summer fruits, but the others are winter and since pears aren’t good if they ripen on the vine, they stay dormant in the cold until you bring them out and let them sit!  Yay!

I paired (get it? haaha..ok, maybe not) it with a mini larabar in pb and chocolate chip and OMG larabar you have finally done yourself some justice in my bag.  I found these at TJ’s and bought one even before I tried the mini one…thank goodness.  I want to make these babies at home since they cost a $$$ at the store.

The morning was a bit rough but I was ready for lunch when it came and wow, it was tasty.  I realized as I was eating it that I was practically eating last night’s pizza in a sandwich form…I should have just brought my leftovers!  Those are being saved for tomorrow when I’m gonna be in a super rush.  Ick.

Alas, the sandwich was packed with hummus, marinara, mozzarella cheese and spinach.  On the vegetable bread it was a delight.  And since I’m smart like that I wrapped the sucker in foil, left it on the black dash under the window so it could heat up and get nice and toasttttttty.  Yep, who needs a toaster/panini maker eh?

Pair that with a gargantuous apple and I was set for the afternoon, or so I thought.  But before the next round of hunger engulfed me I set out to make sure I took in the environment…

Lots of sun…

Blue skies…

Green…bushes?  There really aren’t that many trees out here…

I was driving home and started to feel funny again so I snacked on a blackberry oatmeal bar to keep me over until well, dinner that I had no idea what to make.

I was talking to Mara about dinner and she suggested making black bean burgers…I thought I had everything to make them but oops, I was missing one essential ingredient…onions.  Sorry peeps, but those burgers need onions…actually, I think everything need onions!  Woohoo!

I totally lucked out when I dug deep into the freezer (ok, not that deep) and found my last Morningstar black bean burger, which is seriously one of my favorites.  I bet I could make better ones if I tried.  I smashed it into some bread with mustard, spinach and tomatoes, sided with an orange and some sweet potato fries (ok seriously, where did the pink/red ones go?! Now they’re all beige!!!) and ketchup.

And I ended the night with some GingerCats and Yoga…yep, yoga.  After dinner (somehow exercise has scared me if I do it after dinner…like I’ll be hungry again and have to eat…hah!) I did a 50 min video of my favorite yoga instead of running like I was supposed to.  A part of me felt guilty for not running this afternoon but really, I need to listen to my body.  It’s sore from strength training yesterday and super tired to boot, so I relied on yoga…breathe baby breathe…

Happy Wednesday!  I hope your day went well and the rest of your week goes great!!

Pizza Day

Thank you all so much for the wonderful comments from yesterday’s post.  It means the world to me to have your support and know you’ll always be there when I need you the most.

I definitely started today off with a good attitude.  I made sure to wake up with a smile on my face and remembering that hey, I get to be outside today getting a tan with the 65F weather and sun!  I wish I could share some of it with all of you freezing well, everywhere else!

I’m getting tired of my oats so I’m moving into a Greek Yogurt phase as of current!  I paired it up with lots of cinnamon topped with strawberries, blueberries, Uncle Sam’s Cereal and LF TJ’s Vanilla Almond Granola.

Out to the field I went were today I had to be surprising cautious because, not offense to them, but there were quite a few transients out there and to be frank, they make me nervous.  You never know what kind of condition they might be in.

I was almost done with my surveys and gave the thought of eating my lunch at home, but decided against it as I knew I would just get too hungry at that point.  So I dug into my lunch of a sad looking asian pear and a veggie hummus sandwich.  I need to bulk up my sandwiches because it did nothin for me…I need to remember more protein!

I spent some time reading when I got home because I wanted to chill out a bit and snacked on a small apple and the last piece of chocolate chip and blackberry bread.  Then it was time for a run!

I ran a 5 mile there and back route and surprisingly saw that I ran the first mile in 7:30!  Holy moly!  It could be that I ran downill almost the entire time…lets not reflect on that fact, other than I was speedy that that moment!  I finished the entire run in 44 minutes and walked a bit afterwards to stretch out…

Then it was pizza time!!!!  Whit brought half the ingredients from TJ’s while I provided the rest and this is what I ended up with!

Veggie pizza with a bit of mozzarella cheese, vegetarian italian sausages, artichoke, onion, spinach and mushrooms! With a side salad everything was complete!

And I ended the night with my favorite cookies on the planet…well, other than the chocolate covered pb cookies by TJ’s…((smirk))

To a good day tomorrow!!!  Have a great Wednesday everyone!!  Smile as big as you can!!!!

Internal War

[[Side Notes: Internal War

Lately it seems like I am doing so much better.  I’ve finally been able to realize all the good things going on in my life and being more realistic about myself.  I’ve found a guy that likes me for all that I am and what I do/love and continue to pursue the job that I want/love to do.

But as much as I smile, as much as I laugh, as much as I say, “I’m doing great!” on the inside I feel like I’m breaking.  There is something inside there that isn’t healed over quite yet and still spilling out the blood, the negativity, the emotional crisis waiting to unfold.

I currently cannot find a band aid big enough to cover it and stop the outpour.  I’m running around trying to stop it from overflowing and creating so much turmoil that I’ll trip, fall and lay their broken.

I take solace in the love of the people around me.  I stare into the sky and admire the sun, the clouds, the birds, the breeze in my face.  I squeeze my cat with her unconditional love and support, who always listens, even when my talking only comes in the form of tears.  I run to run away from the fear, anger and anguish.  I try everything to keep from falling apart.

Currently my mind is falling apart, but it’s also still holding together.  It just doesn’t know which way to turn, how to take in the support I have around me or the things I am trying to accomplish.  It’s mixed up in it’s need for…something.  Am I lonely?  I’m always lonely, but then again not.  Am I sad? Over what? I’ve got everything I need in my life, right?  Am I unhappy?  Not that I’d like to acknowledge…

It’s the moments the past week that have been getting to me the most and leading to the downward spiral of struggle.  I start off the day listening to my body and eating what I need to stay energized and feel good, but then something at some point snaps and I’m left digging my hand into my trail mix, and within moments I’m staring at myself wondering, “What the hell is wrong with you?  This is not going to turn your health around for the better?”

It breaks my heart when I reach moments like this and feel sick to my stomach…because I’ve been working so hard to not be like this anymore.  I keep telling myself it takes time, you learn from your lessons and so on, but if I were learning, why has it not decreased or stopped yet?  I thought that was the point of learning something, to get better at it and be a better person with it!? 

I can’t help but ask, “What am I doing wrong?  Why is this not working?  What in my brain is loose that can’t grasp these concepts?”  So utterly frustrating and debilitating to my head.

This post, this frustration has been building up in me for over week when really I should have given it a chance to show it’s face so I could confront it.  There is no wrong in admitting how I feel, but there is a horrendous amount of guilt that comes with admitting that you’re still doing something wrong and can’t stop.  It’s the exact opposite when I was suffering from anorexia and couldn’t understand why I couldn’t get myself to eat…but now it’s why I can’t get myself to stop/not eat.

I’ve read all of Geneen Roth’s books and for a time I was doing great…maybe I need to reread them because the concepts it explores has evaporated from my head.  Or maybe I need to read a few new books and see how they help me along, exploring other parts that Roth may not have passed in her books.

It’s a case of snowball effect for me right now and I need to stop rolling.  I think the first step is to admit you want to get better and stop rolling.  So that’s what I’m doing right here: I WANT TO STOP ROLLING.

What books have you read on intuitive eating or ED that has helped you, if you’ve needed it?  I’ve read a bunch of them but it has been years, so I’m up for all suggestions! ]]

Oh how boring I was this weekend, well, other than my date with my cute boy last night!

Whit’s currently training for his first half marathon, that will lead to the same full I’m doing in June, so this weekend he was due for a 7 mile long run that I told him I’d run with him.  Of course he was crazy enough to run that long after surfing really early in the morning and then driving over two hours to get back to town!  That boy’s got stamina if you ask me!  I wish I had it! Haha!

(Source)

Alas, we headed out to the river trail and accomplished a sweet 7 miler, me paying more attention to the birds on the river than the twigs flying up and cutting my legs all over the place.  Oops.  Priorities people, priorities.  Because he’s a speedy guy and I was trying to keep up with him, we ran the 7.06 miles in 1:05, which is about a 9:12 pace; I never run that fast when I’m doing long runs!  Haha!  I’m gonna have to work on going my own pace or I’m gonna get hurt, so next time I’ll be more careful.

Anyhow, you can bet that as soon as we were cleaned up he was starving!  I’ve always noticed that when someone just starts off running they get a bit more hungry faster than those that have been running for a while…cause I certainly wasn’t that hungry…but I also didn’t surf that morning!  He loves it though, can’t take the surf out of the inland boy!

We sped off shortly after to our favorite Japanese restaurant that serves tasty and cheap sushi: I Love Sushi!

I order the same thing every time because it’s all I can really get there, but you can bet that Whit ordered his heart out and ate it all…runners belly. :)

We started off with their complimentary edamame but it wasn’t enough and we wanted more protein, so we ordered an extra bowl to keep us going until our real meal came along.

I ordered the Seaweed Salad which I love…

Along with my usual Vegetable Roll and Cucumber Roll. I wish there were Japanese restaurants that would venture out on their veggie options.

I’ll give you an idea of Whit ate too, because his are so much more appetizing looking than mine!

That’s along with edamame and the dessert:

How cute is that?  Hehe…

We spent the night watching stand up comedy on tv and snacking on popcorn from TJ’s because we’re too lazy to pop our own (ok, in my own defense, I can’t pop mine at home because the power on my microwave is not great enough and just burns the bag; I’ve tried).

This morning I had to travel back home and by the time I got there it was hours past my usual breakfast time so I was starving!  I know I could eat cereal in a heartbeat but wanted something to hold me over for a while so I had my oats.  I swear I tried to add some variety to them but nothing came to mind.  Creature of habit…I wish my oats looked as interesting as the ones that Meghann made this morning!

I didn’t do much the rest of the day since I didn’t have to be out in the field so I got an oil change for the car and snacked on a few handfuls of pb pretzel nuggets.  I think I might have had a few too many because after that I felt sick and didn’t eat for almost 8 hours!  Yowzers!

I finally had a little something for dinner in the form of the soup I made over the weekend…I can’t let all those good veggies go to waste!  Sorry you get a recycled picture, tonight's was just as boring looking, minus the eggs.

And now, some me time…cause ya know, I haven’t had enough of it all day. (shrug)

Happy Monday…