Busy Week, Peanut Pesto, Bad Derm News

Happy Sunday! I hope you're all having wonderful days! I've been with the family today - just hanging at the house with Austin and the poodles, watching movies, catching up on my Fall TV and just having a nice little Sunday. :) Here's what little Remy did for most of the weekend...

Seeing what's up in the backyard

Not even the camera could get her attention

She's annoyed with me here... hehe

And right back to it!

My week was pretty standard - Wednesday was in training all day (again) - had to be at a breakfast at 7:30 a.m. so no workout. BUT I visited the gym during lunch - running a mile, walking a half mile, and doing legs, shoulders and biceps. Not too bad! Then it was more training and home to the family. Thursday I got SO much work done but my afternoon got a bit derailed with the dermatologist called me back. One of my moles, the one they took from my face, came back abnormal. So I have an appointment with a plastic surgeon on Tuesday to have it completely removed. I'm talking with the surgeon tomorrow to see what exactly this means - so far all I know is that they have to cut deeper, I can't travel for 3 days following and I will have stitches for 10+ days. So yes, Thursday was a bit of a downer and instead of gymming I just wallowed and felt sorry for myself. True story. :)

Friday was a bit better - busy day at work, took my lunch to get my haircut - yessss. I hadn't been since May - it was much needed! Then it was just more work before working a bit late and heading straight home to do nothing! We just watched a movie and called it a night! Saturday we ran errands (oil change; eye doctor; drycleaners; grocery store) and then I cooked a few meals before heading over to Mel & Jon's to watch Auburn lose and Alabama win. MAN did we lose. eek! Still love my tigers, but am not a big fan of rebuilding years.

So that's it in a nutshell: work, errands, bad mole news, movies and lots of family time! We also had a new recipe:

Spicy Asian Peanut Pesto
Inspired by Café Lynnylu
Makes 4 Servings

Nutritional Information (with Chicken & Pasta): 464 calories, 49 carbs, 16 fat grams and 34 protein grams.

We really liked this recipe - definitely not a normal/standard pesto! Austin said it's like pesto with an infusion of heavy peanut flavor (due to peanutbutter!).  It made a lot of sauce, froze well, and reheated well. - we'll definitely make this again! Check out the recipe on Healthified Kitchen!

Q: Ever had peanutbutter in your pesto?


Q: What has been the highlight of your weekend?

Quinoa Cristed Quiche, Pumpkins & Puppers

Happy Sunday! Thank you all for your sweet comments and being so awesome and supportive of my MIA-ness.  Operation Catch Up is coming along well, I feel like i'll be almost there come Tuesday. Well, that's my goal anyway! Before backing up to this weekend I must share a new recipe we're loving: Quinoa Crusted Quiche. 

Quinoa Crusted Quiche
Inspired by a Lynn's Kitchen Adventures recipe
Makes 6 Servings

Nutritional Information: 405 calories, 32 carbs, 18 fat grams and 28 protein grams.

I loved it. Austin said, "it's good, but it's weird to eat quinoa for breakfast." hehe I personally like a grain at breakfast time, it kind of reminded me of the breakfast risotto. Anyway, I thought the spicy sausage added a lot of flavor, and as usual the Cabot cheese melted well and tasted great without adding too many calories and fat grams. All in all, i'd make it again, but maybe next time in a rectangular dish so it would be easier to eat then the deep oval dish!

One serving!

Check out the recipe on Healthified Kitchen!

So Friday was spent sleeping in through my workout, working, out to lunch with Stacy (yes, skipping my second opportunity for working out!) before heading home to pack up the car for Auburn, get the pups ready and work a bit more before going to sleep - long day! Saturday we got up early and headed to Auburn for Teresa's 30th Birthday party! Have the cutest pics to share once I sort through them, but for now I have some pics from a Trader Joe's stop. Wine for Teresa, pumpkins for us: 

Ausitn and our soon-to-be masterpieces I'm SURE

Those things are heavier than they look! haha

After our TJ's stop we rode down to Auburn - here's some pics of our safe puppers.

Remy gets super cozy despite her seatbelt, and seriously sleeps the whole way. The flash popping up woke her up from her slumber!

Reuben on the other hand does. not. relax... at least not for the first hour. I caught this pic of his sad little face- poor baby - but at least he was safe!

We made it to Auburn around 1:30, helped set up for the party, scarfed down some Subway (veggie sammy on wheat for me - have been CRAVING banana peppers lately), cooked, got ready, then it was party time. Cute pics coming later, but good to see everyone, catch up with Teresa's AU friends, and visit with Jimmy & Mary (even though they were sick - boo!) and Mary & Scott (first time seeing them since Scott proposed!). We didn't stay up too late, and slept great, so today was just Starbucks and driving straight home in rainy weather to spend the day getting ready for the week. Lame - but required - so what are you going to do?!

Q: Ever had quinoa for breakfast? I loved it!

Q: Have you picked up pumpkins this year? If so, are you carving? I think  Austin is carving but I have a paint idea in mind! 

Peppers, Puppers & Polyvore

So yesterday I showcased Reuben and our tomatoes. Thank you for your sweet comments! I of course think he is the cutest most perfect little fella! However, I neglected to give  Remy and our bell peppers a shout out!

They're coming in strong! We've eaten one already, and these guys get bigger every day! And please note, a few of you have said you have a hard time growing stuff/don't have a green thumb - note that I'm not growing anything. Austin is! This was ALL his doing and not to be obnoxious (assuming i'm not beyond that point already) but i'm SO proud of him!

This is Remy DURING a car ride. She is super comfortable in her seat belt and just rolls on her back and sleeps. Reuben, on the other hand, is a nervous little pup. While this position is cute, it gave  her matts in her arm/leg (?) pits. Sigh! Oh well - safety first! They're really taking well to their harnesses.

Outside of growing veggies and taking pictures of my furry passengers, I've been playing around in polyvore. A LOT. Working on outfits for Auburn football season. I'm nothing if not a fan.

Why is it that my favorite outfits usually consist of inexpensive items that IN TOTAL don't equal the cost of the bag I want to carry with them? Sigh. Yesterday's nutshell: I got up early for a quick 1 1/4 mile run with a bit of walking on the front and back for a total of 1.5 miles, followed by 15 minutes of spinning. Then it was work, working through lunch, more work, and then home to Austin a new recipe i'll post tomorrow - it marked my first time using cabbage! We also watched True Blood - i'm LOVING this seasons so far.

Q:Do you like polyvore? Ever used it?
Q: Are you watching True Blood? 

Color-Changing Pups, Two-A-Days

Happy Sunday! I hope you're having a great day! I'm relaxing at home after getting back in town from Alabama - am having a great weekend! Tracking back, Friday ended up being a pretty good day. Awesome? No - but not too shabby. I got up early with a massive headache. Ugh. But I went to the gym and met Stacy there! I walked 1/4 mile, ran 2 miles at 6.3 mph, then walked 1/2 mile - 2.75 miles in 30 minutes. Not bad! Then I showered, worked, then me and Stacy went back during lunch for a 1 1/4 mile walk (taking me to 4 miles for the day - 2 walking and 2 running) and shoulders, triceps and biceps. Great workout and nice to be done with exercise by 1 p.m.! Then I just worked more, had meetings, and headed straight home at 5 p.m. to the family! I made a new recipe, ran a load of laundry, hung out with Austin and played with the pups. And thankfully my headache escaped me - yessss.

Speaking of puppers, I've been marveling lately at how much they've changed colors. Reuben was a major color changer. I got a brown pup, and ended up with a black and gray one...

Reuben 16 weeks old - day 2 of having him in September 2007

I mean really! LOL Little posing poodle

Reuben over the holidays!

Then came Remy - a little brown & white pup:

her at 10 weeks

her at 16 weeks - much lighter and her brown turned more of a caramel color

her in April. Seriously - she is turning so white!

Regardless, I love my two little color changers! Even if I did go from two mostly-brown pups to ebony & ivory! :) (May 2011)

Q: Do you have a color-changer?

Q: What are you up to this weekend? We stayed in Friday night, went to Birmingham for a wedding Saturday and just got back in town today! I'll post pics from the wedding tomorrow - great time with great friends!

Book Review, New Recipe, New Tips & How-Tos Section

Good Morning! I hope you're all having good days so far - I'm feeling a little sick (allergies/sinus) but i'm trying to power through it! Backing up... Saturday I finished Karin Alvtegen's Missing. I started this at the beach and quickly got halfway through - then set it down... until I picked it up yesterday and finished it. A quick, good read (only 294 pages). The book is a "Swedish thriller" about a privileged woman who is living as a drifter. She is quickly accused of murder, and throughout the story you follow the murders. Did she do them? If she has money why is she living a homeless lifestyle? The story flashes back to her past, growing up, and what led her to where she is, and the present as you try to figure out if she is the murderer and if not, who is. I really enjoyed the book, lots of twists and the whole time you really believed her story and worried about her safety. I give it a 4.5/5 - well edited and had a good, suspenseful pace.

After reading, I worked on videos and added a new section to the site: Tips & How Tos. It is a place that includes a lot of my posts about things like weight loss & workouts, home organization, cooking & food, etc. I also included stuff like my first 100 days and how I set goals. It was fun to read and resurface some of these posts, and I hope to build on this page as I continue blogging! Guess who kept me company?

Seriously - best companions ever

Love this little fella!

Then I cooked a recipe and got ready for a party at Lo's! We had fun, had a few drinks, met some nice people, played cornhole then called it a night! Sunday we slept in- SO nice! Then we did stuff around the house before heading up to Lake Lanier to Sharon & Terry's for Father's Day. We visited for a few hours, got to wish Tyler a happy birthday in person (he was in NY for his 21st birthday) then headed back to home to work, do laundry, and get ready for the week. Here's a few pics:

Who doesn't love cookie cake?

Happy Birthday, Tyler!

And a new recipe - a new pasta bake we've been munching on!

Mexican Bake with Cilantro-Lime Cream
Makes 6 Servings
Recipe adapted from Diabetic Living
Nutritional Information: 393 calories, 59 carbs, 5 fat grams and 30 protein grams.

Check out the recipe at Healthified Kitchen!

Q: What was the highlight of your weekend?

Q: What's an update you recently did to your blog, or that you plan to do?

Catch Up, New Breakfast Recipe

Yesterday was all about getting back to life, back to reality! Thank you for your sweet comments on our travels!! I've been slowly catching up your blogs and what all you guys have been up to! Yesterday was also all about getting back to these guys:

Remy

Reuben

They make it REALLY hard to stay away! So we got up early in Birmingham and drove to Atlanta where I immediately got to work pre-cooking, unpacking, getting my oil changed, picking up puppers, cleaning said puppers, hitting up Petco for new seatbelts and life jackets for their upcoming lake trip, laundry, more unpacking... the list went on. I think I finally sat down at 8 p.m. EXHAUSTED! LOL No workouts as planned but I sure felt like i'd had one with all of the running around! The night ended with a bit of DVR catch up and family time. SO NICE to have the day to catch up.

I also wanted to share a new recipe I had before we left town that I never had the chance to post. It's a yummy, easy breakfast recipe that's meatless - yay!

Egg & Veggie Breakfast Pockets
Recipe adapted from Better Homes & Gardens
Makes 4 Servings

Nutritional Information: 325 calories, 27 carbs, 16 fat grams and 18 protein grams.

We loved the crispy pockets, and the onions added nice crunch and the spinach mixed in well. The garlic helped give it a bit of kick, and the egg filling went well in the crescent. All in all a good breakfast. Yes, a bit high in fat, but it kept me full for hours.

Q: What's been your go-to breakfast lately? I've been finding it SUPER easy to stuff all of my favorite things into these little crescents! My other go to has been filling crescents with ham, jalapenos and pepper jack cheese- um, fabulous!

Q: Do you have pets? If so, do they travel with you? Mine have never done well in crates in the car, but I hate to just hold them - I just worry about their size and if there was an accident. Ugh - don't want to think about it. Anyway - I hope these new seat belt harnesses work for them - wish us luck this weekend as head off to the lake for Memorial Day!

New Workout Clothes and CHEESE!

Remy says HELLO, she looked at me like this all day. hehe Anywho, thanks for the sweet comments you guys! You know I love some pre-cooking, and I'm liking the idea of putting down the steps - anything to make it even easier to get ready for the week! Biz that's so funny that he wouldn't eat it because it would be considered leftovers! I get it - I never would think of it that way! And I totally get it that some of you guys prefer to cook each night. I just find that if something isn't ready - I have a hard time making good choices. But that's just me and my lack of self control! LOL I'll post my first step-by-step meal plan soon (will link to a PDF) - I just want to double check the freezing instructions on a few of them so it should be ready by early next week!

So what's been up? My Wednesday was pretty standard, just work, work through lunch, more work and then straight home to visit with the family. While I love working out, I also love an 'off' day to rest, relax and not get sweaty! Today I received two exciting packages... First, sweet Kelly (friend outside of blogger and blogger of The Pearce's Kitchen)sent me some workout clothes! Two pair of Nike tempo shorts, 1 nike sleeveless top and 3 CUTE workout tops!

hehe love the little messages - the copy on the back is cute too!

Awesome loot!!

Thanks again for thinking of me, Kel! ANYTIME you want to retire work out clothes over here feel free. :) After my excitement over my USPS deliver, UPS showed up and the fun continued. You know my Cabot cheese giveaway that Cabot's Kelly & Wendy hooked us up with? Well they sent me a batch too, complete with recipes, a cutting board and knife and of course the 8 packs of cheese!! Let the games begin!

And of course you missed the giveaway don't worry - it's open until 11 p.m. EST this Saturday, April 30! Just leave a comment on this post to enter - TWO winners will receive a gift pack!

Q: Complete one of the t-shirt sentences: I spin...; I only run...; OR I workout... I'd say I only run because I love how invincible it makes me feel!

Q: What's your favorite brand of workout clothes? I wear Nike Tempo shorts when I strength train/walk/run, and Nike spandex capris when I spin. For tops - I wear some Nike, some Target T's and tanks, or Fila tops - whateva. For sports bras I love champion seamless. FYI - I LOVE the look of lululemon - it's absolutely gorgeous - but I haven't brought myself to spend that kind of $ on workout clothes yet. If anyone wants to send me lululemon clothes I'll wear them. LOL :)

5 Magazine Tips, 3.5 Miles, Working out in the a.m.???

Yes, I finally did another photo shoot with my favorite girl, "new" puppy Remy. hehe LOVE it. I can't wait to get some of these framed. On another note, as you all may remember, I became the proud owner of about 7 new magazine subscriptions about a month ago. Now I don't save them. I just rip out or write down ideas then toss/recycle the magazine. Here are 5 few things I found in mags this month!

1. Visit DoINeedAnUmbrella.com. Enter your ZIP code and it says 'YES' or 'NO' - simple! Or spend $2 on Umbrella Today, an app that allows you to pick a time and get alerts on days you need an umbrella. So, you could set it to alert you before work if you need it! mentioned by multiple mags
2. Real Simple provided a few websites I thought were interesting. Fiverr.com connects you with people willing to complete tasks like $5 to distribute flyers. Sepiatown.com shows you your favorite city or street from decades or centuries past.
3. Consider blanching and shocking. Vegetables like broccoli and asparagus can lose their color after 6 or 7 minutes of cooking. If you know you'll eat them immediately, remove, drain and serve. Otherwise - blanch and shock. Cook for two minutes in salted, boiling water, then remove vegetables immediately and plunge into ice water. The ice bath helps set the color. Later, reheat the chilled vegetables by sauteing in a bit of olive oil without losing the green color. mentioned by multiple mags
4. Cooking Light suggests nutritionals for women age 25 to 50. They suggest 2,000 calories, 50 protein grams, 65 fat grams (or less), 304 carbohydrates and 2,300 mg of sodium or less. note per Erica at Itzy's Kitchen: these are broad and depend on your height, weight, activity level, etc. From me: I TOTALLY agree and actually meant to put this in here - this surprised me. I mean 25 to 50? Wow! Huge range, no?
5. Real Simple suggests easy eye shadow. It has a contoured brush so it applies three shades at one time. It's called the Loreal Paris One Sweep Palette and it's $10 - i'm going to try it!

Q: Did you learn anything from magazines lately? Do you preserve your mags or rip them to shreds?

So my Monday was pretty blah. I will say that it's spring break so traffic was minimal. I left the house at 7:15 a.m., drove Austin to Buckhead to get his car (from Saturday night - we cabbed it home!), then drove into work - all of that and I was still in before 8 a.m. I LOVE spring break. Then I just worked, walked 3.5 miles with Stacy, worked more, then headed straight home at 5 p.m. to do nothing but read, relax, hang with Austin and play with Reuben and Remy. LOVE IT.

Q: I am considering 6 a.m. spin classes instead of 6 p.m. - this way I can be home home by 5:20 after work, instead of arriving at 7:15 p.m.. What do you think?? Pros vs. cons? I'm loving the idea of getting it over with, having no traffic on the way into work, etc. I'm nervous about actually making it (involves me waking up at 5:35 a.m. to leave my house at 5:40), having to get ready at the gym and what do you eat? Anything? I would think no. LOL

Less is More in April, Goal Assessment, New Indian Recipe

Happy Friday!

Reuben caught with his tongue out (again!) and sleepy Remy dozing in the car

Mary T sent me these pics via Facebook from our December road trip to AL! Love them! So...OMG still behind on blog reading - OY! This week has just been so busy with work, home projects, crap weather, doubled commutes, etc. I didn't even get a workout in yesterday - NOT cool. I think my focus is just everywhere. I'm trying to cook a bunch of new stuff (which takes longer than cooking 'oldies) and I'm really trying to get a bunch of spring cleaning done. Then of course there's my job, my workouts, my goals (who has time to edit video?). Eek! And you know, family and friends. Important stuff like that! :) I think I just thought "March is long, I can do SO much, but alas, it was a tough one and not everything got done. I'm giving myself a break in April - fewer goals = more success. I hope! You can check out my March goal assessment and April goals here. Yes, I made a goal page. BE a bigger nerd. Not possible. Clearly.

Moving on! So yesterday like I mentioned was just a frenzy of work, home chores (laundry/dishes), more work, cooking, more work, framing project, kitchen 'business center' project, you NAME it. I finally stopped spinning my wheels around 9 p.m., which was when Austin got back from poker - perfect! So we had a few beers and played with the baby puppers. Great day but again, too much - I WILL get better at not trying to multi-multi-multi task. :) I normally enjoy getting things done - and I want to keep it that way so less is definitely more in April. As you can imagine from all of the cooking I mentioned - I DO have a recipe to share. :) This is the one that involved the grinding of the cardamom!! We LOVED it.

Chicken Vindaloo
Recipe adapted from a Cooking Light.com recipe
Makes 4 Servings
Nutritional Information: 375 calories, 48 carbs, 7 fat grams and 31 protein grams.
Whole pan

Here's the recipe on Healthified Kitchen!

Q: In-home Indian dishes - yay or nay? I don't think i'll ever eat Indian out again - I love them!

Q: What are you looking forward to most this weekend? I'm looking forward to seeing my nephew Dane and volunteering at the pet shelter today, celebrating Shana's upcoming baby Preston and visiting with friends tomorrow, and enjoying my time at home with my family on Sunday. I think we're going to have nice weather - eee!

Meatless Zucchini Recipe, 3.5 Miles, Remy Update

YAY – I loved reading your dares! From the fitness related like Biz’s ‘sign up for a 5K’ to the hobby-related like Gabriela’s ‘learn how to use my camera better’ – these are great! If you missed the giveaway and sharing a dare, go here and leave a comment. You'll be eligible to win a SOYJOY prize pack, which includes a bag, camelbak and more!

As you know, my dare is to try meatless Mondays, so I’m still whipping up some meat-free recipes. Here’s another I made this week that I’m loving so much!

Zucchini and Parmesan Pasta
Makes 4 Servings
Recipe inspired by Cooking with My Kid

Nutritional Information: 374 calories, 57 carbs, 9 fat grams and 16 protein grams.

Check it out on Healthified Kitchen!

And quick Tuesday recap! I was tired all day, worked and walked 3.5 miles during lunch. HRM said: 53 minutes/270 calories, average HR 117; max HR 128; 53 fat-burning minutes and 0 fitness minutes. I'm LOVING having an HRM again. I don't know why, but it's like my workouts without one don't count! I know that's absolutely ridiculous and false but it's how my little brain feels. After my walk, I just worked more, headed STRAIGHT home to make some meatless recipes including the above, and a Roasted Vegetable Lasagna. AWESOME. Other than that, the usual: TV-watching, blog-reading, chilling with Austin and the puppers - HEART. Speaking of puppers, Remy has finally warmed up to this adorable little red bed that I got for Reuben that he never warmed up to.

be cuter! And yes, Austin sends me pics of my babies when i'm at work and he's working from home!

I snapped this one of Remy and her master (yes, Austin is her absolute favorite - she likes me but she LOVES her Austin!)

Q: What are you doing to celebrate St. Patty's? I personally don't plan to celebrate tomorrow. I feel like I completely did it justice with Saturday's beer fest and am all St. Patty'ed out.

Q: Do you like zucchini? I think I love it. I am 99% certain it's going to be purchased at every single trip to the grocery store until it gets all pricey and out of season again!

4 Miles, Puppers, Full Saturday, Injury

Happy Sunday!! Hope you're all having beautiful days - I am. This is what i'm looking at right now (aside from your blogs)

I love spending the day with my puppers! Backing up a bit to Friday, which was just a busy work day. I was able to get in a 4-mile walk during lunch with Stacy - YAY! We also did abs. After work, I headed straight home, did a few chores and then me and Austin headed to meet Katie and Cush at their place for a drink. Which led to another drink at Taco Mac with a big group of buddies, then us, Katie & Cush & Jeff went to a local bar near the casa. Trying to get in as much Katie & Cush time as possible before they leave for Colorado. I'm am going to miss them SO much. Great night! I was asleep by 1:30.

Saturday I got up and had intended to hit the gym, but got a lot done at home instead, doing laundry, wrapping gifts, grocery shopping, dropping items off at Goodwill, getting gas - you name it. 1 p.m. came early, and it was time to shower and get to Jennifer's to give her a baby shower gift and see the nursery! I visited with her for a bit, then went to get a haircut (bliss!), then went to my mom's and visited with her and then drove over to her friend's Naka & Meredith to meet them and their little boy Kai. My mom nannies for Kai and LOVES it - I see why - they seem like wonderful people, their house is fabulous and Kai couldn't be cuter! After THAT, we hit up Leon's for dinner with 20 to celebrate Katie & Cush's going away! We got an amazing spot outside; able to enjoy the weather but sit by a heat lamp - perfection. From dinner, we headed to Twain's. The guys hit up the foosball, shuffleboard and beer, while us ladies chatted about everything from weddings to babies to work - we also hit up the vodka. Wonderful night with great friends, and so fun to meet new, awesome peeps! Here's some pics!

Most of the group - a few got cut off - sad!

Fun group shots!

GREAT times with these ladies! We even got in that photo booth behind us. Yes, all 6 of us. Hilarity. And I LOVE that we're all brunettes!

The ladies with Cush & Matt

The spot we had outside at Leon's

ONE thing did not go my way last night. My finger got slammed in a door. BAD. Like I almost passed out from all of the blood (yes, it was very embarrassing haha). Thankfully - Austin got me in a chair and the girls helped cool me off and I was back to normal and doctored up quickly. In the meantime... go here to see a pic. You know, if you're morbidly curious. :) I had it posted here but don't want to gross people out... sorry if you've already seen it! LOL

The whole part on the top/right is 'loose' - like 3/4" of skin is flapping around - EW. Thankfully, I have a great wound cleaner kit (from my runner's toe problem) so I'm good to go but GENA it hurts. Even now - as I type about how bad it hurts.

Q: Why do "nail problems" hurt SO DANG BAD? I mean really!

Q: What 'cha up to today?! We are doing nothing. Just making hummus, cooking a bit, wrapping up laundry, petting the baby puppers and enjoying the lazy day together. Is a busted thumb a good excuse to skip the gym? No?