Summer Days

Well, as usual I have failed to maintain this blog and keep everyone up to date on my thrilling life. I will play a little catch up, but with mostly pictures of things that have been happening lately. This post will focus on various happening from March- May.

1. I got a new puppy. You may remember a glimpse of this chunky monkey from my last post here. Well, I saw him, knew I had to have him, and got him. He was a part of the Tails of Hope Dog Rescue which was perfect, considering I am a strong advocate for adopting dogs, not buying them. I met him at the adoption event, set up a home visit, and he was mine mid-way through my spring break. His name is Jackson and he is the sweetest big boy in the world. His mom was a full-blooded chocolate lab (stray) and was shot, but her 5 puppies were saved. The breed of the dad is unknown, but I think Jack looks about as chocolate lab as you can get. He will be 6 months old July 7 and is a ridiculous 60+ lbs right now. He may be big, but all he wants is lovin' and cuddlin' all the time :)

Jackson (Left: 3 months old. Right: 5 months old) 

2. I took a trip to New York with my parents to visit my brother in April. It was so much fun, and we lucked out with pretty great weather. We did a LOT of eating and equally as much drinking, but hey - that is what vacations are for, right? Here are a few pictures from the trip!

German Bar with my mother

Heading to the Wythe Hotel, where we hung out on the rooftop for a majority of the day!

Ground Zero

Brooklyn Promenade the last night with my brother

Salty Dog on the rooftop (It was so delicious!)

Cafe LuLuc - the most heavenly pancakes you could ever think of.

Wythe Hotel

3. Lastly, and quite possibly one of the most exciting things that has happened in the last few months, would be the Memphis Grizzlies playoff run which took them all the way to the Western Conference Finals to face the Spurs! It was a phenomenal season to be a Grizz fan. Some people get mad that there are so many new "bandwagon" fans just because the team started playing well in the last couple of years. I, personally, couldn't care less. First, I feel that if you are from Memphis, it doesn't matter when you became a fan, you should not be considered a bandwagon fan. Basketball does something really special to this city, and I see nothing wrong with bringing out a sense of community and cohesion - even if you haven't been a fan through the first several years of horrendous play. It was a blast watching this team and rooting them on as a city. Though some serious damage was done to my bank account, I feel it was worth every penny.

Maddie loves the Grizz

So does Jack :)

After we closed out the series against the Clippers in game 6!

When I wasn't at the game, I was doing this.

Grizz support at weddings.

Even after the season was over I continued to support on the beach.

That concludes my recap of March-May. They were good months, packed with fun times and good people. I am enjoying my summer off, and will update soon with what has been going on since I have been out of school. I have turned 25, been to the beach, and hosted a Beer Olympics. Only 4 more weeks of summer left for me, so I have to make sure to enjoy it as much as possible! Au revoir, bloggers!

Whole30 Wrap-Up

     While this is a little delayed, my Whole30 is over! It went well, and I am still sticking to it about 75% of the time, give or a take. For instance, tonight for dinner I had sausage, asparagus, sweet potato chips and eggs. It was delicious and "whole30 approved". However, I have definitely indulged in some good stuff, like good scout cookies - LOTS of girl scout cookies, since it has been over :)

     In conclusion to this Whole30, I did enjoy it, noticed some small changes in energy and sleeping. I felt better overall, but definitely still had some cravings. Unfortunately my headaches never completely went away, so I am still planning on going to the doctor at the end of this month and maybe a specialist in the next couple of months to try and figure out what the deal is. Body wise, I lost about 7 lbs and 3 inches in my waist. Not too shabby!

    I would recommend trying this program, it gave me a whole new insight on what I eat and made me much more aware of everything I was putting into my body. It really is true that you don't realize how much unnecessary junk you fill your body with until you are forced to really pay attention. Now, when I go to the store I fill my cart up with more fruits, good meats, and veggies over sugary things and carbs.

     On another note, it is Spring Break time, meaning I have an entire week to sit and do a lot of nothing. It could not have come fast enough. I plan on working on a lot of grad school stuff and getting a head start, but I won't be surprised if I only accomplish about half of my list. So far I have enjoyed a day at the park, brunch with Dave and his brother, a little shopping, and meeting the most precious little pup in the world. He is currently in a foster home and up for adoption. I saw him online and just knew I had to meet him. Luckily, he was at an adoption event at a pet store near by so we went and saw him. He was even more loveable in person. He is my dream dog, so it must be a sign! I have always wanted a chocolate lab, but don't want to go to a breeder for one. I am a firm believer in rescuing, especially since Maddie is a rescue. Would you just look at this face? How could you ever say no to it?!

I wasn't choking him out, he was busy smelling and wouldn't look up :)

Love at first sight.

Whole30 Day 20-25

Here are a few things I have been eating these last few days.

I made a delicious skirt steak using this recipe
I served it over spinach and/or kale and had enough for a few meals. I served it with either sweet potatoes, asparagus or even both depending how lazy I was feeling. I also browned some lean ground beef and mixed in some veggies and served it with an egg for dinner one night too. I am all about these quick recipes. I am getting more used to just going in my refrigerator and throwing some stuff together, haven't had a flop yet!

I also made a bacon, onion kale salad. I just cooked my bacon and onion in a pan, and then tossed in some kale to get some extra bacon/onion flavor and ate it just like that. It was super quick and easy, and filled me up!

I made myself another batch of homemade mayo to keep up with my tuna/chicken salad fixins, have eaten eggs in about any form you could imagine and have tried to up my veggie intake even more. Last night for dinner I sauteed broccoli, cauliflower and shrimp in olive oil, seasoned with a little salt and pepper. I figured I could afford to cut down on the red meat and eggs a little.

Tonight, I plan on having some sort of concoction similar to last night. Full of veggies and maybe throwing in a little chicken or shrimp, or both if I am feeling especially feisty.

I am also embarking on a workout journey tonight. I joined The Kroc last week with Dave. I am pretty pumped, it opened this weekend and I think it is really going to be a nice place, plus it solves my pool problem for the summer. We are going tonight to explore and I will get in a little work out too. Let's keep our fingers crossed that I don't die from participating in physical activity.

Hope you all have a wonderful week, and I will be back this weekend with my final update!

Bacon, onion, kale salad

Ground beef sauteed with kale and spinach, served with an egg and some sweet potatoes

My skirt steak served over spinach with sweet potatoes and asparagus

Whole30 Days 16-19

     Happy Tuesday and happy 19 days to me! I can finally start to see the light at the end of the tunnel. I have found some more new recipes, as well as stuck with some simple,basic ones that I find myself making over and over. Here is a quick update on my meals

Day 16
Meal 1: Inside Out Scotch Eggs
Meal 2: Homemade Tuna Salad
Meal 3: The last bit of my pot roast from valentine's day and asparagus

Day 17
Meal 1: Baked bacon wrapped eggs (heavenly), clementine, Sweet Potato Hash
Meal 2: Homemade chicken salad served over spinach
Meal 3: Sockeye salmon burger, baked sweet potato chunks, asparagus

Day 18
Meal 1: Swirly Crustless Quiche adapted from Practical Paleo
Here is the recipe I used, it lends itself to plenty of variation depending on what you like:

10 eggs, beaten
2 medium zucchini
Shredded carrots (a couple handfuls)
Fresh, chopped spinach (a couple handfuls)
1/2 lb Whole30 Approved Pork Sausage
Rosemary, thyme, sage, salt, pepper to taste

Preheat oven to 375
Mix all the veggies and seasonings in one bowl and let set.
Brown sausage and add to the veggie mixture.
Mix in eggs.
Coat the bottom of baking dish with olive oil (I used a 7x11 since I only used 10 eggs instead of 12, and it was plenty big enough!)
Pour mixture into baking dish and bake about 40-45 minutes, until a little golden brown around the edge.

Meal 2: Homemade chicken salad and an apple
Meal 3: Grilled chicken and asparagus

Day 19
Meal 1: Breakfast quiche
Meal 2: Homemade chicken salad served over spinach, blueberries
Meal 3: Shrimp over spinach, asparagus, baked sweet potato

     The breakfast quiche I made was the best idea ever (thanks to my brother). It makes enough to give me a quick, tasty breakfast for the week. I also like it because you can make it with pretty much anything in there you want. I plan on making it again for next week, and maybe throwing in some onion, kale, and bacon. I highly recommend giving it a try :)

     If you didn't notice, I ate a lot of chicken/tuna salad the last few days, but it has come to be a staple food for me, especially for lunch. I can make a big batch of it ahead of time and have it ready to go for lunch throughout the week. I can serve it plain, in lettuce wraps, over spinach, with some type of veggie, whatever. It is quick and easy which is what I need!

     Overall, I am feeling better. Headaches haven't subsided, but I can't say I am surprised. I have noticed I have a little more energy, but definitely not anything drastic. My sugar cravings have calmed down A LITTLE, but I would still do just about anything to get my hands on a cupcake, or reese's or cookie (11 more days)!! I have a few more recipes I plan on trying this week and next, and will keep you posted for those of you who are actually enjoying following along on this journey.

Do you have any recipes you think follow this program that you could share? Please feel free, I am always up to try something new out! Have a wonderful week!

Bacon Wrapped Eggs!

Salmon Burger with sweet potato chunks

My "Swirly Crustless Quiche"

Whole30 Days 11-15

Hello! Here is a quick check-in on my eats these last few days!

     I had a lot of the same things, so I am not going to go and repeat those each day, I will focus more on the newer things I tried out.

     I had my usual over-easy eggs and hard-boiled eggs for breakfast each day, and occasionally for lunch/dinner. I made a delicious chicken salad adapted from the tuna salad I made a few days ago. It was rather tasty. I plan on making a big batch of both chicken and tuna salad this weekend.

Homemade Chicken Salad: ( I didn't measure anything, just did it by taste and texture)
Boiled chicken breast (grass-fed)
Homemade, olive oil mayo
Splash of apple cider vinegar
Crushed almonds
Diced celery
Salt & Pepper
Paprika
Hard-boiled egg
Dijon Mustard

     One night for dinner, I made a random mix of sauteed chicken, shrimp, carrots, cauliflower, broccoli and served it over some fresh baby spinach. It was a quick and simple way to get my protein and veggies in.

     Valentine's Day was quite a challenge. So. many. sweets. everywhere! I wanted cookies, cupcakes, ice cream, etc. But I could not have a bite :( I had some left-over chicken salad and carrots for lunch, and was really ready to get home to the tasty dinner I was making. I ordered a 3lb, grass-fed, center cut shoulder roast and had it in the crock pot ALL DAY. Needless to say, when I walked in the house my mouth immediately started watering. It smelled heavenly. I didn't do anything special to it, just had it in there with onion, celery, carrot, salt, pepper, and fresh garlic and let it cook on low for about 8 hours, and then just turned it to warm the last house before I ate.

     Dave came over to celebrate our 5th Valentine's together, which I was happy about so I could share this delicious food with someone! I had the roast, and also made some baked sweet potato chunks and asparagus. My oh my, I don't normally brag on myself, but it was quite a delightful little meal if I do say so myself. Even Dave, who is not a fan of sweet potatoes, enjoyed it! Now, I am not going to lie and say I had no desire for a rich, delectable dessert, but I did refrain and caught up on some Modern Family to occupy my brain and sweet tooth.

     Today is officially the half-way mark for me. 15 days down. Overall, it has gone by pretty quickly, but there have been says (especially this week) that seem to go on forever. I was really hoping this sweet craving I am having would have subsided a little by now, but it has just intensified and really making things difficult. Hopefully I can stay strong and avoid the temptation of homemade cupcakes and cookies for 15 more days... not to mention Girl Scout Cookies!!!

     Headaches are still here, not as bad, but they haven't gone away either. Not sure if they will or not, either way, I really do feel better about how I am eating and plan to stick with it for the most part even after my 30 days are up. Given, I will still allow myself to eat sweets and peanut butter and cheese, I will just keep it to a minimum instead of 7 days a week.

Hope you all had a fabulous week and Valentine's Day. Have a great weekend, too!

Homemade Chicken Salad

Valentine's Dinner

Random chicken.shrimp, veggie mix over spinach

Monday Torture

This is what I have had to stare at. All day.
My willpower is nearing zero as the end of the day inches closer.
 I am hungry and needing a snack thanks to my 10:20 lunch schedule, but my normal fruit or veggie is in the refrigerator in the teacher's lounge.
I just need to make it about 10 more minutes. 10 more minutes of convincing myself they are not worth blowing the last 11 days of this Whole30!


I MUST GET OUT OF HERE!

Despite my usual fat kid instincts, I didn't have a single one 

Happy Monday, friends! Go enjoy a cookie (or 6) for me!

Whole30 Days 7-10

Hello all,
     I am back to write a quick post on some of my meals I have had in the last few days. Some new, some repeats, but nevertheless I am still holding strong!

Day 7
Meal 1: 2 eggs, clementine
Meal 2: leftover sautéed chicken, shrimp, and broccoli, carrots.

Snack: "You're the Top" Tuna Salad
Meal 3: 2 eggs, carrots, italian beef breakfast patties

Day 8
Meal 1: 1 hard boiled egg, Green Machine Naked Juice
Meal 2: 2 hard boiled eggs, pulled pork, and carrots
Meal 3: I really don't remember what I had, it was clearly nothing exciting or fancy!

Day 9
Meal 1: Crab Cake Benedict

Meal 2: Zucchini Chips, apple
Meal 3: New York strip, baked sweet potatoes, salad

Day 10 (I was busy today and DID NOT eat enough, plus I was out of eggs so breakfast was even less)
Meal 1:  1 hard boiled egg
Meal/Snack 2: Almonds, apple, clementine, Green Machine
Meal 3: Tuna salad adapted from the one above. I made it with tuna, crushed almonds, diced celery, 2 tbsp homemade mayo, a little dijon mustard, splash of apple cider vinegar, hard boiled egg, salt & pepper. DELICIOUS! Plus, it made enough to eat for lunch tomorrow.

My status: I'm still sleeping really well. I feel like I wake up a little more easily these days with a bit more energy, but nothing drastic. My headaches are still there, but much less intrusive into my daily activities. I have definitely lost some weight, not sure how much, but all of my clothes fit better and my stomach is a bit flatter than it normally is. I am debating weighing myself even though it says not to during the program. They tell you not to so that people don't lose motivation to keep going. However, I was never doing this program to primarily lose weight, that would just be an added bonus. So I am not going to quit because of that. I will let y'all know if I decide to weigh myself :)

Proud Moment(s): I have successfully been surrounded by cupcakes, chick-fil-a chicken biscuits, cookies, BBQ nachos, and peanut butter and have not given in at all. It was not easy, but I felt like it was a major accomplishment to literally not give into temptation even once! 

Hope you all have had an amazing weekend, and have an even better week.

May not look pretty, but my crab cakes were delish.

Crab Cake Benedict sans Hollandaise Sauce (that just didn't turn out for me)

My favorite discovery, zucchini chips (before)

Finished Baked Zucchini Chips

My version of "You're the Top" tuna salad

Whole30 Days 5-6

Here I am, 6 days into my Whole30 adventure. Here is a quick update on my meals the last couple of days.

Day 5: (Overall pretty boring, used some leftovers and had to have a quick dinner due to other plans)
Meal 1: 2 eggs and a clementine
Meal 2: Hamburger, 2 hard boiled eggs, carrots
Meal 3: Lettuce wraps (ground beef cooked with onion and celery, seasoned salt/pepper/garlic/cumin)

Day 6:
Meal 1: 2 eggs and a clementine
Meal 2: Left-over lettuce wraps, celery, apple
Meal 3: Sautéed seasoned chicken, shrimp, onion, & broccoli in olive oil and asparagus

Today, however, marks a turn around! I had two exciting events take place: 
1) I got my order of meat from U.S Wellness Meats
2) I attempted and was successful in making my first batch of Homemade Mayo 
 These 2 things open a lot of doors as far as what I can eat and cook in the coming weeks. I found some good tuna, chicken, cucumber, and egg salad recipes which will keep me from getting in a food rut.

     As far as how I am feeling, I have found that I am sleeping better at night, I fall asleep almost instantly and don't toss and turn throughout the night. My energy levels haven't really changed, and as far as my headaches, I haven't notice a huge difference yet. I still have them, but I have noticed they are not as intense as usual. I haven't had anymore grouchy days since Sunday, thankfully.

     I will post again sometime this weekend. I can't wait for it to be here, that's for sure! I am lucky enough to have been invited to see Mary Poppins at the Orpheum with my friend, Abby. I cannot wait! Until next time, I will leave you with some food documentation.

My order of meat and seafood!

Day 6, Meal 3: Chicken, shrimp, broccoli and a side of asparagus

My homemade mayo

 

Whole 30: Days 1-4

Good evening!

     I am 4 days into the Whole30 program. It is not nearly as bad as I was expecting... but I don't want to speak to soon. Here is a break down of what I have had so far each day. I haven't done a ton of experimenting yet, but I am looking forward to trying new recipes and combinations. So far out of the 3 or 4 new things I have tried, I can thankfully say only one has been a major bust (lemon chicken). So here it is:

*Day 1: ( I was not at all prepared for this day, it kind of snuck up on me, so I did not have anything exciting!
-Meal 1: carrots, 2 hard boiled eggs, pineapple
-Snack: Green Machine Naked Juice
-Meal 2/3: 3 hard boiled eggs, grilled chicken breast

*Day 2: 
-Meal 1: 2 hard boiled eggs and an apple
-Meal 2: Beef & onion stuffed zucchini
-Snack: Clementine
-Meal 3: Tilapia and asparagus

*Day 3:
-Meal 1: 3 scrambled eggs & shredded zucchini, mixed with leftover meat mixture from my stuffed zucchini and shredded zucchini & a clementine
-Meal 2: Tilapia seasoned with ginger, garlic, salt & pepper, cooked in coconut oil. Served over mixture of sautéed carrots, cauliflower, and brocoli
-Meal 3: Hamburger (no bun), zucchini chips, celery & carrots

*Day 4:
-Meal 1: 2 eggs and a clementine
-Meal 2: Hamburger (no bun), 2 hard boiled eggs, and some carrots
-Meal 3: Lemon chicken, garlic mashed cauliflower , and asparagus

    So far I haven't made anything too out of the ordinary, or had a chance to really experiment. However, I ordered 8+ lbs of meat/seafood/poultry, etc. and it should be here in the next day or so which will open up a lot of options. I have a lot of recipes I plan to try, so it won't be this boring all of the time. I'll put pictures of some of those meals mentioned above at the end.

Things I will definitely make again:
-Beef & onion stuffed zucchini 
(I used this recipe, just didn't do the rice aspect because I didn't have cauliflower at the time I made it)
-Garlic mashed cauliflower
-Zucchini chips

Not giving this another go:
-Lemon Chicken (at least not the recipe I tried out)
-Tilapia: I had never had it before, and figured now would be a good time to give it a try. I am just not a fan, I have tried it a couple of different ways and while I did eat it, I just don't think I would waste my money buying it again. I will stick to salmon!

    As far as my mood/energy, I haven't notice too much of a difference other than yesterday (day 3). I was really tired and grouchy for some reason. I really have no idea why I was grouchy, I was literally sitting there thinking to myself that I had no reason to be, but couldn't get myself out of that mood. However, I woke up this morning feeling about normal so hopefully that awful mood stays away! I will be back in a few days with another update, I will try to make it more exciting than this one!

Day 2, Meal 2: Beef and onion stuffed zucchini

Day 3, Meal 1: Scrambled eggs with shredded zucchini and left over meat&onion from stuffed zucchini

Day 3, Meal 2: Tilapia over veggies

Day 4, Meal 3: Lemon chicken. garlic mashed cauliflower, and asparagus

Whole30

Happy Saturday, bloggers!

     I have very recently embarked on a new journey, as in I literally just started yesterday. It is called the Whole30 program.

Have any of you heard of this program? Tried it? Looked at it and thought the people were crazy and went on your merry way?

Never heard of it? Check out the site to learn more: http://whole9life.com/2012/08/the-whole30-program/

     The gist of the program is that you remove grains, dairy, alcohol, legumes, sugar/artificial sweeteners, white potatoes, carrageenan, and sulfites from your diet for 30 days. No cheat days, no slips, it is all out. I don't look at this as a diet, AT ALL. It is more a way to make healthier choices, while becoming more aware of what you are putting in your body. After the 30 days (sometimes it takes longer depending on the person and circumstances), your body has "reset", and rid itself of the years and years of junk you have overindulged in. You can slowly begin to reintroduce those foods into your diet, and you can ultimately see what kind of effect they have on you.

     The thing that caught my attention the most were the testimonials, and one in particular. It was about people who have had headaches and migraines for years and after doing this program, their headaches had diminished. For those of you who don't know, I have been battling headaches every day for the last 8 or so years, so no wonder this stood out to me. The thought of going without a headache for a whole day leaves me speechless. I would not even know what to do with myself. Once I looked into it on my own, I talked to my brother more about it and he sent me the book It Starts With Food , that really goes more in depth in explaining the reasoning behind all of this and why cutting out those food groups can make such a difference. In no way do they say you should never have those things again, but those foods and additives have so much power over how your body works, from daily battles with cravings to medical issues. Once I read through the book, it just made even more sense. I would highly recommend just reading it, even if you have no desire to do the program, it really puts things into perspective!

     I plan on blogging my experience, recipes, etc as I go, mostly as a way to track my progress. And hey, who knows - maybe I will even convince one of you to give it a try! I can say that tomorrow may be the biggest challenge of the 30 days considering it is Super Bowl Sunday, good timing on my part! If I make it through that, I think I will be fine :)

     Stay tuned and I will post my first few days of meals/recipes soon, as well as any other changes I notice in energy, attitude, appearance, etc. I won't be posting any weight loss, because one of the stipulations to this program is that you are not allowed to step on a scaled or take any measurements for the duration of the 30 days. However, if I start losing some weight I am sure I will be able to tell simply by how clothes fit and how I am feeling. Wish me luck, you guys! I really hope I am able to come back in 29 days with some great news and changes!

Enjoy the Super Bowl, eat up and have a drink for me ;)

Lately

     Oh my stars, it has been ages since I have blogged! I was really going to try and do better, especially sharing all of the house updates we did, but then life just got in the way (in a mostly positive way, of course). I last blogged in August, at the very beginning of a new school year in a new grade and the start of my Masters program. Because I don't want to sit here and ramble on and on, here is a quick run down of my life since then:

*Started teaching in a new grade, with a class of 18 students which is totally different from last year.
*Began my masters program at Arizona State University (online)
*Went to Charlotte, NC for a beer festival with my family and to visit my cousin that lives there
*Concluded my year of being a bridesmaid with my last two friends tying the knot in October
*Hosted the first gathering at my house on Halloween
*Ventured to Nashville to take Dave to the Bears v Titans game for his 23rd birthday
*Visited Arrington Vineyards in Franklin, TN -- which was beautiful!
*Ventured to Lynchburg and Tullahoma with two good friends to explore the George Dickel distillery and Jack Daniels distillery. We also stayed in this quaint Bed and Breakfast that was just perfect!
*Enjoyed Thanksgiving with my wonderful family
*Watched David become a graduate of the University of Memphis :)
*Earned a 4.0 in my first semester of my masters program
*Enjoyed Christmas with my whole family, my brother flew down with his pup and spent 10 days here!
*Hosted my first dinner party for 13 people. Cooked 60 Italian Spinach Meatballs, spaghetti, and Italian spinach + a few delectable desserts
*Ventured to Cherokee Village, Arkansas and stayed in a cabin on Thunderbird lake with 9 other people to ring in the New Year

     That is pretty much a summary of the last 5 months of my life. Overall, they have been great, especially the little trips that I was able to take. There have absolutely been some down times, but that is life and it is what ultimately makes us all appreciate the good times even more.

     I am not one for New Year's Resolutions, as I always tend to break them within about 13 seconds. So this year I have taken a new route. I am simply going to strive to be better. That leaves me with a lot of options of how I can be better, whether it is being more active, cooking more, listening better, reading more, saving money, etc. By leaving it vague and open to interpretation, I can't really break any "resolution". As long as I am always doing something, no matter how small, to better myself then I will consider it a success. I am looking forward to a new year and a new beginning. Hopefully I will be a little better about blogging so I am able to share some of the fun times with my few, yet faithful followers! With all of that being said, I will leave you with a few end of the year pictures.

Happy 2013, y'all!

Tacky Christmas

My sweet Mildred flew in from New York to spend Christmas with us!

Peppermint Oreo Balls for the dinner party.

Merry Christmas from these sweet girls

View from our cabin for New Years

Some of the group

New Years Eve

HAPPY NEW YEAR!