A positively perfect day

Today I want to rant about POSITIVITY and happy-happy, joy-joy type goodness. I was in a special mood yesterday. I'm sure my post made that painfully obvious. Or did I hide it well? Either way, apologies my lovely (and patient) readers!! We all have those days! I'm in a much better mood today. So much so that I would like to declare today positively perfect day! I have some personal matters that I'm currently "handling" and they had me bit frazzled yesterday. I'm happy to report that as of this morning, things seem to be moving into the right direction. I'll share all the details with you once I get it all sorted out. Just know that as of right now, everything is just peachy keen.

BREAKFAST (meal #1) at 9:00am.

I swear my oats tasted better than usual. It probably has something do with the absent stress monster that was clinging to my weary back yesterday. AHHH! I'm in such a good mood!

• 1/2 cup old fashioned oats
• 1/4 wheat bran
• 1 1/2 cups water
• dash cinnamon
• dash apple pie spice
• pinch salt
• Splenda to taste
• 1 tbs flax
• 1 tbs Trader Joe's pumpkin butter

I completely forgot how much I ADORE this sweet and creamy pumpkin butter. It was SO good with the oats. Now if I could only stock up on canned pumpkin and add that to the mix as well. That would be amazing! I've been hording one large can of pumpkin at home and I'm scared to open it. I know once I eat it, that will be the last of it. I'M SCARED TO LET GO! I can't find the stuff ANYWHERE right now! I've been looking for months! IT'S A CONSPIRACY!

LUNCH (meal #2) at 12:15pm.

I'm a lover of leftovers. I'm also a lover of cabbage. This made packing lunch for today a no brainer. I had the slaw-cauliflower combo leftover from last night and topped it off with a black bean veggie burger from Morning Star Farms. It was SERIOUSLY amazing! I enjoyed it way more than my dinner last night. Sometimes the trick is to just let your food hang out in the fridge overnight. Magical things can happen inside refrigerated tupperware. MAGICAL!


On our break away from the office today we were on a secret mission. It may or may NOT have involved Birthday purchases for a certain fantastical Papa. Mr. wonderful will be celebrating his eternal youth on the 21st. HI PAPA! You know I love to torture you so. ;)

SNACK (meal #3) at 4:15pm.

I had the pleasure of another Dannon strawberry Greek yogurt today. I'm loving these little sweet treats. Great flavor, creamy texture and 12g protein. SOLD!


After work it was off to the gym for my weekly LAST CHANCE workout before weigh in tomorrow morning. I know most people HATE scales but that square little devil sure keeps my ass in check. For me, weighing in weekly (though lightweight stressful) just works. Of course this method doesn't work for everyone and you should always do what makes you comfortable. To some people this means tossing the scale out the window or burning it in a ritualistic ceremony. HA!

WORKOUT!

Elliptical Cross Trainer, 1 hour, 5.1 miles, 716 calories
1-5 min., (level 6)
6-10 min., (level 7)
11-15 min., (level 8)
16-20 min., (level 9)
21-25 min., (level 10)
26-30 min., (level 11)
31-35 min., (level 12)
36-40 min., (level 11)
41-45 min., (level 10)
46-50 min., (level 9)
51-55 min., (level 8)
56-60 min., (level 7)

GOOD GRIEF! I thought the hour would never end!! People that find an hour on the elliptical to be "fun" or "easy" are either crazy, or great liars. Maybe one day cardio will grow on me. Until then I will openly HATE IT and FORCE it.

SNACK (meal #4) at 7:45pm.

I got home later than usual from the gym. I had to make a quick stop and Mama and Papa Babushkas house to pick something up. By the time I walked in the house I just had no desire to mess with the whole smoothie making process. I opted for a fudge brownie Jay Robb protein bar instead. I LOVED IT! It was dense, chewy, chocolaty without being too sweet and just plain tasty!


The stats were pretty nice too with 14g protein, 6g fiber and 220 calories. The carbs were a bit higher than I like at 23g but not bad overall. I would totally have this again. I give it a 9 out of 10.

DINNER (meal #5) at 9:00pm.

While devouring the bar, I also started prepping my dinner. Mama Babushka hooked me up with some brussel sprouts during my quick visit after the gym. I completely depleted my veggie stash at home because I've been on some sort of a vegetable kick this week. CAN'T GET ENOUGH! In a last minute desperate attempt I politely asked my Mama if she had any to spare. Of course she did. LOVE HER!

I seasoned the brussel sprouts with sea salt, black pepper and cayenne and tossed them on a cookie sheet sprayed with Pam. I decided to bake the last of my orange cauliflower as well. You know, just to cover all of my veggie bases. For some protein I tossed a jalapeno chicken sausage in with the veggies as well. SO EASY! Of course I drizzled some Sriracha on top as well. I need my heat!


Well that's it beautiful people. I'm going to call it a night and maybe watch an episode of Dexter before crashing. We're already done with season 1. I LOVE IT!

I'll fill you in on my weigh in and how I did last week in my usual Sassy Friday Update Style. Have a great night.

XOXOXO
Ildie

A foodie fairytale

Why hello there. Happy Saturday! It's been a productive and fun one for me. YEAH!

It all started a long, long time ago. In a kitchen far, far away. In a magical place known as Babushka Land. The lovely Rambling Maiden awoke from her sweet slumber and thought to herself, now what shall I have for breakfast? Oatmeal? No, too typical. Cereal? No, too cold! Then suddenly, a vision of pure breakfast perfection appeared to her out of thin air. Spicy breakfast burrito!! Her diligent yet delicate hands whisked the egg whites, added the ground sausage and cooked both to perfection. With wild yet beautiful eyes, she piled them high atop her flax infused wrap and smothered it all in a secret spicy sauce. Oh the Maiden was pleased with her creation.

• 1 flax and whole grain FlatOut
• 3 egg whites
• 1 serving Morning Star Farms sausage crumbles
• salt & pepper to taste
• Sriracha sauce

Breakfast was served with a mug of hot, delectable brew. Sweetened with the new love in her life.

• Large espresso made with Chocolate Chip Cookie flavored coffee
• 1 packet Stevia in the raw
• 2 tbs Sugar Free creamer
• dash cinnamon

Babushka Land was abuzz with the delight of this magnificent feast. Joy filled the hills as the fair people frolicked about. All was well, for the fair Maiden was full, both with joy and in belly.

HA! Okay, enough with the Maiden talk. After breakfast it was off to the gym for an early morning sweat session. This workout was out of this world. I fear I may be sore by tomorrow. It was similar to the same workout I did last Saturday BUT EVEN BETTER. Last Saturdays workout left me super sore clear into Tuesday! :-O (scared)

Treadmill Warm up - 5 min.
5 Incline, 3.2 speed
Seated Leg Curl (cable)
90lb x 15
90lb x 15
80lb x 15
Squats
x15
Leg Extension (cable)
90lb x 15
90lb x 15
80lb x 15
Squats
x15
Hack Squat (plate loaded)
30lb x 15
30lb x 15
30lb x 15
Squats
x15
Single Leg Pres (plate loaded)
90lb x 15 (each leg)
100lb x 15 (each leg)
100lb x 15 (each leg)
Plié Squat (heels together)
x15
x15
x15
Stiff Legged dead lift
45lb x 15
45lb x 15
45lb x 15
Elliptical - 30 min.
Uphill Challenge
Resistance 3-16
410 calories burned

After this AWESOME workout I came home and quickly made myself a Green Monster Smoothie.

• 1 cup unsweetened vanilla Almond Breeze
• 5 frozen strawberries
• 1 medium banana
• 1 scoop chocolate whey protein powder
• 2 cups spinach
• 1 packet Stevia in the raw
• 1/4 tsp xanthan gum (I'm a cool kid now)

It was SO good! Rich, super creamy and very filling. However, it left me feeling frozen to the core so I decided to take a HOT bath as soon as I chugged this baby down. After my bubbly adventure, I made a nice cup of green tea. Which was enjoyed in my lovely and stupid yellow dog mug. HA!


As soon as the tea was gone I indulged with a laundry party. I'M LYING! I had three loads to do. Amazing, considering only two of us live here. ???? BAH!

Lunch/Meal #3 was all sorts of delicious! I decided to make spicy, Asian infused broccoli slaw with chicken sausage.

Into a skillet I tossed an entire bag of broccoli slaw.


An onion.


Broccoli florets. (about 1 cup)


And a handful of sugar snap peas.


I added low sodium soy sauce, teriyaki sauce and spicy Thai chili paste to the party as well along with some spray butter.


A few pictures of the whole happy family, pre-cooking.


While the veggies simmered in the covered pot, I cut a Trader Joe's jalapeno chicken sausage in half and slowly seared it till golden in frying pan with Pam. By the time it was done, so were the veggies. And here you have it. Perfection topped off with a bit of Sriracha.


After lunch I did laundry load 2 of 3 and cleaned the house up a bit. Busy, busy. Nick eventually forced me to take a break and we curled up on the couch for a while watching his beloved home renovation shows. Signs of aging perhaps? HA! I took this TV watching opportunity and popped a bag of fat free popcorn, which I split with Nick. I seasoned my half with a packet of Stevia, cinnamon, sea salt and a bit of spray butter. SO GOOD! I used to eat this stuff all the time. No idea why I stopped. My popped tasty treat was enjoyed with another cup of green tea.


When dinnertime rolled around I decided to make a loaded little salad. Man I DO love me a good salad! It contained spinach, a sliced apple, a Morning Star Farms black bean burger, sugar snap peas, chick peas and Feta with a bit of fresh cracked black pepper and spray butter. WOW! I know this combination sounds a bit weird but I absolutely loved it. I'll be having this again!


I just finished laundry load 3 of 3 (I'm FREE) and think we're about to watch a movie next. Oliver is CLEARLY ready to cuddle and call it a night. He's been acting like an out of control attention whore all day today. SO CUTE!

Muew, muew, pfffft and all that jazz!

Back to reality

As Sunday evening comes to an end I find myself reminiscing over this lovely Holiday Season. I gaze upon the empty wall where my Christmas tree stood just a few days ago and already I feel a deep void. I'm now left with only a cold, brutal and gloomy winter season. No more Christmas. No more New Years. No more Vacation. It's officially over. Work and my normal schedule starts again tomorrow and there's nothing I can do about it. Except cry, whine, kick, groan and moan. WHAAAAA! WHAAAAA! WHAAAAA!

Alright, I feel a bit better. This is the part of winter that I hate the most. It's the coldest, darkest, snowiest and most miserable stretch of three months EVER!

Moving on. Enough complaining! Breakfast today was a bit different. I wasn't craving oatmeal or eggs so I decided to have yogurt.

I made a yogurt mess with Weight Watchers Boston cream pie yogurt, banana and a small handful of pomegranate granola. I also had a toasted English muffin with fat free peach jam on one side and Trader Joe's pumpkin butter on the other. It was all delicious!


After breakfast I worked on some laundry and hung out with the Mr. before getting ready to visit Mama and Papa for lunch. I decided to take a delicious salad from home to have for lunch. The original plan was to cook up some Shrimp which I had taken out of the freezer to thaw in the morning. However, once they thawed out something about them just seemed "off" and "not fresh" so SADLY I had to toss them out. Instead I grabbed a Morning Star Farms black bean burger which I crumpled on top of the following...

• Baby Spinach
• Sweet Butter Lettuce
• Black Beans
• Fat Free Mozarella Cheese
• English Muffin (toasted and crumbled for "croutons")
• Spray Butter
• Red pepper flakes
• Black pepper

I love this combo. Lunch was VERY good. After my salad we played some Yahtzee, chatted and enjoyed a nice cup of coffee. I also brought over the leftover brownies that I made on Friday for everyone to enjoy. I thought it best to get them out of the house so they weren't there to tempt me. That and Nick isn't into sweets and they would've just gone to waist. I can't even lie, I had one. It went unphotographed though. What can I say, IT HAPPENED SO FAST! Maybe going back to work next week isn't such a bad thing. I need to get back into the swing of my regular schedule of meals and workouts and stop with the excuses and the mini splurges. Now don't get me wrong, I have NOT been feasting on cake, frosting, fried chicken or drippy cheesy fries. However, I have not been eating as clean as I usually do, drinking enough water or working out 5x a week. BAH! I think I only worked out 3x in the last 9 and the last time I made it to the gym was on Tuesday! I FEEL LIKE A SLUG!


Also, I CLEARLY did NOT update you on my weigh in this Friday. Why not? Because I decided to skip the weigh in this week. I figured that I only do this once a year and I deserve to have a good time, splurge and relax a bit and not stress myself out about it. I will weigh myself next Friday and if I lose 1.9 pounds I will still count it towards my mini end of year goal of 35 pounds lost. I know it will be the 8th when I weigh myself which is obviously not the end of the year but that's okay. Let's just say I'm "IMPROVISING"! ;)

Dinner was simple tonight. My Mama sent breaded chicken and butter rice for Nick to have for dinner and I was craving sweet potato fries. I put a batch of fries in the oven and tossed in a Chicken Sausage as well. CATASTROPHE hit when I plated up my food. I REALIZED I WAS OUT OF KETCHUP. OMG! I WAS SO SAD! Instead I dipped the fries in fat free maple syrup and I dipped the sausage into Sriracha sauce. It turned out okay. Disaster averted!


For a DELICIOUS snack later I enjoyed a scrumptious 18Rabbits granola bar. I received a sample of their new flavor (Belle Bananas Foster) to try.

HOLY YUM! This bar made me want to swoon and sing with delight. It was absolutely delicious! I've said it before and I will say it again, this brand is super tasty and I have yet to be disappointed. Find it, buy it and eat it immediately! I give this bar a 10 out of 10. As with all the other bars I've had the pleasure of trying, it was rich, moist, chewy, bursting with flavor with a great texture. Excellent!! Thanks for the sample 18Rabbits!

I think Nick and I will play some games before heading to bed. Speaking of bed, I better make sure to get to sleep early tonight. The alarm is set for tomorrow whether I'm ready or not. It's time to get back to reality, bright and early.

Have a great night!

Lost or stolen? To be continued!!!

It's Saturday and I woke up feeling Sassy and TIRED. I slept like poop! I must have woken up at least 15 times last night. Unable to get comfortable, I kept tossing and turning. My leg was hurting again. Stupid bum leg! It's like a dull annoying ache I feel only when I sit for too long with my legs under me or if I lay on my sides when I sleep. And I hate sleeping on my back! So needless to say, I woke up a bit moody. I decided to make a cozy breakfast of warm goodness hoping that it would soothe and calm me down a bit.

• 1/4 cup old fashioned oats
• 1/3 cracked wheat
• 1 cup water (roughly, sorry, I eyeballed it)
• Splenda
• cinnamon

I microwaved this goodness and then topped it with just one tablespoon of crunchy almond butter. Oh my! This was delicious, creamy and rich with a bit of a crunch from the almond butter. It was so filling that I couldn't even finish it.


Of course I enjoyed it with a nice cup of coffee which I flavored with sugar free caramel syrup and plain fat free creamer.


Before I knew it, the time to head to gym had arrived. I rushed around to get dressed as usual and somehow got there on time. While in the locker room, I kept digging around for my MP3 player. It wasn't in the purse, in my pockets or in the car. I knew I didn't see it at home either. Well surely this wouldn't help my mood! With a heavy heart and angry little steps I shuffled upstairs to warm up on the bike and then it hit me. My battery died on me last Thursday while I was on the treadmill and I took it off and placed it in one of the water bottle holders. That was the last place I saw it. So of course like an idiot, I started looking for it in the cardio room. GONE! A girl on one of the eliptical machines saw me looking for something and ODDLY ENOUGH asked if it was an MP3 player with pink earpieces. YES I screamed with excitement, that's the one. She said she found it on the treadmill last Thursday and turned it in at the front desk to the girl that was working that night. So happily with a slight skip in my step I walked back down to ask them for it. Dude behind the desk looked in all the drawers and found nothing. He said he would call his bosses and see if they knew anything. Well as my luck would have it, neither knew JACK! Just lovely! The girl that was working on Thursday, of course, was not there. I told them I would be back to the gym on Monday and would check in again. This gives them 1.5 days to sort it all out. I don't want this event to leave a bad taste in my mouth because I love this gym. GRRRR!!!! I will hope for the best and update you all on Monday. To be continued.................

When I got home I was two things! Freezing and starving!! I warmed up with another cup of coffee and decided to have breakfast for lunch. I made a veggie, egg white and cheese omelet and had an English muffin on the side.

• 4 egg whites
• 1 green onion (chopped)
• 1 small tomato (chopped)
• handful of green peppers (chopped)
• 1/2 cup mushrooms (sliced)
• 1 serving fat free shredded cheddar cheese
• salt & pepper to taste

I cooked the egg whites, stuffed it with the cheese and veggies and then topped it with a little bit of hot mango habanero salsa. TASTY!


After lunch I cleaned myself up and then we were off for MORE COSTUME SHOPPING! This year is killing me. Why can't people plan ahead? WHY!!!???? Nick was looking for a TON of stuff and we were running all over town, yet again. The long list is below, as well as our found and purchased hit rate.

• Cowboy boots - NO LUCK!
• Belt - NO LUCK (but he has one which "could" work)
• Cowboy hat - PURCHASED at costume shop.
• Fake gun - NO LUCK!
• Long trench coat - NO LUCK!
• Jean button up shirt - PURCHASED at the Thrift.
• BAD tapered leg Jeans - NO LUCK (but he has one which "could" work)
• Suede Vest - NO LUCK!
• Wig - NO LUCK!

Yes, this means that we are not done shopping. Nick said he would go out tomorrow while I was visiting the folks to try and purchase the rest. OH I HOPE HE DOES! To tell you the truth, between Ann and him, I'm all costume shopped out! I'M AT MY LIMIT!

By the time we got home it was dark and I was starving. I wanted something quick for dinner so I decided to cook up one of those Al Fresca Chicken sausages I purchased a few weeks ago. Nick decided to have hot dogs topped with chili sauce. YAY FOR SIMPLE! I finally found some wheat hot dog buns last week and we used them for dinner. Surprisingly, they were difficult to find. I also made a salad on the side with spring mix, chick peas, black beans, tomatoes, green onions, raw slaw mix, Melba bagel crisps, salt, pepper, red pepper and spray butter instead of dressing. Please don't get grossed out. It's not like I SMOTHER the salad in the spray butter. I just add a little bit and I swear it just makes everything taste so freaking amazing! I have like 10 different salad dressings at home and I can't bring myself to use them instead of this magical little spray butter bottle of love. SO GOOD!


After dinner we curled up to watch Adventureland. It got a pretty high rating on www.rottentomatoes.com and Nick refuses to watch anything that's rated low. I loved it. What a CUTE movie! I'm such a sucker for sappy stuff. ;)

For a little snack halfway through the movie I had a small handful of chocolate animal crackers. I love these crunchy little four legged critters!


And now I'm sleepy so I'm going to say goodnight. Here's to hoping that I sleep good tonight. I NEED IT!