the denia interlude

I've Moved!

2009-12-05T15:59:00.002-05:00

I've moved my blog to make it more conducive to food blogging.

Blogger has been fun, but I'm moving on.

You can find me in an apartment near Chinatown.

peace, love and snow.

BRRR!

2009-12-02T19:10:00.006-05:00

It's December 2nd and I have yet to turn on the heat in my apartment. I'm so cheap when it comes to my electric bill, so I just throw on a sweatshirt or grab ~~my boyfriend~~ a blanket. The one problem with no heat is that if I get hot in the middle of the night, I shed some clothing and then come morning time, I'm too cold to get out of bed! (Note to self: stop starting blogs off with how much you hate getting out of bed)

For breakfast, I had a bowl of oats (soy, water, half a banana and cashew butter) and an orange-mango-goji smoothie.

Two days ago I threw a handful of goji berries into a pint glass of water. The berries plumped up and softened, turning the water a reddish-brown color. I threw the water and gojis into the blender with a splash of OJ and a couple pieces of frozen mango. I took it to go so I could drink the cold smoothie while blasting the heat in my car.

MMS: Handful of Kashi Go Lean and Pumpkin Spice tea

Lunch did not go according to plan. I had a lovely salad prepared, but that will have to wait until tomorrow because I got this text from my dad at 11:40: Want to meet @ Chipotle in 15 mins across from your office?

Oh no. There are two things I just can't say no to...Family and Chipotle. My dad scooped me at work and we met up with my mom. I got a veggie burrito bowl. I always mean to get the salad, but it's cold and rainy and I wanted something hearty. My bowl had black beans, tomato salsa, hot and mild salsa, corn, guac and lettuce. YUM! I saved some of the bowl for dinner.

Afternoon Snack: Honey Oikos Greek Yogurt (I honestly didn't think I'd need a snack after lunch, but I was wrong)

Dinner: Leftover Chipotle on a bed of spinach with a little cheese.

Dessert: Cut up apple with cinnamon raisin PB and cinnamon

Last night I was able to get to the gym, take a shower and put my Christmas tree up before 9! That meant when z got there, I was ready to relax!

Ok, I know it's a little pathetic ~~and right in front of the intake~~, but I've got to work with the space I have!

Off to do hopefully do a podcast and wash some dishes!

It's December?

2009-12-01T19:30:00.004-05:00

Oh, I guess that would explain why it was so darn cold this morning!

I love my bed so much that I can never seem to get out of it when I need to. This morning wasn't as bad as yesterday, and I was up before my auto-brewed coffee had even finished filling the carafe :) Since I had showered, made my lunch and picked out my ~~school~~ clothes last night, I was able to sit down and have some coffee and oats while reading a cookbook.

B: Oats (water and soy), melted banana, cinnamon raisin PB with coffee and hazelnut Silk creamer

MMS: Honeycrisp ~~Apple Cider~~ Apple

L: Spinach salad with cottage cheese, wafer carrots and leftover tofurky (does not look appetizing); Apple Goji Yogurt

S: Chocolate Chip Z Bar, Sugar Cookie Sleigh Ride tea

Pre-Dinner Snack: Cheese and "salami" rollup.
For dinner, I was craving french toast. No idea why... So I made Arnold Sandwich Thins French Toast with egg whites, silk creamer, vanilla, and cinnamon.

Topped with half a banana and maple syrup. Yummy!!

Lately I have realized that I don't really watch my sugar intake. I focus on seeing low calorie and low/no fat on labels much more than I look at grams of sugar. Why is this a problem? Sugar that isn't burned off ultimately turns in to fat! Duh! Yogurt is where I'm having the biggest dilemma...I really enjoy yogurt and it's so delicious, but do I compromise flavor and health benefits just to lower the amount of ~~money I spend~~ sugar I consume?

Yogurt Comparison:

Fat Free Honey Chobani ($1.00+) - 6oz, 150 calories, 20g sugar, 16g protein, 20% calcium, no gelatin, no artificial flavors or preservatives, thick and yummy

vs.

Lucerne Light Yogurt Apple Goji ($0.50) - 6oz, 90 calories, 10g sugar, 5g protein, 4% calcium, contains kosher gelatin, sweetened with Splenda, runny and fake tasting

It seems like an obvious choice, but 20g is a LOT of sugar and paying over a dollar for 6 ounces seems insane. Ugh...

Other things of note:

In case you were worried, today is the end of the Atlantic hurricane season.
I was here a year ago: http://peaceonuniverse.livejournal.com/2008/12/02/
I need to shop here: http://www.adogslife.net/index.htm

It's almost 8 and I need to go to the gym and shower before z gets here at 9...ahh!

Happy Tuesday from an apartment near Chinatown!

ravenous.

2009-11-30T20:56:00.006-05:00

After Bootcamp, I'm usually really hungry and tonight was no different.

I microwaved some egg whites and toasted two sandwich thins to make a sandwich.

Bread.Ketchup.Hot Sauce.Cheese.Vegan Salami.Egg Whites.Bread.

Holy cow! Even though I burnt my toast, it was still an awesome sandwich :)

I quickly followed this with a bowl of Kashi Go Lean cereal with soy milk.

As if that wasn't enough, I had a couple bites of the vegan chocolate banana ice cream I made last night.

The liquid mixture.

Getting frosty!

Ready to eat!

To ~~warm up my cold hands~~ finish off the night I had some Sugar Cookie Sleigh Ride tea. I finally found the seasonal teas!!

I went to the gym Friday, Saturday and today, but I think I need to go tomorrow to get myself on a better routine. I'm a work in progress...

On a side ~~love~~ note: I get to see my boyfriend tomorrow!

goodnight.

He's back!

2009-11-29T20:08:00.004-05:00

z is finally home! I really missed him.

We spent the weekend together and he sectioned my grapefruit for me again :)

The end <3

Dia de las Gracias!

2009-11-28T14:28:00.016-05:00

Thanksgiving is probably my favorite holiday! Lots of family, food, and fun!

My parents let me sleep in Thursday morning which was awesome. I had a "C"themed breakfast of coffee, a clementine and a chocolate chip cookie :) Before we really started anything, my mom and I took Zeus on a nice long walk in the cold.

I started "Grandma Redmon's Cranberry Sauce" right away. This is the second Thanksgiving without her. After grandaddy died, I was the only one she made the cranberries for, so I knew I wanted to be the one to make it this year.

I started by rinsing the fresh cranberries and picking off the stems.

In a pot, I brought one cup of sugar, 1/2 cup OJ and 1/2 cup water to a boil. Once it came to a boil, I added the fresh cranberries. They instantly started to pop!

I stirred them for a few minutes then took them off the heat to let them cool and get jelly-like.

They turned out so beautifully...and they were super tasty!

Then it was time to peel and cut the carrots for roasting. They were tall, skinny and gorgeous, so I told my mom they were "model carrots."

Tofurkey prep time!

Because I had fresh sage on hand, I decided to do the recommended baste on the side of the box.
Hey pajama pants!
Hey Tofurkey!

Butternut squash and carrots getting ready for roasting!
After they finished roasting, I added dried cranberries and fresh sage to the squash.
The final product:

I finished all my tasks, so I offered to help out with the non-veg food. I made bagged stuffing with chicken stock and water.

Then I made the homemade gravy with flour, water, butter and the turkey ~~fat~~ juice. Kind of gross. Apparently it's good but I stay far, far away from it.

Here's dad carving the turkey:

Honey Baked Ham:

The BUFFET!!

This is the beautiful table my mom and I set up.

My amazing plate: carrots, squash, tofurkey/veg stuffing, cranberries, mashed potatoes, sweet potatoes, artichoke dip, and one sneaky little olive. I think this was the best Thanksgiving plate I've ever had!

Killer Dessert Plate! I took tiny slivers of pumkin cheesecake, pumpkin pie, pumpkin bar, brownie and pound cake (with coffee, of course). Wow...definitely couldn't finish it.

Cute cousins playing on the floor, ha!

Kasey and I:

My parents convinced me to play Rummikub.

Grandma loves it.

We went around the table and said things we were thankful for. There is SO much to be thankful for. I thank God for family, friends, an awesome boyfriend, and a job! I love Thanksgiving!

Hope you all enjoyed some time with family and friends!

Happy Thanksgiving!

sometimes we have two thanksgivings.

2009-11-28T14:13:00.006-05:00

My aunt had to work on Thursday, so we had a family Thanksgiving on Wednesday so she could enjoy some family time. It was a pot-luck, very non-traditional Thanksgiving, which was cool because we did the traditional food on Thursday.

I always have an appetizer problem. Everything always looks good, so I end up eating too much...

My brother diced fresh onion, tomatoes, green and red peppers and then melted a TON of fresh cheese into it on the stove. He called it "Salsa con Queso," but I'd like to re-name it "that damn cheese dip that almost spoiled my appetite because it was so good."

My dad grilled turkey and beef burgers, mom brought veggie burgers, but I didn't even need one. Here is some of the table...

Here's my plate with veggie couscous, cabbage/corn relish, cucumber raita, deviled egg, a random lettuce leaf, and potato casserole!

Dessert was pumpkin pie...I don't love the crust, so I let my little brother eat it.

I was stuffed! I offered to be the DD for my two brothers when we went to Bethesda to meet up with high school friends. It was crazy, as expected. I was being kind of lame, but I was full and still in my work clothes. Good to see everyone...I nerded it up a little by talking to a friend about blogs! Along with some friends, he recently rolled out a new blog which is totally different than mine, but super cool. Check it out: The Gallant

Got home around 2 and went to bed. Had to be awake for Thanksgiving prep the next day...

Thanksgiving recap coming soon...

give me carbs.

2009-11-23T20:52:00.006-05:00

So, it's Monday. It wasn't a horrible day...or maybe that's just perspective from yesterday's horrible day.

It was pretty rainy all day, but I was relatively busy.

Breakfast was yogurt with stuff on top and my new 365 coffee!

Lunch was some spinach, chili, latkes, and a clementine. Nothing out of the ordinary.

Snacky was apples and a zbar.

I left work a little before 5:30 so I could have time to get ready for Bootcamp. Good thing I picked out my clothes last night...Traffic was a nightmare! 1 hour and 45 minutes to get home! I had to stop by Giant to pick one thing up and then rush home to change. Got home at 7:12, threw on my clothes and sneakers, popped in my eyes, filled up my water bottle and literally sprinted out the door. I was sucking wind by the time I got into class RIGHT before the first exercise started. I had a pretty crappy workout. Now any workout is better than no workout, but I had no energy and felt like I couldn't recover from a few stations. I tried to finish strong and pat myself on the back for having the dedication to show up...

Walked home in the rain and thought about dinner. I had a vegan "salami" and cheese quesadilla and half of a sweet potato w/ salsa. I was hungry and wanted CARBS!

This cheese is expensive, but the slices are thick, it's organic and vegetarian...oh and delicious!

Half moons.

I used the other half of the sweet potato and my peeled adult carrots to make soup. I just boiled some veggie stock, water and black pepper, added the dice sweet p and carrots with a dash of salt. Once they were soft, I used the immersion blender to puree it, then added some more S&P and a lot of curry powder. I think I'm going to freeze it and take it to the Wednesday Thanksgiving. I think my aunt will enjoy it :)

To finish this day off, I heated up a mug of apple cider. 'Tis the Season ;)

z made it safely to san francisco and his sister just picked him up from the airport. Four more dias.

pathetic.

2009-11-22T20:35:00.003-05:00

I stayed in PJ's all day because I was extremely hungover. I drank an obscene amount of red wine last night and acted like a stupid, stupid girl.

Let's just say I'm in time out and I shouldn't have been able to use my phone when I got home ~~last night~~ this morning.

Ugh, I suck.

sopa vegetariana.

2009-11-21T16:56:00.005-05:00

You may remember me going to a vegetarian fall soup cooking class last month at L'Academie de Cuisine...

Well, I took the second class today! Once again I had a great partner (with an awesome job).

Check out our masterpieces:

Ginger and Cilantro Red Lentil Soup with Lemon Cream

Roasted Pumpkin Soup with Fall Spiced Caramelized Apples

Black Bean Soup with Crispy Tortilla Strips and Guacamole

The black bean soup was the BEST! The pumpkin soup was a close second.

I had a really good time and I know I'll be back to L'Academie for some more classes :)

Off to DLF's for my first of three Thanksgivings this year!

she's awake.

2009-11-21T11:01:00.007-05:00

My alarm went off at 8:45 this morning, and as usual, I had a battle with myself about whether I was really going to the gym...Usually the answer is "heck no, it's Saturday morning," but I surprised myself and got up (fifteen minutes later). Threw on my clothes, put my eyes* in, and peeled a clementine for a quick morning boost. I jogged the 5-6 minutes to the gym, drank some water and set up my equipment for Bootcamp. This monkey butt got kicked, that's for sure.

The setup for Saturday is much different than the Monday class, but they both work me hard, so I'm not complaining.

I came home made some coffee and oatmeal. Then I chugged a glass of carrot juice with an H20 chaser.

Today's oatmeal:
- 1/3 cup oats
- 1/3 cup H20
- 1/3 cup unsweetened soy
- organic banana (melted)
- dollop of cashew butter
- dollop of cinnamon raisin PB
-topped with apple butter

I'm going to finish my second cup of coffee, chug some more water and hop in the shower. I'm taking the metro to Bethesda and want to give myself time to walk to the culinary school. I'll be back later :)

Side ~~Love~~ Note:
I asked z to text me when his train arrived in Canada, but promised I'd keep my phone on silent so I wouldn't wake up. Funny thing...I woke up at 3am for some reason, checked my phone and he'd sent a text just 10 minutes before. I was able to go back to sleep instantly :) Love is so funny...

*I'm considering LASIK. A couple people I know have gotten it and are really happy with the results. I hate having blood shot eyes, or having to switch from glasses to contacts for the gym, or not being able to see the clock when I wake up. My mom thinks it might be a good idea too...I'll keep you (all two of you) posted.

how much?

2009-11-20T19:42:00.006-05:00

Picked up my car after work last night. Damage: $2,458.18 - Are you kidding me? UGHHHH!!

The night got better though, because I had a sleepover with hpants.

It started with some boxed Chablis and TV while we waited for the spaghetti squash and eggplant "creation" to cook. This is hpants' version of an eggplant parmesan, but much healthier. She slices eggplant and layers it in a casserole dish with spinach, tomato sauce, mushrooms and fresh mozzarella. I personally think it's better than the regular fried stuff, and over the spaghetti squash, it's delightful! For dessert we snacked on some oatmeal macaroons and PB/Fig cookies that she had made earlier in the week. Yum. We got cozy and watched Grey's and Project Runway and then went straight to bed. Her guest bed swallowed me and I slept really well! hpants gave me a fat free coffee yogurt with a ripe banana for breakfast. I actually really loved the combination, so I'll be purchasing the coffee yogurt in the future. And because hpants and B usually get to work earlier, I stopped to get a grande soy misto (in a red cup).

It's Friday and pay day :)

What did I eat today?

B: Fat free coffee yogurt with a ripe banana and a grande soy misto

L: Dr. Praeger's veggie burger on whole wheat bagel, organic golden delicious

S: Clementine, Back to Nature Granola to Go: Wild Blueberry Walnut with Flax Seed

Yes, I ate it out of the bag with a spoon.
So pretty and juicy!

D: Spinach topped with chili and carrot latkes with a little salsa :)

Dessert: I shouldn't have eaten dessert, because I was stuffed...but I ate a mini yogurt bowl with gojis, cranberries, almonds, walnuts, apple butter and agave with a cup of Decaf coconut chai. Woa...overload.

Goals for tonight:

- ~~Finish this blog...~~

- ~~Get insurance stuff taken care of at my parents house~~

- ~~Go to the gym and get my booty on the treadmill~~

- ~~Eat some dinner and catch up on this week's tv~~

- Clean/Organize apartment

- Talk to zboy while he's on a train to Canada

Agenda for this weekend:

- Bootcamp at 9:30 on Saturday morning

- Vegetarian Fall Soups (part two) at L'Academie de Cuisine from 1:30 to 4pm

- Pre-Thanksgiving at DLF's apartment - I think I'm making the gravy again ;)

- Possibly attend yoga on Sunday morning at 10:15

- Buy groceries for both our Wednesday and Thursday family Thanksgivings (I'm making some veggie dishes, cranberry sauce and dessert)

Jimmy Dean?

2009-11-18T21:39:00.006-05:00

I finally made it home tonight (Wednesday) after having been at my parents since Sunday. I really need my car back...

After work:

Parents picked me up and we got Chipotle (second time in this week).

I picked up my comforter at the drycleaners.

It took me two trips from my parents car to get all my stuff (including yummy clementines from mom) upstairs.

I brought all my laundry home and sorted it on my bed...but haven't put it away yet.

Cut up two onions and two jalapenos. Sauteed those with some EVOO, chili packet, garlic and salt. Used my immersion blender to turn two cans of whole tomatoes into tomato sauce. Threw that all in the skillet for a few minutes. Drained a can of light kidney beans and black beans. Added those to the bottom of my crockpot and put the tomato mixture on top. Then added some frozen peas and corn. It's still hanging out on low. That will be my lunch tomorrow.

Chili today, hot tamale.

Then I peeled a bunch of adult carrots, so they're ready to eat, juice or roast. While I had my 5lb. bag out, I figured I'd juice some and store the juice with some lemon juice in the fridge.

Every time I juice carrots, there is so much pulp leftover and I hate throwing it away...so I thought, I know you can make potato latkes, but what about carrot? So I googled away and found this recipe for Gingered Carrot Latkes. I figured I'd try it. I used my carton of egg whites equivalent to 3 eggs and used my jar of chopped ginger that I keep in the fridge. I fried them up and had to taste one. HOLY COW! They were #1 Delicious and #2 they tasted exactly like a Jimmy Dean sausage. Not that I really remember what that tastes like...but that's what popped into my head. AWESOME and easy recipe! Soooo exciting :)

To me, you're perfect.

(Ok, so that's from Love Actually, but I think it's totally acceptable to say that to a freakin' delicious carrot latke).

I need to do some form of exercise since it's 10pm and I didn't go to the gym...again. Ugh, tubby tubby.

9 more days until z comes home. Not that I'm counting...

baby, you can drive my car.

2009-11-17T19:26:00.014-05:00

This post is from Tuesday, but I was having some technical difficulties:

Yesterday, I had a 7am dentist appointment and they gave me a flouride treatment. That meant I couldn't have any hot liquid for six hours! Ugh...no hot coffee for me! The morning dragged on and I ate two bananas for breakfast. After lunch, I knew that caffeine was necessary so I used my free Starbucks Via packet and made iced coffee with a little ~~chemical powder~~ Splenda. Not half bad actually.

While driving home from work last night my temperature gauge started beeping and flashing red. Not a good sign....so I had to pull into a gas station to diagnose the problem (aka, talk to my dad). I bought a 20 dollar bottle of coolant to put in my car, but as soon as I started to take the cap off, all this red stuff started leaking out of the bottom! My poor Sadie girl was bleeding! I knew it wasn't good...but I filled up the coolant tank anyway. The light didn't go off when I turned the car back on, so I tried to drive home. I had to pull over two miles later. There was a flashing light, some smoke...and something was burning. My dad called a tow truck and picked me up. We went to Chipotle for dinner and to Whole Foods for some bananas and coffee. Hopefully my car will be fixed someday...ugh! z said I could borrow his car, but then my parents let me borrow theirs. I have felt so off this week!

Today:
B: Dad made me some stovetop oatmeal. I had mine with half a melted banana, Peanut Butter and Apple Butter! After this, mom took me out for a grande soy misto :)

L: Wilted spinach with a little soy sauce, one fresh tomato and a Dr. Praeger's California veggie burger

S: Hodge podge granola (mini airplane pretzels, almonds, blueberry granola and banana chips)

D: Roasted carrots, green beans, coleslaw, toasted roll and wilted spinach.

Dessert: Popcorn with melted chocolate chips!

Playing Catch-Up (as usual):

--Made some Banana-Aalmond bread, inspired by Cait . I used vanilla Oikos instead of plain, almonds instead of walnuts and I sprinkled a good amount of cinnamon on top before baking. I saved a piece for myself, hpants and z. It turned out really well!

z came over for dinner last Thursday and I really wanted to make him dinner. Everything turned out really good!

We had:
- Roasted acorn squash (EVOO, S&P),
- Roasted, fresh green beans (EVOO, S&P)
- Spinach salad with dried cranberries, a honeycrisp apple and Drew's Honey Dijon dressing
- Fresh baked whole wheat bread from WF
- One piece of natural pork from WF for z (cooked in a skillet with EVOO and S&P)
- Winter Hook Winter Ale

My plate.
z's plate.

--Went to Eighteenth Street Lounge on Friday...and had an interesting time with my girlfriends ;)

--I made myself a soy misto at home in the morning and had to take a picture because I love my AeroLatte frother :)

glamorous. ooh frothy, frothy.

--Saturday was my ~~little~~ brother's 21st birthday! Yikes. We went to Mongolian Grill in Bethesda. I love family and extended family dinners! I had a salad (times two) with spinach, lots of random veggies, cottage cheese, mandarin oranges, pineapple, uncooked tofu and a delightful sesame ginger sauce. I also ate 1 1/2 funfetti cupcakes that my mom brought! We really had a lot of fun!

After dinner, I headed to z's. He let me watch TWO episodes of Cats 101 on Animal Planet! He must really love me haha! We went to bed around 11:30 because we were both falling asleep on the couch.

We got out of bed around 9:15 thinking it was much later. We walked up to the farmer's market and picked up a cranberry, orange, applesauce loaf for breakfast. z brought me coffee on the couch where I was enjoying "my" blanket and the new Food and Wine magazine. While I was lounging, he cut a few slices of the bread and put it in the oven to get toasty! He also cut a grapefruit and sectioned my half for me :) After breakfast and the Washington Post, z suggested that we go to Roosevelt Island. We parked in Rosslyn and walked over the bridge. It was a BEAUTIFUL day. The weather was just gorgeous! We walked around the entire island and saw A LOT of puppies :) Then we sat down to look at the Teddy statue while munching on a golden delicious and some lemon-lime Gatorade (best flavor ever). I saw someone holding an iced coffee while we were walking back to the car...and I had to have one. Good thing my nice boyfriend had his wallet. He bought me a small Cosi iced coffee with soy :) When we got home we watched some football and I took a delicious nap while he packed (sniff, sniff). He's going to be gone for two weeks and I'm going to miss him a lot.

"Conservation means development as much as it does protection" - Teddy

Hi, Mr. Dragonfly!

Just keep swimming!
Absolutely gorgeous!

Sunday was one of the best days I've had...maybe ever <3

2009-11-09T18:57:00.002-05:00

I always feel like blogging during the week is too much work, especially since I get BLOCKED every time I try to update. But I realized if I just used my BB for most pictures (compromising quality, of course) and emailed myself, then most of the work would be done and I'd just have to copy, paste and publish. We'll see how long this lasts...

B: Repeat of Saturday's pumpkin-banana toast and some coffee with Silk Creamer.

MMS: Honeycrisp and gala apples with some H2O.

L: Mixed greens salad with the last of the marinated tofu, and wheat berry salad with homemade vinaigrette (peanut oil, rice vinegar, ginger, red pepper flakes, cilantro, and low-sodium soy sauce)

AS: Fat-free Peach yogurt, half a banana nut bread Clif bar (these are so gross and I'm so glad there aren't many left)

Pre-Bootcamp S: Other half of the banana nut bread Clif bar, carrots and hummus.

I came prepared today so I wasn't starving after work and so I wouldn't have a belly full of food during my workout.

Hopefully I'll have time to grab something else to eat after the gym. My awesome boyfriend read my mind (not my blog) last night and asked if I wanted to have a Steelers sleepover at his house tonight. I guess he missed me... :) I can't wait.

Go Steelers!

where's my crepe?

2009-11-08T18:32:00.004-05:00

I met my high school girlfriends for brunch today at Napoleon Bistro. It was such a beautiful day in DC today. I took the bus and a short walk to get there. I ordered a spicy bloody mary while we looked at the menu. The top of the brunch menu said "Local and Sustainable" which was great :)

LBoogie and I decided to order two things and split them. She ordered the "Montmartre" crepe that had wild mushrooms, scallions, herbed goat and gruyere cheese. I ordered the "Mallorca" sandwich that had grilled eggplant, zucchini, caramelized onions, sundried tomatoes, marinated goat cheese and olive tapenade on a yummy, chewy bread. It came with a tomato, cucumber salad that was really fresh. Splitting it was a really good idea.

I had a headache, so I treated it with multiple cups of coffee and water (in cool red glasses). After we all finished, someone decided to get a dessert crepe that we could all have a few bites of...I was happy to help. We ordered the "Last Tango" which had Nutella, strawberries, whipped cream, and berry melba sauce. It was SOOOO delicious! MMMM!

Because it was so beautiful out, a few of us decided to walk the 2+ miles back to my place so they could see my apartment. We looked at a few pictures and then I said I'd drive them back to their cars. I knew I needed apples, so I stopped by Whole Foods which was on the way home.

I got some Honeycrisp Apples, 365 salsa, light coconut milk, an acorn squash, spinach, and mint chocolate Newman-O's.

Look how gigantic this Honeycrisp is!!!

I ate a quick salad with greens, marinated tofu, cottage cheese and honey mustard for dinner and needed a small dessert. So I broke out my new monkey mug for some chai and three O's. Perfect way to end a great day in the city!

Just caught up on the Office and put up my new shower curtain. It's time to unload the dishwasher, vacuum, and get ready for the week.

I missed my boyfriend alot this weekend. Maybe he'll let me watch the Steelers at his place tomorrow night...I hope he's not too tired! <3

peace and love from an apartment near chinatown.

fit for a monkey.

2009-11-07T10:48:00.012-05:00

I went to bed around 1am because I forgot to ask for a decaf soy misto (1 pump-kin) on my mother-daughter date. Oh well...I am proud to say that I still went to the 9:30 bootcamp class this morning.

I got up around 8:45, ate a granola bar and drank some water.
Then I changed into my gym clothes and jogged the 4 blocks to the gym. I hadn't done the Saturday class before, and just don't think I'm a morning workout person...I didn't feel like I had my normal bootcamp energy. I still worked hard and got in a great workout.

I was obviously hungry when I got home, so I toasted two whole wheat Arnold Sandwich Thins, spread them with my homemade pumpkin (low fat) cream cheese and topped it with a whole banana (monkey, monkey) and cinnamon. Wow...this was awesome.

Somehow I was still a tad hungry, so I decided to use up the whole eggs that I had in the fridge. I hardly ever have a carton, but had to get them for the cupcakes I made on Halloween. I used one whole egg and 4 egg whites, a splash of unsweetened soy, ground pepper and hot sauce in the scrambled egg mix. It was a lot of eggs, so I only ate half.

They were good, but I think I'll stick to my carton of egg whites...

On another note, look at my new kitchen rug! Isn't it cute? I needed a new one because I had a little kitchen floor/gravity mishap with a gigantic bottle of olive oil.

Side One.

Side Two.

While I was shopping with my mommy, I also got a new black pea coat, the new placemats and monkey holiday mug you see above, a non-leather work belt (finally), and some of these goodies from the new grocery section at Target:
Peanut Butter & Co Cinnamon Raisin Swirl: I had this on an apple last night; YUM!
Smuckers Organic Strawberry Perserves: I wanted to find the one with real fruit, no HFCS, and Organic doesn't hurt! Ingredients: Organic Sugar, Organic Strawberries, Fruit Pectin, Citric Acid.
Arnold Whole Wheat Sandwich Thins: First time buying them and they are amazing. Even better toasted, and I rarely like things toasted! I'm never buying real bread again...

100 Calories, 5g Fiber, 1g Fat, 0g Trans Fat
Cholesterol Free, no HFCS, Whole Grains

Decaf Sweet Coconut Thai Chai Tea: Really comforting. The smell is lovely and the flavor is just spicy enough. I'm having a mug right now!

That's all for now. It's almost Noon...I guess I should go do something with my day, though I think I feel a nap coming in the future.

Hunger Anger

2009-11-02T18:55:00.003-05:00

I realized something today: I am a hunger hater. I get mad every time my stomach tells me it is hungry. I mean no one likes to be hungry, I know this...but I get seriously mad when I feel the slightest bit hungry. It's usually because I think I've eaten too many calories, or I just finished eating not too long ago, or there's nothing but junk to eat. I understand that your body needs fuel and needs calories and needs fats, so why do I get so upset when I'm hungry.

Oh, because I am absolutely terrified of gaining weight.

I try not to be psycho about it, since I know I go to the gym and eat really healthy, but the fear is still there.

For example:

Today's consumption:

B: Bowl of O's and unsweetened soymilk

Mid Morning Snack: Gala apple, water, two sips of gross coffee

Lunch: Leftover salad with romaine, artichokes, red and green peppers, onion, mushroom, kalamatas, and some balsamic dressing

*I thought the salad was huge, but was still really hungry after I finished it, so had to come back to my desk and eat my snack*

Lunch, part two: Fat-free peach yogurt and a Chocolate Chip ZBar

Afternoon Snack: Nothing because I ate it for lunch :(

I look at that and realize it's not really that much food and yet I won't eat a mini-Butterfinger because I'm paranoid. I have Bootcamp tonight which is super intense and I really NEED fuel...but stupid me felt like if I brought more food, I'd eat it. DUH, YOU NEED TO EAT! Stupid.

I need to stop by Whole Foods for more unsweetened soymilk, so maybe I'll take a look at the ridiculously expensive, yet ridiculously delicious salad bar.

Anyway, I just need to make smart choices about what I eat and not freak out about providing my body what it needs.

Update:
So after I wrote this, I went to WF and picked up apples, bananas, unsweetened soy, veggie burgers and cottage cheese (all things on my list). I also stopped at the salad bar and picked up some tofu, tempeh and veggies...but before I closed the lid, I stupidly glanced at the hot bar and the mac and cheese called out to me...so I got a mini spoonful. Ugh. I ate the mac and cheese right away followed by all the veggies, and left some tofu/tempeh for my lunch tomorrow.

When I got home, I proceeded to eat a leftover chocolate cupcake from Halloween. This is why I probably should have had another snack.

Lesson: Be better prepared to fight hunger with SUFFICIENT lunches and SMART snacks.

The end.

almost halloween.

2009-10-29T23:04:00.009-04:00

z had been gone all week on a volunteer trip in Mississippi, so Saturday night, we walked to "Ben's Next Door" for dinner. I got an Abita Purple Haze and z got a "super cold" Heineken. They served mini corn muffins with butter, so I had to have one. Cute and tasty. To start, z got the house salad and I got the Crispy Tomato with Mozzarella with balsamic reduction, extra virgin olive oil, cracked pepper, and sea salt. It was sooo freakin' good, but because of my cooking class I wasn't super hungry. z gladly finished the rest of it. For my entree, I got the small house salad (z finished this off for me too) and z got the Brined Fried Chicken with coleslaw and “perfect” mashed potatoes (I got a nibble of both sides; yum). I thought about getting dessert, but z suggested we go somewhere else. We walked by an ice cream shop but I was too cold, so we looked for live music. Nothing was catching our ear, so z suggested we open a bottle of wine and listen to jazz. OK BY ME! We opened a 2002 Denira Red (my awesome parents brought me two bottles of wine and a cute Yosemite t-shirt from their California adventures). We listened to "Sketches of Spain" - Miles Davis and talked on the couch. It was a lovely evening!

We stayed in bed until about 10 (wow) and then headed to Starbucks for our Sunday morning breakfast of coffee, pastries and the Washington Post. We sat in Mt. Vernon Triangle (in the sun of course) so I could keep an eye on the kitten that lives under the Historical Society of DC museum. After reading the paper, we decided to actually go in to the museum that we see all the time. The Abe Lincoln gallery was pretty neat. Lots of different representations of Lincoln and in the middle of the room, there was a HUGE map of DC on lighted floor tiles. z loves map, so obviously we were on our hands and knees finding things :)

I love Sundays.

This week - ~~over scheduled again.~~

Monday - work, bootcamp and the Greene Turtle for Monday Night (Redskins are terrible) Football with some buddies.

Tuesday - work, dishes, bathroom cleaning, late night z time.

Wednesday - early to work (that means a Starbucks treat for me) because z ~~is insane/gets up at the crack of dawn~~ had to go to work, laundry/food network at my parents, back to the hood

Thursday - date with h-pants, eggplant parm, sugar-free jello, grey's with exercise commercial breaks, and Halloween party prep

Friday - girls night in

Saturday - h-pants and B are having a Halloween costume party. z and I are doing a couples costume haha! More on that later...

In other food news:

-I have finally transitioned to Unsweetened Soymilk after 6 years of drinking soymilk. I don't know what I was so scared of. I'm never going back to the added sugar.

-I roasted an acorn squash this week and ate it with agave and cinnamon - yay Fall!

-I eat an insane amount of Gala Apples. They're the ~~cheapest~~ best at my grocery store.

-I got an Arugula-Spinach Salad Mix this week...I have never liked arugula and don't know why I'm trying to trick my taste buds. Nope. Don't like it. I'll stick to spinach and romaine.

-I'm back to eating a banana a day. I went a week without them and just felt odd.

-I'm making orange-chocolate cupcakes for Saturday. All you do is replace the water that the recipe calls for with orange juice. I'm still not sure what icing I'll be using, but I'm excited to try them out...

-I also really want to make these chocolate covered pretzel rods, but don't have a reason to...yet.

-There has been a bowl of candy on my desk for about two weeks, but I've been VERY good about not eating it (though I did have a nasty mini-moonpie the other day; gross).

Ok, that's all for now.

Hopefully as the week goes on...there will be photographic evidence of these things :)

souper dooper recap.

2009-10-24T17:22:00.016-04:00

Quick recap.

this is the rooibos tea (from auntie m) in my cute little french press!

It has such a beautiful color.

Carrot, apple, lemon juice. The lemon made it tart and delicious!

This is potato-cauliflower soup I made with my mom last week. We sauteed onions, celery, potatoes and cauliflower with very low sodium chicken stock. I used the immersion blender to make it smooth and creamy! Didn't taste it though...(not vegetarian). These are the two low-sodium soups. The other is a brown rice and lentil vegetable soup using water instead of stock.

Saturday was a crazy day! Got up at 745, hopped on the metro to SW and got a DC driver's license, ahhhh!! Then I got in my car and drove to NE to pick up a package, then headed to the gym, took a quick shower and got back on the metro.

I took a vegetarian fall soup class at L'Academie de Cuisine in Bethesda. It was so much fun.

Louisiana Gumbo with Tofu and Okra

Sweet Potato Bourbon Soup with Pecans

Vegetarian New Mexico Chili

In order to get a glass of wine, all students were required to turn in their knives. I gladly handed mine in!

The lovely soups made by some lovely people!

Oh wow! Goober alert!! (That's the instructor in the back!)
I had a really nice partner (who had two really nice daughters). It was a pleasure working with this class, and I can't wait until I get to make three more soups next month!

real age.

2009-10-18T23:02:00.001-04:00

I just took this long quiz http://www.realage.com/ and they told me my real age was 29 based on my health, family history, nutrition, risk, etc.

bogus - I'm totally a 25 year old.

cold hands.

2009-10-18T14:46:00.012-04:00

This post is going to be mostly pictures because I'm trying to watch last Thursday's Grey's Anatomy (with a blanket and a cup of hot organic apple cider).

Last week:

Blueberry "cheesecake" oatmeal from Carrots 'n' Cake:
Snacky(raw almonds, O's, dried cranberries):

Lunch (spinach, mozz, tofu, carrots and pickles):

Dinner (thanks to Heidi):

I'm "special"

Dessert:

Unfortunately, this was followed by a large handful of chocolate-covered peanuts! Oops...

Yesterday morning I went to watch Tony play in a wheelchair basketball tournament in Boyds. Lots of family showed up which was awesome! They lost the two games I saw, but it was amazing and inspiring...GO CAGERS!

I came home, cleaned up, then curled up on the couch for a mini-nap before the gym. At the gym I did a 15 minute hill workout on the treadmill followed by stretching, abs and planks! I've conquered the one minute hold, but want to see if I can go for more...someday.

After the gym, I relaxed a little, showered and then headed to Z's for a quiet Saturday dinner and a movie :)

He had the candles lit when I got there and we went into the kitchen to cook...together.
Delicious pasta with sauteed red/green peppers and onions mixed into a spicy red pepper pasta sauce, topped with shredded mozzarella. Delicious! We drank a bottle of Malbec (from Argentina).

Z put some olive oil and black pepper on the bread and then baked it. When it came out, I rubbed a fresh clove of garlic on each slice!
I didn't take a picture of dessert, but Z made an ice cream sundae for two! Vanilla ice cream, fresh raspberries and warm hot fudge! He's the best!!

Don't you love my placemat?? The pizza was really tasty and I have a ton leftover for this week!

I'll leave with you with this picture. Reason for documentation? I felt so trendy haha but was so comfortable. I love my one and only pair of lo-tops!
I think that's all for now. Back to Grey's...

2009-10-13T20:40:00.005-04:00

It has been pointed out to me that I have been a major blog update slacker! There are plenty of reasons for this including, lack of time, making the gym a priority, no desire to stare at a computer after work, and did I mention lack of time?

I am now working back in Maryland which means my commute is long again. I would say its 40-45 minutes on a good day depending on traffic. I'm trying to become "zen" about it and realize that I made the decision to leave my on-site gig (15 minute commute). Being back in Maryland means a lot of good things: visiting with my family, seeing heidipants for lunch, seeing my other Maryland friends, working across the street from a Whole Foods AND making my relationship with Z a lot more like...a relationship :)

I don't really even know where or when to start my recap from...I guess I'll start from today and move backwards? That's logical to me.

I'm going to Stained Glass Pub with Mom, Dad and Grandma "B" and Auntie "M" tonight for half price pizza. Yum! EDIT: I went to SGP for cheese and veggie pizza...and a salad.
At dinner, my aunt brought me a present! An awesome Gandhi magnet and a bag of loose Rooibos Tea (I've been wanting some...so I think she read my mind!).

Today I bought hot sauce at Whole Foods and pickles at Giant. I've been having odd cravings lately...

I went to Whole Foods last night after work to pick up some groceries (and a $9 salad bar dinner). I got some baby eggplants, agave nectar, roasted yellow peppers, hearts of palm, kalamata olives, bulk almonds, baby spinach, lots of greek and regular yogurt, lots of flavored tofu, low-sodium chicken broth (for the soup making party my mom and I plan on having), vegetable tempeh, 365 cheddar and mozzarella, HUGE jar of 365 salsa, 365 blue corn chips, Drew's Honey Dijon Dressing, and Newman's Own Balsamic Vinaigrette Dressing. I have no self control in that place...

Friday night I met up with Amanda and Rapha for some Panera and the List (wearethelist.com). It was an enjoyable evening (except for the rude, drunk old people that were flinging their bodies across the dance floor and scaring away all the children, ughhhh).

I went to New York over the weekend because Margarette (Mo) was visiting from South Carolina. I took at 9:30am MegaBus on Saturday morning and made it to Manhattan by 2pm. Not bad. Erica, Rachel and Mo picked me up which was sooo nice of them (and it saved a lot of time). We went to Burrito Poblano for chips/guac and nachos! MMM Then we headed to Kate P's place for dinner. Her kitten Humphrey is freakin' adorable. I ate some fresh salad and delicious rolls with REAL butter (it has been a while). I also drank 1 1/2 glasses of FRANZIA.

Later that night, we drove to Hawthorn (Erica's house) and had a great bonfire with musical singalongs and fireworks on the side! It was so nice. She has two pups, Madison and Clyde (the Conehead). They are Scottish Terriers, but they're WHITE. Weird, but adorable.

The next morning we had Starbucks (grande soy misto, one shot of pumpkin) and a pancake breakfast (no bacon for me!). We headed to a beautiful park with gorgeous views of the Hudson River. We walked around, climbed trees and listened to a story. What a glorious day! We headed to JFK Airport to drop Mo off. Erica and Rachel were nice enough to drive me back into the city so I could catch my 6pm bus back to DC. I did a little shopping (ATL) and walked to Penn Station to wait for my bus. It was thirty minutes late, but we still got back right before 11. I walked home, quickly unpacked, ate some brown rice with my homemade parsley-walnut pesto and got ready for bed. I couldn't sleep because I was paranoid about ticks from our nature walk. Good thing I didn't fall asleep because I got a call at 11:38pm from a certain boyfriend of mine who was also traveling home from NYC:

"Are you asleep?"

almost.

"They aren't running the yellow line today"

oh no, where are you?

"Chinatown"

come on over.

"ok see you in a few"

He's so cute and I'm glad we had a spontaneous sleepover. Precious.

Other things worthy of a blog update:

-I haven't missed Bootcamp since I started it a few weeks ago. It is a super intense workout and even though it's painful, I love it.

-I still don't like my job, but I'm learning to deal with it.

-I made butternut squash ravioli/dumplings. Roasted the squash. Scooped the guts. Mixed with cinnamon, salt and brown sugar. Stuffed them in my Nasoya Wonton wrappers and baked them. Yummy lunch.

-I haven't been eating my usual amount of salads and fear that I'm replacing them with not-so-good foods. I better get that in check (after the pizza tonight, of course).

-I'm maintaining my weight at 127 which feels DAMN good. Gotta keep it up.

-Z and I are going to the E Street Cinema on Thursday to see "WILLIE NELSON AND WYNTON MARSALIS PLAY THE MUSIC OF RAY CHARLES" on the big screen. Should be pretty awesome. It's at 8 but I'm going to try and see if Z wants some happy hour sushi before the show...yum.

I am stuffed beyond belief. It's time for me to get ready for tomorrow and then hop in bed!

More later.

go, go gadget.

2009-09-26T11:44:00.003-04:00

I have a problem.

I am in love with kitchen gadgets.

Currently in my bite-sized kitchen:

Microwave
Toaster
Coffee Maker
Coffee Bean/Spice Grinder
Steamer/Rice Cooker
Blender
Crock Pot
Ice Cream Maker
Bread Machine
Milk Frother (new)
Immersion Blender (new)

Apparently I'm good at convincing myself that I need all these things.

Yikes...

Coming up next: Recap from last night's dinner with Nicole and Cash (her pup).

It's not easy being green.

2009-09-21T21:02:00.009-04:00

You know what else isn't easy...the Bootcamp class at Results Gym. I showed up at 7:20 and ran for 5 minutes on the treadmill for warm up. I actually thought I was going to "Urban Funk" which is like a hip hop dance class, but apparently the Fall Schedule has switched over. I decided since I was there and hadn't worked out for a while, that I'd stay. Oh boy...that class kicked my butt. Squats.Lunges.Jack knives.Dumbbells.Body Bars.Repeat. OUCH!! I was sweating so much and getting out of breath...I was amazed I pushed so hard for the whole 45 minute class. It was awesome and intense. I drank all my water and craved Gatorade. I had to pick up a prescription at Giant, so I grabbed a 32 ounce Lemon-Lime G2 Gatorade and ~~drank~~ chugged half of it! Tasty!

All green outfit and a green Gatorade...hehe

I also picked up a few other goodies.

(there's definitely a green theme going on here...)

I (finally) got new running shoes that provide stability and motion control for my flat feet! I LOVE them!

I had been in the market for a rolling countertop/extra storage unit and my mom found this great one! I spent about an hour on Sunday putting it together and I love it!

Last but not least, this is a picture of a partially eaten (hehe) Vegan Mango-Coconut Bread Pudding that I made using the rest of my first attempt at Bread Machine Bread! YUM!

That's enough of an update for now. I just took a Zyrtec because my allergies are killing me...That combined with my killer workout should equal some good, sound sleep!

peace and love from an apartment near chinatown.

mis padres y un mango

2009-08-19T21:46:00.003-04:00

My parents biked two and a half hours down to DC to have dinner at my apartment! My dad was surprised to find out that didn't mean walking down to Chipotle. I had a really good time making this meal for them keeping in mind my mom's new low-sodium restrictions!

Baked chicken (with a homemade salt-free spice rub) over a bed of tri-colored couscous and topped with an awesome mango salsa!!

This is my plate! I marinated the tofu overnight with olive oil, lime juice and the same spices as the chicken and baked it in the oven!

Dad said the plate looked beautiful and he ate every last bite!!

Mom is still in her bike gear (and looks great even after that long ride)! She loved it as well!

I sure wasn't complaining about my dinner either...I scraped the plate clean :)
After dinner I made a blackberry crisp with a side of vanilla bean ice cream! Then...we walked down for Starbucks for a "treat."

Thanks for visiting mom and dad!! LOVE YOU!!

2009-08-10T15:37:00.000-04:00

kind of freaking out about some things.
I hate feeling crazy.
I need to do something.

who loves food? this girl.

2009-07-25T11:54:00.014-04:00

let's get up to date...

2009-07-16T10:52:00.021-04:00

july 3rd was amanda's 25th birthday. a group of us went to dinner in rockville and then out to barking dog in bethesda.

the next day was july 4th - z and I had some mango drink creation out on my balcony and then walked down to the mall for the fireworks. we had a great time!

Crazy Birds!

I had a guitar lesson a few weeks ago. He wants me to practice and my aversion to practicing is the whole reason I still suck. It was a great lesson and now z is learning some guitar. He's practicing a lot more than I am...

Eli had a pig roast. It was a LOT of fun. Music and food and dancing and friends and z and more music and more food and more dancing and going in the pool in our underwears, etc. Stayed until 1am having a great time!

I love Tuesdays. On Tuesdasy, z and I have "date night!" We made fajitas and drank margaritas and it was wonderful.

I read a short story by one of z's friends. It was really interesting. I'm always intrigued by the brain of a writer.

So, this past Thursday (which also seems to be a "date night") we walked a few blocks downtown to the Washington Kasltes Stadium. Apparently DC has a tennis team? Anyway, I was pretty high on Wimbledon so I decided to buy tickets to see some live tennis with John McEnroe. Ha! It was comical. Z and I had a lot of fun though. We are such dorks.

Friday was an interesting day...to say the least. Z's car got towed from my parking lot on wednesday. we didn't have any time to go get it until Friday morning because of their stupid hours. So Friday morning, we ended up taking the day off work and we headed over to Northeast DC to the towing lot. It was SKETCHY! We got there around 9:15am (they opened at 9am). Z walked around and called the company but we couldn't reach anyone. We walked up to the gate and another guy was there waiting. He opened the gate and said "the guy is probably sleeping, I'll go check." So he goes in and sure enough, he WAS sleeping. LAME! The guy comes out wearing a shirt that said "you can't knock the hustle" but it almost look like it was in a middle eastern language. Anyway, we see z's car and it's behind three other cars, including a smashed up cadillac. The guy was like "how am I supposed to get this out of here?" Um, it's your freakin' job to give us the car once we pay you an absurd amount of money. FIGURE IT OUT! So he's calling people and tells us a guy is on the way. We wait in my car until about 12:15 and decide we can't stay there all day. We tell him "we'll call you, and you'll tell us that you can get the car out, then we'll come back." So we run some quick errands and find out we can go back and get it. We get there around 4-430 and the car is free, but a different guy is there. He looks at us like "what do you want." Well, jerkface, we're at a towing lot at 4 in the afternoon, hmmm WE WANT TO PICK UP OUR CAR! So he goes towards the office to get the papers, turns around and yells "yo, you got that cash money?" Um, excuse me? Do we have the cash? Yes. We have the $160 dollars in (SKETCHY) cash that the previous guy told us to bring. He says "It's $170." What? The guy told us $160, which makes sense ($100 tow, $20 perday). "He don't even understand English" He seemed to understand pretty well... "How you gonna tell me you know him? It's $170." No, it's $160. "Fine, give me the $160 and I'll just take it out of his paycheck." Great. So we get the car and LEAVE because we had to quickly shower, pack for CT and get to a friend's birthday party. Woof!

We made it back to VA for an amazing dinner with R, S, z, D, and T. S got lobsters (for the boys), made a delicious spinach quiche (for the girls), potato salad, corn on the cob and PEANUT BUTTER PIE. Dmade an orzo/arugula salad with craisins and feta. I made a fresh fruit salad. Everything was so delcious. We sat around talking and listening to old school rap. It was awesome!

We left the dinner at around 10pm and headed straight to CT for E's wedding! It was a long drive in little Sadie, but z and I were troopers! We listend to music, talked and enjoyed the ride, though we were exhausted! We made it to CT at 5am! Yikes. We checked into the Holiday Inn - Coco Key Waterpark (ugh, so gross) and passed out. We had to wake up at 8:30am, so needless to say, we were some tired kids! We made it to the church at 10:05am (10am wedding), but we were not late and were not the last ones there, phew! The ceremony was short and sweet. Everyone looked wonderful and it was SO good to see my old friends! The reception right after and we drove to the Aqua Turf Club which was gorgeous. It was also a fantastic weather day! We ate a lot and danced a lot and took advantage of the open bar. It was so much fun. We headed to E's mom's after that and stayed for a few hours. We were just so tired that we had to go back to the hotel. We were in bed my 9:30 (there were screaming children in the pool out our window, so it was a bit difficult to get to sleep initially). At around 2:30am we were woken up by another wedding group who was parading down our hallway and Lady GaGa (as z calls her) was screaming about all the single men and how she "didn't see a ring on his finger" and ...UGH so obnoxious. We had a little delirious conversation and eventually went back to bed until about 9:30! It was amazing. We took our time having breakfast outside on the grass, watching an indian wedding with a horse and a DJ van (equipped with loud music, a DJ, and a flashing light). The drive back was beautiful and z drove this time. We had a great time together <3

Hey, cute boy, turn around! :)

We had a Tuesday date last night. We went to Asian Spice in Chinatown. I got the Thai Eggplant and z got a spicy beef salad with tofu (!) soup. It was all really tasty. We got a table outside and just hung out talking for a while. It was so nice. I'm a pretty lucky girl :)

Things I'm looking forward to:

Vibrant Vegan cooking class at whole foods TODAY!
My passport and new clothes coming in the mail this week!
Z's 30th birthday!
Z's sister's wedding on August 1
WEEK LONG VACATION with Z in September!

my new "hobby"

2009-07-08T22:40:00.007-04:00

First, let me start by saying, blogging from bed should be a no-no! Oh well...

Here is a look at my recent adventures in the kitchen, inspired by my favorite bloggers:

This is Crazy For Carrot Apple Ginger Juice

I added some OJ to make it more juicy. The flavor was great, but it was a little too chunky for me since I don't have a juicer or a strainer...

This was my really fun post-hour and fifteen minute workout dinner. Slice of whole wheat bread with cashew nut butter, sliced banana and a drizzle of honey with a bowl of nonfat plain yogurt topped with blueberries, goji berries, walnuts and another drizzle of honey. Also, a coconut water for electrolytes/hydration. This isn't my favorite coconut water...so far I like the Zico Mango the best!!

I grew this little guy ALL BY MYSELF! He did just fine growing up in the city! I picked him last night with Z and let him hang out on the counter (the jalapeno, not Z). He was later chopped up with some of my city balcony grown cilantro, a tomato, half an onion, half a lime and salt/pepper for some impromptu pico de gallo...SO TASTY. For some protein, I cooked up an egg white and threw that pico right on top (Thanks Fitnessista!).

I bought a fresh baguette at the farmer's market near work yesterday. Z and I ate some with dinner, froze half of it, and still had about 1/4 of the bread left, so I decided to make a little modified Spanish/Italian Panzanella. I made garlic-lemon vinaigrette with things I had lying around. Soaked the bread for 10 minutes in the vinaigrette and then added an organic cucumber from YES! and the rest of my onion. It looked like it needed more veggies, so I threw the rest of my pico de gallo in there. It looks and smells fantastic. After marinating overnight, it should make a super tasty lunch tomorrow!

I get to have a sleepover tomorrow. I always look forward to those :) I'm so in love...

time for sleep.

don't let the bed blogs bite. hehe

2009-07-08T13:28:00.002-04:00

Recently Purchased Albums:

we sing. we dance. we steal things. - Jason Mraz
only by the night - Kings of Leon
back to the river - Susan Tedeschi

The susan tedeschi album is by far my favorite of the bunch. I learned to play 700 Houses which is beautiful Katrina song.

I have my first guitar lesson today up near U Street. I'm pretty nervous and excited at the same time. $45 for 45 minutes. Hope it's worth it...

I also can't stop reading The Fitnessista! She really interests me and maintains a dietary lifestyle that seems totally feasible for me (the working out on the other hand...I'm not up to her level yet). It has also made me start photographing my meals...not sure if this is weird, but it helps me hold myself accountable for what I eat.

I'm ready for a new job. I love the people I work with. I love the convenience of my on-site location. I love that they just gave me a promotion.

But I'm ready to do something that fits who I am a little better. Not the best time to be looking for a new job, but it never hurts to look.

More later...

2009-07-08T10:14:00.000-04:00

coffee with soymilk in the morning is so comforting.

2009-06-29T10:02:00.003-04:00

some people make me absolutely crazy. ughhhh.

on a happy note: my boyfriend comes home today! I was so excited that I couldn't sleep last night!

on a healthy note:

I bought a grinder. I ground my flaxseeds and have been adding them (along with my goji berries) to my morning oatmeal!
I went to the gym on Friday and did a nice long(ish) run on Saturday. I wish I was healthy all the time, but it seems to come in phases.
I have been making fruit (and protein) smoothies a lot lately! So tasty!
I love cashew nut butter! I have a recipe for homemade walnut butter...maybe this will save me some money!
I love fruit!
I ate a whole avocado yesterday, oops...I only planned on having half in a salad, but it was so good that I had to make another!
Now, I just need to keep going to the gym...

Is it 5:30 yet!?!?!?

verde.

2009-06-20T13:11:00.002-04:00

Green and Crunchy

I won't lie...this blog makes me want to go back to my vegan ways.

I bought a blender and now love smoothies.

I now want a dehydrator to make yummy fruit snacks! Just called my BB&B and they don't have any in stock...hmmm

must.eat.healthier.

someone like you.

2009-06-19T11:16:00.002-04:00

I'm wondering how many times I can listen to "Use Somebody" by Kings of Leon before getting sick of it. It's really catchy...ugh.

I've even considered spending 99¢ to buy it on iTunes just so I could put it on repeat.

I don't even know if they're a good band, but I can't stop myself...

The end.

lately...

2009-06-12T12:28:00.005-04:00

Things have been mellow at work...and by mellow, I really mean boring.

I got a promotion...out of nowhere.

I have been reading a lot of food blogs lately. They really interest me!

Went to New York for less than 24 hours for Kim's birthday

Came back from NY and headed straight to the Black Cat to see the Local Natives and Blind Pilot on Sunday - great show!

I had a fever of 100.3 this week and still have the remainder of a mini-cold.

I made homemade bbq sauce last night before I went to Zumba...

I put the sauce on some tofu I prepared and put it over couscous for lunch- man I love bringing my own lunch :)

I'm enjoying my new gym, though I guess I better enjoy it at 79 bucks a month!

Tonight, Z and I are going out with a few of his friends; I love them!

Tomorrow....Deanna and I are going to the Animal Welfare League of Arlington Shelter to look at kittens, because apparently my apartment allows them? EXCELLENT.

Z asked me where I wanted to go on a vacation...I couldn't think of anything (still can't). I am limited to this country since I have not yet replaced my stolen passport. Now when I say 'limited,' I obviously don't mean that...there are so many things to see. My gut is saying San Diego for some reason...the weather, the west coast, the Zoo?

I love Fridays. Everything seems to be better on Fridays...

Also, this picture is ridiculous:

Rollin' With The Homies...

2009-05-27T21:03:00.006-04:00

So, I got out of work at 6 and went to the grocery store. I had some stuff in my fridge that needed to be used tonight or I'd have to throw it out...and let's be serious, I'm too cheap to throw things out. So I found this recipe Cheesy Lasagna Rolls and decided to have some fun. I of course adapted it a little...

I had a hard time boiling the noodles, because my pot is too small!

Lay noodles on CLEAN countertop!
Spread some ricotta...

Next is the sauce...I had some Onion/Garlic pasta sauce in the cabinet, so you know that's what I used...
This spinach almost went bad...I also found some basil in the same condition so on the pasta it went!

Veggie Sausage!? Tastes so good...
Last of the rollups!

Look at the mess the sauce made...Yeesh
All the little rollups in one pan; so cozy!

The rest of the sauce went on top...

And now...the CHEESE!

Goodbye buddy, get melty!

Goober with a tan...and dirty dishes in the background!
YOU ARE DONE!

I will eat you...
I had myself a nice little dinner...
The end :)

2009-05-19T17:10:00.000-04:00

attempting to not be stressed when you're stressed is really stressful.

2009-04-29T09:24:00.003-04:00

possibly paranoid about swine flu...

2009-04-27T20:17:00.003-04:00

I finally hooked up my wireless internet, so tonight I'm blogging in the 88 degree weather on my little balcony.

I spent all weekend outside and got a little sun on my shoulders to show for it...

I got to see Master Amanda on Saturday. We didn't chai...we Proofed instead. It was refreshing...

Z and I (as usual) spent the whole weekend together and it was fantastic. I feel so blessed to have him.

I'm taking the plunge and switching over my residency to the District of Columbia... Unfortunately, it's not as easy as I'd like it to be. I'm able to do a lot of things online, which is great, but if I had my way...I'd do (almost) everything online!

So many things to remember...mail.voting.credit cards.car insurance.car title.driver's license.and more...

Also, I just realized that since it's dark outside, I can't see the keyboard, but haven't needed to glance down once. Growing up in the computer (AIM) age has made me a much more proficient typer...that or I have memorized where the 'backspace' button is. Ha...

No real reason for a blog, just wanted to test my wireless...and sit outside. Mmm warm weather is among us :)

lol aardvarks, really?

2009-04-24T10:42:00.003-04:00

undeniable.

2009-04-24T10:25:00.001-04:00

aardvarks are exponentially cuter than anteaters.

2009-04-22T15:38:00.003-04:00

it's earth day!!

my boyfriend's back and ...I'm really excited.
the end.

2009-04-20T15:43:00.001-04:00

also, i think i'm funny.

i forgot to add that.

whoooo are you? oo oo, oo oo (let's get introspective)

2009-04-20T14:45:00.005-04:00

there's always the way you'd like to think you see yourself, the way you want people to see you, and the way you really see yourself.
these don't ever line up for anyone. you can pretend that they do, but you'd just be...pretending.

i'd like to think that I'm a caring, generous, selfless, cultured, loving, thoughtful, open-minded, smart person. maybe that's who I want to be...
i think some people see these things in me too. maybe that's what I want them to see...

some days, I do things that surprise me:
i pass judgment, i think i would have done something differently (better) than other people, i roll my eyes, i BS the crap out of people, i get annoyed or impatient, i forget to be thankful, i take things and people for granted, i talk about people behind their backs, etc. some people might call this "human," but if we justify these behaviors and don't strive to be better, what happens?

i know who we are changes as we age, as we learn, as we experience, as we meet new people, and as we realize the things we don't like about ourselves.

the confusion of being you...is that you're never really you. no one is original. this is what i conclude. we're all conglomerations of everything and everyone. maybe the various combinations of things that make us "us" are the ways we are unique. i don't know. this all makes sense in my head, but i always have problems articulating...

now for the motivation of this entry:
i did earth day stuff this weekend. watershed cleanup and free concert on the mall (los lobos, moe., and the flaming lips). i did these things because i wanted to be active in my community. here's where my dilemma lies...i went to the free concert because it's something i thought was something i would do...but really, i was tired. i could have just as easily stayed home. another dilemma, i didn't like moe. and didn't even really like the flaming lips. i stayed because...how could i tell my friends (who love the lips) that i didn't stay...even though it was free and in my own backyard. sometimes i do things because i think people think i should...so i do. but the other dilemma...is that sometimes i don't even know what i really like to do, or what kind of music i like to listen to etc. you know?

the last note i will leave on is this: today i thought to myself "geez, why does this person try so hard to be cool and have all these friends...??" and then i thought, "denise, why don't you try? why are you content on spending most of your time with your family and your boyfriend?" and then i realized "WOA, I ACTUALLY LIKE DOING THAT!!!" thank you, Jesus.

now seriously, i love my friends (alot!), and they know that. i like that i don't really have to try super hard to have these friends...we all kind of work together and it's great. but i think the reason i love them...is that we don't have to go out and do something every weekend...even when we're together, we don't have to do anything! phew...

i'm not old, i'm not cheap, i'm not lazy...i just don't feel the need to be doing something all the time...that's all

haha i don't think any of the makes sense...however, this exercise was well worth it, because somehow i feel as though i've vented and now i feel better. comical.

Friday Story Time

2009-04-17T13:40:00.005-04:00

Story #1:

Well, this morning someone walked into my cube and saw a very elementary drawing of an aardvark.
The following conversation ensued:

man: Hm, an aardvark

me: yes, I drew that and I love them

man: interesting. I bet you didn't know that my dormitory mascot at college was Haggis the Aardvark.

me: no way, that's awesome.

man: yea, yesterday I saw a picture of an aardvark in a sweater.

me: I need that.

man: I'll find it for you.
So, he found it and sent it to me.

Story #2:

Last night when I got home from having Chipotle with my parents, I decided to make my "Hearty Greens Soup." I had the written recipe on my counter for a while and had about a pound and a half of kale hanging out in my fridge, so I knew it was time. I love chopping. I love cooking. I didn't get to taste it last night because I was super full and it was 10pm. So I packed it for lunch today. It was hearty and chunky and at first bite, the kale tasted like banana. I think it was my mind playing tricks on me again. After the 4th bite it was fine, though I did add some salt. Towards the end I crumbled up pretzels and put them in the bottom to soak up the somewhat-flavorless liquid. I crumbled pretzels into my lunch yesterday...hm weirdo. Anyway.

It's Friday, folks. A day for aardvarks in sweaters and chunky soup!

Also:
http://greenapplefestival.com/ and http://www.anacostiaws.org/ This weekend.

signed, SEALed delivered, I'm yours.

2009-04-16T16:10:00.000-04:00

after four years of writing meaningless tidbits about my life on livejournal (http://peaceonuniverse.livejournal.com), i have decided to switch to blogger.

i would rather write meaningless tidbits about my life in a blog atmosphere that seems more accepting ...and has a much better standard font. it also has a toolbar, which means i don't have to use stupid geek codes.

today i woke up happy...thanks to you.
wow, that's gross.
true, but gross.