food

I finally managed to get my shit together last night and complete most of the tasks on my to-do list. The most important was making a menu of meals for the week and subsequent grocery list.
I cleaned out the fridge and started to feel bad. I was throwing away so much unused food, even from my farm, which just crushes me. Every time I throw something away, I just see money going into the garbage. I just imagine literally taking dollar bills, fives, and tossing them away. Due to this, I attempted to make my food list based on what I have in my cupboards and fridge already.

Days in red indicate I am working. Obviously, this isn't all I am eating, just my main meals. I don't include snacks or foods I may be eating on the side of the meals, like vegetables or fruits. Also, I don't normally schedule my lunch on days off because I just wing it. Work, however, is another story since I work nights. If I don't plan, then I am forced to eat at the cafeteria. That isn't necessarily a bad thing because the cafe has a lot of healthy options, but I'd rather not spend the extra money.


Tuesday
Lunch: left over pizza

Dinner:
Left over  apple squash soup
BLT sandwich 

Wednesday
Before work:
Left over meatloaf

At work:
Left over soup
Yogurt with fruit/granola

Orange slices 

Thursday
Before work: mizuna pasta recipe
http://www.ecometro.com/Community/blogs/portland_food/archive/2009/05/20/green-to-the-last-bite-of-mizuna-recipe-pasta-with-mizuna-and-walnuts.aspx


At work:
More pasta
-yogurt with f/g
-lara bar

Friday
Before work: miso soup with
Mushrooms, pepper, mizuna.

At work: left over’s.

Saturday
Dinner: pancakes with pears or apples sauce

Sunday
Black bean quesadilla recipe

Monday
Asian chicken wrap recipe
http://www.5dollardinners.com/2008/12/asian-chicken-wraps-with-steamed-snap-peas.html




Well, I'm off to start the day!

feelin' saucy!

I feel so good today! I don't know what it is, but I hope this feeling lasts into the week:)

I woke up and organized/cleaned, which always makes me feel..cleansed? I decided yesterday that today I want to make a tomato sauce! I've been craving a nice, homemade sauce for awhile now, but I rarely make one since I know it could never compare to my mom's!! She told me over the phone what she does, so I am going to mimic it the best I can. I'm also adding ground turkey breast to mine. She usually does the whole ground beef and italian sausage deal with amazing meatballs *drool* and she cooks it ALL. DAY. Growing up, I have found memories of the weekends when her sauces would start early in the morning and simmer all day long. The smell would permeate throughout the whole house. We'd always have good bread, too. I miss those days.


As much as I want to follow a vegetarian diet, I find that I don't feel well when I do. I just feel better at times when I have animal products. Truthfully, this makes me feel guilty and sad, but I just do not like feeling like crap! Honestly, I'm all about listening to what my body needs. Sometimes it wants all fruits, veggies, and grains and rebels against any sort of animals, even dairy! And then there are times when I know I just need it.
Does anyone else feel this way? I feel guilty, I guess, since I read a lot of blogs related to vegetarianism and veganism, but everyone is different, right?

Lately, I've been on the search for a good, daily moisturizer. I was using Alba organics prior, but it is gone and I'm ready for something new. I use Yes To Carrots cream at night and I like that, so I thought I'd give it a try. I found a Yes to Cucumnbers facial kit on sale at Target. It includes a headband (haha), a facial cleansing gel, a facial hydrating lotion, and soothing eye gel.

After a bunch of errands this afternoon, I came home, put away all the food, and made a delicious lunch consisting of: whole wheat pita with hummus, baked until hot and then topped with organic spinach, fresh basil from my porch (love!!), organic tomato slices, and (the best) kalamata olives. I love making these little pizzas! On the side, I had a fruit salad from Publix.
I'm ready to start cooking my sauce!

Max says, "hi!"

Totally random, but does anyone else get extreme joy out of purchasing stupid things, like hand soap, sponges, etc? I don't know, I'm a freak!

Day 30!!

One more day of the challenge!! I cannot believe how quickly the month just flew by! It's been a busy whirlwind for me, but I loved it.

This afternoon Mirza treated me to a late lunch at the Red Mesa Cantina. That was around 4pm and it is now 11:30pm. Let's just say I am still full. I wish I would have taken advantage of the setting and gotten something more unique, but unfortunately, the unhealthy food was calling me! I ended up getting the blackened chicken. ugh, it was a lot. However, the yucca fries were awesome! I've never had them before. Still, I should have ordered something more...mexican or something, you know? Oh well.









Best part of the night? Mirza and I did yoga!! Yes!
I downloaded an Intro to Yoga podcast for us (since he is new) and it was nice. About 28 minutes. Afterwards, he was dead and I was just kind of bored since it was the bare minimum. I then downloaded an advanced power yoga podcast. It was 23 minutes, but I could only do about 12. All that damn food in my body, blaaaaaa. I just want to eat vegetables and fruits forever when I eat something like that. What the hell was I thinking!!? hahahah



We spent the rest of the night inside watching movies.

I love Bill Maher. http://www.huffingtonpost.com/bill-maher/new-rule-you-cant-complai_b_291852.html

Day 29: yoga, sleep, bake

Day 29, can anyone else believe it? The end has been the most difficult for me. Not because I don't want to do yoga, but because of my schedule. I am exhausted after work; it's ridiculous! Yesterday I ended up doing a 15 minute podcast.
This afternoon I completed a 25 minute podcast.
Someone asked me what my favorite podcasts are for yoga, and I honestly do not have any yet since I just bought my new MacBook Pro last week! My previous computer was a piece of crap and I couldn't download anything! Argh!!
I am enjoying 20 minute yoga download, though. I really prefer videos, so if someone has any suggestions for yoga download VIDEOS then hit me up.


After yoga, I had every intention of going food shopping, but sleep overcame me! I ended up napping for 3.5 hours. um, oops?
Right now my egg-free and dairy-free banana bread is baking away (-free because I didn't make it to the store). I hope it turns out good. I'm not too worried. I also grated in 1/2 of a honeycrisp apple (am enjoying the other half as I write this).

Lately, I'm been enjoying a lot of vegetarian and vegan meals. Sometimes I just cannot eat any meat or animal products; I feel like crap after...toxic-like? I do not like to label myself as vegetarian or vegan, but I'd say right now my diet is 85% vegetarian. Still love my cow's milk yogurt and cheese, but I did venture out the other night and try one of Amy's frozen pizzas that had no dairy. Pizza with no cheese! And I was pleasantly surprise!

It will be interesting to see how my diet changes over the next few months to accommodate to my CSA. And even more importantly, how it changes when I start to work nights--PS: terrified. If anyone has any tips for maintaining a healthy lifestyle, especially eating when working three 12 hour night shifts, hit me up. Right now, I am tentatively beginning November 16th. My manager is well-aware that I am not wanting to work nights and says, "it won't be for long." I think she might know something, but cannot say for sure. I'm all for working nights at the moment though, since I need to pay off this lovely laptop. I'll be making about an extra $400 per paycheck. Sweet! I'm trying to look on the bright side.

Here are some pictures from last weekend. We went to International Mall to get Mirza's MacBook fixed and ended up at a delicious restaurant, which I have no idea the name!! aah. It was something "bistro." Inside was quite aesthetically pleasing. They had a variety of options and it was not expensive at all.




I had the vegetable wrap with house salad:



Mirza had the coconut curry shrimp with jasmine rice and "vegetables."


Dessert was a Creme Brule cheesecake. Sorry, no picture:(

Tomorrow is my CCIP graduation!! I will post pictures of my pin and certificate.

Day 25: Ohm?

I just found out about a giveaway that is meant for me. Seriously...

Just wanted to tell you all about a contest we have going for any of you out there that might have a blog (or have friends that do). If you enter and your post wins, you and a friend will relax and revitalize during a weekend yoga retreat at the beautiful Kripalu Center for Yoga & Health. You will enjoy two days and two nights of rest and renewal for your body, mind and spirit. This prize includes:

Transportation and accomodations at the Kripalu Center, a premier yoga retreat located in Lenox, MA

Accommodations at Kripalu in a Standard Plus Room with delicious all-natural meals

Daily experiential workshops and guided outdoor activities

Daily yoga and YogaDance™ classes

Evening events

How to Enter? It's easy - simply create a blog post on your blog about one of the following:

1. Share an original story about why you need to say “Ohm”

2. Post a photo of you doing yoga in a toga (Oikos is Greek yogurt after all!)

3. Share a recipe you created using Oikos yogurt as an ingredient

Then, let us know that you posted it. You can find full details of entry and contacting us here: http://www.stonyfield.com/Kripalu/. One winner from all eligible entries will be selected at random. Randomly selected entries will be posted on the Oikos Facebook wall throughout the contest.

All links to entry posts must be received by November 30, 2009, and the winner will be announced on Stonyfield.com on or before December 15, 2009.

Please visit here for more info: http://www.facebook.com/oikos

I've been drooling over my recent Kripalu catalog, so this contest comes at the perfect time! Not to mention the 31-Day Yoga Challenge.

Why I need to say "Ohm"...

In all honesty, I have a bit of a love-hate relationship with the word "Om." Whenever I attend a yoga class where they begin the practice with chanting, I always feel awkward. My judgmental mind kind of rolls it's eyes and thinks, "Okay, we're not monks," and I feel a bit like a...poser? As if I am trying to be someone or something I'm not. However, for the month of October, I've been completing a 31-Day Yoga Challenge. Everyday, for 31 days, I am practicing yoga and inviting all things positive into my life. During this time, I have come to a new conclusion on the "ommers" in the universe! And I now consider myself one, too. But in a different sense of the word...

As a critical care Registered Nurse, everyday at work I experience a wide array of emotions from myself, but even more so from my patients and families. Often times, patients do not live or the road to recovery is long and painful. We try to give them a death with dignity, but it can be difficult when one is literally hooked up to a breathing machine with tubes going into every orifice and even man-made holes through flesh for extra lines. Many times, it is the family who needs the most support as the patient is generally sedated or unconscious. In a position such as mine, I need to encompass as much compassion and empathy that one can muster up. During the dark early morning hours, I make my walk through the streets to the hospital entrance. The world is still. I am quiet. And my thoughts are racing..."what will happen today? will someone code? will we be able to save them? Will I know what to do?!" Even though I'm well-equiped with a brilliant team of nurses and doctors, as well as my own education and knowledge, I feel scared. It is during this walk that I remember to breathe and truly understand the meaning of "Om." Keeping my mind quiet and realizing I am part of the universe. I need this...I need OM to continue to provide great care to sick patients. I need to experience OM to experience deeper compassion for myself, others, and the universe!

So, even though the actual chanting of "Om" can sometimes make me cringe, I use OM in my everyday life; during those quiet times when no one is aware, and it is completely necessary.

...


For the challenge today, I completed about 15 minutes of random video podcasts. I went on a good 30 minute walk this morning, so I skipped my 11:30 class and opted for "bedtime yoga." I did a "Couch yoga," "Yoga for stress," and "Yoga for Facebook addicts" by Tara Stiles. These are short, about 5 minute videos. They sounded amusing, anyway. I enjoyed them!

On my way this morning, I snapped this photo of another bunny:


And for dinner, I wanted something CLEAN. I think this meal is actually completely vegan. Pictured is an acorn squash (I bake it at 425 with lots of garlic, evoo, and brown sugar), seven whole grain pilaf blend from Seeds of Change, and whole hearts of romaine with evoo and red wine vinegar!


I work the next two days, so it's time to hit the sack!

Day 20

Good evening, folks!

Today was good, but I suppose all good things must come to an end (I work the next two days), right? haha!

I began the day with a walk through Lake Seminole Park, which is definitely my new favorite place to walk now.




I love the way the sun glistens off the water in this picture.



Bird basking in the sun!






My favorite photo.


Sans makeup...aah



Bunny!



I'll post more pictures of the park later in the week...

I spent the rest of the day cleaning, shopping, and making dinner.

I also bought myself flowers! I wanted a fall-feel for the dining area.



Dinner was Carrot Ginger soup with baked sesame pita from CLEAN FOOD.





DELICIOUS!!!!

And for dessert, we had a slice of cheesecake at the bookstore.

----

For yoga, I did about 20-25 minutes. I was feeling anxious and hyper and had difficulty getting into it. I also had food in my stomach and drank some OJ right before, so yeah...don't do that, people!
Sometimes I think the amount of minutes practiced do not matter so much as the thought and intention/purpose that goes into the practice. For instance, I could have days when I do 90 minutes and am totally not with it. And others when 15 just blows my mind because I am completely one with everything. The fact that I am taking any time out of my day to do something intentionally good is all that matters to me.

Day 19

Just completed a good 30 minutes of yoga at home. I lit candles and put on my music and it felt great. I'm actually liking home practice a lot more than I had originally anticipated.

This morning we had our last lecture for CCIP. It was on shock and sepsis. I also finished all of my ECCO MODULES!! Amazing. 50 online modules of all the body systems. Each body system broken down into anatomy and physiology, tests and procedures, pathologic conditions, nursing care, etc! Next Friday is our graduation and I guess that means I will officially be a "Critical care nurse," although I already feel like one now. Well, maybe an impostor since I'm still learning, but I'm not a new nurse, sooooo...

Class ended for me at 10:15 because I'm already ACLS certified and didn't need to take the exam/mock code. I hung around the house for a bit and then it felt like a brick wall of exhaustion hit me around 12:30. I tried to stay awake, but gave in to the sleepiness. I unrolled the covers and slept until almost 4pm! What the heck!?

Mirza stopped by after school and we went for a 30 minute walk around the neighborhood. I'm absolutely loving the weather and walks and will be incredibly saddened when the heat returns.
--

Lately, my neck and shoulders have been killing me. They don't hurt like muscle aches from physical activity, they just feel strained like I've been holding my body the wrong way. I'm conscious of when my shoulders come up to my ears, so I'm not quite sure the culprit.
I think I'll go look for some yoga poses to release neck and shoulders.

Any suggestions?

Day 14: Two weeks!

Today marks two weeks of the 31-Day Challenge! It is going SO FAST.
I'm thinking of extending it to a 60-Day Yoga Challenge, hmmm, any thoughts?


In honor of day 14, I tried out a new studio: St. Pete Yoga. I attended the 9:30 class Asthanga flow: Internal heat. It is for levels 2-3, according to the site. It was a difficult class for me. The sun salutations weren't a big deal, but they did a lot of other poses that I'm not used to. However, I liked the instructor because she helped to adjust my position numerous times (she asked first, of course), which was nice because sometimes you wonder if you're doing a simple pose correctly or not. And the instructors at my gym don't really do that.
My back is kind of sore today though probably from all those attempts at dancer pose yesterday!

I spent the rest of the day taking care of business, errands, etc. Also browsed through the winter Kripalu catalog, drooled over the awesome retreats...

Made an early dinner from a combo of recipes from Clean Food.

I made the Quinoa with Almonds and Currants, and on the side enjoyed the Sauteed garlic greens (I used purple kale).





Dessert was a coconut almond ice cream bar. mmmmmm.


I'm feeling kind of bummed right now. Pretty sure it is a combination of hormones and the fact that I work the next two days and I had like 8 days off (I did have labs though). Going back to work is always difficult when you have fun days off. It isn't that I am sad to go to work; more stressed. I'm always worried before I go in, especially since I am new to the unit and wonder who will be working and blablabla, it's dumb. Staying positive and cursing female hormones.

Day 13: Take two

Alright, I feel much better now. I was just so frustrated earlier by the fact that it is October and it is still soooo hot that I cannot even go for an autumn walk. I want fuzzy sweaters, beautiful foliage, crunchy leaves, crisp air!
We've been breaking all kinds of record high temperatures!
But relief is in site for the weekend:


I cannot wait!
I plan on taking a nice, long walk.

After my little meltdown, I did about 20 minutes of yoga, followed by 5 of savasana and then a 15 minute guided meditation from Living Joy.


I forgot I bought this cd over a year ago and it occured to me during savasna, so I jumped up and put on "Living Acceptance," since clearly I need to accept the fact that I live here! haha

Max participated:





hmmmmmmm? I was probably thinking about dinner...



My best attempt at a dancer pose. I don't know how people get their legs practically over their heads and torso up, but...you know...this is me!


I can go forward, but not up!


Balance is not an issue for me, but apparently flexibility is!:)


Made some homemade chocolate chip waffles for dinner...




Pretty new pictures in honor of the 31-Day Yoga Challenge: