Happy birthday!

Did you happen to notice where i mentioned vegan food/brothers decide on my menu plan? Yeah, its because little brother came to MN for a visit!!

nice to meet you uncle!

In June I came up with the best idea for my hubbs' birthday. His little brother lives in LA and hasn't been home for almost 2 years. They were missing each other, so I came up with a way to kill 2 birds with 1 plane trip. Little brother (not so little, 23 years old) bought a ticket and we pulled off an awesome surprise trip home. Though mother in law almost ruined it a few times but overall hubbs had no idea.

wake up!!

I had been telling hubbs that i had to work on Wednesday so he would have to pick up monster after work. I spent the morning cleaning the house for our guest and  then I went to pick up little brother and hurried home. When husband was pulling into the driveway/garage, little brother was standing in the garage.

Yay!! :) Happy birthday hubbs!

Random Facts about Me!

The other day, 20minutemom had 20 facts about her on her blog. I decided to take her idea and do it for myself. However, I did not do 20 facts, I did 6.

1. I'm a natural blonde (I always spell blonde with an 'e') but I've always wanted dark hair, like Lauren Graham.

2. I am the youngest of 4 kids, 3 boys and me. They are all older. Man was I spoiled. :) not by stuff or how i acted but how i didn't have to do chores and my brothers were not allowed to lay a hand on me, therefore I never got in physical fights. still haven't.

3. I lived in Tucson, Arizona for 5 months. We moved there in May and moved away the end of September. By the way, the hottest summer on record at the time! Every one said we would have loved the winter weather...

4. I have 2 cats, Sebastian (Sebass) and Winnie the cat.

5. I went to 4 different colleges and it took me 6 years and 1 quarter to get 2 different degrees. I have a Bachelor of Arts and an Associate of Science. Thinking about going to get my Masters in a couple years.

6. I do my hair in the morning and it always ends up in a pony tail by lunch time. Speaking of that, I need a hair cut.

groceries and meals/randomness

Grocery shopping is too expensive. There are only two of us really eating (monster still eats baby food) and we tend to spend $100 a week. Ridiculous. Recently I have been trying to figure out ways to cut back on our grocery expenses but it is really hard with a husband who eats like a teenager and wanting to use fresh foods. I could totally eat like I did in college (ramen, etc) and be super cheap, but that doesn't even taste good to me anymore. I went to ALDI this weekend for groceries and also had to go to CUB to get a few other things. I'm pretty sure I can't take husband to ALDI ever again because he hates it there, but there are good deals to be had. Ice cream (a weakness) for $2.49? Heck yeah, I'll take it. Frozen fruits for $1.99? Oh yes please! Plus their produce is pretty cheap too. Avocados for 49 cents... sign me up! Can you freeze avocados? Anyhoo, I decided I'd try to make it for 2 weeks with this weekend trip. Here's the menu for the next 2 weeks... however, there are a couple of days where we'll be out of town, have special meals (for birthdays), or go out to eat because of friends in town. Total spent $144.28.  There are a couple things I did not get (flax meal and potatoes) and will need to pick up plus we spent $12 on baby food. (side note -- monster needs to eat table food...) I am hoping to keep it under $150 for 2 weeks (minus eating out).

Menu for two weeks:

Sunday -- Turkey burgers and sweet potato fries
Monday -- Chicken taco salad bowls
Tuesday -- Chicken and veggies
Wednesday -- Vegan tomato soup and grilled cheese
Thursday -- Baked apple cinnamon oatmeal/brothers decide
Friday -- Carmel pecan rolls/Flan/birthday supper
Saturday -- Blueberry pancakes/State Fair
Sunday -- Family party/Friends get together
Monday -- Grill out burgers and sweet corn
Tuesday -- Black bean burgers
Wednesday -- Meat loaf muffins and mashed potatoes
Thursday -- Clean out fridge/leftovers
Friday -- Out of town
Saturday -- Out of town
Sunday -- Out of town

Lizzie

Thank you for being the one who reads this blog and comments. You are el número UNO supporter of mine and words cannot tell you how it lifts my day to get an email with your comments. I love you mucho :-) Spanglish what?

I am so glad to have you as a friend, the best thing that could have happened to me was to wander into the lounge late one night in 2001... seems like such a long time ago and yet, like yesterday. Thank you for making the effort to befriend me also. We work.

So excited for you as you become a mama! I know how long you've waited for this! I hope everything with the little Mr. (I've decided Baby is a boy) is everything you ever dreamed of and I will always be here for your questions and frustrations and smiles.

and Lastly, a very Happy Birthday to one of the best friends a girl could ever have!! 

Half-year report

Update... I have not done much in the last 3 months. This list looks eerily similar to the one I posted in May. This summer was not much in the way of my goals, but I am hopeful that will change in the upcoming months.

30 before 30.

Health--Body

1.  Run a 5K with decent finish time (60 minutes or less).  DONE April 28
2.  Do a mud run. 
3.  Give up Diet Pepsi.
4.  Lose 10 pounds. DONE April 14
5.  Try a yoga class.
6.  Do water aerobics.
7.  Learn something new (physical).

Health--Mental

8.  Get off all meds and feel good about it. **I am off all meds and feel mostly good about it... only time will tell. In the next 6 months I plan that I will feel good about it!**
9.  Learn something new (intelligence).
10.  Learn to grow something (flowers or veggies).
11.  Finish Audrey’s baby book/scrapbook/calendar.

Food

12.  Bake a cake from scratch. DONE 04/25/2012
13.  Make homemade peanut butter cups with cookie crust.

House

14.  Go through closet and simplify wardrobe (use it or lose it). 
15.  Clean out and organize office. **started working on this, will take a while**
16.  Paint office and trim.
17.  Paint front porch and garage door.
18.  Decorate the dining room.
19.  Solve the coats and shoes dilemma **mostly finished**
20.  Get new sheets/pillows for bed.  **Still need pillows but sheets are done**
21.  Frame some family pictures (gallery wall). **Have some but not all framed, need an IKEA trip! and some spray paint**
22.  Go through knickknack box/get rid of/put out/store things.**partially started**
23.  Make/hang curtains in living room/dining room.

Travel

24.  Take a trip somewhere I haven’t been.
25.  Visit Monmouth.
26.  Check out city of Madison. DONE 06/15 and 06/16
27.  Go to Duluth for a weekend. DONE O5/13 thru 05/15/2012
28.  Spend a weekend camping out of town.

Other

29.  Finally change name on passport.
30.  Watch the Lethal Weapon movies.

Philosophy of a healthy life

I know all the things to do for a healthier lifestyle but it's a matter of actually doing them... for instance, eat real food, not a lot, mostly plants --- BUT WHAT ABOUT CHOCOLATE?!?!?!

•  Monitor sleep. Very important for health and well being, mentally and physically. Have a consistent wake-up time and go-to bedtime. Not always feasible but overall helpful. Progressive relaxation, listen to your breathing, focus on emptying your mind.
• Eat protein and fiber at every meal, including snacks. Help fill you up faster and keep you fuller longer.
• Increase overall intake of fruits and vegetables to 5-6 per day. Again with the low-calorie, fiber packed foods! You can eat a lot and not feel too bad (unless there is too much unhealthy dip going on!)
• Eat mini meals throughout the day. Keep metabolism up by eating every few hours. Eat within the first hour that you're awake and stop eating 2 hours before bedtime.
• Increase overall activity, start small and manageable, work up, do something that challenges you mentally but you enjoy or you will get bored and quit.

passing judgment

I try not to judge... at least, I tell myself that I try not to judge. I'm pretty sure I do judge, everyone and everything. Seriously, silly of me since I hate to be judged. I can't seem to help it. At least I try to keep my judgments to myself. I do tend to talk under my breath when out in public... "that kid should be in bed" "glad my kid isn't like that" "she'll never be like that" "please don't be like that." Or when I'm at work, "really you left the house like that?" "you're actually wearing that in public?" "oh my god, of course you're on medication/in counseling."

Last night I really thought about this. I pass judgment on other people because I see those same flaws in myself. I feel like I'm not the best parent, so I look for other "bad parents" so I can feel better. Am I a bully or what? :-(  You should see some of the outfits that I put together for work (because none of my clothes fit and I am too lazy to shop or lose weight/tone up). Medication? Check. Counseling? Check. God... I am sometimes a horrible person. And please, please, please don't ever come to my house without at least 4 days warning. I am a SLOB, a huge messy, dirty, gross SLOB and I am super lazy as well. What am I teaching my kid? I must get better and set a better example for the monster so she doesn't grow up with the same complex that I have. How did I get this way? My parents aren't like this at all!! This one is all on me.

self pity party over. :-) enjoy your day.

Californication

Have you seen this show?

We recently got Showtime and although I had heard of the show, I didn't know anything about it. No, I take that back, I knew David Duchovny was the star. Other than that, crickets. One day my husband started to watch it on demand and I had no interest. He later showed me a part he thought was pretty funny and I thought it was raunchy. He kept watching and since I wasn't doing anything else, so did I. It wasn't a show that I would choose to watch but since it was on, I'd watch it. Then, I got hooked. The season 5 finale left with an outrageous cliffhanger and I seriously can't wait to see what happens next!

Anyway, back to the point... we found a really good deal a couple of weeks ago at Target for season 1, on sale for $14.99. Let me just say, this show is ridiculous. Parts of it are funny. Much of it is disgusting. But, I keep coming back for more. We ordered seasons 2 and 3 from Amazon and are working our way through them. It's like crack. Only healthier??

Part porno, lots of naked people, and some heartwarming relationships. Go figure. I need to order the next season, though I'm sure we'll finish this one before getting the next. Boo. It totally doesn't hurt that he's hot either... :)

ps happy birthday to my daddy.

day in the life -- saturday august 11

5:21 -- Wake up to CRASH!! WTF? I don't really care and go back to sleep. Darn cats.

6:44 -- Am I hearing things? Nope, monster is awake and I have to pee. Then I wake up husband and go back to sleep.

7:09 -- Alarm goes off, I hit the snooze button and pull covers back over my head.

7:18 -- Actually get up and get dressed.

 

 7:35 -- Leave for meeting. What a gorgeous morning!

 

 8:45 -- Get home from meeting and eat breakfast. 

 9:15 -- Put monster down for nap, she fights it and makes mucho noise/cries/squawks for half an hour then sleeps. I use the time to blog surf, online shop, and find a recipe for flan (husband wants flan for his birthday, yuck, and being the good wife that I am, I promised to make him some even though I can't stand it). He plays some video games.

 

 10:30 -- Monster wakes up, so I get her, change her, and feed her a bottle.

love little baby socks!!

 11:15 -- We get ready to leave the house and hit up caribou, go shopping, and then go have lunch.

1:45 -- Come back home and monster has another nap. The girl won't quit, she's talking to herself for a while and then all is quiet. Husband and I relax on the couch. Then he goes for a motorcycle ride, the cats and monster nap, I play on the Internet and work on this post. 

3:34 -- Small cries come from the monitor, someone must be awake and lonesome! I go up to change her and then husband gets home from his ride. He gives monster a bottle and we settle in on the couch to watch some Californication.

To our beautiful daughter, our black president, and my magnificent dong. Cheers!

4:45 -- Husband starts the grill and goes off to the store to pick up some things we forgot for dinner. and he ever so nicely brings home snacks for tonight :) We eat dinner, I feed monster some dinner (which she hardly enjoys), and then we settle in for an evening that includes:

yumm

Good Night!

The end of my somewhat typical but not always Saturday. Hope you enjoyed your peek at my day in the life.

what's up chicken?

Ever have one of those days that is so hectic that you forget about supper? I do, all the time. That's where this little trick comes in handy. Any time I forget to take the chicken out of the freezer, I poach them from frozen.

Place chicken in a large pot. Cover with water and set on medium heat. Boil chicken until done to your liking. Remove from heat and shred or chop for any recipe.

I used my poached chicken to make buffalo chicken quesadillas. Delicious. Here's how...

10 ounces cooked chicken.
1/2 cup fat free plain Greek yogurt
2 tbs buffalo sauce
1/3 cup crumbled blue cheese
1/4 cup green onions, sliced
1 1/3 cup shredded marble jack cheese
4 tortillas

Mix together chicken, yogurt, buffalo sauce, and blue cheese. Fold in the green onions. Place 1/4 of mixture on each of the 4 tortillas. Cover with 1/3 cup of cheese and fold in half. Cook in a hot pan until crispy on the outside and cheese is melted on the inside.

This made 4 good sized portions. I had 1 and JT had 2. I'll probably have the other for lunch :)

Slim Down Sundays -- Volume 11

Update from Last Week: What am I doing wrong? I'm going to try to do paper tracking and see how that goes. I'm also going to reread all my plan material and focus in on where I am weak... ugh.

Weigh In: Saturday, August 2, at meeting, 176, up 0.4.

My Weekly Motivation:  Blaughssjowih.

Exercise: Why do I even bother adding this category? I just kid myself.

Share the Wisdom of Others: The first bite and the last bite are always the best bites, so why eat more than 2 bites???

First Degree Goal: Pre-pregnancy weight of 172 pounds.

Second Degree Goal: Find an activity that I enjoy in order to add in some exercise.

Ultimate Goal: 140 pounds/feel good in my skin/fit in single digit size clothing.

Linking up at

Welcome to the family...

Winnie the cat

Welcome to the family, Winnie :-)

Blog co-dependent

I am absolutely addicted to my Google reader. My blog list must have at least 50 blogs on it. I check it about once an hour, sometimes more. I get very sad when there are no new entries on my list, especially when my favorite blogs don't update every day. I hope no one feels that way about my blog (you know my one regular reader, love you Lizzie) because I just don't have enough to post daily. I wish i did but I totally don't have the time either...

I'm off to spend the day with my family :-) and maybe a little fro-yo too.

Here are a few of my favorite blogs, click over and check them out.

A Healthy Slice of Life

Duchess of Fork

Young House Love

20 Minute Mom

A Turtle's Life for Me

I Heart Organizing

Navigating the Mothership

It's All Happening

Musings of a Half Wit


Happy Friday!

Easy dinner tonight!

Baked Lemon Pasta

Ingredients:
1/2 pound whole wheat spaghetti
2 1/2 TB smart balance light buttery spread with flax
1/2 TB extra virgin olive oil
1 tsp minced garlic
Juice of 1-1 1/2 lemons and zest from 1/2
1 cup fat free sour cream
1/2 tsp salt or more to taste
2/3 cup shredded Parmesan cheese
Chopped parsley for garnish

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350*
Cook spaghetti to al dente. Melt smart balance and olive oil over medium heat. Add garlic and saute until fragrant. Take off heat and add lemon juice from one half of lemon. Stir in sour cream, lemon zest, and salt. Pour over drained pasta and stir to combine.  Pour into oven-safe dish and cover with foil. Bake for 15 minutes. Turn off oven, uncover and bake for 7 more minutes. Remove from oven and stir. Squeeze half a lemon over the top. Sprinkle with Parmesan cheese and parsley. Finish off with more lemon juice. Enjoy.

serves 4

I served this with a green salad and shrimp sauteed in butter with garlic and lemon juice . Wonderific.

Adapted from the pioneer woman.