I've Been a Bad Girl

In the last few weeks while I was abandoning my blogging... I was out shopping. I'm not sure what got into me but boy did I BUY!!!! Among the goodies:




A ROCKIN' new iPod and Nike Fit!!! This is what I've saved up my tax return money for. It took a long time picking out which color I wanted. The Nike Fit is amazing and it talks to me. I've also been putting my songs on shuffle more lately and have been discovering many goodies I've been missing. Love my iPod.

On July 17, Seth and I got slightly impulsive. We/I decided to see O.A.R. in Davenport. Not only is O.A.R. my favorite band EVER. It had been a full two years since I've seen them in concert!! Show #5 proved to be just as amazing... oh, and wait for it...









I GOT TO MEET JERRY DEPIZZO!!!!!! Seth and I wandered around Davenport for a while following the concert and when we were too hot to walk any more, we decided to head back to the car. We saw a crowd gathering around the bus and low and behold - Jerry stood. I blabbered to him that "This is my, uh, fifth show... heeheehee" and "I played the sax in high school so I know how hard it was" - ner. But he was nice enough to stand next to me and take a picture before I panicked.





Once we got back from the concert, I was feeling the need for some healthy cooking choices. I destroyed my body in Davenport at the Filling Station - dessert and all. So it was time to jump back on the wagon. After scrounging through many good options, I found "Healthy Cooking for Two" which was full of healthy things I never heard of.




It took a while to find something in the cook book without going out and buying all the ingredients from scratch. But I did it! My concoctions for this week were:


Quinoa, peppers, mushrooms and onions








Marinated chicken, sauteed cucumbers and sweet potatoes. All had different seasonings and all were delicious!!









Lentils and leeks. First time buying both of these ingredients. I made this tonight after I made the above meal. Directions say to eat it over a fresh green salad but I may just warm it up and eat it with something else tomorrow. But I made my breakfast for tomorrow tonight - Green Monster! This beast has handfuls of spinach, a banana, blueberries, almond butter, milk and ice in it. I'd like to make it with Almond Breeze and whey protein sometime for a meal. Delicious!


BAM! Check out this guy!! Splurge number 15 for the month. My blow budget is all but gone. I have been eyeing this beauty for months and finally broke down and got it. This tumbler from Starbucks allows you to create your own tumbler. I've been itching to have some more creativity and wanted to check this out. I have yet to finalize my plans for the design but I'm sure it will be glorious. Since I've been cutting back on my caffeine and coffee consumption, I've been drinking water and crystal light. I've encountered some headaches but know it will be just fine!











In other sad news, I had to say goodbye to Brenna this weekend. They had a nice going away party at Pat's partents' house. Pat was accepted into medical school at USC where he'll be there at least the next three years. Brenna isn't too excited about it and neither am I. I did, however, have the best (and only) salmon burger I've ever had. I went right out and bought myself a package to try myself.

There's been a few changes at work in regards to Active with Asthma. We still only have 11 kids registered which is not 100 like we were planning. I really hope the day turns out ok and things flow as needed. I've also been trying to work on the Asthma Educator Institute more so make that a successful program. I'm enjoying my job better and feel like I have a better handle on it lately. I need to keep up my self confidence which makes a HUGE difference.

This weekend is RAGBRAI weekend!! There will be a big extravaganza including a fish fry on Friday and a hog roast on Saturday. It will be great to be home and see family again for another special occasion. Wooo!!!

Cookie Monster

I did it! My first attempt at "Thier Family Cookies" was a complete success! But holy cow the recipe never mentioned that it yields 1,000 cookies. Looks like I'll have to freeze some and save for later...

With an open Sunday and me trying to delay starting anything to have to deal with work, I decided to pick up trying something new. Sarah provided this excellent recipe to her bridesmaids during the rehearsal dinner and it has been sitting in my room since. So after a 3 mile run on the treadmill, I thought I was in the clear for a few extra calories. I ran to the store to pick up a few extra ingredients I didn't have laying around the house. This batch of cookies cost about $24! I was excited to use the new mixer Mom got for me a few months earlier too. In the recipe of Thier Chocolate Chip Cookies:
-1 lb butter or margarine (4 sticks) oye!!
-2 C dark brown sugar
-1 1/2 C white sugar
-2 tsp Vanilla
-3 eggs
-6 C Flour
-1 1/2 tsp Salt
-1 1/2 tsp Soda
-4 Cups Chocolate chips (2 bags)
-3 dashes of cinnamon (optional)

Cream butter and sugars (I had to call Sarah for this part since I didn't fully know how to cream these ingredients. She mentioned I needed to warm the butter up for 20 seconds first before mixing... whoops). Add eggs and vanilla and beat 3-4 minutes. Add all dry ingredients until mixed. Add dashes of cinnamon and chocolate chips. Mix well. Bake at 350 for 6-8 minutes. Cool for 5 minutes before taking off pan. Secret: Do not over bake!

After wads of cookie dough and 3 cute little perfectly baked delicious cookies, I feel ill. Last night I went to Wellman's with Bobbie Jo and a few of her friends (which was lame) and didn't go to sleep until 3:30am. I'm feelin a nap! Seth is here, determined to watch more James Bond movies. The 4 he watched last night with Martha and Jill were not enough... haha.

I've also been tossing the idea around of getting a new ipod. Seth teases me that whenever I get something new I have to blog about it... so.? :) But the ipod I have now has been dying within minutes of when I start my runs. I bought it refurbished 4 years ago on ebay and it's finally pooping out on me. I also want one of those Nike fit things that help me track mileages of my runs. I couldn't decide between an ipod touch-screen and a nano but I think I want to go with the nano. The only thing is... that's a lot of money to fork out! I always debate with myself if I can afford it or not...

Ok, time to clean the place up and start thinking about the work week again... ew. I should be thinking about what to make for supper but that is the last thing I want to worry about now. In the meantime... MMMMMM COOKIESSS!!!!!

New Running Shoes Make Life Better

Last week, I convinced myself and indulged in a new pair of running shoes. It's been a good year since I allowed myself to buy a decent pair of new shoes. The $50 ones at Kohls did NOT count. You get what you pay for. There is something incredibly motivating about having new shoes. Although hesitant to get them dirty, I know hitting the road is much easier and I am easily persuaded to go farther. That actually goes with any new running clothes that I buy... which explains why most of the new clothes I get are workout clothes. Tonight Seth and I ran for a solid 20 minutes non-stop. We started directly at the independent living center next to me and ran to the skateboard park (our normal turn-around spot) and continued again until 86th street. It felt great! Actually, it was so humid and I was sweating so hard I couldn't see through the sweat in my eyes. The new shoes gave me wings though. I really want to get into the habit of exercising in the morning but I am SO not a morning person. This morning I woke up at 7:15 and practically had to get drug out of bed. I am so grumpy in the morning up until I have my coffee finished by 10:00am. I need to start my IV of coffee at 5 in the morning... Going for a run right in the morning before work would give me tons of extra free time in the afternoon to do other things I wanted. Making one goal at a time...
Off to bed! I'm going to read a little more of my book "Loose Girl" about a promiscuous girl who finds true love in herself. On the agenda for tomorrow... handing out more Active with Asthma materials to Parks and Recs around the area and continuing (starting) my work with the Asthma Educator Course. That thing is a MONSTER! I avoid it at all costs but now it is getting down to crunch time. I also need to confirm a speaker for next week's BBC. AHHHH! Ok no more thinking about work. Only think about work when I'm there or I start to panic.

Yay!! I'm a blogger!!

Well, well, well. I finally joined the rest of the world on this whole internet thing. Here's where I'm going to write about my exciting - and not so exciting adventures in this lovely place we call world. I'm going to have to think of another name for the blog - something that suits me more... One of my favorite blogs is from an ALA staff member's sister-in-law called "Iowa Girl Eats". She writes about cooking glorious food, traveling, and running. I'm inspired that she can do so much and still blog. I will need to write more outside of being at work. Stay tuned...