Happy Labor Day!

Oh the bliss! Sleeping in with no alarm clock = pure heaven.

We had a slow, lazy breakfast – pancakes with dark chocolate + berries + one scrambled egg and my favorite hazelnut coffee with cream…what a perfect start to the day.

I used my favorite pancake mix- Fiber One…

I love slow breakfasts…most weekday mornings I’m rushing around like a crazy person just trying to get ready and get out the door for work…so a leisurely breakfast is a treat.

On my agenda:

• a walk with Anthony at a greenway/park
• a little swimsuit shopping…I need one more suit before our upcoming anniversary trip!
• a little more laziness before the work-week begins!

Movie review from last night:

• New in Town- loved it! I’m a huge fan of Renee Zellwegger and I thought it was the perfect, light romantic comedy.
• Last House on the Left- hated it! Can’t really give it a full review because we turned it off after about 30 minutes – we didn’t really get any suspense during the first 30 minutes, just negativity…not my kind of movie. I definitely wouldn’t recommend. But, we did turn it off after 30 minutes, so maybe it redeems itself later in the show.

I hope you’re having a great Holiday weekend!

See you later!

Adventure Bound

HAPPY BIRTHDAY to my sister AMY!!! My little sister is 31 today!

I started my morning with a great cup of coffee and a morning walk…my favorite way to start the day.

After the walk, breakfast was a veggie scramble, fresh berries, and toast with peach butter.

Now, we’re finishing the packing and getting ready for our road trip to Hot Springs, NC….so excited – we’re starting the day with a half-day whitewater rafting trip and then spending the evening in a cute little B&B. I’m excited about the B&B! We are taking a break from technology for the weekend, so I’ll be back tomorrow with a recap of our trip.

Hope you have a great weekend!

Happy (belated) Birthday Dad!

Good morning! We’re driving a couple of hours to my sister’s house today to hang out and celebrate my dad’s birthday (it was on Wednesday)….

Our breakfast today was simple and delicious….scrambled eggs with a multi-grain English muffin with raspberry preserves….

And fruit to share…

Have you seen this wedding video? It makes me LAUGH! Congratulations to Jill and Kevin – what a cool couple!

We’re getting on the road soon! Have a great Saturday!

Lazy Sunday

I hope you are having a great Sunday!

It is gray and dreary here, which gave us a nice excuse to sleep in, stay inside, and get some organizing done. Our 3 dogs, well 2 of our 3 dogs (Lenny the 2-year old golden retriever mix and Lucy the 17-year old poodle mix) have had insomnia problems, to put it kindly, the last two nights….so, let’s just say sleep has been scarce around this house. So, today’s housework involved rearranging the dogs’ sleeping arrangements to hopefully facilitate better sleep for ALL of us starting tonight! I LOVE our dogs, but they are definitely work!

We ended up sleeping late, which means we missed church. I decided to make a simple breakfast of eggs and english muffins. I had two eggs scrambled, some mango and berries, and an English muffin with pumpkin butter. It was so nice to enjoy a slow breakfast with the newspaper…doesn’t happen often in this house, so it was a special treat.

We spent the morning and early afternoon oranizing and cleaning. Anthony moved the dogs’ beds and did some cleaning/organizing in our office and laundry room, while I worked on straightening and laundry. Even though cleaning and laundry are far from my favorite things to do, I do love having the time to do them. I also had the chance to get outside and do a nice walk/jog around the neighborhood.

We just had a late lunch of homemade pizza on garlic naan….so good…I made one with tomato sauce, mozzarella, and veggies, and another with pesto sauce, tomato, basil, and feta….both were delish!

Thanks so much for your entries into the Trader Joe’s Giveaway! If you haven’t already, definitely check it out. I’m so excited to announce a winner tomorrow night! Also, stay tuned, I’m planning a Food Should Taste Good Chips giveaway in the next couple weeks.

Enjoy the rest of your Sunday!

Dave’s Breakfast + Wii

Good morning! Happy Memorial Day! It is dreary and rainy here….we planned to go out on the lake today, but I don’t know if that will happen or not now…depends on the weather.

My brother-in-law, Dave, is a great cook and he made us a yummy egg scramble for breakfast….egg, tomato, onion, basil, and spinach….delicious! I also had 3 small pieces of bacon and some double fiber toast with pumpkin butter.

Now, we’re playing Wii while my sister and Emma Kate catch up on some sleep they missed last night.

Have a great Memorial Day!

Balance for Breakfast

Balance is something I aim for in all areas of my life….sometimes I do well, sometimes not so well. With food, balance affects how we feel and how our bodies work.

Have you ever eaten a low-fiber cereal, like cornflakes for breakfast? And, a couple of hours later you feel hungrier than if you hadn’t eaten. That is because, carbohydrates on their own, are digested fairly rapidly (unless they’re really high in fiber), so you get a quick rise in your blood sugar, a quick burst of energy, and then as your blood sugar falls, you’re left feeling lethargic and starving.

Adding protein, fiber, and a little healthy fat to your meals, helps to slow down the absorption of carbohydrate, keeping you feeling full longer, and keeping your blood sugar more steady, which leads to more stable energy levels all day.

So, for breakfast this morning, I was thinking about balance….I decided on an egg + toast + fruit. I love Eggland’s Best eggs because they have a good amount of omega 3 (healthy) fats.

• egg (protein + healthy fat)
• double fiber toast (high fiber carbohydrate)
• strawberries (fiber + vitamin C + delicious)
• coffee (energy + YUM)

This breakfast should get me though the morning with energy to spare!

And, check out our herbs – they are growing like crazy!! We use basil and cilantro quite a bit, but I’ve never cooked a lot with parsley and oregano.

Do you have a favorite recipe that uses parsley or oregano that you’d like to share??

P.S. If you have any strength training questions, check out my co-worker Adam’s new blog, Breakthrough Strength.

Have a great day, everyone!

A Walk in the Park

Good morning!

I’m going into work late today, because I’m teaching a late class tonight…so I had a little more free time this morning. I made some eggs and toast for Anthony and me. I had one egg and double fiber toast with blueberry preserves and pumpkin butter.

And a delicious cup of hazelnut with cream.

Since I had extra time, I went to the park for a walk…check out this beautiful lake view from the walking trail.

And, then I treated myself to a yummy banana chocolate vivanno.

Now, I have to get going….this afternoon I teach a diabetes meal planning class, and this evening a post-op gastric bypass class.

Have a great day!

Saturday + Sunshine

What a beautiful morning!

We started with veggie omeletes (mine had one egg) with whole grain toast with blueberry preserves, pumpkin butter, and hazelnut coffee with cream.

I can’t wait to get out and enjoy this beautiful day. Have a great Saturday!