Fall Fashion I

I was going to sit down with a nice, warm, delicious smelling bowl of pumpkin oatmeal while I wrote this post...well I ate the oatmeal before I even opened my blog. We were out of raisins so I put craisins on it this time and I loved it- such a great comfort food.

This is going to be the first Fall Fashion installment, and it was one of the first autumn inspired looks I did at the shop earlier this month. The theme, if there is one, would be that florals break all the rules! Who says fall can't have bright patterns too? This mix of prints here is almost too much, but it seemed to work just fine. The pants are a pink/salmon with a same shade diamond pattern, just a smidge noticeable. The slacks themselves are a retro, highwaisted Claiborne, blouse is J. Crew, cardigan is AT Loft, and jewelry is via Mosaic :)

Enjoy!

 

Also, my 5k is coming up this next Saturday! So, my training isn't too tough this week- just a 3 miler and some crosstraining tomorrow. I'll post about that later, xoxo.



Psst...

PS: I think I am also going to run to the store before we head home and grab some pumpkin seeds, dried cranberries, and chocolate covered almonds to combine with walnuts and raisins we have at home. I am going to start with this combo and call it my go to autumn trail mix. I can't wait to add and swap out other yummy snacks. What sort of combo sounds delicious to you?? Night :)

Pretty Skies

Do you feel fall in the air? My goodness it was a beautiful day! In the 60s, gray the first half, but then it opened up into a mixed sky. Blue pieces, with storm clouds, and puffs of white all together making for a picturesque evening. (This is one of my very favorite parts of fall).

courtesty of: Carol B. of GR, MI- also a fabulous friend



I decided to run indoors today at the gym because it was raining pretty hard this morning. I had a 30 minute tempo run and was able to sink in 3.5 miles. My stressed tendon on the top of my foot has really been bugging me, but I am trying to stretch my calves more and ice it daily. If it gets unbearable to run on it I may just stick to biking, some exercise videos I have (yes, they are embarrassing), and other strength training- we will see :) Tomorrow morning is a fast 3 miles with upper body strength work.

This afternoon I had tutoring with kids K-6th grade and we made some cookies and brownies for them and their parents- since it was the first meeting. The kids, I think, were mostly excited about the treats and there were none left by the end of the night. I, then, only ate 1/2 a cookie- blessing in disguise. But, wait...we went to my parents for dinner and we had mac n' cheese. I sort of behaved ;) I had a little serving (1/2 cup+) of that and made a big salad with veggies and lite ranch/salsa dressing. I ended the night with a chocolate vitatop gooped with a tablespoon of natural PB, mmmm!

All of this fall excitement got me wanting pumpkin- all varieties. I love making pumpkin cookies, but I am not ready for those just yet (colors haven't changed on the trees yet). So, I found a recipe for something I have been wanting to make for so long: Pumpkin Oatmeal. I am a huge fan of oatmeal anyways so I am excited to mix up my usual oatmeal with PB or raisins and walnuts (and maybe some brown sugar). Here is a recipe from allrecipes.com user JULOYES...

1/2 cup quick cooking rolled oats
1/4 cup vanilla almond milk
1/4 cup canned pumpkin puree
1/8+ teaspoon pumpkin pie spice
1 teaspoon cinnamon [sugar]
2 tablespoons raisins

Mix oats and milk in bowl; microwave on high for 1-2 minutes. Stir oatmeal and add any extra oats or milk for desired consistency and microwave for another 30 seconds. Then, stir in pumpkin puree, pumpkin spice, and cinnamon. Scarf Savor :)

Nutritional Info: (can also cut in half if you are just wanting a snack size)
Calories: 300
Total fat: 2.5g
Dietary fiber: 6.g
Carbs: 20g
Protein: 4.3g


I think I will try this for either breakfast in the morning or as part of our 'breakfast dinner' tomorrow night (along with omelets with veggies and cheese, and probably toast with nutella for Jake).  

Hoping to do a Fun Fall Fashion post next, cheesy, yes :)

God Bless your night, xoxo

I don't feel like running so I'm writing this instead...

Good Morning,

Yes, I should have been on my run, oh let's say, atleast 45 minutes ago. I promise I am still going, I just wanted to procrastinate some. I was up late working on a paper- that's a legit reason right? I do only have a short run scheduled today (under 4), so I hope I just enjoy the time before my day starts to get crazy.

I thought I would share a "recipe" (I hesitate to call it that because it's pretty simple) that I threw together the other night for dinner. It is a light verison of a chicken enchilada casserole and the ingredients used can defintiely be skewed to your liking or with what is available.

Lighter Chicken Enchilada Casserole:


Serving Size: 4 (maybe 5, depending on how hungry everyone is)
Prep Time: (including baking the chicken) 1 hr.
Cook Time: 15 minutes

2-3 large chicken breasts baked (I baked them for about 45 minutes)
1 onion chopped
1 green pepper chopped
1 red pepper chopped
A couple chiles (only add as much spice as you like!)
1 can green enchilada sauce
1/2-3/4 box of Ronzoni Smart Taste pasta, prepared
1/2 cup shredded cheese (we used a combination of Mexican and mozzarella cheeses)
6-8 Ritz crackers

Preheat oven temperature to 380 degreees.
After chicken is fully cooked and shredded into fine pieces, prepare noodles as directed on box. Place first layer of noodles (about 1/2) in bottom of square casserole dish, add 1/2 onions, red peppers, green peppers, chiles, and chicken pieces. Pour 1/3 of the enchilada sauce onto the first layer. Repeat with the rest of the ingredients for two layers total. Once finished layering, add the shredded cheese evenly to the top of the casserole. Crumble the crackers and spread over top layer. Bake in preheated oven for 12-15 minutes or until cheese is melted and crackers are browned.

 The sauce softens the peppers and onions just enough and although it is a messier dish it  tastes delicious! It was also nice to have a non-creamy enchilada casserole (we wouldn't turn these down either though), and even with the lighter taste it kept us full for a long time. Hope you enjoy :)

I promise I am going to go run now...really.

xoxo

(PS: yes, in that second photo, that is a cupcake back there- my husband's. And, yea, it was eaten before dinner...I refused to crop it out)

Forgive Me...

This post is going to be self-focused. Ew. I do not mean for it to be, I just haven't done a fashion post in a while and have been wanting to do one from our honeymoon. Yes :) I did just get married a few months ago and we stayed at my uncle's condo in Key West- absolutely beautiful there! We rode bikes and walked everywhere-ate so, so much good food-made tons of new friends (animal and human)-fed the local roosters and chickens running around-swam everyday-ate more delicious food, including REAL key lime pie-went on a big boat to a private island-kissed a lot :)-and I may have shopped...some a lot. Anyways, I had Jake take a picture of a few outfits with the intention of doing just a fun little blog post highlighting some of my favorites that week, hope you enjoy!

1.

 

XXI Dress, Old Wedges (sorry, I forgot where I got them :/ ), retro purse via Mosaic, Mom's Jewelry, shucks

 

 

2.

 

Macy's Maxi, Boring Flip Flops (we walked all the way to Duval that night!), Same Retro Purse, Bracelet From Bali (found in boutique there), Earrings via Mosaic

 

 

3.

XXI Blouse (oops, super see through in photos- but we're on our honeymoon so it's kinda okay right?), H&M Linen Shorts, Bracelet Found In A Hole In The Wall Boutique on Duval Street, Basic Gladiators

 

4.

I just like this photo :) This outfit was accessible-it was HOT. I wore it the day we went to Hemingway's house- us history nerds and architect enthusiasts (I am more of a 'oh, that is sooo pretty' enthusiast) loved exploring...But, it is a Retro Blouse Via Thrift Shop, H&M Shorts, Repeat Bracelet...And, I think my husband is cute- that is my sole reason for wanting to post this picture of him, it is one of my favorites

 

5.

Retro Esprit Romper, Gladiators, XXI [sale] Earrings, yeah!

 

6.

Boutique Jumpsuit (I swore I would never wear one of these for the fact I couldn't pull them off but I was getting married so I guess I felt brave), Same Purse, Same Earrings (sorry for the repeats!), XXI Belt...This was our last night there and we had an absolutely amazing time

 
I hope you enjoyed this silly post! Back to reality, and homework. Have a blessed night, xoxo.

Long Run and...Cookies!

Last time I left you I was having hip issues- mmm I sound super awesome...and I was feeling out the rest of my runs that week. I ended up doing a few shorter runs= nothing over 4 miles, and took this past Sunday off.
 
Saturday was the most beautiful, it's almost fall sort of day! I ran in the morning to skies that were a gorgeous mix of bright blue, puffy clouds, and storm looking colors all mixed together. That afternoon Jake (hubby) and I went with my mom to the farmer's market and local bakery. We walked...so when we ended up buying squash, cucumbers, corn, scones, cookies, apples, tomatoes, and doughnuts our upper body workout for the day was done :) We also got some burgers from a local farm here in NW Ohio and they were delicious. I hadn't eaten red meat in a while and it filled me up more than I expected, but of course I found the room to eat that AND a doughnut for lunch.
 

(They turned out super chunky and thick! Yum.)

We had a fall- type of arts festival this past weekend that is super neat and so all of these autumn inspired activites got me in the mood to bake! I just went off a basic oatmeal cookie recipe I knew and made some fun changes along the way to create...Raisinet Walnut Oatmeal Cookies (or I guess I could call them C.R.O.W. cookies, but that doesn't sound very sweet). Here's the recipe and nutritional info:
 

Minutes to Prepare: 15-60

Minutes to Cook: 9-11

Number of Servings: 40

Tips:

If possible chill dough for 1 hour before baking.

Ingredients:

1.5 cups whole wheat flour
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1-2 tsp cinnamon
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup brown sugar
1.5 cups quick oats
2 tblsp canola or vegetable oil
2 medium sized eggs
1 tsp vanilla extract
6 tblsp butter
1/4 cup unsweetened applesauce
165 grams/ 1 cup [organic] raisinets- this kind was on sale ;)
1/2 cup walnuts chopped

Directions:

Combine dry and wet ingredients separately, mix together, fold in raisinets and walnuts, roll into medium sized balls, bake for 9-11 minutes at 375 degrees.

Yields: 40 cookies.  

 

Nutritional Info

Amount Per Serving:  

• Calories: 98.8
• Total Fat: 4.6 g
• Cholesterol: 12.9 mg
• Sodium: 114.9 mg
• Total Carbs: 14.8 g
• Dietary Fiber: 1.2 g
• Protein: 1.8 g

(And, sugars are less than 6 grams)

PS: Thinking of adding ground flax seed for some extra punch and maybe coconut next time! 

The day I made these I ate two...not so bad right? Well, I also tested the dough, several times. They are safe to eat I determined all on my own. Thankfully, the next day was a scheduled long run.

Yesterday I woke up thinking I would shoot for 4.5-5 miles, as I am training for a ghost 10k (ghost meaning there isn't one that actually exists in my log book yet, but it has been a goal of mine to be able to run this distance). It was another beautiful, cool morning and after a breakfast of my favorite kashi cereals (I'm a mixer) and pb toast I set out on my normal path. About 1.5 miles into my run I decided I wanted to go where I wanted to go and not on the same old route. I ran through some neighborhoods, past my parent's house, and onto a country road (don't worry, there were still groupings of houses out there). I was having a little trouble with some cramping, but I said a prayer and asked the Lord to ease my anxieties and help me to enjoy this time with Him. I came back into town and was feeling really great. I made a loop in my parent's neck of the woods and ran back home where I made one more loop around my streets. When I routed my run later I realized I ran 6.5 miles :) On my computer this number looks small, but when I saw it on my odometer I giggled like a little kid. Just to know that I CAN do it was so encouraging. I credit God in giving me that peace of mind and strength to accomplish this goal.

I have eaten more cookies...but I definitely did not run that far again today. Today was a cross-training and walking day- my knee bruised up a little so I am being a smidge careful. Tomorrow is a 4-mile run outside and it is supposed to be a pretty day again. I have some backlogged food posts waiting to happen so look for those in the next few days.

Have a blessed day, xoxo.

Unintentional Faster Pace

         Today was the day. Today I was going to run 5+ miles again. I hadn't run that distance in almost two weeks. A couple weeks ago I did not run less than 4.5 or 5.5 miles and then the following two weeks my 3 mile runs felt like a struggle. Last Saturday I went out for a run and felt awkward and heavy so I ended up walking 2.5 miles and lifting a little- needless to say I felt defeated. Then, this past weekend a super great friend of mine got married :) :) :) So, the weekend was FILLED with desserts and amazing food- and no I did not say no to any of them. I attempted to run the Monday after and made it 2.5 miles, and it was a disgusting run at that. Yesterday my left hip joint was bugging me, but it hadn't gotten bad enough for me to think much about it so I went to the gym and did some machines to ease back into the work out week. Well, this morning I woke up and every step I took I felt a pain shoot down my left leg, but I figured I was being petty and decided it would be a long run day anyways. To be honest the muscle strain hurt more when I walked then when I ran. I started my run and felt pretty good, but something wasn't right...There were spiders everywhere. No, not garden spiders or the little jumping ones that seem soooo friendly. These were huge spiders with huge webs that always seemed extremely close to where I was running. I did some freaky sounding ducking maneuvers that I didn't even check to see if anyone witnessed. I killed a pretty large spider the other night (my shoe was the weapon and after being used was left on the porch all night for fear that I didn't actually kill it)...my guess is all its friends and family found out and are after me. "Blessing" in disguise is that I sprinted more on my run today, thus a faster pace and unintentional sprints/pace work. I don't really know if it's worth it, but I am still here- no webs attached, hahaha.

          In similiar news- my goals for the week running wise have been 16-20 miles/week. I started off about a month or so ago with these new goals and was reaching 19-20 consistently. It was just one week (last week=indulgence week) that my mileage was a smidge lower. I also didn't run on Sunday due to the lovely wedding so I am trying to make up this week's mileage in these next few days, but we will see- I need to keep a watchful eye on this grandma leg acting up.

          I got it! I think I know why last week was such a lowsy running week- I didn't have peanut butter. Well, don't fret, I went shopping and picked more up :) I also am trying VitaTops for the first time and so far the chocolate and cranberry are scrumptious. I had ice cream and bananas with the chocolate and pb on top of the cranberry, yumm!

         I have a 4 mile treadmill run scheduled for tomorrow morning so that my grandma joints can ease up some. And...our first indoor volleyball game is tomorrow night so wish us luck!

XOXO

PS: Found some really delicious sounding recipes all over the internet today so there should be some bakery posts in the near future, can't wait!

Sweet Potato!

I am feeling carbilicious tonight and so I am opting for an old favorite- sweet potato. She never disappoints me. Never. I can eat sweet potato any which way and almost as much as I can eat Peanut Butter- whoa now, I won't get carried away...I know
that NOTHING compares to PB! Anyways...I figured I would just use what we have around the house and make do. Therefore my Sweet Potato Mash tonight will consist of (granted this may be version 4 or 5 by now)...

1 medium sweet potato baked
1/4 to 1/3 Chopped onion (I like a lot)
Generous portion of FRESH spinach
Baked shredded chicken
Baby grape tomatoes
1/2 cup brown or yellow rice
1/4 cup mozzarella cheese
And any spices or herbs you might like to shake in there- I think I will do a smidge of garlic tonight

CAUTION: this makes a whole lotta food!

I just bake the sweet potato for about 30 minutes or if I am being "casual"  lazy then I microwave it...finely chop onion and tomatoes- toss into skillet with spinach- saute for 5 to 7 minutes...I pre-bake the chicken breast (usually takes about 30 to 40 minutes) then hand shred the pieces, not bad I promise, and you get to do what I call testing for taste...For a quick fix I am using Uncle Ben's Brown Rice, but I have also made yellow and slow cooked brown rice...Once all of that is complete place the potato into a bowl and slice open then mash slightly with a fork...plop in the rice, then place shredded chicken, veggies, and herbs into (onto?) potato and top with cheese!

I know it sounds simple but my is it goood. And, it's simply a platform to mess with as more ideas develop! I'm excited for fall and to manipulate the recipe to match the season. When I get a photo of an extra good turnout I'll post, enjoy :) 

PS: this meal is lower in calores, fat, and sodium and offers several health do's, all the doctoring up isn't going to make for any guilty feelings, so give into your craving!