Sunday Side Up.

Thanks to Doug, I came across a new comic blog this morning called Stuff No-One Told Me. I scrolled through all of the posts and decided to share some of my favorites:





I could definitely relate to all of these and just thought they were great and quite poignant at this particular point in my life. Whether I'm seeking motivation to run and eat healthy or need to de-stress over finances, work and relationships, these simple, cute, funny little comics help me break things down into simpler terms and refresh my perspective. The Internet is kinda rad sometimes.

Still plugging along with my 10K training. Finished week 4 today and start week 5 tomorrow. Eight weeks is flying by faster than I thought it would! My pace is definintely getting better each week, although this morning's 4 mile trek was slowed back down, thanks to too much gin and snacks last night. Not sure what possessed me to eat and drink like that the night before a long run, but I'll definitely be more cautious in the future. Although I felt kinda sick and irritated most of the time, I didn't give up and feel better now that I finished. Plus, despite feeling kinda crappy, I was still excited to give my new running shoes a try:


ASICS GEL-Kahana 3
They were already marked down quite a bit and I also had a $15 Amazon gift certificate, so pair that up with free shipping and these were a damn good deal! And the best part: they feel great! I didn't even have to break them in. I also ordered them 1/2 a size larger because I always tend to need a bit more toe room in my running shoes. So comfy. I've also broken up with my custom orthodics, and these still provide great support for my flat feet. I've been wearing orthodics since I was a kid, but lately, I've been experimenting with strengthening my arches naturally, between exercise and shoes with arch support already built in. So far, so good. It probably doesn't sound like a big deal, but being able to run long distances without my orthodics feels like a strange accomplishment, heh. It's also possible that I didn't need to rely on them as much as previous podiatrists said I did. Anywho.

Yes, I'm still slacking on original food pics. May/may not reverse that trend this week. I will share my new favorite treat with you though:


Blue Bunny's Peanut Butter Fudge Chip Ice Cream Sandwiches!
I regularly crave peanut butter, ice cream and chocolate all at once, so I thought this would be a great portion-controlled indulgence. Soooo good! I spotted them at Wal-Mart and there was an instant $1.25 off coupon on the box, so at $2.00, a box of 10 seemed like a reasonably priced splurge. They also have mint chocolate and cake batter flavors. Oh, Blue Bunny. You're a dirty whore.

That's all for today. Need to head out to the store to pick up some various produce for the week. Hope everyone enjoyed the weekend!

Weekend eats.

Friday, we made pizza for dinner. I found a pre-made pizza crust marked down in the bakery department, so we threw on some toppings for a quick, tasty meal:



We spread goat cheese on the bottom and then topped it with fresh spinach, tomatoes, bacon, artichoke hearts, oregano and olive oil.



Sprinkled on some mozzarella...



... And baked to bubbly perfection!

This was such a simple pie, but it turned out great. I'll have to keep my eye out for more of those crusts marked down in the future! Saves a lot of time and holds up well to a good amount of toppings.

For dessert, I decided to try a 3-ingredient ice cream recipe I came across on Serious Eats. Bananas, honey and peanut butter? Yes please!



Of course, I had to drizzle some chocolate syrup on mine. Sooo good. It was a great way to use up the last of my frozen bananas.

Pretty quiet weekend so far. Just hung around the house yesterday, did some chores here and there and then watched Diary of a Wimpy Kid (such a cute movie!) and Kick-Ass (quite the 180 after watching Wimpy Kid, but still recommended if you enjoyed the over-the-top choreographed death scenes in Kill Bill- I did!).

I was going to work out this morning, but slept in and woke up starving. Once my breakfast digests, I think I'll schedule another appointment with Jari Love. I can't get enough of her DVDs these days! Hope everyone's enjoying the weekend (or what's left of it).

P.S. Not food-related, but is anyone else stoked for the return of Mad Men tonight?!



Mmm... Don Draper *drools á la Homer Simpson* Might have to buy some more booze so I can drink along, haha. Love that show!

Cat Scratch Fev-uh.

Ok, dumbest thing I've read so far today? "Gwenyth Paltrow's Secret to Weight Gain!" I try not to waste too much time sippin' the Haterade (well, most of the time), but y'know what? Gag me with a friggin' spoon. And dip the spoon in chocolate and peanut butter while you're at it. "Secret" solved! Buh.

Skipped Zumba last night. (Gasp!) I had to. I ended up doing the Jackie Warner DVD Wednesday morning, JM's Yoga Meltdown DVD Wednesday night (along with some failed hula-hooping attempts) and then ran 2 miles Thursday morning. By Thursday afternoon, I was just too sore and busted to shake my boo-tay. Oh well. Next week.

This morning, I headed to the gym at the usual dark 'n' early hour. Ran/jogged 3 miles, followed by 15 minutes of intervals on the step mill. Nice burn, good sweat, feelin' good.

Re-cap of last night's dinner:



I needed to use up an avocado and came across an idea (from the official California Avocado site or something?) to make an avocado chipotle quesadilla. Well, wouldn't you know it, I actually HAD a few cans of chipotle peppers, so I was all over that idea.

Mashed 1/2 small avocado on a wrap, topped with 3 chopped chipotle peppers, shredded cheddar, and, wait for it... Tuna. Yeah, yeah. I was out of canned chicken, too lazy to defrost an actual chicken breast and not really in the mood for black beans, so tuna it was. Doug was slightly repulsed when I told him about it (he had dinner with his parents/brother earlier), but y'know what? It wasn't bad at all. To me, anyway. I was craving some extra protein and it hit the spot.



Grilled, crispy goodness.



A [bad] close-up. As I've mentioned before, I like-uh the spiiice and this baby was indeed spicy. It was my first time trying chipotle peppers in adobo sauce, but I wasn't skeered. Loved the smokey taste and the runny nose/sweaty upper lip that later ensued. Win.

But when the spicy sensation continued to linger longer than I anticipated, drastic measures needed to be taken.



*Bites knuckle*



I followed Doug's lead from the other night and paired a slice of orange crush cake (white cake mix + can of diet orange crush + shredded coconut) with, yes, cake-flavored ice cream. I gave him shit for it the other night, but now I realize I was just jealous that I didn't think of it first. Cake & cake-flavored ice cream. Like, duh. And of course it took care of the chipotle burn.

Since I had a second half of the avocado, I ended up making a second quesadilla which will be today's lunch. Breakfast was a peanut butter/banana/cinnamon/honey wrap made with my new vanilla cranberry PB that I got at Super Target. Also had some coffee, soymilk and an apple as well. It's been a while since I've had soymilk. I'm ready to go back to almond, ha.

And for a snack later?



A spinach-fruit salad. Instead of making my usual Green Monster, I used the last couple handfuls of spinach in salad form. Topped with papaya chunks, strawberries, blueberries, chia seeds, 2 crushed pecan halves and a drizzle of honey. Never tried this combo before, but um hello? Pretty sure this is gonna be the shiz.

That's all for today. After work, we need to figure out dinner, head to my mom's to try and fix her computer and finish the evening off with a big grocery trip. Happy Friday, kids!