Oh, look what I’ve done

…look what I’ve done & eaten, lately, I mean:

Sweet Kristina from Stonyfield Farm sent me a bunch of fun stuff! Coupons, free Oikos & a canvas bag to lug it all out of the store! Thanks, Kristina! I look forward to trying all the products & telling my lovely e-friends about the delicious orgasmic organic treats!

Because my camera was M-I-A, maybe in a Paper Plane (…), I took some MacBook photos, weeee! Here, we have golden oats, with (beige-not-golden) oat bran/oatmeal, a Golden Delicious apple, golden raisins… I just needed a golden crown or something:

 

Yeah, it was tastyyyy! 

 < I must rave about these babies. When I buy salted pretzels, I pretty much end up picking off the salt. It’s like a game, but my mouth becomes raw if I don’t! (ick!) So now, (DUH to me!) I buy unsalted pretzels! They’re soo addicting! Here, I dipped them in: half homemade hummus & half Dijon mustard! (I’m sorry Matt, but this mustard ROCKS the hizz-ouse!!!) 

 < another unidentifiable bowl of oats! Why do I keep taking pictures of them, if they look the same? I’d assume it has walnuts, a banana, some s’milk, cinnamon & other goodies in it, but it’s a mystery now!

 < give it up for some Oregon love! Stash Tea is manufactured close to Portland (Tigard), so I love it more! I got the double spice Chai tea & WOW, I looooove it, especially sweetened & (s’)milky! I’ll rave about this, too!

 

^ tempeh-veggie-avocado-BBQ (sauce) sammich! The tempeh isn’t cooked. Just in the raw– very scandalous! 

 < sauteed veggies (green beans, squash & zucchini), tempe-teh (from ED&BV– YES, I ordered it… LOVE IT & can’t wait to make different hummus from the entire section it has about it!), with a side of that Dijon to dip, a whole wheat roll with buttah’ & a baked sweet ‘tater with more buttah’, brown sugar & cinnamon

& because I saw this –> 

I made this: 

 

I used green curry paste & subbed s’milk for the coconut milk, with veggies & tempeh. A stir-fry that was creamy & divine!

 < I made this with frozen mango,  s’milk & some plain yogurt to thicken it more. Very good & refreshing!

 < can you spy a boy in a tuxedo?!

OH-EM-GEE! Guess what I saw back in Target, just yesterday?!

My favorite Luna bar: PB Cookie (Nutz Over Chocolate is back, too)- from the recall. I’ve honestly been neglecting my girl Luna, as they’re getting really sweet, but this flavor (PB Cookie!) totally makes me & my taste buds happy! I sincerely hope this “PB-scare” is gone for good!

I am so very jealous of Heather’s yoga journey! I’m happy she was able to do it (you-go-girlfriend!), especially because of my love of yoga lately. Check out her final review of her workshop!

Temptation with Foodstuff

I’ve been busy in the kitchen! Check it out, yo:

 

^ Vegan Coconut-Pineapple-(Blueberry) ww Pancakes from Vegan with a Vengeance. This was so great! It’s been so long since I’ve had pancakes. I made them Friday morning, when I have no school or real reason to be up early, so it started a leisurely day off well! I did not make the “Pineapple Sauce” they suggested, but mixed up canned pineapple (with a bit of juice), blueberries, coconut, a bit of smilk & plain yogurt & agave. Just enough “moisture” for these beaut’s! I will make this again. I burnt one side of one, so I shared part of that with Jas-i-per & Tuck-i-fer! They didn’t complain!

 < I randomly went to Whole Foods (grr, competition for independent stores like mine! But I wanted to check it out & compare) & was greeted by this temptation. I passed by it, backed up, took a deep whiff, snapped a picture, & moved on again. Go Me! Is this 4 weeks, holding strong with no coffee? Even at dinner parties we serve coffee afterward & I have to make it. And free coffee at work. Well, free tea too, so I’m set! Yazoo! I feel real good with my decision & don’t feel deprived of it, though Sunday I was draggin’… I lovez me some teaz!

 < Why didn’t I use this orange bowl & spoon sooner?! It’s purr-fect, along with my Breast Cancer mug. In this bowl is oat bran, a banana, almond butter, cinnamon, walnuts & smilk!

So, I went grocery shopping (not at WF) & here are some things I got that are new to me. The other stuff, I hid already!

 

^ 3-bean salad, Artichoke-Lemon Pepper “Hommus”, Annie’s Tuscany Italian Dressing, og. Tamari Pumpkin Seeds, Dairy-Free Mac’n’Chreese (haha- anyone try this?) & also Garden of Eatin’ “Bible Bread”- traditional pita pockets with a great, short ingredient list: Organically grown whole wheat flour, water, organically grown sesame seeds, yeast and sea salt. I’ll take it! I love the hummus & dressing, too- new flavors for me!

 

^ Breakfast Parfait, in an effort to switch it up from oats. Then I deconstructed it because it became difficult to get more than one ingredient in a bite… with Mr. Bigelow tea. In it was: plain yogurt, blueberries, chopped apple, cinnamon & Sunflower-Pumpkin Seed granola

 I made a wheatberry salad, inspired by these hoots! I don’t know the real recipe, so I just added chopped celery, apple, walnuts, wheat berries (duh!), plain yogurt & the thing that brought out the ingredients= apple cider vinegar, with some salad seasoning herbs on top! YUM!

Another cooking-success?! From 101 Cookbooks. All her recipes & photos are amazing & this dish, the Orange Pan-glazed Tempeh was no exception. I served it with spinach & wheatberries (because I made a TON when I made them!) & a salad with dressing & sliced almonds:

   

Guess who liked it, too?

 

Welp, I hope that those of you with exams & other important things on your “to-do” lists are doing MORE THAN okay!!!

I’m still working on getting a new header & theme & such… I’m workin on it, but if you could send me some help & ideas, I’d love an e-mail at smbvb10@hotmail.com. If you know-someone-who-knows-someone, too, I’d so appreciate it. Should I make a contest? How do people catch on & how can I make that worthy?!

THANKS, Lovely Ones!

Ketch-up!

I mean, CATCH UP! Because there ain’t no KETCHUP here! …instead… 

Did I lure you in? …keep reading to see more!

I’m sorry I have been a naughty, absent blogger–mama, but I’ve been pretty good about commenting on everyone else’s lovely blog-iggities! Thanks for keeping my interest & taking up all my free time, GOSH! No, I love it!

…continuing from Valentine’s Day, like I said before, my dad & I got pedicures. This is a picture of the little Oriental ladies (who know us by name) rubbing our dogs. Please disregard the scary Casper-legs. I’m working on it. My dad is drooling. See us in all our luxury:

 HA! My color is called “Wild Child”– a bright green-ish… my dad picked it out. I guess I’ll be ready for St. Patty’s Day!

I’ve been taking lots of yummy food-photos (the photos aren’t yummy, but what’s in them has been!) Here are some oatbran breakfasts, as of late:

   < with banana, soy, pb & granola; again with banana, nuts, soy & banana… with my mom’s cute little cocktail napkins (she thinks she’s funny & this is so her…); & with soy, strawberries & nut butter. I really forget what is in each, but they had cinnamon (of course!) & were all good & truly solidify my love for oatbran.

P.S. That’s TEA, not COFFEE!!! Weeee!!!

 < my Multi-vitamin of choice & Calcium-Magnesium-D(3) supplement, in strawberry-flavored liquid form (milky, but I like flava’-flave!)

   < Tempeh Quesadillas, based off of this recipe, from Vegetarian Times (online), but I didn’t broil it with cheese on top. I added peppers, onions, spinach, mozzarella, tempeh, tomatoes, salsa in a whole-wheat tortilla; cooked it in the skillet; served it alongside homemade guacamole (just avocado, salsa, onion & red pepper flakes!) & blue corn tortilla chips. A nice lunch, with Jasper in the background, contemplating the meaning of life… or something like that.

Friday the 13th was my grandpa’s birthday, so on that Sunday the 15th, we had the family over to celebrate that & Lover’s-Day on the 14th. (that was out of order, sorry) I made a cake from Vegan With a Vengeance: 

Raspberry Blackout Cake with Ganache-y Frosting– here it is, in the process/layers:

    

TA-DAAAA!!!

My mom is way creative (hello, teacher!) so we had a “circus-theme”, bringing out the inner child of my grandpa. Our table cloth was (*homemade*) zebra-print, & we had circus animals & clowns/ring-leaders on the table, too. Here’s the arrangement I made. I’m so 6-years-old:

 RAWR!!!

 < He likes the gorilla

 < tootin’ his own horn= ring leader?

 

… this cake turned out so moist & delicious! If you have the cookbook & have a reason to make it (& even if you don’t!), DO IT– you will not be disappointed!!! It was a major hit, if I do say so myself (& I do)! The party was great, too! Having family around is always a fabulous, beautiful thing, don’t ya agree? Even if you don’t always get along with them all, the love is still there! For sure!

Okay, this post is way-long, but I have some other great kitchen-makings that I feel really great about showing you! SOONER THAN LAST TIME, I will show you!

Until then, enjoy your weekends. What are you doing?! I hope it’s warming up in some wretched parts of the country! I’m sending warm wishes to you all- in your hearts & on your bodacious bods!

 

 

He loves you, yeah-yeah-yeah!

Me & The Beatles say, “HAPPY VALENTINE’S DAY, LOVES!”

I hope your day is filled with love, in all areas of your life: for yourself (#1!), friends, family, the things you do & everything in your world! What are you doing to celebrate this commercial love-filled holiday?!

I have to work tonight, but until then, I’m going to watch some romantic-comedies & get a pedicure with my dad. He loves them & he’s not afraid to say so! Last night, I saw He’s Just Not That Into You with one of my girlfriends. We’re both single, so it was our date! It make me just want to shout “STOP TALKING!” sometimes because sometimes the characters were so awkward, but it was cute & fun. Afterward, we chatted on the outside benches. Lovely!

When I woke up this morning, I saw, on my computer, a card:

 

from Daddy!!! (thanks, Daddy-o!) plus a sweet little note with it!

 

& a box of chocolate (& cash) from Mommy! (thanks, Mom-sie!)

I’m so lucky to have such a supportive, loving family! Truly, sometimes I feel overwhelmed with inheriting a great fortune, in the form of love, care & happiness! I hope you feel this way, in some part of your life, too!

Thanks to everyone on their feedback, though I was looking for even MORE than a few people. But, none-the-less, it was great to hear from a few special people & I’ve come to realize that, yes, it is MY blog, so I can write whatever, but will you read?

I think I even had a dream about my blog, leading me to some ideas… kind of cool, huh?! Would it be too much of a nuisance to change my name or blog?! Any experience with this?

Some of my favorite tea-makers sent me a sample (which I had inquired about a while back)  

with 3 flava’s: Green tea Pomegranate, Himalayan Apple Spice, & Berry Detox. I’ve tried the Green Tea Pomegranate & it’s tasty, so I’m looking forward to the others. Also, a lil’ coupon, YIPPEE!!! I love me some savings!

…speaking of TEA, I just got some new French Vanilla flavored tea, from Mr. Big(elow)!

 < it’s wonderful! I’ve been drinking it with soymilk & agave, which brings out the flavor & sweetness! mMmMm… even without coffee, I like to have a little fix of something, with some caffeine in the black tea in my mornings!

I saw the nutritionist this week again, too. While I followed the meal plan she gave me, toward the end, I felt even more hungry, even with less exercise I had been doing. So when I saw her, she weighed me (I was UP about 1.5 # in a week & a half, & I am happy with this!) & we worked on another, bigger meal plan. A “prescription,” if you will. It’s incorporating a lot of fat (mmm, hello nuts, seeds, avocado, nut-butters, etc…) & she said it’s her goal to get my *girly-thing* within 2 months!!! While I know this may be a pain (literally?), this excites me, because it’s been gone for farrrr too long! And that is just not right. 

Want to see some food? OKAY:

 < yesterday’s breakfast, with a ray of sunshine from above (mug): oat bran (thanks to Heather, I have noticed that yes, oat bran, as opposed to oatmeal satisfies my hunger a wee bit more! Check out her comparison on the nutritional info. on the 2 oats here). Anyway, oat bran with walnuts, banana, cinnamon, vanilla & s’milk, multi-grain toast with Smart Balance butter & 2 eggs with spinach + S&P & tea with agave & s’milk. WOW, filling, but delicious! 

 < a phone call, from the plain so’gurt to almond butter on the banana phone!

 in the blender it goes…

…+ ice & blueberries 

…to make:  YUM!!! Just what I needed on a warm winter day. Yes, it’s warm, sunny & BEAUTIFUL here in FL… *wish you were here!*

  

^ noodle bowl with: soba noodles, tempeh, veggies, sliced almonds, with red pepper flakes & flaxseed oil drizzled on top for some moisture & nutrient-absorbing fat! (Eaten with chopsticks, of course… Noodles are very difficult to eat with choppies so I had a fork around, too)

 < snack: Clif bar & tea (I LOVE this flavor tea!)

okay, I have a few more food photos, but instead, I’ll leave you with some great men in my life… they’re begging for you to “Be Theirs!” They’re lovers, I swear:

~*XOXO*~

p.s. I love you!

I think I’m clear!

A few days ago, I picked up some things from the store, new to me: 

^ cherry-pomegranate Fruit & Grain bagels, sunflower seed butter, & multi-grain hot cereal

^ Bolthouse Farms Green Goodness juice (2-for-$2.79!), vanilla Chai tea (after seeing it frequently appearing on Miss Gliding Calm’s blog), some stir-fry veggies… & Orange Pop? Plus, a couple of bars!

So, I thought I was all good, buying sunflower seed butter, even before the recall! 

 < crunchy with full sunflower seeds!

Then yesterday I busted out one of my new PB Cookie Luna bars at school the other day, & tossed the wrapper, without a thought. Later, when I started feeling icky, I thought about it. Yesterday, I went to the store in which I bought it to check if the same box might be there with the date on it. Well, if it’s from the same box, it’s “Best By” September ’09, which makes it safe. 

Thank you for all your concerns!

The bagel, by the way, is great!!! The ingredient list is short, & though they’re smaller than a lot of bagels out there, the flavor is excellent!

 < great with  VeggieGirl’s flavored nut-butters!

Some other eats lately:

^ veggie egg-scramble (check out that bubble!)

^ sweet potato fries with Agave, ginger & cinnamon, plus a mini-squash thrown in there!

^ seasoned tempeh, my fries + broccoli. I’m not a huge ketchup gal, but I tried it with my fries & really liked it that way! I pretty much ate this with my hands… like “tempeh-nuggets?”

It’s weird, I’m feeling head-heavy & stuffed-up, with a sore throat today. I’ve got no school today, just work later, so I’m planning to relax, drink some tea (weird I don’t even want coffee today!) & maybe take a trip to Target. Maybe.

Everyone stay warm & happy! Have a super-duper weekend! Have any fun plans on the agenda?! I hope so!

P.S. There’s a dog whimpering on the Today show & my pups are going crazy!

Skool iz Cool!

School has begun once again (Monday). I’m taking 12 credit-hours, after the 16 I took last semester. I felt pretty overwhelmed & spread pretty thinly over all my subjects…I just wasn’t satisfied with my focus & how I did in all of my classes. I excelled mainly in those that interested me & got by in the others. So, I lightened the load (minus 1 class & 1 lab). Here’s what it looks like:

• Mon/Wed– 9:35-12:15 pm (with a break in there) –> I get 6 credits for 1 class (2-for-1), which blends Composition 2 + Humanities 2
• Tues/Thurs– 8-9:25 am –> Applied Ethics
• Tues/Thurs– 11-12:15 pm –> Cultural Anthropology

I am most looking forward to the Cultural Anthropology course. My teacher is really enthusiastic, it’s a big class in a teaching auditorium & we’ll have some hands-on assignments. 

It looks like I’ll have a lot of reading. And, I was asking for book recommendations, & I found one before classes started. I’ll finish it, for sure now! I just love it!

  < true story & inspiring!

Last semester I had all male teachers!!! In 6 classes! All of them! This semester, I have 3 males + 1 female (in the blended class). I like it this way. I think I perform better in class taught by a male teacher… I don’t know why! I was the same way with coaches, when I played sports. **What is everyone’s preference in this? Nervous with males, but excel with females? Don’t care?** I find it interesting in how many men are teaching now! Cool!

I might have an edu-crush on them, meaning I respect their styles, accomplishments, & knowledge so much, that I like them! Even if they’re older? Eek! I just feel like I don’t want to let them down sometimes, yanno?! It’s all good. No trouble here. I see the line.

You want food, you say? Okay:

^ Dinner the other night: tempeh in Annie’s ginger marinade; green beans; broiled tomato; red + regular quinoa

Today, I went to class (so long that my lil’ Mac ran out of power from taking notes on it!), walked Bella (gosh, she’s a bundle of energy!), went to the gym, then made something, starting with this:

… then I had a wonderful Elvis-inspired fave-rave:

…in the blender-upper:

I also added some sogurt, ice & water to thin it out. It was thick & indulgent! I stuck it in the freezer while I took a shower, like this:

< in my Shrek cup, over-flowing with goodness! I started drinking it with a straw, but it was too milk-shakey for me, so I got out a long, thin, diner-style spoon. Wow! It was a great combo, but I’m not sure I’ll buy a whole tub of this flavor. It’s good for special occasions or sweet/rich cravings!

My dad & I went to dinner tonight… juuu-ust the 2 of us (~thanks, Big Willy!) Whenever I ask him where he wants to go, he always asks me what I want. But, I know what he really wants. It’s always… THAI! Which I L-O-V-E, too, so it works out!

We went to a place we’ve never been, but I’d heard good things about it. The verdict: it might become a new favorite. We both RAVED about it. I took no pictures, as I was enjoying the meal with pops, but we were both served a soup to start (him: chicken-rice; me: vegetable… I love how the veggies in Thai food are still a bit crunchy!), then I got some red-pepper eggplant dish with tofu. It was very good, but I would request less sauce next time (’cause oh- there will be a next time!) because it was drenched! We got brown rice & it came on a plate, shaped like a star! How cute of them! …a very nice evening!!! 

When I’m at my uncle’s house, I spend most of the nights here, not at home, so I don’t get to see my family as much, though I still call & visit! haha. Is it weird that I like being away from home, on my own, even though it’s only 5-10 minutes away.

Finally, I had some of my favorite tea:

comforting & soothing!

Tomorrow, I have class, pick up my paycheck from work, & my dad is going to join me for HOT YOGA tomorrow night! I haven’t done a night class there, so it’ll be nice to challenge myself then, since I’m usually a morning/afternoon exerciser, usually!

Hope your days are as wonderful as mine!!! The weekend is almost here, folks!

Tag! I’m it!

Oh, so little ol’ Matt tagged me, so while I felt annoyed at first, I’ve decided to be thankful that he thought of mui, Miss Orange Pop! This also means that I had to get my booty in some sort of gear to blog about something. So, thank you, “Bama!”

Here it goes (before 2008 has been forgotten & 2009 is over!):

*In no particular order of favorites*

4 favorite memories from 2008:

• Starting school again (college)
• Re-visiting Portland, OR
• Jet-setting to Paris, spontaneously with my sister, right before exams
• Making new friends & going out with them!

4 favorite movies that I saw:

(I had to look up which movies came out, thus putting them in ABC-order!)

• The Dark Knight
• The Boy in the Striped Pajamas
• Hannah Montana
• Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants 2
• & this year I saw Into the Wild 

4 favorite foods in 2008:

• Tempeh!
• Betty Lou’s balls
• Carrots
• …nut butters. There. I’m one of you, too!

4 places I loved in 2008:

• Paris, France
  
• Portland, OR
• *my hometown*, FL
• finding a cozy, new cafe in town with free wi-fi!

4 things I liked in 2008:

• Having a job
• Going to the beach on winter break
• Spending time with family, especially my sisters
• Going back to school

4 things I am looking forward to in 2009:

• Getting a bike
• Furthering my education (okay, 3 times, really? I’m a nerd!)… & trying to decide on future plans
• Building strong(er) relationships
• Traveling with my sisters

(…thanks, really, Matt!) It’s good to look back, but I think it’s more important to look forward & ahead about what is to come.  Sure, a lot is unknown, but that’s pretty cool & exciting to me, that I just don’t know what’s coming my way in 2009! I’m not going to tag anyone else, but with that, I’ll leave you with this:

Bloody Heck!

Yesterday, I got some blood drawn, just to check up on things and I asked for my doctor to check for gluten intolerance. I think this is a way to tell, am I right? In the mean time, the past couple of days, my appetite hasn’t been so present… this is weird for me. And definately a sign something’s up! I figured I’d be more hungry because a lot of products I’ve been eating are more corn and rice-based, with less fiber, though I am having a lot of fruits and veggies as calorie-sources. My aunt took me out to eat at one of my favorite Mexican restaurants, which is mostly vegetarian/vegan-friendly. Rare, where I’m from. It was easy, as far as I could tell, to order because they served corn tortilla chips and I asked for corn tortillas, instead of flour. Very chewy, though. I’ve got to say I’m not a huge corn-lover. I love my veggies, but corn- eh, I’d rather pick it out of my food, than try to enjoy it. But, corn-products… we’ll see. My aunt left and as I dog-sit for her, she got me some rice cereal. Thanks, but it has barley and malt ingredients=no good. I’m doing a test-run at a gluten-free diet, and so far, it’s been good. Quinoa, soy proteins, fruits, veggies, beans… all things I love. I’ve been doing a lotttt of research, via the internet and talking to people with CD experience! Thanks to those of you who can relate and have shown me that!

The other night for dinner I had some BBQ tempeh strips (with Amy’s bbq sauce + more for dipping) with a sliced tomater and sauteed peppers and onions.

Today for lunch my mom helped me chop a boat-load of veggies for a stir-fry with tempeh, Braggs and chili sauce. Sister 2 painted this bowl for me at one of those pottery places, because she knows I love using chopsticks… it has it’s own “holder!”

It’s orange! My color, favorite!

My parents got home from Ireland on Wednesday night, zonked! They had an incredible trip, but I’m still waiting to see pictures. They wrote down new, cute little phrases those silly Irish people use and are trying to incorporate them into everyday language here. hehe. They brought me some… salt-and-pepper shakers! The black pepper-shaker has a little shamrock on it’s butt. I don’t know why (yes I do- it’s the eyes!), but they remind me of Jasper. Maybe I’ll shake him to see if anything edible comes out… er, um, let’s not be silly by what I just said…

Alright, folks. There you have it. An update from yours, truly. I’ll let ya know what I hear about the blood work! I’m kind of hoping it is, in fact, CD just so I can pin-point the problem! Yes, that’d make it a little more difficult, especially eating out, but I figure once I load up my pantry with g-f foods, I won’t have to continuously search the internet or read the labels of the foods already on my shelves and fridge! Very meticulous!

I deposited my check after the blood-bath work. I also watched Sleepless in Seattle and settled in with a giant bowl of popcorn (my favorite movie, with my favorite type of corn, and my 2nd-favorite pop!) during a rainstorm the other day. Ah, life is grand!

I speak with honest GARLIC breath!

Why, hello, my lovely long-necked friend! I saw this at the store and had to try it! Why? WHY NOT?! Yes, it is diet, but it still tasted like I melted an orange creamsicle in my mouth! I felt like I was in the 50’s at the soda fountain. Oh, a twist on my beloved orange pop! Too bad I don’t have a juke box and I wish I drank it with a straw, but now I think of it…

To back-track, I made some famous Chickpea Cutlets from V’con for lunch today. I also had Emerald Kale Salad from the deli at work, which was excellent. One bite into the cutlets and I said, “OHHH YEAH!” I made a spin off of some mustard sauce, which I could never in a million years replicate, because I just sort of put some of this in, and some of that in… improvisation! From what I remember, it had some mustard powder, Braggs, Wasabi powder, garlic, Agave nectar, some flour to thicken it… I don’t know for sure, but it was garlicky, tasty, and delicious, all together! I was very satisfied, can you tell?! The kale salad was garlicky, too, so afterward, I sort of felt like I had just eaten the entire bulb of garlic! Ha! (Jasper and Tucker did not want to speak to or kiss me afterward!)

Isn’t my mini-whisk the cutest?!

So, I went to the mall after that, because I have a few gift cards and I love a good sale, but nothing caught my bargaining eye, so I left and picked up my liquified-creamsicle and some decaf coffee (Cinnamon Hazelnut, thank you) and went home. I really wasn’t hungry for dinner. 4 hours later, can you believe it?! Usually my body is saying, “FEED ME!” every 3 hours or so, but I wasn’t hungry! I was, however, in the mood to cook. After going through my recipe books and taking stock of what I would fancy in my head, I decided I would eat a good, full, meal. And it would be tasty! I made a spin off of Pasta de la California in V’con (hmm, Pasta de la Madam Orange Pop?!), with some spicy Bar-B-Que tempeh, and a side-salad with Annie’s Woodstock dressing! How have I not known about this beauty-of-a-dressing before?! Loved it! Props to Annie and her employees! Again, I have garlic breath, but I wouldn’t have it any other way!

I have to be honest here. I’ve been dreaming all today when I would sneak in some exercise, other than walking around the mall. I haven’t been feeling as strong lately and it’s been probably a week since I’ve hit the gym. But, I have been walking, biking, running (minimally) and working recently. And, some more honesty for you, I’ve been feeling a bit tired, frail/thin-feeling. This is not a good feeling for me because I am usually full of energy, happy, warrior-like (yes, me, Orange Pop, Warrior Princess!)… so I knew I needed to eat and eat I did! I feel like sometimes I look like a little girl, or worse, a little boy! You know what I mean? So, here I type, full, sleepy and a bit uncomfortable, but I will be kind to myself because I’ve been not-so-kind in the past, if ya know what I mean.

So there’s honesty for ya! I promised myself and my parents I’d take great care of myself while they’re away, and always! That’s a gift everyone should let themselves have!

“Here I go again, my my…”

Soo, while I’ve been slacking on the blog, I have been cooking and trying new things out in the kitchen. Well, first off, my parents are going to Ireland tomorrow to celebrate their anniversary and leaving the house and the dogs to me for a week or so! So I stocked up on some groceries and produce this weekend! I got a lot of good deals. I do have to say that the local market where we shop for produce hasn’t been carrying my favorite apple (Galas) so I went with Pink Ladies, which are crisp, juicy, and similar to Galas. I’ve been craving something *crunchy* so I got these bad-boys:

…which were very good! I also love those Snyder’s pretzel pieces and got some of those. For lunch the other day, I whipped out my Vegan with a Vengeance cookbook and made my first creation from that book, and here it is: the Curried Tempeh-Mango Salad. I subbed a few things, like dijon mustard for the Vegenaise, and Mango Poppy dressing for the lemon juice. I had it over some greens:

I also bought some loose tea from work (by the way, thanks for all the messages about work– I’m over it now, and I’m not dying them! ha, just wearing different pants), but when I brewed it in my “Happiness” mug, the leaves fell through the strainer and I had tea with bits and pieces in it… not good! So I’ve got to get a strainer, tea ball, or make my own bags, I guess. I’ll leave you with a picture of it: It has it’s own hat!

I ended up using a tea bag after my misfortune with the tea. It was Orange Dulce flavor, what else?! I sweetened it and added some soymilk. Yummy.

My parents, sister and I went to see Mama Mia last night! I L-O-V-E-D it, it was so happy and fun! I am inspired to take a dance class… you know, one of those with a cheesy performance at the end. Hip-hop? Salsa? Hmm, I’ll have to look into it. I have a really good friend who’s into Broadway and musicals and stuff, but she might laugh at me! haha, but I don’t blame  her, because, despite being in dance for 4 or 5 years when I was a kiddo, my skills in that area are limited…

Have a great week!