Birthday Skate, Fro-Yo, Pizza...Oh My!

How long has it been since you wore roller skates?  10 years?  20??  If you had asked me that yesterday morning I'd have had to say closer to 15 years...but now I'd get to say 1 day! :P

That's right! Yesterday we went ROLLER SKATING!!!

Actually, yesterday has so many highs I feel a little bad for today.

There's just no way it can compete.

First I started the day with...

Wait for it....

OATMEAL!

You'd think I'd get tired of it, but with so many topping options who could get bored??

Oatmeal + Wheat Berries + cinnamon + pumpkin + frozen apple
+ chia seeds + pumpkin seeds + agave nectar

Then I hit up a Step Class with my friend.  My bum is a little sore today.  Man, does Instructor Carrie like to do Lunge Walks!  It's a little unnerving how much she likes them...Like she's not really human...hummmm?

Lunch was left over chili from the night before & some more pumpkin.  Only this time I added some Yogurt on top.  Wow, I wish I had thought of that the night before.  I didn't think it could get better and then it did!!

Anyway, I'm glad I went to the step class in the morning because after lunch the Hubs, Kai and I headed out to do our grocery shopping.  We went to Avon and passed by a little shop that's been threatening to open for a while and finally did it...

YES!!!  We HAD to stop. 

I ran in and got 2 FroYos...

For me, a mix of white chocolate (BEST), cheese cake & peanut butter

topped with EVERY fruit option.

For the Hubs, vanilla topped with mini-cups, sprinkles, cherries, coconut & cookie crumbs.

Kai got to share each of ours...She may have shared more of the Hub's than mine...

I'm not very good at sharing...maybe I should have watched more Care Bears as a child?

Sorry, consumed WAY TOO FAST for a picture.

I consumed mine VERY fast.  And I loved EVERY LAST DROP.   Now I need an excuse to head back out there.  Maybe my blog readers really want me to taste test some more flavors (they have 12!)?  I mean, I couldn't let my readers down, could I?  :)

So already I've had an amazing breakfast, workout, lunch and froyo,

how can it get any better?

How about a "surprise" birthday party at a roller skating rink for my sister-in-law?

That's right, I still rock the skates!

Yep, the party last weekend was a decoy!  Ha-Ha!  Of course she recognized cars before she got in and it's possible her hubs isn't all THAT sneaky but we all jumped up and shouted Happy Birthday and she played along. :)

Birthday Cup Cakes from Longs

After the Kid-Friendly-Skating-Party we headed out for the Adults-Only-Party at the Mucky Duck on the South East side of Indy.  We sat outside listened to music and enjoyed adult company.  Good times.

My mother-in-law and I split a Veggie pizza & a drink.  I wanted her to try the Pinnacle Whipped Vodka but they didn't have it so the waitress recommended UK Cake Vodka.  Oh my, I thought it was a great recommendation.  SO tasty when mixed with a bit of sprite! :)

I know not the best picture!

The pizza was OK.  I like black olives on my pizza but there was a LOT of olives.  And a LOT of cheese.  But since most people like globs of cheese I'm sure others would have really enjoyed it.  :)

So that was it.  An AMAZING day of good food and good friends. :)

Eating like it's Fall...

Yesterday's high was 86° and the leaves on the trees are all still green....and yet my stomach seems to thinks it's Fall.  


Last night I was on my own.  No hubs and no Kai.  That meant I could eat ANYTHING I wanted.  And I wanted Chili???  What is wrong with me?


Seriously, I could have had the biggest salad in the world and there was no one to comment on all that green.  But I wanted Chili...and pumpkin.  Is there anything more Fall-Themed than chili and pumpkin?  Add a little Apple Cider, a football game and some costumes and we might as well call it October.  Actually, now that I think about it there was a Colt's game last night.  Hummmm


Now since I'm not one to deny myself, I made some chili.  And it hit the spot perfectly! :)

BUT FIRST...

Breakfast:  Once again Kai wanted cereal and I wanted oatmeal...

Cheerios + Kix + Wheat Berries + milk

Oatmeal (1/4C oats, 1/4C water, 1/4C Almond Milk) + Cinnamon + Raisins

AND THEN THERE WAS LUNCH...

We had decided to go to the zoo and wanted to eat first so lunch needed to come together quickly.  Sadly we didn't have any left overs so it was a little random...

Raw Veggies & Humus, Apple, Cottage Cheese & Quinoa with Parm. Cheese on top

Random, but tasty. :)

THE MAIN EVENT

Dinner was what I was craving:

Chili

1/4 Onion - chopped

1/4 Bell Pepper - chopped

BIG Handful of Spinach

1 Roma Tomato - chopped

1 Can Diced Tomatoes with Chili

3/4 C cooked Black Beans

3/4 C cooked Wheat Berries

1/2 T Chili Powder (more or less to taste)

1/2 T Paprika

1/2 T carob or cocoa powder

1 t cumin powder

Saute the onion in a little EVOO until clear. 

Add the Bell Pepper, Spinach & Roma Tomato then cook until spinach is wilted.

Add the rest of the ingredients and let simmer.

When you just can't wait any longer put it in your bowl and top with some lime juice and avocado.

But that wasn't enough to quench my Fall craving.

No, I needed pumpkin!

That's right, for dessert I had a Big Ol' Bowl of Libby's Pumpkin Puree.

Topped with a drizzle of maple syrup & molasses,

pumpkin pie spice (cinnamon, nutmeg & ginger), chia seeds & pumpkin seeds.

And with that, my craving was satisfied...

For the night anyway. :)

Snack Time

I'm a snacker.  

All day.

All night.

All the time.  

I snack.

But I try to snack responsibly.  Chips & Candy won't do your body any good.


So I thought I'd share some of my favorite snacks with you....

My #1 Go-To Snack is fresh fruit.  Watermelon, Apples, Peaches, Bananas, Grapefruit...

Always hits the right spot!

Another favorite is 100% Puree Pumpkin.  Straight from the can.

Topped with a little Agava Nector or Honey and some Pumpkin Seeds.

Of course if what you really want is chocolate you can't go wrong with chocolate covered bananas!

To make my topping I mix equal amounts of Almond Butter & Almond Milk & stir in some Carob or Cocoa powder.  Add Almond Milk to get the consistency you're looking for.

Then just drizzle over bananas and/or apples.

Now if I want to snack at night I go for the old stand by...

POPCORN!!

Plain popcorn with some Annie's Cheddar Bunnies (similar to Gold Fish Crackers) and some Raw Sunflower seeds.

And of course there's always smoothies.

Or raw veggies with humus.

Or yogurt.

Wow, does anyone else want a snack about now?

BBQ Lentils & Pumpkin Ice Cream

Tonight I tried something new...I did not serve the Hubs meat!!

I did not surprise him with a meatless meal though.  That would NOT have gone over well.

And what I did serve was covered in a tasty BBQ Sauce.

The results?


Well he tried it (hesitantly).  He did not over react.  He did NOT like it.  


ehh, 2 out of 3 isn't bad. :)


Now if you're a bit more adventurous than him I bet you'd LOVE this...


I followed a recipe this time too!  ...well for the most part.  I'm never going to be the one to dig out all those tsp/Tbsp measuring devices.  It's just not going to happen.  But I did use all the same ingredients and approximate measurements.


Here's the link to the recipe:  Stampede Barbecue Lentil Sandwich

My BBQ Sauce is heating up.  Smelled So Good!

And as sides?  Some sweet corn and kale chips.

Have you had Kale chips yet?  If not you need to ASAP.  They're so quick & tasty.  Even the hubs likes them!!

Tear the leafy parts off the stems into bite size pieces then toss with EVOO & some salt. 

Spread out on a pan & roast around 400 degrees for about 10 minutes until they're crispy.

Watch carefully, they can turn black very quickly.

That's it!!

mmmmmm!

Then for dessert I made some Pumpkin Ice Cream.

For Christmas last year my mom got us an ice cream maker.  I was not an ice cream eater.  While I love the taste it often makes me sick and while I loved the gift I didn't think I'd use it much.  

I was wrong.

 Very wrong.

I use it all the time!!

By controlling my own ingredients I don't get sick.  Of course I have yet to make something the Hubs would consider to be ice cream but lets face it, he's too picky!  (Just shows how perfect I must be that he picked me)

My ingredients:

1 C Almond Milk

1 C pumpkin puree

drizzle of Molasses

drizzle of Maple Syrup (hubs thought it need to be sweeter so you may want to add more)

dash of Pumpkin Pie Spice (2 parts cinn., 1 part ginger, 1 part nutmeg)

1 T Chia Seeds

pinch of salt

Mix & let sit for a bit while you make dinner.

Pour into your ice cream maker.

Getting memorized by the swirling

Then just scoop & enjoy.

I had intended to sprinkle it with some gram cracker crumbs but forgot.  Oh well, it was enjoyed none the less.