End of Summer Celebrations!

What an awesome, fun weekend it was!

Friday night when the clock struck 5 PM, I was off of work to start my normal routine; gym. I did cardio followed by yoga, then went home. Marquis arrived shortly after me and told me to get changed because he was taking me downtown for dinner, drinks, and live music - my favorite! We live in a suburb of south Charlotte called Waxhaw, and it is so beautiful. It's rapidly growing, safe, very classy, and upscale, and I just love it. The "downtown" area reminds me of an old western town. It's very small, but packed with local restaurants and pubs, shopping, ice-cream, hardware stores, and more. Downtown was even having horse and carriage rides.

We stared at this little hole in the wall, listened to bluegrass, and drank Fireballs. 

After being there for a while we went into Charlotte at a pool hall that Marquis worked security for a long time ago. More live music, drinks, karaoke, and good food there. And um, Marquis got pretty drunk! It was very entertaining!

We went to bed around 2 on Saturday morning and ended up waking up at 9:30. That's late for us, we are usually up around 8:30. Not to my surprise, Marquis felt horrible. From enduring 14 hours of training in the gym in 4 days, then a night of drinking, he was exhausted. We spent most of the day just hanging out around the house and relaxing.

So did Marty.

Finally later in the afternoon he was feeling better. We got creative in the kitchen and baked from scratch his mother's fruited oatmeal cookies for the "End of Summer" luau. They were amazing!

We then showered and made ourselves presentable and it was off the luau. The cookies were a total hit. I will admit, Marquis did most of the baking. I handed him ingredients and cleaned, but he did all of the good stuff. At the luau we had the most delicious BBQ and drinks. As always, it was such a fun night.

Sunday we woke up and had breakfast outside on the porch and enjoyed the beautiful morning. We then took the dogs to the dog park. I had to snap this picture of Dottie trying to get a lizard from a tree and Charlie watching. Typical.

We took the dogs back then had to get some errands done. One of our stops was Old Navy. I was able to get 2 PJ sets, a pair of work out pants, an adorable pair of flip flops, and Marq a pair of flip flops all for $52. I love a good deal.

Since Marquis felt so good about the cookies and how well they turned out, he wanted to bake AGAIN. So it was back for round two! This time he made (I helped some!) a cherry pie, all from scratch. Another one of his mother's recipes (She passed in 2008). And I believe this one will be another hit. We are giving it to friends since we can't really have any right now. Want a slice?

The rest of the evening was spent making a delicious squash dinner and watching "Bar Rescue". And now another Monday is upon us, let's make it count!

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Food Firsts (3)

Happy Memorial Day! Did you know that yesterday was also the 75th birthday for the Golden Gate Bridge? I did not attend, but there was quite the hoopla in the city, culminating in fireworks set to music, courtesy of KFOG (a great radio station). Did you know that you can download the KFOG app and listen anytime, anywhere!? You should check it out. My favorite is the acoustical sunrise.

My computer is still broken, which means I cannot upload any photos AND I tend to save future posts as word docs, which I now cannot access. So, in lieu of an interesting and funny post, I am going to share a couple of the recipes that I made over the weekend. Both of these were adapted from this site. If you get a chance you should go over and check it out. Laura is a mother, a runner and a darn good cook! If we lived closer together I know we would be good friends and probably even running buddies, although she is a little faster than I am!


Garbanzo Brownies:

These were very good and did not taste like beans at all! I actually ate half of the batter as I was making them, so you may want to double the recipe so you can have extra for snacking while cooking!

- 1 can garbanzo beans, drained
- 1/2 cup brown sugar
- 1/4 cup flax
- 3/4 tsp baking powder
- 1/8 tsp baking soda
- 3 tbsp nut butter 
- 3.5 oz 80% (or 70 or 60) dark chocolate bar (I like this one)
- 1 tsp vanilla

Split the chocolate bar in half. Melt half of the chocolate and chop the other half into small pieces (you can also use chocolate chips). Add the melted part to the rest of the ingredients and blend all ingredients  thoroughly in a food processor. I had to also add a little bit of water to the mix to make it a bit more creamy. You don't want it too thin though!

Spread the mix in a greased 9x9 baking pan. Top with remaining chocolate (chips/chunks). Bake for 25-30 minutes at 350. The brownies come out dark and moist and for me, just sweet enough. If you have a sweet tooth, you may want to follow Laura's recipe more closely, as it calls for 2 tbsp of maple syrup as well. I cut mine into 16 pieces and they came out to a little less than 100 calories each.

Apple Oat Cookies:

These don't use any flour either and are very fun and nutty. In fact, I may have eaten them for breakfast a time or two. Laura's original recipe called for carrots, rolled oats and oat bran, but I had flax, no carrots, and steel cut oats. They turned out fine.

- 3 ripe bananas, smashed
- 1 cup steel cut (or rolled) oats
- 1 cup flax meal
- 1 apple, shredded
- pinch cinnamon
- 1 tsp vanilla
- 1/2 cup sunflower seeds (or equivalent)
- 1/2 cup raisins (or dried fruit)
- 1/2 cup chopped almonds
- 1/2 cup applesauce (I cut up one apple and stewed it in a pan with 1/4 cup water and a dash of cinnamon)

Mix all ingredients together and place in spoonfuls on a greased cookie sheet. Bake for 15-20 minutes at 350. I found it helped to kind of smash the cookies down a little so they are flat. That way the middle gets thoroughly cooked. Otherwise a few in my first batch were a little moist on the inside. Also, they don't rise/spread, so you can pack them in on the cookie sheet. This recipe made about 40 small cookies.

I hope you are all enjoying your day off! Tomorrow, I have big news to share!

Have you ever tried bean brownies? Are you off of work today? What fun things did you do this weekend?

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What a Week

It's been a while since I've done a Week in Review post! I love doing them, since it's a great way for me to remember what I did throughout the week. I am surprised at how putting it together on a list makes me seem so much more productive sometimes! Not that I am not, but it just reminds me of what I DID do, rather than making me worry about what I did not.

Last Sunday, I went with a friend for a run and then brunch. The place we went to for brunch had really great food and bottomless mimosas, made with fresh fruit juice. The waiter comes around with a pitcher and in order to try the next kind (there were about 20) you have to down the one you have. Sure, the glasses are only 6 oz, but they add up!

 What started out as an innocent Sunday morning brunch....

See those teeny, tiny glasses? 

...ended up as Dance Party USA. 

Hey. There was Madonna.

And 2 Live Crew.

It rained a lot this week. 

View from the back porch.

The sun did peek out from time to time, enough so I could catch up on my

reading,

coffee drinking,

and sunshine loving.

That coffee cup holds about a third of the pot. 

I love it.

I also learned that "Cher" hair is back in style. 

Um, ladies, I have had that hair for the last 30 years. 

Well I guess you have to be "in style" once every 30 years.

Note the insert. 

It says "Don't go overboard.  Leave a little body. Poker straight hair is not always flattering"

Yeah. Like I said. 30 years.

I made a couple of care packages for my loved ones.

And this is why I believe in Karma...

The VERY SAME DAY...I received two blog prizes in the mail! 

A Nature Box that I won from Carrie. 

And Profoot insoles that I won from Marcia.

Heads up people. Do you love boxes?

Or organizing? 

Or organizing with boxes? 

Target special = $1 each! 

This weekend I went running, went grocery shopping and cooked up a storm.

Two kinds of chili.

And a pan of brownies. 

I did not eat this entire thing by myself. 

Only the entire edge part. 

The middle got cut out and made into...

 

These! Brownie Balls! 

Not quite the same as the cake pops I made last time, but close.

 

I had to try one. It was pretty darn good. Except that I really didn't need it. 

After I licked the batter spoon. 

And the bowl. 

And ate all the edges of the brownies. 

And all the leftover melting chocolates.

I feel sick. 

How was your week? Have you ever had bottomless mimosas? Be honest, how much of the brownie pan can you eat in one sitting?

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WIAW (2) & Food Firsts (1)

I have a few different lists of goals. I have  a life list, which I have not put online, but it's been there for a while and I am slowly chipping things off and probably more rapidly adding things to it. It is a work in progress.

I also have a Project 52 list, which I made because of Karen's suggesting it. I also have not put this one online, as a lot of the things on my list are private, things I want to do for me. BUT. One of my goals for myself recently was to try a new recipe once a month. I have been pinning recipes, as well as just going and buying stuff and throwing it together on my own accord. I love doing that; it's like an experiment or a game. You win if it tastes good. You try again if it doesn't.

I have blown my goal out of the water. So far, I have probably made a new recipe at least once a week. Here is one I made recently that I liked! They are not too sweet, which I like, but if you have a sweet tooth, you may want to add a little sugar. Also, I will probably add more cinnamon next time! These make a great breakfast muffin or a nutritious snack. They have approximately 100 calories per muffin.

Low-fat Apple Oatmeal Muffins

Prep Time: 10 minutes / Cook Time: 20 minutes / Total Time: 30 minutes (adapted from this recipe)

Ingredients:

2 cups apple, peeled and shredded

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

1 cup quick oats

2/3 cup firmly packed brown sugar

1 1/2 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp salt

1/2 tsp cinnamon

1/4 cup fat-free milk (I used unsweetened Almond milk)

2 tbsp canola oil

1 tsp vanilla extract

1 cup plain fat-free yogurt

2 egg whites (I used one whole egg)

1. Combine wet and dry ingredients separately. 

2. Add wet ingredients to dry ingredients. Stir. 

3. Put batter into lined or greased muffin tin. **NOTE: I used papers, and the muffins got stuck to the paper, so I ended up eating half muffin, half paper. I would suggest a greased tin or better papers than the ones I have! Darn it Martha!

I only filled mine about half full, since I would rather have more smaller muffins rather than less bigger ones. The recipe suggests 12 muffins, but I made 24 (obviously, if you only make 12, they will have approximately 200 calories per muffin instead!)

4. Bake at 400 degrees for 20 minutes. 

5. Eat three two one (see, I am glad I made them smaller!)

For more recipes I am thinking of trying, or to find me on Pinterest, go HERE. Also, since it is Wednesday, here's WIAW, part deux, hosted by Jenn at Peas and Crayons.

Breakfast: 

Steel Cut Oats with Apple / Pumpkin Seed / Sunflower Seed / Almond Milk

Spinach & Egg Muffin with Yellow Bell Pepper

Gummy Vitamins (yum)

Lunch/Dinner:

Mixed Bean Soup

Corned Beef

Chicken Breast

Snacks:

2 Apple Oat muffins

Strawberries with Cottage Cheese

Carrots and Hummus

Greenish Drink (Almond milk / Spinach / Frozen Peaches / Flax seed)

What I learned? I did not eat very much green stuff on this day! Also, I use the little light blue bowl a lot. Also, I need to work on my food photography. Katrina, over at Capture Your 365, suggests reading this article for some food photo tips.

Do you try new recipes often? Do you have a new favorite? Are you good at taking food photos?

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Then and Now: December

Happy New Year's Eve! I hope that wherever you are, you are having a great weekend! Have a wonderful time tonight and I will see you next year! 

The holidays are often very similar each year. There are holiday parties, get-togethers with friends and food to be eaten and presents to open with family. This December was no different. There were many people to see that I see every year, and many holiday traditions that were observed this year, just as they were last year. There were also a few things that were different. Here is December 2010 vs 2011, The Who, The What and The Where.

The Who:  Every year I get together with friends in San Francisco for a snackapalooza. This year was no different, except we got together in November instead! So we met up in Sacramento for some carb loading before the marathon instead. Also, I get together with my old HS buddies on the day after Christmas each year. It's great fun and I am glad we have kept the tradition alive!

2010: Snackapalooza, San Francisco, 2011: CIM carb loading

2010: Hail, grey skies and a large group, 2011: Sun in the eyes and less people

The What: Last year I did many of the same things as this year. I went to see the birds; I ate cheese platters; I make cookies. The only huge difference was the running. Last year I took lots of walks; this year I took many runs instead (mileage last December: 0 miles, this December: about 100 miles).

2010: Walks, 2011: Runs

2010: Birds + great reflections! 2011: Birds but no reflection

2010: Small cheese platter, 2011: large cheese platter! (2012: Cheese table?)

2010: Pumpkin Choc Chip, 2011: Macaroon

The Where: Last year I went on a road trip from California to Iowa, where I met up with my friend Red at her new house. This year, I have been in California all month.

2010: Iowa

California

What were you doing last December? Do you do the same thing every Christmas or are your holidays varied?

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Cookie Monsters

Last weekend I got together with the girls and we had a cookie decorating party. The original idea was that we would have our friend C and her two kids over, so that we could have a fun time with them, but they were not available. This did not deter us; we decided to have the party without them. 

In attendance was my friend N and her mom, me and my mom and our friend C.  We were assisted by little C, who is about 18 months old and actually decorated cookies better than I did, I think. Excuse the lighting, the low winter sun was shining right in the window and made it really hard to get a good photo.

Everyone brought snack foods to eat while we were hard at work; as hard as I tried to eat only carrots and hummus, I think I may have snuck in a lot of cookies along the way too. I mean, you have to try each type of cookie with each type of frosting! Right? 

My friend made two kinds of cookies: sugar and gingerbread, and three kinds of frosting: maple, orange and butter cream. 

We had several shapes, such as a bone, a star, a Santa, a couple of men, a heart, a tree and a bell.

We used food coloring and sprinkles to create our masterpieces.

We had a great time, all of us adult girls, decorating cookies badly. 

Have you ever had a cookie decorating party? Do you think you could do a better job decorating (meaning if you have preschool skills or higher) than we did? 

Note:  I just realized that my posts from the last few days were not showing up in Reader! After much detective work, I went to a site that I already followed and signed in, and VOILA, they were back. What the heck, google.

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