Tuesday, December 22, 2009

Grinch

Hey kids,

This chica has been through H.E. double hockey sticks this past week. Not only did my fair Hamlet get hit by the worst snowstorm this area has seen since 1979 but now, NOW I am sick as a dog. Just in time for the holidays, just in time for me to miss out on some mucho deniro just in time to make me a perfect grump!

So sorry, there wont be much blogging until after the holidays. :(

I hope you all have a safe and lovely Solstice, a Merry Christmas, a Happy Hanukkah, a Joyous Kwanzaa and a wonderful New Year! :)

Thursday, December 10, 2009

Soooo, How Are You? :)

Wow.... I have been putting off blogging for ever and now there are so many subjects to cover that I feel this post will be a doozie. So bare with me please.

Gosh, where to start?

Okay, Food Matters by Mark Bittman is a revelation. I know that I am super late on hopping on this bandwagon but what can I say? I tend to come to things in my own time. To sum up; in order to shrink your global footprint, eat consciously, feel better and yes, even loose weight you should eat local, eat mostly plants, animal protein as more of a side dish and stay away from processed foods. You may be thinking, well duh Olivia, many books have said such things. But for some reason they way Mr. Bittman writes about it makes sense to this lay person.

So I have been putting his ideas to work. The thing to remember is that it's not about what you can't have it's about what you can. So I have been juggling several different approaches. The one that seems to be working for the moment is eating mostly fresh fruits, vegetables and whole grains with meat being a side dish or a flavoring. In fact what I have been doing is saving animal protein for my evening meal ( one of many positives to this approach is since I mostly work out in the evening the protein helps to repair my muscles during sleep.) Plus the meat I am purchasing is from my local butcher from a local source so that makes me feel kinda good. :)

I must admit it has been a little challenging reminding myself not to order meat when I go out and to try to stick to the mostly vegetarian menu options but other than that it's been pretty awesome. I feel much more energetic, I am sleeping better and you know what the best thing about this change is? It's so much friendlier to my wallet. You will be amazed at the amount of savings you will enjoy when you mostly buy fruit, veggies, legumes and grains. So give Food Matters a read, I got mine from my local library.

Moving on to exercise (groan.) I gotta be honest... I can definitely improve my commitment to exercise. I was doing quite well for a few weeks in November but admit that I lost my way. I started back up again this week partly because I have been feeling so much more energy from the Food Matters menu but also because I have been thinking about goals. I have been reading what Krissie at Questions For Dessert has been up to for the past couple of months. That girl is a runnin' fool and I love it! In fact running has been on my mind a lot lately. I really admire the people I see out there every day running, taking that time out for themselves and getting stronger every day. Many of my clients are runners and I just love to hear them talk about the feeling they get when they run... the Runner's High I believe it's called. It just sounds so amazing.

I know that I am a quite a bit away from being able to run for exercise. Any sort of bouncing exercise tends to hurt (if you know what I mean) so I have to always find alternative ways of doing things. I hope to one day not have to worry about alternatives, to one day be able to just hop into any exercise without feeling so incredibly overwhelmed at first. Here's hoping or should I say hopping? ;)

Moving Day approaches. Well, not till the middle of January but it feels like it's next week. I am starting to freak a little because I feel as though the packing will never get done. Work has picked up in many ways and slowed in some but I seem to have little time to do home stuff except at night but by then I am tired and just want to lay in bed and read. Hence the not so frequent blogging. Even with all the stress I am still super excited. I love the house I will be moving too. I really enjoy the folks I will be sharing the house with and I really enjoy the fact that it is out in the country. Don't get me wrong, I love my little historic town but it seems like the University is taking over and the college kids are infesting every single apartment building downtown. I have nothing against college kids but let's call a spade a spade and admit that loud obnoxious partying until the wee hours of the morning almost every night starts to take it's toll. I used to be there, I was that young once so I don't throw a big stink about it. Instead I chose to move elsewhere.

I hope to have to pictures to show you soon of the new place. I have to paint at some point before I move into my room and hope that will only take a day or two. The kitchen is so lovely... so much room and counter space. I find myself becoming more creative with food when I am over there. There is a big porch with rocking chairs and a beautiful two story shed that the upstairs can be converted into an art studio. I can't wait!!!!

Enough about me, what have you been up to?

Thursday, December 3, 2009

ThePioneer Woman's Sweet-Roasted Acorn Squash Wedges

It's no secret that I love me some Pioneer Woman. I must check her site at least three times a day.... more if I am off work. I covet her new cookbook and hope upon hope that Santa will bring it to me this year. ;) When I saw this recipe I knew it was for me. I actually made it quite a while ago but haven't had the time to sit down and blog about it. I changed the butter to Smart Balance and halved the recipe since I only had one squash. Here goes:

Ingredients
  • 1 whole Acorn Squash, Cut Into 8 Wedges Each
  • 2 dash(es) Olive Oil
  • Salt To Taste
  • 1/4 cup Smart Balance
  • 1/4 cups Brown Sugar (lightly Packed)
  • 1 Tablespoon Rosemary (minced)

Cut squash in half

Scoop out seeds and guts

Cut into wedges, smear in olive oil and sprinkle with sea salt roast at 350 degrees for 20 minutes

While the squash is baking mince the rosemary

Mix Smart Balance, brown sugar and rosemary into a paste

Once the first baking is done, smear the paste onto the squash wedges, return to the oven for 30 minutes or until caramelized

Smells heavenly

Tastes even better :)

I decided to make chicken breasts to go with it. Take two tablespoons vinaigrette of your choice and 1 teaspoon herbs de Provence and mix it in a small baking dish
Add two skinless chicken breasts and cover with the mixture. Cover in tinfoil and bake with the squash for it's last 3o minutes

De-lish! Thank you Pioneer Woman!

Farewell Dear Friend


My beloved purple Guess bag has moved on to a better place. A place where purses are free. Free of clutter, gum wrappers, spilled lotion, scuff marks and broken handles. I will miss you my loveliest of accessories. Perhaps we will meet again someday... or maybe if you have a twin sister you could send her my way? *sobs quietly to herself*

Tuesday, December 1, 2009

Post In the Near Future

I promise. :) There has been a lot going on and business had JUMPED and with packing and Christmas coming, time has gotten away from me. But soon, my pretties, soon. :D