Seeing things in 2D.

I love Saturdays... They mean Farmer's Market! I took mental pictures all afternoon because I lent my point and shoot to Carly for the day and left my big honkin' camera at home. I didn't really need anything at the market today, but had a great time walking around with my Mom and life-long friend Ashley. It sort of reminded me of when we were little and my Mom would take us with her shopping. 

Today the was the market's 4th annual wellness festival. It had booths from local wellness centers, and information booths. One of the booths was dedicated to Gluten Free info. We picked up some free samples and pamphlets. Then walked on over to my Mom's favorite tent... The Gluten Free Bakery! (I'll admit I like it an awful lot too! They have vegan cookies!) They were out of the millet english muffins we went for so our next stop was to their actual bakery and store just up the street. They have a mini market with some great options for gluten free and whole food eating. I picked up some pretzels and palm sugar... I have a recipe in mind! I guess they hope to one day add a cafe to the bakery. I have a feeling they would serve great food, but the location of the bakery is pretty terrible.

Vegan and Gluten Free mini pizza!  

After the Bakery we went to lunch at a newer mexican restaurant in town.
The lady thought I was crazy when I ordered a quesadilla with no cheese...
To be fair though it had spinach, beans and pico de gallo and guac on the side.
Usually Mexican food makes me feel too full, but this made for a perfect light lunch.
I'm liking this no cheese thing.

After lunch we went up to a plant sale up the street from my house.
It turns out the Clear Creek Nursery is going to be turning a vacant lot into an extension of their nursery.
The new area is also going to feature fresh fruits and vegetable from the eastern side of the state!
This is within walking distance from my house!
Fresh and local! Love it!

Girls night with Katy!

She came over for dinner and I made my favorite soup!
Yummy Squash and White Bean.

After dinner we went and saw THOR (I felt like I had to capitalize all those letters).
We saw it in 3D.
In my personal opinion... 3D is overrated.
The movie was great though.
I love me some superhero action.
My Mom was right... the guy who plays Thor... is "hot" :)

Magic Bullet.

I may have a problem... I'm addicted to Peanut/Almond butter (I would probably add hazelnut and cashew if I let myself buy). I have seriously been putting it on everything lately! Oatmeal, toast, apples, celery, dates, and my finger to name a few! 

Funny thing happened when I woke up today, my left leg hurt more than my right one (opposite of the usual)... seems that I might need a touch of a tune up on my insoles, but still promising! I feel sort of like right now I'm just trying to get to June 5th, but in the back of my head I'm still trying to figure out what comes after race day. Maybe I'll have to drastically cut back my running? 

I didn't leave enough PB in there so overnight oats were less than stellar this morning!
Funny that my coworker didn't ask me why I was eating PB for breakfast... I think everyone is getting used to me being an odd eater.

Lunch was a mishmash of kale with the last of my farmer's market spinach, avocado and whichever veggies I grabbed first this morning!
I'm trying to get back to not having any processed food in my house... so I gotta eat it!

Since I was out of PB and Spinach I had to make a run to the store.
There seems to be about 4 foods that I HAVE to have in my house at all times.
Peanut Butter
Bananas
Lettuce
Milk (Soy these days)
This one is from the bulk foods section!
Made fresh! So tasty.

Sometimes I feel like a little kid....
But I think those kids are on to something!

My newest addition to my kitchen!
An easter present! 

I tested it out with an egg salad recipe from it's manual.
I think I didn't follow understand the recipe because the celery didn't get chopped up at all!
I spooned around it, but I think I have much to learn about the Magic Bullet!
Any tips? Or maybe I'll just stay up late one night to watch the infomercial!

The combo was still good minus the celery!
Tomorrow morning I'm testing it on some blended oats!

Are there any foods that you can't live without?!

A Little Support Please!

It turns out that is all a girl really needs. When it comes to most things in life... but especially when it comes to running!

Today I tested out my new insoles. I was more than nervous. Seems like before every run nowadays I get a bit jittery. My biggest worry is pain, what if I get far away from my house and it hurts so much I can't run anymore? The next biggest thing that makes me nervous is the feeling of defeat I get when I'm unable to run as far as I would like. So today when I tested out my new insoles I went the safe route and ran the treadmill. The first half mile or so was a little touch and go, but once I loosened up I felt pretty darn good! I may have blisters on my arches from where they rub on their new supports, but totally worth it! My legs felt good! I ran 5.25 miles, which is the longest I've run since being injured. It was slow... I mean slow as molasses on a winters day slow.... 11 minute miles, but they were steady. I would be happy to run 12 minute miles if it meant completing 13.1 miles on June 5th. I needed this run, I feel light and full of energy and happiness! Hoping that tomorrow I wake up without pain!

Happy Cinco de Mayo! I celebrated with a salad and Spanish class! Anything that includes avocado, salsa, fake chicken, corn and tortillas means Mexican to me! I wish I had had a Corona (I'm not as much fun as I was in college)!

Stop Teasing me Sunshine!

I upload a lot of pictures. I didn't realize how many until yesterday when I hit my free limit! So you better believe that from now on my posts will ALWAYS have photos because I'm paying $5 a year for more storage space! Although I think it is sort of ridiculous I have fun going back through and looking at photos and my journaling thoughts.... which is something else I did yesterday. 

My cousin Rebecca gave me the idea that I should link back to my book recommendations from my book list! Well it would have been really difficult to go back and do it on the main screen, so instead I created a new page up at the top where you can click on a book title and see what I thought about it in my original post. A found a few that aren't working right now, but I think most of them are (still a work in progress!).

It was really fun to go through almost all of my posts from last year. It made me really miss how into reading I was. It also made me realize that I haven't reviewed all the books that I've read yet! Somehow I just skipped the last few from 2010 and even a few from this year! I plan to go back and fix that! It is nice for me to be able to go back and see what I thought.

I had a great PT appointment today. I've been having a lot of pain in my arches the past few days. Almost like a charlie horse, but not quite. So he fitted me for a pair of insoles to test out. If they work then I may get the expensive orthotics (I'm on my parent's health insurance until February and they will pay for 90%). He also used an infrared light therapy on my leg. Tomorrow I run in the orthotics... wish me luck!

I'm trying to figure out ways to stay get full in the morning.
So I tried whisking in an egg into my oats this morning!
The eggy oats
1/4 C Rolled Oats
1/4 C H20
1/4 C Unsweetened Soy Milk
1 T Chia
1 Farmer's Market Egg added at the end!

My most royal linen... a week late.
 Topped with a half a sliced banana, homemade granola and peanuts.
This was a smaller portion than I usually make, but kept me pretty full.

Brew Master Bruce!
My Dad is brewing up some Hefeweizen for my nephew's first birthday in June!

I made the guys a lunch of ABBJ (Almond Butter, Banana and Jelly!)
And snacked on a half a sandwich for my lunch!

When I work in the afternoon my entire routine is a mishmash so I ate dinner really late!
Kind of a weird creation...
I whisked an egg and poured it into the pan and let it set like an omelet.
When it was almost set I placed a corn tortilla on top.
Then Flipped and cooked for a few more minutes.
Then filled it like a taco!
Turned out pretty good!

I walked to work today because the weather was so great!
I'm really missing summer right now.
I usually enjoy every season, but I am literally craving summer.
I'm sick of being teased!

Racing the Rain.

Today was great. A day of random getting things done. I needed to hit reset... you know do laundry, read, and bake... the usual. I like days like today where I have very little of a schedule. The only thing I HAD to do was go to the dentist... oh fun. It actually went a lot better than I anticipated. Just a quick cleaning, and she barely yelled at me for not flossing regularly! Maybe that was because I didn't try to lie about it this time around.

It doesn't matter what time I go to sleep... I always wake up at 6 am!
Classic rolled oats with homemade granola on top!

After riding the exercise bake I had a snack!
Have I told you about these bars?!
It is called a You Bar.
Basically you go in and pick all of the ingredients for your granola bar  (you can see the nutritional info as you pick everything out). Then you name it and they ship you a box! Custom made bars!
I would never have bought them if they hadn't had a groupon! They were like half off, but still after shipping over $20 bucks! Which is ridiculous! But a fun one time thing. I got them before lent, but because I had chosen chocolate chips I've had to wait to enjoy!

Super snacky.... While my brother mowed my lawn! I received a coupon for 5 free lawn mowings for Christmas! He didn't know what he was getting himself into! Made my day!

Since I was already on Bainbridge Island, after my dentist appointment I  walked around downtown Winslow.
They are doing construction on the road so it was completely torn up! I may have been one of about 10 people walking around at all! I spent some quality time in the bookstore! It has been far too long. I've felt very disconnected from the reading world lately... something I need to put more effort in to.
For lunch I stopped at this little hut on the corner that sells all vegetarian Vietnamese food! Not just tofu, but all sorts of other fo-meat entrees! I can't believe I worked in Winslow for a year and never tried this place out! The fake meat was almost too real! 

I decided to take my lunch away from the construction zone and found a park!
When I had left my house the clouds were heading this way! By the time I got back into my car the drizzling had resumed!
I also read a book today! From beginning to end! Just like the old days!

When I got home I had an urge to bake!
How about some vegan/gluten free/low sugar chocolate chip oat cookies...

Instead of an egg... a Flax egg!
1 T ground flax with 3 T hot water let it sit for 5 minutes!

Guess I needed some extra sugar...

Since These have everything I love and nothing all at the same time...
Maybe I'll call them free cookies? 

Bite sized deliciousness!

Delicious Free-Cookies1 1/2 C Rolled oats
3/4 tsp baking soda
1/4 Dark chocolate chips
1/3 C Sliced almonds
1/4 C Sugar
1/4 C Brown Sugar
2 T Earth's Balance Vegan Butter
1/3 C Homemade almond butter
1 flax egg

Mix everything together!
They don't really stick together... like hardly at all..
So I got a little creative and spooned some into my mini cupcake pan!
So perfect! The pieces were perfectly crispy and wonderful!
Bake at 350* for about 10 minutes.
I did half as the mini cupcake version and half spread flat on a cookie sheet, these would make a good bar... but crumbly! I think you could ever go for a bit less sugar on these.
Maybe a bit of GF flour would make everything stick together? I enjoyed the texture sooo much I wouldn't change much! A warning though... they are addictive!

World History.

On Sunday night I went to bed soooo early that I didn't hear the news that Bin Laden had been killed until I woke up Monday morning. This blog isn't a place where I share my political opinions or ideas, but I will say that I am thankful that there is one less terrible person in this world. I will also say that I don't think celebrating in the streets in necessarily the right response. I think that right now we should be remembering those that were lost in the terrorist attacks and also thanking the heros in the military, fire and police departments for keeping us safe.  

Raindrops not sweat!

 I've decided from now on I have to listen to my body... my mind may be up for a run but my legs may not be. Monday morning everything seemed to be clicking. When I left my house it was barely drizzling... about half way through I was caught in a torrential downpour! I really don't mind running in the rain. I get a lot of people giving me sad eyes... but it is actually sort of refreshing when the temp is above 50 degrees!
I went just about 2.5 miles. Then I went to my PT appointment. We talked about my awful week and he recommended giving my body more time to heal in between runs... no more back-to-back days for me.

I put a spin on breakfast this morning! Steel cut oats! I liked the texture, but they take twice as long as regular rolled oats! I packed on top 4 different kinds of nuts! Protein packing! 

Lunch was quite the mishmash!
Left over edamame, farmer's market spinach salad, tempeh sandwich with half an apple on the side!
I'm really trying hard to like tempeh, its such a different taste and texture mix....
But it is better for you than tofu and it is super packed with protein.

The naturopath told me to eat granola instead of puffed cereal so I'm experimenting with making my own! 

Melting down that coconut oil!

Crunchy Savory Granola
(adapted from Kath's recipe)
1 1/12 C Rolled Oats
1/2 C Raw Buckwheat
1/4 C Oat Groats
1/4 C Sliced Almonds
1/2 C Sunflower Seeds
3/4 tsp Cinnamon
1/4 tsp Salt
1/4 C Honey
1/8 C Coconut Oil
1/2 tsp Vanilla Extract
1/8 C Coconut

Mix everything together but the coconut in a big bowl and pour into a square baking dish.
 (I used an 8X8)
Put into the oven at 325* for 1 hr. mixing every 20-30 minutes.
Remove from oven when everything looks good and baked and smells delicious!
Mix in the Coconut. (This would also be the time to add any dried fruit you want).
Let cool completely and stir a few times before putting it into a container!

Yum!

Veggie Drawer Frittatta for dinner!

And my attempt at tempeh bacon!
Sliced tempeh as thinly as possible.
Mix together
1/2 T agave
1/2 T Soy sauce
Salt and Pepper
Garlic
Smokey spice of your choice... Paprika
Pepper flakes
Marinate tempeh in mix
Put on skillet set to medium
Pour remaining marinade on top and cook until hot.
A little too soy saucy for me, but decent. I'm still not a huge fan on the tempeh texture. 

I made tonight's version with duck eggs and unsweetened almond milk!
4 Whole and 3 whites.
Made for a very dense frittata, but delicious!

I also have discovered that I really enjoy millet (GF) english muffins!

After dinner my Mom and I finally watched the Royal Wedding! So much fun! I love all of the pageantry. They looked like such a loving and happy couple. And her dress was gorgeous. It was also neat to hear all of the commentary. I really don't know much about how the monarchy works... or British history at all.

High Gear.

Good morning sunshine! Last night I went to sleep when it was still light out!
It only made waking up at 5 a little easier...
Breakfast this morning was granola with a tiny banana and chia seeds on top.

Tofu for lunch!
If you like tofu, baking a bunch once a week to save for lunches is the way to go.
All that protein really fills you up.

I'm addicted to almond butter. I need a support group.

Bike ride with my Dad!
Does anybody look good in a helmet?

The ride was a lot more mountainy that I was looking for. I like a good workout, I just don't like having to jump over stumps and logs while while navigating through narrow trees! I think I like road biking more.

We spent an hour out riding, and it was a great workout. Lots of hills.
This trail would be awesome for a run.
I obviously don't ride my bike enough though,.I kept slipping into higher gears and my brakes were screeching like banshee. Not so good when we got to the part of the trail that was next to the golf course... hope nobody was putting...  

After our ride, Dad and I stopped in to the new brewery in town!
I didn't even know it existed!

Always fun to support local... especially when it comes to beer!

Dinner @ Joe and Carly's!
Taco Night!
As you can probably tell.... Tacos are a family favorite!

And now I'm exhausted! I loved the sunshine and didn't feel like I got to enjoy enough of it today! Please come back! Tomorrow A.M. I go into the physical therapist for an evaluation....