WIAW

It's Wednesday, ya'll (I was tempted to again use the Hump Day commercial as an opening, but I'll refrain...just for this week).

So. This is my last summer edition of What I Ate Wednesday. I'm pretending that I'm super excited about returning to school, but truthfully, it doesn't even feel real yet. My brain logically knows it's a mere 5 days away, yet I feel like I have a good month to go.

Sigh.

But on a positive note, I've had a lot of yummy eats zis week! (Thanks a bunch, Jenn!)



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Breakfasts

We were in charge of the volunteers' food at church this week, and we came home with a bunch of leftover food (apparently people prefer bagels and donuts to muffins), including a few whole wheat bagels.

Breakfast: the bottom aka thicker, chewier half of a bagel, an organic white nectarine, half a banana, and lots of Sunbuttah. Coffee w/ vanilla almond milk on the side to wake me up.

I feel like I shouldn't even post this breakfast, but I'm going to anyways. I am the QUEEN of kitchen disasters, and this was a sadly failed attempt at recreating a version of vegan baked pancake that was previously successful.

I think subbing the white nectarine for the banana did it in (hardy har har). It came out perfectly on the top and bottom, but the middle was still raw. I then nuked it in the microwave to save the top from burning, which made it sink like a deflated souffle. At least it cooked through and was tasty.


Lunches

Mom, Reibs, and I went out and picked up lunch from Atlanta Bread Co. and it was between the chicken + pesto panini and Salsa Fresca Salmon Salad for me. Clearly, the salad won. And it was delicious! Grilled salmon, black bean and corn salad, lots of greens, and a really yummy dressing that I can't remember the name of. It was kind of honey mustard-y tasting with a hint of spice.


Dinners

I have new product love! Whilst at Trader Joe's I picked up Thai Vegetable Gyoza - basically potstickers.

I steamed mine, which I honestly wouldn't suggest. At my friend's house (where I discovered them), we pan-fried them and it gave them a crunchy exterior. The texture of my potstickers was like a chewy noodle.

Be forewarned...have a pack of gum at your side because these babies are little garlic bombs. Maybe that's why they're so tasty?!


Snacks

You're probably getting tired of this picture, and I apologize. I'm just really bad at photographing my snacks! But I almost always have a bowl of yogurt, half a banana, and a nut butter before bed. It's the bomb dot com.

Happy Hump DAAAYY!

Thankful Tuesday

You guys, I have really got to start shaking up my post titles. I generally state the obvious, which I guess is what you're supposed to do, but it's obvious as in I'm always reminding you what day of the week it is. Actually, at this point in the summer, it's probably good to remind myself.

Example: I literally just realized it's TUESDAY and I forgot to post my first MIMM post! I had it all written up and got busy yesterday. But I need some positivity today and wanted to recognize all the little things I'm thankful for! The little things make up everyday life, after all.

I'm thankful for.....

New movies to watch! Ya'll know I'm a movie junkie, and when I was at my cousins' house last week, I may have borrowed a few. ;) Indiana Jones, heck yes!

I'm thankful for....

Grocery trips to Trader Joe's! It's been waayy too long since our last visit, and Mom spontaneously decided we'd grocery shop there this week. I get way too excited when I find new (and old) favorites.

I'm thankful for....

Nerd alert! Back to school shopping. I'm not sure why, but I just love buying new notebooks, pencils, pens, and other school essentials. I remind myself that when I want to complain about school, I'm blessed to live somewhere with a good education system.

I'm thankful for....

Improved running times!! It's also known around the blog that I don't formally time my runs, I just keep an eye on the overall time to see improvement. And guys, I actually got faster this summer!! A lot faster. I started with about a 33 to 35 minute 3-miler, and my time this morning was about 30 minutes for 3.5 miles. That's pretty dang fast for me personally!

I'm thankful for.....

Getting to redo my room! It's a bit off in the future (our house is full of halfway finished projects right now), but we're planning on completely redoing my room. I'm all over Pinterest, different websites, and magazines looking for inspiration!

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The quilt that I'm basing the color scheme off of! I'm going for a boho-vibe. 

I'm thankful for....

Good friends. I tend to introvert myself and build up walls - which is why blogging is good for me - but I have lots of great friends I've been hanging out with this summer that bring me out of my shell and help me let loose a little bit.

I'm thankful for....

Friendly people! This is no joke, when we were at Trader Joe's a few days ago, our cashier was the sweetest guy and gave my Mom a bouquet of flowers after he rang up our purchases! I'll admit, me and Reibs were weirded out at first (Mom wasn't wearing a wedding ring and he was about her age hahahaha), but then I thought, can't people be nice anymore without any suspicion? I mean seriously! So anyways, it was really sweet of him and they're really pretty flowers.

Have a terrific Tuesday, lovelies, and remember all that you're thankful for!

Sunday Thoughts

Hellooooooo, gorgeouses.

This is one of those posts that I've attempted writing 4 different times, and none of my thoughts are seeming to come together. I've been really busy and haven't had time to actually sit down and write  a post!

So anyways, I sort of neglected my thoughts for the blog this week, but here's my run-down of workouts, runs, and what not, mainly because that's all I can really compile in my brain right now!

Fitness
Monday: 61 minutes on the stationary bike

Talk about indoors sweat-sesh! Geez.

Tuesday: Run, arms and abs workout

Wednesday: I was hanging out at my cousins' house, and they have a great neighborhood with sidewalks around the perimeter, so I went ahead and took another run (I'm not generally a fan of back-to-back running - I never want to experience muscle fatigue again). It was nice to be on a different route, and I think I covered at least 3 miles, maybe closer to 4. I also took a lot of odd routes to avoid the garbage guys and dogs. :) This is why I need a Garmin, people!

Thursday: 2.5 mile walk with Reibs, 20 min arms, 15 min core

I also went swimming for a couple of hours with my friend, but we mainly lay on floats and catapult each other off of them so...doesn't count.

Friday: 3.5 mile run

So like I have this brain blockage that keeps me from understanding that it's a no bueno idea to drink coffee before a run. It's as if I am subconsciously (or consciously?) choosing to deny the fact that I nearly overheat whenever I coffee it up before expending a good amount of energy. But what will I do without it on those mornings?!?!?!! I guess I have my beloved chocolate milk refuel to look forward to?!

Saturday: Nada

Sunday: Nada

I'll probably just take a walk or something later if it's nice outside!

Well there you go! I got a lot of activity in this week, and I'm feeling pretty good. I know I have another strength session in there somewhere, but I just can't remember the day.

It's the last week of summer!! Ahhh!!

WIAW

Guess what day it is??!!

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It's hump day! I know for a fact I'm not the only person who appreciates that commercial. And hump day means it's WIAW! Thanks Jenn!

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Breakfasts

I mentioned this breakfast on Monday, but I'm mentioning it again because it was gosh darn delicious.

A semi-parfait of plain 2% greek yogurt, a supremely ripe plum, and Bear Naked Granola. The plum was a little gem of sweet yuminess!

I really just can't get enough summer fruit, but nectarines...oh my. I'm eating as many as possible before they go out of season (which will be a sad day in our household).

This was a delicious stack of waffles! I layered waffle, nectarine slices, waffle, nectarine slices, and topped it with Barney Butter and sprinkled cinnamon. I then heated it up in the microwave to get the waffles chewy (I don't care for crunchy waffles), and the nectarines in the middle got all melty and gooey like a compote!

Lunches

Hummus+tomato+cucumber wrap, carrots and snow peas, a nectarine, and a Diet Coke I smuggled from the church's cooler for volunteers. :) Don't worry, I was volunteering!

 

 

Same plate! Turkey and hummus sandwich, snow peas, carrots, and cantaloupe.

 

 

Dinners

I made this dinner the other night and Dad proclaimed that "This is the best dinner I've had since the last time you made it!" Thank, Daddy. ;)

I pan-seared chicken and finished it off in the oven, and served it with balsamic bell peppers over brown rice. It was indeed a great dinner!

This was my after-hike-I'm-so-hungry-need-something-fast dinner. Whole wheat spaghetti, homemade tomato-basil sauce, a small squash, and ricotta cheese.

Snacks

The hot weather has put me in a smoothie-mood. Smoothies are where it's at!

I had been planning a banana bread muffin + PB snack, but after 61 minutes on the stationary bike (I timed it) and lots of sweat, I couldn't quit thinking about the frozen strawberries in the freezer we had. So I made a strawberries 'n cream protein smoothie (1 cup milk, 1 cup strawberries, protein powder, pinch of salt), and topped it with granola. 

I think this green gem was after an evening strength workout - 1 cup almond milk, 1 banana, 1.5 tbsp peanut butter, splash of vanilla, and topped with granola. 

 

By the way, I need to shout out to Aimee, who designed my blog for me! I really needed something different, and she did just what I was picturing! Also, she was an angel to work with - I highly recommend her! I've thanked her like 50 times, but...thanks Aimee!! :)

Long Distance Hike

Morning friends, just wanted to pop in before I'm off to volunteer at church!

I woke up yesterday morning super duper excited for breakfast! As I am every morning. This was an attempt at a parfait. :)

Plain 2% Greek yogurt, Bear Naked Granola, a few stray cherries, and a perfectly ripe plum. They're definitely in peak season, because this one was like little bursts of candy!

Coffee + vanilla almond milk on the side. Of course I added a spoonful of peanut butter, but I forgot to until I actually took the pics.

At 9:30, my friend and I headed out for a super long hike on our favorite trails. The weather was beautiful, but we had to push through the humidity.

It was awesome, and we were booking it! Before we knew it, we had gone almost 6 miles and stopped for a lunch break at the beginning of a running trail. The rest/refuel was definitely necessary, I don't think we would have made it without at least a little break!

Teeny tiny frog!

It was more challenging than our usual hikes, and there were quite a few inclines that I thought would kick my butt. My legs/knees/hips were aching by the last mile (we didn't expect to go that long), but it was so much more fun having a hiking buddy to walk with. We couldn't believe we had gone almost 10 and a half miles!

I always have such a great time with her! I got home, ate food, watched Star Trek (one of my all-time favorite movies) with the sis, and off to bed!

Saturday Randomness

Bonjour, darlings! (And congrats Miranda aaahhhh!) It's a rambling day because I've compiled a large selection of random photographs that I've taken this week. I should really start planning out more posts! It's a sort of Friday Favorites/Week Recap/Fitness Recap thing - I like to just go with it. Bear with me.


We have been spending so much time poolside and I absolutely love it!

A membership to our local Y is probably the best thing we could have done all summer. Since we don't have a neighborhood pool, we can just come here year round, and also have access to the gym which is a nice bonus!

And the sun has actually been coming out scorching us, typical of Southern temps, making my runs absolutely steamy. More on that in a minute!

I'll be honest and say I'm the type who just like to lounge around by the pool, get in and swim a few lazy laps, get out and dry off, get back in, and it's just a cycle of getting in the pool and drying in the sun the whole time. Most of the time I have my Kindle and food with me!

Can I just take a moment and mention Michelle Moran? If you enjoy reading historical fiction, then you have to try some of her books. She's very historically accurate, has wonderful descriptions of the culture of that time period, and always has major historical figures as main and minor characters. I'm on my fifth and latest book by her, The Second Empress and am completely in. love.

Because of the sun I've been on such a running kick lately! The sunshine just makes me want to be outside all the time, and what better thing to do than, well, run?? Despite braving the heat most of the time, sometimes it just gets stifling. I know for a fact my times suffer - pace and overall, because after a certain point I feel like I'd overheat or sweat enough to fill the Atlantic.

The Sahara Desert

The Tropical Rainforest....

I really need to find a new running trail/location, because my current route is getting booorrriiinngg.

After runs, this beautiful brown powder has been my life glycogen muscle saver for the past couple weeks. It's not exactly au natural or organic, but it's pure sugar, and makes my sweaty self happy! When I mix it with almond milk, omg. Best recovery drink evaahh.

I've done strength training this week as well, and had a great abs and arms session. Observe what happens when you drop a dumbbell on your *left* foot:

You see that rectangular, faint bruise? Yeah. People, I thought I broke my foot. I've broken more than a couple bones, and I seriously thought that dumbbell split my bone in half. I may be a drama queen and have a low pain tolerance, but this hurt, yo.

Getting into my randomness, Mom brought home some granolaaaa that I've been craving forever!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I guess I was a little jealous of Brittany, Cait, and Kath.

Aaaanndd she brought home some plums, nectarines, and peaches. <3 I sent her with a list to the store and she delivered.

With my own moolah, I bought myself some delicious coffee flavors!

And I thought that Target couldn't get any more perfect. Alas, I've been proven wrong. The dark chocolate truffle one is my favorite of the three!

I'm taking a backtoschoolshoppingtrip to Target in the near future - holy crap! Where did summer go? Didn't we just get back from New York?

Before I go back (although I don't really want to think about it), I really need a haircut. My hair is very fine, so it's getting to that weird point where it's frizzy and the only thing I can do is a ponytail.

I was told by my little brother that my bangs make me look like a vampire?

Moving right along, have any of you seen Under the Dome?

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I'm so addicted to this show. My friend and I watched 3 episodes in a row (I think only four have aired), and it's based off of Stephen King's novel under the same name. It's a little dystopian, a little sci-fi, a lot creepy, but not as...disturbing and graphic as the book. It reminds me a lot of Lost, even though the plotline is completely different, if that makes sense.

The last thing I'd like to mention in my post of randomness is that I'm planning on registering for my first 5k! I've been wanting to do a race for a while and it's totally out of my comfort zone, but everyone has such a great experience that I want in on the fun! Also, I really really need a Garmin. 

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I really like this color. :D

For anyone who owns a running watch, what do you suggest? 

Soooooooo that's all for my complete brain purge. I've got a hike with my sweet friend today, and we're taking a picnic to eat along the way! Adios, mis amores!