Lack of Words

The only words I seem to have at the moment...my heart and prayers go out to Boston.

 

source

 

 

Lord, be with them. 

Delightfully Doughy

Hope you're all feeling bright-eyed and bushy-tailed! The first day back at school (from spring break) was pretty much same thing, different day. I'm bracing myself to be smacked with EOCT/AP Test reviews (no SAT/ACT for me yet!!), and will thoroughly enjoy the coffee that will no doubt get me through some study sessions.

I finally squeezed in a short lil' jog because it was so dang pretty out and I was feeling some school stress. I quite enjoyed my alone/God time and I worked up a little sweat!

Me like.

I came home to homemade piiizzaaasss on the menu!! Thanks Mom! Mine + Rebekah's were just fresh pizza dough, tomato sauce, fresh mozz (YES), and fresh basil. Side of veggies for me!

Goodness I love me some carbs. The crust was chewy and doughy without being too thick - a fab vehicle for the gooey mozzarella.

It was, however, no bueno as a pre-run meal (which I knew already but couldn't resist) and it left me with a wicked bellyache. You live and you learn.

Have a teeerrific Tuesday!



Chillax Weekend

Happy Monday, loves!

I had a lovely weekend to round out spring break and get me ready for schooool. So close, so close.

I took it pretty easy Friday and Saturday, as my lower body was still more sore than usual. I guess I don't work my butt really hard that often - in the strength way, I mean. ;)

Friday: Mom, Reibs, Jonathan, and I headed out to see Wreck It Ralph at the dollar theater (oh yeah). It was just okay, but still really cute.

The rest of the day was just chillaxin'.

Saturday: I did literally nothing active. It was fantastic.

 I wasn't feeling too great, so I sat on the swingset for some Vitamin D therapy (this girl's gotta have sunshine!) - then went inside and promptly took a 2.5 hour nap, which was superb and totally did the trick.

Just a little while after I woke up, Mom and Dad went to a Third Day concert!!!!!!!!!!! Not gonna lie, I was pretty jealous.

That left me, the bro, and the cats all by our lonesomes for a bit.

I don't think the cats minded. ;) I did actually make some time to do some She Reads Truth (#obsessed #inlove #God'sWord) and make a dinner of champs.

No joke - I have been craving sweet potato, it might be my favorite starchy veggie. Especially French-fry style w/ cayenne pepper, mmmmmm.

I'm pretty sure Jon and I sat for 3 hours straight watching Dr. Quinn, Medicine Woman reruns (quality television, people), but after the 2nd hour your eyes get a little fuzzy.......

Sunday: Woke up before everyone else to marvelous coffee in our fancy schmancy new pot + overnight oats. It was good way to start the day!

I finally got to have OIAPBJ - oats in a peanut butter jar! It's always gone before I can steal that last few bites for myself. ;)

After church, we were planning a hike or strawberry picking, but neither got done because of the rainy weather. Boo!

I ended up just doing a strength workout that did not challenge my arms at all but definitely worked my lower body cuz that's how I roll, yo. I've been looking for more challenging upper-body stuff because my arms are, frankly, too strong for the 5lb dumbbells (that I've used since I started out), and I don't own dumbbells heavier than that. I'm proud that it's time to step it up - means I'm getting stronger! 

Laziness ensued after that, but we all know it was in a good way.

Peace.



Stuffed Peppers

Happy Friday, friends! 

Glad the weekend's coming? These are my last days of freedom until summer....dear goodness. But let's not think about that!

For me, part of being in the kitchen and cooking is the experience. Some people enjoy spending lots and lots of time cooking really special meals, and that's just not my mojo - in my opinion, simple = nutritious, delicious, less time, and ultimately a more enjoyable experience. That's what food is supposed to be!

That being said, I can't eat frozen Kashi pizzas or wraps (delicious as they are) for every single lunch, and I love the opportunity of cooking my own food, so I manned up and got my sore hiney into the kitchen to cook a nice lunch. :)

(The sore butt/legs/thighs is the product of Tina's appropriately named Butt-Kicking Workout What 20 minutes will do to ya...)

This is still a really, really, easy recipe (should it even be called a recipe?) that I assembled in a jiffy. The black beans were made in the crock-pot last night, I had some rice already made, and all I had to do was chop, saute, and assemble. This meal is full of really classic combos, and also super versatile.

Tex-Mex Stuffed Peppers (Serves 1)

Ingredients:

2 small baby bell peppers (or 1 regular size), cut in half

1/2 cup brown rice (if you don't have rice already made, just make some according to the instructions)

1/2 cup black beans

cumin, garlic powder, salt, pepper, to taste

Any veggies you prefer, chopped - I used:

onions

carrots

peppers

Any garnishes that you'd like - I used:

avocado

greek yogurt

squirt of lime juice

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 400* F

2. Heat up a pot of boiling water, and shock your peppers (with the seeds removed). All this means is boil them 2 - 3 minutes, keeping them crisp, and then submerging them into ice water so they  cook, while they keep their color/firmness.

3. Saute up your veggies for 3 - 5 minutes in some olive or canola oil. Add to your black beans and spices in a bowl.

4. When the veggies/beans are done, scoop it into your bell peppers - it doesn't matter if it's heaping/overflowing a little bit.

(Your choice: Add shredded cheese!)

5. Bake for 15 - 20 minutes (if you've added cheese on the top, just bake until it's melted and bubbly, about the same amount of time)

6. Enjoy with any garnishes you like!

Tasty, tasty, tasty. 

Springtime Love

Woo, after writing my last post, I'm feeling much better!!

 

To jumpstart my enthusiasm for trust, I began participating in the She Reads Truth devotional. And of course this is the topic they've been discussing:

 

 

 

 

Ah, the way God works. :)

 

 

I (plus the bro and sis) am currently on spring break, and there is plenty of fantastic weather and free time.

 

On Monday I got a baking urge, and I had the right ingredients for, duh, muffins. Ha.

 

 

Whilst baking, the weather was so great that I just opened up some windows to let the sweet, warm breeze into the house.

 

 

 

The kit-kats quite enjoy the sunshine - it gives them even more reason to lounge around.

 

 

One of my favorite transitions into spring besides the temps is the change in colors! I am loving these cherry blossoms and bright nail colors!

 

 

 

 

 

I have been definitely been getting my outside time and soaking in some sun - walks, as always. One included breaking in my new kicks shoes that I loooovveee.

 

 

 

 

Yesterday I went in the heat of the day (around 3-ish), but I loved working up a nice sweat. My walking paces are getting faster, I think I've shaved off around 10+ minutes of my normal route.

 

 

 

 

The new bangs have not made an appearance this week. My go-to hair has been the side braid with an awkward pinned-back-poof-thingy - lazy hair at its best!

 

I've also had some good eats, including yesterday's dinner.....

 

 

Grilled shrimp w/ Cajun finishing butter, roll, and a big 'ole salad.

 

....eaten on the porch with this awesome kiddo:

 

Pizza face!

 

Have an awesome day!

 

 

 

 



Shooting for the Stars

Firstly, can I get a hallelujah for the spring break weather?!

 

 

 

It couldn't be a more convenient week to get awesome temps (we're ignoring Thursday and Friday's forecasts). This means that my flat-iron is going into hibernation pretty soon, but I'll deal with that when the time comes. So are my scarves and boots and sweaters! Ahh!

 

Before my train of thought choo-choos off into the sunset, I have a pretty important topic that just sort of came to my mind I thought I'd share on the 'ole blog.

 

Every human has two things that I think goes hand-in-hand: hopes and dreams.

 

 

Life tends to throw things at us that we don't expect/don't want - how we deal with them is our choice. It could be as small as perhaps a plan getting cancelled or as big as depression.

 

 

In any case, everything affects our dreams and future. For me, being a religious person, I believe that God knows every single moment and experience in our life, beginning to end, but He presents us with opportunities and challenges we either pass or accept.

 

 

Sometimes, these don't line up with the way we try to plan our lives to be. That's why we get disappointed so often.

 

 

Now, this may come as a surprise, but I'm a bit of a control freak when it comes to life. I can analyze and overanalyze every single part of my life, every single day, however tiny the event. To the extreme, it gets exhausting, confusing, and stressful.

 

 

I preach and preach about self-care and letting go, but I admit: sometimes I struggle to just go with the flow and trust God.

 

 

Yes, our choices add up to our future, and we can't just sit around doing nothing (as in: "Oh, God's got me covered. I'll just wait.") - God and His Word are our guides. Literally every single time I open the Word, I find verses that pertain to my situation/problem/etc.

 

 

In the midst of my eating disorder, I had neither hopes or dreams. My life revolved around food, calories, and my body.

 

When I started to learn how to cope with/overcome my anxieties and obsessions, I found myself having a rather difficult time discovering what were my hopes and dreams. I was (and still am) going through that stage in life of, "Who am I? What's my purpose? What am I aspiring to do and be?"

 

 

I like to think I've gotten glimpses of answers. Thoughts. I get questioned about why I talk about food a lot on the blog and my answer is, well, because I like it. I've said before that coming out of what I've been through, food is seen through completely different eyes. Actually, pretty much everything has.

 

 

What are my dreams right now? Well, I want to go into medicine. I want to be an RD - something I've been struggling internally with for quite a while, seeing my history. I just have this overwhelming feeling that I want to teach others what I've learned, and what has changed my life. Trials and tribulations meant for the glory of God, and I want to change other peoples' lives.

 

 

Will this happen? Who knows. But I definitely feel this strong pull from this career opportunity, and I am praying hard about it. I'm only 16, but God plants seeds in our hearts for a reason. So, I'm just going to go with the flow. I want to enjoy this season in my life, this season of hopes and dreams. Sometimes I just gotta let go and trust my omniscient Daddy.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 







More Muffins.

Spring is finally coming. FINALLY.

 

Georgia weather is notorious for being all. over. the. place. The overcast skies and mediocre temps just get....bleh. For the past few weeks I have been obsessively checking the weather waiting for warmth.

 

Ah, the wait is worth it, friends.

 

 

Although this outside girl loves all the seasons, it's time to ditch the long-sleeves and gray skies. You know?

 

 

 

Well, I don't have much else to say, so I suppose I should get to the point of the title. I do indeed have another muffin recipe.

 

You're welcome.

 

These babies are banana-y, chocolatey, gooey, and comforting. Did I also mention they're naturally sweetened, packed with antibiotics, vitamins, minerals, and they're vegan?

 

 

  I confess that I'm always a little insecure when I present something I've baked to my family because....well....I've had a few mishaps (read: tasting like cardboard/too much salt/so on). But these kids are winners.

 

Le star: black bananas. Nature's sugar. The dark chocolate provides the antibiotics (learned from Robyn, whose blog I got this from!), and I love the hint of banana.

 

 

 

Don't shy away!

 

Vegan [Gluten-free] Banana-Chocolate Chip Muffins

adapted from the The Real Life RD

 

  

3 mashed ripe bananas

2 1/4 cups whole wheat pastry flour

3/4 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp baking powder

1/8 tsp salt

2 tsp vanilla extract

1/2 cup applesauce (I had old-fashioned so I used that)

1/2 cup brown sugar

1/3 cup almond milk

1/2 cup dark chocolate chips

 

 Directions:

Preheat oven to 350*

Mix flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt in a bowl. On top, stir in mashed bananas, applesauce, vanilla, brown sugar, and almond milk - until JUST mixed. Then gently fold in the chocolate chips - you don't want to over-mix or else they'll be dense.

Scoop into a greased or lined muffin tin.

 

 Bake for 15-17 minutes.

Easy as pie muffins!

 

 

 

Mmmm, I'm hungry. I actually used old-fashioned applesauce cuz that's what we had (work with watcha got!), but if you're watching added sugars, I'd just suggest reducing the turbinado sugar or using all-natural applesauce.

 

 

I had so many chocolate chips left that I baked cookies to bring to my neighbors! :)

 

Have a fantastic evening!