Busy busy busy

Sorry I haven't written much this week. I've been super busy! My whole routine was thrown off because my kids started going to Vacation Bible School from 9-12 everyday. They had finally started sleeping in a little, so I was waking up early to read and comment on blogs, and write in my blog; then this week, with VBS, I've had to wake them up, get them ready and be out the door by 8:30, so I haven't had time for the computer. I've also been reading a lot--I accidentally requested 3 books from the library and they all came in at once, so I have to read them and get them back on time. I'm a SLOW reader, so I need every spare moment I can get.

Anyway, I've been doing terribly on my intuitive eating, and I really want to get back in focus today. I was thrown off when I went up north for a girls weekend, and then yesterday was Noah's birthday party (read: cake!) so I put the intuitive eating on the back burner for a while. I haven't gotten on the scale, and I'm thinking that I might just weigh in once a month while doing the intuitive eating. A lot of times, the scale dictates how I'm going to eat each day, and I don't want that to be a factor right now. But I'm kind of scared NOT to weigh, because what if I gain 50 pounds?! 

It's been SO HOT here this week. Yesterday was almost 100 degrees, and today is not looking good either:

Needless to say, I will NOT be running outside today. I'll be doing a few miles on the dreadmill--usually 3 is the most I can do before I want to gouge my eyes out from boredom. Yesterday at Noah's birthday party, the kids were all pouring sweat, and actually went through a whole case (36 bottles) of water between 12 kids. They had fun though--they went for a hike and they played dodge-baseball, which was new to most of them. A lot of birthday parties these days are waaay over-the-top, and I just felt like going back to the basics and keeping it simple. 

Playing dodge-baseball (like baseball, only with a big rubber ball and you can throw it to hit and tag each other out

Cooling off in the nearly-100 degree heat

On a hike

 It was a pretty stress-free party, which is always nice.  And afterward, Noah told me that it was the best birthday party he's ever had, so I'd call it a success!  ;)

Well, I've got to take the boys to VBS this morning, but I'm going to try and write some more later. I am also SO FAR BEHIND on reading blogs that I feel I may never catch up. Sorry about that!

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What I've been missing out on

The kids asked Jerry if they could go for a walk in the woods across the street from our house, and on a whim, I decided to go too. Normally, I am NOT a fan of walking through the woods because of mosquitos, spiders, poison ivy, and other not-so-fun things. I've never been an outdoorsy person. Our house is across the street from state land, and this is what it looks like from my house:

An old pic from when it snowed in April (to the left is the woods)

Nothing special, right? We've lived here for almost 8 years now, and I've never ventured into the woods. However, since I made it a goal to have a more "active" life, rather than just planned, intentional exercise, I decided to go with Jerry and the boys for a walk in the woods.

I was AMAZED at what was located just about 1/2 mile away from my house! It was awesome! First, we walked along the dike to where there was a good path going into the woods.

Jerry had the camera, and THIS was the picture he took... lol

Eli and Noah on the dike

At this point, I was still not impressed. We saw dead fish and a couple of dead baby birds that had fallen from a tree :(  But once we got into the woods, I was blown away....

We walked along this path, and there were tons of clearings

Like THIS

I never would've guessed that THIS was just a 5 minute stroll away

Noah did pretty good taking a pic of Jerry and me

The boys were finding all kinds of used shotgun shells

My shadow :)

Isn't it so pretty?

I'm seriously in awe that I never knew this path existed!

Although I did see an unwelcome critter ;)

I spent the first 6 years we lived here being too fat and lazy to go exploring just minutes from my house, and then the last 2 years losing the weight. I'm so glad I went along on the walk with the boys! I'm definitely going to be going walking on that trail more often. The whole route is only 1.3 miles out and back. Perfect for a family walk. We'll have to be careful during hunting season, however ;)

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RECIPE: Sweet Potato Wheels

I had a sweet potato sitting on my counter for a while, so I decided to  turn that into my lunch yesterday. It was SO GOOD that I just have to  share--it's not much of a "recipe", more of a "method". But either way,  you've got to try it!

Sweet Potato Wheels (because "Wheels" sound so much more fun than "fries" or "rounds")

1 large sweet potato (mine was 12 oz)
cooking spray
salt & pepper to taste

Set the oven to 'broil' (mine has high and low, so I chose high). Peel  the sweet potato and slice into thin slices (about 1/4 inch). Spray a  baking sheet with the cooking spray, and then lay all the sweet potato  pieces out on the sheet.

Place the wheels on a sprayed baking sheet

Spray the tops with a little cooking spray and then  sprinkle generously with salt and pepper. Put the sheet under the  broiler until the tops are starting to burn darken in spots, like this:

When they look like this, flip them over

I think it took about 10 minutes for mine. Flip each  piece over, and put the sheet back under the broiler. When you can smell  the sweet potato goodness, and they look like this, they're done:

Pile them all on a plate and devour them.  Share them with someone, because this is probably at least two  servings. I ate the whole batch for about 280 calories, which was  totally worth it. These taste just like sweet potato fries, but they are so much easier to make--they cook more evenly, they don't stick to the  baking sheet, and they take less time overall.

A very well-spent 280 calories!

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RECIPE: Homemade Fajita Seasoning Mix

There is no reason to buy fajita seasoning mix in a packet when you can make some of your own in your kitchen. It tastes delicious!

You can mix up a batch of it and just use it whenever you want. In the photo below, I just sautéed a bunch of peppers and onions, added the seasoning mix, and served it over quinoa. No need for any meat! You can spice up all sorts of veggies this way.

Here is a printer-friendly version!

Fajita Seasoning Mix  

3 Tbsp. cornstarch
2 Tbsp. chili powder 
1 Tbsp. salt 
1 Tbsp. paprika 
1 Tbsp. sugar 
2 1/2 tsp. crushed chicken bouillon 
1 1/2 tsp. onion powder 
1/2 tsp. garlic powder 
1/2 tsp. cayenne pepper 
1/4 tsp. crushed red pepper flakes 
1/2 tsp. cumin 

Mix it all up in a baggie or airtight container. To season meat and/or veggies, add 2/3 of a cup of water + 3 Tbsp. of seasoning mix (per pound of meat). This makes 10 tablespoons of seasoning, and each serving is 3/4 Tbsp. 

The peppers and onions were so colorful while they were cooking, and smelled delicious! And after adding the seasoning, I could have eaten them plain, they were so good.

You can double or triple the recipe to always have some on hand. Enjoy! 

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RECIPE: Cookie Dough Hummus

I'm SHOCKED at how good this is!!  It's hummus that really does taste (and look) like cookie dough. I ate it with pretzels, which was awesome, and then for dessert today I had it with a chocolate Vitatop. Heavenly!

Here is a printer-friendly version!

Cookie Dough Hummus

1 can of chick peas, drained AND peeled (takes a little time, but worth it!)
1/4 cup natural peanut butter
6 Tbsp. pure maple syrup (or heck, just use sugar if you want! ;) )
1 1/2 tsp. vanilla
pinch of salt
1/4 cup mini chocolate chips

Blend all ingredients except chocolate chips in a food processor until very smooth. Then fold in the chocolate chips.  Serve with whatever you think would go well with cookie dough!

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RECIPE: French Onion Soup

Delicious! This soup has very few ingredients, and other than slicing the onions, not much work to it!

French Onion Soup

1 Tbsp. olive oil
3-4 medium onions, sliced
1 quart beef broth
1 Tbsp. Worcestershire sauce
croutons and cheese for topping, optional

Heat  a soup pot over medium heat, and add olive oil. Add onions, and  cook down for about 45 minutes until onions are soft and light brown, stirring occasionally.  Add the beef broth and Worcestershire sauce. Bring to a boil, then  reduce heat and simmer for a couple minutes. Put in an oven-safe bowl,  top with a crouton and 1 oz. cheese (I like cheddar jack), and put under  the broiler for a few minutes to melt the cheese.

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RECIPE: Salisbury Steak

This is a super easy, and fast version of salisbury steak.

Salisbury Steak

1 lb. lean ground turkey (or lean beef)
1 can cream of mushroom soup
1 6 oz. jar of mushrooms
1 onion, chopped very fine
1 egg
1/3 cup bread crumbs

In a medium bowl, combine meat, egg, onion, bread crumbs and 1/4 CUP of the soup.  Form into 4 oval patties. Heat skillet over med-high, and cook the patties a few minutes on each side to brown. Drain any fat that may be in the skillet, and remove the patties to a plate. Put the rest of the cream of mushroom in the pan, along with the mushrooms (drained) and 1/4 cup of water (or 1/4 cup of the mushroom juice). Stir together, and then put the patties back into the pan. Cover and cook over medium heat until cooked through.

Makes 4 servings.

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RECIPE: Turkey Loaf (Meat Loaf)

Meat Loaf, but using turkey instead of beef. I love this comfort food!  I usually have all the ingredients on hand, too. This uses applesauce, which keeps the turkey moist since it doesn't have as much fat as the beef.

Turkey Loaf

1 lb. lean ground turkey
1 small onion, chopped very fine (or a tablespoon of dried onion flakes)
1 egg
1/2 tsp. Italian seasoning
1/4 tsp. garlic powder
1/4 tsp. crushed red pepper flakes
1/2 cup unsweetened applesauce (yes, applesauce!)
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 cup quick-cooking oats (or you could use bread crumbs, but oats are better for you, and you can't tell the difference!)
2 Tbsp. grated parmesan cheese
2 Tbsp. ketchup

Preheat oven to 350. Combine everything except ketchup in a large bowl. Spread into a loaf pan (or you could shape it into a loaf and put in a 8 x 8 pan--I like the loaf pan because it insures that you get 4 equal portions). Spread the ketchup on top. Bake uncovered for 1 hour and 15 minutes.  Serves 4.

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RECIPE: Roasted Cauliflower with Parmesan Cheese

This is my VERY FAVORITE vegetable-- I can eat an entire head of cauliflower in one day this way, that's how good it is.

(This is more of a cooking method than a recipe, because you can adjust the amount of oil and cheese depending on how many calories you want to spend). This is how I usually make it:

1 head cauliflower
1 Tbsp. olive oil
3 Tbsp. grated parmesan cheese
salt & pepper to taste
garlic powder to taste

Preheat the oven to 425. Spray a casserole dish with cooking spray. Cut the cauliflower into bite-sized pieces, and put them in the casserole dish. Drizzle with the olive oil (I have one of those pump sprayers, where you just fill it with oil, pump the top, and then spray--I like that, because it gets more coverage). Sprinkle with parmesan cheese, salt, pepper, and garlic powder. Toss it all together with your hands, to coat the cauliflower. Bake UNCOVERED for about 30-40 minutes--for softer cauliflower, cook longer. I usually take it out when it starts to brown, like in the picture.  Makes 4 servings.

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RECIPE: Quinoa with Spinach and Feta

Quinoa tastes great, it's very versatile, and it's healthier for you than brown rice (although it's a similar texture and taste). You can substitute quinoa for brown rice in pretty much any recipe.  And likewise, you could also make this with brown rice. This recipe is definitely for garlic lovers like me!  (This recipe that I created was featured many times on Sparkpeople too!)

1/2 cup quinoa, uncooked
4 tsp. extra virgin olive oil
3-4 cloves garlic, sliced very thin
1-2 cups spinach, cut into strips
2 ounces reduced fat feta cheese, crumbled

In a small saucepan, add the quinoa and 1 cup water. Bring to a boil over high heat and then cover and reduce heat to simmer. Cook about 10-15 minutes until the water is absorbed.
Meanwhile, heat a skillet over medium heat and add the olive oil and garlic. Cook the garlic in the oil, watching it CLOSELY so that it doesn't burn. Cook it until the edges of the garlic turn very light brown. When the quinoa is done cooking, add it to the skillet, along with the spinach.. Stir it together until the spinach wilts. Add the feta cheese and stir to combine.  Makes 2 servings.

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