I was really excited about my long run in the beautiful, nice, flat charleston. My plan was to get up early, and run down to the battery. Turns out, hubby wanted to run too and he also wanted to sleep in so at 8:40, I finally woke him up and said, let's go.
The first 2 miles - awesome. They felt good, I felt strong, then we hit the battery. It was hot and my legs were a little sore from walking the day before. I also wanted to run faster than I should've been running on a long run. I decided to switch to run 5, walk 1 since I wanted to be speedy, but at that point, it was too late. I was thirsty, I was hungry, I was hot and I was pissed. By the time that we got back to the hotel, I still had 2 miles to go but my motivation was bleh.
So, that was it. Not great, but lesson learned. Next time, eat, bring water, and run early.
Saturday, June 25, 2011
Friday, June 24, 2011
Charleston, My Dear
This morning, I decided to swim since I have a triathlon in 4 weeks and I can't go more than 25 m without resting. Then I thought, hey, let me throw in a little bike/run combo just to see what it looks like to do all three. My workout looked like this:
600 m swim - 30 minutes - lots of stopping and breathing
*the good news is that I'm getting better each time I get in the pool. I feel like if I can just get in the pool at least twice a week before the tri, I'll be okay.
20 minute bike - 1. it was the gym bike which I put on a level 10 and it still wasn't hard 2. 20 minutes was only half the time I needed to ride for it to equate the tri ride.
*but the point of this was to see what it's like to ride after being wiped out in the pool. I mean, the pool really wipes me out
5 minute run - yes, it was weak. but I ran out of time.
*the good news, it was easy to run. I had NO issues in the 5 minutes I was on there. In fact, it felt pretty good which running on the treadmill usually doesn't
So I'm thinking I'm going to okay for this tri. if I can make it through the swim, I should be good to go.
______________________________________________________________
My hubby & I arrived in Charleston around 5:30. Our hotel is nice and it's right across from the cupcake shop!! We ate at a little hole in the wall sushi restaurant. We were hoping it'd be good, but it was just okay. The we walked down to the battery which is gorgeous. I'm taking LOTS of pics, trying to use different settings and see if I can improve my photography skills, so more pics to come.
We got some Belgian Gelato (no where as good as italian) and sat on the pier. It was a nice beginning to our anniversary weekend!!
This pic isn't great, but we took it like, 10 times, and James said this was it...
Thursday, June 23, 2011
Buon Anniversario a Mi
Today is my husband and I's 4th anniversary. It's hard to believe that we have been married for 4 years. It's gone by so quickly and I've thoroughly enjoyed the last 3 ;). We won't talk about the first one - let's just say it was hard.
I love my husband because he's cool:
I love my husband because he's cool:
He's a good dancer:
He's stylish:
and finally because he's straight up gangsta:
LOVE YOU!!!
Thursday Funday
This week's training is going better than last week, in that, I have actually worked out every day this week and have 2 of my 3 runs down... BAM
Monday: I slept in and missed the group run so ran on the treadmill... already talked about this
Tuesday: Holly Di Giovine's badass boot camp - i don't know what we did... lots of stuff that made me sweat and made me sore
Wednesday: Morning intervals. This week, the training plan called for 5-6 sets of 2 minute intervals. I averaged an 8 minute mile pace per interval - Covered about 3.5 miles total
Tonight, I'm going to do a tabata workout
tomorrow: swim & maybe bike
saturday: long run - 50-65 minutes total, record my distance, pace
sunday: the day of rest
After this, I will officially be done with week 2 of marathon training - I love a training program...
1) How did y'all meet?
JC: I had a job at Hobby Lobby during my undergraduate career at Iowa State University. While transferred to a different store for the summer I met a weird lady from the framing department who just wouldn't leave me alone! I couldn't believe how persistent (annoying) this girl was. At one point she even had the gall to put her number in my cell phone without me knowing! One thing lead to another and I eventually caved and started hanging out with Marta and eventually she wore down my mean facade (over the course of about a year). We started dating... and then living together... and before I knew it I decided that this woman was the one I wanted to spend the rest of my life with! The rest is history.
MC: We met while both working at Hobby Lobby. I was a framer in the Frame shop and Justin was a cashier/stock boy. There was another guy that worked there named Jason... so as you can imagine... it was very confusing and I probably called him Jason for the first couple of months that I knew him. But regardless of what I called him, I had a big crush on him! A couple of months after knowing him, I broke up with my boyfriend. Justin ("Jason") was a very interesting person. Unfortunately, for me... Justin didn't really care about giving me the time of day... We shared a locker in the break room, it was the end of Christmas break and we were both going back to school. So I decided that now was my chance... so I waited until I was on break and I put my phone number in his phone... A couple of days later, we were both on break together and he decides it'll be most embarrassing to call me while sitting there staring at me...
MC: Justin had already been attending school at ICAR for his Masters/PhD for a full year before we got married. That whole year, I was still at Iowa State and working frantically on finding a job in the Greenville area. By the time I graduated, I still hadn't found anything very concrete, but I planned on "beating the streets" after I moved. I graduated on May 8th, we got married on May 16th, moved to Greenville on May 18th, and started my job on June 7th.
4) Tell me about your dog, Lucy. (pics would be great)
MC: After getting settled in our apartment and sort of getting used to living with each other again, we decided it would be a good time to start looking for a dog. I have had dogs my whole life and it was very hard to then not have one around while in school. We knew we wanted to go through a rescue and were looking specifically at Nova Scotia Duck Tolling Retrievers. It is a rare breed of retriever that has red hair, a smaller body than that of a Golden and a very energetic personality. We found a 6-month old male at a rescue in Wilmington, NC named Captain. He had been returned after a couple of weeks with a family because he didn't like being left alone and didn't like the husband! After learning more about him, we decided he wasn't the right dog for us. Another dog at that rescue though seemed like a good fit. "Suzy" was a 2 year old Golden Retriever-Redbone Coonhound Mix with Heartworm. We learned later that she has had a litter of puppies when she was about a year old and had spent some time as a stray before being picked up by the rescue. To get a dog from most rescues, you have to go through a screening process, to make sure the dog will be left in good hands. We filled out an application, they checked three references, we had to have a home visit, and somehow we passed! We fell in love with her and after all of her heartworm treatments were done we were able to pick her up from her foster parents. We had never met her before bringing her home, so we were kind of worried that she'd have some problems that we couldn't deal with or something like that. But luckily, we ended up with the best behaved, most content, most loving dog you could find. We renamed her Lucy because of her red hair, after Lucille Ball. She fit into our life almost immediately, and minus her fear of phones, thunderstorms, and talking greeting cards, she doesn't have too many issues!
JC: After Marta moved to SC and started her job a coworker told her about Holly DiGiovine's iRun program. I emailed Holly the next day as I was about sick and tired of doing long runs alone on a treadmill. After the first Wednesday AM workout I was hooked and I have never looked back.
MC: We got involved with Go Run/iRun because a woman in my office had wanted to start running with her husband and found the iRun website with the training schedule. They trained on their own, but she told me about the group and we started going regularly.
MC: Justin has always enjoyed running, but maybe hasn't always had the support that he needed to make it consistent. I haven't ever really enjoyed running, but being new in town I joined the group to meet new people and to try to support Justin with his hobby.
JC: Getting up at 5AM to go run for three miles sounds like torture but I have found that it is actually an AWESOME way to start my day. I get to run with a group of people I enjoy and get my workout knocked out first thing in the morning. It has also, as an added bonus, helped me maintain a more healthy weight as well as little things like climb a flight of stairs without getting winded.
MC: I like the energy that the group creates. It has never mattered how "fit" you are or fast you can run, it's about getting out there and trying your best. It's about meeting your own goals, not the goals of someone else.
9) Any special races coming up?
JC: Yep, I am currently beginning my training for my first half marathon! Under 20 weeks to go!
MC: I think that the Spinx is the next big race that we're going to attempt. Justin will be running his first half marathon during the Spinx! So I'm looking forward to cheering him on for that!!!
Monday: I slept in and missed the group run so ran on the treadmill... already talked about this
Tuesday: Holly Di Giovine's badass boot camp - i don't know what we did... lots of stuff that made me sweat and made me sore
Wednesday: Morning intervals. This week, the training plan called for 5-6 sets of 2 minute intervals. I averaged an 8 minute mile pace per interval - Covered about 3.5 miles total
Tonight, I'm going to do a tabata workout
tomorrow: swim & maybe bike
saturday: long run - 50-65 minutes total, record my distance, pace
sunday: the day of rest
After this, I will officially be done with week 2 of marathon training - I love a training program...
__________________________________________________________
So, as you all know, I am a part of a running group called Go Run. I love all of the people that I've met in the this group and it's so fun being a part of it. One of Go Run's success stories is Justin and Marta Callies. Justin started in the program and quickly gained speed. He just completed a 5k in 25 minutes (I can't remember the exact time)... So proud of him!!! Marta is heading up our Go Walk program and so far, it seems pretty successful. I wanted to interview them so you can get to know them a little better. And their doggy, Lucy.
1) How did y'all meet?
JC: I had a job at Hobby Lobby during my undergraduate career at Iowa State University. While transferred to a different store for the summer I met a weird lady from the framing department who just wouldn't leave me alone! I couldn't believe how persistent (annoying) this girl was. At one point she even had the gall to put her number in my cell phone without me knowing! One thing lead to another and I eventually caved and started hanging out with Marta and eventually she wore down my mean facade (over the course of about a year). We started dating... and then living together... and before I knew it I decided that this woman was the one I wanted to spend the rest of my life with! The rest is history.
MC: We met while both working at Hobby Lobby. I was a framer in the Frame shop and Justin was a cashier/stock boy. There was another guy that worked there named Jason... so as you can imagine... it was very confusing and I probably called him Jason for the first couple of months that I knew him. But regardless of what I called him, I had a big crush on him! A couple of months after knowing him, I broke up with my boyfriend. Justin ("Jason") was a very interesting person. Unfortunately, for me... Justin didn't really care about giving me the time of day... We shared a locker in the break room, it was the end of Christmas break and we were both going back to school. So I decided that now was my chance... so I waited until I was on break and I put my phone number in his phone... A couple of days later, we were both on break together and he decides it'll be most embarrassing to call me while sitting there staring at me...
2) What brought you to Greenville, SC??
JC: I wanted to go into the automotive/motorsports industry after college but there was not much opportunity in that field in the middle of Iowa. I applied to a couple of graduate programs and a few months later I visited a small, relatively unknown program through Clemson University based out of Greenville, SC. After touring the facility and a trip to Falls Park I knew that Greenville was the place for me and I began school the following Fall.
MC: Justin had already been attending school at ICAR for his Masters/PhD for a full year before we got married. That whole year, I was still at Iowa State and working frantically on finding a job in the Greenville area. By the time I graduated, I still hadn't found anything very concrete, but I planned on "beating the streets" after I moved. I graduated on May 8th, we got married on May 16th, moved to Greenville on May 18th, and started my job on June 7th.
3) Marta, what did you study and what do you do?
MC: I graduated from Iowa State with a BFA in Interior Design. I am lucky to be working as an Interior Designer at MCA Architecture in Greenville.
4) Tell me about your dog, Lucy. (pics would be great)
MC: After getting settled in our apartment and sort of getting used to living with each other again, we decided it would be a good time to start looking for a dog. I have had dogs my whole life and it was very hard to then not have one around while in school. We knew we wanted to go through a rescue and were looking specifically at Nova Scotia Duck Tolling Retrievers. It is a rare breed of retriever that has red hair, a smaller body than that of a Golden and a very energetic personality. We found a 6-month old male at a rescue in Wilmington, NC named Captain. He had been returned after a couple of weeks with a family because he didn't like being left alone and didn't like the husband! After learning more about him, we decided he wasn't the right dog for us. Another dog at that rescue though seemed like a good fit. "Suzy" was a 2 year old Golden Retriever-Redbone Coonhound Mix with Heartworm. We learned later that she has had a litter of puppies when she was about a year old and had spent some time as a stray before being picked up by the rescue. To get a dog from most rescues, you have to go through a screening process, to make sure the dog will be left in good hands. We filled out an application, they checked three references, we had to have a home visit, and somehow we passed! We fell in love with her and after all of her heartworm treatments were done we were able to pick her up from her foster parents. We had never met her before bringing her home, so we were kind of worried that she'd have some problems that we couldn't deal with or something like that. But luckily, we ended up with the best behaved, most content, most loving dog you could find. We renamed her Lucy because of her red hair, after Lucille Ball. She fit into our life almost immediately, and minus her fear of phones, thunderstorms, and talking greeting cards, she doesn't have too many issues!
5) How did you get involved with Go Run (formerly known as iRun)?
JC: After Marta moved to SC and started her job a coworker told her about Holly DiGiovine's iRun program. I emailed Holly the next day as I was about sick and tired of doing long runs alone on a treadmill. After the first Wednesday AM workout I was hooked and I have never looked back.
MC: We got involved with Go Run/iRun because a woman in my office had wanted to start running with her husband and found the iRun website with the training schedule. They trained on their own, but she told me about the group and we started going regularly.
6) Why did you want to start running?
JC: I was involved with the ROTC program at ISU for a few years and got a taste of running as away to improve my general fitness. After moving halfway across the country I no longer had a large group of people to run with so I started running on a treadmill. It was partially to improve fitness and partially to lose a few pounds for my upcoming wedding. I was following a running program I had found online and before long I was running 7 or 8 miles on a treadmill (YUCK!!!).
MC: Justin has always enjoyed running, but maybe hasn't always had the support that he needed to make it consistent. I haven't ever really enjoyed running, but being new in town I joined the group to meet new people and to try to support Justin with his hobby.
7) What have you liked about it?
JC: Getting up at 5AM to go run for three miles sounds like torture but I have found that it is actually an AWESOME way to start my day. I get to run with a group of people I enjoy and get my workout knocked out first thing in the morning. It has also, as an added bonus, helped me maintain a more healthy weight as well as little things like climb a flight of stairs without getting winded.
MC: I like the energy that the group creates. It has never mattered how "fit" you are or fast you can run, it's about getting out there and trying your best. It's about meeting your own goals, not the goals of someone else.
8) Marta, tell us about the Go Walk program:
MC: I wanted to start the Go Walk program in conjunction with the Go Run program for all of the people that either don't like running, can't run (due to injury, etc), those who are still intimidated by running or people who just want to walk with a group of people. As I mentioned, I've never really enjoyed running, I'll run if someone is chasing me, but other than that, I'm perfectly content just taking in the scenery.
9) Any special races coming up?
JC: Yep, I am currently beginning my training for my first half marathon! Under 20 weeks to go!
MC: I think that the Spinx is the next big race that we're going to attempt. Justin will be running his first half marathon during the Spinx! So I'm looking forward to cheering him on for that!!!
Wednesday, June 22, 2011
What I'm Loving Wednesday
I wasn't sure what to post today and even though I've just changed the name of my blog to A Southern Yogi, I wasn't feeling yoga pose wednesday today. SO... thank you Little Miss Daisy for giving me something to talk about.
What are you loving today?
1. My Learn Italian Rush Hour CD:
It has songs in Italian so I can sing and learn italian at the same time. "mi presta il dicionario"
If I ever get to go to Italy again, I will for sure be able to ask to borrow a dictionary.
2. AMAZON
In the past two weeks, I have ordered a cookbook:
some peanut flour
and luckily all of my yoga books because I start my yoga teacher training on August 1st. I had to buy 9 books and I thought, HOLY CRAP THAT'S A LOT. Luckily I found them on amazon and the total was only $103!!
3. SO YOU THINK YOU CAN DANCE
The new season started last week and I love the dancers already. I haven't had a chance to decide who I like yet but I know who I don't like which is the tap dancer and Sasha. I liked her sister WAY BETTER....
4. 4 day work weeks!!! My hubby and I are going to Charleston for the weekend. I usually plan lots of things but he's been working a lot, I've been working a lot, so maybe we'll just keep it leisurely. Although I do want to do the horse and carriage ride. I love that.
5. MY HUBBY!! We're going to Charleston because our 4 year anniversary is thursday. Woot Woot!! Our first year was tough, mainly because I was crazy, but now I'm not as crazy thanks to yoga so yay!!! Maybe we'll make it!
yeah, he'll love this
yes, we are in bass pro shops - why do you ask
oh how did that get in there...
What are you loving today?
Tuesday, June 21, 2011
It's Tuesday... and, that's it...
Update on training for the week. I did my speed work yesterday. It looked a little something like this:
Treadmill workout I HATE THE TREADMILL but since it's literally 98 degrees outside and I didn't wake up early, this is what I did.
Warm up mile
6 sets of 60 seconds sprints
cool down mile but I got bored so I stopped halfway through. I mean, I hate the treadmill
I think I probably started off a little slow. I'm the type of runner who just runs fast and then looks at the time when Im done. Yes, it's very strategic.
Today, I am going to Boot Camp after work so that'll be fun working out in the extreme heat, but it may end up being inside, i'm not sure.
So, onto what I really want to talk about: Fashion.
When I was in high school, I was interested in lots of different things, lots of different types of fashion, etc. Grunge and Metal were big (late 90's - I'm old) so I tried to dress like what I saw on MTV. If I had lived in Seattle, WA, NYC, Denver, you know, any of the forward thinking cities, I would have been right in style. But I live in Greenville, SC so I was what one considers, a weirdo. I like to think i'm just more worldly ;)
That being said, I'm still stuck in that dilemma of what I would love to wear and what is socially acceptable in the upstate of SC. Here are a few things that I'd like to wear:
I mean, even the quintessential southern girl Reese Witherspoon wears one... Think I can get away with it?
What about you, any fashion no nos where you live?
Anything you want to wear but are afraid to?
Treadmill workout I HATE THE TREADMILL but since it's literally 98 degrees outside and I didn't wake up early, this is what I did.
Warm up mile
6 sets of 60 seconds sprints
cool down mile but I got bored so I stopped halfway through. I mean, I hate the treadmill
I think I probably started off a little slow. I'm the type of runner who just runs fast and then looks at the time when Im done. Yes, it's very strategic.
Today, I am going to Boot Camp after work so that'll be fun working out in the extreme heat, but it may end up being inside, i'm not sure.
So, onto what I really want to talk about: Fashion.
When I was in high school, I was interested in lots of different things, lots of different types of fashion, etc. Grunge and Metal were big (late 90's - I'm old) so I tried to dress like what I saw on MTV. If I had lived in Seattle, WA, NYC, Denver, you know, any of the forward thinking cities, I would have been right in style. But I live in Greenville, SC so I was what one considers, a weirdo. I like to think i'm just more worldly ;)
That being said, I'm still stuck in that dilemma of what I would love to wear and what is socially acceptable in the upstate of SC. Here are a few things that I'd like to wear:
Leather shorts (Saks Fifth Ave)
Rompers - specifically with long pants
headbands - but like these hippy ones not the Blair Waldorf kind
same source as above
You can wear this stuff, but you're going to get some stares. I know, we're weird, but most people here dress like this:
So that brings me to my point... I really really really want a:
A FEDORA
What about you, any fashion no nos where you live?
Anything you want to wear but are afraid to?
Monday, June 20, 2011
Guest Blog - In the Pink and Green
WELCOME TO MY NEW BLOG NAME AND BLOG DESIGN. If you're wondering what happened to Earth, Wind and Fire - it's still here, just under a new name. I felt like it was time and I think this is more along the lines of what I'm looking for. I hope you likey!!
Today is special because we have a guest blogger!!! My friend Jane from In the Pink and Green is going to write about something special. I met Jane in late 2010 when she came to work with me at System 1. Jane is from Michigan and we instantly bonded over food, exercise and our love for the earth. We traded recipes and she introduced to me sites like Passionate Homemaking and books like
Hi everyone! I'm excited to be doing my first guest blog post for A Southern Yogi to start off the week. Wendi and I are co-workers, but our many common interests (such as blogging and eating!) are what helped us form a friendship. Since a common topic in both of our blogs is healthy cooking, I wanted to share a few of my favorite summer tips/recipes that are perfect for times when the temperature soars. (aka this week in Greenville, it's supposed to be 100 degrees tomorrow!)
-Use your slow cooker: People seem to tend to use their slow cookers primarily in the winter months for chilis and stews, but this is one of the most versatile and useful kitchen appliances that can actually really come in handy in the summer! It's perfect for those times that you don't want to heat up the house by turning on the oven or stand there slaving over a hot stove, and it's nice to come home from work to a meal that's all ready so you can go out for a swim or just be lazy :) One of my absolute favorite crock pot recipes is Vegetarian Black Bean Enchiladas; they're super easy and something everyone in your family will love. They're made by rolling veggies and black beans inside tortillas (I like to use whole wheat for even more fiber) and then covering them with salsa and a little cheese. They can easily be made non-vegetarian by adding some cooked chicken or ground beef, but I encourage you to try them the way they are first because they're suprisingly hearty and filling! (My husband, who normally doesn't like vegetarian dishes, loves these without meat!) This recipe is courtesy of one of my favorite food blogs, the kitchn, and you can find the full recipe here.
-Eat more fish: When it's hot out, the last thing I feel like is eating a super heavy dinner, so incorporating more fish in your diet is perfect for this time of year because it's light, yet filling and nutritious. I also love that it typically cooks very quickly, meaning less time stuck in the kitchen and more time to enjoy the summer! My dad is a big fisherman, so I've been fortunate to be able to eat fresh fish a lot of my life, however, now that I no longer live near my parents that means I have buy fish. I like Whole Foods because they typically have a great selection of fresh fish that is caught/farmed using sustainable practices. I got this wonderful fish recipe from my dad via Allrecipes, and it's a quick, delicious way to prepare fish for a summer dinner that has a little bit of a Mediterranean flavor.
-Learn to love salads: One of the great things about living in the South is the abundance of fresh local produce available during the summer months, which can easily be transformed into a delicious salad, a perfect summer lunch or dinner. However, I tend to get sick of eating green salads too much, so when I want a salad with a little more substance my go to dish is my summer bean salad. I like to make it in the early part of the week, that way we can have it as a main dish for dinner one night (since it's so full of protein and fiber, it's actually very filling!), then we have leftovers for lunches/side dishes the rest of the week. I made a few swaps from a traditional bean salad recipe to make it a little healthier; here's the recipe I came up with:
What I love about this salad is that it's super easy! Start off by adding your pasta to boiling water and cook for 10 minutes. You'd rather the pasta be a little bit more on the al dente side then over cooked, otherwise it's going to get mushy in the fridge. Just a little note about why I chose to use flax pasta--since we weren't having meat in this meal, I wanted to make sure to pick a nutritionally sound pasta that would give the salad some extra protein. The flax rice pasta is both a good source of protein and fiber, as well as providing a good serving of essential fatty acids which are important since I'm trying to make our diet more heart healthy. I also like the fact that the pasta is a little bit darker because it gives some nice color to the salad. You could use any kind of small pasta shape in this salad, as well as trying other things like quinoa or kamut pasta.
Once the pasta is done, drain and let cool. Once pasta is cool, combine it in a large bowl with the next nine ingredients. What's great about a salad like this is that you can just use whatever you like (or have on hand at the time!), so feel free to experiment with different types of veggies and beans. I personally really like using the red pepper and the red onion because they add great color and flavor to the salad, and then I threw the olives in there because my husband loves them.
Next, wisk together the olive oil, vinegar, sugar, oregano, and garlic. Again, feel free to experiment with the dressing by substituting different oils, vinegars, and herbs. Pour over the salad, along with 2 oz of shredded parmigiano reggiano cheese, and combine until everything in the salad is well-coated. Top salad with the remaining cheese, and refrigerate. The more time that you refrigerate the salad, the more time the flavors are going to have to combine and it's only going to get better, so it's definitely something you could make a day ahead of time if you were having company.
One other note is that I didn't include any salt or pepper in this recipe; my hubby is really trying to watch his sodium intake, whereas I tend to like things super salty. I've been trying to just leave the salt out of recipes, that way we can salt/pepper our meals to taste individually.
This salad is great as the main course or a side dish, and it's packed with fiber and protein from the beans and pasta, as well as looking colorful and summery :)
I hope that y'all enjoy these recipes, and thanks to Wendi for letting me share them with you!
xoxo,
Jane
Today is special because we have a guest blogger!!! My friend Jane from In the Pink and Green is going to write about something special. I met Jane in late 2010 when she came to work with me at System 1. Jane is from Michigan and we instantly bonded over food, exercise and our love for the earth. We traded recipes and she introduced to me sites like Passionate Homemaking and books like
Super Natural Cooking
This book is cool because it helps you understand how to replace all your old, processed ingredients with organic products. It's also got some neat recipes.
Anyway, Jane is moving to Colorado and I. AM. DEVASTATED. So, in honor of her relocation, she is going to be talking about summer foods.
__________________________________________________________________________________
-Use your slow cooker: People seem to tend to use their slow cookers primarily in the winter months for chilis and stews, but this is one of the most versatile and useful kitchen appliances that can actually really come in handy in the summer! It's perfect for those times that you don't want to heat up the house by turning on the oven or stand there slaving over a hot stove, and it's nice to come home from work to a meal that's all ready so you can go out for a swim or just be lazy :) One of my absolute favorite crock pot recipes is Vegetarian Black Bean Enchiladas; they're super easy and something everyone in your family will love. They're made by rolling veggies and black beans inside tortillas (I like to use whole wheat for even more fiber) and then covering them with salsa and a little cheese. They can easily be made non-vegetarian by adding some cooked chicken or ground beef, but I encourage you to try them the way they are first because they're suprisingly hearty and filling! (My husband, who normally doesn't like vegetarian dishes, loves these without meat!) This recipe is courtesy of one of my favorite food blogs, the kitchn, and you can find the full recipe here.
-Eat more fish: When it's hot out, the last thing I feel like is eating a super heavy dinner, so incorporating more fish in your diet is perfect for this time of year because it's light, yet filling and nutritious. I also love that it typically cooks very quickly, meaning less time stuck in the kitchen and more time to enjoy the summer! My dad is a big fisherman, so I've been fortunate to be able to eat fresh fish a lot of my life, however, now that I no longer live near my parents that means I have buy fish. I like Whole Foods because they typically have a great selection of fresh fish that is caught/farmed using sustainable practices. I got this wonderful fish recipe from my dad via Allrecipes, and it's a quick, delicious way to prepare fish for a summer dinner that has a little bit of a Mediterranean flavor.
-Learn to love salads: One of the great things about living in the South is the abundance of fresh local produce available during the summer months, which can easily be transformed into a delicious salad, a perfect summer lunch or dinner. However, I tend to get sick of eating green salads too much, so when I want a salad with a little more substance my go to dish is my summer bean salad. I like to make it in the early part of the week, that way we can have it as a main dish for dinner one night (since it's so full of protein and fiber, it's actually very filling!), then we have leftovers for lunches/side dishes the rest of the week. I made a few swaps from a traditional bean salad recipe to make it a little healthier; here's the recipe I came up with:
Summer Bean Salad
Ingredients - 6 oz flax rice pasta (I used spirals from Eden Organic, they have tons of healthy pastas, many of which would be perfect in this salad)
- 1 can of kidney beans, drained and rinsed
- 1 can of black beans, drained and rinsed
- 1 can of pinto beans, drained and rinsed
- 1 can of garbanzo beans, drained and rinsed
- 1 can of green beans, drained and rinsed (you could also use fresh green beans instead of canned)
- 1 can of black pitted olives
- 1 chopped red pepper
- 1 chopped red onion
- 1 tbs of fresh rosemary, roughly chopped
- 1/3 cup good olive oil
- 1/3 cup red wine vinegar
- 2 tbs sugar
- 2 tsp oregano
- 1 tbs chopped garlic
- 4 oz shredded parmigiano reggiano
What I love about this salad is that it's super easy! Start off by adding your pasta to boiling water and cook for 10 minutes. You'd rather the pasta be a little bit more on the al dente side then over cooked, otherwise it's going to get mushy in the fridge. Just a little note about why I chose to use flax pasta--since we weren't having meat in this meal, I wanted to make sure to pick a nutritionally sound pasta that would give the salad some extra protein. The flax rice pasta is both a good source of protein and fiber, as well as providing a good serving of essential fatty acids which are important since I'm trying to make our diet more heart healthy. I also like the fact that the pasta is a little bit darker because it gives some nice color to the salad. You could use any kind of small pasta shape in this salad, as well as trying other things like quinoa or kamut pasta.
Once the pasta is done, drain and let cool. Once pasta is cool, combine it in a large bowl with the next nine ingredients. What's great about a salad like this is that you can just use whatever you like (or have on hand at the time!), so feel free to experiment with different types of veggies and beans. I personally really like using the red pepper and the red onion because they add great color and flavor to the salad, and then I threw the olives in there because my husband loves them.
Next, wisk together the olive oil, vinegar, sugar, oregano, and garlic. Again, feel free to experiment with the dressing by substituting different oils, vinegars, and herbs. Pour over the salad, along with 2 oz of shredded parmigiano reggiano cheese, and combine until everything in the salad is well-coated. Top salad with the remaining cheese, and refrigerate. The more time that you refrigerate the salad, the more time the flavors are going to have to combine and it's only going to get better, so it's definitely something you could make a day ahead of time if you were having company.
One other note is that I didn't include any salt or pepper in this recipe; my hubby is really trying to watch his sodium intake, whereas I tend to like things super salty. I've been trying to just leave the salt out of recipes, that way we can salt/pepper our meals to taste individually.
This salad is great as the main course or a side dish, and it's packed with fiber and protein from the beans and pasta, as well as looking colorful and summery :)
I hope that y'all enjoy these recipes, and thanks to Wendi for letting me share them with you!
xoxo,
Jane
Sunday, June 19, 2011
Bill Walker
Growing up, I had no dad. I lost contact with my father when I was 14 years old and even before, there wasn't a lot of interaction. My mom worked her tail off to provide for me a life she wanted me to have.
1994 - enter Bill Walker, Jr.
He walked me down the aisle.
He loves Clemson like me
1994 - enter Bill Walker, Jr.
yes, I am wearing orange overalls
He took over like he had been my dad my whole life. He tried to instill values in me such as hard work, integrity, respect - things that I took for granted at the time.
He stood by me during a tough time in my life and gave me the kind of love I needed. He helped guide me to a path that brought me to where i am today. As a step-parent myself, I truly understand how difficult this was and it makes me appreciate him even more.
He adopted me in 2000 which officially made him something he already was, my dad.
He danced with me
HAPPY FATHER'S DAY!!!!!!!!!!!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)