June 17, 2013

graduation + birthday + dads

Hello! Happy Monday! Well, I’ve had quite the busy weekend over here. I’m not even sure where to begin. I think I alluded to an incredibly Type-A personality-like itinerary my dad made a couple weeks ago? This was that weekend. We had a whole slew of family members over to celebrate my sister’s high school graduation, 4 (!!) birthdays, and a bridal shower. What better way to recap than with a photo dump with Katie’s Marvelous in my Monday? Because, let’s be honest. Although spending long periods of time with family can get a little hectic and make you want to poke your eyeballs out, we love them quite a bit.

We had my grandma staying overnight while everyone was here. So, naturally, we made a Chipotle stop on the way home from the airport to fill up on a late night dinner.

Earlier that afternoon, Pippa helped me make a poster for my sister’s graduation party.

The morning of my sister’s graduation, I took a 6 AM Body Pump class. Call me crazy, but I just love Pump.

The graduation went well! It only took a couple hours…I guess that’s what you get when you have 500+ graduates. The entrepreneur behind Knockaround sunglasses graduated from my sister’s high school, so he was the guest speaker.

He brought free shades for the graduates.

The night of graduation, we gathered our rambunctious group of 30 for a dinner cruise on the Potomac. It was so pretty!

I made sure to use my free juice ticket.

Bright and early the next morning, we headed out to D.C. to run/walk a 5k for Pancreatic Cancer in Freedom Plaza. We lost my uncle this past fall, and it was great to see the thousands of people out in support of such a good cause.

My dad made sure to keep everyone on the schedule as we left D.C.

Yesterday, (as I’m sure you’re aware) was Father’s Day. I woke up bright and early for a spin class and picked up some coffee on the way home to ready myself for another long day.

Lucky for my dad, it was my dad’s birthday too. A double whammy! I think my dad is the very best.

Oh! And what would a post of mine be without some food pictures. Am I right?! From left to right – my new favorite breakfast. Toasted Van’s waffles with a mix of cottage cheese + peanut butter, topped with some organic cinnamon crunch cereal. A make-your-own-fajita bar for lunch. Last, a big old burger at the birthdays BBQ.

Lots of good food. Lots of good family. Lots of sleep needed.

June 12, 2013

hump day

You don’t know how long I’ve been waiting to title a post that. I have no idea why it’s taken me so long. Oh well, there’s a first for everything, right? Wednesday is one of my favorite blogging days for two reasons.

I like food.
I like taking pictures of my food.

Thank you, blogging world, for making taking my camera out at mealtimes perfectly acceptable. If only the lighting would cooperate with me. Anyway, graduation weekend here is officially underway – my aunt and grandma flew in from Chicago yesterday, so we’re a bit busy over here. No way I was missing Jen’s link up today! Make sure you check out Peas and Crayons for other entries.

Are you tired of seeing oatmeal yet? I hope not, because I’m definitely not tired of eating it. I switched up my recipe, though! This is about 3/4 cup oats, 1 scoop chocolate protein powder, a big spoonful of peanut butter, and a bunch of almond milk. I added a new-to-me topping: honey. Yeah, that’s happening more often.

On the side, I had my usual morning banana and…gasp! Is that coffee NOT from Starbucks? I bought a fancy flavor coffee from Wegmans a couple weekends ago and have been slowly working through it. In my Anthro mug, because it just makes sense.

Have you guys been to the Whole Foods deli? If not, seriously go. I’m so obsessed with this sandwich and have gotten it almost every week. Yeah, my wallet’s crying but my stomach’s singing. It’s their Dill Turkey sandwich on multigrain…turkey + spinach + tomato + some really good lemon dill mayo + Havarti cheese. Hasn’t gotten old. If I’m feeling crazy, I’ll #addavocado.

Plus an apple because I want to keep the doctor away. I’ve been having my snowballs as a snack, plus another fun combo: Laughing Cow Cinnamon Cream Cheese wedge and strawberries. Berry season is the berry best season.

Guess what?! Pita pizzas are back! I grilled up some chicken, added tomato sauce, red onion, broccoli, and feta cheese. Looove this combo.

I finally got around to getting a picture of my usual nighttime cereal. Puffins + Nature’s Path Crunchy Maple + almond milk. I’ve been loving Brookside’s chocolate covered pomegranate berries, too. Costco bags are so winning. So, here’s an idea of how my nights look…

Hope you have a great Wednesday!

June 11, 2013

i made snowballs

Hello! I think I’m finally settled in for the summer at home. I know, I know. I’ve been home for, what? 3 weeks and I’m JUST settled in? You see, it was highly stressful just unpacking and jumping right into a job. Plus, I have a problem “settling in” here knowing this is a temporary home. Boo hoo. But, I got a surprise call from Anthro yesterday saying my shift was cancelled since the store was dead and they were over scheduled. I was actually really bummed…being a #poorcollegekid and all.

I tried to make the most of it, though. I slept in to the sound of rain outside {love that} until Pippa came in and jumped on me. Once I woke up, I decided to bring myself to Starbucks and do some homework. The bright side of this shift being cancelled is the fact that I got a lot of homework done that I likely would have had very little time {and energy} to do later this week.

You know what I also love about being at home? Taking full advantage of the kitchen. In my other life, I am a famous chef/baker blogger. Now that’d be a dream! You guys already know I made some Paleo granola last week, {considering I ate it on yogurt, I’m so not Paleo} I’m making a bunch of fun stuff for my family’s visit later this week, and on Sunday, I made balls.

Get your mind out of the gutter. I’ve been dying to make something like this since balls seem to be sweeping the foodie blog world {again with the jokes…}. Plus, I had a whole bag of this for some reason…#foodbloggerproblems, right, Amanda?

I found a recipe from Mama Pea and decided to tweak it based on the ingredients I had and my own creativity. I think they turned out pretty well, but could use a little more sweetener. See all that oil on the peanut butter jar? Stirring peanut butter is a messy, pain in the butt.

I’m a coconut-chocoholic, so coconut covered chocolate peanut butter protein balls it was. Say that 5 times fast? Once I ground up my rolled oats into oat flour, I mixed them all up in a bowl. It looked like a bowl of…nevermind.

Then, I rolled them up and rolled them in coconut! Safe in my fridge and ready for serving. You wouldn’t believe how many photos I took to make my hand look less deformed.

My cousin told me they looked like a bigger version of those candies you get at the movie theater, Snowballs. So, that’s what I decided to call them.

Perfectly portable!

Protein “Snowballs” adapted from Mama Pea’s Protein Truffles

1/2 c. oat flour
1/3 c. ground flaxseed
1/3 c. chocolate powder
1/4 c. chocolate coconut peanut butter
1/2 c. water (or enough needed to mix it up)
1 tsp. vanilla extract
shredded coconut for topping

Mix all ingredients in small bowl and roll into ball shape.
Roll balls in coconut.
Refrigerate, or serve immediately!

If you’re reading this, I’ve been at work since 5 a.m. Need I say more?

June 10, 2013

lobster kisses

Hi! How are you this Monday morning? I’m having a bit of a difficult time coming to terms with the fact that it is Monday…but more on that later. I had a pretty nice weekend, though! I tried to relax as much as possible, but I’m pretty sure the word relax isn’t quite in my vocabulary. Bummer. Let’s see…I think I can come up with some marvelous things though. I didn’t take as many photos as I would have liked this weekend, but you win some, you lose some, right?

Thanks to Katie at Healthy Diva Eats for hosting!

Marvelous is…taking a BodyPump class for the first time. I looked like a total loony doing squats, (likely because I was most definitely doing them wrong) but it feels good to know I’m getting stronger! Back to doing them wrong…let’s just say I’m told squats are good for the butt and thighs. Well, those areas happen to be just fine. It’s another one that’s making it difficult to sit, and walk, for that matter.

Marvelous is…getting Chobani to Tweet at me after posting this photo. I mean, come on. Need I say more?

Marvelous is…a delicious soy latte after a LONG day at work. Let’s just say I’ve had some draggy days lately.

Marvelous is…this face. Done.

Oh shoot…that wasn’t the right picture.

Muuuch better. I have no idea who that chub monster is.

Marvelous is…going through old photo albums for a special project I’m working on. Stunna shades, am I right?

Marvelous is…getting some stickers after kissing a lobster at Wegmans yesterday. All the cool 5-year-olds had stickers, so I had to ask if I could touch the lobster and get one. Well, the sly lobster guy decided my task should be a bit more challenging. Considering I’m what? 15 years older than the target age group for stickers? Or 13…right Alex?

Marvelous is…this guy. And the Blackhawks. We’re Chicagoans through and through and the only thing that can get us to stay up late is a good game.

Let’s move on to the not-so-marvelous: my work schedule this week. It’s inventory week which means I’ll be working ridiculous hours (read: 5AM-2PM both Tuesday and Wednesday). Pair that with just about every out-of-town family member coming into town for my sister’s graduation on Friday, and you have one tired Megan. Upside: big time family fun coming soon!

About that summer school homework….

June 6, 2013

routine, here i come

Hi! I hope your week is shaping up well. I’m happy to report that I think I’ve finally fallen into a decent routine with work, classes, and social time. I’m a bit short on words today so I’ll go with the whole “Two words” theme. I know this is typically done on Tuesday, but Thursday starts with a T too, so let’s roll with it. Hopefully I’m not breaking blogging rules by saying that.

Sidenote. I learned something last night: always have cash and change. I had some issues with the parking meter when I went to meet up with Alex for dinner. She’s the best…seriously, though. Also, I’ve come to the conclusion that there is never a time that DC traffic doesn’t suck. Commence hot flashes now.

Moving on…

free wrap.

best coffee.

maxi dress.

grocery shopping.

talking lobsters.

sore legs.

homework time.

twitter bff’s.

berry-ful breakfast.

current read.

hot dog.

Off to a long day of work! One day closer to the weekend…let’s do this!

June 5, 2013

eek…june already?!

Hiya! Sorry I’ve been pretty sucky on the blogging end lately. I’m still trying to figure out a way to fit everything in without getting exhausted (although it’s a bit too late for that). I know it’s not like I’m working a “real” job, but it has still taken me some adjustment. Add a summer class to the mix and you have one stressed out Megan. Hence the lack of posts. Last summer, I blogged every day, sometimes twice a day. While that’s all well and good, I honestly just don’t have as much time to dedicate to blogging as I used to.

Let’s get a few things straight though. I still read every post in my reader and comment in the mornings, because I love ya. I’ll be sticking around, no worries – just be patient as I fine tune my schedule

What better way to kick off my June blogging than with a What I Ate Wednesday post? No better way, if you ask me. Check out Jenn’s blog for more submissions!

Breakfasts have been same old, same old. Overnight oats are so easy to throw together at night and pull out of the fridge in the morning. I’ve been making my peanut butter cookie dough overnight oats with bananas and lots of berries (plus an extra spoonful of peanut butter…). Yep. Finished a jar in less than a week. Can that be a new record?

Most of the time, I’m working a 12-8 or a 10-6 shift, meaning a hefty lunch with tons of snacks is a must. I never really know when I’m going to get a break, so I always have snacks. A cranky sales associate ain’t good. This lunch was a chicken breast sandwich with Havarti cheese and spicy mustard. I also packed a bunch of chopped veggies, Chobani, an apple, and a granola bar.

I also took a spin class a little before work and ate tons of cashews. Cashews are the best nut, are they not? Unpictured – way too hungry to stop and snap.

When I get home from work, I am hungry with a capital H. Guess who’s been preparing beautiful meals for me when I get home?! Yep, my momma. She’s the best. One night, she made salmon burgers with an avocado quinoa salad. Another night, it was BBQ pulled pork. So yeah, she’s on a recipe kick ever since she got her Cooking Light magazine in the mail and I’m a huge fan.

Well, I’m typing this up as I watch some TV and wind down for the night. I’m thinking I’ll be having some sort of chocolate soon. Hope you have a great Wednesday!

May 31, 2013

what’s kickin?!

Hey guys! Long time no talk-ish? I have to stop saying that…it’s really only been a day. I’m keeping it short and sweet today because let’s be real, you don’t want to hear the ridiculous ramblings going on in my head. I save those for Alex. So what’s been going on?

Work. Still loving it. One of my favorite parts is interacting with customers…and their children? I know that sounds super creepy, but lots of moms with kids come shopping. Honestly, Anthro is probably not the best store to bring your young child since there’s so much glassware in the home section, but I haven’t had an incident yet. The kids also serve as a nice break when I’ve been standing for hours.
Spin. I haven’t been running as much, mostly because I haven’t felt excited to go on a run in a while. Why go out when I’m not feeling it? It makes me excited to go to spin classes and I get a great workout. I’m all about it.

Food. Like these peanut butter cookie dough overnight oats I had yesterday morning for breakfast. So good. Oh and the peanut butter? It’s peanut honey pretzel, made by a company called Wild Squirrel. It was a total impulse buy for my mom and I because we saw the company featured on Shark Tank. The company was started by two college girls in Oregon. What do you think? Should I drop out of school and start a million-dollar peanut butter business?

New recipes. I made granola I found on Carrots N Cake. I’m not gluten-free or anything, but I had a ton of almond flour to use up and thought this was a good way to do so. You’ll have to wait for my next batch though, that one’s long gone.

If that doesn’t work out, I think I’ll just work at Whole Foods. I mean, just LOOK at this sandwich I got the other day.

I’m an Instgrammin’ fiend. One of the many reasons I love being home is the fact I have ample photos to participate in Instagram’s “Throwback Thursday.” I felt so left out!

Sorry the numbers on my list are all screwy. WordPress doesn’t really work with me, ever. That’s all I have for today. Hope you have a great Friday!

May 29, 2013

i hate to admit this, but…

I like the new Jonas Brothers song. Pom Poms? That’s it. It always comes on either during my ride to work or from work and it’s just catchy and annoying enough to make me want to get to either destination the quickest way possible. Sorry for being a little MIA. It wasn’t really planned, but life got in the way (ie. work, summer classes). Ugh. I can’t believe summer classes started yesterday. Truth be told, I actually haven’t done any work for them yet thanks to an epiphany I had on Monday. More on that to come.

I’ve been taking a lot of pictures lately. Mostly on Instagram, but when my DSLR is near, you can bet I’ll be taking some fancy food pictures. Because that’s just what food bloggers do, I suppose. Soo let’s get the What I Ate Wednesday shenanigans started.

Really been digging the blackberries on my overnight oats. I’ve been using either muesli or regular oats with banana Chobani. The best Chobani flavor. Hands down.

Hop aboard the sandwich train! Thanks to the motherload of bread we’ve had in the house lately, I’ve been making tons of sandwiches with deli meat, or a pseudo-chicken salad with avocado and mayo. By the way, I’m all about subbing greek yogurt for mayo…but is there really a better addition to chicken salad than mayo? I think not.

My favorite dinner hands down has been BBQ ground turkey with sweet potato fries. So quick and easy. I eat BBQ sauce like the rest of you eat ketchup. It would also appear as though I eat every meal at the same seat, same placement. In reality, I eat:

in front of my laptop
in front of the TV
outside

The third is the only decent habit. I just have to watch Jimmy! Right, Alex?

Snacks…take a guess. Lots of Quest bars, honey covered cashews, and chocolate covered pomegranate berries. I’m almost done with that Costco-sized back and we bought it late last week. Hey, dealing with cranky customers deserves some chocolate, right? No work today, just a follow-up wisdom tooth surgery appointment and maybe getting some work done for classes. Super big maybe on that one though.

Have a great Wednesday! Be sure to check out the other entries on Jenn’s blog!

May 24, 2013

lack of creativity + pain meds

Hello! This post brought to you courtesy of my wandering mind coupled with exhaustion thanks to my lovely but uber strong pain meds from my surgery on Monday. I couldn’t figure out why I’m so tired/falling asleep while sitting up the past couple days…until my mom reminded me I’m taking some hardcore medicine to alleviate pain from wisdom tooth surgery. Ah, it all makes sense now.

Anyway, I was planning to do something really cool today as far as posting goes, but I can’t really say many exciting things have been going on. I think we’ll just go with five fun things for today because who doesn’t love a good alliteration? #englishmajorproblems to the max right there, sorry.

1. I got a new phone. Did you know it was possible for the electrical wiring in the iPhone can get shorted? I thought Apple was supposed to stop things like that from happening. Despite not having a phone for a day and suffering some major bff withdrawals, it turned out okay. Turns out, I was due for an upgrade and have finally caught up with the times with the iPhone 5.

2. As you might suspect, I’ve been loving playing around with all the fancy new features. Just kidding…if there are any incredible new features, I haven’t found them yet. The camera is pretty fantastic, though. Would you look at that paw fur? Come on.

3. I got some awesome samples in the mail on Wednesday that I can’t wait to try. My thoughts will be up soon! I think I’ve seen these on Theresa’s IG?

4. True life: I could spend hours in Barnes & Noble. Even though I’ll definitely be busying myself with summer classes and work, I thought I’d pick up some summer reads. We’re B&N members, so we get discounts like crazy.

5. My family is hilarious. Check out this e-mail from my dad to our Chicago family regarding my sister’s upcoming graduation and their visit. Yes, we all have positions (even Pippa). There’s even a color coded Excel document outlining our daily activities. Goodness, help me.

How about some ‘tude from my favorite person in the world to start off your Friday? Keep it sassy, T-swift.

May 22, 2013

what i ate: semi-solids

Good morning! Well, it’s day 3 of post-wisdom tooth surgery. The nurse said today would likely be the worst…let’s just hope that’s not the case. Yesterday I wasn’t feeling too much pain, just some slight cheek swelling. It kind of looked like I was storing some food for later in my cheeks. Come to think of it, that wouldn’t be such a bad idea, now would it? The good thing is, I was able to eat solid food (carefully) by lunch. Lucky for you…my smoothies and applesauce on Monday would have been super boring. So here are my eats from yesterday. Thanks to Jenn at Peas and Crayons for hosting!

Thank goodness overnight oats are soft-food friendly! I’ve been loving muesli overnight oats lately. They’re basically the same thing, just swapped out the oats for muesli. I think this morning’s had banana Chob? Topped with my favorite coconut peanut butter, bananas, and blackberries. Because berry season is the best season!

I still wasn’t allowed to use straws yesterday…but that didn’t stop me from getting coffee! That coffee was gone way too soon. It’s all too easy to gulp it down without the straw getting in the way.

Lunch was my favorite combination as of late…sandwich with Laughing Cow French Onion cheese, dill spread, turkey, avocado, and mixed greens. In hindsight, I may have not picked an apple. I’m not a food waster, though. I just chewed it slowly and mostly with my front teeth

I had a bunch of errands to run for my mom yesterday, so I brought a Quest bar in my satch for when I got hangry. Thank goodness I did because I ended up being at car dealership for 2 hours while my mom’s car got serviced!

Then, I had an iPhone snafu that currently has me without phone. So tragic and an absolute first world problem. I had some bananas and strawberries when I got home.

After not having pain meds for a little while, my jaw started to hurt again. Back to softer foods for dinner! A perfectly flipped veggie omelet with turkey, goat cheese, and guacamole alongside a sweet potato. So. GOod.

Oh. And the best snack when only super cold food sounds good? This ice cream. Straight from the pint because I’m classy like that. You surprised by the flavor? Me either.

I’m off to hopefully get a new phone today! hope you have a great Wednesday!