1 day to go!!

Tomorrow is the big day - spread the word!!

Here are some fun giveaways going on in the meantime!

Run to Finish -gear

Erica- Mix1

Lauren - favorite things

Have you tried Chia seeds yet? I want to try them, they sound like they have great benefits!!
Amazing Grass - I'm donating 1/2 of what I was sent for the bake sale tomorrow, though I love the stuff, I want to keep it for myself! But it is for a good cause...

Yummy lunch!

EAT

I made the coconut curry that Angela had on her blog yesterday. Oh yum!! Pair that with some black bean burgers and avocado in a La Tortilla wrap - and I 'm back in the game!!

Easy Beginner Curry - adapted from Angela @ Oh She Glows

• 1 heaping T of curry powder
• 1 t ginger
• 1 28 oz can crushed tomatoes
• 1 T coconut oil
• 2 cloves minced garlic
• pinch of sea salt
• pinch of ground cloves
• black pepper
• Shredded coconut and peanuts (optional garnishes)

Mix all sauce ingredients into saucepan and heat on low, stirring frequently. Add peanuts or coconut for garnish.

SWIM Yesterday I swam with my sister. Usually I just go behind her in the lane, but we swam next to each other and I tried to keep up. We were doing a set of 100s - descend. The last one was fast. I felt like I was giving all my effort to sprint but she was flying ahead of me. After a 50, I kind of gave up and didn't give all my effort. I felt so defeated, my stroke felt like crap and I felt like I was a frolicking whale in the water, splashing around everywhere. I wish I hadn't given up so easily and I don't want Nick to be like that! So I have to make sure that I teach him not to give up!

RUN

Running question of the day: Do you tie and untie your shoes when you put on and take off? I have mizunos and I ruin the back part (it has a name, but I forget it) all the time. I'm trying to make a conscious effort here but I love just sliding in and out of my shoes.

bake sale rules

Bake for DANA! will be held on Monday! Hooray!! I am so excited. Please tell your friends!

The bake sale kicks off Monday at 8 am EST, so I want to review the rules and logistics for the event.

(sorry for the underlining)

Once I post all of the items up for sale, if you want to make a bid, e-mail me: tosha25italia@yahoo.com with a bid amount for the item you are interested in purchasing. Each item has a minimum bid of $20 and all quantities for each item should be clearly marked in the description.

An official bid must be emailed, thus any bids left in the comments section will not be reviewed. Only e-mailed bids will be considered official.

Think of the bid as a silent auction of sorts. All buyers will have until midnight Tues EST to submit their bid. Throughout the day I will update the post with the highest bid for each item. Keep on bidding!

If by the end there is a tie of bids for a particular item, (for instance, three people bid $50 for an item), then I will draw those names from a hat and have a random winner for that item.

Once a reader has won the bid on an item they will then donate the specified amount directly to my Dana Farber page. Once the donation goes through I will e-mail the baker the winner’s address and it will be the baker’s responsibility to send the baked goods to the winner.

The winner has 24 hours to make the online donation. If in that time frame the donation is not made, the next highest bidder will be contacted or the item will go back up for bid.

Please remember that all proceeds from this bake sale go directly to cancer research for Dana Farber. You will be supporting a great cause and are helping to save lives!

Please let me know if you have any questions about the Bake Sale and get excited! There are a ton of awesome things to bid on, and hopefully we’ll be able to raise lots of money for a great cause. I appreciate your participation and consideration!

A HUGE thank you to all of the bakers and donaters, who made this event possible! I am forever grateful for your generosity!

Good luck!

falling off the bus

I've been baking since last week - baking to do a trial run and snap pictures for Mon! I've come across a ton of great recipes, that have been fun to make, but not all of them are healthy, and I've been taste tasting. Healthy diet out the window! The rest of the day is good but taste testing is no good!

I have been superbusy with the bakesale so I've slacked on comments and I'll be back soon.
I 've been up early to workout all week - swimming, heartless runs, Jillian, on demand yoga. Today Nick decided to wake up and cry at 5 am. I was actually in the midst of sleeping in, so this was no good. I actually love being a morning person, but I seem to stay up late to get things done and get too tired. I have to get back into the routine of getting up early and to bed early!

Yesterday I was considering wearing my recovery socks to the store. Hot pink. I like them more for their style than benefits. I would just look like an old soccer player or something, right?
Anyone worn them out?

In the sock topic...I forgot to tell you about my undying love for Wrightsocks. I have talked about them before, but they are my one and only running sock now. It became serious quickly! Down the shore, I always manage to get blisters when I run. Last weekend I forgot to wear my Wrightsocks the first time and did have some blisters forming AND my toes hurt while running. The next day: Wrightsocks: No blisters, no pain. I love them. Here are my fave 4:

Cushioned DLX : great light support, cozy
SLX - cushioning and venting in key places
Running II: v.similar to the DLX
Cool Mesh: lighter than the rest with the same benefits

Good news- you can get these on amazon :) I love amazon. What can't you get there!

early riser

I got up early this morning to make it to the Y when it opened at 5 so that I could get back home in time to feed Nick around 6:30. The only way I was up was because Nick must have been having a dream and cried around 4:15. (and I'm coaching a camp this week in the mornings so I wanted to get the workout out of the way so I wouldn't feel bad bringing Nick to daycare after I'm already leaving him in the morning). So I tried to doze for a little and wake up in time to go to the Y for once.. and I did. I was surprised at how many people were actually there. I swam 2000 yds, biked 4 miles and ran 2. My legs were tired by the end. But the idea of a mini tri workout changes things up for me. It kind of took too long though, I would have liked to run a little longer, maybe even bike too. I'm excited to do an outdoor bike at some point too. When I was down swimming, I put my suit in one of those water extractor machines and it got completely stuck and ruined. All ripped up. That sucked bigtime. It was great, actually, and felt good, to be up and working out at that hour (like in the non-pregnant/non baby days).


A few reviews for you . . .

amazing grass
I've tried all of the amazing grass now. I am a fan.

BARS: contain powder from the amazing superfood drink. Check out this ingredient list:
Organic Dates, Organic Agave Nectar, Amazing Grass Green SuperFood (Organic Wheat Grass, Organic Barley Grass, Organic Alfalfa, Organic Spirulina, Organic Spinach, Organic Chlorella, Organic Broccoli, Organic Acai, Organic Maca, Organic Carrot, Organic Beet, Raspberry, Organic Rose Hips, Pineapple, Green Tea, Organic Flax Lignans, L. Adidophilus, Alpha and Beta Amylase, Protease, Lipase, Lactase, Cellulase, Organic Peppermint), Organic Cashews, Organic Almond Butter, Organic Almonds, Organic Sunflower Seeds, Organic Dried Cranberries, Organic Pumpkin Seeds, Organic Dried Coconut and Organic Vanilla Extract. Allergy Information: Contains Almonds and Cashews

Green superfoodbar: has a great mix of ingredients including lots of veggies, though you can kind of tell that it is good for you :) Chocolate green superfood bar: the green superfood bar covered in cacao. It kind of masks the 'good for you' taste!
Click to enlarge - amazing meal nutritional facts
Amazing Meal: original blend, chocolate infusion and pomegranate mango infusion
My favorite was the chocolate, "A blend of greens, protein, fruits & vegetables infused with chocolate" it tasted like chocolate milk. The other 2 added to the flavor of the smoothie, but nothing crazy. They are chock full of health benefits, fruits and veggies! I used these after a hard run and they were great in a recovery smoothie! They have 110 calories and 10g of protein.

Amazing GREEN superfood:
"One serving gives you the antioxidant equivalent of 7 servings of fruits and vegetables and helps you hit your daily quota. "

blend of tons of antioxidants,fruits and veggies. My favorite two were the berry flavor and chocolate. The berry really added to my fruit smoothie and chocolate was the chocolate milk taste again! They also have the superfood for kids which is awesome. I used these in my morning smoothie for 30 calories and a slew of benefits!

Organic Wheat Grass - I liked the flavor of this. 35 calories and tons of vitamins and minerals to share! :)


Thoughts: I would probably benefit most from the 30 calorie smoothies morning and/or afternoon as a boost to my smoothie! The meals were good for recovery food. I'm not sold on the bars, but I am used to sugary ones like balance bars and luna bars. I would eat them if I was hungry but they wouldn't be my first choice! I'd rather have a smoothie! I would choose the chocolate or berry flavors. Also, perhaps even more fun than the drink mixes is the cup that you can buy to go with it - I have been using it not only for smoothies but also for water! I love the little spout to drink from, like a water bottle. It makes me drink more water! I'm going to order some of the drink mix so that I am one up on my fruits and veggies everyday!



Want to try it out? Bid on some samples on Monday!
You can check all of these out at amazing grass. Amazon has them too!




Nike+
My battery died a long time ago. Maybe before Nick was born, or shortly after. I brought it to the apple store where I was told I had to get a whole new one. They don't have battery replacements? I liked the Nike+ especially when Paula Radcliffe came on to say good job to me. But I'm not buying a new one.
Choc Chip Cookie Dough - Breyers
I like how Breyers ice cream is all natural and it is tasty. However, the chocolate chip cookie dough flavor is missing so much cookie dough. They might as well call it vanilla. My sister brought me home some ice cream from a local place on the way home from DC to home on her move and it was chock full of cookie dough. Then I get some breyers for Bill since I won't share my local ice cream pint (selfish and mean) and that was so disappointing.

One week to go!

One week until the big bake sale online here! Tell your friends! Spread the word!

I hope everyone had a great weekend! We went to the beach - it was nice! I wasn't too motivated to run, but it is a little easier down there sometimes. I did some easy short runs each day. I'm getting more accustomed to the bike at the gym - instead of the videogame type one, just a normal one.

I did a bunch of baking last week to take pictures for the bake sale and more for this week! Thank you to everyone who is baking for the bake sale!! You guys are awesome, and I am so appreciative!

Have a great start to the week!

AMAZING GRASS
Amazing Grass - so far I have tried the Chocolate Amazing Meal, Original Amazing Meal, Pomegranate Green Food, the Green superfood bar and Chocolate Green superfood bar. Whenever I make a smoothie now, I use the fun cup! I am impressed with this stuff. It has so much going on - so many amazing ingredients, and yet, it doesn't taste like you are drinking or eating all of those ingredients.

The Original Green Superfood did not change the taste of my smoothie with spinach, bananas and berries. The Berry Green added a berry flavor to my smoothie - it was like having a dessert. The CHOCOLATE... oh man. This was like drinking chocolate milk. YUM!

The bars: Green superfood bar : maybe reminded me of Odwalla superfood bar. This was OK. I could tell it was good for me, if you know what I mean! The chocolate one is the same but coated in chocolate. I'll take it!!

So far, I really like this stuff! I have my Aria Protein Powder and some Hemp protein powder that I purchased at Trader Joe's - but these have more beneficial ingredients and flavors, chocolate especially, give it a great taste! I found that they sell it on amazon too so check that out! I'll keep you updated as I try the other flavors.

So you want to try it? Amazing Grass will be an item for the auction coming up July 20th!! Mark those calendars!!

5 months 7.6.09
I forgot to do a 5 month postpartum wellness post, so here's where I am:

Body: Ehh. I'm not thrilled with my beach body right now. It is my stomach that seems to be the biggest problem. I look like I'm 3 months pregnant and want my abs back.

Mental/Emotional: I feel that since it is summer it is much easier for me to be home and happy about it, since no one is working (that I work with) - since I am a teacher! Most days I wonder how I will ever leave Nick 5 days/week until he is in school, and pray that a part-time position comes up that I can take on until that time! Sometimes I feel clueless and wonder what I am doing day after day and constantly wish I could have the same schedule everyday (for Nick - napping/eating, etc)- but I can't seem to get there.

Running: I have definitely a lost mojo right now. I'm really trying to get back into it. I'm in trial mode as far as running a hard marathon to see what I can do - that would be Steamtown in October. I didn't sign up, as I want to see how the training goes. So far, I skipped the 2nd week's longrun and I did this weekend's long run this morning and it dragged. I'm not motivated to work hard, alone, on the treadmill.

I kind of want to switch it up and find a tri to train for!

MISC:
Check out this promotion owater is running to be on their water bottle labels!
http://www.owater.com/label_comp.php


And again.. mark your calendars for some fun items to bid on coming up on JULY 20!

Tell your friends!
A sneak preview - peanut butter surprise cookies, owater, amazing grass, gluten free delights, mini cupcakes, chocolate chip banana bread, anzac cookies, peanut butter granola bars, granola, green tea cookies,... and much more!!! Lots of amazing items from awesome bakers and donators. Be sure to check it out!

Catching up

So this morning Lizzie sent me this article: http://www.boston.com/sports/other_sports/running/articles/2009/07/07/runners_keep_your_splits_to_yourself/ which was interesting. I think blogging helps me to get motivated and for some extra encouragement! What do you think?

BAKE SALE AHEAD!
I'm getting things together for the bake sale coming up in 2 weeks - I'm super excited! Hope you will tell your friends to come visit my site on July 20th! Last call for bakers/donators!! You don't have to bake something to donate! You can put together your favorite things, or running things, or anything fun! So far I have mainly cookies, cupcakes, granola, & granola bars, and a few non food items!

RUNNING & SWIMMING
Today I did a tempo run in the morning, 7 miles w/ 5 miles tempo pace. Then my sister wanted to swim in the afternoon. We ended up doing our own tri. I didn't feel like swimming the whole time or running the whole time either. So we swam 1000 yds, biked for 15 minutes and ran for 15 minutes. That ended up being 3.25 miles biked and 1.65 ran. The bike was better, I used a different one and with my sister there to talk to, the 15 min flew by. Now I just want to find a cheap try to start with!

AMAZING!
Teri at Amazing Grass sent me all kinds of amazing stuff to try and I can't wait to try it out and tell you about it! I've tried an amazing meal and one other packet so far, and a bar. They are good! I think I am most excited for the fun cup!


















CALORIE COUNTING!
I'm using fitday.com for some calorie counting. It gets tedious but I did it today and yesterday. It makes me more aware, so we'll see how it goes. I made a huge thing of veggies and baked them in the oven for this week again. There are so many things going on (eggplant, carrots, sweet potatoes, broccoli, zucchini, ... it is kind of annoying to put into fitday). It is delicious! Last night's dinner was barley with all of the veggies. Have you ever eaten more and lost weight? When I plug in my info for cals needed, most sites + nutritionist give me a whopping number of cals -alot more than I am eating. Thoughts?

WHERE ARE YOU PROTEIN?
I've been cutting out dairy because I was having major issues! But now, being a vegetarian, my PROTEIN is low! I've been limiting soy also, but how now do I get protein???

BAKING
So I found this site where you can input in your recipe and break it down to figure out the nutrition facts!! http://www.nutritiondata.com/ AWESOME!! Here's an example:



And last.. I forgot a dentist appt today. I just totally forgot about it. I'm becoming my mom. AHh

holiday weekend

For the holiday we went up to CT where Bill's parents live. It was a nice trip and it is really pretty there. The weather was great! Nick slept awful while there. He was in a pack and play in our room and it just did not work well for us. We heard every movement he made and he was up in the middle of the night several times.
RUNNING
Saturday and Sunday I planned to get up at 5am to get in a long run, and I was so tired from being up already and sleeping awfully that I could not do it. On Thursday before we left I did 2 mile repeats, which was somewhat trying. Friday I took Nick for a hilly BOB workout that was superslow and did Jillian Level 3 Shred. Saturday I ran an easy 6.5 miles and Sunday a fast 4. No long run for week 2 of possible marathon training. Too much running and I'm taking off today! There aren't many options for cross training when away and running is the easiest thing to do.

EATING
I ate pretty well this weekend. I decided that nursing does not give me the ability to lose weight quicker or anything! I think I may be eating too much? A little bit here, a little bit there, trying out recipes - and it all adds up. So I am going to count those calories starting today and try to stick with it and see what I can do!

JULY is here! I cannot believe it. It is the month of the bake sale, in exactly 15 days! Get stoked and be sure to mark your calendar!

it's better with 2!

before going in the oven

yummy cooked veggies!!


This was for dinner last night and the rest of the week... took a bunch of veggies (fennel, carrots, asparagus, broccoli, sweet potatoes, zucchini, eggplant) put them in a big pan with olive oil and garlic, some salt and pepper, and baked at 450 till they were tender. Then I added mushrooms that were cooked on top of the stove, and some tofu. YUM!!


Then I made these - Angela's recipe: DELICIOUS


2 non coconut for Bill!

Today my sister moved back home from DC. I am so happy! We went swimming and she is wayyy faster than me and I had to swim FAST to keep up! We were following the board workout, and changing it up a bit because it was so uncreative (10 100s, 10 75s, 10 50s, 10 25s - basically whatever she said: build, drill, kick, I was sprinting!), It was a good workout, it just shows how you can do so much better with a partner! My sister has light hair and blue eyes and looks more like Nick's mom than me!




It is the same w/ marriage, don't you agree? Bill rounds me out as a person and makes me that much better of a person by doing so. : )

Winner & here and there

The winner of Oprah's giveaway (hehe) is the Happy Runner selected by random.org #13!!
Runners Log, Gu, Beans, raw choc chip cookies, Lara homemade bars, Pb flax granola bars & PB Oaties. :) Hope you like nuts!!

The winner of some pb flax oaties is *Lisa*

Buffalo Bill, I have something special for you too. Great snack tip there.

Winners email me at tosha25italia@yahoo

Thanks everyone for your awesome snack ideas!
Here and there - some random things:
My nike+ died several months ago. It was only a year and a few months old. I finally brought it to an apple store and they told me I basically had to buy a new one. There are no battery replacements (and the warranty only covers it for 1 year). Just incase you are on the market for one, you should know this!

mental/emotional
After school let out and I stopped hearing from kids and reading emails from work (I wanted to) on a daily basis, it has been easier for me to not be thinking about teaching. I think September will be hard, and I finally heard back from my district that I CANNOT sub and jobshare will NOT be an option. However, the past week or two, I am feeling good about being home and can't imagine leaving Nick for more than a couple of days a week. He does new things every day and I love seeing them and watching him grow. He'll be 5 months soon and I don't know where the time went! So, I feel good that I have taken the opportunity to take some time off and be poor for a bit. I think it is worth it.

Food
Thanks for your help yesterday - I don't feel like I am eating badly! Maybe the nursing is keeping the pounds on but I thought that was burning calories plus an active workout schedule... I don't get it! I've cut the pb out of the oatmeal in the morning (that was just an unnecessary thing and bad idea). I really cut back on cheese. I was eating it daily. I have 2 smoothies most days, one w/ veggies and banana and protein powder and one with fruit and hemp powder. It is fun making the raw food, but also still counts as dessert to me!

BABY FOOD
Moms - what foods do you make yourself for the baby and what do you buy pre made?
Alison gave me a great tip to just mash the banana - no food processor, and Angela - same w/ avocado, what else are some easy foods to make? So far, Nick has had apples, oats, rice, pears, bananas and prunes. I think I am going to go through all the fruits then try all the veggies. I wanted to wait till he was 6 months, but since he is constipated often, the pediatrician said to start the solids. So far it hasn't helped him, but he is into the solids!

Yesterday I did some yoga on demand w/ some guy - thighs and butt or something. I feel THAT today!! :)

Feeling like a big load

I've been feeling like a load lately. I felt like my weight was starting to go down, but now it is just stuck again. It isn't the number that I focus on, but how I feel. I don't feel good about my body right now. My stomach just looks gross to me, still. I feel like I am not overeating, just eating when I am hungry and eating good things! (of course the occasional splurge) - but I can't seem to lose weight, despite running faster, swimming, and Jillian Shred workouts 3 times a week. I've read many moms out there go below their pre-pregnancy weight around 4-5 months, but I'm still stuck here! Should I eat less? Count calories? Switch up my workouts? What gives?

In the first week of marathon training for a possible Steamtown Marathon, it went pretty well. I had to get up at 5 yesterday to run 12 on the treadmill. Usually Nick is up around 6:30 so I figured I could get most of it done before he woke up. He was up at 5:30! I let him play/talk till he started to fuss around 6, and went to get him, then finished running after he was fed and happy. The morning workouts - I love getting it out of the way. For the long runs, they are definitely going to have to be done in the morning to be done! I also woke up early a couple of times this past week to be able to run w/o interruption and it worked well!

12 miles/1::50:36/9:13 minute mile - ehh. It felt ok, kind of dragging. My knees have been bothersome as of late.

Favorite comment of the week by Jess after my swimming fiasco:
So, did you go home commando?
Answer: no, I always have a change of clothes in my swim bag :)

The giveaway ends tonight @ midnight, don't forget to enter!

Note to Self

So, I took Nick to the Y today to go swimming. Normally I have my suit in my bag - at least one of them. I rinse it there and use the machine thing that gets the water out of it and just keep it in my bag. After Wednesday I washed one of my suits and yesterday I took Nick swimming and rinsed that one at home... so I get to the locker room and have no suit. I do have a pair of Victoria's Secret colorful PINK underwear and 2 sportsbras in my bag... one of them kind of matched. I really didn't feel like running or doing other cardio. So... I just wore a sports bra and the bright striped underwear. You totally couldn't tell (except that it didn't match). TO make a long story short, I swam in that, had to go get the other sports bra to double up, but still felt like water was flying in my top and that I was going so slow. I actually stopped to see how fast the guy next to me was swimming because he kept passing me and he was OLD - and he looked like he was going pretty damn slow. And he was beating me. It was not a good swim. I did 1800 yards and couldn't wait to get out. So note to self: Make sure your bathing suit is in the bag before you leave the house.

The rest of the week, workouts were pretty good. Thursday's run seemed to fly by. Starting on Tuesday I got up at 6am to do the workout before Nick was up at 7:30, but that was the only day that Nick was up that late - rest of the week at 6 talking to himself and 6:30 to eat. It was great being able to get in the run uninterrupted.. but I don't think I'll be getting up at 5. I tried getting up this morning at 5 to go swimming, fully knowing I would talk myself out of it. I just lay in bed thinking, I will have to pump, only get to swim 45 minutes (with the masters team) and have to rush home to be home in time to feed Nick. The pumping part is annoying - I really hate pumping. But I really am tired of swimming alone too - so hopefully one of these days I can get there - been saying that for months now.

Thanks for the advice with the biking! I won't give up yet.

Lizzie sent me some Australian Anzac cookies earlier this week - they did not even last long enough to get a picture. They were delicious. She is donating some for the bake sale!! Look out for those amazing anzacs!! (BTW, I'm totally still looking for willing bakers!!)

I've been busy mostly baking this week - putting some things together for the giveaway and my own and Bill's enjoyment! One thing that I learned is that you shouldn't sub in canola oil for coconut oil.
It isn't the same.

Raw Chocolate Chip cookies
Sooo much better w/ the coconut oil

Homemade Lara Bars

Peanut butter flax granola bars

June 25 - 4 years!

Oh crap! what now ? We're married!!

Happy anniversary to my best friend & husband! : ) It has been a great 4 years - to many more!

June 25, 2005
Villanova

• 

I even gave him a kiss after he shoved cake in my face

Honeymoon in Hawaii... do I hear 5 year anniversary in Hawaii??

Brick?

Today I played on the bikes at the gym. It is similar to a video game - computer screen where you see other people and as you bike uphill, the resistance increases and so on. I SUCK at biking!
I chose a challenging course, out of moderate or easy, that was a mistake. I do not need to be challenged at biking. It said it was to be 25-35 minutes and 8 miles. By 22 minutes I had only completed 4 miles. And I'm pretty sure a triathlon is more like 20 to 100 miles, I have no idea. One thing is for sure, I do not like biking. My legs must be weak. I was planning on riding for 30 minutes and doing the elliptical but instead I hopped off the bike and into the pool for 1250 yds. Does that count as a brick? (Don't laugh at me!) I would have done a 20 minute run and had my own triathlon but Nick was in the daycare and I wanted to take him swimming. Boo for the bike! What is the main part of a tri - the one that is always included. Is it the bike? Maybe I can find a duathlon where it is swim-run -swim or vice versa.

whole foods

I finally made it to whole foods to get some needed baking items. On Monday, I actually drove there, and got out of the car for a second, but Nick woke up (we are having some nap issues) - so I turned around and drove home. That was like seeing a big warm chocolate chip cookie and having to walk away. But I made it today! Man, I love the products there but it is so expensive! I would love a shopping spree to whole foods. Free shopping forever. How can I get that? One cool thing is that they give you 5 cents back (per bag I think) for using your own bags. I went at 8am today, the best time to go and browse. Otherwise, I want to run people over with my shopping cart! It happens to be in a ritzy area and I'm not a big fan of everyone on their cell phones walking around in their heels. Anyway, I got some good stuff for some baking! I can't wait to make some of my favorite items for the giveaway! Also, they were just putting out hemp seeds and Amazing Grass items. I wouldn't even know what they were (nor most of the items I was buying) if not for blogging! When I was in college, whole foods was called Fresh Fields. Sometimes I can't shake calling it Fresh Fields, but I'm getting better!

Speaking of which, I really want to win this giveaway for Amazing Grass that Erica has going on. Check it out (but don't enter, bc I want to win!!haha) Just saw Amanda has a giveaway going on to! Hmm.. why can't Amazing Grass contact me to try it out??


Nick is going to try some bananas today. So far, he's had brown rice, oats, and apples. He likes the apples the best. We'll try out the bananas. Sometimes I use the hand blender that I use for my smoothies, but sometimes it is so little of an amount that it doesn't work. Then, I whip out the mini food processor, an item I've made fun of for years - I put a big food processor on my wedding registry and one of my mom's cheap aunts bought me this mini one instead. I just got the normal size one for christmas this year from my inlaws - and man have I been making use of it!

And talking about blogs, when you find a new blog that you like and you comment here and there, after how long do you follow the blog if the blogger never checks out your blog and comments? Does it depend on how much you like the blog? I tend to follow blogs for a while, but if I never get a comment from the blog I am following, I might just stop reading the other blog. Is that wrong? I love hearing from you, so I'd rather comment on your blogs than those who aren't reading mine. What do you think?

Oprah's giveaway

In honor of my blogversary, I'm going to do "a few of my favorite things" giveaway. So you can call me Oprah.

Some things that will be included:

Runners Log book
Vanilla Bean GU
Sport Beans
Various homemade goodies + other surprises

If you want to participate, leave a comment telling me what your favorite healthy snack is.

Winners will be chosen randomly. Contest ends on Monday June 29,2009 at midnight. If the prize is not claimed in 48 hours a new winner will be chosen. The winner will be announced in a post.


I did some mad baking last night, and tried Angela's glonuts. I don't have a donut pan so this rose pan that is from our wedding and I have used maybe once had to do. They were larger than her mini donuts and I prefer them small, but they were delicious! I also used some leftover icing from the blackbean brownies - I sweetened them up to bring them over for Father's Day and my parents couldn't tell they were not your standard brownie!

They were delicious!

Then I made some Dr Nanners burgers (a spinoff of Dr Praegers which seem so easy to make). I just started dumping things into the food processor (broccoli, kale, peppers, some bulgar, oat bran, and a tbsp of oil). They didn't stick together too well, and were mushy but they were similar to a broccoli patty that Dr Praegers might sell!

I had one for lunch w/ some multigrain bread and smart balance spread. YUM!

Happy 1st Birthday, Blog!

Today is my blog's first birthday! : ) It has been a fun year!

A special shoutout to my longtime followers, since the very beginning, D10 and Aron! Thanks ladies! You are inspiring!

You've followed me through

• my parents and inlaws trip to Maine
• running while pregnant
• being pregnant and antipregger esp maternity clothes!
  
• attempting to run the Philly marathon 28 weeks pregnant (did the 1/2)
  
• giving birth to Nick
• running the Boston marathon
• deciding whether to work or take some time off with Nick
• thinking about doing my first tri
  

Thanks for all of your support! It has been great to have all of you to turn to!

I'll have a birthday giveaway coming up this week, I haven't decided what it will be yet, but stay tuned!

RUNNING
Some fast running this weekend has helped to keep me motivated... I just plugged in a training plan for the Steamtown Marathon in October which starts today but today is a non running day for me, so we'll start that tomorrow! This one is from smartcoach and based on my last 5k time. I feel like there was somewhere where you could put your goal time and come up with a plan based on that. Anyone know anything about that? I am definitely incorporating Monday "off" days where I will do yoga only. I will otherwise burn out.

SWIMMING
The master's board was missing today and I was not feeling it at all! I did 2500 yds but it was brutal. 45 min.

EATING
Not as good as a couple weeks ago, but still hitting up the produce place and eating good veggies and fruits. I've had a few bad eating days lately, mostly the end of last week. I picked up some hemp protein powder at Trader Joe's to switch it up from my Aria protein powder. I've made 2 smoothies with it so far, and you really can't taste it. Hemp has similar benefits as flaxseeds and is said to be good for athletes and vegans/vegetarians for those Omega 3 and 6 fatty acids!

Smoothie - hemp powder, kale, 1/2 banana, almond milk + skim milk - it was green!



Where can I find one of those bike trainer things and how much do they run?

All you can eat

I don't know if my period is imminent or what, but holy **** I was a machine yesterday, and the end of this week. When Nick went to bed last night, my mission was to go to Whole Foods (a goal of the week that was never accomplished). Once out, I decided I'd rather go home and hang out with Bill since Nick went to bed early and easily, but that I needed ice cream. I stood in the ice cream aisle of the Acme for a long time. I had Edy's Loaded PB cup in my hands and was reading the ingredients - it was $2.50. Breyers Cookies and Cream (bill's fave) or Cookie Dough (my fave) all natural was 5 bucks, but had like 5 ingredients compared to a whole lot in the other one. Edy's looked Loaded. Breyers, ehh. I tried calling Bill but I had no service. In the end, I picked the Breyers Cookies and Cream and felt like it was the better choice. Breyers did not disappoint! I reasoned with myself that I would make some edible homemade cookie dough to throw in the dough so that it was a mix. I also warmed up some black bean brownies and threw them into my bowl of ice cream, cookie dough and brownies! We had a great movie and ice cream night!

All week I was overeating at night and not even hungry. On Thursday and Friday all I could think about was Pizza Hut pizza, nachos... junk food - food I never eat. I HARDLY EVER eat ice cream. It doesn't even appeal to me. Frankly, I like the toppings and mixins better than the ice cream. But what is going on ?! Lack of motivation, crazy awful food cravings - I think my period is trying to return!! (I'm still nursing, yes.)

So when I was running today, I decided I wanted to go fast and burn off ice cream and cookie dough. I was picturing it burning away so that I could keep up a fast pace : ) You play, you pay!

4 miles/30:22/7:36 Treadmill ... It went by quickly!

WHy flax?

SPOTLIGHT ON FLAXSEED

I don't know when I started using flax, but for me, it was because of the Omega 3's that I wasn't getting since I don't eat fish. I wanted to do some research and check out the benefits of flax (and make sure it is worth using in my baking, peanut butter and oatmeal)!

FLAX
Flax is a seed grown in cool climates. Ground flax is said to be more easily digestible than the seed itself. I use a coffee grinder to grind it up!

BENEFITS
So flax- it has Omega 3 fatty acids, which may have these benefits:

• great source of fiber
  
• natural antioxidant
  
• reduced risk of cancer, diabetes, heart attack
• helps lower cholesterol
• protective effects against breast cancer and prostate cancer
• can help with hot flashes and constipation

WHERE TO FIND IT
You can find flaxseed in the health food section of your local grocery store. It is sold as seeds and ground, but is usually more cost efficient if you purchase the seeds and grind yourself. Whole Foods and health stores will definitely have it if you cannot find in your supermarket.

STORE IT
In the fridge or freezer

FLAX IN FOODS
The easiest way to incorporate flax into your diet is a tablespoon here and there - in baked goods (cookies, muffins, breads - throw it into the dough), oatmeal, cereal, yogurt, smoothies... try it out!

Try this recipe, adapted from here: it only makes 6-8 muffins

Almond Surprise Power Muffins
1 egg
1/4 c brown sugar - I need to try agave to see if that works too
1 tbsp canola oil
1/3 c ground flax
2/3 c ground oatmeal
1/3 c whole wheat flour
1 mashed banana or 1 cup of pumpkin or sweet potato puree
1/2 tsp baking soda
1.5 tbs almond butter (optional)

Use a whisk and whisk all together then put half the batter into each muffin cup,add a tspish of almond butter to each one, then top with rest of batter, then bake until set! Add some chocolate chips for an extra! : )

ready to go in the oven...

Locals looking for a Father's Day 5k?? Click here for 2.

Struggling!

Ah, my workouts really are a struggle lately. Yesterday I just didn't feel like finishing the 4 50s that were left in the set on the board and felt good enough just getting in 3000yds. Usually I'm one to do more than what is on the board. Running - I wake up on the days that I run and just dread it.
What's going on? The weather? Lack of baby naps? Confusion over staying at home for a year? Eesh.

If you make the green monsters with banana, you totally can't taste the greens.
I used 1/2 c kale, 1/2 c spinach, a banana and a cup of almond/skim milk mixed and it was good!


Yesterday I followed this recipe for Anzac cookies after Lizzie told me she would make some for the bake sale (still taking donations!) but it was very crumbly, and due to Nick's non napping, it was interrupted too. I made 3 that stuck together and then I just started adding things to the bowl of crumbles and made it into a bar w/ pumpkin, cranberries and flax. The cookies were delicious, the bread is interesting.

And while I was swimming and hungry I wanted some black bean brownies. I took the easy way out and got a box of brownie mix from my mom's cupboard, added a can of black beans and a can of water (the beans food processed) and these are really good! You totally can't tell! Bill thought they had tofu in them. The consistency looks different and they look very fudgy/moist but they are good!!

S W I M M I N G

Jessica asked about my swim background so I thought I'd devote a little time to it! I don't know how early I was in the pool, but I know as a child, at least by age 4, my mom always took us swimming. I remember being scared of the holes in the wall. They still kind of freak me out.


I started swimming on a team when I was 6 and swam competitively all through high school. I was really good when I was 9 in winter swimming, and when I was 12 in the summer swimming. After that, it all kind of went downhill, and I was a mediocre swimmer but never awesome.

In high school I swam the 200 free, 200 IM and 500 free. The team at my school wasn't very good, so I was one of the top 4 swimmers on the team. I've always been a long distance swimmer. I did backstroke in the summers and I've done the mile in a couple of meets.

I kept up swimming every now and then during college, and picked up Masters swimming a couple of years ago. The best thing was that it was right at my high school that I teach at, so I could do it right before work (5:30-6:30) and then go to work! I swam with the fast people and continued in the summers at an outdoor pool - this was great! They are rebuilding the pool @ my high school so this fall/winter I swam with another team which wasn't as fun, mostly swimming alone. Right now, I'm just swimming on my own! The masters program at the Y starts at 5:30 but Nick gets up between 5:30-6:30 right now, so this hasn't worked for me yet. I hope soon.

My sister is a really good swimmer and swam in college at Delaware. My brother swam up until he had to wear a speedo, and then he quit.

The biggest thing for me was the drains in the pool. Some drains still scare me. I don't know what it is about them - are they going to suck me down? On all of my meet programs I have the drain lanes written on the front page ("drain lanes 1 and 5.") If I happened to be racing in a drain lane, the anxiety was awful!! I think I kept my eyes closed and went crooked. When I brought Nick swimming and stepped on a drain by accident, I still was kind of freaked out! It's so weird!

I think that Nick will like the water too. So far, he enjoys it!


Monday's board workout was ENDURANCE. It was mostly 400s and 3 and 200s. To me, that is easy. I don't like doing fast 100s. Today's workout was a bunch of fast free. I feel like a slacker but to motivate myself to go fast somedays, I need to be swimming with someone in the lane next to me!


In other news, I had my first GREEN smoothie (aka green monster) yesterday. Spinach, banana, almond milk and some protein powder. Not bad. You can taste the spinach (I used frozen).




And I'm working on some healthy breakfast muffins.