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Monday, June 28, 2010

Still Alive *barely*

My days have certainly not been blogworthy. It's basically been--wake-up, run/walk, brekky, lecture, summarize lecture notes, do practice questions, study, study, study. I will NOT miss bar prep one bit, and hope I never have to go through it again.

I did manage to make a blueberry smoothie the other day. I had a delish one when I was in Chicago over winter and attempted to re-create it, but it was bland. Though it did look pretty. Yet one more reason why you can't judge a book by its cover ;)


In sappy news, here's a picture of the brekky I made the Aussie before he left the other weekend. I wasn't going to take a picture, but he insisted :)


I always write little notes to him and leave them random places. I think it's important to do the tiny gestures of love. As for the brekky, it was our first time trying an organic mini watermelon. I was very excited, but it was very soggy. Definitely not the word you want to use while describing watermelon. It was too ripe. It's so hard to determine the ripeness of a melon.

In running news, my 1mile speed is down to 9:15. I still haven't run the whole 5k yet. But I will one day :)

Off to bed,

B

Tuesday, June 22, 2010

Coconut Choc Oatmeal Cups

I am still studying hard and counting down the weeks till the exam is over and I'm living in Annapolis with the Aussie. Even with the studying, I'm managing to stick to the running (M,W,F) and trying to cut my 5k time. I can't wait to sign-up for my first race. Wed I did a 5k in 32:16. But I'm still doing the run/walk method, so I'm sure as I build up the ability to run more and walk less the time will go down.

Now let's talk about the good stuff--the cups :) These little suckers are darn tasty. They held up pretty well, but I'm hoping they firm up in the freezer a bit more. I put them in the freezer for about 10mins before digging into 1 (ok, ok 2). I used a food processor to blend 3/4 cup of fast-cooking oats with 1/2 cup of ground coconut. Then I added 1/4 of a cup of brown sugar and enough agave to make it sticky. I put the mixture into a bowl with 1/2 cup of choc chips and mixed. Then I pushed the mixture into a cupcake tin. It went into the freezer for a bit and this came out . . .




I also made a lovely colorful feast for lunch. The best thing about eating a veg diet is the color. I made stir-fried bok choy with hemp seeds on top, mango salsa w/ Mary's Gone Crackers (love them!), and a fruit said (peaches, strawberries, apricots, and kiwi). Absolutely delish. Hopefully the lunch and dessert will make Con Law review a bit nicer :( A girl can dream. Off to be productive!



-B

Tuesday, June 15, 2010

TWO MILES :)

Sorry I've been MIA. This bar studying is definitely a life-stealer. But don't fret, it's over at the end of July and I will post much more often come Aug. So much so that you will probably get sick of me ;)

As the title suggests, I ran (more like a slow jog) 2 miles. I was super proud, but then I found myself focusing on how the time wasn't fast enough and other negative things. I told that Negative Monster to ship out. It's healthy to push yourself and strive to be better, but you also have to enjoy the small accomplishments. I was proud that I ran two miles, and I don't care that turtles could have passed me (I did it in 21:12). Every single day is a chance to be a better version of yourself. Don't let the seeds of doubt or the Negative Monsters steal away your today. Because today truly is a life changing one.

Granted, I am wishing away my days till the bar is a distant memory :) Ugh, I need to get back to the books. I'll definitely post something fun for the weekend, because the Aussie will be in town <3 swoon <3

In the meantime, figure out your goals and fight to the top.

I'll leave you with a picture of our honeymoon location. We booked it this week. Woot, woot



-B

Sunday, June 6, 2010

Run.Walk.Run

Yesterday I planned a morning run, but couldn't manage to get out in the morning. Instead I ate brekky and began studying for the bar. Hours passed and I couldn't shake the sinking feeling of failure. At 1pm I entered the stickiness (it was hot & humid) by convincing myself that I could walk more than run. Once I started though I pushed through. Sure I walked (a fair bit), but I also ran. I ran more than I walked. I watched as people stared at me from their cars, and I realized I was, at that moment, the person that I envied when I stared out of my car window at someone running. It was a great feeling. I was red-faced and sweaty when I arrived home after the 3 mile ordeal that took 36:36 to complete.

In life it's important that we push ourselves. It's important that we don't worry about what other people can do or how we'll never be as good as them. Instead step outside on a hot afternoon and challenge yourself. The last time I did the run/walk 3mile loop it was more walk than run and it took 43:45. Compete against yourself. Improve yourself. Focus on yourself.

Now onto some tasty dessert. I saw this on Julie's blog (Peanut Butter Fingers). It's a combination of peanut butter/pretzels/choc. Sounds amazing, right? I changed it up a bit. I used saltines, because I didn't have any pretzels. And added chia seeds & hemp seeds to make it a bit healthier ;) All you have to do is combine ingredients (use twice as much pb as saltines/pretzels), roll into balls, stick them into the freezer to get solid, dip them in melted choc, pop into the fridge to harden. Done! I keep my pb in the fridge, so it was easy to roll into balls, but if you don't then I would put the amount of pb you want to use into a bowl and into the fridge for a bit to make it easier to work with.




I obviously ran out of choc towards the end. The one poor guy ended up naked and others were scantily clad :) Here's what the inside of the balls of joy looked like . . .


The Aussie enjoyed them, though he did say they weren't as sweet as he would like. Back to studying I go. I hope you're enjoying the day.

-B

Friday, June 4, 2010

So Sore

You know it's going to be bad when you're sore before class is even over. Bodypump kicked my tush. Here I am two days later still in pain. But no pain, no gain :) In other exercising news, I have been using Garmi (aka Garmin 305) for walks and walk/runs, and absolutely adore him. He makes life so much easier. I'm planning to do runs on Tues, Thurs, and Sat. I started this Thurs. It was a walk with running spurts, but eventually it will be a run with walking spurts and then finally (hopefully) one day a full on run! Running is a humbling experience. It's hard to be so bad at something. Everyone talks about how they felt when they first started running, but few talk about it as they go through with it. I think I know why. Fear. There is a huge fear of failure when you begin a running program. Even though everyone reads stories of how people started out slow and gradually became a runner, it's hard to believe that one day that could be *you*. So here I am putting all the fear aside and saying we can do it. I will lace up my shoes tomorrow and fight the fear. I hope you do the same.

Because no post is complete without some eats . . .

I recently had a delish berry smoothie. I have been off green smoothies for awhile. **shocking** I will get back to them at some point. In the meantime I wanted to jump back on the smoothie bandwagon with a berry one--mixed berries, hemp protein, ice, rice milk. Absolutely refreshing



I've also been eating this every morning . . .



And a new favorite is broc, meatless meatballs, spinach, and spag sauce.



Tomorrow I'll share my secret for making desserts a little healthier.

Till Then,

B

Thursday, June 3, 2010

Baked Potato Heaven

A baked potato, to me, needs to have a crunchy skin and mushy inside to be perfect. I rarely ever make baked potatoes b/c they always fall short in the crunch department--enter earth balance, sea salt, and a grill. Ahh and of course one Aussie who claims that the grill is his territory ;) haha. In actuality it was more of a group effort, but I dominated the potato part. I put it in the microwave for a few minutes (although after reading Kimberly's blog (kimberlysnyder.net) about microwaving I may not do that next time) then I smeared some earth balance all over and added a good amount of salt. I placed it on a piece of aluminum foil, but didn't "wrap" it like many people suggest. We paired it with corn on the cob (eaten off the cob), veggie kabobs, and a smartdog. It was the perfect summer meal.


Also, I tried the box of cookies I picked up at Wholefoods and thought they were pretty tasty, but no Mary Loves Cookies :(

I haven't been filling you in on the exercise front, but I've started :) Tonight was my first time at bodypump (a 60 minute weightlifting class). Wowza! It was intense. I could barely lift my gym bag when it was over. Hopefully I'm not too sore tomorrow.

Wednesday, June 2, 2010

In Need of a Movie Snack?

Angela has you covered! Ever since I read about Angela (from ohsheglows.com) making choc covered raisins I have been craving them. They are very easy to make; since I didn't have coconut oil mine was literally melted semi-dark choc (with no milk crap in it) and raisins. Just melt, mix, and refrigerate. Wait till they harden (it doesn't take long) and then attack.



On an intense sugar rush, I decided to make some banana soft serve (ie frozen banana into a food processor) with melted choc. and sprinkles. The melted choc hardened when it hit the cold ice cream, so I would prob skip it next time. And, of course, the best way to eat banana softserve is with banana slices :)


I was completely stuffed after the sugar feast, so it ended up being my dinner. At least it included fruit ;)

Stay tuned for how to create the perfect baked potato. I know everyone is on the sweet potato bandwagon, but I still love the little white guys too :)

Off to learn Contracts,

B

Tuesday, June 1, 2010

Everlasting Life in DC is my fav

I loved the feeling of eating a no-chicken sandwich this weekend. The bean curd was crispy and wonderful as a sandwich.


Of course I shared with the Aussie ;) Although I did contemplate inhaling it when he turned his head. After the sandwich we needed something sweet, so it was off to Sticky Fingers. I opted for the salty and sweet choc chip cookie (actually 2 because the Aussie is known to be a thief when it comes to cookies) and he got a coconut cupcake.


I love eating in the city! The Aussie and I had a bday party in Arlington, so we got a hotel room nearby. It had a kitchen!! It would definitely be where I would want to be if I had some kiddies with me or if I was staying more than a night. Although we didn't use the kitchen, we definitely enjoyed the stay.



Now all the fun is officially over, because my bar prep classes begin tomorrow. However, I did make some tasty treats to share with you tomorrow. All I can say is I love ohsheglows :)

Till then,

B