Sephora and Supper

It was a good Sunday! Sephora...and supper...what could be better?

Sephora!
I made a haul from Sephora. I got a little crazy with my standard mascara and eye base refill order. I decided to cash in a bunch of my points on some skin care and liquid lipcolor. Throw in the free samples and you get this:

 

 

Supper!

 

Tonight we made Wildtree's Alfredo Extraordinaire! Quick, easy and delicious! I liked it because it wasn't terribly saucy or soupy. It tasted clean - not processed - and had a great garlic flavor! It was very good and we have leftovers for lunch! Next time I may add a dash of olive oil or grapeseed oil as the whole grain noodles tend to be a bit sticky.

 

Cook Time: 10 Minutes

Serves 4

One Serving =

Calories:  325

Carbs:  43g

Protein:  12g
Fat:  14g
Fiber: 5g

Ingredients + Approximate Prices:

• 8 oz. Healthy Harvest Whole Grain Thin Spaghetti ($1.72/package)
• 1/2 cup Kirkland Skim Milk ($3.09/gallon)
• 3 Tbsp. Land O' Lakes Unsalted Butter ($5.24/4 sticks)
• 8 Tbsp. Wildtree Gluten Free Alfredo Extraordinaire ($8.50/16 Tbsp.)

 

 



 



Simple Sunday Supper - TACOS!

Hello! This is me...officially working to get my nutrition back on track! Read how I'm doing that HERE. But, check out the tacos we made for dinner! Cheap, easy, healthy, fast, yummy!

Muckle Sunday Night Football Tacos!

Prep Time:  15 Minutes
Cook Time: 15 Minutes

One Taco =
Calories: 212
Carbs:  14g
Protein:  11g
Fat:  13g
Fiber: 2g

Ingredients + Approximate Prices:

• Old El Paso Stand & Stuff Shells ($2)
• 1LB Kirkland Organic Ground Beef ($19 for 5 lbs)
• Wildtree Organic Taco Seasoning ($8.50 for 34 servings)
• Costco Organic Romaine Lettuce ($6 for 6 heads)
• Kirkland Signature Parmigiano Reggiano ($11)
• Organic Ripe Tomato (< $1)
• Organic Yellow Onion (< $1)
• Lindsey Sliced Olives ($2.50)
• Daisy Sour Cream Light ($2.50)
• Old El Paso Taco Sauce ($2.50)

How-To:

It's easy! Cook the ground beef, then add 2 tablespoons taco seasoning and 1/2 cup of water. Simmer.

Clean and cut the veggies.

Bake the shells as directed. Load up your shell and enjoy!

Getting Nutrition Back On Track!

Ever since our move to Florida, we've been a bit off with our eating. We're living in a temporary space without our stuff, househunting, trying to get acclimated and having some fun, too!

But, YOU KNOW the feeling when things are getting away from you just a bit too much. There's a lot on your plate, meal planning gets to be overwhelming or stale and things start to go south. I'm thankful that I get a lot of help from my husband when it comes to meals! A friend of his mentioned Wildtree meals to him and I had a flashback!

I was using Wildtree products a few years ago and they completely dropped off my radar. I'm not sure how because I loved them! I dig that they're organic and a super added bonus for me is that they are peanut-free. I'm deathly allergic and I never have to worry about having a scary anaphylaxis incident with these foods. This is a huge relief for me!

After reacquainting myself with their website, I decided to get the starter kit. Go big or go home!! There's just so much I wanted to try...so I did it. Woot!

And, I found my ol' favorite friend - Roasted Garlic Grapeseed Oil. It's so dang good! I'm excited because I've been so bored with the usual foods. Plus, what is this all about??

 

 

I don't know, but I can't wait to find out! Yum! I'm most excited to try their "bundles". Basically, Wildtree sends you recipes and ingredients to make 20 meals. All I have to do is buy the protein. This is truly what I need!

 

I'm not much for cooking and I really don't want to spend a lot of time on meal planning, shopping prep, etc. It's all done for me. Quick, simple, easy...it's what I need right now! I'm so excited to have one stressor handled.

 

Now I just need to find a place to live!

 

The New Normal

Week 1 of the "new normal" is complete!

Here's what I feared:

• Starting a new job
• A new commute
• Not having time to take care of my health

New Job: I haven't started at a new company since 1997. Let that sink in. I had absolutely no idea what to expect. But, it went really well. I picked up on everything quickly and I spent the majority of my time writing - LOVE! This is a welcome change from my last job that entailed much less writing and much more red tape, meetings and email. Refreshing!

Commute: We only have one small hybrid car fit for an urban environment. That will need to change soon! (Convertible, you think?!?!) By Friday I was able to make it to and from work without my GPS. And, usually the skies are clearing from afternoon storms on my way home, which makes for a magnificent drive.

Healthy Lifestyle: Keeping up my healthy habits is a priority. But, things have changed, so I have to adjust.

• I've been walking to and from work for the past three years.
• I've been using a standing desk at work for the past year.
• I've had a gym membership for the last several years.

I have none of this anymore. Yikes!

We are getting back on track with meals after our road trip. And, I worked out 4 out of 5 mornings this week. I actually went running outside one morning, which I haven't done in ages because it's been too cold in Minneapolis. I miss not having a gym right now, but I'm working with weights I have at home and doing fine with that. I also got in a pool workout after work twice this week and walked on my lunch break. Plus, I feel like I'm so much more active from a NEAT perspective, which contributes.

Prior to my week back to work, we headed to Fort Myers Beach.



Shortly after this photo was taken, Tropical Storm Colin effects rolled in and we experienced a mass exodus from the beach like I've never seen before!

Luckily, the weather cleared up this weekend. Yesterday morning we went to a community my husband found that's just a mile from us to watch dolphins and manatees playing. I could've stayed there watching all day, but it was cooking outside!

 Then, I did some househunting, a pool workout and rewarded myself by cooling off with a bit of rum while watching the hometown Minnesota Twins game at our new local tavern!



Another day at the beach and pool today, then back to the new normal tomorrow! And, I'm excited! I was worried that the grass wouldn't be greener. That the dream I hyped up in my head for so long wouldn't be as great as I thought. But, it's even better than I imagined. I found my home!

We made it!

We made it to Fort Myers! It was a long, long drive, but we finally made it!

Friday
It was my last day at work. I was happy that it was pretty uneventful because so many people were out for the holiday weekend already. I wrapped a few things up and left peacefully :)

When I got home, we packed up the last few things into our POD and hit the road! We decided to play the Flat Stanley game with a twist! :)

Of course, it was raining, so it was a gloomy drive. We made it to Madison, WI around 5:00 and settled in for the night.

Hidden gem: La Mestiza Mexican restaurant

Saturday
It was a very boring drive from Madison through Illinois. VERY boring and cloudy. But, I was happy to have an uneventful drive and get some more hours under our belt!

Hidden gem: Tuscan Hills Winery in Effingham, IL (We crashed a wedding! Congrats to Josh & Erin!)

 

Sunday
This was easily our best day of driving! We drove from southern Illinois through Kentucky and onto Nashville. It was only a few hours long and very beautiful. We'd never been to Nashville, so I was excited to stay downtown and explore the city.

We made the best of our day visiting the Titans stadium, the Parthenon and a few local places to hear some music.

Hidden gem: The Palm

 



Monday
This was our most stressful day of driving! We were on the road for a good 10 hours and endured the mountains in Chattanooga, Atlanta traffic and Florida rain. I was so happy when the day was over!

Hidden gem: The Florida Border!! (Not really hidden, but it felt like it when we were driving!)



 We drove a few hours from Gainsville and made it to Fort Myers on Tuesday. Since then I feel like we've had more activity than I've had all year so far in Minneapolis! We've been in the pool every day, been to the beach and unloading our POD burned quite a few calories.

It's back to work on Monday. I'm looking forward to getting back on track with our meals and figuring out my new workout plan, which will certainly include a lot of water activities and pool workouts. SO happy to be here and see my dream of living in a warm climate realized!

 

 

A celebration of life!

The past week was an eventful, emotional celebration of life! My family through a going away party for us. While I will still see my family often, it was difficult to say so long to my fabulous grandma and these three adorable faces.

I wanted to make it to Paisley Park one last time before I left Minneapolis. I hadn't been out that way in about 20 years! The memorial was amazing. AMAZING! I'm so happy I got to take part in it.

We also celebrated Charlie's first birthday without him, which was a difficult milestone. I'm ready for the 'firsts' to be over.

On the health front, I'm feeling good! I turned another year older this week. I'm so thankful that I've been mindful of my health and wellness over the last several years. I can't imagine how terrible I'd look and feel at this age if I hadn't been so diligent about nutrition and exercise for the last decade. I was on an awful, unhealthy track and I'm so thankful that I turned it around!

Also, the weather has finally improved enough to get outside and enjoy it! I made it to Target Field one last time.

I've also been taking advantage of the weather by walking all over Minneapolis this week! I will definitely miss walks along the Mississippi, but I'm so excited to stop being STATIC. There's only one more week until we move!

Getting back on track during disruptive times

Today is a great reminder about WHY I try to take great care of myself by eating well, drinking plenty of water and exercising regularly! It is so important and directly contributes to feeling well and performing at your best both mentally and physically.

I knew that my last few weeks in Minneapolis would be busy and stressful. I’m trying to pack and sell items we’re not taking with us, finish up my job, and see friends and family. Everything is hectic…and when I come home, there’s nowhere to sit and relax because I sold everything! I'm currently sitting on my friend's lawn chair because we sold our patio set on Saturday.

With this much disruption, my health is suffering a bit of disruption, too. I'm doing pretty well health-wise considering. I'm still getting in at least 10,000 steps every day and lifting weights 3-4 times every week. The weather hasn't been fantastic other than a few days here and there, but we have really been trying to grill our protein and veggies as much as possible.

That said, we ended up eating out (and drinking out) on Friday night with friends at our going away party, then again on Saturday evening for the Kentucky Derby. This is typically a big no-no for us. We ate our Saturday night leftovers last night for dinner, which I still count as "eating out" given the sodium and who knows what else the restaurant put in our delicious food.

This morning I felt bloated and lethargic. It's definitely a direct result of my nutrition (or lack thereof) over the weekend. The difference now is that I recognize how these foods affect me and I can turn it back around quickly. Before I changed my lifestyle, I would consider this type of behavior "off the diet wagon". But, now I don't act like I'm "on a diet" or "off a diet". I try to eat healthy and exercise most days. When things go a bit too far - like they did this past weekend - it's not a free pass to keep treating my body poorly. It's a wake up call to get right back on track.

Today's meals:

• Breakfast: Green smoothie and coffee
• Lunch: Kirkland turkey on wheat, fat-free cottage cheese
• Dinner: Big veggie salad and veggie farfalle
• Missed my snacks today, but I had lots and lots of water!