A comeback….

I am planning a comeback…believe it, people.

I have been in a major funk.  I have such a respect for bloggers who never give up. I have been in survival mode after taking a second job in February.  I have been finished with that for a few weeks now (it was a temporary job) but I still haven’t gotten back in my groove of exercising and eating consistently well.  I am hoping this blog will help me get back on track as well as making a serious re-commitment to my health.

 

Pray for me, and I will see you SOONer than later,

Love, Beth WA

 

 

Easter goodness.

Spring break has been great so far.  Saturday night I had my parents and my cousin over for a good old fashioned Easter bbq.  OK, not so old fashioned, but definitely called for as I hadn’t had meat in nearly 40 days.  We had burgers and beer brats.  They were delicious.

I also made macaroon type nests with mini cadbury eggs in them.  They were delicious.  I actually got them from a blog and I can’t remember which one now.  But they were adorable and delicious.  Here’s a picture.

They just consisted of toasted coconut and egg whites.  Then, you put the best Easter Candy of all time on the top.  I love the Cadbury mini eggs.

Then, Saturday morning I tried Kodiak pancakes for the first time.  They are delicious.  I added pumpkin to them, and topped them with Biscoff spread and coconut. (I love coconut.)

I hope everybody had a great Easter!!

Beth WA

Lent is almost over…

Well, I started Lent hoping that giving up meat and chocolate would make me want it less.  I’d hoped that by living without the two things I’d realize that I can live without them in my life, and I’d make all of these healthy choices in place of meat and chocolate.

But instead of meat, I ate grilled cheese and pierogies and pizzas.

And instead of chocolate I made cinnamon streusel muffins, ate laffy taffy, and butterscotch chips.

And I also realized, that I really like meat.  I don’t need it every day, but I do like it occasionally.

But, chocolate…that’s another story.

 

-Beth WA

My first blog survey

here’s the survey, read for your copy & pasting pleasure. happy answering!

A is for age: 36. : /

B is for breakfast today: egg sandwich with Munster and jelly. Yumm. O.

C is for currently craving: vegetables. I’ve been eating lots of crap lately.

D is for dinner tonight: it was actually noncrap. Tilapia. Warm kale/garlic salad. It was delicious. And mashed sweet potatoes. I will have to share the mashed sweet potato recipe because it is simple and amazing.

E is for favorite type of exercise: exercise videos and walking.

F is for an irrational fear: falling forward on cement steps and landing on my front teeth.

G is for gross food: soggy bread.

H is for hometown: I lived the first 10 years of my life in Cleveland, OH, but Springfield, OH, feels more like my hometown.

I is for something important: my family.

J is for current favorite jam: song or jelly? Ha ha. I’ve been listening to my favorite era of music lately – the 90′s. I love the song Crazy Game by Indigo Girls.

K is for kids: I’ve got none of my own. I just teach 122 each day.

L is for current location: my couch.

M is for the most recent way you spent money: groceries.

N is for something you need: new tennis shoes.

O is for occupation: teacher.

P is for pet peeve: When I am grading papers and a kid does not have their name on the paper, or they didn’t turn it in, or they just put random answers down. GRrrrrr!

Q is for a quote: Somebody who is busier than you is running right now.

R is for random fact about you: I subscribe to a LOT of magazines. I save them for the weekends in a stack that is organized with my favorite magazines on the bottom. Then, I savor them – and read my least favorite to my favorite.

S is for favorite healthy snack: sugar snap peas

T is for favorite treat: Dove chocolate

U is for something that makes you unique: I lived in California for 2 and a half years with my BFF after college.

V is for favorite vegetable: root vegetables!

W is for today’s workout: does grading papers count?

X is for X-rays you’ve had: only an ultrasound of my heart.

Y is for yesterday’s highlight: visiting with my niece, the love of my life, Ava!

Z is for your time zone: eastern. We had to spring our clocks forward an hour last night. Boo!

Have a good Monday!

Beth WA.

Egg Sandwich

I have eggs very rarely for breakfast, mostly due to time limits. Also, because I usually have a smoothie, because I can eat it on the go, and I can get lots of fruits and vegetables in it. And, it lasts a long time…which with my job, I have to go a long time between breakfast and lunch.
Also.
I suck at making eggs.

My husband, on the other hand, is very good at making breakfast. In fact when he makes his standard breakfast -eggs in a nest – he flips the “nest” just by a flick of the wrist with the pan in his hand. This kind of thing amazes me.
(I know, it doesn’t take much…)

So, this morning, I took the opportunity to have my husband make me an egg for an egg sandwich that I have seen Julie at Peanut Butter Fingers make often. It always looks delicious. Egg, jelly, and muenster cheese on bread. And it did not disappoint. It was delicious. Really delicious.
Egg sandwiches remind me of when I was a little kid. My mom used to make them for my dad, and wrap them in wax paper so it would sort of steam it, I guess.
I don’t know what it was, but the wax paper made it more delicious.

And in other news…
Jennifer Garner finally had that damn baby.

-Beth WA

Edamame Hummus

So, I’ve always liked hummus. I just have this weird thing about it’s texture. I like to dip crackers, pita, or pita chips into it, but not vegetables. I don’t know why. It’s not a flavor thing, it is definitely something with texture.
Until now.

I thought I’d try this edamame hummus, even though it was green. And I haven’t turned back. I love it with everything. Even vegetables.
But I like it best with crackers, pita and chips!
Here’s a picture. You should try it.

Also, just thought I’d pass along something delicious I had last night for dinner. I went to the grocery store to get something to eat after tutoring last night. It was late, and I wanted something quick…with no meat.
I was looking in the frozen food section for a pizza with no meat. I could only find plain cheese. No veggie. Now that I think about it, maybe they had a special Lent pizza section that I was missing.
*kidding*
Anyway, I ran into this delicious Private Selection Fire Roasted Vegetable Pizza that didn’t have a terrible ingredient list, and was only 5 points for a serving – a large serving.
Here’s a pic of the box and the pizza. I added a bit of goat cheese to mine, because I love goat cheese.

I hope everybody has a great night.
I live in Ohio and it is almost 70 degrees out!! UNSEASONABLY warm.
And sunny.
I think it is making everybody a bit more cheerful.
Off to tutoring…
-Beth WA

Tofu Fried Rice

Grr. For the first time since I’ve been blogging, I lost a whole entry. It was this entry.

I had to be mad for 2 hours (and do school work) before I attempted it again.

Ok, let’s see what I remember. I know I started it off talking about last night’s dinner. The vegetarian stuffed peppers. They turned out very well. They were spicy, flavorful, and filling. They tasted great with the mashed potatoes I served them with, and there was plenty leftover.
I was able to have one for lunch today, and my husband will be able to have one tomorrow night when I am working at my part time job.

Tonight I made this Fried Rice that I make often, with every vegetable I have in the house in a pan with fresh garlic, sesame oil, soy sauce and a bit of brown sugar. Then, I add brown rice. BUT, today, I added tiny cubes of extra firm tofu.
This is my 4th attempt at cooking tofu, and my most successful.
Since I am getting used to the texture, I think the tiny cubes helped a LOT. I wish I would’ve done that to start with. I think it helps the adjustment period with tofu.

Anyway, it felt good to eat so many veggies and fruits today, and I had way more energy. I also stayed in my WW points plus, which is the first time since I went to Vegas.
I’ve been a total wreck loose since then, and I am already feeling better with a day of success behind me.
Now, I just have to get back to the gym.
Cross your fingers I make it tomorrow night after tutoring.

Well, I will leave you with a picture of tonight’s dinner. Yummmmy.