Foodie Pen Pals January!!!

Today is the day!  Yahoo!!! Time to show off what my amazing foodie pen pal sent me this month 🙂

My FPP, Candace,  was a newbie this month and she did a fantastic job 🙂

The day the package arrived was a super long day for me away from my house.  When I walked in the front door I was so excited to see it I almost forgot to give my hubby a hug!
As soon as I opened the box and saw this I knew it was going to be great 🙂

First there was a super sweet note explaining all the contents and why Candace picked each item!

Reading over the note made me mouth water!  Since it had been a long day and I still had to make dinner I dug into these amazing snax right away!  They have a great flavor and you can tell they are healthy, but I thought they were delicious!

  We also dug into these awesome treats!  I shared half with the hubby.  Yum!  I got these before from a FPP and they rock!!

I am not sure why this pic won’t turn the right way..haha opps, but no matter what direction it is this stuff is amazing!  I love cashews and have attempted to make my own cashew butter a while back, but it is not easy to transport.  This little pack was just the size I needed to take on my recent trip to Chicago.  I ate it with an apple while I waited for my delayed plane.  

I have not tried this tea yet, but it smells amazing!  I put it in my tea cupboard but I keep forgetting to try some.  (I just put a note in my phone to have some tonight!)

On Monday night this week I was able to make the quinoa spaghetti! It was so yummy!  I made some homemade sauce filled with colorful veggies (red & yellow peppers and spinach).      

Along with a great salad made from many treats found at the Farmers Market, it was a super healthy and filling meal!!!

Thank you again Candace for everything!!!!

If becoming a foodie pen pal sounds like something you would like to try, head on over to check out Lindsay’s blog.  She is the founder and creator and does a great job keeping up with it every month!  Thank you Lindsay for all your hard work!!!

Here is more specific information:

Here’s a detailed explanation of the program:

-On the 5th of the month, you will receive your penpal pairing via email. It will be your responsibility to contact your penpal and get their mailing address and any other information you might need like allergies or dietary restrictions.
-You will have until the 15th of the month to put your box of goodies in the mail. On the last day of the month, you will post about the goodies you received from your penpal!
-The boxes are to be filled with fun foodie things, local food items or even homemade treats! The spending limit is $15. The box must also include something written. This can be anything from a note explaining what’s in the box, to a fun recipe…use your imagination!
-You are responsible for figuring out the best way to ship your items depending on their size and how fragile they are. (Don’t forget about flat rate boxes!)
-Foodie Penpals is open to blog readers as well as bloggers. If you’re a reader and you get paired with a blogger, you can choose to write a short guest post for your penpal to post on their blog about what you received. If two readers are paired together, neither needs to worry about writing a post for that month.
– Foodie Penpals is open to US, Canadian residents & UK residents.  Please note, Canadian Residents will be paired with other Canadians only. We’ve determined things might get too slow and backed up if we’re trying to send foods through customs across the border from US to Canada and vice versa. So, I’m going to keep two separate lists and match US w/ US and Canada w/ Canada!

***If you’re in the UK, please contact Carol Anne from This Is Rock Salt at rocksalt@thisisrocksalt.com to get involved!

If you want to sign up for February, click HERE!

Have a happy and healthy day!

E

Chicago Weekend!

FRIDAY:
Well I made it to the airport with plenty of time. By the time I walked to my gate I was feeling hungry. I saw an organic salad bar in my terminal, so I got a salad. Friday’s #cleanstart2013 challenge was to fill your lunch plate with at least half veggies. So I got pretty much all veggies on my salad. It was really good, and I am glad I was able to get it.

Of course the flight was delayed. They kept saying we are going, nope, we are staying, we are going now, just kidding, we are staying. Ok, we are finally going now. Ha the joys of flying.

Arrived safe and sound in Chicago and it is COLD!!! I forgot just how cold it can get here.
After all my flight delays my plans for meeting friends for dinner were pushed back a bit, but I finally made it and met up with a few wonderful friends from my college days! It was so great to just sit and chat about life, memories, and the new adventures we are all on these days! These are the moments in life that I really cherish the most 🙂

Saturday was a been BUSY day!! I got up and drove up north to meet some of my cohort from grad school. Most of the group I have not seen in about 6 years!!! It was so great to sit, chat and catch up while eating at an amazing breakfast place that I have missed while being in Texas. I don’t think I have laughed that hard in a while. We were the 4^th group to go through the program, so there were certainly still many kinks they were working out. Looking back and remembering all the funny/challenging stories of what we went through together certainly was fun and reflective.
Thanks girls for meeting up! We better not wait 6 more years to do this again.

After breakfast I drove back to the H house and waiting for my lovely friend Kari to arrive. She was so sweet and drove several hours from Indiana just to spend a few hours with me. It was really sweet and I am so glad I was able to see her gorgeous face! We went to lunch and Target. I am so thankful for her, and the friendship we have had the past 12.5 years! These are the kind of friends that everyone needs to have 🙂

Love you Kari!

We had a fun lunch and the food was amazing! It was one of the best salads I have tasted in a while 🙂  Although I was a little bummed when I looked up the nutrition information.

 

Since I have been blessed to stay at the H house several times, I took the opportunity to babysit the 3 H kiddos while mom and dad had a little party to go to. We had so much fun. We made pancakes and all 3 kids helped me make the batter. After making each kid a pancake in the shape of the initial of their first name, they think I am a professional pancake maker! It was hilarious 🙂
We had a nice dinner, and then played shoots and ladders before we headed to bed. It was such a fun evening! I was so glad I had a chance to hang out with A, C, and K 🙂 They are such fun kids!

Sunday was wedding day! I woke up to some wonderful smells coming from the kitchen. Katie had prepared this amazing looking french toast on Saturday afternoon to bake Sunday morning. Everyone helped prepare breakfast and with setting the table. It was a small feast. The AMAZING french toast that pretty much melted in my mouth, yummy eggs, turkey bacon and orange juice! It was such a treat to sit down to breakfast with an amazing family!

I went to church with Katie and little A and helped out with the Sunday school lesson. After church I had to get my stuff together to head out to get my makeup done and to get some different shoes.  Katie and the kiddos were leaving soon after I did, so I had to say goodbye to them before I left for the wedding!

I was just going to try to pick up a pair of non-flats at Payless. I plugged the info into my GPS and headed on my way. Little did I know the GPS was taking me to Payless Liquor, NOT Payless Shoes. Ha! Oh well. I didn’t have time to be driving all over creation looking for the right place so I happened to be driving by a Wal-mart and just ran in and grabbed a pair. Looking back, I should have just skipped that thought all together and just stuck with my flats!
I finally arrived at Angela’s house and started to make her and her hubby some of my famous mashed potatoes! I used to make them all the time for her when we were roommates back in the day! So she had been waiting a LONG time to have this tasty treat 🙂
While the potatoes cooked A went to town on my face! I have come a long way with wearing makeup. I still don’t have a clue half the time what I am doing, but now I own eyeliner and black mascara, so I guess I am making steps in the right direction 🙂
Of course, Angela did an amazing job. She is a rock star 🙂 I am so thankful for good friends who can help me look my best for important events like this wedding.

Wedding Time!!

Well it was SUPER cold out on Sunday and my winter coat didn’t really go over the dress and shall very well, so as I walked from the car to the church I was freezing! Of course this is usually the coldest weekend of the year in Chicago. The weather on Saturday was actually not to bad, and was almost 50 degrees and sunny. On Sunday it was 15 but felt like 3 degrees. I can not believe I managed to live in this weather for so many years. I am so not made for cold weather!!!!

The wedding was beautiful! I am so thankful I was able to be here for this special day for one of my best friends! The only awkward part was besides the bride and groom, I didn’t really know anyone except for a few family members of the groom. At the actual wedding, I didn’t talk to anyone except the groom who I saw for a few minutes before the ceremony started. It was short and sweet and to the point. I really liked the bridesmaid dresses and what they were carrying. The were holding little mini lantern like lights with some flowers inside! So pretty and in all the weddings I have been to, I have never seen anything like it before 🙂

  

The reception was a lot better. I was able to connect up with the groom’s family and we chatted and caught up. I have not seen them in years, so it was great to see everyone 🙂

   

I hung out for a while and then decided it was time to go back to the H house so I could do a load of laundry and pack. As soon as I was packed again I took a shower and went to bed.
Got up about 6:30 and finished getting ready. It was even colder out than it had been on Sunday. I can’t remember the last time I was in below zero weather. YUCK! I am so glad I don’t have to deal with that kind of weather on a daily basis. There was also a dusting of snow on the ground. Enough snow and cold for me for a LONG time.

The flight home was delayed for maintenance issues. I was not really surprised. I think I can count on one hand the number of times a flight has had no issues. And I have flown a LOT!

Finally made it home and back to my babies!!! I missed them! As soon as I walked in the door they were reaching for me and wanting me to hold them. What a blessing to have such a great job!

Workout Review

Workouts for January 13-18
Well, this week was pretty good with my workouts! I was really proud of myself for pushing it and getting in some sort of workout Sunday-Thursday (Friday if you count the almost 2 miles I walked in the airports).
Here is a little recap:

Sunday: I went to the gym and knocked out week 5, day 3 of my 5k training plan. In 31 min I did 2.3 miles. Averaging 13:29 min mile. It was a little challenging since I have been out of running longer times, but I was happy that I did it. It was a great start to the week and it helped after taking Saturday off from the gym. I also did some major organizing and cleaning at home, so that blasted even more calories.

Monday: Zumba was tonight! I am finding that I am beginning to get more comfortable with some of the moves and I don’t feel like I am a complete idiot the entire class. The instructor is so sweet and encouraging and I really have enjoyed her instruction. 🙂

Tuesday: Another day of 5k training. Week 6, day 1. I have started doing some sprints after the completion time with the training program that will hopefully help get my pace a bit faster. I completed 3.2 miles in 43 minutes. Averaging 13:26 min pace.

Wednesday: This was an easy workout day. Just 15 min on the elliptical and then I did leg weights.

Thursday: The weather finally cleared up from all the rain and I got to take the babies out for a nice long jog/walk. In 48 min we went 3.25 miles. The trail we went on was full of hills, so the pace was a LOT slower than I have been running. My focus for this day of week 6, day 2 of 5k training is to gain more endurance. The official training run was only 33 min, and I managed to do about 2.10 miles in that time. Overall my average pace was 14:45.
A wonderful reason I love running with the twins is that they think they are going fast! They love it and have a blast, which helps the time go faster.

Friday: Walking in the Houston and Chicago airports…

I did not really planning to get any workouts in during my weekend in Chicago. I didn’t even bring my workout gear with me on the trip, which is HUGE for me. I always get at least some sort of workout in when I am traveling. My plan was to just enjoy the time I have with my friends. I feel this is just one more step in the right direction in terms of my continued recovery.

Back to the blog!

Hello everyone!  It has been an eventful few weeks, and I have not been doing that great at keeping up with the blog.  I have been working on getting home internet, which will help a TON, but have run into some issues along the way that root back to my identity theft.  Since my identity was stolen I can not even begin to count the hundreds of hours I have had to spend on the phone for simple reasons, such as getting the internet hooked up.
This is what happened in a nutshell last Friday: I called to finally have proper internet at our house…and according to the agent I spoke with everything was all ready to go, even after I alerted her that my identity had been stolen and they would probably need to verify it was really me. Several minutes after hanging up thinking that everything was a-ok, I receive and email saying that they were not able to process my order and to call them. So I called and a fraud specialist came on the line to say I needed to call (#A) and give them the correct information. So I call #A and they give me #B to call. I call #B and it is just an automated system with lots of options that I do not need. So I call #A back to see if they can help me. The next agent I spoke to said #A was incorrect and to call #C. So I call #C, and what do you know, it is a recording to tell me to call #B!!! So I call #A again, and get a different agent, and after I explain I already called #B and #C, he says that those are wrong and to try to call #D (M-Th) or #E (Fri). So I call #E and it gives me an automated message with a NEW number to call, #F. I call #F and it is the same automated system from #B with a bunch of information that is NOT helpful to my situation. Can we say ANNOYING!

I eventually look up the company and they have a location here in Houston and so I call them, hoping to at least get a real person on the phone! After another lovely automated system, I finally reach a real person and I am transferred several times before I actually reach a person who can answer my question. After ALL that I need to submit my request in writing and mail it to GA!!!!!!! AHHHHHHHHH

Speaking of identity theft, two weekends ago my car was broken into!  Ahhh again.  Not a fun experience at all! Not cool robbers, not cool.
  
So, needless to say, it was not a fun middle of the weekend.  I was at a birthday party for a sweet 2 year old.  My car, along with one other car were broken into.  Such a huge pain.  I rarely carry a purse, but this day it had been pouring down rain and so I actually had one.  Once I arrived at the party it had stopped raining and I figured I didn’t need my purse then.  When I realized the window had been smashed in, I saw that my purse (and two new umbrellas I had just bought at Target) was missing!!! AHHH.  Right away I was on the phone with the bank canceling my cards.  In the few minutes from the robbers taking the purse and me calling the bank they managed to buy a tank of gas.  Everything else was canceled before they did any more damage.  I didn’t have any cash, just my license, a few gift cards and some random club cards and library cards.
Overall it was just a huge pain to get everything replaced.

My words of wisdom from this experience:
1. Don’t leave your purse/bag in the car, no matter how safe the area.
2. Have phone numbers for financial institutions you have cards with (banks, credit cards, etc) in your phone.  It makes it so much easier to call and have the current cards canceled and new ones sent.
3. When getting a quote for a replacement window, call multiple places and also find out from your insurance has any deals.  Even though my deductible was too high, I got a price through my insurance agency for a fraction of the price from the same company who wanted to charge me an arm and a leg.
4. Breath! As much of a pain as it is to deal with all of this, I am SO thankful that no one was hurt at the party.

If anyone has any more questions regarding stolen information or identity theft, let me know.  I am somewhat of an expert these days.

Well, that’s all folks 🙂

~Esther~

Back to the Gym :)

Well I am back in the groove. After taking some time off from the gym over the holidays, I am back! It was a bit of a challenge to actually go after work. I was SO tired from not sleeping well for the past few weeks and spending 10 hours with the twins. Last night as I pulled into the parking lot it was packed! Then I remembered that it was the beginning of January so of course many new faces would be there.
I ended up getting back on track with my 5k training. The Color Run is a month away and I really want to be able to run the entire way and be faster than I have been lately. My best 5k time ever is 31 min. I know that is not stellar, but I am not a fast runner. No matter what I do I can not seem to break that 10 min mile. So hopefully with a massive amount of weight loss this year I will finally be able to run that pace for more than a few minutes. The last few run/walks I have done I have had about a 13:30 min mile pace. I still get frustrated at that number. I have many friends who run much faster than that and at times it makes me annoyed when they think they are slow when they run faster than a 10 min mile. So if that is you, sorry, but that is just how I feel. Probably something I need to get over. However, when I am able to run a consistent 10 min pace I will not feel I am a slow runner anymore. I don’t have any ambitions to run like the olympic runners, but a 10 min mile pace is my first goal this year!
Yesterdays workout was 35 min and I accomplished 2.41 miles. This included a warm up and cool down. My first mile was 13:30, and my second mile was 12:50. So slowly improving. Then I lifted weights. I did some leg lifting and a bunch of abs. By the time I arrived home I was ready to pass out. Dinner and a shower needed to happen, and I needed to do laundry. Such an exciting evening.

I really want to start working out in the mornings when I can. Especially the days when I don’t have Zumba or yoga. It would be nice to have a little more time in the evenings to get projects and normal day to day tasks around the house finished. Lately it seems like I have such limited time at home that is not sleep time. I need to reorganize my kitchen, redo my office, and the closet in my office, and put away all the Christmas presents and decorations. So many days I wish I had a house keeper who could come help me. Working 60+ hours a week and trying to stay on top of working out, household chores, shopping for healthy food and cooking, cleaning, spending quality time with my husband can be exhausting at times. Add no sleep to all that and I am ready for another vacation.

Happy for the health challenges for today!
Elf 4 Health: Eat at least 3 food groups at every meal
Clean Start 2013: Track water intake

Well hope everyone has a great day!

2013 Goals

Happy New Year friends!  Hard to believe that another year has come and gone.  In the words of my Great Aunt Doris, “Time just goes faster the older you get.” She is a wise woman 🙂

For 2013, I have decided that there are 13 goals I would like to achieve.

1. Clean eating.  Incoorpoate more gluten free eating into my diet.
2. Participate in at least 12 races.
3. Add 2 new recipes a month to my cooking
4. Read the entire Bible through and increase my prayer life.
5. Read one book a month from my massive collection of unread books.
6. Be off all medications and medicate with natural products/clean eating.
7. Start juicing at least 3 times a week.
8. Complete a triathlon.
9. Reach my weight loss goal.
10. Break a 10 min mile.
11. Make new friends.
12. Write at least 3 blog posts per week!
13. Do at least one activity a month that helps me relax (pedicure, massage, extra sleep, etc)

Well there you have it.  Goals that cover many areas of my life 🙂
Now that they are out there in cyber space I can have accountability with them!

Hope everyone is enjoying the beginning of 2013!!

Be Blessed

~E~