veggie fest discovery

There have been many times in my life where I have been upset about the location in which I live. Don't get me wrong, I love the Chi - but its suburbs are not very veggie or allergy friendly. I can imagine my life on the beaches of California, eating at a vegan cafe and soaking up the sun. That's just my dream - unfortunately FH will not go for it.

You can imagine my excitement when I found a veggie friendly food festival today which is located in Naperville, only a 30 minute drive from me. Veggie Fest will be here August 7-8, and I am pumped! I will have just gotten back from my honeymoon - so we are making it back just in the nick of time. Veggie Fest is described as, "the largest free vegetarian food festival in the USA!" SCORE!!!

Anyone want to come?

I was boiling this morning when I woke up... on the couch.... my room was far too warm last night. Thankfully, I had something cold and refreshing waiting for me in the fridge.

i'm trying to get more creative with the breakfast photos since they are repeats most of the time...

This morning was spent running around while the kiddos were in VBS - FH and I had to go get our marraige liscence! I was feeling totally stressed out earlier today. I'm not sure why - I just had this overwhelming feeling that I wasn't going to finish everything I need to. I let myself freak out for about 10 minutes, and then I tell myself to get over it. It works like a charm every time.

Snacks this morning included some almonds and a piece of zucchini bread (which I am NOT posting the recipe for. It's just "meh" - it's really dense. Any suggestions on how to make it better?)

Lunch was spent pool side at my aunt's - I packed pb&j's for the kids, and a salad for me.

this was taken about 1/2 way through.. I got too excited.


getting in touch with my inner child

We were on our way home when we saw this....

When we got home at 3, I was ravenous! I was in major need of a snack... STAT!

chips and hummus

really delicious pink lady apple

Dinner was okay, one of my staple meals - stir fry veggies and brown rice. I love adding stewed tomatoes to my veggies - it adds a lot of flavor.

Currently I am still feeling a little snacky - I am feeling a large dessert coming on tonight. But for now, I have to go shopping with FH for ceiling fans. Yahoo!!!

Question: What is one of your favorite go to dinners?

stubborn or deaf?

That, my friends, is what my family and I have been trying to figure out for the past 11 years about my furry family member.

Meet Chagall. Chagall is a Bouvier des Flandres - not a very common dog. He is kind, loving, and we have never heard him growl all 11 years of his life. Chagall is somewhat of a pushover. He lets little dogs run all of him, and he is unaware of how big he actually is. He constantly gets in your way, then proceeds to look at you with a dumbfounded look on his face saying: "What! You're the one who ran into me!" Chagall also smells - ALOT. Chagall has allergies, causing him to constantly be scratching at his skin. Chagall and I bonded when I found out I was gluten intolerant because it just so happens that my doggie, Chagall, is allergic to wheat. He even has special "Buddy Biscuits", which are wheat free.

Chagall is a dog after my own heart. He has one obsession in life: apples.

Yes, my friends, my dog loves to eat apples.

laying at my feet

really wanting a piece of this juicy treat

sitting like a good boy (never mind my laundry in the background)

This is where this dog's stubbornness comes into play. Chagall never listens - to anyone. "Sit Chagall" "Go lay down Chagall" "Leave it Chagall!" are phrases I am very familiar with when it comes to this dog. He never listens. For a while, I thought Chagall just couldn't hear because he's getting so old. It turns out... he is just the most stubborn dog in the world.

How do I know this you ask? Chagall can hear the crunch of an apple on the other side of the house - he can hear the crunch of an apple through the floors. No - I am not joking. Before these pictures were taken, Chagall was happily sleeping in the family room. I went into the kitchen, grabbed an apple, and came up to my room. I took one bite of that baby and Chagall was up those stairs in 3 seconds flat (he doesn't let his arthritis get in the way of his apples!). You see now why this shows Chagall is just stubborn, not deaf.

I rest my case. Question: Does your pet have any weird qualities?

I have two options next. One, I could bore you with my rather dull eats today. Two, I can just share with you the best dessert I have eaten in a long, long time.

Most would agree with me when I share with them I am gluten intolerant, corn intolerant, lactose intolerant and stay away from highly processed foods or refined sugars that I would have a difficult time finding things to eat.

Good god of all that is holy, I had the best dessert ever. If you want to be as happy as I am right now, please follow these steps in a quick and orderly manner:

1. Make one of April's protein muffins (chocolate will work best). If you are vegan, replace the egg white with one half of a flax egg - otherwise it will get too liquidy.
2. Place said protein muffin at the bottom of a very large bowl - crumbling the muffin first will make this dessert even more decadent
3. Place your favorite ice cream over the protein muffin - I used Decadent Vanilla Bean - I usually do not eat ice cream out of a carton, but the stats on this are awesome. There is a bit of added sugar from agave - but nothing refined, nothing bad for you.
4. Enjoy the dessert of your dreams!
   

I know, right?

This dessert packed a punch! I'm not really a calorie counter, but for those of you that are, this was about 250 calories, but with 11 grams of protein and 9 grams of fiber! Holy cow (or coconut for that matter)!

This was rich, satisfying, and made me feel so happy. What's your favorite dessert?

"insert creative and witty blog post title here"

Sometimes, I can't think of my own titles... which is why I am letting YOU be creative to create your own. It's a win, win situation for the both of us, don't you think?

I had a fantastic day. Let me tell you why...

1. I had a delicious lunch - leftover tofu, and a huge salad topped with balsamic and hummus. Are you wondering why the hummus and balsamic are in tupperware? It leads me to #2.

2. I spent the morning lounging outside at my aunt's in the sun. Fabulous!

lunch was followed with this juicy pink lady

3. I got to spend the afternoon with the bestie. We started out by laying out in her new pool (two locations in one day? I am a sun tanning hussy!) We then got to go look around for some centerpiece things. We also acted silly....

She is probably saying, "I'm with her? Yikes!" I really just wanted my headband to stay on.. which is why it was over my ears!!!

4. I made a delicious dinner - which is unpictured. Why, you ask? I was so incredibly hungry when I got home at 7 that I needed to eat and I needed to eat FAST! There was no time for picture taking folks. It was brown rice with a crap ton of veggies piled on top (spinach, zucchini, onions, fresh basil, red pepper, garlic, and stewed tomatoes).

5. My sister and brother in law got the house they wanted to rent! They found out today after they found out my sister got a second job! Good luck is flying their way today because this means they get to go get the BIL's (brother in law) kids for good! Good things are supposed to happen in three's right? I am so excited for them. My mom, BIL and I are roadtripping it down to Savannah, Georgia next weekend to get all of their belongings out of storage and to get those kiddos. I have a feeling there is going to be a lot of babysitting in my near future. :)

6. I ended my day with a nice big bowl of chocolate banana softserve. It was topped with coconut, walnuts, and a little bit of peanut butter (because every day should end with peanut butter). This also meant I used my new Cuisinart Mini Food Processor! It was hiding in my aunt's storage room because that is where all of our new wedding gifts are!

Question: What made your day fabulous?

my afternoon/evening described in two parts

Caitling asked the question today - "how would you describe your day in two parts?" Since I already focused on the morning, I'll just hit up the rest of the day for you all! :)

Okay, so I'm kind of cheating because I want to make a sidenote to tell you how wonderful my afternoon of running around with FH was!!!! We never get to spend any time together anymore because he is suer busy with work and the house - it was awesome. Funny how excited I am that I got to run errands with him today. I'm sure that will change eventually.... But, onto bigger and better (okay not really) things!

Part 1: Listen to your body

I made a mistake today. I did not listen to my body.. at ALL! When I woke up this morning, I thought, "hmmm I really don't feel like working out. My hip hurts and I'm just not feeling it."

This is me... this afternoon.. about to embark on a run.

Unfortunately, I did not listen to my body. My run = horrible. Let me count the ways it was terrible for you:

1. It was hot and humid at 4 pm when I decided to go
2. My legs would not move as fast as my mind wanted them to go
3. My right hip hurt bad
4. My body felt "unbalanced" - kind of like my right side ws being weighed down, so I ended up lopsided and my left side had to overcompensate.

I have been getting better about listening to my body when I feel like I should just take a rest day. Unfortunately, I get super antsy, very uncomfortable, and overly anxious if I don't work out (except for Sundays - I never work out on Sundays). Last week, I listened. Sure enough, the next day I did a great 15 mile bike ride because I was rested!! This week, not so much. I'm going to pay for it tomorrow though. Whatever workout I had planned will either: a)not be happening or b) be painful.

Part 2: Food and Flowers

As I mentioned earlier today if I don't work out, I am always super hungry. Well, going for that run sure didn't stop me. I snacked so much today... almonds, raisins, crunchmaster gluten-free crackers (crack in a box - I can't give them up!), hummus, and raspberries. No, I am not joking. No, they are not pictured due to the fact that I was too busy shoveling as much food into my face as I possibly could.

So after my run, I decided to make a delicious dinner of tofu a la Emily. I made tofu her way a couple of weeks ago, and I will never turn back. Along side: baked sweet potato fries and brussel sprouts.

doesn't that look yummy?

you have no idea how good this dinner was!!!

While dinner was cooking, I went into the backyard and cut a couple of hydrangeas off of our plants! Aren't the different colors really pretty? I decided to put them into a mason jar instead of a vase because, let's be real here... mason jars rock.

I only made it an hour after dinner before I needed my snack - apple, raisins, and a peanut butter spoon. I always have peanut butter in the morning and at night. It helps to keep me full until the morning! I think that's my excuse for: "I really like peanut butter and would like to eat it 10x a day!"

Hi Caitlin!

Enjoy the rest of your night!

Question: Have you ever not listened to your body and regretted it later?

rain, rain, go away!

I had a very busy day since we last spoke (er... read?) with each other. First of all, the rain stopped. Not in time for me to run outside, but it stopped. Before I went for my wedding hair test run, I had a quick lunch.

left over "almost fallafel" chicpea balls, sauteed mushrooms and asparagus

apple, raisins, and almonds

The picture below is ALL you will see of my wedding hair until the big day. It include extensions, a viel, and a headpiece. Most brides would agree all are necessary.

horrible lighting - lo siento

I was at the hair stylist for about 2.5 hours - i LOVE my hair! I am so excited about it - we sat and chatted for a while about colors, flowers, timing, all that good stuff. The good news is we don't start hair and makeup until 11 AM on the big day! Hooray for an evening wedding! I then went over to my house to check on the progress FH was making on the floors (sidenote: althought I do love that FH is super busy at work, a rain day is good for home progress!). The floors look so good! The only thing they have left to do is the office and kitchen. I love the "putting back together" phase. It's much more fun than the demolition phase we just went through.

When I got home, I threw together a quick dinner for the madre and me. She is pretty much "couch bound" right now - she fell yesterday and sprained her ankle. The funny thing about this is she just got over an injury, and now she has given herself another one. We're pretty sure it's God's way of telling her to "take it easy for a while". She now has no choice!

in the mix: romain, grape tomatoes, cucumbers, red pepper, and red onion

pretty brown rice and stir fried veggies

I had to take a picture after I smashed the brown rice tower. I'm such a child.

It was a great dinner! I love when I eat so many veggies in one day - it makes me feel so good!

As of right now, I'm attempting to upload my next half-marathon schedule to a post. Does anyone have any tips on how to do it?

Cross your fingers that it isn't raining in the morning! I'm scheduled to go running and to the beach with friends tomorrow!

Before you leave me, you need to watch this. I swear, It gets funnier every single time. I actually was crying watching this about a half hour ago!

Question: What is your favorite commercial?