Kale chips

I've been wanting to try to make kale chips for months, but I've been intimidated by the dehydrator.  I decided to finally go for it.  I used 1 recipe cheezy sauce for 1 large mixing bowl full of kale.  Mix well to coat, then put in the dehydrator.  Mine doesn't have variable temperature, so I just plugged it in and let it do it's thing for about 8 hours.  They are yummy.  My two year old kept begging for more.

Lemon peel

I've been enjoying this simple acid cleanser for my face.  Here's what I do: juice a lemon and store the juice in a small glass jar in the fridge.  Dip fingers in the jar in the morning and rub them on my face.  Let the juice sit on there for about 10 minutes.  Wash off in the shower or sink.  Apply moisturizer afterwards.

No Cheating February

So the holidays happened, and I got a bit off track in my eating.  I feel so much better when I eat a no dairy, low sugar diet.  It's just hard to get back to that after letting my will-power get flabby over the holidays.  No cheating February seems like a good place to start to strengthen my ability to "just say no" to foods that make me feel like crap (even though they taste oh-so-good). 

 Here's something I've been reflecting on: why do I put things in my body that I know make me feel yucky?  I've come up with some answers, but I'm curious to know if any of you (if there are any readers still out there) have had similar struggles.

Hello again, cyber world.  As I was swimming laps this morning my mind started to wander, and I began to think that this blog might be the right space to share my exercise journey in order to keep my self accountable.

I had another realization--one of the things that has been holding me back and stressing me out has been wondering if I am pregnant.  I know, it sounds weird, but we've been trying to conceive since September, and so far it's a no go.  This would be my fourth child, so I'm really okay if our family ends up consisting of the three amazing and rambunctious children we already have.  The anxiety comes from not knowing.  From not being able to plan out my next race because of the possibility I might be pregnant.

Anyway, while swimming I decided to less this anxiety go.  If  I end up forfeiting a race fee, oh well.  It's a small price for peace of mind.  I'll be thrilled if another child is in the cards for our family, but I'm going to keep setting fitness goals in the mean-time.

So here they are: swimming--swim 25 laps in 30 min.  Today I swam 24 laps in 30 minutes, but I used my zoomers for 16 laps, so I'm not as close to my goal as it seems.

running--run a 10k in April in less than an hour

biking--stretch my IT band so it doesn't kill my hip every time I ride.

yoga--do a sun salutation every day and an hour long session weekly.

strength--15 real push-ups (don't mock my wimpiness)

What are YOUR goals?

Confessions and Revival

So I need to get back on track with my eating. A couple of things derailed me. 1. I found out I was pregnant. 2. My husband was furloughed in August, so our income took a hit. I started buying the cheap stuff to save money and found myself back to eating refined sugars and flours.

Now that baby is here, I'm back to eating egg/dairy free. So I figured now is a good time to get back to better eating habits.

Here are some questions I have: 1. Is anyone else still interested in this blog? 2. Would you (contributors) mind if we had a schedule for posting things (I'm thinking that if each of us posted once/month we would get a lot of great recipes, etc.)? What are your thoughts?

Edamame Pate

Edamame Pate'(courtesy of Vegetarian Times*)

1 1/4 cups frozen shelled edamame, thawed (You can buy frozen, shelled edamame at any grocery store).
1/2 cup walnuts
1/3 cup mint leaves (packed)
1 green onion, chopped
1/4 tsp salt
3 Tbs. lemon juice
3 Tbs. water

Puree the first 5 ingredients in a food processor until finely chopped.

Add lemon juice and water then process until smooth.

I used pecans instead of walnuts, because I had them on hand and it was still so tasty. This makes a great dip for veggies or pita chips. Very light and refreshing. You can also spread on a whole wheat tortilla and stuff with fresh vegetable goodness.

Easy facial

I first saw this idea here. I blended up some oats when I made soap recently, had leftovers and decided to use them this way.

Step one: blend 1 C oats in a food processor or blender. Store in a glass jar or tuperware -like container.

Step two: Cover a small towel in hot water, wring out, then place on your face to open the pores.

Step three: Put a small amount of the ground oats in a small bowl. Add just enough plain yogurt to make a paste, then spread on your face.

Step four: Wait. 10 minutes should do it. Not longer than 15, or you can damage the skin.

Step five: wash off with warm water over the sink.

Step six: apply a toner. Mine is just a few drops of lavender essential oil in water.

Step seven: apply moisturizer. Mine is aloe vera gel (100%) mixed with a tiny bit of glycerine (which can be left out all together if your skin feels too sticky)

Ahhhhhh. It's very relaxing, yet not very time consuming, and my skin looks and feels great afterwards.