Pizza & Game Day!

After my long day at work yesterday, I guess my body needed sleep because at 11 o'clock this morning I was woken by a phone call.  On the other end was my dad wondering when I'd be out for the game.  So I jumped out of bed to put my jersey and hat on!  My father is a big Kansas City Chiefs fan, and his enthusiasm has rubbed off on me.  I loaded the dogs up for a play date at Nana and Papa's and off we were.  Thankfully, the Chiefs beat the Cardinals (sorry Cardinals fans).

Dad and me before a Chiefs game in September



For lunch we had one of our hometown favorites, Davis Brothers Pizza.  I was born in Peoria, Illinois but have moved all around, finally ending up in Arkansas (random, I know). But my great uncle brings us frozen pizza from our favorite pizza place whenever he comes to visit.  The sausage and cheese pizza definitely wasn't healthy but sometimes it's hard to resist when it's a childhood favorite.  Any hometown favorites you can't live without?

After the game it was time for work...again :( Once studying became too unbearable, I decided to finish watching, Hachi, a movie I had previously started. I do not recommend  the movie to avid dog lovers! I cried the entire time and not just a little bit.  I was bawling like a 2 year old who just had their favorite toy taken away.  I had a perfectly good reason though;  the Akita in the movie reminds me of a furrier version of my dog, Addie.  She's my best friend, and it's hard to imagine life without her.  Hachi is a very touching movie, but just be warned that crying will definitely happen!

My baby, Addie!

Now that my tears are all wiped away, I guess it's time for more studying.


What movies tug at your heartstrings and make you cry??

cold weather and running...ew

4 hours down, 11 to go. Taking a nice break from studying for my nursing final...eek. I also had some lunch which consisted of left-over Italian Pasta and green beans.  I love cooking fresh green beans with a little bit of lite soy sauce and teriyaki sauce.  Makes a good nutritious snack! 

I'm also thinking about getting into running. I've always wanted to be able to do at least a 5K, which might seem like nothing, but I have never been much of a runner.  My only problem right now is figuring out where to run.  I'm not a fan of cold weather or running so mixing the two would not go well at all.  I think a church down the road has an indoor track that is open to the public....might have to check that out! Any advice for a newbie runner?

13 hour shift...wish me luck

Woke up a little sluggish this morning because I wasn't looking forward to my 13 hour shift.  But my doggies definitely cheer me up :)

Bailee

I started by planning my meals for the day since I would be eating lunch and dinner at work.  We'll see if I make it!  I then sat down for breakfast which consisted of vanilla Greek yogurt and a banana.  Instead of granola I decided to add Quaker Multigrain Fiber Crisps to the yogurt, which was delicious!  On a side note, I've had 2 bottles of water already....off to a good start.

While I'm at work maybe I should do some office exercises:)  Any suggestions?

My Weakness

I had a little set back tonight; one I always face when I try to eat healthy.  My biggest food weakness is french fries...dun dun duh.  I'm a little embarrassed to say this, but I'm obsessed with them.  If I had to choose one food to live off of for the rest of my life, it would be potatoes hands down.  In my perfect world, every meal would consist of potatoes.  But in my new nutritious world, potatoes are my enemy.  So, back to my set back.  I had just ran out to rent a movie (Sex and the City 2 if you're curious...ha), and after passing the endless row of fast food restaurants, my craving started to kick in.  I finally gave in as I usually do.  And to be honest, they were delicious.

But now I'm left with an empty box and the guilt of eating the fries.  My next goal will be to find an alternative to the greasy fries I know consider my foe.  My first attempt will be rutabaga fries.  I'll let you know how they stack up!


Now I ask you, what food can you not live without?

Yummy Cookies:)

First, I'd like to brag a little and say that I have already drank 6 bottles of water and it's only 4. Guess that goal is going to be much easier than I expected!



Strawberry Greek yogurt w/ granola and a banana




I had to wake up early today in order to watch my nephew, so breakfast was a must. I decided to try Greek yogurt for the first time and thanks to the advice from Crazy Wife I started with strawberry instead of plain. I also put a little bit of Truvia since I didn't have Splenda. I then added granola which I have never used before, but I must admit it was delicious.

After my nutritious breakfast I headed to my parent's house where my nephew was waiting:) I enjoyed play time, but nap time was a nice break for Auntie McKenzie!

My adorable nephew

While he was napping, I was able to make Pumpkin Spice Cookies, which were ooohhhh so delicious!! I'm not a cookie fan at all, but these aren't your typical hard cookie. I was curious how they would turn out in a mini muffin pan, so I attempted to veer from the recipe (which I normally don't do as I'm not much of a baker or cook for that matter). But the results were definitely a home run. I sent some back home with my nephew so his older sister could enjoy them too! 

Thankfully, I had thought ahead and brought stuff with me to make a sandwich.  No offense to my mother, but I knew she wouldn't have any nutritious options (sorry mom!).

 I got home just in time to whip something together for my dinner since I had to bring it to work.  Italian Pasta was my choice cause it's simple yet so filling. It consists of whole wheat pasta, veggies of your choice (I used zucchini, red peppers, and carrots), chicken, and fat free Italian dressing.  It is one of my favorite meals. I just hope I can hold off a couple more hours cause it is calling my name!

Chicken and veggies cooking...yummy

Success!

I don't know if it's correct to say success since it has only been 1 day, but drinking 6 bottles of water is definitely an accomplishment for me. The downfall to this whole drinking tons of water thing is the frequent bathroom trips...womp womp.  Not an accomplishment is breaking down and eating a cupcake :( The only thing that makes me feel a little better is that I had used the egg white recipe...it's a start! As for dinner, my sandwich was delicious. The best part was the baked chips I put inside it. I love a crunchy sandwich!! That's not totally weird right?? What other ideas should I try in order to spruce up my sandwiches?

Oh, here's a pic of the cutie pie I get to watch tomorrow. I'm the luckiest Auntie :)

Assignment #1

Last night I spent a lot of time setting goals for myself and my new and improved lifestyle. It was difficult getting to sleep! One of the first "hurdles" I want to accomplish might seem so simple and easy to most people, but for me it's one of the most difficult: drinking 6-8 glasses of water a day.  I've always known it is important, but I loathe water (yes my hatred goes that deep).  If you told me to drink 6-8 diet cokes a day I'd have no problem, but water is different.  I am just a few weeks away from completing my first semester of nursing school (YAY!) and not until now do I realize how important it is to drink plenty of water. Learning about fluid and electrolyte balance made me wonder how my body is still working properly considering the fact that I drink absolutely no water! So this is why my first goal is to start drinking plenty of water.  If I can accomplish this then I can do anything:)

So far today I have drank 3 bottles of water and I'm working on my 4th. As for diet coke, I had 1 with lunch which is definitely an accomplishment on its own. Lunch also consisted of the veggie platter at a local restaurant(salad w/ light italian dressing, green beans, squash, and some apple sauce). After grocery shopping, I came home to make some cupcakes for a co-worker's birthday. This was no easy task because all I wanted to do was lick the bowl clean, but I stayed strong and refrained.  I also promised myself not to eat any, which would be easier if they would hurry up and vanish!

Since I work evening shift I had to pack my dinner, which consists of a turkey sandwhich on whole wheat bread, and a salad with fat free balsamic dressing. I brought some carrots and a banana to snack on because snacking is usually my weakness.

If you're wondering what happened to breakfast, I didn'y have any. Since I work late, I usually don't wake up in time for breakfast and just skip right to lunch.  This will be my next goal: eat a nutritious breakfast every morning. At the store today I bought greek yogurt and granola, which I'll try out tomorrow.  I will definitely need the energy since I'm baby-sitting my rambunctious 14 month old nephew tomorrow morning. Wish me luck!

They are taunting me!