Pretend "Health" Food

I love my job.  I do, truly.  It allows me to be creative, love people, inspire, educate, and shape the future.

That being said.....I also love snow days.  I know people think as a child they are great, but they are 

b-e-y-o-n-d great as an adult.  Seriously.  

So, today I created a new recipe!!!!!!!!!  I know, if it weren't for the snow and ice, the world would not have this recipe.  This is the first recipe on this blog that I feel real ownership over.  Yes---I did base the recipe off of SkinnyTaste.com's "Chewy Low Fat Banana Nut Oatmeal Cookies".  But I added a few one of my own things and I feel like I can claim it!  (Maybe I am breaking major copyright laws.  Don't sue me.  You will pay more in legal fees than I am worth.)

So I was making SkinnyTaste.com's cookies because of this little situation.  

Walmart BRUISED my perfectly-good bananas last Saturday.
They were yellow when I bought them.  By the time I traveled the
5 minutes home, they were brown and spotty.  No good Walmart.  No good.
But I couldn't let them go to waste!

So I made the Banana Nut Oatmeal Cookies without the nuts (I didn't have them!).  They were definitely delicious in a healthy--I am not completely blowing my diet--sort of way.  I would almost consider them in-line with a granola bar.  You know, not a total sweet snack, but a sweet-ish snack.  Well after I made them, I had half a banana and 1 tablespoon of butter left.  So I thought, maybe I'll half the batch and make more.  THEN I had a creative moment.  Or maybe I just wanted to make the sweet-ish snack a teeny-little-bit sweeter.  So I scavenged the cabinet and found chocolate chips AND peanut butter.  

Duh.  Solution.  

Peanut Butter Banana Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies

Here's my recipe:

Peanut Butter Banana Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies (PB/BO/CC cookies for short)

-1/2 C. flour

-1/2 tsp. baking powder

-1/4 tsp. baking soda

-1/4 tsp. cinnamon

-1 Tbsp. butter, softened at room temperature

-1/4 C. sugar

-1/4 C. brown sugar

-1 egg (Well you can't half an egg, so I didn't put all the egg white in)

-1/8 C. mashed banana (This is about a third of a small banana)

-1/4 tsp. vanilla

-1 C. old-fashioned oats

-3 Tbsp. peanut butter (I used natural peanut butter)

-1/4 C. chocolate chips

The ingredients.  I forgot the peanut butter though!
And, no--this isn't a blog sponsored by Great Value brand food.

1.  Whisk the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt and cinnamon in a medium bowl.  

2.  In large mixing bowl, use mixer to cream together butter and both sugars.  Add egg, mashed banana, and vanilla.  Mix until combined.  

3.  By hand, stir in flour mixture.  Add peanut butter and stir in.  

4.  Add oats and mix by hand.  Then, add chocolate chips.  

5.  Drop on sheet and cook for 10 minutes at 350.  I rotated my cookie sheets at the halfway mark.  

6.  EAT!!!!!!!!!  

This recipe made 18 cookies.  You could easily double it to make more cookies.  Still use one whole egg if you are doubling it.  

Here are a few more tips and pictures!  

I used my Pampered Chef Mix & Chop to mash the banana.  Great idea Chris H!

I used my Pampered Chef cookie scoop for this mix.  It's definitely TOO sticky
to do by hand.  But, a large soup spoon will do the trick just fine too.  Unless
Pampered Chef wants to start sponsoring my blog, then definitely only use their
medium cookie scoop.  ;)

Pretty delicious!!!!!!!

Now I will say these aren't your I-am-CRAVING-sugar-and-I-need-a-freaking-delicious-amazing-awesome-rich-decadent cookie.  These are your I-am-craving-sugar-and-I-need-just-a-little-hint-of-sweetness-peanut butter-chocolate cookie.  And I don't too think they are too terribly unhealthy.  Only 1 tablespoon of butter and a cup of sugar is pretty awesome for a cookie!  

Let me know what you think!!  

Original recipe:

http://www.skinnytaste.com/2011/04/chewy-low-fat-banana-nut-oatmeal.html#more 

Veggie Hater/Island Lover

I am a former picky eater.  And I don't know that I am totally recovered.  If it looks weird (i.e., green, orange, etc.), has an off smell, or is something I have never eaten before...my inner 3-year old goes "ewwwwwwwwwwwwwwww."  I know, it's horrible.  Well with my running, I have been reading a lot of Runner's World and other running articles and apparently runners are supposed to eat healthy.  I know, right?!  Annoying.

So I have been branching out.  Over the past year, I have added celery, asparagus, carrots, green peppers, red peppers, broccoli, and green beans to my regular eating.  I would on occasion eat this BEFORE.  But like 3 bites, and I would have been done and moving on to the cheese.  I try to eat my 3-4 servings of veggies a day.  Sometimes I don't like it.  Sometimes I choke it down.  Sometimes I repeat to myself "I'm doing something good for my body" like the entire time I am chewing.  Especially for carrots.  I hate carrots.  But every now and then I eat it and it's delicious!  And I sing to myself "This is good for my body!  This is good for my body!"

Being a busy and lazy person, I know if the veggies aren't readily accessible I will totally reach for a cookie because it's fast.  So each weekend I do my bargain shopping where I find the cheapest veggies in the local ads (I check out about 4 of them) and go to Walmart and do their price-match guarantee.  Then I prep!  It only takes about 45 minutes to prep all these veggies and they last all week (sometimes longer if I do, by mistake, reach for a cookie)! 

Veggies ready to prep.  Asparagus, carrots, green beans, red & green peppers, broccoli 

Step 1:  Wash all the veggies.  While this is happening boil water in 2 pots.  (About 1 inch of water in each pot.)
Step 2:  Begin to steam/boil carrots on medium heat.  (I HATE carrots and this is the only way I can eat them!)  I steam the carrots for 35 minutes so they are nice and mushy!
Step 3: Cut the broccoli and begin to steam.  I steam the broccoli for 20 minutes.  

Step 4:  While the broccoli and carrots are on the stove steaming, cut the asparagus woody (the white part) end off.
Step 5:  After putting asparagus on cookie sheet (put parchment paper on it for easy clean-up!), drizzle a little olive oil, and sprinkle salt and pepper.  This time I added Mrs. Dash Garlic & Herb---yum!

(Step 5)

Step 6:  Bake asparagus at 350 for 12 minutes.  While this is happening, chop the ends off the green beans.  (This is also typically where I throw in a load of laundry!)  You might also have time to cut the peppers.  I seriously had to look up a video on you-tube for how to cut a pepper!  I cut mine in strips.

Step 7:  Take asparagus out of the oven.  Preheat oven to 425.  **At this point, the broccoli is done so turn the heat off of that.**  Put the asparagus in a container and use the same baking sheet and parchment paper (reduce/reuse/recycle) for the green beans.  Drizzle olive oil, Mrs. Dash, pepper, and salt on the green beans.  Put in oven at 425.  Bake for 10 minutes, then shake the pan and bake for another 5 minutes.

(Step 7)--While these are baking, you can finish up cutting the peppers, begin putting veggies into containers to refrigerate for the week, or cleaning the kitchen.  

Veggies are done!  Ready to reheat for lunches and dinners for the week!

j

The goal is that I would reach for these veggies BEFORE something else.
I might need to wash it down with a Corona too though.  :)  

On a completely unrelated note, I got a kitchen island from IKEA and did a bit of a flip on it!!  Here is what it looked like in the store.

Bekvam Kitchen Cart $59.99 at IKEA

Here is MINE!  My dad stained it with a dark wood and added a towel rod (also from Ikea).  

My dad put the dark wood stain on before even putting it together.  He also added the towel rod.  He then put a clear polyurethane coating on it to protect it from spills.  (Like when your friend spills Corona on it....)

The kitchen with the rockin' island!  

So pretty much it's been super exciting here for me!  I am eating my veggies and enjoying my new island.  :)  I am also a little injured from running so I have been trying to take it easy.  It's REALLY hard to not run, but I know that my knee needs to heal or it will just keep getting worse.  It needs to feel better STAT because I have got a half marathon in like 10 weeks!!

Let me know what you think of my IKEA flip and my veggie prep!  I'd love ideas to streamline it more!

Furniture Fashion

Sometime in my life around the age of 12, I discovered the Pottery Barn catalog.  I am sure I was their only 12-year old subscriber   But anyway, I have pretty much always loved looking at those catalogs.  I love how classic, chic, and homey it looks.  It looks beautiful but livable at the same time.  Dream home stuff.

Well as the 25-year old "adult" that I am now, I realize that Pottery Barn is DANG EXPENSIVE.  Seriously, who can afford $200 for a dining room chair?  If I were ever able to afford that stuff, I don't think I would let anyone use the furniture.  (Or more likely, I would have ONE really nice Pottery Barn chair and the rest would be folding chairs!  Classy, right?)  Maybe, I'm just cheap.  But I still love the look of Pottery Barn.

As I've stated before, I frequented the "auction scene" this fall.  I found quite a few things that in my mind, look like Pottery Barn.  Classic.  Chic.  Maybe a little dusty.  (You might disagree, which is fine.  I'll live my PB fantasy in my head.)  My auction tips are:
1.  Get there early to scope it out.
2.  Get yourself a donut to make sure you have enough calories in your body to think clearly.  Hot chocolate is helpful too.
3.  Find what you like.  Look for well-made and quality workmanship.  If you like modern lines, look for modern lines.  I like classic and traditional and have looked at thousands of PB catalogs so I kind of know the look I am going for, so that's what I look for.  Don't be scared by an ugly wood finish or a paint color you don't like.  These things can be changed!  Be creative!!
4.  Once you have found something you like, REALLY look at it.  Open the drawers, look underneath it, etc.
5.  Decide your "top price" that you will pay.  You have to STICK to this so really think about it.  Questions to ask yourself that help you determine your top price include: "Do I need this?"  (My answer is always yes!)  "Where am I putting this?"  "Do I need to revamp the furniture in anyway?"  If the answer to that question is yes, consider the cost of that when figuring out your top price.

So here is a dresser that I had purchased at an auction for about $15.  This auction really had nothing else except this dresser.  It was a rose among thorns (i.e., junk!).  Also, I didn't really think about HOW to get it home.  I totally had to ride in the passenger side seat WITH my mom also in it.  It was a long 20 minute drive.

One of the wooden knobs was missing.  Also the wood finish
wasn't great looking.  

Step 1:  Degloss.  This probably wasn't totally necessary, but
it did get some of the gross stuff off the wood.  

Step 2:  Begin wiping on the stain with a cloth or rag.  I chose a really
dark stain.  It's important to stain it in a horizontal position so that the
stain doesn't "run."  

Step 2 (continued):  The one on the top has the stain.  The bottom
is the old finish.  

Step 2 (continued):  Staining the sides

Step 3:  Wipe on a polyurethane coating to seal the stain into the wood.  Do
this at least 24 hours after you have stained so the stain is "set."  See that scratch on the
bottom left?  That's what happens when you put too much polyurethane on.  My dad
later informed me that it is NOT like frosting a cake.  He had to sand it out and re-stain it.
Isn't he great?

Finished product!!  My dad had the idea to use the extra knobs
that we had leftover from the kitchen reno instead of the wooden
knobs that were with it!  

                                       

Excuse my not-great-picture taking skills.  It's late and I'm tired.
What do you think though?  I am not totally sold on the mirror being
white.  The old homeowners had left it and was a nice 90s gold.  The
white is much better but it's very whiiiiiiiiiiiiiite.

I'll update soon, I promise!  I have a couple of thoughts for my next entry.  It might be my recent bargain-grocery shopping adventures or maybe an update on my hallway!!!!!!!  We'll see!!  

A Hint of Self-Control?!

So last I posted I updated on my resolutions.  I said the "no sugar for one day a week" was really, really, REALLY hard.  And it was.  I do not lie.  Apparently sugar is like crack to me.  I crave it to the point that that is all I can think about.  It is a wonder I am not 3000 pounds.

Anyway, I made this resolution because I really wanted to get a handle on this addiction and learn some self-control.  I never want to be one of those people that says, "Oh no, I can't eat that because I am on a diet."  But I do want to be a person that can have some self-control and recognize when they don't NEED something.  Or maybe just be able to stop at ONE cookie.  Instead of 9.

I just wanted to give a little status update on that because I think today I had a big moment!!  Maybe.  Although, it all crash and burn tomorrow.  I was looking for a pre-workout/after-school snack.  I so badly wanted a cookie.  They were sitting on the counter, just looking at me, saying "EAT ME!  EAT ME!  YOU NEED ME!"  But I knew I would want a cookie (or two) AFTER dinner too.  So I made a good choice and decided to eat an apple INSTEAD of a cookie.

Just so you know, I totally ate the cookie later.  I actually ate 2.  Whatever.  I had self-control for a little bit.  

Resolution & Renovation Updates

Hello all!  I am writing to update about my resolutions and "debut" my kitchen pictures!  My kitchen is DONE!!

We'll start with the boring stuff first.  Feel free to scroll down if you only want to look at pictures.  Just keep in mind that I am cursing you in my head because looking at pictures and not the words IS CHEATING.  At least that's what I tell my students.  You are just cheating yourself out of becoming a better reader.  I assume y'all can read though!  So skip if you must.

Here's the resolution reminders...
1.  Run a half-marathon.---We've had some bizarre weather in Ohio.  I continue to run inside 3-7 miles at the Y depending on the day.  I was able to run 10.77 miles on a beautiful day on Saturday!  So I'm working it.  Not tellin' my time though...  
3.  Go one day a week with NO SWEETS.  I AM STRUGGLING HERE.  Today is my no sweets day and seriously all I want in the entire world is a cookie.  This will be week 3 and day 3 of it and I know it will benefit me later!  BUT STILL I WANT A DANG-GONE COOKIE.  
4.  Work on my abs and legs.  I have been doing the machines at the Y and my favorite pilates instructor added some inner thigh stuff at my request.  Also, each morning since January 1 I have spent about 5 minutes stretching, doing sit-ups, push-ups, and plank.  I look pretty cool doing it in m penguin PJs.  Be jealous.  
5.  Lose 5 pounds.  (Khloe)  We are walking more and I am trying to feed her less.  
6.  Pay off my Sears credit card.  I made a $50 payment this month and plan to make another next pay too.  I don't know I am going to make the May goal though.  :/

.....DRUM ROLL....KITCHEN UPDATE!!

Just a reminder as to what the kitchen looked like before.  Patriotic theme.  Red.  White.  Blue.  Go America.  Old Glory.  ICK.  

Before.

Progress.  My dad took all the cabinet doors off and labeled each one so he knew what was what.  

Taking Old Glory down.  But look, another border!  

You can see the soffet is painted and part of the cabinet base is painted.  

Notice, the cabinets are just builder's grade cabinets.  Totally flat on the front.  On Pintrest, I saw all these great ideas about adding molding to the front of the cabinet.  So after a lot of convincing, my dad agreed to do the labor!  Here were his steps.  

1.  Take cabinet off wall.
2.  Degloss cabinet with deglosser.  This eliminates the sanding step and helps the paint to really "stick."  
3.  Add molding with Elmer's wood glue.  Secure with clamps.  Let sit for at least 24 hours.  Fill in any gaps between wood with wood caulk.  
4.  Paint one side.  Dry Completely.  Do a second coat.  Then paint the other side with the same process.  We used Sherwin Williams ProClassic because all the blogs recommended that.  It supposedly can deal with the wear 'n tear cabinets naturally get.  
5.  Add door handles and pulls.  I purchased these from the Home Depot in the bargain bin.  The handles were $1.50 and the pulls were $1.99 each.  I think they were Martha Stewart brand.  

Dad's supplies.  

My dad added the molding.  They were $1.99 for 4 ft. of poplar board.

My dad likes to make sure things are secure!  He let them sit like this for 24 hours.  

FINISHED PRODUCT.....

Cabinets!
My mom made the Roman Shades with fabric from JoAnn's.  

Close up of the cabinets.  What do you think?
You can see the added flat molding on the door and the new pulls.
My dad added the mini-crown molding on the bottom too.  

Roman Shade by Mama!  What do you think of that light?
It came with the house.  It's not awful, but something might be better....

Close-up.  

I love the handles and pulls!

Other side of the kitchen!  You can see the aluminum sheet my dad added
to the left above the oven to prevent splashing.  

My favorite corner to stand and spill stuff at.  

The white tile was with the house.  You can barely see where we painted over the Old Glory
border.  One day I might add 2 rows of subway tile to really cover it up.  My dad hates tile work though,
so I'll need a new contractor!  :)  

My pull-out trash can.  Bargain find from dad.
Don't you love how I took out the trash for you?

Pull out kitchen-cleaning supplies under sink.
Dad installed!

My dad found this wooden drawer that didn't quite fit for $5.
He added  2X4s on the side to make it fit.  

Another drawer by dad!

So from this.....

To this....
I lived with the open-concept kitchen for a lot of weeks.
It was great.  I always knew I didn't have any food.  :)

FINAL PRODUCT!!
The walls/soffet are Sherwin Williams Gateway Gray.
The cabinets are SW Dovetail in ProClassic.  

What do you think?  I am totally in love with it.  Like I said I would love to add some accent tiling eventually and maybe a new light.  But that can wait for now.  I got really lucky with the counter tops matching being really neutral and matching perfectly.  I don't totally love the floor.  It seems cheap to me.  But for now, it works.  

Now, we are working on painting the trim and doors in the hallway.  And finishing up the living room totally.  It's 95% done.  My reupholster-er (i.e., Mom) is still working on a chair.  

I'll keep you updated, but I'd love to know what you think of my kitchen!

Purple Progress

Hey there.  I was sick today and couldn't go into work so I pretty much feel like a unproductive shlup.  (I guess shlup isn't a really word, who knew?  Oh well, I am keeping it.  It's my blog.)  I hate being sick and hate missing school.  I just knew I couldn't give my kids my best if my head and body were aching.  Still though, I worried all day and imagined what they were doing every hour.  And worse, I couldn't go running which means 0 miles in 2013 since this head cold started on New Years Eve.  I think I am getting to be a little obsessive about this running thing.

I thought my productive thing for today could be an update on that dreaded purple wall.  I had already taken pictures so I can type from my horizontal position on the couch.  Here we go!

Remember that horrible purple accent wall mistake?  Remember how I cried and sobbed over $30 of wasted paint?  Remember how my sweet dad tried to comfort me but to no avail?

Dad starting to paint the wall.  

He stopped at this point because I was SOBBING.

I don't think these pictures even do the purple justice.  Seriously it was like MAGENTA.  We have all heard of hot pink right?  This was like hot magenta!  But it really just looked like a hot mess.

So it was back to the drawing board.  I considered just painting everything grey to match the rest of the walls in the living room.  But that made me sad.  I love grey but I really wanted an accent wall/hallway that was bright and different.  Grey is not different.  Grey was the color of the rest of the room!  

I looked into like 400 different paint samples and a very nice lady at the local Ace Hardware tried to help me.  Eventually I settled on another purple that was actually the purple I originally wanted to go with.  I thought it would be too dark originally.  So I took the risk.  It's Expressive Plum from Sherwin Williams but its Behr Eggshell finish from Home Depot.  (You should know that when I got to the store, I STILL looked at colors for like 35 minutes just to make sure I was totally sure.  THEN I talked to the paint ladies for another 25 minutes about what I wanted to do.  THEN my dad talked to the paint ladies for another 5.  THEN they started to mix the paint.)  

Home Depot can match any color.  It's also a little cheaper than Sherwin Williams.  (Not that I don't love Sherwin Williams, but I had a gift card to Home Depot from my cousin Nina---thanks Nina! so that's what I used it for!)  So I brought in the Expressive Plum sample from Sherwin (my dad keeps calling them Shermin, so funny!).  

Here is Home Depot's first attempt.

The first time the Home Depot lady tried it, she and I were in agreement that it wasn't quite right.  At first she had just used the computer to match it.  On the second try, she scanned my color card from Shermin :) in her color match system.  This worked better.  

Second attempt.  You can see the difference already.
Less of that BRIGHT red.  

I wasn't totally sure it was right.  But then the paint lady stuck her finger in the paint and painted it on my paint sample.  She then dried it with a hair dryer and it looked exactly like it was supposed.  (Paint ladies are SUCH risk takers.  I never would have stuck my finger in a gallon of paint!)

So then my dad painted the purple on the wall.  (He doesn't let me paint....)  At first I wasn't too sure about it.  (I know again....)  But I googled purple paint and it said it deepens over a whole week.  It's been like a month now and I LOVE it.  It did deepen slightly.  Or maybe I just got used to it.  Whatever.  

Purple wall!!  And some artwork by me.  

Looking down the hall.  At first I was worried that the purple would be too dark.
But I took this picture at night, and I don't think it's too dark!  

Here's a sneak peek to what we are working on now.  My dad is still working on painting the rest of the living room grey.  Since he's been sick it's kind of on hold, which is okay since I just want him better.  He is also working on painting the trim and the doors white.  They are all a medium wood tone right now and very '60s-ish.  

I'll give you a glance at the before so you can remember what the living room looked like......

Before.  It was a tan color.

In progress.....but looking good!  (Note, this is not the same wall but it is the same room.)

The white trim makes a huge difference.  I can't wait until the rest of the house has it too!  But I think I'll be waiting a while!  

One more picture....because I am just a little obsessed.  

The red buffet stand was an auction find ($45), as are most of the accessories.
The stained glass window was from my parents' basement.  They bought it years ago and never used it.

The kitchen is almost finished too!  But I'll make you wait on those pics!  

Goodnight!  It's 8:46 and I am off to bed!

2013 Resolutions

I know some people think that having resolutions is dumb and that "no one ever keeps them."  But I don't think it's dumb.  I think it's very important to set goals for oneself and to reassess them and see how that goal is going.  I consider resolutions to be goals and I like setting goals.

Last year my resolution was to not eat from the school cafeteria.  I accomplished that!  No more unhealthy foods!  It saves me calories and money!

So here are my 2013 resolutions/goals for myself.

2013 Goals & Resolutions
1.  Run a half-marathon.
I am already working on training for this goal.  I don't have a "dream time" either.  I just want to finish.  Who knows, maybe one day I'll run more than 13.1?
2.  Be more positive about my life.  
I know sometimes I can be negative and grouchy.  And I know that that really comes across in my blog at times.  BUT I am making a conscious effort to be more positive.  Positive thoughts.  Positive life.  Each day is precious and a gift and I need to take advantage of that day!  I'm trying!
3.  Go one day a week with NO SWEETS.  
I have the biggest sweet tooth ever.  It's horrible.  It's to the point where I feel like each meal needs to end with something sweet.  I need to get a handle on this.  So this is my attempt....
4.  Work on my abs and legs.  
Last year I worked really hard on my arms and there is still some work to do.  But this year is the year for abs and legs.
5.  Lose 5 pounds.
The vet said that Khloe is just a little overweight and that she needs to lose about 5 pounds.  She will be eating less food, less treats, and more walks.  Maybe I'll lose 5 pounds too!
6.  Pay off my Sears credit card.  
I really try to live debt free but I had to buy a washer and dryer and the only way to do that was to use my Sears credit card.  My goal is to pay it off by May.
7.  Continue to live in and enjoy my home.
There are many projects to do on my house but I want it to be fun and cost-effective!
8.  Try new things.
This is ALWAYS my goal.  Every year, but I like to put it in writing.  I want to try new foods, meet new people, travel to new places, and just have amazing new experiences.

Here's to 2013!  It has to be a wonderful year!