Marathon Training Update

It’s great to be back on here after a fun and busy summer! We had a few last minute trips out of town and ended up being gone for most of July so it seemed like the summer flew right by. I just finished the halfway point of my 18-week marathon training plan. Woohoo! In some ways it seems like I’ve been training for way longer but at the same time it seems to have gone by pretty fast. I was a little nervous about training while traveling but I was able to fit in all the runs and it was refreshing to run in new locations.

Our first stop was the Vegetarian Summerfest held at the University of Pittsburgh in Johnstown, PA. We had a fabulous time learning tons of information, meeting great people, and eating amazing food (I need to do another post or even a few more about that experience). If you’re not familiar with Pennsylvania, it’s quite hilly at least in parts and the Johnstown area is one of those hilly parts. I tackled a few smaller hills, which was good for me since I don’t spend a lot of time running hills. I was very tired for each run since I was up much later than normal every night and up earlier than normal in order to finish my runs before breakfast which was only served from 7:30-8:30, but it all worked out and I got them done. My long run that weekend was a 9-miler. It was the day we were leaving so I skipped a session after breakfast and did a little yoga since I didn’t think it would be a good idea to ride in the car for several hours without getting a decent stretch in. At Summerfest, we had the great pleasure to meet Rich Roll, spend some time with him, and attend his running clinic. At the end of the clinic we did a fun run and Scott and I ran with Rich the whole time. It was a pretty cool experience. I think I’ve made it clear in prior posts that I’m a huge fan of him, his wife Julie, and their work. If you’re not already familiar with Rich and Julie, you definitely need to check out his book Finding Ultra, their cookbook Plant Power Way, his podcast, her music and their other work and products. He, Julie, and many of the people he (and sometimes they) has interviewed on the podcast have inspired me in this marathon challenge, my whole-food, plant-based journey, and many other areas of personal growth. I listen to his podcasts on every run (I use his app or the Sound Cloud app on my iPhone). Here are two pics with them.Our next stop was an overnight stay with some friends in Mechanicsburg, PA. In the morning I visited the local Y to get in my cross-training workout (swimming and some weight and core work) before we got on the road. I unfortunately forgot my Speedo at home so I wore my sports bra and the bottoms from my no so sporty two-piece. The drag created by the somewhat loose fitting bottoms was a bit annoying but at least I kept them on! They must have been the reason I was so slow that day. Ha, ha. I’m not the fastest swimmer no matter what suit I wear but I do have pretty good endurance.

Cape Cod was the final destination on this leg of our trip. It was our second year visiting the Cape and hopefully it will be a yearly trip for our family. My best childhood friend and her family have a home in Sagamore Beach and graciously allow us to stay there. The highlight of the week was when our friends visited with their 9-month old baby. She was a delight to be around and the kids loved playing with her. We enjoyed many great conversations and spoiled them with several yummy plant based meals and desserts. This was our first vacation being whole-food, plant-based and while it definitely took a bit more planning, it worked out just fine. We didn’t partake in any of the traditional local fare – namely seafood – but we did thoroughly enjoy the abundance of farm stands. So on to the running part…the topic of this post, right. It’s so easy for me to go off on a tangent! There are many places to run near our friends’ house including the Cape Cod Canal path, which runs along the canal (see below).

I like running on the path for shorter runs but it is totally flat and a down and back so I find it a little monotonous after a while. I ended up running most times starting out from their house and then winding through neighborhoods and along local roads. There were plenty of rolling hills and some short but steep inclines. It was challenging compared to my normal routes but was a really nice change (similar to PA). I also loved the fact that it’s lighter there earlier in the morning so the sun was already shining when I’d leave for my early morning runs. One day I was running through a neighborhood and a few turkeys ran in front of me. That was a first!

My long run that weekend was supposed to be 10 but I ended up doing 11. I started out on the canal path and passed fisherman after fisherman out for their early morning catches. I love to think about what life might be like as a fisherman sitting in the serene stillness of the morning. It certainly requires a lot of patience and persistence – both of which I could use a little more. Then I headed toward a road that was just inland from the houses facing the beach. I was the only one out at that time of day so it was very peaceful. I made my way further inland before ending with the steady climb back to our friends’ house. That last portion was the killer part of the route. Just when I was ready to be done (and feeling like toast), I faced the most challenging part of the run. Because I sometimes like to torture myself, I did hill repeats through their neighborhood a few times. They were slow but fun in a weird sort of way.

From the Cape, we came home for a few busy days of trying to get things back in order and catch up on everything after being gone for almost two weeks. We then headed north to Cheboygan, MI where Scott’s originally from. His grandmother still lives there in a vacation home his aunt and uncle recently rebuilt. The house itself was amazing and just a short walk from Mullett Lake – a large and beautiful lake. We had a fun (albeit interesting) few days in a house jam-packed with family. There were literally people sleeping everywhere! My favorite part was the boat dock where I enjoyed several post-run yoga sessions in the early morning stillness. Below is a pic of that lovely spot.

I have traveled with “my” food and Vitamix (a must bring along travel item for me if at all possible) for several years now showing up with bags of produce in particular. This year we brought even more since I was packing for all four of us and we didn’t want to have to make a huge grocery trip when we got there. Thank goodness their fridge was the Cadillac of fridges and fit all of our stuff and more! We used the Vitamix several times a day so I’m sure everyone else was relieved when they returned home to quietness after hearing the jet-engine like sound of the Vitamix for several days.

The house sat right next to a really long snowmobile trail that people use recreationally for other activities like biking, walking, and running. I ran a few short runs on the trail but knew I didn’t want to do my long run on it because it was harder to run on with it being gravel and it was monotonous – completely flat and tree lined the whole way. I set out for my long run intending to run 12 according to the plan but ended up doing just over 13.5 (13.2 was the furthest I’d run prior to this!). I had gotten too far out on a long country road before looking at my phone to see how far I needed to go to get back home. I turned around at a farm stand, which was a neat coincidence. I planned to go back later in the day to get produce but as soon as I got back to the house it started raining. Below are a few pics from that morning.

We found out later there was a tornado close by. It was a good thing we didn’t know it at the time as our son is terrified of tornadoes and we were in a giant window filled house. It continued to rain for hours and we lost power at the house (so no water or toilets!!), which just wasn’t going to work for all of us in the house for very long. We made the decision to head out a day early. It was a great decision to avoid the inconvenience of no water but not so great considering how far I had just run. I was a little worried that I would be really sore the next day after riding in the car but I was able to use the stick roller and stretch a little before getting in the car and during our ride so that helped.

I had a step down week the following week and then ramped back up again completing just over 14 on my next run. Below are two pics I took along the way. The sunset was fabulous that morning and I snapped a fun shadow pic closer to the end of the run. I had to stop for that one.

I set out early and got home before everyone else was up and moving. I felt pretty good after about mile 6 when I got into a nice groove. I took two water bottles filled with a water/coconut water combo that I had soaked dates in overnight. It was really refreshing and seemed to do the trick but I ran out by the end of the run. I plan to take more for higher mileages and I’m also planning to take along some nourishment as I go further. I used dates when I trained for the half last year and plan to try them again in addition to sweet potato. I joked that I might put the sweet potato in my sports bra so if you see me at the beginning of my run I will have a large chest and it will slowly dwindle back to normal by the end. In all seriousness I’ve heard sweet potatoes can be great for long runs if you are trying to stick to whole foods.

Pace-wise, I’m hovering around an 8:30 average pace. This is almost a minute slower than my average pace for the half but I seem to be naturally gravitating toward this pace. I haven’t paid any attention to my pace until I finish each run and when I finally look I’m always within 15 seconds of the same average pace. It’s actually pretty remarkable that the body works like that. I may end up even a little slower as I start adding on more miles but we’ll see.

I’m going to need to a new pair of shoes and sadly my favorite Nike Air Pegasus are now made differently and no longer fit well. Unfortunately I can’t find any of the older style online or in stores. I’ve been wearing Air Pegasus since I started running about 6-7 years ago so I’m really bummed. I tried a pair of Brooks at a local running store and thought they felt ok but after running to the end of our street in them I knew they weren’t right for me. I’m going to head to another local store to get a running / fit analysis done so hopefully that will help steer me in the right direction. I am mad at myself for not getting a few extra pair of the Pegasus the last time I ordered some online but what can I do now?

I’ve been focusing on carbs/starches a lot more recently and it seems to have really helped with my energy and the recovery process. I think this combined with a whole-food, plant-based diet has been behind my overall increased energy, reduced soreness, and faster recovery. I’ve heard plant-based athletes talk about this but didn’t believe it until I started experiencing it myself. My diet is the main difference between this year and last when I trained for the half and was eating a mostly whole food diet that was lower in starches and contained animal products. I will continue to boost my whole food starch intake and see what happens. I’m also trying out a few supplements that Rich Roll mentioned in his book Plant Power Way. I’ve been adding fresh ginger and spirulina or chlorella powder to my smoothie every morning and then occasionally adding maca and camu camu powder. I also take turmeric capsules to help with inflammation and have experimented with cordyceps mushroom capsules to try to boost my oxygen levels. I’ve never been one for supplements but I figured it’s worth a try especially since they come tested and recommended by an ultra-athlete.

Whew – that was a long post. Thanks for staying with me. I’ll leave you with a little inspiration that has been on my mind since I first heard Julie (Rich’s wife) say something like it to me at the Summerfest:

Hold the highest vision of yourself and others. When you envision the greatest potential in yourself and others, you (or they) will eventually move toward that vision and you will certainly see yourself and others in a more positive, accepting, and compassionate light.

Kid Style Vegan Cafe

I love when our kids tap into their creative sides! After lunch today our 7-year old set up his own little pretend restaurant he called “Ethan’s Cafe.” The pic below is of the menu he created all by himself. He’s clearly influenced by the things we are talking about and listening to on podcasts. Notice the vegan cookie sandwich and fruitarian donut (This one really made me laugh! Maybe someday he’ll invent something like this). And what a steal – you can get the “All for one and one for all” for just $4.00 :). He said he’s taken chicken and meat off his menu. He also told me “this would be a place you and people who like being vegan would like to eat.” As a parent, I’m always amazed at the things they hold onto from conversations.

Here’s Scott and I looking over the menu before we place our order.

And here’s little sis and her buddy at their own pretend cafe. Their menu was full of dairy based items but that’s okay. When her friend offered me ice cream for dessert, C piped up and replied “does it have dates, she likes it with dates?” (I eat banana “ice cream” with dates). They are having a great time and they are using their imaginations.

Introducing Start Marketing Right!

I’m excited to announce the launch of a really cool web site developed by my bright, creative and talented husband 🙂 – StartMarketingRight.com. He’s spent the better part of the last six months developing this tool and we are looking forward to see it take off. Check out the site to learn more and share it with others!

A Yoga Workshop, Delicious Veggie Burgers and Another Great Podcast

Last weekend I got to attend a 3-hour detox yoga workshop. I attended a similar 2-day workshop led by Seane Corn in the fall which was really the catalyst for the 21-Day Detox I did at the beginning of the year. It was at Seane’s workshop that I felt convicted about several habits of mine that were not benefiting my mind or body. I drug my feet for a while but eventually decided to do the detox as a way to start fresh in the new year. Those 21 days were life changing for me in many ways. This weekend’s workshop was a nice little refresher. We went through a 2-hour detox flow and then had time at the end of the workshop to consider our life priorities (or “non-negotiables”). We made a plan as to how we would make sure we were really doing those things we said were our priorities. It was helpful to list these areas out and make a commitment to fitting them into my schedule. The flow itself was very challenging physically and mentally but I felt great afterward.

I made this Our Perfect Veggie Burger recipe from Oh She Glows last weekend. Yes, that is a little bite out of the one on the left. I couldn’t wait to try them.

I prepped and mixed most of the ingredients the night before and then finished them on Saturday. While I was shaping and baking them, I listened to some of Rich Roll’s podcast #131 From Crash Victim To Elite Athlete: A NYC Firefighter’s Long Run to Wholeness with Matt Long (you can see my iPad propped up in the background of the pic). It’s an amazing story of Matt’s perseverance through tremendous adversity and coming out the other side a changed person. Through sharing his story, Matt has made a powerful impact on the lives of many others. E was out in the kitchen for some of the podcast (fortunately his missed the gruesome details of Matt’s accident and also a few sprinkles of foul language) and was full of questions about what he was hearing. The podcast ended up being a springboard for probably the deepest conversation E (7.5 years old) and I have had about living through trials, the choice we all have about what lens to look at life through (great reminder for me!), and eternity. It often amazes me how conversations like that start. I realized that most of the deeper conversations E and I have are when he is milling / pacing around the house and I am cooking. Conversations just seem to flow more naturally when we aren’t sitting face to face staring at each other. That’s not necessarily a good or bad thing…it’s just the way it is.

Back to the burgers….I used a bag of gluten-free crackers instead of bread for the bread crumbs and coconut aminos instead of Tamari. I also added a cup or so of mashed sweet potato before I shaped them because they seemed a little dry and crumbly. I absolutely LOVE these! They have great flavor and a nice little crunch from the almonds and sunflower seeds! We took a few of the burgers to our friends’ house for dinner on Saturday for the adults to eat instead of regular burgers. Everyone seemed to like them (or at least that’s what they said :). I ate mine wrapped in a giant piece of iceburg lettuce with some of the hosts’ salad, a few sliced onions, and some of Chef AJ’s Yummy Sauce.

And for fun, below are two pics of some mommy / daughter bonding time in the kitchen from Monday. We were making these bread machine Whole Wheat Hamburger Buns. C loves to be my helper. I think some of this is natural for a little girl but she’s also a huge fan of Caillou and he is always helping on the show. In fact there is a catchy song on there about helping that C loves to sing. I wish he weren’t so whiny in the show because I think that is also rubbing off on her but I do like the messages about helping. She clearly loves the camera and has enough attitude for all of us!

1 Thessalonians 5:18 was part of my devotional the other day and I decided it would be the perfect verse right now for the chalkboard hanging in the kitchen. It says, “Give thanks in ALL circumstances for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.” Amen to that and Happy Weekend!

8 of My Favorite Vegan Sauces and More

I have a little confession….I’m kind of into sauces. Well, to be completely honest, I’m really into sauces. They are such a great way to add a little extra flavor to any dish. I’ve always been a condiment fan and back in the day I used to smother my eggs and pretty much anything else with ketchup. I moved away from ketchup several years ago after realizing how much sugar is in it but I still love sauces – everything from guacamole to hummus, hot sauce, salsa, pesto and more! The unfortunate part of many store bought sauces is that they often contain lots of preservatives or other unrecognizable ingredients. Fortunately it’s very easy to whip up a healthy and delicious sauce with a few ingredients and a blender or food processor. And also it’s easy to adjust most sauces to fit your specific dietary or flavor preferences. For example, I’ve found medjool dates to be the perfect substitute for sweeteners in sauces. You just need to blend the sauce a little more thoroughly.

And speaking of sauces….I have several sauce recipes I’d like to share with you.

I made this delicious Low-Fat Nut-Free Creamy Garlic Parsley Sauce to go with pasta and veggies. We loved the creamy, flavorful texture and I was surprised how much it tasted like a dairy based sauce. It would be delicious as a soup with the addition of veggies and a little broth or stock to thin it out. I will definitely be pulling this one out at Thanksgiving as it had a thick gravy like texture and would be great as a gravy or sauce for meat or roasted vegetables. I highly recommend trying this and experimenting with different kinds of potatoes. I love sweet potatoes so I’m going to try it with sweet potatoes next time. I made a few modifications to the recipe and used toasted almond coconut milk, veggie broth, a mixture of baking and red potatoes, and dried parsley instead of fresh.

I made this Yummy Sauce by Chef AJ earlier in the week. Chef AJ is a chef (surprise, surprise), author of Unprocessed, and has an amazing life story including how she has turned her life around by transitioning to a whole food, plant based diet. If you’re not familiar with Chef AJ or her story, check out Rich Roll’s podcast with her. You can also find his podcasts on the Sound Cloud app. Chef AJ is an inspiration and has so much energy you can feel it through the podcast. And onto the sauce…I love it! The flavor is unique and reminds me a bit of honey mustard with the sweetness from the dates combined with the savory mustard. I’ve used it as a dipping sauce for veggies and on romaine lettuce tacos and I imagine it’d be good with veggie burgers, crackers or pretzels if you eat that sort of thing.

I’ve made this Creamy Coconut Peanut Sauce (just the sauce part of the recipe) a few times now and really enjoy it drizzled over salad, veggies, zucchini noodles, and rice. It has nice flavor that you can spice up using a little extra hot sauce or diced jalapenos. I used about 1/4 cup coconut milk, coconut aminos in place of soy sauce, a mixture of lemon juice and rice vinegar, and homemade sriracha sauce. Mine turned out a little thick both times so I added a little water and veggie broth to thin it out.

This Buddha Bowl Sauce is great and the only change I made was to use some veggie broth in place of some of the oil. I also really like these two sauces from the “bowl” category – the sauce from this Roasted Buddha Bowl and the sauce from this Quinoa Cauliflower Bowl with Almond Sriracha Sauce (I use unsweetened hot sauce and leave out the syrup).

We enjoy eating Mexican and if you’ve never looked at the ingredients on most store bought enchilada sauces, you should. There’s a lot of junk in there! I’ve tried several enchilada sauce recipes and these are two of my latest favorites – Homemade Enchilada Sauce (I use veggie broth in place of some of the oil and leave out the brown sugar) and the sauce from this TexMex Creamy Roasted Red Pepper Pasta (I saute onions and garlic and blend it with the immersion blender. It is delicious for tacos or enchiladas).

We are Greek food fans in this house and have always loved tzatziki but now that I’m not eating any dairy I’m on the lookout for a good dairy-free alternative. I’ve pinned a few to try but haven’t gotten around to it yet.

And I’m always up for a yummy peanut/nut butter sauce. I’ve tried so many peanut sauce recipes and usually like them all so I don’t have any one specific recipe to recommend. I normally alter the recipe to take out the sugar / sweetener (and have replaced it with medjool dates several times) and often change up the nut butter I use.

That’s all on the topic of sauces. Here are a few pics and highlights of other things going on around here lately.

Scott and the kids were gone last weekend so I spent a pretty quiet weekend at home. I had an outing with friends scheduled for Saturday night but the snow hampered those plans. I spent most of the weekend doing things around the house, cooking, doing yoga and listening to podcasts. My friend recently recommended a podcast by Rich Roll. After listening to that and another one of his, I was hooked! As I mentioned above, I listen to them using the Sound Cloud app on the iPad and iPhone but you can also find them on his web site. Many of them are on the topic of plant based nutrition but there are lots of others with individuals who just have amazing stories to share and I was fascinated by every one! I was thinking earlier this morning how much technology has changed the way we communicate and podcasts are a great example. Before You Tube or podcasts someone would have to go on a speaking tour or write a book to share their story. Now it’s so easy to record and share anything. I’ve also listened to a handful from Howard Jacobson on his Wholevana Podcast and a few other random ones by Christian pastors. I’m thinking this might be a new addiction 🙂

When I took the kids up to Wooster on Friday we stopped to see our brand new beautiful niece Vienna. She’s a doll and seems to be a very good baby so far. The kids had a great time visiting with their cousins too. The pic below is of C, her cousin Mav and baby Vienna.

On the way home I stopped at Earth Fare to look around and pick up some Nori sheets. I’d been wanting to try them for making wraps and happened to find a package on clearance. I’ve tried a few random creations and have been pinning lots of interesting recipes to try! They are easy to use and definitely taste like seaweed (of course they do!) but I kind of like them. I’m pretty sure I will be the only one eating these in our house unless I make sushi rolls with lots of rice on the outside.

Scott got home late Sunday night and then we drove to Walnut Creek to visit my Grandpa and meet my mom to get the kids. I love going to visit him as he is such a neat man and the kids adore him. My grandma passed away just over a year ago so he’s on his own now. I took cabbage rolls, veggies, and rice up for him and for my brother and his family who just had Vienna. He was thrilled with that! We visited with him at his condo and then went to lunch at the Amish restaurant up the street. The second pic below is of Great Papa, the kids and their giant ice cream sundaes. They thoroughly enjoyed those. I was surprised that I wasn’t at all tempted to have any. I was much more interested in having my blended frozen banana and dates when I got home. The last pic is of C hand in hand with Great Papa. She kept going over to him to grab his hand. It was adorable to see her look up at him with her big brown eyes. It was a great visit and was so nice to see him and have the kids back.

The next day C and I went on a double date with our friends to Portia’s Cafe. It was great to go out to lunch and have some girl time. I realized that was the first time C and I have gone out to a girls lunch. It’s a vegan restaurant so we ordered the girls vegan cheese quesadillas. C was not overly pleased with her food so she chowed down on my spicy Pad Thai made with raw kelp noodles. She ate almost half of my meal and loved every bite. We got them chocolate mousse to share. It was made with avocado, cocoa, maple syrup and vanilla. At first they turned their noses up at it but then ended up devouring it. It was very rich but had great flavor and texture.

Lastly, I’m loving this song right now. I heard it on the radio and then we sang it at church last week. The lyrics and so powerful and it just seems to be speaking to me at this time in my life. You can find it on Spotify or You Tube.

Oceans (Where Feet May Fail)
by Hillsong United

You call me out upon the waters
The great unknown where feet may fail
And there I find You in the mystery
In oceans deep
My faith will stand

And I will call upon Your name
And keep my eyes above the waves
When oceans rise
My soul will rest in Your embrace
For I am Yours and You are mine

Your grace abounds in deepest waters
Your sovereign hand
Will be my guide
Where feet may fail and fear surrounds me
You’ve never failed and You won’t start now

So I will call upon Your name
And keep my eyes above the waves
When oceans rise
My soul will rest in Your embrace
For I am Yours and You are mine

Spirit lead me where my trust is without borders
Let me walk upon the waters
Wherever You would call me
Take me deeper than my feet could ever wander
And my faith will be made stronger
In the presence of my Savior

Oh, Jesus, you’re my God!

I will call upon Your name
Keep my eyes above the waves
My soul will rest in Your embrace
I am Yours and You are mine

Have a great weekend!

Happenings Around Here Lately

It’s been more than a week since my last post so I wanted to update you on what’s been going on around here lately. After writing posts every day of my 3 week detox, I felt like I needed a little break. While I’d love to be a blogger that consistently writes every day, I’m just not there quite yet.

I have continued to follow the same eating plan that I followed on the detox and have been feeling great! I’ve had a little sugar in a few pieces of dark chocolate I’ve had over the last few weeks and have had two lattes. I’m trying to stick to one coffee or less per week as a treat. Both times I got a latte I ordered a tall soy latte. The soy milk at Starbucks is sweetened and thus does contain some added sugar. Otherwise my “treat” of choice has been frozen bananas blended with a few splashes of coconut almond milk and a date. I have been eating (very ripe) bananas like crazy. I can’t seem to get enough of them right now. I have changed my breakfast to be just a very large smoothie and it has at least 5 bananas + a few other fruits and veggies. Bananas are a great way to get a lot of calories and carbs (= energy) from fruit and the browner the better for digestion. I was eating a nut meal based “muffin” in addition to my smoothie but have felt great after eliminating that. I think the fats in the muffin were messing a bit with my blood sugar and digestion. Here’s proof that I’ve been eating a LOT of bananas. I finally broke down and just bought a case. Kroger often has bananas that are getting too ripe (for the normal person) on Manager’s Special and I lucked out the other day and found a bunch of bunches 🙂 that were marked down. Between the four of us, we are flying through them. I got my second case today. Pretty soon the whole house is going to be smelling like bananas. I’m definitely going to need to start thinking about a solution for fruit flies once the weather gets hot. We always seem to have a problem with them in the summer and this surely won’t help!

At the end of my detox and into the first week or so after I was feeling a little sluggish at times throughout the day and my friend recommended that I increase my fruit carbs even more so I added more bananas and an additional fruit + greens smoothie in the afternoon. It has made all the difference. My energy level is at an all time high and I seem to just be feeling better. My friend follows most (if not all) of Banana Girl’s Raw Till 4 lifestyle and while I’m far from adhering to all of the principles (like eating raw until 4!), I’ve adopted some of them and am moving toward others. It’s definitely a very different approach to eating than I’m used to and I find it fascinating.

I’ve continued to cook lots of new and interesting recipes and make up all kinds of creative concoctions too. If only I could figure out an easy system to capture the details of my creations! Scott and the kids have been awesome about eating everything I make. I normally just cook up a little chicken or ground turkey to go along with the meal for them and they are happy.

The kids and I made our second batch of sprouts in our sprouting jars. We sprouted alfalfa seeds this time. C enjoyed several handfuls (see pic below) for lunch the day we got them out of the jar and asks for them every time she seems them on my plate.

I am so proud to say that I’ve had ice cream only one time since the detox ended (the day after) and haven’t had strong temptations to eat it. I did stop at UDF to get gas the other day and considered for a moment going in to get some since it was on sale (yes, I can still be tempted by a good sale) but decided I’d feel much better if I just ate my frozen bananas and dates. It was a small victory for me. I took the kids to Graeter’s the other night for a special treat and did find myself salivating a bit as I watched people enjoying the giant chocolate chunks (my favorite part) in their ice cream but felt good that I didn’t end up getting anything. I will have it at some point but I’m trying to save it for when I REALLY want it. Chocolate has been the only thing that I’ve occasionally wanted in terms of sweets. I made a few vegan desserts that contained dark chocolate and the funny thing is that I really just wanted the chocolate and could do without the rest. However, I think the increase in fruit carbs in the earlier in my day has helped minimize these cravings. Here’s a pic of the kids enjoying their ice cream treat.

Scott and I had dinner Friday night at Portia’s Cafe. It’s an adorable all-vegan, gluten-free and mostly raw restaurant. We both had wraps that were made with raw and gluten-free tortillas. The waitress told me they were made of teff flour, tapioca flour or starch (I can’t remember), olive oil, salt, and water. Of course I hopped on Pinterest when we got home to see if I could find out how they were made raw and find a similar recipe. I found all kinds of interesting recipes for raw tortillas/wraps and other raw food items made in a dehydrator so that is next on my list of kitchen appliance “wants”. In the meantime, I will settle for these cooked Quinoa Tortillas that are made very similar to the 5-Ingredient Quinoa Pizza Crust we love. I made a batch of both today and thought the tortillas turned out great. The texture is spongier than a normal flour or corn tortilla but they are good and I’d highly recommend the recipe. We ended our dinner with Portia’s Chocolate Cheezecake. It was delicious! Unfortunately I had a pretty bad stomach ache the rest of the night so something didn’t sit well with me but it sure tasted good while we ate. Here’s a few pics from our dinner out.

On the way home from Portia’s we stopped at Saraga International Grocery. I’m a sucker for grocery stores – especially ones with tons of produce and things that I’ve never seen before. The produce section had about double or triple the offerings of a normal grocery store. If I ever need an exotic ingredient I will definitely head there.

E’s class took a field trip to the local Senior Center last week. I got to go along to help and really enjoyed seeing the students interact with the seniors. The kids shared about the Leader In Me initiative at Jefferson Elementary and each kid had a chance to talk in the microphone. I was amazed that every one of them spoke with no noticeable fear! They were so brave and articulate. The kids enjoyed a buffet style lunch with the seniors complete with a dessert table. I was laughing at how full the kids filled their plates with dessert. Left to their own devices they went all out. We eventually limited them to two cookies each 🙂 I’m guessing their parents wouldn’t have been too happy had they seen the first few plates that went through the line. I’m so blessed to have a flexible schedule so I can go to these types of things.

Both kids have their Valentine’s Day parties on Thursday this week. I’m in charge of organizing E’s but am not contributing anything other than two games. I made these candy cane hearts pictured below for him to pass out as his Valentine’s. I was worried I might not find candy canes anymore but I happened upon several boxes of candy canes marked down at Kroger last week! I heated the candy canes in the oven for a few minutes and then shaped them into hearts. Then I melted pink candy melts and filled the centers. We printed little tags to attach to the cellophane bags. They are cute and hopefully the kids will enjoy them. I have to make cut-out cookies for C’s class and will finish that tomorrow. The dough is made so we just need to roll it out, cut it into heart shapes, and bake.

A friend gave me this cute idea last year to do a “heart attack” on the kids’ doors. Each day in February leading up to Valentine’s Day I write a message on a heart telling them something we love about them. They love to see the new hearts each day and definitely love the affirmations.

I hope you are having a great week so far!

Play by Play of Half-Marathon Day

Sunday was an amazing day – exhilarating, emotional, and exhausting all in one! The day started dark and early just after 5 am. Last year I was very anxious on race-eve but this year I, surprisingly, had a pretty good night’s rest. After dressing in my running gear + a few extra layers, I headed out to the kitchen for some fuel to get me through the big race. At the suggestion of a friend I had been eating a little before my long runs. That seemed to help a ton so I did the same on race day but had a little more since it was more than 2 hours until the start. I had a mini whole wheat bagel, scoop of nut butter, scoop of raw honey, half a banana, coffee, a glass of Thrive Sports Drink from No Meat Athlete, and lots of water.

I took the rest of the banana with me but never ended up eating it. I also wore a fuel belt this year and filled one of the bottles with water and one with the sports drink. E woke up before I left and gave me a good luck hug and kiss (I’m pretty sure he stayed up reading until he was allowed to watch a show at 7am!). I also spent some time in prayer and reading God’s Word. The verse of the day was perfect: Matthew 6:34, “Therefore, do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.” I certainly had enough to think about for even the next three hours let alone start worrying about the next day and on!

My friend Kelly so kindly drove me downtown and dropped me off on her way to work (for the 2^nd year in a row). The race started in a different spot this year and it seemed way LESS convenient than last year. There was a ton of traffic but fortunately Kelly knew an alternate route to bypass the mess of traffic and she got me to where I needed to be with plenty of time. After finding my way down to the corral area, I backtracked a little to check in my extra clothing and then made my last potty stop. I was greeted by unorganized chaos again but I made it thru the line and got to the corral just before 7am (when they technically closed). My goal time was 1:38 so I wanted to stay in between the 1:30 and 1:40 pace leaders. I lined up behind the 1:40 guy and anxiously awaited the 7:30 start. There was so much energy in the air that you could almost reach out and touch it. The music was blaring and everyone was eagerly dancing around to keep warm. Finally the time arrived and we were off! After a bit of walking and jogging, I was finally able to pick up my pace. I weaved in, out and around other runners to get my spot in front of the 1:40 pacer and never looked back! I caught up and passed the 3:15 marathon pacer and left him in the dust 🙂 I started out quite a bit faster than my normal pace and stayed within 7:05 and 7:34 for the whole race. It was a struggle though! My body ached and I felt like I was in an intense mental and physical battle. One voice seemed to be saying “just walk…I feel terrible” while another said “I can do this…I’ve trained for this….I have it in me…don’t stop now.”

I pressed on through the aches and fatigue and crossed the finish line at 1:35:58. I finished almost 3 minutes faster than my goal but I felt like it was a struggle every step of the way. It was a very different experience than last year when I finished thinking I wanted to run the full next time!

The fans were amazing and it was so encouraging to hear fans I don’t even know cheer for me by name (first names are on the bibs). I was especially encouraged when I got about half way into the 12^th mile and saw Scott and the kids and then a little further along saw three of my best buddies!

 

It was an emotional day to begin with but the sight of them all elated me and gave me the extra boost I needed to get to the finish line. Last year, I had several moments along the route where I was overcome by emotion and started to cry. This year, instead of crying I felt like my chest was tightening up and I struggled for breath almost like I was hyperventilating. I was glad to be done and have that behind me! We stayed around for a while after the race to chat and for the kids to play in the bounce houses and then headed for home. On the way home we stopped at the Starbucks drive-thru for a post race latte treat. That helped warm my still chilled body! Scott had a meeting in the afternoon so I let the kids watch extra shows while I stretched and rolled out some of my aches and sore spots. We hosted small group later in the evening so by the time I finally got to lay on the couch I was EXHAUSTED! It was a great day and a great personal accomplishment for me. It’s so cool to see what our bodies can accomplish with proper training (physically and mentally). And, to be totally honest, it feels pretty neat to feel like a rockstar for the day! All the hoopla, cheering fans, and then the after race celebrations (and FB posts), etc. sure make you feel special! It’s easy to see how a real celebrity could get addicted to all the attention. It is so fun to experience even if it’s only one day a year.

My training runs were significantly faster this year compared to last and I attribute that to the running interval training I did last winter and spring (I used variations of workouts like this HIIT Treadmill workout from Peanut Butter Fingers), the jump rope training I’ve been doing consistently for the last many months, the cross-training ½ marathon plan I followed, and lots of yoga of course!

What next? I don’t know. I felt a little depressed the day before the race and I think part of it was that I knew I’d been training all this time for something and it was soon to be over. Now that it is over, I feel the need for another goal to work toward. Last year I did a 50 push-up challenge so maybe I’ll do that again. I’d love to hear your ideas too!

Mexican Themed Morning in the Kitchen

A few friends and I were planning to take a Stand Up Paddleboard (SUP) Yoga class yesterday morning but it was cancelled due to potential rain / storms so instead Miss C and I spent a few hours in the kitchen making two things on my “make” list: Whole Wheat Tortillas from 100 Days of Real Food and Homemade Roasted Red Pepper Enchilada Sauce from She Likes Food. The E man started school (1st grade!!) on the 13th (his birthday) and since then it seems we have a very different 3-year old here at home. She has been much calmer and has thrown far fewer tantrums. I’ve enjoyed being with her so much more and have felt less anxiety overall. Unfortunately, I think she and her brother can bring out the worst in each other. If he were home we wouldn’t have been able to have such a long peaceful time in the kitchen.

This first pic is of the Whole Wheat Tortillas after we mixed them up, divided them into individual pieces, and rolled them into balls. After this we flattened them a bit with the palms of our hands, covered them with plastic wrap and let them rest for about 20 minutes. I modified the tortilla recipe by adding a few tablespoons of whole chia seeds and ground flaxseed, and a combo of extra virgin olive oil and coconut oil (melted).

While the tortillas were resting we got to work prepping the Homemade Roasted Red Pepper Enchilada Sauce. We roasted a red bell pepper and a 28 oz. can of drained whole peeled tomatoes. I modified the enchilada sauce recipe by using just one pepper, the can of tomatoes, and a combination of chicken broth and water as the added liquid.

This next pic is of the finished sauce. Even after adding extra liquid I find the sauce to be a little thick but I figure I can always add extra liquid when I use it in a recipe. I definitely should have used a bigger sauce pan. It seemed to spill out over the edges each time I stirred in this tiny pot. Not sure what I was thinking when I pulled this pot out to use 🙂

C helped a little with the tortilla prep and then she wanted to paint. On most days I’d have said no to her request to paint but since she’s been doing so good behavior wise and seems to be really into crafts lately I went for it. She had a great time painting a little wooden doll and herself (well, mostly herself). I was smart and put a giant piece of art paper down on the table first.

While I worked on some other kitchen tasks she moved on to play “water station.” This is what we’ve affectionately named her activity of playing in the sink with the dishes. She mostly pours water from one dish to another, turns the water on and off and has a few turns at the garbage disposal. She entertains herself for quite a while doing this and just gets a little (or sometimes a lot) wet.

It was finally time to get to work pressing and cooking the tortillas. Miss C wanted to help again so I designated her the tortilla press operator. She found it amazing how easy it was to put the dough in the press, push down and then open it up to find a nice thin and flat tortilla.

I used our crepe pan to cook the tortillas for a short time on each side and then transferred them to a baking sheet to cool (I put small pieces of parchment paper in between each one to keep them from sticking).

After they cooled I stacked them into one big stack and put them in a plastic bag in the fridge. I ended up using a few later that night for the kids dinner. I heated them for about 20 seconds in the microwave covered with a damp paper towel and was surprised how pliable they became. I threw together a quick and yummy black bean, chicken, avocado, and enchilada sauce filling, placed a large spoonful onto each tortilla and then rolled them into mini burritos. I put a little melted coconut oil on top of each burrito and then baked them for about 20 minutes at 350 degrees. The kids thought they were delicious.

After our morning in the kitchen I owed C some outside time on her beloved bike. So, we went out for a bit before she headed off to a friend’s house while I went to a yoga class to make up for the cancelled a.m. class with my dear friend (who is sadly moving away very soon).

It was a productive and fun morning. While it takes time to make things like tortillas and sauces from scratch, it sure feels good to eat food without all the additives that are in most store bought alternatives. And it’s a great way to share my love for the kitchen with my kids.

It never ended up raining in the morning yesterday so too bad the SUP class was cancelled. However it did rain today and C and her little girlfriends had a blast playing in the rain and getting soaked. She talked about how fun it was the whole way home.

Since I included so many pics of C in this post I thought I’d share a few of the E man. This first one is of his first day of school (and his birthday) on the 13th. He loves school so didn’t mind that they both happened on the same day. He was even dressed in his school colors – a gift from Grandma for his birthday.

Later that evening we celebrated his birthday with cupcakes from Gigi’s. Yum!

This last one is how I found him asleep the other night. He had been writing in his journal and passed out with his journal and pen on his lap. The night after he fell asleep with the pencil still in his hand! He’s a funny guy.

Clamming, Mussels, and a Fresh Farm and Sea to Table Meal

It’s been just over a week since we got back from our vacation to Boston and Cape Cod and I’m finally getting around to writing about it!

On our first full day in Cape Cod, our friends Justin and Erin took us clamming. We had no idea what fun was in store for us that day! We set out after breakfast to get to our spot on Buzzard’s Bay during low tide. We were able to collect one bucket of clams with Justin and Erin’s license so we all got to work and filled the bucket pretty fast. The kids thought it was great digging for theses little “treasures”. E’s personal mission was to find a pearl. He of course didn’t come across any pearl filled oysters (we warned him in advance it was highly unlikely that he’d find one) but he did find an oyster and lots of nice shells.

After we filled our bucket with clams we took a little walk along the beach toward the Maritime Academy to climb on the rocks and see the large ship that was docked there. On our way I noticed tons of mussels that had washed up to shore.

Justin said I could take them so I got to work cleaning off some of the gunk and filling a smaller bucket with these little beauties.

For a little background…I fell in love with mussels when we traveled to Croatia a few years ago and you could find fresh and delicious mussels at many restaurants. A fellow traveler recommended I try them since it was a great time of year for mussels in Croatia. I heeded their advice and it was pretty much love at first bite. Fresh mussels are key of course but the broth / sauce really make (or break) the dish in my opinion. I had mussels one time here in the States after we got back but they were nothing compared to the ones I had in Croatia (no surprise that it’s kind of hard to find fresh seafood in Ohio :). So, I was thrilled to find these mussels on the beach and get to prepare them for dinner later that night. I found a simple, delicious and garlicky recipe in one of Erin and Justin’s cookbooks. They turned out great and C even gobbled them up like they were candy! She also joined us in eating raw oysters. She’s definitely a girl after my own heart in the food department.

On our way back to the house we stopped at a small fish / seafood shop to get more oysters and then Bay End Farm for some fresh greens, sugar snap peas, bread, tomatoes, and kohlrabi (first time I’d ever had kohlrabi and I loved it!). I made the beautiful salad pictured below with some of the tomatoes, peas, greens and kohlrabi for lunch. I also tried the kohlrabi roasted with a little EVOO, salt and pepper. It tasted great this way too.

Later that evening we got to work preparing our meal that included everything we collected and bought fresh that day. The men also went out to get fresh lobsters for each of us and Erin made us mojitos with mint from their garden. Erin and I had a great time reminiscing about the hours we spent in the kitchen as girls concocting all sorts of culinary creations – particularly our homemade peanut butter cups (in giant muffin tins!!). We made way too much food that night but it was a great experience and we had lots of yummy leftovers. It was a true farm and sea to table meal and it felt good to be eating foods that were so fresh and straight from the source.

It was a day full of adventure and fun that ended with a fresh and satisfying meal shared with great friends!

Journal of a Novice Gardener – Entry 6

We got back from our trip to Boston and Cape Cod on Saturday afternoon. I have lots of things to share from our trip in other posts, but I wanted to post an update on our garden. When we left almost two weeks ago there was not much happening in the garden itself other than giant squash and carrot leaves and worms eating the cabbage and cauliflower. I was losing hope as it seemed we wouldn’t have anything actually grow in there this year other than our one small batch of greens. Our cherry tomato plants were covered with tons of green tomatoes so I figured they would ripen while we were gone. The neighbors graciously agreed to water the garden and I told them to pick anything that was ready while we were away. This first pic below is a view of the garden from Saturday. Squash leaf mania!!!  As we pulled up to the house I could see lots of red peeking out from the tomato plants and was of course thrilled to see all the tomatoes waiting for us. The kids got right to work picking (and eating!) them as soon as they got out of the van.

I got into the garden and moved around the squash leaves to see if there was anything growing and laughed out loud when I saw three HUMUNGOUS Black Beauty squash / zucchini. And humungous is no exaggeration. I have never seen such large zucchini. There were also several smaller Delicata squash ready to pick (which I learned after picking are actually winter squash….guess I should have noticed that when I bought the seeds, but at least they grew). There were a few yellow carrots with tops sticking out so we picked those. I don’t think these were quite ready but they are great for smoothies (greens and carrot itself).

And best of all….there were a few small bunches of broccoli!!! I was so so excited to see this since I planted it too late and thought it was going to be a lost cause this season.

What a nice surprise to come home to this nice little harvest and it saved me some money on my grocery trip later that evening. We’ve already eaten most of the tomatoes, all of the broccoli and a few of both types of squash. I gave away a few too. I love the zucchini cubed and sauteed in a little coconut oil or thinly sliced and roasted. The Delicata squash is fabulous roasted (I just cut it in half leaving the skin on, scooped out the seeds, sliced it into moon shaped pieces, and tossed it in a little olive oil, salt, and pepper). Yum!