Shana had this on her blog this morning, and I'm a self-proclaimed sucker for questionnaires. And warning, I'm stealing some of her answers because sometimes, that girl lives in my head.
1. WERE YOU NAMED AFTER ANYONE? I'm pretty sure Brooke Shields is how the name made it to my parents heads. They were Team Green and if I'd been a boy, I'd have been Adam, which to my knowledge had no connection to anything in particular.
2. WHEN WAS THE LAST TIME YOU CRIED? "I’m a huge crier. I cry all the time. Most recently…this morning on the train as I read the book about a girl who was the sole survivor of the car crash that killed her whole family. She’s sort of suspended and she has to decide whether she wants to stay or whether she wants to go. It’s a great book called If I Stay by Gayle Forman." - Shana. Pretty much exactly this, only I was reading Signs of Life about a woman who is widowed at the age of 24 while 5 months pregnant. Shana and I know how to pick uplifting reads :)
3. DO YOU LIKE YOUR HANDWRITING? It's okay. It's a little sloppy.
4. WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE LUNCH MEAT? Turkey
5. DO YOU HAVE KIDS? I have two pups who are my kids.
6. IF YOU WERE ANOTHER PERSON, WOULD YOU BE FRIENDS WITH YOU? Yeah, I'm pretty awesome. I'm a good and loyal friend
7. DO YOU USE SARCASM A LOT? Definitely
8. DO YOU STILL HAVE YOUR TONSILS? Yes
9. WOULD YOU BUNGEE JUMP? "Oh, hell no. I have a paralyzing fear of heights and just answering this question is making my heart race a bit." - Shana Ditto
10. WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE CEREAL? Honey Nut Cheerios (they remind me of Grandma's house), and Froot Loops
11. DO YOU UNTIE YOUR SHOES WHEN YOU TAKE THEM OFF? Yes, my shoes that tie can't be taken off without untying them
12. DO YOU THINK YOU ARE STRONG? In many ways, yes.
13. WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE ICE CREAM? Mint chocolate chip or Blue Bunny (this is very specific as nothing beats out Blue Bunny on this) Perfectly Peppermint
14. WHAT IS THE FIRST THING YOU NOTICE ABOUT PEOPLE? Probably the way they're dressed
15. RED OR PINK? Pink.
16. WHAT IS THE LEAST FAVORITE THING ABOUT YOURSELF? "My tendency to be lazy. I always have big plans…but my desire to sit on the couch wins way too often." - Shana. Word
17. WHO DO YOU MISS THE MOST? I've been fortunate to have not been faced with a lot of loss. I miss my uncle very much, though.
18. WHAT IS THE TECHNIQUE THAT YOU NEED TO WORK ON THE MOST? Hmmmm. I want to get better at creating recipes with baking
19. WHAT COLOR SHOES ARE YOU WEARING? Black.
20. WHAT WAS THE LAST THING YOU ATE? An egg white omelet with peppers, onions, and spinach. I forgot my Morning Star sausage today
21. WHAT ARE YOU LISTENING TO RIGHT NOW? Chevelle
22. IF YOU WERE A CRAYON, WHAT COLOR WOULD YOU BE? Dumb. Next..
23. FAVORITE SMELLS? My husband fresh out of the shower (awwww!), vanilla cake batter, and my momma's perfume
24. HOW IMPORTANT ARE YOUR POLITICAL VIEWS TO YOU? Aren't everyone's important? If you're asking if I'm highly opinionated and vocal, overall I would say no. I have only a couple issues I'm passionate about.
25. MOUNTAIN HIDEAWAY OR BEACH HOUSE? Mountain hideaway. Shana answered beach house. I'm questioning her sanity.
26. FAVORITE SPORTS TO WATCH? "College basketball." - Shana. Oh, Shana. That's two in a row. I like NFL and hockey. Or golf if I want to take a nap.
27. HAIR COLOR? Natural color is dark brown. Right now, it's black with a purple sheen.
28. EYE COLOR? Brown
29. DO YOU WEAR CONTACTS? Yes - I alternate with glasses though. I wear contacts about 50% of the time.
30. FAVORITE FOOD? Steak and potatoes. Any kind of potatoes. I love them.
31. SCARY MOVIES OR HAPPY ENDINGS? Neither. I mean happy endings aren't bad, per se, but it makes me think of romance movies like the Notebook, which I have no interest in. I'm perfectly fine with endings that aren't all sugary and sweet.
32. LAST MOVIE YOU WATCHED? Pitch Perfect
33. WHAT COLOR SHIRT ARE YOU WEARING? Black sweater
34. SUMMER OR WINTER? "Fall is my favorite, but I prefer winter over summer." - Shana. And we're back on track
35. FAVORITE DESSERT? Tiramisu. Or cheesecake. Or tiramisu cheesecake from Cheesecake Factory
36. STRENGTH TRAINING OR CARDIO? Cardio if it's Zumba or Kickboxing. Otherwise, I'd rather do weight training than running.
37. COMPUTER OR TELEVISION? Television.
38. WHAT BOOK ARE YOU READING NOW? I'm almost done with Signs of Life by Natalie Taylor
39. WHAT IS ON YOUR MOUSE PAD? It's plain black.
40. FAVORITE SOUND? Ummm, anything that isn't creepy. I'll tell you my least favorite sound - zippers. I hate zippers. They're like nails on a chalkboard.
41. FAVORITE GENRE OF MUSIC? Metal or hard rock
42. WHAT IS THE FARTHEST YOU HAVE BEEN FROM HOME? Canadialand
43. DO YOU HAVE A SPECIAL TALENT? Mmmm, I dunno. I don't think I'm above average at much of anything.
44. WHERE WERE YOU BORN? Tucson
45. WHERE ARE YOU LIVING NOW? Phoenixish.
46. WHAT COLOR IS YOUR HOUSE? Off white with plum trim
47. WHAT COLOR IS YOUR CAR? Silver. I wanted it in graphite, but the one they had was like $4K more (four THOUSAND more?!) and sensible me decided that wasn't worth it.
48. DO YOU LIKE ANSWERING 48 QUESTIONS? "It was perfect for today" - well said, Shana
Thursday, January 24, 2013
Monday, January 21, 2013
Meal Plan Monday
Hello, hello! Hope 2013 is treating you well. The beginning of the year was a whirlwind for me with work - many 9-10 hour days, and some even longer. It's finally letting up and I'm settling back into our regular pace. One thing that is new for the beginning of this year is that I'm doing the Biggest Blogging Loser, run by Jennie of SheLikesPurple. One of the items on my 101 in 1001 is to lose 25 pounds. Ideally, it would be a bit more than that (I have a goal number in mind, but I'm not sharing because it's my goal and I'll not allow myself to feel guilty about a number on a scale so long as I make healthy changes and feel better about me). It runs from January 7th through the end of March, with the final weigh-in on April 1st (I think - thankfully, Jennie send weekly reminders). The motivation and support among the 50 other ladies in the contest has been great. We have a FB group where we talk about challenges, share recipes, and cheer each other on.
Anyway, it seems like the perfect time to discuss what I'm doing (and what's been working for the 1st two weeks) and share my meal plans. I'm not setting out to do anything like Paleo or Whole30 (as some of our more brave and possibly crazy ladies are), but we're eating more veggies than ever before and it's pretty much a South Beach Diet plan, which I've been successful with in the past.
I made a HUGE pot of vegetable soup on Sunday (green beans, white beans, broccoli, cabbage, zucchini, celery, onion, carrots, etc.) and we had that Sunday and I'll have it the rest of the week for lunches. Breakfast is always (even at home on weekends or telecommuting) a 3 fresh egg white omelet with veggies and Morning Star sausage. For snacks, I have celery and cucumber pre-cut and packaged to grab when I make my lunch each morning. Afternoon snack is yogurt. I love Kroger's CarbMaster brand because it's got a lot of protein, is low in carbs, and it comes in "fake" flavors that I love. While I like Greek yogurt, many have fruit on the bottom and I can't handle the texture. They also tend to be high in carbs. So CarbMaster gives me flavor I love while keeping the sugar count low. My rule is that I only eat what I bring (unless I get really hungry, and then I steal a coworker's almonds), and that's worked well on both the diet and my budget.
Dinners this week:
- Cheeseburger wraps. I'm past the 1st phase of South Beach, so I made these with whole wheat tortillas. I skipped the ketchup because of extra sugar and just used my favorite burger seasoning instead. Funny story, we don't have a George Forman grill as recommended, so I used our waffle maker. Ours didn't look nearly as good, but they were tasty.
- Cilantro lime chicken and black bean salad. I love crock pot meals, and plan to freeze half the chicken for a later time. Hopefully this Pinterest find works out better than cheeseburger wraps in execution.
- Turkey meatloaf and spaghetti squash. I know, I've said that a hunk of turkey meat doesn't sound appetizing. But I'm determined to find a good recipe. If all else fails, I will season the heck out of it. We substitute spaghetti squash for pasta in our favorite creations a lot, but I also love it as a side. Dan makes it extra tasty with just a bit of butter (I don't use butter on hardly anything, so I don't feel quilty for a little bit in one side dish every now and then) and Spinach and Herb dip mix that I get from Tastefully Simple.
- Grilled chicken with mashed sweet potatoes. FINALLY I can have sweet potatoes!
- Steak with spinach salad. We had this same meal this past Saturday night and it was just so tasty. I love steak, and as long as I buy a lean cut and pair it with vegetables, it makes for a satisfying end to the week. Plus it always feels special to have a steak dinner :)
What are you having this week?
FYI, I'm getting spammed a LOT, so I'm turning off anonymous comments a while to see if it helps. I've set it so that anyone with a Google account can still post - if you're still unable to comment, feel free to shoot me an email and I'll see if another setting works better.
Anyway, it seems like the perfect time to discuss what I'm doing (and what's been working for the 1st two weeks) and share my meal plans. I'm not setting out to do anything like Paleo or Whole30 (as some of our more brave and possibly crazy ladies are), but we're eating more veggies than ever before and it's pretty much a South Beach Diet plan, which I've been successful with in the past.
I made a HUGE pot of vegetable soup on Sunday (green beans, white beans, broccoli, cabbage, zucchini, celery, onion, carrots, etc.) and we had that Sunday and I'll have it the rest of the week for lunches. Breakfast is always (even at home on weekends or telecommuting) a 3 fresh egg white omelet with veggies and Morning Star sausage. For snacks, I have celery and cucumber pre-cut and packaged to grab when I make my lunch each morning. Afternoon snack is yogurt. I love Kroger's CarbMaster brand because it's got a lot of protein, is low in carbs, and it comes in "fake" flavors that I love. While I like Greek yogurt, many have fruit on the bottom and I can't handle the texture. They also tend to be high in carbs. So CarbMaster gives me flavor I love while keeping the sugar count low. My rule is that I only eat what I bring (unless I get really hungry, and then I steal a coworker's almonds), and that's worked well on both the diet and my budget.
Dinners this week:
- Cheeseburger wraps. I'm past the 1st phase of South Beach, so I made these with whole wheat tortillas. I skipped the ketchup because of extra sugar and just used my favorite burger seasoning instead. Funny story, we don't have a George Forman grill as recommended, so I used our waffle maker. Ours didn't look nearly as good, but they were tasty.
- Cilantro lime chicken and black bean salad. I love crock pot meals, and plan to freeze half the chicken for a later time. Hopefully this Pinterest find works out better than cheeseburger wraps in execution.
- Turkey meatloaf and spaghetti squash. I know, I've said that a hunk of turkey meat doesn't sound appetizing. But I'm determined to find a good recipe. If all else fails, I will season the heck out of it. We substitute spaghetti squash for pasta in our favorite creations a lot, but I also love it as a side. Dan makes it extra tasty with just a bit of butter (I don't use butter on hardly anything, so I don't feel quilty for a little bit in one side dish every now and then) and Spinach and Herb dip mix that I get from Tastefully Simple.
- Grilled chicken with mashed sweet potatoes. FINALLY I can have sweet potatoes!
- Steak with spinach salad. We had this same meal this past Saturday night and it was just so tasty. I love steak, and as long as I buy a lean cut and pair it with vegetables, it makes for a satisfying end to the week. Plus it always feels special to have a steak dinner :)
What are you having this week?
FYI, I'm getting spammed a LOT, so I'm turning off anonymous comments a while to see if it helps. I've set it so that anyone with a Google account can still post - if you're still unable to comment, feel free to shoot me an email and I'll see if another setting works better.
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