A lunch break blogger, just writing to hear herself talk.

Thursday, March 28, 2013

Weird-Ass Cookies

So, I made cookies tonight (last night by the time I post this) out of GARBANZO BEANS! They're freaky but pretty dang good! Now, they aren't exactly health food cookies... chocolate chips, peanut butter, honey... they just happen to be grain-free. So... you can pretend they're good for you if you want!

I followed this recipe pretty much to the letter, including all her tips and tricks. So... there is nothing original at all about this post. It's just a pictorial montage of me following a recipe someone else made up. Be impressed.

Gather the stuffs. I used dark chocolate chips and I lucked out that my peanut butter is natural because she warns that regular peanut butter WILL NOT WORK. So... dodged a bullet there. You'll also need honey, vanilla, baking powder and of course chickpeas! No salt added.

Rinse all that sodium away!

Put 'em in the food processor thingy along with all the other ingredients except the chocolate chips. Ignore that baggy of PB2 and my protein powder sitting out. Those do NOT go in this recipe.

Her recipe says do NOT use a blender, use a food processor... but my Ninja Blender has this sticker on the front that says it also is a food processor. So... whatever.

You go, Ninja! This took like 20 seconds maybe and it looked JUST LIKE COOKIE DOUGH!

So I put the chocolate chips in... about 3/4 of a cup instead of half a cup. Obviously. I assumed the recipe MUST have had a typo.

I couldn't get my Ninja to mix the chips in though so I just took the blade out and mixed it up with a spoon. I really wanted to lick the dough off the blade but resisted. I happen to like my tongue attached to my head, thanks.

I did not, however, resist the urge to lick the spoon. I was skeptical of whether the dough would be good but it was delicious.

I proceeded to eat a ton of the dough.

Then I followed the instructions and wet my hands before making the dough balls... Nifty little trick. No dough sticking to my hands. It's supposed to make 12 but I always seem to follow a recipe and then add a little extra of the stuff I like so it yielded 12 and 2/3 cookies.

And then I baked them! For 10 minutes on 350. And I obviously did not grease the parchment beforehand. You can see the remnants of the first cookie that was stuck.

The cookies never really get crunchy. Like they stay the same consistency as dough. I threw them back in the oven after the 10 minutes was up, hoping a few extra minutes would make them more cookie-like. Then I went and curled up on the couch to watch DVR'd Project Runway and work on my taxes and forgot about them! It was probably an extra 10 or 15 minutes and I went RUNNING back in to the kitchen and they looked EXACTLY the same. Not burnt. Not any less doughy. Kind of freaky, really. They're unburnable! You basically can not mess this up. I stuck the rest of the cookies in a baggy and put em in the fridge and even after they got cold they didn't get any less dough-like. I guess that's a grain thing. 

The blog I followed said they're not delicious cold but I think they are. She also said the dough was gross but I didn't think it was. D wouldn't touch these with a ten-foot pole so I have no one to back me up on the fact that they're yum-o. They just taste like peanut butter and chocolate. I think they're glorious, they don't take long to make and they don't require too many ingredients. Winner winner.

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Tuesday, March 26, 2013

Currently

Watching: All the Whitney I have on my DVR. Ahahahaha I think every 20-something girl relates to this show but I really, really relate to it and I lauuuugh and laugh. Although this season has been a little more "and here's the formal moral of the episode" for the last 4 minutes of the show. I'm not looking to Whitney for morals. Cut that crap out.

Eating: Whatever I want for the next couple days. Because I don't have to be in a swimsuit again for like... a month and a half. So I'm going to enjoy all those cheat meals I skipped before the cruise before I get back in to my routine. I'm even making lasagna. With actual noodles. When I told D, he wiggle jumped, like a fish. LASAGNAAAAA!!! THIS IS THE BEST THING THAT COULD HAPPEN!

Thinking about: Going back to therapy. Just because I really loved therapy in college. BUT! How do people with jobs go to therapy?! I can't be taking half a day off work every other week... I can not be the only normal crazy person with this issue.

Mad about: Kanye getting out and running right in to the busy street in front of our house. The first words out of my mouth once I scooped him up after the nice man in the low-rider truck stopped traffic for him were We. Are. Moving. even though it wasn't our house's fault. A windstorm blew our side gate crooked enough for him to slip out of the backyard and while I was trying to fix it, K was like, "Oh? You don't want me getting out through this hole down here? Don't mind if I do!" If I hadn't pointed it out to him, I doubt it would have ever interested him. But I need something to blame for this accident so I'm blaming the location of our house near a busy street.

Reading: Just finished Speaker for the Dead by Orson Scott Card. It's the sort-of-sequel to Ender's Game. We have a box set of Orson Scott Card books I'm working my way through.

Gotta read all the books in preparation for this:

AHHHHHHHHHH!!!! Ender's Game The Movie comes out this year!!! I'm excited/nervous. It's my second favorite book ever and I'm going to be crushed if it's not exactly as dark and inspiring as I've imagined it in my mind since I first read it in 8th grade.

Celebrating: The fact that I paid off Lucy!!! Lucy... this is Lucy.


My RX350 I got summer of 2011. I read that you maximize credit by making on-time payments on a loan for 12-24 months so now's the perfect time! When I called to pay it off, the girl was like, 'can I ask why you've decided to pay the balance?' and I was like, 'well, I got my bonus for work... and I can... so I am!' and she was like, 'yes, congratulations, but WHY?' I didn't know what she meant... why would I keep paying interest if I don't have to? So confused. I just said, 'uhmm... I guess I don't know... just because I want to? I really want to..."

Craving: This haircut. I feel like a ton of my famous blogger friends are doing it... and my hair would grow back quickly. It might happen. Fair warning.
Also a perfect summer ombre, too.

Making me happy: The fact that I have Friday off for Good Friday! After a vacation, there's nothing better than a short work week. I mean... other than an even shorter week, I suppose. How about NO WORK WEEK! Ok, I'm getting carried away.
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Monday, March 25, 2013

Dirty Face

I affectionately named this look 'dirty face'. I get it every spring. This year, it came with some lovely dark circles under my eyes and some greasy hair. Aren't you supposed to come back from vacation looking refreshed? I did something wrong.

I'm baaaaaaaaaaaaaaaack and exceptionally brown. My tan will be peeling off of me for a week or two. If only I'd let that massage therapist on the ship convince me I needed her $125 sugar and ginger scrub, I could speed up this process and keep from shedding skin everywhere I go. Yummy.

It was glorious. Belize City was beautiful and Roatan, Honduras was even MORE beautiful. Cozumel still pours a mean Mai Tai. The cruise ship had a gym, a couple swimming pools, a pizza bar and a regular bar. That's about all I can tell you about it. I danced my face off every night that I wasn't sleeping my face off. There was no in-between. And that's about the summary of my trip! 

I'm exhausted and I think if someone were to offer me a free cruise but I had to take it right now, right this second, I might decline. MIGHT. I'm not sure I could ever decline a week off of work.

I swear I'll get around to those posts I talked about before I left but for now, I'm going to go exfoliate, moisturize and repeat.
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Friday, March 22, 2013

Spicy Butternut Soup

Hi I'm Lori, I was so excited when Arica asked me to guest blog while she was away on her fabulous cruise. I have my own little corner of the Internet, In The Middle is my blog and I have an Etsy shop as well. My blog is mostly of my recipes that I create. I eat mostly a plant based diet but will believe that food should also be real. Meaning I will most of the time choose an organic, free range, chicken, over an overly processed non-organic tofu (not that I'm against tofu by any means). I'm also a big fan of flavor so all of my dishes go through a very hard critic to even make it on the blog.

 Today I am going to share my spicy butternut squash soup. I made this the other day and A (the boyfriend) and I both agreed it was blog worthy. Plus, it is super easy and who doesn't love easy cooking? **Caution: This soup is really spicy! You can always start with 1 chipotle pepper and add more.**



Things you'll need:
1 10 oz package organic frozen butternut squash
1 can organic coconut milk
1/2 cup veggie broth
6 garlic cloves
3 chipotle peppers 
1/2 C mushrooms
1/4 C chopped carrots
1 small potato pealed and cut into cubes
1 steam of kale leaves torn
1/4 C lentils
1 avocado
dried cilantro
1 tbsp cumin
1 tsp curry

Place squash, coconut milk, broth, garlic, and chipotle peppers on the stove and bring to a boil. Once at a boil turn stove down and let simmer for 15 minutes. While the soup is simmering chop mushrooms, carrots, potato and kale leaves. After 15 minutes of simmering pour soup into a blender and blend till smooth. Transfer back onto the stove add the rest of the ingredients (except avocado and cilantro) and spices, let simmer until lentils are fully cooked, about 30 more minutes. Once done garnish with avocados and cilantro and enjoy!

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Wednesday, March 20, 2013

Why Oh Why Wednesday - Baby Edition

Why oh why, baby???


Hey guys, I'm Jenna, the Overly Enthusiastic ones sister, I have a little boring rambly blog over here where I talk about how I could better the world if only someone would ask my opinion or I talk about my sweet lovey, Peyton.  (she's no stranger to this blog - made quite a few cameos)

On Wednesdays over at my bloggy I pose a why question, so I thought I would continue the theme over here while my sister suns her buns on foreign beaches and a giant cruise ship for a week.  Only slightly jealous.

Peyt loungin in our front yard enjoying this past weekend's 90° temps!

H is definetly for Hell - why don't they have "The Growth" diagram where your partner occupies 3/4 of the bed?
Why oh Why does my child gravitate to me in the night.  We have a king size bed!  We're regular sized humans.  Why do I never have room?  She's either mashed up against me like a growth OR she is perpendicular between us, like an H - I always get the feet end.   It's like magnets.  I try to flip over to see if I can repel her like magnets do.  Has yet to work. 

Which brings me to my next why, why child are you still in my bed?  You're a week shy of being HALF a year old.  It's time.  Therefore, I've decided we're dragging the guest room mattress into your room tonight and you and I will sleep in there and my goal is to have you sleep trained by your half birthday. 
Anyone want to take bets? 

Which brings up another sleep related question, why are you so hungry at night that you require 2 bottles?
I feed you a ton of oatmeal at dinner, what?  How can I help you sleep?  Any feed back would be enthusiastically devoured, thanks!  Wish me luck!

Hope you're all having a great week!






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Monday, March 18, 2013

Shabby Shack Crafts

Arica asked me to guest blog while she was away on a cruise. My name is Kimberly and I have a blog called Shabby Shack Crafts where my finace and I share our DIY projects and give step by step details so you can make your very own.

Blog: http://www.shabbyshackcrafts.blogspot.com/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/#!/shabbyshackcrafts

This morning I am going to share one of my favorite projects....tile coasters! They can be personalized for yourself or as a gift and they are very inexpensive.



Materials you will need:

4 - 4"x4" Tumbled Tiles

Staz-on ink pad

Rubber stamps of choice

16 - Felt pads (to avoid scratches)
 
 
I usually get my tiles from a local tile store that has 48 tiles to a box but if you are just looking to make a couple of sets, any home improvement store will have them in their tile section. Just make sure none of them are broken or have huge holes in them. Once I remove the tiles from the box I use a wet rag to wipe off the excess dust. This will make the ink stick better.
 

I then go ahead and put the felt pads on the bottom of them (one in each corner) so they will not scratch the surface you set them on.
 

Now it is time to get creative. StazOn inkpads are by far the best ink I have come across and come in a variety of colors. It is permanent so it will not bleed when you set a drink on top of the coaster. I bought mine 40% off at Hobby Lobby. Stamp on your image and let them dry completely.


Here are some I have made...
 

 
 

Stack them up and tie together with a bow. Now you have the perfect gift anyone would love to have.
 

 
Enjoy! Love you Arica!
 

 
 
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Friday, March 15, 2013

Diagnosis

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You guys. This week was so crazy. Work was a whirlwind of rushing, waiting, and accomplishments. I'm really excited about where I'm leaving (most) of my projects. At home, it was like workoutworkoutworkoutpackcleanworkoutshopworkoutBAM! Upper Respiratory Infection. Doc gave me steroids to help me feel better quick (she said about 2 days! Hallelujah!) and told me to take Mucinex and also wrote me a script for an antibiotic to take on the boat with me in case it does turn in to Bronchitis. Best. Walk-in clinic. Ever.

So, naturally, I google 'can you exercise with a URI?' because I had not given up on losing the last 3 lbs before the cruise and wouldn't you know it. It was just article after article about how working out too hard makes you highly susceptible to URIs. I DID THIS TO MYSELF! I was so mad last night. Just stewing in my anger and cough syrup. I even got really angry at Bob Harper for wearing that shirt on Monday that said '3 on, 1 off, 365 days a year' and me rolling my eyes at it thinking 'I go 6 on, 1 off, you slacker, Bob Harper!' Although, I'm not 100% sure the shirt is even talking about frequency of working out... it could mean something fitness-related that I'm complete unaware of...

I do like his tall socks though... and his tattoos... and everything about him. 

So... no working out except for coughing, which I'm thinking may be toning my abs... not sure.

So here are the three posts I had PLANNED to write this week but instead I was busy being sick, busy or exhausted so instead you got these lame posts these last 3 days. I'll write them when I get back and you guys just pretend with me, okay?

Inventory Lists - How to pack everything you need and nothing more for a cruise.
Advice from a Semi-Pro Cruiser - What to expect, tips on saving cash, ect, ect.
Crossfit-ish - the program my trainer put me on to get ready for the cruise that got me SO CLOSE to my pre-holiday weight.

AND FINALLY!!!

I'm boarding a (mostly) internet-free boat Saturday so I have three very lovely ladies that are going to be guest posting for me while I'm away next week! I'm pretty sure I couldn't have picked a more diverse bunch of girls with SUPER diverse blogs and I hope you guys love them as much as I do!

Bon Voyage!

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Thursday, March 14, 2013

Laziest Post Ever

A bunch of images I screenshot because I liked them, from twitter, insta, ect.

#Coveteur #Instagood

The perfect skirt I plan to make for myself when I get home because I can't find a source for it. I'm in to maxi skirts with slits this spring.

OMG, inappropriate attraction to Kendall in this pic. Killer legs. #Jailbait

Hillary Duff is my favorite. I think she's so pretty and her tweets and instas are SO down to earth and always positive and I just love her. And she posted a picture of her new sweater. Like a total dork. Like something I would do. Hillary, I'm pretty sure you're rich. Stop getting excited about a new sweater! Just kidding, never stop! I <3 you!

Kim's new bangs. I like 'em, Michelle Obama be startin' trends, yall!

Undressed Skeleton is trying to kill me. I read the title to this post and I was like, this is just a muffin full of everything I'm allergic to. Not cool, Taralynn!

Our dinner last night was yum-o. Flank steak and veggies in szechuan sauce. Mmm Mmm Mmm

You have got to be FREAKING kidding me.

I'm sick. I'M SICK! TWO DAYS before my cruise. My throat is like a thousand tiny knives stabbing me every time I swallow and my chest HURTS. But... those are my only symptoms.

This is both good and bad. It's good because I can soldier through those symptoms and still have a kick butt time on the cruise, barring this does not get any worse.

It's bad because it sure sounds a lot like bronchitis to me. Which is good because that means it's not something you need antibiotics for... because you can't drink on antibiotics. And you can't cruise without a bloody mary or 3 for breakfast. But it's also bad because bronchitis is contagious, I think. And that would be a jerk move on my part, infecting the world with my bronchitis.

But seriously. asd;flkasd;fawoiefna;sdlkvan.gasdlk

Now I must go to sleep. I must sleep so much and drink so much water and take vitamins and do all those things my mom preached to me so I can hopefully feel marginally better, stat. Also, I see a trip to the clinic and some begging and groveling for a steroid shot in my future.

Send healthy thoughts my way, ya'll!
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Wednesday, March 13, 2013

Once you go black...

I'm never going back. I've finally made the switch. At first, I was just trying to cut some sugar from my life. Then I ran out of my favorite cinnamon creamer... and one thing led to another and I'm all black coffee, all the time now. I feel very mature... except I still have to put ice cubes it in so it doesn't burn my mouth because I have not patience... so not that mature.

In similar news, D and I stopped by Sbux Monday night because we needed to grocery shop and the Sbux shares a parking lot with the HEB so... we didn't really see how we COULDN'T get Sbux. We were so physically close to it... it drew us in. ANYWAY, I order a cup of decaf because it's like 8:30 at night and do you know what the girl told me?!

"I'm sorry. We don't brew decaf at night."

I said, "I'm sorry, you what?"

"No decaf at night. It would go to waste"

*squints eyes like I don't speak English*

"There's no decaf at night. No one orders decaf at night. I can make you a decaf Americano?"

I was dumbfounded. Why even INVENT decaf at all? What's the point of decaf in the morning?! Mind. Blown.

Now to bring this tangent home by moving from coffee to tea. Specifically dandelion root tea. I read about a dandelion root tea drink on Jillian Michaels' blog. It's supposed to be a diuretic and help you lose water weight before an event. Yes, please.

Here's the link to the recipe I followed. Well, half followed. Literally. I did HALF of the recipe and planned to do the second half in the afternoon but I just didn't have it in me. Like... I thought if I peed ANY more I might die.

I steeped the tea in hot water and then mixed it in the water bottle with the rest of the ingredients

Farmhouse paraphernalia circa 2003 :)  

It's not yummy but not terrible. Bitter. It's hard to drink so much of it. I had to take a potty break mid-workout. HOWEVER! It was totally worth it. I lost 2.1 pounds in one day! I ate normally, did my normal ~50 minutes of cardio. The only thing I did differently was this drink! It's all natural, just tea, lemon juice, cranberry juice and water but geez-o-man. I'm going to keep it up until the cruise but I don't think I could do 7 full days of it.

I realize I'll gain it all back fairly quickly, but I may add this in to my routine once a week or so, just to keep water weight at bay. It seems like a healthy alternative to some of the other methods my crazy girlfriends use to de-bloat before an event.
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Tuesday, March 12, 2013

Winterest

I used to have a board on Pinterest called 'Winners' and I'd move the things I tried that were awesome there for quick reference. I also had one called 'Not That Great' but then I was like, why I am I keeping these? They were not that great. DELETE BOARD.

Anyway, the 'Winner' board became less user-friendly than I was expecting. It was a hodge-podge of everything from a really great lipgloss my mom got me for Christmas to the perfect seasoning recipe for baked chicken to a cleaning checklist I had adopted. It was disorganized but I was sad to let it go! I felt like I was doing the world such a service by letting you know, "Hey! I tried this and it actually works. Seriously. This is not a waste of your time" but again, it just made finding all my favorite things more difficult and that is NOT in the spirit of Pinterest.

So, instead, after I've racked up enough winners, I'll just share them here. I was hesitant to do this because I thought it was redundant. If you follow me on Pinterest you see me pin them and then you see me blog about them. But I just, I really, really want you to know about the awesome things that are out in the world and... I just want to shout it from the rooftops. But I don't have a rooftop. I have a blog. And today's post reads "these pins are supah-awesome" (Anchorman tangent)

Don't change a thing about the recipe. The peanut butter tastes like the inside of a Reese Cup and... omg. They're SO GOOD.

It feels like butter and looks GREAT! But be careful. If you ask for it for a present and your awesome mom shells out the obscene cash to buy it for you, you'll get addicted and then YOU'LL have to shell out the obscene cash for it FOREVERRRRR.

It looks super fancy and impressive but it's easy and pretty healthy and it doesn't have any crazy ingredients or spices you've never heard of.

Perfect foundation all day. It stays put and looks airbrushed. Also, you use less foundation so you can buy the good stuff and it'll last way longer.

D tried to trade his potato chips for my baked Edamame once. They're SO healthy and tasty, even boyz like them!

Dish wand: Half dish soap, half vinegar. It's a soap scum killah and convenient. I can just wipe it down while I'm already in there. Love it.

Again... looks impressive, something cool and REALLY yummy to bring to a holiday get together and be like, oh yea, I just whipped up some homemade cranberry sauce, no big thing. 

I was kind of obsessed with these things during the holidays and this was my go-to resource for how to make them. I mean, come on, how easy does this make it? You could print it off and trace it if need be.
No Source

I mean, duh, right? Why didn't I think of this?
No Source

And who knows WHEN this will come in handy but it's definitely something everyone should know about.

Follow me on Pinterest! :) 
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Monday, March 11, 2013

My Weekend in Pictures


And welcome to my weekend. This is pretty much how I looked all of Sunday. The only reason I put on pants Saturday was to go to Brit's baby shower and my mom's birthday dinner. Other than that, I was a recluse of Cinderella-esque proportions. Just washin' laundry and scrubbin' dishes and getting the house ready to leave it for a week.

This week is suh-lammed at work, preparing for vacaaaaatioooooon. I have to stay super-focused and get all my stuffs in to other peoples' hands so it doesn't just sit, collecting dust while I'm out sunnin' my buns. I have a to-do list, and I'm checking it twice. I really don't want to come back to a crisis. I'm not taking a satellite phone this year because I don't have any construction going on! Hip hip hooray! 

Also, boo on daylight savings, can I get an amen?

The birthday girl just trying to keep the baby from flying away.

The beautiful mama to be.  

Babysitting is not that easy when you have no baby equipment. This was my first attempt at how I thought the carseat was supposed to go in the car. I had to send picture texts to my mom for her to correct me because I had no idea. #momhelp #25andclueless

Yup, I could hold her all day long while she sleeps. I kissed all her fingers and toes and ears and nose. 


And then this little man changed the course of our entire Sunday. He sometimes lays on this end table here so he can see out the front door, but I try not to let him. But good gravy, how cute is he?! I couldn't tell him no. Other times I open the windows and he sits on the back of the sofa and looks out the windows. But D said no, no, no. No puppies on the back of the sofa, looking out the windows. But puppies should have windows to look out. so we had to reevaluate our entire layout all because of this 6lb prince.

So this is an OLD before pic, obvi, because we've painted since. But it shows the original furniture layout that was blocking the windows. And it shows the front door has the screen at the bottom so he can't see out there, either, the little nugget.

Aaaaand after. Muuuch more open and inviting! The sofa in the front room is going to D's mom's house. Then it will be even LESS crowded. Not exactly conducive for entertaining... barely any seating... but D is loving his man throne of a recliner.

Then we needed a break. So we splurged on tortilla carbs but skipped the rice at Freebirds. 

Then we went to TJ Maxx and I bought this rug. And I put it in the dining area. I think maybe it makes the space look smaller? Separating the dining area and the living area? But the rug is really really pretty in person and I love it so it shall stay. It may find a new home in the office or something... but it's a keeper.

Also bought my Yurbuds. They're phenomenal. I'm crazy about them. Buy yourself some. The $30 ones had everything I needed. Don't bother with the $60 ones.

And little man is VERY pleased with his kingdom's new layout. He can lay in his bed and chew on his giant bone and gaze out at the birds and cars. Also he likes to run from one end of the house to the other... just because he can. The whole family is much happier with this layout. Good weekend.
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