Sweet and Savory By Sarah

Spinning, Running and Farting

2012-02-28T21:40:00.000-06:00

I have been really bad at staying right on schedule for my half marathon training plan.   Don't get me wrong, I am completing most of it, just not on the right days.   I'm also doing other things on top of running that aren't on the schedule but I figure as long as my muscles aren't too tired, I should be alright.

Yesterday for example:

I was supposed to do my long run on Sunday.   From my previous post, you can see that I did not run this past weekend.   Shopping and simply being lazy got in the way.

Monday morning rolled along and I got up and got the girls dressed.   I sent Katelyn off to school and Kenzie and Aubri dressed and took them to the gym daycare.   I knew on my way there that 7 miles was on the schedule and I had this sick feeling it wasn't going to happen.   I knew that I had to do it on the treadmill for a few reason and the longest run on the treadmill prior to this was 6 miles the week before.    I was ready with my Nuun and got things going.   At about 2 miles in, my friend found me up there and hopped onto the treadmill next to me.   She got me through the next 20 minutes and I now realize what it's like to run and talk at the same time.    I have never ran with anyone before so I never knew if I was capable of such a thing. I'm glad to say that I am and it was soooo nice to have someone to distract me for a little while.   I wish she could have stuck along for the whole time seven miles!   Yes, I did complete the whole thing.   I didn't walk at all either which is what I'm aiming for.

Later that night I had spin class.   Normally I do my long run Sunday and then I do spin Monday night so I feel like it gives my legs enough time to rest.   Oddly though, I got through spin just fine.   Thanks once again to my friend that also saved me earlier in the day on the treadmill.   Without her, I probably wouldn't have gone.   Tiffany to the rescue!

That's the spinning room.   I'm pretty sure the guy in the back was wondering why I was taking a picture of the room.   Even Tiffany wasn't so sure about it. What you don't get from this picture is how peaceful the room really is.   The lights are dimmed and the walls are painted nicely.   It really doesn't look like puke.

Now tonight I was supposed to take Core-Strength-Core and run 4.5 miles but I had to cancel out.   My stomach was so upset with something I ate or my IBS was kicking in again after being gone for how long.   I had such horrible gas that I couldn't go.   I don't think most people call out of work for gas but if I had a job I would have had to because I honestly would have gassed people out.    People would have been so mad if I was there.    Not to mention it actually really hurt my stomach.   Instead of working out, I sat in the bath and read magazines.

Rough, I know.

Now I'm back to playing catch up on the training schedule, just like I am every single week.   I feel alright with it though as long as I am able to keep getting my long run numbers up.   Here's hoping that will keep happening.

Weekend in Review aka the No Run Fun Weekend

2012-02-27T07:34:00.000-06:00

This weekend was a good one if you don't factor in that I didn't run at all. Besides that, it was pretty amazing of a weekend and as busy as it can get. Friday I worked and it was with my love Hailee. I can pretty much assume if I work with her, it's going to be a great night. She's just my kind of gal and has no problem being completely inappropriate.

We played emotions again...Jackie as the creator of emotions was shouting out what emotion we should show.

Hailee's emotion is correct. Mine is not.

I can already imagine the emails I will get on this one. Sorry to disappoint.

On Saturday, the girls had soccer nice and early.   I started the day off with lots of coffee and a quick shower and then off we went.   Both girls played great and their teams also won.   Yay for a great start to the day.

After that we went to Katelyn's school carnival.   We spend more than we should have.   $20.00 on Raffle Tickets, $20.00 on games and then $10.00 on food.   It's a good thing we won a couple of the raffles and so it makes it all worth it.

Here's the fun part.   Once we were home from the carnival, my mother in law came to pick the girls up and was taking them to a hotel with a little water park inside.   This means Mike and I have an entire day and night without kids.    Like most adults, the first thing we did was run to Home Depot.    We like to dream about what we will do with out house.   We fought about how I would never put granite counters in my current house because I don't plan on living here forever and I'll save that big expense for a house I will live in.    We also argued over rugs and how Mike likes the most ridiculous rugs ever made.    Then we settled on buying a new light fixture for our front porch.    Some how we both liked the same style for that.

Now the fun.   We made a reservation at a hotel for ourselves.   We had dreams of having drinks and sitting in the hot tub all night and just having fun.    What really happened wasn't at all like that.    We stayed at one of the better hotels around here which is right down town Appleton so that we could walk to dinner.

Waiting for me to get ready for dinner. Instead I take pictures.

The toilet makes a great back drop.

This is my idea of a perfect outfit. Leggings, tall boots and a longer shirt to cover my butt.

So after taking 465 pictures, we went to dinner where I proceeded to take more pictures. This is my dinner. It doesn't look good but it was amazing.

Whole wheat spaghetti with a bunch of veggies and marinara sauce. I had to try to order something healthy to counter act the White Russian I was drinking and the large loaf of garlic bread they gave me as we sat down.

We walked back to the hotel and thought about going into the hot tub. Both of us were exhausted. We didn't want t spoil the evening by going to bed at 7:30 so back outside we went to walk to a coffee place.

After sitting there and talking for about 45 minutes, we went back to the hotel.   We never did end up going into the hot tub.   We watched TV, played around with the Sleep Number beds that were provided, and slept.    We.Are.Lame

Honestly though, it was just kind of a perfect night.

Sunday was filled with looking at open houses, shopping and working on an art project I will be sharing sometime this week.

Do you and your significant other ever rent a hotel just to get away, even though it's only a 15 minute drive from your house?

Do you go to Home Depot, Lowes or any other home improvement store and dream of what you'd love to do to your house?   We do it ALL the time.

Yikes...It's so unlike me to share this...

2012-02-23T07:19:00.000-06:00

It's official. I am signed up. My first half marathon, only a short 2 months away.

Yellow Jasmine Rice aka The Best Rice Ever

2012-02-22T21:51:00.000-06:00

I usually wont say "The best" when posting recipes because I'm scared people will take that very seriously and then be disappointed when it doesn't live up to their standards. This time I think I've got something special here so I am pretty confident in labeling it "The Best Rice Ever." This stuff is amazing.

The smell.

The color.

The taste.

They all meet my expectations. You need to try this. Run to the store, get the ingredients and make this as a side dish for dinner. Heck! Make it for your main dish if you wish. I wont judge.

Ingredients:

2 Cups of Dry Jasmine Rice
3 Cups Water
3 Chicken Bouillon Cubes (Or I used 1 Tbs. of Better Than Bouillon)
1 tsp. Turmeric
1/2 tsp. Diced Garlic
1/4 tsp. Ground Cumin
1/8 tsp. Cinnamon
1 Bay Leaf
2 Tbs. Butter

Directions:

In a large pot, add the butter, garlic, turmeric, cumin, and cinnamon. Stir constantly on medium heat for about 2 minutes to get the spices cooking.

Inhale. Yum.

Add the jasmine rice and stir to coat the rice. The rice may pop a little bit. Continue to stir constantly for 2 minutes.

Add the water, bouillon cubes and bay leaf and give a good stir. Turn the heat up to high and put a lid on the pot. Once the water is rapidly boiling, turn the heat down to the lowest setting and let alone for 20 minutes.

After 20 minutes, take the lid off of the pot. Remove the bay leaf and fluff the rice with a fork.

Well that was awkward...

2012-02-22T10:10:00.000-06:00

So a couple of days ago I ordered another box for the TV in our family/Toy room. I have my treadmill back there and the Y has spoiled me into thinking that if I'm going to be running on a treadmill, I need to have a TV to watch as well.

As part of me ordering it, they gave me HD channels for Free, Movie Channels for free, Sports Channels for free and also HBO and Skinamax for free. Of course it's only for 1 month but I'll take it. A day later, I still didn't have the channels and they had told me that it would take about 4-24 hours for them to be active. I decided since it's easy enough, I would chat with a rep. and ask them where my channels were. Turns out they were to be added the 22nd, and yes I do have them now, but the conversation with this rep. was so awkward....

As I waited for him (I think it's a him?) to write what he was going to write, I couldn't help but feel anxious and nervous. I figured I hadn't won the U-verse lottery or anything but what was it that was going to make me smile? I pretty much figured I was getting some more channels to try. Mike was happy though. I am just so thankful this took place over chat and not over the phone because that would have made it even more awkward.

The Lost Recipes

2012-02-21T12:11:00.001-06:00

As a food blogger, I have high expectations for the recipes I share. I dread getting feedback where people hated what I made or it didn't turn out for them. I usually try to help them if something went wrong but I have to learn that not everything I make is going to please everyone as much as it does me. That being said, there are many recipes throughout the time of this blog that haven't made the chopping block for one reason or another. Half the time I forget to take a good picture of the end product. Without that, the recipe is nearly pointless. I feel like it would be a failure as a post and I wont put that on here. Other times, I didn't like it as much as I would have loved to. I don't want to just put recipes on my just to have a post. Sadly, those pictures and recipes get no time in the spot light so I thought I'd share some of the pictures of these lost recipes. Enjoy!

Foccacia Bread

2012-02-17T13:28:00.000-06:00

Today I was looking for a bread recipe to make. I wanted it to be easy and obviously be with ingredients I had on hand. Last night for dinner I made chicken noodle soup and it was delicious but it was missing the bread to go along side of it. I wasn't looking to consume the added calories of a slice of store bought wheat bread with butter so I just ate the soup as is.

I knew I would be having the left overs for lunch today so I was ready to bake some type of bread to dip in the soup. I needed it to be quick and easy since I only had this morning to make it. This is it! I already am looking forward to using it as sandwich bread for tomorrows lunch!

Ingredients:

Dough:

2 Cups of Luke Warm Water
1 Tbs Honey
1 Tbs Active Dry Yeast
1 Tbs Kosher Salt *
1 Tbs Extra Virgin Olive Oil
1/2 a Small Onion, Diced
5-6 Cups Flour

*Please make sure to use Kosher salt for this. If you use regular table salt, the bread will most likely be over salty.

Topping:

1 Tbs. Extra Virgin Olive Oil
Kosher Salt to taste
Rosemary to taste
1/4 Cup Parmesan Cheese

Directions:

In the bowl of your stand mixer (or a large bowl) add the warm water and dissolve the honey into the water.

Here is a quick motherly tip. I used Buckwheat honey in this recipe. It's a darker, non processed honey that is made right here in Wisconsin. It's amazing on a cough! Give it a try if you have a child and you would rather not give them something manufactured.

Back to the recipe. In the Water/Honey mixture, add the yeast. Let sit for 5 minutes until it starts to bubble.

After 5 minutes....

Add in the salt and stir. Add in the Olive Oil and stir. Stir in the onion. Place the bowl in your stand and with the dough attachment going on low, start to add the flour.

You need to go up to about 5 cups and see where you are at. You want to dough to be sticky but you should be able to get it out of the bowl. If you go in and grab it and you get nothing but dough sticking to you and the bowl, add a little more flour. You will want to knead for about 3 or so minutes in the mixer or about 5 minutes by hand.

Once the dough ready, place in a greased bowl and cover lightly with a damp cloth. Let the dough rise until double in size. This took about 2 hours in my cold house even with using a warm oven to help.

I put a little extra flour on top because it was a little more sticky than I would have liked when I put the dough in the bowl.

Pour the dough out on a greased baking sheet or a silicon mat. Press the dough down to fill out the baking sheet.

Poke your finger into the dough to indent it all over.

Brush Olive Oil over the top of the dough. Sprinkle with Kosher Salt. Sprinkle with Rosemary. Sprinkle with Parmesan Cheese. You really can top this bread to your liking. Add slice tomato, Olives, Cheddar Cheese. You name it!

Preheat oven to 415 degrees. Do this once you are done topping your bread. This way gives your bread time to rest and rise just a little bit again before you place into the oven.

Place the Foccacia in the oven and bake for 20 minutes until golden brown.

Source: All Recipes "Michael's Foccacia"

Oh what a week!

2012-02-16T13:48:00.000-06:00

This week has been crazy.   Makenzie has been a hot mess and I've been busy taking care of her.

Monday - Kenzie woke up from a nap screaming and jolting her body when she would go potty.   Instantly thought it was a UTI.   Called her Pediatrician.   They wanted me to wait 3 hours and then drive 20 minutes to a clinic because the one in the city I live in didn't have any appointments for the day.    Hmm...didn't seem like a quick enough solution so I straight up told her that I was going to go to another companies clinic that had urgent care and will be seen right away.   There was an awkward pause and then she said "If your insurance covers that" and I knew it did so away we went.

We got there and she had to pee so bad. I knew they would need that sample so I kept telling her to hold it.   We sat in the lobby while the receptionist held a conversation over the phone with another employee.   Kenzie is turning red in the face holding her pee.    Finally she waves us to another window to get checked in because she was obviously so busy.   We go to the other window.   The lady is entering some info into the computer and says that she'll be right with us.   To be fair, she was very nice.    So we are waiting and waiting and waiting and then she tells me her computer is frozen and she's going to have to restart it.   I asked her PLEASE can we use the bathroom.   I told her that I knew they would need a urine sample though so if there was anything we could do to speed this up.   Kenzie was literally crossing her legs.

The lady was great and told me to go walk down to the actual urgent care window and ask them about it and I gave her my insurance so she could actually check us in once she had her computer up and running.   I go over there and they had to fill out a couple quick things and then sent us on our way to finally go potty.   Poor little Kenzie screamed again and it was obvious she had a UTI or worse by what came out of her.   I wanted to cry.

We get out of the office and get the meds and go home.   She gets two doses in before I went to bed that night because I really wanted her feeling well since she was scheduled for surgery on Wednesday.

Tuesday she wakes up sick as ever.   She hurts when she pees.   Her side hurt terribly.   She had a fever and had also vomited.   She wouldn't eat a thing and barely drank anything.   I was so sad for her.   This infection just took everything out of her. She missed her Valentines Day party but thankfully my awesome friend Tiffany stopped by to get her Valentines to hand out and then came back over after school to bring Kenzie her goodies.   She also had Starbucks for me!! BFF Tiff!

Kenzie didn't get any better throughout the day so I pretty much assumed the surgery to have her adenoids removed would be off the next day. The next morning she woke up with a low grade fever but she felt great.   I called the hospital nice and early and told them everything.   I figured they would cancel it because of the low grade fever but apparently not!   The nurse said since it was just from the UTI it was fine.   As long as she didn't have any upper respiratory issues she was clear to have surgery.

We got to the hospital at 7:30am and Kenzie was the most perfect angel ever.    I was so upset I forgot my camera in the car so I have no adorable pictures of her in the hospital gown.   Total frown face here!

Her surgery was at 9 and she went back as scheduled.   They waited until she was out to put in her IV so the prep was so simple. Just hang out in the room, answer questions and talk about what was going to happen.    The doctors all came in to talk to us and then off she went.   Mike made a comment on how wrong it is to see your child that young being wheeled off to surgery.   He's right.   Such a tiny little peanut in such a huge bed.

We went to the waiting room and waited about thirty minutes until the doctor came out to talk to us.   Everything went well and her adenoids were pretty large so hopefully this helps her sleeping and breathing issues.    It was another twenty minutes or so until we went back to see her.   She was once again totally angelic and awesome.   Quiet as could be and wanting to be in my arms to sleep.   Fine by me :)

After a while they let us leave and we went home. Kenzie was requesting pizza and hot chocolate immediately.   She has been completely normal since being home and hasn't had a single ounce of pain.   You would never know she had surgery!   She even went back to school today and the teachers were shocked she was back already.

So anyway...up until today I hadn't ran since last Friday and haven't blogged since before the UTI incident. This morning I went to the Y and ran just over 4 miles to work off a couple pieces of Valentines Day Chocolate that I got. I have to get many more miles in to work off the rest. I did stick half the box in the freezer this morning because I'm sick of them being there ready to eat.

Sorry for the long winded post with no pictures.   I really would have had them had I not forgot my camera in the car!!

Have you had your Tonsils or Adenoids taken out?   How old were you?

Did you really make it through this entire post?   I am not sure I would have if it wasn't about my own child!

I am no longer "sick and pukey"

2012-02-13T14:23:00.000-06:00

So here we go. The longest and most pictures of possibly any weekend post I will ever have. We will start with Friday. I got up and went to the gym super early for me. If you know anything about me, my legs hate the morning and usually don't function very well.

I had to get in 4 miles to keep with my half marathon training and I really wasn't looking forward to it. I put Kenzie in the daycare there and got to it. Forty minutes later I was done and happy and it wasn't hard at all on my legs. I just made sure to take it slow and easy. Here's what happened though. Last week I showed you a picture of the view while on the treadmill. It's of the gymnasium downstairs. At this time of the morning, no one is playing basket ball so the lights are off. Because of this, you see yourself running as a reflection in the glass. I have never watched myself run before and because of that I was mesmerized by my feet. Like I stared at them nearly the whole time I ran because I had a hard time believing that's what my feet did when I ran. I have been working on a new running style and this was wonderful in seeing if I was actually doing it right.

On Saturday, I went shopping with my mom. We went to Kohls where they were basically handing their clothes to us and saying "Take this home for free!" Not exactly but 80-85% off of the regular price and then an additional 40% off of that price. On top of that, I also had a 20% off coupon so I literally spend hours at Kohls. Katelyn was awesome and got some new shoes and clothes as well. I ended up spending about $150.00 but I got sweaters, sweats, tons of shoes, tons of clothes for my nephews, a fleece for Aubri, 5 pairs of shoes for my girls and clothes for them as well. It was crazy. One problem though. You see the beast come out in women that want what you are looking at. They slowly creep in and take over.

I arranged for my mom to take the girls for a sleep over on Saturday night so Mike, my sister and I went to dinner at Senior Tequila's. This was the first time we had been there and it was a good time. We had to wait a while for a table and I ended up getting tipsy from starvation and drinking booze. I know better.

Bonus: They make table side salsa so for once in my life, I could tell them NO CILANTRO! Blah I hate that stuff.

After dinner we went to a bar and I continued to drink liquor instead of beer....mistake! I don't know how to drink liquor. I expect to be able to drink it like beer and you just can't do that. By the time we got to our friends house to hang out with them, I was to the point of not remembering much. So I remember them having a push up contest.

BUT I don't remember having these pictures taken of me and I found them on my phone the next morning. If someone could clarify as to what was going on in these pictures and why you were taking these pictures, that would be fabulous. I imagine I was telling some super amazing story that made a lot of sense. Or perhaps I was doing some awesome dance moves I've learned.

I may be possessed here.

I was supposed to go for my long run but I came down with something and felt weak and pukey on Sunday. I was miserable and I just wanted the day to be over.

I do realize I was hung over.

Where my Running is at right now....

2012-02-09T11:45:00.000-06:00

I haven't talked about my running much lately but I am still running.   I decreased my miles significantly for a few weeks but have been back at it again for the past two weeks or so.   My muscles are a bit sore from it but I am running for a reason.   I have two races in my future.   I am doing the Bock Point 5 miler on March 3rd.   It is going to be awesome because they give you free beer after you finish.   We all know my love for some beer.

Another race that I was very skeptical of even mentioning until I official sign up for is the Oshkosh Half Marathon.   The deadline to sign up at the reduced rate is February 20th and I plan to sign up on February 19th.   I am very nervous to sign up for a half because I haven't been running as much lately and many of my runs have been on a treadmill. I'm also terrified because I have never ran further than 10 miles. The 10 miler was a few months ago now and I've lost much of that endurance.

I did have one stellar run on Monday night that was 5.18 miles at a 9:20ish pace (good for me) but I felt great and enjoyed it AND it was outdoors.   The weather was pretty awesome and I actually ran based on time, not distance.   I ran for 50 minutes exactly and didn't even have a GPS tracking my distance. I went home and very carefully mapped my run and was happy with the 5.18 miles.   Yay!   That means I'm right on track for my half training plan.

The only picture I have is from the gym last night. I tried to secretively take a picture of what the view is of while you run on the treadmill.   I slowly grabbed my phone, turned the camera on, looked around, turned the flash off, and snapped.   I was running and I am surprised I didn't trip and go flying off the thing but I managed this picture.

In the reflection you can actually see the guy next to me....

My mom goes the gym with me a couple nights a week and when I told her my angry thoughts while I ran, she sort of laughed. She later told me that her thoughts are all roses. She told me she actually thinks how nice it is that families are down there playing basketball, that it's nice that the families get out and do something active instead of sitting at home. How lucky those kids are that their parents are interested in doing that with them. Etc Etc Etc. Unless my run is amazing, I rarely have happy thoughts. I pretty much have to talk myself through every.single.run. Is that at all normal??? Should I not be a runner??!?!?

We also have the luxury of having our own TV on the treadmill which is totally a bonus. I love it in comparison to my treadmill that I wonder to this day how accurate it is. Don't ask me to calibrate it. I am not smart enough for that.

Come Back Sauce

2012-02-08T14:00:00.000-06:00

This stuff has been labeled the best stuff on anything.   You can use it with Chicken, Fish, Beef, Burgers, Fries, you name it.   It's very easy to make and worth the 10 minutes to measure and store.

Mike's a condiments man.   We have pretty much every condiment and dressing you can buy and I find it rather annoying.   Our fridge door is filled to the max with bottles of condiments.   No matter what dinner I make, Mike has to add same sauce or condiment to it.

Maybe he's just trying to mask the flavor.   No....that can't be.   Nevermind I even said that.

I'm hoping this will take care of some of the bottles.

Ingredients:

1/2 Cup Mayonnaise
1/4 Cup Chili Sauce
1/4 Cup Ketchup
1/4 Cup Light Olive Oil
1/4 tsp. Hot Sauce
1 tsp. Worcestershire Sauce
Juice of one lemon
1 Tbs. (Heaping) Dijon Mustard*
1/2 tsp. Garlic Powder
1 tsp. Onion Salt
1 tsp. black pepper

*I only stone ground mustard. I used it and it was just fine :)

Directions:

It's so simple I found it silly to take a picture. Add all the ingredients into a blender. Blend until fully incorporated. Place into a container and refrigerate over night to let the flavors combine before using.

Source: Syrup and Biscuits via Pinterest

Lots of food equals a stomach ache and bad dreams...

2012-02-06T08:15:00.000-06:00

I ate way too much food yesterday. I filled my plate a couple times because of course I had to try everything. We had authentic jambalaya, egg rolls, veggie tray, ham and cheese crescent rolls, chips and salsa, chips and cheese, chips chips chips, avocado dip, chips and more. I tried all of that. Yeah, I'll own it.

Currently in a food coma

Since the Packers didn't make it this year, it was a pretty boring game for us. No one was really into it and we all basically got together to eat and watch my girls run around like crazy, cry, and pester every male in the room.

This chair was entertaining to them most of the night too.

Speaking of the room.....it's our friends basement. They bought the house this way and but there is usually some comment about this:

Do you see that in the floor?? It's a giant "G" for Green Bay Packers. Yes, the whole room is painted and decorated for the Packers.

So last night I went home still totally full. I finished up "The Help" and then went to sleep and I had the worst dream. I had a dream I was dying of cancer. Now today I'm totally freaked out that it was some secret message that I should be looking into more. It could have also been the fact that I consumed 2000 calories in a single sitting. You be the judge of that. Today I am getting right back on track with my food. I started off with my traditional over night oats with almond milk, peanut butter, banana and protein powder. Tonight I have a 4-5 mile run in the schedule along with a 45 minute spin class. I am actually looking forward to both after how many calories I ate yesterday.

Do you ever have dreams that freak you out for the entire day after?

Did you over eat yesterday?

My Eleven Things

2012-02-03T09:08:00.001-06:00

Thanks to Courtney over at Third Time's a Charm for tagging me in the Eleven things challenge.   Here we go!

I think everyone knows what this is about and has been tagged already but if you haven't, just copy and paste this for your own blog and fill 'er out.    Here we go!

Eleven things about me:

1. When you first meet me, I am usually pretty quiet.   I feel like I stumble over my words and can't speak clearly.
2. I don't sign up for races too far in advance.   I am scared of injury or of not training enough. I also don't announce on this blog when I sign up for races because I sort of don't want anyone to know just in case I suck.
3. I miss cooking without having to stop every step to take a picture. This is why I don't blog solely about food.   I want to just cook sometimes and I feel like the recipes with only "after" pictures aren't nearly as interesting.
4. I think 90% of drivers are idiots.
5. I swear more than I should.
6. I watch Days of our Lives every day.
7. I look forward to getting the mail every day and it's hard for me to actually let my girls go out and get it.
8. I won a trip to NYC from a radio contest.   It was the first time Mike and I ever flew together and it was after 7 years of marriage.
9. I sometimes think I should change the name of my blog to "The Undeclared Blogger" because I clearly blog about nothing in particular.
10. At work, we have to carry large trays filled with drinks. The most common question is "Have you ever dropped one of those trays?"   I am truly terrified to answer this because the answer is NO....but I feel like the second I say that (As I am holding this tray up with 1 arm handing them their drink) that the tray is going to go crashing to the floor.
11. I dream about a day of being alone and doing what I want.   Then I get 2 hours alone and I'm lost and have no idea what to do with myself.

Courtney's Questions:

1. favorite candy?

Chewy Spree

2. what's your favorite disney movie?

Honestly, don't really get into Disney Movies

3. if you could meet one celebrity who would it be?

Aaron Rodgers and then we'd get married.

4. who's your favorite band?

DMB used to be my favorite. Now I just listen to the radio and like the trendy stuff.

5. favorite cereal?

Cinnamon Toast Crunch

6. if you could leave tomorrow and visit one place for 2 weeks (for free), where would you go?

The East Coast, with a Car and Mike. He'd keep me sane.

7. have you ever met a blogger?

Nope! I haven't met a single one!

8. what's your favorite alcoholic drink?

Beer. Yum.

9. what's your dream race?

Fox Cities Marathon. Watched it for a few years now and I have always been amazed by them and dreamed of doing it too.

10. do you have any tattoos?

Unfortunately. Tramp Stamp Butterfly. Soooo 1990's.

11. what's your best running memory?

The day I broke my personal wall.

I'm supposed to tag people and make my own questions but I'm pretty sure everyone's pretty much been tagged already!!!

A tip on how to fill a piping bag without the mess.

2012-02-03T07:40:00.001-06:00

I'm not sure how many people know this tip but I remember learning and thinking "oh my gosh...genious!" So if you ever need to pipe frosting onto a cake or into a cookie, here is my tip on how to make your life easier and to keep your hands and kitchen clean.

First take a large mouthed cup. Place your piping bag (or you can use a ziplock bag like me) into the cup and fold it around the edges. You want to put it so the corner of the bag is pointing down in the cup. If you are using a certain piping tip, that will face down into the cup. Keep it close to the top of the cup.

Take a rubber spatula and get some frosting. Scrape it into the bag. If you want to add more frosting, keep pushing the bag further down into the cup with your rubber spatula.

Once you have enough frosting in your piping bag, pull the sides up over the frosting and twist to close off.

If you aren't using a tip on your piping bag, just cut off the corner of the bag to pipe the frosting.

That's it! Clean and easy way to fill your piping bag!

Avocado Puff Pastries

2012-02-02T08:19:00.000-06:00

Thank you Pinterest for the idea. These were yummy. I wish I would have added some course salt to the outside of the puff pastry before baking though. That would have made them perfect! I have a couple of recipes just waiting to be shared. It has been a very busy week and I've been spending a lot of my computer time trying to get some donations for a benefit coming up in a few weeks. It's been slow to say the least and I'm hoping my insane emailing will pay off in the next few days. I am running and working out still. It has been a little more restricted though since Mike started school and is gone two nights a week. Total bummer when you are supposed to be on a schedule.

Ingredients:

2 Sheets of Puff Pastry
1 Avocado
1 Cup Salsa
1/2 Cup Cream Cheese
1 egg, beaten

Salt for sprinkling

Directions:

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

Roll out your puff pastry. Try to roll it out thin. Mine wasn't very cooperative at all so it wasn't as thin as I would have liked. Take a pizza cutter and cut little squares out of the dough. They don't have to be perfect. It'll all work out in the end.

Scoop out the avocado and mash with a fork.

Take a spoon full of avocado and place in the onto the puff pastry.

Keep half of them empty since they will be the top of the puff pastry.

Spoon a little bit of cream cheese on top of the avocado.

Spoon some salsa on top of the cheese.

Take each one and cover with a square of empty puff pastry. Seal the edges with a fork.

Brush the egg onto each pastry. This will help give it a golden brown color. Sprinkle some coarse salt onto the pastries.

Bake at 400 degrees until golden brown. At the 10 minute mark, check them and keep an eye on them until they are done to your liking.

Source: Love Veggies and Yoga

Hippie Runner Winner! And Handful Giveaway!

2012-01-31T13:30:00.000-06:00

I was going to just email the person that won but they don't have an email address listed so I will post it and hope they see this! The winner is comment number 11.

Ashley

Please email me within 48 hours. If I do not hear from Ashley within 48 hours, I will have Random.org select another winner. Thank you!

In other news, did you see Handfuls new video? If not, here it is!

Would you like to win 3 handfuls for yourself? I know my husband says he only needs two handfuls but I think you can't go wrong with three ;)

Here's how to enter in this contest.

Watch the video. Go to Handful's facebook page here and let them know that I referred you to the video.

Tweet this: Enter the @HandfulBra Giveaway that @snsbysarah and told me about! Watch this video to learn more about Handful http://youtu.be/lAi5m1csr5I?hd=1

Facebook this: Watch this great video @sweetandsavorybysarah told us about @handful. http://youtu.be/lAi5m1csr5I?hd=1

Or you can blog about it and let me know!

Each thing you do will get you entered in! Just make sure you use the @ signs so they post on handfuls social network and my social network so we know you did it!

Thanks guys!!

Blood, Babies and Expressions

2012-01-30T08:58:00.001-06:00

I'll leave the blood for last.   If you have a weak stomach, you might not want to read down to the bottom of this post.   I am warning you there is a little bit of blood involved.

Babies.   My friend is having a baby.   It will be her first and it's about time some of my friends from high school join in on the life of being a parent.   The life of true restriction.   The life of true love.

I've been friends with Jenny since the time I became friends with Mike. It's pretty much how we became friends in the first place. Mike and Jenny were friends.   We all worked at Shopko together and would hang out.   Mike was best friends with Jeremy, who is Jenny's husband.   Jenny and I naturally adopted each other when she started dating Jeremy and I started dating Mike.

Then in comes Mel. Jeremy's sister. Now Mel is married to Jeremy's current best friend Paul. Paul was my friend forever. He used to call me "chomp chomp" in middle school because apparently I looked like the girl in Brave Heart that bit off some guys ear. I've never seen the movie. Paul and I once had drivers ed together. We were in the same car together with one teacher teaching us how to drive. Paul was asked on that drive "What kind of drugs are you on!?" by the teacher. The teacher was totally serious. I was scared for Paul.

Did you get that?

Here we are today at Jen's baby shower.

Look at the cute idea! They took Jen's cravings and made it into a table of food we could eat!

Oh and Hailee and I did one more "Expressions" for you this weekend while we were at work. Can you guess what it is?

Notice the pizza.   This is 12am. I am wearing a jacket at work because I'm so cold and cool all at the same time.   (the expression was "You find a big hair in your food."   No hair was found in the pizza.)

Now onto the blood.   Stop reading if you want.   I understand.

Here's the back story.   Yesterday when I was getting ready, I was determined to wear a certain outfit.   I haven't worn it for a while and I knew it should be in my closet since I do laundry constantly.   It wasn't there so I am running around my house nearly naked trying to find this shirt.   I had to go to the basement to try to find it since I couldn't find it in my closet and while I was down there I tripped over a laundry basket and my pinkie toe got stuck in the basket.   It hurt like a mother and I took a quick look at it and went on with my life.   I went upstairs and realized my foot felt wet.   I looked at it and it was covered in blood.   I wiped it down and realized I nearly tore my pinkie toe off.   It was tore down to stuff I don't like looking at under the thick layer of skin on my feet.    I forced Mike to look at it and he told me that if I needed stitches to just go.   I didn't need stitches.   Just a stiff drink.

By the way...I found that shirt in my closet after all of that.

The picture does no justice.   It was tore so deep that it made me feel sick even.   I am not weak when it comes to stuff like that.

And before I forget again....

2012-01-27T11:25:00.000-06:00

It's my Blogiversary. I was going to bake a cake but then decided that baking a cake for yourself on an important day isn't as fun as going to buy cake that is already made....

I couldn't decide so I bought two.

And I enjoyed.....

Every.Single.Bite

From the bottom of my heart, thank you to those that found me along the way and continue to follow me through this journey called life. I appreciate every.single.one of you.

Dear lady on the treadmill next to me....

2012-01-27T07:44:00.000-06:00

So guess what?   You didn't smell!   You actually smelled good and I did appreciate this.   I didn't however appreciate the way you were running.   I am not exactly sure what is going on here but I'd love to know if this is some sort of training technique I am not familiar with.   Maybe I'll have the balls to ask you some day because you truly confused me.

As I floated along at my steady slower pace of a 6.1 on the treadmill, you were right next to me pounding away at a 6.8.   Yes I looked because you looked like you were killing yourself.    You were working so darn hard that every 60 seconds, you would jump up onto the side of your treadmill and act like you had to do something on your Ipod.   You gave it away after you did this the 10th time during your workout that it really was just a way to catch your breath again.

Just an FYI.....when you are up on the side of your treadmill while it's still running full speed at 6.8, you really aren't running those miles.

Why are you calling people while your treadmill is running at full speed (for her) and then standing on the sides once again? Why do you not get off the treadmill and actually take this call?

I don't think running, while holding onto the side bars hunched over is healthy.

Oh, you didn't like that song again?

Yes I think you do need that towel, however, I think it might be a good idea to actually turn your treadmill off or down when you decide to stop running and wipe yourself down. No? Okay I guess you can just stand on the side of your treadmill some more.

Oh, you didn't like that song either?

Dear guy on the treadmill next to me...

2012-01-24T19:11:00.000-06:00

First it was your breath.   You were breathing and I could smell it.   Running and smells don't mix for me so I was pretty angry at this point.   I continued to ran through it since it was 6pm on a Tuesday night and all the other treadmills were taken.   Every time you exhaled loudly, there it was again, like a punch in the face.   Just in time to remind me of what I was missing the past 7 months while running outside.

Your grunting didn't make it better.   I understand a hard run.   We all have those runs that we put every effort into but I didn't even make that much noise while in labor.   Let me remind you that I had headphones on and was watching TV and still could hear you.

Lastly.   When you are done with your workout, please don't stand between me and the fan.   Cooling off? I get that...but you may have forgotten to put on your deodorant today or it's not doing its job and I am once again nauseated by the sick smells coming from you today.    It was so bad, I started to actually wonder if it was myself.   Could I possibly smell that bad?   That was answered when you finally walked away and once again I could breath hot, dry air that didn't smell.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

SO I took an entire week off of running. I wanted to do a week of classes and then I was struck with a cold that sort of kicked my butt for a couple of days and ended up with not a lot of hours at the gym and a lot more hours at work instead.

I look angry. I wasn't. I was actually darn cozy and warm!

This week I am back at it. Yesterday I did 45 minute of Spin and then ran 3 miles. Today I did Core-Stength-Core and then 2 miles on the treadmill. I was told to make my gym stay short so that Mike could go get his brakes fixed but then that ended up not happening so I cut my run short for nothing.

What are your pet peeves about the gym?

Would you move if someone next to you stinks?

To the Mother with only One Child

2012-01-22T12:19:00.000-06:00

Dear Mother of Only One Child,

Don’t say it. Before the words can even pass your lips, let me beg you: don’t say, “Wow, you have nine kids? I thought it was hard with just my one!”
My dear, it is hard. You’re not being a wuss or a whiner when you feel like your life is hard. I know, because I remember having “only one child.” You may not even believe how many times I stop and reflect on how much easier my life is, now that I have nine children.
All right, so there is a lot more laundry. Keeping up with each child’s needs, and making sure they all get enough attention, is a constant worry. And a stomach bug is pretty much the end of the world, when nine digestive tracts are afflicted.
But I remember having only one child, and it was hard—so very hard. Some of the difficulties were just practical: I didn’t know what I was doing, had to learn everything. People pushed me around because I was young and inexperienced. But even worse were the emotional struggles of learning to be a mother.

When I had only one child, I truly suffered during those long, long, long days in our little apartment, no one but the two of us, baby and me, dealing with each other all day long. I invented errands and dawdled and took the long way home, but still had hours and hours to fill before I would hear my husband’s key in the door.
I cared so much what other people thought about her—they had to notice how beautiful she was, they had to be impressed at my natural mothering skills. I obsessed over childhood development charts, tense with fear that my mothering was lacking—that I hadn’t stimulated her enough, or maybe had just passed on the wrong kind of genes. I cringe when I remember how I pushed her—a little baby!—to achieve milestones she wasn’t ready for.
I lived in terror for her physical safety (I once brought her to Urgent Care, where the doctor somewhat irritably diagnosed a case of moderate sniffles) fearing every imaginable disease and injury. In my sleep-deprived state, I would have sudden insane hallucinations that her head had fallen off, her knees had suddenly broken themselves in the night, and so on.
My husband didn’t know how to help me. I didn’t know how to ask for help. My husband had become a father, and I adored him for it. My husband got to leave the house every day, and sleep every night. He got to go to the bathroom alone. I hated him for it.

When I had only one child, I told myself over and over that motherhood was fulfilling and sanctifying and was filling my heart to the brim with peace and satisfaction. And so I felt horribly guilty for being so bored, so resentful, so exhausted. This is a joyful time, dammit! I should enjoy being suddenly transformed into the Doyenne of Anything that Smells Bad.
I loved my baby, I loved pushing her on the swing, watching squirrels at the park together, introducing her to apple sauce, and watching her lips move in joyful dreams of milk. But it was hard, hard, hard. All this work: is this who I am now? I remember!
So now? Yes, the practical parts are a thousand times easier: I’m a virtuoso. I worry, but then I move along. Nobody pushes me around, and I have helpers galore. Someone fetches clean diapers and gets rid of the dirty ones. When the baby wakes up in the middle of the night for the ten thousandth time, I sigh and roll my eyes, maybe even cry a little bit for sheer tiredness—but I know it will pass, it will pass.
It’s becoming easier, and it will be easier still. They are passing me by.

I’m broken in. There’s no collision of worlds. We’re so darn busy that it’s a sheer delight to take some time to wash some small child’s small limbs in a quiet bath, or to read The Story of Ferdinand one more time. Taking care of them is easy. It’s tiring, it’s frustrating, but when I stop and take a breath, I see that it’s almost like a charade of work. All these things, the dishes, the diapers, the spills—they must be taken care of, but they don’t matter. They aren’t who I am.
To become a mother, I had to learn how to care about someone more than I did about myself, and that was terrible. But who I am now is something more terrible: the protector who can’t always protect; the one with arms that are designed to hold, always having to let go.
Dear mother of only one child, don’t blame yourself for thinking that your life is hard. You’re suffering now because you’re turning into a new woman, a woman who is never allowed to be alone. For what? Only so that you can become strong enough to be a woman who will be left.
When I had only one child, she was so heavy. Now I can see that children are as light as air. They float past you, nudging against you like balloons as they ascend.
Dear mother, don’t worry about enjoying your life. Your life is hard; your life will be hard. That doesn’t mean you’re doing something wrong—it means you’re doing it right.

by Simcha Fisher

Hippie Runner Review and Giveaway!

2012-01-20T08:46:00.001-06:00

Are you getting ready to start training for your spring races? Need something to help you get through the short and long runs and be with you on race day to help you stand out? Hippie Runner is perfect for that.

Hippie Runner makes awesome headbands that are made of nylon spandex so they are great to to wear and keep the sweat and hair out of your face. I love them. Their designs are flashy, bright and fun and the best part? Totally affordable. They are only $5.00 per headband and when you buy four, the fifth one is free! They also fit my head a lot better than other bands I've worn and actually stay put without having to readjust at all.

Look at all the fun designs!

Not only does Hippie Runner make headbands, they also make expandable gear belts to match many of the headbands. The expandable pockets are large enough to actually fit my huge droid along with some Gu's and chomps. They are comfortable and come with reusable bands to attach your race bib to as well. The belts are fully adjustable to make sure they are comfortable for each individual. These are on sale right now for $19.99 only!

Can you spot the one I tried on with a fleece jacket? Oops!

Please go check out their website here. They also sell skirts to match at a very reasonable price. To be honest, I can't wait until it's warm enough out that I don't have to sport a winter hat and can get back to wearing these! It has been too long.

Would you like to win a Hippie Runner head band AND matching belt?


These can be yours! Phone not included :)

How to enter:

-You must be a public follower of Sweet and Savory by Sarah.

-Like Sweet and Savory by Sarah on Facebook here.

-Go like Hippie Runner on Facebook here.

-Go check out Hippie Runner's website here and let me know which headband is your favorite.

-Share this giveaway via Facebook, Twitter, or your blog and let me know!

Please leave a separate comment for each entry for it to be counted. Contest will remain open until January 27th at 8pm CST.

I received items for free to review but all opinions expressed are my own.

Lasagna Soup

2012-01-18T09:06:00.003-06:00

Brr it's cold out today. The weather this week is the coldest temperatures we've had yet this winter so it's officially soup season. This one is a sure to please. I made it and there was only enough left over for one bowl the next day. That to me indicates a successful meal.
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Ingredients:

1 lbs. Ground Beef or Ground Pork (I used beef)
1/2 onion, diced
4 Cloves Garlic, minced
1/2 tsp. dried oregano
1/4 tsp. Red Pepper Flakes
1 can Tomato Paste
1 14oz. Can Diced Tomatoes
2 Bay Leaves
2 Cups Water
1/2 Package of Lasagna Noodles, Broken into bite sized pieces
1 Tbs. Dried Basil
Salt and Pepper to Taste

Optional:

Cheese to garnish

Directions:

In a frying pan, cook your ground beef with the diced onion, until no longer pink and onions are translucent. salt and pepper the meat generously.

Add in the garlic, oregano, and red pepper flakes. Stir constantly until the spices and garlic are fragrant.

Add the tomato paste and stir in. Heat until the tomato paste starts to turn a little brown.

Add the can of diced tomatoes and bay leaves.

Transport into a larger pot and add the water and basil. At this point, give it a good stir and add more salt and pepper as needed. I did end up adding more. Keep tasting until it seems right.

Bring to a boil and then turn the heat down to medium low. Let the soup simmer for 30 minutes. After simmering, add in the pasta and let cook another 10 minutes, or until the pasta is done.

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One Year Ago...

2012-01-17T15:31:00.000-06:00

New Orleans....Oh how I miss you....Until we meet again!

Times are a changin'

2012-01-16T15:18:00.000-06:00

A lot has been going on lately. Life has been busy but in a good busy kind of way. Mike is starting school this week. That means that two nights a week he will be gone. He also will be switching positions at his work and his hours are changing drastically. Right now he's working straight days. When he switches, it'll be 12 hour days and it will be a southern swing where he's on 3 days, off 4 days, on 4 days, off 3 days etc etc. This includes weekends so I will be probably crying most weekends when I don't get my usual break. This does however mean that I will be able to hit up the gym in the morning on the days that he isn't working. That will be pretty awesome because I'm pretty sure I am in love with the gym. Seriously.

Another thing happened last week. I realized I'm an freak. Or at least I look like on in my aerobic classes. I was doing cardio kickboxing and I noticed that when I looked in the mirror at myself, all I saw was legs. Lots and lots of leg. I felt like I was really gangly and had really long arms and legs. Then to make me feel better, my friend Tiffany told me after class that every time she looked in the mirror at me, all she saw was my legs. Seriously that happened.

I have taken two classes today and I still have spin to do tonight. Shoot me now. Hopefully I will still be alive tomorrow to post about it. You spin me right round baby right round.

My love for all things Nuun.

2012-01-14T10:05:00.000-06:00

Have you tried Nuun?   Please say you have!   If you haven't you have to try it.   Just once and you will be hooked.

Back on Halloween I received a package from Nuun that contained 4 tubes and their water bottle.   I was excited to try it and I went for a run that day with Nuun in hand.   I LOVE it.   My favorite part about it is that it actually isn't overly sweet. It's a subtle flavor but a yummy subtle flavor.    In the pack they sent me, it had Grape, Tropical, Strawberry Lemonade, and Fruit Punch.   You can purchase this exact pack for $24.00 here. My favorite, which actually surprised me was the Tropical flavor.   They were the first gone.   The ones I liked the least, which isn't saying much because I still liked it, was Grape. I still have a couple of them left.

With that being said, what surprised me about this product is how long it actually lasts.   I have been drinking the Nuun very regularly since October 31st and I still have a couple tablets left.   There are 12 to each tub and even if you're drinking about 2 a day, a package will last you over a month.   As you can see, mine lasted me 2.5 months.   I don't drink it every day but I like it when I am tired of the water flavor.

One of the great things about Nuun that water doesn't have is electrolytes. Each Tablet makes 16 ounces of Nuun and delivers 360 mg. of Sodium, 100 mg. of Potassium, 25 mg. of Magnesium and 13 mg of Calcium. All the things to help you recover from your run or workout.

One other quick note is that the Nuun water bottle is by far my favorite water bottle. It sounds silly but I truly love their water bottle and use it every day I go to the gym.

I don't really have any negatives about Nuun other than the cost seems a bit high at first but if you break it down, it is about $ 0.50 each bottle (is my math right?!)   That is so affordable!

I need to give one shout out to Nuun as well quickly.   I am on Team Tough Chik and they recently became a sponsor!   Yay for Nuun discounts! Thank you for becoming a Team Tough Chik Sponser Nuun!

What is your favorite Nuun Flavor?

How often do you drink Nuun?

I received a 4 pack of Nuun and a water bottle in compensation for my review.    All opinions expressed in this review are my own.

Home made Vegetable Stock

2012-01-13T09:43:00.001-06:00

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Yet another easy recipe to share that everyone should be doing! It was so easy and I hope this post just puts the thought in your head that YOU can do this! In this recipe I did not add salt. I wanted to keep that out so I could season it myself when I am actually using it so that I can control the sodium. You can add salt right away if you wish to though! Some other ideas for good vegetables to add would be leeks or mushrooms. I did not have them on hand so I did not use them this time. Same with herbs. Use what you have on hand! Thyme is a great start though.
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Ingredients:

2-3 Carrots
3-4 Celery Stalks
2 Cloves Garlic
2-4 Onions
5 Sprigs of Thyme
2 Bay Leaves
A Palm Full of Pepper Corns

Directions:

Give your veggies a rough chop.

You can keep the leaves on your celery if they are in good condition.

Leave the skin on your onion and just slice it in half or quarters. The skin will give the stock more color!

Cut the garlic clove in half. You can leave the skin on this too. I told you this was easy!

Throw everything into a big pot including the bay leaves, thyme, and pepper corns. Fill it to the very top with water.

Did you notice I switched pots? This one held more water.

Put it on the stove and heat at Medium High heat until it starts to bubble up lightly and steam is coming off the top of the water. Then turn it down to Medium Low and cook for anywhere between 1-4 hours. 1 hour will give you closer to a broth. 4 hours will give you a stock. I did about 2 hours total. The water will decrease over time. If you would like to keep a more concentrated flavor, leave it as is. If you want more broth, add more water.

Also, stir the stock every once and a while.

Line a strainer with paper towel or coffee filters. Place the strainer inside of another pot to catch the stock. Strain and then jar or put into sealed bags, once cooled. You need to keep in the refrigerator for up to 1 week or freeze for future use.

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A birthday and a sore Butt

2012-01-11T09:49:00.000-06:00

Sorry I've been sort of MIA this week. I am somewhat on vacation mode in my head because I celebrated my 28th birthday this weekend. I don't have too much to post about either. For my birthday we went out to dinner with just the family. It was a group of 6 adults and 5 kids and when we got there they said it would take about 35 minutes for a table. An hour later the kids have had it and we are all hungry and not sure when we are ever going to eat. They finally came up to us and said that they have been waiting for a table to open for a while but the people have been done eating for a long time and just weren't leaving. They asked if we wouldn't mind sitting at two tables right next to each other instead. If we willing to do this, they would buy us a couple of appetizers just for the hassle. We said it was fine... but really we had no choice. The kids were screaming and crying and we still had to make it through dinner. Ugh.

Waiting Waiting Waiting.

We get to the table and order and the kids are still pretty crabby. Once they got their food they all seemed to calm down and enjoy their food and just chill. Hallelujah. The other table was so lucky. At one large table it was me, my sisters and all the kids. Our view of the lucky table.

My mom said our table looked so peaceful and the kids looked like they were behaving so well.   This was so far from the truth. I think each kid cried while we were waiting for food.   Kenzie started walking around the restaurant without a shoe on.   My children fought about who gets to sit next to me.   You get the idea.

After dinner I went out for drinks with some friends, my sister Staci and my parents for a little bit.   Basically though it was a pretty weird birthday for me.   The next day was even weirder.   It was my actual birthday and there was no cake.   There was Happy Birthday to be sung.   I woke up to a messy house and no presents and it was some what depressing.   Getting old sucks.   I did manage to go shopping and get some new gym clothes though so it wasn't completely a failure of a day.

This week I have been at the gym to take my first classes.   On Monday I took a group spin class and it was good.   I took the advice of Kim and got some padded shorts but to be honest...my butt bones STILL hurt.   It isn't bad...but it's like the actual area of where my butt bones are that hurt. I also got a side stitch in the class and it was BAD.   I kept going through it and as soon as I got off the bike and walked around, it went away.   I would have been too humiliated if I had quit and walked out because of a side stitch.   I was worried I may actually puke from the pain of it though.   That would have been even more embarrassing.   It got so bad I even located the garbage can in the room.

I will be back next Monday to take the class again though. I really hope I don't get another side stitch and I am able to put out my full effort!

Chicken Parmesan Casserole

2012-01-10T11:38:00.001-06:00

I failed as a food blogger today. I forgot to take a picture of the finished product! Hopefully you can visualize how amazing this looked after it cooked. The cheese was all melty and gooey and the croutons were toasted and amazing. This recipe has been floating around Pinterest for some time now and I figured it was a good time to give it a test drive. It was delicious. Possibly even more delicious the second day. I comes together in less than 10 minutes and bakes in less than an hour.
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Ingredients:

2 lbs of Chicken Breasts or Chicken Tenders. (thawed or frozen)

2 Cloves Garlic

1 Cup Mozzarella Cheese

1/2 Cup Shredded Parmesan Cheese

Fresh Basil (as much or little as you like)

Pepper

Crushed Red Pepper

1 Pkg. Garlic Croutons.

1/2 - 1 Jar Spaghetti Sauce (Use as much or little as you would like)

3 Tbs. Vegetable Oil

Diretions:

Preheat oven to 350 Degrees.

This will make a 9x13 pan. Take your pan and spread out the 3 Tbs. Vegetable Oil all over the bottom of the pan.

Take your knife and crush the garlic to get the skin off. Then give it a good chop. Spread the garlic onto the bottom of the pan. It doesn't have to be perfect!

Sprinkle the Black Pepper on the bottom of the pan.

Add the Crushed Red Pepper. If you like things spicy, put more. If you are sensitive to heat, hold back a bit. We like heat.

Add your chicken on top. You want it to cover most of the pan. I used chicken tenders so it took a lot of them.

Pour the Spaghetti sauce on top of the chicken. Again you can use as much or as little as you like. I wanted mine to be nice and saucy. I also used two different sauces. I had made a tomato vodka sauce the night before and had some left that I wanted to use up.

Chop up the basil and add as much as you prefer as well. This recipe is really how you want to make it.

Sprinkle half of the Mozzarella cheese on top.

Sprinkle half of the Parmesan Cheese on top. I had shredded and some flakes so I used them both.

Pour the whole package of Croutons on top. Spread them out evenly.

Sprinkle the rest of the Parmesan and Mozzarella Cheese on top.

Cover with loose fitting aluminum foil and place in the preheated oven. If the chicken you used was thawed, bake for 35-45 minutes. After 30 minutes, remove the foil and let the top get browned. If your chicken is frozen bake for 55-65 minutes or until cooked through. Remove the foil after 45 minutes to brown the top.

You can serve this over pasta or eat as it is. I didn't use pasta at all and loved this meal a lot.

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Lemon Cupcake Bombs

2012-01-06T08:04:00.002-06:00

The reason I am calling these bombs is because you can pop a whole one in your mouth and it's like a flavor explosion. These are amazingly delicious. If there is anything to know about me, it's this. I love stuff with lemon and lime flavors. I love the tartness of the two and you will often find me bringing Tostitos with a Hint of Lemon to every party. People have come to expect it and look forward to it. Please make these! You can also make it into a cake, loaf, or larger cupcakes.

(Adapted from Martha Stewart)

Ingredients For Cake:

1/2 Cup (1 stick) Butter, softened
1 Cup Granulated Sugar
1 1/2 Cup Flour
2 tsp. Baking Powder
1/2 Cup of Fat Free Plain Greek Yogurt
1 tsp. Vanilla Extract
Zest from 1 lemon
Juice from 1 lemon
2 Large Eggs

Ingredients for Glaze:

Juice from half a lemon (about 2-4 Tbs. depending on how thick or thin you want it)

1 1/2 Cup Confectioners Sugar

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

In a small bowl, combine the lemon zest, lemon juice (from whole lemon) and Greek yogurt. Whisk to combine.

In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour and baking powder.

In the bowl of your stand mixer, cream together your softened butter and granulated sugar.

Add in the eggs, one at a time, beating after each.

Add in the flour/baking soda mixture one cup at a time alternating with a quarter cup of the yogurt/lemon mixture. Once all ingredients are in the mixer, mix until blended. The batter will be thick.

Spoon into cupcake papers and bake for 15-20 minutes depending on your oven.

Once done, let the cupcakes cool.

To make your lemon glaze, just beat together the confectioners sugar along with the lemon juice. Add the lemon juice one tablespoon at a time to avoid having your glaze getting too thin. Once it's to the thickness of your liking, turn the cupcakes upside down and dip the top in the glaze. Spin and shake off the extra glaze and let them sit out to dry.

What's that?

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A lesson in parenting daughters...

2012-01-05T23:22:00.001-06:00

When your daughter comes up to you with a paper towel veil and asks you to help her put it on, dig out the veil you wore on your wedding day that has been stored away for 9 years. It will make her day....

And you will have priceless pictures.

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A few things...

2012-01-05T07:40:00.000-06:00

I have managed to use my gym membership 3 days in a row now.   I know I'm one of those annoying new year new members to those that see me there but technically I am not.   Like I previously mentioned, I actually have had my membership since August and just failed to actually use it.    I am liking the feeling I have working out there.   I have more options than just running.    I feel like I'm with like minded people for the most part.   Not the muscle heads that stare me down each time I am walking in though.   They just creep me out.

Yesterday I had a thought.   Why am I driving to the gym to work out? It seems weird...unless of course you live too far to drive there or the weather is crap.   I get it then, but I usually want to do more than 3 miles on their treadmill and yet there is the sign I am forced to look at constantly: "Please limit your workout to 30 minutes at busy times."    The time I am there is definitely busy. It's the after work rush and you're lucky to walk in and get a treadmill right away. With all of this in mind, I decided to get dressed at home, throw my Brooks winter running pants on top, and my Brooks winter running jacket on and actually run to the gym.   I knew this meant I would also have to run back home so I kept this in mind during my workout to ensure I'd have enough energy to do so.   It worked.

Today Wisconsin seems to be getting some warmer weather than we are used to in January.    This bums me out because there is no way I am going to have a chance to run outside in it.   We have an appointment to refinance our mortgage with the insanely low rates and then I have to go straight from there to work where I will continue to do sit-ups, burpees, lunges etc with my work wife between lifting 20 lbs. in drinks over and over.

Tomorrow is supposed to be warmer as well so I am going to have to figure out a time to get a run in since I am also working tomorrow night.

I realize this post sort of had no point.   I'm sorry about that.   I am hoping to make something really yummy and unhealthy within the next day or so.   I have been craving a cupcake like crazy and the only way to get rid of that thought is to make them.   Eat them.   Then get rid of them so I don't over due it.

Happy Thursday!

Baked Falafel

2012-01-03T07:37:00.000-06:00

As part of the new year, I am looking to improve in a couple of things. One being less processed foods and healthier choices. The other is to work out at the gym that I have had a membership at since August. I have not used that gym membership once. How ridiculous is that?!

Traditional Falafel is fried and because of that, pretty unhealthy. In this recipe I baked the ingredients instead to get all the benefits of the chickpeas, onion, garlic and spices without the fat.

Ingredients:

1-15oz. can of Chick Peas
1 small onion, or half a large onion
1 large Egg
1 Tbs. Lemon Juice
2 Cloves of Garlic
1 Tbs. Vegetable Oil
1/4 Cup Flour
1 tsp. Baking Powder
1 tsp. Cumin
2 tsp. Coriander
1/4 tsp. Chili Powder
1 tsp. Salt
1 Tbs. Parsley

Directions:

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

In a food processor, combine all the ingredients and process until combined.

Line a baking sheet with a silicon mat or parchment paper. The easiest way to make the falafel is with a small scoop.

Scoop the falafel out and place on the pan. With a small scoop, this recipe will make between 15-18 falafel.

Bake at 400 degrees for 25 minutes.

A quick side story. When Mike got home from work, he went to the kitchen and took a bite out of one of these thinking it was a cookie. I didn't see the reaction but I did notice one had 1 bite out of it and knew exactly what had happened.

Back to the recipe. To make your falafel sandwich, you will need a pita, lettuce, tomato, red onion and some kind of sauce. You can use greek yogurt (like I did) or you can use tahini or hummus as well.

Stuff a couple Falafel inside the pita. Spread the greek yogurt in there and add the lettuce, onion and tomato. Enjoy!

Top 5 Recipes of the Year

2012-01-02T09:12:00.000-06:00

It's always interesting to see what brings people to my blog. If you're a blog owner, you've looked at the key phrases that have brought people to your blog. Yesterday somebody came to my blog searching for "Birthday Fantasy." How fitting! I know my blog has taken a turn over the past few months and become some what a running blog, I still enjoy cooking and trying new recipes and sharing them with you guys. It's hard to get good pictures in the winter, since it's dark by the time dinner is done and I am forced to take pictures with the harsh flash. It's very unappealing to me.

I am going to continue to post recipes and food for as long as this blog has a heart beat so if that is why you are here, no worries :)

Here are the most viewed posts of the year:

5. Pumpkin Pancakes. These pancakes are delicious. They came in 5th place with 2,986 hits.

4. Crock Pot Beef Stroganoff. A family favorite. Mike asks for it regularly and it will be made this week. It came in 4th with 3,851 hits.

3. Almond Sheet Cake. This cake made it's way all over Pinterest and FoodGawker. It came in 3rd with 8,860 hits.

2. Apple Butter in the Crock Pot. So Easy. So Delicious. So viewed! This came in at 9,496 hits.

1. Cake Truffles for Valentines Day. Pre DSLR days for this photo and it still managed to get 11,167 hits. It was all over Pinterest as well and managed to be featured on Money Saving Mom.

If are you are newer to this blog, please take the time to back to the beginning of 2011 and check out some of the recipes. Many of those are personal favorites and are over looked because it was back when the blog had very few viewers and also before I had a DSLR to take great pictures.

My year in review!

2011-12-29T09:06:00.000-06:00

Since I only started running in July of this year, my numbers are pretty low in to comparison to many other bloggers out there.   My running journey started with me running my familiar 1.5 mile loop that I still run when I want to stay close to home.   When I first started, I couldn't even run that whole mile and a half. I did the ol' run-walk-run-walk-run walk until I was able to run-run-run-run-run.   Then I slowly moved up in my distance.   I remember the amazing feeling I had when I ran 1.86 miles without stopping.   I ventured out of my familiar loop at the last half mile and continued on.   I could have gone further but back then I left myself little room before it was dark out since I didn't think I would be gone longer than 20 minutes.   Finally I broke the mental wall that I had up and I was increasing my furthest distance by almost a full mile a week.

Miles by month (only running miles):

July: 27.41

August: 69.38

September: 63.86

October: 62.87

November: 66.75

December (still a few days left!): 85.71

Total Miles for 2011: 376

My goal for 2012 is to run over 1000 miles throughout the year.    I am hoping that I can do it, but we shall see!

I did 3 races this year.   The Joe's Pantry 5k, Turkey Trot 5 mile, and the Race to the Light 5k.

My pace when I started running this summer was around the 11:24 per mile.
My pace right now is about 9:57 per mile.

I also plan on doing at least one half marathon this year.   I would like to do one in spring but I want to see if I can keep up the mileage through the snowy weather we haven't yet experienced this year.   If this doesn't work out, I will do the Fox Cities Half Marathon in the fall.

Somme Institute Review

2011-12-28T08:39:00.001-06:00

A couple months ago I was talking with another blogger about how my skin had been horrible ever since I started running 6 months ago.   No matter what I did, I couldn't get it to clear up.   I would wash my face immediately after getting back from a run.   I would wash my face before a run to make sure I had no make up on.   Nothing at all worked.   I was becoming pretty depressed to be entirely honest. I kept thinking that it's not fair that I can work on being healthy in other ways but then my face breaks out and I no longer look healthy.

I have spent many days in the dermatologists office in my adult years. I have such sensitive skin that I've ended up in the Emergency Room from having an allergic reaction to face products. That is when one of the worst things happened. They told me to use a combination of hydrocortison cream and face lotion to help my skin go back to normal.   The problem with that remedy is that my skin actually because addicted to the hydrocortison and whenever I would stop using it, my face would flair up in a rosacea type of rash and I would go back to using the hydrocortison to get rid of it.   I am embarrassed to say that this has been going on for years.   It's so unhealthy to use hydrocortison on your skin and I just kept with it to keep the flair-up away.

Back track two months ago when I contacted Somme Institute desperate to try their products.   I was thrilled when they emailed me back and said that they would send me their whole 5 step Regimen to try. It arrived a few days later and I was so very excited to give it a try.

Week 1 - Major break outs.   I had probably some of the worst skin ever this week.   My sister even came into the house one morning when she was dropping off her daughter and noticed the break out.   I knew this had to happen to clean out my skin and bring out my new skin so I was okay with this! Another thing that happened this week that I mentioned previously.   My skin was dependent on hydrocortisone and I stopped using that right when I started using Somme.   My rosacea was back and I had some burning and redness.   I read online that steroid induced rosacea will take months to heal and go away.   I was bummed.

Week 2 - Still breaking out but I am noticing that my breakouts are healing much quicker and they are becoming less frequent.   My rosacea was gone. GONE.   Never has this happened before. I am not sure if Somme can help with steroid induced rosacea but it sure as heck cleared up mine in a week!

Week 3 - Clear skin! It's starting to happen!   I am still getting some blemishes but not at all like before.   I am also having several black heads making their way to the top and for the first time I am noticing how fresh and new my skin is starting to look!   My mother in law even told me that something was different about how I looked.   I looked more "mature" or something. I think it basically was that I didn't have the adolescent skin she was used to seeing.   I still didn't have ANY rosacea.   None at all.

Week 4 - Still having a couple small problem areas but these are the areas I have always battled with my entire adult life.   I can tell that Somme is still clearing out my skin.   The blemishes are healing quickly and becoming less often.   No signs of rosacea and I feel safe in saying that my skin is no longer dependent on hydrocortison which is a first in 7 years. Yes, I used hydrocortison that long.

Week 5 - Nearly perfect skin.   I couldn't have dreamed of my skin looking this good while maintaining my new healthy lifestyle.    I am so very thankful for Somme.   It helped me through steroid induced rosacea.   It helped my skin become healthy.   It made me actually proud of my skin instead of embarrassed.    I look forward to continuing this regimen and seeing all of the results from this point on.

What's in the 5 step regimen -

Somme Institute contains our Patented technology MDT5 (Molecular Dispersion Technology), a revolutionary protein/vitamin delivery system (A, B3, B5, C and E) which transforms the skin, thus improving its tone, texture and clarity while reducing the signs of aging (for all skin types).

Step 1: Nourishing Cleanser (non-foaming/non-irritating)

Step 2: Transport (gentle exfoliant)

Step 3: Serum (with Vitamin C)

Step 4: A-Bomb (moisturizer with Vitamins A and E)

Step 5: Double Defense (SPF 30+)

The Nitty Gritty - Somme Institute 5 Step Regimen is for sale here.   For the entire 5 step it will cost you $298.00.    I have been on their email list for some time now and if that price is too steep for you, they almost always have a sale going on of some sort.   On Black Friday the 5 step regimen was 40% off.   I wish I would have taken advantage of it then!

You can also skip some of the steps to save yourself some money.   The parts of the regimen that I would personally keep is the Cleanser, the Serum, and the A-bomb.

Bottom Line - Is the 5 step regimen worth it after all the cost?   Yes.   It's not the cheapest treatment out there but if you want to have clear, smooth, flawless looking skin, give it a try. I think you will fall in love.

I have spend thousands of dollars over the years on doctors visits, lotions, pills, and ointments to have clear skin and none of them have worked as well and as safely as the Somme Institute 5 Step Regimen has.

A few new Wright Sock Winner!

2011-12-27T22:00:00.000-06:00

Some people didn't get back to me. I checked the ones with blogs and they have posted since so I decided to stick with my rule of the 27th by 8pm and here I am picking a few new names.

Clarinda @ All Things Clarinda

Falon @ Falon Does Marathon

Jen @ Just Jen

Heather @ Just a Colorado Girl

Please email me your mailing address and shoe size by 12/29/11 at 8:00 pm to claim!

Christmas is Over

2011-12-27T09:37:00.000-06:00

And I'm ready to get back on track. I took 2 days off. One by choice and the other not by choice. I actually came down with a stomach bug and felt pretty horrible on Christmas day. I ended up spending most of the day on the couch watching this.

Mike is obsessed with YouTube. He also had no idea I was taking this picture.

Christmas was great. We got a lot of nice things. One of my favorites was this:

I couldn't wait to take it out for a test run so yesterday, although I wasn't feeling well yet, I went out and did 5k in 29:31. I can see how these are dangerous. I kept looking down at it. Before when I used my phone, It was in a sleeve on my arm and I could never look at it to see my pace, time, distance. It would tell me after each mile but that's it. Now it's right there staring at me at all times.

I also got one of these:

It hurts so good...

I also did Jillian's 30 day shred and I am no longer hurting from it. About time.

In other news, Katelyn has off of school all week. The girls have been fighting non-stop and I might possibly go crazy by the end of the week. If my posts get more and more random throughout the week, you know why. If you have a heart, come save me.

Friday afternoon run....and WRIGHT SOCK WINNERS!

2011-12-23T23:29:00.000-06:00

I know most of you are probably only reading this to check if you won some awesome socks...but first I'm going to make you look at some pictures of me that aren't very easy to look at.

I went for my run and left the house about 3pm. My run started off great. It was easy, the weather was about 21 degrees with a bit of wind. The wind wasn't so bad until about mile 2 when I hit the Trestle Trail. Holy wind. I nearly blew off the darn thing. I should have learned from doing the Paul's Pantry 5k there a few months back. I made it across and had planned on going about another half mile so I could get to 7 miles total for my run but I decided to just turn back around and let the other side of my face get beat by the wind. My face was pretty much frozen in this picture.

You can see the Trestle Trail in the background...goes right over a big lake.

It only got worse once I was off the trail. I no longer had the wind nearly blowing me away but the snow picked up a lot and I was running straight into it. I could barely keep my eyes open and people were looking at me like I was crazy. I had a love/hate relationship with this run. I loved that I was doing it and not giving up. I didn't like the snow straight up in my face and how the wind and snow really affected my pace. At the same time the snow was beautiful and I enjoyed running in daylight again where I was able to listen to some music when I wanted to. I haven't had music on a run in a very long time and it was sort of refreshing to have again.

After my run, this is what i looked like. That is snow flying in front of my face...not snot. I look pretty disgusting in this picture.

Anyway I completed 6 miles. I'm glad I did it.

NOW the winners of the Wright Socks. Everyone needs to email me their name, mailing address and shoe size so I can forward the info to the company. They will be sending the socks directly to you. I am going to be more strict on the email to claim your prize. I will give you more time since the holiday weekend is here. To claim them, I must hear back from you by 12/27/11 at 8pm. If I don't, I will have random.org select another winner instead.

1. Jenn @ running with the girls
2. Carrie @ Prevail, Persist, Endure
3. Jen @ From FAT to FINISH LINE

4. Amylee @ Run My Guts Out
5. Courtney @ Third Time's A Charm
6. Jenn @ http://www.jennsadventures.com/
7. Kim @ Living Domestically
8. Sarah (Comment #27)
9. M. Adams (Comment #47)
10. Janice Brown (Comment #61)
11. Vanessa @ Gourmet Runner
12. Jill R. (Comment #101)
13. Suz and Allen @ Cows and Lasers and Everything In Between
14. Beth @ RUNNING around my kitchen
15. Ali Mc @ Running /w Spatulas
16. Karien @ Running the Race
17. Trish @ Begin Again and Again and Again...
18. Kiley @ DAILY VITAMIN F
19. Amy @ Juice Boxes and Crayolas
20. Penny @ Pink Hat Runner

Dang that took a while! I wish EVERYONE could win but I have more giveaways lined up for the near future!

Sweet People and Sweet Abs!

2011-12-23T14:06:00.000-06:00

First and foremost, I got one Christmas card in the mail today. It might have possibly been the best card I received this entire season. The reason? It had gifts inside. If you have checked my facebook, you already know that Kara at Chickbands sent me and my girls each a Chickband. How seriously sweet is she?!

Secondly, I have been working out a TON. I mean a lot more than I ever have in my life.   It's all in an effort to stay in the top three of the HBBC to be completely honest.   The plus side to it is this: I don't have to worry about gaining weight through the holidays.   It goes hand in hand I guess.    I am also eating much healthier than I have in years.   To be completely honest with you, I used to be very food conscious before I met Mike.   My mom misses it because I lived at home and made healthy dinners and had her buy healthy food. I miss having my mom buy any food I told her to.

Anyway I'm starting to see some changes to my body that I so proudly showed off to a couple girls at work last night. First off, I am getting major muscles in my legs that I have never seen before.   My favorite is the one in front of my shin.   I think it's the Tibialis anterior but I could be wrong.

I am also getting abdominal muscle lines.   Nothing to ever show on this blog, but they are slowly growing and becoming something I am personally proud of.    Yay for small achievements!

My love handles are still there.   They will be there when I am 98 lbs @ 5 ft. 9 in. Of course I could never weight 98 lbs. but I'm just giving you an idea that those are never going to be gone.

I also haven't showered yet today.   It's after 2:00 PM and I am still planning to run so I am not showering until after my run. I just didn't feel like showering twice today.   Call me dirty.   I like it.

Chicken Caesar Sandwiches in the Slow Cooker!

2011-12-21T13:49:00.001-06:00

I can't take credit for this one. It's amazing and easy and so very delicious. I found it a while ago over at Sweet Treats and More. I knew it would eventually make it into our rotation and I'm so glad it did! I used the left over chicken today on my salad and it was just amazing. My sister had a sandwich and after finishing, raved about how good the chicken was. Winning.

Ingredients:

2 lbs. Chicken.   I used Chicken Tenders
1 Can Chicken Broth
1/2 Cup Caesar Dressing
2 Tbs. Dried Parsley
1/2 tsp. Pepper
1/2 Cup Shredded Parmesan Cheese

Directions:

In your slow cooker, combine the chicken and the chicken broth.   Turn on low and cook for 4-6 hours.

Once the chicken is tender, removed from the slow cooker and shred.   Get rid of the chicken broth that is in the crock pot.

Sorry for the bad lighting. It was dark by 4pm last night :(

Add the parsley and pepper. Then add in the dressing. Add slowly to ensure you don't over do it. You can add as much or as little as you would like to. Then add the Parmesan cheese and turn the slow cooker on high and cook for 30 minutes, until the cheese melts and the chicken is warmed through.

Serve on a bun with lettuce.

New HeadSweats Winner!

2011-12-20T18:51:00.000-06:00

I waited almost an entire week before picking a new winner. I still haven't heard from the original winner and it pains me to leave them out on such an awesome prize but I do need it to move on to a person that will love it!

The new winner is:

Kim over at Life in the Twin Lane!

She actually lives REALLY close to me and once she's up to running full time again I hope to run with her! Maybe we will be sporting matching hats!

Kim, please email me to claim your prize!

Me....at my best...

2011-12-19T08:42:00.000-06:00

This all started back when Kari over at Running Ricig mentioned how another blogger had met her in person for the first time and had said her voice was lower than she had imagined. I emailed her about how I am now on a mission to set the "tone" of my blog for my readers by uploading a video of myself so that people can actually hear my voice and know what I sound like.   I told her that my voice is probably also lower than others think it would be and I also sound like a yooper since I am in Wisconsin and all.

Here's the best video of me.   I'm so awesomely kind to Mike in it.

In the video you meet me, Katelyn, my mom (she will hate that youtube paused her in the still shot), my dad and my sister Jill.

I also want to let you know that Mike's pretty infamous for taking terrible videos of everyone.   Close ups of zits, or our mouths or something really unflattering to those on the other side of the camera.    I figured that was probably what he was doing and on top of it, I am not one that is used to being on the camera so for me to have the camera pointed at me for nearly 5 minutes (felt like 10 in my head) is hard.   I tried to keep it cool and thought that if I ignored him, he would get bored and quit. Apparently not.

To prove my point a little bit.   I wrote on my sisters wall that I would be uploading a video on my blog of her eating and this is what she wrote.

So I hope you forgive me for my un-Christmas like attitude. I also hope that you can now picture the tone in which this blog is written. If I lose followers after today, I understand.

Here is a challenge: Upload your own video.

Wright Socks Review and Giveaway!

2011-12-16T13:48:00.000-06:00

Okay I'll admit it. I'm new to running. I am still considered a newbie by most and I'm okay with that. I have learned so much in my short 6 months of running and still have so much more to learn. That being said, I have learned a thing or two about socks. Most importantly, they are important when it comes to running. For the longest time I was wearing any sock to run in. El Cheapo from Walmart was just fine for me. My feet would get hot and sweaty and gross but I thought that was normal.

Enter WrightSock. I was sent a few different pairs to try. I am a changed woman. I love these socks so much that I actually will save them to run in them more than once. Gross maybe, but my feet don't really get that sweaty in these and it's so cold out to help out in that area that I'm able to get away with it.

One more example of how much I love these socks. The night before the Thanksgiving Turkey Trot I had to work and didn't lay out an outfit to wear the next morning. At 6:00 AM I was up and ready except I couldn't find any matching pairs of my WrightSocks. I sat in my dark room for 10 minutes digging through the clean laundry basket trying to find a pair. Finally I did and I was off to the Turkey Trot in my WrightSocks.

A little bit of info from their website to give you the technical talk on these awesome socks.

1. Moisture Management: Dri-WRIGHT™ inner layer wicks moisture off the skin better than any other fabric. The Result... your feet stay dry.
2. Temperature Regulation: Staying dry means staying cooler in the summer and warmer in the winter. The Result... your feet are more comfortable.
3. Friction Reduction: Interaction between the inner and outer sock layers absorbs friction that is normally transferred to the skin. The Result... skin shear is eliminated.

In competition, your feet are subjected to extreme stress. As your body heats up, your feet get wet, hot and chafed. The combination of moisture, heat and friction often leads to painful blisters and discomfort that keeps you from performing at your peak. How can you eliminate this problem? WRIGHTSOCK™ Double Layer Socks are the answer!

WRIGHTSOCK™ Double Layer construction coupled with the most technically advanced fibers, delivers the blister protection that you need. WRIGHTSOCK™ Double Layer provides year round comfort and performance with no blisters- guaranteed.

1. Patented 3rd attachment keeps socks aligned.

2. The outer layer is constructed of fibers specific to the activity.

3. The inner layer is always a smooth, undyed, hydrophobic surface against the foot. PATENTED!

4. Friction and shearing forces, created by rigorous activity, are absorbed by the interaction between the inner and outer layers of the sock instead of being passed on to the outer layers of the skin. The result is less blistering.

5. Color coded toe seams for easy size matching.

Ready to win an pair of WRIGHTSOCKS for yourself?! Ready to be hooked?? Here's what to do:

-Become a public follower of Sweet and Savory By Sarah (or let me know if you already are).

-Like Sweet and Savory by Sarah on Facebook.

-Like WRIGHTSOCK on facebook.

-Tell me if you wear any socks for working out or if you are brand specific.

-Share this giveaway via Facebook, Twitter or your Blog.   Leave a comment for each.

The best news?   WRIGHTSOCK is awesome enough that they are going to give away TWENTY pairs of socks to TWENTY winners.   They are making sure several of you will be able to try these socks out.   They are smart and know you will be hooked :)

Please leave a separate comment for each item to complete for it to be counted.   Contest will be open until 12/23/11 at 8:00 PM CST.    Winners will be selected by Random.org.

Chocolate Walnut Toffee

2011-12-15T14:50:00.000-06:00

It's that time of year to over eat on chocolates and cookies and I'm here to help you out. I have never made toffee before because the temperature thing seemed complicated. When I saw this recipe that didn't call for a candy thermometer, I knew I had to give it a try. I am glad I did. It's really so easy and very delicious. Your ass will thank me.

1 Cup Sugar
1 Cup Butter (2 sticks)
3 Tbs. Water
1 Cup Nus, Roasted (choose whichever nuts you prefer)
1-2 Cups Chocolate Chips or Chunks

Directions:

To toast the nuts, place on a baking sheet and preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Place the nuts in the oven and bake 7-10 minutes. At the 7 minute mark, check them and make sure still need more time. Keep an eye on them at this point because they can burn quickly.

Once the nuts are toasted, place them in the bottom of a greased 9x9 pan. I used a lot of PAM to grease my pan.

In a heavy bottomed sauce pan, add your butter, sugar and water and turn on high to bring to a rapid boil. Stir with a wooden spoon if needed.

You will continue to boil on high until the mixture turns into an amber color and starts to JUST smoke. Remove it from the heat immediately and pour over the nuts. Here is the colors as it happened. Once it starts to turn darker, it goes very quick so be ready to move.

In reality, I shouldn't have taken that last picture. I should have been taking it off of the heat.

After a few minutes it will look like this.

Let this sit for about 10 minutes before you add the chocolate chips to the top.

Let the chocolate sit on top for about 5 minutes until you can tell it is soft. Take a spatula and spread the chocolate over the top.

You will now have to let this sit for a few hours to harden. After about 3 I got sick of waiting and threw it in the fridge to make the chocolate set. It worked like a charm.

Tip the pan over on a cutting board and the the toffee should come right out.

Cut or break into bite sized pieces.

Headsweats Winner!

2011-12-15T08:13:00.000-06:00

Congratulations to EricaH over at

http://www.ericarunning30.com/

You are the winner of the Headsweats hat of your choice!

Please email me within 48 hours to claim your prize!

If I do not hear from Erica within 48 hours a new winner will be selected.

I will also have a recipe posted later today and it's really easy and yummy so everyone wins today.

9th Wedding Anniversary and Pictures from our wedding.

2011-12-14T07:23:00.000-06:00

Today is our 9th wedding anniversary. That makes us sound very old but in reality we just got married very young.   Young as in 6 months after graduation.   Young as in not even 19 year old.   Young as in WTF were we thinking?!

It all worked out for us in the long run but I don't think I'd suggest it to many other people ;) I think it takes a lot more work and possibly luck that you will both grow into people that can actually live happily together.

The story as to why we got married so young is really simple.    He left for the Army in August of 2002.   We missed each other so very much so I wanted to move by him in Oklahoma.   The only way that would work is if we got married.   Turns out that he was deployed to Iraq 3 months later and I was back to Wisconsin for another 9 months waiting for him some more.    Then back to Oklahoma I went.

Here are some pictures of our wedding.   Enjoy!

Need some help...and Chicken Legs

2011-12-13T10:28:00.000-06:00

When you ask your 4 year old to take a picture of you, expect nothing better than this!   This was the 3rd and best picture she was able to get.   I still love her though. The reason for the picture is because I got those shorts and I am in love with them.   They are the Northface GTD shorts.   You can get them here.   They feel like air and fit so well.   I am in love.

So this picture brought up two things in my mind.   I have chicken legs.   I didn't realize they were this bad until I saw this picture.   Second thing...do you see the muscle in that thigh?! Hell yeah! I wish it were a clearer picture.

Don't look at my face.   I had no makeup on.   My hair wasn't done.   I wasn't showered and I woke up not too shortly before this.   Maybe it's good the picture isn't very clear....

Now if you've seen my facebook, I need your help.   Tell me your favorite place to vacation within the continental USA.   I would like it to be warm and some what relaxing with things to do if we get bored.   Our girls will not be with us.   We are also able to fly for this.   It would probably be October-November time frame of next year.

Ready....Set...Comment!

Cosmetic Surgery

2011-12-12T14:40:00.000-06:00

Last Friday, Katelyn had some cosmetic surgery. It made me a bit sad to have her go through it but we knew it was a matter of time before she would ask us for it.

When she was born, she was born with a small skin tag on her left ear. It was more noticeable as a baby because she didn't have hair to cover it. As she grew older, so did her hair. Her hair covered it very well but eventually the dreaded days came when kids started to notice it. We explained to her that is was just like a birth mark. She was born with it and many people are born with other birth marks as well and it wasn't anything to be ashamed of. Needless to say, she still asked us to have it removed.

Refusing to smile. Too nervous.

I was sad about it mostly because that's how she was given to me.   Her skin tag had a story as well.   One that I didn't learn until after she was born and her pediatrician asked me one simple questions. "Did all of her ultrasounds come back normal?"

I paused and told her that they had.   Then I mentioned that at the 20 week ultrasound they had seen a spot of possible fluid in one of her organs (either kidney or liver, I can't remember anymore!) and that they weren't sure if it was just a reflection so I should have it checked again at a later date.   We weren't worried and when they did another ultrasound at 28 weeks everything looked perfect so we assumed it was just a reflection.

The pediatrician got a sly smile and said that is exactly what she was wondering.   According to her, they are finding that fetus's that have this come up in their 20 week ultrasound often have a skin tag somewhere around their face as a result.

How weird.   Just so weird.

Holding ice on it before the numbing shot. Also watching Toy Story 3.

Anyway the skin tag is now gone. She's still embarrassed because she has stitches now and will not be getting them out until next Tuesday. The procedure went really really well and she didn't even know he was taking it off when he was.

Is it bad that the entire time I was there, I was tempted to ask the doctor how much new boobs would cost me? I really honestly wanted to but I could only image Katelyn's jaw would have dropped and she would have been humiliated that I just talked about boobs with a guy we don't know.

Monday Miles 12/12/11

2011-12-12T07:38:00.000-06:00

I might have multiple posts today. I have some posts that I have going on in my head but I am not sure I'll have the time to get them all out.    I wanted to do Monday Miles this week for a few different reasons.   First is because I ran the most miles this week than I ever have in a one week period. I logged in so many miles mostly because of the HBBC challenge going on.   I am fighting hard to stay in the top three and sometimes I feel like I'm working way too hard for being only a builder.   I have some issues with how people are inputting their info as well.

One of which, I noticed at least one person puts in their points for the entire week at the beginning of the week anticipating what they will do that week with the schedule they have put together.   This simply isn't fair.   I don't think they ever go back to change it when they don't meet those goals.

The second one is when they only add their points at the very end of the week or even a day after the week has ended.   How do we know who we are even competing against if you're not regularly adding your points as you go.    It also brings up the honesty in your points because it seems the ones that do this, sky rocket to the top with little or few posts stating they are working out and doing anything to get these points.   These are some major points they are laying down and I'd love to see how they are getting these just as much as anyone else that is competing in HBBC.

With that, Amanda is doing an amazing job running this.   I don't know how she does it to be completely honest.   I am a stay at home mom during the day and I still wouldn't have the time to organize this amazing challenge.

I feel so much better the past two weeks.   I feel like it's thanks to all the fruits and veggies that I have been consuming thanks to HBBC as well.

One other amazing thing happened this week. It was pretty damn cold in Wisconsin this week and I did make a half attempt to run outside on Tuesday but gave up after 1.5 miles because I was too cold. My throat and longs hurt even though I was breathing through a scarf so I went home and finished up on the treadmill. I sort of fell in love with that thing. I thought it would never happen but it was there at any time of the day. I managed to run twice a day a few times this week because I could run while Kenzie and Aubri played. It was sort of amazing! Then I would run again at night.

My Miles are going to be a bit off and not exactly match the HBBC challenge because I run my week Monday to Sunday, but you get the idea.

Monday 12-5

     - 3 miles on the treadmill in the AM
     - 3.5 miles on the treadmill in the PM

Tuesday 12-6

     - 1.5 miles outside in the AM
     - 2 miles on the treadmill also in the AM

Wednesday 12-7

     - 4 miles on the treadmill in the AM
     - 2.5 miles on the treadmill in the PM

Thursday 12-8

     - 5.25 miles on the treadmill in the PM....longest run on the treadmill ever for me.

Friday 12-9

    - No Running

Saturday 12-10

     - No Running

Sunday 12-11

     - 5 mile run outside in the PM
     - 1.25 mile walk back home

Total Miles: 28 miles!!!!

My other points come from eating all my fruits and veggies (having a smoothie in the AM really helps this) and then doing tons and tons of arm, ab and leg workouts.   Also I have stretched before and after each run.   This is something I was sooo lazy about prior to HBBC as well.

How did your workout week go?

Has HBBC been motivating you to put out more physical activity than you normally do?

Apple Sauce Snack Cake

2011-12-08T15:29:00.001-06:00

Today Kenzie had her end of semester concert at school. It made me so happy to see her up there because if you recall, this was her last spring.

She gets so nervous to be in front of all these adults. She gets the "I'm going to puke" look on her face and I just cringe imagining if that were to happen. Here she is today...

Notice anything wrong with this picture? I didn't notice it until I published this post...

Most of the kids smile and wave to their parents but Kenzie just stands there with the same look the whole time. Today, unlike the past two concerts she has done, she did do the hand motions with all of the songs and sang all of the songs as well. My little girl is slowly coming out of her shell. Not to quickly though Kenzie. I like you just the way you are.

I was in charge of making something like coffee cake for the concert and these looked just about right. They aren't a coffee cake but they are not overly sweet and are light and moist and pretty darn delicious. I think others might agree. There wasn't a single one left after the concert.

Recipe From Cooks Illustrated

Ingredients:

3/4 Cup Dried Apples cut into 1/2 inch pieces
1 Cup Apple Cider
1 1/2 Cups All Purpose Flour
1 tsp. Baking Soda
2/3 Cup Sugar
1/2 tsp. Ground Cinnamon
1/4 tsp. Ground Nutmeg
1/8 tsp. Ground Cloves
1 Cup Unsweetened Apple Sauce, Room Temp.
1 Large Egg, Room Temp. slightly beaten.
1/2 tsp. Salt
8 Tbs. (one stick) unsalted Butter, softened
1 tsp. Vanilla Extract

Directions:

Preheat oven to 325 degrees.

In a medium sauce pan, combine your dried apples and apple cider. Bring to a boil over medium heat and simmer until all the liquid is gone.

Let the apples cool. While cooling, combine the flour and baking soda in a medium sized bowl and whisk to combine.

In another bowl, combine the sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg, and cloves. Whisk to combine.

Measure out two tablespoons of the sugar mixture and place into another bowl (you use a lot of bowls in this recipe). This is reserved for the topping.

Once your apples are cool, place them into a food processor. Add the apple sauce and process until smooth. You may need to scrape down the sides a couple of times.

In a large bowl, whisk together your egg and salt. Then add your sugar mixture and whisk until well combined and light in color.

Add the butter in three sections, whisking after each.

Then add the apple mixture and vanilla and whisk again until combined.

Sort of looked weird at this point.

Now you need to add the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients. Stir until combined.

In a greased 8x8 pan, pour your batter and spread it out evenly.

Sprinkle with the remaining sugar and spices.

Bake at 325 degrees for 35-45 minutes or until a knife inserted in the middle comes out clean.

Let the cake cool completely before cutting or removing from the pan.

Headsweats Review and Giveaway!

2011-12-07T15:02:00.000-06:00

Now that it's winter time a hat is an essential part of my running attire. You simply can not go without one if you plan on running longer than half a mile. I was very excited when Headsweats said they would let me pick out any hat from their website to try out and review. I instantly knew that I needed a winter hat because I live in Wisconsin and honestly this hat will be worn for EVERY outdoor run for the next 4 months at least. I needed it to be comfortable and this hat is awesome. It's not too small that I have to worry about it sliding around while on my run. It stays put and goes down far enough to cover the entire top half of my head.

Notice the earrings, I wasn't going for a run after this picture. You get the idea though! The hat is very warm and very comfortable though and it has been with me every run since I received it.

Another great part about this hat is that it actually has a hole in the back to put your pony tail through!

They also make visors, running hats, custom hats, Beanies etc. so even if you're in a warmer part of the country than me they have lots of awesome hats for you.

Would you like to win a hat of your choice from Headsweats? Any hat?! Headsweats has been awesome enough to send one of my followers any hat of their choice from their website.

Here is how to enter:

*You must live in the continental US

-Become a follower of Sweet and Savory By Sarah (let me know if you already are)

-Tell me which Headsweats hat you would choose if you won.

-Like Headsweats on Facebook.

-Share this giveaway either on Facebook or your blog.   (Leave a comment for each)

This giveaway will remain open until 12/14/11 at 8:00 pm CST.    Random.org will select the winner!

Random Acts of Kindness....or Creepy? And Winner!

2011-12-06T14:39:00.000-06:00

This past weekend we got some interesting mail. Here is a picture of it....minus our address....since I'm so famous that I'm sure to get some creepers if I give it out.

If you notice, there is no name or signature to this post card.   I sat looking at it for a while.   Looked to make sure it was sent to the right house.   Make sure that I'm not missing some hidden message.   There wasn't anything to give me a clue of who sent it.

To me, it looks like an older child did it with the circles for the dot of the I's.   It also looks as though a parent was there to help out finishing up the post card as the penmanship does change both in the message and the address part of the post card.

We may never know who sent this post card but Mike gloated for a bit since he is the one that does most of the yard work and tries hard to keep up with it even when we have busy lives.   I also felt a bit proud that someone noticed our small little house and thought it was nice looking!

Was this a random act of kindness?   Or a random act of creepiness?   When I told people about it, I got both reactions.   My mom was sure someone was trying to find me.   I'm sorry Mom but I've been found.   They have my address. Other people thought it was nice that someone took the time to do it.   Others found it just weird.    We liked it...and I think that's all that matters.

Do you ever do random acts of kindness?   'tis the season.

A week or so ago I bought the coffee for the person behind me at Starbucks.   I've done it a few times and each time the cashier looks at me oddly and asks "Do you know them?"   Then I tell them I do not and they always ask "So why are you doing it?"   In my honest opinion, they shouldn't be asking me that.   They should get it enough that they know exactly why I'm doing it without further explanation. My response is easy though "Because I can."

I honestly just hope to make their day.   It might work.   It might not. I can just hope that it continues and when they can pay it forward they take the opportunity to do so.

Do you do random acts of kindness?

Do you think the post card is creepy or kind?

Oh and the Winner of the Go Girl Sports V-Neck is:

Megan @Fit Crafty English Teacher

Please email me to claim your prize!

Race for the Light 5k Recap

2011-12-05T13:39:00.000-06:00

Source

On Saturday I did the Race for the light 5k. It has a start time of 4:30 PM and goes through a park that is decorated with hundreds of thousands of lights. Normally you can drive through the park and pay to see the lights but they shut it down so that the runners can go through and enjoy the sights and sounds of Christmas as they run. I love this 5k.

Not my picture Source

Right off the start it was different though. When people were lining up to start, no one was going toward the front except a few of the elite runners. It was very open and so I just went there. I figured that way I wouldn't have to zig-zag around a bunch of people and I could start off good. I was wrong. Before we knew it, they blew the horn and we were off. The elite runners started so fast that I felt weird instantly falling behind that I started way too fast. I felt like puking in the first quarter mile...haha. I slowed it down and was passed by quite a few runners at that point. Since I started at the front, it was bound to happen.

Not me....Source

The rest of the race was sort of rough since I started out way too fast. I felt pretty tired and kept thinking "This sucks. I don't like this. I hate being passed. I suck." To be completely honest with you, I have discovered I'm an angry runner. I get mad running. I am not thinking about daisies and puppies. I am thinking about how much work running is and how much is sucks that I get bad stomach aches and I feel like I might shit myself. I hate how my foot gets numb at some points while running. I hate getting hot. I hate being tired. I hate when my lips get chapped. You name it, I have a lot of hate while running. Once I'm done though, I am thrilled and on cloud nine and that's why I do it.

Source

So anyway here are the numbers:

Finished in 29:37 @ a 9:32 pace.

25th place out of 111 females in my age division (19-29)
128th place out of 527 females

I am happy that I finally got my sub 30 5k :)

Our Christmas Tree

2011-12-04T19:49:00.000-06:00

We had a wonderful weekend. I worked a bit but we had Sunday open to do all the things we needed. We started off by setting the alarm to 7:00 am. We got up and got all pretty so we could go to church. After church they had a brunch so we ate brunch and talked to some of the people from the Parish. Once we were full we set off to get our Christmas tree. It literally took us 2 minutes to get it. We got out of the car and saw a nice tree. We looked a little more and then the girls started to complain that they were cold (um, it's Wisconsin and 40 degrees) which is ridiculous so Mike and I looked at each other and declared it was the one. The guy selling the trees even joked with us on how quickly we picked our tree. It's the way we roll.

Katelyn had a birthday party to go to so while she was at that I headed to Sam's Club with my mom and loaded up on fresh veggies and chicken for the week. I am set to eat healthy. I even bought a gigantic container of hummus so no excuses not to get those points for the HBBC challenge.

Anyway here is our tree.

All the ornaments, including the ones of my babies first Christmas :)

Do you see me? My legs look nice.

Tomorrow I will hopefully write up a recap of the Race for the Light 5k I did Saturday night. It was a fun one but I had to go solo so no pictures AGAIN. I swear I really do run.

Green Giant Valley Fresh Steamers with Pasta Review and Giveaway

2011-12-02T07:47:00.000-06:00

Being that I'm a busy mom on the go, I am constantly trying to find ways to feed my family a healthy meal that doesn't take a lot of time for me to prepare. Green Giant Valley Fresh Steamers with pasta is a great way to make a healthy side or meal, full of vegetables, that takes only a few minutes in the microwave.

The taste was pretty good. I normally enjoy cooking things on my own so I know exactly what I am eating but these are great for the lunch or dinner that you just hadn't planned. It beats Taco Bell!

Here is more info:

Making meal time easier than ever, Green Giant has introduced vegetables with pasta and savory sauces to their already convenient and tasty line-up of Valley Fresh Steamers frozen mixes.

New Valley Fresh Steamers Vegetables with Pasta varieties include:

Macaroni and Cheese Sauce with Broccoli - classic elbow pasta and broccoli in a mouth watering cheese sauce
Pasta and Vegetables with Alfredo Sauce – delicious corkscrew pasta with carrots and broccoli in a savory Alfredo sauce

Steam-in-the-bag sides will have your family asking for seconds. Join in the conversation today on the Green Giant Facebook page.

Would you like to win a Green Giant Valley Fresh Steamers with Pasta Prize Pack of your own?

Here is how:

-Become a follower of Sweet and Savory By Sarah

-Tell me which Green Giant Valley Fresh Steamer you would like to try most from their webpage.

-Share this giveaway on twitter, facebook or your own blog!

Please leave a separate comment for each entry to be counted.

This giveaway will remain open until December 9th at 8pm. The winner will be selected by Random.org

Disclosure: Green Giant Valley Fresh Steamers with Pasta, information, and giveaway have been provided by General Mills through MyBlogSpark

Swag Bucks.....perfect for Christmas time!

2011-12-01T11:58:00.000-06:00

Have you heard about Swag Bucks? If not, let me tell you about it!   It's a search engine that you use that gives you points.   Over time you turn your points in for awesome swag!   It's very simple and I have personally been using if for just about 2 years now.   Last year I saved all my Swag Bucks up and turned them in for Amazon.com gift cards.   By the end of the year I had $135.00 in extra Christmas money to use for my gifts!

How it work: You download their tool bar and it will be at the top of your window each time you open up Internet Explorer, FireFox Etc.   When you need to search something, you put it in the tool bar and it will sometimes give you points!   It's random so you can win any time.   You also get different point amounts for each time you search.   You can also search the web for codes to give you points but I don't do that. I just use the toolbar personally.   If you "like" Swagbucks on facebook they often give you hints on codes and also sometimes give you codes that will appear right on your wall for you to enter and add more points to your bank.

If you would like a referral, here is my referral link: http://www.swagbucks.com/refer/ssoccer27

I do get points if you sign up and actually use Swagbucks with that referral link.

If you have any other questions please ask!   I really do love swagbucks. It's simple, easy and very straight forward.

Home Made Chicken Stock (in the slow cooker)

2011-11-30T14:28:00.000-06:00

One of the things I'm trying to improve on is using less canned goods in my household.   They are easy to use and overly accessible so it's easy to go to them whenever we are making dinner.   Canned goods also contain extra sodium that is used to preserve. Having too much salt is of course something many of us are guilty of.
One of the easiest ways to use less canned goods is to eat fresh. Use fresh fruit or fresh vegetables. Steam your vegetables to make them into a side dish at dinner time.   You can add a little salt but at least this way you are able to control how much salt you are adding.

The same thing goes for chicken stock.   It's so very easy to go buy a large can of chicken broth or stock and use that.   You can get the low sodium versions to reduce the sodium but it's still processed to stay on the shelf for longer periods of time.   If everyone knew how easy it is to make your own chicken stock, I think more people would do it.   It does take time and some planning but the effort is well worth it.   You will fall in love with the flavor of your home made stock.   You can also tweak it to add whichever herbs and spices you and your family particularly love!

I made this in the slow cooker. You can make it on the stove but I decided not to simply to make my life easier. One warning though. This cooks for 24 hours in the crock pot and your house will smell ridiculously amazing the entire time.    I also did not take step by step pictures but it's just that easy to do.

Ingredients:

1 whole chicken with bones *
1 stalk of Celery
2 large Carrots
1 whole Onion
1 head of garlic, roots cut off but leave the skins on.
Salt and Pepper to your taste
1 Tbs. Dried Parley

* You do not have to use the whole chicken. If you make a roasted chicken, save the carcass.   Stick it in a freezer bag and save it until you have a couple of them.   A couple of carcass's will work wonderfully for this as well!   What a wonderful way to use up everything!

First chop up your veggies.   Nothing fancy here.   A large rough chop will do.

Add your chicken to the slow cooker.   Then add all your veggies around it.   Salt and Pepper and then add your parsley.

Fill the slow cooker with water almost to the top of the chicken.   Being that it's a whole chicken, there's a good chance it will make a bit more liquid so don't fill the slow cooker to the top with water.

Turn the slow cooker on high and cook for 24 hours. No need to stir or lift the lid unless for some reason the water is going down then add a bit more water.   My water did go down while I was sleeping.   I blame this on my lid. It wasn't centered on right and so it was venting all night long.   Oops.

The next day take the chicken out with some tongs.   It's going to fall apart and you will lose pieces in the stock.   No biggie!    You may use this chicken for sandwiches, casseroles, or soups.   It will be very tender!

Next strain the stock with a mesh strainer into a bowl.   It will get all the spices, bones or chicken that are left in there.

The stock can be stored in the fridge for up to 1 week or freeze for future use.

One other note: The fat that is left will float to the top of your containers once you let it sit.   I skimmed that off so that there was barely any fat in my stock.

Go Girl Sports V-Neck Vortex Shirt Giveaway!

2011-11-28T14:12:00.000-06:00

Looking for an awesome shirt to giveaway this holiday season to the runner in your life? Or how about keeping it for yourself?   Go Girl Sports was generous enough to let me give away one of their awesome V-Neck Vortex Shirts in the color and size of your liking. I love the look of this shirt and wish I had one myself.   I may have to purchase myself a Christmas gift this year!

Please visit Go Sports Wear and take a look around.   You are sure to find many things you will love there!

To enter the Giveaway:

-Go Follow Go Girl Sports on twitter here.

-Like Go Girl Sports on Facebook here.

-Follow Sweet and Savory by Sarah...that way you will know if you win :)

-Like Sweet and Savory by Sarah on Facebook here.

Please leave a separate comment for each of the entries to be counted.   Contest will remain open until 8pm CST on December 5th.

Oh yeah...

2011-11-28T11:22:00.000-06:00

I got bangs...

Thank you for the suggestions!

Maybe someday I'll put some Windex on the mirror before snapping pictures. Today's note from Katelyn "I love you." was all over it :)

Monday Miles and a Wedding

2011-11-28T09:33:00.000-06:00

Lets get right down to it.   Here is what I did this week for running.   On top of the running, I did lots of ab work and arm work this week. I really need to work on strengthening all areas of my body, not just my legs.

Monday Nov. 21st

   Run 3 miles @ 9:41 pace

Tuesday Nov. 22nd

Run 2.5 miles @ 10:00 pace on the treadmill

Wednesday Nov. 23rd

   No Run

Thursday Nov. 24th

5 mile Turkey Trot @ 10:03 pace

Friday Nov. 25th

     No running

Saturday Nov. 26th

   No running but lots of running around :)

Sunday Nov. 27th

5 miles @ 9:56 pace.
      1 mile cool down walk

Total Miles: 17.00

I also feel like I ate pretty healthy this week. I ate some salads for lunch and lighter dinners as well.    Thanksgiving I did have two meals but I kept it light and went for more veggies for the lunch.

We also attended a wedding this weekend.   I was responsible for taking pictures of the girls getting ready but I will not be posting those because I'm sure they would kill me.   Instead you get a lot of pictures of kids because I can't help but take a million pictures of them.   I promise I'm not a pedophile.

What does a blogger do in a bathroom? Take self portraits of course!
Paige flew up from Louisiana.   She felt betrayed because she is normally my hair stylist and I had my hair cut the day before I saw her.   Sorry Paige!
Melissa, Paige and Paul
So glad to have a child with front teeth again.   She was missing them for close to a year!
My friends niece.   She just stares and stares and is so beautiful.
My friend Jenny (niece in previous picture) is pregnant.   She's having a girl! I can't wait!
Melissa again :) It was her sisters wedding.

Turkey Trot 5 Mile Recap

2011-11-27T20:14:00.000-06:00

Yeah yeah...I'm way behind. I know. I have been so busy this week and weekend with many festivities that I haven't had the time to blog.

This year I did my very first Turkey Trot.   I was very excited to do it and even had my sister and niece doing the 2 mile walk so that I had someone to stand around with and talk to before hand. I was excited and anxious for the race even though I haven't been running as much as I would like lately. They had packet pick up the night before and the traffic was crazy.   It was a never ending line of traffic going into the university.   Once you got inside it was pretty quick though.   I liked it!    They had a record turn out this year so I knew to arrive early the next day to get a close parking spot.

That morning I felt good.   I had worked the night before but I ended up to bed at a normal time anyway and got enough sleep.   I ate a Clif Bar for breakfast and had a little bit of water.   I avoided the coffee this time in hope to also avoid the multiple trips to the restroom prior to the race but I was only slightly successful in that attempt (WTF?!).   We lined up to start the race and there were so many people that we were all packed in and basically fighting for a spot to stand.    There was a guy talking in a loud speaker but I couldn't hear a thing they were saying.    A few moments later we were finally seeing movement ahead of us so we started walking, jogging and then running.....only to find out that wasn't the official start.   We were running to our official start spot. Everyone was laughing because no one around me had heard the guy say there were two starts.   I don't get it but we went with it and then slowly again the people in front of us started to move again and we were really starting now.

The first mile and a half were packed.   There were so many people that you were forced at the pace of the others around you.   I was okay with it. I truly went into this race with the mindset that it's Thanksgiving and I'm here to run this race just for me and enjoy running this race.   No pressure.   I saw some pretty young kids doing the 5 mile run and I was surprised.   I just smiled and thought how great it was that they had the motivation to do something like that.   I found myself smiling a lot the first 2 miles of the race.   I just was enjoying people watching and seeing people dodge around others.   Around 2 miles it spread out a good amount and I was able to get my own pace going.   I didn't have my phone to check my pace so I just went on how I was feeling.

Being that I don't normally run in the morning, I did find myself tired more quickly than normal.   At the 2.5 mile mark they had water and Gatorade to drink and I slowed to drink some.   I was tired and my head felt a bit light headed which is completely typical for me on a morning run.   One problem with this race is that I never saw a single mile marker until the 4 mile marker.   They had signs showing you which way to go but I never saw any with the mile markers.   This annoyed me greatly.   I think they only had the signs on one side of the road (the inside) and I was on the outside the entire race so they had to have been blocked by people.

Once I saw the mile 4 marker I slowed down and walked for about 15 seconds just to catch my breath so I could go and not stop again.   I had been playing cat and mouse with two other girls the entire race so I finally had it in my head to get ahead of them and never let them back in front of me.   I passed them shortly after my walking break and then ran steady until there was about .10 of a mile left.   It's up hill at this point so I glanced back and saw one of the girls somewhat close so I turned back around and gave it my all to the finish.

My official time: 50:15 seconds
Pace: 10:03 per mile

I sort of felt like puking after the race so I just kept walking.   I wanted to get away from the hundreds of people.   I got my loot and left with my sister who had a much harder time with the 2 miler.   Apparently she was that parent and had the screaming child the entire race.    I have a 5k to do this weekend and can't wait because it starts at 4:30 pm!

What should I do with my hair?

2011-11-23T11:10:00.000-06:00

I haven't had my hair cut since January. Yes...January as in almost a full year ago. I've been contemplating for a while what to do with it and have sort of enjoyed growing it out for the time being. But now I just simply need it. My ends are gross and my hair snarls up so easily that something needs to be done one way or the other. I'm hoping you will all help me here.

This is what I look like on a normal day that I have my hair down.

The problem with this is I rarely have it down. I usually at some point end up putting it back because I find it annoying to always have hair falling into my face when doing the dishes, vacuuming, and cleaning the floors.

SO then I end up with something like this.

I realize my mirror always looks dirty. It's because I have the need to wipe it down with a towel after my shower and then it dries that way. Martha wouldn't be impressed.

I'm thinking of getting a couple inches off but keeping most of the length but the biggest difference would be BANGS. I'm actually considering getting side sweeping bangs. Mind you, I haven't had bangs since 1994. They would look something like this.

Can you see me through the watermarks?

Now is your chance to tell me what to do. I can't promise I'll take your advice but I really would appreciate it. Do I make a jump for something totally different or continue to look like this?

SPIband Winner!

2011-11-23T08:53:00.000-06:00

Random.org Selected Jenn! From Jenn's Andventures

Congratulations!!!

Please email me your address and I'll get it out to you soon!!!

Another Giveaway coming up!

Slowcooker Pork Chops

2011-11-22T13:37:00.000-06:00

Yeah that's not the most attractive picture. It gets dark here around 4:30 and when dinner is later than that, I don't know how else to take pictures of my meals. A flash is a must during this time of year. This is super easy and yummy.

Ingredients:

4-6 Pork Chops
1/4 Cup Brown Sugar
1/2 Cup Ketchup
1/2 Cup Soy Sauce (I used lite)
1 Tbs. Ginger, Grated
2 Cloves Garlic, Crushed.

Diretions:

In your slow cooker add all of the ingredients except for the pork chops. Whisk to combine.

Add your pork chops and turn to coat the meat in the sauce. Turn the slow cooker on low and cook 6-8 hours for frozen meat or 4-6 hours for thawed meat.

Serve over rice with the sauce spooned on top. Garnish with green onions.

Monday Miles and the Nutcracker in the Castle

2011-11-21T11:53:00.000-06:00

Another week of not that many miles.   I got more than last week though but Mike was to blame this time.   He went deer hunting from Thursday to Sunday so I couldn't run while he was gone.    One huge accomplishment for me is my pace.   I have been a steady 10:30+ for a while now and this week my pace was all under 10 minutes minus a couple for my longer run on Sunday.   I don't know if I will consistently pace myself under 10 but it made me excited this week.

Monday 11-14

     -4 mile run @ 9:54 pace

Tuesday 11-15

     -3.1 mile run @ 9:38 pace

Wednesday 11-16

     -No Work Out

Thursday 11-17 (got a run in before he left)

     -2.44 miles @ 9:42 pace

Friday 11-18

     -No Work Out

Saturday 11-19

     -No Work Out

Sunday 11-20

     -5 mile run @ 10:08 pace
     -.58 cool down walk

Total Miles: 15.12 miles

I also worked on a lot of sit ups, mountain climbers, kicks, planking this week to work on my core muscles as well.

This weekend I was able to take my girls to the Nut Cracker in the Castle. It takes place at a museum that is just like a castle.   They decorate it for Christmas and tell the story of the Nut Cracker and then let you do a tour through the castle that is decorated for Christmas.   They only let you take pictures before the tour begins and then after so that's all I have.   Also was very low lighting and I didn't want to be the obnoxious person with the flash so I don't have the highest quality photos.

The Story Teller and Tour Guide. Katelyn was terrified of him last year...but talked to him this year.

My sister Jill and nephew Logan

Playing in the children's area.

Kenzie's puppet show.

Me and my girls :)

Random Stuff

2011-11-19T12:38:00.001-06:00

I made this scarf. My MIL gave me this lace skirt that she found knowing I would never wear it. Instead she said that I should do something with the fabric because apparently she knows me as crafty. I actually think I don't have my creativity at all. I get a mental block any time someone asks me to get creative. Eeks. I cut the skirt apart and bought some t-shirt material from the craft store and sewed the two together and got this. Yes my kids play with My Little Pony in the bath and one of them made it into the photo shoot this time.

What is up with the weird glare/flash on my face. I look creepy.

All morning I've been alone.   I didn't know what to do with myself.   First I thought about going for a run.   Then I thought about how badly I need a hair cut instead so I got into the shower only to realize I really don't feel like going to get a hair cut so I just sat around.

I made an egg sandwich for breakfast.

I made my bed.

I brought dirty laundry downstairs.

I played angry birds.   Judge me if you want.

I called my mom and talked to her about cleanses and poop. Judge us if you want.

Anyway I really did nothing productive with my time.   Now my girls are home and I really wish I would have made better choices on how to spend my time this morning.

In other news I received these a week or so ago from an awesome friend.   She knows who she is.

They are AWESOME. They work so well. The reason she had given them to me is because the week prior she had seem my latest "invention." I cut the tips off of my index finger and thumb on the gloves I was wearing so I could still use my phone without having to take my gloves off. Genius I though. She thought it was pathetic.

A couple other things.

She should really have a computer in her lap. Not a book.

It doesn't matter that it has never once worked, I still try it every.single.time I make Mac and Cheese.

We'll end the day with a little brain stimulation since this post was nearly pointless.

New Tommie Copper Winner!

2011-11-17T17:48:00.001-06:00

The previous winner didn't get back to me within 48 hours so random.org picked me a new winner!

Julia @ Pain Pride and Perseverance!

Please email me within 48 hours Julia to claim your prize!!

French Bread Rolls

2011-11-16T10:13:00.000-06:00

I've had this recipe in my bookmarks for a very long time. Yesterday I was craving a bread recipe so I pulled it up on the screen and got going. It really is an easy recipe and doesn't take that much time considering you do need to let it rise a couple of times. I messed up and forgot to spray the plastic wrap with non-stick cooking spray on the last rise so they deflated a bit when I took it off. Otherwise they would have been beautifully rounded. The result of these is just like french bread. Crunchy on the outside but very soft on the inside. I'm making chicken salad for lunch today just so I can have more of these. Yum.

Ingredients:

1 1/2 Cups Warm Water
1 Tbs. Active Dry Yeast
2 Tbs. Sugar
2 Tbs. Vegetable Oil
1 tsp. Salt
4+ Cups of Flour

Directions:

In your stand mixer bowl, combine the warm water, active dry yeast and sugar. You need to let the yeast proof before working with it. Let them sit for 5 or so minutes until the yeast starts to get bubbly.

Since we are in a cooler climate, I will give you my trick to getting my bread to rise within normal time since my house is so cool in the winter. While you're waiting for your yeast to proof, put a pan of water on the stove and bring to a rapid boil. Once to that point, throw it inside the oven. It will make a nice little home for your bread to rise nicely and quickly and not take all day long.

Once your yeast has proofed, add in the vegetable oil, 2 cups of flour, and salt.   With the dough hook attachment, turn your mixer on medium to combine all the ingredients.   Scrape down the sides of needed.   Then add more flour by half cup increments.   Your bread will have enough flour once it no longer sticks to the sides or bottom of the bowl while being mixed.   If it still does and it feels too sticky by hand, add another half cup.   I ended up adding 4.5 cups exactly but it will vary each time you make it. Once enough flour is added run your mixer on medium for 5 minutes or hand kneed for 8-9 minutes.

Remove and place into a greased bowl and cover with GREASED plastic wrap loosely.   Place in the oven for 1 hour, or until doubled in size.

Once doubled in size, take out of the oven and punch the dough down. Turn it out onto a greased surface and cut until 12 equal sized parts.   Roll into balls and then place on a silicone mat or a greased pan.   Place greased plastic wrap on top of the rolls loosely again and put back into the steam room oven to rise again for another 45 minutes.

Take the rolls out of the oven and preheat the oven to 400 degrees.

Place the rolls in the oven and cook for 12-14 minutes, until nicely browned.

I'm sorry for a lack of pictures. My sister was over while I was making these and I forgot to take pictures.

Recipe Source: Mels Kitchen Cafe

Spiband Giveaway and a winner!

2011-11-15T14:23:00.000-06:00

I was recently given the opportunity to try out a SPIband.   I have tried similar products in the past but what I really liked about the SPIband is how the fit my small wrist better than the other similar products.   It actually isn't lose once I put items in it. Nothing worse than being on a run and having the arm band shaking around as a distraction.   There is none of that with the SPIband!   They are made with a stretchy material so they can fit most sized wrists.   They retail for $9.95 so they are a lost cost solution for when you need somewhere to store your keys when on a run.

They were great enough to send me two. One for me and one to giveaway to one of my readers!     To enter is going to be very easy.

*Go and like SPIbelt on facebook here.

also.....
*Leave me a comment telling me what your ALL TIME favorite food is!   That's it!!! Random.org will select the winner.

Contest remains open until November 22nd at 8pm CST.

As for the winner of the Tommie Copper sleeves. Random.org selected:

Khanh Pham

Please email me within 48 hours or another winner will be selected!

Pumpkin Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting

2011-11-14T21:23:00.000-06:00

Yep...you read right. More pumpkin. When will I get over this pumpkin need? Probably never but I do plan on still venturing out once and a while. I kid. It should slow down after this but I have said that before so who the heck knows with me anymore. This cake is amazing. It's light and fluffy and full of flavor. The cream cheese frosting compliments this cake so well also. Both of my sisters loved it and one sister even had the chance to eat the lovely piece of cake in this picture. She asked me how I cut such perfect pieces. I had to be honest and tell her I just cut. I don't do anything special and I just hope for the best. Take that secret with you. It has more value than gold.

Cake Ingredients:

4 eggs
1 2/3 Cups Sugar
1 Cup Vegetable Oil
2 Cups Pure Pumpkin
2 Cups Flour
2 tsp. Baking Powder
2 tsp. Cinnamon
1 tsp. Salt
1 tsp. Baking soda

Frosting Ingredients:

8 oz. Cream Cheese, Softened
1/2 Cup Butter, Softened
2 Cups Confectioners Sugar
1 Tbs. Vanilla Extract

Directions:

Preheat Oven to 350 degrees.

In a large bowl, combine the eggs, sugar, pumpkin and vegetable oil. Mix for a couple of minutes until it's well mixed and some air is incorporated.

In another bowl, sift together the flour, baking powder, cinnamon and salt.

By hand, stir in the dry ingredients with the wet ingredients just until combined. There will be some lumps. No worries!

Pour mixture into a greased 9x13 pan and bake for 25-30 minutes or until a knife inserted in the middle comes out clean.

While the cake is cooling, make the frosting.

In a large bowl combine the softened cream cheese and butter. Mix on high until fluffy.

Add the powdered sugar and mix on low until incorporated. Then turn on high and whip the heck out of it. Add the vanilla and continue to whip. I wanted a light and fluffy frosting so I had mine running on high for a few minutes after the ingredients were all added.

Once the cake is cool, frost the cake.

Source: Sweet Peas Kitchen

Monday Miles

2011-11-14T07:47:00.000-06:00

This week was crap for running. It just didn't seem to work out well. I will say though, my muscles and calves have really felt great this week and so maybe it was needed as I was always running on sore muscles.

On another note....what the eff....seriously what.the.eff

And if you can't see it in the last picture, maybe this one will help.

Last week they already decorated down town for Christmas! Isn't that a little early?? What you can't see in the pictures is all the lights on every tree and there were several snowflakes attached to the light poles.   I just couldn't believe it when I drove downtown that day. Also note the really crappy weather. It was cold too...the next day we got like 4 inches of snow already.   Sick I tell you.   Which brings us back to the mileage for the week and why there was a lack of them.    This week is looking like better running weather though so lets hope.   Mike will be leaving late Thursday to go deer hunting though and that means I wont get a Sunday long run in for another week since he wont be home until Sunday night.

Monday 11-7

     - No Running

Tuesday 11-8

     - 3.5 miles at 11:09 pace.   This was on the treadmill and I hate the treadmill.   HATE.

Wednesday 11-9

     -2 miles at 10:31 pace.   This was also on the treadmill.   Gross I tell ya.

Thursday 11-10

   - No running

Friday 11-11

     - No running

Saturday 11-12

      - 4 mile run at 10:48 pace.   Finally outside. Over dressed and was really hot the whole run.

Sunday 11-13

     - No Running.   Had all the intentions but then went shopping and that took way too long so I ran out of time.

Total Miles = 9.5

Please remember to enter my Tommie Copper Giveaway!   Those things are awesome!!

Veterans Day!

2011-11-11T07:31:00.000-06:00

Tonight I get to go on a date with Mike. There will be no running today. Just time to spend with him and remember 10 years ago when he signed that dotted line and signed his life away unselfishly.

Any military wife or husband can tell you that the day they return from nearly a year long deployment will be one of the best days of your life. That memory will never leave you and whenever you fight or can't see eye to eye you just need to remember that day when you were were completely filled with excitement, joy and anxiety.

Waiting for that first touch.

And not wanting to let go...

Ever again....

For your enjoyment...

2011-11-09T07:49:00.000-06:00

Best Prank Ever

I want to date him.

damnyouautocorrect.com makes me cry daily.

If you don't know who this is...figure it out stat and then enjoy!

I now keep a note pad in my car....

Mike's a pro at this.