I Dreamed A Dream | Fit Life Friday

I feel like a wild ‘n’ happy kid all over again!
I got a visit from one of my FAVORITE FAIRIES!!

THE FOOD FAIRY!!

Seriously, I have been abundantly blessed in the food department lately! Awhile back, I Grammed (Instagram) a pic about an awesome grocery shopping feat and shared the Gram with my Twitter followers:

Dude, this is huge, okay?!? Pacific Northwest grocery prices are OUTTA CONTROL ‘spency! :O

To which one of my friends replied:

So, in order to answer that friend, and anyone else with similar questions, I want to take the opportunity to use today’s Fit Life post to share some of my tips/tricks. I’ll start by saying that none of this is particularly revolutionary, just some things I decided to try out paired with some Divine appointments.

The week I made the big grocery score was not really different from any other week in my meal planning adventures. I had my list of meals I was going to make and I was ready to put together my list. Before I headed to the store, I went up to the kitchen to see what supplies I already had so that I could cross them off my list. I had so many half-used items on my shelves and in the fridge/freezer that I had to take everything out and set it on the counter to see what I could cross off. Then it hit me like a ton of bricks: Why don’t I just take inventory of all the things that are out on the counter and instead of adding to it, start getting rid of it! I threw away a lot of stuff I had tried but didn’t end up liking. And then I made my list:

Throughout the past couple of weeks, I’ve crossed off things that I’ve used up. What a HUGE difference it all makes, cost-wise!

From there, I took my list back to my room, cleared off my list of previously planned meals and then went to my FOOD IDEARS Pinterest board to search for recipes that called for the items I already had on hand. After that, I put together a new meal plan and listed out the new groceries I would need in order to make those meals happen. What started out as a list of 25 items was reduced to a list of 7 items! As I shopped my list, I noticed that some items that were similar to what I needed were on SALE, so I got those instead. And by the time I left the grocery store, my grand total was $28! And for what I normally spend on a week’s worth of meals, that is CRAZY AWESOME SAUCE! It felt so great to walk out of the grocery store without spending a ridic amount of money on my Hungry Hungry Hippo needs. 😉

So here’s a few things to keep in mind to save money on food:

• PLAN. PLAN. PLAN. — Create a menu featuring recipes that use the same ingredients as what you’re already buying anyway. That way you’re not left with half a can of beans for the week and nothing to do with it but let it rot or toss it.
• Clip Coupons — Sign up for your local grocery store’s rewards/coupon program and pick up the little newspaper on the way in. Use that information to save you some dinero. Seriously, I just picked up a FREE carton of eggs because I’m signed up for QFC rewards and they send me coupons for stuff like that all the time!
• Take Inventory — Write down what you have already and challenge yourself to create meals to use it up in your weekly meal prep.
• Bring on the Subs — If there’s something on sale that’s similar to what you have on your list, go for the $ale item. **Disclaimer: One thing I’ve trained myself to do is to read the nutrition info labels on the back of things. While sale items are nice, there are some things I won’t buy even if it’s on sale. If the sale item has significantly more added sugars or more sodium than the original item, I won’t buy the sale item. I’ll pay the extra that it takes to keep my food habits low-sodium and less processed.
• Invest in a food processor — The majority of the time, produce is cheaper than the canned business. Also, it’s FRESHER and you know there won’t be additives AND you can buy as much/little as you need, as most cans have a little more/less than a recipe can tend to call for.

As I mentioned earlier, there’s another reason why I’ve been able to save more on my food and that is because of the power of relationships and Divine appointments. Here’s what I mean:

My Food Fairy Godmother is my best friend, Heather J. She’s part of a co-op that gathers leftover food from grocery stores. This is the food that stores are not legally allowed to sell because they’re about to turn or they’ve reached their box expiration date. The co-op then takes all the food and other supplies back to their warehouse where everyone involved is given a chance to look through it all and take whatever they want home. So what Heather SO GRACIOUSLY does—because she’s got a selfless heart of gold that always goes out of its way to invest in and bless others—as she grabs food for her and her husband, is look through the fruit and produce with me in mind as well. Every week on a certain day, she’ll bring me a bag of produce and other goodies that she knows I can use to make my meals for the next week. And that picture of Heather’s note on my house whiteboard at the top of this post? Well, it’s just the best love note ever because I walked up to the kitchen, saw the note, and then looked down to find a huge bag of food loot! As I set it all out on the counter to store in the fridge, I found the 3 bags of salad she had written about also sitting on one of my fridge shelves! Here’s how happy my shelf looked like once I got it all stored on my shelves:

Om nom nom nom! I’m in produce HEAVEN!

I thought it was extra funny because as I had gotten home, I checked the mail and found that the latest issue from my subscription to EATING WELL magazine was in there. And on the cover, beaming just as beautifully as ever, was a feature of my FAVORITE fruit!

Oh glory!

Knowing that it was my favorite, Heather made sure to bring me a lot of apples in my goodie bag, so I was one happy camper! I’m REALLY looking forward to using the apples this week! She also included 2 grapefruits and that turned out to be an excellent choice. I’ve always been afraid of grapefruit, but since I could tell it was on its way out, I decided to have one for breakfast and one for at dinner. It turns out that when you rub the slices with a little Stevia, life isn’t so bad! 😉 I actually really liked them!

“Trying a grapefruit for the first time, thanks to a special delivery from my awesome Food Fairy, Heather J.! I dig it & it’s a perfect pairing w/ my Sweet Potato Pancake!”

[Sweet Potato Pancake Recipe]

I got to doll up my Turkey Taco Chili dinner thanks to one of the bags of salad that Heather left me! And since fruit has become my preferred sweet treat, I opted for a dessert of juicy strawberries! Glooooory!

[Crock Pot Turkey Taco Chili Recipe]

The Food Fairy’s generous donation also helped me with my snacks today!

The only thing I had to buy was the almonds! This makes for one happy tummy 🙂

Another Divine Appointment

is that my workplace has a co-op garden as well, and those that use it to grow food usually bring their leftover crops to work and set them out on the counter free for the taking! Those offerings help me out with my weekly snacks as well. This past week, my boss brought in a HUGE bag of apples (my fave!) and told us to PLEASE take a bunch home with us. . . .UM, OKAY! No problem!

Fruit Loot

Guess I’ll just eat some with my lunch . . . and dinner . . . and . . . well, you get the point 😉

And of course I’ll save some for later too. 😉

More Divine Appointments . . . 

My friend/mother/mentor, Kathy, will often let me know of deals happening at Costco and Central Market and will offer to pick me up sale items that I can’t get to because I don’t have a vehicle or a Costco membership. So this week, she picked up some greek yogurt on sale and so I decided to pick up some chia seeds to try out. A lot of bloggers I follow recommend chia seeds, so I’m looking forward to adding this to my greek yogurt parfaits this upcoming week!

Ch-ch-ch-chia!

And my friend Glenda, who I lovingly call G-Mama, was cleaning out her bookshelves and came across 2 Clean Eating Cookbooks and decided to gift them to me! This week has been SO full of treasures!!

THANK YOU so much, G-Mama! ♥

So I guess the best way to end this would be to actually share my next week’s meal plan with ya, eh? Sweet! It includes things I had leftover from last week’s recipes and the new loot I got from my Food Fairy. Here it is in all it’s tasty, low-cost glory!

Breakfast: Greek Yogurt + Chia Breakfast Mix

Mid-Morning Snack: Green Beans + Almonds + Apple

Lunch: Deviled Egg Wraps + Salad

Mid-Afternoon Snack: Cauliflower + Almonds + Apple

Dinner: Potato & Vegetable Salad w/ Lemon Pepper Turkey

Happy Fit Life Friday, y’all!

Y’know, you can always count on me to wear the latest in Children’s Director fashion 😉

PS: If you have any other money saving ideas for meal planning & shopping, please feel free to share the love in the comments!

Two of Hearts

With all the new exciting things happening in my life, I’ve REALLY felt the love!! So, I figured now would be a great time to share some love as well! Okay, okay, so basically it’s more a sharing of things I’ve fallen in love with lately, but still, it’s something, right? Since my heart is so overwhelmed with lovely things, why not double the fun? Here are some pairs of things that have captured my heart lately:

 

Techy Things:

I really need to thank my friend (and Seattle Dad) Del Irwin for giving me the hot tip on this one!

• The Flipboard social magazine app on my phone. For the most part, all of my bus rides involve reading—blogs, e-mails, books, and NOW, Flipboard! I have Flipboards set up for FOOD, DESIGN, PHOTOGRAPHY, NEWS, TECHNOLOGY, GAMING, CELEBRITY, MUSIC, FILM, and HOME. So as I’m riding the bus or waiting at a stop, I can browse my Flipboard and read up on some really innovative things! And the app allows me to e-mail the links to myself, favorite them on Twitter, or send them to my Evernote (my favorite option, by the way). It’s an extremely convenient inspiration and information source for me!

 

Thanks for the hot tip on this one, Korin!

• Okay so this one is more of a gadget, but just go with me, ‘kay? Recently, my friend Korin and I went to our friend Kathy’s house to watch Sense and Sensibility. While we were getting the air-popper ready, Korin mentioned this new microwaveable air-popper bowl that she had bought. I was fascinated and was on the hunt—I NEED one of those! I currently make my popcorn in a skillet on the stove, but it’s so tedious and truth be told, our pan lid doesn’t really fit so I have to hold it the entire time—lame sauce! So I recently went to TARGET in search of this bad boy and I got one!! And I used it yesterday and I’m in LOVE with it!! It’s a perfect option for me and I don’t need to even add oil for it to make the perfect bowl of air-popped popcorn! My snack life is revived!!

 

 

Tasty Things:

Nomilicious!

• My snack platter this week is my favorite combo thus far! It’s full of variety and packed with so much flavor and sustenance. On the menu, we have: A sliced cucumber, blueberries, a sliced apple, Toasted sesame crackers with cashew butter spread on them, a hard-boiled egg, and a mug of Laughing Man Espresso Roast! Also, you should know I’ve gone into a mild panic because I’m ALMOST OUT of my Laughing Man coffee grounds!!! . . . time to order more online!

 

• Italian Chicken Sausage + Orzo Pasta with Basil, Zucchini, and Red Pepper. My love for this dish is unending!! I made this for my lunches this week and it’s so ridiculously full of flavor. Every time I eat it, I feel like I’m decked out in a white sundress, dining on the grounds of a mansion while sitting at a fancy schmancy table in the bright warm sun! I dunno why, but this light and filling dish just makes me feel like royalty . . . maybe it’s the basil, or just the combo of everything, who knows. But seriously, if you can, please make this at home. You won’t regret it! I used Italian Chicken Sausage for the meat in mine, but I’m sure you could sub in any kind of meat you want and it would be just as awesome!

 

 

Thoughtful Things:

As I mentioned before, I love to read and since I’m on the bus so much here in Seattle, I get a LOT of reading in. I’m constantly reading e-newsletters and blogs to stay up to date on information that interests me. Here are 2 of my FAVORITE blogs that I follow:

 

• Orange Leaders Blog. Orange Leaders is “a gathering of leaders who are passionate about engaging churches and families to influence the faith and character of the next generation.” It is run by the reThink Group and offers so much practical and spiritual insight into leadership development, which is my perfect cup of tea! ♥

 

• Carrots ‘N’ Cake. Tina blogs about so many incredible things that inspire me! She offers so many great anecdotes that cover a great range of topics that interest me—from fitness to food to family life—and she’s so great at keeping things real. Plus, she’s a huge fan of nut butters, just like I am!! Her blog has helped me grow leaps and bounds throughout my Fit Life journey and I always look forward to her posts! In fact, I’m such an fan that I’ve even found myself adopting her phrases (like “HOLY YUM!”) 😉

 

Tune-worthy Things:

• LINK IN A CHAIN by Missy Higgins. Missy Higgins is one of my all-time favorite singer/songwriters, hands down! Her style is clean, creative, and innovative sound—and that Aussie accent is pretty rad too! So when I found out that Missy was coming out with a new album, I got butterflies in my stomach. After purchasing (and listening on repeat to) her latest release, THE OL’ RAZZLE DAZZLE, I was reminded of why I fell in love with her music all over again—it’s just wonderful quality all-around and inspires me to create music that matters! LINK IN A CHAIN is my favorite song off of the album because it challenges the listener to break through the chains they’ve lived in for so long and live an extraordinary life, which is something I value so much in my personal life.

 

• BE YOUR EVERYTHING by Boys Like Girls. Let’s get real, I’m a sucker for a good love song, and this one just hits the spot! It’s not a super slow song that reminds you of a scene out of A Cinderella Story. Instead, it fits my style and makes me think of speeding down the highway to destination anywhere with the car top down and the love of my life holding my hand as we head into adventure! It’s power poppy with some spunky punk grooves and Martin Johnson’s voice just soothes me for some reason. This song is featured on their recent release, CRAZY WORLD EP—go ahead, give it a spin!

 

 

Twitteriffic Things:

I feel like I spend less time on Twitter these days, but when I do, I can count on 2 friends of mine providing enough entertainment to make up for anything I may have missed during my absence:

 

• emzuniga. This girl is a RIOT!!! Elaine and I went to school (MCAustin) together for 3 years before she moved to Louisiana to pursue an MC Staff position there. Through the years, we’ve kept in touch through social networking and do our best to see each any time I’m back in Texas on vacation. I love the practical wisdom and quick wit she shares with me when we’re together! Her Twitter feed never fails to keep me smiling, with her snarky thoughts, intellectual marketing insights, fun pics of her rambunctious kitty cats, and the delicious food that she makes! If I could bring myself to do it without feeling like I’m such a creepster friend, I’d ‘favorite’ all of her tweets and save them for a rainy day!

 

• AudreyHannahB. Audrey is one of those powerful women that I wish I lived closer to so that could frequently go out for coffee with her. Alas, I must settle for her sweet, quirky, fun tweets about photography, business, spiritual life, and family. She’s the incredibly inspiring wife of my long-time teacher/mentor/creative guru from MCAustin, Brian Brooks at Innovado. But don’t think for a second that she is merely arm candy—this chick can hold her own! She’s funny, wise, kind, and an astoundingly creative professional photographer! She has her own photography business, AUDREY HANNAH PHOTO that takes her all over on adventures, helping people of all ages and backgrounds capture treasured moments in the most gorgeous ways! Don’t believe me, just check out this sweet shot that she took of a sweet couple in Colorado:

 

Photo by Audrey Hannah Photo

 

 

Treat Things:

Why not finish with something sweet?? Since cleaning up my nutrition and completing the No-Sugar Challenge, I’ve become much more sensitive to sugary sweets. That doesn’t mean that I don’t still CRAVE sweets, it just means that I have to be more conscious about my choices because too much sugar will make my stomach hurt something fierce and will make me feel lethargic and out-of-sorts. Therefore, I’ve been on the search for substitutes that make it easier for me to enjoy the sweeter things I crave. Two of my favorite recent finds are:

 

 

• Dreyer’s No Sugar Added Fruit Bars. Out of habit, I still venture down the Ice Cream aisle any time I go grocery shopping. I’m a sucker for cold sweet treats!! I’ll admit, I was skeptical when I bought these because (1) I never really jumped on the Splenda train and (2) Most of the time, Sugar-Free or No Sugar Added equates to No-Flavor At All. 😉 HOWEVER, and this is a BIG HOWEVER, these fruit bars are a WIN!!! It’s just the right amount of sweet, I can’t taste the ‘ol “Splenda after-bite” I had become familiar with back in the day, and they are so refreshing and delicious!! Now it’s just tough not to eat 10 of them at a time! :O [Bonus: The Black Cherry is my favorite!]

• Private Selection brand Acai, Pomegranate, & Blueberry Green Tea. God really DOES answer prayer! A few years ago, I led a missions trip to Brazil. It was there that I was first introduced to the glory of Acai. And NOW, three of my favorite flavors have all joined up to fight crime in a healthy Green Tea blend!! Talk about tasty sweet loveliness—Holy Yum! This tea is a perfect treat for me and I’m so glad I found it. I picked it up at the grocery store over the weekend and I’ve had at least 3 mugs of it daily since! If you’re a fruit lover like I am and you’re looking for a way to get that sweet fix without the sugar buzz, this is the way to go! ♥

 

Welp, that about wraps up my current “Love Life.” 😉

How about you? What are some things that you have fallen in love with recently?!?

 

The Medallion Calls

This be the tale of a landlubbin’ crew that be innovative
and chock full ‘o entrepreneurship.

Grab some hearty rum, scoot over a nearby keg
and sit yer peg leg down as I tell ye the tale of

PIRATE INK

Ye see, it all started in a deep dark pit near

the Island of Social Netwerkin’ in the city of Twittargggh . . .

And as a response, yers truly, Peg Leg Shenanigans

has created a shiny new design for Pirate Ink!

So ye be sure to stop on by when the rum’s gone an’ my

team of scalliwags will put a nice little ink stain on yer bones!

Ye may be wonderin’ who some of our high profile clients are, and since yer so curious, you can spot some of them in this here video:

http://d.yimg.com/nl/movies/site/player.swf

Santariffic

Who’s excited for the Christmas season? 

 Well I sure am! I seriously spent the day after Thanksgiving decorating for Christmas; and I pretty much listen to Christmas songs year-round. Don’t get me wrong, I celebrated Thanksgiving with tons of love and thanks and turkey, but there’s just something magical about Christmas.

It’s comforting knowing that my friends are EQUALLY (if not more) excited about the Christmas season as well. And so, today, I wanted to share with you some words of wisdom from two amazing friends of mine.

David Atkins & Kat Crosby

David was part of MCA and one of my students when I was the Media Director there. I loved having him on my team and I loved hanging out with him all over the ATX. He’s funny and he’s put up with so much of my shenanigans—for that, he should get a Nobel Peace Prize! What’s more, is that he found an equally amazing woman to share love with. Her name is Kat and not only is she one of the cutest, sweetest, and completely lovely women I know, but her genuine love and care for people encourages me so much! It means so much to me to have friends in my life who not only understand me when I’m letting my freak flag fly, but who also know how to join in the fun! They are such a wonderful couple and I look forward to spending more quality time with them when I go home for the holidays.

Speaking of holidays, 

here is a step-by-step tutorial courtesy of Kat and David of

 

“HOW TO TAKE

 
A PICTURE

WITH SANTA”

well, kids, I hope you learned something today 😉

We Are The World

I love Twitter. There, I said it. I do. I get a lot of flack from people often telling me I’m wasting my life by having/using Twitter. And you know, maybe I am to a certain extent, but I’m okay with that. I actually find Twitter to be a powerful resource. It helps me stay connected with my friends and other people that I like to learn from but would never get a chance to be around in full-time in my current position in life. A lot of people tell me I just need to have Facebook and not Twitter. But I find them to be two completely different social networking tools and since I know how to use them both “properly” (in my opinion), I get different things from each. I think for most people, social networking scares them. Maybe it’s right for you, maybe it’s not—that’s for YOU to decide. It’s also up to you to decide how to use them and what boundaries to set. I know people who maintain the balance without “losing their souls.” (As I’ve heard others state about the dangers of social networking sites.)

One of my favorite people that I follow on Twitter is JEREMY COWART. I probably wouldn’t have even ever heard of him if I wasn’t following Parachute on Twitter. They tweeted one day about a photo shoot that Jeremy was doing for them. They posted his Twitter handle and I went over to look at his site. I was completely stunned at how amazingly talented he is. And it was a huge bonus plus when I discovered that he is very much into faith and social justice.

Today he tweeted something that has just been resonating in my own heart lately concerning the situation in Haiti:

Jeremy was a huge supporter of serving and taking care of the people in Haiti after the disaster struck. He flew over there to help, not just take pictures. In fact, he stated in a message to people in his social network about how his primary concern in going was the people, and not the job of being a photographer. That is honorable—yet he remained humble about it all. Ever since he went over, he’s been doing all he can to provide help for those in Haiti.

With the rainy season approaching and many of the Haitians still without shelter, I’ve been thinking and praying a lot about how Haiti has been slipping off the radar. I realize that all of a sudden there seems to be an influx of natural disasters and that we can’t always save everyone. That doesn’t make me want to remember any of them any less though. Our world is huge and crazy stuff happens, but I am not alone. We are not alone. It is our job as human beings to care for each other and help each other become the best we can with as much as we are able to give—whether that be with money, time, possessions, thoughts, or our voices.

The other day I was looking on MSN, as I do every day and reading the news updates and such. On the bottom side bar, they were tracking which topics were trending and which were fading away on Twitter. Justin Beiber and Avatar were up and Haiti had a big red down arrow next to it. My heart sank. Really? Justin Beiber and Avatar are more notable? I get that the majority of users on Twitter are teenagers and are currently obsessed with the Beibster. If you know me, you know that I am a HUGE fan of pop culture. But after seeing that, I just couldn’t help but worry that I might one day reach a point where I also become so consumed in pop culture that I forget about the world around me. It is my utmost prayer that that never happens.

It’s amazing to me how all these thoughts that have been building up in my head all week have kind of made their way to the forefront of my mind even more, with a little help from social networking. In fact, this morning, my friend Cory tweeted this:

And I wanted to Re-Tweet it, but I’m 95% sure it would just come across as arrogance and elitism, and that’s NOT what I’m going for. It really challenged me. I can’t do anything but agree. I am sometimes WAY TOO in love with myself and not others. I’ve got work to do. I never want to get to the point where I lose sight of the things and people that matter. I’m just a small spec on this planet, and I have an opportunity every day to sow seeds of love, compassion, honesty, and kindness. I never want to miss those opportunities—I can’t get them back.

Worlds Collide

It’s Music Monday on Twitter! Basically, that means that people share some of their favorite music via Twitter. But I figure hey, I may as well just share it on here, because I’m long overdue for a big music sharing post!

Here are some new tunes for you to try out:

ANYWHERE BUT HERE by Mayday Parade

Superhuman

A little over an hour ago, I was standing in the movie aisle at Target, and as I was perusing the shelf, I see both THE BOURNE TRILOGY and THE X-MEN TRILOGY staring me down. So I pick them both up and check out the equally amazing bonus features for each. And I set them down because I know that I’m so impulsive, I’ll buy BOTH. And right now, I need to save money for my trip to the ATX. So, I put them down and start walking away…like 5 steps away…and then immediately walk back, pick them both up, and contemplate again. I took out my phone and tweeted this:

Seriously though—HOW DO YOU EVEN BEGIN TO DECIDE? I mean, I adore the X-Men, but on the same hand….Matt Damon handing out whoopins and still lookin like a stud…let’s get real—it’s a tough choice! Being a big fan of Action/Adventure movies, that’s like asking me to choose between Godiva Cheesecake and Chocolate Mousse Cheesecake…both so irresistable! So I did what anyone in my situation would do (right?): I kept walking away and walking back, constantly holding them side by side…and then putting them back on the shelf, only to walk away, and come right back to fuel the seemingly endless debate.

Here was the result of my DVD Dillema:

Even as I was walking out the door, it took a LOT of talking myself out of it to keep me from running back to the aisle and taking one, or both of them up to the checkstand. But, I had already bought SLEEPERS the other day…which is by far, one of my FAVORITE movies… next to PAN’S LABYRINTH.. both of which are some of the best written, best directed, powerful dramas of all time. So all is not at a loss… and maybe a few paychecks from now I’ll walk back into Target and play this fun game all over again. 😉

Oh yeah, PS: I STILL ABSOLUTELY LOVE MY NEW HAIRCUT! 😀