It's Moving Week!!!

Moving week is here!! We move to our new apartment on Friday! Jeff and I are both so excited! I don't know if I've ever blogged about how much we HATE our apartment, but we are both beyond ready to be done with it. Here are the current problems in it:

1. It is infested with cockroaches.

If you leave food on the counter in the kitchen and then walk out of the room for a minute when you come back (literally 1 minute later) there are ten of those suckers all over it. They live everywhere. We have them spray weekly and nothing ever got better. We moved in and they were already there and they never left. It's been hell.

2. All of our neighbors are freshman who party (loudly) until 5am. Even on a Tuesday.
 (Yes I am kind of jealous that my college days are over and don't need the daily reminder of it)

3. All of our kitchen appliances break on a regular basis (probably because the stupid cockroaches live in them). We have been without an oven and microwave for a week now and I'm getting sick of grilling everything. We actually reheat food on our grill.

4. Did I mention it is infested with cockroaches. Seriously sooooo gross.


So Friday can't come soon enough!

I'm very tired of packing and my OCD is going crazy with how messy and crazy our place is.

This is my dining room. 

This is what has happened to my once perfectly organized and color coded closet

The one thing I'm going to miss so much is my wonderful HUGE closet. It has been amazing!

Our new place will be a lot smaller than this one, but I'm actually pretty excited to downsize. We currently are in a two story/two bedroom apartment but it's just too big for us. Plus this is giving us a great excuse to get rid of a lot of our junk (although Jeff hasn't given up a single one of his things). 

I've been posting all of my stuff I don't want anymore on those facebook online yard sale pages and have made about $1,200 so far! So less junk and more $$$- sounds like a win to me!

I have been online shopping for new apartment stuff! Here's what I got so far.

This chevron rug! This is my living room inspiration! Except for a lighter blue instead of Navy. 

New Bedspread! It's organic (whatever that means)

I'm going furniture shopping tomorrow!! So excited!

I also had to buy new jeans because mine are too big :) It's money I don't mind spending! Hope everyone has a happy Monday!

Exciting News!!

I get to guest blog for one of my favorite bloggers: Jess at Operation Skinny Jeans. My excitement is through the roof! I'll be sure let everyone know once my post is up on her page, but if you're not already reading her blog I highly recommend it!

I have been loving summer so far. It's been nice not having to work every day. Aside from moving and graduate school, I've gotten to just relax and experiment with clean recipes in the kitchen.

I have developed a serious addiction to spaghetti squash. If you've never had it you're really missing out! It's a squash that you cook and the insides can be scraped out into spaghetti-like strands.

This was my lunch yesterday.

It's half of a spaghetti squash filled with vegetables and Mario Battali Tomato Basil Sauce.

The easiest way I have found to cook spaghetti squash is to take a knife and cut several holes in it. Then place the whole thing in the microwave for 10 minutes. Then just cut in half, scrape out the seeds, and take a fork to either scrape out the "spaghetti" or you can just leave it in the squash to use as a bowl like I did above.

I sauteed mushrooms, mini sweet peppers, and spinach in a little coconut oil. I placed some tomato basil on the squash and then put the vegetables on top. Such an easy, healthy, and filling lunch!

I was making clean enchiladas for dinner last night and had my filling cooked and tortillas grilled. All that was left was to bake everything in the oven. Well of course with my luck the oven wouldn't turn on. I tried everything from unplugging it and replugging it in to kicking it (that one didn't work-surprise surprise). So we ended up with open faced enchiladas that were microwaved...not too bad actually :)

One week until we move! I'm so excited! We are moving to a smaller apartment, but it will be so nice to save money PLUS I get to redecorate which is one of my favorite things ever. Any moving tips and decoration ideas are more than welcome. 

The Most Inconsistant Blogger Award Goes to....

...ME!

I once again apologize for being so MIA. I'll make it up to everyone with two words:

Clean Chocolate.

I have a serious love for chocolate. I've always been that person who craves chocolate after dinner (ok let's be honest I crave it all the time, but can usually hold out until after dinner).

There aren't a ton of clean chocolates out there that I've liked. Plus they are very expensive.

So a few months ago I came across a few pinterest recipes for clean/paleo friendly chocolate. I've tried a few recipes and they were ok. I finally played around in the kitchen and came up with this.

Clean Eating Candy

Ingredients:

1/2 cup extra virgin coconut oil (at least partially melted, if not all the way)
1/2 cup pure cocoa (I use Hershey's)
1/2 cup ground almonds (or you can try cashews or peanuts) OR1/2 cup almond or peanut butter
1/4 cup raw honey (not the processed stuff)
1 tsp pure almond extract (optional)
1 tbsp unsweetened almond milk (optional)

Mix all ingredients in food processor or blender.
It will be stiff and awkward (much like my junior prom date). The mixture is not supposed to be runny or it will not work!

Press the ingredients into a mold. You can use several different things for the mold: ice cube trays, fancy silicon ice cube trays (they are super cheap at Target or Amazon), or even cupcake liners. You will need to use your finger or spoon to press it in there since it's not a runny mixture.

Place in refrigerator until they harden (a few hours). I usually just make them and then let them sit overnight. Then you just gently pop them out of the mold and store them in the fridge in a ziplock bag.

I use these heart shaped silicon molds I got at Target on clearance. This recipe makes 28 using these which is the perfect post dinner treat. They are rich enough where one or two is plenty.

Here is a breakdown of the nutrition facts based on how I made them with almonds.
 1 piece: 60 calories, 5 grams of fat, 1 gram protein, 1 gram sodium, 4 carbs, 1 gram sugar

So definitely not a diet buster, but at the same time remember just because it's clean doesn't mean you can eat the whole batch :)

You can make these into peanut butter cups (just layer chocolate and peanut butter in the cupcake liners), peanut clusters, chocolate coconut ball....the possibilities are endless :)

We make a batch every Sunday and Jeff and I enjoy them all week. He actually didn't like them the first time that I made them, but now he loves them too. I love that I am able to eat chocolate everyday and not feel guilty at all. That's a great feeling :)

I haven't been weighing myself lately, because I'm trying to focus on how I feel and not just the number on the scale. I've been a lot less stressed since making this switch. I can tell I'm losing weight, because my clothes are starting to get much looser and I can see muscles forming in my legs and arms. I'll weigh myself in a few weeks to see where I'm at before I start p90X, but until then I'm staying off of the scale.

Hope everyone is having a fabulous week!

No Motivation (Must be a Tuesday)

Today has been very blaaaaaaah. I have gradwork, packing, cleaning, and more gradwork to do. And I'm sitting here watching Law and Order SVU and wasting time.

Oh and snuggling with the puppies. Lacey, the brown one, and I are both being lazy today. We've been sitting around taking pictures (gotta love my macbook photobooth). My white one, Miley, is running around and barking as usual.

I went to Raleigh the other day for a doctor's appointment and stopped by Whole Foods for the first time. I am officially in love with that store! I brought home two bags full of food. I wish so badly that we had one closer to us. 

I ate lunch there as well. I had a salad with veggies and balsamic, grilled zucchini and squash, and roasted tomatoes and garlic kale. Soooo good!

Speaking of kale if you haven't tried kale chips yet I HIGHLY recommend it! Even Jeff liked them (much to both of our suprise). He said they were "pretty good for leaves". Men.

Here's the recipe:

Kale Chips

Kale leaves: torn into large pieces

Himilayan Salt 

Pepper 

Olive Oil

1. Tear kale leaves into pieces and toss in bowl

2. Add a small amount of olive oil and mix until the leaves are barely coated

3. Spread on baking sheet with parchment paper

4. Add salt and pepper to taste or any other spices you'd like (I hear paprika is good for a little kick)

Preheat oven to 350

Bake on one side for about 5 minutes, flip and then watch them carefully. They should be crispy but not brown. They can overcook very easily, so watch them carefully. 

Try them if you've never made them! They are delicious and much healthier than standard potato chips. 

Clean Eating Roasted Chicken and Vegetables

This whole week I'm going to be posting clean eating recipes. I have made so many new ones and I'm excited to share.

Last week I made the easiest and tastiest meal. Even my picky fiance loved it. Here it is:

Clean Eating Roasted Chicken and Vegetables
(this is a portion for 2, feel free to add/change quantities to meet your needs)

Ingredients:
3 red potatoes: quartered
1/2 onion: cut into large chunks
6 mushrooms: cut in half
2 chicken breasts: cut into chunks
4 garlic cloves
1 cup baby spinach
1 tsp himalayan salt (or more to taste) *you can use regular salt, but himalayan is best
1 tsp pepper (or more to taste)
1 tsp of rosemary (or more/less to taste) *you can also get creative and add other herbs
2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil

1. Preheat oven to 475°F

2. In a roasting pan combine onion, potatoes, garlic,  1 tbsp olive oil, salt, pepper and rosemary.
Mix around until herbs and olive oil coat the veggies.

3. Roast for 25 minutes.

4. Add chicken, mushrooms, and 1 tbsp olive oil to pan and mix. Roast for another 15 minutes or until chicken is cooked through.

5. Add spinach on top and mix (if your mixture has dried out add a little more olive oil). Bake 5 minutes.

6. Enjoy :)

This dish is healthy, low in calories, and clean! 

Back on Track

Sorry for being MIA! It's been a busy busy week!

I weighed in yesterday at 211.2. Last week was 215.0

So that's a total of 3.8 pounds this week and 28.8 pounds overall! Yay :)

Crazy thing is I haven't worked out once this week, which isn't good, but goes to show how important diet is. I ate clean all week. I made all sorts of yummy clean food that I'm excited to post.

I haven't had any desire to eat anything "bad" since my hospital visit. It really shined a light on how much it isn't worth it to eat fried food or junk food. I have felt amazing since I've gone back to eating clean. It really makes me have a new perspective on everything. It's not only about weight loss, it's about being healthy and taking care of the one body I have.

I have to get back to packing (I swear it never ends), but I'll be back soon to post some recipes.

Emergency Room Wake Up Call

I don't know what has come over me this weekend, but I feel like I ate worse than I had in a loooooong time. We didn't cook once. Not once. I ate candy bars, fried pickles, hotdogs, chinese food, cheese fries, broccoli cheddar soup (not the healthy homemade one, the panera one), and more unnameable disgusting food.

I gained .4 pounds. Not the end of the world.

I also landed myself in the ER last night.

After my fried food fest yesterday my stomach started to hurt. Like REALLY hurt, not just the minor uncomfortable pains that overeating sometimes cause.

The pain went on through out the evening and I tried to ignore it and then even just go to sleep to let it go away.

It wasn't going away though. It was getting worse.

Finally at about 1am I realized I need to go to the ER. I told Jeff I would be back (he mumbled something in his sleep) and I drove myself to the emergency room.

I was given an ultrasound and morphine (first time for that- it was weird, I don't even take Tylenol).

Turns out I have gall stones and my very unhealthy fried food binge caused my gall bladder to overexert itself and then that's when the pain began. The doctor suspected I've had them for quite a while, but since I don't eat a high fat diet my gall bladder has not had to work very hard. This weekend caused it to work and thus I found out about my gall stones. I told the doctor I shouldn't have eaten so badly, but he said it's good I found out about this.

If I continue to have awful pain I will need to get the stones removed. If not I can go on living normally without surgery.

I couldn't ask for better motivation to eat clean and NEVER do that to my body again. No food is worth that much pain.

Honestly one of the worst parts (besides the horrible pain) is that today was the last day of school (work). I missed it. That means I didn't get to say goodbye to my students and that breaks my heart. I'm supposed to work tomorrow and I'm hoping I can be there to at least say goodbye to the staff.

Jeff got a surprise call at 6am to come pick me up at the hospital. The poor guy hadn't even realize I left (I purposely didn't tell him, because I didn't want him to worry or to have to spend all night sitting with me). He got a cab, which he had to share with some random drunk lady, and waited the last hour at the hospital with me while they concluded the tests (and pumped me full of even more drugs).

He went out and bought a fridge full of fruit and even made kale chips for me to snack on (recipe tomorrow! they are amazing). We are going to relax the rest of the night and be thankful that nothing else is wrong.

Friday Weigh-in

It's Friday! This week was long, but overall it was a pretty good week! 

I weighed in today at 215.0. Last week was 216.8.

So I'm down -1.8pounds for the week and exactly 25 pounds overall. Not too bad :)

Slow and steady wins the race. I always want to drop lots of weight quick (biggest loser style), but I also know that it's how loose skin and re-gain happen so I'm fine with the pace I'm at. Ideally I want to aim for about 2-3 pounds a week. 

My ultimate goal is 135, but once I get closer to that number I'm definitely going to care a lot more about what I look like than that darn number. 

Here I am this morning- Starbucks in my hand. If you read my other post you know that I am addicted to going there in the mornings after my workout. I made it almost all week without going, but left my breakfast at home today so of course I had to stop in for my unsweetened green tea, oatmeal, and blueberries ($9.62!!!!!). 

I hope everyone has a great day and fantastic weekend!! I plan to post some more clean recipes! I just need to make them so I can take pictures. 

Work Out Wednesday

I had a great workout this morning. I did a shorter workout than normal, but it was definitely an intense one. It's called the 5-4-3-2-1 workout. I'm linking up with Skinny Meg for a quick post today!

Here is the workout :)

I did the at home version for cardio and repeated it 2 times through. I definitely felt it at the end. It's a great workout to do if you don't have a lot of time on your hands.

Hope everyone is having a great week so far! 

Just Whatever Pops into My Head

Today was a long day! I am happy to be sitting on the couch at home with dinner in the oven. We are having roast chicken, sweet potatoes, and zucchini. Yummm. I just wish the chicken didn't take 3 hours to cook. 

I had to have mall court food the other day.  This is what I picked out. Yay for healthy choices :)

Grilled chicken nuggets, fruit, water w/ lemon

I'm working on breaking my Starbucks breakfast habit. My friend at work, Shirria (she blogs over at My Cheap Addictions- check her out), teases me every morning when I bring in my Starbucks. Why you may ask? I get unsweetened green tea over ice (aka a tea bag in water with ice cubes in it) and steel cut oatmeal with blueberries. So basically things I could actually make myself...for A LOT cheaper. What can I say? I'm lazy sometimes. I really need to work on this though. 

So much prettier than when I make it :p

Has anyone actually added up how much they spend at Starbucks (or similar places) a year? Don't do it. 

You'll cry!! 

And Lastly. Facebook. Oh how annoying is facebook sometimes? Does anyone else have those friends who will post these statuses like "OMG OMG YOU WILL NOT BELIEVE WHAT HAPPENED TO ME!!!" or " THIS IS THE WORST DAY EVER! MY LIFE IS RUINED!!!" or "I JUST GOT THE BEST NEWS OF MY LIFE! SOOOOO EXCITED!!!''...

...and then someone will comment on it (they always do) "What happened?" or "What is it?"...

...and the person responds with some form of "It's private" or "sorry it's personal".

Does this happen on anyone else's facebook too? It drives me insane!! 

Or my other 'favorite' is when people go on long rants dissing their boyfriend/husband/partner/whatever and they break up on facebook and then the next day they are together (and of course there is a picture of flowers or a status of how madly in love they are). Only to be followed with another breakup. DRAMA!!!!

 

Or lastly when people get in long fights on facebook where they go back and forth forever just insulting each other (and then always claim they are too mature for this nonsense). 

I keep wanting to delete my facebook, but on the other hand it is entertaining. 

Monday Funday (wish it was still Sunday)

Good morning. It's my last full week of school (work). I'm going to miss all of my students, but I am excited for a little break. Not getting up at 4:45 will be amazing!

On to weekly goals. I didn't do them last week so nothing to report on. I did fairly well with my mini weekend goals.
1. I worked out yesterday, but not Saturday
(in my defense I had a little stomach bug and probably lost a few pounds on my own if you know what I mean) Sorry TMI

2. I had two cheat meals, but no dessert so I guess I kind of made this goal.

3. We went on a short walk, but we also cleaned our whole place so that ended up being active.

4. We didn't do any formal meal planning, but we shopped for the week and are going to try to get creative with our clean meals this week. Homemade clean taco bowls tonight :)

On to this week's goals. I'm linking up with Jess from Operation Skinny Jeans. She is one inspiring lady!

1. Work out before work Monday, Wednesday, Friday and then attend Zumba and Body Pump on Tuesday and Thursday. 

2. Eat clean this week with no cheats. 

3. Try to have a positive attitude about my journey and do not use the F word when referring to my self. (I mean the 3 letter one, not the 4 letter one ) :) The reason for this goal is that I will make little jokes about being fat (there I said the word), which just puts myself down instead of building myself up. 

Hope everyone has a great week! 

Wedding Stuff (A non weightloss related post)

It's been 2 months since Jeff and I have gotten engaged so I thought I would write a little bit about that instead of only focusing on weight loss. Getting engaged and knowing I will be walking down the aisle in a year is HUGE motivation for me to shrink down, but I also don't want that to be my only focus.

I'm really excited for our wedding. We are getting married June 21, 2014 in Iowa. Living in North Carolina has made wedding planning challenging, but I'm making pretty good progress. We are going home in July to see our friends and family and we will finally be able to pick a venue out which will reduce my stress level by 1000%.

Jeff proposed on April 1, 2013 on the first day of our cruise. We wanted to take a vacation for spring break and I had no clue he was going to propose. We had been dating 4 years and I thought it was never coming. He popped the question in our room. It was one of the best moments of my life that I will never forget.

Day we got engaged :)

Shamless ring shot- but I am so in love with this ring! He did an amazing job picking it out. 

So far I have picked out our wedding colors (blush and gold), chosen my bridesmaids (8 of the best ladies I know), hired a wedding coordinator (Liz at ETM Events) and photographer (Aly Carroll Photography), and started designing the invitations (INKsational Design on Etsy). I can't wait to get more done once work is out for the summer and we get to make the trip back home.

Not our cake, but this is my color insiration

Draft of our wedding invitations

Hope everyone had a fabulous weekend!