W.I.A.W. - September Goals Week 4

Wrapping up the final week of September and Jen's challenge of falling into healthy habits has proven to be a bit tougher than the first three weeks.  I was hit with a cold... it didn't last long because I actually took some time and rested but being sick set me back a bit.

To review the other goals I had this month...

1. Meditation - out the window this week
2. Cutting back on coffee and treats... coffee a few slip ups... treats - still on the waggon!
3. Meal planning & not eating out - 50/50.  We had to eat out a couple of times but these were due to unexpected situations and not out of laziness.... really!

So this weeks goal was going to be to blog everyday... obviously not happening.  What I have decided to do is continue with what I did to help me feel better from this cold.  Take it easy every now and then.  So here's to more baths, this tea and saying 'No' every now and then.

Now for my food...

camera shy but amazing apple oatmeal

More apple fun & coffee

Lunch - amazing borscht

Snack - one of these pumpkin muffins & green tea

Dinner - tofu & veggie stir fry with udon noodles

W.I.A.W. & Week 3 Goals

Even though the calendar doesn't say it yet - fall weather is upon us... Jen at Peas and Crayons has created this wonderful venue to share our food ideas and now incorporated goal setting.  My type A personality loves this!

My first few weeks series of goals included - meditating, cutting back to 1 daily cup of coffee and evening snacking to once a week and menu planning. So how am I doing with those things? 

Mediating - not too bad - I think I need a new series.  The woman who I've been using is beginning to get on my nerves a bit... which means not such a soothing experience.

Coffee and evening snacking - check and check and those extra pounds from the summer are gone - yippee!

Menu planning - I love!  The girls help me and we've been cooking a lot more together which sometimes takes longer, but will help all of us in the long run (or at least that's what I keep telling myself)

This week I have two goals...

1 - to not buy take out or pay to go out for lunch or dinner.  I need to specify that I will not be paying for dinner as I have two work events this week - so I'm not paying for it - my employer is.  I had a grocery bill that made me feel a little light headed this weekend, so I've vowed to not pay for someone else to cook for me this week.

2 - to get at least 7 hours of sleep a night.  With all of my new classes and the girls activities and the back to school colds that circulate I need to give myself all of the ammo I can to do everything on my agenda.  I know being properly rested will help a bit with that.

So back to my food....

Breakfast pre-spin- pumpkin muffin & coffee

Post spin - apple and pecans

Lunch - butternut squash soup with hummus and crackers

Pre-track workout for my half marathon clinic - 1/2 tea biscuit (not pictured)

Dinner - steamed kale, tomato, poached eggs with a bit of shredded cheese on pumpernickel

W.I.A.W. and September Goals Week 2

I cannot believe a week passed and I didn't post anything.  I had intended to, taken pictures, prepped recipes but didn't get around to it.  Maybe next week.

This month Jen at Peas & Crayons has asked everyone to share their goals with everyone along with our food for the day.  Last week, I was continuing with mediation which I had started earlier and I was cutting out coffee to 1 cup a day and popcorn to Fridays.  So how'd I do?  Not bad.  The coffee thing is down pat during the week.  I did have 2 cups on Sunday, but not bad and after Wednesday I didn't really miss that second cup.  The evening snacking was a bit more difficult, again just during the weekend - I had popcorn both Friday and Saturday. But I feel a pretty successful switch.

Which brings me to my goal for this week.  With September in full swing now, second week back at school.  Me teaching regularly again - 5 classes a week and the girls activities staring up - its time to be organized and stay healthy at the same time.

So I felt I  needed to be on top of things food related.  I've gotten into a bad habit of quick meals, take out or going out.  All of these aren't always the best choice and get expensive after a while.  So I decided to plan my dinners and lunches on the weekend and be organized on the food front.  I know writing out meals at the start of the week can take the fun out of being spontaneous so I don't consider the menu carved in stone, but it definitely takes the guess work out of dinner before you have to rush out to your evening commitments.  And the best part of this menu... I got the kids involved they helped choose and prepare some of the meals. (Mom of the Year award... right here)

So here is the menu....

I also am adding a picture of Monday's dinner as a teaser - veggie tacos.

So back to my food yesterday....

Fresh baked peach spelt oatmeal muffins with blueberries for breakie and post spin class.

Lunch... I deviated from the meal plan... oops.  But in my defence, I was treated to lunch out and didn't want to say 'Gee - I can't, I have a meal plan'.  Instead I let the person buying think I was a little weird by taking pictures of my lunch : )

We had naan and hummus to start

then I had Fresh Pea Soup and 1/2 a roasted vegetable sandwich.

Pre-run workout was dates and peanut butter.

And on tonight's menu - spaghetti and salad.  Dan and I opted for just the salad as I was not feeling overly hungry.  I also prepped our lunches for tomorrow at the same time.

I'm going to try to stick with the meal planning thing for the next little bit.  It has made things easier during the week and I feel organized.  I also love the fact that the girls have been involved.  I was joking about the Mom of the Year Award, but I have been looking for ways for them to be more involved about their food choices so this is perfect.

W.I.A.W. and September Goals

So its Wednesday again and time for me to show you my food.  But Jen from Peas & Crayons who has created this venue has also motivated us to set some goals and share them this month.

I am sort of mid-goal/changes; my yoga studio is hosting a book club and this is our book. 

I've really enjoyed reading it, it did take me a while to actually start reading this book... I was distracted by the Fifty Shades trilogy.  I am completely ashamed to admit that I was reading that series... but maybe I'll just claim I needed to mentally be in the right frame of mind to read about Indian spirituality.... and I needed Fifty Shades to get me there.

Nevertheless... my current book is making me think about my approach to how I view myself and the world around me.  As a result I have been meditating pretty regularly for two weeks now using Yoga Journal's guided meditation series.

So my first goal is to stick with the book and meditating throughout the month.

Next I will set little goals each week to get me back on track for the new school year and all the other fall related stuff that happens this time of year.

So this week's goal is to cut out the little treats that have become the norm.  I'm not sure if this happens to you but I'll have some little extra like a cup of coffee in the afternoon and all of a sudden I'm drinking that extra cup of coffee everyday.  So the coffee habit has crept up again and also for whatever reason large bowls of popcorn have become an evening staple for me.  So this week's goal is one cup of coffee a day then switching to green tea and only popcorn on Friday night.... thank god its Wednesday : )

So here is my Tuesday food intake....

Breakfast - fruity granola...

I taught spin today and went for a coffee with a friend.. but only one.

Lunch was pizza on a spelt pita.

Dinner - baked falfafels with taziki and tomatoes and lettuce.

Baked Falafels

by Denise Boyd Dunlop

Prep Time: 12-24 hours (soaking time)

Cook Time: 30 minutes

Keywords: bake appetizer entree vegan gluten-free

6031951

Ingredients (12 falafels)

• 1 1/2 cups dried chick peas
• 1/2 onion
• 1 carrot peeled and finly grated
• 2 cloves garlic
• juice from 1 lemon
• 2 tablespoons tahini or other natural nut butter
• 1 teaspoon curry powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt

Instructions

Soak chick peas in 3-4 cups of water overnight or up to 24 hours. Drain water and rinse.

Place chick peas in a food processor along with other ingredients. Process until a chunky paste forms. Using a tablespoon amount, form chick pea mixture into flattened balls.

Place on parchment lined baking sheet. Allow falafels to sit for 1-2 hours covered in the fridge. Bake in a 375 degree oven for about 30 mintues or until crispy and golden. Flip partway through to ensure even cooking.

Powered by Recipage

Surprisingly I didn't snack on anything today.... if only I hadn't given up popcorn... just kidding

Summer's over... or is it?

I finished off the last long weekend in a blaze of sucking up the final moments with absolute gusto.

Friday night we packed the kids and one extra into our car and headed here....

ahhh the drive in... I had a few dates here while I was in high school.. but that's a whole other story.  The evening was perfect for sitting out and there was a blue moon... it looked much cooler in real life.

On Saturday Dan and I headed to Toronto for an evening. 

It was our anniversary earlier this week so we decided to celebrate.  In the afternoon we hit the shops on Queen Street West.  I also picked up some much needed new workout clothes from Lululemon.

We spent the night at The Grand Hotel which was fun, I have stayed in hotels which have larger rooms, but they had great customer service, excellent parking locations, free breakfast and wi-fi so I was happy.

For dinner we went to George Restaurant and had an amazing dinner.  Dan and I both had the tasting menu... Dan had the 5 course and me vegetarian.  We were so happy to go somewhere that offered a tasting menu for both carnivores and vegetarians.

My first course was salad, grated carrots on cashew cream and some other stuff - I didn't take a picture.  It was OK, but a bit bitter.  The next course (no picture either) was delicious.  It was quinoa topped with greens on yellow gazpacho. 

This was the third course, which I thought was my main.  Grilled artichokes, mashed carrot topped with farrow.  The grilled artichokes were so tender and perfectly flavoured.  The farrow included almonds and were perfectly balanced with the carrots.

Then surprisingly for Dan and I we were presented with our main course...

I was pretty full at this point, but I managed to eat everything.  This was grilled tofu, vegetable falafels and grilled zucchini rolls topping citrus infused spatzle.  I'd never had spatzle before and this was so delicious.  The falafels were pleasantly crispy on the outside and creamy and almost cheesy tasting on the inside.  The tofu was grilled to perfection as well.

After our main course, we were served our cheese and fruit course.  I had a 10 year raw milk cheddar which was again delicious.

Between this course and dessert we had some time to digest our meal.... thankfully. 

My dessert was white chocolate mouse on a chocolate sponge topped with ginger and chocolate chip cookies and presented with a lovely message.

I also had the cucumber grapefruit mojito which was the perfect blend of refreshing grapefruit and cucumber and mint.  Nothing was too overwhelming in this drink.

The food was phenomenal and the service was impeccable.  My only complaint with this restaurant was our table.  We were seated in the middle of the restaurant which did provide me with a view of the kitchen and was very interesting to watch.  Dan however was watching the wine preparation.  We had a lot of traffic around our table.  However, we have been married for 14 years with two children and we have eaten in New York on several occasions and have become quite skilled at tuning distractions out around us during meals.

Busy table or not, I would recommend this restaurant to anyone who wants a fantastic evening out with fabulous food.

My fun continued throughout the rest of the weekend... Sunday evening we spent the evening on a patio listening to great live music.... and we squeezed in one last camp fire complete with s'mores.  All around A+ weekend...

but its not quite over for most kids school starts the day after Labour Day.  But for some absurd reason my daughter's school board decided to schedule a P.A. day on the 'first' day of school... meaning one more day of summer.  So we are hanging out today just having fun.. lucky us!