Tag Archives: bagels

Bagels and no more pumpkin!

Thanks for your comments on yesterday’s post. I felt a little silly actually putting that out there, but there it is! I’m back to my usual self today 😎

You know what Sunday morning is! Gingerbread…

pan1122

And here is proof that I actually eat these things:

chomp1122

Chomp!! Still sticking by my Broncos – even though they stink!!

It’s quite a nice day today. Upper 40s and sunny. John hung up the outside lights, although they won’t get turned on until Thanksgiving. Best to do those when the weather is nice, right?

I worked steadily all morning and was very productive. I don’t know how busy this week will be with the holiday coming up, but hospitals don’t close. One of my clinics will be closed, but not the 2 hospitals. I actually am scheduled to work on Thanksgiving (because hospitals don’t close…), but it will likely be very unbusy.

Felt like some good protein for lunch, and made a smoothie:

lunch1122

1 scoop of vanilla protein powder
1 banana
1 serving of chocolate PB2
oat fiber
ice cubes.

This was thick and delicious! I don’t usually drink my lunch, but this kept me full for a long time.

I would have made a pumpkin smoothie, but stores around here are officially out. We shopped last night and there were signs up that there would be no more pumpkin (Libby’s or OnePie brands) until fall of 2010! I have 1 can on my shelf at home, and we have a couple of pie pumpkins to cook up. I know you can’t freeze the canned stuff, but does anyone know if you can freeze the home cooked pumpkin? Not sure I want to waste it LOL! We are going to pick up more pie pumpkins this week. Maybe we will give canning a shot. 😯

Afternoon snack with my latte:

attune1122

I finished up work very early WooHoo!! John and I took a nice 2 mile walk for an active recovery day today before dinner. Chilly, but that makes you walk brisk 😀

Leftovers for dinner:

din1122

Plus a delicious kiwi. This kiwi had a label that it is from the US. Where do kiwis grow in the US, anyone know? This was a little more tart than the NZ kiwis, and I quite liked it. Num, num.

Question: Have you ever canned anything or did your family?

NROLW, bagels, and books!

New Rules workout this morning. Just one more workout after this one!

Incline barbell bench press: 2 sets of 8 at 65 pounds
Seat row: 2 sets of 8 at 70 pounds
Static lunge with rear foot elevated: 4 sets of 15 with 25# plate
Push ups: 4 sets of 15
Romanian barbell deadlift: 4 sets of 15 at 65 pounds
Dumbbell bent over row: 4 sets of 15 with 20 pound dumbbells

I felt weak today. Although I did increase the weights on the first 2 exercises. I think it was the 6-mile run yesterday that made me fatigued today for such a difficult workout. The pushups were so hard today, but I did them. I did a little treadmill walking and then went for my reward!

bagel1118

I liked this little bookmark thingie.

coffee1118

Worked fast today. I was in a real rhythm and plowed through my lines. Lunch break for a really boring lunch LOL!

I got tired of tuna, but still had a packet left. I really wanted more protein for lunch for recovery, so I had that mixed with some lemon pepper and light mayo. Served with Wheat Thins and carrots. Does this not look like a ‘diet’ plate?

lunch1118

Mid afternoon yum!

latte1118

Sitting on top of the paperwork for my Olympus. It was sent out today. God speed little camera……

Ready for another load of broccoli? I opened a new bag and accidentally poured too much into the pan.

din1118-1

This was the most delicious red pear, too. It almost tasted appley.

So what does a hip woman do when she is done with work and ready to paint the town red?

lib1118

When John goes to the library, he will get 1 or maybe 2 books out. I have a problem and usually end up with at least 6, and today was no exception. 3 Christmas CDs and 6 books!

This one seems quite interesting. I already try to practice this, but maybe I’ll learn something new.

book1118

To solidify my dorkdum, I love to sit on the couch after getting home from the library and surround myself with all my books. It’s like Christmas morning and I switch from book to book because I can’t settle on one 😀

Question: Do you read more fact or fiction? (I am in a nonfiction mode lately)

Gingerbread bagel time!

Fa-la-la-la-la! It’s that time again at Panera 😀 Gingerbread bagels!

We almost biked to PB since it was in the upper 40s, but it was wet and soggy. I guess it won’t hurt me to have a day off, anyway.

Check out this baby!

bagel1115

I think if someone made a cranberry bagel with eggnog cream cheese I might pass out in a foodgasm. 😆

My work week started today. I stepped on and broke my work headphones (sigh….) and have been using these now:

me1112

Makes me look like I should be on a runway directing planes! I love the sound on these, but not wearing them for 8 hours, as they make my ears sweat… ewwww…

Lunch was some greek yogurt, strawberries and Hemp granola (140 calories for 1/2 cup!):

lunch1115

I have been having another super productive day. I managed to make more batches of soap for this customer (she ordered again), roasted coffee, worked all my lines, and got my refinance loans scanned and uploaded! I don’t know what is going on with my organization and productivity, but I will take it 😀 Way more productive than this one:

pixcute

However, I have been too snacky today.

Some of this:

cashews1115

Okay, a couple of those…. and a Zone bar. It’s one of those days where I just want to *eat*! Frustrating.

We found some crab cakes at the grocery store yesterday, and each one has 150 calories and 8 grams of protein. Not bad stat-wise and quite good taste-wise!

din1115

Tonight is some football watching since I got so much done today. I think I lost the picks this week. Last week we tied, so we didn’t get dinner out!

Question: What is your favorite flavor of the season?

NROLW and art with breakfast

Happy Wednesday! And Happy Veterans Day. Thank you to all veterans and those currently serving our country!

Another New Rule workout this morning. Ate 1/2 a Zone bar, bundled up and biked to the gym as it was 39 degrees

What a routine this was, too:

Barbell incline bench press: 2 sets of 8 at 55 pounds
Seated lat row: 2 sets of 8 at 60 pounds
Dumbbell squats with heel lifted: 4 sets of 15 with 20 pound dumbbells
Overhead shoulder press: 4 sets of 20 with 10 pound dumbbells
Step ups: 4 sets of 15 with 20 pound dumbbells
Underhand grip lat pull down: 4 sets of 15 at 60 pounds

Dang these are hard! The last 4 exercises are done in a circuit with 30 second rests. For the dumbbell squats, I used 2 plates on the floor to put my heels on. John texted me and was not feeling well enough to bike, so he told me to meet him at the coffeehouse and he would drive. I hopped on the bike and hit the path. How things change in a few weeks:

trail1111

Bagel and hot coffee to warm up!

bagel1111

This cafe showcases local artists, and there were some nice pictures by our table:

art1111

My back started bothering me again during the ride there, so I actually am glad John drove because I just put the bike in the car after breakfast and came home with him. It has something to do with the pushing motion on the pedal on my left side. I didn’t want it to feel as bad as it did on Monday, so I was smart for a change and took the ride home.

Another waffle creation for lunch (guess it is Waffle Wednesday!). I love my waffle sandwiches. Plus some homemade cashew butter and a local honeycrisp apple.

lunch1111

I can’t tell you how many times I am transcribing files about the H1N1 vaccine and how it isn’t available. Is it ever going to be around?? There is only 1 company in the US that makes the vaccine and they were unable to meet their promised production. Losers. I don’t want the H1N1 vaccine, but there are a lot of high risk people that need it.

Break time was a latte (not pictured) plus an Attune bar. Dark chocolate bliss…

attune1111

Was feeling the pasta vibe for dinner. Cheese ravioli with a sprinkling of mozzarella. And more broccoli! Think I should have named this blog Finding Broccoli instead of Finding Radiance 😉

din1111

I’ve been doing really well on the snacking front. Or not snacking front, I should say. Keeping cereal out of the house has made a huge difference. It’s funny how just a small change like that and the scale starts to drift downwards.

Hot 100 update:

1. Duathlon. DONE!!!
2. Limit the number of eggnog lattes this year to 2 or 3. Have not had any.
3. Keep a redline of weight in mind to not go over during the holidays. Under redline.
4. Complete the New Rules of Lifting for Women. Started stage 7 (Ow!!!)
5. Enjoy time with family during the holidays. Breakfast with my mom tomorrow

6. Better organization of time to be productive. Maybe a bit better?

7. Do some freelance writing. Pretty lame here this week.

8. Run at least 2 more official 5K races this year. 1 down, 1 to go

Talk to you all tomorrow!

Lifting and more bagels!

Seriously – thank you so much for the comments on my photo! I actually took that to showcase my sweatiness, not my arms LOL! I still have work to do, but I am definitely happy with my progress to this point. I actually find it liberating to feel comfortable putting a photo like that online, sweat and all. I remember way back not liking my photo taken. I would try to turn to find my “skinny” angle. Like turning a little to the side can hide 100 pounds 🙄 Who was I kidding???

Had a relaxed gym day today. My own routine as Stage 7 of NROLW is next week.

Negative chin ups (yes, still trying!): 3 sets of 1
Step ups: 3 sets of 8 with 30 pound dumbbells
Incline dumbbell bench press: 3 sets of 8 with 25 pound dumbbells
Planks: 3 sets of 90 second holds
Seated lat row: 3 sets of 10 at 55 pounds

Then a walk on the treadmill. I haven’t done planks in a while and forgot how hard they are! Love them, though. Guess I am a glutton for punishment.

First time this week to have these for breakfast:

cakes1106

You know you want some ……..

My day off and it was the day my MIL went home. We decided to hit Saratoga Springs and spend some time shopping and enjoying the day before taking her to the airport. We went to Uncommon Grounds for lunch, where John and I split a cup of Sweet potato Chipotle bisque. It was very light since it was vegan, which means no dairy, cream, or butter!

soup1106

And at my favorite place, I couldn’t resist one of these:

bagel1106

Apple cinnamon! I do have reduced fat cream cheese on there 😀

Walked around Congress Park and met some friends:

duck1106

duck21106

They really were this close to me. I think they have been fed bread or other people foods.

I also found the biggest maple leaf ever – it’s as big as my face!

leaf1106

Sorry to see my MIL go home to Colorado. We haven’t seen his family in almost 2 years, and this was a spur of the moment trip, since she was down in Washington this week and just popped up for a few days. I love spontaneous visits! She said the nicest thing to me as we said good-bye and that was that I inspired her. I really and truly hope that I do inspire people, because change is possible for anyone.

Quiet dinner at home tonight. Keeping the breakfast theme from each meal – I had a waffle sandwich with sauteed brussel sprouts. The sammie had chicken, laughing cow, and apple butter. Outstanding!

dinner1106

We were supposed to have dinner at my folks house, but my mom has a cold 🙁 so we postponed. We are supposed to go to a big craft show on Saturday, so I want her to rest up 😀

Lifting and apples!

John’s mom got settled in late last night. I was up early to hit the gym. 30 degrees, so no biking. I am thinking the biking might be over for the year 🙁

Did my own program today:

Barbell deadlift/row combo: 3 sets of 8 at 65 pounds
Pliet dumbbell squat: 3 sets of 8 at 35 pounds
YTWL: 3 sets of 4 with 10 pound dumbbells
Lat pulldown: 3 sets of 8 at 60 pounds
Split squat with 35 pound plate: 3 sets of 8

Then 30 minutes on the dreadmill. I am going to feel this tomorrow! Came home and picked up John and his mom because you know what Wednesday is!

bagel1104

I ate half before I remembered to take a picture 😳 Bad food blogger.

I had to work while John and his mom got to play and have lunch out 🙂 My lunch was a waffle sandwich with chicken, laughing cow, and cranberry sauce. I so love this combo!

sammie1104

While I was hard at work, they went out to an apple orchard. No picking going on, but the apples were awaiting!

orchard

And some sleepy bees:

bees1104

The goats at the orchard had their own playground:

PB040037

PB040034

It’s like a giant Habitrail for goats!

John brought me a couple presents:

ab1104

Plus a small snack:

donut1104

Cider donut fresh made. So good! Plus a fresh Honey Crisp. Fresh apples just taste amazing.

I liked how this was a small donut and not a giant one. Most cider places have ginormous donuts.

John also cooked dinner tonight and made his yummy clam chowder. You all know what I had on the side!

dinner1104

I am so spoiled 🙂 We may not have a lot, but there are times when I feel very rich, know what I mean?

Question: Favorite kind of apple?

Bagel Day and Hot 100 update!

It’s Sunday, so you know what that means!

I woke up feeling so puffy and tired this morning. I am not sure if it is from the flu shot I got yesterday or not. I have never gotten a flu shot in my life before, but decided to this year. I don’t think I have ever had the flu, either. John will get it and I never catch it from him. Go figure. Anyway, since I am now a gym bunny, I thought it would be a good idea. My arm is pretty sore, too. We chose not to bike to breakfast and go grocery shopping instead. I was up nice and early due to the time change 😀

bagel1101

French toast bagel. I cannot wait until the Gingerbread bagels come out at Panera!

And the all important tasty beverage:

coffee1101

We didn’t get a lot of kids for trick-or-treating yesterday. It was pouring buckets for a while and drizzly for the rest of the night. I’d say maybe 20 -25 kids. We had Teddy Grahams and Animal Crackers packs, which I am fine with having around the house leftover.

I have gotten tired of tuna, so I bought some Boca Burgers to have for lunch. In avoiding soy stuff and trying to get rid of processed items, I had stopped buying these. However, I don’t think having them every so often is bad. So I had one for lunch! Topped with feta cheese and A-1

lunch1101

Plus half of a Comice pear. This was delicious!

If you like chewy granola bars, you must try this recipe – they are absolutely delicious! I made some with modifications today and had a snack with my latte:

bar1101

They take 15 minutes to put together and I think are better than Kashi chewy granola bars! I need to try making some with protein powder.

Went great with this:

PB010020

I’m not going to post a dinner shot because the color is bad. I need to figure out how to light those meals in the dark now. Our CFL bulbs take nasty pictures LOL! It was crockpot cooked pork with bbq sauce. Delicious!

I really had good control with eating today, as I am taking a rest day and don’t need too many calories. I’m not snacky like last week, and that is a good feeling!

Hot 100 update!

hot100-small

1. Duathlon. DONE!!!
2. Limit the number of eggnog lattes this year to 2 or 3. Not out yet, phew
3. Keep a redline of weight in mind to not go over during the holidays. Back under redline
4. Complete the New Rules of Lifting for Women. Finishing Stage 6 this week
5. Enjoy time with family during the holidays. Planning on dinner this weekend

6. Better organization of time to be productive. Help!

7. Do some freelance writing. Done another

8. Run at least 2 more official 5K races this year. 1 down, 1 to go

Tomorrow I will talk a little bit about getting through the holiday season coming up and how I have done the last couple years.

Question: Flu shot either H1N1 or seasonal for you?

NROLW and camera is here!

No biking to bagels this morning. My eyes popped open at 6:30 and wouldn’t go back to sleep. It was raining, so I just drove to the gym in the dark since I didn’t have to wait for it to get light like I do biking.

New Rules of Lifting: Stage 6 Workout B:

Reverse lunge, one dumbbell on shoulder: 3 x 6 at 25 pounds
Dumbbell 2-point row: 3 x 6 at 30 pounds
Dumbbell push press: 1 x 6 at 15 pounds, 2 x 6 at 20 pounds
Back extension: 3 x 8 at 100 pounds
Incline reverse crunch: 3 x 8

Assessment: Increased the dumbbell weights on all of the first 3 exercises! 20 pound dumbbells on the push press was hard, though, and unwieldly. Also, the lunge with more weight is hard on the balance, which I guess is good.

Picked John up and off we went to bagels! Delicious warm coffee on a cold and drizzly day:

coffee1028

Plus numminess….

bagel1028

My replacement camera arrived today! Hello beautiful –

camera1028

And hello camera 😉

The camera and I are both pink items in this picture!

I proceeded to take a 1000 macro shots of everything. How I missed my in-your-face food shots LOL! Even Pixie was getting annoyed with my picture taking.

pix1028 Can’t you just hear her saying “Enough already, I’m trying to nap here for goodness sake!”

I had a chill all morning and decided on breakfast for lunch:

cow21028

Pumpkin cream of wheat with the last of the cranberry sauce and some dulce de leche. It’s all flecked with vanilla bean goodness. Yum!

I had some snackage problems today.

cashews1028

Plus some unpictured cereal. Not sure if it was the blood donation or something else. I need to nix cereal from the house. I never actually eat a bowl of cereal for breakfast. It is pretty much only for having on yogurt, but I have found that I really love to snack on it. It has become red light for me, so off to the dungeon it goes for a while. Will I never learn???

Shaking it up for dinner:

din1028

You don’t see that on my plate very often! Little cheese raviolis. So good and they really hit the spot tonight. I don’t have pasta too often because of the small amount of food for the calories. Although with mini cheese raviolis, it looks like you get more. A serving of these is 240 calories, which isn’t too bad.

More soapmaking in progress as I type this. Tonight’s menu is gardenia, applejack, and coconut.

Stay tuned tomorrow for one of my thinking posts!

Biking and bagels and health watch news.

The rain finally ended overnight with the low at 47 when we woke up. That is within the bike riding threshold, so we hit the road. Decided on street route only, as the path probably would have eaten us alive like quicksand! I don’t mind the road riding on an early weekend morning when the traffic is very light. We actually go a little faster since the road is smoother. Interesting how much the gravel path slows you down.

Panera bread for a chocolate chip bagel and 3 cups of coffee! :O

bagel1025

The ride home was a little slower. John just wasn’t feeling fast today, so I let him go ahead. I tend to really push the pace, but didn’t want to leave him behind (aren’t I the good wife??).

Sigh… back to work today. It is nice working at home and can have the football on in the background. I just pay attention when the good stuff happens LOL!

Speaking of work in the medical field, I was contacted by the Healthcare Association Watch about preventing health-care associated infections. Here is a link to more information on that where you can watch some videos and read more about what can be done. While it is important for those of you that are health care workers to follow these guidelines, it is also extremely important for all of us to take our own protective measures. When you see your physician – don’t be afraid to ask him/her to wash their hands before examining you! There is no reason for you to leave the office with an illness you didn’t come in with.

Regarding my camera – it does not have a viewfinder hole, just the LCD screen. I can actually buy the same camera refurbished for $85, which is less than it would be to actually get mine repaired. What is up with that? So, I am going to do that.

Here is what my camera looks like turned on:

cam1025

Isn’t that lovely??? This will also be my pink item of the day!

Snackage today:

snack1025

I really miss the macro function on my camera. All of my pictures look so ordinary on the old camera (Okay, done whining!).

Candy corn has entered the house, but it is under lock and key. I have allowed myself to have 1/2 a serving (which is 10 kernels) at a time, which John dutifully doles out to me.

kernels1025

I am making an internet confession here that I eat candy corn in a strange way. I love to bite off the bottoms and save the white tips for last.

cc1025

I don’t know why, but I think the tips taste the best. Or maybe I am just weird.

On a great note – I won the football picks today! I’m on a roll thanks to the Steelers and the Bills. Now I just need to decide where to have my football dinner this week heehee!

Question: Do you have any strange food mannerisms?

NROLW and bagel day!

Back to the gym today! It was dark when I got up, so I put a reflective band on my leg for biking. Then I realized that I forgot to put my bag rack back on my bike after the race on Sunday. D’oh! So, by the time I got done fumbling that on, it was much lighter out. 😀

I have missed my lifting! I am backing up into stage 6 a little since I took a week off. Workout A:

Negative chin ups: 3 sets of 1 (still just dangling there).
Lat pull down: 10 sets of 2 at 60 pounds (slow release)
Barbell split squats: 2 sets of 10 at 65 pounds
Pushups (the real way!): 2 sets of 10.

John arrived just as I was finishing the pushups and off we biked to bagels! Oh how I missed my bagel. Haven’t had one since last Wednesday!

Come to momma!

bagel1021

And le cafe.

coffee1021

Really nice day for biking. I wasn’t sure if my legs were a little twingy from the workout or a little leftover duathloning, but it was so great to be back on the bike! My favorite sport.

Spied my pink item while at the cafe:

pink1021

I love Wednesday mornings. I don’t have to start work until 10, although sometimes I start early – but not on Wednesdays! I enjoy the time with my hubby and relaxing.

I decided on something way different for lunch:

lunch1021

Microwaved sweet potato topped with pan sauteed broccoli and chick peas with a wedge of laughing cow (plus some cumin seeds thrown into the saute pan). I give this a thumb’s up and it was very different for me. I never used to like sweet potatoes.

I was having so much fun playing with food today that I decided to carry that on for dinner! We had cooked chicken and I had made the cranberry sauce last night. Well, in the spirit of fall, I made a sandwich panini style! I used an Arnold sandwich thin, sliced chicken breast, cranberry sauce, and Cabot light cheddar cheese and smashed between 2 hot pans:

sammie21021

All that was missing was some stuffing and it would have been totally perfect!

And you know a girl needs her chocolate! Love those Attunes!

choc1021

Question: Are you a meal inventor, or do you follow recipes?