keep smiling.

cue the dramatic music, I'm feeling moody.

Winter break couldn't have come at a better time.

The past few weeks at school were pretty rough for me emotionally.

I found out (through facebook nonetheless) that my ex-boyfriend is engaged to the girl he started dating about a week after he broke up with me and never spoke to me again.

As much as I hate to admit it, this news really set me back. It crushed me.

I am so thankful for my loving family and friends who talked some sense back into me.

Most importantly for my mom and dad who came to visit me right away, with no agenda, just to be together and get my mind off of it.

--

I hope to always remember this verse: "For I know the plans I have for you," declares the Lord. "Plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you a hope and a future." Jeremiah 29:11.

I know that one day I will meet someone so much more wonderful than I could have ever dreamed.

It's okay to be sad when things don't turn out the way that we want them to.

There is a reason-and one day we will see it.

For now, just keep smiling.

home for the holidays

I made it!!

My first semester away at school and it feels so good to be home.

First things first: catch up on my reading!

I love how festive this issue was.

Today we woke up to snow that continued all day.

My mom and I spent the day baking cookies and a holiday tradition, mushroom turnovers!

It is SO nice to be home!!

snow day!

Our last day of classes today was cancelled due to snow-awesome!

Except that I studied all weekend and feel like I cannot look at my chemistry anymore or my eyeballs will literally fall out of their sockets.

I warmed up this morning with some coffee (of course) and some oatmeal with raisins, cinnamon and some flaxseed. Yum! 

On my agenda for the rest of the day: some more studying, making Christmas cards and then off to the gym. 

Wish me luck on my finals!

cozy Sunday + vegetable barley stew

Today was the ultimate cozy day!

I woke up to snow and it is still snowing ten hours later as I type this.

Instead of venturing out, I opted to make some soup in the crockpot, study and reward myself with Love Actually.

I hung some Christmas lights up too, so with the addition of Love Actually, I am feeling rather festive today.

It is hard to get in the Christmas spirit being away from home! 

Vegetable Barley Stew

I didn't measure anything-just throw in however much you like!

1 onion

1 can diced tomatoes

1 can beans, drained (any kind, I used kidney)

1 bell pepper

vegetable stock

barley

mixed frozen vegetables

garlic

salt & pepper

Throw it in the crockpot, set it on low and cook for 4-6 hours.

The perfect recipe for a cozy snow day!

falalala finals are here!

In a week I will be home for a SIX WEEK Christmas break!!

Words cannot contain my excitement.

Technically, it's not a full "break" as I will be taking an online class for my communications major, but hey-I'll take it. 

My main goal for break is to spend time with my family, friends and learn some Organic Chemistry before I take the class next semester. Oh, the life of a nutrition major!

pretty much.

--

This weekend is our Girls on the Run 5k and I am so excited!

The girls have worked so hard this season and it will be so rewarding to see them all finish their 5k. 

I don't think my schedule will allow me to coach in the spring, but I am hoping to again next fall.

Bonus: my mom is running the race too!

I am so proud of her for running. She doesn't enjoy it, but sets goals for herself and I admire her so much!

From  her first 5k and my first 1/2! Ignore my outfit-had to tie my sweatshirt during the race.

This weekend will be full of studying, making Christmas cookies and an ugly sweater party. 

Have a good one!

vegetable spotlight: cauliflower

Taking a much needed study break to fill you in on my new favorite vegetable:

Cauliflower!

I'll set the scene for you: broke college student wanting to spend the minimum amount on healthy groceries before moving home for the next month. Mom sends her back to school with ziploc bag full of cauliflower. 

Since I've been lazy, I've just been enjoying this cruciferous (#nerdalert) vegetable with some hummus, but you could go crazy with it. On Thanksgiving we had it steamed with some red pepper flakes. Serving it mashed like potatoes is a great option as well!

Not convinced??

Cauliflower is exceptionally high in vitamins C, K and folate.  It is also said to be an anti-inflammatory aid! 

Well, I'm off to study again. 

Wish me luck!

venting

Please allow me to vent for this minute.

AHHHH!!!!!!

This is the last week of classes before finals.

I held an A in Chemistry up until yesterday when I did poorly on a test and now I have a B. 

You might be thinking, "a B? Why is she so upset about a B?"

Normally I wouldn't be. However, when I saw my grade, the first thing that popped into my head was I'M NOT GETTING A DIETETIC INTERNSHIP WHEN I GRADUATE IN TWO AND A HALF YEARS.

To make myself feel better, I googled some dietetic internships to see the requirements and don't worry, my GPA is in no danger.

I don't think people realize how stressful this  major is!

lately

I have been neglecting this blog and I hate it!

Next week I will be starting my month and a half of glorious Christmas break (thank you Jesus!) and I plan on really working on this space. 

Of course, since break is coming, that means that finals are too.

I have to keep reminding myself that school is worth it and that I am so lucky that I can go to college even though sometimes I wish I was still a nanny.

It makes me sad that I was so anxious to move on from nannying and into college. I was ready for a change and I knew it was a good one, but I truly miss being a nanny!

Ah, I need to stop complaining.

My goal for December and hopefully my life is to ENJOY the season of life that I am in.

I have realized that sooooo many times I can't wait for the next chapter (i.e. to graduate, get married, procreate...) and then when I am there, I long for the old days. I know that this is normal but I am working on it.

Thanksgiving was last week, which of course you know because you are on blogger!

We had 16 people at our house and my mama and I cooked up a storm.

Pear pie-my dad's favorite. 

All of my sisters together again!

I hope you all had a great Thanksgiving.

I promise this blog is going to stop sucking once I get a minute to relax!

Philly Marathon 2013!

Yesterday I ran my 2nd marathon and PR'ed by almost an hour!

I am so thrilled. Last year I wanted to just be happy that I finished but truthfully I was not. I just wasn't happy with my time last year (4:55) and really wanted to do better this time around.

I ran it in 3:57 yesterday! 

I enjoyed yesterday's race so much better than last year-obviously I am bias-but it was such a nice day and I felt confident going into the race. 

I NEVER thought I would be running a marathon, let alone more than one.

I signed up for Philly last year as a deal to myself. I wanted to prove to myself that I am strong and not to listen to voices in my head that told me I wasn't. I didn't want to feel bad for myself about the breakup anymore. I said if I finished it I would stop thinking about it.

Honestly, that didn't really happen but I'm getting there.

It's hard when you are still single to not be hard on yourself when it is your fault. 

Running has become a part of me and I truly do love it-I wouldn't have ever been able to say that before. My advice to anyone who is struggling with heartbreak of any kind is to do something that makes you feel strong. Reminding yourself that you are in charge and that you can do something will make a huge difference in your life!

NEDA walk 2013

This weekend some friends and I participated in a local NEDA walk.

It was such an inspiring morning and I am glad they chose to spend it with me, supporting a cause near and dear to my heart.

If you have never been to a NEDA walk before, go!!!

NYC Food Tour

This weekend flew by.

On Saturday I went with Student Dietetics Association to NYC for an ethnic food tour!

It was a lot of fun and although I forgot to take pictures until the end, it was a great way to try different restaurants in the city.

We went with City Food Tours and had a blast!

Here are a few of the places that we went (I missed pictures at the first 5 places-whoops!)

How many kinds of olive oil does a person need?!

This was at Puro Chile where we tried a couple different spreads, all equally delicious!

Oh yeah, and on our way to Puro Chile we passed Mark Ruffalo. #nbd.

My favorite thing we tried was a tomato and basil quiche at ORO bakery. 

Our last stop was at papabubble which was so unique.

They are based in Australia and only hire artists to make their hand-made candy! 

Each piece has a design in the middle. 

It was a great day in NYC and a fun way to see a different part of the city.

sneaking in your vegetables

This week I started interning with an RD who has a radio show and teaches cooking classes.

I am loving it! It is so cool to see a different kind of dietetics other than a clinical setting.

Last night's class was "Vegetarian Sides for Thanksgiving" and it was awesome.

We made some delicious dishes (sadly, I don't have pictures): quinoa stuffing, pumpkin hummus, bourbon sweet potatoes and my favorite: Ruby Red Pie.

Ruby Red Pie is made of pureed beets, walnuts and raisins.

OH MY GOSH. It was amazing! 

Honestly, I don't think that I ever tried beets before, but putting them in a pie crust was definitely the way to try them first. Amazing. I will definitely be making this for Thanksgiving!

(not my picture)

This is a great way to sneak in some vegetables! I love sneaky foods like this. Black bean brownies or a kale smoothie are great ideas too.

I think I need to re-read this book

it's a good one!

say no to stress

Being a Nutrition major is draining.

I love it, but man is it killing me.

Knowing that I have to do x,y and z to get an internship when I graduate just stresses.me.out. 

All of these great opportunities have come my way within the past few weeks and I have said yes to them all. I genuinely want to do them, and boosting my resume doesn't hurt either.

The down-side is...this week is craziness. Everything coincided within this week and I feel like I have been running on empty. Running. Volunteering. Interning. Babysitting. Oh yeah, and I am in school too. 

I have learned this lesson time and time again but I am really feeling it this week- IT'S OKAY TO SAY NO! People aren't going to hate you for it. Next semester will be a test of this. I am going to say no if I don't have time for it or if I just want a day to relax.

I really love my major and am so excited to one day be working in the field of Nutrition, I just want to make sure that I get an internship! 

Can anyone relate? I am not seeing the light out of this college tunnel just yet.

turtle love

Finally Halloween is over!

My girlfriends and I spent the better part of last week working on our prize-winning costumes...the Ninja turtles. We used roasting pans for the shells and they turned out pretty cute, dontcha think?

I will admit to having a few pieces of candy this weekend but hey....I ran TWENTY miles on Saturday!! Race day is approaching rapidly-ahhhh!!!

This week is another crazy one. Seriously, I think by the end of this semester I will have aged 10 years. 

5 on Friday

And it's November!

October was a crazy month everything-wise.

School work piled up, volunteering became stressful and the change in seasons always makes me a little weary. It seems that November will be a reward: my race/training will soon be over, a fun trip to NYC and Thanksgiving break.

I am feeling so thankful today, fitting for the first of November.

Here's what I am looking forward to:

1. Skinny Spaghetti Squash Alfredo

from here

2. Seeing my nanny-girls

from last Halloween. 

I miss them so much!

3. Catching up on BL!

It's the first season that I have gotten behind on and I plan on catching up after my LAST LONG RUN tomorrow.

4. Tonight's Halloween costume

My friends and I made our costumes together and they turned out too cute.

Can't wait to see them all together!

5. Thanksgiving

I don't want to rush the season, but Thanksgiving is my favorite.

There is nothing like cooking all morning with your mama!

I hope everyone has a fun & safe weekend!

Halloween Candy under 100 Calories

If you are anything like me, the only appealing thing about Halloween is the excuse to have a few extra pieces of candy. Preferably guilt-free.

I am also a chocoholic-and I am assuming you are too.

Here's the breakdown of the good stuff.

1 snack size Almond Joy: 91 calories

1 Reese's Cup:87.6 calories

3 Hershey Kisses: 90 calories

1 fun size pack of M&M's: 73 calories

It's Halloween; you can have as many pieces as you want. 100 calories is just an easy number to calculate by.They only sell Reese's pumpkins once a year, so enjoy them while you can!

kitchen sink cookies

Today a first happened: I developed a recipe while I was running.

I made the cookies as soon as I showered afterwards while the recipe was fresh in my brain.

Here they are:

Kitchen Sink Cookies

because they contain everything in your kitchen

yields about 40 cookies

1/2 cup applesauce

1/2 cup plain greek yogurt

1/2 cup sugar

1/2 cup brown sugar

2 eggs

1 tsp baking soda

1 tsp salt

1 1/2 cups flour

2 cups oatmeal

coconut

chocolate chips

dried cranberries

Mix applesauce, yogurt and sugars together.

Add in eggs.

Add in baking soda and salt.

Add the flour until just mixed in.

Stir in the oatmeal.

Fold in the coconut, chocolate chips and cranberries.

Bake at 375 for 8-10 minutes.

Enjoy!

My favorite part of these cookies is the color.

They taste pretty good too. 

camping aka how not to stay fit and full

This weekend was a good one, and boy am I feeling it today!

I went camping with a group of girls from CRU and it was a lot of fun.

I don't think I can justify how much I ate on the trip, but it's okay.

Everything in moderation, right?!

We had something I had never heard of before for dinner... "mountain pies"

not my picture.

I was glad that there weren't hot dogs and hamburgers and this was an interesting choice!

I put cheese and sauce in mine-how boring.

We also made dessert ones with chocolate and marshmellows.

They were heavenly!

great friends.

3 of us are nutrition majors!

Only three more weeks until race day and I missed my long run this weekend! I am trying not to get too nervous about race day. I did it last year so I know that I can do it, but it's coming quickly!!

letting go

As always in October, I spent a lot of time reflecting on the last three years of my life. I also spent a lot of time this month being sad because I was thinking about a time in my life that was so heart-breaking for me. Do you know what I realized?

I need to let the past go.

I had fooled myself into thinking that I let it go, but the truth is that when I eat too much or get a bad grade on a test, you're not good enough comes back into my head. When I see a guy that I want to talk to, you are boring plays in my ear and I don't.

I still hear all of the things that he said to me years ago.

The feeling of being inadequate has plagued me ever since he left.

Want to know a secret?

I run about 30 miles a week, yet I don't consider myself a runner.

I ran a marathon and am going to run another and I don't consider myself a runner.

WHY?!

Because I'm not the fastest and I'm not the best.

It's the sad, honest truth and I need to get over it.

I have somehow cemented into my brain that since I wasn't good enough for him, I am not good enough period.

This is a lie and I have believed it for exactly three years.

Today, October 25, 2013, I am letting it go.

I am good enough and I am going to keep my face towards the sunshine.

--

Do you have anything that you need to let go?

secret weapon: applesauce

It's no secret that I love applesauce.

I put it on my dinner every night.

Pizza? Chili? A sandwich?

It's good on everything.

After 20 years of experience, I have discovered the best time to have applesauce:

while running.

When I was training for my first race, everyone told me to have gels or drink Gatorade after an hour. I couldn't stomach either of those while running, so I researched.

I read on SkinnyRunner about how she fuels with candy or anything to keep her blood sugar up.

The next time I went on a long run, I brought a pouch of applesauce and the rest is history.

*I like to keep them in the freezer and then take them out when I start running. It will be mostly thawed after an hour or so when you need it.*

What do you refuel with?

Helping the hungry

Last month I read an article in that has stayed with me. It seems that each week, my eyes have been opened to more hunger than I would have noticed in the past.

In high school, volunteering at a soup kitchen or food pantry was required on multiple occasions.

I enjoyed the experience, but once I fulfilled the requirements I was out of there.

My life (and priorities!) have changed now and I am anxious to get back to helping others.

The holiday season is among us and how sad is it that 842 MILLION people in the world don't have enough to eat?

They are sad truths, but we can help.

Tomorrow begins my first day at the local food bank, and I am excited to make a difference.

You can too! 

To find a food bank near you, go here

 hunger stats

WE CAN MAKE A DIFFERENCE!

Women's Health Wednesday

I loved Carrie Underwood on this month's Women's Health!

An article that made me think was How to Live in the Now by Tori Rodriguez.

This addressed an issue that I am so guilty of, and a huge reason why I haven't had time to blog!

anxiety.

The article talks about being mindful of thoughts and actions.

"Mindfulness means letting your thoughts come and go without rushing to figure out what they mean" (pg. 88).

I am not going to lie-I have been dealing with an extreme amount of anxiety this month.

I randomly burst into tears and my eating and sleeping habits are getting out of order.

What is most irritating is that I cannot figure out the cause of this anxiety.

Reading How to Live in the Now inspired me to take time out of each day to meditate or do some yoga. I pray each day, but I think that meditating is different. Focusing on the now instead of what will I do when I graduate?! Will hopefully help me to ease these anxiety symptoms.

Do you have any tricks for relieving anxiety?

TRY IT: desert pepper salsa

I have found the perfect salsa and I feel it necessary to share with you.

Beware: this has a little spice (which I love) but some people don't.

I  love it and think you will too:)

not a sponsored post-this stuff is just amazing.