Thrilling Thursday

Its cold today...LIKE REALLY COLD!! I am thankful that I got to sleep in a little bit. I will tell you one thing, my troubles with sleeping are temporarily fixed! AMEN! I guess waking up at 4:40am makes you tired. Who would have known...Ive also been taking melatonin and it works wonderfully! HIGHLY recommend that if you have troubles sleeping. That and kava. Good stuff.

So I'm just sitting here on our new 1960's velvet couch. Its freaking awesome. Some (or most) might think its hideous, but Scott has a thing for that era and I love the retro feel to it! So yesterday we spontaneously decided to 86 the sectional to be the gym lounge couch and try this beaut at home. We already have 2 sweet rockers that match nicely. I never realized how HUGE the sectional was until it was gone. Our living room feels so empty now! Time to revamp and do some shopping! And painting....whoop! So that's whats going on in the home front.

You could say training is going pretty good. I am on week 4. Last week was a max week, I didn't perform as good as I wanted BUT I did PR on some lifts and PR match which I will take over nothing. Snatch and Clean & Jerks are HARD. Glad for this week is low percentages so I am working my tech more (much needed). Why is the jerk so hard?! I feel like its the hardest out of them all. Just gotta keep doing it. Repetition is key. As a matter of fact, today there are jerks. LETS DO THIS!!

Tomorrow is a big day for us at Eternia Athletics! We are having our Open House/Max out session with some local lifters. Its going to be a blast! We are going to have a snack table set up and mingle with people. While watching our platforms loaded with awesome people giving us a little show of snatch and c&j.  Should be a good time. I mean lets be honest, food and lifting...that's like two of my favorist things. And most of everyone else that will be there feels the same way. BaBAM!

THEN.... Saturday we are headed to Medford. Rogue Valley CrossFit is hosting the "Wishing on a WOD" event. This event benefits the Make a Wish foundation. Good things going on here people. Go check it out, and if you live in the area. GO! Here's the link to read more http://roguevalleycrossfit.com/wishing-WOD/ 

So last night I made homemade taco pizza, mainly because Scott LOVES taco pizza. But it was delicious, no doubt about that!! I bought pre-made pizza dough and pretty much built a taco on top. YUM! Then the other day I made cinnamon roll waffles. Just bought cinnamon rolls from the store (I know, I was being lazy) and put them in the waffle maker. Neither of these meals were very...um... healthy?! BUT I enjoyed them both at the time of day that my eating reggie allows. That way my body can use and burn the way it should, So what I am trying to say is I don't feel guilty, or fluffier. So its a win-win. I need to make cookies and send them to our good friend out in Utah. Next week, Johnny. Be patient.

Enough rambles for one day I would say!!! Ha. Time to go be productive. Love ya all, to the MAX! Pin It Now!

Monday ohhh sweet Monday!

First things first....

Today is the first day of our soft opening at Eternia Athletics!

Secondly....I paper cut my top lip this morning getting into my car with papers in my hand. Hows that happen? Hey paper, sure get all up on my face and cut me. NO. It hurts. Lame.

I had my first class this morning at 5:30am...it was AWESOME!! I had so much fun and have missed coaching A LOT. Glad to be back at it. My people kicked ass, and had a blast doing it! Proud of them! Surprisingly I didn't have a hard time getting out of bed. Some might have been a little worried about me and the bed/sleeping in situation. But I showed them :) On the other hand, our dogs were like WTF?! We usually snuggle in bed till 8 or 9, sometimes 10....you'd do it if you could. Anyway, we are all stoked to get back into coaching and helping people achieve their goals! If you are in the Grants Pass area, come check us out!!

Now I am sitting here with frozen fingers. Waiting for the bathroom to get installed. WAHBAM! You know whats even better? I get to be the first person to use it. OHHH YYYEAAAAH! IN YOUR FACE  BOYS! :) Haha. I kid, I kid. 

Week one in the books on the new training redge. I'm having a good time! Today's will be fun, get to do some snatching and squats...Nice little workout for me today!!

Snatch - 60% x3, 65% x3, 70% x3, 75% x3x3
Snatch Pull - 95% (of SN) x3x4
Back Squat - 75% x6x5
SLDL - 3x5

For the record, I'm pretty darn sore today. I got rolfed yesterday. That Gary, he really got me this time. I feel like I got hit by a bus! I'm better for it though. So THANK YOU Gary :)

We had a taco party at the house last night. It was fun! I fried up some of our new ground beef and made cilantro lime WHITE rice, and black beans and a garlic lime slaw and of course all the taco fixings. I pretty much made a big pile on a plate and inhaled it. It was delicious. EVEN BETTER we watched the American Weightlifting documentary. It was great! Go watch it. You'll be inspired. At on point, or five, I had goosebumps. Such an amazing sport. I LOVE IT.

I want you all to have a goooooood Monday! :) 

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Oh, HIIIIIIIIII!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

BACK AGAIN!!!!

Ha...So I have been inspired to start writing my diary again, read it if you want. OR don't. I don't care either way. But if you don't you'll probably miss out, just saying. :)

As far as my diet/eating journey has been going, Ive played around with a couple different things. I haven't been 100% paleo.....EEEEEK. Its okay, I am still alive. Paleo isn't really realistic for my life, and I say this because I love treats. And when I say I love treats, I mean.... I LOVE TREATS!!!!!!!!!! When I say that I think of the little girl from Monsters INC when she yells "IT'S SO FLUFFY!!" Goodness, shes cute. Anyway, I eat primal most of the day. Breakfast consists of fat and maybe some fibrous vegetables. Sooo that is eggs and bacon. OR since I have a phobia against eggs lately it'll be bacon. Or maybe not even bacon but some leftovers. Sometimes just coffee. Honestly, I have been neglecting breakfast till about 10-11 so it might be lunch time already. If that's the case, its a salad with meat. I get in trouble if I don't eat breakfast. I KNOW I KNOW.... I need to do it. So far, this week has been good. So back on track, lunch. Lunch is leftovers or chicken and a homemade green salad. Lately I have been loving the crisp deliciousness of romaine lettuce/cabbage. Mmmmmm. Throughout my day I am drinking a huge jug of water. I aim to get a gallon or more in. Easy to do when theres a hefty jug that I haul around with me everywhere. Dinner is where I waiver. This is the Carb-Backloading theory. I have found that it works. But for the ladies its not as fun as it is for the gents. I cant just eat 800 donuts and a huge bowl of ice cream while having 16 cups of rice and pasta and bread and pizza and rolls and potatoes and cheese and fries and and and and..... the list goes on. ANYWAY, I do whatever it is I make for dinner with a limited amount of carbs. So like a little white rice...That way I can have a cookie. Or ice cream. But nothing too crazy. Truth is, sometimes I get crazy. Like with all this Halloween candy. OR the brownie skillet with ice cream I had last weekend...(I didn't eat it alone... Jill helped me) Shessh. Or beers, or wine. Those suck. Its just fun to celebrate life with friends. But my belly doesn't look awesome afterward. That's the scale though. Gotta live and love life, cant live in a jail cell of the diet world. I have and did, and I bet I was annoying. "Ummmm I cant eat that." What a snood. Haha. So bottom line, we all have slip ups. And its okay, tomorrow is a new day and one slip up isn't going to ruin everything. Just like one good meal isn't going to make you perfect. So take a breath and LOVE yourself. :)

Dem Quads....Seriously!?

FITNESS....I love that I found something that I am SO passionate about. I amaze myself everyday with where I am now. I watch the elitists and am inspired on a daily... and the beginners, cause that's where I started. To see the fire in their eyes to want to be better. MAN! Its great. Cross Fit is great and gives results, but I have found something that I want to be better at...and that's weightlifting. Something about it intrigues me. I want to be better. I want to prove to myself that I can be better at these technical lifts. And I will. So this drive has taken me down a different training path. I started this week. Day #4 is today. Snatch...Clean...Squat...Squat...Jerk....Squat.SQUAT. So far so good. I'm excited to be better. I am prepared for more bad days then good days. To break things down and rebuild. Needless to say, I am stoked.

Gosh, this is going to be a million miles long...Sorry. NOT. :) Anywho, Eternia Athletics is in the works. What?! Yep, its for realsies. Our own spot. Its awesome. We are all so excited. Its been truckload or 63...of hard work, sweat, tears and stress. But the end result is that we have a place to workout that's not our garage. To have fun, to laugh, to hangout and cheer each other on. To SLAM BARS....to drink a beer, to release stress, to listen to loud music, to have community, to PR...to fail....to be BETTER then we were yesterday. And that is priceless. Stay tuned...its coming soon!

Me, practicing snatch

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Authentic Mexican Chicken Tacos

 

Just got back from Mexico on Friday. I had the MOST amazing time! We did a whole lot of eating, drinking and relaxing. It's crazy when the days start melding together. Life at no worries or responsibilities. Awesome!! Our favorite part was just walking to town from our resort and stopping at all the bars on the beach and having beers and guacamole. Boy, those guys know how to make some mean guac! So does Scott. He's obviously not native, but I have to give him a shout out on his ability to make magically delicious guacamole.

downtown Playa Del Carmen "The Portal"

Scott on one of our walks, Great view! :)

So the weekend turned out to be highly productive and filled with tons of fun! Woke up Saturday morning and headed to the gym, did a really fun team wod. I was pleasantly surprised at my performance seeing that I had consumed more booze over the past week then I do in a year probably. It was a nice concoction of every movement you could think of. Oh heck, here it is... “Choose your own WOD-venture”

This is a team WOD and will be completed in teams of 4.

At each “Choice” the team must choose which exercise they will do and then all members must complete the RX’d distance or rep scheme for the exercise chosen. Only one choice per team is allowed. e.g. A team cannot have two members choose to do handstand pushups while the other two choose squats. In between choices each member must complete each of the exercises at their “Base Station.”

At the Base Station team members must complete 15 reps of each exercise. The base station is completed once all team members have completed 15 reps of all 4 exercises. Once the base station is complete the team moves on to the next choice.

Base Station:
15 KB swings (1.5 pood/1 pood)
15 Thrusters (45lbs/35lbs)
15 Ab Mat sit-ups
15 Box Jumps (24″/20″)

WOD…

Choice 1: Relay Run or Row (Each team member must complete 400m run or 500m row)
Relay 1600m run or 2000m row

Base Station

Choice 2: Top or Bottom
15 HSPU’s or 50 Squats

Base Station

Choice 3: Push or Pull
50 Push Ups or 25 Pull Ups

Base Station

Choice 4: Up or Down
50 Jumping Squats or 25 Burpees

Base Station

Choice 5: Climb or Hang
1 Rope Climb or 25 KTEs

It's confusing, I know. Head trainer, Chris had to explain 6,000 times. But we all eventually got it. Short story long, my team finished in 28:05 and I am still walking around like a crippled woman. It's fine... Ill be okay.

So later we went to Dinner for Oliver's 12th birthday and to see Iron Man 3, which was pretty awesome besides my RLS. Sunday was full of yard and house work, planting flowers, building stones and some Dracula coffin like cement thing to carry around, pressure washing, new BBQ purchase, laundry and ended with beers and tacos with friends! Whew!

Today is day 1 of a reset on this bod, Scott is going to do this with me cause honestly...our stomachs hate us and it doesn't feel good. TMI, sorry.

So these tacos were a recreation of some tacos we ate down in Mexico. I'd say I got a A on this one.


Authentic Mexican Chicken Tacos

1 lb chicken breasts or thighs (I used both)
Juice of 1 lime
1 tbsp chili powder
1 tsp ancho chili powder
1 tbsp cumin
1 tsp cayenne pepper
1 tbsp olive oil
Salt and pepper

Toppings
Chopped cilantro
Diced white onion
Valentino hot sauce

White corn tortillas

Combine chicken and all ingredients in a ziplock or bowl and let marinate for 4 or more hours.

Grill the chicken on your BBQ until cooked through. Chop chicken into tiny pieces.

To make the taco, heat tortilla in a hot pan on both sides and add some chicken, cilantro, onion and squeeze a lime wedge. Dash a little of the hot sauce and your finished!

Eat as many as you want, Scott had 7, Mike had 9 and Chris had 10. Me? I had 2. So however many you have, they are still yum.

Mike, enjoying his tacos!

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Sesame Seared Salmon with Asparagus Slaw

Today has been a pretty good day, if I don't say so myself. Woke up (SORE AS SHIT) and headed down to the gym for Benchmark Fridays. So every Friday for the next while we are doing benchmark wods. Today's was "Barbara", I'm just going to say that I was nauseous and didn't want to move for like 30 minutes afterwards. And I did ring rows cause I have hamburger hands, don't judge me. Anywho... I didn't move. I sat in my car in the Fred Meyers parking lot for 20 minutes with my seat heaters on while I drank my protein shake.

I don't have pictures for todays post, I need to get in the habit of being a picture person again. Sorry. I will work on it.

Soooo.....Once I got my lazy bum into the store it was GO time. I got things for a gigantic delicious green salad and vegetable tray I am making for my baby sisters BABY shower tomorrow. Awwww! I'm going to be an aunty! I'm pretty excited about this. Minus a few things, like, poop, pee and vomit...oh and crying. I also bought my sister a few items off her registry list that she needed.

Once I got home I cooked up some ground turkey and cracked 3 eggs over it with a handful of baby kale and spinach! YUM! Seriously the best breakfast. I love it EVERY TIME I make it. Then it was nappy time. Or at least an attempt for a nap. The pups weren't having it. It's fine. Guess I didn't need one that bad.

So at our box, CrossFit GP, we are doing a nutrition challenge. Every week, Corrie and Anna give a recipe suggestion. I recommend you guys make it, cause obviously its going to be amazing. They are both FAB cooks. This weeks is salmon and slaw. I don't know about you guys but slaw is my favorite thing to eat in the entire world. it can be any kind of slaw too. NOM NOM NOM. I could eat slaw for breakfast, lunch and dinner and be as happy as a clam. :)

Here's the recipe friends, make it! It's delicious and nutritious. Hope all of y'all have a stupendous weekend!

Sesame Seared Salmon with Asparagus Slaw

Makes four servings

• 1 bunch asparagus, trimmed
• 8 radishes, trimmed
• 1 carrot, peeled
• 1 fennel bulb, trimmed
• 1 tbs. chopped fresh dill
• Zest and juice of one lemon
• 2 tbs. olive oil
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 1/3 cup sesame seeds
• 1/4 tsp. cayenne pepper (optional)
• 4 salmon fillets, skin on
• 2 tbs. ghee (clarified butter)

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.

For the slaw: Slice the asparagus, radishes, carrot and fennel thinly by hand, with a mandoline, or with a fine-slicer blade in a food processor. Toss with chopped dill, lemon zest and juice, and olive oil. Season with salt and pepper. Chill the slaw while you prepare the salmon.

For the salmon: Toss the sesame seeds in a shallow bowl with the cayenne pepper (if you are using it). Season the salmon with salt and pepper, and press the side without skin into the sesame seeds to coat. Heat the ghee in a heavy ovenproof skillet over high heat and add the salmon, sesame-seed-side down. Sear the salmon until the sesame seeds are browned, about one to two minutes. Turn heat down to medium, flip the salmon fillets over, and sear the skin side for one to two minutes. Transfer the salmon to the oven to finish, about five to 10 minutes depending on how you like it. Serve with the asparagus slaw.

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It's been a while....

Oh hey there, writing a blog post? THIS IS CRAZY-NESS.

I know, I know.

I feel that I have had a nice little vacay from blogger. But it's time to get back to babbling about my life and food and training. I mean for what it's worth the "Love Languages" book says I am a babbling Brooke, so may as well roll with it, right?!

Lets see...what's new with me? Well I am sure there's a ton but its just still same ol same ol me. Always something interesting going on in my life. Like the fact that in just 8 DAYS, Scott and I will be sipping margs in MEXICO! BOOM!! I'm not excited at all...its going to suck. Just joking, Shheesh!! But really, its going to be awesome and I couldnt be more excited to be spending the time with my lover.

Holy geez! My dogs are so annoying. Oliver has a new "little man syndrome" dog attitude. He gets in my planter beds (so he's tall enough) and tries to kill the neighbor Pomeranians. Those little puff balls have such a yappy little bark. ArrghhH! Obviously this is happening at this very moment and that's why I am venting to the blog-o-sphere. :)

Soooooooooooo, I am not 100% paleo at the moment. Who am I!?? I'm trying out the whole Carb Backloading thing. Which means I get to eat sweets at night time. WHICH IS AWESOME. Like last night I ate a white chocolate macadamia nut cookie and a Reese's peanut butter cookie AND a scoop of ice cream. I made these cookies on Monday. There's probably 132 cookies in my house right now. I get excited just thinking about them. I have been sharing, don't you worry your little tummy. Although I forgot to give Beau his. I'm sorry Beau.

Right now I am cooking up a storm. I'm making chicken soup for my sicky friend, Corrie. Some delicious sweet basil and oregano chicken with plum tomatoes for lunch and I need to get dinner started. Not totally sure what that will be....Maybe steak and broccoli. BORING. But I love broccoli. Its my #1 favorite vegetable.

As far as my training has been going, I have been doing a strength training program on top of my regular training for about 2 months now. Its been great! I feel like I am getting alot stronger, and not to mention muscles popping out is an added bonus! WINNING! I have made a goal to myself to try and do the programmed wods as RX. Now I don't do them ALL RX, but I get as close as possible. If I tell Scott the night before that I want to he does a pretty good job at holding me accountable for it the next day when i try to be a sissy pants. Thanks babe! Like yesterday, CFGP did this wod....


10 minute AMRAP
15 Burpees
10 Power Cleans 135/95
Rest 2 minutes
5 Minute AMRAP
20 Toes to Bar
5 Box Jumps 30/24

I did it RX and got 96 reps on the first 10 minutes! That's a pretty big landmark for me considering the open wod that had power cleans in it I had a not so easy time. So needless to say, I am excited. But NEED to say that my power cleans are ugly. I'm definitely going to have to work on those. I cried about it last night. Someone videoed my wod and well, I didn't really want to see that. But now that I have calmed down from my pitty party its time to work on them and overcome my weaknesses right? RIGHT!


No recipe today, just wanted to say ELLO! (in a British accent at a volume of 12 out of 10)

Have a happy, happy, happy day!
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Apple Upside Down Cakes

So it's okay to take a month plus 2 weeks or so off right? Well whether it is, or isn't. I did. So sorry to the ones who hate me now for not feeding you. But I am also, not sorry. Sometimes you just need a break. Enough of the guilt trip I am giving myself.

How was every ones holidays? Mine were awesome! I am now another year older and probably 5 lbs heavier. Only because of all the sweet treats...and drinking. Damn you alcohol. Why do you tempt me so....But on a good note that's not going to be sticking to my ribs for long!

This week is test week at the box. First off let me just tell you that I GOT MY FIRST KIPPING PULL UP EVER IN MY LIFE!! Which resulted in ripping my thumbs off because I did Cindy the morning prior...I know first glance it looks like something it shouldn't...

PR-ed by 40# on my dead lift, 7# on my strict press, and 20# on my back squat. BOOM! Pretty excited about that. Not to mention everyone else in the gym hitting awesome numbers and killing it! My man, Scott, has been making some huge gains this week too! I just have to tell you guys one thing, this guy named Jon, he's pretty much a large muscle. Any who, today is his birthday (besides the point) and he got a 430# back squat this morning. WHAT IN THE....are you kidding me? "That means he can probably lift cars off of people and shit" (quoted from Corrie) So I hope he doesn't mind, but I am changing him as my emergency contact, in case a car falls on me. Genius.

Something else AMAZINGLY exciting is...our head trainer, Chris Dunkin is competing in the Masters division at the OC Throwdown this weekend. Here's the link if you want to see how cool it is....OC THROWDOWN. We are all going to be cheering him on from Grants Pass, OR. GO CHRIS!!! If you guys don't know this, the OC Throwdown is like one of the biggest competitions next to the Reebok Crossfit Games. Pretty cool kids, pretty cool.

So I made these cause Scott wanted something like apple pie...NOM!

Apple Upside Down Cakes

For the Cakes
1 1/4 cup almond flour
2 eggs
1/4 cup coconut oil
1/4 cup honey
1 tbsp vanilla extract
1/4 tsp sea salt
1/4 tsp baking soda
1 tsp cinnamon
dash of nutmeg

For the Topping
1 Tbsp grassfed butter or coconut oil
2-3 apples skinned and diced
1 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp coconut sugar

Preheat oven to 350F

First off, skin and dice your apples. Stir apples with cinnamon, coconut sugar and coconut oil. Set aside till your done making the batter.

For the cake batter, combine eggs, coconut oil, honey, and vanilla extract. Whip together. In a small bowl combine salt, baking soda, cinnamon, nutmeg and the almond flour. Mix the wet with the dry and stir until well incorporated.

You could do this recipe as one large cake, or mini cakes. I did mini cakes. They are cuter! So, spoon apple mixture into oiled pan and fill about 3/4 of the way. Spoon cake batter over the top and cook for 20-30 minutes, until a toothpick comes out clean from the cake part. I got 12 mini cakes out of this recipe.

| Prep time 20 minutes | Cook time 20-30 minutes | Serves 8-12 |

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Chicken Cacciatore

Time to fill everyone in on what's been happening in my life. Thanksgiving turned out delicious. For the most part, I ate paleo. WAY TO MUCH! That's okay though cause I went to bed at 8pm that evening and was still tired Friday morning. Is that a food coma? I'm not sure what a food coma really is but I imagine its something like that.

So at Crossfit GP we have been doing this strength bias cycle, its awesome, but its also ripping me apart. Good news is, I'M GETTING STRONGER! Although walking around regularly and getting up and down my stairs is difficult at times. I wouldn't have it any other way. I am so thankful to not be injured anymore and be able to workout regularly. It makes me happy. :)

Our weekends lately have consisted of a little too much alcohol intake. Not that it isn't fun, but MAN. The recovery when you get older takes too long. We went out Saturday night with a group of friends from the box and drank way too much. Not to mention I took a shot of something I shouldn't have that caused me to have a headache for 24 hours. LAME. Thinking its time to slow my roll down a little bit and ride my bike or something.

Kitchen project is still underway. I have been slacking on these doors. But its okay, the fact that I don't have doors doesn't really bother me too much. So I'll get to it. Do you guys like the Beiber song "Beauty and a beat"? I LOVE IT. Everyone makes fun of me, but ever since I saw him perform it on the music awards, I love it. You people would too if you'd get over the fact that its Beiber. Everyone loves to hate on the Beibs.

I just made myself the MOST amazing breakfast, two fried eggs and sweet potato pancakes. Um YUM!

Chicken Cacciatore

2 lbs skinless, boneless chicken breasts

4 roasted red peppers (from the jar), chopped

1 14oz can fire roasted tomatoes

1 14oz can tomato sauce

2 tbsp olive oil

1 cup beef broth

4 garlic cloves, minced

1 yellow onion, diced

2 bay leaves

1 tsp crushed red pepper

1 tsp dried parsley

1 tsp dried tarragon

1 tsp garlic powder

1 tsp onion powder

salt & pepper

 

Preheat your oven to 350F.

 

Lay chicken breasts in baking dish sprinkle with pepper and drizzle olive oil, bake for 25 minutes until cooked through. While your chicken is cooking on your stove top bring a large saucepan with olive oil for medium heat. Add your garlic and onion and cook down until onion is soft. Next add all remaining ingredients and stir to incorporate all the spices. Once chicken is done, immediately add to sauce mixture and cook on low for another 10-15 minutes to let the flavors marry.

 

 

Serve over white rice, cauli rice, zucchini noodles, or grilled veggies (like me). Or just eat it by itself. Do whatever tickles your fancy. Any way you eat it, its delish.

 

 

 

| Prep time 5 minutes | Cook time 45 minutes | Serves 4-6 |

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Thanksgiving Prep

So this morning like any other Tuesday morning I get up at 5am to do the 6am wod. I have to do the 6am class on Tuesday's because I help the Dunkins' with different things. Today it was food prep for the Turkey Day. Anyways, I will talk about the food after I tell you this. I was on my way home from the gym, killed the shoulders today. If I can lift my arms over my head tomorrow I will be surprised. K, back to story. Driving home from the gym my eye itched, so I itched it. But the thing is I half poked myself in the eye slash had salt/sweat and whatever else was on my hands assuming other peoples sweat (ew...I just thought about how gross this is) and this all went in my eye. It burned SOOO bad and was watering a rediculous amount. So its a soggy waffles morning, a monsoon outside to be exact and it's dark and hard to see because my driver side windshield wiper sucks(go figure). So I was driving unsafely and should have stopped to let my eye recoop. But I just wanted to be home so badly! So I patched my bad eye with my hand and continued onward.

So my day ended up being super productive and I cooked my little heart out! My body is immobile from the dead lifts yesterday and tomorrow it will be my shoulders. I wouldn't have it any other way! So I don't have any recipes BUT I have pictures of the things I made with the links to the recipes I got them from.

Needless to say I will be getting a lot of cooking in this year for the feast. I still have to do my pumpkin pie, apple crisp, stuffing, cheese/sausage platter, and french onion dip for my families meal. Fun stuff!

Wishing everyone a joyous time with their family and friends on Thanksgiving this year!

Pumpkin Pies



Garlic Cauli Mashers

 

Cinny Buns

Paleo Stuffing

 

 

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Elk Stroganoff

Jimminy CHRISTMAS!!!!!!!!

It's right around the corner! Booyah!! I love the holidays. Cooking delicious meals, spending time with your closet loved ones and decorating of course Plus its my sister's 21st birthday this year, and that means my birthday is 7 days later. And that's the most exciting! I already put up a little Christmas tree today. Its so cute! This week is Thanksgiving and what's everyone up to?! We are going to go spend some time out at my parents house and eat some amazing food. I'm making a few paleo dishes for Scott and I so we can try and stay good.

It's raining cats and dogs here in Grants Pass. Such a soggy waffles morning, but I got my workout in! Laying in the bed listening to the rain was definitely not a motivator this morning. Anywho, kitchen is coming along, slowly but surely. Thanks to Scott and Mike this last weekend we got it all painted. Makes the world of a difference! I love it! It had motivated me to finish the doors, but that's still a huge project. Ugh.

Rogue is 4 months old this week. CRAZY!! He got his last set of shots this afternoon and he is ready to see the world. So happy that I don't have to worry about him coming down with the plague and whatnot. He needs puppy school. I need to sign us up for that ASAP. He gets a little crazy...

Tried out this recipe and it turned out tasty!

Stroganoff

2 tbsp ghee
1 yellow onion diced
1 cup of sliced white mushrooms
1 lb ground meat ( I used elk, obviously, but you could use anything)

2 tbsp of tomato paste
2 tsp thyme
2 tsp rosemary
4 cloves of garlic
1 tbsp arrowroot
1 1/2 cup beef stock
2/3 cup canned coconut milk
salt & pepper
cauliflower mashers

 

In a large fry pan heat ghee to medium and add your onions, garlic and mushrooms. Saute until soft and caramelized. Once this has cooked down for a bit remove and set aside. To the same skillet add your ground meat. Once this has cooked until hardly any pink is left add your thyme, rosemary and tomato paste. Stir well to incorporate spices. Sprinkle arrowroot powder over meat mixture and stir to combine until arrowroot is completely mixed in. Add beef stock and stir to mix in. Sauce will begin to thicken as it comes to a simmer. Stir back in your sauteed onions and mushrooms then reduce heat and simmer for about 5 minutes. Remove from heat and let cool for a couple minutes. Stir in the canned coconut milk and serve over your cauli mashers!

 

| Prep time 20 minutes | Cook time 30 minutes | Servings 4-6 | Pin It Now!

Beef Stew

My house is literally in shambles. Let me fill you in on a little something, I have OCD. If things aren't the way they should be or if I don't have done what I like to have done I cant relax and I begin to stress out, then I am not any fun to be around. It blows. But I have been pretty good at keeping my composure for the most part. I just want my kitchen back to normal. I still have to do all the cabinet doors (stain & seal) but I only have to seal the frames. I'd say I am about 50% there. After that is paint. Kitchen transformation here we come! :))

Before....

 

Next....

 

This is why I haven't wrote any blog posts because I haven't cooked. Ugh, I have ate leftover beef stew and meatballs for lunch and dinner the past 3 days. But this beef stew was awesome. I tried calling it beef soup because Scott doesn't like beef stew. And we also found out he doesn't like beef soup either. Cant win with that boy. Picky.

So if you want something delicious and comforting and warm and savory and amazing, make this.

Beef Stew

2 lbs stew meat (cubed beef)
2 parsnips, chopped
4 carrots, peeled and chopped
4 stocks celery, chopped
2 yellow onion, chopped
2 tbsp minced garlic
4 cups beef broth
salt & pepper to taste
1 bay leaf
1 tbsp garlic powder
1 tbsp onion powder
1 generous sprig of rosemary
2 tbsp ghee

 

In your stew pot heat ghee to medium and add stew meat. Saute meat for 5-10 minutes to get a nice brown on it. Add your onions and garlic and saute until onions are transparent. Next add all of the remaining ingredients, and cook on a low - medium heat for 45-60 minutes. The longer the better for meals like this so all the flavors can marry and be delicious.

Serve and enjoy!!


| Prep time 15 minutes | Cook time 1 hr | Servings 6-8 | Pin It Now!

Ginger Spice Cookies

And its monday again already?! I had an awesome weekend with my man. Saturday we relaxed, correction, I relaxed and Scott organized the garage. It looks SOOOOO good. My anxiety doesnt get all fired up when I step out there now. Thanks goodness. So that afternoon we decided to head over to Medford for some shopping and dinner. We ate at Misoya. It was really good! Sushi places are always iffy cause you never know if it's gonna suck but I was impressed. MMMM nom nom! Then Sunday we went for a motorcycle ride. My first time on Scott's BA bike. So much fun! Had a blast and the days weather was AMAZING. Like 75 and sunny. Then family dinner at the Pierson residence. Perfect weekend :))

 

 

So I started a project today. I am currently taking a break from it because my arms were about ready to fall off from vibration. I am taking on the kitchen cabinets and sanding them down to stain them a different color. YAY for home projects! I'll keep you updated on the progress. I am sure a couple days into I wont be so excited. But it's going to look awesome when its all done!

These cookies are very holiday. Make them and feed them to people. That's what I do.

Ginger Spice Cookies

2 1/2 cups almond flour
2 tbsp coconut flour
1 1/2 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp ginger
1/2 tsp nutmeg
1/4 tsp cardamom
1/3 cup maple syrup
1/2 cup pumpkin puree
1 egg
1 tsp vanilla
pinch of salt
1/2 tsp baking soda

Vanilla Glaze
1 tbsp raw honey
2 tbsp coconut butter
2 tbsp coconut milk
1/4 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp vanilla extract

Preheat oven to 350F

In a mixing bowl combine all dry ingredients and add in the wet. Stir until well combined. Scoop about a golf ball size of dough onto parchment lined cookie sheet. Softly press down to flatten a bit. Cook for about 20 minutes. Let cool completely.

 

While your cookies are baking and cooling make your icing. In a food processor combine all ingredients and mix until a cream is made. Once cookies are cool put a little frosting on top and enjoy!

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Deviled Eggs with Bacon

Oh the sun is out today! You know what that means...GUNS OUT! Ha, just kidding. Although I did take a picture of my bicep yesterday for progress and it's growing, slowly but surely. So last night was Halloween as we are all aware (way to point out the obvious Codi) and all the little kids, or big kids, or young adults were out and about collecting candy on the streets. I know its tradition but if you think about it, it is kinda strange that we Americans do this.

Anyway, good news. I got more then 3 hours of sleep last night. Rogue enjoys urinating on his bed in his kennel. I think he likes it to smell like his pee. But we don't, cause then it makes our room smell like pee. So I end up washing his stupid bed a billion times and that's just annoying. So we decided to punish him by not letting him have a bed to sleep on. Just crate. Bad idea. It punished us worse then him. Neither of us got any sleep. Ugh. So last night I only gave him a towel and it was better. Not 100%, but still better. He is getting so big. Its crazy. I bet he weighs 27 lbs now. He has the whole lanky thing going on right now.

So this was the other appetizer I took to the party last night. They got gobbled up!

Deviled Eggs with Bacon

6 eggs
1 tbsp ground mustard
1 avocado
4 strips of bacon cooked and chopped
1/2 tsp garlic powder
salt & pepper
paprika
1 tsp lime juice

Boil eggs for 15 minutes. Let cool completely before cracking and removing the shell. I boiled mine in the morning then came back to them in the afternoon. Carefully de-shell and cut eggs in half removing all yolks into a bowl. In the bowl with the yolks add all ingredients, avo, bacon garlic powder, s&p, mustard and lime juice. Stir together until fairly smooth. Stuff eggs and sprinkle with a little paprika. Enjoy! :)

| Prep time 15 minutes | Cook time 15 minutes | Servings 12 egg halves | Pin It Now!

Witch Fingers

 

HAPPY HALLOWEENY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

It's such a soggy waffles day here today. Bummer for all those trick or treaters. Hopefully the rain will subside for a bit. This is the first year that I haven't dressed up for Halloween. Crazyness. I got to help out with some costumes yesterday. I made a "CUT" thing that directors use. Casen is a movie director. It's going to be an awesome costume!! Then we had a hell of a time trying to figure out how to make Ollie's crash test dummy costume work. Needless to say I found black paint on my elbows this morning. So much fun for the kiddos!

I am feeling accomplished already today. I went to the 8:30 class this morning and got the wod out of the way. I was almost done with my 2 min of air dyne and Annie walked in. I ran and tackled her cute self. Love working out with her. I tried to be festive so I wore purple and orange. That's all I had. FAIL! haha...SAIL...man I love that song. Any who, today's wod was hard. Burpee's really kill my quads. AHH!!
for time…
20 burpees
then 3x
3 power cleans(135/95)
6 box jumps(24/20)
9 wall balls(20/14)
then
20 burpees

We are going to a little open house today and I wanted to make some scary treats, so here they are! They are so super fun to make, they would be a good project for kids, if you had them, which I don't so I had fun yelling at my furbabies to get out of the kitchen the whole time.

Witches Fingers

3 eggs
1 and 1/2 cup almond flour
1/2 tsp salt
2 tbsp butter
3 tbsp coconut flour
1 teaspoon water
almond slivers
Coarse salt

Beat just 2 eggs, and set them aside. Then in a medium bowl add the almond flour, salt and 1 tbsp butter together and mix well. Once well mixed, add the eggs.  Next add in one tablespoon of coconut flour and mix in well. Let sit for about a minute as the coconut flour takes a bit of time to absorb. You are looking for a dough that can be easily kneaded, so it will not stick to your hands. Add a second tablespoon of coconut flour, stir well, then add last tbsp of coconut flour.

Let the dough rest for five minutes. Preheat oven to 350F. Make your fingers and bake for 10 minutes.

 

Remove from oven and change heat to 400F. Glaze with last whipped egg and top with coarse salt. Bake for 5 minutes top and remove. Glaze with butter.

Serve with some marinara, yum!

 

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