Plato's Plate

New Years Cleanse Update

2012-01-08T11:37:00.000-08:00

I was looking back at my New Years Cleanse post and realized it was lots of information about things I won't do. Here is some information on things I am doing:

I will focus on eating as many fruits and veggies as I can get into my face. I already ate most of my two week CSA package...in one week. I took a trip to the farmer's market yesterday and bought more seasonal produce... cauliflower, carrots, radishes, turnips, I found some decent tomatoes, shitake mushrooms, cremini mushrooms, etc.

I will focus on drinking one green drink per day and eating at least one big salad for a meal per day.

I will drink hot water with lemon every morning. It's such a great way to start your digestive functions moving, and it helps to clear out your liver.

I will drink as much herbal tea as I want. I am not cutting green tea... I am not addicted to caffeine and don't have to worry about coffee, and I love my green tea. Also, it has so many benefits...to me, it out weighs the caffeine issue. Most cleanses recommend cutting caffeine all together, but I am not getting rid of my green tea.

After my first few days, I will reincorporate whole grains. I am giving my body a break from those for a few days...but am definitely craving them!

I am also eating lots of legumes...chickpeas, aduki beans, lentils...any kind of legume I can find.

I am focusing on eating as many seeds and nuts (in moderation) as I can. Variety is the spice of life...and there are so many seeds and nuts that are good for you out there...Chia seeds, flax seeds, sunflower seeds, hemp seeds, sesame seeds....the list goes on and on.

I finally am starting to feel better, so I went to yoga for the first time in three weeks yesterday. It was AWESOME! I am super sore today, but in a good way.

Today I am going for a hike and another yoga class. Tomorrow I am getting back to running (the last time I ran was in NYC on December 26th.

I already can feel my body cleansing. Cutting out dairy and wheat alone make a big difference, as does cutting out alcohol. I feel a little drained of energy, but not horrible. I have been sleeping really poorly ever since I got sick, so I am hoping this cleanse will help reset my internal clock.

Due to the aforementioned sunshine, I have been slow to start on my list of projects, but I have been able to do a few things, like cleaning up my computer and going through a bunch of old photos. I also have cleaned out my work and personal file cabinets and cleaned out and organized my Christmas decorations. These are all little steps towards "detoxing" my house, office, etc.

Here is some more information on the benefits of detoxing your body. Of course, I take this as a time to "detox" everything...my house, computer, etc.

Detoxing Done Right
Weekend Detox
Benefits of Detox on Livestrong

Happy Cleansing!

2012 Goals, Redux

2012-01-08T11:16:00.000-08:00

I have been thinking about my goals and I have made some adjustments.

#1 Get out of debt, save money, make a certain (private) amount of money.
#2 Blog when you are inspired to. Blog when you have a trip to talk about, a recipe to share, an inspiring story to pass on. Don't feel guilty when you don't blog. You have a busy life!
#3 Eat a vegan diet 80% of the time. Drink more green juice and more green smoothies.
#4 Read 25 books. (I am keeping it the same as last year because there are a couple of really long books I want to read this year...like Anna Karina and a few other behemoths)
#5 Do a half marathon!
#6 Do an Olympic distance triathlon!
#7 Learn to listen better. If you do that, you won't interrupt people so much.
#8 Find time to meditate and self reflect. A calm mind=a calm body and soul. (Everyone, including my doctor, have been spouting, "MEDITATE!"...I am really going to make an effort to meditate for a few minutes a day.)
#9 Travel to a place new that you have never been to before.
#10 Learn to stop judging yourself. Others see you as you see yourself.
#11 Find your way back to photography...you have a nice new camera! Thanks Dad!
#12 Learn to say "no". You don't need to go on every trip, to every party, every outing, etc. Take time for yourself!
#13 Set daily, weekly, and monthly goals for work, working out, and life in general. Complete them each time. (Really, this is another way of talking about my to-do lists. I make the lists, but they are disorganized and I don't always complete them. Every day at the end of my work day, I will make a to-do list for the next day. Every weekend, on Sunday, I will make a to-do list for the week.)

Well, that's it, I really just wanted to add a few things. I have a big list this year...here's to accomplishing all of this and more!

Summer in January

2012-01-08T11:10:00.000-08:00

Hi Friends,

Have you heard about the big swell hitting San Diego right now? Waves were supposed to be 10-15 feet. Every surfer and wannabee surfer in San Diego County hit the waves. There were lots of problems with inexperience people hitting the surf...our lifeguards and emergency response patrols have been working some major overtime with all the accidents. I live about 2 miles from the beach and have heard sirens going non stop the past few days. The waves are definitely bigger than we normally get in San Diego and the weather has been 70-72 degrees. It's super pretty and I am sure people in colder climates hate me for saying this, but....isn't it supposed to be winter? I want to wear sweaters and scarves and eat soup and read with a cup of tea. It's hard to stay inside and tackle goals while the sun is shining! I have been enjoying the sun...going for short walks...and taking photos of the PACKED surf. It's really like summer at the beach communities...all the parking spots are full, in fact, people are double parked in some places. It's INSANE. But something neat to look at in January:

Looks like a painting...

Catching a ride!

OK...I guess this could be a 15 foot wave?

San Diego Sunshine

Super popular surf spot "Swami's" in Encinitas...it's always packed, but not like this!

Looking South

Looking North

I hope you have sunshine (or rain...if you want it like me!) where ever you are! Enjoy your weekend.

2012 Beginning of the year cleanse and kick off

2012-01-04T18:07:00.000-08:00

Each year I like to take the first month and cleanse away the previous year, the holidays, and just start the year off right. This will be like any other year! As soon as I get over being sick and empty my fridge of some cheese and left over holiday deserts that I don't want to waste, I will start the 30 day cleanse. It will look like this:

1. No Dairy (I will still eat eggs and fish in moderation)
2. No refined sugars or flours.
3. No alcohol.
4. No processed food.
5. Yoga 6 times a week.
6. Run 4 times a week. Including one long training run a week.
7. Scrub my house from top to bottom. Clean carpets, windows, clean doors, floor boards, remove books from bookshelves and clean and reorganize them, clean out and reorganize kitchen, clean out garage, clean up plants on deck, get rid of anything I don't need. Make the house spotless.
8. Organize all of my work paper work. (This is all pretty organized as it is, but I just want to fine tune.)
9. Drink as much green juice as possible...including doing a 3 day juice cleanse.
10. Pamper yourself as much as possible: give your self facial masks, at home spa treatments, etc.
11. Get working on those New Years Goals!

I LOVE when I do this cleanse every year. My skin becomes perfect...my sleep is divine, I loose weight, I work more, I get super organized, my house gets super clean, and everything just feels calm. Last year I also did one during the summer to recharge...I think I will do that again this year.

I will keep you all updated....and hope I feel better soon so I can start!

XO
A

Goals for 2012

2012-01-04T17:55:00.000-08:00

Howdy Friends! Happy New Year!

I am sorry for my absence. The past two months have been hectic to say the least. I did two 10ks, went to New York, went to Maui, and had house guests. I also have been sick three times (!!!!) once with a cold, once with a weird food poisoning that lasted for over a week, and now, since Thursday, sick with a combo virus / bacterial issue that is basically like a bad cold and flu combined! Not too mention, holiday parties, friends, and work has been super busy too. So between all of that activity...I didn't really have time to blog. Over the first few months of the New Year I plan to blog about all of the vacations I took this year as well as all of the races that I did.

As we march into the New Year I have reflected on my goals for the year, and truly could not be more proud of myself. I don't set resolutions because they sound so contrived. Goals are much more fitting for me, and the beginning of the year is a good time for me to set them. There were some things last year (mainly money focused) that were beyond my control that I didn't complete, but for the most part, I surpassed my goals! What a feeling!

There were lots of personal relationship changes in my life in 2011, all of which were really painful. Some of those changes were for the better and made me learn and grow, some of those changes just plain hurt and I am still bewildered by. Changes are a part of life, and as I have said before, without change, we never grow.

Let's reflect:

Here is my post from that time: http://platosplate.blogspot.com/2011/01/farewell-2010.html (Lots of this had to do with Aaron who we all know is not in my life anymore, but lots of these things apply to me and me only. Strangely enough, I always write my goals on a pretty piece of paper to put on my medicine cabinet and look at every morning. When I transcribed the goals from this blog to the paper, I took out anything to do with Aaron and made them all about me....just as personal goals should be.)

Here were my goals for 2011 and my results below each one.
#1 Get out of debt, save a certain amount, and make a certain amount. (Those amounts are private...ahem).
I did not meet my financial goals this year. The economy sucks. But, for having a new business in a general recession, I did not do too shabby. I pay my mortgage and bills and can afford vacations and shopping, etc.
#2 Visit my sister in NYC, and take a trip to Seattle or Portland and perhaps Texas to visit my step dad.
Well, I visited my sister in NYC twice. I did not make it to the Northwest or Texas, but I went to Maui twice, took a weekend trip to Julian, and went to San Francisco 2 times. Although I didn't get to some of the destinations I wanted to, I would say I traveled QUITE a bit.
#3 Blog once a week.
Well, I didn't quite meet this one either. But I didn't do too bad. I think I blogged about 35 times, which is almost every week. I just don't think it's realistic for me to blog once a week.
#4 Eat a wholesome, healthy, vegan diet 80% of the time, and it's ok if 20% of the time I eat fish or dairy products.
I definitely stuck to this one. It might have been more like 75/25% but I did great in my book.
#5 Read 25 books.
I read 26! Take that! I am REALLY proud of this one. Reading enriches my life in so many ways, and I just couldn't be prouder that I backed away from the TV and read, a lot.
#6 Run a 10k! (Ahh! Did I really just put that out into the world?)
Not only did I do a 10k, I did 2 10ks! And I did a 5k....and I did THREE SPRINT TRIATHLONS!!! This is the one I am most proud of. I am actually getting a bit teary eyed thinking about it. There is nothing you can't do when you put your mind to it.
#7 STOP INTERRUPTING PEOPLE. It's super annoying.
Well, I think I made some headway (I guess I need to ask other people about their opinion on this) but it will continue to be a goal of mine moving into the New Year.
#8 Make my focus on being active: Do yoga, run, bike, walk, just be more fit overall.
Umm...see #6. Not only did I run, bike and yoga'd my brains out...I also swam...and sometimes did all 4 on one day! WHO AM I???? Not only did I complete all those races, I made some great friends in the process, joined the San Diego Triathlon Club...and lost over 20 pounds. I also hiked quite a bit which is fabulous. I still can't tell ya'll how great it feels.
#9 Simplify. Get rid of more stuff. No one needs 80 pairs of shoes.
This is another goal I KILLED. My closet looks like a photograph. Every drawer is organized. I took about 10 car loads of stuff to the Goodwill to donate. BOO-YA. The only problem is I replaced lots of clothes...see #8...I lost over 20 pounds! I had to buy a new wardrobe. But, I might have gone a bit overboard...and this did not help with goal #1.
#10 Continue to grow artistically. More photography and other art forms.
This is one that I did not touch. I lost interest in photography because my camera sucked, and with all the training I did, I really didn't have much time to do art work. Back on the list it goes!

All in all, a great year. Moving on to 2012:
#1 Get out of debt, save money, make a certain (private) amount of money.
#2 Blog when you are inspired to. Blog when you have a trip to talk about, a recipe to share, an inspiring story to pass on. Don't feel guilty when you don't blog. You have a busy life!
#3 Eat a vegan diet 80% of the time. Drink more green juice and more green smoothies.
#4 Read 25 books. (I am keeping it the same as last year because there are a couple of really long books I want to read this year...like Anna Karina and a few other behemoths)
#5 Do a half marathon!
#6 Do an Olympic distance triathlon!
#7 Learn to listen better. If you do that, you won't interrupt people so much.
#8 Find time to meditate and self reflect. A calm mind=a calm body and soul.
#9 Travel to a place new that you have never been to before.
#10 Learn to stop judging yourself. Others see you as you see yourself.
#11 Find your way back to photography...you have a nice new camera! Thanks Dad!

Lots of my goals this year are more philosophical. One thing I did not do well in 2011 was "stop to smell the roses". I was running from here to there (figuratively and literally) and rarely found time to sit down. I need to take time for self reflection. That might help prevent me from getting sick! I was sick more times than I could count this past year, way more than ever before. Not ok. Being healthy is much more fun!

Happy New Year. I hope you meet all of your goals this year!

Guilty Pleasures....

2011-11-02T11:24:00.000-07:00

Hi Friends,

I hope you are all having a great week. I am sort of done with my cold although I have a strange lasting effect...I keep getting dizzy spells that last for several minutes. It's very odd and uncomfortable. Any ideas about that?

I got in a 5 mile run yesterday and am going to shoot for a 6 miler tomorrow to gear up for my race Sunday. This is cramming at it's finest, not the smartest way to train! But, with my cold and time constraints, it is what it is. I am looking forward to running at the Del Mar Race Track and know I will finish. And, since this is my first 10k, it's a PR, right!!! :)

In the meantime, I was thinking about some of my guilty pleasures the other day and thought I would share. What are your guilty pleasures?

1. Staying in bed late into the morning with a fresh pot of tea and peering over food magazines, cookbooks, or whatever novel I am currently working through. As much as I like working out in the morning on the weekends, I LOVE staying in bed late and reading. It's so relaxing and gives a greater sense of peace to my entire weekend.

2. Slicing button mushrooms and hard boiled eggs. I don't know why, but I just love the way these feel under a sharp knife! Call me crazy.

3. Indulgent loose leaf teas. My favorite teas are from the French Tea House Kusmi or from my local coffee shop Pannikan. Lovely. Bagged teas work in a pinch, but the ritual of lovely tea mixed with boiling water in a pretty tea pot is so much better.

4. Frozen yogurt. I can't stop eating it although it almost always makes me feel bloated. It's just such a tasty treat and I let myself indulge about once a month.

5. Healthy living and food magazines. My favorite was Gourmet...I still am sad it's gone and miss it's gorgeous pictures every month. I also love Natural Health, Whole Living, Saveur, Cucina Italiana, Food and Wine, Vegetarian Times, VegNews, and occasionally Living and Real Simple. I dog ear recipes and try them out, I check out natural alternatives for cleaning, healthcare, etc, I find book reviews to read, think of ideas for decorating my house, etc.

6. Down. Down comforters, down pillows, down feather beds. Ah! I can't get enough. I love slipping into a big puffy, fluffy bed of feathers.

7. Clean sheets. I would wash my sheets every day if I could. Martha Stewart recommends washing them every other day! Who has time for that? I wash mine once a week since Pdog sleeps on the bed. Ahh.

8. Essential Oils. While Essential oils are great for cleaning, health issues, aromatherapy, etc, they also smell lovely. I like putting some drops in my shower, sprinkling some on my yoga mat, mixing some with water and misting all over the house, my bed, etc, for a fresh home. I won't tell you how many of the little bottles I own. It's a lot.

9. 90210. Yes, I love these cheesy show. While I am at it, I might as well admit I watch Jersey Shore. I know, I know. Horrid! But, these are guilty pleasures, after all.

10. Cheese. As much as I would love to be a vegan, cheese, I just can't quit you. You are creamy, melty, salty, delicious.

11. Flower vases, I have more of you than I know what to do with. I actually cleaned out some of my vases recently, but still have quite the collection. I buy fresh flowers often and love these vessels for showing them off. They also look pretty in key spots around my house.

12. Sweet smelling candles. Do I need to explain? I have been trying to switch to soy or other natural candles lately. I have been reading about how bad regular candles are for you.

13. Badger Balms. I have about 15! They do everything...from soothing a headache, to grounding you for yoga practice, to mending sore muscles, to keeping bugs away. These balms are organic, smell fantastic, and they really work. I highly recommend them.

14. Banana Republic. Hands down my favorite store. Great work clothes, great casual clothes, great dresses, etc. I would guess that 80% of my wardrobe is from Banana.

15. Cookbooks. I can't even begin to tell you how many I have!

Racing Fever

2011-10-28T16:36:00.000-07:00

Hi Friends,

I hope everyone had a great week!

I have racing fever! Who am I? One of my goals for 2011 was to run a 5k and a 10k. I did a 5k in March, I have done 3 tris, and I am doing 2 10ks! Holy moly!

My tri on October 16th was fantastic! It was this race: http://www.sheroxtri.com/results-and-photos.html in San Diego. This was the first triathlon I signed up for...back in January! This was the one that started it all...the race that got me training in March, signing up for two more races over the summer, whipped my butt into shape, and helped me to loose over 20 pounds. It really amazes me that I have done THREE triathlons! This has been a life changing experience. The work outs are fun, the camaraderie of the people I train with is lovely, the strength and fitness I have gained are amazing...and race day is just so darned exciting. I am addicted to racing...that is a fact. I think I will do at least 2-3 tris a year for the foreseeable future. I am considering doing an Olympic distance race next year...which is a 1 mile swim, 50k bike ride, and 10k run. I am really pretty confident I can do it. We will see!

Anyway, I never wrote about my second race in July. It was a shorter race so it was difficult to compare my times with the race I did in May. While the July race was fun, I got a cold the week before. It made race day really tough and I did not feel like I was at my best. My back hurt, my muscles were stiff from no activity, my lungs were not working very well...and I was drained of energy. It was still fun and I am glad I did it. Because I did not feel great in July, I really poured myself into training for the October tri. I mean really! I really kept up with my workouts and pushed myself for speed. I did all of my swims in open water (rather than the pool), I did longer bike rides, and I ran more.

Of the three races, I was certainly most excited for this one in October. I felt prepared, I knew what to expect, and I wanted to kill it! Well...I did! I beat my racing time from the race in May (the same distance) by over 20 minutes!!!!! The first race was 1:53 and this one was 1:32! The whole race was a thrill. I had lots of friends in the race and just felt amped and well...ready for it.

The swim started in the water which was weird and annoying because you got kind of bunched up with the people from your group. But as soon as I got past the traffic jam...I was off! And wow did I swim fast. I lapped people two waves ahead of me...no problem. My first swim time for the same distance was 26 minutes or so. This time it was 17 minutes! That is improvement right there folks.

Then came the bike ride. Given I have a clunker of a bike, I don't go totally fast, but I beat my time by a few minutes. I really pushed myself on the bike...and just pedaled as fast and as hard as I could. The bike ride was around Mission Bay which is very pretty so it made the ride go by fast.

Now, it was time for the run. I jumped off my bike and my legs did not hurt at all! I remember the first race I felt my legs were going to give out from under me at this transition...not this time. I just started running...and ran really fast! In fact, I ran so fast, I finished the 5k in 26 minutes. Folks, this is huge. I usually run a 9:45 mile. 5k is 3.2 miles... you do the math! During my first race, my run time was over 32 minutes. Umm...again...improvement much!??? I just kept thinking "you are stronger than you think you are" and pushed through. It was amazing. I felt so darned proud of myself.

This race was wonderful. I had so much fun I didn't take any pictures! Oopsie! All I can say is, anyone can do a sprint triathlon and should. It's a great way to get in shape, test your physical and mental strength, and well it's just an absolute blast.

My next race is a 10k at the Del Mar Fairgrounds on Sunday, November 6th. I am not overly nervous for this race although it's been about 6 months since I last ran 6 miles. I can easily run 5, and know I have the endurance for it. I mean...what's a 10k when you have done a triathlon? :) I had planned to get a few longer runs in this week...but guess what? I am sick! Is this a trend? A curse? I hope this isn't a new kind of "racing fever"!!!! Getting sick before a race sucks. It does not help mentally. Although it's really too late to build speed or strength in my training so close to race day, I just wanted to get in the runs to mentally prepare. I also wanted to stretch and warm my muscles at yoga, which I have not been able to do since I am sneezing like a banshee. I knew this 10k would not be my fastest, I just wanted to bite the bullet and start running more, so I signed up for the race....why not? It worked with the triathlons. And, clearly since I just did the triathlon, I haven't had a ton of time to train for speed. But....anyway, I am sure it will still be fun, I just hope I don't continue to get sick ahead of other races. It's no fun! Here is the race next weekend: http://www.irongirl.com/Events/Del_Mar.htm#axzz1c7caKlT0

My next 10k is December 10th, so I will have more time to train for that one. And it will be fun to see how my time improves from next week to the 10th. It will also be great to be running through the holidays, and hopefully I won't have the weight gain so many people experience at this time of year. Here is the race in December: http://www.southbay10k.com/

To be honest, aside from my fantastic Triathlon on the 16th...the past two weeks have been total crap. I had two automobile snafus, work hasn't really been great, I had two fairly awful outings, I haven't been able to sleep, my television broke (and I paid someone from AT&T $55 to tell me what I already knew) and to top it all off...I am sick with a crappy cold!!!!!!!!!! Bleck, bleck and more bleck. It's amazing how much you miss your health when you don't have it....

Anyway, I hope you all have some fun Halloween plans for the weekend. My plans include making a few batches of homemade soups, sitting on the couch with some books and the magazine pile I need to catch up on, and watching movies on my brand new TV (that I really didn't want in the first place....ha! At least I can make a joke about it).

Happy Halloween, Love Bugs!

Saag Paneer with Tofu

2011-09-29T20:24:00.000-07:00

Hi all,

I made my Saag Paneer tonight. I didn't take pictures because my kitchen at night is a black hole and let's be honest...Saag Paneer is not pretty anyway. It's an Indian spinach dish with yogurt, and typically made with cheese. I chose to make it with tofu. This is a pretty simple dish to make, it only took me about 20 minutes. However, it takes a food processor and I used two pans...so it kind of makes a mess. But once you get the hang of it, it's really easy.

1 onion chopped
2 cloves garlic chopped
2 TBSP butter
2 tsp grated fresh ginger
2 tsp curry powder (I used freshly pounded curry mix from my farmer's market)
1 package tofu cut into large chunks (I am really liking Trader Joe's organic sprouted tofu)
1-2 pounds fresh greens (I used 2 bags of Trader Joe's fresh baby spinach and 1 bunch of beet greens. You can use any non-bitter greens that you like. I bet chard would be great. Last time I made this, I used 2 bunches of spinach from the farmer's market and that was the right amount. Tonight I think I had a bit too much, but it still worked. You want about 3-4 cups of processed greens.)
1 cup Fage 2% plain yogurt.

If you want this dish to be vegan, substitute the butter with EVOO and the yogurt with soy yogurt.

Saute the onion, ginger, garlic and curry powder until fragrant, about 5 minutes.
Meanwhile, saute or roast your tofu until it has a crisp outer layer. Set aside.
Now, at the same time, comes the annoying part. You have to puree the greens in the food processor. Do it in batches, pushing the greens down all the while. Once the spinach is very finely processed (think pesto), then add it to the onion mixture. Some recipes said to pre-blanch the greens, but I found it unnecessary and found the water from the raw greens helped to deglaze my pan. I am sure that I retained more of the nutrients this way as well.
Once the greens are cooked down and the water evaporates, add salt, and stir in the yogurt off the heat. Add the tofu at the last minute and stir in. Voila! This is SO tasty, I really encourage you to make it.

This made three entree servings. I served it with whole wheat naan for dipping. You definitely want something to dip into the smooth and creamy spinach! If you are having this in addition to other dishes as traditional Indian food is served, it would serve 6. I bet it would taste great over rice too. You could even add in some veggies...just nothing too acidic as to curdle the yogurt.

I hope everyone's week is going great!

Cleanse Updates and Mount Woodson

2011-09-27T13:31:00.000-07:00

Hello Friendies! I hope you all had a glorious weekend and are settling comfortably into your work week. I was on top of my work out plans last week and surpassed my goals.

My workout goals were:

Yoga 5-7 times a week

Run 2-3 times a week

Swim 2x a week

Bike 2x a week

Walk Peroni for 45 minutes 5 times a week

In actuality, I did:

Yoga 8 times!!!! This is a new record for me!
Ran 2x
Swam (in open water!) 2x
Biked 2x (one 15 mile ride and one 20 mile ride!)
Walked Peroni 6 times
AND I did a killer 3 and half hour hike up Mount Woodson. It's been two days and my legs are STILL sore! Holy cow...what a hike! More on that in a minute.

As far as my food was concerned, I was good except for two small slip ups:

I ate a popsicle from Trader Joe's. It was lime. It was tasty. I kind of forgot it had sugar in it. Oops!
I wanted to make vegan Saag Paneer but could not find soy yogurt, so I used real yogurt. I have to tell you, this dish turned out so amazingly good, I can't wait to make it again. It's essentially finely chopped spinach with yogurt and seasoning mixed in. It's typically made with big chunks of cheese, but I used pan fried tofu. I will post a recipe the next time I make it.

Overall, I am so happy I did the cleanse. It's great to give your body a break from sugar, wheat, dairy and alcohol. I feel refreshed and got so much done around the house. I highly recommend a cleanse for anyone but it's especially good if you have been feeling sluggish or you have been getting behind on projects...it's just great for the soul.

Now back to Mount Woodson! I have done a fair amount of hiking in San Diego but had never been to Mount Woodson. It's a 7 mile round trip hike, going straight up the side of this mountain and then turning around and coming back down. It took about 3 and 1/2 hours with a couple of water and snack breaks. It was an awesome workout and the views were lovely. I highly encourage you San Diegans to do this...just bring LOTS of water and sunscreen.

Taking a break from the heat....

Peroni loves hiking....

My friends Kim and Ondre....can you believe them? I would not climb on that thing...it looks way too unstable to me!

Kim, Amanda and Michelle....

This was a moment before a huge crow swooped down with claws out and tried grabbing at the dogs!

Cleanse Updates

2011-09-19T14:14:00.000-07:00

Howdy,

Is everyone's Monday off to a good start? Due to my cleanse...I am having a pretty good Monday so far.

Here is my update of how things went the first week:

Food (I have been cooking quite a bit of recipes out of "Clean Food"...a must have cookbook for clean eating and cleansing!)

Sweets/ Sugar: One of the reasons I wanted to cleanse is that I have had an undeniable sweet tooth lately! I find that the more sugar I eat, the more I want. It is addicting, after all. So, when I cleanse and cut it out, over time my cravings go away...or if they are still there they are satisfied by some fresh fruit or a small bit of dark chocolate. So far, I have been pretty good with sweets:

Last Monday I ate a small piece of dark chocolate. I have not slipped up on sweets since then.
I baked some healthy "treats" (if you can call them that) of nut cherry bars adaptedfrom "Clean Food". They have no sugar, are made with brown rice flower, and have very little fat. I would hardly call them sweet, but they are tasty and keep me on the clean eating while allowing a little treat in my day.
I also made some poached fruit from "Clean Food"...again, with no sugar and really not bad for you. I used fresh apples and figs with dried cherries, spices, fresh oj and orange zest. Yum. But, after dinner when I have a sweet craving, this fruit does the trick.

Dairy: As much as I love cheese and Greek yogurt, I really feel so much better when I avoid dairy. (I don't eat any other dairy...I use alternative milks and haven't had regular milk in YEARS. It's gross). My stomach feels flatter, my skin is better, my digestion works better, I don't feel sluggish, etc, etc, etc. There are SO many reasons NOT to eat dairy, but honestly, I am addicted to cheese and don't think I could give it up completely. What is more glorious than a delicious glass of wine shared with friends on a patio over a nice cheese board? For a while I was eating non-dairy cheese, but now it just grosses me out. It just seems so fake...real, organic, non-hormone, cruelty free cheese is probably better for me in the end. Of course, dairy is really hard on your digestive system...our bodies are not made to break down other animals' milk. So, even if you can't go fully vegan...give your body a break from dairy once in a while.

I had a little cream cheese and Greek Yogurt left in the fridge on Monday and did not want it to go to waste, so I used it. I have not had any dairy since Monday and honestly...I don't really miss it.

Processed White Carbs: So I don't really eat processed foods but I do love me some fresh French Bread and pasta. Since I have been working out so much, I haven't been feeling guilty about eating these naughty foods lately. But again, the point of this cleanse is to give my body a break, so I am trying to lay off. I don't really consider my two items "slip-ups"...They were well thought out decisions to eat carbs...that happened to be white. In both instances, the things I ate were organic, handmade, without preservatives, and served with balanced, healthful meals. I do not feel guilty one bit about either one. I am not going to eat any more this week.

I was invited to a soft opening at an awesome new restaurant in my neighborhood: Urban Plates. This is a farm to table restaurant and they use all local, sustainable, organic products. It was fantastic...and free! They offered dessert which I easily turned down...but on my lovely plate of grilled ahi, raw kale salad and roasted potatoes, I was offered a toasty peice of ciabatta bread. Ummm...I ate it. And loved it.
Last night I made fresh made egg pasta with raw tomatoes, garlic, and basil. It was grand.

Green Juice / Green Smoothies: I have been drinking at least one 12 oz glass of veggie juice a day. It gives you so much energy. (I am not talking V-8! I mean freshly made juice of kale, cucumber, carrots, spinach, herbs, etc.) Every morning I make some kind of green smoothie: some combo of frozen bananas, fresh spinach, green powder, and some other kind of fruit...and sometimes flax, chia seeds, etc. I blend it all with rice milk, almond milk, etc. These drinks give you so much energy...I highly recommend them! I don't have a juicer, so I go to juice bars to get my veggie juice. It's fairly pricey, but when you consider all the pounds of organic veggies that it takes to make juice...and how expensive juicers are, it seems worth it to me.

Snacks: I have been snacking on raw nuts and fruit. This seems to be doing the trick.

Meals: My meals have been tasty! I have been making salads, soups, roasted veggies and tofu, grains like quinoa with flavorful mixins, and things like that. This week I am going to try a vegan Saag Panneer with tofu rather than cheese. I am also starting to crave fall foods like roasted root veggies and squash. My meals aren't that different than usual...with the absence of cheese. I still am eating free range organic local eggs, and have had wild caught sustainable salmon once too. I feel perfectly satisfied.

One note about food: So much of my job is schmoozing....going to happy hours, lunches, breakfasts, meetings, etc. All of these things = wine and food! I feel very proud of the fact that although I went to about 6 of these types of events last week, I did not have any slip ups! If there were appetizers, I stuck to eating raw veggies and hummus, and fruit. If there was breakfast, I avoided it. I did have a lunch at a Thai restaurant, but I stuck to veggies and brown rice. Still tasty, and in line with my cleanse.

Wine / Beer: I haven't really missed alcohol. Without it I find my sleep patterns are much better and my sleep is much deeper. I have only thought about it twice: once last night with that fresh pasta...you know some chardonnay would have been great with it. And, on Saturday when I got to try Urban Plates...that lunch would have tasted great with a beer. But other than that, my herbal tea, water and green juice has been quite enough for me.

Workout updates: So, I did pretty well with my workout goals last week...surpassing some goals and only falling short on one.

My workout goals were:

Yoga 5-7 times a week

Run 2-3 times a week

Swim 2x a week

Bike 2x a week

Walk Peroni for 45 minutes 5 times a week

In actuality, I did:

Yoga 6 times
Run 2 times
Swim 2 times
Biked 1 time
Walked Peroni 6 times, 4 were 45 minute walks, one was 30 minutes, and one was 90 minutes

I am pretty happy with my first week of the cleanse. It's going so well, I might decide to keep at it longer than just two weeks!

Have a great week!

Cleansing = Crossing off the "to-do" list

2011-09-18T16:30:00.000-07:00

Hi Friends,

I have had a glorious and productive weekend, tackling my to do list and having some fun too!

Listen to everything I did:

Yoga Friday, Saturday and Sunday
Walk Pdog Friday, Saturday (along Coast Highway in Encinitas) and Sunday
Biked to Yoga Saturday (and my legs are still sore)
Cleaned my entire house
Did about 10 loads of laundry
Cooked a healthy "desert"...Nut Raisin Bars from "Clean Food"
Went to the farmer's market in Del Mar on Saturday, and in Leucadia on Sunday.
Dropped off pants to be altered
Groomed Pdog
Took Pdog to the groomer to clip his toe nails (which is always an absolutely horrid experience! Pdog freaks out like nothing I have ever seen. He is 16 pounds of unbridled strength!)
Cooked Coconut Lentil Soup Friday
Took some returns to H &M (why oh why did one of these have to open so close to my house? TROUBLE.)
Took some returns to Anthropologie
Got my Japanese Knife Sharpened
Restocked my dry goods (beans, lentils, grains, etc) at Sprout's bulk sale
Cleared out a pile of magazines
Picked up dry cleaning
Planned my meals for the week.
Started reading a new book.
Watched some trashy tv and a few good movies.

Phew!!! I need a break from my weekend :). I am SO productive whenever I cleanse. I love, love, love it. I feel like I have so much energy and just love crossing things of my to do list. I tend to let domestic projects pile up, so it's great to get so much of this stuff done.

I still have a pretty big list I want to tackle over the next week:

Purge Guestroom / Office (I have tons of clothes that are too big for me and I need to figure out if I am selling them, donating, etc.)
Organize and purge dressers (I have recently done this with my closet and love it. I had to get rid of all the clothes that were too big, and reorganize and make space for my new smaller attire! My closet feels like my own personal store. I love it.)
Organize my photo albums (this has been on my to-do list for YEARS. AGH! Enough.)
Put together an emergency kit (this became an important item after last week's major blackout)
Organize recipes. (I have piles of magazine clippings, recipes printed from the web, etc. I am actually hoping to start tackling this tonight)
Organize garage
Organize balcony closet

And my fun to dos:

Make jewelry (I have tons of beads, etc., and should take advantage!)
Do some Asian Brush Painting (I purchased all the equipment in May of 2010 and have yet to paint once!)

It's actually just nice to organize these thoughts. Like I have said before: cleansing clears your body of toxins and opens you up to new ideas. When you cleanse your body, it's only natural that you start cleansing other parts of your life too!

I hope you all had a great weekend.

Back on the running train!

2011-09-16T09:04:00.000-07:00

Happy Friday Friends!

What do you have planned this weekend? I have so much I want to get done: My to do list is a mile long and includes things like house cleaning, dog grooming, organizing, cooking, yoga, farmer's market, etc. I hope I get through it all and find some time for gratitude, reading and relaxing as well. :)

My running efforts have suffered a bit over the past few months...due to lack of time given all the other activities I work on. In January, February and March of this year, I was running three times a week, typically a 3 mile, 4 mile, and 6 mile run. But then I started training for the triathlons and didn't have time, energy, blah, blah, blah....excuses, excuses. While I find running really hard, I actually feel so strong when I do it...and it makes me realize my big thighs are strong and good for something! I feel so accomplished when I am done with a run...and really most of the time it's a rush. I also LOVE how much weight I lose when I run. So I really would like to work my way back up to that 6 mile weekly run (and who knows? maybe longer?). My runs over the past 6 months have been 3 miles....no more. I just keep thinking that 3 miles is the distance of my races, so that is what I need just to keep up with training. Well... I think this is plain lazy and lame!

So today I decided to try a 5 mile run, giving myself permission to walk as much as I needed, knowing that jumping up by 40% in distance would not be easy (or advised by any training experts, by the way)...but I had it in my head and off I went. The first 3.75 miles were AWESOME! I felt like I was moving the earth under my feet. I was also averaging about 9 minutes a mile! Holy smokes! This is really fast for me! I haven't been watching my time this summer...just going out for leisurely 3 mile runs. But, I guess I have been gaining speed! This is SO encouraging. I really thought after mile 3 today I would hit a wall...and I really didn't. At the end of mile 3 and 4 there are hills that I ended up walking up (hills suck). So I finished 5.10 miles in 55 minutes, and I am guessing I walked for at least 7 minutes. Not too shabby at all! The next time I run I am going to try the same route and see if I can run for more of the time.

In any case, I am so glad I forced myself out of bed this morning, laced up my running shoes, and ran. I feel strong and ready to start my day...and it certainly helps to start your day by burning over 530 calories in the morning!

Yahoo! Happy Friday to you all. Here is to hoping I get all my "to-dos" done!

"Back to School" Cleanse

2011-09-13T16:29:00.000-07:00

Hi Friends,

I can't believe how long it's been since I last posted. I hope everyone has had a lovely and exciting summer. My summer has been an absolute whirlwind. After going to Maui for a week, I traveled to NYC for a week to visit my sister, took two trips to San Francisco, went camping twice, had 3 weekend visitors, did another triathlon and have spent much time with friends going to the Del Mar Horse races, going to the pool, the beach, shopping, eating out and generally having a blast. I have been continuing with my healthy eating and cooking (as much as possible with all the traveling and eating out). What I haven't had is much time or inspiration for blogging.

While most of my summer has been joyous, there has been some pain two. My family lost two very close friends...both of their lives were taken too soon. One was like an aunt and the other was like an uncle to me, so that has been very sad, particularly for my parents that were so close with these people. I have also had several friendships go sour, which I find heartbreaking. I think that when you lose a friendship, a little piece of you dies. In most of these cases I am not sure what went wrong, but all I can do is try to learn from these situations and try and be a better friend going forwards. I cherish my friends and pour a lot into my friendships, so I find it really sad when things don't work out, especially with friends I have known for decades. I have to tell you that this has definitely taken a lot out of me. Between all the fun, there has been sadness, and hence I think a reluctance to blog. I have just been trying to enjoy life, work and continue to keep up with work, yoga, strength training and triathlon training....all the while being thankful for those that are in my life.

I have my third triathlon in October and want to get back on the healthy bandwagon, so I have decided to do a "back to school" cleanse. I am not going back to school, but fall has always seemed like a time for new beginnings with all of the excitement of school starting.

Today I am starting a two week cleanse to re-jump start my healthy ways and refocus my energy on triathlon training and my own mental well being. Cleanses are so good for giving your body a break from all the things we put into ourselves, but I also find that my mind clears, I get lots of projects done, I read more, and just generally refocus.

I will be doing the following (which isn't far off from what I normally do, but it's good to put into writing):

Yoga 5-7 times a week
Run 2-3 times a week
Swim 2x a week
Bike 2x a week
Walk Peroni for 45 minutes 5 times a week
No alcohol
No sugar
No dairy
No processed food
Avoid white carbs (I have been obsessed with making fresh dinners with pasta lately)
I am taking Trader Joe's "two week cleanse formula" which is full of cleansing herbs for the internal organs and digestive organs.
Although I hate it, I will also be drinking straight cranberry juice... it does wonders for cleansing your organs even if it tastes awful!
I will eat as many fruits and veggies as possible and focus on clean, homemade foods.
I will drink lots of smoothies with spinach and get vegetable juices whenever I can.

I usually do a cleanse like this in January and also like to do another one at some other point in the year as well. I feel fantastic when I cleanse and know that this will start my fall off right.

I hope you all have a fall and consider a cleanse to kick it off before we get deep into holiday overeating!

Good Eats and More Weekend Fun!

2011-05-26T12:29:00.000-07:00

Well the fun continues at Plato's Plate! I have been so busy lately with work, friends, fun and working out. I have been really focusing on eating as much produce as possible. Given that I am now the only human in this house, my large box of produce from the CSA seems extra large. BUT, I am challenging myself to eat through it, and have been doing a pretty good job. I am headed out of town for three of the next four weekends, so friends and neighbors and have been getting some of the benefits. Here are some of my best dishes from the past couple of weeks.....

Post Race last Sunday, I ate a magnificent, veggie filled meal. I made a salad with fresh shelled peas, fresh chopped cilantro, fresh green onions, S and P and EVOO.

I also grilled some zucchini and spring onions, and then roughly chopped them with fresh basil, parsley, and cherry tomatoes. A little S and P and Balsamic Vinegar...delish!

After all that racing I thought I needed a little protein so I grilled some scallops to go with my veg. I think it's funny I think of protein as something to go along with my veggies! For years I thought it was the other way around...finding enough veggies to go with my protein. I wish more people thought this way, weather they are meat eaters or not! I doused everything in lemon juice and ate on my porch with Pdog. Yum! What a nice nightcap to an amazing day of racing.

This is a loaf of multigrain bread...that I made! I was so proud of myself! Well I can't be too proud, it came from a Mix from Bob's Red Mill. But, it was still very time consuming with lots of raising, resting, raising, punching down, etc, but in the end it turned out great!

With that bread I had an absolutely delish light dinner...toast with chopped mango, avocado, cilantro, S and P and lemon juice. OMG. This was so good, I could not stop saying "mmmm" the whole time. Peroni was jealous.

This is a little desert combo I have been enjoying...a couple pieces of brie, a little cup of blueberries, and some dark chocolate covered cherries. Do I even need to tell you how good this is?

Last Saturday was an epic day. I woke up early, rode my bike to an insane yoga class, rode home (it's 7 miles round trip of ridiculous hills that make me wonder what on earth I decided to start riding a bike for) and got ready for brunch at the Grand Del Mar.

The Grand is an UNREAL hotel. I have never seen anything like it. I am not bragging, but I have seen 4 star hotels in NYC, SF, Paris, Rome, London, Maui, Kauai, etc.....but I have never seen this place's equal. It's very elaborate with lots of crown molding, gold details everywhere, marble everywhere. It's quite palatial. It's a little over the top, but it is somehow very pretty. No detail was spared, and the grounds are gorgeous. I mentioned dinner at Addison a while back...that was at the Grand. Well, my best friend Erica is pregnant and unfortunately I have to miss her baby shower, so I treated to brunch! We had such a nice time talking, enjoying yummy food, and opening her gifts. I didn't do a great job of taking pictures...but you get the idea....

And here is my perfectly pregnant Erica. She looked so elegant in this dress....I thought she should be a preggo model! If it weren't for her belly, you would never know she was pregnant! She is about a month away from being due and has only gained 16 pounds. She looks fantastic!

After brunch I had a last minute invite to visit with another dear friend, Jessica, and her boyfriend, Martin, on Martin's boat in the San Diego Harbor. Divine is all I can say. Jessica was dolled up and perfect as usual with lots of tasty treats on the boat including homemade guacamole and whole grain chips, smoked salmon, and truffle cheese. She also had some of the seasons first cherries. There is something so satisfying about eating cherries on a boat and sending the pits into the water. We had some champagne while Martin and Peroni steered the ship!

The sun came out for about an hour, and we soaked it right up!

I am the captain! He is my skipper!

Jessica is the best hostess I have ever experienced!!!!!She always makes things so nice and perfect and she is a pleasure to spend time with.

Later on Saturday I went out for sushi and drinks in Del Mar. It was a long but fun day!

The following Sunday was filled with the beach, farmer's market, and lunch at Captain Keno's. Captain Keno's is a greasy spoon heavy on the meat. They do have Crab legs on Saturday nights which I love, but other than breakfast one of the few things I can have is a tuna melt. It is tasty but not very healthy.

In effort to lighten things up, later that night I made a twist on this Coconut Spinach Dish from 101 Cookbooks. (By the way, this is short grain white rice "New Crop". It is hands down the best rice I have ever had. I always try to eat brown rice because its so good for you...and I like it! But sometimes white, fluffy, sticky rice is all that will do. This rice does this trick. I got it at a Japanese grocery store...I highly recommend seeking out some new crop short rice and learning how to cook it properly. I drain mine in a siv until the water is clear. Then I put 1 1/4 rice to 1 1/2 cup water. Cover and let sit for 30 minutes. Bring to a boil as quickly as possible. Once boiling, turn way down, as low as possible, and let cook for 25 minutes. Turn off, and let steam for 15 minutes. Once you turn the rice on, DO NOT REMOVE THE LID! This is key. Then take off the lid and gently fluff your rice. Perfect Sushi rice, ready to be eaten or covered in sushi seasoning).

The changes I made to the Coconut Spinach recipe included using a whole chopped caramelized onion...and I used this weird baby spinach I found at the farmers market. It doesn't look like spinach and didn't taste like spinach, but I wasn't going to argue with the person who grew it. I also used fresh asparagus, and I topped it off with tons of chopped cilantro, green onions, and toasted cashews. I served it over fluffy white sushi rice. It was wonderful!

I made this soup on Monday. I made a simple stock from celery, carrot, onion, garlic, ginger, lemongrass and red pepper. After simmering for about an hour, I strained out all the ingredients. I added the broth into a large pot with sliced asparagus. After a couple minutes, I added chopped beet greens and chopped spinach. I added in some noodles that were cooked and added at the last minute (I find adding noodles directly to soup makes them mushy) and topped with some sauteed tofu and fresh green onions. I added some drops of sesame oil, soy sauce and black sesame seeds. It was SO tasty and fresh!

And that my friends, is it for now. I am off to enjoy a long weekend in SF. Have a great Memorial Day Weekend!

Triathlon!!!!!!

2011-05-18T17:50:00.000-07:00

Well, I completed my first triathlon!

It was, above everything else, a complete and total blast! I had SO much fun and was smiling the whole time. I got up super early (I actually woke up on my own at 3:15 am!). Luckily I slept pretty well thanks to massive amounts of tea, a hot epsom salt bath, and plenty of homeopathic sleeping pills.

I was the first athlete to the race at 4:40 am...I think I was a little over excited! The transition area opened at 5, and I wanted to get a good parking spot and spot in the transition area. The wind was howling and the waves were kind of gnarly! I was pretty nervous.

First it was time to set up the transition area.

Here we are trying to act calm. We were not calm. We were nervous and excited and full of emotion!

Then we walked down to the beach for a practice swim. I was SO happy we did this. It seems the first 100 yards are the hardest, so we got them out of the way. The wind died down and the waves died down...although there were definitely still waves and the water was pretty choppy.

Then we had to wait for about 40 minutes. My feet were FROZEN by the time we got in the water. In fact, for about 75% of the swim, my feet were numb! I was in the 5th wave of people starting. They do it by sex and age group. The anticipation was building while we were waiting to go! But, we finally went in. The water was 63 degrees, so it was just as warm if not warmer than the air, so that certainly helped. I tried to stay calm and did a pretty good job of it! I swam for what seemed like an eternity. But I finally finished and wasn't even really out of breath! Wahoo! 1st step done.

Then I had to run up this awful hill to the transition area. Not fun. I walked. Quick change and jump on the bike. I did not train on my bike enough. Not that the ride was too hard, but I could have gone faster with more training. I was so worried about the running and swimming...I just didn't focus on the bike. Next time!

The bike ride was pretty and fairly uneventful.

Next came the hardest part...changing from biking 12 miles to running for 3 miles. HOLYCOW BATMAN! My legs felt like jello. I thought they were going to give out on me and I was going to topple over! But, after I got into a rhythm, it was fine. There were not very many spectators. The ones that were there sure did help! It was very encouraging to have people cheer for you. It was also great to see my tri training buddies along the course! And whenever someone older or heavier than me would pass me, I would be very motivated to go faster. Overall it was just such a cool feeling! I seriously was smiling ear to ear the whole time. It was just so much fun!

I ended up sprinting at the end (who am I?) and passed that guy in the black...by a lot!

Who-hoo! I finished! They even called out my name over the loud speaker!!!! It was SO FREAKING AWESOME!!! And if I do say so myself...I think my arms are looking very toned in this picture! That's probably thanks to yoga. :)

We did it! Look! I got a medal!

My awesome friends Missy, Gil and Aaron got up early to come and support me. They were so nice to do that! I needed moral support. Afterwards we walked to Captain Keno's which is my favorite dive bar and greasy spoon for a big breakfast and drinks. Can you tell I am happy to be getting food in this picture??? And who are we kidding...that was the best beer of my life!

These ladies are awesome. We already signed up for another race in July and are going to train together for the next couple of months. Yahoo!

Overall, I highly recommend doing a triathlon. The training was time consuming and sometimes pushed me outside of my comfort zone (umm...swimming in the ocean at 6 am? WTF?) but it was doable. And I have never considered myself to be an athlete before. If I can do it...so can you! The actual event was so much fun and I felt a great sense of accomplishment afterwards. Plus...I lost 15 pounds while training...if that isn't motivating, I don't know what is! I also made some great new friends which is just an added bonus.

I also finished the race in 1:53...I thought it would be a least two hours, so I am really proud of that time. All in all a great experience....and now I think I am hooked!

The Countdown Starts....

2011-05-14T18:56:00.000-07:00

Well in about 12 hours from now I am going to hear, "Females, aged 30-34, Wave 5, take your marks at the shoreline...ready, set, go!" Gahhhhhhhhhhhhh!!!!!!!!!!!! The anticipation is killing me!

Ummmmm......is it time to see this yet?

This finish line is going to look SO good tomorrow!!!

I went to pick up all of my race stuff today and ran into my tri buddies Andrea and Jo. We actually went out for a great pasta dinner last night too.

This is where the killer swim will occur. I know its hard to see, but we are swimming out to a yellow buoy. It's actually not too bad... I am being overly dramatic about it! It's actually just past the buoys we have been practicing with, so I am not too worried about it. The surf is supposed to be non-existent tomorrow which is great news. Also, Jo and Andrea will be in my wave! So that is going to be fantastic.

So...I have done everything on the pre-tri check list. Carb loading two days before...no exercising for the day before...bike is all ready to go...gear is packed. I just ate dinner....baked greens, cracked wheat toast and some tofu. It was tasty! Now I am trying to calm down and get to bed...I want to get to the transition area by 4:30 am....so I think I need to get up at about 3:30 to allow time to drive, blend my smoothie, and take the pooch out before I leave. My clothes and everything are all laid out, so it shouldn't take too long to get ready. Going to bed at 7 on a Saturday night is not easy. I am drinking tea, took some night time homeopathic sleeping pills...and am going to jump in a Epsom Salt Bath...hopefully that helps loosen my muscles, calm my nerves, and make me sleepy!

I am full of nerves...mostly excitement. I hope that I have trained enough...that I don't get a flat....and that I don't drown. OK, I am not going to drown...but I really hope to do well. It's so funny how I have already accomplished so much...all the time put in for training...all the weight I have lost (15 pounds! Can you believe it????)....and above all....pushing myself far outside of my comfort zone. Yet, with all of these accomplishments...the biggest one is still tomorrow. I must get across that finish line! Today this man at the expo was telling me to get rid of "monkeys"...first...there will be a monkey on my back while I am waiting to jump in the water....there will be a monkey on my back for the first hundred yards of the water...there will be a monkey on my back when I have to run up the hill after the swim...and there will most certainly be a monkey when I transition from biking 12 miles and my legs feel like they are going to give out when I start to run.

Well....I am off to force myself to sleep and try to sedate those monkeys until tomorrow.

Wish me well, lovebugs! Here goes nothing!!!!

Triathlon Training Updates and a Fabulous Weekend

2011-05-10T09:44:00.000-07:00

This past weekend was a mix of sunshine and overcast skies in San Diego which was perfect for me. I took advantage of the sun on Saturday and took Peroni to the beach in Del Mar. I even got him to run in the water! Sunday was overcast so I spent the day running errands and cleaning and organizing. I always hate doing that kind of thing on a gorgeous day...this was my kind of weekend...some fun....some work....and a perfectly clean home on Sunday to start the work week off right.

I was so unbelievably productive this weekend! I look back on everything I did and am shocked! It's no wonder I was exhausted last night.....

Look at this insane list of things I got done!

I did some work.
I gave myself a pedicure.
I scrubbed my house from top to bottom.
I cleaned my windows.
I steam cleaned my carpet.
I cleaned all of my couch cushion covers and chair covers.
I did about 15 loads of laundry.
I made it through my "to do file" of bills, thank you notes, etc.
I journaled.
I went to a farmer's market where I picked up gorgeous flowers

and Moringa Leaf Powder...I plan to use this to fuel my triathlon. It has protein, calcium, vitamin A, potassium, iron, and vitamin c! It seems to be the perfect fuel for a workout. Has anyone else heard of this stuff?

Every time I go to the farmers market I also pick up farm fresh eggs.

I went shopping for succulents and planted them on my deck. I went to this amazing little succulent shop on Coast Highway 101 in Solana Beach... Solana Succulents....it was a lovely place that I have always meant to stop into. They had so many gorgeous varietals I had never seen. I had to buy some.....

Here are the plants I went home with. I also bought some new pottery to plant them in. I am a sucker for handmade pottery. I think they look so nice on my little deck....and add to my previous collection of succulents.

I went shopping for some treasures...new flip flops from a local surf shop...and some pretty earnings and a glass bracelet from Noon.....this is the sweetest little store of jewelry....soaps....stationary, etc. It's very girly...The have an awesome deal called 12 X Noon where you buy a yearly subscription to their earrings. Each month for one year a handmade pair of earrings comes in the mail, packaged and pretty. I may or may not have bought this for myself.....

I went grocery shopping.
I went out for sushi Friday, out for lunch Saturday, and out for breakfast on Sunday. I did all three of these alone. And it was glorious.
I exercised for about 5 hours on Saturday and Sunday.
I watched a great movie..."The Kings Speech"...highly recommended!
I read three cooking magazines.
I read three cookbooks.
I cooked some great food.

All in all, a very busy weekend.

As for my triathlon training...the triathlon is less than a week away. I am starting to get very excited but also very nervous. On Sunday my training group set out in Encintas to do the actual course...we just did half the distance of each. I would love to tell you that things went smoothly for me. But...they didn't......the swimming...the swimming is a totally different story at Moonlight Beach. We have been training at La Jolla Shores. This is open ocean water but it is fairly calm and the ocean floor is very flat, so the waves break very consistently there. Encinitas is a totally different ball game. On our Sunday swim I immediately noticed that the current is pulling both up and down the beach...the ocean floor is violently sloped and troughed in many places...which leads to waves breaking very erratically. Almost immediately upon jumping into the water a huge wave knocked me in the face and took my breath away. I was so freaked out I literally almost turned around and went back into the beach. I wish that we would have been training at this beach....it is quite literally a whole different game.

I know I am going to finish the race on Sunday...I just hope I can channel my inner yogi and remember that it's just water, I have spent my entire life in the ocean, and I am going to be completely fine. I also need to remember to breathe...I got so worked up on Sunday I couldn't breathe...spooky stuff. Of course, after the swim, we have to run up this crazy hill in our wet suit...panting away after swimming a half a mile. As if that swim isn't enough! I personally was cursing myself the whole time...I am the one who decided to do this, right? Am I a glutton for self-punishment?

Then we have to quickly get out of the wet suit and put on shoes to get biking for 12 miles. Then we have to switch and run 3.2 miles. During both of our transitions I kept thinking to myself...what am I doing here? Why on earth am I doing this to myself? I just finished swimming...now I have to bike? I just finished biking...now I have to run?

During the actual exercises my mind reached a kind of zen space....The course winds all through the cute little town of Encinitas and Cardiff by the sea....past the ocean and a lagoon...and the train tracks...it's really a pretty course with lots of visual distractions. But it's really during those transitions that my mind started playing tricks on me. Once I actually got into the rhythm of biking and running...it was smooth sailing. I just need to remember that when I start questioning my logic of putting myself through this beast of a challenge.

I am going to have to figure out a way to think in terms of what I have finished rather than what I still have to do. The race course found here shows that you literally bike and run two loops on the same course. This is also going to be challenging...mentally more than anything. When I run, bike, etc, I mentally enjoy seeing a landmark and realizing that I am a quarter or a half of the way done, and I won't pass that landmark again unless I am running or biking back that way. Well, on Sunday I will have to do two loops on both! So I am going to see everything twice...during two different events.

I think there will be lots of spectators cheering us all on and I am sure I will have an insane amount of adrenalin pumping through my veins...so that will certainly help. I also have prepared. I have been running, biking, and swimming my heart out...not to mention building strength through my yoga and sculpt classes. I have done everything I can to prepare and now it's time to enjoy the fruits of my labor....and to fight my way through that half mile, 12.4 miles, and 3.2 miles. If you had told me a year ago I would be running right now...I would have laughed at you. If you told me I would be preparing for a triathlon....I would have told you that you should lay off the funny stuff....It's really amazing what we can accomplish with our bodies when we put our minds to it!

So, this is my "taper" week and I am supposed to be taking it easy. I am trying to avoid yoga because yoga typically makes me sore the next day. (Although I sure miss it!) My training coach said to avoid anything that might make you sore. We are doing another ocean swim tonight, and I plan to get in two more bike rides and runs on the actual course...but I will just do half the distances. I need to save up my stamina and strength for Sunday.

Ah! Crazy, crazy stuff.

25 Things I know to be true...

2011-05-04T14:10:00.000-07:00

Jenna on ELR got me thinking....and I decided to come up with my own list of 25 things I know to be true. I did not read the initial article which inspired Jenna's list, but have been putting together a list of my own over the past few years...sort of subconsciously. Now is as good a time as any to write them down.

1. You can't always have compassion, but you can always give compassion.
2. You are exactly where you are supposed to be.
3. Shopping can provide happiness...but it is fleeting happiness.
4. Nothing is quite as satisfying as finishing a great book.
5. Talking about how you feel with your friends and family heals you. Don't hold things in. If worst comes to worst, find a therapist. Talking=healing.
6. The past cannot be changed, so no point in dwelling on it. Just learn from it and move forward.
7. There is no point whatsoever in stressing out about things you can't control.
8. Mick Jagger sounds better on vinyl. So does Boz Scaggs.
9. You can't always get what you want. But if you try sometimes, you just might find, you get what you need.
10. Inner beauty creates outer beauty...find beauty and peace inside and you will be beautiful outside too.
11. I can't live without chap stick, eye drops, and dental floss.
12. Sumo wrestlers look good in thongs. I do not.
13. An evening with a great girl friend is better than any date with a guy.
14. A good friend is a good listener.
15. Work can be fun if you love what you do.
16. My life will not be complete unless I live in France one day.
17. Everything is impermanent. Change is the only constant.
18. Most people are flakes. If you can find some good people that are not flakes...make them your best friends!
19. Cooking is my therapy. Chopping, stirring, and turning raw products into a dish is magical.
20. Saying Ohm and Namaste used to make me giggle, now I find it very soothing.
21. I love my freckles and will not listen to sales people try to sell me concealer to hide them.
22. I love my teeth. I will not let others make me feel bad about them or allow an orthodontist to force me into braces for a third time.
23. Life is short. Enjoy every minute. Eat chocolate, travel, watch trashy tv...call your friends, enjoy your life.
24. Written letters are a dying art. Write thank you notes and letters often.
25. Not watching the daily news is good for your soul.

Have a great day, love bugs!
What 25 things do you know to be true?

Mahalo Maui!

2011-04-30T22:18:00.000-07:00

I had such a good time in Maui...just what I needed to heal and relax! I also worked quite a bit while I was there...waking up at 4:30 Maui Time, 7:30 Cali time, working until 10 or 11, worked out with my dad...went to the beach...cooked great dinners...went out for dinner...went to Paia...hung out with a dear friend...read a great book...it was fabulous. I think everyone should go to Maui...it's like Disneyland for adults...but laid back, with gorgeous beaches, fantastic food, sights, shopping....and my dad and Deedee of course! I had such a great time...thanks so much, Dad and Deedee! Enjoy the pics.....

I love my dad! He is a great guy!!!

Maui explained...

2011-04-22T10:38:00.000-07:00

I realize that last post may have come as a surprise...I forgot to even say that I was coming to Maui! My life has been so hectic lately, I forgot what I had said on the blog and what I hadn't. In light of recent events in my life, I decided a trip to visit Maui would be a great way to clear my head and relax. I have mentioned before that my dad Steve and his wife Deedee live here. Now that I am self employed, I can really work almost anywhere...as long as I don't have meetings scheduled. So I cleared my calendar for the week and here I am! I am getting up at 4:30 Maui time, 7:30 California time. I work for 6 or 7 hours, exercise, and by noon I can head to the beach. It's perfect! Of course, I am passing out at about 8:30, but that's fine. I also find it really peaceful to get up so early here...the house is quiet, I can watch the sunrise, and focus my energy and thoughts for the day.

Yesterday I tried to run after the trip to the tomato farm at around noon, and it was AWFUL! It was so humid, I thought I was going to pass out.

Today's workout was scheduled as yoga, so I did a Dave Farmer Free Vinyasa yoga podcast...they are intense! and free on Itunes...FYI. I had the curtains open in my room over looking the Pacific Ocean. It was pitch black when I started, but 80 minutes later, the sun started to come up, my legs and arms felt stretched and strong, and I worked up a good sweat from exercise rather than from the humidity. Now I am getting some work done and am heading to the beach later. I hope to get another swim in...the beach I am going to today is much more calm on the wave front than the beach I was at yesterday, so swimming shouldn't be quite as labored as it was yesterday.

This is an old picture, but this is the beach I was at yesterday...Napili. The waves yesterday were about double this height..I am guessing 8-10 feet. I was getting tossed around everywhere...sometimes I was swimming with all my might but wasn't moving anywhere. What a great work out swimming in the ocean is.

Happy Friday. I hope you all enjoy yourselves this weekend!

Maui....

2011-04-21T20:35:00.000-07:00

I decided to come to Maui for a few days to relax. It's also a great place to work as I have no distractions here.

Last night my flight was late, but my step mom Deedee made me this fantastic vegetarian dinner after a trip to the new Whole Foods here. We had a huge and tasty salad and a big homemade veg pizza. It was so hard not to eat more of the pizza. It was seriously tasty...homemade pesto, squash, mushrooms, spinach...man...and sourdough crust...YUM!

Today I worked for about 6 hours, and then we went to a local farm and got some delectable tomatoes and lettuce....

This is one of the green houses where the protect the fruit from Hawaiian bugs....

Everything is grown hydroponicly here. Here is lettuce, basil and cucumbers...

Baby lettuce...

Cucumbers...the farmer just planted these about two weeks ago! They were nearly 5 feet tall. Unreal.

This is cinnamon basil. I tasted it...it was great, but did not taste like cinnamon.

Then I went for a run, spent time at the beach, and swam about 750 yards in the ocean! It was tiring...so I came home for a well deserved mai tai. Deedee is the bartender.

Mmm...mai tais....

At this point today, I have exercised twice, worked for about 7 hours, and had a hard day of relaxing at the beach. Dinner tonight is roasted tofu (my doing) and a big salad. Aloha!

My first 5k

2011-04-21T20:16:00.000-07:00

Well, I made it through my first 5k. It was so fun! It was really exciting seeing everyone line up stretch and get ready.

This was the view at the starting point looking out to the foggy Pacific Ocean...

Like I said, my only goal was to run the whole time...and I did! I came in at an official time of 33:04 but my timer said 32 minutes exactly. The course had tons of hills an was pretty intense but I made it to the finish. It was so exciting to hear the spectators...and I felt so official with my number and timing tag. I think I have definitely caught the race bug...my triathlon will be so exciting!

After the race, I walked around for about 90 minutes at the La Jolla Cove. I looked at the ocean and the seals...as well as the La Jolla Contemporary Art Museum.

After two hours of exercise...I headed to the beer garden. It was so fun and exciting!

Look at me! I ran a race! :) I am so proud of myself.

I had an extravagant lunch at my favorite La Jolla restaurant, went home and sat in the sun...and then made a tasty and light dinner of roasted veg and tofu, and a big salad. What a great Sunday!

Pre Race Jitters

2011-04-16T19:53:00.000-07:00

Not sure if I mentioned it on the blog but I am running the La Jolla Half Marathon 5k. It's just 3.2 miles...but its my first race! I am excited but really pretty nervous.

Last night I tried an "uni shooter", basically a raw quail egg sea urchin. Why. On. Earth. is this thing so big? That is what I thought when the sushi chef brought it out and almost wimped out if front of my Hawaiian friends. I can't believe I ate it.....this looks like pickled brains!!!!! Uni is something I struggle with. It's Anthony Bourdain's favorite food in the world...most big name chefs gush over this slimy sea creature. It's rumored to be an aphrodisiac and get the ladies of the world a little randy! I don't know if I believe that...Uni has such a ritual that goes with it, there is such excitement when uni is on the menu. I also think sushi chefs take you for real if you order uni...instead of your everyday California Roll for example. although I don't love it I try to order it once in a while. I do like the flavor of uni...like clean, crisp sea water, but softer, and somehow floral? The texture for me is a big problem. The only way I can describe the texture of uni is mushy. But, uni is legendary and worth a go for the serious sushi eater...and I am a serious sushi eater.

Now I am about to tuck into my pre race pasta. Julienned zucchini and carrots with chickpeas, fresh herbs, lemon juice, lemon zest, vegetable broth and topped with plenty of freshly grated Parmesan. I am so nervous about the race so I hope I can eat it!

Wish me luck for the race tomorrow. My only goal is to run without walking or stopping the whole 3.2 miles.

Energizing Smoothie...

2011-04-15T09:54:00.000-07:00

Riding the waves of yesterday's news, I woke up feeling sad, tired, and not wanting to eat. However, with all of my training, I really need to eat lots of healthy food for fuel and I knew a smoothie was just the ticket.

I blended:

1 frozen banana
1/2 cup frozen blueberries
3/4 cup vanilla coconut milk
small handful of ice

And then I added a ton of supplements to boost my mood and energy:
1 tsp bee pollen (to fight allergies)
1 tsp spirulina (for energy and mental clarity)
1 tsp lecithin (for energy and clarity)
1/2 scoop Amazing Grass powder (for energy and greens)
1 tbsp flax
1 tsp chia seeds

The smoothie tastes fantastic (hello vanilla coconut milk!) and I hope it will give me all that I need to tackle, and enjoy my day.

I read yesterday about chia seeds on Tina's Carrots "n" Cake blog. I know they are great for you, but this excerpt from "Born to Run" really sums it up well:

In terms of nutritional content, a tablespoon of chia is like a smoothie made from salmon, spinach, and human growth hormone. As tiny as those seeds are, they’re superpacked with omega-3s, omega-6s, protein, calcium, iron, zinc, fiber, and antioxidants. If you had to pick just one desert-island food, you wouldn’t do much better than chia, at least if you were interested in building muscle, lowering cholesterol, and reducing your risk of heart disease; after a few months on the chia diet, you could probably swim home.

So...go out and get yourself some chia seeds! They taste great sprinkled on everything from salads to pancakes to granola...or you can just blend them into your smoothies....

Changes....

2011-04-14T21:04:00.000-07:00

Today marks the end of an era. The closing of a four year, beautiful, wonderful chapter of my life. I feel it's so personal to share this information on my blog, but my blog is personal and I would be lying if I didn't share.

Aaron and I have decided to go our separate ways. We had an absolutely fantastic time together...partners, loves, friends, and confidants.

Aaron is one of the best people I have ever met...and hands down my best friend. Aaron is loyal, dedicated, hard working, caring, funny, intelligent, interesting and down right wonderful.

We have had so much fun together...I don't recall another time in my life that I have ever had so much fun. How could you not have fun with this guy?

But, after four lovely years, things have changed, and we have unreconciled differences that can't be fixed.

I too, count myself as a fabulous person, and know in the end I will be fine...as will he.

So here I go again on my own.

I am confident we will both have lives of love and happiness and hopefully one day will be the very best of friends.

In the meantime, here is to the one constant in life: change. Run from it, and you will never live, embrace change, and you will constantly grow.

Good night, Amanda and Aaron.

Here is to each of our own tomorrows.

Natural Remedies and Homeopathic Medicine

2011-04-14T10:20:00.000-07:00

A few years ago, I started cutting typical OTC remedies from my life. In America, it's so common to have an ailment and "pop a pill" to cure it. While the overuse of perscription drugs in America is appalling... I am also talking Tylenol, Cold Medications, etc. We all take in so many toxins through pollution, our clothes, laundry detergent, cleaning products (I have converted as much of this stuff to natural and will share on another post)...why not cut out as many toxins and unnatural additives from our bodies as possible?

I have done some discovering and have found some products that work well for me. I am not any kind of doctor so I am not offering medical advice, but am just sharing some remedies I enjoy and feel good about using....and that actually work! If you have a medical problem, seek out the help of a medical doctor. This are just things that I try first before going that route.

I have been hearing lots of complaints about allergies lately. Spring has sprung in San Diego...all of our rain this year has brought tons and tons of lovely wildflowers EVERYWHERE which can be pretty to look at but challenging for allergies. I have only suffered slightly and I attribute this to some of my natural remedies. I took Claritin for years...and it worked pretty well. But I almost think it fought my bodies natural response and ability to fight allergic reactions. Now that I have stopped taking it, my allergies aren't that bad, despite the crazy allergy season we are having.

Allergies

First up for tackling allergies: local bee pollen and local honey. The pretty jar here is actually from France, so it doesn't work for allergies, but I like it for the taste. I did buy the plastic container of bee pollen at Jimbo's and it's local. The honey is local from the farmers' market. Apparently taking these products produces from local bees kicks in sort of immunity to being affected by pollen in the air. I don't really understand it, but I tell you, it works! I believe it's like a natural anti histamine. Just add one or both of these to your smoothies, granolas, yogurt, salad, etc. Everyone loves Honey and I think Bee Pollen tastes good too...just a teaspoon or tablespoon a couple times a week does the trick for me.

When those super natural products don't work, I go to my next step, homeopathic products. My two favorite product lines are Boiron and Hylands. I think they both work well, although you really have to try out different homeopathic products to see which ones work for you. I have some of each of their products...where I might prefer one to another. They both have products with a single cure "sneezing" and they both have products for multiple problems "allergies including sneezing, itchy eyes, scratchy throat", etc. I use some of both.

Both of these products, Hylands "Hayfever" and Boiron "Sinusalia" work well based on my symptoms. Homeopathic medicines are in a sugar pill of sorts you just let sit under your tongue until it dissipates. It doesn't taste bad, there are no side effects, they are not addictive, you can take as many different types as you want at once, there are no drug interactions... I just can't say enough good things about these products. They work for me, period. And I am happy to put herbs into my body rather than creepy chemicals from money grubbing drug companies.

Sore Muscles

Because of all my recent exercising...I walk around in a constant state of "sore". These products have helped immensely! The first, Natural Calm, is a magnesium based supplement that you add to water and drink. It helps your muscles relax and heal after exercise. It also supposedly helps you stay calm and balance your mood, but I haven't noticed that effect...of course I am high strung, so I need all the balancing I can get! It does work for me and my sore muscles, however.

I also recently read that ginger not only settles your stomach and helps with digestion, it also helps to relieve muscle pain! It's also very cheap, and we all know what ginger is...it's not some weird chemical compound I can't pronounce. I love it. It has definitely made a difference since I started taking it regularly....both with my muscles and with my stomach and digestion.

Traumeel is a topical solution for sore muscles. You just rub it on your body in sore parts. It works better if you put it on places you think will be sore the next day, but also works after the fact. It's not greasy, it doesn't smell weird, and it works.

Lastly is another Boiron product, Arnica Montana. You can get Arnica in many forms and again, it is a homeopathic pill taken under the tongue. I take it after a particularly tough work out to prevent pain the next day or days.

Cuts / Burns / Bites

I started using tea tree oil instead of Neosporin a few years ago. It works better, it's all natural, and I like the smell. It cures everything! Got a burn? Tea tree oil. Got a zit? Tea tree oil. Got a cut? Tea tree oil. I like this ointment for skin issues.

I also love this Burt's Bee's Res-Q-Ointment. I like it for mosquito bites because it takes some of the itch away.

Both are great products.

Headaches

We all get headaches, right? Stress, staring at our computers for too long, etc. I think this product works better than Aleve which is what I took for YEARS. Aleve has scary side effects including causing stomach bleeding! This product has NO side effects and it works. Really! Try it! I get bad headaches occasionally, and this really, really works.

Sleep Issues

I have struggled with sleep my whole life. The number one thing that has improved my sleeping regularly is yoga. I highly recommended it. But, even with yoga, sometimes I don't sleep well. I like this Hylands product, Calms Forte. Taken an hour before sleeping, it calms with out drugging and you won't feel like a slug the next day. The only thing is that I prefer to take it before I go to sleep if I think I am going to have a hard time sleeping. If I take it in the middle of the night I am slow going the next day...not a drugged feeling, but a tired feeling. It really works and makes you feel sleepy.

This little pouch is filled with organic lavender. Lavender is a natural sleep inducer with very calming effects...so adding lavender oil to your pillow, putting fresh cut lavender in a vase by your bed, or placing one of these on your eyes definitely helps sooth and get you to sleep!

Flu!

Who wants to get the flu? I don't. I also don't want to get the flu shot. Here comes this amazing product to save the day! During flu season I sprayed this into my mouth everyday. I NEVER got the flu. Twice during flu season, I started to feel run down, like the flu was on it's way. I upped my intake and sprayed this into my mouth 4-5 times a day (along with increasing vitamins for immunity)...the flu never came and struck me down like it has every other year of my life. Plain and simple, this stuff works.

Stress

OK, I definitely stress out. So far, a combination of things has helped...number one being yoga. I can't say it enough...Yoga is a miracle drug.

I do many things to combat stress, including eating a balanced diet, listening to calming music, taking supplements, using aromatherapy, and talking to friends and family. I also use the two following products when things get really crazy.

Holy Basil leaf tastes bad but you just put a few drops in water when you really feel like you are going to freak out...or maybe you already did freak out. It calms me down within minutes. It works well for me as an "on the spot remedy" when my stress levels are already out of control.

The other Boiron product is Sedalia. I take this during times of long term stress...working through a personal problem, a busy time a work, etc. I like this when I think a longer term...say couple of days to a week...of a stressful time is happening.

Well, there you have it. I hope you will all consider looking to some new natural remedies that help you with your ailments without causing some other damage to your body.

Farmers' Market Finds...

2011-04-14T09:33:00.000-07:00

Farmers' markets in San Diego are unreal. Although I love my beloved CSA, I still make a point to go to at least one of our wonderful farmers' markets each week. There are literally dozens of them in every neighborhood on every day, so it's easy to find one that suits your fancy. My favorite is in Leucadia...it's in a hippy little town and itself seems very "hippy-ish" with live music and lots of delicious vegetarian food being cooked over hot stoves and grills. There is a good variety of vendors and I typically find what I need. I also love the Del Mar one, mainly because it's closest to my house, parking is never an issue, and my favorite farm fresh egg stand is there. There are several others I visit but those two I frequent.

There are two mac daddys of farmers' markets in San Diego: In Hillcrest and Little Italy. Both of these are major events with literally hundreds of vendors and thousands of people. You can get everything from fresh shucked oysters to organic grains and lentils to organic dog treats and handmade jewelry to the most gorgeous produce, flowers and plants you have ever lied your eyes on. I forgot to mention the roasted, organic, free range chicken (which I don't eat anymore but urge you omnivores to seek out...it's as close to French Rotisserie Chicken I have found in the US), the gorgeous vegetarian crepes, beautiful deserts, endless tables of ethnic foods, and freshly baked bread. With all of the vendors and all of the people...and all of the sights and smells......it's a feast for your senses. Not only can you eat like a queen while you attend these events, you can purchase local, sustainable, organic foods to enjoy with your family all week! I highly recommend seeking out your local farmers' markets for your grocery shopping needs. You can get SO much more there than just tomatoes and strawberries...breads, artisan cheeses, dips, chips, teas, chocolates, coffee, salads, fresh fish, etc. Last weekend I went to the Hillcrest location and literally drove around for 30 minutes before I found a parking spot. It is intense...and a far cry from my leisurely strolls in Del Mar and Encinitas! But sometimes you want to pick up some of these gorgeous soaps that my mom and I love dearly.......

Sometimes it's just so fun to go to one of these events and stroll around...observing all there is to observe...including some lovely people watching....

I also found a lovely new organic spice stand...selling lovely teas, peppers, spice mixes, seeds, etc. I bought a French curry blend which was lovely...along with some organic pepper, caraway seeds, and harrissa spice mix. I have already used my curry spice with large zucchinis, baby potatoes, and coconut milk to make a take on Heidi Swanson's new recipe "Summer Squash Soup" from her most recent beautiful book: Super Natural Everyday
I absolutely love Heidi's Blog 101 Cookbooks and also have her earlier book Super Natural Cooking. I have also given this book to several people as gifts. I think Heidi makes healthful vegetarian food that is lovely to look at and lovely to eat as well as easy to cook. Her pictures transport you to her San Francisco Kitchen and make you want to tuck into interesting ingredients like Heirloom Beans and Black Sesame Seeds. I highly recommend her blogs and books for anyone looking to incorporate more beautiful vegetarian cooking into their lives.

Recipe:

Summer Squash Soup, Very Loosely Adapted from "Super Natural Everyday" by Heidi Swanson

Toast 1 heaping TBSP French Curry Blend over medium heat in the bottom of a dutch oven.
Chop one purple onion finely.
Add 1 TBSP Coconut oil and 1 TBSP EVOO to your pot after the spices become fragrant and toasty (my seasons were whole, not ground. You could do this with ground curry powder too).
Add the onions and saute for a few minutes until translucent.
In the meantime, cut 5 small yellow potatoes into cubes about 1/2 inch.
Add the potatoes to the pot.
Sweat the potatoes with the onions for about 5 minutes, stirring constantly so things don't stick to the pan.
Add 1 cup water, 1 cup veggie broth (I used low sodium) and 2 cups of Coconut Milk (I used So Delicious Brand from a carton, but you could also use one can of coconut milk instead).
Make sure to get all the seasonings from the bottom of the pan incorporated.
After about 10-15 minutes (depending on your potatoes cooking time) add in two large cubed zucchinis. Allow everything to soften, but not too much. You don't want mushy zucchini which happened to me.
While the soup is cooking, you can crisp up some cubed tofu in pan or roast in the oven.
Taste the soup and add more seasonings in necessary. I added more salt and some garam masala at this point.
Serve a big bowl of soup with your "tofu croutons" and enjoy!

This soup was wonderful. Heidi called for adding the zucchini before the potatoes which I did, and they became WAY too soggy. That is why I adjusted the recipe here. It was a wonderful soup and not too heavy on a warm spring night. Although a reheated bowl really hit the spot after on of my recent training swims on a chilly evening in Mission Bay.

I had some leftovers which I pureed...and that was great too!

Triathlon Training Updates

2011-04-04T11:35:00.000-07:00

Well folks, I haven't done a good job of blogging once a week this year...not at all. I have been super busy with work and with triathlon training!

I believe I mentioned I signed up for a triathlon in October. I started training with a group and the group is training for another triathlon in May...so I think I am going to do that one too! Who am I? Triathlons? Running is out of my comfort zone. Swimming is out of my comfort zone. I am really pushing my limits here! However, I am really enjoying the challenge and think I am getting in better shape.

Running is getting easier and I think it is helping me loose a few lbs. In fact, I went shopping to splurge on my self for my birthday, and seemed to have dropped down a dress size! This is fantastic! I feel more confident and am excited for bikini season this year!

Biking is not too hard for me either and I have been doing fine with that.

Swimming is definitely the most challenging for me. I am a pretty good swimmer but have never distance swam before. I grew up swimming in Lake Tahoe, the Pacific Ocean, and the Sacramento River, as well as swimming in pools, so I am comfortable in the water for the most part. I have been practicing in the pool and over the weekend I finally went for a swim in Mission Bay, which I have been putting off due to some needed vaccinations first. The October Triathlon is in Mission Bay, so it's time for me to get used to it. Putting on my triathlon wet suit was a challenge in itself....that should be one of the events of the triathlon! It's so hard to put it on.... Then I slip on my freaky looking goggles and silly swim cap... now I am really the epitome of fashion, right? I got so worked up before jumping in that water. Why? Partially because I was nervous about swimming alone in the bay. And....Mission Bay is not known for being particularly clean. Well, I got in and the wet suit works awesome...it is SO buoyant that you literally float in the water. It makes the swimming almost effortless. However, I couldn't stay in the water for long. First of all...it was dirty. Literally, garbage was everywhere. Ewe. Also, it was dark, murky, and full of seaweed! It was really freaking me out. Hopefully swimming with more people will make it easier. I felt like I strong swimmer but wished that my eyes were closed! Ignorance really is bliss.

I am continuing with my yoga practice as well as doing the training and continuing to walk my dog everyday.

I calendar my workouts and it has helped me stick to the plan. Here is what an average week looks like:

Sunday, Long (10-12 mile) Bike ride with training group, Walk for 30 minutes, run for 30 minutes (about 3 miles)
Monday, Swim for 30 minutes, Sculpt Yoga Class, Walk for 30 minutes
Tuesday, Long Run (5-6 miles), Swim for 60 minutes with training group
Wednesday, Sculpt Yoga Class, Walk for 30 minutes
Thursday, Yoga, Run for one hour with training group
Friday, Swim for 30 minutes, walk for 30 minutes, Yoga
Saturday, Yoga, walk for 30 minutes

As you can see, it's a lot! Thankfully now that I work for myself, my schedule is very flexible. I am doing my workouts primarily in the morning at 7:00 and at lunch time at 12:00, and then two nights a week in the evenings with my training group. Luckily, on days when I don't have business meetings, I can work in my workout clothes, so I am not having to worry about that...and not having to get ready to go to an office saves me some time. If I was still employed by someone else, I don't know how I would have been able to commit to this, so I feel very fortunate that I have this flexibility.

There have been a couple of unforeseen issues with all this working out:

I am taking 2 showers a day! (On Saturday I took three...one after yoga, one at the bay after swimming, and one when I got home!) I am trying to avoid blowing my hair dry as much as possible so it doesn't dry out. I am worried about my skin drying out, but body oil helps with that.
I am doing BUCKETS of laundry. Yoga clothes must be washed the same day....with heated yoga, it can't wait. Between my yoga clothes, swimsuit, towels for the pool / bay, running pants, biking pants, sports bras, warm up jackets, running socks, headbands, etc, I am doing at least one load of laundry a day. It's uncanny. I feel very guilty about all the water I am using, but I don't think it's avoidable. At least I have a high efficiency washing machine that doesn't use a ton of water.

So there you have it. It's been a pretty wild ride so far, but I feel a great sense of accomplishment, and know that the day of the race will be such an unbelievable high! I am going to be so excited. I have a feeling I am going to get addicted to this!

Sonoita, AZ

2011-02-10T15:07:00.000-08:00

The last stop on our wild west adventure through Arizona was to Sonoita / Elgin area. This is, if you can believe it, a wine region! It was about a 70 minute drive from Tucson (we actually passed through it on our was to Bisbee) and we took Aaron's sister wine tasting for her first time. We visited a few wineries...some of which, to our surprise, were wonderful! We could not believe the quality of wine in this area. We visited one winery which was downright awful, but the majority of the wines we tried were beyond decent. They are really doing a good job! It was so pretty too...lots of open spaces, sun bouncing off the mountains. This was the icing on the cake for a surprising exploration of Arizona. I really couldn't believe how much I ended up loving all the places we visited.

Bisbee, AZ and Tombstone, AZ...and a bonus Ghost Town!

2011-02-10T14:52:00.000-08:00

While out in Arizona, we were encouraged to add Bisbee to our lists of must sees. Having never heard of this place, we were really apprehensive. We were planning to go to Tombstone, but added Bisbee to our itinerary as well. We drove outside of Tucson, past Tombstone, and up through some mountains. Before we knew it, we literally stumbled across this little town called Bisbee, which looks so much like San Francisco! Bisbee was an old mining town and a bunch of wealthy San Francisco locals developed the place, hence, it looks a lot like SF. It was full of VERY interesting characters...lots of hippees and other odd people. While most of the town was clean and quaint, there were some strange...parks?! and odd buildings inhabited by some of these people I would suspect were living off the grid. We also noticed tons and tons of stairways everywhere. The town is quite hilly, so to connect from street to street you can climb these stairwells. The town had so much character, tons of great restaurants, and lots of little haunted hotels! The next time we go out there we plan to get a hotel room for a night. We were really pleasantly surprised at this little gem of a town.

After heading out of Bisbee, we stopped in Tombstone. I had been there years ago and it was similar to how I remembered....commercialized and filled with tourists. BUT...it obviously has history, and there were some cool places to visit. We had a beer in a bar with live gun shots and a man playing piano...it was not boring.

We made one last stop before heading back to Tucson in Fairbank which was REALLY a ghost town...completely abandoned in the late 1970's...but really most of the town left in the 40's after the mining boom. The town was SO creepy and Aaron made me walk about a mile out this dirt road to a cemetery...I almost had a heart attack I was so scared!

This was a gas station that was in operation through the 70's if you can believe it!

This was the school which was recently refurbished and is used as a little museum and book store.

This is the SPOOKY trail that lead to the cemetery....

The sun was starting to set.... so CREEPY...

These are some of the graves. I don't know how appropriate it is to take photos of a cemetery, but I wanted to capture how darned scared I was. The whole thing was really run down but you could definitely tell there were graves everywhere.

The walk back through the trail was even spookier than the way over because we were fighting the sunset! Ah! I get the willies just looking at these pictures.

All in all a great day discovering some of the old west. What an interesting place!

Tubac, AZ

2011-02-10T14:32:00.000-08:00

Hi Bloggies,

I never shared my Christmas vacation with you all. The BF and spent Christmas in Tucson with his family and stayed at his sisters house.

Aaron and I took a few one day trips, to Tubac, Sonoita, and Bisbee, AZ. All three of these places were very appealing and I enjoyed our exploration of AZ very, very, much.

First, I give you Tubac. Tubac is a little artist's colony about an hour outside of Tucson. Like many Arizona towns we discovered, it really pops right out of the desert. It's filled with artists shops, antiques, restaurants, etc, and it was such a fun way to stroll around in the AZ sunshine. Aaron and I enjoyed lunch at a cute little dive bar and restaurant called the Tubac Inn and scored an awesome birthday gift for my Texan step dad in Fort Worth. I love buying gifts as I see them for people rather than rushing around the week before and being forced to get something.I also found some great gourmet products at Tubac Olive Oil company.... hazelnut oil and blackcurrant balsamic vinegar. They taste great on a simply dressed salad.

The Tubac Chamber of Commerce really needs to redo their website because the pictures don't do the place justice. It's quaint and very pretty in it's own southwest way.

Enjoy the pictures.
Aaron checking out a hotrod, per usual.

Pretty December sky.

Another one of Aaron's action series....

Tubac was well worth the 50 minute drive from Tucson. We noticed quite a few restaurants, bars, and little hotels. It might be a fun place to stay for a night and explore!

Not so much on the 30 day yoga challenge...

2011-01-24T11:42:00.000-08:00

Hi Bloggies!

Well, my 30 day yoga challenge didn't go as well as hoped. I am still eating clean and vegan and doing yoga lots, but not everyday. I decided to take a few days off to get over my cold, and then have been busy with...running! I have now run 4 times (only for a bit over 2 miles) and it seems to be going ok. Aaron also ran in the Carlsbad half Marathon this weekend, so running is on the brain! I am going to have to come up with a new work out schedule, because I am going to train for this! http://www.sheroxtri.com/san-diego-ca.html

Oh yes, that would be a triathlon. Eek! I also will do a 5k and 10k race before that. I need to figure out which ones I am going to participate it, but given that the triathlon is in November, I feel like I have time to get ready. I feel really excited about this. I never have been an endurance athlete, but now is the time. There were so many people running the marathon this weekend that were not in as good of shape as me, and if they can do it, why can't I? I just need to plan and put my head to it.

I think for now, I am going to do 2 sculpt yoga classes (with weights) a week, 3 regular yoga classes a week, 3 runs a week, and one long bike ride a week. I am going to have to figure out what this looks like and obviously will be doubling up my running and yoga class days. I am going to do the bike ride and a rest day on the weekend (likely). I will add in swimming when it starts to get a bit warmer. There is an Olympic sized pool right by my house, so I will start swimming this summer.

Obviously I will update the blog as I progress through this process.

In the meantime, Aaron and I had so much fun this weekend! I made him lots of pasta, we went out to eat, and he ran, ran, and ran his little heart out during the half marathon. It was SO cool to see him cross the finish line, but certainly nerve wracking while I was waiting for him. For those of you that don't know, Aaron was a distance runner in high school. He remained active after that, but a few years ago came down with an awful illness that almost took his life. He had MRSA pneumonia and it was truly terrifying and awful. He was in the hospital for 30 days, had surgery, chest tubes, home health care for 6 weeks, it was really an experience I hope not to relive. The predicament left Aaron with a 50% loss of one of his lungs. So, the past couple of years have been hard for him...he would get tired walking up stairs and certainly wasn't up for running. Well, about 6 months ago, he decided enough was enough and he started training for a half marathon. It was understandably very exciting to see him work up to this race and actually do it!

Aaron had a good friend that was also running, Brian. Here they are before the race...both were nervous. There were literally thousands of people there...it was absolutely crazy. Lot's of energy and people wearing weird stuff. It's amazing all the stuff people use to run. It's so high tech...what just happened to lacing up your shoes and running?

Here they are afterwards! Aaron, I am SO proud of you for crossing that finish line. It sure was exciting to see you accomplish your goal.

Aaron and I had such a fun weekend getting amped up for the race Sunday. We went out for breakfast on Saturday and had this little man to accompany us.

We went for a walk in Encinitas..it was so pretty out!

Aaron is pondering how he talked himself into running 13.1 miles the next day.

Me pondering....the meaning of life?

This is classic...obviously we were having fun.

On Saturday night before the race, we went to one of our favorite restaurants after we checked out the health expo (part of the marathon) and Aaron picked up his running bib and official tag. (Again, there was so much gear and high tech stuff for sale at the expo! One of the things that is appealing to me about running is that it seems so simple, tie on some shoes, step out the door, and run! It's amazing how people complicate things.) Anyway, back to the restaurant. The whole Vigilucci's family of restaurants are wonderful, managed by my dear friend Erica's husband, Matt. If you are in the San Diego area and have a hankering for some great Italian food, check them out! They also have great fish, steaks, etc. The one we went to in Carlsbad overlooks the ocean and has a nice big bar with a great happy hour...lots of dishes for $5, $6, and $7! Aaron had pasta and I had salad while staring out at the gorgeous sunset. It looked like a painting it was so pretty.

And then we went to bed super early to prepare for our 4 am wake up call for the race. What a great, fun, inspirational weekend! We had an absolute blast, and although I didn't run in the race, I think I have race fever!

Pomegranate / Edamame / Millet Tabbouleh

2011-01-11T12:48:00.000-08:00

Happy Tuesday, Lovebugs! My Yoga Challenge is going Swimmingly...Although I am still not 100% back to health after my cold. I still feel sort of draggy...and coughy....and just bleh...but! Yoga and healthful foods are certainly helping.

Yesterday I tried this almond honey butter from Hopkins AG. It was delish on top of my oatmeal. I bought this at the Del Mar Farmer's market last Saturday. I also bought some cinnamon sugar almonds and lime and sea salt almonds. To die for!

Today I was wondering what to make for lunch. I had a huge pomegranate to use, about a cup of shelled edamame, and about 2 cups of leftover millet. I also had a big punch of parsley. I thought to make a spin on Tabbouleh! Boy, am I glad I did. This was exploding with flavor and has all the nutrients you need for a healthy lunch!

Tabbouleh is such a versatile dish. Traditionally made with bulgar, parsley, green onions, tomatoes, lemon, salt and pepper, and olive oil...I often add in goat cheese, or feta, or garbanzo beans. Pinenuts are a wonderful addition...as really any nuts are great. I also have used cous cous instead of barley which is very quick and tasty. You could also try using another herb or green. I bet finely chopped arugula would be awesome rather than the parsley. And really, you can use any grain you want. Just make sure your grain is mainly cooled, and that your ratio of grain to green is 2:1. See my recipe below.

Pomegranate / Edamame / Millet Tabbouleh

Makes 3 large portions (Nutrition facts are based on 3 huge portions below)

Mix well:

2 cups cooked and cooled millet

1 cup pomegranate seeds

1 cup edamame

1 cup extremely finely chopped flat leaf parsley

juice of 3 lemons (or to taste...I LOVE lemon, so I use a lot)

3-4 TBSP Olive Oil

1 tsp pink himilayan sea salt (or any salt you prefer)

lots of freshly ground black pepper

That's it! I am sure this will be better after sitting for a day, but right now it tastes absolutely delicious. It has protien, fiber, tons of antioxidants...and healthy carbs from the grains that will boost your day. Seriously, I can't believe how tasty this is! See nutritional information below.

Have a great Tuesday!

***(Updated Nutritional Information. I thought the earlier calorie amount was high...I think it was calculating based on dried millet rather than cooked Millet. This looks a bit better.)

Nutrition Facts
3 Servings

Amount Per Serving

Calories		316.7

Total Fat		16.0 g

	Saturated Fat	2.0 g

	Polyunsaturated Fat	1.4 g

	Monounsaturated Fat	10.1 g

Cholesterol		0.0 mg

Sodium		62.0 mg

Potassium		440.8 mg

Total Carbohydrate		36.8 g

	Dietary Fiber	2.6 g

	Sugars	19.3 g

Protein		9.7 g


Vitamin A	42.7 %

Vitamin B-12	0.0 %

Vitamin B-6	9.2 %

Vitamin C	79.7 %

Vitamin D	0.0 %

Vitamin E	13.2 %

Calcium	8.7 %

Copper	8.6 %

Folate	12.0 %

Iron	15.6 %

Magnesium	8.0 %

Manganese	6.9 %

Niacin	5.6 %

Pantothenic Acid	7.9 %

Phosphorus	6.0 %

Riboflavin	5.0 %

Selenium	1.4 %

Thiamin	6.6 %

Zinc	4.7 %

Smoothies are a nutritional gold mine!

2011-01-10T09:38:00.000-08:00

Good morning! Dawn from Florida Coastal Cooking shared a cool website with me...Spark Recipes. It is free and calculates the build up of your recipes. It's not exact because some of the things I used were not listed (it looks like you can add information about your favorite products too!) but this is a general idea.

I made a smoothie this morning and while I know they are good for me, I was shocked at HOW good they are for me!

This morning my smoothie included the following. (NL means the product was not listed on Spark Recipe so I had to improvise...but I think it's pretty close).

1 cup fresh spinach
3/4 cup frozen blueberries
1 frozen banana
1 TBSP flax meal
1 TBSP Peanut Flour (NL)
1 tsp bee pollen (NL)
1 cup hemp milk (I added this one in, although it does not allow a spot for Omega 3 ALA, and my hemp milk has 46% the daily recommended amount)

While my smoothie was high in calories, it is extremely high in nutrition too! look at this!

Calories		479.4

Total Fat		19.4 g

	Saturated Fat	2.6 g

	Polyunsaturated Fat	10.3 g

	Monounsaturated Fat	5.7 g

Cholesterol		0.0 mg

Sodium		236.1 mg

Potassium		1,002.5 mg

Total Carbohydrate		73.8 g

	Dietary Fiber	12.6 g

	Sugars	40.8 g

Protein		12.7 g


Vitamin A	69.6 %

Vitamin B-12	20.0 %

Vitamin B-6	45.2 %

Vitamin C	38.4 %

Vitamin D	15.0 %

Vitamin E	20.1 %

Calcium	42.5 %

Copper	11.7 %

Folate	25.7 %

Iron	21.7 %

Magnesium	22.8 %

Manganese	37.5 %

Niacin	19.0 %

Pantothenic Acid	6.5 %

Phosphorus	11.4 %

Riboflavin	14.7 %

Selenium	4.1 %

Thiamin	9.2 %

Zinc	6.2 %

Not a bad way to start a Monday! Have a great week, everyone!

Yoga Challenge Day 3 and the Farmer's Market

2011-01-08T16:51:00.000-08:00

Hello Lovlies,

Today was round three of the yoga challenge and I did...ok. I am still not 100% healthy so I feel weak and shaky in class. But...despite that, I got my vinyasa on for an hour today, did some deep breathing, and got seriously sweaty. I felt great afterwards and am always happy when I go to class.

Aaron and I had lunch at The Roxy in Enicintas, a funky little vegetarian friendly dinner. It was an odd little place. I had falafel and a big arse salad.

Afterwards, Aaron and I ran a few errands. I am looking for a new yoga mat as the one I bought in March is already falling apart. I think I found the winner at Jois Yoga in Encinitas. It's $65, which is costly, but given how much time I spend on it, I think it's worth it. Anyone have any good mat recommendations? Mine is crumbling apart because I use a Yogi Toes towel on top. I don't think I like thick ones too much either...while they are great for comfort, they tend to get really swampy in hot yoga...ewe.

I also got Aaron to do something he rarely does....go to a farmer's market! I just made a big trip to Trader Joe's so I didn't need much, but I did get some pretty plum blossoms that smell lovely, a large bushel of rosemary and parsley (for 1 BUCK!), some incredible almonds...lime and sea salt, honey and cinnamon, and almond honey butter. The honey is from bees that spend their time on the almond trees. Unreal.

I made this little dish in a pottery class I took in 2009.

I took about 25 pictures and only a few turned out. The lighting in my house is awful...AND I need a better camera, but at least you get the idea. I hope you are all enjoying your weekend!

Yoga Challenge Day 1? Round 2.

2011-01-07T10:23:00.000-08:00

Well, I took a yoga class last night after skipping Wednesday due to feeling like crap. Last night's class was AH-MAH-ZING. Seriously. I was still pretty weak and shaky, but for the most part could hold my own and really got into the whole yoga "zen" thing. I felt so relaxed and my mind was calm. So I am starting over my 30 day challenge as of yesterday. I am so happy to be on the way!

Also, my food "cleanse" has been going great. I have made some really tasty foods and have had no trouble with staying away from dairy, processed carbs and refined sugars. I feel so healthy when I eat a vegan, whole foods diet, it just makes me feel like I should eat this way all the time. I always say "I love fish, eggs, and cheese too much to give them up"....maybe true, but after all I have read in the book Gristle...and others books...I am beginning to think I shouldn't eat that stuff anymore. More on that later.

In the meantime, I thought I would do a quick summary of what I ate yesterday. I typically don't count calories, per se, but I do have general idea of the caloric build up of my foods and aim for three 400-ish calorie meals allowing for a few snacks in between if I am hungry, for a total calorie intake of no more than 1800 calories daily. I would love to use the calculator Dawn from Florida Coastal Cooking uses...one of my favorite blogs with great recipe ideas and gorgeous pictures of Florida.

Anyway, I thought I would do a guesstimate of yesterdays food, and also give you all a sample of what I am eating.

Breakfast
1.5 servings of steel cut oats 225 c
2 TBSP chopped cashews 80 c
2 TBSP chopped dried cherries 60 c
1 tsp raw local honey 20 c
1/4 cup hemp milk 30 c
Total 415

Lunch
Steamed and lightly sauteed:
1/2 tsp olive oil 20 c
1/2 head of cabbage 24c
1/2 carrot 3c
2 green onions 15c
Drizzled with: 1 TBSP Flax Seed Oil 100c
2 TBSP Sesame seeds 100c
Drops of Ume Plum Vinegar (nominal calories)
Total 269

Snack
5 dried apricots 100

Snack.
2 TBSP homemade hummus with carrot, celery and bell pepper sticks 100

Dinner
1 (AMAZING!) Lentil burger from 101 Cookbooks. Seriously, this was so good. It was fun to cut the burger in half and stuff it...I didn't miss a bun at all and have to agreed with Heidi that sometimes eating a veggie burger in a bun can seem a bit "bready" I subbed for the breadcrumbs some brown rice and chickpea flour, and for the onions, I used green onions and cilantro. I also halved the recipe. Also...I used plain green lentils and it worked out fine. These were SO good. I can't wait to eat one of the leftovers. I am really going to have to guess on this one's calorie build up. I would guess 225 c?
Stuffed with 1/2 small avocado 100c
and arugula 20c
and topped with some of this incredible dressing, maybe 45c?
I put some of the arugula and avocado on the side too for a little side salad with the dressing. It as an awesome dinner.
Total 390c

Dessert
5 dried apricots 100c
2 cuties tangerines 80c

Wow...this is surprising, my total for yesterday was about 1454 calories. Hmm, less than I thought! Well, I am really going to have to think about this. I was never hungry yesterday and ate enough to fuel my yoga workout, a long day of work, a trip to Trader Joe's, cooking, and reading a whole book. Not to mention, two loads of laundry and playing with Peroni for about a half hour. I think I am going to need to do some calculations of how much I should be eating to meet my goals and have enough fuel for my day. I think I might be over guessing how much I actually need. I am not really into counting calories...I try to eat intuitively...meaning, "am I really hungry?" and "what does my body really want right now?" and eating accordingly. But I do have some goals about how I want my body to look, so I might have to reconsider some of this.

Well, I hope you all have a wonderful day. I will be back with updates on this whole calorie thing. I am a bit baffled. In the meantime...please try that Green Goddess Salad dressing and those lentils burgers. Yum!

Yoga Challenge Day 1?

2011-01-05T09:34:00.000-08:00

Well, yesterday I thought I was finally getting over my cold so I decided to go to my 1st of 30 yoga classes as I planned in "kicking off 2011 right". I took a P1 class which is the easiest of about 5 levels of classes at my studio. I usually go to the 3 hardest classes. But given that I had been out of town for a week and then sick for a week, I thought I should ease in. I am not going to lie. It was hard. Really hard. However, I felt better afterwards and thought I was on the way to recovery. Not so. I woke up today feeling more tired and ill than I felt yesterday. My back is also killing me, and I can't tell if that is from yoga, or from my cold, or because I am sleeping in the guest room as now Aaron is sick! Argh! Well, I just keep telling myself positive thoughts, am drinking copious amounts of herbal tea, eating lots of veggies and tasty vegan foods, popping vitamin C and Zinc like it's candy, and hoping that tomorrow will be a better day. (Who knows, maybe this afternoon will bring a second wind!)

I hope all of your January's are off to a great and healthy start!

Christmas Cooking Gifts and Healthy Meals...

2011-01-03T19:06:00.000-08:00

I was a very good girl this year because Santa brought me tons of cooking and kitchen gadgets! Below you can see my new pizza stone! and a new baking rack for roasting veggies on, and a Le Creuset Cast Iron Skillet! and a lovely large new tea pot. My old tea pot kept scalding me with steam. Bad.

Below here you will see the Rancho Gordo Heirloom Bean Cookbook and some beans in the background. My dad thought I was nuts to ask for beans for Christmas, but hey, it's what I wanted. My sweet friend Jessica gave me one of her dad's prized cutting boards, hand made with trimmings from the fruit trees she climbed in the midwest as a child. Such a sweet and pretty gift!

Another shot of the lovely beans....I made some last night simmered simply with garlic and onions. I topped them off with some sea salt and freshly chopped cilantro. Served with a side salad, what a great and healthy dinner! I encourage you to take a look at the Rancho Gordo website. This guy is doing some amazing things with one of the healthiest things you can eat. Thomas Keller even wrote the forward. I found out about this guy due to Heidi Swanson, she is always talking about his beans.

These are the prettiest little measuring spoons Aaron picked out for me at Anthropologie.

And these are the cutest measuring cups I have ever seen! Aaron picked these out too!

Aaron also picked out these pretty wooden tea spoons for me.

Such a lucky chef! To start off January right, I have already made some wonderful food. I cooked a chowder inspired by Vegetarian Times with corn, potatoes, red quinoa, soy milk, veggie broth, and lots of seasonings. It is fabulous and tastes so rich but it's really not and it's great for you.

Below is a simple pesto I made with a bunch of arugula, and handful of pinenuts, lemon juice and olive oil. It tastes great mixed into soups, eggs, rice, noodles, whatever you want!

Tonight I mixed it in with some simple steamed green lentils and topped that with a mixture of this pretty purple kale sauteed with some onions, bell peppers, and fresh herbs. You can also see the pretty olive platter that Aaron brother and sister in law gave us for Christmas.

I am off to eat my veggies!

Kicking off 2011 right...

2011-01-02T18:18:00.000-08:00

January is a great time to do some sort of a cleanse and start the year off right. I have done this for the past few years and it is a great way to get rid of all the crap and sugar I eat during the holidays and just really clear the slate for the new year.

I am fighting a cold, so hopefully it is gone soon. As soon as I am back to healthy, I am going to do a 30 day cleanse and yoga challenge. I had hoped to start today, but when I am sick I can't do yoga, and all I want to eat is bread, pasta, and white rice. I think I am getting better, so hopefully I can start in the next day or so.

Here are the guidelines:

With the exception of eggs and fish, I am going to eat a vegan diet. No dairy at all.

No "white" or processed carbohydrates. No white bread, no pasta. I still plan on eating whole grains and beans, but just want to take a break from bad white carbs that make me fat, tired, and hungry for more.

Limit salt. I can't eat food that doesn't taste good, and I don't think most food tastes good without salt, but I am just going to monitor it and try to use more fresh herbs and healthy seasonings.

No processed or packaged foods. I don't eat much of this anyway, but I am going to omit it all together.

Try to eat some raw dishes, perhaps once or twice a week.

No alcohol.

***One more thing....no processed sugar. If I need a treat I might have some vegan dark chocolate, dried fruit, or some organic apple cider from the farmers market. But I really want to limit or eliminate all of that if I can. I just want to make sure I stay on track, and if that happens by giving myself a few concessions, well then so be it.

Basically I am going to eat a wholesome, healthy, diet based on plant products with lots of fresh veggies, fruit, whole grains, nuts, etc. This is the way that I feel I should eat all the time, and I know I will feel great after a few days of eating this way. I hope it entices me to eat like this more often throughout the year. (I love fish and cheese, so I don't think I can ever give those up, but I can try to eat the best I can as much as possible).

Last but not least, 30 straight days of yoga. We don't have any trips planned and no visitors so far, so this should be attainable as long as I don't get injured or sick again.

I also want to start running, but I am not sure how much time I will have with doing yoga everyday and working hard to start the new year off right with my job.

I encourage everyone to do some sort of cleanse in January. When I was still eating meat, I did the fat flush plan which works GREAT. The first few days I felt super sleepy, but then I felt suddenly fabulous, with lots and lots of energy. My skin was lovely and my sleep was perfect. It's tough to do anything like that without eating meat, so I am hoping my new approach will work for me.

Here is to a healthy 2011 for everyone!

Farewell 2010!

2011-01-02T18:06:00.000-08:00

Every year I reflect on what has happened and what I would like to happen next. I make a list of goals rather than resolutions and write them on a pretty piece of paper. I post that paper inside my medicine cabinet so that I look at it (or it looks at me) at least twice a day. 2010 has had it's challenges, mainly of the financial manner. While I did not meet all of my goals for 2010, I accomplished most of them, and a few other things along the way.

2010 Goals

#1 Be a kinder girlfriend and person. Stop judging, stressing, and bossing.
Well, I think I did fairly well on this, although I suppose it would be best to ask Aaron and others what they think. I think that Aaron and I are getting along very well and everyday learn how to care for and enjoy each other better. I have realized that I really need to listen more, however.

#2 Read 20 books.
Well, does it count that I read about 35 blogs on a daily basis? Ok, ok, it doesn't. I completed 14 books and am halfway through 3 others. I have to admit that I haven't had any books grab me since the Twilight series. Embarrassing!!!! I have also added two magazines to my monthly reads, so it's not like I haven't been reading, I just haven't completed all the books I have wanted to.

#3 Get out of debt, earn a specified amount, and save a specified amount.
Well, none of these happened. I attribute that to the economy and my challenging work situation over the past year.

#4 Blog, take more photos, and get involved in other art.
Well, I did start the blog which was huge. I did take more photos that usual, so that is great too. I bought all the supplies I need to do Asian brush painting, but I just haven't done it yet. Getting there, I suppose.

#5 Go camping 5 times
Well, I didn't do this either. I attribute that to the fact that Aaron and I had barely any free weekends this summer, and our summer was cold and gray, which made us hermits. We didn't really feel like camping. We went once and it was lovely.

#6 Take a one week vacation with Aaron
We did this! We went to Maui for over a week. Yahoo! Goal accomplished. We also just spent a week in Arizona for Christmas.

#7 Find professional calling and work towards it.
Well, I think I am most proud of this one! I was miserable working for the start up where I was and when I was laid off, I decided to start my own company. I am my own boss, I have closed a few deals, and everything is coming together. Certainly something to be proud of.

#8 Yoga 5 times a week.
I think I did a great job of this when I could. I couldn't always keep up if we had guests in town, or if I had an injury, but for the most part I went 5 times a week. I also completed 30 straight days of yoga in March.

#9 Walk Peroni everyday.
I think I walked Peroni 9/10 days, and some days I walked him twice, so I think I got this one in the bag.

#10 Clean and simplify! Get rid of stuff!
I definitely did this, taking about 15 trips to the Goodwill. Also given my financial situation, I wasn't adding anything, so I definitely made a dent here. I would like to get rid of more, so this continues to be a goal.

Looking back at my accomplishments for the year, starting the blog, my own company, and furthering my yoga practice, I am damn proud. I also stopped eating most animal products in 2010 and no longer eat poultry, beef, pork, etc. I am very proud of the fact that I am helping my body and making the environment a better place by choosing to eat the way I do. While 2010 was overwhelming, stressful, and sometimes just sucky, I think I definitely pushed through and had some great times. 2011 can only be better!

My goals for 2011 are similar to 2010, but here it goes:

#1 Get out of debt, save a certain amount, and make a certain amount. (Those amounts are private...ahem).

#2 Visit my sister in NYC, and take a trip to Seattle or Portland and perhaps Texas to visit my step dad.

#3 Blog once a week.

#4 Eat a wholesome, healthy, vegan diet 80% of the time, and it's ok if 20% of the time I eat fish or dairy products.

#5 Read 25 books.

#6 Run a 10k! (Ahh! Did I really just put that out into the world?)

#7 STOP INTERRUPTING PEOPLE, especially Aaron. It's super annoying.

#8 Make my focus on being active: Do yoga, run, bike, walk, just be more fit overall.

#9 Simplify. Get rid of more stuff. No one needs 80 pairs of shoes.

#10 Continue to grow artistically. More photography and other art forms.

I hope you all have enjoyed the holidays and that your goals for the year are coming into clear focus.

Happy New Year! I am off to make a healthy and comforting dinner.

Hana Treehouse!

2010-12-17T09:42:00.000-08:00

So as I mentioned, Aaron and I just went to visit my dad in Maui. We had a great time...especially when we went to Hana and stayed in a TREEHOUSE! To be honest, it was an adventure...TONS of mosquitoes, lots of spiders, toilet outside in the jungle, insanely large avocados were pummeling the roof all night. Needless to say, I did not get much sleep. But we could see the ocean from where we were and the drive to Hana was gorgeous.

Here we are at the beach:

Here we are having mai tais! Yum!

Here we are in the bottom of an extremely scary lava tube. I felt like Indiana Jones!

Here is the inside of the treehouse!

These flowers grew all around the treehouse wild. It was literally in the middle of the jungle. We had to drive through mud to get to it, and then we had to hike through lots more mud to get up to the treehouse. There were no people around...except menehunes!!!

These are the towels for the shower that was outside. Not a good idea with the amount of mosquitoes everywhere! Seriously, we got eaten.

Here is the firemaster bringing us light...since there was no electricity!

The man that owns this property has built treehouses all over the world. He wrote a book about it and Aaron was taking a look.

See all those citronella candles in the background? They didn't really work that well. There were all kinds of dead bugs inside the candles in the morning.

In the background is the ocean. It's about 1.5 miles away. It was raining like crazy.

This is where we ate our dinner which was purchased at Mana Foods which was the coolest store in a cute little town called Paia. In the background you can see the "bathroom".

This is the side of the treehouse. Right below we found 5 pound avocados which were knocked off in the middle of the night. They could have killed us! There were tons of guavas and other things that the storm had knocked off branches. It was wild.

The treehouse was three stories with the bedroom in the middle. The top floor was really cool with great view but it had a grass roof which was ineffective against all that rain, so we stayed on the middle floor most of the time.

The sun came out in the morning and it was so pretty.

We had dinner at Lahaina Grill one night and the famous Amanda made an appearance! We had a blast catching up since we hadn't seen each other since high school.

Here are me and my dad.

All in all...a great trip to Maui. Lots of relaxing, healthy foods, lots of exercise. It was the first vacation in a while where I actually lost a few pounds! Aaron and I were so active the whole time. My dad and I also took lots of long walks, which was lovely! I must warn you, if you decide to do the treehouse, bring lots of bug spray! It was not for the faint of heart.

Tidbits

2010-12-17T09:21:00.000-08:00

Hi Bloggies! Well...it's been a while. I don't really have an excuse: work, travel, yoga? Where have I been? Well, I have been cooking lots of vegetable delights (much to the chagrin of poor Aaron) and have been working, was in Maui, and have been having fun. I love blogging but am not good at keeping up with it, clearly.

Moving on, let's talk about some cooking tidbits.

These cookies from Eat, Live, Run are wonderful. I made some and brought them on a trip to Maui to visit my dad for Thanksgiving. I highly recommend them. I think mine were made even better with freshly harvested walnuts from a good friends family farm!

This recipe for soba noodles and other delicious ingredients made a great introduction to vegetarian cooking for my dad in Maui. Made with farm fresh baby eggplants from Hana Fresh, which Amanda so perfectly displayed here. I substituted Mango with pineapple and it was delish!

I have a new found love for cabbage...really! I have never really liked it before, but it's so crunchy and versatile, I am really digging it.

Here are some cabbage ideas:

Cabbage, apple, and nut slaw: Shred some green cabbage, slice some apples, toss with lemon juice or apple cider vinegar, olive oil, salt and pepper. Top with pinenuts or walnuts...absolutely wonderful. Even Aaron really liked this.

Steamed cabbage with ume vinegar and flax oil: Gently steam some cabbage (this works well with bok choy too) but leave some crunch. Top with flax see oil, a dash of ume plum vinegar, sesame seeds and salt. OMG. Sounds so simple but really, really, really tasty and good for you!

Shredded cabbage tastes great mixed into green salads, topped on tacos, and sauteed into stir frys. Give it a whirl!

We recently celebrated Aaron's promotion at work by dining out at this restaurant. Holy moly. This place is not joking around! Sapporo on draft, hot hand towels, freshly made pickled cabbage, gorgeous dishes and glasses, wonderfully fresh fish, lots of veggie options, perfect Japanese decor...I think we found our new favorite sushi place.

Last, I have had lots of cooking failures lately. I mean...so bad I threw the stuff out. Am I off, or is it just trying new dishes that don't always work? Probably the latter. I am going to keep trying new stuff and hopefully I have more wins then failures.

Cooking Failures and Wins

2010-10-19T21:10:00.000-07:00

Well...I had hoped to have some wonderful dishes to share with you today. I sat down on Sunday with a list of what produce I had on hand in the kitchen....fresh pumpkin, butternut squash, fresh tomatoes, kale, chard, cabbage, carrots, etc....and made a menu plan for the week. Mochi dumplings, pumpkin and chickpea stew, black bean soup, and apple spice cookies were all on the menu. Everything sounded wonderful! Well, not everything has turned out quite as I had imagined....

First, let's look at one WIN:

Apple Spice Cookies, Adapted from Vegetarian Times Magazine:

2 1/2 cups whole wheat flour
1 1/2 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp ground ginger
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp freshly grated nutmeg
1/4 tsp sea salt
1/2 cup and 2 TBSP canola oil
2 cup peeled, cored and grated fresh apple
3/4 cup sugar, plus some for coating
1/4 cup molasses
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/4 cup finely chopped or grated crystallized ginger

Preheat oven to 350 and line two baking sheets with parchment paper.

Whisk dry ingredients in a bowl.

Mix wet ingredients in a separate bowl.

Fold wet ingredients into dry ingredients.

It will be messy. Roll 1/4 cup balls of dough and roll into more sugar for a nice coating. It's a big mess, but worth it.

Place 2 inches apart on cookie sheets and bake for 20 minutes.

These cookies are great the first day or two, but start to get a bit soggy afterwards. If you make them with whole wheat flour they are pretty healthy. I have been eating them with tea for breakfast as they are more like muffins. If you don't plan to share, I would halve the recipe. Even a bit soggy, they are delicious. I was lazy, so I put the apples and the ginger in the food processor. I used freshly picked apples from my cousin Rosemary's tree. You could also use applesauce, but I would add less oil and you might need a bit more flour. They are really pretty tasty, though, and vegan, to boot! Aaron even likes them. :) Cooking WIN #1.

Some of the failures as of late have been heart breaking. I had high hopes and really dug deep into my cookbook collection to really plan out this week's meals. I usually have a loose plan, but really wanted to make sure I was using up all of my gorgeous CSA produce. I spent about two hours on Sunday looking at cookbooks, my magazine clippings, and my recipe box. I really planned everything out and decided to try some recipes I have been wanting to try for quite a while.....

Well, this didn't go well. These are some mochi dumplings I have had ear marked in Clean Food since the first day I read it. This is the second time I tried to use mochi....I just am not feeling it. It sticks to your teeth when you cook it. It's weird. I stuffed these with a veggie mix that was tasty, but Aaron and I could not get past the texture of the mochi. Failure #1.

We made the dumplings with the salad from The Grains of Paradise from Flatbread's....a place in Paia I can't wait to visit. I printed out the recipe from Amanda's blog...it is a simple salad with rice vinegar, oil, sesame seeds, I used some nice lettuce, lemon cucumbers, organic pre-fried tofu, carrots, hijiki,, etc. This was all great and I should have LEFT IT ALONE! ...But I did not leave good enough alone. I thought the dressing was too sour, so I added a little sesame paste. The sesame paste over powered the whole thing and gave it a really weird taste. I am sure it would have been great without it. BLECK! Bad dinner. Cooking Failure #2.

The next dinner we had was a WIN!...but I made the recipe up myself! I guess sometimes I should go with my gut.

Black Bean Soup (I added whatever I had in the fridge...use what ever veggies you have on hand.)
1/2 chopped white onion
1 whole chopped purple onion
2 chopped carrots
1 chopped yellow bell pepper
1 fresh bay leaf (these keep forever! buy them...they make a HUGE difference and last for a couple of months in the fridge, seek them out from a farmer if you can)
EVOO
S and P

Saute for about 5 minutes.

Add in 2 cups of dried black beans that soaked in water overnight (or use two cans of black beans and reduce cooking time)
Add one 15 oz can roasted tomatoes
Add 4-6 cups water or stock (I started with 3 and added more as the beans soaked it up)

Simmer until you reach your desired consistency. I added lots of chopped cilantro on top. Yum. It would be great with some lime, cheddar cheese, or greek yogurt or sour cream on top. I am cutting down on dairy, but would have enjoyed any of these toppings. It was fine without, too. I actually had some of this soup for lunch today with a small piece of sourdough toast...OMG, it was great!!!!! Cooking WIN #2.

What else was a fail? I bought some frozen lobster tails on sale for $4.99 each and was actually only charged for one of them. Good deal, right? WRONG! They were fishy and gross. Cooking FAILURE #3!!!

Tonight I made some stuffed chard leaves from Vefa's Kitchen, a great Greek cookbook. These turned out ok, but it was more like a casserole. My chard leaves fell apart so the rice and vegetable stuffing fell out everywhere. They looked awful, but actually tasted pretty good. I guess this was a WIN / FAILURE combo. I took pictures but they were too hideous to share.

Tally: Wins...3, Failures, 4

Part of going into the kitchen night after night is that you don't necessarily know what you are going to come out with. It could be the best you have made, it could be the worst, or it could be a good lesson for the next time you try the recipe. It's only Tuesday, and I have 5 more meals planned for the week....so I have something to look forward to!

In the meantime, I leave you with Peroni...his dinner (actually...his breakfast) is always the same....and he always loves it, especially when I mix in some carrots for him. :)

Get in your kitchen, don't be afraid to fail...you might just win!

San Diego Back Country....

2010-10-17T18:42:00.000-07:00

One of my favorite things to do in San Diego County is to head out to Julian for the day. I actually prefer to get a cozy hotel room, rent a cabin or camp overnight, but the day drive out is fun too. Yesterday was a dreary (and lovely!) fall day and Julian seemed like the place to go. Sometimes all the freeways, traffic and people in San Diego get to me....and I just want to be where there are open spaces and old world charm. Julian and the drive there has it all. They also have some cute little wineries, restaurants, and tons of apple orchards. It is actually apple harvest right now so most people go and pick some apples. We have some many apples from our CSA and my cousin Rosemary's house that we thought it would be a waste.

First we stopped in Santa Ysabel which is on the way. We went to this really odd little "treasure shop" with lots of faux indian goods...mostly made in Pakistan? It was VERY odd.....

I actually really wanted this basket but couldn't buy it once I realized it was made in Pakistan? Seemed to odd?

Hsss.....

So, we ventured out to Hawk Watch (which is actually outside of Julian). It was a bit of a long drive, but the wine was very nice and the owners were so friendly. The winery was very pretty too...lots of over sized pots of flowers, big white wooden chairs everywhere, and two fat cats watching over the whole thing. I definitely recommend checking it out.

Next up, we went to the oddest fruit stand I have ever encountered. There were three random people sitting in chairs on the side of the road selling all of these random squashes, pumpkins, tomatoes, peppers, etc. I wanted to take a picture, but was worried they might get a riffle and shoot me. The roads in this part of the county are definitely....rustic? I bought some lemon cucumbers and a little edible pumpkin.

We then ventured to a biker bar called The Hideout, which is right by the lake we camped at earlier in the year. There were plenty of bikers when we arrived, but they all dissipated as we were there. There were also a handful of rat rods like Aaron's car, but he wouldn't let me take pictures..I guess that is against biker bar policy. As the bikers thinned out, I took some shots and even did some yoga on stage!!!!! Aaron was SO embarrassed. I guess I am not all that tough....at least I like Budweiser!

Then we headed up to Wynola, which is another little town on the way to Julian (we never actually made it to Julian proper...but that is the fun of it, just poking around and finding what you find). We tasted some cider and liked it so much we bought some with some appetizers we had, and we took a couple of bottles home. I think Aaron was over me taking pictures at this point!

All in all, a great fall day in one of my favorite places.

I am LOVING fall. It's been cold and rainy and I just love it. I have a newfound love for squash, pumpkin, sweaters, blankets, cuddling, cider, and baking. I am also loving going to hot yoga...it's pretty easy to get in that hot room when it's cold and rainy outside. I have some new recipes to share...coming soon.

Tahoe....

2010-10-03T11:40:00.000-07:00

In case I never mentioned it, I was born up at Lake Tahoe. I wish I had never left. It is so majestic, peaceful, and I really feel so at home up there. But, unless you are in construction or the skiing or hospitality industry, it's tough to make a living up there. Maybe I will go back upon retiring....

This summer I went up to Tahoe to visit our friends Annie and Reuben, to go to a friend Michelle's wedding, and to take some time off after the tumultuous break from my old company. I got to go boating, see old friends get married, took walks, cooked great food with my friends, spent time at the beach, spent time with my mom, my sister, Aaron, Peroni, Tucker (Annie and Reuben's dog), went to a couple of bars, restaurants, etc. It was just what I needed and I left feeling much more relaxed and at peace then when I got there.

Here is Reuben on his boat....where he belongs!

Aaron and that lovely Tahoe Blue....

I'm happy!!!

Two of my favorite guys.....

Reuben's friend jumping off a dock that should have been condemned......

Thunderbird Lodge.....

Love.....

This is the boat area at the Thunderbird Lodge. I have never seen it open before! I have seen their boat (a classic woody) riding around the lake...

Friends!!! I have known some of these people since before kindergarten!

See what I mean about feeling at peace???

Peroni, don't you think you could help?

Here we are getting ready for the wedding....

At the wedding....

Matching Glasses?

Mom looking quite cute....

My dad used to have a softball team "Scott Construction". This picture is still hanging in a bar in Tahoe City called Pete and Peter's!!! It has been there almost as long as I have been alive! It's really sad, many of these men are dead. My dad is third in from the left on top....

This was an amazing chocolate souffle that Annie cooked for us....

Here is the famous Pete and Peter's.....

Aaron, Reuben and I all jumped off this rock.

Mom looking cute again....

Aaron taking the jump!!!

I am the captain of this ship!!!!!

Looking at giant birds nests...

The nest is at the top of the dead tree.....

Mom ended up getting stuck up at Tahoe for an extra day, so I decided to stay too. We ended up going to the beach and then had a beer at this cute little bar on the beach. It was the most relaxing day I had up there. The rest of the trip was pretty darned busy.

This is Tucker....an incredibly sweet and hyper puppy!!!

Tahoe is always such a nice reprieve. I prefer it in the summer, but would love to head up in the winter again too. I highly recommend it!

Ahhhhhhhhddison

2010-10-03T10:46:00.000-07:00

So, when my dad visited, I mentioned that I needed a whole post dedicated to one of the most amazing things we did. Well, we went to Addison. Addison is an unmatched restaurant in San Diego. It has all kinds of crazy ratings, wins awards constantly, and is really one of a kind for San Diego. In San Francisco and Chicago, there are all kinds of crazy restaurants. This is the real deal, several courses, prepare to be there for hours on end, and prepare to spend a small fortune.

All in all, I am very pleased that we went. Addison is in a gorgeous hotel right around the corner from our home, and I have been wanting to go since the moment I found out about it. The food was absolutely wonderful...breathtakingly good. The ambiance is elegant, the views spectacular, and the wine list unreal. Truly, this is a high class, top notch restaurant.
The only complaint I have was about the service. While the service was impeccable, it was too much. We (Aaron, Dad, and I) kept trying to get one of our 8 waiters to laugh, smile, crack a joke..no! Not so much as a blushing of the cheeks!! These people are SO serious about what they do, and they are damned good at it, but whoa, lighten up. It almost made me uncomfortable. For instance, when I stood to use the ladies room, they came and ESCORTED me. Really. I am not suggesting that you not try to go, but I would not go with someone you don't know well, it is not a place for bustling conversation.

In any case, I will recap the food.

First, they offered us bottled spring or sparkling water, which was included with our dinner and bottomless. I choose sparkling, naturally.

The sommelier offered us champagne, I naturally had a glass of their house champagne, which was wonderful.

Dad ordered a nice soft red Italian wine, which was delicious and we all shared it through out our meal.

One of the really nice things about Addison is that they bring you all kinds of amuse bouches and other little treats in between each course. So we all chose the three course option, but we probably had 8 or 9 total with everything they brought out.

First was a tomato consume. It was unreal. It was so clear, but it was incredibly tomato-y tasting. Very unique. In the background of this picture you can see the pretty view out to the lush golf course and waterfalls. We had a lovely table.

Here is my first course. It was salmon baked in butter. They baked it at a low temp, so the butter just wrapped around every tiny morsel of this fish. It was so rich but so wonderful. I have never had anything like it.

On the side of my salmon was this salad of grapefruit and cucumber. I told the maitre 'd I wanted to lick the bowl of the dressing and he didn't even laugh!!! Kidding aside, this salad as so simple but the flavors were so fresh and bright, and you could really tell how fresh all the ingredients were.

Dad had some kind of burratta cheese with beets. He said it was to die for.

My next course included a large prawn and some white fish. The flavors in each component of this meal were just unreal. So fresh, so elegant, but so simple at the same time. While the portions were quite small, all the dishes had a richness that made them very satisfying.

Aaron had some kind of beef...of course.....

This was a pre-desert....desert. It was two kind of ice cream.....one was honey creamy one and the other was a granita type concoction, I think with grapefruit.

Dad had a canoli....

I had some other kind of honey deliciousness with a peach in peach consume. Wonderful.

This was our after desert-desert, which was a rich pot of chocolate with real 24k gold on top. It was TDF.

Once we had paid our check, the maitre ' d came to walk us out. Our car was waiting for us out the front door, and he handed us these pretty little packages of sea salt caramels to take home. We felt like royalty. It was a wonderful experience but it was a bit stuffy. I am not saying I wouldn't go again....if you treat!!!

Oh summer, where art thou?

2010-10-03T10:15:00.000-07:00

It seemed just days ago that I was complaining that my summer was grey....that I was attending a romantic wedding in Coronado...that my dad visited from afar in Maui....that I was attending an amazing farm dinner....I also went to Tahoe for over a week, attended two other weddings, spent two weekends in San Francisco, spent a weekend in Anaheim and Long Beach and most importantly.....left my job AND....started my own new company!!!!...what a whirlwind!!!! Well, now it's October! I can't believe it. As you can see, I haven't had much time for blogging. I have barely had time to sleep!!!!

Although my summer has been jam packed with travel, friends, family, and the usual yoga, cooking, spending time with my loves....clearly the most ground breaking and life changing was the job situation. As I read back over my posts since January, I can clearly see that I was miserable at my old job. It's so hard to see, or perhaps, to admit, when you are in a relationship with work or a person that is damaging to your soul. I have, unfortunately, been in the former and the latter and while these are painful memories you would like to forget, this is where the learning comes in...the good stuff really starts to happen. My most recent job was a HUGE risk and while I thought the pros outweighed the cons, things didn't work out in the end. I did however, learn some valuable skills and got a large bump in my professional confidence:

I learned that I can manage my own time, am very resourceful, am more respected and well known in my industry that I previously realized...and I learned that I could start and own my own company. I was really propelled to do this with the help and support of Aaron and of my family, but deep down, it's the work and effort I have put in over my recruiting career that has led me to this fantastic decision. Things are going REALLY well, I am just struggling with managing my time (there is SO much to do) and am working quite a bit. But all in all, I have made a wise decision and am sleeping better, feeling better, and all in all just BETTER for it.

While the weather in San Diego was grey non stop, my cloudy head has cleared and this fall is looking as bright as ever.

Believe in yourself, know yourself, and do what makes you happy. Life is way too short to be miserable...at work, in love, and in general. Also, taking chances are risky, but chances can lead to change, and change is what keeps us moving forward.

Food Inc and Michael Pollan

2010-09-01T09:48:00.000-07:00

A good summary of Michael Pollan's food philosophy on one of my favorite blogs:

http://floridacoastalcooking.blogspot.com/2010/09/food-inc.html

Be Wise Ranch CSA Harvest Dinner

2010-08-11T20:53:00.000-07:00

Earlier in July I was lucky enough to be invited to Be Wise Ranch's Harvest Dinner. I have talked about Be Wise again and again...their produce and CSA membership is simply wonderful.

The dinner was truly lovely. The farm is very pretty with huge bushes of tomatoes and other wonderful produce everywhere. The farm is in Escondido and began in 1977. Bill Brammer owns the farm and has seen it through many changes over the years. Most recently, The Witch Creek Fire (which was so damaging to San Diego County) damaged quite a bit of the farm. They are still working through the damage, three years later. Sandra Broussard manages quite a bit of the farms operations, all of the CSA memberships, etc. She is wonderful and you can tell she is very passionate about what she does...as are all of the people at Be Wise. They do not currently have any public viewing available, but you can certainly join their CSA or buy their products at San Diego grocery stores.

For any newbies, CSA stands for Community Supported Agriculture. You basically pay a small membership fee and then every week or every other week, you get a huge box of wonderful organic produce. With Be Wise, they have 30-40 drop spots in San Diego County, so you can certainly find a place near to you. I get a large shipment every other week. The shipment is $30. The produce lasts me and my boyfriend for the whole two weeks! It is such a great deal, you get to try such fresh stuff, and you get to try produce you might not normally buy...which leads to creativity in the kitchen! And if you don't live in San Diego, seek out a CSA in your area! It is so great for the farms, and you get excellent, fresh, in season produce. You will be protecting you and your families health from pesticides and other nasty things that conventional farming does. You will also be helping a local company and saving our environment from all the damaging effects of conventional farming. If you can't join a CSA, at least shop at a farmer's market for your produce. Support local farmers! It is so important. Last, if you can't find a CSA, and you can't find a farmer's market, go to Trader Joe's and look for local produce. Trader Joe's buys some of their produce from Be Wise and I am sure that they practice that in other areas of the country as well.

Please look at their Be Wise's website for lots of history and more information on the CSA.

It is truly amazing that a local farm produces this high quality produce right in a suburb of San Diego in this day and age. Not only do they grow wonderful stuff, they also create a wonderful workplace for their employees...most of their employees have been there at least 15 years!!!!

Now...onto the good stuff!!!!

Here is Sandra giving me a tour of their state of the art packing facility. This is a new building because the original was burned in the fire.

They have lots and lots and lots of tomatoes.....it smelled like blue cheese in there to me strangely, but Sandra said it was all these beauties I was smelling:

Here is the room we had champagne in and also got to hear Bill talk about the farm and how important the CSA program is. They have about 2500 members!!!!

This is where we were setting up along with the caterers, Dining Details

Here are some pictures of the farm in Escondido. Those are all tomatoes! All kinds of varieties.....

The farm is part of the San Pasqual Valley Agricultural Preserve, so they don't own the land, they lease it.

Here is where the dinner was! So whimsical...It really seemed like something out of an Anthropologie Catalog. It kind of reminded me of a scene from the most recent Marie Antoinette movie by Sophia Coppola.

This was the area for the band and cocktail hour. Again, so whimsical with all the random upholstered chairs. I loved it. I really felt like I was in a fairy tale!

Baby lettuce for CSA members....

This piece of equipment actually can fit over and around all those rows of tomatoes for spreading minerals or other natural ingredients to make those maters grow big and juicy!

After my leisurely tour of the farm with Sandra, a bit of panic set in. There were about 25-30 flower arrangements that needed to be made! Sandra asked if I would mind helping and of course I helped! She had a huge box of basil and squash blossoms to mix in with the flowers. It was SO fun. I felt like I must have been in flower heaven.

Here is where the madness began:

Here are some of the finished products...literally in the nick of time.....

Here is the bar set up complete with white wine, red wine, and a local beer on tap:

And here is the set up with the tables, flowers, etc:

Here is the band...jamming away!

Here are some guests:

This little shrimp and gazpacho was unreal. The soup was nice and chilled and it was great to cool off...it was about 98 degrees out there....

Everyone was called to the table and there were all kinds of little heirloom tomatoes decorating the tables.

The table also had bread with almonds, various sea salts, and avocado butter. It was all delicious.

The first course of dinner was some kind of shortrib, so I did not try it.

Next was an "intermezzo" which had tomato granita, dill, cucumbers, and radish. It was so refreshing and even though it was a fancy preparation you really could taste all the vegetables and herbs so well. Dining Details did a great job of using Be Wise produce and really making the natural flavors shine through.

Next was this salad which was delectable! It had a goat cheese stuffed squash blossom, tomatoes, avocado, green onion, cilantro and grapefruit. It was so interesting with all of these different layers and textures. Plus, if it has goat cheese, it wins me over.

Then came the main course. There was a vegetarian option of a stuffed tomato, but I love fish. This was wild salmon with a basil and mustard crust, beet risotto, zucchini ribbons, corn puree, and cherry tomatoes. Again, this had so many layers of flavors and textures...and although it was a fancy preparation, all of the flavors of the produce really stood out.

Last was dessert. We each got two little desserts: peach pie and almond sherry cake with blueberry compote. They were both unreal.

I feel so lucky to have attended such an eloquent dinner with such a passionate farm. There were so many heartfelt, dedicated people working at the farm, you could feel it in the air. Thank you Sandra for inviting me!

Here Sandra and I are together:

Thank you Be Wise Ranch for an incredible night, and for bringing me so close to my food.