Moving Day

I've wanted to do this for a long time, but this blog has officially moved!  To continue following, I'll be at internalignition.wordpress.com.  Please keep following me, and thank you for everything!

Day 103--So Long Self

Admittedly there is a double entendre with this blog title.  I thoroughly enjoyed my day off from school, sleeping in, having a great work out, eating good food, relaxing, hanging out with friends...but its important we don't lose sight of WHY we get today off.  Because of my Savior's willingness to die, I can wake up each and every day, whether early or late, skinny or fat, with friends or alone, and know that my human self doesn't matter one stinking bit because Christ has redeemed my soul.  So on this Good Friday, I say So Long Self...not only are you a great workout song, but you're also a reminder of exactly who I am.  To use one of my favorite quotes: "I don't have a soul.  I AM a soul. I have a body."  And my soul is redeemed.

Breakfast--Return of the Steel Cut Oats.  It's been a while since I woke up early enough or with enough time to make some steel cut oats, but it was well worth it today.  I had about a third of a cup of dry oats with a tablespoon or so of peanut butter stirred in.  Delicious and filling.

Exercise--I hopped on the elliptical to try to save my legs some impact abuse, and I could immediately tell the difference.  It wasn't a taxing workout from a fatigue, weariness, "I'm about to fall over here" standpoint, and yet my heart rate was elevated and I maintained a great pace for about twenty minutes.  I also did some weight work, and then the kicker, some body weight squats.  Between the new cardio on the elliptical and the squats, my quads are VERY unhappy right now.  Might have overdone it a bit.

Lunch--Two peanut butter and jelly sandwiches on whole wheat with jalapeno chips. I tried my new strawberry rhubarb preserves...kinda funky with the peanut butter.  And it almost has an autumnal flavor to it with the spices, so it was very out of place.  I think it would have been incredible about 6 months ago.  Whoops.

Dinner--Sushi!  Went to Miyako sushi with some of Abby's friends from optometry school and had a great time.  We split the spicy tuna roll with crunchy rice and I had the S&M roll (no idea why its called that...maybe because it's supposed to be spicy?) while Abby had the crunchy roll.  Oh, and I also had grilled jalapeno sushi, which literally consisted of half of a grilled jalapeno with sushi rice bound with seaweed.  I think the jalapeno was pickled in some soy sauce, because it was AMAZING.  The whole meal was great, because I love fish, and it was very well prepared.  We will certainly be going back.

So Good Friday = truly good.  And I'll leave you with the witty, and thought-provoking, tweet of one Mo Rocca:  TGIGF!!

Day 102--A Welcome Speed Bump

So, I was truckin' along, heading towards more weight loss glory, and then BAM: Thursday happened.  Whoops.

Breakfast--I overslept by a good 45 minutes today, waking up shortly after I need to leave my apartment to get to school on time.  This led to me grabbing a Fiber One bar as I was walking around the classroom getting stuff ready for the day.  Terrible breakfast.

Lunch--"Chicken" sandwich.  Usually I don't mind today, because its a chicken patty sandwich (not the greatest, but at least no sauce/cheese/unnecessary fat addition) with baked potato wedges and asparagus.  The chicken wasn't bad, but the potato wedges were cold and the asparagus was literally swimming in butter. Like, it had a yellowish tinge from the fat.  GROSS.  So I finished it off with a piece of bread and Justin's chocolate peanut butter for a more filling meal.

Snack--A couple of my delicious cookies.  Probably the best thing I've ever baked. Seriously.  I have students who will back me up on this.

Dinner--Tonight we had a gathering of friends (party just sounds weird and strangely ineffective to describe tonight) at the St. Germains.  Met a lot of new people, had some wonderful pizza and cupcakes (yep...) and had an all-around great time.  Thanks for the invite guys!

So there you have it.  Bad sleeping habits, unhealthy meals, no exercise...took me three days to fall back into bad habits.  The good news is that I have tomorrow off to work out and undo some of the damage, and I drank a lot of water today to help keep me relatively full in the in between.  So we'll see how bad things are tomorrow!

Day 101--Who Knew MercyMe Was Great Workout Music?!

The beauty of a four-day week at school is that Thursday suddenly becomes Friday and we all get to relax a day earlier.  The unfortunate side is that sometimes you forget what day it is, like today when I thought Wednesday was actually Tuesday and so I forgot to go to Science Olympiad.  Oops.  The ironic thing is that I had a conversation at lunch today about how if it wasn't for chapel I actually would forget what day it was...and then I did. Fail.

Breakfast--Cinnamon Swirl oatmeal.  Start the day out with fiber and you'll feel fuller than normal...which is a good thing when trying to lose some pounds.

Snack--Fiber On...FAKE OUT.  I actually consciously ate something else, which in this case was about three palmfuls of smokehouse almonds.  Probably too many, but it was only 260 calories, which is a great dose of protein and healthy fats (also nice when trying to feel full.)

Lunch--My beautiful wife decided to bring me lunch today!  I had a footlong turkey, toasted with bacon, lettuce, green peppers, cucumbers, jalapenos, and black pepper from Subway along with half a bag of Baked Lays BBQ.  The food was good...having lunch with Abby was better.  Thanks babe!

Dinner--No snack...took a nap instead.  Abby is spending the evening with some of her friends from Optometry school, so I was on my own.  She likes to work out before dinner, and I'd rather do it afterwards when I have more energy from the food.  Therefore, the schedule was flipped today.  For dinner, I took the two extra burger patties from yesterday, half an onion, and three eggs and made breakfast tacos with some corn tortillas.  It was great, and should have been a solid dose of protein from all the meat and eggs.

Dessert--I made cookies. Chocolate chocolate chip cookies to be exact.  In fact, I undercooked them a bit so they were warm, gooey, chocolatey...and I had the willpower to only eat one.  Holla.  The rest shall be gifts...I just like baking, even if the results make me large (and in charge).

Exercise--I ran about two miles, and I actually mean ran.  I've always had problems staying focused running, because I usually get bored out of my mind and then I focus on how tired I am and then I quit.  Today I went with the Generous Mr. Lovewell album from MercyMe, and WOW.  Whenever I got tired, a song like Move, All of Creation, or Beautiful would come on and I would get this incredible burst of energy.  I spent all of All of Creation running with my hands lifted in praise to God...something I probably couldn't do without falling over most days and something I definitely wouldn't do with other people in the room, but today I overcame both.  According to my Nike+, I burned about 340 calories, which is a nice workout.

All in all, a great day.  Good nap, good food, GREAT workout, and tomorrow is "Friday."  I think I'm well on my way to my new goal!

Day 100--Goooaaaaaalllllll!

Ironic title because Manchester United has been el sucko lately, but oh well.  I'm taking a cue from Nathan MacDonald and setting a new goal for myself in my weight-loss odyssey.  For those that are loyal readers, you may remember that my old goal was to not be so large for my sister's wedding.  I (sorta) achieved that goal, because I looked better but with the way tux sizes roll I was still in a suit designed for a much larger man.  Anyways, that goal was a month ago tomorrow, and I can tell since I haven't set a new one that I'm much more prone to relaxing, splurging, and maintaining the status quo instead of working hard on my health.  So here we go:  School ends May 27th, exactly 37 days from now, and I'd like to lose 10 pounds between now and then.  That's around 2 pounds a week, and it will certainly require more work than I've been putting in recently, but I think I can do it.  If (WHEN!) I succeed, I'll be down to 220 lbs, also known as my junior year of college on my way up to 230.

Breakfast--Peanut butter and strawberry jam toastwich on whole wheat bread.  I accidentally bought jam as opposed to preserves, but I'm not complaining...makes for a great filling in cakes and actually makes for a more satisfying toastwich.  Duly noted...self.

Snack--Moving along...

Lunch--Tuna salad with crackers.  Thankfully this is a four-day week, and thankfully there's only like 27 days of school lunches left (not that I'm counting...) so I won't have to A) eat their food and B) keep eating the same simplistic options for lunch all the time.  That will be a glorious day.

Snack--Two cups of kettle corn during my off period.  Trying the healthy snack thing again...I told you, I fell off the horse.

Exercise--That's a word not recently seen 'round these here parts, but sure enough I got off my butt and trekked over to the workout room.  I ended up running/walking for 20 minutes and probably could have gone more but I got bored.  Then I lifted some weights to work out some tension in my shoulders, and all was well in the world.  I also tried my new Nike/iPod Plus that Abby got me for my birthday (Yes, my birthday was 2 months ago.  I lost the receiver for a while, then stopped working out...its had an inauspicious beginning.) and I really liked it except I used my iPhone and the music on there is more driving music than workout music, so I ended up using Mumford and Sons, which worked out really well.  Something about The Cave leads to great running...

Dinner--Bacon burgers, Jason-style.  Abby diced and crisped three slices of bacon that I integrated into the burger patties, and since my 1.3 pounds of chuck made about 6 patties, we probably only ate a slice of bacon each.  Using toasted sandwich thins as buns and minimal condiments means it was a really healthy burger.  We had chips and beans as a side to go with the bacon burgers.

Dessert--Dreyer's Chocolate Chip ice cream bars.  One bar is only 130 calories and really good, especially to satisfy a chocolate craving.  Unfortunately, they're also expensive and we're kind of broke, so when the box ends, I'll have to find alternative sources of goodness.  C'est la vie.

So here we go...37 days for 10 pounds.  We can do this!

Day 99--Slow Cookers and Donuts

Today was a vast array of triumphs and defeats, especially in the culinary department.  While all Mondays are, by definition, atrocious this one was less bad than others.  I've noticed that as the school year inches to a close, two things are happening: 1) the students are getting more and more rambunctious and undisciplined, and 2) the teachers are becoming stricter and losing patience.  This, of course, is a bad combination for all involved, and I told my students as much today.  Hopefully we can work together to keep everything in line for the rest of the year, but I certainly doubt it.

Breakfast--In my Senior Bible class we watched Invisible Children this morning, so I decided to be nice and bring in some donuts for the class.  Unfortunately, I also ate three of them. Whoops.

Snack--Fiber One bar.  It's like I could create a template for this blog and just keep firing that out.

Lunch--Salad greens with grilled chicken, carrots, and a Snickers chaser.

Snack--Some cracked black pepper and sea salt chips while I was waiting for dinner to get ready.  They're my new favorite kind of chip, but I can't find many that I like as much as my first batch from some random brand at school.  Any suggestions?

Dinner--Braised brisket that I've had in the slow cooker for about 5 hours yesterday and an hour or so today.  All I did was add a pound and a half of brisket (seared off and seasoned with salt and pepper), a jar of roasted pepper salsa, a chopped onion and some water to loosen it up a bit, then let it do its thing.  It was amazing, especially with some salad and roasted potatoes seasoned with rosemary from my rosemary plant on the balcony. Score!

Dessert--A piece of whole wheat pita with chocolate peanut butter and marshmallow creme...a poor man's S'more if you will.

So, donuts are bad, brisket is good, and tomorrow is another go at it.

Day 98--Awkward Hand Motions

Had the privilege to teach class this morning at church, and for the first time in a while, I felt really good about the outcome.  We focused on John 15, where Jesus tells His disciples that He is the vine and we are the branches.  In the midst of our discussion on gardening, memories, and the apocalypse (ask if you want to know), Jason Toy made some ridiculous hand motion for a vine with branches.  It resembled spirit fingers, an awkward palm tree, and what I can only assume is the hand-motion for "pay me my money!"  It was incredibly weird and cannot be duplicated.

In other news...Abby's home!  Huzzah!  The cat is still psychotic, we're both relatively exhausted, but at least I can hear the sound of another live human being.  She had a wonderful weekend on the retreat but I have to admit I like her here as opposed to there.

Breakfast--Fiber One bar.  I actually ate something else too, but I can't remember what it was.  I got up early, made dinner for tomorrow in the slow cooker, got showered, dressed for church, put some stuff up from the dishwasher, reloaded the dishwasher, ate the unknown product and a Fiber One bar, then went to church.  I just cannot for the life of me remember what that was.

Lunch--Panera Bread!  I had a Thai Chicken Salad with a small piece of baguette.  The salad was PHENOMENAL.  It had lettuce, chicken, edamame, roasted red peppers, wonton strips, cilantro and a spicy thai vinaigrette.  Absolutely fantastic, to the point where I may have to drive back down there to have it again this week.

Snack--So I finally made a decent gluten-free dessert.  My first attempt at flourless chocolate cake was a rousing success, given that my Life Group absolutely demolished over half of it.  For the final presentation, I layered some strawberry jam and almond "shingles" on top.  It doesn't look the greatest, but for my first try, I'm fairly pleased.  Hopefully the recipient will be just as happy! (I listed this as snack because I nibbled while making it.  It was goooooood.)

Dinner--Sonic before Life Groups.  I had a Sonic burger with mustard (the low calorie alternative), tater tots (not so low-calorie), and cherry Dr. Pepper.  Good meal, but a great Life Groups.  I love those guys.

So all in all, not a terrible weekend.  I've decided that the sheer act of living in Houston destroys most of my baking attempts, so whenever I recreate this stuff in a lower humidity climate I should be infinitely more successful.  Congrats Houston: you killed something I truly love.

Day 97--Hello Metrocity

Brief recap of today:  Abby being here > Abby not being here.

I went to the Farmers Market this morning, and I have to admit...I was whelmed.  Not overwhelmed, not underwhelmed, just plain whelmed.  Nothing jumped out at me, nothing looked great, everyone was sold out of bacon except one farm that was charging outrageous prices (like, double what everyone else was..sketchy) which probably explains why they weren't out of product...not so good.  So I went to Central Market since I was in the neighborhood (roughly) and got some good stuff for snacks.  More FSTG chips, kettle corn, etc.  It redeemed an otherwise worthless morning.

I ended the day (and spent the afternoon...) up at school for our movie night.  This time it was Megamind, which I hadn't seen before but actually kinda enjoyed.  The first Will Ferrell movie I've liked since...Ricky Bobby? Even that took a few tries.  Potentially Elf or Anchorman, whichever came out last.  It was a good movie, but the food selection...not so hot.  And I didn't plan well.

Prepare for carnage.

Breakfast--Um...didn't happen.  Planned on getting Fusion Taco @ the FM, but then the whole experience drained me so much I didn't feel like standing in line and waiting.  So I just failed on this part.

Lunch--I had my leftover Pei Wei from the other day, as well as an addition of some diced veggies from CM.  I think it had water chestnuts, carrot, celery, onion...not sure what else.  It was good though.

Snack--Toastwich (to make up for breakfast?) with chocolate peanut butter and cherry jelly.  Very black foresty.

Dinner--I apologize to everyone who cares about the size of my waistline for the next few phrases. Peace be with you. Here's what I ate:  three cups of kettle corn, a Snickers, sour belts, a coke, and two cookies. I planned on eating pizza, but with the butter cookie fiasco of yesterday, I figured piling more grease in my system wasn't a good call.  So logically I ate my weight in sugar.  I suck at this.

Dessert--Really? There was no dessert. READ WHAT I ATE FOR "DINNER."  I should eat a salad for dessert, then run 8 miles.

So in review:  I miss Abby, my cat is going insane because she loves Abby and hates me (and is therefore very moody and upset), I've eaten TERRIBLY, the movie wasn't bad, and oh yeah, Man U and the Rangers both choked today.  Goodbye Saturday...you won't be missed.

Day 96--Experimental Procedure

Today was test day, which is still code for "I sit and answer questions all day."  Its a great day...no thinking on my part.  Unfortunately, Abby left for Girl's Retreat this afternoon, so I'm here by myself for the weekend.  That means two things:  hygiene is going to be neglected in unfortunate ways (although I have run the dishwasher and cleaned up after dinner) and I can just screw around in the kitchen without judgment being passed.  Let the games begin.

Breakfast--Another toastwich.  I had lots of bread going on at once this morning, from my peanut butter and peach-mango toastwich to the sandwich I made for lunch today.

Snack--Officially my last Carman's bar.  RIP.

Lunch--A peanut butter and mango-peach (see what I did there for "variety?") sandwich on whole wheat with cracked black pepper chips.  Not healthy, but suspect catfish was the other option.  I win.

Snack--Beef jerky and some more chips.  Less than one serving...but still not the smartest thing I could have done.

Dinner--Here's where things get interesting.  I made pizza, except it wasn't normal by any stretch.  I put my homemade tomato sauce on whole wheat pita, topped it with mozzarella, then covered it all with bacon and leeks.  The sauce, bread, and bacon/leeks were all amazing...cheese still sucks.  I don't understand how you people eat that stuff.  I scraped it off and enjoyed what became my bacon-leek tart.

Dessert--Baking practice.  I found this great recipe in Bon Appetit for honey-cherry lace cookies.  Because Abby doesn't like cherries, I subbed pomegranate craisins for the cherries, and my first attempt I misread "heaping teaspoons" for "heaping tablespoons" for the cookie size.  Therefore, all the cookies melted into one giant glob of buttery nastiness...I threw it out.  The second batch worked MUCH better, although its still got way too much butter in it for my taste.  For someone who has attempted to avoid unnecessary fats and junk, my body is SCREAMING at me right now trying to figure out what I did to it.  I hope they're better tomorrow when they've dried out, or I'm going to have to tinker with the recipe a bit.  Can't handle the buttery slickness.

Hope you all enjoy your weekend like I plan on enjoying mine...stay safe and God bless.

Oh, and Westbury kids--come to the movie night tomorrow. 6 o'clock, Megamind. Boom.

Day 95--Trashketball

I consider my job to be fairly important.  I have about 100 impressionable minds and the task of discussing the gospel of Christ--the greatest news anyone has ever heard.  Sometimes things get emotional, sometimes things get funny, and sometimes I think its downright thrilling.  That being said, the most excited I've seen any of my kids all year was today when Delvin Dickerson managed to throw a tennis ball into a wicker basket from the other side of the room.  It was freaking pandemonium...cheering, hugging, students running around the room.  I have no idea what I need to do to get them as excited about Jesus as they are about trashketball, but I've got a month and a half to figure it out.

Breakfast--Peanut butter and peach preserves whole wheat toastwich, prepared by the lovely wife.  That's twice in the span of a week that she's made breakfast for me...which may be twice more than the entire time we've known each other.  It's exciting!

Snack--Fiber One bar. Of course.

Lunch--Peanut butter and banana sandwich.  Unfortunately, the options today involved meatloaf. And something that began with the adjective "buttered."  That was enough for me...eating healthy and "buttered" don't work.

Dinner--Jalapeno chip crusted chicken fingers, baked beans, and corn.  Those "Food Should Taste Good" jalapeno chips were good to the very end, and made an incredible crust for the chicken without having to deep fry it and gain calories.  AND, it was slightly spicy but Abby ate it. So double win.

Dessert--I wanted chocolate cake...I settled for a little less than a cup of mango sorbet.  It wasn't a bad trade-off.

Tomorrow's the beatitudes and test day, and then the weekend...glorious, glorious weekend. And the Farmers' Market!

Day 94--Herbs and Peppers

Well, I finally broke down and did it.  After years of deliberating and always talking myself out of it, I am now the proud owner of one rosemary plant and one jalapeno plant.  They are sitting proudly on an old Omaha Steaks cooler on our apartment "balcony."  So at the same time I'm both Green-thumbed and red-necked.  Suits me well...and hopefully we'll have some fresh herbs and delicious peppers to spice up the summer's cooking!

Speaking of Omaha Steaks, they called me during dinner for the fifth night in a row, and finally I couldn't take it anymore and asked to be taken off their calling list.  The lady seemed annoyed that I asked her to do this...when SHE KEEPS CALLING DURING DINNER.  6:40, every day, like clockwork.  I enjoy their products, and the sales are really nice, but not enough to talk to you every day. Or every week. Or even every month...I mean, there's a LOT of food in there.  So goodbye Omaha Steaks...I won't miss you disrupting my meals.

Breakfast--Oatmeal!  On purpose!

Snack--Fiber One bar. I actually wanted something sweet more than I wanted the fiber or health benefits, but I suppose I got both anyways.  So boom.

Lunch--Pulled pork sandwich that actually had recognizable pork in it! Huzzah!  I also had some chips.  I wanted a mango, but the one I brought had already left for the sweet hereafter.

Snack--Snickers bar.  So so good.

Dinner--Taco salad with potatoes instead of beef. I threw some black beans on top to add texture and protein with the sauteed potatoes, jalapeno, and onions.  I think it was just as delicious as last time...Abby disagrees.  So that will probably be the end of that particular recipe.  Feel free to steal it and keep its legacy going.  We hardly knew ye.

Dessert--Cherry Fage with honey and chocolate chips.  A fitting end to a weird and not altogether pleasant day.

Here's to getting to try again tomorrow.

Day 93--Hang You Up

Confession: I am a big Yellowcard fan. Have been since high school, and I'm not ashamed.  The first couple of listens, I have to admit I'm not a huge fan of the new album though.  The one keeper, at least at an incredibly superficial level, is their single "Hang You Up."  The song is great, the video is great, and the acoustic version they recorded for MTV showcases how musically solid they can be.  Also, I've had it stuck in my head all day, as does Abby.  Whoops.

One of my students, Andrew Dunlap, introduced me to the Warrior Diet today.  The main premise is that you eat very little during the day (i.e. a warrior on the hunt...not eating large meals) and then gorge at night (i.e. after you catch/kill something).  It sounds a bit like yo-yo dieting to me, but the reviewers on Amazon swear by it.  Have any of you used it/heard of it?  It's not really an option for me, because I am NOT dieting--just trying to eat healthier as a lifestyle choice--but I'm intrigued by the idea and can of course tailor a lifestyle around it.  So how about it readers? Any thoughts?

Breakfast--Chocolate cheerios. My last bowl...sad day.

Snack--Carman's apricot almond muesli bar.  Delicious, and I actually thought it was my last one of those too, but then I found one in the pantry.  Huzzah!

Lunch--Spicy thai chili tuna on salad greens with a Fiber One bar for some added substance.  Great meal, but I'm sort of getting tired of it as a lunch substitute.  Looks like PBJ is making a comeback...

Snack--Pomegranate frozen juice bar.  Oddly, for pomegranate, it didn't have a ton of flavor.  Great for calories, great for texture and temperature...needs more acid perhaps? Oh well.

Dinner--Pei Wei!  I had Mandarin Kung Pao vegetables, this time with fried rice (yeah yeah...don't judge. There's a reason.), vegetable spring rolls, and edamame.  This may sound like a lot of food, and to be honest--it is. But that was the point.  We ate all of the edamame (fiber and protein), and I only ate two spring rolls (leaving four) and half of my entree.  Therefore, I've got another meal waiting for me AND I ate relatively healthy food for dinner.  Edamame is a wonderful product...I'm a huge fan.

Dessert--A single piece of chocolate peanut butter whole wheat toast.

All in all, a great day.  And tomorrow's dinner is going to be excellent...so get pumped!

Day 92--Stepping Out

Every couple of months or so I'll cooking something for dinner that has me asking my beautiful bride "did you every think you'd be eating [fill in food product here] and enjoying it?"  Inevitably the answer is no, and so I am able to take great pride in the fact that I've introduced her to something new, delicious, and "adventurous ."  However, as I've tackled new culinary challenges and Spring has awakened my sense of passion and fervor, I came to the realization that I very rarely try something new for myself.  It's usually something that I had once or twice, or used to eat at home but can't really afford now, but never something that I just look at it and say "someway, somehow...I will cook and enjoy that." Therefore, I've made a conscious effort to try new stuff and see what happens.  It may absolutely suck (see: daikon) or it may be delicious (see tonight's dinner), but at least I've got the courage to try and ask myself, "did you ever think you'd make that for dinner?"  No, no I didn't. But I'm glad I did.

Breakfast--Oatmeal.  I've missed you, old friend.

Snack--Fiber One bar.  Not exactly missed, but still nice to get a routine going again.

Lunch--Stupid SAGE dining.  The menu for today clearly says "Potato Kale Soup," which loyal followers will note as one of my favorite offerings.  However, there is an EXTREME difference between potato kale and potato and leek soup.  One is broth, the other cream.  One is hearty, the other rich. One I'll eat, the other I won't.  Therefore, the backup plan was some asparagus, grilled chicken, and a peanut butter sandwich. Lunches at WCS suck.


Dinner--Here's the awesomeness...so great, I even have pictures.

Leeks, caramelized in bacon drippings, then braised in apple juice and Riesling, topped with crunchy bacon pieces.  I've never had leeks before, never ordered leeks before...now I wonder why I hadn't done this sooner!  This might be the best side dish I've ever made...it was like candy.  I almost ate more standing at the stove than I did on my plate.

Roasted pork loin with a sweet and spicy rub.  I finally mastered the art of applying a rub to get it to caramelize into a crunchy crust.  And there are leftovers...

Roasted potatoes with salt, pepper, and some ancho chili powder.  They added a great silky, smoky flavor to go with the buttery leeks and tender pork.  All in all, an incredible meal.

And, because she's my favorite, I bought Abby some flowers.  Welcome to Spring everyone!

Day 91--Sleep and Jesus

I love our Life Group.  While we definitely missed the St. Germains, the Smiths, Hamilton, Patrick, Chris, Crysta, and everyone else who couldn't make it tonight, I'm pretty sure its scientific fact that the world is at least 93% better on the weeks we meet.  Tonight we discussed James, an amazing book, and I feel reenergized for the week and for my relationship with God.

I also slept about 11 hours today to recover from the weekend, and man I do feel tons better.  Softer bed, new pillow, NOT getting up before dawn...in the words of Charlie Sheen, tiger blood. No wait. Winning.

Breakfast--Abby made pancakes!  I had like four 4-5 inch pancakes, half of which had chocolate chips.  It was a great breakfast...good to be home.

Lunch--Because breakfast was kinda late, lunch just didn't happen.  I had cherry Fage with honey about 3...does that count?

Dinner--Wendy's!  Ironically, our hotel in Abilene was right next to a Wendy's, but I never went over there to eat.  Opportunity lost.  Anyways, I had a spicy chicken sandwich, lettuce only, with fries and a Dr. Pepper.  Scrumptious (trying out new vocab words...yay or nay?).

Exercise--Throughout the day, I did some squats, some free weights, and then Abby and I took a walk around the complex a couple of times.  All about getting the metabolism back online...

School tomorrow. Yeehah?  I hope the lunches are manageable!

Day 90--Return of the Jedi

Or at least the Westbury Christian TCSIT contingent.  That's right, I'm finally home. I get to sleep in my own bed, eat food I prepared, and have a face to face conversation with my wife.  Needless to say, I'm pretty excited.

We had a wonderful trip.  The kids did extremely well, with some surprise successes and some expected dominations.  I was incredibly pleased with our results and proud of how hard all the participants worked to put on a great show for the judges and those of us lucky enough to get to watch.  All the hardware we brought back was just icing on the cake.  Unfortunately, another bus trip means another weird eating day, so being back also means a return to a decent schedule.  Here's the end of the madness.

Breakfast--A waffle and a banana.  Eating in a hotel continental breakfast...you eat what you can.

Snack/Lunch/Snack--I don't know what this is.  From the span of 10:30 to 3:30, here's what I ate:  two bagels from Einstein Bros, cherry poptarts, some almonds, a palmful of sour cherry gummi something or others, and water.  Sounds...healthy?

Dinner--Arby's!  Large roast beef and fries.  It was delicious...I love me some Arby's.

And now I'm home.  No dessert, because I've eaten enough sugar recently to kill a small horse, and lots of water to help my body recover from the climate and humidity changes.  Life groups tomorrow, then back to the grind on Monday!

Day 89--Hello, Good Friends

Alright...cat's out of the bag. I've been in Abilene the last two days for TCSIT, an academic competition for private and parochial Christian schools in Texas.  It's been a whirlwind of a trip, with little free time and less time to breathe.  Our kids have done amazingly well though, with many of them making the finals in their events and all of them competing and performing admirably.  Because of the nutso schedule, finding time and places to eat has been a bit difficult, and therefore today's menu is a tad...different.

To everyone in Abilene I didn't get a chance to see: sorry.  Literally my free time has happened around 11 at night or 5 in the morning, and I'm not overly sociable at either time.  I like sleep, and my body likes it when I sleep.  I'll try to catch you on the next go around!

Breakfast--Half a cup of granola with half of a Yoplait strawberry yogurt.  It wasn't my first choice, but its free hotel breakfast. Whatyagonnado.

Snack--A palmful of smokehouse roasted almonds.  It really helped take the edge off.

Lunch--Sharky's...oh how I love thee.  Had a great time with Sarah, Michelle, and my new friend Brittany. They were kind enough to kidnap me and take me to lunch, and for that I am grateful.  I had a whole wheat burrito with chicken, potatoes, rice, black beans, lettuce, roasted pepper salsa, and cilantro. With a side of chips it was a fantastic meal, if not the healthiest of all options.

Snack--The rest of my almonds.  And I have a bag for the ride home. Holla!

Dinner--Little Panda...another long lost friend of mine.  I had the house fried rice and a mango on the side. Again, not healthy, but worth it.*

Dessert--Frozen yogurt with Leah Bouteller.  I had salted caramel and chocolate with a sprinkling of Reese's chunks (probably around half a PB cup).  It was good food, but better conversation.  I'm excited about hanging out with her some this summer!

I dearly love Abilene...it truly is one of my homes now.  Coming back is a renewing experience, and since this is now the third time this school year I've been in its borders, I feel pretty darn good.  I could even see myself back here for an extended period of time some day...who knows?

*Worth it disclaimer completely dependent on me getting off my butt and working out upon my return to Sucktown--I mean, Houston--and getting back into a decent routine.  So, value TBD.

Day 88--Crazy Eights

Two important things:

1) There won't be a new EE post tomorrow. I just don't have the time. I might crank one out this Sunday, but for the ten of you that read it, sorry...I'm a slacker.

2) Due to an insane schedule, there won't be detailed updates here either, at least until Sunday afternoon.  I will, however, try to give brief accounts of what I ate to keep myself honest.

Breakfast--Oatmeal. At 4:45 am. Suck.

Snack--Cherry sours...we stopped at a gas station. Those aren't good for me.

Lunch--Taco Bell. Again.  I had three crunchy tacos, fresco style, and two chicken soft tacos, also fresco style.

Snack--Fiber One bar.

Dinner--Quiznos turkey bacon club.  Turkey, bacon, lettuce, on wheat, with a mango on the side.  Pretty good dinner.

Dessert--Small Oreo shake from Jack in the Box.  I still don't understand why people eat there.


That's it folks...pray for the students competing tomorrow at the various events! (That's cryptic, but I'll explain it later. Promise.)

Day 87--Rockin' the Early Weekend

For reasons that will be explained later, I don't have to go to school again until Monday. SCORE.

The one downside is that I have to get up at around 4:15 tomorrow. WHATEVER THE OPPOSITE OF SCORE IS.

...and that pretty well sums up my day.

Breakfast--Chocolate cheerios (I overslept today to make up for getting up early tomorrow) and a Fiber One bar.  Waaaaay too much chocolate for one morning.

Lunch--Hot dog, seasoned cauliflower...oh yeah, and a banana.  My life during school days is kinda blah.  This is why I enjoy weekends...the rest is nice, but the food is wonderful.

Dinner--Two peanut butter and peach preserve sandwiches with whole wheat bread.

Snack--As opposed to dessert, I went with edamame, with my special cayenne/sugar/salt mixture.  It proceeded to light my mouth on fire. Totally worth it.

As for losing weight, well...the malaise continues.  Perhaps things will get better after the weekend?

Day 86--Baking as a Stress Reliever

About halfway through today, my wild weekend finally caught up to me.  I was exhausted, had stopped up sinuses, a slight cough...and therefore I went home at lunch.  I can't afford to get sick, so some sleep and fluids were necessary.  For my 6th and 8th period students who take the time to read this...sorry I bailed on you, but its better than the alternative. Trust me.

Today wasn't a great food day, but I'm getting back on track.  I have this weird habit where the best stress relief I can get actually comes from cooking and baking.  Unfortunately, when you're on a diet, baking can be a problem.  Now, I understand you can bake healthy stuff using applesauce and sweeteners (see yesterday's post to see what I think about Truvia...) but lets be honest: good baking involves sugar, butter, and usually an addition of chocolate and/or cream.  On that note, I made oatmeal chocolate chip cookies.  I followed the recipe in my Joy of Cooking (if you don't have one, leave this page, go to Amazon, and buy one. Now. I'll still be here when you come back) and I have to admit, it needs some tweaking.  I need to increase the chocolate chips and tinker with the sugar ratios, but they were GOOD.  I'm going to keep a couple, then send the rest to school with Abby tomorrow to minimize temptation.  After the nap and the cookies though, I feel much better.

Breakfast--Cinnamon Swirl High Fiber oatmeal.  Like I said...getting back on track.

Lunch--For our campus ministry team meeting, Brenna had the brilliant idea of getting Taco Bell.  Not only do I love Taco Bell, but they have relatively healthy options when you drop the cheese like I do. I had four tacos, which is 670 calories but 11 grams of fiber and a load of protein.  Good work Brenna.

Dinner--I had breakfast sandwiches comprised of 3 strips of bacon (around 200 calories), 3 eggs and 4 slices of whole wheat toast.  So for the day, with about 3 oatmeal cookies thrown in, the calories might a bit high, but I think they were pretty good calories and nothing too extreme.  Just gotta keep it up!

Also, I'm at 6,000 pageviews for the life of this blog, about 4,000 of which have come in the last 86 days.  Thank you all so much for reading and sharing my journey.  It may seem rambly (word I made up...feel free to steal it and enrich your vocabulary) and often times disjointed, but you have no idea how much its helped me become, well, less of me.  Here's to 6,000 more!

Day 85--Back to the Grind

I'm falling off the horse here.  We haven't worked out in three weeks, I'm not eating as well, I'm certainly not controlling portions...this isn't good.  I've got to make sure I stay under control, because fluctuating weight is almost more dangerous than being overweight.  So here we go.

Breakfast--A cup of Chocolate Cheerios.  I really need to start my days out better, but after this weekend I couldn't get myself out of bed this morning.  I hope to start out with oatmeal and yogurt and stuff better than chocolatey cereal, even if that chocolatey cereal is actually relatively healthy.

Lunch--Chicken teriyaki, snap peas, and white rice.  Admittedly, not the best lunch either, but I had a rough morning for various reasons...it was an eat and run adventure.

Snack--Cherry Fage with honey and chocolate chips.

Dinner--Chipotle.  I got a bowl with rice, black beans, fajita vegetables, chicken, hot salsa, corn salsa, and lettuce.  For once, willpower kicked in and I had water.  Been a while since I did what I was supposed to do...sigh.

Dessert--I made brownies, but I wanted to try truvia in them to cut down on calories.  I've heard really good things about it, but...eh.  Too sweet, goofy aftertaste...not a fan.  I'll stick with the real stuff, since it's cheaper, tastes better, and its easily controlled.  So thanks truvia; you screwed a perfectly good pan of brownies.

Not a terrible day, but I know I can get better.  Here's to trying again tomorrow!

FCC Dinner 4/2/11

Here are the pictures and my recap of the Food Creates Community event from Saturday night.  It was above and beyond anything I could have hoped for...much thanks to Jordan for trusting me and to everyone who came out!

Amuse: Artichoke hummus with flatbread, a parsley leaf, and capers.  It was refreshing and a great way to start out the meal.

1st Course: Caramelized onion and mushroom soup with an herbed goat cheese crouton.  I have to admit, as someone who doesn't eat cheese, having to spread 50 croutons with a creamy chevre was...unique?  The croutons looked delicious, even if I wouldn't like them, and the soup was fantastic.

2nd Course:  A sweet pea puree, blini (small savory pancake), creme fraiche, asparagus, whole peas, and smoked salmon, garnished with lemon juice and shaved carrot.  Lots of components, lots of work, and completely worth the effort.

3rd Course:  I'm sad to say I don't have a picture of this one...we ate it too fast.  Jordan made a sweet potato cornbread that we turned into a bread pudding, with chives, roasted red bell peppers, and topped with purple kale, roasted Texas smoked sausage, and a splash of honey.  My favorite dish of the night, save the dessert...but I'll get to that in a bit.

4th Course:  Roasted chicken with an herbed oil, with the herbs coming straight from the garden outside the restaurant kind enough to lend us their kitchen.  The Garden Cafe in Dallas is a stand-up establishment run by some great people.  Can't recommend it enough.  The chicken was topped off with a cauliflower-kale puree, sauteed mushrooms in white wine and sauteed red peppers in some of the chicken fat.  We garnished with orange juice, parsley, and some collard green flowers.  Just a remarkable plate.

5th Course: Sweet, sweet dessert.  Jordan made a batch of brown sugar biscuits that acted as the shortbread in our Texas Strawberry Shortcake.  I made a sabayon sauce (a vanilla custard flavored with wine) and a strawberry-citrus jam to garnish the plate, and then we topped it all with whipped cream and grapefruit zest.  I ate my fair share of biscuits and of course tasted the sauces as they came along, and let me tell you...you missed out.

I encourage all of you to check out Jordan's catering service as well as FCC, because its not only incredible food, its an unique and fantastic experience.  I hope he lets me participate again, but even if it doesn't work out, I got to say I was a professional chef for one night, and for that I am grateful.

Day 84--Yep. I Skipped a Day.

Our little Food Creates Community endeavor Saturday night was amazing.  I would be more than happy to share the menu, but its so far above and beyond what I usually put on here I'm afraid it would set the bar too high.  I might come back tomorrow and add my pictures in a separate post.

This weekend was just an absolutely incredible time.  From seeing my family to being able to cook phenomenal food to a wonderful service at Creekside this morning, I've very rarely had so much fun or been so ultimately exhausted.  Creekside is a church in Midlothian where my cousin Steve is worship minister.  For the first time in my life, I was able to spend time with Steve twice in the span of 12 months.  Usually he's in Nebraska or I'm in Colorado or something gets in the way, but it was great to get to see him and his beautiful family.

One unfortunate byproduct of FCC was that we didn't get to eat.  We were working so hard that first thing I knew, it was midnight and I'd eaten two biscuits and a spoonful of strawberry jam I made for the dessert course of FCC.  So in some ways, that explains the food, um, debacle thats about to ensue.  Also, I have no free-will.

Breakfast--Another one of Jordan's brown sugar biscuits, a blueberry muffin, and some strawberry jam made from strawberries from Jenna's wedding.

Lunch--A burger with mustard, lettuce, onions, pickles, and bacon, and then a side of fried okra.  Because I was so tired/hungry, I honestly didn't care what I ate, which is a horrible way to pick food.  However, lunch with Steve was excellent, and it really was an incredible burger.

Snack--Another Bucky's trip...not so good.  I had some sour belts.

Dinner--Whole wheat rotini with chicken, diced potatoes, onions and peas sauteed with some garlic and white wine.  I will admit, cooking with wine is a pretty great way to add flavor.  That whole acid spiel I gave/read about is certainly true.

Dessert--Strawberry Fage with honey and, for a little variety, some chocolate chips.  It was amazingly good...maybe a new dessert tradition.

After a long and industrious weekend, some sleep and routine will actually be nice.  Here's to another week of school!

Day 82--Dallas Bound

I apologize for my late posting.  It's going to be another late night tonight, but I'll get around to posting about today...sometime.

Breakfast--Chocolate cheerios.  Trying to cut down on dishes since we're leaving; seemed like a good choice.

Lunch--Grilled chicken sandwich and a peanut butter sandwich.  Also, pray for my student Khadeem Lattin.  Right before lunch, he fell during basketball practice and suffered a concussion, among other complications.

Snack--Fiber One and cherry Fage.

Dinner--Leftover Pei Wei: spring rolls and kung pao veggies.  Delicious the second time around as well.

Dessert--We stopped at Bucky's on the way to Dallas, so the wheels fell off a bit here.  I had sour cherry punch straws, a Code Red Mt. Dew, and sunflower seeds. Meh.

Sorry this is so stilted, but I'm getting ready for tonight's adventure.  I'll report back later!

Day 81--My Arm is Falling Off

So I've had the opportunity to sub for Coach Washington this week while he's in Chicago for the McDonald's All-American game with Amber Orrange, one of our seniors.  He coaches middle school PE 7th period.  Yesterday, I played catch with Matthew Douglas pretty much the entire time.  It's been a long time since I've thrown a football for longer than ten minutes, and it didn't even remotely occur to me that I couldn't just pick it up, chuck it around, and be fine.  Today, however, I walked into class, grabbed the pigskin, reared back...and threw it about ten yards, with some pretty substantial pain in my shoulder.  The good news is that I worked it out after a couple of minutes, but the bad news is obviously that I'M OLD. Dangit.

I also started hacking my way through the next Epicurean Epiphany post for tomorrow.  Get excited, because its one of my personal faves.  Potentially shouldn't have knocked it out this quickly, but I couldn't hold out much longer. If that doesn't get you excited, well...I'm actually not surprised by that.

Breakfast--Peanut butter and peach-mango toastwich.  The bread was...whole wheat? I dunno. Glad to get out of here. New food next week.

Snack--Fiber One bar!  I know I said yesterday was the end of them, but oddly enough I found one buried in the bottom of my tub-o'-stuff.  Yes, I have a tub-o'-stuff. Deal.

Lunch--Salad with "grilled" chicken, carrots, and cucumbers.  And then I had cookies.  Boom.

"Exercise"--Throwing the old football around.  My arms might fall off. And by arms, I mean arms.  I throw with both arms because I'm amused I can do it.

Dinner--Pei Wei!  Had dinner with Abby and Lindsey, got my usual double dose of spring rolls and kung pao vegetables with brown rice.  It was AWESOME.  Good friends, and good food...excellent evening.

Dessert--After catching up on our weekly comedies (Perfect Couples=Awesome. Raising Hope=Eh. Mr. Sunshine=Why is this still on the air?) I had a Cherry Fage with honey.  Good way to end the day.

Here's to Friday, and here's to going to Dallas!  Wish me luck!

Day 80--Eighty?? Really?

Man...time flies when you're losing weight.  I can't believe its been eighty days since I challenged myself to get healthier and lose some of my gut.  I think its been pretty successful so far, even if I know I could work harder.  Thanks for sticking around this long, or if you're new to the Ignition, welcome to the show!

Today ended testing (thank the Lord) so tomorrow we get back to normal and I don't have to be freakishly bored all the time.  Tomorrow also begins the awesomeness that is Amazing Grace, a vastly underrated movie if you appreciate God and history like I do.  I'm pretty pumped...and I bet the kids fall asleep.  Oh well.

Breakfast--I felt compelled to eat a bigger breakfast than I have recently for two reasons: 1) I couldn't remember what lunch was and wanted to be safe, and 2) I wanted to jump start my metabolism.  I think I accomplished both.

Snack--My last Fiber One bar...rest in piece good friends.

Lunch--I'm not even sure what lunch was today, but I know it wasn't healthy.  I had another salad, and grabbed some of the "grilled" chicken they keep in the salad bar.  It definitely wasn't grilled, but it was actually really good.  I wish I had found that earlier in the year!

After School Activity--This isn't food, but I wanted to celebrate the fact that I went to a restaurant supply store and snagged myself a chef's coat for the weekend.  It looks really good...almost like its meant to be!

Dinner--My version of pasta carbonara.  I don't like cheese or cream, so I went with bacon, crisped up and set off to drain, then I added asparagus and peas, then tossed it all with garlic and some rotini.  It was amazing, even if my portion sizes were probably a bit off...

Dessert--Leftover raspberry sorbet from last night with some Dove chocolate fudge to make it a bit more indulgent.  It was great, although it was unnecessary in retrospect.  I thought I wanted sweets, but now my body is informing me it wasn't the greatest idea...which is wonderful for the future.  I love sweets, but they should be special, not a necessary stage.  Feels great!

So there we are...I'll probably take a walk later and do some weight work.  Good stuff all around!

Day 79--Party Time at the St. Germains!

So we celebrated my friend Jason Toy's birthday yesterday night, which was a great time with amazing friends and great food.  Casey made this amazing teriyaki chicken and sticky rice, I made sauteed squash, mushrooms, and onions, and then there was Funfetti (what what!) cake and sorbet floats, courtesy of Safeway brand Apple and Pomegranate Apple Sparkling Cider.  I wish I got paid for that little product placement.

The highlight of the evening was most certainly Ms. Julia Austen St. Germain, all two weeks of her.  She slept almost the entire time, only got fussy once (and when I picked her up SHE CALMED DOWN. Alert the presses.) and generally spent the night looking as cute as possible and stealing my wife's heart.  I've got some competition now, and I don't mind one bit.

On to the food...my memory isn't so hot right now since I'm exhausted, but this will be as accurate as I can make it.

Breakfast--Fage Peach with honey. It was another slow starting morning.

Snack--Fiber One bar.

Lunch--Spicy Thai chile tuna with spinach salad, crackers, and barbecue Zapps.  Still funny.

Snack--Fage Cherry with honey.  I went to the store to get stuff for dessert and reloaded on Fage while I was there.  The Chobani was cheaper, but they only had pineapple 2%, and frankly, its gross.

Dinner--As I said above, I had a teriyaki chicken breast, about 3/4 cup white sticky rice, and a heaping pile of sauteed veggies.  The vegetables had some Montreal Steak seasoning and a splash of Riesling white wine at the end, and I have admit--they were really good.  Usually I don't cook with wine, or even have it in my possession, but I read an article the other day that really stuck in my imagination: "Home cooks season with salt and pepper.  Great chefs season with salt and acid."  So that's my new venture...how can I incorporate some acid into each dish, not for the sake of doing it, but to enhance flavors.

Dessert--Here's where the wheels fall off.  They had a bowl of jellybeans out (so you know I'm screwed) that I nibbled on all night while cooking, and then I had TWO pieces of cake.  C'est la vie...it was delicious, and I had a salad for lunch. I think I can deal.

All in all, not a terrible day, but not perfect.  I still need to workout some, and hopefully Wednesday will provide an opportunity for that.

How about you, dear reader--do you use any special forms of acid (vinegars, wines, juices, etc.) in cooking that I should know about?

Day 78--The Frugal Gourmet

Thus begins week two of our little attempt to plan out meals, hopefully saving money and allowing us to be healthier so we won't be tempted to eat junk food.  Its harder to eat bad stuff when there isn't any bad stuff around to eat.  After some simple planning last night, I got all the ingredients together for the week and it cost a whopping total of: 18 dollars.  That's right...5 days worth of meals, 18 dollars.  I'd say this is working out quite nicely.

The testing schedule today was just as weird as expected.  I literally didn't do anything from about 9 til 1, then talked to my freshmen about sex using duct tape as a visual aid (thank you Eddie Boyer), then taught one Acts class that I don't see again until Wednesday.  Business as usual.

Breakfast--Chocolate Cheerios and Mango Chobani with honey.  Back on the protein/fat kick to get full, and it worked quite well.

Snack--Fiber One bar.

Lunch--Chicken, brown rice, and sauteed spinach.  I will say...sauteed spinach is NOT good.  I topped it off with another Fiber One bar because chicken and spinach isn't that filling and eating cups of rice just to get full seemed, well, dumb.

Snack--Cherry Fage w/ honey.

Dinner--Jambalaya rice, andouille sausage, and dark red kidney beans.  Very filling, very cheap...a great meal.  And it will definitely be complete when I finish it off with...

Dessert--Cupcakes! Gotta eat them before they go bad.  Yeehah.

Day 77--Well, I Made it Eleven Weeks...

...before I got bored.  I'm at my lowest weight since last February, have done it almost effortlessly, and yet it was so easy to completely screw up today.  I do believe I've hit a wall, and it bugs me.

Perhaps working out more is the key--all I've done is eat well, and there isn't much variety in that.  I also have some ridiculous stress levels (more on that in the coming week) that have sapped me of my ability to care about my weight, and I can't stop thinking about cooking due to Jordan's FCC event, and let me tell you: when you're capable of what I'm capable of, and when you know what Jordan is capable of, simple salads don't fit the bill.

All this is to say: today's eating was a disaster, and I'm not really sorry for it.  I will try to do better though.

Breakfast--Chocolate cheerios.

Lunch--Whataburger.  Double whataburger, fries, Dr. Pepper, and some jellybeans.

Dinner--Three slices of Dominos (still gross) and three chocolate chocolate chip cookies.  And another Dr. Pepper.

So I'm sure I ate like 3000 calories today and I didn't work out at all, but I did get a new iPhone and I should lift weights before bed.

Any suggestions/motivations to get me out of the funk?

Day 76--Butler!

I'm not even sure its fair to call Butler a cinderella anymore.  I mean, they appear capable of doing what everyone THOUGHT Gonzaga was capable of doing in the early 00's--winning a national title for the mid-majors.  Unfortunately for them, they have to (probably) knock off the best team remaining in the tournament, and the only one seed left: Kansas.  Good thing Kansas collapses more easily than the Metrodome roof (too soon?).  Go Bulldogs!

In less eventful news, Abby had a softball tournament today.  Her team was the defending champion, and, well...they don't have to worry about that anymore.  She played very well though, and has a screwed up ankle and a scratched up leg to show for it.  Chicks dig scars.

I neither went to the Farmers Market nor worked out today because I was lazy, the softball tourney happened, and then both basketball games were amazing, AND we had dinner with the Toys.  It was busy, just not healthy.

Breakfast--Peach Fage with honey and a bowl of Chocolate Cheerios.  I'm really a big fan of Chocolate Cheerios...they're good and (relatively) good for you, as chocolate cereals go.

Lunch--Half of a leftover chicken breast from the other night, some brown rice, and black beans, all topped with sweet chili sauce.  It was delicious...I shall certainly concoct it again.

Snack--Really, throughout the day I ate about 4 handfuls of jellybeans.  I finally did the responsible thing and threw the bag away after picking out the cherry ones.  I love cherries.

Dinner--Brenner, two nights in a row. Booyah!  We had eggs and pancakes at the Toys, as well as really good conversation.  I also had two cokes. Oops.  In my defense, I needed caffeine to help me stay awake...long day, and I'm not used to being in the sun. Took the strength out of me.

Church tomorrow, life group tomorrow night, then back to school for the Testing Week of Wackiness, or TWW from here on out.  Sorry for the short post, but the brain is fried. I'll try to make up for it tomorrow.

And welcome back to the newlyweds, the Kings!  Hope Mexico was fun!

Day 75--Generic Rebecca Black/Friday Joke

Would you like the good news, the great news, or the amazing news first?  Good news? Okay...we'll let the excitement build.

Good news (non-Gospel edition): There's a new Epicurean Epiphany post!  I went with Byron Dawson's suggestion of balsamic vinegar.  It's not as in-depth as the salt post was, but I still think its fun to explore all these ingredients that I use almost every day and learn more about them.  Maybe you'll learn something too...click on the link and find out!

Great news: IT'S FRIDAY.  All hail the weekend.  I still haven't successfully recovered from the wedding, and getting up early for school certainly didn't help.  Going to bed and sleeping for a while should remedy that particular situation.  Also, heard a good word from Rob Bell today that was completely unrelated to hell and got to fiddle around with the Proverbs for a while, so it was an edifying day as well!

Amazing news:  So my good friend Jordan Swim, who is at least partially responsible for every single thing about me (why I'm a Christian, why I cook, why I'm in ministry, etc.), has this incredible catering service, Vestals Foods, runs the Culinary Arts program at Allen High School, and also does these monthly gatherings called Food Creates Community. And yes, I'm link happy today. Deal with it.  Anyways, his next FCC event is April 2nd in Dallas, and I get to help him put it together!  I'm pumped about all of it, from shopping with the local vendors to actually running service in a kitchen.  I'm also blessed to have a friend who is willing to let a moron like me in his kitchen.  I'll be sure to report back with how it goes, and hopefully I can convince him to write an EE post sometime.  The man has forgotten more about food than I know.

On to what I do remember: what I ate today.  It isn't pretty.

Breakfast--Two pieces of whole wheat toast with chocolate peanut butter, courtesy of Justin's once again.  I probably overdid it on the CPB, but I also knew that lunch was going to be shady at best, so I tried to plan accordingly.

Snack--Fiber One bar. Because there's a box of them by my desk.

Lunch--A piece of bread with even more CPB on it, a banana, and a bowl of lentil soup.  I scavenged.

Snack--Handful of jellybeans.  I forgot about them for so long, and then the bright yellow bag attracted my attention once again.  Freaking Starburst marketing department...why you gotta be so good at your jobs?

Dinner--We had two choices: go out and eat something not that healthy that also took up some money, or go with breakfast foods we had in the fridge.  Frugality won out, surprisingly, so we went with bacon, eggs, and roasted potatoes/peppers.  I had a good portion of potatoes, about 2.5 eggs, and 2.5 strips of bacon.  A delicious meal, if I do say so myself.

Dessert--And here's the problem.  We had a movie night at school, showing Toy Story (a classic), and we also sold concessions.  Cheap concessions.  I had some sour belts, a sweet and salty peanut bar, and part of a Coca Cola.  I'm a failure.

I think the lack of calories at lunch probably evened out the disaster this evening, but with no exercise to speak of, it still wasn't good.  Hopefully the Farmers Market and an afternoon in the gym will help get everything back on track.

Enjoy your weekend!

Day 74--Oh Yeah...There's Basketball On!

You know its been a weird week when I completely forgot we were in the middle of March Madness.  Then, lo and behold, I turn on the telly to see San Diego St. and UConn duking (pun intended) it out.  It's nice to have a memory like a sieve...means things are always fresh and new!  Oh, and GO DUKE.

Decent day at school; our schedule is going to get really weird in the next week or so because the seniors go on Senior Experience starting tomorrow, then the beginning of next week is our lovely testing schedule that means classes take a backseat to the standardized testing we do each year.  So...that'll be fun.

Breakfast--Toastwich baby! All natural peanut butter, Fredricksburg Farms peach preserves, and two pieces of whole wheat toast.  You better believe its just as amazing as it sounds!

Lunch--Dilemma time.  We had a CMT meeting today, and we ordered pizza that was literally dripping with grease, so I went with the school provided option: a baked "chicken patty" sandwich.  Needless to say, I didn't finish that.  But the asparagus and baked potato that came with it I devoured, along with a banana.  It was great.

Dinner--Abby abandoned me for a dinner at her school, so I decided to tinker a bit.  I wok-fried some ground pork, asparagus, and onion in a soy/mirin/cornstarch mixture that ended up producing a wonderful sauce.  The whole thing went on top of some brown rice, and it was a great meal.  Not sure the health content since I had to add some new stuff to the sauce (like mirin and a dash of stir fry sauce) but it tasted great and had good ingredients.  That's really all I could ask for.

Dessert--Gummi bears, followed by a (much healthier) chaser of peach Fage with honey.

Exercise--Some weight work while watching the aforementioned basketball games.

Notice I avoided the cupcakes today. Points for me!

Day 73--Yearbook Party!

I was (pleasantly) surprised this morning by the announcement that today we were going to have a yearbook signing party at the end of school.  This, in itself, doesn't mean a whole lot.  Teachers don't sign or receive yearbooks so its not a big deal for us.  However, the yearbook signing party does mean one important thing: Schedule D.  I LOVE Schedule D.  Through crazy random happenstance, Schedule D aligns the stars in such a way that my lunch period and my off period line up next to each other.  That means hour and a half lunch.  BOOYAH!!

Today we also finished the book of Acts in my Acts class, which might seem a bit weird in Acts class, but...whatyagonnado.  It was an enjoyable discussion, and I'm ready to get into the prison epistles and finish this thing strong.

Breakfast--Cinnamon Swirl oatmeal.  It wasn't the most efficient morning...shoulda woulda coulda been better.

Snack--Fiber One bar! Woo!

Lunch--The hour and a half lunch manifested itself in a wildly unnecessary but delicious lunch at Wendy's.  Spicy Chicken sandwich, lettuce only, with a large fry and a medium Frosty.  I considered this to be a decent meal because of dinner, and the lack of substance it was going to contain.  And it was AWESOME.

Dinner--Sweet chili-soy marinated/glazed chicken breasts cut up and put on a bed of spinach with pomegranate craisins, sunflower seeds, and an apricot-soy dressing.  It was a great meal, especially the chicken.  Usually I'm not with it enough to marinate the chicken before using it, but I'm really glad today was an exception.  And the best part?  All of it I either had on hand or bought in my shopping spree for the week.  Two points for planning ahead!

Dessert--Strawberry cupcake. Best. Cupcake. EVER.

Exercise--Abby and I went for a walk around our apartment complex.  Two laps isn't far, but it got the blood pumping.  I also did some weight work...I'm glad I brought my dinky hand weight back from Plano.  It's nice to have around so I don't have to hit the gym for weights.  Way to go purchase-I-made-four-years-ago-for-some-reason-but-you're-just-now-paying-off.  Two points.

Time Flies

Its incredible sometimes to realize how much we change.  As I've learned from my beard experiments and running into people who last saw me pre-fat loss, even a couple of months is enough to change someone dramatically.

Never has this been more evident in my life as we began the inevitable retrospective on Jenna's life for the wedding.  It's still amazing that this:

Eventually turned into this:

My baby sister got married!  I hope you're having a blast Jenna (and Seth)...I look forward to growing old and bickering with you until the world ends.  Love you.

Day 72--Back to School. Yay.

Le sigh. Spring Break is over, and its back to work.  The good news is that I left minimal work to be done when I got back. The bad news is that it could have been zero work and I was too lazy. Oh well...tests will be graded, paperwork filled out, and the world will keep spinning. Presumably.

Today also began our little shopping experiment where I'm attempting to buy all of our weekly groceries up front.  This will hopefully serve three purposes: 1) Save me trips to the grocery store and cut down on impulse buys when I'm in there every single day 2) We can plan our meals and have healthy options ready 3) Should be cheaper and healthier in the long run.  I spent around 70 bucks today for tons of meals...some canned beans, some rice mixes, chicken, vegetables, sausage, ground pork (for this amazing asparagus and pork recipe I found) and then some condiments (sesame oil, soy sauce [it exploded in the parking lot...sad face], mirin, etc.), more yogurt...it was quite the haul.  I'm interested to see how this all plays out!

I also really need to get back in the gym.  The physical and emotional toll of the week has slowly dissipated, and now I feel almost normal.  Unfortunately, for me almost normal is still fat.  That needs to be corrected.

Abby had a terrible day today, and that sucks because she deserves to have some good days and because she hasn't had a break in about three months.  First she had to get up with me (read: early) and study, then she had a test exactly a week after boards started, then she discovered she left her car keys (and, by proxy, her apt key, locker key, EVERYTHING) in Plano, so that was some unnecessary stress.  If you could lift her up in prayer, she and I would definitely appreciate it...she's too good of a person to continually get stepped on by life like this.

Breakfast--Cinnamon Swirl High Fiber oatmeal with dried cherries, and cherry Fage w/honey.  I ate a big breakfast because I knew lunch today was going to be a salad at best.  It was actually worse than that.  Side note: When I say "big breakfast" some of you may scoff, because lets face it: oatmeal and yogurt isn't big by normal standards.  However, the best thing you can do to fill yo belly is eat a lot of fiber and protein, and high fiber oatmeal (duh) and greek yogurt give healthy doses of both, making it fairly large. At least by the standards of my stomach, which is all that counts in this space.  Back to our regularly scheduled programming.

Lunch--A Fiber One bar and a bag of barbecue Zapps chips.  There's an incredibly awkward story from high school involving Zapps chips, and anyone involved may be laughing uncontrollably right now. As they should.  Moral of the meal time is that lunch sucked.

Dinner--Whole wheat penne pasta with some asparagus, yellow sweet onion, yellow bell peppers, garlic, red pepper flakes, and andouille sausage.  It was really really good, although after my scant lunch I ate waaaay too much of it, and probably reduced any nutritional value that was in the pasta primavera concept. Whoops.

Dessert--A single chocolate cupcake from my lovely sister's wedding and a strawberry (variety! holla!) Fage with honey.  NOW I'm full.

I know I need to do better eating, and assuming our lunch compatriots hold up their end of the bargain, I should have something healthy to eat every day the rest of this week.  If they don't, well...I have another bag of Zapps in my desk.

For those that haven't scoped it out yet, my newest writing endeavor at epicureanepiphany.blogspot.com is gearing up for round two this Friday.  If you have any suggestions for what I should tackle, let me know in the comments section.  And please, tell your friends!  I'll soon be featuring a guest post from Nathan MacDonald, and I hope to get more people involved.  If you know someone passionate about food, specifically the beauty of individual ingredients at their best, then let them know about it!

Shout out to my European and Asian readers...the stats section of this thing continues to amaze me.

Psalm 34:8--Taste and see that the Lord is good!

Day 71--Houston Bound

About three months ago I made the incredibly intelligent decision to take today off from work.  I assumed that after the emotional stress of turning my sister from a Henderson into a King with a flick of my pen came piling down upon me that I would need a day to catch up. Man, was I right. Sorta.  I really needed another week off, but they frown upon that at WCS. C'est la vie.

Jenna and Seth are currently living la vida loca in Mexico right now, hopefully enjoying a wonderful first night of their honeymoon along with some great food, beaches, and most importantly time together.  Abby and I got back right in the nick of time for my eye appointment follow up, and everything checked out magnificently. In fact, I currently see 20/15 in my left eye. Booyah.  Unfortunately, that means that I saw things all too clearly when I hopped on the scale after this week's festivities, which shall henceforth be referred to as CupcakeFest2011. It was a great week for my belly, but it wasn't a great week for my waistline. Ugh.

Breakfast--Cupcakes. Yep. My mom, bless her soul, didn't want to make breakfast after giving her only daughter away in marriage, and I don't blame her.  That did leave us in kind of a bind though, and rather than persevere and grab some Chobani and whole wheat toast like an intelligent person, I went with a chocolate and strawberry cupcake. Oh yeah, and a plum. Because that makes it better.  I suck.

Lunch--Here's where the uptick begins.  We stopped somewhere in the middle of nowhere on 45 and got us some Subway.  I had a footlong turkey with bacon on wheat, complete with lettuce, cucumber, green pepper, jalapenos (including one that tried to kill me...), black pepper, barbecue baked lays, and a wildly unnecessary, un-Lenten, but (in my mind) deserved Dr. Pepper. They say a Dr. Pepper a day keeps the apple..wait, that's not right. They say it rots your teeth. And they're right.

Dinner--Stir-fry.  We got a bag of broccoli, cauliflower, and carrots, and I threw in half a red onion and 2/3 of an orange pepper, along with a cup of brown rice and some soy sauce/rice wine vinegar/spicy ginger sauce.  It was delicious.  I think I'm starting to get this saucing thing down, which is impressive since I usually don't even like sauces.

Dessert--A Fiber One bar.  Thus begins the purge of the system.

Tomorrow we start school again, and it'll be harder and harder to stay on track.  Tonight we're going to plan out all of our meals to save money and increase health value/decrease the ability to stray and be tempted.  I hope it works!

Thanks again to everyone who reads this.  I get discouraged sometimes because I feel like I'm fighting an unwinnable battle (even though I totally rocked my tuxedo this weekend...) but I know that all of you are thinking about me and lifting me up, even if its silently or from afar.  As the Fotographing Fat Kid (But Not For Long!) says, you keep us going, and you really help motivate.  I clicked on the stats button on this blog earlier and was blown away by how many people care about my health (or are amused by how badly I fail...) and keep coming back to check on me.  Silent prayers, simple thoughts, and comments are all the fuel I need to get the next pound off!

Day 70--Wow.

So the Henderson family is down a member, which seems only fair. Started with four, we should end with four.  However, I'm pleased that our loss is the King's gain!  My sister is now officially Jenna King, complete with signatures on marriage licenses and dozens and dozens of cupcakes (more on that later).  The ceremony was beautiful, we had our fair share of screw ups and mishaps, but at the end of the day, Jenna and Seth are on their way to Mexico to have a glorious time as a new couple! Mazel Tov!

Eating today was a little bit, um, unique too.  We woke up, rolled downstairs and my mom had breakfast fixed, then lunch was kind of on our own, and dinner was post wedding, and there were SO MANY FREAKING CUPCAKES.

Breakfast--Breakfast casserole.  My mom has this ridiculous concoction of eggs, breakfast sausage, and crescent rolls that she bakes into a pyrex dish (it can also contain cheese, if you so desire) and its pretty much delicious from beginning to end.

Lunch--My mom, sister, and wife were at the wedding place getting ready for the day's festivities so dad and I were left to fend for ourselves for lunch.  We went with Baker's Bros. deli, and I had a tuna salad sandwich with lettuce, roasted red onions, chipotle salsa, all on a fresh baked toasted bun.  Along with barbecue chips and a Dr. Pepper (holla!) it made for quite the nice meal.

Snack--Cupcakes.  I also had some fruit and asparagus, but seriously, the star of the show is the cupcakes.  I had one strawberry and one chocolate, and they were both fantastic.

Dinner--Some more breakfast casserole! Woo!  I also had a peach Fage 2% with honey, which is probably how I should have started the day, but oh well.

Dessert--Guess. Two of them.

Wonderful day, fantastic celebration, and now I'm exhausted...apparently when your emotional and physical limits are stretched all at once, it can take it out of you!  I want to roll over and sleep...and so I shall.

Day 69--Oh Snap, My Sister's Getting Married

Today was rehearsal day, or as I move we rename it, everyone goes crazy day.  We got up, got dressed, drove to McKinney, and paraded around in our Sunday best (on Saturday) so that we can do everything right (on Sunday) and not make the bride have an aneurysm. There was minimal yelling, minimal temper flare ups, and I'm still not 100% sure I know what I'm doing, although if Jenna reads this before 3:00 pm on Sunday, don't worry...everything's fine!

It probably wasn't my finest culinary day either, because I have a tendency to get into this mindset of "it's a celebration, its worth it to splurge!" even when it's just Thursday and I'm happy I hit all green lights on the way home.  Because a majority (read: all) of our entertainment budget goes to food, I see celebrations as an excuse to relax and enjoy what I consider to be the finer things in life.  That being said, I tried relatively hard to behave today, although all of my celebrating added up in the end, as you will soon see.

Like, now.

Breakfast--Two homemade cinnamon rolls. The same rule for the blueberry muffins applies to the cinnamon rolls: you try to resist, then judge me.

Lunch--Spring Creek Barbecue for the rehearsal lunch.  We had a small problem at my wedding.  We couldn't have the rehearsal at the scriptural time because there was a wedding the day before ours.  Therefore, in order to get the rehearsal in, we had to do it in the morning. Well, having a rehearsal, then sending everyone home, then having dinner seemed...stupid. So we did rehearsal lunch. Best. Idea. EVER.  Therefore, Jenna took the idea, and it once again worked to perfection (for really the same reason...there was a wedding at the Cotton Mill tonight. Go figure.) leading to our barbecue meal.  I had barbecue turkey breast with beans and green beans. I resisted fried okra (I love fried okra!) and bread, dessert, and beverages other than water. Healthy meal, right?

Snack--Cherry Fage 2%.  Delicious as always.

Dinner--Here's where the wheels fall off.  We had Chipotle for dinner, and you know what? I wanted a tortilla. I LIKE the tortillas. I don't eat bowls instead because I like the flavor, I do it for my health, and so I decided to "celebrate."  Now, had I known that the freaking tortilla was 300 calories (Actually, its 290, but who cares) I might have thought differently.  My burrito, by itself, with no sour cream (don't like it) or cheese (don't like it) or guacamole (don't like it) was around 850 calories. Yikes.

Dessert--Two pieces of whole wheat toast, two tablespoons of Nutella, and banana slices.  It was a splurge, it was amazing, I'd do it again.

I kind of wonder what the scale will say when I get home.  I've eaten kind of well (haven't I?) and exercised some and I still feel like I've gained weight.  It'll be like a fun, horrible, nerve-wracking game!

Here's to the last night of my sister being a Henderson. I'm glad she's happy, I'm glad she's in love, and I look forward to many years of her being a King!

Day 68--Calm Before The Storm

And so it begins. Tomorrow we have rehearsal, rehearsal lunch, and then something called a centerpiece party that I hope above hope that I'm not invited to.  Today Abby came to town (finally) and we started putting the finishing touches on everything for the weekend.  I'm excited about it all, but more excited that Jenna gets to be happy and the center of attention for a couple of days.  She deserves it.

I accidentally slept in again today, but at least I figured out why.  The alarm that I set (which hasn't gone off. Twice.) was apparently set on silent.  Why in the world an alarm even has that ability, I have no clue. Silent alarms seem a lot like turning the alarm off.  So anyways, hopefully tomorrow I can get up a bit earlier and throw my schedule back on track.

Breakfast--Went with the peach Fage 2% with honey, and I gotta admit...it was pretty good. Cherry is still my favorite, because I'm partial to cherries, but I like the peach too. Nice to have options.  I also threw down another one of my mother's incredible blueberry muffins because, well, they're incredible. You couldn't resist either...don't judge.

Exercise--Twenty minutes on the treadmill with a variety of running, walking, inclines...it was solid.  I also did minor weight work with my little twenty pound free weight.  Not bad for a makeshift workout.

Lunch--Sandwiches.  Two sandwiches, on whole wheat bread, with peppered turkey, lettuce, and a single pickle stacker.  It was a great, filling lunch and fairly healthy I believe.

Snack--Green tea.  I realize this isn't a food item, but since I did the whole "I'm only drinking water" thing over a week ago I decided to splurge with a little flavor.

Dinner--Snuffers, a burger joint in Dallas.  Snuffers is known for two things: its burgers and its cheese fries.  Neither are healthy, so both are problematic.  I behaved and didn't get a burger, and I don't like cheese so I avoided the fries.  I ended up getting the marinated grilled chicken strips and regular fries, which have some spicy salt mixture on them.  This is also where I plug my new blog, epicureanepiphany.blogspot.com, which I conveniently wrote on salt today. Check it out and comment!  Anyways, dinner was delicious, and my mom got the same thing so I ended up cleaning up hers too. And yes, I had water.

Dessert--A pink lady apple with a tablespoon of Nutella.  It was AWESOME.

Not a bad day, and tomorrow could get really weird, so I better enjoy the healthy stuff while I can. Check back in for rehearsal news!

Day 67--Happy Anniversary Mom and Dad

Thirty-two years ago today my mom and dad got hitched in Abilene, Texas.  Three days from now my sister and Seth will be getting hitched in McKinney, Texas. Love is in the air...every time I look around...

Breakfast--Before the food, let me say that sleeping in a king sized bed alone after being used to a queen with a co-occupant is WEIRD.  I haven't slept very well, and I've had a horrid time even getting to sleep in the first place.  Due to those complications, I've been sleeping in much later than usual, so today didn't start until closer to 10 am. When I finally got my butt downstairs, I had Cherry Fage 2% with honey and a single homemade blueberry muffin.  They were both delicious, but again--there ain't no cooking like momma's cooking. I heart those muffins.

Lunch--Chick fila, an apparent genetic weakness.  I had a spicy chicken sandwich with a large fruit cup and one of Jenna's fries that I took from her.  It's just a great meal from start to finish.

Snack--Mango Chobani 2% with honey.  I was working on my metabolism because I knew that for tonight's meal, we would be celebrating. And celebrate we did!

Dinner--We had a nice dinner at Cadot, a French restaurant in Dallas named after its acclaimed chef/owner Jean-Marie Cadot.  It was definitely a typical European meal: slow, luxurious, and consisting of multiple courses.  I had a Bibb lettuce salad with candied pecans, Granny Smith apples, and a mustard vinaigrette that was absolutely amazing as well as roasted duck with an orange/ginger sauce that came with roasted fingerling potatoes, green beans, and acorn squash.  The duck was cooked perfectly, the vegetables were incredible, and the sauce was almost good enough to soak up with bread.  While I really like roasted duck, there is usually a layer of fat on the outside of the breast meat that can be a bit troublesome if it doesn't all melt away.  I only had to trim a couple of pieces, so well done M. Cadot.

Dessert--I eschewed the menu options for dessert--none of which tickled my fancy--for some chocolate kettle corn, and it was definitely worth it.

All in all, not a horrendous eating day, and I got my car serviced and Jenna picked up my tux. We ran a lot of errands, but that means I didn't have/take the time to exercise.  Hopefully tomorrow will be better...

Also, I started another blog solely dedicated to food.  It won't have theological ramblings, nor is it necessarily diet related.  Check it out at epicureanepiphany.blogspot.com.  And yeah, I like alliteration.

Day 66--Eating in Plano! Oh no...

I should not be allowed to stand in a high-end supermarket and just think about meals. Baaaad things happen.

Breakfast--Two pieces of whole wheat toast with peanut butter and banana slices.  Bar none, the healthiest thing I ate all day.

Lunch--There's this awesome deli near my dad's office named Mr. G's that we used to go to all the time when I was in high school, so when we went to have lunch with my dad we decided to go there.  I had an awesome tuna salad sandwich on wheat bread with barbecue Baked Lays.  It was great, but tuna salad (at least the pre-made kind...homemade is different) isn't really the healthiest option, even if it was delicious.

Snack--Fiber One bar.  I have to do something to offset what's about to happen.

Dinner--This afternoon I got my hair did for the wedding (so I look less shaggy) and then went with my mom to Market Street to get some stuff for dinner.  We settled upon Shrimp Fra Diavolo, which consisted of shrimp, zucchini, roasted broccoli, my pasta sauce with spinach, and whole wheat thin spaghetti with some garlic, red pepper flakes.  It was incredible!  I mean, I enjoy cooking for people, but its nice when those other people actually enjoy the food too, unlike some of my disastrous meals.

Dessert--...And here is the problem.  While standing in the produce section, thinking about dessert (commanded by Jenna. When the bride wants sugar, you give the bride sugar), looking at strawberries, my mom uttered the fateful words: "Market Street has really good pound cake."  It went downhill from there.  We had strawberry pound cake that my mom turned into french toast, then I sprinkled it with sugar and bruleed it, THEN we made chocolate sauce, whipped cream, and macerated strawberries on top.  When the longest paragraph I write on this blog is about dessert, the day has gone horribly, horribly wrong.

Hopefully there will be exercise later (after I digest for an hour. Or three.) to counteract the calorie bomb from today, but I will admit...it was amazing food. Potentially worth it, assuming my tux still fits.

Also, I miss my wife. Come to Plano Abby!

Day 65--Plano!

I'm home!  Abby had boards starting this morning, so I rolled out of bed bright and early to make her breakfast (a fried egg and steel cut oats) and then rather than getting ready and heading to Dallas, I immediately fell back asleep.  See, I suffer from a severe case of stress-induced insomnia, and between the wedding, boards, school, and life in general, last night was a doozy.  I didn't go to sleep until about 2 am, which made getting up at 5:30 really bad.

Needless to say, I'm glad to be home. Gonna be a great Spring Break.

Breakfast--Cherry Fage 2% yogurt with honey. Yep...that was it. It gets worse as the day goes on, then gets better!

Lunch--Fiber One bar, and a singular mini caramel Cadbury egg.  In my defense, I was driving at the time and didn't feel like stopping to grab food. I wanted to be home.

Snack--About a cup and a half of chocolate drizzled kettle corn.

Dinner--Mexican pot roast. I really really like being home. We had pot roast, crudite (carrot and celery sticks...fancy terms help), black-eyed peas, and cornbread.  It was delicious, and the only decent meal I had all day. It would have been the best meal regardless, but it was nice to eat real food.

Exercise--I walked/ran on the treadmill at home for 15 minutes and burned off one of my meals (either breakfast or lunch), followed by some minor weight work.  Felt good, especially with the lack of sleep and the fact I've been painfully sore the last few days from stress and poor sleeping habits.  It's also nice to get some work in at home.