Family Reunion Weekend

I ran 6 days last week! No long runs but I did 3.25 miles on Sunday, 3.55 miles on Monday, 3.4 miles on Tuesday, 3.25 miles on Wednesday, 2 miles on Thursday, and 3.5 miles on Friday.

Saturday we got up early, dropped Lucy off at doggie daycare and headed to Virginia to see my dad. It was 4 hours to get there, we stayed 4 hours, and then 4 hours to get back home. My brother's family also went, and we had a really nice day!

My brother, my dad, and me :)

Needless to say, I was so exhausted that I spent the entire day Sunday in bed, just vegging out and watching TV. I never even turned on the computer. Lucy was wiped out from playing with the other dogs all day Saturday, so her and Bogey stayed in bed with me :)

Today was right back to work. I went to the gym at lunch and got in a much needed run. I had to take it easy though, since I had another one of those weird weak/dizzy episodes in the shower this morning, and my equilibrium has been "off" all day. One more week until I get the blood work done and find out what the hell is going on. Ugh.

Three Things Thursday

1. I got home from work, took Lucy for a walk, changed into my PJs, had a salad, then turned on the TV and the laptop. I sit down and this is the look I get:

She looks so inquisitive. What do you think she is thinking?

This is Lucy at 5 weeks old. I can't believe she was ever this tiny! 

2. Did you know I also have a cat? Because Lucy is so needy and always craving attention (and so photogenic!), Bogey hardly ever gets mentioned. I'm sorry Bogey. You know I love you too!

Bogey is pretty mellow. He just lounges around and eats, a lot!

He's very festive at holiday time :)

3. I really have nothing else today, so I'll leave you with the cutest piglet I've ever seen :)

Awwww!

Today was an exhausting day at work. Thank goodness tomorrow if Friday! Be well, my peeps!

Gotta run, Laura

Wordless (Weigh In) Wednesday

Part of today's workout - Loved this!

Weight - 118.8

Taco Bake (Vegan)

This is a pretty quick and easy recipe that's full of flavor. I either eat it as is, or throw on some salsa and guacamole. Enjoy!

Taco Bake (Vegan)

• 1 package Lightlife Smart Ground (Mexican-style)
• 1 can black beans, drained, rinsed, and mashed
• 1 cup corn grits (Polenta), prepared (see below)
• 1 packet taco seasoning (I use Old El Paso Hot n Spicy)
• 1 (4oz) can chopped ripe olives
• 1 (4oz) can diced green chilies
• 1 cup vegetable broth

Instructions:

1. Preheat oven to 350
2. Spray a pan with PAM (or whatever cooking spray) and heat the ground "beef" on medium for about 5 minutes, then add in the beans, taco seasoning, broth, olives and green chilies.
3. Meanwhile, make the polenta. Bring 3 cups water (and a pinch of salt) to a boil, add the corn grits, stir. Reduce heat to low, cover and simmer for about 5 minutes.
4. Add the polenta to the "beef" mixture and stir it all together.
5. Pour into a (PAM/cooking spray- sprayed) 9x13 casserole dish and bake for about 20 minutes.

I get 6 huge servings out of this. Each serving = 258 calories, 1.6g fat, 42g carbs (9g fiber, 1g sugar), and 17g protein. Delicious, with just the right amount of spicy :)  And you could definitely make the servings smaller and get at least 8 instead of 6. 

Gotta run, Laura

Food Tracking and Treadmill Tales

I was super busy at work today so no bloggy time. I wasn't even going to post but I wanted to give a shout-out to Jen over at Perfect in our Imperfections for telling me how to take pictures of stuff on my phone (yes, I'm a little technologically challenged these days)!

For the past few months I've been using the iPhone notepad to keep track of everything, which has been working just fine. However, my doctor thinks I might be anemic, or at least lacking in certain nutrients, so I'm heading back over to the food tracker at SparkPeople.com. I added a link to it on the Food/Fitness Tracker page above if you might be interested in seeing what I eat to maintain my weight loss.

If you don't know about SparkPeople.com, first off it's FREE. It's a community of people trying to live healthy. They have food and fitness trackers, teams you can join based on your interests, lots of articles and health news, and so much more. Really, you should check it out! And if you do, my name over there is HALFFAST. 

Last night I was actually going to run outside, but as soon as I put on my gear and headed out it started pouring. So I went in the treadmill room, plugged it in and turned it on, and POOF! All the power in the house went out! Except for the treadmill! Yes, I made my husband sit in the dark for a half hour so I could get a few miles in ;)

And that's about it for my exciting life!

Gotta run, Laura