breathe.paula.breathe

that's what I keep telling myself.  Gosh, I am such an emotional eater. Okay. I'm going to be honest here. I am spoiled.  I am used to having my way. Ever since I was a kid, I usually got what I wanted.  I am not saying that I was this princess.type.who.got.everything.she.wanted. Far from it. I could tell you stories...

In my adult life, I find that it's necessary for things to occur in a certain fashion. I am methodical. I have a routine. There is order in my world. Anything that veers me off such "certainties" in my life have a tendency to frazzle me.  I can be a lilly in the wind. Don't misunderstand. I want to please.... and so when I am challenged. I take it personal.  How do I react?  I look around "oh, there are peanuts, candy, trail mix." Doesn't matter. I will eat it.  Stuffing my face is way more appealing than say, dealing with NOT GETTING MY WAY.  There. I said it.  Can you relate? Am I alone here? BE HONEST.

I work with intelligent, young adults.  They will test me just like my own kids have done and will do.  These are all natural life courses so Paula... stay away from the freakin candy.  Put your gym clothes and go to STRAIGHT to zumba.  A little cumbia and reggaton will make you smile.  Brush off the issues of the day.  So you were treated with disrespect.  Don't take it personal.  They want it their way as well.  Give a young person some authority and whew... interesting things happen. Stay calm. breathe and don't let crapola ruin your day of healthy eating and the potential to smile. Got it?

Sometimes you just gotta talk yourself down from a tree.

healthy.eater.show.off

Aww, it's Thursday. One more day til Friday...  Doing really good with my  new motto "not drowing in a cup of water."  Helping me keep things in perspective.

I wanted to share one of my favorite food finds from Trader Joe's.  I found this Quinoa medeley in the frozen food section. It's 220 calories for 1 cup.  High in calories if  you're eating "as is" which I do not.  I add this grain to my veggie dishes.

I've been doing this for a while since it adds a layer of flavor to what could be BORING vegetables. Last night, I sauted fresh asparagus and when they were nice and soft, I added 2 cups of quinoa. 

Here's a picture I took with my cell phone.  This picture doesn't do the meal justice.  BTW-- Is there a way to take a picture on android cell phone and upload to blogger? I can't figure it out. 

Back to my quinoa obsession.  I divided this batch of quinoa and asparagus. Half for last night dinner and the other half for my lunch.  This little mixture (heated up of course) was the perfect topping to my massage kale with olive oil.

I felt so healthy heating my lunch up in the break room.  I'm such a healthy.eater.show.off.  After my healthy lunch, I went for a 2 mile walk.  My leg was a little sore from last night's 2 hour jog. It was cold last night and I didn't want to go but after reading Roni's Weigh's blog yesterday where she talks about healthy habits.  She's so right about turning on "auto pilot" and just doing rather than thinking about exercising.

Love you Roni.  Well, gotta run.  I am so looking forward to the weekend. How about you?

how do you handle stress?

Ever take a good look at how you react to stress?  Things are starting to get challenging as I work in two different departments.  Monday was "off the charts" in terms of stress. Just before quitin time, a had a project go wrong and was beside myself.  Instead of heading to zumba, I went home to wallow.   The moment I walked in I was a bear. Went straight to the kitchen and made me a huge omelete.  Gobbled up a banana and almonds right out of the bag. Then went to bed early with an uncomfortably full belly.

I slept until 6:45 a.m., still FULL from last night's dinner. Never eat a banana before going to bed. Just saying... 

Today things are in perspective. I do what I can, where I can, with the amount of time I have.  The end.  My issues are so minor in the grand scheme of things.  Why do I drown myself in a cup of water? I'm evaluating how I manage my stress. Today I was told a co-worker's husband died. Another lost his vision. And what am I doing?  Wallowing over SHIT.

There is always going to be stress in one's life.  I cheated self by not keeping with my routine. Remember, one never feels bad after a work out. I knew that intellectually but chose to hide under a rock.  My day is still stressful but the difference is my attitude.  I Instead of succumbing to the huge bag of M&M's near my desk, I'm chomping on an orange.

Didn't have time for exercise during my lunch hour. Okay... I can always take a walk during my break, take a zumba class this evening or do a workout with the new app I downloaded on the ipad2.

I do not have to let stress gobble me up.

I can acknowledge it.  Look at it.. and choose not to drown in it.  I know this approach is easier after a good nights rest and certainly the challenge is to recognize it in "real time" and then turn things around. You'd think at my age, I'd have that figured out.  But no... If you have any suggestions on how to "turn a frown upside down," and "be happy", I'd sure love to hear it.

Later, gators.

test kitchen sunday

Hi friends, how's your Monday treating you?  I've been so busy that I've not had time to blog. I really wanted to share the pictures from my Sunday. Did I tell you my son purchased a taco truck?  Years of Urban Planning and he wants to make tacos.  Go figure. 

Our afternoon was filled with shopping at the farmers market and then it was time for Daniel to give my son a cooking lesson in making carnitas for the taco truck. Daniel is an excellent cook. He ran a successful restaurant in Mexico for years. He said a restaurant demands the same love and attention as a young child.  My kitchen was filled with aromas of carnitas, frijoles del oja, cilantro/lime rice, salsa picosa, onions, cilantro and guacamole.  I even made an agua de melon (cantelope water).

I took lots of pictures to share and then I decided... no need to torture you with food porn. I logged my calories from yesterday's taste testing and was astonished that 3 tacos were nearly 700 calories.  Yikes. I am in love with my fitness pal app by-the-way. I love that I can scan ingredients...

Today is my first day back to my workout routine.  Walking a noon and zumba in the evening. I've been sidelined almost 2 weeks due to my asthma.  Dontcha just hate missing your workouts when  you're sick?

well, better get back to work. I'm on a short break. Have a great day all.

Happy Leap Year friends. Luckily, I got plenty of rest last night and slept well. The morning started out with a little rain in SacTown so I thought I'd treat myself to Old Soul. I parked my car next to the Guild Theatre. Isn't this a cool building? The Mayor who was raised in Oak Park bought several buildings and had them restored.

 Old Soul is one of those buildings. They make the best latte.  I had a doctor's visit yesterday and due to my Gerd, he recommended I give up coffee. I'm seriously thinking about it and that's sort of what drew me to get the  latte this morning for breakfast. Tell me I can't have something and that's the first thing I want. I'm my worse enemy.

Here I am leaving with my cup of goodness.

My sister Vi is returning to Texas tomorrow and so I invited her to lunch.  I wanted vietnamese but she wanted to visit El Novillero. It was one of her favorite spots when she lived in Sacramento.

This staircase makes no sense since it doesn't lead to anywhere. I love the Hacienda feel of the place. Don't you think this would make a great place for a wedding?

 I ordered two flautas ala cart. They were huge. I asked the waiter for a container and then gave it to my sister.  I was full from eating chips n salsa. I had to really contain myself as I can easily inhale an entire basket. Eating was far from perfect. But at least I'm conscious of I'm doing.

After work, I headed over to Trader Joes. I needed a few items. My thought is if I have some quick "go to foods" then I will eat out less and or indulge in the food Daniel cooks.

 Here's my loot.  I will try to continue on with the grain free but there will be times I'll need to reach for grains.  The more I place foods off limits, the more I want them.

With groceries put away, I picked out some meat from the carne con papas Daniel cooked and made a quick salad.

 Dessert was two cups of mango.  Daniel had chocolate with a glass of milk. Then we settled on the sofa to watch Secretariat in Spanish. 

It's one thing to speak Spanish and it's another thing to watch a movie in Spanish.  I always wish I had the talent to write a Novela... Anywhooooo, I'm off to bed. Hope you all had a great day.

I really am looking forward to the start of March... How about you?

slap yourself

Jalapenos

You might wonder why is she posting a picture of jalapenos?  I have no real reason other than I love the colors and how the steam is rising in the photo. 

Instead of attending a healthy living seminar at work, I found myself at Kaiser having my lungs checked out. Still feeling crappy so instead of attending a healthy living seminar at noon, I had a doctor's visit. My asthma does not require me to use an inhaler every day so that's always good. I thought about that as I returned to work. Feeling "zapped" and then I thought, "why be the face of negative energy?" So instead of bemoaning inside my head, I decided to fake a smile and pretend to be on top of the world.  I'm telling you.  It kinda worked.

Do you ever have those moments of recognizing?  Of catching yourself being negative and then you take steps to turn it around? I need to practice that more often. 

Have you ever had a similar moment where you just slap yourself?

gripa and rituals

Hi friends. Happy Thursday. I was out sick yesterday with a cold.  The first day of a cold is always the hardest. Instead of going to work, I called in and layed in bed until 8 a.m.  Then I remembered I have an ipad2. Why not watch a movie in bed. So not only did I watch a movie. I watched North and South.  I love watching period pieces.

It was easy to eat healthy while at home. After all, I have all kinds of veggies and lean meat in my fridge.  I even scrambled some eggs for dinner. 

I'm at work today.  Having  yesterday to just lay around certainly helped.  Daniel asked me why I get sick so often and I really don't have an answer. I eat healthy and exercise. I've just accepted that I have asthma and a cold can kick my ass if I don't care for myself and so I felt no guilt about yesterday. It's what I need to do so I don't end up with bronchitus. Is it mental? Maybe.  But if I don't care for myself, who will? 

So even though I brought gym clothes to work. Instead of a workout, I treated myself to chicken soup, lemon and lots of hot sauce...  Everyting tastes better with hot sauce, don't you think?
When you're catching a cold, do you have a ritual that helps you feel better?