Hot then Cold

This morning when I woke up I was freezing! Maybe due to the fact its 8 degrees outside..
So I knew I wanted something warm for breakfast, aaaaand maybe a cookie.
These gingerbread cookies are so soft and tasty that they inspired this mornings breakfast.

Gingerbread Cookie Oatmeal

Ingredients:

• 1/2 Cup Gluten-free oats/old fashioned rolled oats
  
• 1.5 tsp. stevia
  
• 1.5 tsp. cinnamon
  
• 1/4 tsp. Ginger
  
• 2 egg whites (optional- I add it just for protein)
  
• water

Directions
Place desired amount of water in bowl with oats (I like mine thick) Along with 2 egg whites
Microwave for 2 minutes
Stir in spices and cook for additional minute
Optional: Top with gingerbread cookie

After my belly was nice and warm I was able to head out in the cold air to the gym. I made it to about half of body combat and taught Body Pump. Body Pump #80 is SOOO fun! It is one of my favorite releases. It includes a few new/different movements which make it innovative and fun. I love all the songs for each track as well. The tricep and lunge track hurt so good..
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After pump, I was planning on running but got about 2 miles in on the treadmill and the shoes I was wearing were really bugging my feet.—>I’m super picky when it comes to running shoes & socks. Comfort is key!!  If I start to feel the least bit of So I switched it to the stair climber for a little over 20 minutes at level 10.

When I got home I was a sweaty and more then ready for a recovery smoothie.

Chocolate protein + unsweetened cocoa + Strawberries + Spinach ,blended with Vanilla almond milk unsweetened and ice

Weird combo but it was pretty tasty but now I’m freezing again!
Time for a hot shower to warm back up then off to *hopefully get some Christmas shopping done! Lets hope the babies are in a shopping mood today..
Q. Body Pumpers, what do you think about release #80? Have you done it yet?

Gingerbread Cookies

Do you know what will get you in the Christmas spirit?
Baking cookies, the smell of cookies baking and Eating cookies…
Not just any cookies..
These cookies.
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I was saw some gingerbread men cookies at the grocery store the other day and decided I could make my own healthier, gluten free version of those tasty little men.
After a test run, a few adjustments my mission was accomplished.
Although I didn’t have a little man cookie cutter.. hearts work to right?

Gingerbread Cookies

Gluten free

• makes 15-16 cookies (depending on cookie cutter and thickness)
• Prep time: 15 minutes
• Bake time: 10-15 minutes (depending on thickness

Ingredients

• 1 Cup Almond Meal
• 1/2 Cup Coconut flour
• 1 tsp. of baking soda
• 1 tsp. of baking powder
• 1/2 C. Applesauce
• 3 Tbs Ground flax seed
• 1/2 tsp. gaur gum
• 1 Tbsp. apple cider vinegar
• 3 tsp. Stevia
• 1/3 C. Agave Nectar
• 1 tsp. vanilla extract
• 1/4 tsp. sea salt
• 1/4 tsp. allspice
• 1-2 tsp. cinnamon
• 1 1/2 tsp. Ginger

Directions

1. In one bowl, mix the first 4 ingredients in one bowl
2. In another bowl mix the remaining ingredients together using an electric mixer.
3. Combine both mixtures together
4. Sprinkle a little coconut flour onto part of counter and roll out the dough for desired thickness
5. Use cookie cutter or bottom of a cup to cut out your cookie shapes
6. Spread on non-stick cookie sheet
7. Bake 12-15 minutes depending how thick your cookies are.

Sit next to the fire.. and or your glowing fake candle.., kick your feet up and enjoy.

There is one little man in my life that holds my heart.

And one big man that holds hers.

Have a good night!

Raspberry Pancakes

Its late.. which means its almost breakfast and I know exactly what you should make.

How could you not.

I mean raspberries are the best fruit known to man and pancakes are like fluffy, delicious cakey, carby deliciousness..
These ones are actually gluten-free, light, low carb and dare I say… freakin fantastic?
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Raspberry Pancakes

Makes: 3-4 pancakes

Ingredients:

• 1/3 C. Coconut flour
• 2 T. Gluten free rolled oats- may sub normal but obviously won’t be gf.
• 1/4 tsp baking powder
• pinch of salt
• 2 T unsweetened applesauce
• 1 packet of stevia
• 1/3 C. Almond breeze unsweetened vanilla milk
• 1 whole egg
• 3 egg whites
• 1 T extra virgin coconut oil
• 1/2 C. (Handful or 2)  Fresh/frozen Raspberries

Directions

1. Combine all dry ingredients together besides raspberries
2. Combine all wet ingredients together
3. Mix together then gently fold in raspberries
4. Mixture will be thick!
5. Pour onto hot skillet and cover with lid and cook for 3-4 minutes, these pancakes will not bubble like bisquick. Flip and repeat on the other side
6. Top with the remaining raspberries you didn’t eat while they were cooking.. and a little almond butter, banana, maple syrup, whip cream, ice cream, chocolate.. I’m being flexible here folks.
7. Devour. 

Best breakfast since ever.
CHRISTMAS LIGHTS
As I was driving around tonight I started to notice peoples Christmas lights… I love Christmas lights but I have limitations..
Lets chat shall we?
Colored “Christmas lights”?

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I'm talking the strings of pink, blue, orange, green and red.
3 out of 5 of those colors do not ring Christmas to me..
Really?.. Pink? Valentines
blue and yellow? I don’t even know?
Orange.. Halloween.
Green and red.. sure, that’s Christmas but not with pink, blue, yellow and orange..that’s a party.
I guess it depends on how you actually display it. Colored light bulbs in icicles form stringed around your house.. you just crossed the line.
I more of a simple person.. My favorite combos are red and green, white and blue, red and white.. just plain white is always fancy but you throw in all the colors and I just think you could get away with keeping them up all year around.
Q. What is your favorite Christmas light combos?

Pool Tide Gale..

What is a good way to commit to your goals?

Invite a friend.

I have good friends. Don’t I?

One of my goals for December was to get back in the pool. When I set my alarm for 4:30am last night, I knew it would be easier to go if I was meeting someone there.

Then you wake up to a text  at 4:36 am threatening your life if you don’t show up..

I have good friends.

And no, I wasn’t looking forward to getting in the water. It was zero degrees outside and my bed was quite comfy..

We got about an hour swim in. I have to admit it has been much to long since I have been at the pool and I could tell that my swimming endurance was a little on the weak side. Train more I suppose. I was really glad I got it done, it felt great to swim again almost therapeutic, dare I say.

LUNCH-

For lunch today I wanted a salad, I have a ton of spinach and besides just throwing it my protein shakes liquid style.  I decided to dress it up all fancy and eat it like a normal person would.

With a fork.

Plus a organic turkey burger, sweet potatoes, cucumbers, avocado and tomato. Drizzled with balsamic dressing.

An apple with almond butter was also consumed. While my turkey burger was on the stove.

Love me some veggies! I haven’t had cucumbers forever and was glad to have that extra crunch in there! 

Yesterday, was my brother in-law Jake’s birthday! So tonight we got together with the fam damily and enjoyed this scrumptious pumpkin spice bundt cake with caramel sauce. In his honor

We also played keep away with the babies and the doggies. For some reason, Aspen LOVES to lick the babies faces whenever the opportunity may arise..

Its pretty cute though.

Had to guard the Christmas tree from the little elves..

Is B in dinosaur pj’s you ask? Why yes, yes she is and she likes them. Is my hair still wet, pulled back from swimming at 5 am. Yes, yes it is.

T tracked down the Christmas choo choo pretty quick.

It was funner to pull it apart and throw it then push it along any track.  

 

It was a fun night and now I’m just chillin with the hubs- laptop to laptop.. romantic eh? Can’t wait until finals are freakin over and we can begin to enjoy the holiday a bit more. But to get us in the spirit a little more we are jamming out to this little diddy.

I am really loving Justin Biebers Christmas CD. I’m kind of a teenager at heart and swoon over his girly voice.

Q. What is your favorite Christmas CD?

Mine used to be Mariah Carey.. But Justin Beiber holiday on pandora is rocking in this sleigh (my car) lately.

December Goals

Good Morning!! I started this morning off with this workout. I warmed up on the bike for about 20 minutes before tackling that beast. My hamstrings are  ALWAYS sore after those SLD. Tomorrow should be fun. It feels good to get up early again for a workout! Lately my A.M workouts have taken a backseat.. Cold weather, late nights, no goal motivation(races) to work for= Lazy Candice. Although, I have been getting my workouts in they have just been more of an afternoon thing.
I came home and made a quick egg scramble

4 egg whites + 1 yolk, tomato, spinach, yellow onion and mushrooms

Today we have the funeral to celebrate Brent’s grandfathers life so I’ll be quick

In order for me to get through this season I am going to plan out some goals I want to work on to keep me motivated. Last months challenges were awesome! And I did pretty well with sticking with them! Although I did miss 3 or 4 days of KB swings. Overall, I think I did pretty well!

December Goals!

1. Drink more WATER!! I used to be really good at this.. The past couple of weeks I have been lacking and I can feel and see the difference of not staying hydrated.
2. Get back in the pool! I miss the water and need to commit to swimming at least once a week! Even if it is 10 degrees outside.
3. Take a yoga class! NEED. I always put off stretching and end up regretting it when it comes down to an injury. I know how important it is to stretch to actually prevent injury.. and I think it will give me the “slow down” time my mind and body need during the holiday season.
4. Christmas Cards- We got our family pictures on Saturday. Lets just hope one turned out! So I can get them addressed and in the mail!
Q. What is one of your goals for December?

Weekend Re-cap

 

Hey guys! Hope you all had a great weekend! Last night Brent and I were able to get out on a little mini date while his dad hung out with the twinners! We didn’t have very long but since “date nights” seem to be a rare occasion these days so we take every chance we can get! We decided to just go to kneaders. Its right up the street from our house and Brent hasn’t been there yet, its quick and good quality food!

Brent got the Turkey, Bacon, Avocado Sandwich with broccoli cheese soup. The bread was soft and warm, the turkey was freshly sliced and they sure don’t skimp out on the avocado!  The soup was perfect and not to salty like most restaurant style soups can be sometimes.

I rolled with the Chicken Berry Salad

It had fresh Spinach with grilled chicken,blueberries, purple onions and candied pecans. I ordered it without cheese and  with the raspberry vinaigrette dressing on the side. Bonus: I got to take some home to!

I’m super picky when it comes to salads and eating out in general but I am always pleased when they are willing to accommodate me and their patience when I ask a million questions. The blueberries were huge and the candied pecans added the perfect crunch! I think next time I will have them replace the chicken with some turkey though. The chicken wasn’t exactly my favorite part of the salad but the turkey on Brent's sandwich was fresh and real turkey! Overall, we both were pleased with our meals and experience there. We will definitely be back for more!

We spent the rest of the night watching

Friday night lights started a few years ago.. but thanks to Netflix we are able to catch up. Brent and I both really like it so far, it has enough football to keep him entertained and some drama for me. Win-Win!

This morning started with a pancake fail.. quickly turned into a tasty creation

{Pumpkin Chia Bars}

 

Gluten free, low calorie and high protein!

Matched with some spinach and 2 eggs..

Breakfast was served!

Since this was intended to actually be pancakes.. the bars I think need just a little adjusting for perfection before blog approval. They were just a little on the “moist”--->I hate that word… But I work with it and get it up sometime this week!

However dinner came together without fail

{Lemon Tilapia}

This was SOOOO simple to make!

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees
• Lay filet on tinfoil
• Sprinkle with lemon pepper
• Place to slices of fresh lemon on top of filets
• Wrap up filets and place directly on rack
• Bake for 15-20 minutes!

Voila!

I had some red potato and sweet potatoes and carrots to use before they grew arms and legs so we enjoyed them on the side.

Classic Sunday Dinner! I forget how much I love fresh steamed carrots! They were delish!

 

Q. Are you a T'.V show series or movie buff?

We are totally T.V show series folk. Its an addiction really.. 24, lost—>major disappointment p.s, Friends, The O.C, Desperate housewives, Greys anatomy —>Okay, those last ones are just me.. I totally bought the seasons of O.C and Friends in high school!

Q.   Are you a picky Restaurant eater?

The Windocalypse 2011

This morning we were waken up from strong winds that were banging on our windows! The news gave us fair warning about the wind last night so we were able to “batten down the hatches.”
Then around 11:00 am I went out to get the mail and there was no wind..? I figured it was over.. Then I turned on the news to see that a state of emergency was issued in the city just 5 miles away from us!
Brent tried to go to the gym earlier and it was closed due to no power! The wind storm knocked out power to over 50,000 people today! It may not be back for 48 hours! Schools were all canceled and even into tomorrow! Semis blown over on the freeway, major damage everywhere!
Luckily, we have had power at our house all day! The wind picked back up pretty strong at our house about 5 ish.. and still going strong! The wind has been as fast as 102 mph! Fences blown over, HUGE trees uprooted, shingles everywhere.. and I’m pretty sure nobody can find there own garbage can..Its CRAZY!!
Check out some of these pictures!



This is at my MIL house! My dad had a tree fall and break his patio roof!

Garage doors—these pictures and more can be found here

"You can bet I blew right past this one!"
So… due to the hurricane type weather, all gym classes were cancelled because there is no power at the gym... (Day off work) I would usually celebrate.. but I kind of sort of love my job!
Without anywhere to go safely.. we stayed home pretty much ALL day!! And I cleaned up after my two little windstorms!

This is what happened while I was in the shower for 10 minutes! I won’t fail to mention that I just got done cleaning and vacuuming my entire upstairs… sigh. A mothers work is never done.. neeeeeever……
but they are pretty cute…

while eating spaghetti.. (that’s just a whole new mess in itself)
The gym stayed closed all day, so I took my day off and did my own little workout at home!
I studied Body Attack 75, LOVE IT!! Also completed this quick workout in the comfort of my own living room.

Windocalypse Workout

• 25 squats
• 25 burpees with 4 pushups at the bottom of each burpee
• 25 sit ups
• 25 backward stepping lunges Right
• 25 backward stepping lunges Left
• 25 sit ups
• 25 burpees with 4 pushups at the bottom of each burpee
• 25 squats
• 300 jump ropes
• X2!!

Phew!! I was a sweaty mess!! I even was able to get it done while the babies were down for their nap. I should of timed it but I didn’t if I had to guess I would think about 25 minutes.
If you try it let me know! It’s a tough one! Set your timer and go as fast as you can! I’m pretty sure I’ll be sore from all those push ups!
Bad news: Earlier today I received a text from my FIL that Brents g-pa was taken to the hospital because he was coughing up blood.  I got updates throughout the day and I am truly sad to report that he passed away about an hour ago. He was an amazing man and was always fun to talk to because he had so many great stories to share.

I never mentioned because I like to keep the blog a positive place but my nana actually passed away last week also.

Losing two grandparents within 1 week is a little rough. Life is so precious and sometimes we don’t realize it until you have to watch and just wait for their life to come to an end. I am grateful for my faith and knowledge that I will get to see them again. Because families are forever.
Sorry for such a downer post today but that’s just life right now. Tomorrow is a new day! Hopefully,this wind won’t cause to much more damage!
Off to cuddle my babes!
Q. What is the craziest storm you have ever experienced?
This pretty much tops the list! It’s the most damage I have ever seen in my little hometown!