Back to School...

Back to school to prove to Daddy I'm not a fool....

Sorry I totally just had a Billy Madison moment... Not that that is over, well not really, I am secretly singing the whole song to myself right now, shhh don't tell :o)

It has been a crazy few days back to school with my new class that I have the misfortune pleasure of spending the next 178 days with... but who's counting?

I am short on time and energy and need to make this post quick so I can get ready for my 15hr work day tomorrow... YIPPIE LUCKY ME :o)...

For those that read my post know I am not one who is short on words... I considering doing a "wordless Wednesday" post but HA that could never happen. Instead I have decided to do a Less Word Wednesday Post :o)

So I bring you WIAW... My favorites from this week!

Breakfast: Baked Blueberry Oatmeal (new recipe coming soon). Topped with Chia Jam, Protein icing and fresh fruit.

Snacks: Chobani, fresh fruit and Love Grown Granola. Dried Pinapple with Natural PB... YUM

Lunch: Chicken Breast, Black Beans, onions, tomatoes, salsa and a sprinkle of cheese. 

 Dinner: Baked Tilapia, Homemade sweet potato chips and homemade Mango salsa. The best bite was piling the mango salsa on the sweet potato chips... heaven!

I am not sure I like this whole being back to work thing... I am thinking an early retirement may be in the cards haha One can wish right?

Ciao and no time

Alexis 

Back to Work and WIAW

I am back to work, attempting, with all that is mighty, to prepare for my little kiddos. If you are a teacher you know that is not possible but hey I am trying! lol

I spent all day in meeting yesterday and today I have to head to the convention center for all day workshops for someone to tell me something about teaching HA... So needless to say I am over the meeting thing and have had no time to myself so far this week.

I didn't want to miss out on WIAW so it is 5am and I am hurrying to finishe before I have to get ready for an early day! :o)

In case you missed it on Monday, one of my good friends Carissa, had us over this weekend for a Pizza party and we had so much fun... check it out!

Favorites from this week so far

Breakfast:  Quinoa with Protein powder, Almond Milk and topped with Banana and Kiwi
Lunch: Chicken salad with quinoa and tomatoes, topped with guacamole instead of dressing

   I get up at 4:30am every morning so I usually hungry by 7 or 8 :o) knowing I was going to be in meeting all day I thought I may need a energy boost too. Solution... Coffee Protein Shake. Left over coffee I keep in the fridge, almond milk, protein powder, flax, chia and an antioxidant splenda. SOO GOOD!
Post Workout: Protein shake with berries, chia,  flax and almond milk. (Note: I did not drink these in the same day)

Dinner: Chicken Butternut squash quesadilla. Much like an older recipe I posted but I added chicken. :o)

I guess I need to go get ready... I have been "designated" as the driver today by my coworkers LOL At least I know we will get there quickly that way :o)

Ciao and back to school,

Alexis

Holey Moley! WIAW

HOLEY MOLEY!!!
This is all I kept hearing come from Brian last night during dinner. I felt a mix of accomplishment, confusion and pure hilarity. Why?

 First off I don't think I have ever heard Brian say Holey Moley before so I found it so funny, on the other hand dinner must have been pretty darn good to warrant that response. So why the confusion? Dinner was nothing special, I have made it a million times before but apparently there was something about this version that was outstanding haha... So what was it you may ask... well you will just have to wait until I get to the dinner portion of this post... tehe

If you need a killer at home workout to help you once you finish eating all these summer staples I have one just for you... Get outside and Work!

Now that we have gotten that out of the way on with the food!

Breakfast: Everything Bagel flat smeared with goat cheese and topped with onions, smoked salmon, tomatoes and lettuce. I think it is safe to say I could eat this everyday and never be tired of it! Of course Black coffee went along with this

Snack/Lunch: Rice Cake with 1Tbsp PB and topped with homemade mango Blueberry Chia Jam and a delish granny smith apple. 

 

 Brian helped me take all my stuff back to my classroom to get ready for school to start (MOMMMY I DONT WANT TO GO)...and on the way he got me some passion tea. No complaints here.

 

Snack: A big bowl of amazing-ness... cherries were on sale this week at Publix so I couldn't resist them anymore. They were perfect. 

Snack: not Pictured: Pretzels and Hummus

So here comes where the Holey Moley comes in...

Dinner: his and hers- Turkey Burgers with Jalapenos, Sauteed onions and peppers, spicy guac. 

Hers- I ate mine as a salad with some tomatoes and blueberries and used the guac as my dressing. Sounds weird but SOOO GOOD. 

His- Served as a burger with a salad on the side. I am not quite sure what put this dinner of the edge but hey I will take the compliments where I can get them lol

When was the last time you got a big response from a meal you made?

Ciao and Holey Moley, 

Alexis

What I ate Wednesday: Early Morning wake up call

 

This image followed by BEEP BEEP BEEP BEEP BEEP.. yet a lot louder and a lot more annoying!

This has become my daily wake up call. "You get used to it" is whatever one says... this may be so but it still is not enjoyable haha. Well Alexis "Why do you get up so early?" Good question... Brian is out the door by 5am for work and since his return from being gone for 6 months (Navy) we have decided if possible every breakfast and dinner will be eaten together... you realize after not having the little things for 6 months its what you miss the most. 

Long story short. Since Brian's return we have an unspoken tradition that if we are both home we eat breakfast and dinner together. So every morning we get up at 4:25am he gets ready to leave and I make a home made breakfast... no cereal for this family LOL. We sit down and eat and then he is on his way.

This brings me to the wonderful Jenn (who if anyone understands this odd tradition it would be here lol) and WIAW Summer Staples. Summer is slowly coming to an end and as much as I dont want it to school is creeping up on me. SO, I am trying to get back in the swing of prepping more food in advance again before I head back to work. So my summer staples for this week are easy breakfasts to make in advance and just cook or heat up in the am... this is def. a big help at 4:25am :o)

Brought to you courtesy of my phone and Instagram... Sorry there is not any natural lighting for the real camera this early in the AM lol. DEAL WITH IT!

 Gluten Free Muffins stuffed with Chia. Super easy to make in advance. I make 6-12 depending on my mood and store them in the fridge. Take out warm up and its like Heaven in your mouth lol 

 Coffee and a good book. I have finally come to the end of this book after stopping and starting about 10 times and leaving my brand new hard cover on the plane. Thanks Marie for trusting me with your hardcover haha.

 Protein Pancakes: A staple in our house anytime. These are what we actually had this wonderful Wednesday morning. Brian deemed them his favorite by far. Peanut Butter Apple Pancakes. They were quite delish. No worries recipe will be up this week :o)

Breakfast quinoa as I like to call it. I always prep a ton of Quinoa in advance so it's always on hand. This is just plain quinoa with lots of fruit, chia, some almond milk and Love Grown Granola. 

So there you have it. My Summer Breakfast Staples, that can really be enjoyed anytime of the year . 

Happy Wednesday Everyone! I hope your week is going well and only gets better!

Ciao and Early Morning Hell Love

Alexis

WIAW from NY

I am so happy to be back at WIAW this week. I missed everyone last week but I definitely was loving my vacay in NYC!

Brian and I at our Friends wedding

Although I am Detoxing this week (read no food), I have plenty of delish foods to send your way from my trip. To stay with Jenns theme of fun, food, and fitness I will be throwing in some pictures of my hotel workouts and some super fun vacation pictures...



 

Here is all the different eats and fun moments of the trip followed by some hotel workouts

My sister and I enjoying some drinks our first night in the City.

 First Up is a few pictures of wedding food. I can honestly say this was some of the best food I have eaten and the most amazing, extravagant wedding I have been to.

From top left: Cocktail hour sample plate with chickpea salad, lentil salad and hummus. Braised short ribs and Chicken and waffles (sounds odd I know but so good). Wild Mushroom Angolotti (to die for) and a gotham salad.  Black and white sesame crusted Salmon. Chicken Martini shot, and last but not least desert drinks ( I did not partake in those). 

My favorite non wedding food is found at Ess-a-Bagel. The best Lox Bagel I have ever had and although it was $12.75 it was so worth it!

*on a fun side note they also make vegan cream cheese (made from tofu) in TONS of different flavors. We liked the bagels so much we went back again, however this time I just opted for  Egg Whites on a salt bagel.

Next I went to my BFF's Bridal shower and sampled a few good eats. It was held at a culinary school how could they not be good?

Caprese skewers, fruit and cheese, Peaches wrapped in prosciutto, Veggies, Super cute cup idea which I filled with a Gin Limeade... so delish! And for dessert we had Meringue topped with raspberries filled with Balsamic reduction. 

 The number one reason we went to NYC! RICE TO RICHES!!!!! If you ever are in the City this place is a must. They have about 20 different flavors of rice pudding and delish toppings for it. I only eat half so I always have leftovers. Its way to good I have to savor it.

Ok now that you have seen some of my indulgences while on vacations I leave you with 2 of my hotel workouts and a few pictures from the trip. There will be more to come along with a SUPER AWESOME giveaway coming shortly.

Big Brother and Sister 

 Getting my dance on a t the wedding LOL and Making fun of some others in the process in the process and yes my sister and I have matching tattoos LOL

 Polar Bear at the Central Park Zoo

 Alison Wonderland Statue in Central Park, one of my favorite memories of visiting NYC with my dad

Ground Zero... Breathtaking to say the least. Its crazy to think it was been more than 10 years now. 

Ok Ok I think I have overloaded your brain (if you even made it this far haha) so I will bow out now but there will be more fun things to come. My review of the Waldorf NYC... is it really as good as everyone says or is it all just hype? HMMM Lots of awesome NYC pictures and a giveaway. Stay tuned! 

Ciao and indulgences, 

Alexis 

HAPPY INDEPENDENCE DAY and WIAW

 Happy Fourth Everyone. I know its a day to celebrate our Independence from England but I also believe now-a-days I like to think of it as another opportunity to thank all of our military and their families. Without all of these amazing men and women, and their supportive families Independence Day would just be another day of the year. So thank you!

 Now onto WIAW! This month Jen wants us to to focus on the 3 most important Fs... Not that F get your mind out of the gutter! I am talking FOOD, FUN, FITNESS!

Food I have been loving on lately!

Oatmeal with fresh berries a dollop of PB some almonds and a splash of almond milk

Chicken, barley, red peppers and roasted asparagus

Smoked Salmon with avocado, spinach, goat cheese and onion on a bagel flat

Stuffed Sweet potato- Need I say more?

Egg whites, asparagus, zucchini, onion, avocado and goat cheese all on a Flax Oat Bran Pita

 

 My fun!

Spending time with my nephews. They love coming to my house because only a short drive away in the "down town" (if you can call it that haha) part of our city is a splash park for kids. So yesterday they came over and I sat in the blistering heat and laughed as I watched them run around in the fountain. 

My Fitness!
I have fallen back in love with yoga.  I have started going 2 days a week again and I am loving it! That is really my only group fitness class of choice. I am pretty much a loner when it comes to working out. I like getting in, focusing, and getting my workout on. I am loving my box jumps although my a*s does not quite share my love haha.

So there you have it, my week of Food, Fun and Fitness! What would your week look like if you documented it?

Have a safe and happy 4th of July! Do you have anything fun planned today?

Ciao and lovin' yoga

Alexis