Elle Oh Elle

One of my friends posted this to Instagram, and I had to copy it because it made me laugh out loud. I had to modify it a little, but still.

Find something that makes you laugh out loud today :)

xo A

Getting "old"

Recently people have been saying "oh I feel so old" "I just can't do ______________ like I used to, I'm getting too old" "You're to old to do that"

That's just a really bad way to look at life I think. Yes of course you can't do things like you used to, because you GREW UP, and you are SMARTER now. [of course staying out til 2am drinking on a Thursday is bad, you have a JOB to go to at 8am, hello, use your head]

I'm not old, I just have a job now, that I very much like because it pays me.

However, last night as I was taking out my contacts, I saw a grey hair and promptly pulled it [I'm very glad I dyed my hair BEFORE my birthday or it might not have ended so well]. I've been noticing I've had to dye my hair more frequently as of late, and the only thing I worry about when I "get old" is how frequently I'm going to have to dye my hair.

If I dye my hair every 2 months [and that's pushing it] and spend 7.99 [let's make it $9 because of inflation and tax]

Yearly = $54 + 3 hours

Until I die [age 80 is what I'm 401K'ing for a target age] = $2,860 + 159 hours [or 6.5 days]

Ugh. I think that's more scary than anything. And probably by the time I retire, I'm not going to want to color my own hair! $$$ the price of being beautiful :)


xo
A

Baked Oatmeal

I've really been trying to eat a lot healthier lately. After doing the Advocare 24 Day Challenge, I kind of didn't stop. I've cut out processed food, sugar, fried things, and coffee [obviously on occasion I eat these things, but rarely. I've noticed I just don't feel great after I eat them] It's really easy to do during the week because I almost always have meals and snacks planned. On the weekend it's a lot harder because I'm at a movie or out to supper or at the bar and it's a little more difficult to eat better.

Anyway. 

I have been cooking new recipes I find on Pinterest and it's amazing. Until last night. When it all went very, very wrong.

I can't even tell you when I came to the realization that it wasn't going to turn out... Probably about the time I tried to mix milk, eggs and PEANUT BUTTER together. With a fork.  I knew it wasn't a good idea, and yet I kept going.

I would write more but it just depresses me. Ugh what a mess. Believe it or not peanut butter does not...melt when baked at high temperatures. I blame it on the natural pb...someone at work blamed it on the eggs.

       

It might look decent, but it has these awful pockets of gelatinous unsweetened oatmeal.

It's quite terrifying. And it's only missing so many because I scooped three pieces out to take to work for breakfast for the week.

This is quite literally what failure looks like. In an 8x8 pan sitting in my refrigerator right now. 

       

The absolute worst part about the whole thing.

It smelled AMAZING! So I'm sitting on my couch waiting for it to be done, and naturally take a bite right as it comes out of the oven so it's quite literally too hot to even tell if it's good or not... The second bite was spit into the sink.

I wasn't going to add this, but I actually wrote a comment on the woman's blog I got the recipe from, and probably sounded like a whiny brat (not really, but probably pretty whiny) everyone else had noooo problems, why did it turn out so bad for me?!

I hate baking.

xo A

#transformationtuesday

Oh it's Thursday? Sorry I'm not sorry.

This. Is probably one of the longest project I've ever done. Not because it takes a long time, but because I couldn't decide what I wanted. And let's be honest, holiday weekend...I didn't want to be stuck inside.

Pintrest helped me out. However there is a semi sad ending to this story.

On with the show.

Kat gave me this canvas that she was going to throw away. I knew I could paint over it but didn't know what exactly. I researched a little and found a cool idea to paper mâché over the canvas to give it more dimension. Naturally that sounded the best way to go, because I'm not the best painter.

       

I mean this is pretty easy, I've done this for so many school projects... 2/3 cup water 1/2 cup flour, strips of newspaper.

       

       

And dried.

       

And I should have anticipated that the canvas would warp, but I didn't so I added an extra two days of this laying face down between two barstools and Friday nights recycled beer bottles on top (innovative I know)(thanks Justin's for the idea)

So my bedspread is white, grey turquoise and yellow. And I wanted something for the very bare wall I have. I've seen some really cool ombré pieces and that's super easy to paint. So I covered 3/4 of the canvas in white and edges! to cover the type of the newspaper (cover the whole thing!!)

       

I didn't really take pictures of the colors going on but it was really simple. I used a bunch of white on the plate and added a little bit of turquoise in the middle at a time. I stirred with a small paintbrush and striped about 8 inches of the canvas. I added more turquoise the farther I got to the left of the canvas. 

       

Overall I think it turned out great!

       

                                     

It looks pretty small still :( any other ideas?

       

                         

Transformation! Tuesday!

(Technically I finished painting it on Tuesday)

The sad. It cracked. The newspaper underneath cracked. You can't really tell from far away, but it's still sad, I should have sealed it or something...actually, I should have fixed it before I hung it up, because now it's never getting fixed.

What's also sad (even though I'm #vacationstatus) I was going to post next week about this super awesome DIY gel manicure that lasts for 7 days, except one nail chipped already. Not even 24 hours. 24 hours! What a joke. I just noticed as I was typing, I didn't even do dishes today! I'm beyond upset. Another glass of wine it is.

love love 

A

One pot recipe

In order to keep myself from going crazy, or eating deep fried foods, I've been cooking a lot.

And I've also been hanging out with babies. Because you just HAVE to be in a good mood around babies. I've been missing my babies at home but SO excited to see them soon!

I mean come on, look at those cheeks!!

                                         

So this is a one pot recipe for Mushroom Zucchini Pasta that I halved, but I'll include the full recipe that serves 6

1 pound spaghetti (I used angel hair whole wheat)

1 pound sliced mushrooms

2 small zucchini, quartered and sliced

1 cup frozen peas

2 cloves of garlic

Salt and pepper

Thyme (I didn't have any)

1/4 cup cream ( I used milk )

1/3 cup Parmesan cheese

I mean this is literally it. Out everything in the lot, add 4 1/2 cups of water and bring to a boil.

      

Reduce heat and simmer uncovered 8-10 minutes. Check your noodles to make sure they are cooked. Liquid will be significantly reduced. Add cream (milk)  stir and add Parmesan, serve immediately. A light cream sauce a very healthy!!

                                         

So easy to make!

xo A

Cheesy potato skins

I started actually making some of my Pinned Pintrest recipes

Cook 4 large potatoes, and cut in half

       

Scoop out insides and place on a cookie sheet. set aside insides in a separate bowl

       

Add tomato sauce, I used that instead of pizza sauce, I added garlic salt, basil and oregano.

Use more than one spoonful! I wish I added more

       

I filled mine with turkey sausage and mushrooms

       

Then added a bunch of mozzarella and some Parmesan on top and baked on 350 for 20 minutes. I left in for another 2-4 minutes until the tops got brown.

       

Turned out really good, but needed more sauce and heat up really well for lunches!!!

       

A Better Mac n Cheese

So this is something I made last week, that also heats up nicely. I tried to half it, but ended up making the same amount of noodles, and only halving the sauce..so it was a little bland and needed salt. But overall, will definitely make again. (Again, I halved so I had supper, plus 3 Pyrex dishes to take for lunch)

Ingredients

• 1 1/2 pound (20 oz) whole wheat elbow macaroni (or any other kind of pasta)
• 2 small sweet potatoes, microwaved or baked until soft (or sub 1 1/2 cups cooked carrots)
• 2 1/2 cups milk (I used 2%)
• 3/4 cup pasta water
• 3/4 cup plain yogurt (Greek-style works)
• 1 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/4-1/2 teaspoon black pepper
• 3 cups grated cheese (I used a mix of cheddar and mozzarella)
• 1 cup bread crumbs
• 1 teaspoon olive oil
• Optional: 1 tablespoon fresh parsley, minced or 1 teaspoon dried parsley

Instructions

1) Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Coat a 9x13 baking pan with cooking spray

2) Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Add the macaroni and cook until tender but still a bit firm. Reserve 3/4 cup of pasta water. Drain pasta in strainer/colander and set aside. Toss with a little olive oil to keep from sticking.

3) Meanwhile, place the sweet potato flesh (orange part), milk, pasta water, yogurt, salt and pepper into a blender and blend until smooth (this hides the vegs from keen eyes!).

4) Then pour the milk mixture into the same pot you cooked the pasta in. Stir frequently over medium-high heat and cook until the mixture is almost simmering. Turn to low and slowly whisk in the cheese a little bit at a time. Stir until mostly melted and smooth. Cooking Note: The cheese sauce will seem runny/soupy but it thickens up in the oven.

5) Add the cooked macaroni to the cheese sauce and stir to combine. Transfer the macaroni and cheese to the baking dish.

6) Combine bread crumbs, olive oil, and dried parsley in a small bowl. Sprinkle over the top of the macaroni and cheese.

7) Bake for about 20 minutes, until the top is lightly browned.

       

If you follow me on Pintrest you can find them there too

xo A

Cleanse Day 9&10 + 11-19

Yeah yeah yeah I suck. 

I need to find a happy medium. Either I write everyday and get worn out because really not that much cool stuff happens on a daily basis (things that are notable anyway) or...yeah just that top one happens. So I need to find a happy medium. It stopped being fun when I tried to force myself to write all the time. It's pretty tiring being funny all the time (kidding)(not really)

So this past week I've just been evaluating my life (no big deal) cleaning out the excess and re organizing... But literally. 

       

All these shelves used to hold DVDs and now they're expertly hidden in these amazing boxes from IKEA

       

I also recently met with a financial advisor to go over retirement plan and blah blah blah, no one cares about that stuff. Either way, he says I'm in a good place and I'm in better shape than most people he sees (money wise, not fitness wise) so that makes me feel pretty good. He said it's more about educating myself 

Anyway. The 24 Day Challenge is going well. I haven't had processed foods in almost 3 weeks, minimal dairy, no coffee or sugar (I had a glass of lemonade the other day that was sooo good though). The recipes I'm trying are spectacular and I actually have food in the fridge to make real meals. This afternoon I made Parmesan Garlic crusted zucchini and chicken salad with Greek yogurt. While all that was coming together I had rice, leftover turkey burger and spaghetti sauce that I stuffed inside green peppers and baked them. Added some garlic salt, Italian seasoning and onion...sooo good

       

I honestly think just planning out meals and going to the grocery store twice a week has really helped. My produce doesn't go bad because I only plan 4 days at a time (I had a lot go bad at the beginning because I was trying to plan a full week)

I feel great, am eating great, and working out on a semi normal schedule.

Clean eating isn't hard, per say....just takes planning.

xo A