Quick sweat treat

Kudos to my coworker, Jennifer, who discovered this delicious little "peach "of a sweet treat today.

• Cut up a nice, ripe peach.
• Put pieces in a small bowl and microwave for about 20 seconds.
• Sprinkle with cinnamon and microwave for another 15 to 20 seconds.
• Enjoy!

Turns into a delicious yet healthy treat reminiscent of peach pie. Accompany with a scoop of coconut or french vanilla ice cream... yum!

Hearty, Healthy Morning Muffins

Once a creature of the night, I now enjoy waking up early even on the weekends. I contribute this to my husband and two dogs who are all early risers. I can't sleep through the light clip clipping of the pups feet pacing down the hallway as they eagerly wait for their breakfast. My mother would say my new attitude is a miracle after spending my adolescent years waiting for me to groggily emerge from my bedroom mid to late morning. But now there is something so satisfying about rising with the sun and getting a head start your day.

Yesterday, as our black coffee was brewing, I had the urge to take the huge basket of blueberries I recently purchased and bake a breakfast treat. I love the way fresh blueberries explode in your mouth when baked, and at this time of year you can afford to purchase a big bunch of them and get creative in the kitchen (and buy extra to freeze!).

Healthy Chocolate Pudding

As a woman who wakes up at 4:50 AM each day to lace up my running shoes, hit the gym or yoga studio before work, you might assume I would also be interested in eating a healthy and relatively balanced diet. And, you'd be right. But I also regularly fall prey to the "I want chocolate" demon who lives in the back of the otherwise healthy pantry in the back of my brain.

Compassion

I work in the hearing aid industry (for 29 more days at least!), and although I do not see patients or fit hearing aids myself, I do aim to understand our audience and the basics of an in-office hearing evaluation. As you can imagine, the majority of people who need our products are well into their senior years. Although hearing loss can happen at any age, and for a variety of reasons, it typically accompanies the greying of hair and bifocal lenses.

Follow that food truck

I've been reading about food trucks and seeing stories on the mobile gourmet vehicles that seem to be "on the go" in cities like San Francisco and New York. But, to be honest, when I envision a food truck it resembles the Lee's Catering trailer that fills my little Honda with fumes of greasy gut-bomb breakfasts that I often have the unfortunate luck of sitting behind at traffic lights. Let me tell you, I have been enlightened! Thank you MIHO!

Glass of Green

I wanted to share my latest green drink concoction with you. This was adapted from a recipe found in Whole Living magazine, they have a special section dedicated to eating raw foods. While I'm not ready to commit myself to an all raw diet, I do believe it has health benefits and it is something to aspire to (don't tell my husband!). Meanwhile, this green drink is a good first step!

You'll need:

• 1/2 honeydew melon
• 1 green apple
• 1 inch. ginger root
• 1 stalk celery
• 1/2 cucumber
• bunch of kale (tough stems removed - if not it can be very bitter!)

Juice all and enjoy! Makes two servings - the calorie content per serving is somewhere in the 80 - 100 calorie range.

Total Body Circuit Workout

Do you ever find yourself on your way to the gym not sure of what exercise routine you should conquer? You are committed to giving an hour of your day to exercise, but you are feeling uninspired and left wondering what body part should I work on today?

I had this exact mental battle with myself yesterday morning on my way to LA Fitness. I reached into my bag of tricks and pulled out a hand-copied note of a total body circuit I compiled from several routines published by Oxygen or Women's Health Magazines.

To complete this routine do each exercise back-to-back as one circuit with no rest. Complete the entire circuit three times, resting in-between to allow your heart rate to drop. Do 12-15 reps of each exercise using a weight of dumbells (when approprate) that is challenging.

1. Squat with overhead dumbell shoulder press
2. Push-ups with feet on exercise ball with leg raises (complete one push-up, then lift right leg, then left leg off ball - move on to second push-up and continue)
3. Plank position with back row
4. Hip thrust with skull crusher
5. Sumo squat with barbell curls
6. Sit-ups on exercise ball

If you have questions, let me know! This is a great workout to touch each bodypart, get your heart rate going and can be completed in about 30 minutes. Enjoy!

Good for a laugh

My corworker forwarded this to me today. At first I thought he was attempting to entice me to consider moving to Minnesota (our San Diego office is closing and relocating to MN), but quickly realized this was just good for a laugh. Couldn't resist sharing with all of you!

My Grandpa

Today would have been my grandfather's birthday, July 12th. My grandpa is the kind of man that left a legacy in his wake. Growing up he was just "my grandpa" but years later I would grow to understand that he was larger than life to many people besides me.

As a kid I wasn't aware of the impact he had on the people he knew and the community he lived in. It wasn't until he passed away that I would get a glimpse of the number of lives Grandpa touched.

My favorite memories of Grandpa are simple things like the way he smelled in the mornings of Old Spice and Listerine. Or the fuzzy "old man" sweater he would wear in the winters, going to USD football games and being embarrassed to wear the huge mum boutonniere he would buy us for Dakota Days or how calm he was when he would take me out driving before I got my license.



Me and Grandpa several years ago



But Grandpa was more than scratchy, wet kisses and old stories of meeting baseball legends; he was Dean of Men at the University of South Dakota, he was involved in his local church and community, he was a math professor, a referee, a father and a friend. There are so many questions I wish I could ask and lifeevents I wish I could share with him. But I do know he is in my heart and I think I'll hold on to the idea that he is there watching and guiding me through life, giving me a gentle push in the right direction when I need help staying the course.

My grandpa was my hero.

Happy Birthday Grandpa!

Summer days and Strawberry kabobs



My handsome hubby

 This past Sunday was spent riding "beach crusiers" on the boardwalk in Mission Beach with my in-laws. (Doesn't the word in-law sound negative and burdensome? I suggest a new description for my in-laws and am open to ideas!)

There is something special about spending the first hot, summer day on a bike, feeling the breeze in your face, and taking life a little less seriously. I couldn't resist the urge to jump off my bike and hop on a swing as we passed a small playground. I pumped my feet and tried to touch the clouds with my toes like I remember doing in grade school. Even as a 30-something adult, it made me feel like a girl again. It was a perfect summer day of fun!
Now for the grilled strawberry kabobs, this is so simple and tastes like summer fun on a stick!

• Cut up a pound cake or angel food cake into rather large squares.
• Wash and take the tops off a bunch of fresh strawberries.
• Alternate a strawberry and cake chunk on prepared skewers (if wood, soak first)
• Grill on a medium low heat, turning when the cake is golden brown.
• Serve with whip cream, or other favorite toppings and blueberries for a festive Fourth of July theme.

Delicious and nutritious! Thanks to Cooking Light for the recipe!

Breakfast of Champions

A perfect Thursday morning: an early morning run with my hubby along Del Mar's coastline, a caffeine treat from Starbucks and a breakfast of champions, quinoa.

Are you familiar with quinoa (pronounced "keen-wah")?
It is a quirky and delicious seed that is a complete protein, giving you all 9 essential amino acids. They didn't name it the "gold of the Incas" for nothing.

Besides the health aspects, I enjoy quinoa for its chewy texture and versatility. I create cold salads with quinoa and avocado, feta cheese, craisins, almonds and balsamic. Or warmed with almond milk, raisins or bananas, walnuts, cinnamon and ground flax seed (another favorite magic food I'll talk about later). Quinoa can replace rice as a side dish or stand alone as a main course and cooks in only 15 minutes!

If you are unfamiliar with quinoa, try one of the many varieties today.

If you have a favorite quinoa recipe, please share!

Today I'm loving sunshine

How lucky am I to live in sunny San Diego! Well, now that June Gloom has Recently vacated our beautiful landscape anyway! People think it is always sunny and perfectly gorgeous here but we do get our dumpy dreary days as well. Not that I'm complaining, not really anyway. But today is the kind of day you'd like to look at your boss and say, "I'm sorry but sun-thing came up. I have to go!" And then head to the nearest beach without passing GO. It is the kind of sunny day that just makes you smile inside and out. What sunny thing is making you smile today?

the Fabulous Farmer's Market

This morning I started my day with one of my favorite weekend activities - a visit to the Farmer's Market in Hillcrest, CA.  I love all the produce stands with heirloom tomatoes and carrots that appear as if they have been hand-painted, the buckets of vibrant fresh cut flowers, the juicy ruby red strawberries and blueberries as big as your thumb.

Today I purchased swiss chard for the first time, along with some kale, to prepare for this week's green drinks (a relatively new addition to my nutrition regime which my husband loves - wink wink!). The swiss chard was a rainbow of leafy goodness with orange, magenta and red stems. Who knew a leafy green vegetable could be so beautiful?

And, almonds, I stopped by my favorite almond grower's stand to replenish my raw almond stock at home. Today I was lucky enough to sample their newest flavor, garlic sundried tomato. YUM! I made my purchase and was on my way. Don't worry, even if you live outside the San Diego area you can by them too, check out their website: www.hopkinsag.com. Don't miss the Lime and Sea Salt, one of my favorites!

For the love of almonds

I have to share one of my new found loves, raw almonds. The real deal, California, just picked and cracked fresh from the shell almonds. They taste nothing like the almonds that you find in that giant, 10 lb. bag of trail mix at Costco, they are sweet and mild. They actually taste like an almond, sounds stupid I know. But, honestly, they remind me of the flavor of almond paste or almond extract. They are also full of protein and you can even make low calorie milk from them (no sugar added variety of course). And don't forget almond butter! Delicious little devils! Next time you visit a farmer's market and see the guy with the fresh, raw almonds get out your dollars, you'll be glad you did!

Maiden Posting - Calming a Craving

Last night I calmed a craving, no not a food craving (although a cup of Yogurtland Pistachio with bananas and cheesecake bites would calm a craving right now) but a craving to create... to draw.

It has been YEARS since I've been to a life drawing class and I was fortunate enough last night to attend a class through the San Diego Continuing Education program. We drew for 3.5 hours, while our model moved from pose to pose under a spot light and our charcoal and pencils feverishly kept up with her silhouette. The beginning was a bit "sketchy" for me as the cob webs were worked out of my fingers, but I got my groove back as my right-brain and hands and fingers limbered up. And it felt so good! I often feel that itch to draw and it was so gratifying. Who cares if my sketches don't end up in frames, the creative release was delicious! Better than that Yogurtland Pistachio frozen treat.

Anyone else recently rediscover a passion you've left behind?