It's a MADHOUSE!

School has resumed, so life has gone from relaxin' and chillaxin' to a chaotic madhouse! But, I am okay with that, because I am a creature of habit and I LOVEEEEE routine. 


My love for routine has rubbed off on my girly-man, Cliff, because it is 7am and he is meowing at me to play fetch. Similar to how he does every morning. I am almost positive I have created a fetch monster. As for my favorite girl, Lilly, she is being a big brat. I think she knows it is her birthday week (yes, week) and she is taking full advantage of it. Meowing, jumping in front of me when I am walking, and prancing all over the counters. What a major smarty pants! Her actual birthday (she is 4)  is March 21st, but we started celebrating on Sunday by giving her 3 toys, a fish, a mint flavored stick-y thing, and some cardboard on a wire (we are high spenders I know). The toys kept her attention for about 5 minutes. Figures. I think she was more pumped about the special wet food we got her for her birthday! What a fattie.... 


On to other news. 
I have become a bosu ball and balance champion of the world! No, seriously, I have noticed quite a big-ass change in my strength, balance, and performance in my training sessions. In secret, I brush my shoulders off every time I get home after training. :) It all has to go to the wonderful and thoughtful training from Mrs. Leigh Ann Yeager! Not only does she know her shit, but she is super motivating! Thank you, LA! 


And on to shopping....I have gone on a bit of a shopping binge (at least it's not food, right) this past week. I found jeans (with a waistband, button and zipper-Adam is thrilled) and some fun shorts, amoung other things. All this is fully justifiable because we are going to Miami in a few weeks and I want to look fly (and prance around in my sick new legs and shoulders-again, courtesy of LA).  I would advise anyone who wants to save money NOT to go to anthropologie, free people, lucky, aldo, or j.crew. Buuuuutttt, if you want some sickity, sick clothes, I would go to those stores. :) 


Now, sunday it was beautiful here! It was so sunny on sunday morning, that I went on a cooking spree! And, I remembered to take a picture of one of the dishes! Score! 


First up, was a wrap, which didn't wrap that well. But it was good either way. 
Italian Herb Collard Wrap (from Ani's Raw Food Kitchen)

• 2 large collard leaves, ribs removed (now I just sliced these, and made a salad since the wrapping wasn't happening) 

Fillings:

• 1 batch Sunny Dill Cheeze (recipe below)
• 2 scallions, chopped
• 1/2 bunch rosemary leaves, chopped
• 1 bunch oregano leaves, chopped
• 1 avocado, sliced
• 1/2 pint of cherry tomatoes, halved
• 1/2 cup sun-dried tomatoes, sliced

According to Ani, you should be able to spread the cheese on the collard leaf, top with the fillings and roll. But this was beyond my abilities. In all seriousness, the salad I made was yummy! 

Sunny Dill Cheeze:

• 2 cups sunflower seeds
• juice of 1 lemon
• 3 cloves of garlic
• 1 bunch of dill
• 1/2 cup of water, as needed

Process all ingredients in a food processor until smooth. Add water as needed to make a creamy texture. 

Here is a pic: 

The dill cheeze isn't pictured, because in my hungry stupor I forgot to pack it to take to school. :( 

This is on the lunch menu for today...
Broccoli Salad with Raisins (from Raw Food)

• 1 large crown of broccoli, cut into bite-sized pieces
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 3 carrots, coarsely grated
• 1 red onion, diced
• 1 tomato, chopped
• 5 sun-dried tomatoes, cut into small pieces
• 1 apple, cubed
• 1/4 cup raisins 
• 1/4 cup sunflower seeds
• 1 tbsp lemon juice

Coat the broccoli with olive oil and salt to soften it. In a large bowl, add the other fruits and veggies to the broccoli. Sprinkle with raisins, sunflower seeds, and lemon juice. 

This was lunch on sunday, and it got great reviews (even from the non-raw food eaters in the house)! 

Asian Cashew Curry (from Raw Food

Salad:

• 1/2 head of crispy lettuce, torn into bite-sized pieces
• 1/2 cup wild rice, soaked
• 1 green apple, cubed
• 2 inches of leek, cut into rounds
• 1/4 small head of cabbage, cut into thin strips
• 2 celery stalks, cut into rounds
• 1/4 head of cauliflower, cut into bite-sized pieces

Soak the wild rice for 3 days. Honestly, this was a big pile of BS. I soaked that damn rice for 5 days, and it was still hard. The rice was omitted from the recipe. To make the salad, just toss all the ingredients in the bowl and top with the dressing (below). 

Cashew Curry Dressing:

• 1/2 cup cashews
• 1/2 cup water
• 1/4 yellow bell pepper
• 1 inch of leek
• curry, turmeric, tamari and lemon juice, to taste

Blend the nuts into a flour-like consistency. Add the pepper, leek and half the water. Blend until mixed. Add a little water at a time until a creamy consistency is reached. Season to taste. 

It is now time to make a smoothie...