Be Back Soon ...

Hey Y'all! We were on vacation, away for Daughter's fast pitch world series all last week.  Posts will resume on Tuesday starting with ... guess what? That's right, the world series.  You'll want to check back because the team's performance was pretty amazing.

See you then! 

What's on your plate? Pizza * That's what!

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BBQ Chicken Pizza to be exact! YUMMA!

All you'll need:

3 boneless chicken breast halves, cooked and cubed

1 cup hickory flavored barbeque sauce

1 tablespoon honey

1 teaspoon molasses

1/3 cup brown sugar

1 bunch cilantro (optional), chopped

1 (12 inch) pre-baked pizza crust

1 cup shredded cheese [smoked Gouda, pepperjack, mozzarella] you choose

1 cup thinly sliced red onion

1 cup sliced orange bell pepper

1 tomatoe, sliced thin

This is a fun one to make with the kiddos. You can make homemade

pizza dough or use the pre-made.  Can you guess what I use? :o)

All you'll do:

Preheat oven to 425 degrees. In a saucepan over medium high heat, combine chicken, barbeque sauce, honey, molasses, brown sugar and cilantro. Bring to a boil.

Spread chicken mixture evenly over pizza crust, and top with cheese, onions and bell peppers. Bake for 15 to 20 minutes, or until cheese is melted.

Add tomatoe slices once out of the oven.

[Prep Time: 15 Min] [Cook Time: 30 Min] [Ready In: 45 Min]

[Approx 8 servings]

Per Serving [Calories: 378] [Total Fat: 10.3g] [Cholesterol: 53mg]

Road to 10k: My schedule was turned upside down last week so I honestly didn't do as much as I wanted.  I still worked out but not much. Last night I got back to it with 60 minutes of exercise and I loved it! 45 minutes of that was cardio, split between the treadmill and the elliptical. WOOT!

Summer [a short story]

Summer

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When I think of Summer I think of water, sand, sunscreen (for daughter) and tanning oil.  I think of light, fresh foods, popsicles and tall, icy beverages.  I think of fun trips and lots of time outside.  Summer means the hot sun and I [heart] that. 

I lay out whenever I can, mainly when Hubber and Daughter are off at practice. Just me, my floaty, a book, tanning oil and one of those tall, icy beverages. 

When my family is home we enjoy swimming and hanging outside with Jeter.  Speaking of Jeter, he is not too fond of the pool just yet. I don’t think we have to worry about him trying out his swimming skills on his own any time soon.  Phew!

On those really hot days I like the shade with a side of breeze.  Especially when we are at those softball tournaments that last all weekend.  *Side note: Daughter’s team won the tournament last weekend – WOOT!*

[cue the sounds of time fast forwarding] It’s mid-July in No Cal and it’s barely 80 degrees.  Not hot enough to lie out because I am a wimp when it comes to cold pool water.  I want the heat back STAT. The End.

A Summer Yummy {it's What's on your plate?}

YUMMA! Just the word 'cucumber' tells me this is a refreshing appetizer for a warm Summer day.  Let's get to it!

Cucumber Shrimp Appetizers

All you'll need:

1 can (8 ounces) unsweetened crushed pineapple, drained

1 can (4 ounces) tiny shrimp, rinsed and drained

1/4 cup reduced-fat mayonnaise

1 tablespoon finely chopped green onion

2 teaspoons Dijon mustard

1-1/2 teaspoons minced fresh dill

1 medium cucumber (8 inches), cut into 1/4-inch slices

All you'll do:

In a bowl, combine the pineapple, shrimp, mayonnaise, onion, mustard and dill. Spoon onto cucumber slices.

Approx 32 servings (serving size = 1 piece)

Prep/Total Time: 10 minutes

[Per serving: 16 calories, 1 g fat (trace saturated fat), 7 mg cholesterol,

29 mg sodium, 2 g carbohydrate, trace fiber, 1 g protein]

Diabetic Exchanges: 1 Free Food

Road to 10k: I have been fighting a cold so I haven't run since Friday.  I have been working on my weights and stretches though.  YAY!  Feeling like running tonight so stay tuned.

PAMPERING ~it's kind of important~

Hi Folks ~ Today we are linking up to Gussy Sews. Each week she hosts a linky party titled Inspiration Workshop and each week has it's own theme. Pretty cool huh?  I sure think so. 

Anyhoo ... This week's prompt is Pamper Yourself.  We all need deserve a little pampering.  Wouldn't you agree? 

With as much as I have been working, running around, and now training for the 10k mud run I decided that I MUST make time for myself each week. Even if it's just 30 minutes.

I am in no way high maintenance so I am easily satisfied. My idea of pampering is having my toes and fingers done while sipping on a latte (hot or cold depending on the weather).  I can have them done in a salon or by a friend - either is just fine.  I like pretty painted nails and I like the way I feel when mine are pretty. 

Now, my dream day of pampering would go as follows:

Getting my fingers and toes done at an outdoor salon while sipping on that latte with this in my view ... 

Of course this is happening out of town so once done with my spa time I would shop casually through the little town boutiques.  Ahhh ... vacation please!

Road to our 10k: Last night I did 27 minues on the treadmill - 25 of those minutes were jogging and the other two were walking.  I have decided to focus on just minutes for this first week. Starting Monday I will be logging minutes and distance.  Yeeeee! Stay tuned.

Quick * Light * Easy it's What's on your plate?

Hi-ya!

Since Summer has been busy, busy, busy for us, and I assume you too, I thought I would share a little secret of ours.  Yes, I know that probably 4 out of 5 households with active children and/or working parents know about this, but just go with it, K? Great!  

The store bought rotisserie chicken has been a huge time life saver more times then I can count.  I especially like that you can do so much with this little chick and it's quick & easy-breezy too.

I have found the best chickens at SaveMart and Costco. I go to SaveMart most because we seem to want the chicken when we don't need to buy a pantry full of stuff. Know what I mean?

My favorite three things to do with this lovely bird are chicken salad, chicken fajitas and chicken tacos.  I do chicken salad more then the other two. It's light and I am on a health kick. :o) {trying to kick the bad eating habits} 

Since we are only a family of 3 humans we always have leftovers - YES! I [heart] leftovers because they make for easy lunches and I don't like wasting good food. 

Hmmm ... what's for dinner tonight? Oh ya, spaghetti. :o)

Road to our 10k: last night was minimal. I didn't want to start with guns blazing so I did 11 minutes on the eliptical and 11 minutes on the treadmill.  The exciting thing was I stopped on the treadmill, to get some work done, before I even got tired. woot! woot!  I may just do the treadmill tonight. We will see.

Tootles.  

A New Goal

Today I committed to run the 10k part of the Mud Run, happening in October.  I am going to do this with Misti, and whoever else wants to join us. 

Last year Misti ran the 5k with me and I am so thankful that she did.  I can honestly say I would have walked more than I ran/jogged had she not been there to keep me going.  You see, Misti is an experienced marathon runner and me, well let's just say at that point, I was still in the interval stage of running. HA! 

Let me tell you that the mud run was the hardest thing I have done but so rewarding at the same time.  I was estatic that I could walk after I crossed the finish line.  Seriously.

So this year, Misti suggested we do the 10k and I said 'OK'. eeek!  I took running/jogging consistently out of my workouts a while ago.  Guess I better add it back in and add it in quickly, like tonight.  I've got three and a half months to be in the 10k - not the slowest time having - shape. Know what I mean?

I CAN do this :: My goal is to work my patootie off to be 10k ready by October. I AM going to do this and I AM going to share what I do with all of you by adding progress to my posts.  I have decided to add what I did at the end of each post for two reasons; 1) maybe I can motivate a friend or two and 2) this holds be accountable to keep doing it.

So, here we go! Check back tomorrow for an update.  Weeeee! 

Click here to see how last year's event went.

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