Where's my KEYS!!!???

OH WHAT A DAY! I got up early making a Sweet Cream Cheese with Strawberry Slices and Blueberries and fresh, raspberry jam, waffled or pressed in a waffle maker til warmed and toasted. A messy look but I love the cool checker look the waffle maker makes on the bread. The berries were tangy yum.

Then I got ready because we we're planning on going out to get a few more things..purse, make-up, etc. So I'm ready. I get Amerie a piece of waffled toast, some sweet cream cheese dip and mixed berries and I make my hubby his Brown Sugar and Cinnamon bagels. Well, my Tita invited us down at 12 for lunch so we figured we'd go out, stop by, and then go shopping. We get to the car...I can't find my keys. I figured they were in my room somewhere...I recalled taking them from Amerie once as she was walking out the room, keys in hand waving and saying "Bye, Bye Momma..Bye, Bye Dadda". So I knew they had to be in the room or in my bags. It was 11:30 Am. when we were ready to leave....an hour and half later I was frustrated, tired, hungry and at near tears. I looked high and low, every where!! I couldn't find them...it was 1 o'clock and I was starving and I wanted peanut butter and bananas but had no bananas so Tim went to get me some bananas to make me feel better and I made lunch for Amerie, kaya and I. I made a crunchy peanut butter, banana and strawa2Qberry jam wrap grilled in the skillet and a Bud Light beer (I needed it!). As for Amerie and Kaya I made them a peanut butter roll up with grape jam to dip, veggie crisps with ketchup and some cashews, raisins and chocolate chip mix. We all sat and ate and I savored and devoured every single delicious, peanut buttery banana bite. It was sooooo good! I want another! After Lunch I cleaned them up....

It was around 2:30 and I began looking again...where could they be??? Then I saw the box. In Amerie's room is a big cardboard box that i store most of her toys in. Every Monday we switch out toys so they stay fresh and "new" to her and it keeps the room organized and clean. Well, there wasn't much of an opening so I didn't think much of looking, plus I thought I had them last; not her. Well low and behold there they were dangling off one of her push toys! I yelled out her name in relief to finding them and realized she did have them and she hid them and we asked her over and over where they were at and all she said was "Don't know". That little booger!! I can't believe it! Thank goodness! Let's go! So we head out and go shopping!

Well, of course, it wasn't too long until dinner time hit so we went to Pollo Campero...a Latino Fried Chicken Joint...wasn't much for me but Tim got a 3 piece frie chicken meal and ordered yuca fries and fried bananas for me to try while Amerie got a kids grilled chicken strip with black beans and rice for me to try as well and I got a maranon juice which is a fruit from the cashew tree I believe..it was so mildy sweet and delicious that I drank it like water. It wasn't sugary or anything..you could tell it was fresh juice with no additives..I loved it but Amerie loved it more and ended up drinking most of it. The yuca fries were really oily. I don't know if they weren't cooked in hot enough grease or what but they were really soft on the inside with a light, golden crisp on the outside..they fell apart as you picked them up. I mean don't, get me wrong they were really good, but just too soft and greasy for me. If ima eat fries, I like them to stay intact and be slightly more firm and crispy. As for the fried plantains...they were greasy too...What am i to expect.. but they were delicious because they were just that..fried plantains. No sugary or battered coating...just a natural coating from natural sugars of the plantains caramalizing, creating a nice sweet coating and they were firm not mushy..I loved them. I could've eaten more but thank goodness they only gave us 4 small slices. And the black beans and rice were simple and perfectly seasoned with cumin and other spices. They were yummo....and everything was reassured vegan! No pork, no dairy, fried seperately...the upside..it was reasonably priced...all for only $15...but the downside and the worse part of all this was the fact that my fetish for trying new foods led me to down almost over 700 calories! Yep..I said 700! And it was mostly grease and sugar too!! What a meal..this is why I eating out is unhealthy! But if you're a serious foodie...a lover of food and flavor...a freak in trying new things..then you just have to suck it up and enjoy! What kind of life would you live if you didn't indulge NOW and THEN.

The rest of the evening we finished most of our shopping...including a stop by Border's..our FAVORITE Place..all three of us LOOOOVVVEEE books and all three of us got to choose a book or two or three. Tim got his books on assassination and history, Amerie got a good deal on a set of three My First books and..me VEGAN LUNCHBOX by Jennifer McCann!!! A book to make my life a little easier in finding good healthy vegan meals to pack instead of me trying to rack my brain on what to pack for lunch...teh author puts it all on paper with tons and tons of recipes! Peefecto! Now all I have to think about is Dinner and Tim's lunch. I can't wait to read it!!!!

AHH a stressful day, that ended in a sweet note with a brand new book for each of us to relax and read after such a hard day! As for my keys, I'm getting and alarm or something for those things!

Stress is an ignorant state. It believes that everything is an emergency. Nothing is that important.
Natalie Goldberg

Can't Stop Moving!!!

Today was another busy day for us as a family! Amerie and I went up North to check out daycares today. We met daddy for lunch and at the end of the day we took daddy to the daycare we liked most and made a final decision to place our baby girl in their loving, tender care! I am going to miss her soo much but I think she'll do great! When we went in the second time, they were outside playing at the playground and she just joined right in and Tim and I felt very comfortable about the place! But I am just so overwhelmed and so busy with all there is to do to prepare for this job! And what's worse it's already taking a toll on me physically and mentally. I haven't been to the gym but once! I like working out..it makes me feel more energized and my body seems to feel better and function better..so I feel so eww right now! I have tooooonnnns of paperwork to do! And I just realized that my cooking is going to be limited to the weekends because I will have to modify the time I put into cooking! Even more sad! But I will still be making great breakfasts, wonderful lunch box meals and an all around dinner! It will just take a lot of planning but it will get done! But it'll all be worth it in the end.


So as for breakfast, I needed to move those berries in my fridge so I made a warm berry compote wrap with my Cinnamon Vanilla Sweet Cream Cheese and some walnuts, grilled, topped with extra compote and powdered sugar. It was berrryyy delicious! It was like having dessert for breakfast with the creaminess melting in with the natural juices of the berries..mmmmmm!!! Amerie had her very own berry compote, some cottage cheese and a piece of buttered bread. She loved those berries!!

Lunch..that was another story. We had decided to meet daddy for lunch but went ahead around, 11:30 to visit the second to last daycare that was on our list since it was on our way up to visit Tim. Thinking it was only going to take 15 minutes top as it did at the daycares, it took double the time!!! The lady was sweet and funny but liked to talk and not stop talking and just went on and on and on with stories and everything!! Finally, we were out of there around 12:10 and headed out to pick up Tim who had mentioned going to a Vietnamese Pho restaurant. I figured, hey that's fine, I can usually always find something to eat, and usually when it comes to Asian and international restaurants (compared to any American one!), they seem to always cater and have an option available for vegetarians/vegans. Well there's a first for everything, right??

Well when we got there, I checked the menu...nothing! They even mentioned that their “No meat noodles and soup” wasn't even vegetarian! All I could eat was rice! They didn't have any veggies or anything! I was so upset. I was getting really hungry, jittery and fidgety and almost began crying. But Tim craved their Lemon Chicken and we both felt it would be rude to get up and leave so Tim promised to take me to my Lotus Vegetarian if I stuck it out for just a little while. So I calmed down, he ordered his meal and I fed Amerie as he ate his lunch. His meal was huge, totally worth the money and they both absolutely loved it which made me feel better. When I know your food was absolutely decadent and worth every penny..then I'm satisfied.

So we immediately dived into the car and headed straight to Lotus Vegetarian..an organic restaurant catered to vegetarian and vegans ONLY!!! It's right across from where we work which makes me soooo happy, but it is also sooo BAD. Ima get fat and go broke! But Tim and I have tried it before and he even liked it and my plan is to eat there until I've tried everything vegan! So this time I had the lunch special of vege-beef with snow peas (marinated soy beef sauteed with snow peas, organic carrots, jicama and lotus root in a brown sauce), some brown rice and a freshly deep-fried spring roll (cabbage, organic carrots, jicama, celery, potato and shiitake mushrooms wrapped) with some sauce. OH MY GOSH! I was in Vegan Heaven! The soy-beef was textured and similar to chunks of beef, the vegetables were crispy and fresh, the sauce was very light in taste and my meal overall was lightly coated not drenched in sauce. The rice was perfectly cooked; soft with a slight chew to it and the spring roll...hot and crispy on the outside with crunchy veggies on the inside! It was the most filling and the most tastiest meal ever! I love being vegan!!! YEAH! I am so addicted to this place!!

The rest of our afternoon consisted of chilling and more daycare shopping.

We got home late and I went to prepare dinner. For dinner, I prepared Pork chops and slabs of tofu marinated in McCormick's Garlic, Herb and Wine marinade mix and baked. On the side Lima Beans for Amerie and I, a baked potato for Tim, and for me a small Strawberry and Spinach Salad topped with raspberry vinaigrette and almonds. I love a plate full of options. It provides a full range of different flavors to compliment one dish after the other. I love marinade mixes too! They work so well with tofu since the tofu soaks in all the juices and flavors and baking it makes it even better. It was a great family dinner! And Amerie is now sitting in her highchair at the big people's table! No more trays for her! She's growing up so fast!


Oh by the way...I have broken out all over my face and neck in a rash..I think I might be allergic to Portabella Mushrooms! NOOO Ain't that horrible! I loooovvvvee mushrooms and portabella's are the best! How could it be!

Free Day

Today was another very well, planned day. I promised Amerie I would take her to the “water” (or the pool) after being so good the last two days, but I was also in need to go to the gym. So I made plans for us to go to the gym after she ate breakfast and then after her after lunch nap, we would go to the pool. So I got up a little later than usual due to the fact that someone woke up at around 4 this morning screaming, crying and throwing fits. I finally just gave her some books, told her to play and she eventually fell back asleep. So I woke up and decided I wanted waffles to go along with my ripe mango which actually ended up being an unexpected joy to my morning.

As the previous mangoes that I have lately bought, I was expecting my very fragrant and soft mango to be overripe, fibrous and mushy. However, when I had cut into it, I found some amazing qualities to it. The tropical aroma of the mango was amazing all together; it was soft, but still firm enough to hold its shape when being peeled and sliced; and the flavor was at its peak with a sweet yet tangy bite to it. I loved it and couldn’t wait to dive into it. However, unfortunately, with joy comes sorrow! My waffles…the sorrow.

The first batch of waffles I made fell apart. I guess I didn’t grease my waffle maker enough so no biggy, I just decided to go for a second round. However, those didn’t turn out right either. They just wouldn’t puff and crisp right. It was either the fact that the batter was too runny or it might have been the little bit of OJ I added to give my waffles a citrusy flavor to go with my mango. Either way, it just wasn’t my day to make waffles, so I just stuck with what I had and made sure I topped it off really well to make up for what was underneath. So I topped it off with some of my homemade cottage cheese, my mango slices, lots of coconut and chopped Brazilian nuts! And a little side plate of “extras”! It was sooooo tropically good..if only my waffle was crisp =-(! As for Amerie: She had a perfect waffle, some vanilla pudding and some mango slices which she crushed!

We headed out to the gym where I was able to do a 20 minute run and a 20 minute “stair master” climb..I felt like I was working it hard too! It must have been that beer from last night slowing me down..but it felt really great to work out though! I felt more energized, perky and happy and ready to take on the rest of the day! When we got back I went straight to lunch. I felt creative today so for Lunch I made an Avocado Cucumber BLT wrap (from parent/parenting magz) minus the bacon with a simple mayo dressing. It was so cool, light and refreshing! On the side, extra veggies and my favorite recipe for chickpeas; Roasted Tamari Chickpeas (from some vegan cookbook!). If you love anything roasted, like chestnuts, peanuts, vegetables..then you will die for these roasted chickpeas!! The flavor is amazing and I would never expect roasted beans to be so good! I love how its slightly dry and crispy on the outside and soft and moist on the inside and they are soo great hot! I could eat a ton of them! As for Amerie I made her a “Garden Pot” filled with hummus and carrot, celery and bell pepper sticks sticking out like “plants”, some cucumber slices, and a baked bread cup filled with chickpeas.

All the ideas came from my parent/parenting magz. I figured I would try something new with her meal to make it more fun and appealing and sure enough she ate most of it. She, of course, licked the hummus clean, she ate about half the veggies, all her chickpeas, and if the bread cup was more soft than crispy, she would’ve eaten all that too!!! I’m definitely gonna have to start being more creative; she ate more and I had fun doing it!

During Amerie’s short nap, I decided to go ahead and make my marinara sauce for our spaghetti dinner tonight. I found a recipe off of vegcooking.com for a Sublime Marinara Sauce which used canned whole tomatoes..expcept I did a few things different. I crushed my tomatoes to release all the juices to allow them to simmer and I added more dried herbs for more of an Italian flavor. I finished it by pulsing it in a blender and dinner was ready to go. We spent a little time at the pool which was nice. Amerie and I had a blast playing, bonding and having mommy and me time! I love watching her play; she's such a little person!

As for dinner, I threw on some noodles and added some red pepper flakes and half a crumbled boca to my marinara sauce to give it some spicy kick and a meaty texture and flavor and served it on top my noodles with a sprinkle of fresh basil leave strips. It was another satisfyied craving! However, I think I might have added a little too much red pepper because it definitely had a kick..a clear my nose out kick! As for little Amerie, a plate of noodles sprinkled with parmesan cheese, some marinara sauce and 6 meatballs and she ate every last bite of it! I guess she just can’t resist the noodles and my marinara sauce, it must have been decent enough for her to eat it straight with a fork!

It was such an enjoyable, yet fast moving day! This day flew by so fast but I was glad that I was able to enjoy some time with my daughter and keep my promise to her. I think it’s important to follow up with any promises that are made and plus, she needed some outside time after being cooped up in the house and then being driven around for the last couple of days. And she was soo well behaved those last couple of days; she deserved a treat to the pool! Ahhh…I love being a mom!! Although, I do need a job..I have too much going on during the day to talk about! This is crazy!

"Learning to live in the present moment is part of the path of joy."
Sarah Ban Breathnach

Oh what a Quick and Simple day!

It's Monday..uh...nothing exciting today..it's Monday Clean Day and we went to the gym and that was it! So my fruity victim the pear was a little overripe. As I begin slicing I noticed it was still slightly crisp on the outside, but it was softening towards the core. So on my computer where I have all my recipes I’ve tried and want to try, under breakfast, I had written down a random list…soaked dried cranberries, pears, walnuts and cinnamon in butter and sugar…well I knew I obviously had to cook them but I couldn’t remember how..I knew I remembered that list from a recipe I saw in a magazine at the gym but which one?? I searched endlessly for it and couldn’t find!!! So I decided to just heat up some butter and sugar add the pears and cinnamon, cook them up add the cranberries, sprinkle with walnuts and serve over my waffle. Well because the pears were softening, I was having trouble cooking them so I ended up butter frying them til they were caramelizing and becoming golden brown and crispy. I added a little grounded ginger for extra flavor and they came out just fine!! Any fruit sautéed in butter and sugar til hot and tender is good no matter what so there were no worries!!! However, I did end up finding out where I got it from…it was under my nose and in my searches the whole time under “Pork with Cranberry Pear Compote”..duh! I didn’t think I would have gotten it from that recipe because of the pork but I did!!! I cooked it accordingly for the most part (obviously minus the pork) except I used brown sugar instead of white..no biggie! I loved the combination of tart cranberries with the super sweet pears…It was a new combination for me…something I’ve never tried and of course, as I seem to like everything, I liked it!

Lunch I created a sautéed Tofu and Black Bean wrap with rice, baby spinach, and salsa (Eat, Drink and Be Vegan Cookbook). Being Asian I am addicted to rice but I usually don’t eat much of it because it is so high in calories and to fill me up, or better yet, to satisfy my tummy and taste buds..I’ll down like 3-4 servings. So when a recipe calls for rice, I’m on it and rice is even more delicious when it’s placed inside a wrap. I love the texture it gives. So I made this quick wrap simple and easy and on the side I had some cantaloupe and crushed cashews. Cantaloupe is really sweet to me so I always have to combine it with something salty and savory with some crunch to kind of counterbalance the sugariness and cashews do the best when it comes to melon!!! As for little missy..she had rice (of course!!), cold diced tofu, beans and a side of cantaloupe and cashews as well. And she ate too!

As for dinner…we had to run to Wal-Mart (FOR someone's cheese!!!) after the gym so we were running slightly behind and luckily Tim wanted grilled chicken strips and yet another baked potato so I decided I would have a baked sweet potato; one side with butter and salt and the other with butter and cinnamon brown sugar and a Boca burger with ketchup, mustard and tomatoes!! It was another quick and simple meal that was satisfying and so American!! I loooovvvveeee sweet potatoes..they are just soo good and I prefer them over white potatoes..I just love how soft and creamy (or less starchy) they are and they work both ways with salt or sugar! Unfortunately, I wasn’t the only one to find them so good because I ended sharing half of my two-fist-size sweet potato to my little potato monster who also downed the rest of Tim’s white potato that was left over after all the cheese and bacon bits were devoured and picked off. Amerie obviously loves potatoes…I wonder where she got that from????

So another day at home…I did do a quick search through a book of 300 3 minute games for toddlers and up..I found it not so amusing..good for those who like to do a lot of rhyming, hand motions and singing, but I’m more into physical activities, crafts and such so I kind of skimmed, found a few good ideas, and was done so now it’s time to go rent a better one! As for Amerie, I have got to interact with her more. She’s currently addicted to me singing nursery rhymes and songs like Itsy Bitsy Spider, Five Little Ducks, etc. She has me singing them non-stop!!! It’s fun and cute to see her doing the movements but I’m trying to introduce her to new ones like Wheels on the Bus and Five Little Monkeys but she goes back to “ducks” and “itsy bitsy”. Hey at least she’s consistent! LOL!

Oh I do have some good news…I received a phone call from HR for a job I applied for way up north. The lady I spoke to is gonna further send my resume to two different job positions that are available and hopefully get back to me by mid-week. I am so excited that I might actually have finally found a job!!! Yeah!!!! Please keep your fingers crossed and pray that I do because that would be so awesome!!! Thank you God! I am just soooo anxious now though!!! AHH! Can’t wait!

New Verse from Today:
Romans 12:20 “If your enemy is hungry feed him. If he is thirsty, give him something to drink. In doing this, you will heap a burning coals on his head (or in modern translation, “your generosity will surprise him with goodness”)”. Feed ‘em that good food!!!

Lazy Food Saturdays

Today is what I call Lazy Food Saturdays..Usually on Saturdays I fix breakfast for my daughter and husband (which lately, has been cream of wheat), then lunch we kind of just fix whatever we want and then I fix dinner…well today I fixed breakfast as usual. I kind of plan my meals and last night I checked out my pantry and saw that the mango was the next fruit to go…it was fully ripened, soft and smelled absolutely wonderful..I could tell it would be so sweet and juicy so I was thinking of a way I could use it. I already knew the two addicts wanted cream of wheat so I figured I would have it too so I needed a fruit topping..well I had seen a recipe for mango and blueberries coated in pina colada mix but unfortunately the one my husband loves has milk in it so I couldn’t use that so I was thinking ok coconut…don’t feel like opening a can of it just to use a little….shredded coconut sounds yummy but not enough..coconut lime..then yes Mango, blueberries and Bananas (for color!) with Vanilla Lime and Brown Sugar “Dressing” Topped with Shredded Coconut and Chopped Brazilian Nuts (since they’re similar to macadamias with texture)….Oh it worked out really well! The Tangy Lime with the slight hint of vanilla worked well with the sweet fruit and the nuts and coconut are always a favorite and a plus! Then of course my two little addicts had cream of wheat and Amerie had a side of my tropical fruit blend and some yogurt



…As for Lunch and dinner…they were both lazy fix meals…



Lunch was slightly easy..I had made Amerie some of my bean salad yesterday for her lunch as well, but, again, we ended up not using it and going out so that became her lunch today with leftover chicken and broccoli that her daddy ate up! I on the other hand had ¼ left of my avocado and was craving BBQ so I made a BBQ Tofu and Avocado wrap with tomatoes, baby greens salt and pepper. It was yummilicious! I pressed, drained, freezed, thawed, crumbled and stir fried my tofu like last time which gave it a pleasantly meaty texture with the BBQ sauce…my favorite is Sweet Baby Rays’s..Oh so good! It was perfect..but I have to be honest I was so hungry and caught up talking to my husband about the house that I didn’t really get to enjoy my meal and taste the flavors..but I know it was good though! And on the side some Veggie Crisps which are baked spinach, carrot and potato sticks with ketchup on top because they taste like crunchy fries!! They’re good!

So Saturdays are usually our chill as a family day where we kind of just..well…chill Tim plays video games, I read or do my list and Amerie just plays…unless of course we make plans then we’ll go out..but there are times as well where we decide to just do something or go out out of pure boredom or impulse..well today was one of those days. We decided to go check out the pricing on things we would need for a house!! Well when we got back I really didn’t feel like cooking. I’ve been so tired lately but my husband wanted chicken and Garlic Ginger Broccoli and I was like..Amerie is not gonna eat that again!!!! So I decided I would fix them simple Pork and Beans with Nathan’s Hotdogs sliced up and a drizzle of syrup…(GROSS… I Know!!!) and I had a



veggie platter with hummus since I was still kind of full from my Cherry Lara Bar that I had for snack…Oh do I love energy bars…the cherry one though, was pretty tart and tangy, but I love the mixture of fruit and nuts..but I have to say my fave is the Chocolate one, of course!!! Well they’re meal ended up a mess..the pork and beans for some reason were mushy and not whole beans..they were still good but maybe Amerie got a hold of the can or I over stirred them or something, but my husband decided he was just gonna eat the dogs. Of course the perfectionist I am I got sad and disappointed that I messed his simple meal up....but Amerie ate the beans and dogs..she loved them actually! I had to give her something healthy though so I gave her a side of veggie mix too!! But thankfully I made up for the mess by fixing them both a hot, chocolate chip cookie for dessert that they both instantly devoured!!!

That just proves that for a person like me who has to have things planned and prepared..impulse does not work and just screws up everything! I didn’t have dinner planned and I didn’t have time…I convinced my husband to down grade his pallet for my lack of desire to cook out of pure exhaustion and it created a bigger mess…not only a very moody me, but a pan of pig slop, and an unhappy and hungry husband…but of course, pulling out the sweets made up for it… thank goodness…hey but at least Amerie was happy the whole time!!! That’s all that counts!!!

One Bad Night...One Awesome Day Spent!

Last night was a mess..let's just put it that way! Amerie was up screaming and crying for like 2 hours because unfortunately, her and I are very stubborn! She wanted me to rock her back to sleep for the third time and I wanted to stay with consistency and lay her back down, lay beside her on the floor and pat her back....well her and I pretty much sat and looked at each other for 2 hours while she screamed and I got frusterated..oh and this was between the hours of 11:00 to like 1:00 until at 3:30 I got up and went into my own bed! But I woke up this morning anyways...early as usual, and wanted a blueberry pancake so I created a Blueberry Cinnamon Pancake with a Blueberry (and Corn) Sauce (Recipe from yet another cookbook!....well minus the corn) Sprinkled with chopped walnuts and a little powdered sugar. On the side a peanut butter and berry celery snack...I'm addicted to peanut butter..like eat it with everything, by the spoonfuls about three times a day etc addicted....So I first made the sauce with frozen wild blueberries which are a tad bit sweeter than fresh ones. Now for the corn...I know your thinking..WHAT??...well one night I was wacthing Iron Chef America and Bobby Flay had made some Blueberry Corn "Salsa" sort of speak to top one of his dishes..the colors caught my eye immediately and I thought well...yes corn and blueberries go great together...think Blueberry Corn Muffins are the bomb so I figured I would try to add it to my sauce..it gave it a unique color and the two different sweetnesses complimented each other very well. Then I made my Cinnamon Blueberry Pancake with fresh blueberries because I like the juiciness that fresh blueberries give especially when heated and hidden inside something dry and "wheaty" sort to speak! I cooked my pancake in a little oil this time around which gave it a nice crispy and golden brown exterior which prevented my pancake from becoming mushy from the sauce. All together it was just enough sweetness added with just enough "pancake"; just enough moisture with just enough crunch to bring my morning to a berry happy beginning!

As for little Amerie..she enjoyed a deluxe blueberry meal with blueberry yogurt, the other half of my blueberry sauce, fresh blueberries, and purply-blue blueberry mini pancakes...unfortunately I didn't get a pic...but her love for blueberries was written all over her face..literally!



So today I decided we were gonna stay home and Amerie and I would spend some time together! She woke up late..around 9..not a surprise at all due to the episode from last night...she sat up on the counter and made her own pancake mix..she poured and stirred away all while pretty much eating her meal; her sauce, her blueberries, all her yogurt (that never made it to her tray!..once the pancakes were done she was already half full!!! After that I ended up talking on the phone to a friend for a little, while I just played around with Amerie watching her climb couches and all..by the time I got off it was almost 11 o'clock!!! The day was going by fast...so we went upstairs and got her dressed, then we painted her toenails (mine later) and we chilled on the bed and interacted/watched her favorite show (and the one out of two shows a day I let her watch...)Mickey Mouse Clubhouse...
She loves Mickey Mouse and Disney but again, I only let her watch two shows because she has hit the age where she will stop dead in her tracks, stare and watch whatever’s on and I personally believe that tv is ok as long as you make it a learning experience and not use it as an entertainment tool. I dislike it when kids just sit there and watch TV all day…I actually prefer video games sometimes over tv.I just feel that it hinders there growth by not allowing them to use their imaginaton send them in their room to play with toys, send them outside or better yet play with them!! But that’s me….after we said Bye to Mickey we went to fix lunch..when it comes to me and cooking I try to find recipes that consist of ingredients that are in my fridge that need to be moved out; like leftover beans or opened tofu or veggies that are beginning to age, so I found a recipe on vegcooking.com for a Crunchy Veggie Wrap. It was very tasty…the raw veggies gave it a nice crunch, especially the red cabbage..and it needed no dressing for the cream cheese, avocado and tomatoes did the trick. Then a long side my wrap I created a shredded carrot-grape salad topped with raisins and chopped nuts….I love carrot salad but this one needed no dressing as well….with each bite the juicy grapes added the moisture needed to go along the dryness and sweetness of the carrots and raisins and the saltiness savory creamy textured cashews brought a subtleness to the sweetness of the three. I swore to myself I was gonna need something but it worked out amazingly enough! Amerie, well she had her own mini carrot salad and Campbell’s Mega Chicken Noodle Soup to help her with her watery eyes, runny nose and overall painful teething symnptoms. It definitely cleaned her nose out and she loved every bite!

We spent a little time at the playground after lunch..then nap time it was as I prepared dinner…



I was trying to figure out what to make for dinner when I came across Sloppy Joe in my Skinny B Cookbook…I thought oh yeah that sounds really good! Before I was vegan, I loved Sloppy Joes so I was looking forward to this meal…I of course, switched the Vegan Textured Protein for drained, dried, pressed, frozen, thawed then crumbled and stir-fried extra-firm tofu and it turned out pretty ok with the tofu..maybe not the texture of ground beef but hey I’ll sacrifice a little texture difference for a little health and happiness! It wasn’t what I was expecting..I guess because we always bought the can version and just browned some ground beef…but hey it still tasted like a Sloppy Joe and I threw it down in a second..Amerie on the other hand wasn’t as fond of it but she ate a little of it! She more wanted to enjoy the cheese that was on her plate alongside her crackers and some of Tim’s baked potato which she destroyed and licked the crumbs from,,,he of course wanted some popcorn shrimp and another bacon and cheese baked potato!!! When he gets hooked on something he’ll continue eating it until he gets sick of it…then we’re stuck with It if he doesn’t eat it all before he gets tired of it …I hate that (remember, I can’t waste food!) But what can I say…at least his meal was easy to prepare and clean! That’s a plus.

So here’s another story..I live with my in-laws as well as with my sister-in-law and 4 year-old niece.,we have a pretty full house here…well I love to make different snacks for Amerie and when I make them for her I have to make them for my niece too because when she sees what Amerie’s eating (like all pre-schoolers) she looks at you with those cute eyes and asks, “What she’s eating??” And then goes on to tell you how she’s never had that before and so on and I find it so funny and adorable so I decided that from now on I would make snacks for both of them to share plus she’s my food critic…trust me she’ll tell me if she likes it or not!! so I have her hooked on banana pops covered in yogurt and sprinkles..so when she got home I invited her over to share one with Amerie and I had a frozen banana pop covered in peanut butter and rolled in crushed cheerios..oh was it good..again Peanut Butter Addict…but I had to take a picture of the 2 crazy girls enjoying their pops…they were so happy!!!



This day ended up being a day well spent…it was relaxing, a little lazy but my time to enjoy and dwell in my daughters presence…watching her develop and grow into such a mini adult..talking non-sense, expressing her emotions, especially anger =-), showing me she can understand…I love it!! After this crazy week it was what I needed. Now if only I can catch up on rest..maybe I should start by getting off here and sleeping! What a concept!

Another Crazy Day!!

Today I was once again running around busy! Wednesdays are usually my day to work on my abs instead of go to the gym, for me to do a big activity with Amerie, usually an outside one, and for us to run any errands we have like grocery shopping...well unfortunately, all I got to do was drop off a resume and go grocery shopping! My lack of sleep is building more and more; between my daughter waking up in the middle of the night due to teething, me staying up too late working, not sleeping well at night, then getting up at the break of dawn because my stomach screams "FEED ME", I haven't quite caught up with it yet so I am still a little out of it! But I woke up this morning, starving for some reason, and had my most favoritist breakfast ever...homemade muesli. I prepared everything last night and all I had to do was mix and eat and ooooh man if only you could smell the picture....It's got about 20 or more different things in it but it was soooo fulfilling and satisfying and my kind of breakfast..creamy, crunchy, sweet, fruity, nutty, spiced and cold and just...mmmm! It was the best start to my day! Once Amerie woke up I fixed her a little mix of banans slices (which ended up in the trash), dried fruit including raisins, cranberries and cherries (they ended up being part of my afternoon snack mix), and a few chopped nuts (mix!), some yogurt (she ate!) and rice krispies with milk (her and I both ate!). For some reason she just didn't want to eat much and she had noo problem showing it either!

After eating I got started in my list of tasks including laundry I started last night, getting dressed and make-uped, finishing my application to apply for the like millionth job in the last week....and the rest I have no idea where it went! I know I did chase my non-listening toddler around today who was in a mood again, due to teething..she was moody, attitudish and very defiant! But we had lunch early at 11 cause I was again, starving, and made a salad in a wrap. It included spinach, green apple, avocado, shredded carrots, chopped walnuts and some raspberry vinaigrette dressing! It was once again, a meal for me, light, crunchy, sweet and savory, and creamy....however, after eating it I was still hungry so I ate the leftover black beans in the fridge cold with a little seasoning! They were good too! I love beans..ima a bean freak! For Amerie, I made what is called a Tin Plate consisting of just a bunch of stuff...apples and grapes, nuts, olives, pretzels, and cheese...with Amerie I have to give her a variety of things to choose from so I know she'll eat something and she did..mostly olives, cheese and grapes...at least she ate..she pretty much just munched the whole time!

After lunch we went grocery shopping which we love to do because for some reason we just play...she loves to help put the produce in the bags, holding on to all the goodies and for some reason we always munch on a snack! But we had fun, it was actually quite relaxing weirdly enough!! And she got to pick out a snack, honey vanilla rice cakes, which she carried the whole time and ate on the way home! When we got home, she helped me unpack the gorceries, which is so helpful and actually an excercise and great learning activity for Amerie....she learns about new foods and about helping others....and sometimes she'll even stack a few things..see developemental skills are being put to use! Then for dinner.....I made Cajun spiced sausage and Velveeta Mac and cheese for Tim and Amerie..well actually..Amerie had stir fried tofu....and I had another stupendous meal...Hummus Sesame Noodles with Stir Fried Tofu...I love hummus and noodles...the flavor is that of a cream sauce like the taste of mushroom and cream or beef stroganoff..it's so soo good!!! I absoluetly recommend trying it either with plain or a subtle flavored hummus..I'm telling you, you'll be amazed!!!

Don't Judge! Really U.G.L.Y..but edible and surprisingly good!!

Well today was an off day. My daughter woke up at 4 this morning due to teething and she wouldn't go back to sleep. So wedecided to "get up" at 5:30 and made breakfast. I wasn't too happy, but what could I do?? So I was craving something savory this morning and decided to concoct a French Scramble; a recipe from the Skinny B*itch in the Kitch book I just borrowed from the library. Of course, I had to alter a couple things since they like to use so much processed vegan foods in their recipes like vegan sausage, vegan cheese, chicken...I don't mind it...but for me I rather cook from complete scratch. I find a lot of these processed vegan foods no comparison to the real thing and extremely expensive..I'd rather find a sub or create a substitute that could enhance the flavor of the meal!! Therefore, I find the book a slight dissappointment because the recipes depend on so many vegan subs but...oh well!! Just as a clarity though.....I do use vegan subs....I am in love with Tofutti Cream Cheese and SoDelicious Icecream so I am not judging them at all...I guess it's just teh one thing I'm actually picky on!!!




But Anyways...so I made my French Scramble which is pretty much your standard tofu scramble with spinach, mushrooms and green onions and I was supposed to have some vegan cheese, but instead I took a piece of toast, topped it with a spread of Pine Nut Hummus which has a slight creamy, cheese flavor and poured my scramble over that! On the side I had some applesauce, sprinkled with cinnamon and grapes. (Amerie's breakfast consisted of boiled eggs, her favorite fruit right now, grapes..which for some reason she calls berries =-)....Mickey cheese slices and some of my sauteed mushrooms). Seeing the picture you may start to understand the title of my post! Wait til you get to lunch!


So Amerie and I were in on and off moods, being happy and content one minute then fighting the next. It's amazing the arguments you can have with a toddler! But once I put her down for a mid morning nap..completly off schedule...I did a little searching on what to make for lunch and found on one of my favoritist vegan sites ever...vegcooking.com...a recipe for Tex Mex Tortilla Wrap. Well being the busy mom that I am...and because my day was so off..I was completely unfocused...so my daughter took a short nap...yeah me...so I wrote down the recipe quick and went downstairs with her to make it..well my wrap was a mess!!! As you can see...I was trying hard to make it presentable but it wouldn't cut right and it was just plain messy! Well, after trying to do what I could presentation wise, and then eating it within 5 minutes cause it was really delicious!!!!...I looked up the recipe and discovered I prepared it all wrong!! I was supposed to just blend the beans and other ingredients together in a food processor, spread on the wrap, wrap up and serve with salsa. Instead I added the salsa in the wrap and,to make it worse, I heated it!!! Try cutting a wrap that's crispy on the outside with an inside the cosistency of thick soup...hard!!! It gave me a good laugh and boosted my mood and moral a little!!! Once again though...ugly but yummmy!!! (as for Amerie...she chowed down on black beans which she loves!!! Some sour cream, more grapes, crackers and her other favorite...chips! specifically Sea Salt and Lime tortilla chips which are sooo good!!!)



After that we prepped for dinner...a tip to making any woman's day easier...and went to the gym for an hour..then we came back and started cooking (Sometimes I have those days where I just focus on food and cooking..prepping, making new things, looking up recipes..well today was one of those days!! A complete lazy day!) For dinner my husband wanted baked whitings, teriyaki stir-fried zucchini and some rice (which my daughter had also along with some tomatoes) and I needed to move my avocado out so i came across an awesome recipe for Grilled Cajun Portobellas with Avocado Creme Sauce..again off of vegcooking.com! I love mushrooms and I have baby bellas in the fridge, so decided to take it further by making it into a "sandwich". I prepared my baby bellas and avocado sauce according to the recipe then rubbed down a Boca burger in the same cajun seasoning..grilled it up on one of my favorite kitchen appliances, the Foreman Grill, and prepped my plate as followed....a bed of hot white rice, my boca, some avocado sauce, fresh spinach, sliced tomatoes, my baby bellas grilled and sliced and "drizzled" with the rest of the creamy, tangy sauce. Now this meal was not as U.G.L.Y as my previous concoctions of the day, but it was a spicy, meaty, creamy and really good ending to such a crazy, off day!