Showing posts with label christmas. Show all posts
Showing posts with label christmas. Show all posts

Wednesday, December 26, 2012

What I Ate on Christmas Eve & Christmas! (WIAW #31)

Instead of posting my weeks-worth of eats (which you can find on my Instagram anyway ) this week, I'm gonna share my Christmas Eve/Christmas day feast with you all!

Christmas Eve was filled with fitness, food, fun, and family. My four favorite things in the world!

I started it off bright and early at 6:50/7:00 am with a workout...
Then, I made me and my family stuffed French toast for breakfast!
Oatmeal bread with White Chocolate Wonderful + cinnamon roll protein cream + banana slices + crunchy cereal, topped with clean chocolate fudge + more banana & cereal + Christmas sprinkles + more cinnamon roll protein cream + a drizzle of light maple syrup + my advent calendar chocolate! Oh, and a sifting of some nice powdered sugar, of course. 

After breakfast, I quickly showered and got ready for the day.
Then, my mom and I head out to run some errands!

When we got back home, we continued to set up and clean and what not. I had a snack of some fresh turkey and steamed vegetables with ranch yogurt "dip" while I waited for my mom to be ready so we could head out to get some of our food!

2:30/3:00 eventually rolled around, which was when all of my family (aside from one cousin and my uncle and his girlfriend), and we all got to eat! We started off with appetizers, and then moved on to our delicious main courses.
Appetizers: a huge plate of fresh shrimp with hot cocktail sauce, prosciutto wrapped breadsticks (my personal favorite!), and a HUGE delicious antipasto one of my uncle's brought.
Main courses/dinner: homemade baked ziti, Italian meat pie (aka one of my absolute favorite foods now), and loads and loads of fresh seafood in marinara sauce!

After stuffing our faces to the point of exhaustion, me, my brother and my cousins (minus the one who wasn't there yet) all head out for a bit. First we went to the mausoleum to visit our grandparents, and then we head over to Seaside Heights to see how it's keeping up after Hurricane Sandy a few months ago. It was quite depressing, to be honest. I'm still in shock about the whole thing!

An hour later, we arrived home, ate some more, and waited for our other cousin and our uncle and his girlfriend to come. When they all arrived, it was the best time... aka dessert time! We had a ridiculous amount of dessert for the amount of people, but hey, I wasn't complaining!
Homemade cookies (chocolate chip and chocolate with peanut butter chips), homemade rice pudding (aka one of my favorite desserts now), homemade super moist brownies, my homemade "hot chocolate" cupcakes with a candy cane handle (bigger picture on the right!), one of my cousin's homemade Santa cupcakes, a dish we all like to call "mush" (it's kind of like a giant pudding pie with a whipped topping), and the best part: a giant cannoli stuffed with mini cannolis... with extra cannoli filling to dip the actual cannoli shell in.

After two of my cousin's and one of my uncle's left, my family and my other cousin's exchanged presents. (Long story short, we never exchange with the other's because of their mom who never wanted to.)
They got me a coral Victoria's Secret v-neck hoodie, delicious smelling body sprays and lotions, nail polish, and the most gorgeous ombre purple scarf! Oh, and earlier in the day, one of our neighbors randomly came over and gave us $600 WORTH OF GIFT CARDS. Like... WHAT?! Six. Hundred. Dollars????!!!! That's over half a thousand! (Obviously...) They know how hard my mom (and dad) are struggling to keep our house and they found out when we're getting served for foreclosure in a few months, and they make a decent amount of money so they decided to be so super generous and amazing by surprising us with this freaking amazing gifts. We were speechless and we sent them an edible arrangements in return. It’s all and the least we could do. We were, and still are, SO appreciative.

I ate enough food to leave myself looking legitimately pregnant by the end of the night... I might of ended it with a horrible stomach ache, but it was well worth it! I can't believe it's over already... 364 days to go! 

But, I, of course, laid out some cookies and milk for Santa before heading to bed Christmas Eve night...

Then happily awoke Christmas morning to this lovely sight:
My presents consisted of...
A PUNCHING BAG WITH GLOVES!, a workout sandbag, Victoria's Secret pajamas + sweatpants + tote bag (which came with some perfume/lotion/etc. insde!) + workout/yoga spandex shorts + red keychain, nail polish, "Cooking with Coolio" the cookbook (hahahaha!), brand spankin' new GORGEOUS and PERFECT bright neon workout sneakers (mine now are basically fallen apart!), spiked/studded combat boots which I am deeply in love with, instant mini donut and cupcake makers, gourmet lollipops, fake pearl earrings, a GORGEOUS giant heart mood ring, new nail files, a big eyeshadow kit, new mini Christmas-themed spoon and fork (I LOVE mini utensils! Haha), gum, an egg scrambler (my mom/Santa is too cute), a lovely blue fake Otterbox iPhone case, an Insanity tank top, a Blogilates tank top, new socks, and nail polish remover!
From my siblings I got new tongue rings/barbells, a brand new huge mug with a spoon, and a gorgeous mint green glittery Victoria's Secret iPhone case!

I can't even describe how lucky I feel. My mom purposely puts aside a certain amount of money every year prior to Christmas so she can get me and my siblings gifts. I'm so grateful.

After opening presents, I made breakfast for me and the family again! Mine consisted of some of my best pancakes to date...

Other meals following mostly consisted of leftovers from Christmas Eve. And, again, I ain't complaining! Especially about the leftover antipasto and meat pie... OMG Italian Heaven!

Overall, I had an awesome, awesome past two days, and the tummy ache(s) were so worth it!  I love Christmas time more than anything, and I'm so sad it's coming to and end...
Oh, wait, no it's not! It's always Christmas in my little world!  I like to treat everyday like it's the most wonderful time of the year.

Wednesday, December 19, 2012

What I Ate Wednesday #30

I feel so weird not having posted a WIAW in like... THREE weeks now! I had this post originally set and ready for last Wednesday... until I completely forgot to link it prior to work. I fell asleep when I got home, too, so linking up then was out of the question! Work has taken up my Wednesdays, as well as a lot of my Sundays (and other days of the week, haha). At least my job now is completely bearable, being I work with SUPER lovely people! Third time's job's a charm! 
Anyways! Since I haven't posted a WIAW since November, here are some of my recent December eats:
11/29/12 - Breakfast: cinnamon roll protein egg white oatmeal with healthy cereals + banana slices + plain Greek yogurt + cinnamon + slivered almonds + CHRISTMAS SPRINKLES! (+ a bit more unsweetened almond milk)! All inside a super delicious Biscoff spread jar.
11/30/12 - Breakfast: I took off of school this day since I had a physical, so I had time to make pancakes!
HUGE stack of Tirimasu protein pancakes with Dark Chocolate Dreams + protein mocha “sweet cream” + banana slices + pumpkin flax granola + a tiny drizzle of maple syrup after the picture.
This entire stack is less than 300 calories with 30g protein... Can you ask for anything better?! I think not!
11/30/12 - Dessert/Snack: clean mini protein German chocolate cake microwaved cupcake with protein sweet frosting, on top of two super mini apples (+ a few banana slices) + a sprinkle of healthy cereal + homemade chocolate protein almond milk "ice cream" + gingerbread cocoa sauce + some slivered almonds.
12/1/12 - Breakfast: Christmas egg white oatmeal for the 1st of December!
Peppermint tea infused-oats with healthy cereal + banana slices + plain Greek yogurt + cinnamon + slivered almonds + shredded coconut + Christmas sprinkles + Dark Chocolate Dreams + sifted cocoa & gingerbread powder + my advent calendar chocolate! Andddd water in my Christmas tumbler + sugar cookie tea in my winter thermos.
12/2/12 - Breakfast: fluffy gingerbread tea-infused egg white oatmeal with healthy cereal + super ripened banana slices (I love me some brown banana!) + plain Greek yogurt + cinnamon + slivered almonds + cinnamon roll protein cream + Biscoff spread + gingerbread man marshmallows! So cute, right?!
12/2/12 - Lunch: healthy sandwich made with loads of vegetables, feta cheese, super spicy mustard & buffalo chicken slices, and a tuna salad made with more veggies, some chickpeas, spices, feta & spicy mustard. Loads of protein and clean and healthy goodness goin' on here! 
12/3/12 - Breakfast: super thick banana bread butterscotch egg white oats with healthy cereal + pumpkin flax granola + banana slices + plain Greek yogurt + cinnamon + Biscoff + prepared butterscotch fat-free/sugar-free pudding (mixed with a bit more of plain Chobani) + slivered almonds + my advent calendar chocolate! I also added some extra unsweetened almond milk after taking this picture.
12/3/12 - Lunch...ish: half of my lunch is this beautiful, beautiful plate of steamed fresh vegetables with spices & super spicy mustard (with Greek yogurt ranch & more mustard to dip). The other half is was boring looking. I have an ADDICTION to a plate full of soft, steamed vegetables with a bit of spices on top. I eat them nearly every single with lunch.
12/4/12 - Breakfast: how freakin' pretty is this bowl of oats?!
Christmas oatmeal! Green "power" oats (spinach, banana, Greek yogurt, egg whites, etc.) with healthy cereal + banana slices + plain Greek yogurt + unsweetened all natural cocoa powder + banana nut granola peanut butter & Dark Chocolate Dreams + cherry vanilla pudding I made, mixed with some plain Chobani + Christmas sprinkles + my advent chocolate!
12/4/12 - Dinner: my at work bento; sandwich made with high fiber, low calorie bread, stuffed with cinnamon raisin granola peanut butter + plain Chobani + cinnamon + some whole egg + apple & banana slices + healthy cereal (for crunch! Hehe + fresh baby spinach (can't taste it), with 1/2 a tiny sweet potato (stuffed with plain Chobani + cinnamon + a drizzle of melted Biscoff) and the rest of my small apple topped with cinnamon & more melted Biscoff.
12/5/12 - Breakfast: sugar cookie tea-infused fluffy egg white oatmeal on top of healthy cereal + a pumpkin Magic Pop cake + pumpkin flax granola + plain Greek yogurt + cinnamon raisin granola peanut butter (+ the tiniest bit of Biscoff) + banana slices, topped with more of those things + prepared pumpkin spice pudding mixed with more plain Chobani + my advent chocolate, of course!
12/5/12 - Dinner: this was DELICIOUS! I love me some giant sweet potatoes!
HUGE “baked” (microwaved) savory stuffed sweet potato (Jenn will appreciate this!); stuffed with tuna + salsa + plain Chobani + feta + spices, with a chickpea & vegetable “salad” mixed with some salsa & more Chobani and what not.
12/6/12 - Breakfast: fluffy s'mores protein egg white oatmeal with healthy cereals + banana slices + a bit of hot cocoa Goldfish + plain Greek yogurt + a few mini marshmallows + extra unsweetened almond milk (added post-picture), all inside a nearly-empty Dark Chocolate Dreams jar! So gooood.
12/6/12 - Snack: made FULL fat, straight-out delicious hot chocolate brownies for my family after my workout! Then enjoyed one after my big rainbow plate of deliciousness for dessert, and I regret absolutely nothing. I’m proud of myself for not taking the oil out of the recipe like usual, nor the eggs. They came out thin, but still fabulous!
12/7/12 - Breakfast: banana bread egg white oatmeal with healthy cereal + more banana slices + plain Greek yogurt + cinnamon + banana nut granola peanut butter + prepared sugar/fat-free chocolate pudding + my advent calendar chocolate! First time prepping my oats with just unsweetened almond milk and no water... LOVED it! So much creamier!! 
12/7/12 - Dinner: just look at this MOUND of super healthy and clean deliciousness that I had for dinner! These happen more often than not. I eat my salads out of serving bowls.
"Power" bowl/"power" salad with baked chicken + a bit of tuna + chickpeas + all the vegetables in the world, topped with some hot mustard + hot sauce + salsa + plain Greek yogurt + feta! Calories shmalories.
12/8/12 - Breakfast: December "pancake Saturday" calls for Christmas-themed protein pancakes!
Green 'monster' chocolate protein pancakes, topped & stuffed with Biscoff + cherry vanilla protein sweet ‘cream’ + warmed cinnamon PureVia honey crisp apple slices + healthy cereal with slivered almonds, plus my advent chocolate and a mini drizzle of light maple syrup! Oh, and Christmas sprinkles, of course!
12/9/12 - Breakfast: post-workout super freakin’ fluffy chocolate protein egg white oatmeajl ooked in all unsweetened almond milk with a strawberry Magic Pop cake + healthy cereals (a bit of strawberries & cream + berry Kashi) + banana slices + banana nut granola peanut butter + strawberry Greek yogurt (made myself) + my advent chocolate, as per usual lately!
12/9/12 - Lunch: this was my first time having spaghetti squash... Verdict: LOVE IT!!!! I topped it with tuna + garlic & onion diced tomato (aka my new obsession) + feta + more wonderfully delicious and healthy things, with a chickpea “salad” made with vegetables + salsa & plain Greek yogurt.
12/9/12 - Dinner: I happily enjoyed my night with my fellow Rite Aid employees at our Christmas "party" at Chilis! First, I had a few chips with salsa (not the best, to be honest... The chips are like paper, and the salsa is SUPER watery. Not a big fan anymore!), almost all of the semi-breaded jalapeños from this onion ring & jalapeños appetizer (SO GOOOOD! I would like all of my jalapeños like that from now on, please?!), and my full meal; this grilled chicken dish (topped with cheese and some other delicious things) that came with a side of steamed broccoli, and another side dish, which I chose sweet potato fries... And they gave me TONS of the best sweet potato fries EVER... And I ATE IT ALL! It was so good, and I'm usually not a big fan of Chili's food! This was also my first time having sweet potato fries, and definitely not my last! So proud of myself. No stress went on afterward, which is such a big step for me.
12/9/12 - Dessert-ish: A SUPER delicious homemade cookie made by my super Italian (other) manager’s daughter... And some espresso (with REAL SUGAR!) that I didn’t really enjoy, haha. Ended my night at one of my manager's houses since my boss legitimately nearly begged me to go for espresso after dinner, and she even offered to bring me home after! So, even though I had school at 7am, I went and I enjoyed it a ton!I went home happy, guilt-free, and proud. I love the “free” feeling I’m getting back. My cheeks hurt from laughing and smiling so much that night!
12/10/12 - Breakfast: SAM-OATMEAL! (Or samoatmeal!) Aka SAMOA-inspired oatmeal! 
Chocolate swirled protein egg white oats with healthy cereals + banana slices + plain Greek yogurt, topped with Biscoff + caramel Greek yogurt + clean chocolate drizzle + shredded coconut + my advent chocolate!
12/11/12 - Breakfast: fluffy pumpkin egg white oatmeal with healthy cereal + banana slices + plain Greek yogurt + cinnamon + cinnamon raisin granola peanut butter + light cream cheese (omg, SO good with pumpkin oats! And just pumpkin anything in general)+ my advent calendar chocolate + some SUPER healthy MIXED NUTS/TRAIL MIX (such a “fear food”!!) + some extra unsweetened almond milk! Delicious and super filling!
12/11/12 - Dessert/Snack: omg... SO good!
A "power" bowl made of a chocolate 'green monster' protein mug cake, diced golden delicious apple, a sprinkle of healthy cereal, and cinnamon roll banana protein almond milk "ice cream", all topped with clean chocolate protein sauce + some banana nut granola peanut butter + melted Biscoff spread! Honestly didn't even care about calories in this. It tasted too good to be so healthy and clean! 
12/12/12 - Breakfast: cinnamon roll protein egg white oatmeal with a bit of healthy cereal + banana slices + plain Greek yogurt + Biscoff spread + a creamy Chobani based protein “frosting” + a bit of super healthy trail mix/nuts because I like to challenge myself with “fear foods”. (Like I previously said, nuts/trail mixes/snack foods of the higher calorie variation are a HUGE "fear food" for me... Trying to conquer them slowly!)
Oh, and I also added some more unsweetened almond milk post-picture.
12/12/12 - Dinner: dinner at work was a delicious combination of garlic spaghetti squash (my newfound love!) with fresh baby spinach + tuna + diced tomatoes + feta + spices, 1/2 a sweet potato with plain Chobani + spices, and a chickpea "salad" mixed with vegetables + salsa + more plain Greek yogurt + spices.
12/13/12 - Breakfast: oh boy do I love OIAJ!
"Dulce de Leche" protein egg white oatmeal with #healthy cereal + crushed Dulche de Leche Cheerios + banana slices + chocolate almond protein Greek yogurt + my advent calendar chocolate + a few mixed nut + a little bit of cream cheese & unsweetened almond milk added after the picture was taken!
P.S. Can you tell this day was ‘pajama day’?! 
12/13/12 - Dessert/Snack: two FULL FAT desserts two weeks in a row?! That's right!
This is something I wouldn’t have even thought about doing a few months ago… But, now I’m willing, and I’m PROUD of that. Why? Because I miss living for ME. The times I missed out on because of my habits can never be made up. All the good food I avoided, homemade or not, can’t be eaten now, ya know? Incorporating treats (NOT “cheats”!!!!!!!! I hate that word!) into your diet will not only help aid your progress, but also help you mentally. Don’t deprive yourself, loves. Things like these delicious Reeses Puffs muffins out there! If one muffin made you fat, then I guess one healthy meal will make ya fit, right? (No.) Moderation is the real equivalent of a healthy, nonrestrictive lifestyle. Don’t “detox” until Christmas... If treats come along the way, FREAKIN’ ENJOY THEM!! You will seriously, seriously regret it later on if you don’t. I can promise you that firsthand.
P.S. These are some of the best muffins I’ve EVER had!
12/14/12 - Breakfast: "Butterfinger" protein egg white oatmeal with some healthy cereal + banana slices + plain Greek yogurt + caramel/butterscotch Greek yogurt swirled into the chocolate oats + crushed peanut butter Cheerios on top + banana nut granola peanut butter + my advent chocolate added after the picture.
12/15/12 - Breakfast: I freakin' LOVE pancakes.
Sugar cookie tea-infused protein pancakes with cinnamon raisin granola peanut butter + sweet gingerbread protein "cream" + banana slices + a sprinkle of healthy cereal/granola + a drizzle of maple syrup + clean chocolate sauce... mixed with my melted advent calendar chocolate!! There's also a few dark chocolate covered soynuts inside my pancakes... O m g. Under 300 calories with nearly 30g protein again (not including my globs of peanut butter)! Who said eating healthy was boring?
{Recipe coming soon!}
12/15/12 - Dinner: garlic and Italian herb spaghetti squash with fresh baby spinach + tuna + garlic and onion diced tomato + a few nuts thrown in there, 1/2 a sweet potato stuffed with turkey + plain Greek yogurt, and some chickpeas in healthy spicy ranch. Oh, and a pickle!
12/16/12 - Breakfast: clean pancakes and ice cream, anyone?
This mess of a breakfast is literally one of the cleanest and healthiest breakfasts ever, surprisingly!
SUPER fluffy chocolate almond protein pancakes (using Spoonful of Fit's fluffy coconut pancake recipe, but subbing in whole wheat flour and cocoa powder and what not. Seriously, she’s a genius!! Omg!! The pancakes themselves are only 160 calories with 16-17g protein… And there’s 5 BIG ones! Ahhhhhh-mazing!) topped with banana nut granola peanut butter + banana slices + homemade banana cinnamon roll protein almond milk ice cream + a sprinkle of healthy cereal & shredded coconut + a drizzle of light maple syrup & clean chocolate sauce (mixed with my melted advent chocolate).
Literally the best post-workout breakfast ever. SO happening again!
{If anyone wants this recipe, let me know!}
12/16/12 - Snack?: I didn't eat this entire back, obviously, but I wanted to show off this 4 pound bag of popcorn I purchased when Christmas shopping. I have an addiction, and I don't even care!! (I say this as I shove popcorn down my throat...)
12/17/12 - Breakfast: SUPER fluffy vanilla egg white oatmeal with healthy cereal + banana slices + plain Greek yogurt + cinnamon + cinnamon raisin granola peanut butter + a bit of prepared sugar-free/fat-free pudding mix + a broken up Biscoff cookie (all natural European cookie! So good — just as good as the spread!) + my advent chocolate & some unsweetened vanilla Almond Breeze added after the picture!
12/17/12 - Dinner: sandwich made with rye and pumpernickel (I believe?) swirled bread stuffed with turkey + feta + fresh baby spinach + tomato + healthy spicy ranch + plain Chobani with a side of spaghetti squash mixed with vegetables + chickpeas, and a pickle!
One of the best sandwiches ever.
12/18/12 - Breakfast: oh boy do I LOVE OIAJ! This was perfect in every form of the word.
Super fluffy gingerbread tea-infused egg white oatmeal with healthy cereals + banana slices + plain Greek yogurt + two gingerbread man marshmallows + my advent calendar chocolate + an extra dash of tea & unsweetened vanilla almond milk, all inside a nearly-empty SUPER creamy natural peanut butter jar!
... Merry 7 days until Christmas to ME!

12/18/12 - Dinner: can you say PANCAKE PORN?! Holy goodness were these amazing.
I FINALLY mastered the perfect pumpkin protein pancakes!! Inspired by Spoonful of Fit's fluffy coconut pancake recipe again, I made lower-ish calorie, high protein 100% healthy pumpkin protein pancakes topped with a bit of PB + cinnamon roll protein cream + a sprinkle of healthy cereal + a few banana slices + clean chocolate fudge. With a small egg white scramble on the side.
I would like these ten more times, please and thank you.
{Recipe is on its waaaay!}
12/19/12 - Breakfast: I recently won a giveaway by Jill Hanner, and yesterday I received my prize, which was a few individual packets of Coach's Oats. So, I decided to try ‘em out this morning!
Strawberry egg white oatmeal with a small sprinkle of healthy cereal + a few banana slices + plain Greek yogurt, topped with a little bit of sugar/fat-free chocolate pudding mixed with Greek yogurt and cocoa powder + clean chocolate fudge + a few mini chocolate chips (yay fear food!) + my advent calender chocolate! Oh, and there’s some peanut butter in there as well.
Verdict on the oats? WAY more filling than my normal ones! Not as thick/fluffy, but still more filling!

I was only gonna share a few, but... I decided to share a bunch Sorry for the super lengthy post... Hope you guys don't mind!!

Workout {Picture} of the Week featuring an awkward flex-ish pose, as always:
The rest? Here!

P.S. 06 days until Christmas, and 05 until Christmas Eve!! I'm really excited, but I don't want this season to end!  Oh, wait... I forgot, Christmas never ends in my little world

P.P.S. HAPPY 100TH POST/BIRTHDAY, WIAW!