What I Ate Wednesday #19

This will be my first full week of senior year... STILL SO WEIRD!

But, anyways! It's Wednesday again, which means it's time for another weekly eats post!

It's been feeling A LOT like fall lately. I freakin' LOVE it!

9/6/12 - Breakfast: chocolate almond protein egg white oatmeal with pumpkin flax granola + a few pieces of chocolate cereal + banana slices + a bit of plain Greek yogurt + cinnamon + some slivered almonds + a dollop of Biscoff cookie spread & White Chocolate Wonderful!

9/7/12 - Breakfast: this oatmeal is probably my new current favorite.

Pumpkin cookie protein egg white oatmeal with pumpkin flax granola + a few Cinnamon Toast Crunch squares + some banana slices + a bit of plain Greek yogurt + cinnamon + some Biscoff spread & Dark Chocolate Dreams peanut butter... 

9/7/12 - Snack(?): I don't even like coffee, but after school, I made my mom take me to WaWa to get their pumpkin spice coffee... Haha. I didn't drink much of it (I TRIED to like it... I added my usual tea sweetening things, but I couldn't drink it...)

9/8/12 - Breakfast: delicious sweet omelet!

Pumpkin banana omelet with some pumpkin flax granola + a few Cinnamon Toast Crunch squares + banana slices + melted Biscoff spread inside, and a 100% whole wheat sandwich thin half with Cinnamon Raisin Swirl peanut butter + pumpkin flax granola + cinnamon, and half with Biscoff spread + banana slices + cinnamon.

9/8/12 - Lunch: ALDI GOT SWEET POTATOES AGAIN! I missed my savory stuffed sweet potatoes!!

Loads and loads of vegetables (with plain Greek yogurt + ranch powder to dip) and a savory stuffed sweet potato.

9/9/12 - Breakfast: the best  post-workout healthy power breakfast ever!

Pumpkin protein cookie egg white oatmeal with pumpkin flax granola + cereals + baby banana slices! + a bit of plain Greek yogurt + cinnamon + melted Biscoff spread... All inside a nearly empty Cinnamon Raisin Swirl jar! With pumpkin spice protein green tea on the side. Mmmmm.

9/10/12 - Breakfast: I finally got some all natural unsweetened cocoa powder this past weekend! Yay! 

Chocolate covered strawberry & banana protein egg white oatmeal with pumpkin flax granola + some cereals + banana slices & strawberries + a bit of plain Greek yogurt + cinnamon + Biscoff spread.

9/11/12 - Breakfast: Pumpkin & apple pie/cookie protein egg white oatmeal with pumpkin flax granola + a few squares of Cinnamon Toast Crunch + apple slices + plain Greek yogurt + cinnamon + Biscoff spread & a dollop of Dark Chocolate Dreams.

9/12/12 - Breakfast: long story short, I've been struggling a lot lately, and I've unfortunately been falling back into some old habits... But, this morning, I decided today was a day to try harder.

This is the first time I used a full serving of oatmeal in SO long... I've been using 1/4 cup more/less for awhile now, but that's not the serving size. 1/2 cup is. So, that's what I used.

I'm really proud of myself for this, despite the anxiety I got... But, it was DELICIOUS and FILLING, nonetheless! Vanilla pudding egg white oats with pumpkin flax granola + a few Cinnamon Toast Crunch squares + banana & strawberry slices + a bit of plain Greek yogurt + cinnamon + White Chocolate Wonderful!

Where are my workouts, you ask? Never fear... Here they are! 

My goal for the next few weeks is to change up my meals some more! As you can tell, the only meal I really ever change up, is breakfast... Making for pretty dang boring and repetitive WIAW posts! This will be my motivation to get experimental and get cookin'! I guess this means it's time to lurk some WIAWs for more inspiration... 

Fall-like Mornings

You know what's almost as good as fall? Fall-like summer mornings!

This morning, it was beautiful out. And it still is, at 12:30 pm!

I woke up early, ate a small post-workout snack, worked out and burned 541 calories (woo!), then made myself a delicious fall-y breakfast!

Pumpkin cookie protein egg white {stovetop!} oatmeal with pumpkin flax granola + two random cereals + baby banana slices + a bit of plain Greek yogurt + cinnamon + melted Biscoff spread... all inside a nearly-empty Cinnamon Raisin Swirl jar...

So. Freaking. Good. OIAJ are always a good choice, especially post-workout!

Oh, and the pumpkin puree nearly doubled my oatmeal in size, which is awesome!

(Btw, one day I will purchase an actual camera to take decent pictures...)

Pumpkin cookie protein oatmeal is probably my new favorite oatmeal! It's thick, creamy, healthy, and actually taste like it's name! Recipe following...

Pumpkin Cookie Protein Oatmeal

Ingredients:

1/3-1/2 cup dry oats

1/4 cup (or 2 generous tbsp) pure canned pumpkin puree

1/2 cup water

1/4 cup almond (or any type of) milk (... or just more water!)

2 egg whites

1/4 scoop cinnamon roll protein powder (optional!)

dash of cinnamon

dash of salt

slight dash of nutmeg

dash of pumpkin pie spice

dash of brown sugar

1 packet of Stevia/sweetener

1/2 tsp butter

1/4 tsp vanilla extract

1 spoonful of Biscoff creamy spread, or Trader Joe's Speculoo Cookie Butter

Directions:

Mix all your ingredients, aside from the cookie butter, thoroughly.

Cook for 3-5 minutes (or whenever done).

Once it's done cooking, immediately stir in a generous spoonful of cookie butter.

Let cool, top with your favorite toppings, and enjoy!

I used the microwave the first time, because I had school that morning, but this recipe is stovetop-friendly, too! (Considering I made it stovetop this morning...)

I love fall and I love pumpkin everything!!  I can't wait until it's actually fall... I've been pretending for too long now! Haha.

Have a lovely Sunday everyone! 

Sweet Omelets!

Back in August, I experimented with sweet omelets.
I made a banana and peanut butter omelet, to be exact...

And, well... I've fallen in love with sweet omelets/scrambles/eggs ever since!

Though, my last two attempts were more like half scramble, half omelet... Oopsies! 

- Banana omelet stuffed with banana, apple, blueberries & strawberries + pumpkin flax granola + melted Biscoff spread, along with a 100% whole wheat sandwich thin that's half topped with Cinnamon Raisin Swirl peanut butter + pumpkin flax granola, and Biscoff spread + banana + cinnamon.

And... drum roll please... Probably the best one so far...

Pumpkin-banana omelet!

Well, it actually looks more like an exploded omelet, but booooy was it delicious!

- Pumpkin-banana omelet with pumpkin flax granola + a few Cinnamon Toast Crunch squares + banana slices + melted Biscoff spread inside, along with a 100% whole wheat sandwich thin half with Cinnamon Raisin Swirl peanut butter + pumpkin flax granola + cinnamon, and half with Biscoff spread + banana slices + cinnamon.

Ingredients:

1 whole egg

2 egg whites

splash of almond/soy/etc. milk

1/4 tsp vanilla extract

lots of cinnamon (I also added a dash of cinnamon roll protein powder... Totally up to you!)

1 packet of Stevia/sweetener

dash of brown sugar

tiny dash of nutmeg

a couple dashes of pumpkin pie spice

1 baby banana, mashed (or 1/2 medium/large banana, mashed)

1 tbsp plain Greek yogurt (optional)

2 generous tbsp canned pure pumpkin puree

your choice of filling(s)!

Directions:

Combine all ingredients (aside from the fillings, of course) in a bowl.

Stir thoroughly to make SURE everything is combined.

Preheat a pan or skillet. (Also make absolute sure to spray/oil it to make sure your omelet doesn't stick!!)

Pour in your omelet mixture.

When you are able to lift the edges no problem, add in whatever fillings you want to the middle. (Don't be too generous, though... The more you add, the heavier and weaker it gets... meaning it will probably turn out like the majority of mine! Haha.

Once it's steady and cooked enough on the bottom, carefully flip it in half and cook through until done!

OH! And I also made a strawberry & banana white chocolate peanut butter egg white scramble at one point, too! (This one was actually meant to be a scramble... Promise! )

My questions for you guys; what's YOUR favorite way to prepare an omelet... or scramble? Savory, sweet...? What's your favorite ingredients?

P.S. Do you guys like my new theme?! Happy almost fall! 

I'm A... Senior?!

So.
Today, September 5, 2012, marks my first day of my last year in high school.

... Wait, what? My last year in high school? I'm going to COLLEGE next year?! When did I turn old enough for this to happen?! I was 7, like... yesterday! 

Okay, but really! Time FLEW by... I seriously remember certain days in middle school and elementary school like they were literally yesterday! I remember so many clear moments, and I remember telling myself "only 6 years until I graduate!" back in sixth grade... It's so bittersweet it's not even funny! It felt like it was SO long back then, and now, it's here... My last year in high school. I can't believe it's true, but it is. I'm officially a senior! 

My day began at 5:40 am when my alarm went off. I woke up, brushed my teeth, and then proceeded to get ready! I normally would sleep in till 6:00 am, but I decided to not push limits this year and to give myself more time... (I have to leave by 6:50/7:00 am!) 

This was my outfit today! (... Which I also wore on my birthday back in July, aside from some accessories and my shoes.  Hehe.)

Shirt - Forever 21 (on sale!)

Shorts - Target

Shoes - Converse online... Momma got 'em for my birthday for me! 

Rings - thumb and pointer; Target

(The other one is from my mommy! It was given to her by my grandparents/her parents on her 16th birthday.)

Bracelets - saints; Ebay and skulls; Claire's

Polar Heart Rate Monitor FT4 watch; n/a (got it for mah birthday!) and wishbone; Disney store! (It has Jessie from Toy Story dangling off, haha.)

After I finished getting ready, I made myself breakfast! I was forced to use the microwave to make my oatmeal instead of using the stovetop, but it still came out super delicious!

Banana cinnamon raisin protein egg white oatmeal with pumpkin flax granola + some Cinnamon Toast Crunch squares + banana slices + a bit of plain Greek yogurt + cinnamon + a dollop of Cinnamon Raisin Swirl peanut butter! 

Then, after finishing eating, I finished up my hair, and then head to school! My momma took me, which was nice... Though, I wish I had my license and a car so I could drive myself like pretty much everyone else! Haha. (January 31, 2013 is when I go for my license!)

The day started off alright... They didn't let us go inside until the first bell rang, which is absolutely ridiculous! It had just down-poured for two days straight, making it gloomy with about 98% humidity... AKA my hair's worst nightmare! So, I had to wait in that, by myself... Until I found my friends Christian and Kylie! I waited with them for a few minutes, and then head to class once the bell rang.

My homeroom/first period class is anatomy and physiology first semester, and then biochemistry and nutrition second semester! I've been excited for this class for a looooooong time... But, of course I get the teacher who is so strict that she basically warned us about herself and her class as soon as we got to class this morning... But, oh well! I can deal with it, as long as the class is as good as I'm expecting it to be! Haha. And I like the majority of my classmates, which is good!

Second period was English 4/British Literature... And I love my English teacher so far! She's hilarious, but I don't think she's gonna be able to handle my class for too long... Most of them are those kids... (You know, the "popular" kids.) Her room is disgustingly humid, though... I DON'T UNDERSTAND WHY MY SCHOOL DOESN'T PUT THE AIR CONDITIONING ON! We have no windows to open to begin with!

Third period is psychology/human growth and socialization! I absolutely love this class because my preschool best friend is in there with me, along with my old best friend from first grade! My teacher is hilarious and quite lovely, too, which is great! I spent some of the class discussing the cutest member(s) of One Direction with my preschool best friend, haha. I love him to deathhh!! And we haven't had a class together since preschool, so, basically, we started together, and now we're ending together! 

Fourth period is gym/health. I got the teacher I was praying not to get... (He was super rude and disrespectful to me in the past... WHEN I DIDN'T EVEN HAVE HIM AS A TEACHER!) But, at least my best friend, Emily, is in the class with me! I'm seriously excited for gym now that she's in there with me, haha. The rest of my class isn't too bad either, which is good! I'm just not excited to actually socialize or be around my teacher. Bleh... (And I'm also not excited about the disgusting amount of heat and humidity circulating around that gym... I felt like I had just showered when just sitting there talking to Emily because of how humid it was! It's safe to say my hair looked the opposite of straight by the time I got home...)

Fifth period is pre-calculus! I've been warned thousands of times by a few different people about how hard it is, but I really wanted to just get a FEEL of it before heading to college and diving right in, you know? I was planning on dropping the class, but two of my good friends are in there, along with a few other good people! And my teacher seems nice, too, so we shall see how the class is overall! (Oh, and this class was completely air conditioned somehow, and it felt beautiful! Haha.)

Sixth period is CAP program! I get to work with the special education/Autistic kids, and I absolutely love it. I love the teacher to death, and I love the kids. And I also get to work with one of my best friends, which is awesome!  I got to "watch" one of the kids do his job in the cafeteria today (he actually gets paid to help clean the trays... How awesome is that!? Haha), and I had some lovely little conversations with him that brightened my day a bit. 

After sixth period, which is around 12:00 pm, I get to leave school and go home! I only have six periods this year, and it's awesome! When I got home today, I had a pre-workout snack, and then immediately did an amazing strength and cardio workout!

This is also the 80th picture I have of workouts I've done! Pretty awesome, haha.

I did Insanity Cardio Power & Resistance's warm up followed by 4 Blogilates videos and a 6:03 plank! Then, I cut up some watermelon, and made me and my mom lunch! I was very happy to finally have a meal in me since I hadn't eaten anything (besides my small pre-workout snack) since 6:40 am! Aside from the watermelon I (un)consciously inhaled, I had a low carb, high fiber whole wheat wrap with grilled chicken, veggies and mustard on the inside, along with a extra little bit of grilled chicken, steamed fresh broccoli and carrots with plain Greek yogurt + ranch powder to dip in, and a mini bowl (maybe about 1/4-1/2 cup?) of seasoned corn, peas and mushrooms! It was all scrumptious!

So, yes, I had a pretty dang fabulous first-last-day-of-high-school overall, and I'm pretty happy with my schedules and classes! I'm excited for a new year and a fresh start. I'm gonna make it a good one.

What I Ate Wednesday #18 - First Day of Senior Year?

So, today was my first day of senior year...
So bittersweet... Can't believe it... AAAAAAAHHH!

... Okay, anyways! Let's get onto WIAW now, shall we?

LOVE the new WIAW theme! Thanks, Jenn!

8/30/12 - Breakfast: chocolate almond protein egg white oatmeal with pumpkin flax granola + cerealz + banana slices + a bit of plain Greek yogurt + cinnamon + melted Biscoff spread… All inside a nearly empty White Chocolate Wonderful jar!

8/30/12 - Dinner & Dessert: made my mommy a semi-healthy birthday dinner and dessert just like she wished!

Baked chicken & spinach rollatini alla parmigiana (inspired by Skinny Taste), ricotta & tomato bowtie pasta, and baked chicken tenders (we LOVE chicken, haha) for dinner (I had a chicken rollatini over a rainbow salad with tenders! SO delicious!), and a HUGE fruit salad for dessert... Just like last year!

She was really, really happy with everything, and that’s when I know it was all a success. Some things unfortunately happened today that really got us all down, but seeing her happy made MY day better! 

8/31/12 - Breakfast: vanilla egg white oatmeal with pumpkin flax granola + some of my favorite cereals + banana slices + a bit of plain Greek yogurt + cinnamon + melted Biscoff spread & a mini dollop of Cinnamon Raisin Swirl peanut butter.

9/1/12 - Breakfast: 1 egg + 1 egg white banana ~omelet~ (that broke a bit...) stuffed with banana, apple, blueberries & strawberries + pumpkin flax granola + melted Biscoff spread, along with a 100% whole wheat sandwich thin that’s half topped with Cinnamon Raisin Swirl peanut butter + pumpkin flax granola, and Biscoff spread + banana + cinnamon!

9/1/12 - Snack: one of the BEST combinations EVER!

Mini Ginger gold apple with Cinnamon Raisin Swirl peanut butter!

9/2/12 - Breakfast: one of my favorite OIAJs yet!

I pretended it’s autumn by lighting my amazing pumpkin cupcake candle while I ate my post-workout oats, consisting of pumpkin & apple pie egg white oatmeal with pumpkin flax granola + cinnamon cereals + apple slices + a bit of plain Greek yogurt + cinnamon (a bit too much... I genuinely suck at "dashes"!) + melted Biscoff spread... All inside a nearly empty gigantic Marshmallow Fluff container!

Semi-healthy and completely earned! No regrets. 

P.S. Pumpkin + melted marshmallow = fab-tastic combination! Try it sometime!

9/3/12 - Breakfast: I. LOVE. OIAJ! And thankfully my family loves all types of peanut butter enough to let me have it at least 1-2 times every 1-2 weeks!  The best post-workout breakfast ever~

Banana bread egg white oatmeal with pumpkin flax granola + a few squares of Cinnamon Toast Crunch for fun + banana slices + fresh blueberries + a bit of plain Greek yogurt + cinnamon + some Cinnamon Raisin Swirl peanut butter... All inside a nearly empty Biscoff creamy spread jar.

Literally Heaven in my mouth. L.i.t.e.r.a.l.l.y.

9/3/12 - Dinner: I finally got to see my best friend today, for the first time since school, and she brought me over a black bean burger (since we were making hamburgers for dinner and she's a vegetarian)! It was SO delicious, omg. I want more!!

{Black bean burgers and rainbow salads... Can't get much better!}

9/4/12 - Breakfast: my last early morning post-workout breakfast of the summer!

This all came out INCREDIBLY delicious!

Pumpkin pie protein pancakes topped with some Dark Chocolate Dreams peanut butter, a mini banana, pumpkin flax granola, cinnamon, and a drizzle of light maple syrup.

On the side, I have 1 egg white + added egg substitute with salsa, onion, tomato, spinach, mushrooms, lean turkey & ham, and hot sauce on top of lettuce for some crunch!

TIP: Add a spoonful or two of plain Greek yogurt to your eggs prior to cooking, and make sure to stir thoroughly. It makes them creamier, thicker, AND bigger, with no added flavor! (It looks like I have way more than just 2 egg whites, right?!)

9/5/12 -Breakfast: last-first-day-of-school breakfast!

Banana cinnamon raisin protein egg white oatmeal with pumpkin flax granola + some Cinnamon Toast Crunch squares + banana slices + a bit of plain Greek yogurt + cinnamon + a dollop of Cinnamon Raisin Swirl peanut butter!

This was delicious, and it kept me full for HOURS!

All my workouts can be found here, as usual, or just on my Instagram... which I am obsessed with!

P.S. Be on the lookout for my new theme coming soon!  Possibly autumn-themed? 

P.P.S. My first day of senior year post will be up asap!

September Goals

Mornin', everyone!

Today's September 1st, and I've suddenly become inspired to set some goals for myself this month! At the end of the month, I'll check off everything I completed! 

{Picture credit}

1. Snack less/not at all when cooking. -- This is a very, very bad habit for me. This summer, I've been snacking while cooking NONSTOP! Sometimes I forget what I eat while cooking adds up, too... Oopsies! The only exception is watermelon!
2. Practice intuitive eating. No more worrying about every single thing that goes into my body. No more worrying about calories.
3. Work hard at Aeropostale! (AKA don't get fired! Haha.)
4. Be more outgoing and talk more. Make new friends (or enhance old friendships)!
5. Cook/bake more... Come up with a new recipe or two!
6. Blog more, and blog more informative things!
7. Change up meals at least weekly. Try new things!
8. Don't be scared to snack in between meals when hungry. (Must listen to my body!)
9. Have one or more "cheat" days/meals. Live life.
10. Stay positive no matter what happens. The only way to recognize good days, is to experience some bad ones, as well. Remember that things happen, but life will always go on and eventually get better!

Seems easy enough... Let's hope all goes well!  Happy September!