Sorry for not posting yesterday. The majority of my day was spent motionless, hoping my back would feel better. It feels a tiny bit better today, but still is quite painful. 
I fixed breakfast yesterday, like I had promised the boy, even though I forgot to make them in to pretty shapes. Using this mix from Whole Foods (side note: the boy thinks of WF as “that hippy place” but fell in love with the beer section), I made some blueberry pancakes. I picked up the Arrowhead Mills Buttermilk Pancake and Waffle mix, which was so easy to prepare.
Mine are on the left. I’m not a fan of buttermilk pancakes or blueberry pancakes (I like my pancakes to be much sweeter), so they tasted just okay. I could really taste the whole grains, which might have thrown me. I think that if I added maybe some vanilla extract and chocolate chips, the taste could grow on me. The boy didn’t finish his plate, so I don’t think he liked them much either (even if he said he did, lol).
My mom ended up not coming up (no state refund yet), so since it was a pretty day, the boy and I went to the flea market, even though it was still cool. He ended up having to buy me some earmuffs. I shuffled along, then finally got to sit when he went to look at the knives (boys…).
I didn’t buy anything, but the boy bought some Cajun dip mix, which he made as soon as I took him home. I took some pain pills, then just rested. The boy did bring over some dip later on and it was so tasty. I made another one of my cheeseburgers (this time with a bun), and just relaxed.
Well, I’m off to get ready for a going away party at my former place of work! It’s in honor of me and another girl who both got new jobs on the same day! There will be a ton of good food, so I’ve only eaten a banana today.
Today has been an interesting day. I meant to post earlier, but fell asleep. After work today, I was all dressed to go to the gym, but called my mom. See, I had been having a massive back ache in my mid back for the past week or so, but it escalated to the point today where standing brought tears to my eyes. It’s sort of like I somehow pulled a muscle. So of course, she suggested no gym. I listened and have spent the rest of my evening relaxing with my heated blanket and my lovely boyfriend.
I also picked up this great Hard Tail yoga top from Denim and Lace (photo from Hard Tail’s website). They hadn’t even finished unpacking everything when I fell in love with it. The fabric is just so soft and light, that I can’t wait to use it!
Okay, and now the meals!
Breakfast:
I prepared overnight oatmeal (1/2 cup oats, 1/2 cup milk), and after microwaving it for 2 minutes, added 1 whole banana, 1/ scoop of chocolate protein powder, drizzle of honey and 2 tbsp. almond butter. This was amazing and filled me right up. I have dubbed it “The Elvis.”
Lunch:
1 apple (on the way home from work), 5 truffles from Godiva (I didn’t mean to, but since my back hurt so bad, I thought it would help. It did not, but the cheesecake truffle is amazing).
Dinner:
The boy and I stopped to Whole Foods for dinner. I spent about $25 on the stuff below, but could have gotten out a lot cheaper if I hadn’t spend $10 on some all-natural pain pills that do not work – Boiron?). I bought some more ground beef, cat food, milk, the pills (boo), blueberries for our pancakes, buttermilk pancake mix, and mac & cheese.
We fixed burgers and mac & cheese for dinner. My burger was one like last night’s while the boy decided to go with Cajun seasonings. I also had mine with some pickled beets and a beer called Shotgun Betty, which was decent. The boy served his burger on a bun and had a few different beers that he picked up. We watched Top Gun (I had never seen it before), then after a chocolate milkshake (which did ease the pain some) I drifted off to a pain filled sleep!
For me, it’s all about the little steps. Making substitutions in the foods I eat now. I don’t have a lot of money right now, so I can’t just throw out all of my unhealthy food. But what I can do is to try my hardest to balance the healthy and the unhealthy.
Breakfast:
2 Food Lion Brand Strawberry Poptarts (I just opened the box today, so you’ll see a few more poptarts in the feature. I’m trying to replace that crummy breakfast with fresh fruits and more oatmeal).
Lunch:
4 pieces of white toast w/ a small amount of butter and Food Lion Concord Grape Jelly (In the future, I hope to replace the bread (I have 4 hamburger buns and 6 slices left)with whole wheat, no butter, and use a more organic jelly that doesn’t contain as much processed sugars. Since the jelly is not mine, I can easily replace it.)
Dinner:
I gave the most thought to my dinner tonight. Originally, I was going to fix a potato/zucchini/squash torte to use up some leftover vegetables, but I decided to go with something a bit summery. Anyone who knows me knows that I hate the cold, and today, it even snowed for a few hours. So I wanted that taste of summer. My dinner was quick, which was great since I came home from work and was starving. I even managed to stop off to the grocery store to grab some essentials.
I ended up buying 3 bananas, 2 apples, one hothouse tomato, 1 packet ranch, 2 packets koolaid, .63 lb of hamburger, lettuce, a quart of whole milk, and chocolate ice cream. So the last two items weren’t exactly healthy, but every now and then, it helps to have a treat. I’ll be less likely to buy a soda or a Reese’s knowing that I have my favorite things at home. I spent about $14 on everything (no coupons).
So dinner!
I know that it doesn’t look like much, but believe me, it was exactly what I needed to beat away those winter blues. It was also the healthiest thing I had eaten all week. From preparing to table, it took 10 minutes. The chocolate milkshake was just a lovely bonus to reward me for a hard day’s work.
Quick and Easy Ranch Burgers
Since it’s not really a recipe, I’m going to write out what I did in steps.
- Preheat your George Foreman grill.
- Season your hamburger meat with dry Hidden Valley Ranch dressing and panko bread crumbs (to taste. The panko helps hold it together. Will replace with a whole wheat panko eventually).
- Cut until no longer pink in center. Toss a slice of cheese on top.
- Top with tomato, ketchup & lettuce (no bun to save those calories)
- Enjoy! I can definitely say I enjoyed this. Licked my plate clean. I still have enough hamburger left for another one tomorrow.
This is a fool-proof recipe, but if you have any questions, feel free to leave a comment below
