Today I Am A Baker

Today I am a baker. So here's the deal. Chase's birthday party is this weekend, and I'm trying to be good. Now, I know how it is trying to get ready for these things, and I'm running around like an enraged Hulk yelling at anyone who gets in my way and Hulk-Smashing everything. And believe me, I was tempted to just go buy a cake instead of trying to bake one. But I kept feeling guilty. And I am trying to break the habit of making excuses. If this is going to be our lifestyle, then I need to learn how to pull off a "healthy" birthday party.

So I scoured the internet (really I just Googled paleo chocolate cake...) and found this recipe. We made a small amount just to test it, and the birthday boy approved. Now, on top of all this birthday stuff, it's also Apple Dapple Day in kindergarten, and I signed up to do special snack for Chase's class tomorrow....what was I thinking? So today I destroyed my kitchen and made one delicious chocolate cake, and 52 Apple Cinnamon Muffins.

This is how I look when I'm baking. See how much fun I'm having?!

And after spending all morning in the kitchen because I desperately love my children and this is so worth it and I'm not having any regrets whatsoever, this is what I ended up with:

Boom. Eat your heart out, Betty Crocker!

So you should all be really proud of me! I tried to come up with a list of snacks and foods that were not AS bad for you as normal party food. Here's what we're serving:

Fruit tray -grapes, pineapple, strawberries, raspberries

Apple Cinnamon Muffins

Organic Popcorn

Mixed Nuts (no peanuts)

Paleo Chocolate Cake

Home-cooked Chicken Wings

Pizza (yeah, yeah, I know. But the birthday boy wanted it.)

water bottles

organic milk boxes

So healthier than your normal party. And yes, it is a sleepover. With 9 little boys. I tried to recruit my sister to help, but she didn't fall for it. Here's how that conversation went:

(Ring Ring.)

Alison: Hello?

Me: Hey! Guess what! I've booked us a luxury suite on September 26th. I want you and I to go. It's going to be amazing! My treat! I won't take no for an answer. What do you say?

Alison: Uh...well you said I can't say no...

Me: AWESOME! The reservation is for you, me, and 9 little boys.

Alison: Nice Try. 

She didn't fall for it. Maybe next time I'll have to use more bribery... 

If you don't see another post from me, I didn't survive the party. 

Pizza Soup

     Today is a wonderful lazy day! We go to church on Saturday evenings, which means on Sundays, we literally try to do as little as possible and relax. It is the only day that we aren't running around like crazy people, and I am thankful for this day of rest!

     This past week was as busy as ever. I've been keeping up with my workouts, and I am already starting to see results. After just a few weeks, my body is becoming toned, and my clothes are fitting differently. It's exciting to see changes, and it gives me the motivation to work even harder. Every day we focus on a particular area, doing weights for that area, and giving other areas a chance to rest. We still go to the track and run, and my endurance is getting much better. And of course, we are still boxing!

     Karl hasn't let me skip a day, and I'm thankful because if I'm given a little slack, I'll take a whole lot! He says that when your body gets used to a workout cycle, and if you miss a day, your body is prepared to burn those calories, but since it doesn't, it stores them as extra fat. So I think about that when I'm feeling lazy. We also switch up our workout every time so that our body doesn't get used to it and stop burning as many calories, and so it doesn't get boring. 

     Yesterday I was craving pizza. I almost ordered one at like midnight, because it was all I could think about. Those days are the worst. And when I get a craving, it doesn't just go away. I will crave something for DAYS until I either give in or find a suitable substitute. Today, I made Pizza Soup. I just started throwing things into a pot until it was delicious. Definitely not as good as real pizza with a crust, but my body will thank me. I don't want to get into the pattern of thinking I've worked so hard, I've earned a reward, and start eating whatever I want. Then what would be the point of working out if I blow all those burned calories on junk? And there's the fact that it's not paleo. Blah, blah, blah, onto the soup recipe.

Pizza Soup

Ingredients

1 LB ground grass-fed beef

1/2 - 1 LB sausage 

2 cans diced tomatos

1/2 red bell pepper

1/2 yellow bell pepper

1/2 onion

handful of mushrooms (chopped finely so the hubby doesn't suspect anything...)

1 tsp salt

1 tsp oregano

1 tsp basil

1 tsp thyme

1 tsp garlic powder

1/2 tsp onion powder

2 quarts water

Romano cheese, for garnish

Brown the beef and sausage in a big soup pot. There is usually so little fat in grass-fed meat that I don't have to drain it, but by all means, do so if you need to. Then add the rest of the ingredients, bring to a light boil and cook for 30 minutes or until the veggies are tender. 

Top with Romano cheese, and red pepper flakes if desired.

Eat three bowls full, and don't feel guilty... After all, there was no crust. 

Women's Self Defense

     Whew! I'm feeling pretty amazing, and only a little sore after yesterday's workout! We did a lot of boxing for cardio. Before long, several people started to gather in our area while lazily pretending to be lifting their weights and just watching us. I already feel a little silly swinging my fists like I'm swatting flies, but to have a small crowd gathering..okay, so it was like 3 people, but still, enough to make any armature nervous! But it did feel good when I had a lady come up to me afterwards and say, "Wow! You really got a good workout there! You looked awesome!"

     Then when I got home, my doorbell rang, and it was WRAL news doing a story on a domestic violence case that apparently happened a few doors down. Talk about oblivious, I had no idea it had even happened. I have no clue what went down, but it got me thinking a little bit. So many women are practically defenseless, and when they are attacked, they are easily over-powered and taken. I think it is so important for every woman to take a good self defense class. And a good boxing class, for that matter. If you think you don't need it, you don't know that. I hope you don't need it, but you can never be too careful. Moms, what would you do if you were with your children and a large man confronted you with bad intentions? You'd want to be as prepared as you possibly could, and do everything in your power to protect yourself and your babies.

     I took a couple defense classes, and I learned how to use momentum to give power to my attacks. I'm not saying I'm a pro, and those attackers better watch out, but I do feel as though I have a chance if I apply what I've learned. The most important thing is to not give up. Yell and scream, and kick and scratch, and hit, and make it as difficult for that person as possible. Sometimes, women are so focused on fighting back, they don't even scream. If you make enough racket where he's worried about getting caught, he might just give up. Local ladies who know me, I'm going to look into getting a friend of mine, who is an excellent teacher, to do a class for us. This is not a karate class, and you will not become a Spinjitzu Master. But it's a realistic class that's fun, it's a workout, and it could save your life one day.

Paleo Fried Rice and Ginger Pork

     I've been trying to sit down and blog all last week, but I've been so busy, it just didn't happen. And I'm not using that as an excuse because I want to sound important. Here's my daily schedule:

6:45 Get up, fix breakfast, get the kids to school
8:00 Get back home, clean up the kitchen from the night before because I was too lazy
8:45 Go to the gym or the track
10:15 Arrive back home, shower, tend to the mountain of laundry, the piles of trash, the toys scattered about the house, the cobwebs in every corner, and attempt to undo the neglect of my house, just in case someone randomly stops by.
12:00 Fix a super-healthy lunch, like a spinach salad with tons of veggies, grilled chicken, boiled eggs, and balsamic vinegar dressing.
12:30 Start to eat my super healthy lunch, only to be distracted by the dryer stopping. Time to put another load in. Forget about my lunch.
12:45 Remember my lunch and go finish it.
1:00 Figure out and start to prepare dinner for that night.
1:45 Cry because I only have 45 minutes until I have to be at my job in after school, and I forgot to work on my fall clothing line. Maybe tomorrow.
2:25 Go to work.
5:40 Get home from work. Finish dinner, eat, and start the kids on homework, which literally takes all evening.
7:45 Get the kids packed up for school in the morning, PJs on, teeth brushed, and tucked into bed.
8:00 Remember the 47 loads of laundry that I didn't have time to fold, and piled on our bed.
8:45 Pack lunches and snacks for the next day.
9:00 Eat chocolate or a Paleo cupcake. Eat another one in secrecy because I'm ashamed.
9:15 Sit down to blog. Fall asleep because I am exhausted.
And Repeat.

     I thought once the kids go to school, I would have all this free time, but I feel like I can't catch up. I have all these things I want and need to do, after all my daily tasks, I have absolutely no extra time. I'm going to have to take a course on time management or something.

     By the way, did you notice that I'm working out now? About 4 years ago, I worked out several times a week, but once school started, and I started working at the school full-time, I didn't have the time. I've been wanting to get back into it but I didn't have a work out buddy, and wasn't motivated enough to do it alone. If you are wanting to work out too, and can't seem to get motivated, a work out partner who holds you accountable can help a lot. That, and you have to schedule a time to do it, and stick to it. Don't just work out when ever you get a chance, because you will go to the gym twice and then "never have time again." And you will have wasted all that money on your gym membership because you were too lazy to even go up there to cancel it until you've paid for it for 9 months. Not that that's ever happened to me...

     But back to the point. I was excited about getting healthier through eating, and wanted to take it to the next level. I suckered my friend and co-worker, Karl, into training me. For those of you that know him, you might know that he is a boxer, and he's been doing it a long time. He's had a trainer for years, and he's trained people himself. And he can't resist tasty paleo treats, so he agreed to help me get in shape. And let me tell you, he is awesome at what he does. We go three times a week, and we either go to the gym or the track. Every day we switch up what we're doing, and by the end of my work outs, I feel so energized. By the afternoon, I'm exhausted. I can't stop yawning, so if you come up to talk to me and I keep yawning, I promise you aren't boring me. And he's been teaching me to box.

Hey, hey, I've only been doing this a couple of weeks. Give me a couple more months, and I'll look much more menacing.

                                      

Just look at that perfect form!

And here we are at the track.

 
     I used to dread working out. I did the same thing every time, and I exhausted myself so that I was miserable. I've often seen the personal trainers running some poor guy, who is clearly out of shape, half to death. They run till they throw up, and then the trainer barks at them to "Keep going, you big Sissy. My Grandmother runs faster than you." So the thought of a trainer was terrifying. But Karl has a much different approach. We walk 3/4 of a lap, then run the last 1/4, and keep doing that so that I'm gradually building up my endurance. It's much easier to do it that way, and I can already run much longer without feeling so out of breath. And we change our workout every day so it's not the same old thing, we don't overwork the same muscles, but at the same time, we work every muscle in our bodies. On days that I don't work out, I wish I was because I genuinely enjoy it!

     Anyways, I want to share a recipe with you. I love Chinese food. It's my comfort food. So after trying a few Paleo recipes, and tweaking them to our preferences, here's what I came up with. It's hard to imagine the cauliflower as a good rice substitute, but it's actually really, really, good. The sesame oil covers up the flavor, and makes it taste like Chinese food! Feel free to switch this up with different types of meats.

Paleo Fried Rice

Ingredients

1 medium cauliflower

2 cups of diced veggies (carrots, broccoli, zucchini, mushrooms, etc)

1 yellow onion, diced

3 garlic cloves, minced

2 eggs

Coconut aminos, to taste

2 Tablespoons of sesame oil, unrefined (refined oil has no flavor)

1 tablespoon of fat (bacon grease, olive oil, coconut oil, etc)

Salt and pepper, to taste

To make the rice, cut the cauliflower florets off the stem, and put them in your food processor with the shredding attachment until they are in rice-sized pieces. If you don't have a processor, you can use a grater. You probably need a good arm workout anyway.

In a large skillet, add your fat, onion, and garlic. Cook for a couple minutes, then add your veggies and cook until tender.  Pour the veggies into a bowl and set aside. Add your eggs to the skillet and scramble.  Then add your cauliflower, and cook for a few minutes, stirring, until it's good and hot. Add your veggies back in, and add your coconut aminos, sesame oil, and salt and pepper. I usually taste it at this point, and add more oil or seasonings if it needs it.

Ginger Pork

Ingredients

1 pound of pork tenderloin, cut into cubes.

1 teaspoon ground ginger

Salt and pepper

1/2 teaspoon garlic powder

1 Tablespoon of olive or coconut oil

Cube up the pork.  Add all the ingredients into a skillet, and cook until the pork is done.  Serve with Paleo Fried Rice. 

We've also had the rice with Sesame Chicken from Crunchy Mama. It was good, but I felt that it needed some tweaking. Maybe one day I'll get around to that.