Hello Loves!!

♥ ♥ ♥

Remember me?

I know. I have been a very bad blogger lately. But I promise you I will make it up to you! I have a few exciting posts that will be coming in the near future so make sure you check back!

The reason for my absence?  Well we all know school has taken over my life, but honestly, life has been kind of non-exciting. Nothing is really going on. And maybe I need to change that. I have definitely gotten into a rut. A rut of not doing anything.  On the weekends I am letting Matt win, by not doing anything or going out. It’s like I have to force the kid to go outside. Ok so it’s already 100 degrees here and he works hard all week, but it’s good to get up and moving!  Maybe that just means I need to try a little harder, give him a little shove. Or if necessary drag him out the door. I can do it.

♥ ♥ ♥

But I thought I would come around for What I Ate Wednesday.  You guys are also super inspiring, so maybe this will be a good kick in the butt for me!

♥ ♥ ♥

This addition is definitely what I’ve been doing with pumpkin lately.

You know when you open a can for one dish or recipe, and then you have this whole can left.

Well loves. I’ve been putting it to some interesting, yet tasty uses!

♥ ♥ ♥

Breakfast creations have been:

Pumpkin Oats!

I seriously think it is mandatory to put coconut butter in pumpkin oats. Also a little sprinkle of cinnamon love.

These things are amazing.

(I’ve also made this with an addition of adding chocolate protein powder at the very end. Oh my tasty)

♥ ♥ ♥

One of my other creation favorites.

Homemade Pumpkin Peanut Butter and Pumpkin Tofu Scramble.

Seriously. Adding pumpkin to everything makes it better.

♥ ♥ ♥

Lunches and dinners have been pumpkin-tastic as well.

I love quesadillas. And I will seriously stick anything in them.

No really.

I think a pear once made it into one of my quesadillas. Now I call them quesadillas, but there is rarely, if ever cheese in them. It’s just a mixture of everything else.

That’s ok with me.

This was yes, a sweet quesadilla.

Yup. There is an apple in there. Along with some pumpkin. Probably some cinnamon. You never know with me.

I’m crazy.

♥ ♥ ♥

Another pumpkin addition.

Hummus Tortilla Pizza. With the addition of pumpkin of course.

Again. Super-duper tasty.

♥ ♥ ♥

My can still isn’t gone though.

I’m working on it though.

It’s a hard life I know.

♥ ♥ ♥

Again be sure to check back soon because I got a wonderful gift from the beautiful people at Artisana.

(Prepare to be jealous)

Yup, this girl has a lot of baking to do.

♥ ♥ ♥

I hope everyone has a lovely rest of the week.

♥ ♥ ♥

Do you have any recipe’s with nut butter you would recommend?

What is your favorite outside activity?

Happy Saturday my loves!

♥ ♥ ♥

I hope everyone’s weekends have started out lovely.

I know mine has.

♥ ♥ ♥

Let me explain. If you read my last post, I kind of did an update on my eating disorder and how I have been handling it.

Well folks. I seriously feel so refreshed. I think I am finally pushing over that hump and realizing I need to do what I need to do to be healthy. Yes, I may be uncomfortable, and yes I may not be completely happy with how I look/feel, but you know what. I want to live. And I will do whatever it takes.

I’m starting to realize I have so much to live for and so much to give.

♥ ♥ ♥

I also am in a great mood because I found out my test score. I also mentioned about how well I was doing in school. I kind of surprise myself at how easy I am picking this all up, but it also confirms that I made the right decision and this is what I really want to do. So that is exciting!

But my last test, I totally felt uneasy about afterwards. Usually our tests are at least 50 questions, but for this class there are only 25, but the test is still worth the same amount. So basically if you miss 3 questions you’re down to an 82%. That’s a little intimidating!  So after the test I had mentally marked at least 4 that I was unsure about. Not a great feeling to have.  But I had done my best. What else can I do.

I really contemplated checking my grade later in the day. The teacher is awesome at posting them right away, so I knew they would be up. I figured, hey why not. And to my pleasant surprise I had a 96% staring back at me!! I seriously got so giddy, ran into the other room where Matt was and said “we’re going out to celebrate because I am just so smart”

And can you guess where we went?

Sushi. Duh. You all know me too well.

Since moving, we haven’t found “our sushi spot” yet. The place we decided to try last night was amazing none the less, but a bit pricey, so I don’t know that it will become “our spot” but it was an amazing was to celebrate!

♥ ♥ ♥

This place was really neat. Very nice atmosphere.

My wonderful date. Love that face.

(Ps. it’s “Mustache May” at Matt’s work which is what explains him only having the mustache. Typically he has full facial hair. I promise he’s not a creeper. Ok, so he’s kind of a creeper. ♥)

It was happy hour, so of course we had to get sake.

We started with tuna tataki. Pretty too look at. Delicious to eat.

Matt got a spicy tuna crunch roll. He said it was amazing.

I got a rainbow roll. Also very delicious.

And we each got a spicy yellow tail. Ok seriously. I know yellow tail is a buttery fish to begin with, but this fish was amazing. So glad we ended on these rolls. And that we each got our own!

♥ ♥ ♥

And what’s a celebration with out a few (more) drinks? Not a celebration if you ask me.

My night ended with this.

We spent the rest of the night hanging out on the couch watching some Netflix.

Honestly. Perfect date night if you ask me.

Again, it is nice to “get back to normal”.

It feels great!

♥ ♥ ♥

Well loves I hope you all have a wonderful weekend.

♥ ♥ ♥

How do you celebrate your accomplishments?

What has been making you happy lately?

Hello Loves.

♥ ♥ ♥

I know. I know.

I have totally been MIA again.

I’m sorry. Please forgive me?

School has again taken over my life and honestly other then going to school, not much has been going on.

♥ ♥ ♥

Although I did recently have an event that is worth mentioning.

I haven’t done an update post on how I am doing. Eating disorder wise.
So I figured with recent events, now would be a good time.

So. I’m doing good. And not so good.  I’ve kind of been up and down.

I will have a great week. Gain. Things are good. People are happy. But then I freak out.

It’s like I know I need to gain weight, but when I actually push, and it actually happens. It freaks me out a bit. Or let’s say it freaks my ED out.

Source

♥ ♥ ♥

It just seems like the places where I have started to gain weight, are the exact areas that got me here in the first place.  I know the hardest thing about recovering from this disorder for me is going to be self acceptance.  Accepting that my thighs and belly may never be how I want to them to be, but guess what. That’s ok. I’m perfect the way I am.

Source

♥ ♥ ♥

So what typically happens when I come to a stand still and I don’t gain as much as my nutritionist wants?
You guessed it. She takes me out for a challenge meal. And trust me. This lady does not let me slide with my ED eating habits.

What did she choose? Mexican food.

I use to love Mexican food. Well I still do, just of course minus all the cheese and sour cream now. And chips? Nope. Because those are fried. Duh.

Now, I typically do pretty well at my food challenges. I make sure I go hungry.  This time Matt came with too, so that was a big help to have that extra support.

When it came time to order, she didn’t even let me stick to my mostly vegetarian eating habits. She really wants me to get better protein in, so I knew that one was coming.

Now I’m not going to lie, there was a ton of anxiety leading up to dinner. I did great though throughout my day and made sure not to restrict at any other meal.  I got a little pep talk before dinner and off we went. Once I vented a bit about why I was anxious, heard how silly I sounded, I calmed down so much. And to be honest, I really did want to enjoy myself. If I had to do it, might as well indulge in the situation. So I did.

♥ ♥ ♥

Here is what we all got.

I guess I went kind of safe with a chicken burrito. I did however get some enchilada sauce on the side. So glad I did.  I actually wanted to get shredded pork, but I haven’t had red meat in so long, we were a little concerned on how my stomach would react. Another accomplishment? About halfway through my burrito I said I was full.  I don’t know if I was full or if my ED was full.  But my nutritionist did not let that slide. I was basically told that I had to finish my plate considering I didn’t get beans or rice or any sides.  After I was done…I realized ED had been full before, because I ate every last bite and wasn’t “stuffed”.  And you know what, I didn’t feel guilty for cleaning my plate.

♥ ♥ ♥

Proof!

♥ ♥ ♥

Matt I believe got carne asada tacos.  He finished his plate too, so I’m assuming they were good.

♥ ♥ ♥

My nutritionist ordered the tamales, which the restaurant is known for. She made me try a sample of hers and oh goodness.

I actually wish I ordered what my nutritionist got, but I told everyone more reason for me to go back! And you know what. I think I will.

♥ ♥ ♥

So yes, I have been doing really well pushing myself food wise.  What I am struggling with is how I feel afterwards.  I still sometimes have that guilt of “I ate too much” “I should be full”.  I am slowly learning though to honor my body.  And if it tells me it wants more. It wants more. End of story. No guilt.

I’ll get there though, because there is no turning back for this girl!

♥ ♥ ♥

I hope everyone has a wonderful weekend.

♥ ♥ ♥

What have you challenged yourself with lately?

Hello all my love bugs!

(I don’t know why I’m on the love bug kick. Go with it.)

♥ ♥ ♥

It’s the end of April and what does that mean? Other than this year is going by crazy fast! I’ve been in school for 6 months already, can you believe that! Oh my gosh, has it flown by!

But the end of the month also means I get to do my Foodie Pen Pals post!

It’s this little thing I’ve been doing for the past few months put together by the wonderful miss Lindsay at The Lean Green Bean.

Here is a little info about what it’s all about.

♥ ♥ ♥

-On the 5th of every month, you will receive your penpal pairing via email. It will be your responsibility to contact your penpal and get their mailing address and any other information you might need like allergies or dietary restrictions.
-You will have until the 15th of the month to put your box of goodies in the mail. On the last day of the month, you will post about the goodies you received from your penpal! 
-The boxes are to be filled with fun foodie things, local food items or even homemade treats! The spending limit is $15. The box must also include something written. This can be anything from a note explaining what’s in the box, to a fun recipe…use your imagination!
-You are responsible for figuring out the best way to ship your items depending on their size and how fragile they are. (Don’t forget about flat rate boxes!)
-Foodie Penpals is open to blog readers as well as bloggers. If you’re a reader and you get paired with a blogger, you are to write a short guest post for your penpal to post on their blog about what you received. If two readers are paired together, neither needs to worry about writing a post for that month. 
-Foodie Penplas is open to US & Canadian residents.  Please note, Canadian Residents will be paired with other Canadians only. We’ve determined things might get too slow and backed up if we’re trying to send foods through customs across the border from US to Canada and vice versa.

♥ ♥ ♥

Sound like something you want to do? I highly suggest it! Not only do you receive great goodies, but I have such a fun time putting my package together.

This month, oh man did I get lucky.

The lovely Sarah at The Smart Kitchen was who was sending a package to me.

Ok. I follow this girls blog anyways, and let me tell you, I have seen some of the goodies she whips up.

I knew (or shall I say hoped) I was in store for some delicious home made goodies.

I was right. So right. And so happy.

(I had a happy fiance too)

♥ ♥ ♥

I have everything shipped to Matt’s work and sometimes it’s torture when he tells me I got a package and I have to wait until he gets home to open it.

Remember my last Foodie Pen Pal when I couldn’t even wait and opened it at his work?

Yea, I’m like a 5 year old.

But let me tell you and soon as he walked in the door I grabbed the box and ripped it open.

It was hard to take the time to photograph everything, because I wanted to dig in to so many things.

(It didn’t help it was dinner time too)

But I actually had some restraint.

♥ ♥ ♥

Here is what the lovely and very generous lady sent to me.

First the home made goodies.

Oh my gosh. Drool.

But the fun doesn’t end there.

Ok seriously? This girl speaks my language.

We all know my obsession with jam. Fig and Strawberry preserves? Yes please.

I have been dying to try the Biscoff spread. New addiction? Thanks Sarah.

Orange, Banana, Cherries, COFFEE, and tea.

Mind reader this Sarah girl is.

♥ ♥ ♥

Remember me saying I restrained from cracking right into these bad boys?

It didn’t last long.

It started with this.

Then it quickly progressed to this.

These cookies are dangerous.

And were gone.

Quickly.

(Insert 5 days later)

We obviously hated the cookies.

-tee hee-

♥ ♥ ♥

Back to the arrival day though.

Don’t worry. Peanut Butter and Jelly Granola did not get left out.

♥ ♥ ♥

Let me just say. Sarah. You’re awesome.
Everything was delicious.

Thank you!

♥ ♥ ♥

I hope everyone has a wonderful week and a wonderful May!

It’s summertime and everyone should be happy about that!

(Ps. Head over to The Dancing Runner to see what I got my Foodie Pen Pal. Chelsea is super sweet!)

♥ ♥ ♥

What the best home made goodies you have had lately?

What is your favorite thing to make from scratch?

♥ ♥ ♥

(On a side note, the winner from my Incredible Greens giveaway has not responded so I will be picking a new winner 05/02/2012 if I do not hear from her. I also didn’t get as many entries as I wanted so I am opening up this post as well to enter. If you want a chance to enter the Incredible Greens giveaway, head over to that post and leave a comment and I will count it!)

Hello loves.

♥ ♥ ♥

I first wanted to say thank you for all your kind words on my last post and about Matt’s mom.

An update!

She is out of the hospital! Yay!

As much as we know is she had an ulcer on/in her GI tract. They also found a tumor behind the ulcer. Results are not in yet from the biopsy, but they are in no rush to take out the tumor which to me means it’s benign. Or they think it’s benign. So that is good!

I am so glad she got to go home and sleep in her own bed. We had plans to go up to see her this weekend, but she is so worn out we may or may not.  If anything, Matt might just go up. She doesn’t need the excitement and she tends to feel like she needs to entertain and I want to make sure she gets as much rest as possible.  But I know Matt really wants to see her.  I just want what’s best for her to feel better, so we may hold off till later in the week or next weekend.  I am just so glad she is home.

♥ ♥ ♥

Also some great news that I can finally announce to the world.

I AM GOING TO BE AN AUNT!

And we just found out it’s a baby girl!

Source

This is kind of a bittersweet moment for me. Of course I am crazy excited for my sister and the fact I will be an aunt, but the fact that I live so far away now kind of sets in. I won’t be able to be as present in the child’s life as I would like to me.  These are the times where I just really miss my family.

But you better believe I will be the best long distance aunt I can!! I am so excited I can’t even describe it.

(and I totally wanted it to be a girl. weeee)

♥ ♥ ♥

But I am sure the news you all are waiting for is the giveaway winner for my Incredible Greens giveaway.

♥ ♥ ♥

Congrats Carly!  E-mail me at debbie (at) accidentlydelish (dot) com to claim your prize and I will get in touch with Jonathon to get your bottle sent out to you!

Also, more good news for you guys! Since Jonathon is basically the nicest guy ever, he set up a coupon code for all Accidently Delish readers!!

How great is he. Seriously.

Just head over to Incredible Greens and enter coupon code “accidentlydelish” at checkout and you will get 50% off your order!!

You heard me. 50%

So really you all are winners!

 Seriously guys, if you’re looking for a way to get more greens into your diet and want to do it the easy way, this is an amazing product!

♥ ♥ ♥

Do you guys have any exciting weekend plans coming up?

Have you gotten any exciting news lately?

Hello my love bugs!

♥ ♥ ♥

Happy mid-week! I hope everyone is doing wonderful.

♥ ♥ ♥

It has been kind of stressful around here.  We found out Monday that Matt’s mom was taken to the hospital due to GI problems and severe dizziness.  We’re still not 100% sure what is going on, but she did have some GI bleeding. For those who follow me know how important Matt’s family is to me. His family is my family. Since mine basically abandoned me when I told them I had an eating disorder, Matt’s parents have been more than supportive. They mean the world to me.  So this is hitting me as if it was my own mother. Because really, she IS my mother.

♥ ♥ ♥

On top of that, school is starting to get to me again. It’s just so much. So quick. I’m doing well don’t get me wrong, but sometimes we all have our freak out moments.

It happens. It’s allowed. And it will pass.

♥ ♥ ♥

But on to fun stuff.

Because we like to keep it fun and light around here!

What I Ate Wednesday.

Hello my loves and happy weekend!

♥ ♥ ♥

I’m sure I am not the only one who is super excited for the week to be over. I feel like this week kind of dragged on. Usually my weeks drag on or they fly by. Never a happy medium. But such is life right?

♥ ♥ ♥

Well I have been promising this for a very long time and finally got my butt in gear!

I think we all know I am crazy addicted to sweet.

I mean my consumption of jelly is ridiculous. And fruit has to be my most favorite thing in the world. Any fruit. I’m not picky.

Ok I’m not a huge honeydew fan, but any other melon you can throw my way!

So when I discovered sweet dessert hummus’? Um. Jackpot. I was in love.

And since I eat so many banana’s I could turn into one when I saw a recipe for banana bread hummus. Cha-Ching. It was quickly made. Consumed. Made again.

Since I’ve started making it though, I think I’ve definitely simplified it and catered it to my own tastes, to where it’s not really the original recipe I made.

But I will say I love experimenting with it.

Remember when I made Chocolate Banana Bread Hummus? Oh my that was amazing.

But I thought I would share with you my staple go to recipe for when I make it. It can easily be tweaked to your liking, but here is what I do.

♥ ♥ ♥

Banana Bread Hummus

Ingredients:

1 15oz can chickpeas (drained and rinsed)

1 medium – large size ripe banana

1 tbsp vanilla

1/2 tsp almond extract (key ingredient if you ask me)

approx 1/2 tbsp cinnamon (more or less to your taste)

approx 1/2 tbsp raw agave (or maple syrup or sweetener of your choice)

♥ ♥ ♥

Directions:

Pour chickpeas into food processor.

Add banana.

Sprinkle cinnamon.

Add vanilla and almond extract.

Little drizzle drizzle of agave (or your sweetener of choice)

Blend until hummus reaches your desired consistency.

(I like mine really creamy)

And you’re done!

♥ ♥ ♥

Bowl it. Dip your finger in it. Spoon it. Put it on a cracker. Demolish it.

Then repeat.

♥ ♥ ♥

This stuff does not last long in my house. I love it.

Maybe too much.

But then again, I am turning yellow and starting to peel.

(wow lame attempt at a joke)

Just a hint. This goes great on english muffins with no surprise. Jelly.

Trader Joes Fig Butter (♥) and Chobani greek yogurt on one half. Blueberry jam and banana bread hummus on the other.

Sweet and delicious.

I hope you all enjoy it!

(Click here for original recipe)

♥ ♥ ♥

Have you ever had a dessert hummus?

What is your favorite kind of hummus? Link me some recipes!

♥ ♥ ♥

Also don’t forget about my Incredible Greens giveaway! There is still time to enter!

Hello my loves!

♥ ♥ ♥

I hope everyone is having a wonderful week so far!

Mine are of course is busy busy busy.

But after a relaxing weekend, I suppose its ok.

The weekend ended with this.

♥ ♥ ♥

The night was not planned to end with wine. It was actually quite a relaxing Sunday. Matt and I lounged around for a bit. Hung a few pictures in the new place, and then we decided we each would have a pamper day. I got a pedicure (obsessed ♥) and he went to a local bar and grabbed a few beers to wait for me. After my pedicure I met him at the bar and we sat outside and enjoyed the gorgeous weather. His tummy started to rumble, so he ordered a small order of their sweet potato fries (which are amazing) and I of course had to have a side of BBQ. Well let’s say Matt may have had a few too many beers while waiting for me, because the day ended with my water spilled onto my phone and me wearing the BBQ sauce.

Insert bottle of wine.  I actually found the situation quite funny (only because my phone was ok) and I told him we should walk over to the market and get a bottle of wine for me. I deserved it. We then enjoyed the rest of the evening at home watching Burn Notice on Netflix.

A great way to end my night if you ask me.

♥ ♥ ♥

But on to other important things.  A Giveaway!.

Have I not been on a giveaway spree lately? It seems like it.

♥ ♥ ♥

omelet, green smoothie, banana oatmeal pancake, and banana oats

All were delicious and I could barely, if at all, taste the greens! Win!

♥ ♥ ♥

I also used the last of my plain Chobani greek yogurt and made a little dip!

Hey why not?

This ended up going on top of an un-pictured sweet potato. I think I also added some cinnamon.

It.Was.Great.

Delilah thought so too!

i think she misses me experimenting in the kitchen!

♥ ♥ ♥

Overall if you are looking for a easy way to get your greens and extra nutrition in, this is a great product to try!

And the great part!

You can!

Jonathon has offered a free bottle to one lucky Accidently Delish reader! How cool is he huh?

♥ ♥ ♥

To Enter:

Leave a comment on how you would use Incredible Greens.

For Additional Entries:

Add me on twitter and tweet about the giveaway. “I just entered to win Incredible Greens with @AccidentlyDlish! Check it out!! http://bit.ly/IvUESX”

Leave a comment letting me know you did!

Friend me on Facebook and let me know you did!

♥ ♥ ♥

I’m interested in seeing how you guys would use this as I could use the ideas!

Giveaway will be open until April 25, 2012.

Giveaway open only to US Residents. (sorry across the pond pals)

Good Luck and have a wonderful rest of your week!!

♥ ♥ ♥

(Disclaimer: I was sent a free bottle of Incredible Greens to review, but was not paid for my opinions. They are strictly my own.)