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Seriously Stuffed Saturday

Hi friends, it is 10:30 P.M. and to say I’m tired is an overstatement! I’ve been ready to crawl into bed since about 8 P.M. but for a number of reasons that hasn’t happened yet. Muffin and I were up bright and early and had a jam packed day. We were up early for a good reason at least, her epic-ally over due spa day. I present for your viewing enjoyment an no longer unruly, shaggy beast!

Spending the morning at the spa is apparently very exhausting!

Once Muffin was safely at the groomer I ventured to the gym. I was pleased to find it wasn’t terribly busy for a Saturday morning in January. Have peoples resolutions already fizzled?

I completed 35 minutes of cardio, split between the bike and elliptical and then 30 minutes of arm weights and ab work. Followed that up with 15 minutes of stretching and called it a day. It was a good work out, I was off in my own little Taylor Swift workout fueled zone. I am such a geek!

After the gym I headed to Starbucks to meet a girlfriend and her fiance for coffee. We chatted for well over an hour. Lots of catching up was done and even more wedding talk! She is getting married in the somewhat near future and we had a great time chatting about ideas, mostly cupcakes.

My skinny peppermint mocha vanished all to quickly! Note to self: Don’t skip breakfast before the gym! Healthy living fail. After coffee I headed back to the groomer to pick up Muffin and then had a visit with my parents and my adorable niece who is feeling a little under the weather after her big snow sledding trip.

I somehow managed to go till mid afternoon with no food. I know, I know! I almost never do that and trust me by the time I got food in me I wasn’t feeling so great. After a late lunch Kevin and I leashed up Muffin and my Brother and Sister in law’s dog Maple up for a walk around the neighbor hood.

Maple was more interested in the world then having her picture taken! Please forgive her she is still a puppy.

Muffin on the other paw was more interested in visiting with her neighbor BFF dog, Sophie. Of course she was also concerned about looking fashionable in her little pink fur lined jacket. Someone really should slap me!

After our walk Kevin attempted to watch some football but I caused much distraction by doing another 15 minute mini trampoline workout. Who knew jumping up and down was a distraction for men! Ya learn something everyday!

If you have one of these I suggest you utilize it! I did a few exercises but the sit/stand with the medicine ball was felt the most. It is amazing how such a simple exercise can be so effective. I used my extra work out as an excuse to eat a piece of yesterdays banana bread with some peanut butter. So yummy!

My other snack of the day was much healthier I promise. Veggies and dip, an easy stand by.

Later in the evening Kevin and I ventured back out to get me a pair of shoes I saw yesterday. I loved them when I saw them but wasn’t 100% sure I needed them at the time. After thinking about them all day I decided I did want them and much to my sadness by the time we got back to the store my size was all sold out. I guess it wasn’t meant to be. Have I mentioned life is hard?

Once home I tackled dinner.

I made whole wheat spaghetti with my Mom’s meat sauce recipe. It calls for an abundance of garlic, mushrooms, onions, peppers and lean ground beef amoung a few other key ingredients. Kevin likes to dust his pasta with parmeasan, which has never been on my yum list. Don’t get me wrong I love parmeasan, heck I love all cheese. I just don’t like it on my pasta sauce. I am very odd when it comes to food, and mostly all aspects of everything! OCD for the win!! More on that little jem some other day.

After dinner the three of us did some cuddling and I whined about being sore, and seriously considered a bubble bath.

We have some pretty intense cuddle sessions in this house!

I am sure you have noticed my love of owl’s, they pop up everywhere around my house and on me. Today was no different. Ever get the feeling you’re being watched? I did all day. This little hooter peeked out of my sleeve and stared back at me every time I looked down today. Such a cute little bracelet!

That is as close as a picture of me gets today. No one needs to see my look of exhaustion. So with that friends I am going to leave you for the day. I think I am going to tackle that bubble bath. My goal is to not fall asleep in the tub but I make no promises.

Friday Before And After!

Jan4

Hi Friends, both new and old! I am very excited to see a few of you commenting. Thank you! So my day started off rather productive, Kev and Muffin had no intention of getting out of bed when I did, so I busied myself in the kitchen. Did some dinner prep, baked some banana bread, and finally made an omelette and English muffins to entice the other two lazy bones out of bed!!!

I thought it might be fun to show you some before and after photos of my kitchen adventures today!! Here we go! Greek lemon potatoes prepped to soak for the day in lemon juice, olive oil, white wine, garlic, and spices.

And after an hour in the oven this evening…

I made a bowl of homemade tzatziki because Greek potatoes just aren’t the same without it in my opinion. I used chopped cucumber, low fat Greek yogurt, dill, garlic, lemon juice, a little olive oil, and a touch of salt and pepper.

The finished product had a serious garlic kick. Just how we like it.

Kevin and I paired our Greek potatoes with some Barbqued pepper garlic pork tender loin and some sauteed zucchini with a sprinkle of parmasan.

It turned out pretty delightful, but im not going to lie I am glad I am not the one who had to stand outside in the dark to barbque the pork. Thanks Kevin! Love you.

Up next on my “To Do” list after prepping dinner this morning was to make a couple loaves of banana bread. I love baking and my friends and family don’t seem to mind because I always like to gift my creations. That way I don’t eat it all myself. Always thinking 😉

The final product, with a little Instagram filter action for your enjoyment!

If any of you would like me to post my recipes for anything I make please just let me know. I am considering adding a recipes tab if there is any interest.

I didn’t spend all day in the kitchen, though I could have today. I visited my parents and then this afternoon we ventured out to find some new oven mitts and of course as always with shopping I ended up with more then mitts. I got a new wallet, shorts for the gym, kitchen towels, and a few other things. The wallet was a necessity as mine decided to give up on life mid way through Christmas shopping last month. I finally found one I liked okay fine loved. It has owls on it, clearly I couldn’t say no.

When we got home from shopping Muffin was sure everything I purchased was simply hers and all made for a cozy bed.

As if spoiling myself wasn’t bad enough, my best friend Katie showed up this afternoon bearing gifts for me.

New Pj pants, a reusable owl bag and some Bath and body works bath gel. See told you I was spoiled! Katie is awesome, but she’s my friend you can’t have her! 😉 Okay find maybe I can share! You should know I managed to unload a good chunk of banana bread on her before she escaped my house.

Muffin would like me to show you all her before, during, and after her big yawn today.

So here we are before, just chilling with dad. No big thing!

Then it happened and i’m still not sure how I caught it on camera, but my little tiny nine pound fur ball let out the worlds biggest yawn. For a second I thought we were all going to be sucked into some sort of puppy black hole!

>;Promptly after the big yawn she went back to relaxing. You know the thing that takes up most of her doggy day!!

I need to reiterate that her life is hard people! So very hard! She is going for a groomer visit very soon to tame that mess of fur she has going on. I promise you will be shocked when you see her after a day at the spa. She will look ridiculous and not in a good way. You’ve been warned.

It has been raining here most of the day and I haven’t felt so great. Sometime soon I will get into the reason why I don’t feel so great lately but for now I won’t. I didn’t go to the gym as I had planned and I guess I just have to accept that for what it is. We did However spend a good solid hour walking today and I thankfully we did so indoors. I am going to take Muffin around the block and catch up on some blog reading before we call it a night. Hopefully tomorrow will be a better day exercise wise.

Enjoy your Friday night friends!

Chilly Thursday

Jan3

I’m currently cuddled up on the couch with Muffin and Kev! I am so incredibly cold. I’m pep-talking myself to go to the gym. I should have went earlier but being my first day off I slept in a little after a late night Menchies froyo run last night.

Once I pulled my lazy self out of my warm and cozy bed I spent the day out and about with my man and my Muffin!

Today was casual, laid back and fun. I started by refilling all my bird feeders, I’ve become very attached to watching my little chickadees, bush tits, finches, etc. Pretty sure I’m also feeding half the squirrel population in our neighbour hood.

I figure the squirrel hunch is a safe one based on the fact one chewed the hole in this feeder twice the original size so he could binge eat mixed nuts!!!

I had to dump hot water in the birdbath as it was frozen solid this morning. Even though it was very cold it was a gorgeous day and we took advantage of it by taking a walk around the duck pond.

No matter how many times we go to the duck pond, Muffin isn’t sure she trusts those ducks!

Other then the park we spent some time going to my favorite local thrift stores in search of vintage Pyrex and other treasures. After shopping we decided to have a midday lunch date at the Olive Garden. You really can’t go wrong with soup, salad, and bread sticks. Oh an a free wine sample. Yum.

While lunch was good it wasn’t as good as the home made almond chicken, fried rice, and chow mien I made for dinner.

I made up the recipe for the almond chicken on my own and thankfully it turned out very well. I tossed the chicken in some crushed Trader Joes candied nuts once it was cooked for some sweetness. I really wish we had a TJ’s closer to home then Bellingham.

So folks that’s a quick run down of my day. Hope you all enjoyed your Thursday as much as I did. Seriously I’m gonna kill the rest of my coffee and get in a workout!!!

I See You There

Jan2

This is what i contend with at every meal.

This adorable face who has made it her life’s work to be sure that I remember sharing is in fact caring. How do you say no to that face? No really please teach me as I cannot seem to do it.

Anyways, I don’t know if you know this or not but walking down a hill covered in black ice is a treacherous adventure! Walking back up the hill is never a picnic, but you know what they say…whatever doesn’t kill you!!!!! I have to admit it was a beautiful day here, considerably nicer then the foggy afternoon yesterday.

Yesterday’s foggy walk compared to today’s clear skies.

The area I work is great for midday walks. Lots of flat areas and hilly areas depending on how I’m feeling. I actually felt decent today. Which is a change from the last little while, so we did a quick mile walk mostly hills. I like this area because it is very much city life but still close to nature and the country.

I’ve been in a cooking mood lately and this morning was no different. For breakfast I chopped up an apple added some water,sugar, and cinnamon to a pot and cooked it just long enough for the apple to soften. I drained the water mixture and was left with amazingly flavourful, sweet cinnamon infused goodness. I added half my creation to a bowl of oats and peanut butter, perfect for a cold morning. The other half found itself mixed with a few little cheddar cheese squares ad my afternoon snack. I’ve been reading that cinnamon has some serious health benefits, so I sneak it in where I can.

I was lucky enough to have Kevin bring me lunch today. He stopped on the way here and grabbed us both Quiznos. I can’t even remember the last time I had a sandwich from there, but it was very good. Mine was some turkey, guacamole, veggie concoction, and while it was far from pretty it was satisfying. I looked up the nutritional value on their website and it wasn’t half bad other then the sodium content.

Kevin hasn’t been feeling great either so it was nice we got to hang out over lunch while I’m at work. I know a lot of our friends are sick right now and I really don’t want to catch it!

My need to be in the kitchen proved successful at dinner time as I made a quinoa salad for my boss and I. I love quinoa, such a great source of protein and so versatile. I don’t make it at home often unless its for my sister in law or dad and I as it is on Kevin’s will not eat list. Actually a good portion of the salads ingredients are on his will not eat list!!!! Though he will straight face tell you he isn’t fussy! I guess I still love him. Anyways the salad consists of quinoa and a mix of chopped onion, peppers, cucumber, tomato, feta cheese, avocado, and beans of choice. I used chick peas because I love them and that is what was in the pantry here! I used fig balsamic vinegar as dressing but Greek dressing is also good on it. My boss and I had the salad with some lemon garlic chicken breast pieces, so good.

I guess I should get back to work, I have another hour before my weekend officially starts. Hope everyone is enjoying this wintery Wednesday.

Happy New Year!

Jan1

I for one can’t believe the year is already upon us! No one told how fast time and life would move once I became an adult! I hope everyone had a fun night and didn’t wake up feeling too rough this morning!! My night was pretty dark and low key..Muffin and I spent the final hours of 2012 at work doing next to nothing thanks to a power outage. Not exactly how I ended to say farewell to the year. Oh well, just one of those things in life that remind me how little control we really have sometimes .

I woke up this morning and threw together a yummy breakfast consisting of ancient grains hot cereal, a scoop of peanut butter, and a banana. It was delicious and filling. The Starbucks skinny peppermint mocha wasn’t to shabby either!

After breakfast I did my typical work duties until it was time to conquer lunch. I decided to make a hearty salad consisting of mixed baby greens, avocado, cucumber, pineapple, pecans, cashews, feta and a few crispy onions for some crunch! I sprinkled the whole thing with a little fig balsamic vinegar. This is where I wish I had stopped but alas live and learn! I added the garlic salmon burger patty I had cooked as my protein source and learned quickly it was a bad choice. I like to try to buy local, so on a recent trip to Choices Market I picked up a box of Ella’s Finest Garlic Ginger Salmon Burgers.

I think I paid about $6 for the two pack and cooked them according to box directions. They smelled decent enough while cooking but first bite proved other wise. I actually ended up picking it back out of my salad after trying two bites. I am sorry to report in my opinion it maybe the worst salmon I’ve ever had! It was very dry and flavourless, not at all what I was expecting. Once I removed the salmon the salad wasn’t half bad, tho I’m sure I will be looking for a snack sooner then usual thanks to my protein void lunch. Ya can’t win ’em all my friends!

I think I’m going to bundle up and take Muffin for a walk around the neighbour hood. It is cold and crisp but not snowing or raining! So I figure we both could benefit from a little fresh air and a break from “work”! Incase you’re curious this is what Muff’s Work day has looked like thus far today …

“Just checking Facebook mom!”

But mostly this…

Life is hard people!!!!
Have a great day!

iPhone Blogging

Dec29

Hopefully the iPhone app works better then the Blackberry app did!

I’ve Had My Run….Baby I’m Done…I’m Glad I Came Home

Dec18

Hi there! I am Erica… a 30 year old home care nurse from Cloverdale BC Canada. Cloverdale is a little suburb about 40 minutes from downtown Vancouver! I share my life with my husband Kevin and our dog Muffin, along with a number of family members and friends! I’ve been blogging off and on over at Livejournal for many years, I have often considered trying the more intense blogging thing and I guess there is no time better than the present!

I originally started this blog back in the early summer of 2011 around the same time my life took an 18 month turn down a road that taught me many things about myself, love, life, marriage, friendship, who to trust, and what’s important.

So I guess this is my new blog beginning. I want to use this as my day to day canvas to document my struggles and triumphs of trying to lead a full, healthy, happy life. Feel free to tag along for the ride, offer feedback, constructive criticism, ideas and anything else you see fit.

Hope you stick around!

Erica M.

Life With The McGavins

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