Angela's Coal Fired Pizza (&new camera!)

I know what you’re thinking…more pizza??? Yes, more pizza.  I love it and I always make room for the foods I enjoy.

The BF and I met another couple here for dinner.  On Monday-Wednesdays they have half off cheese pizzas, which is awesome.  Their pizzas are amazing.  I love the sauce, and they sprinkle fresh basil on top before they serve it, it’s delish!

We ordered a family size house salad, and two large cheeses to split.

I really like their salads because they put a lot of stuff in it.  You know how some places just put lettuce in a bowl and top with croutons and call it a Salad?  Not Angela’s!  Their salad had red onions, kalamata olives, celery, hardboiled egg, chickpeas(<3), tomato, and slices of flatbread on top.

Now that’s what I call a salad.

Here's my portion

 When the pizza came, we all dug right in.  Official Mac&Cheese&Peas rating: 4 out of 5 peas!  It was just as good as the last time I came here.  

Since I ran a good 3 miles on the treadmill on Tuesday, I took Wednesday off.  Some days it’s impossible to find time to work out.  There just aren’t enough hours in the day.

Tonight, I'm going for a run with my brother.  Yay for Sibling 5k training!

In other exciting news, the camera came in! Finally! Now I just need to learn how to use it.  Any tips?

Here’s a few of my first shots:

My Momiji

matryoshka

My brother's awesome face

Dad

Candle in the window

One thing I wish I did more often...

Is Pack my lunch the night before!  It's a great way to plan a healthy meal, and save money.

I love having a salad for lunch, but If I’m short on time, I just throw a sandwich together.  If we have lunch meats, I usually make a turkey, provolone, and hummus sandwich on whole wheat bread.

If I do have time, I make a huge salad packed with every vegetable I can find.  

This is the salad I made last night:

Mixed greens

Cucumber

Carrots

Olives

Broccoli

Chick peas

Feta

And I added Grapes, because I’m weird.

Yes, there's lettuce under there

Since I barely have time to make a lunch, I never have time to make breakfast at home.  Usually I throw some oats in a bag and bring along a tiny Tupperware of chunky peanut butter to mix in.  I make this at work and eat it at my desk.    

And I’m usually on the verge of passing out by the time I get to work.

Fact:  I need to eat often or I feel like I’m going to faint. 

Fact:  I have never actually fainted from not eating.

Fact: I have never actually fainted for any reason, but I did come close one time when I stayed in the sauna too long.

This morning since I woke up 10 minutes earlier than normal, I had time to make some eggs.  I made a egg sandwich on an English muffin with reduced fat cheddar and Frank’s(of course).

I take two eggs and scramble them in a bowl, then I pour it onto the pan and try to shape into something that would fit on an English muffin.  Most of the time I fail and end up with a giant flat omlette-looking thing.  Today was no exception.

This kept me full for a looooong time.

For lunch I had the salad, which was very filling, but I had a hankering for something sweet after.  I got a chocolate chip cookie from Au Bon Pain.  Yum!

Have you heard of the Traffic light or  Stoplight system of eating?  It's a rating system where foods fit into different categories like Red, Yellow, or Green.  It's a great system for kids.  Green means go, eat all you want foods like veggies.  Red is fatty or sugary foods to eat in moderation.  I've started using this system in my life.  Today, for instance, I had a cookie after lunch, and that was my one "red" food for the day.

 I had to work late today, because I left in the afternoon for a Dr’s appointment.  I’m starting Immunotherapy for my bee sting allergy.  I’ll tell you the whole story another time.

I didn’t get home from work until almost 7pm.  Luckily my parents had a plate made up for me waiting in the microwave.  Ahh... the perks of living at home.

It was baked fish, rice, mixed veggies, and asparagus.  Now there’s a vegetable I haven’t had in a while.

I was planning to go on a nice long run tonight, but the rain has put a damper on that (I’m not that hard core).  Looks like I’ll be spending some QT with the ol’ hamster wheel.

Yoga with Mom

A few weeks ago my mom mentioned that she wanted to do “hot” or Bikram Yoga.  When I asked if she had ever taken a regular yoga class, she said no.  She has only done the Yoga DVDs she has at home.  I suggested that she take a regular yoga class before the hot yoga just to get used to the poses, and to know what to expect.  Since you can bring a guest for free to my gym, I offered for her to come along with me. 

MG Fitness here we come!

 My lower back has been bothering me for a few days so I’m hoping this will help to stretch it out.  I can’t wait to do some cat & cow poses!

The class was packed so we ended up finding a spot in the back corner.  It started out very fast moving, which I liked, it really got my heart rate going.

I think the teacher was adding in some yoga fusion/pilates type things, which was good.  She did a few moves that really worked my arms and core.  She even did 5 minutes of ab exercise near the end.  My abs were burning!

At the very end of the class, we meditated.  Luckily, I had taken this class before, and I knew that the teacher goes around to every person in the class and places a scented tissue over their eyes and massages their temples.  I warned my mom about this before the class because I didn’t want her to freak out!

Now that I’m getting into yoga again, I really have to put my Living Social deal to use.  I bought a deal for 5 yoga classes at BSC in OCTOBER, and I still haven’t scheduled them.  I miss BSC so much, you think I’d be dying to go back there.  Truth is, I’m just lazy and I don’t like to plan my workouts.

New Goal:  Start planning weekly workouts (as you know that's not my strong suit)

New Mantra:  Commit yourself to constant improvement - H. Jackson Brown Jr.

What are your fitness goals and personal mantras?

Recap of my 5k training

So the Jingle Bell run 5k is closing in.  It’s in 2 weeks! 

I can’t believe it’s so soon.  I got an email about where and when to pick up my t-shirt, bib, and bells. (I’m most excited about the bells).  Luckily one of the places to pick-up the stuff is on my way home from work so It won’t be out of the way.

The route begins in front of the Burren ( a pub in Davis Square) and ends on Highland st in Davis square.

Harpoon is sponsoring the post-race refreshments.   Remember how much I love Harpoon?

There’s a bunch of pubs/bars in the area to go after the race.  I can’t wait to chase my run with a nice cold beer.  

The email also said that you can win a prize for dressing up.   I want to dress up as an elf, and I just have to convince my running partner, Tracy.  Come on Tracy, It will be so fun!

This could be us:

source

 Here’s a recap of my 5k training:

Sept 30- 1 mile

Oct 1- 2 miles

Oct 2- 1 mile

Oct 6- 2 miles

Oct 7- 2 miles

Oct 8- 1.4 miles

Oct 19-2 miles

Oct 20- 1 mile

Oct 24- 1 mile

Oct 27- 2.2 miles

Nov 2- 3 miles

Nov 5- 2 miles

Nov 7- 2 miles

Nov 13- 3.39 miles

Nov 14- 1 mile

Nov 19- 3.28 miles

Nov 20- 1 mile

Nov 25- 3.31 miles

Nov 26- 1 mile

Nov 29- 2 miles

Dec 4- 1 mile

Total miles ran to date: 46.58! That’s almost 2 marathons.

I feel prepared.  For my training I tried to run outside as much as possible, but most of the runs were done on the treadmill.  My goal is to run outside a few more times for 3+ miles to get used to the cold air.

Slice

Tonight I’m skipping the gym and eating some pizza.  Yes, you heard me right! No gym and lots o’ pizza!

I ordered from this local place called Slice.  I’ve eaten there once before and it’s awesome.  If you order a single slice, they will give you 1/4 of a pizza...how great is that?

Their menu offers much more than pizza.  They have pasta dishes, calzones, subs, salads, you name it!  For their delicious pizza and menu variety, I award Slice 4 out of 5 peas!

For our pizza, I ordered mushrooms, basil, and roasted red peppers for the toppings.  

up close and personal

Since I'm not working out today, I'll tell you about my work out last night.  I went to a yoga class at my gym.  I bumped into one of my old friends that I hadn’t seen in a while, and she was taking the yoga class too.  I love to see familiar faces at the gym.  

I’m not sure what type of yoga the class was, but I liked it.  We did lots of hip stretches in the beginning which is great for me because I have really tight hip flexors. Then we moved into some Vinyasa flow yoga, which really gets your heart rate going.  

In the end of class we got to do the wheel pose, or the bridge as I call it from years of dancing.  I love this pose because it really stretches out your spine.

source

And then we meditated.  Ommmmmmmmmmmm.

Well,  we didn’t actually say “om”  but I was thinking it!

Namaste.

My Hero

Today was a proud day.  My Dad was being honored at the 22^nd Annual Fire Fighter of the Year Ceremony in Worcester, MA.  The ceremony started at 12:30 and it was an hour away.  I knew I needed a good breakfast because I wouldn’t be eating lunch until after the ceremony.

I whipped up an omelet  with spinach, broccoli, and feta.  I added a splash of Frank’s, of course.

 My Dad, along with other Fire Fighters from his department were being honored for a large fire that happened this summer.  A gasoline tanker was hit by another car and exploded on route 1 in my town.  There were 8 other cars involved in the crash.  The gasoline spill leaked into the Saugus river and the river caught on fire.  A few surrounding houses and a local business were also  involved in the fire.  The fire was the largest one my Dad has ever been in charge of.  He was the Incident commander for this fire.  

That's my Dad! His middle initial is NOT N, but that's ok.

My Dad, the chief and the other captains on his department were given  the Excellence in Leadership award.  I was very proud and happy for him that he was recognized for his hard work this close to his retirement.  I was touched by the kind words about the Fire Fighters.  They really do act without any regard for their own safety.  They would risk their own life to save another's.   I really wished I had my new camera to take pictures of this moment!

It was a very moving ceremony.  They honored many towns’ fire fighters for their bravery in different situations.  I am glad to be a part of the Fire Fighter community.  

After the ceremony we went to lunch to celebrate.  I was so hungry because it was almost 4 pm and I had eaten breakfast at 9am.  I ordered the Haddock sandwich with sweet potato fries.  Delicious!

 Now I’m off to the gym!

Two Milestones

1. We’re buying a DSLR! My first professional Camera!
2. We're buying it together… it’s our first big purchase!

We did a lot of research for this.  We talked to lots of people, we tested the cameras out, we scoured the internet for deals, and then we finally decided on this:

Canon 60D with the Tamron 15-70mm 2.8 and the Canon 50mm for lenses.

And when I say talk to people, I mean stare at them and nod while they  talk about things like ISO and aperture.  My camera experience is limited to my trusty canon point and shoot.

Which I <3.

 

I realize I have a lot to learn, but I know I can do it.

We bought the camera body through Best Buy since they threw in a free camera bag and a free book of our photography from Shutterfly.  How nice of them.    

I’ve always had an interest in photography so I can’t wait to get started and learn to use this giant complicated camera.  I promise to show you all of the pictures that I take. :)

For today’s workout I took the Pilates class at my gym.  It was short, only half an hour, but I definitely felt the burn.  I used to dance, so I’ve had some experience with Pilates but I still find it very challenging.

This is my high school dance team- the Blue team.  I'm not kidding that really was our name.

  

I'm third from the left.

After the class I ran a quick two miles on the treadmill.  I was pretty sweaty by then end of it all but I love that because I feel like I really pushed myself.

Sweating=working hard!

Another reason that I wanted to run tonight was because I was close to reaching the next level on Nike+.  The first level is yellow and its 1-30 miles.  Tonight I made it to the orange level which is 31-154 miles! I’m so proud of myself (though I have a feeling I’ll be in orange for a while).  Basically the more miles you log the higher up you go in levels.  It’s a great way to motivate yourself to run farther and more often.

Only 123 miles until the next level!

Warren Tavern & the best movie theatre in the world

On Saturday, the bf and I had to dog/house sit in Charlestown.  I suggested that we go to the Warren Tavern to check it out.  I've been there a few times, but not recently, and the bf has never been there.  It's a really cool place because it's so old.  It has been operating since 1780!  I thought it was the oldest tavern in Massachusetts but I found out that a few other places also claim that title.  Bell in Hand claims to be the oldest Tavern in America (est. 1795).  Hmmm that’s a few years after Warren Tavern...but it’s the Green Dragon that has the oldest date of establishment, 1654.  The Union Oysterhouse calls itself the oldest restaurant in America, but it wasn't established until 1826.   

Anyways, we watched the Bruins and ordered some food and beer.  We both got the Shipyard Pumpkin with the Cinnamon and sugar rim, of course.  He ordered the burger with cream cheese and I got the crab cakes appetizer.  

The food was delicious! My bf didn't even know that I liked crab cakes.  But I didn't know that he liked cream cheese on his burgers, seemed weird to me!

Also, very exciting news:  I  noticed that they served a variation of macaroni and cheese with peas  called Polish Mac&Cheese! I can add this restaurant to my list! For that, I award Warren Tavern 5 out of 5 peas!

Here's some grainy photo-graphical evidence: 

On Sunday, we went up to the BEST movie theater in the world called Chunky’sCinema Pub.  It’s an actual pub, as in they serve drinks and food while you watch the movie.  It’s a fun place because all the chairs are actually old car seats from old Cadillacs and Lincolns.  The menu is really cute because they name all the entrees and drinks after movies.  I had already eaten dinner, so I just ordered a Butter Beer float.  If you aren’t a nerd like me and don’t know what that is, it’s a drink from the Harry Potter books/movies.  

 
Guess what movie we saw?

The MUPPETS!

I <3 Kermit.

You don't need a gym to workout

Today I did a little bit of yoga in my room, and then did a short run on the treadmill.  Even if you don't have a treadmill or fancy workout gear, you can still get in shape at home.

I have this really great yoga mat that shows all the poses.

All the tools for my run, Nike+ band and sneakers.

There are lots of ways to stay in shape without going to the gym.  Remember, working out is free and it feels great!  Here are some of my favorite ways to workout without the gym:

Go for a walk/run: Find a local park or just take a stroll around your neighborhood.  Try to take walks during your break at work. If  you have a dog, take him/her for a nice long walk, whenever you can.

Always opt to take the stairs:  I used to work on the 13th floor, and once a day, instead of taking the elevator, I'd take the stairs.  It was quite challenging, but it was worth it.  Some days it was the only exercise that I would get.

Find workouts on the internet:  This website is great for workouts, they call it the Home Workout Movement,  and Zuzana is amazing at showing you how to workout with little to no equipment.  I used to do her workouts when I was in college.  You can also find tons of work out videos on youtube.

Work out with your TV:  If you have On Demand, there's a section called Sports&Fitness that has workout videos.  I used to do them when I moved home from College and didn't have a gym membership.  There's lots of different ones from dancing, to yoga, to pilates, to boot camp.  You can try lots of different workouts this way to see what you like.

Remember, every little bit of movement adds up.  Try to be active in some way, everyday!

Day-After-Turkey trot

I skipped the black Friday shopping this year and slept in.  After lounging around my house and eating some leftovers, I felt like going to a run.  It was super nice out!  Since I ate my fair share of turkey, stuffing, and desserts yesterday, I needed to go for a day-after-turkey trot. 

I ran the same loop that I did a few weeks ago.  It's about three and a third miles.  The last part of the run is all uphill, so it's usually my slowest and most difficult part.  It's such a great feeling when you climb those last few hills and don't give up.

A few years ago when I worked at a gym, I signed up for some personal training sessions.  I'll never forget what my trainer told me.  Every time I would quit or give up on the last few push-ups, he would always say, "you are only cheating yourself."  He was right, and after that I realized it wasn't fair for me to cheat myself out of what I deserved. 

That's how I feel every time I reach the end of my run.  I don't want to cheat myself anymore.  I just have to dig deep and do it.   Even if it's slow, like my last part of my run,  I just kept going.  It's amazing how much you have left in you when you feel like you've reached the end.  I love the feeling after a run where you know you gave it your all.

Motivated yet?

When I met my friend at the gym later on, I didn't have much steam left.  You know when your muscles are just all out of energy?  Even though I felt like that I still gave it everything I had left.  It was a pretty good work out.  It's always helpful to have a buddy to cheer you on and keep you motivated.  We did some of my most hated exercises, such as burpees and push-ups.  I know they are good for you, but I usually avoid them at all costs.  It was good to have someone there to give me the little push that I needed.  I'll definitely be sore tomorrow!

Thanksgiving 2011

I hope everyone had a nice Thanksgiving!  Since my five year high school reunion was the night before, I spent the morning recovering on the couch, cuddling with my cat and watching the Purina Dog Show.  Well, mostly my cat was cuddling with the bf, because she loves him way more than me.  Look at that loving gaze!

what a model

I love watching the dog show.  It's way better than football and the Macy's Day parade, in my opinion.  I never knew how many different breeds of dogs there are!  It really made me miss my dog who passed away this summer.  I miss you Rex!

Here's my favorite picture of him:

Rex

While watching the dog show, I snacked on some "pickies".  My mom always makes these little cinnamon things, which my boyfriend described as shrunken stale cinnamon rolls.  They taste better than they sound,  To make them:
Roll out a pie crust to about 1/4".  Spread butter/margarine over the whole thing.  Sprinkle a mixture of cinnamon and sugar over the butter.   Cut into strips about 6 inches long and an inch wide.  Roll them up and pop them in the oven until they are slightly brown.  They are very easy to burn so keep an eye on them.

Since we were having dinner at my bf's house this year, I didn't get to have dinner with my family.  But there are tons of leftovers that I'm pretty excited about.  I can't wait to have one of these, that my aunt brought:

whoopie pies!

Today, I'm meeting a friend at the gym later this afternoon.  I hope he can show me how to use some of the weight machines, since I usually stick to the Cardio side of the gym.  I'm definitely a Cardio Junkie, but I'm looking to learn more about strength training.  I'll let you know how it goes!


I need to give a shout out to my 3 newest readers:  Serena, Melissa, and Holly! 3 peas in a pod!

Mexico Lindo

Tonight after work I headed to a little Mexican restaurant for dinner to meet my family.  The restaurant was called Mexico Lindo, and my parents LOVE it there.  They have home made tortilla chips, pitchers of maaaahgaritas, and gigantic portions. 

I had no clue what to order so I got the most boring thing on the menu, one beef taco and one chicken enchilada with a side of re-fried beans and rice.  I'm so exciting, I know.

I had planned to photograph the food but for the second time I forgot my memory card at home!  I was so disappointed, but the lighting wasn't very good in there anyways... oh well! You all know what a taco looks like.

For my drink, I copied my brother's girlfriend and ordered a Strawberry margarita.  It wasn't the best, but it was pretty strong, which is ok by me. :)

On a scale of one to five, I give Mexico Lindo 3 and a half peas.  (I think this will be my new thing)


My workout for tonight is opening and closing my eyes every few seconds.  Gotta tone those eyelids!