Motivation Monday

Do not let what you can't do interfere with what you CAN do.

John Wooden

Celebrating New Life...

Yesterday I had the privilege of attending a baby shower for one of my dearest friends (who I met through Beachbody via social media) in Indianapolis.  Another one of my friends was able to make the trip too so we had a Turbo reunion of sorts... We refer to each other as Turbo Sisters and have a bond that is as priceless as it was unexpected.  I mean really, who makes real, true, honest to goodness friends through the Internet?  Ummmm.... me!

I hope we are able to make these reunions occur a little more often because I truly love these girls....

Gabi, Beth (and baby Violet) and me

2011 Daytona 500

Oh yes, its that time again!

The last several years we have watched the opening race of the season with our friends... this year was no different.  We start talking about it in January.  By then we have had two full months without any Nascar festivities and we are ready for a little racing action.

I never seems to fail though that about... oh, say 50 laps in... we start saying "Wow, this race is taking forever".  And besides chatting, we start looking for other things to occupy our attention.  Yes, even steadfast racing fans like us can get a little bored when our drivers have hit the wall and have to spend several laps in the garage.  Of course we always have plenty of food to occupy some of the time.  This year I made tacos and Rachel brought her yummy guacamole and chips!!  They both hit the spot!!

Rachel took pictures of each of us to show how we spent our time watching the race.  They made me laugh...

According to Chad, Rachel and I talk too much and too loud so he had to lay down in front of the TV
away from our yapping...

Curt watches with my computer in his lap so he can see online what is happening when the race coverage 

goes to commercial...

Rachel watches while she reads the latest scrapbooking magazines looking for ideas and inspiration... 

p.s. I love her jacket!!

I watch with my phone in hand.  My nephew introduced me to a most addicting game.... Can't. Stop. Playing.

By the end of the race all of our drivers had somehow managed to get out of contention to win... mostly through wrecks.... most of which were not their fault...  Frustrating!!  Throughout the race we kept hearing the name of one rookie driver, Trevor Bayne.  He had a fast car, seemed to work well with other drivers, and seemed respected by the other drivers because he wasn't out there making a mess of things like some others (I will refrain from naming names).  Nobody knew anything about this kid except that he had turned 20 on Saturday, even Dale Waltrip, one of the commentators, said his bio sheet on this kid was empty.  Well, this kid that nobody had ever heard of before didn't have a scratch on his car, he had been in the top 10 pretty much all day, and was about to lead the race... so, we decided to cheer for him.

My favorite part of the day came when Trevor took the lead for the last two laps and all of us were jumping up and down screaming "GO TREVOR!!!".  

I just love being able to say my driver won! Here's to wishing you all a very happy Nascar season... with many burnouts to come!

Action.... and enter Ethan

Just about every week Curt does a challenge called the Saturday Fitness Beatdown on Facebook. The fitness challenge is different every week and chosen by the winner from the week before. This week during the taping he had a little visitor... Man I love this kid... I was cracking up, I hope you get a chuckle too.

I Passed!!

Just a quicky... I received an email yesterday with my "unofficial" MTTC results and it was PASS!! Yaye!!  I will get the "official" version in the mail in a few days, but right now it is just nice to have that weight off my shoulders.  

I am one step closer to being a certified elementary education teacher... 

Next up is applying for that very certification.  

In the meantime, I have been enjoying subbing in various classrooms.  So far I have only been at the school where I completed my internship.  The school, staff and students definitely hold a part of my heart and I have enjoyed each day I've spent there.

Look What Came in the Mail Today!

Now I just need a State Certification to make it all official!  I also found out today that my MTTC Exam results will be sent tomorrow... I am excited and nervous!!

New Recipe Thursday - Innagural Issue! Turkey & Chickpea Burger with Roasted Sweet Potato Fries

Real quick, before I get to the yummy stuff I just wanted to take a minute and tell you where the idea for this weekly post came from... Last week I was out shopping for groceries and really looking for the SAME staples I always buy.  I am not a huge fan of cooking, nope, not at all... I prefer eating out or ordering take-out... but, our current budget and preference for healthy fare prevent doing that too often.  While I was at the store I stumbled across a couple cookbooks.  One that I had been wanting to purchase, but too lazy to go out and look for and another that looked equally as promising.  I may not like cooking, but I do like eating... and THAT... along with a Facebook conversation with a couple of my friends is what started this... I am going to be posting "new to ME" recipes that I've found through various means... if its not an original (and that is pretty much a guarantee) I will give 100% credit where it is due.  If you try the recipes, let me know in the comments what you thought of them... I always love reading feedback!

Turkey & Chickpea Burger
Serves: 4

1 15oz. can chickpeas, drained and rinsed
1/2 cup roughly chopped scallions
1 tsp ground cumin
2 Tbsp Worcestershire sauce
3/4 lb ground turkey breast (12oz), 99% fat free
1 tsp fresh ground black pepper
1/4 tsp sea salt
Olive oil cooking spray

In a food processor, combine chickpeas, scallions, cumin, pepper, salt and Worcestershire sauce.  Pulse until smooth.  Transfer chickpea mixture to a large mixing bowl.  Add turkey and mix by hand until combined.  Divide turkey-chickpea mixture into four equal portions, shaping each into a three-quarter-inch patty.  Heat a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat.  Coat skillet with cooking spray and cook patties for four to six minutes on each side.  Serve on a whole wheat bun, topped with spinach, tomatoes, onions and Dijon mustard. (I would not add salt to mine... nor the raw onion on top... but that's just me!)


Nutrional Information:  Calories: 190. Total Fat: 4.5g, Carbs: 16g, Fiber: 4g, Sugars 4g, Protein: 26g, Soudium: 910mg, Cholesterol: 35mg


Roasted Sweet Potato Fries
Serves: 4

2 large sweet potatoes, peeled
1 Tbsp canola oil
1 tsp chili powder

Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Line a rimmed baking sheet with aluminum foil.  Cut sweet potatoes in half lengthwise.  Cut each half into three or four wedges.  In a mixing bowl, combine sweet potatoes wedges with oil.  Sprinkle chili powder over sweet potatoes and stir again.  Place sweet potato wedges on prepared baking sheet.  Bake for 30 minutes, turning wedges several times during roasting so that they cook evenly. (I prefer olive oil to canola so I will use that instead of canola)


Nutritional Information:  Calories: 66, Total Fat: 1g, Carbs: 13g, Fiber: 2g, Protein: 1g, Sugars 3g, Sodium 36mg, Cholesterol: 0mg

Both of these recipes came from The Best of Clean Eating cookbook!