Vegging out + CSN winner

After a fun Saturday night outing (we decided on midnight bowling), I declared Sunday as a super lazy day.

Basically I snacked, napped, and watched the Criminal Minds marathon. It was a nice change of pace since I rarely slow down.

Now I’m all refreshed and ready to tackle the week!

First things first, I have the winner of the $45 CSN gift certificate!

Comment #75—Colleen C.!

Congrats Colleen! E-mail me at thenewhealthy@gmail.com so I can get your gift certificate to you!

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My go-to meal/snack when I’m low on groceries is an avocado and hummus sandwich.

These two are a match made in creamy heaven. I had one for breakfast and lunch yesterday. Lazy day means simple meals. Not that I really ever have anything other than simple meals, but you know what I mean.

I started off the week with a bowl of overnight chia oats.

• 1/4 C. Scottish oats <—first time for overnight oats!
• 1/8 C. chia seeds
• 1 scoop vanilla protein powder
• cinnamon
• frozen blueberries

Today’s packed lunch is leftover steamed veggies. I apologize in advance to anyone who is around when I microwave my steamed broccoli.

Steamed broccoli tastes delicious—but the smell is a whole different story.

• steamed broccoli + carrots
• kidney beans
• topped with amino acids, nooch, and spicy hummus

Complete with sides.

I am on a raw, unsalted nuts kick! They’re the perfect side or snack.

Do you know how hard it is to get work done with this little attention hog?

Like clock work, I get out my notes/binder/book and he’s right there on top of them!

Sorry professor, I’m not prepared because my cat sat on my work all night. Think it’ll work?

Have a great day guys!

<3 Stefanie

Do you ever declare a lazy day where you just unplug and veg out?

Google Tags: avocado and hummus, veggie bowl, steamed broccoli, steamed veggies, CSN giveaway winner

Hollywood days

Hey guys! I hope your weekend is off to a great start!

Sounds like a lot of you have funny and cute nicknames too!

So, how did I get the nickname Hollywood?

I started playing basketball at a young age—AAU, YMCA leagues, middle school basketball, boys and girls club—pretty much anywhere I could get on a court.

My Dad was always the coach (he coaches Adam now)—so we always had a blast and everyone had nicknames!

Even though I’m a scrapper when it comes to the basketball court, I’m still a girly-girl at heart. At one practice in particular, I was fixing my hair on the court when a friend passed me the ball. My hands were above my head and the ball smacked me right in the face.

Fixing my hair on he basketball court (and being a girly-girl) earned me the name of Hollywood—it was even on the back of my warm-up jersey!

I have some great memories from back in my Hollywood days.

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I have a super busy (and fun) day ahead:

• Birthday party for Adam’s friend (they’re taking a hummer limo to a huge arcade) <—pretty cool, right?
• running to the mall while he’s there
• hopefully squeezing in a work out
• jewelry party tonight
• going out with my bestie & her hubby after the party!

What’s on your agenda for the day?

Breakfast

I’m on a “oats as cereal” kick this week!

In the delicious mix:

• 1/4 C. old-fashioned oats (uncooked)
• 2 T. peanut flour
• 1 scoop Sun Warrior vanilla protein
• 1 T. chia seeds
• cinnamon
• topped off with sliced banana + almond milk

Lunch

How nasty does that hummus/salsa look?! haha

• half a baked sweet potato
• spinach
• edamame
• kidney beans
• cherry tomatoes
• steamed broccoli
• hummus/salsa/nooch dressing

Snacks

I won this peeled snacks sampler pack in this lovely girl’s giveaway! So far I’ve tried the apricot and they’re delish!

They’re organic with no added sugar—pretty great in my book!

Time to get the day started!

Have a great day loves!

<3 Stefanie

Don’t forget to enter my CSN GIVEAWAY! You have until Sunday evening!

Google Tags: peeled snacks, larabar, nickname, hollywood nickname, sweet potato veggie bowl, sweet potato salad, uncooked oats, oats as cereal, CSN giveaway

Now I now my ABCs...

..next time won’t you sing with me? Can I get any cheesier?

Get to know me—ABC style!

A. Age: I’m in my terrific 20’s. I’m older than Justin Bieber and younger than Madonna.

B. Bed size: Queen! I had a twin bed up until I moved out of my parents-ha! Sam and I used to squeeze in my twin bed every night (with Bahla in between us). Good times.

C. Chore you dislike: Hm, call me crazy but I actually like cleaning and organizing! All I need is a good playlist + caffeine and I’m a cleaning machine! I mean obviously cleaning the toilets is never fun. But the only thing I dislike about chores is when I don’t have the time to get them done.

D. Dogs: Love ‘em! Especially pretty woman. That’s what I call my wiener dog Bahla who resides at my parents! I’m a recent cat convert too! I used to think they were dull—until I adopted one of my own!

E. Essential start to your day: Pressing snooze 93848 times. When I finally get my booty out of bed, it’s to the Keurig I go!

F. Favorite color: To wear? Black, khaki, pink. In general? Anything bright.

G. Gold or silver: Both—depends on the outfit. I love gold + black. And gray + silver.

H. Height: 5’ 4’’. That’s rounding up. :)

I. Instruments you play(ed): None! I took voice lessons in middle school though.

J. Job title: Mom, first. Student, second. Receptionist, third. Research assistant, fourth.

K. Kids: Well, I don’t have a young goat—however, I do have a child! :) My baby boy, Adam. AKA my life.

L. Live: About 30 minutes from the Windy City and 20 minutes from the Indiana Dunes! Right in between a big city and lovely hiking + the beach? It’s pretty perfect if you ask me. :)

M. Mom’s name: Debbie <3 

N. Nicknames: Miley, Stef, Hollywood (old-school nickname—there’s a story behind this one that I’ll leave for another day)

O. Overnight hospital stays: One—Adam was delivered via c-section.

P. Pet peeve: I’m going to be positive Polly and say that none bother me enough to name. I’m certain my family may beg to differ—but that’s okay! ;)

Q. Quote from a movie: Ah, there are so many! Anything from Elf and Anchorman! :) “Why are we yelling?” “I love lamp!”

R. Righty or Lefty: Righty.

S. Siblings: Two sisters: one older (Tiffany) and one younger (Courtney). One younger brother (Tristan).

T. Time you wake up: Um, at the last possible minute? Usually, around 7:30 on the weekdays.

U. Underwear: What about them?

V. Vegetables you don’t like: Hmm, I don’t think I’ve encountered a veggie that I didn’t like in some way. Can you think of any gross veggies?

W. What makes you run late: Me, myself, and I. I’m always running late.

X. X-Rays you’ve had: dental?

Y. Yummy food you make: Well, I personally think everything I make is yummy. If it wasn’t, I wouldn’t make it.

Z. Zoo animal favorite: SEALS! Oh my gosh, I want to cuddle with them! Or ‘Oh my dosh, I was to tuddle wif dem’ as I say it in my animal voice. Embarrassing tidbit of the day.

Don’t forget to enter my CSN GIVEAWAY! You have until Sunday evening!

<3 Stefanie

Do you have any nicknames? If so, is there a story behind it?

Google Tags: ABC's of me, random facts about me, ABC trivia, ABC blog

The Birthday Plan + Carrot Cake Bars

Momma New Healthy says THANK YOU for all of your wonderful birthday wishes! You guys are the absolute best (but I already knew that)!

Birthdays in my family usually have the same general plan:

1. Pick your dinner (order in, take out, restaurant)!
2. Pick your dessert (traditional cake, cookie cake, store/homemade)!
3. Pick your activity!
4. Everyone gathers together and we have a blast!

Have I mentioned that time with my family means there is never a dull moment? Yes. Yes, I have. Last night was no different!

Since we all have crazy schedules, we ordered pizza in and just hung out at my parents house.

American Idol watching and general New Healthy family shenanigans ensued.

The Family

Yes, I’m shorter than my little younger sister. I’m fun-sized and she’s got that model height.

 

The Food

Insert Papa John’s thin crust veggie pizza here.

This was my first time having cheese since the vegan challenge and my stomach wasn’t very happy with me. All the more reason to stick with the 90% vegan, but vegetarian on special occasions eating style.

For dessert, I made carrot cake bars! Similar to my chocolate chip banana blondies!

Carrot Cake Bars

• 1 box carrot cake mix
• 1/4 C. canola oil
• 1 egg
• 1/4 C. almond milk
• optional: 1/2 C. crushed pecans

Mix, mix, mix and then bake at 350 degrees for about 30 minutes.

Serve with a side of vanilla ice cream.

I called them ‘bars’ because they’re dense and chewy. Yum!

My Mom is actually 47 years young—but sometimes you have to work with what you’ve got. I had a ‘5’ and a ‘7’—hey, that’s better than putting ‘75,’ right?

I haven’t worked out since Monday and I can’t wait to hop on the treadmill tonight with Tuesday’s Biggest Loser.

Have a fabulous Thursday guys!

Be on the lookout for a giveaway later! :)

<3 Stefanie

Does your family have a general “birthday plan?” Or is it always different?

google Tags: carrot cake blondies, carrot cake bars, birthday plans, new healthy family, general birthday, carrot cake mix

 

 

 

Happy Birthday to a woman who…

is beautiful inside and out.

is always there with the right thing to say.

is fiercely loyal.

is always thinking of others.

makes me feel special each and every day.

calls all of her family members when she hears an ambulance go by. “Just checking if you were okay…”

should go on jeopardy because she’s got some mad trivia skills.

beats the pants off the opposing team in any word game.

loves the net, but only recently learned how to copy and paste! <3 it!

loves her grandchildren like they are her own.

buys little presents just because they remind her of someone. Again, always thinking of others.

will drop everything to be with me when I’m having a “beet incident.”

is compassionate and helpful.

was the room Mom for every single party throughout my elementary years.

encouraged me to always do my best—in school or otherwise.

put together goodie bags for my friends and I on report card days.

reads my blog religiously—which means so much.

listens to my incessant babbling and never tells me to shut up.

taught me how to be a wonderful Mother to my own son.

deserves the best in life because she is truly a beautiful person.

Happy Birthday Mom! I love you!

7 Random Facts

Hi, my name is Stefanie and I am addicted to vegetables.

Steamed, roasted, raw, grilled...you name it—I love it! I eat vegetables not only because they’re nutritious, but also because they’re honestly delicious. Especially when topped with spicy hummus—it’s like the icing on my vegetable cake.

There certainly could be worse addictions, right?

Of course, savory must be followed by sweet.

Perfect.

I was recently tagged with a few fun blogger awards. The fab Nicole at of Cookies and Carrots tagged me with the versatile blogger! I’m stealing borrowing her genius idea of combining awards-they both call for 7 facts after all!

The lovely Erin from the Grass Skirt tagged me with the 7 facts blog award!

The Rules [which are meant to broken ]

1. Link the person who awarded you.
2. Post 7 random facts about yourself.
3. Pass the award along to 7 other bloggers.

I’ve probably embarrassed myself enough shared a few too many random facts with you all, but hey I’m always up for a little randomness. I don’t know why my random facts always seems to be embarrassing—hm, it’s probably because I embarrass myself a lot.

1.) When I was 14, I crashed a moped twice in one day. The first time I crashed into a bush because I couldn’t find the brakes, and the second time my sister was on the back and we crashed when going around a corner in our neighborhood. She must have been crazy for letting me drive when I had crashed 2 hours earlier, but then again I’m also crazy for even attempting to drive again!

2.) When I was in elementary school, my sister + me + two of our friends would make a music video complete with dancing and costumes to don’t go chasing waterfalls by TLC every single weekend. We’d then perform for our parents. I can still picture it in my head. I still love that song.

3.) I am an accessories freak! My closest is dominated by scarves, jewelry, hats, shoes, purses…you name it! I’m also a bargain shopper, so nothing is too expensive.

4.) I have no sense of direction whatsoever. I literally get lost in my home town [I wish I was joking—but my friends can attest to this]. For this reason, my GPS is one of my best friends.

5.) A get-together with my side of the family can be described in four words: never a dull moment. Love my family! <3

6.) I love forward to Friday nights because I can chill at home in my pajamas with nothing to worry about besides for what movie I want to watch. Yep, I’m a loser and I wouldn’t have it any other way.

7.) Growing up, I wanted to be a witch (Hocus Pocus!) or a vampire slayer (Buffy, anyone?).

I’m not going to tag anyone specific—if you’re reading this, consider yourself tagged!

No pressure, just share an embarrassing story about yourself to make me feel better about myself. Makes sense, no? Alternately, you could just laugh at my stories and move on. Either will work.

Have a fab day guys!

<3 Stefanie

Embarrassing story/random fact?

Google Tags: 7 random facts, vegetable addict, roasted vegetables, random stories, embarrassing stories

Wraps are back!

And another one bites the dust. Goodbye weekend, you were a good one.

Thanks for sharing your favorite work out moves! Butt kicks, jump squats, medicine balls twists, walking lunges with a leg lift, and mountain climbers will all be showing up in my next interval work out!

As I said tweeted last night, Sam made dinner. And by “made dinner” I really mean “bought Chipotle.” Chipotle is always welcome in my stomach, so no complaints there!

I rolled with the usual: a veggie bowl with rice, black beans, fajita veggies, fresh tomato salsa, corn salsa, and a heaping portion of guacamole.

Chipotle never lets me down.

It looks like I spoke too soon about Adam feeling better—it was short-lived. My poor baby boy was in bed all day yesterday with a fever—what a bummer way to spend the last 2 days of his 4-day weekend, right?

At least he has lots of good library books, movies, and popsicles to keep him company.

*Crossing my fingers that he’s feeling better by tomorrow.*

I planned on taking Sunday as a rest day, but I couldn’t resist doing a body rock workout. Only 12 minutes—and it was killer! I don’t have a timer/stopwatch, so I used this online stopwatch. Pretty handy!

Hello, sore thighs and glutes!

Lunch

It’s been far too long since I’ve had a wrap for lunch—they’re back!

In the wrap:

• black beans
• cherry tomatoes
• mini sweet peppers
• tossed in nutritional yeast + Bragg’s liquid aminos

I added this mixture to a whole wheat wrap spread with hummus and topped with spinach!

Grapes & strawberries, raw unsalted nuts (pistachios, sunflower seeds, almonds) and baby carrots rounded out the meal.

Of course, I threw a peanut butter cookie larabar in my book bag for an afternoon snack!

I’m hosting a GRE study group after classes tonight, so it’s going to be a looongg day! Off I go!

<3 Stefanie

Have you taken the GRE? If so, any study tips? I’m hosting a bi-monthly study group so that we can all keep each accountable. I’m planning on taking the GRE this summer—which will be here before I know it!

Google Tags: black bean pepper wrap, larabar giveaway, GRE study group, body rock work out, body rock tv, favorite work out moves, chipotle, black bean hummus wrap