the essentials

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Is tomorrow really Friday?

Am I moving again on Saturday?

Is it really already September?

Ahhhh

Since 2001, this is my 9th time moving.

Okay. Breakfast.

I inhaled this deliciousness, to the point where I looked at my plate in shock… “seriously, where did it go?”

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I was worried it wouldn’t fill me up because I was still hungry from eating it so fast.  However, after about 15min I was full.  Why haven’t I made this before??  I might need to make it a triple decker next time.

Nothing revolutionary here.  I know it’s been done before.  But it’s seriously, amazing.

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Nut Butter Grilled Banana Samich

  • 2 pieces of bread, lightly buttered
  • 3/4 medium banana [eat the rest :)]
  • 2-3T nut butter
  • 1T jelly

The bread I used, was a deeelicious 14 grain bread from the farmers market.  It toasts up so nicely.

I put the nut butter on both sides + a light coating of jelly.  Putting the pnut butter on both sides, helped keep the jelly from leaking through.  I put banana on one side, topped with the other slice of bread and cooked it away just like a grilled cheese.  It was done in about 7min and eaten in about 3.

Oy.

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Onward!!  I went for an intense interval bike workout at the park today.  Around + around I went!

Ride – 18 miles

  • 6.75 miles at my normal pace
  • 7.25 miles, with [10] 1min sprint intervals at 80-90% max effort, resting at normal pace in bt/n each interval until I catch my breath, then GO again with the next interval
  • 4 miles normal pace

Why did I do that when I knew I was going up + down stairs all day?  Your guess is as good as mine.

Then I biked to Whole Foods.  Double oops.  Hellooooo tired legs.  I had to grab some essentials.

  • I don’t typically buy TP at Whole Foods, but we’re out, and I wasn’t about to bike to Target. 
  • We’re out of toothpaste. 
  • I needed some protein!  Fage 2% is SO freaking delicious. I like it a lot better than plain Oikos.  Now only if it were organic.  I’ll keep buying Oikos though because it’s cheaper.  These were on sale though.
  • The blue bars are Dr. Bronners peppermint castile soap.  They were on sale for $2.50!!! They’re typically $4-5.  Total score, especially because I use these for my homemade laundry detergent.  [which I LOVE]
  • Dryer sheets – well, I had a coupon and this brand is my FAVorite.
  • Kaia Foods fruit leathers – They were on clearance.  Hence, essential.
  • Heirloom tomato – SALE!!! It was hard to only buy one. 
  • GoRaw banana bread bar – It was on clearance, and I wanted to see how it compared to Angela’s “Liberate” banana bread GF/Raw bar.
  • fiCoCo – Fig + cocoa fruit spread!!!! – This was on sale for $2.99 and I just couldn’t pass it up.

I told you.  Just the essentials.

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I’m pretty sure this is going to be excellent on oats.

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I tried the Vanilla Pear fruit leather today.  It was tasty, but pretty hard to chew through.  The pear was noticeable with the texture but the flavor was more banana.  Fruit leathers are pricey, in general, for what you actually get.  I probably won’t buy these again, unless they’re on clearance ;)

I was excited about the goraw bar.  I tried Angela’s Liberate bar back in June.  It was seriously amazing.  The texture + flavors were spot on. 

Well, I tried this bar it and threw it out.  The description I’m going to give you is pretty gross…but I just have to tell you.  At first, I swear it tasted like BEER.  Then, I am not joking, it tasted like vomit with a hint of banana.  It was not good at all, and I would never ever eat it again.  I took a few more bites but it did not get better.  Banana barf.  No thanks.

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For lunch I made…

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Hot Mess In a Wrap, That Had To Be Eaten With a Fork

  • Ezekial sprouted grains wrap
  • tomato paste
  • ricotta cheese
  • zucchini
  • peppers
  • TJ’s grain mix
  • sweet tater
  • heirloom tomato
  • spring mix lettuce

mmm.

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With a side of Fage + LGF granola + 1t maple syrup.  Adding a touch of maple syrup to Greek yogurt is one of my favorite things. 

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Dinner.  The rest of my low + slow sweet taters, reheated with a nice blob of homemade pnut butter.

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And the most delicious, packaged soup I’ve ever had.

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I mixed in the TJ’s grain mix that I’ve been trying to use up.  Needed a little more carby substance for dinner.  Honestly though, this tomato veggie soup was amazing.  It was a frozen soup, which I’v enever had.  It was packed with veggies AND they were crisp.  The soup was perfectly seasoned.  Wow.  Totally impressed.

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The ingredient list was very Ashley approved as well.

Water, Diced Tomatoes in Juice (tomatoes, tomato juice, salt, calcium chloride, citric acid), Ground Tomatoes (tomatoes, salt, citric acid), Zucchini, Summer Squash, Onions, Yellow Beans, Green Beans, Carrots, Celery, Olive Oil, Rice Flour, Scallions, Corn Oil, Spices, Sea Salt, Garlic.

Also great nutritional info. [source]

Sold!

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My back is EXhausted, along with my legs + brain.

Tomorrow is the last day to get things squared away!  I made a ton of progress today and even started to get some cleaning done.  The packing is pretty much done, except for maybe 1 large “completely random” box.  We get the moving truck early Saturday morning and will hopefully be in Ft. Collins by late afternoon Saturday. 

Besides my morning oatmeal, the kitchen is now closed.  We have a pizza coupon we need to use for dinner + I think I heard Chipotle’s veggie bowl calling my name for lunch.

Roar!! Bed.

<3 Ashley