The Pasta of Summer

Last fall this Tomato Basil Pasta Salad was my favorite pasta dish to make because I love tomatoes, basil and garlic. After a recent walk we looked through our cabinets and fridge to find something to fix for dinner.  We worked together in the kitchen to quickly made some food before we all had breakdowns.  While the water was boiling, Munchkie's Daddy chopped basil from our herbs and walnuts mixing them with olive oil, garlic powder, salt and pepper.  While he was doing that I chopped tomatoes.  Once the cheese tortellini was finished boiling he drained it and I added shredded mozzarella mixing to let it melt on the hot pasta.  Then we mixed in the basil mixture and tomatoes.  It was so delicious that Munchkie asked for seconds and probably would have eaten thirds if it wasn't already past her bedtime.

No Time to Wash My Hair

My hair this morning when I got home.

The other day when I was getting my hair cut my hair girl was telling me to try out dry shampoo.  I had heard of this before, but she said that there are many brands out there that have a version, including Suave.  I brought some a little while ago for $2-$3 and decided to try it out last night before I went into work.  I last washed it Friday morning in the shower, sprayed it in my hair yesterday evening and am heading to bed now after a night of work.  I have to say, my hair does not look greasy at all.  I think I went a little crazy spraying it, and probably could have used a fraction of what I did use, so it made my hair feel a little funny.  My scalp was also itchy, which is usually is, and I also don't know if it was as much physically itchy as it was psychological because I knew there was something there.  I don't usually use any kind of product besides some leave in conditioner or antifrizz cream so I'm not used to having stuff in my hair.  I'm definitely going to be trying it again because it cut so much time off getting ready.

 This is what the back says:

This dry shampoo spray, with mineral clay, refreshes hair to prevent a greasy feel between washes.

Stylist recommendation

Shake can well.  Hold 8-10 inches from hair.  Spray directly on oily roots.  Use heat from the palm of your hand to rub in excess powder.  For oil prone hair, apply on first day hair is washed to give extra volume and texture as well as to absorb oil throughout the day.

This makes me think that if you have oily hair you can also use this after you dry and style your hair to keep it fresh looking throughout the day.

If anyone tries this out, let me know what you think.  I'm interested to hear!

Oven Free Homemade Pizza

What happens when you don't have a working oven and haven't had one for a few weeks now.  You can't (or at least shouldn't) get take out every night and there is only so many nights that you can cook chicken on the stove top.  Munchkie's Daddy was really feeling pizza, so we decided to get creative.  For Munchkie's birthday we made individual pizzas and so we did the same tonight. 

Normally we would make our own pizza dough, but since there was no oven to cook that dough, we used some sandwich thins that were left over from last week. Then some pizza sauce was added, reduced fat cheese sprinkled on top and turkey pepperoni strategically placed.  Into the toaster oven it went, set up the temp to 400 degrees and a few minutes later once the cheese was melted and bubbling it was finished.

Easy, quick and actually not too unhealthy, compared to a piece of pizza from the deli down the street.

Per individual pizza (approximate)
Calories 220
Fat 8.5
Carbs 25
Fiber 6
Protein 16

Hair Clip Review

Recently a blog that I follow had a giveaway of a hair clip by Lilla Rose and so I of course entered the contest.  I went to the website to check them out and part of the contest entry was to "like" it on Facebook, which I did.  These clips sparked my interest and I decided that although I didn't win the giveaway, I wanted to try it out.  I get bored very quickly with my hair and then tend to do something that I regret later that usually involves dye or scissors.  I thought that these clips might be a way to change things up for less money and not be quite as permanent.

After pouring through all of the option,s I selected two different kinds in two different sizes and bought them on Monday.  They arrived in the mail yesterday (Thursday)!  And I choose the cheapest mailing option.  They are speedy!  I tried out several styles last night, making Munchkie's Daddy take pictures, and also tried the small sized one on Munchkie.  She was able to wear it well until she wanted to exercise with Munchkie's Daddy and I, then it just slid out of her smooth baby hair with the jumping around.

Then I put the clip to the test.  I put it in my hair when we got to the aquarium today, chased Munchkie around the aquarium all day, came home, took a nap and then took pictures in my bathroom mirror to see what it looked like.  I have to say that I am impressed with how well it held my hair, it did take a couple attempts to get it to feel tight.  And it was much more comfortable than wearing a ponytail.  The only thing is that I'm not sure if it makes my hair look fun or if I look like a Duggar. 

I decided the best way to show these clips was just to post a lot of pictures.  So here I go.

I didn't quite understand how these clips work.  The two parts are attached and then the pin part has grooves in it that keeps it in place.

See how it's attached to the figure eight part?  Then you push the pin under your hair, as close to your scalp as you can, and push it through the loop of the figure eight part on the other side.

The figure eight part is very flexible and so can bend around different styles of hair.

I tried out the small one on Munchkie.  It's small, but just a little too big/heavy to stay in her hair like this.  I think it will work out well on my hair if I'm just going to do it halfway or maybe even just a ponytail if I can get all my hair to fit.

I did a twist with Munchkie's hair and stuck it in.  This was the hairstyle that held up until Jillian's 30 Day Shred started, and the jumping jacks were just too much for it.

These are my hair in just a simple twist.  My hair stood up a little too much for my liking. 

And then the basic ponytail.  Nothing too exciting.

Here's a random twist.

And then of course the classic french twist.

And then this is my hair after today's activities.  I didn't look in the mirror and had no idea what it looked like until I got home and took pictures.

So.  Tell me your thoughts.  What do you think about this clip?  How does it look?  Do I look like I should be wearing a long skirt?

Came across this

www.vitalicious.com

The other day I took Munchkie to Target to get her picture taken and forgot to grab anything to eat on our rush out the door.  When we got to Target I wanted to find something to eat that I wouldn't have to feel guilty about (and there wasn't a Starbucks inside, what Target doesn't have a Starbucks these days???).  Walking past the frozen foods to get to the portrait studio I saw these muffin tops that I had glanced at before when buying things from the frozen natural food section before.  I thought I would give them a try and see how they were.  I have to say that I was pretty impressed.  

I grabbed the CranBran and when I flipped the box over I could read, understand and even pronounce every single ingredient (Water, whole wheat flour, organic sugar, egg whites, whole wheat flakes, cranberries, molasses powder, soy bran, oat fiber, wheat protein isolate, oat bran, inulin, leavening (potassium bicarbonate, sodium acid pyrophosphate, monocalcium phosphate), wheat gluten, fruitrim (grapejuice, brown rice), acacia gum, natural flavor, sea salt, cinnamon, xanthan gum, lecithin, vitamin A, vitamin B6, vitamin B12, vitamin C, vitamin D, vitamin E, folic acid, iron, biotin, zinc) .  Amazing.  That is really hard to find on the backside of a box these days, which is why I usually tend to stay away from boxed foods.  The nutrition facts weren't that bad either.

They really filled me up and tasted pretty good too.  I can remember my mom bringing home foods from the health food store in town when I was little and it was disgusting flavored cardboard.  Things have come a long way.  I might actually keep some of these in my freezer for the day I run out of Homemade Granola Bars and don't have time to make more.  There are also a lot of different options if you look at their website at www.vitalicious.com.  When you look at their website on the side is a little walking man and it says that it only takes 13 minutes of walking to walk off one of their 100 calorie vitatop muffins.  That definitely eliminates any guilt you might have.  Thirteen minutes is nothing!

I hope you enjoy them as much as I did.

Frozen Chocolate Covered Banana Coins

As I've already said I enjoy spending time in the kitchen, especially to relieve stress, frustration or a bad mood.  Yesterday I first make breakfast for the fam, then a batch of granola bars, popped some of these in the freezer, tried out a homemade playdough recipe (fail on that one), then cut up a ton of peppers (for my dinner at work and Munchkie daycare lunch).  I am trying very hard not to be stressed, but I'm just not doing very well with that.  I guess I'll just keep spending time in the kitchen for now and keep praying for peace.

I want to start off by saying that I cannot stand bananas.  I don't like to eat them, to have them in smoothies and will pick them out of a fruit salad.  However, I do like them in things like banana bread and frozen.  This is weird, I know.  When I was little my mom would make us these frozen banana snacks.  One was whole bananas dipped in chocolate, rolled in nuts and frozen while the other was sliced bananas and peanut butter in a graham cracker sandwich, again frozen.  A little while ago I decided to make these to both bring me back to my childhood and also have a chilled chocolate snack available so I wouldn't turn to something way less healthy.  I can pull a couple pieces out of the freezer, slowly eat them and have my cravings filled.  They are super easy and the active part only takes a few minutes.  I never really like dark chocolate, but the sweetness of the banana makes the dark chocolate much more tolerable, so I recommend trying out a darker chocolate than you think you would like, because the darker, the better for you.

Frozen Chocolate Covered Banana Coins

3 Bananas
3 large bars of dark chocolate
Almond butter (or any nut butter)
Almond pieces
Aluminum foil or wax paper
Freezer space

1. First cut the banana lengthwise.
2. Then cut the bananas into one inch "coins"

3. Place a small dab of almond butter in between each piece of banana coin.
4. Freeze these for at least an hour, preferably until firm.

5. Take the chocolate bars and break up into small pieces.
6. Once the bananas are frozen, melt the chocolate in a small pan.
7. Dip the banana coins in the chocolate and place on aluminum foil.

8. Drizzle the left over chocolate over the top of the bananas.
9. Sprinkle the almond pieces over top.
10. Drizzle more chocolate over the top of the almond pieces.

11. Freeze until chocolate is firm.
12. Break apart and store in a Ziploc or airtight container in the freezer.
13. Enjoy!

When things go wrong, start cooking

I had a very specific schedule planned out for this morning.  When Munchkie woke up I was going to get her, do my 20 minute exercise DVD with her "assistance," shower and make it to church for Sunday School.  Due to my schedule and our traveling I have not been able to go to our church since the beginning of December.  Isn't that crazy?  We really wanted to start participating more at church and we haven't been able to because I've been working.  When I woke up, went downstairs and started to brush my teeth, the water just stopped.  I turned the faucet off and on and nothing.  Nothing from the kitchen sink either.  Oh boy.  There went all of my perfectly scheduled plans.  No water= not good.  You don't realize how much you use rely on water.  I can't shower, I can't brush my teeth, I can't wash my scrubs (which are all dirty and I have to work tonight), and I feel amazingly dehydrated since I have limited water to drink. 

So when I get frustrated or stressed, I like to cook/bake.  Even though it meant that I would end up with dishes that couldn't be washed I decided to make something for breakfast.  It ended up being tasty.

I chopped up a couple tomatoes, sweet peppers and 4 cloves of garlic.

I sauteed the garlic in 1 teaspoon of olive oil and then added the peppers.  After they got slightly soft I added the tomatoes and about 1/4 cup black beans.  I know this may be weird, but I push the veggies around the outside of the pan and then pour the eggs in the middle to cook for a little bit.  I used 2 whole eggs and 2 egg whites that were scrambled with a dash of milk, chili powder, paprika, cumin and freeze dried cilantro (bad choice, wish I had fresh).

Then I added just a little bit of shredded cheese once everything was cooked.

Munchkie's Daddy had his in a wrap with hot sauce to spice it up more.

I just put mine in a bowl with some more cilantro.  Munchkie and I were supposed to share, but she decided that she didn't want any once we sat down to eat it. 

And so she ended up with a more toddler friendly breakfast.

This ended up being so filling neither one of us could finish it!  Quite yummy I would have to say.  I think it made our lack of water just a little more bearable.  Now the water can decide to start running at any time.  That would be nice.