Our hike today was perfect! We wanted something low key – mainly because Bill was sick. We decided to head over to Great Falls, Virginia and find a trail there. Once we found out it was $5 to enter the park, we decided to save the cash and hike a trail we found on the way.

I’ll be honest. This trail is a fraud. It is in no way difficult. But that doesn’t mean it wasn’t fun. I was really happy to be connected with nature again.

We love sitting on rocks above water.

We hiked for about an hour and a half. I wore my HRM just to see how many calories I would burn. I burned 405 calories, which isn’t bad – but definitely shows me that this was a very easy trail. Easy – but beautiful nonetheless.

I love this photo I took of Bill.

And check out the spider I found!

We stopped for a little while after we reached the halfway point. I decided to climb on a rock, and Bill decided to document.

I love my Camelbak. Swoon. Goodbye, Difficult Run! We’ll see you again soon.

When we got back to the apartment, I was craving all sorts of weird things. I knew I wanted veggies and hummus. I also wanted veggies in the form a veggie cake. So here’s what I came up with.

I decided to refrain from cleaning the work desk to show you what it really looks like. Also, did you know that Special K makes crackers? I didn’t until I got a box in my Easter Basket this year. They’re not too bad.

I love these veggie cakes, fyi. Quick and easy.

Check out even more of this mess on the desk, including one Mr. Scone The Cat.

After lunch, I took a shower and Bill and I headed to Paper Source. I needed to buy some special items for a very top secret project. I can’t believe the amount of paper in one store. Heaven on earth!

Me and my purchase.

And, because we were so close, we had to swing by Mr. Yogato. Yes, we had to. We even got a 10% discount for answering a trivia question! (What are the two countries that start with the letter “A” but don’t end with the letter “A?”)

I liked this, but I will not be getting chocolate chips again. I didn’t like the texture, and it upset my stomach a bit!

Well, I’m off to get ready for a BBQ at a friend’s house tonight. See you later!

Want to see how I spent my Friday night?

Shoot, I just got a Blackberry!! I am feeling a bit of technology overload. It was definitely time to get one. My phone plan was up, and I had a major credit. Once I send in the rebate, this phone will only cost me about $30. Not too shabby! I’m uber excited to be able to use this – especially from Bonnaroo! Special thanks to Marissa for helping me pick this out via Twitter.

Bill and I are gearing up to go hiking this morning! I’m so excited. We’re going to do a “low-key trail” because Bill hasn’t been feeling well. I am just so excited to get out there! I prepared with some basic oats this morning.

I can’t wait to hear how Heather and Sarah did on their race this morning – along with Bobbi and Meghann in San Diego! Also Leslie is out in Annapolis doing a half marathon too. Sarah has a great “ode” to her half marathon. You should read it here. 

Off to hike!

Barely any time to post today! Being out sick yesterday put me behind my schedule at work, and I want to catch up.

I basically threw things into my lunch bag today – anything I could find in the ‘fridge in terms of leftovers. I had the rest of my tuna salad on a sandwich.

And some strawberries/blueberries – we have an overload of blueberries because they were buy one, get one.

I also have another one of these guys for later, if I want.

I can’t fool you. Yep, that’s a repeat picture from Monday.

Twitter

Despite the madness of the day, I’ve been having a fun chat with some very cool kids on Twitter. It all started when Nate asked whether the Green Monster’s name scared me away. I must admit – I’ve never been a fan of monsters. And the smoke monster from Lost really scares me. I don’t care if it’s made up.

Anyway, follow me on Twitter to get the scoop!

Are you on Twitter? What’s your name?

This morning I made my very first Green Monster.

I’ll admit that I’ve been a skeptic of green monsters for a while now. I didn’t doubt their nutritional power, but there was something about the color that just turned me off. Honestly, I couldn’t fathom drinking green. I watched blogger upon blogger prepare their own green smoothies. Nope. I’m not jumping on the bandwagon this time. But my curiosity got the better of me. Last night as I was reading about Anna and her success with green monster. More energy? Better skin? I had read these before on other blogs, but I guess it just stuck last night. Before I went to bed, I chatted up Angela and got some tips.

My Ingredients:

• Handful of spinach
• Handful of kale
• Skim milk
• banana
• blueberries
• oats

I am sort of wishing now that I had added some PB to this mix. I think it would have tasted good.

Go, Vita Mix. Go!

God, I love this blender. Perfect every time.

I had to try a taste. I was really scared, which I know now is dumb. But I thought I’d have spinach all through my teeth and that the first gulp would be miserable.

Um.

Why didn’t anyone say that the Green Monster tasted just like any berry smoothie? Oh, yeah that’s right. You may have said that, but I was too busy not believing. Oh, Rose.

Anyway— oh my! The Green Monster is GOOD! Everyone in blogland is right! You can’t taste a difference, but it’s packed with so much more power. Yes

In other news, I did sleep through the night, though I didn’t fall asleep until 1:30 a.m. I also slept on the couch. For some reason, it’s the one place I can sleep. And it’s not even that comfortable because it’s a two-recliner sort of couch. Either way, I feel a little better than yesterday, and I’m hoping the Green Monster will help.

Bill is also on a serious iced coffee brewing kick, and I’m not complaining. These were on the counter this morning, sitting at room temp for 12 hours while we slept.

I’m going to enjoy one post green monster   

I have been on the computer and in front of the TV all day. Blech! The good news is that my stomach feels a little better, and I think I will be able to sleep through the night. Here’s hoping

I didn’t eat lunch at all today. I finally got hungry again around 6 p.m., and I was really craving veggies. I had some ingredients to make the Ultimate Veggie Casserole, but Bill wasn’t feeling it. So I decided to make a mini version for myself only.

After making it and putting it on a plate, I realized that this is really just a heated salad with melted cheese. Nevertheless, I do love it.

Let’s get up close.

Ingredients: polenta, spinach, cucumbers, leeks, chickpeas and melted cheese. My cheese of choice? This guy:

I won’t even tell you how much this cheese cost. Let’s just say that is one food that Bill and I don’t skimp on, especially now that I’ve rediscovered cheese. 

Meanwhile, Bill made himself some mini polenta pizzas. I’m sure you will all think this looks better than my meal – and I would have eaten one if tomato sauce didn’t make me sick.

While sitting on the couch this afternoon, I got to work on my independent study for school. I am actually doing two this summer, and you will learn about one via my blog throughout the summer. You may notice a new link on my top header. Since my prof is on maternity leave, this is the way we’re going to communicate. Get ready to see more books!

I’m off to watch Jeopardy with Bill, and I’m thinking about doing a 20-minute yoga session tonight. My body needs to move, and I think it might help me tire out and relax a bit. 

What are you doing tonight?

Wow. Thanks for all your sweet comments about my recent post about how I met Bill. We were both overwhelmed by your response! Honestly, we were both smiling all night. That was a really fun post to write – it brought back a lot of old memories. Almost too much to fit into one post. Again, thank you. 

Unfortunately, I am not smiling today. I didn’t sleep again last night. I tossed and turned and before I knew it, my alarm was ringing at 6 a.m. On top of that, I was having stomach-related issues and just decided to take a sick day from work. I’m really glad I did. I don’t think I would have been comfortable sitting in my desk at all. I ended up turning off the alarm, and I slept solid until noon! Sounds like a long time, but when you don’t fall asleep until 4 a.m. – that’s actually 8 hours of sleep! I ate a breakfast lunch around that time and treated myself to more homemade granola.

So far my day has consisted of watching an old episode of House with a heating pad on my stomach. When I’m sick, it’s always hard for me to relax. Because I’m at home, I always feel like I should be doing something – or checking work email. Bill is here today and reminding me to take it easy, which is nice.

Do you feel guilty when you’re sick? It may sound like a stupid question, but I’ve always been stressed on sick days. I know that I need rest, but I also know how much I’m getting behind on.

After seeing Meghann’s interview with Anne Cain, Senior Food Editor for MyRecipes.com, I commented enthusiastically about how much I adore MyRecipes.com. The website is great! I get many of my recipes from there with the click of a button. Later that afternoon, I was contacted by MyRecipes.com to see whether I wanted to conduct an interview with Holley Johnson from MyRecipes.com. I jumped on the opportunity. What I was most interested in was the basics of the site, how it impacts traditional cookbooks and new ways to keep up with the site.

How did MyRecipes.com get its start?
Time Inc. and Southern Progress had the idea to make a portal site to house the thousands of the recipes from our magazines and cookbooks. They wanted it to be user-friendly so that users could easily search for their favorite recipes, make grocery lists, get entertaining ideas and menus, and watch videos-both recipe demos and how-to’s. From there, MyRecipes.com was born.

What are the goals of the site?
To allow our audience to search, savor, share, and come back for seconds. http://www.myrecipes.com/recipes/article/0,,1602962,00.html

How is a recipe featured on MyRecipes.com? What is the review process?
MyRecipes.com features thousands of the best recipes and hundreds of menus from magazines and cookbooks you love and trust–including Cooking Light, Southern Living, Sunset, Coastal Living, Real Simple, All You, Oxmoor House Books, and more. Unlike any other website, every single recipe is Test Kitchen Approved, which means they are rigorously tested in professional test kitchens and approved by a team that includes food editors, test kitchen professionals, chefs, dietitians, and food scientists. Once the recipe runs in the magazine or cookbook, it is uploaded to our site where users can try the recipes and add their personal reviews and ratings.

What is your personal all-time favorite recipe on the site?
I have filmed over 300 Dinner Tonight videos (which also means that I made and tasted each one) so it is hard to narrow down the list to just one recipe. However, I think I’ll have to default to my favorite summer side dish that I wrote about when I worked at Southern Living: Pan-fried Okra, Onion, and Tomatoes http://find.myrecipes.com/recipes/recipefinder.dyn?action=displayRecipe&recipe_id=1206236 The only change I make is that I cook the okra in a bit less oil but this recipe is truly THE quintessential Southern summer dish.

Many food bloggers would kill to have a job like yours – where they can read and review recipes all day – do you have any tips for recent college graduates (or those who want a career change) in terms of getting a foodie-friendly job? What does it take?
If you are interested in becoming an editor, I always suggest trying to get your writing published. Even if it is in a local newspaper, church newsletter, etc., try to have your work in print because when you apply for the job, you’re most likely going to be asked for writing samples. It also is important to have a passion for food and to be able to speak/write knowledgably about food. This may mean that you are an avid reader of food blogs and magazines, that you take trips to explore the cuisines of different regions, or that you love to experiment in the kitchen. Also, while it isn’t a requirement to have culinary school experience, even a few classes can make a world of difference in a job interview. Or, if taking these classes isn’t an option, it doesn’t hurt to take a nutrition or food science class from a local university. The more knowledge you have about food only helps to increase your chances of landing a job as a food editor or a test kitchen professional.

Can you talk more about the shift from traditional cookbooks and recipes in magazines to online databases, like MyRecipes.com?
We are proud that our magazines and cookbooks are still going strong and love our partnerships with the different brands. It is with the amazing content that our brands provide that we are able to produce the content on our site. As more and more people become computer savvy and want the instant results of being able to find a recipe, learn how to cut up a whole chicken, or get ideas for decorating a Thanksgiving table, they will look towards the web. However, there is something special about being able to hold and search through an entire book or flip through a magazine so they’ll be around for a long time.

Speaking of technology, is there any other way to stay up-to-date on MyRecipes.com? A Twitter account or Facebook group? (For our techie friends….)
We are constantly striving to stay current in the tech world. Our newest announcement for our techie friends is that we have gone mobile! Our mobile site offers the best of our daily content with five features including Dinner Tonight, 5-Star Reviews, Daily Indulgence, Chicken Tonight, and the Daily Grill. We also will have new features coming this summer including videos! Check our this article for more info: http://www.myrecipes.com/recipes/article/0,28747,1895783,00.html

We have a Facebook page http://www.facebook.com/home.php?#/pages/MyRecipescom/74052302134?ref=ts so please become a fan and we’re in the process of setting up a Twitter account so stay tuned (due in June).

We also offer a variety of daily and weekly newsletters http://ebm.cheetahmail.com/r/regf2?a=0&aid=1078531716&n=2 that arrive straight in your email box so you always are up-to-date on what’s going on at MyRecipes.

Special thanks to Holley for talking to me about MyRecipes.com. Now get over there and cook something tonight!

This post is inspired by Hangry Pants and a story Heather recently wrote about how she met Mark. It was cute – you should read it!

When I first met Bill in 2003, he looked something like this:

Ok, maybe not always wearing that hat. But he was certainly a skinny, bearded long-haired kid. And he made me (and every other girl around him) swoon.

Bill and I were both in the Honors College of a Pennsylvania university and lived a floor apart. I don’t remember the first day I laid eyes on him, but what I do remember is the first night we ever spoke. Luckily, that was captured digitally:

Bill is not in this picture, but this was taken one night after a intramural basketball game. Bill and some of my other friends were on the team, and we somehow found ourselves in their room. Thus, the first night Bill and I met.

Over the next year, I had a secret crush on Bill. It was harmless really. He had a girlfriend. I had just broken up with my high school sweetheart. There was nothing better for me to do than swoon for him secretly and keep my mouth shut. I was ok with that. He became a really good friend.

Ironically, all the pictures I can find of us from freshman year of college make it look like we’re a couple.

Exhibit A.

Exhibit B.

Exhibit C.

Exhibit D.

Why yes, Bill was very affectionate. We called each other our “bests.” It was a magical time. It also helped that we were both journalism majors and had every class together. Bill, me and our friend Jared spent the year learning about punctuation and the AP style book.

And for Journalism 101, we were required to take profile pictures. Please view our photos from that year. 

We were the three muskateers.  

That year, Bill tutored me in World Politics. I still got a C. I must have been too busy thinking about his dreamy hair.

The end of the year rolled around, and we were sad to leave school. We spent the last day together, outside. By this point, Bill had grown inches upon inches of hair. I had grown inches upon inches of the freshman 15.

What a photo. Eek.

Sophomore Year – 2004

Bill and I both got into serious relationships sophomore year and spent a lot of time with our significant others. In fact, when I look back to that year – I can’t find any pictures of the two of us. We were still good friends, but we rarely saw each other. That was a sad year for our friendship.

Junior Year – 2005

This is the year Bill and I started dating. It all started the night of my 21st Birthday party – August 31, 2005.

Please note the flirtation.

I am seriously digging him.  

Bill is so cute that I make this face when I see him.

And by golly, we were both single at the same time! Like that had ever happened before.

Needless to say (and without getting into details), we started dating soon after. We even documented our first date – a trip to IHOP. We drove from Indiana, Pa, to Poland, Ohio, simply for pancakes. Back in those days, things were simple.

We made lists and wrote notes.

And I impressed Bill by fitting a teabag in my collarbone.

Pancakes never tasted as good as they did that night.

And we have been dating ever since.  

Someday I’ll show you more pictures from that day and beyond. But for now, that is how I met Bill.

My goodness, I forgot to post a picture of Bill’s homemade iced coffee this morning. Here’s a glimpse, almost gone.

Bill said the coffee was weak, but I didn’t think so. It saved me from almost falling asleep on the highway this morning to work (I kid you not). Plus, it stayed cold for about four hours. This was taken right before my last sip at 11:45 a.m. (yes, it takes me that long to drink my morning coffee).

I should also note that this is Week 3 of NO ASPARATAME. I have had some Sweet n’ Low in an iced latte here or there – but as far as my morning coffee? Nothing, nada, zilch. No cancer sugar! Yes! I will admit that I miss it – but it’s one of those “out of sight, out of mind” kind of things. I just didn’t buy anymore, and since it’s not there – I don’t use it. Funny how it works that easily.

My lunches have been slightly unsatisfying lately, so I decided to bring more variety with me today. I started with a small ham and swiss cheese sandwich on fresh bread from Harris Teeter.

On the side were some leftover peas from last night’s dinner.

… and you guessed it, more fresh strawberries!

This should keep my mouth entertained for a while .

I’m saving a special treat for my afternoon snack. A Peanut- Peanut Butter Granola bar. You read that right. It’s all about peanuts.

Link Love

I was sad to see that Top Chef Contestant Spike Mendelsohn was evicted from his apartment. I mean, I sort of believe his story – but it’s also just weird.

I’m sure that by now everyone is going crazy over the ZestyCook Blog Makeover. Oh, what’s that? You haven’t heard? Get over there now! I promise you some superstar skills. Check out my header as an example!

I think that most bloggers will look at this list and say, “I knew that would be on it!” But it’s always good to check yourself. You never know the 10 Healthy Foods that that could be Sneaking Calories Into Your Diet.

Question

Are you/have you ever been addicted to artificial sweeteners?

No judgment here! Just curious!

I was totally excited to use my own granola as an oatmeal topping this morning. You know how I roll: oatmeal atop oatmeal. I can’t get enough.

I cut up all my strawberries again this week, making them easy to grab and go, adding to oatmeal here and there.

This bowl was mighty sweet.

Which… kind of makes up for the crappy day outside

I don’t know about you, but it’s really hard for me to work out on rainy days. I’m not sure what it is. You would think it’d be easier to go to the gym because you’re not missing beautiful weather or anything like that. I guess I just get sluggish when it’s rainy and all I want to do is get under the blankets when I get home.

Do you ever feel this way? How do you motivate yourself when you’re feeling sluggish?