Chicken Soup

... I didn't actually meal prep this weekend.  We have 3 lunches leftover from last week because of various lunches provided at our workplaces, and we had enough leftovers from dinner last night for 3 more lunches.  And I only need 2 lunches for work this week because we get out at 10 on Wednesday.  So Coby can enjoy some Taco Bell a time or two, and I can make him sandwiches for any other days that he needs lunch since I won't be at work...

I made a giant pot of chicken soup on my snow day off from school last Monday, so I decided to post that this week in place of my normal meal prep post.  I used this recipe from Dishes and Dust bunnies for general guidance.

Chicken Noodle Soup.  Goes well with bacon.

Buy a whole chicken.  4-6 ish lbs is good, ours was 5.8 lbs.  Remove the packet of I-don't-want-to-know-what from the stomach cavity and toss it.  Rinse off the bird and place it in the bottom of a 12 qt stock pot.  Cover with water.  Bring to a boil, let boil for a few minutes, then turn the heat to low, cover, and simmer for 2 hours.  When the meat is starting to come off the bones, remove the chicken from the pot and pull the meat off the bones.  (Coby did this part for me while I was out losing my mind running the 1.1 mile figure 8 loop around our neighborhood for 8.5 miles because it was too snowy to run safely anywhere else.) Return all of the meat and the leg bones to the pot. 

Chop and add a few carrots, about 1/2 onion, a cabbage, a big handful of mushrooms, and a bunch of celery.  Add basil, garlic, and oregano, and salt to taste.  Bring to a boil for a few minutes, then turn back to low, cover, and cook for 2 more hours. 

I cooked up some egg noodles separately and have been adding them to a bowl and then pouring soup over them each time I've eaten the soup.  It also goes great with grilled cheese sandwiches. 

You will have enough soup for many, many meals.  Last time I made this, I froze a bunch of it.  And had enough broth leftover after eating all the substance out of the soup that I could use it to make a few batches of risotto.  This time...we might just eat it until it's gone.  We're about to go on week 2 of soup for dinner and it's so delicious we don't mind.

Meal Prep 12/10/18

Veggies : Quarter 1.5 lbs brussels sprouts, spread on a baking pan, coat with olive oil and garlic powder, bake for 15 minutes at 400.  Spread 2 lbs green beans on another baking pan, coat with olive oil and garlic powder, bake for 10 minutes at 400, stir, then bake another 7-10 minutes. 

Pork Roast : Cover with garlic powder and bake at 400 degrees for 1 hour.

Risotto : Chop 1/3 sweet onion and cook in olive oil until translucent.  Add 1 lb arborio rice and stir to coat in oil, then add 1/2 cup wine.  When the wine is just about cooked off, add enough water to cover the rice.  Add salt, garlic powder or other seasonings to taste.  Simmer and add water as necessary until rice is smooth and creamy.  Add a handful of chopped mushrooms with the last bit of water.

**I only had 1/2 bag of arborio rice, and 1/2 bag of brown rice, so I made two pots of risotto.  Half our lunches have delicious creamy arborio risotto, and the other half have slightly crunchy brown risotto because I can't ever get brown rice to completely lose its crunch...

Meal Prep 12/3/18

36 oz frozen cauliflower : 

toss with olive oil and garlic powder, roast at 450 for 15 minutes, stir, roast 10 more minutes

24 oz brussels sprouts : 

toss with olive oil and garlic powder, roast at 400 for 15 minutes

3 lbs ground turkey : 

mix with 2 eggs and 1/2 c bread crumbs, shape into meatballs, cook in a large, lidded, skillet with just enough chicken broth to cover the bottom of the skillet. Remove lid when meatballs seem cooked through, let cook until all the liquid is gone and meatballs are beginning to brown. 

(Depending on the size of your skillet, you may not be able to fit all the meatballs.  I fit 32 meatballs, and then made 3 turkey burgers with the remaining meat. Each meal got 3 meatballs, so there were 2 leftover plus the burgers.)

7 sweet potatoes : 

peel, chop, boil, mash with milk and garlic powder

Meal Prep 11/26/18

One Pot Beef Stroganoff

I used a 12 qt stock pot to cook this meal. It left plenty of room for stirring without splashing, which was nice.  

Chop and saute 1/2 lg sweet onion, 3 tbsp garlic, and 1 tbsp ginger root.  When the onion begins to brown, add 2 lbs stew beef.  Chop 12 carrots and 6 large celery sticks

Add 21 oz condensed mushroom soup, 1 can of Guinness, 12 oz marinara sauce, and 14.75 oz golden creamed corn.  Mix well, then add chopped carrots and celery.  

When carrots are soft, add 1 lb egg noodles.  When noodles are just about done, add 12 oz frozen peas.  Cook til done. 

Makes 11-12 servings. 

Meal Prep 11/12/18

The Protein : 2.58 lbs catfish nuggets.  Cooked in a large skillet with some olive oil and about 1 tsp of yellow mustard, 2 tbsp soy sauce, and 1 tbsp minced garlic.  (I totally guessed on those amounts...) I kept the lid on for most of the cooking, stirring occasionally. 

2nd Protein : 1 cup navy beans, simmered until done.

The Veggies : 13 carrots, 12 oz frozen corn, 6 mushrooms.  Sauteed with garlic powder in the drippings left in the catfish skillet.

The Carb : 2 cups tricolor quinoa, cooked in 2 cups chicken stock and 2 cups water, with some garlic powder and a dash of salt.  (Bring to a boil, then cover and simmer 15 minutes)

Makes 10 meals. 

Haunted Half Marathon 10/27/18

Half Marathon #36!  This was my first race since the Pittsburgh Marathon back in May, and it felt so good to race a half again! I had forgotten just how much I loved it, and now I'm itching to run another one!  BUT Boston is the goal right now, so I can't just go and sign up for a bunch of half marathons...

Race day was wet and cold, which did not make me feel very excited to run.  It was tough to decide how to dress for high 40s with rain, but I managed to pick out an outfit and hope for the best. 

Starting line photo with our friend Tony (dressed up as Bob Ross).  

My face is a rough approximation of how I felt about the temperature and weather...

We started out in the middle of the pack, as I intended to make the first mile or more my warm-up, and then speed up if I felt good. I tried to keep the pace comfortable as I weaved in and out of runners for the first mile or two.  Eventually the pack thinned out and I just focused on keeping my pace steady.  I pushed a bit harder on the ups and relaxed on the downs.  Eventually, I found myself near a girl running with her small dog on a leash.  Dogs were allowed on the course.  But this girl was letting her dog dash back and forth behind her, and after the 2nd time it almost tripped me, I got fed up and decided that I would have to use some extra energy to get ahead of her so I wouldn't have to worry about falling on my face.  We were 4 or 5 miles in at this point, and Coby and I had been running together, but when I sped up he chose not to, so I ran the rest of the race alone.  I had broken my 6ish year no-headphone rule for races, and I never regretted that decision during this race.  The music definitely helped make the cold, wet, windy course more enjoyable!  

The course was a double loop with quite a few hills.  I was worried about how it would feel to run the same hills twice, but I ended up not minding at all!  The hills were just about the perfect distance and grade, so that I was able to get a good strong push up them and reach the top before getting too tired.  I was carrying my inhaler in my pocket and had decided that I would use it halfway through if I felt that I needed it.  I felt fine at the halfway, so I spent the rest of the race wondering if I would regret not using it.  Turns out, I did not need it this time!  I didn't start feeling the effects of oxygen debt in my legs until the last two miles, at which point I was close enough to the finish that I felt I could push through it.  It certainly wasn't worth using the inhaler that close to the finish!  

I didn't catch up to the 1:40 pacer until the last 2-3 miles, and while I managed to pass him a few times, he eventually ended up back in front of me.  I wasn't looking at my watch, but judging from the few time clocks I had seen on the course, I decided he had to be running ahead of pace.  I was right, as I crossed the line in 1:37:47, and he finished ahead of me!  I had felt like I was running stronger than a 1:40 finish, so I was glad to see that even though I was behind the pacer, I wasn't actually running slower than 1:40.  

I waited a few minutes for Coby to cross the line, and then we headed back to the car and home.  The weather wasn't really the best for hanging around, and I didn't figure I had placed, so when he wanted to go home, I agreed.  I checked the results about halfway home and discovered I had finished 5th female, 2nd in my age group!  I got in touch with a friend who was still at the event and arranged for him to pick up my trophy for me.  

about 4 miles in

I believe this was taken in the same spot as the 1st photo, but this was the 2nd time around. 

I'm slowly working on correcting that heel strike...but it's a slow process...

Meal Prep : 11/5/18

Oh, Daylight Savings Time...When are we going to abolish this ridiculousness?  I've gotten used to driving to work in the dark, I'd much rather keep that than deal with this running in the dark evenings thing...  Also, I couldn't sleep in yesterday morning because the sun woke me up. I was worried the girls would be up even earlier than usual because of the time change, but instead I was the one who got up early!  Since I couldn't fall back asleep, I made the most of it and got lunches cooked and packed before we left for breakfast and church at 9:30.  (With help from Coby when he got up and joined me not too long after I got started).  Teamwork always helps make this meal-prep adventure go even faster, which allows more time in the day for fun stuff!  

2.8 lb pork tenderloin

7 small-medium russet potatoes

3 large sweet potatoes

3 lbs frozen green beans

onion

mushrooms

The pork was crusted with garlic powder, oregano, and basil, and baked at 450 for 1 hour.

The potatoes were peeled and boiled (1 pot for the russets, and 1 pot for the sweets), then mashed together with a dash of salt, some garlic powder, and just enough heavy cream (we were out of milk...).

I browned some onions in a large skillet, then added the green beans and steamed/sauteed them.  I added a large handful of chopped mushrooms near the end.


The pork was split 10 ways.  Coby got 2 large spoonfuls of potatoes, I got 1.5 spoonfuls.  I got about 4 scoops of beans and Coby got about 3 scoops.  There were no leftovers of pork or beans, but there was 1 sandwich-container full of leftover potatoes. 

Meal Prep : 10/29/18

Pasta & Meatballs

The Meatballs : 1 lb ground pork, 1 lb 93/7 ground beef, 1 lb 85/15 ground beef. 2 eggs, breadcrumbs, garlic powder.  Makes 33 meatballs.  I cooked them in approximately 72 ounces of sauce for 60-90 minutes.  The sauce was a mix of tomato-mushroom, tomato-roasted garlic, tomato-basil, and alfredo.

The Pasta : approximately 1.5 lbs of bowtie noodles.  Cook, drain, mix in sauce left in meatball pot after meatballs are removed.

The Veggies : Sauteed onion, 5 carrots, mushrooms, and 2 packages of frozen cauliflower.

The veggies were split evenly 10 ways, each lunch got 3 meatballs and 1 cup of pasta.   There was still pasta left over, so Coby's lunches each got some more pasta.  There was then about 1 serving of pasta left, so that went with the 2 last meatballs.  (The 33rd got eaten as a taste-test)

Meal Prep : 10/22/18

4 lbs boneless chicken thighs

1 lb arborio rice

24 oz frozen peas

12 oz frozen corn

3 carrots

onion

mushrooms

Chicken : Preheat the oven to 425.  Lay the chicken in a large glass baking dish, drizzle with balsamic vinegar, and sprinkle with a generous amount of garlic powder.  Bake for 30 minutes. (Use a thermometer to check that they have reached an internal temperature of 160-165 before removing from the oven.)  

Risotto : Chop about 2/3 of a sweet onion and brown in olive oil in a large saucepan.  Add the rice, stir to coat with oil, then add enough chicken broth to cover.  Simmer gently.  When most of the liquid is soaked up, add the drippings from the baking dish you used for the chicken.  Add minced garlic if desired.  Continue adding chicken broth as needed.  Grate the carrots and them to the pot.  Remove from heat when rice is creamy and tender.  

Veggies : Cook frozen veggies in a large skillet with some olive oil, garlic powder, and a bit of water.  Add chopped mushrooms, cook til done. 

Cider-Pumpkin Bagels

Cider-Pumpkin Bagels

1 1/2 tsp yeast

1 1/4 c apple cider

1/4 c butter (melted)

1/4 c pumpkin (canned)

2 tbsp white sugar

1 tsp salt

1 egg yolk

1 1/2 c whole wheat flour

2+ c white flour

oven 400

Heat apple cider in the microwave.  Use a thermometer to make sure temperature is between 100 and 110 degrees before adding yeast.  Combine cider, yeast, and sugar in a stand mixer.  Melt the butter and add it to the mixer along with the egg yolk, pumpkin, and salt.  Combine, then add whole wheat flour.  Mix well, add white flour until dough is no longer sticky.  

(I think I initially used about 2 1/2 c white flour, but after rising the dough was still extremely sticky, and I ended up adding another 1/2 - 1 c.  

Let dough rise for 1 hr, then divide into 8 pieces and shape into bagels.  Drop each bagel into boiling water until it floats, then bake for 20-25 minutes.  I checked these ones after 12, un-stuck them from the pan, then baked them for 8 more minutes. 

I'll be the first to admit that I'm not sure I can identify the taste of either pumpkin or cider in these bagels...but I don't actually have the best sense of taste, so I'll have to wait for Coby to come home and taste them to find out exactly how flavor-full they are.  They do taste good though!  Breakfast this week is going to be great!

Meal Prep : 10/15/18

I was not impressed with any of the meat prices this week, so I ended up with a package of 10 for $10 boneless pork chops.  Not the best deal, but not the worst either.  I had already decided on sweet potatoes for the carb, and then I picked up a 2 lb bag of fresh broccoli and 2 bags of frozen cauliflower. 

I chopped up the pork and put it in a large skillet, covered, on medium heat.  I removed the lid occasionally to stir.  When most of the pink was gone, I removed the lid and added seasonings : garlic powder, ginger powder, mustard powder, a dash of pink salt, and some soy sauce.  After a few more minutes of cooking, there was still a lot of liquid in the pan from the meat, so I mixed 1 tsp of corn starch with about 1/2 c chicken broth, and added that to the pan.  I let it cook til the liquid thickened into a light gravy. 

The sweet potatoes were chopped and cooked in a bit of olive oil with some garlic powder and salt. 

The broccoli was steamed in a bit of water, and then seasoned with garlic powder. The cauliflower was sauteed with a bit of olive oil and then seasoned with...garlic powder of course.

Everything was divided equally between 10 lunches. 
Total time spent on this meal was 1 hour, with my husband and I working together. 

Workout Wednesday

I started my after school workout class on September 11 and here I am a month later finally posting a Workout Wednesday post...life is so busy!  I didn't even get a workout up on Instagram until the 3rd week of the class and usually Instagram is something I don't have trouble keeping up with.  Unfortunately we missed week 4 because everyone was too busy, and we missed week 5 this week because we all had parent-teacher conferences after school.  But hopefully we'll be back next week! 

I got ambitious this year and printed out the first two workouts on a double sided sheet and then laminated them and put them on binder rings.  I somehow found the time to do the same thing with workouts 3 and 4.  Hopefully I will be able to keep up this trend all year...  It has been super helpful so far, because now each participant can have their own exercise list right next to them instead of trying to read the little iPad screen as we go along. Also, they can take home the workout list if they'd like to do the workout again later in the week. 

For weeks 1 and 2 we started out easy with 30 seconds of work, 10 seconds of rest, 3 rounds, 2 minutes between rounds.  On week 3, we increased the work to 40 seconds.  

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This week, since I had no school on Monday and knew we wouldn't be able to work out on Tuesday, I did my own workout at home on Monday.  I designed an 80 countdown circuit for myself, and somehow managed to complete 5 rounds.  I was a puddle on the floor by the end of the 5th round, but I was able to complete all the exercises without failure until the push-ups in round 5, so I felt pretty good about it! 

10 seconds of rest between exercises, 1 minute of rest between rounds. 

I turned one of my mirrors sideways and leaned it against the wall so I could see my form on the plank.  This really helped me to make sure I was holding proper form during the duration of each plank, as I was able to see when I started falling, and then could correct myself.  I have two mirrors in my  workout room, and they have been super helpful in helping me identify and correct problems in my form with various exercises!

Meal Prep : 10/8/18

White Bean Mac n Cheese

1 lb shell pasta

2 cups navy beans

2 bags frozen peas

1 head of cabbage

1/4 sweet onion

butter, cream cheese, milk, shredded cheese, sliced cheese, flour

I didn't intend for this meal to be vegetarian, but a) I forgot to add the tuna, and b) the mac and cheese is so full of beans it probably doesn't need any more protein.  

Cook pasta and beans each according to the directions on their packaging.  Saute onion until beginning to brown, then add peas and cook until done.  Add garlic powder if desired.  Chop cabbage and saute in olive oil on high heat until cooked through and beginning to crisp.  Add garlic powder if desired.  

For the cheese sauce, heat a few tablespoons each of butter and cream cheese in a saucepan with about 1 cup of milk.  Add 1/4 c flour and 1-2 cups of shredded cheese.  Stir frequently, cook until everything is melted.  Combine with beans and pasta, transfer to a baking dish, cover with slices of cheese, and bake at 375 for 35 minutes.  

Each meal was 1/2 c each of peas and cabbage, and a large spoonful of mac n cheese.  

Meal Prep 10/1/18

Meatballs : 1 lb ground turkey, 1 lb ground pork, 1 egg, 2 tbsp ranch dressing, 1 tbsp minced garlic, 1 tbsp oregano, 2 tsp ground mustard.  Bake at 400 for 15 minutes.  (Makes 27)

Sweet Potatoes : (5 medium-large) chop into bite sized pieces, toss with olive oil, garlic powder, and sea salt.  Bake at 400 for 40 minutes, stirring half way. 

Green Beans : (2 lbs) Toss with olive oil, garlic powder, and sea salt.  Bake at 400 for 20-30 minutes, stirring half way. 

I was pretty excited when I realized this whole meal could be baked in the oven, at the same time.  Oven means no pots and pans to wash (just foil-line some baking sheets!) and since I could use the same temperature, I was able to cook the potatoes and beans at the same time, which saved time!

These lunches looked pretty small after last week's super full containers, so we will be supplementing with triscuits... Also I realized after I got in bed last night that I forgot to cook the cabbage I bought to go in these meals...oops.  I was too busy trying to get the cooking done so I could hang out with the girls before they left!  We do have it down to a pretty good system at least...while I am cooking, the girls help Coby with cleaning the house. 

Meal Prep 9/24/18

We found ourselves with about 45 minutes of extra time between breakfast and leaving for church yesterday morning, so we decided to see how fast we could get lunch made.  This left us the entire rest of the day with nothing on the to-do list but to run.  It was so nice to have the whole afternoon and evening to just spend time together!

Boneless chicken thighs (8) : season to taste and bake at 425 for 30 minutes

Pasta (1 lb) : cook according to directions on box, mix with olive oil and about 3 tbsp of pesto

Broccoli (2 lbs) : steam in a large pot

Sweet onion (1/4, chopped) : saute until turning brown then add...

Carrots (5, large, chopped) : add to brown onion, saute until cooked through then add...

 12 oz frozen artichoke hearts, 12 oz frozen peas : steam/saute until done.

We used a 1/2 c measuring cup to portion out the meals, each meal got 1/2 c each of pasta, broccoli, and veggie mix, plus a little bit more.  8 meals got chicken, 1 of those also got a little bit of salmon because the piece of chicken was tiny, and 2 meals each got a big hunk of salmon.

We got all that done and made it to church on time.  Might have to see if we can get lunches done before church on Sunday more often... They were too hot to put in the fridge, but we put them in the garage fridge with no lids so that they wouldn't sit out on the counter the whole time we were gone.  (There is nothing in the garage fridge that we had to worry about if the food raised the temperature too much.)

Training Tuesday : Update

I submitted my registration for Boston on Friday!  And now I just wait to hear if I got in or not. I had a buffer of just over 5 minutes for the qualifying time so hopefully...

I've been slowly trying to get my mileage up, after a rough time returning to consistent running after the Pittsburgh Marathon in May and a very busy summer!  I finally made it to 10 mile runs a few weeks ago, and then backed back off to 8-9.  Two weeks ago I had a total of about 34 miles for the week which was much higher than I had been doing (usually 20-25).  I also re-started my after school fitness class last week, so my legs were beat by the end of the week!  I kept the weekly mileage under 30 since my legs were beat, but hope to reach 30 again this week, as well as getting my long run back to 10 miles. 

I made the decision not to run the Bluegrass 1/2 at the end of September this year.  I think it will be better for me to continue training until the Haunted 1/2 at the end of October and not tire my body out with a race so soon.  I remind myself that Boston is the goal and I can't be hurting myself just when I am picking my training back up!


For the last two Saturdays, I was lucky enough to be able to do my longer run for the week with my 9 year old step-daughter!  We bought bikes for the girls earlier this summer, and she has been zooming around the neighborhood so we decided it was time to take her on the Creeper Trail.  Two Saturdays ago, we went out and back from Watauga for a total of 9.2 miles.  It was getting tough for her by the end, but she did awesome and was excited to do it again.  So this Saturday, we did a point to point from Abingdon to Alvarado for 8.6 miles.  This time, we only made 2 brief stops for water, and our overall pace was just under 8 min/mile, compared to above 9 min/mile the first time.  I was super proud of her for doing so well, and love having her with me on my run!  She will be getting stronger as my long run distance increases, so the only thing standing in the way of having her on my run each weekend will be the cold weather!  We'll be working on outfits to keep her toasty warm...

Meal Prep 9/17/18

2.5 c brown rice

pork loin

1 package frozen peas

2 lbs carrots

5 mushrooms

onion

garlic

Place rice, 5 cups water, salt & garlic powder to taste in a saucepan.  Bring to a boil, then cover and cook on low for 45-50 minutes.  

Cook the pork with barbecue sauce and a can of Guinness in a crockpot set on high for 5 hours, then shred using two forks.  After shredding, I used a knife to cut the strips into bite-sized pieces.

Chop about 1/4 sweet onion and brown in some olive oil.  Add minced garlic and chopped carrots.  When carrots are almost cooked, add the frozen peas.  When peas are almost done, add chopped mushrooms.  

I made 10 lunches.  Each got 1/2 c rice, 1/2 c pulled pork, and 1 c vegetables.  There was some pork left over.  

Meal Prep : 9/10/18

24 oz jar of Prego Fresh Mushroom Sauce

2 lbs ground beef (1 @ 93/7 and 1 @ 85/15)

1.5 lbs rainbow rotini pasta

2 lbs broccoli

1/4 sweet onion

4 carrots

minced garlic

Dump the jar of sauce into a dutch oven, then add ground beef.  Cook covered on low-medium, stirring occasionally.  Chop and saute onion and carrot, then add to sauce.  Cook the pasta according to directions on the box.  Steam/saute the broccoli with some garlic.  When the pasta is done, mix it into the meat sauce mixture. 

For 10 lunches, each will get approximately 1 cup of broccoli and 1 cup of pasta.  There will be enough pasta left over for several more meals. 

Meal Prep 9/3/18 : When life gives you bread that won't rise

...turn the dough into crackers!  

Leeks were on sale this week and caught my eye, so I decided to make potato-leek soup for lunch.  I had made rosemary bread a few nights ago with fresh rosemary from my garden and it was soooooo good I decided to make bread to go with the soup.  For protein, I took some of the leftover pulled pork barbecue from our wedding out of the freezer.  I also sauteed some brussels sprouts and cauliflower for extra veggies.

  For some reason, the dough refused to rise.  I have never had this happen before, so I have no idea what went wrong.  I did open a new jar of yeast, but I hope it's not full of dead yeast!  I guess I'll find out next time... I even tried mixing more yeast/warm water into the dough (using a different yeast) but that didn't work either.  Some google research revealed that I might be able to save the dough by turning it into crackers, so I decided to try it. 

I pulled a big handful of dough off, rolled it out, and used a very thin knife to cut it into rectangles.  I lined a baking sheet with parchment paper and placed the crackers on it.  They were very sticky!  I sprinkled them with pink sea salt and garlic powder, and baked them at 450 for 12 minutes.  For the second batch, I floured my work surface first, and then rolled out the dough.  No more stickiness, but the crackers were completely coated with flour.  I found the parchment paper was completely unnecessary with the floured crackers. 

Thankfully, the crackers came out pretty delicious, so that unrisen bread dough did not go to waste!  And instead of bread with our soup, we will be eating tasty crackers.  Maybe someday I'll make crackers on purpose...

pre-bake sticky crackers

post-bake cracker deliciousness

Meal Prep Monday : 8/27/18

Tuna Noodle Casserole

School starts back up this week, and therefore so does meal prep!  We had the kids this weekend and I knew cooking would be rushed at the end of the day Sunday, so I picked something relatively quick to make for the week.  I was in a hurry so I really didn't measure or count the ingredients...consider the amounts below to be approximate!

Ingredients

1 lb large elbow macaroni

2, 12 oz cans of tuna

9 carrots

1/4 yellow onion

1 bag of frozen peas

15 radishes

the sauce

2 cups milk 

2 tbsp butter 

1/8 c whole wheat flour 

garlic powder 

3 large handfuls shredded cheese (monterey jack)

I made 10 lunches, each with about 1/2 c of vegetables and 1 cup of tuna casserole. 

First start water boiling for the pasta.  While the water heats up, chop the carrots, onion, and radishes.  When the water boils, add some salt and the pasta.  Set a timer for 10 minutes.  Put the carrots and onion in a large skillet with some olive oil.  Cover and cook on medium-high heat.  When the carrots are almost soft, add the frozen peas.  Cook for a few minutes, then remove the lid and let the veggies brown a bit.  Add the radishes and cook until radishes reach desired done-ness.  (Less time for more spiciness, more time if you want the spiciness to cook out)  When the pasta is done, drain and dump into a large mixing bowl.

For the sauce, add milk and butter to a saucepan on medium heat. When the butter is almost melted, add the flour, stirring constantly (I didn't stir enough and the flour clumped up into dough balls that I had to fish out...) Add the cheese, stir, and then pour over the pasta.  Mix the pasta and sauce, and add the tuna.  Pour into a large glass baking dish and cover the top with shredded cheese. Bake at 400 degrees for 20 minutes.

Steamboat Springs, CO

For "Honeymoon #2" we headed to Steamboat Springs, CO!  This was a trip we had planned before we even got engaged, to visit some good friends of mine from Lewisburg.  It just so happened to be a week after our wedding. I had never been to Colorado before, so it was extra-impressive seeing those huge Colorado mountains for the first time!  So much different than the mountains I am used to.  Photos don't do them justice at all.

Day 1 : 7-15-18

On our first morning in Steamboat, we got to see a hot air balloon festival right outside the house.  Super cool to see the sky filled with hot air balloons!

That evening, we got to ride the gondola up to the top of the mountain in the resort to enjoy the view and watch the sunset.  Coming, back, the moon was so bright you could see the whole round outline, even though it was a crescent moon.

Day 2 : 7-16-18

On our second morning, we went "creeking" in Fish Creek.  This involved walking upstream through the creek, climbing over boulders along the way.  The kids were like mountain goats crawling over the rocks, I had a bit more trouble trying to stay balanced with my backpack on!  We stopped and spent some time at a super cool pool in the middle of the creek, then made our way back down.  

(Don't be fooled by the smiles, the water was so cold it was painful!)

In the evening, we took the kids for a bike ride to downtown (about 4 miles down the bike path) where we got some delicious but very overpriced gelato, then tried to race the sunset back home  (we lost the race...it was definitely full dark by the time we got back...)

Day 3 : 7-17-18

Coby and I went hiking to Fish Creek Falls.   You can see the larger falls from a boardwalk overlook, and you can also hike down towards the creek at the bottom.  After enjoying those views, we took the  2.5 mile hike up 1400 ft to the very top of the falls, at 8600 feet!

Day 4 : 7-18-18 

We were hanging out with the kids all day, so we decided to take them for another bike ride to downtown.  This time we enjoyed a pizza lunch and then found some reasonably priced ice cream.
After eating, we decided to be tourists and buy some really cool t-shirts and sweatshirts in a store called Ohana.

Day 5 : 7-19-18

Our final full day in Steamboat.  Coby and I rode downtown in the evening to sample food & cocktails at 2 different restaurants.  We also got to enjoy a really nice sunset on the way back to the house.

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Of course we also did some running while we were in Steamboat...we only made it out for 2 runs, but they were workouts!  6800 ft of elevation is no joke for the lungs!  Despite all the mountains, there was a surprising amount of flatness to run however.