I’m not sure if it’s the fact that the air is starting to smell a little more crisp on the East coast, if it has to do with having traveled north to visit my family last weekend (much chillier weather), or if it has to do with my recent apple juice overload.

[p.s...my basic 'food plan' as of late can pretty much be summed up in this one picture. Peanut butter, crackers, apple juice. The only thing missing is the hamburgerless Hamburger Helper].

No matter the reason for my recent obsession, the fact is that I am craving a change of season! It’s no secret to anyone who knows me that I am not a fan of the summer. I have asthma, and Maryland humidity does nothing for my breathing. I’m also not keen on sweating unless I plan to. I’m not particularly fond of beaches, and I am deathly afraid of skin cancer…so…the summer is really not my thing.

But the FALL?! The fall is my favorite season. I love the smell outside, the changing leaves, the cooler temperatures. I love all of the holidays and festivities that come as a result of fall. Hay rides, pumpkin patches, crisp air, apple picking (and the inevitable apple pie that follows), and all of the other fall food that comes along with the season.

This year, I’m particularly excited for fall. Not just because of pumpkins and hay rides, but because I’m already starting to show a little baby bump. I’m really looking forward to layering on sweaters and scarves…boots…burlap sacks…you know…to compliment this growing plump in my belly. I’m very much in the “is she fat or is she pregnant” phase of the game, so I’m anxious to just keep it movin’.

Another benefit of the fall (and the fact that I’ve just moved into our new home) is that it gives a great opportunity to decorate! I’m happy to report that I now have enough space to decorate for my favorite season. While living in condos for the past 5 years, I was limited to my decorating choices because I didn’t have much space to store everything. Now, we have a basement, and I’m not afraid to use it.

Here are some of the ideas I’m tossing around for fall decorations…

[image cred]

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Is anyone else DYING over the combination of those white pumpkins and the adorable bronzy owls?! Love! I can’t wait to get my hands on some pumpkins!

All of these ideas were neatly stored in my Pinterest page.

If you don’t know about Pinterest yet, you must learn! It’s one of the greatest resources that I’ve found online. I tend to sign up for a million different free services online, but I never end up using any of them (**cough**Google +). Pinterest, however, has become sort of an obsession of mine. I love the fact that I can just be randomly surfing through websites and use my browser toolbar to “Pin” any photo on the page I’m viewing. When I want to find it later, all I have to do is log into my Pinterest account, and the information about the photo (and it’s original location) is stored right there for me in one place. It’s a great way to make sure you don’t lose all of those little gems that you find online.

If you want to see all of my Pins, just go to my Pinterest page!

So how about you…do you love fall as much as me?

What are you looking forward to with the season change?

I have pets.

Pets are kind of like kids, except pets take naps and leave you alone. And they don’t talk. And they eat out of the designated bowl that you have given them, no cooking required.

Pets don’t pick up after themselves, but then again, they don’t really make messes to speak of.

Besides the copious amounts of dog hair and bird dust that I vacuum from my floors on a daily basis (warning: I would shield my eyes and scroll down quickly if I were you…)

Yes, that is ONE DAY’S worth of dog hair…and I vacuum every single day.  The vacuuming is a job in itself around here!

What is my point (besides the fact that my dogs lose unreasonable amounts of hair on a daily basis)?

Kids are hard work, man.

Kids have to do homework. And read. And you have to be sure that you’re not swearing in front of them. And you have to feed them balanced meals–meals that are cooked, not poured from a bag.

And they usually need something. They’re either hungry or thirsty or tired or bored. They’re not usually content without the help of an adult.

And they want to shop for Halloween costumes in the WalmarK on a Saturday afternoon when there are clearly 5 solid weeks in which to properly procrastinate the choosing of a Halloween costume.

What, you say?!

Good Moms don’t procrastinate?!

You’re probably right.  But it’s exhausting. And I don’t know how Mom’s make it look so easy. It’s probably an immersion type of thing. The immersion of a child in your life from birth causes your schedule to shift and transform. You develop a routine, a peaceful method to life–a smooth way to make your day flow.

When a child comes into your home and you’ve not been properly immersed, it’s a little chaotic.

A lot chaotic.

My Gazelle’s wonderful 8-year-old nephew will be part of our lives at least every weekend from now on.  It’s difficult to make this transition when you don’t have the appropriate “kid stuff” already in your house.

“Wanna play with my CD collection?”

“Here, read ‘Eat, Drink, and Be Vegan’–it’s awesome!”

Uh.  Not so much.  I couldn’t even hook him with ‘Vegan Cupcakes Take Over the World’, and that one has some sweet photography!

Since I couldn’t get him interested in my impressive cookbook collection, we bought these instead.

The second dilemma?  Peeling this child away from the TV and electronics.  I am not a proponent of sticking kids in front of the TV or handing them a PSP for entertainment.  I love imaginations and playtime and getting outside.  As Uncle Gazelle told him “there are no lazy people in this house”.

So, how do you break a child from the habit of grabbing the PSP or turning on the TV when they’re bored?

This is a new project that I’m taking on willingly and lovingly.  In addition to running and cooking and cleaning and working.  Moms…how the heck do you do this?  I hope you will all join me on this next life adventure.  It should be entertaining.

I love him, he is sweet and well-behaved and shy and soft-spoken like his uncle.  But I’m surprised that my house is clean, my dishes are done, and I am wearing clean clothes. Because kids are a lot of work.

And now, I’m going to watch trashy TV.  It just feels right.

* Have you joined my Facebook Group yet?

* See how my training is going over here!

* Wonder what I’m eating?

* Everyone loves a giveaway!

Well, there really IS a plan, I just keep changing it as I see fit. I think I might have some control issues.

No…really?

Part of this decision is because I’m feeling the need to branch out. As a result, last night I learned how to do the tree pose. I may or may not have fallen on my arse whilst learning.

Most of this decision is running coach/PT advised.

Marathon training as it were included 4 days per week of running. The problem is that I’m not sure that my body is agreeable to that plan. After many many weeks of having no knee/leg/calf issues, two weeks ago, my calf again started to do it’s random seizing up for “no reason” business.

Without going into the gory details, this is not an official crisis, and I can still run.

I just don’t want a full-fledged injury.

Did you hear me?

I don’t want a full-fledged injury!

Been there, done that.

I’m stopping the madness now and regrouping. My plan is to run 3 days per week. I’m loosely following the principles of this plan, developed by the Furman Institute of Running and Scientific Training (FIRST).

And, I shall yoga like a good little yogi. Weekly. Because my body needs it. Maybe my mind does too.

I’ll be making an officially revised version of my plan today.

Hopefully I won’t need to change it again.

* Have you joined my Facebook Group yet?

* See how my training is going over here!

* Wonder what I’m eating?

* Everyone loves a giveaway!

I bought something new at the grocery store over the weekend.

Big surprise, right?

I decided to try Kasia’s Deli Sauerkraut Pierogies.

I like sauerkraut. I like pierogies. I have to like sauerkraut pierogies.

Right?

Wrong!

This is what they looked like shortly after I tried my first bite…

I swear, I really wanted to like them. Things just didn’t work out between us. Luckily, it was a clean break.

It’s not you, Kasia’s Sauerkraut Pierogies. It’s me. All me.

However, I made the most delicious vegetarian Italian beans and greens! Please ignore the ugly, gross pierogies residing on the other side of the plate. I was going to crop them because I hated them too much, but I didn’t want to ruin the picture of my beautiful beans and greens.

These are so good. You have to make them.

Vegetarian Italian Beans & Greens

Buy It:
8 cloves of garlic (more or less depending on preference. I love garlic)
1 large onion
1 tablespoon olive oil
2 large bunches swiss chard, collard, or mustard greens (or your favorite green)
1 bunch of kale
2 cups No Chicken broth (or veggie broth of choice)
4 veggie Italian “sausage” links
1/2 cup diced tomatoes (I used canned, unsalted)
1 can butter beans (or white beans of choice)
1 tsp chili powder (or more if you are feeling the heat)
Salt & pepper to taste

Prep It:
1) Peel and finely dice the garlic cloves. In case you haven’t learned from PW the easiest way to accomplish this, here goes. Take each garlic clove, and smash it with the bottom of a can (ie…the butter bean can). After you have smashed the clove, your can will look like this:

p.s…Now that you are aware of this trick, all of your cans are going to look like this going forward. I’m sorry. That’s just how it must be.

So, after you’ve smashed all of the cloves, the outside “skin” peels off easily. After peeling off the “skin”, slice all of the cloves lengthwise. After slicing them lengthwise, turn the slices sideways, and then slice them the opposite way. From there, just chop the daylights out of them until the garlic is finely chopped. Piece of cake.

2) After smashing and chopping the garlic, roughly chop the onion (to your preference).

3) Chop all of the greens into strips, cutting against the direction of the center vein.

Cook It:
1) Heat up the olive oil, and cook half of the garlic and all of the onion until the onions are just barely soft.

2) Add all of the greens on top of the onions and garlic, and pour in the broth. Cover, and simmer for approximately 15 minutes, or until the greens wilt and begin to cook down. Stir once half way through to combine everything.

3) Add the remaining garlic, veggie sausage, tomatoes and chili powder.

4) Cover, and continue cooking on medium heat for approximately 30 minutes, stirring occasionally. During the last 5 minutes of cooking, add the can of beans.

Enjoy.

And please eat all of them if you’re hungry. They’re good for you.

1) My solo trip to The Smithsonian was very liberating. And androgynous.

2) This week’s Thoughtful Thursday featured product review cliff-hangers, an introduction to Fred Mill, opera singers, and some sort of thick blood affliction (that I’m still trying to self-diagnose).

3) ANOTHER (??) giveaway?? Yes, it’s true. Tell me about your the old sheeeet in your closet, and you could win a SPIBelt or iFitness belt!

4) Since I finally (!!) finished the vid for my coupon tutorial (Part II, section I), I’m giving away 3 coupon binders! Seriously? I’m just getting out of hand now. But I love you guys. I can’t help it.

I must caution you that today’s weekly dose of Thoughtful Thursday will not at all resemble last week’s installment, which was filled with dreams of dogs-turned-vermin, story time in the shower, and general ponderous mention of beef jerky.

Nope, nothing like last week. Much less random. Way more pointed, concise, and purposeful.

Like this…
1) Why must Steve Jobs and his lackeys make my life such complete hell by not allowing me MMS messaging on my newfangled iPhone?! I am not kidding you when I say that this one fact in my life, at this very moment (and for the past week that I have had this dayum iPhone), is one of the most irritating things I’m experiencing. I know, I know. It’s petty, you say.

Are picture messages REALLY that important? I answer that question with a resounding “HELL YES, THEY ARE!” Without a way to easily, quickly, and conveniently send picture messages to my friends and family, I feel a personal void in my life. Something is missing. It’s too much WORK to send a picture message now. I feel like my brain is going to explode every time I even consider the process. It’s just TOO MUCH WORK.

Someone, help me.

Or…
2) I really need to purchase a book about grammar. Now that I am not the only one reading the things that I write, I feel like I need to know the difference between “its” and “it’s”, and that I need to know whether my apostrophe needs to go before or after the “s” in any given word. And yes, I think about this every single time I write a blog post. It keeps me up at night.

And…
3) At least once a day for the past two weeks, I have considered the fact that when shown (showed? shown? See…i need a book) this picture:

My Gazelle’s response was “who’s that?”

I replied “errrr…uhhh…that’s me?”

See, this was taken pre-Gazelle. I know that I’m all dressed up silly for Halloween and all, and I am definitely wearing makeup and a goofy wig. But do I look so completely different that a man who sees me every single day for several hours could look at this picture and just completely not recognize me?

Am I like 50 pounds heavier now, unrecognizable to anyone who hasn’t seen me since the unfortunate, massive weight gain? Are my legs the size of tree trunks now, so he had no idea that those sexy things were hidden beneath the fatness which are my legs now?

Do I need to go on a crash diet so that I can again look like some semblance of that Raggedy-Ann-costume-wearing girl I once was??

This is the agony that I have put myself through for 2 weeks. Can you imagine the torture that I’m going through over this? Irrational, senseless agony. The biggest and most alarming problem is that I don’t look much different now–other than the wig and makeup. See, as I mentioned yesterday, my Kung Fu is just not that strong sometimes, people. I’m still a work in progress.

Also…
4) Did you know that this is the picture that caused My Gazelle to fall madly, deeply, insanely head over heels in love with me?

Are you laughing too? Because I am. What was I thinking? What was HE thinking?

Yep, there’s more…
5) I’m trying to plan my next vacation. I think it’ll be around May/June, depending on scheduling and work and blah, blah, blah. I know that I’d pretty much rather be here

than anywhere else in the universe, but my budget is limited. Does anyone have suggestions for a cool vacation, that is not necessarily tropical, relatively budget-conscious, within a reasonable travel-time from Maryland (car, boat, plane, whatever…), and can keep two active, able-bodied whippersnappers entertained for 3-5 fun-filled days? Do tell.

Almost there…stay with me…
6) I am excited about running again. I had a bit of a clash of the calves this week after my 5ish mile run last Sunday. Monday was uncomfortable, but Tuesday brought with it a pair of the tightest calves this side of the Mason Dixon line. I attempted to run on Tuesday, but I only made it a mile in about 12 minutes before I ditched the treadmill in favor of riding hills on the stationary bike for 13 more minutes. With that, I called it a day. Disappointed. Shamed. Mad at my calves. Not willing to be a quitter, I gave the treadmill another attempt yesterday. Despite the fact that my calves were still tight, I stuck with it. Took it very slow for the first 10 minutes, then picked up the pace for the next 5 minutes, and ran the last 5 minutes at about a 9:30 pace, which is fast for me. Hey…I jog, remember? 9:30 is a pretty dayum fast jog.

Tonight, My Gazelle has his bootie-kicking self-defense class, and while he’s getting his arse kicked by Willie “The Bam” Johnson, I will be at the gym, running, happily.

Speaking of “The Bam”, this guy is no joke, people. Here he is in action (he’s the little short guy on the left).

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lqwl9vNi95E&hl=en&fs=1]

My sweet Gazelle goes to this guy every single week (sometimes twice or 3 times per week) and pays The Bam and The Bam’s son (Lil Bam?) to kick his Gazelle arse. Why, you ask? Because My Gazelle is the po-po, and apparently he has to keep his “skills sharp”…just ask him, I swear that those are the exact words that he’ll use. And I love him almost as much as I love cupcakes. Almost. Cupcakes are winning though.

You made it! I’m so proud of you…
7) Does the fact that I’m canceling my other CPA exam on 2/28 ensure that I will be deemed as a “complete and total loser” for years to come? I’m hoping not. Because I am canceling the exam as an opportunity to gain back my sanity and start anew. I will begin again with a better idea of what I need out of this whole CPA exam process, and will be in a better spot. And have more time to coupon. And write Part II of the coupon tutorial. And run. And come to the realization that I would rather be doing so many other things than studying for the CPA exam. It’ll happen…on my time…when I’m ready. I don’t like pressure, so I’ve removed all traces of it from my life. By way of throwing $1,000 out the window. That’ll teach me to pressure myself.

And with that, I can now promise you (without fear of failure or pressure) that I will indeed have Part II of the JL Coupon Tutorial up for your reading (and viewing) pleasure this weekend, without further ado. I will even have time to do my laundry this weekend, and that is very exciting.

See, this week’s Thoughtful Thursday was completely way less random than last week! Told you.

Pffftttttt. Right. If it’s not random, then I didn’t write it.

IMG_0759 edit
Originally uploaded by elisabeth0326

I am totally lagging on my blog posts because of scheduling issues (CPA exam is on 1/24, so I’m in cram mode). However, I just wanted to share this little bit of Nikko heaven with you.

Can dogs smile?

I have so much to fill you in on.

But I’m lazy.

Stay tuned!