I slept in this morning! And I loved every delicious minute.
There are some times when it’s necessary to kick yourself out the door and into your regular workout routine. And then there are other times—such as today—when the healthiest option is to just rest.
I’ve been playing limbo with a lingering cold this past week. It’s like my immune system is playing tug-of-war with a stuffy head. My bets are on my immune system. It’s just taking a little longer than I would like. 😉 Needless to say, the extra sleep felt good. Amazing, actually. Sometimes you just have to listen to your body.
My bowl of oat bran was exceptionally creamy this morning. I think it’s due to the ripe banana and chia seeds. So yummy!
- 1 c. lowfat milk
- 1 banana, sliced
- cinnamon + nutmeg
- 1/4 c. oat bran
- 2 tsp chia seeds
- 2 T. dried cranberries
- Bring milk, banana, and spices to a boil.
- Add in oat bran, chia seeds and cranberries. Reduce heat to medium-low and cook for 6 minutes, whipping every so often.
Creamy. Creamy. Oh so creamy!
Today, my internship involved grocery shopping. And I loved it.
Yesterday involved a meeting with a mom whose son has celiac disease. She’s concerned about what he can eat, his own personal self esteem issues related to this new diet, being able to still “fit in” with the other kids, etc. It was awesome being there to listen in on the conversation between her and the food service director. I can’t wait until it’s my turn to educate someday.
At least I had the opportunity to create a brochure and a 2-week cycle menu for the boy with celiac. I had to keep the school’s budget in mind, as well as making it as easy as possible on the food service workers. Thankfully, there was a little wiggle room to be able to purchase special gluten-free products, which instantly helped with helping him still “fit in” with the other kids. This is where the grocery shopping came in.
I found a gluten-free pizza crust, along with some tortilla wraps for deli sandwiches. Pastas, gluten free cereals, rice cakes, cheesesticks, sun-butter, and other such foods found their way into the menu too. Fun!
On my own lunch menu for today: 2 slices Arnold German Dark Wheat Bread, 1/4 c. roasted red pepper hummus, grated carrot and thinly sliced green bell peppers
I always forget about bringing yogurt for snacks!
Today I packed up some plain yogurt with a chopped orange and a sprinkle of pumpkin flax granola. This kept me full between an early breakfast and a later lunch. 😀
I also snagged an apple and some chopped carrots, bell peppers, and cherry tomatoes for an afternoon snack.
My Food Service Preceptor told me that the Au Bon Pain chicken noodle soup from the school was delicious, and it sounded so perfect for my sore throat. I grabbed a small dish to accompany my sandwich and it was absolutely perfect. Not too salty tasting, like some other chicken noodle soups out there, and the carrots still had a nice firm bite to them.
Fun. Lunch.
The rest of the afternoon zipped by in a flash.
Menu planning, union meetings, and making brochures left me (a) ready for a walk and (b) ready for dinner. I ate dinner first and went for a 3-mile walk afterwards. Both were amazing. 😀
Veggie Pizza Slice #1 (see recipe page)
Veggie Pizza Slice #2
Plus greenage!
Mesculin greens, carrot, cucumber, tomatoes, olives. Drizzled with EVOO. I like my salads kept plain and simple these days. 😀
I am now off to unwind a bit before another busy day begins tomorrow. I have a seminar class with my fellow interns, and I’m excited to see what everyone’s been up to. 😀
Question: How do you treat a sore throat? Ideas? My mom is convinced that gargling with salt water is key, but I just can’t do it. Usually I stick to teas and hot bowls of oats. It’s a temporary fix, but it still makes me feel better. 😉
Someone just tweeted garlic is helping them beat their virus.
I think just plenty and plenty of sleep is the key.
Sore throats can always be tamed with a scratchy piece of buttered toast in my opinion 🙂 Sometimes you have to go the opposite route of soothing it and just scratch out the pain!
I hope you feel better 🙂
❤ Tat
Old indian mom remedy! warm milk + honey + tumeric
I have a sore throat right now, but I just had banana soft serve, that works too 😉
hehe…could you have filled that OIAJ to the brim anymore?! It looks heavenly. And your day sounds really interesting, too. I love hearing about your internship. Do they need to be really careful about where they prepare the boy’s foods? I know some people are so sensitive they’d have reactions just eating food prepared in the same area.
I hope you start to feel better soon! Good for you for getting some extra rest, though. I am convinced that’s the best way to beat a virus/cold. I remember having this awwwwful sore throat once – I had thought it was strep so I went to the doctor, and her recommendation was the same as your mom’s…I can’t really remember it helping as much as the ibuprofen, though 😛
Your oats look so creammyyyy. Mmmmmm 🙂
Try the warm salt water…it really does help. 😉
Does oat bran really get that voluminous?! My OIAJ never seem to come close to filling the jar 😥
I forgot to mention in the “recipe”, that I also use 3/4 c. of extra water when boiling the milk. Between the extra fluid (which the oat bran does soak up, it just takes a longer cooking time) and the chia seeds (which like to plump up during cooking!), you’ll end up with a pretty voluminous breakfast bowl (or jar.)
Hope this helps! 😀
I love your blog! Seriously! I also secretly LOVE to grocery shop! I had so much fun doing menu planning projects when I was getting my nutrition degree! Hope you feel better!
blahh i hate sore throats! hope yours feels better lovely!!!! rest UP!
Honey is a great cure for a cold I find, or else Echinacea, the plant remedy. Hope u feel better 🙂
I remember the time when I tried gargling with salt water… and ended up accidentally swallowing it — and gagging on it — instead. Since then, I stick to warm tea with honey. 🙂
LOL I hate gargling salt water! My mom is CONVINCED that it’s the answer to any sore throat issue. I say tea and sometimes coffee, especially if I’m coughing as well – coffee really seems to loosen up the, uh, mucus.
Gross.
Working at the schools sounds so interesting! It’s pretty much what I want to do after college! 😀
About a tsp of honey is also good for a sore throat, followed by some water. I like tea too!
Hope your immune system wins out soon!
My remedies for a sore throat:
-hot water with honey
-hot water with lemon
-hot tea
-avoiding dairy
Hope you feel better soon!
My mom always wanted me to gargle with salt water and I HATED IT! She would also make me stand over a pot of boiling water with a towel over me head to breath all the steam. That worked pretty well, better than the sick salt water.
I am excited to hear about your internship! I am a senior at UF majoring in Health Education and I have one next semester and now I am working on trying to find one. I fear being stuck in the same place doing the same thing over and over. My secret desire is to work with a local CSA farmer and educate people about the benefits of eating locally.
P.S. – I read your blog everyday so I feel like I know you but I just realized you probably have no idea who I am 🙂 Haha, it’s kinda weird.
For a sore throat I rely on hot water/lemon, hot tea and lots of rest. Usually I just need the rest 🙂
I love your lunches: those glass jars for yogurt and cut veggies just look so fun!
Tea and honey and not talking! Hard for me…
I’ve really been digging grated carrot on my sammies lately. Have you tried grated carrot and PB, with salt and cinnmon?
Your packed lunches always look so great! I like that you use jars to pack yogurt, fruit, and veggies- I’m going to start doing that as soon as I finish my first jam jar here (I recently moved).
I rarely get sick, but I find home-made lemon ginger tea works wonders 🙂
I love the containers you use to pack your meals!
I think that is so cool how you are helping kids like that, what a AMAZING JOB, just makes me want to go back to school right now! =) Great packing for your own food as usual, I am good but man you are great at it. Love the veggie pizza, YUM! =)
Nice placement of the OIAJ – it looks like… an oatmeal flower! 🙂