Wednesday, October 29, 2014

Recipe of the Week!

BIG NEWS! Matt cooked! The rest of this post is written by him. It's With a Little Flare's first celebrity chef posting :)

Chicken Teryaki
This recipe was a challenge for me.  Its actually pretty simple but my cooking repertoire is not that extensive.  It includes salad, pasta, and juice.  This is not the start of the list it is the list. That’s the reason the recipe came from “Help! My Apartment Has a Kitchen Cookbook,” which includes things like “Mom Tips.”  My total lack of cooking skills not withstanding, I thought it was time that I make dinner since I am the beneficiary of all the other great recipes on the blog. It also was Columbus Day, which I had off but Erin still had to go into work.  The recipe calls for using the broiler but Erin quickly pointed out that that was above my kitchen skill level so I took a baby step and just used the oven.

Ingredients:
· 3 tablespoons soy sauce
· 2 tablespoons dark brown sugar
· 1 tablespoon corn oil
· ½ teaspoon ground ginger
· ½ teaspoon garlic powder
· 1/8 teaspoon black pepper
· 2 boneless chicken breast halves (About 10 ounces)

Directions:
· Combine the soy sauce, brown sugar, oil, ginger, garlic powder, and black pepper in a mixing bowl and set aside
· Cut the chicken into small strips
· Add the chicken to the bowl and marinate in the refrigerator for 1-2 hours
· Preheat the oven to about 450 degrees (This is a guess since the recipe did not give a temperature)
· Put tin foil on a large baking sheet
· Spread the marinated chicken out evenly on the backing sheet
· Put the chicken in the oven for about 4 minutes per side until the chicken is completely white and just starting to turn brown.
· Serve immediately.

Rating:

· I think Erin gave it an “Its pretty good” or, in other words, better than expected.
PROOF

Monday, October 27, 2014

Marathon Monday

I started off this week of training with a Sunday long run. Sunday was a little chilly (no big deal, better than being hot) and very windy. I'm telling you it was like swirling wind in every direction we turned. It was great resistance training. Sunday was the most enjoyable part of my training week. Then the weekdays came...

The weekdays had me so wishing we owned a treadmill. It rained a lot. And it was serious rain. No chance for running on Monday or Tuesday, and after two days of having a great excuse to do nothing, it's difficult to get motivated again. Wednesday it was still raining and secretly I was hoping the rain wouldn't stop, but then it did. My excuse was gone. I made myself do the miles and surprisingly they didn't go that bad. Thursday after a very crazy day at work I was glad to go out for a few walking miles, and then I finished my week of miles on Friday (Saturday was a rest day since I have been doing my long runs on Sundays). Friday was a little painful and it was dark. I was happy to be finished with 16.44 miles for the week and happy the weekend was starting.

When this week is over it will be November! Last November I was just starting to train for the Pittsburgh Half Marathon. It is exciting to think about how far I have come since then. It was challenging just to do two miles at a slower pace than I do now. And I think my mental toughness has definitely improved. Only 74 days until my second half marathon!

Friday, October 24, 2014

Friday Love

{ONE}

Second Grade Foodies. It's a not so little known secret that my favorite, favorite age group is second graders. I also love to talk about food. And {this video} shows second graders eating at one of NYC's most upscale restaurants. They give quite the review. I loved it.

*Disclaimer: I really love all my K-5 friends, but if I had to pick...

{TWO}

October. I love October for is lovely cooler, but not too cold, temperatures, colorful fall leaves, and what seems like nightly sunsets that are gorgeous. Those companied with football season and the beginning of warm, delicious fall/winter foods is just fab.

{THREE}

Chai Tea. Yes, tea has made an appearance on Friday Love. I have trouble believing it too. I was trying to find a coffee replacement so I started with some decaf chai. It's not that good, but I have been working on trying to like it. I found out that if I let it steep for a while and add some almond milk and a tiny splash of half and half its not that bad :)

{FOUR}


Pretty Fall Flowers. My sister-in-law sent us some lovely, cheerful flowers after a very dramatic and tragic start to our week.

{FIVE}

Friday Nights. Friday nights are always just such a relief for me. I'm not in a race to do miles, make dinner, pack lunch, get ready for the next day, get to bed at a decent hour, etc. It seems like on Fridays it doesn't matter what time we finally get to eat dinner, or what time we get to bed. I just enjoy being able to relax and not be in a race against the clock.

Monday, October 20, 2014

Marathon Monday

I have been doing my long runs on Sundays. Last Sunday was ROUGH. I was struggling the majority of the time. Every so often when I am running I have terrible calf and shin pain. Sometimes it loosens up and it's OK. This was not the case on Sunday. It just wouldn't go away. I have never been so happy for 6.13 miles to be over.

Last Monday I had a professional development day ALLLL day long. After Sunday's experience I was really not wanting to do any miles, but I forced myself since I was home earlier than usual and since I basically sat all day. I can't tell you the difference. It was seriously such a good run. My legs felt great and my time was my fastest pace ever by a lot. To make that day even better, Matt made dinner (recipe to follow) because he had off for Columbus Day.

I finished the second half of my week with a Wednesday run after school with a friend, and then on Friday doing a little over four miles before going out to socialize. I was a little more focused on getting those four miles done and out of the way with the promise of 'Rimkus pizza' after it was over :) Friday's run brought me up to 16.75 miles for the week and today we are 81 days away from my half marathon, and only 80 days from the 10k I will do the day before. I'm already excited, but it's still a long time to wait.

Monday, October 13, 2014

Marathon Monday

Well friends, not every week in half marathon training can be magical. It's not like this past week was bad, just nothing exciting. I mentioned just briefly last Monday that I was finally reunited last Sunday with my running partner. That was the highlight. Running with a friend is always more entertaining than logging the miles on your own in my book. I have a lot less of {these} crazy thoughts when running with someone. We did our long run for the week together and then I did three more weekday runs alone, for a total of 15.27 miles this week.

Weekday runs are my biggest challenge. Somedays it's just the last thing I want to do, but I have been trying to keep myself in a good routine. I bring my clothes to school and change before I leave. That makes it easier to come home and get going, or to just do my miles around my school. I am hoping that my motivation and self-discipline can hold out for the next 88 days. Going on a RUNcation is definitely a motivating factor :)

Friday, October 10, 2014

Friday Love

Happy Friday! I'm so glad it's the weekend. We don't have major plans, but I'm happy with that. I hope to run a bunch of miles on Sunday morning, and we are going to one of my favorite DC restaurants on Sunday for dinner! What are you up to?

{ONE}


Katy Perry on Gameday. My first three loves go back to last Saturday. I like Katy Perry and I really like College Gameday. I was so excited it was a two for one deal last Saturday morning. She was the celebrity picker, and seriously she was so much better than a lot of the fools they get on there. She even had props.

{TWO}

Corso vs. Katy Perry. Lee Corso brings a lot of hilarity to the last 10 minutes of my favorite Saturday morning tradition...you never know what might happen, really. Last week, though, KP blew him out of the water pick wise. Look at {this} run down. This is how we do.

{THREE}

Ole Miss vs. Alabama. Football is really the only sport where I can watch a full game, beginning to end, and be invested, when one of my teams is not involved. I was loving the Ole Miss Alabama game last week. I was very invested in an Ole Miss win, and it happened!

{FOUR}


Gas that Starts with a 2. This is my gas station! Gas prices in the 2's...WHAT?!?!

{FIVE}

Running Thoughts. Crazy stuff goes through my mind when I'm logging my training miles. Mostly when running alone I do a lot of math trying to figure out how much longer. {This article} is so funny and I have legitimately thought almost all 75 things on the list. Especially the ones about finding bodies.

Thursday, October 9, 2014

Recipe of the Week!

Pork Tenderloin with Zesty Dry Rub

Alright, I have a confession. I can't remember how I made this. I started with a recipe I found online for the rub and modified it, but I can't find that recipe either. Truth be told, though, you aren't missing much. I just wasn't into this. I wanted to try something new because we eat {this awesome pork tenderloin} all the time...and we are going right back to it. It wasn't terrible, it just wasn't amazing. Worth a try for something different I suppose. So here is my best guess for what I put in it...

Ingredients:
1 tsp. black pepper
1/4 tsp. cayenne
1.5 tsp. chili powder
1.5 tsp. cumin
1 tbsp. brown sugar
3/4 tsp. oregano
1 tbsp. paprika
1.5 tsp. salt
3/4 tsp. granulated sugar
1 pork tenderloin (about 1.25 lbs.)
2 tsp. olive oil

Directions:
Preheat the oven to 425 degrees. In a small bowl, combine everything except the pork tenderloin. Rub the mixture all over the pork tenderloin, making sure to coat it completely. Place the tenderloin in a pan in the oven until cooked through. 

Monday, October 6, 2014

Marathon Monday

I have just had the most fabulous week in training! Let's start with last Sunday (because I'm not trying to drive myself crazy with Tuesday-Monday weeks this go around). I couldn't do my long run on Saturday because we had morning plans and then Penn State was on, and after that it just gets to be a little bit warm. So last Sunday...I tried experimenting with a little variation on my normal 5ish mile route because I'm already getting a little bit bored. My new trial route was nothing amazing, but it ended up going very well. I achieved my fastest pace ever for 5-6 miles. Good way to start the week.

Both Monday and Tuesday we had back to school night at BES, so those days had to be no mile days because I have given up my morning miles since it's darker and the temperatures are now more manageable in the afternoons. After the longest start to the week ever, I was happy to have a reason to leave work at a reasonable time to get some miles in on Wednesday. I had to work a little bit harder to keep my enthusiasm for after school on Thursday. I decided maybe a random route would cure my boredom with my 3ish mile weekday route. After inhaling serious fast food grease smells and gas fumes while running this random route, followed by my RunKeeper malfunctioning, I didn't have high hopes for my pace as I was getting closer to end of my run. I was pleasantly surprised when I got home and my RunKeeper informed me that I set a new record for pace...and it was by quite a bit!

I ran both days this past weekend, but only Saturday's miles count in my total for the week. I did another 5ish miles. This time my usual 5 mile route. The weather was pretty nice, but the sun was a little warm. The best part was that I beat my Sunday time by one second! The best part about the whole weekend, though...I FINALLY REUNITED with my running partner yesterday! Seriously so much better than dong the miles by myself. Not only that, but it was nice and cool, but still sunny, and I got a change of scenery! I was just thrilled for myself.

After 16.51 miles this week and consistently doing the miles at a good pace, I feel like I am getting back to where I was in the spring. Good thing because we are now less than 100 days (95 to be exact) away from Disney!

Friday, October 3, 2014

Friday Love

{ONE}

Book Club. One of my goals this school year is to do some book clubs. I started my first one this week, and now I am even more excited. I'm sure you will hear more about it on my blog. I am starting with six fifth grade girls reading the book Because of Mr. Terupt. Can't wait to see how things progress.

{TWO}

The Count-selor. I get asked all kinds of questions in my line of work, but this week I got asked a question I have never heard before. I was talking with student who is new to my school this year. We didn't really know each other. He kept asking me where my kids were (because he thought I had a class that should be in my office). I reminded him I was the School Counselor. Then he asked what I COUNT all day. I was laughing so hard. I tried explaining what the counselor actually does. He just wanted to know if I count money.

{THREE}

Cooler Weather. I am SO SO SO excited for some actual fall weather this weekend. I'm celebrating by making my first pot of chili!

{FOUR}

Maps & Charts. You might know that I'm a little bit of a map lover. I don't know why, its just a thing. Well last week I saw {these maps & charts} that show statistics and make comparisons. More things I really like. Check them out, some are surprising.

{FIVE}

Coffee Saturdays. I quit coffee back in July. I was pretty strict about it back then. Now, though, I have loosened up a little bit. I just couldn't handle College Gameday and football Saturdays without it. I look forward to my coffee fix each weekend!