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Guacamole Ole! March 22, 2011

Posted by cirellih in Craving, Food, Snack.
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Have you ever had a craving for food that seems to never go away until you’ve had a taste of it?

That was me and guacamole today.

All I could think of was getting some of the green deliciousness. I wanted fresh tomatoes. I wanted spicy garlic. I wanted savor lemon juice. I really wanted creamy avocados.

Finally… when their powers combined, they became Captain Guacamole!!! Gosh it was just what my taste buds wanted.

You Put the Jam in the Coconut [Shortbread] March 15, 2011

Posted by cirellih in Food, Snack.
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I love shortbread. I drool over toasted coconut. Blackberries make my soul happy.

When you combine all of these delicious ingredients what do you get?

Blackberry Coconut Shortbread Cookies!!!

Feast your eyes on those lovelies! This entry also requires that you use a little thing called “your imagination”.

In my excitement over the toasted coconut, I managed to forget to take a picture of the jam filled cookies. At the end of the day, none of my cookies made it home, which I take to be an excellent sign for their tastiness.

Spring is Springing! March 3, 2011

Posted by cirellih in Exercise, Food, Planning, Setbacks, Snack.
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Today I was stressed. Lots to do and little time in which to do it.

Meeting in the morning, planning for a parent meeting, Girl Scouts, programming, parent meeting… it was a full day on the go.

To counter the stress did I go to the gym? No. (But I did yesterday!)

Instead, I discovered that I am a stress eater. I munched my way through the day, and finally bought gum so I wouldn’t graze any more. Bahhh.

I didn’t have much time for lunch, so went out and had shrimp, veggies and brown rice from Rumbi… not sure I would go back.

For dinner, the hubby and I went to try a new Mexican restaurant. Chicken enchiladas with rice and beans are delish, but not exactly what I should be eating on a regular basis.

So when I got home I bought these:

Just to remind myself that tomorrow is a new day, and good habits can start now. I’m going for a walk to burn off a little dinner. Tomorrow I’m bringing my gym clothes to work so I can work out in the afternoon!

 

To the Capitol and Beyond! March 1, 2011

Posted by cirellih in Food, Motivation, Snack, Travel.
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It has to be said that I LOVE the east coast! So, by that reasoning, I was an extremely happy camper that the AmeriCorps conference was in Washington, DC. This being my second conference for AmeriCorps, I can say with complete certainty that this was leaps and bounds better than last year’s. The Dulles, Hyatt was swanky (even if the food was not as delicious as I would have liked).

Midyear is a time to connect with members from all of the Notre Dame Mission Volunteers Sites. It is a time to commiserate over pitfalls and celebrate triumphs big and small. There are 300 some odd volunteers all working for a common goal. Everyone has a different reason to volunteer, but we all have the same desire to do some real good in the world.

We listened to John Gomperts, the head of AmeriCorps, the story of Dorothy Stang, a sister of Notre Dame who was murdered in Brazil for helping local people to farm sustainably, and Wayne Meisel, the founder of the Bonner Leaders. All the stories came back to the same idea that service is a crucial part of life. An idea with which I wholeheartedly agree.

The conference was a truly revivifying experience.

I came back with new ideas to try out, new tools for classroom management and a renewed sense of commitment.

It was a great experience, and I am so happy to have been a part of it.

On Monday night, some of my group had a good dose of AmeriBonding and went to see the monuments in DC at night.

First stop was the Jefferson Memorial:

 

Iwo Jima:

The Lincoln Memorial has a special place for me in terms of my year of service. Working for the I Have a Dream program. Truly inspiring to be able to stand on the spot where Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. gave his famous speech.

It was a rather chilly, but the monuments become more alive at night. Definitely not a sight to be missed.

The next day was filled with a trip to the White House. A little disappointing because there is no longer a guided tour. The highlight was a trip to the National Gallery. A quick trip though took us from Rembrandt to the Impressionists. A quick trip back to the airport brought on the next step of my journey.

Sadly, I was not as on top of my flight snacks as I was on the way out. One apple was not as delicious as blackberries had been. Jet Blue gave out animal crackers… talk about a throw-back to elementary school. My flight was delightfully on time, and my brother was waiting for me in Syracuse!