HI EVERYONE! Just a quick note- my server Blue Host had some technical difficulties today and the website was down for an hour or so. Sorry about that…looks like we are back up now! :) Angela
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Good afternoon!
You know I decided today that I don’t have enough eye candy on this website! So I present to you some exciting news…
WOMEN SET THE PACE:
I signed up for a half-marathon! It’s not until next May 2010 though! Remember how I wanted to participate in the Toronto Women’s Half Marathon last May but it was sold out?? Well, they opened the registration for the 2010 date today and I got in!!! Whohoo! One word for you ladies: FIREFIGHTERS. at all the water stations. Need I say more? ;)
How hilarious is THAT!!!!!!!
I have a feeling many of us women are going to be taking lots of water breaks! ;)
Possible outfit for Eric??? y/y??
If anyone wants to run this with me, let me know.
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My day is flying by again. This morning I was busy making a bunch of business calls about packaging for my bars. I also baked up a couple orders, did invoicing, and more research on product codes.
US Package stalking: It appears that my package has entered the US (last night) but it doesn’t yet say anything about customs. I wonder how long this will take? It’s killing me! I want to call them and be like, ‘So just wondering if the bars made the cut?’ LOL!
Let’s get to the winner of the Amazing Grass Prize package!
Congrats to Katie! Please send me your shipping address and we will get this sent off to you!
Katie said:
Two VERY positive changes in my life recently:
1) I live in Chicago and take public transit to my school 5 days a week. While I would prefer to walk there, it’s just too far from my apartment. So, to get a little extra walking time in, I get off and on the bus a few stops before my “normal” stops and walk the rest of the way!
2)I have drastically improved my endurance when working out. Before, 30 minutes on the treadmill and 30 minutes on the elliptical would wear me out. Now, a typical workout for me is 10 minutes of circuit weight training (arms, abs, legs) 20 minutes on the stairmaster, 20 minutes on the elliptical, and 20 minutes on either the treadmill or bike. By the end, I feel more energized than tired!
Don’t despair if you didn’t win! There are two HUGE prize packages being given away this month! The next one is Monday July 20th! :D
We have a fun guest exercise with April from Foods of April today!
Take it away, April :)
Hi Angela!
Here is one of my moves that can be done with a stick, broom-stick, etc.
Tricep Raises
1. Start by holding the broom-stick in back of you, palms facing the ceiling, and about shoulder width apart.
2. Raise your arms as high as you can (You’ll feel your triceps start to work!)
3. Slowly lower to starting point and repeat as many times as you can.Easy as 1, 2, 3! This move can be done anywhere and really tones your triceps.
I think this is a great twist on your standard tricep dip! I admit, I was a bit skeptical when April told me that I could use a broomstick and it would be effective! Guess what? It was! It is all about squeezing the triceps when you lift the bar/stick, so it really does work. To add some challenge I am going to use my weight bar (27 lbs or so). Thanks April! :)
Don’t forget Exercises 19 and 20 (walking lunges and push-ups!) are also on the schedule today!
I tried a new grain this week- MILLET. Has anyone ever had it?
Note. That is not my hand. ;)
Every time I go to Bulk Barn, I tried to pick up a new product that I have never had before. So this week, millet it was!
It is gluten-free and very alkaline!
I decided to cook it on the stovetop and then I made a homemade spaghetti sauce to go with it.
I ate in the dining room on our new table from Dave and Ewa! :) I enjoyed the view and sounds of nature! We don’t have the screen on the kitchen windows yet so we never get to hear the wildlife, but since we do in the dining room it was so nice to have the window open! Sketchie loved every minute of it. He kept standing up on his tippy toes and looking up at the birds. lol.
For the dining room makeover, I am thinking of doing a beautiful burnt orange with a chair rail and ivory below the chair rail (or vice versa). I want the dining room to have a pop of colour, but also be warm and inviting. I can’t wait until we do this room! It is going to look so much better when it is complete.
I used this for my inspiration:
So back to the meal (hehe I just wrote mail- mail on the brain!)
A large salad (organic romaine, red peppers, avocado, and Ruth’s dressing) and approx 1 cup of millet with homemade sauce + St Ives veggie ground round:
So what did I think of millet?
To be perfectly honest I didn’t like it!! It is bland and reminds me of mushier oatmeal. I was not a fan! I much prefer quinoa to millet.
After a quick google, I found out that millet is actually used for BIRD SEED! haha. I guess a lot of things are (sunflower seeds anyone?), but that made me laugh that I was eating cooked bird food! ;)
I’m sure there are better ways to eat millet, but this was not one of them!
Here is a great guide to GRAINS that I found online- it describes almost 15 different kinds of grains!
Enjoy your day!
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{ 51 comments… read them below or add one }
Thanks for the review of millet! I’ve been trying all kinds of different grains . . . couscous, quinoa, barley. Couscous is my favorite, but I keep looking for new ones. Ha ha, I used to work at pet store, and yes, they sold millet! Too funny!
Ha Ha! I think I’ll stick to giving millet seed to my Cockatiels and not try it for lunch after your review.
Your backyard is just gorgeous!
Oh… My …. Gosh …
If I lived any nearer to you than I do now I would start training hardcore today. Just for the firefighters. WOWSA! LOL!
I’ve been looking for local races to run, but I’m not having a whole lot of luck. Dangit, fat Nebraska. Lol.
-muffy
OMG, firefighters at the water stations? I might just have to pass out. ;)
My cats LOVE looking out the windows at all the birds, they don’t seem to miss out on being outdoors at all.
I prefer quinoa too, I actually prefer it to pasta now with my marinara sauces.
Ha ha, the Nike women’s marathon in San Francisco also have firefighters. Now that’s motivation!
I’ll be sure to avoid the millet next time I’m in the bulk foods aisle. Have you tried bulgur? It’s a great grain to use for cold dishes, such as tabbouleh.
I would totally run to see those firefighters!!
My favorite part of the Nike Women’s Marathon was reaching the finish line and being greeted by a handsome man in a tuxedo who gave me a Tiffany box with my medal necklace inside :-D
YAY for the marathon!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Woohoo!!! :D :D
I love millet! however my hubby doesnt! boo!
that picture of Eric is too funny!! what a guy! (er gal ) ;)
Jen- Eric wants to be clear that picture is NOT him, lol. ~A
will not be trying millet, thanks for the review! Also everytime I read the word, I think “mullet,” so that isn’t too appetizing! ;)
I got millet out of the bulk bin a while back too. I just got around to using it a couple of weeks ago, and didn’t love it either. I think it might be a decent breakfast though.
WOW those men are in shape! i would totally run to them!
oh no! i LOVE millet. it’s one of my favorite grains! you can toast it before cooking it, and that will give it a nuttier flavor. but i love it just how it is. i’m sad you didn’t like it. :(
everyone’s taste buds are different, i guess!
We only tried Millet about 3 months ago. The health food store I got it at said to cook for 20 minutes, 2 parts water, 1 part millet. It stays quite firm that way.
We love to make a salad out of it with cucumbers, tomatoes, onions, banana peppers, red peppers, black olives, and a good vinaigrette.
I love the fireman at all the water stations. There’s probably no better motivation to run hard than hot men!!
I think I need to try millet, then the name of my blog can actually be true. hehe
Thanks for the morning eye candy ;)
Yea, my parrot Einstein just loves millet sprays.
Good for you Angela, all signed up for the half marathon!!
Congrats on signing up! Those firemen may just get me to register for my own 1/2!
Hi Angela!
I haven’t cooked much with millet but I love this recipe…
http://historyfoodfit.blogspot.com/search/label/Millet
Good luck!
What a post! At first I couldn’t get poast the firemen:-P
Congrats, Katie! Let us know what you think!
I will definitely be trying the broomstick move for my tri’s too. :-)
Hi Angela,I’m mostly a lurker but wanted to say I LOVE your blog, and especially appreciate the eye candy! I just started training for a half marathon in October. But it won’t be anywhere near as lovely as the Toronto one! Those firefighters are HOT :P too bad you’re so far away!
Ohhh…so funny about the firemen. Someone was thinking when they designed that half marathon!
YAY FOR EYE CANDY! That totally made my morning! Hahahahahaaaa… AWESOME!
I’ve only ever had puffed millet before!
Ironic – I just heard about millet last night on Emeril’s food show (Planet Green)… He used chicken broth to cook with, and then added goat cheese & garlic before stuffing tomatoes… They looked rather tasty but if millet tastes like a**, I may have to try something else… Thanks for the heads-up… :)
Never tried millet, but I have so many other grains laying around my kitchen that I need to use up first! The meal LOOKS good if nothing else! (:
That race looks hilarious! If it were a little closer I’d love to join you! (; Boy oh boy, those men are ripped!
hahahahaa!
Well at least the meal LOOKS delicious!
And YAY for the half marathon! It looks like it will be so fun and that’s such a huge accomplishment :)
HAHA! Loving that eye candy Angela. Sounds like a very fun race. And I’d totally get that outfit for Eric if I were you. ;)
With customs, I know it can take anywhere from 1 day to 1 MONTH depending on the shipping service, time of year, etc. I once sent something from my city (in the US) to Canada through First Class normal USPS mail, and it stayed in customs for THREE weeks! I tried calling to get it moved along, but they told me there was nothing they could do. Hopefully, you won’t have any issues with that. And depending on the carrier (mine was just the average USPS mail), it will probably have A LOT better timing. GOOD LUCK! :)
Great review on the Millet. It doesn’t really sound like something I would be interested in either. But your meal sure looks good!
xxoo
Heather
I use millet in my home-made veggie burger mix and it’s perfect for that.
Haha, that’s funny about the millet seed. We used to give that to our canaries and they loved it! :) And that firefighter on the right is sooo roided out. Eww…but the guy on the left is nice. I think it is a fun idea of course though to have dudes at the water stations. I like the idea of the guy in a Tux handing out Tiffany’s boxes with medals in them! (from the commentor above) That’s awesome!
Wow, LOVE that about the firefighters!!!! Oh man, you are gonna be waterlogged after stopping at every water station!!
that is one hilarious outfit!
i love the burnt orange color.
I think I need to move to Canada just for that race! There needs to be more firefighters at water stations here in the states!
congrats on signing up for the half! i think those firefighters will definitely help keep you going. :)
i prefer quinoa to millet too – similar consistency, but a nuttier flavor. it’s fun trying different grains though!
What a beautiful dining room table, I love the color!
Your homemade spaghetti sauce looks delicious!
When you said millet, the first thing I thought was about how much my two birds LOVE it. When I saw how much they loved it, I figured I’d give it a try. I was unimpressed. I tried it pretty much the same way you did, so maybe it’s just not good like that. Still, I’ll stick to my quinoa.
And I would totally run to some half dressed firefighters!
I would love to do this race with you!! I want to do the Nike one in San Fran, but it seems soo challenging to get in! I’ll message you privately :-)
OMG I think I need to make a trip to Toronto in May! If I weren’t happily married, I would totally fake passing out at a water station so I could get some assistance! :-)
This comment has nothing to do with this post but I just wanted to let you know that I made your 50 cent hummus just now. It was really good. I have tried making it before and was not successful. But I was getting tired of paying for it so I decided to give yours a try. Thanks for the wonderful hummus recipe.
Don’t give up on millet just yet! Like rice, it IS bland on its own, but that also mean it’s a wonderful, versatile, carrier of flavours! If you replace some of the cooking water with broth, or just throw some garlic and salt in the water while it’s cooking, it’ll be much tastier.
An easy thing to do with plain millet:
Throw in some greens (kale, broc, etc), a tbsp or so of tahini, a squirt of soy sauce, some ginger (grated fresh is best but powder works), and some toasted sesame oil, and heat it all up in a wok…YUM!
…this bird loves her millet :)
Congrats on signing up for a half, Angela! Gosh, May 2010 seems so far away but if you think about it, that’s just NEXT year. lol, I guess it only seems like a faraway date to me since that’s when I’ll be graduating from college. But.. I guess that’s pretty soon, yikes!
Hmm, maybe millet would taste good in oatmeal then? I should try that! Thanks for the idea :)
Bahaha, I love the sounds of that race!! Worth running for the eye candy alone :P I can see why it sells out so quick!!
Thanks for the stellar workout move April!! I hate tricep dips, so it’s nice to know I can do an alternative sometimes :)
ummm, those are the HOTTEST men ever! if i was anywhere near the race i would be in it for them alone!! haha.
have yet to try millet…won’t be rushing out to get it!
You beat me to the punch, Ange! I was going to tell you that I used to feed my bird millet as a treat. He loved it! I like the way it smells, but I would have never tried to cook it. I do love horse cookies though…I usually spilt them with my 4 legged babies!
I came across this link today and thought it might be interesting to you after reading your post: http://www.fitsugar.com/3447864
Maybe mixing the millet with something else will help the taste factor?
That half marathon sounds so fun! Yay! I love signing up for races in advance!
Hey Angela… I want to sign up!!! I’ll be in Buffalo that weekend and am looking for something to really get me motivated to run… but I’m not sure I want to run my first half alone! I’m going to seriously look into this!
Ohh I love enjoying my meal when I’m near nature. In my first place I lived on my own my kitchen led to the cutest backyard. If it was too cold I would just prop open the door and leave the screen shut, and I was able to enjoy a nice bowl of oatmeal in the kitchen. When it was spring time I would sit on the steps and the breeze would make all the blossoms from the dogwood blow away. It was so beautiful :)
Oh wow… this looks awesome! I have been wanting to do a half marathon so this just might be the perfect one!
Millet porridge is really nice. It needs cooking down for about 1/2 hour or so (if memory serves). I just used to make it with water. Then, add some honey and enjoy! Very very nice. I used to eat it after going to the gym or for a run in the mornings.
Nice way to get through a long run, huh?! ;) Wheneve rI hear anyone say they eat millet, I giggle, bc I have a cockatiel and that is one of his favorite snacks! So, I can’t connect human and bird food…doesn’t work for me!
OMG, i might even run a Marathon for this!