Black Bean Burrito Bake

Trying to transition the family away from meat, while still having an adequate source of protein for all of the growing bodies in my home, I find myself getting re-acquainted with black beans.

Picture credit: Google Images

We are are also trying to reduce the amount of dining-out that we do.  Really, it's just so much easier to drive down the road to pick up take-out than it is to have to cook something.  How lazy does that sound, right? I'm proud to say that today was a no-spend day and that I made all of our meals at home.  I can imagine I'm probably getting lots of eye-rolls from people who eat at home all the time.  I work full time (estimated 37 hours a week) and go to school full time (estimated 40 hours a week), add in sleeping (I aim for at least 7 hours in a 24 hour period - even if it isn't always at once, or always at night since I work the night shift), spending time with the kids, spending time with the hubby, cleaning, laundry, trying to exercise, paying bills, etc - well, I start to want to outsource something, and providing food for the family is an easy thing to outsource.  

Tonight, I made a Black Bean Burrito Bake.  I had the recipe for a while, but I had to tweak it to make it something we'd all like, since I am not a short-order chef. 

Ingredients: 

1/2 c. sour cream

2 cans black beans

1 bag frozen corn

12 flour tortillas 

2 c. salsa

Shredded cheese

1.  I mixed some taco seasoning in with the sour cream and set that aside while I turned the oven on bake 350 degrees.

2.  After rinsing the beans (some day I'll learn to soak beans and not use cans), I pureed one of the cans and then added both cans to a bowl (not the sour cream bowl).

3.  To the bean bowl, I added the frozen corn (which hubby asked me to leave out next time - he has digestive issues and corn does mean things to him) and then stirred the sour cream mixture in.  

4.  Add a scoop of filling into the middle of each tortilla, sprinkle with some cheese, roll up, and place seam down in a greased baking dish.  I like mine fat and had two different baking dishes for a total of 12 burritos.

4.  Pour salsa over the top of the burritos and cover with more shredded cheese.  Cover with aluminum foil and bake for about 20 minutes.  Uncover and bake another couple of minutes to make sure the cheese on top is all melty. 

I served this with some homemade corn bread muffins and some sour cream on the side.  

Everyone loved it, except for the request to ditch the corn next time.    

10 Mile Training - Wrapped up Week Two

I don't always have time to write, likely because I'm studying or exercising!  But know this...I wrapped up Week Two and I feel great.  I'm having a hard time not eating a lot of crap in my diet, and I think my raging PMS might have something to do with that.  Excuses, excuses, right?

My Wednesday weigh-in yesterday was 170.  That's down 3 pounds for the week.  See, I really have been exercising and drinking my water.  :)

Grumpy, tired and out of shape

I did not stick to my work-out plan today and I'm getting upset because I'm falling behind.

I'm tired and I can't figure out when I should sleep and when I should stay awake.  I'm not a huge fan of working night shift, but it has to work for now.

My IBS is pretty unhappy with the change in sleep pattern and additional stress of school.  My Wednesday weigh-in was a whopping 173 pounds this week, and looking at my food journal, I could see that I'm perhaps on the constipation swing of the IBS pendulum.  To help my situation out, I had a cup of Senna Tea last night and am sipping on one tonight.  If you follow the link to the tea, you'll need to scroll down past some other teas until it comes up.  It's actually called Chocolate flavored Smooth Move.

I'm struggling because I like easy to eat items like PBJ sandwiches, granola bars and other hand-held snacks that I can eat while I'm on the go.  My problem is that those things are not gluten free, and so I'm not doing myself any favors.

I'm waiting on my Learning Team member to get off work in a couple of hours, then we are going to talk on the phone while we finish a collaborative paper.

3 Grad School Classes = 45 Assignments on the Calendar

This semester started July 9 and ends on September 21.

During this time, I have 45 assignments on my calendar.  These assignments include graded assignments such as papers, open book quizzes and exams.  Also included on this list, so that I would not forget to watch the recordings for any sessions that I might miss are the BBCs - BlackBoard Collaborate Sessions, which take the place of a conventional classroom, allowing us to all watch and hear the instructor.  The BBCs are recorded which is a blessing for someone like myself who might be either working or sleeping during "class" time.  There is no penalty for not showing up live.

Not included on this list are the steps to completion for projects.  That would be things like my contribution to the study team for Pathophysiology, or the weekly progress check-in with my Learning Team partner for The Role of Midwifery, or my almost daily emails with my Learning Team partners for Theories.  

I'm a check-list person.  And I'm a very visually-gratifying person.  I enjoy folding laundry and washing dishes by hand because I like to see evidence of my progress through a task.  Which brings me to the above color-coded assignment sheet.  Each class is given a color and the rows are for due date, assignment, class, date turned in, and grade.  I like looking over my shoulder to see where I am at and having a visual reminder of what I need to be working on to help me prioritize. 

I think the hardest part of distance-learning for me so far is the amount of time I spend on my computer typing notes, drafts, etc.  I'm an "outside" person and try to do as much away from the computer as possible when the kids are up.  As soon as they go to bed, I (*ahem*) settle the husband down for the night, and lock myself into my study room with some water and healthy-ish snacks.

A little something to keep me motivated, and because my husband despises the work "can't"...

Photo credit: Pinterest

10 Mile Training - Week 2 Day 2

I'm struggling with this transfer to the night shift.  On Tuesday, which should have been my Day 2 of this week, my daughter showed me an infected looking area on her arm.  Funny, we just went through this with her leg.  I finally decided enough is enough and got her in to see a new pediatrician.  I will say I'm disappointed in the office for not having any nurse practitioners on staff, but I've heard great things about this ped, and it's an all-women physician group and my daughter is very shy about her modesty.  It was a great visit and we now have to make a few follow ups to get to the bottom of this issue.

So, having to work Tuesday night, I chose a nap over a run and called Tuesday a wash.

Moved Day 2 over to Wednesday (yesterday).  We were hopping at work all night Tuesday and so by the time I feel asleep Wed morning, I slept hard.  Woke up at 3:30 and sat outside talking to the hubby while the kids were in the pool, then decided to go for a run.

Plan: 3 Miles
Actual: 1 Mile

Temperature outside: 97 degrees.

Mental note: That gym membership is not just a monthly donation, please consider running indoors if you are really serious about following this plan.

Strawberries - cleaning 'em and eating 'em

We had company for lunch on Saturday and Sunday this weekend.  Now, even when we have company, my kids know that our rule is one fruit and/or veggie with each meal.  Usually it becomes fruit with breakfast and lunch and then veggies the rest of the day.  Recently, I've been reading about eating fruit separately away from the rest of your meal, but I can't remember all of what that was about, so it's on my list of things to look up again sometime when I have time (which is usually never). 

Target had containers of strawberries on sale for $1 per container this past week.  So I picked up 3 and set to cleaning the berries in my non-measured vinegar and water solution.

A nice little bath and then a rinse in the colander with some cold water and the result is clean berries.

My sweet daughter and Sunday's fruit tray - strawberries, fresh pineapple, and orange wedges. 

After having 5 kids and 4 adults eating lunch - there was no fruit left.  I'd call that success! 

10 Mile Training: Week 2, Day 1

Alright - week 2!  That must mean that I made it through Week One!

Today's plan was for Strength and Stretch.

I did about 15 minutes of yoga stretches this morning when I got out of bed, and wow, it felt great!

A few hours ago, I remembered that I had not done any strength training, so I grabbed my kettlebell and did a few swings with is, and then got on Netflix to look for a video.  I settled on an old-school Crunch video with a boot camp type workout.  It felt good and I know I'll be sore in the morning.

Tomorrow - a 3 mile run.  It's also my first night working night shift, so I'm trying to figure out when to actually run.

10 Mile Training: Week 1 Day 8

Did you see what I did there?  Day 8?  Just making sure you are paying attention.  I've actually added today as a day of 30 minutes of cross-training, because even though today is Sunday, the actually training schedule I'm using has Monday as the first day of the week.  So there.

So that I wasn't a slacker today, I did laps in the pool after the kids went to bed, and wow, that's quite a work out.  I was so tired.

I'm out of shape.
But not for long.

10 Miler training: Week 1 Days 6 and 7

Friday was Day Six - I'm kindof off schedule, since Day Six was a "rest day".  However, I ended up doing a walk/run of 2 miles.  I'm still doing more walking than running, but as they say, I'm lapping everyone on the couch!

Saturday was Day Seven - Since we went to church and then had friends over, I flip flopped Six and Seven and took yesterday as my rest day.

Diet wise, I went to the movies last night and indulged in way too many sugary treats - twizzlers, coke and half a pack of junior mints - which makes for a really icky feeling tummy this morning.

Understanding ABGs on the Run

Having been a nurse for 14 years, I've been pretty knowledgeable about interpreting various lab results with the perspective of communicating abnormal values to the appropriate member of the multidisciplinary team.  I'm blessed to be coming into my patho class with a strong understanding of acid/base balance and blood gases.

Other than my amazing textbook (nerd alert: I love my big heavy Pathophysiology textbook), I have come across two helpful resources.

Seattle Pacific University's Advanced Clinical Pathophysiology course lectures is located for FREE on iTunes University. I have listened to a couple of lectures while running, and have watched a couple of lectures while on the stationary bike.

Another great resource for a quick and dirty explanation of blood gases is Hansen Nursing's site.

I'm cautious to be aware of time bandits sucking away at my precious study time, but I promise, these to resources are worth it!

10 Mile Training - Week 1, Day 5

Today's training plan was to do 2 miles.  I only did one mile, but I gave it my all.  The sky darkened and the thunder and lightening started, and I knew it would be too dangerous to continue.  Overall, I have to say I was pleased with my progress, since even though I wasn't wearing my heart rate monitor/watch combination, I still knew I finished the mile in under 15 minutes.  I'm sure that's not too impressive for people who really run, but for someone like me...it's freakin' fabulous!

10 Mile Training - Week 1 Day 4

I didn't write last night, so I'm catching up now.

Yesterday was Day 4 of my training and I fell off the wagon big time in the food area, but did much better in the exercise area.

It was a day off of work, and I allowed myself to be wooed by the hubby.  I had early morning errands to run and stopped by Chik Fil A for breakfast.  My word, it's so good, but yet, so bad.

Then because I was stressed about getting school work organized, I failed to notice it was 1pm and nobody had lunch yet.  The hubby was out working in the yard, so he lost all track of time.  Having a serious lack of groceries in the house meant either a trip to get groceries and then make food, or a trip to hunt and gather lunch.  The latter won out and off to Jersey Mikes went I.

I ate a salad for dinner, though, because I was feeling guilty.

My training plan (I'm following Hal Higdon's 15-K training Guide for Beginners) had yesterday labeled as a cross-training day.  I went to the gym and did 15 minutes on the bike and another 15 minutes climbing uphill on the treadmill.

While those around me watched the various evening shows on the televisions, I pulled out my iPhone and watched a podcast on electrolytes.  I love iTunes University.

10 Miler Week 1 Day 3 Training

Today was a rest day.  

So there.

Okay, it was also a margarita after work day.  

And it was good. 

Week 1 Day 2 Training, Running Tank and 1st Day of Grad School...Whew!

Look, it's me!  I saw this awesome tutorial on Pinterest and decided to start taking some of my never-worn t-shirts from races and walks, and start making tanks out of them.  So, tonight, after a grueling day of work, which I can honestly say it was a day that I saved a life, I decided that I would fashion myself up a cute tank to wear on a short run.  So, there you have it...notice the belly...you would think I would suck it in or something for a picture, but eh, what you see is what you get.

I walked/ran 2 miles today as per my training plan schedule.  While going around the loop, I listed to a Pathophysiology lecture on iTunes University because today is my first official day in my Graduate School program.

I'm off to go officially check in on the website and then get myself organized for the next few months.  

Week 1, Day 1 ToT 10 Miler Prep

One of my dearest friends convinced me to run in Disney's Tower of Terror 10 Miler, this fall.  It's supposed to be slightly spooky. More specifically, the race is about 12 weeks away.  I seem to have fallen off the running wagon, and have printed out a 15K running plan to help me get back on track.  15K is roughly 9.6 miles, which is close enough to 10 to make me happy.

I now have to find balance between school (classes open tomorrow!), working nigh shift (I transition to 7pm-7am next week), and working out.  My husband is super-supportive, and loves my positive sassy attitude I get when I'm my happy, fit self.

Tonight on the training plan was the task to weight train.  Unfortunately, my gym closes early on Sundays, and I had to work 7am-7pm today.  I got brave and busted out a work-out that I haven't done in months.  After reading The 4-Hour Body, I ran right out and bought a kettlebell, and got into the habit of doing some kettlebell swings nightly before bed.  Again, life fell apart when my Mom got sick, and the kettlebell got covered by a pile of clothes on my bedroom floor.  Tonight, I pulled out my 'bell and the video that came with it, and I gave it my all.  I'll let you know if I can't move tomorrow!