These sound delicious

AUTUMNAL SPICED OAT BITES.
Dairy-free. Soy-free. Gluten-free (if using GF oats). Vegan.
Makes 15 squares. 68 calories each. 

With simple ingredients and an easy assembly, these fall inspired bites are a great snack that don’t carry any extra baggage.

Base Ingredients: 

• 40g Raw Cashews
• 40g Raw Walnuts
• 80g Pitted Dates
• 3/4 cup Rolled Oats
• 2 tbsp. Pumpkin Puree
• 1 tsp. Cinnamon
• 1/4 tsp. Ginger
• a dash or two of Nutmeg

Topping:

• 2 tbsp. Rolled Oats
• Cinnamon, for dusting

Supplies:

• Food Processor
• Waxed or Parchment Paper

Method:

Place all the base ingredients into a food processor & run constantly until a ball forms and cleans the sides of the bowl.

Slightly moisten your hands and transfer the dough to the parchment/waxed paper. Do your best to shape into a 4 x 7 inch rectangle.

Sprinkle a light dusting of cinnamon on top of the dough and then cover with the 2 tablespoons of oats. Slightly press the oats into place.

Wrap in parchment or waxed paper and refrigerate for at least 1 hour.

Once firm, cut into 15 even squares & store in the refrigerator until ready to serve.

 

 

Yum yum yum! I really want to make these soon. Next weekend before I go home?

“Take care of you”

I definitely don’t take the time to take care of myself. At least I’m taking more time this year than I did last year (anything is an improvement from last year). It’s still not enough though.

Today started out as an awful day. It was raining, it was cold, dance was hard (I can’t remember choreography to save my life), orgo was boring, I was exhausted, and I had a French test. By accident, I wrote my paragraph on the wrong topic, and had to rewrite it in the last 5-10 minutes of the test. Thus, the rest of my test was also done in a hurry. Thus, bad grade and an overall bad experience.

I decided after class to skip orgo discussion (which isn’t helpful anyways) and come back to my dorm room to nap. I can’t actually nap (I wish I could) because I’m always too anxious, but I did lay in my bed for 30 minutes to just think and lie there. It was great. When I got up to go to chemistry, the sun had come out and people were giving out free high fives on the Diag. What an improvement.

I can’t do anything about French except move on and try to do better on the next test. It doesn’t help that I have a biology exam in 48 hours that has been taking up a lot of my brain space. (I typed brace.. = brain + space?)

Still tired.

I’m going to a conversation French meeting with my good friend Julia in about 10 minutes, so we will see how that goes. I probably won’t understand anything. But at least I can listen to people who are talking how I am suppose to talk in French. Yippee.

Tonight I’m going to do my pre-discussion for biology, and look over biology slides. That’s all I have to do.

Oh, and drink a chai tea latte (made with almond milk of course.)

mmmmm.

Namaste<3

I should be studying

Veganism has been up and down. Sometimes I go the whole day, other times I don’t even have one meal that’s vegan. I’m enjoying it though. I feel good about it. I’m just not ready to give up fro yo or sushi (:

I appreciate that you are still reading. It means a lot to me (: I haven’t posted a lot because I’ve just been so busy, and I’ve been sorting through a lot of stuff. This year is different from last year, and presents it’s own new challenges.

A few of my friends moved off campus and I miss them. I miss having them right down the hall and I miss our study parties. It’s hard to get used to not seeing them as often. It’s even hard with a few of my friends being spread out across the dorm. It’s hard being at this college because everyone is taking such hard schedules and has to study all the time, including myself. Whenever I have time that’s free, I don’t want to do anything but sleep, or drink tea and listen to music and chill. I also miss my friends from home a lot. I didn’t realize how difficult it would be to be away from them. Although I’m so excited to go to Florida for Christmas, it means I only have a few days to see my friends before I go back to school.

My French class is killing me. I’m averaging a 75% on my quizzes and homework. What?! I have accepted that I’m a mostly B student in college (big transition) but that is unacceptable. I met with my prof and she said it’s not something to be concerned about because we will have many more and it’s not a huge section of our grade. I participate all the time in class and I’m improving my speaking, but that doesn’t exactly balance out the fact that I’m basically failing the quizzes. Bof! We went over my study habits in our meeting and I’m hoping that I can start to study more efficiently and improve my grade. I also have a test tomorrow… I have studied on and off, and I’m going to study a lot tonight. I hope I do well..

My other classes are alright. I feel like I understand bio & orgo. I have my first bio exam on Wednesday that I am very anxious for! After I get through French, it’s going to be all about the biology.

I have been so hungry lately. It’s very odd. Especially at night, I just get the munchies and I can’t seem to stop eating. The past week has just been a very bad week for me. I think that I’m encountering my anxiety eating again. This week I’m going to try to take control of it without restricting myself. If I’m hungry, I’ll eat a piece of fruit then stop. I’ll try to drink more water at night to satisfy my compulsion to eat.

I worked for 4.5 hours last night and it was awful ): I was called lazy which is a word I don’t think has ever been used to describe me and it’s still bothering me. I wasn’t cutting the strawberries which my supervisor called me out on… however I had asked the coordinator at the beginning of my shift whether or not I was supposed to cut them and she said no.

….urgh.

Personally, I like my fruit separate. I hate when there’s a giant bowl of all mixed fruit because then it all tastes the same. So I separate the different fruit. I was then told I should try new combinations of fruit and mix it up. Isn’t that more a personal preference rather than something I should “know” to do? I was imagining myself as the customer and doing what I would want.

….hmph.

I have to work again today except I’m just serving food rather than doing fruit. It’s only serve for two hours and close for one but I have so much homework to do that it is a giant chunk of time that could be put to better use /: Working always is time I could put to better use. I need the money though.

Speaking of time, I should get back to studying before work. I am still on the fence between eating sushi with my parents today or eating at Sava’s which is all American food (albeit a nice restaurant).

Ooh I’m going to yoga on Friday mornings at 8:30 with two of my best friends. It’s a great way to start my day (:

Namaste<3

Thoughts: Vegan?

I don’t know if you remember, but I went vegetarian for about 3 months, pescetarian for one, and then jumped back into being an omnivore (with a burger no less). I am someone who constantly changes my thoughts, my life, my diet, my exercise… I always need to be changing things. I seek adventures that don’t involve frat parties or alcohol. #college

I have been researching veganism and I think I want to try it… sometimes. I don’t have enough resources at hand in the dining hall (with my required meal plan) to eat vegan all the time. I would go nuts. Plus, I wouldn’t be able to go out to sushi with friends, or almost anywhere. And if you’ve followed me for any amount of time, you know how much I love sushi.

Thus I’ve come to the conclusion that I will start trying to eat vegan, or vegetarian, when possible. I have read a few places that it’s good to make the transition slowly, to find out if this is really what you want for you. Not for a fad, but for your health and well-being. I’m not ready to give up yogurt, I love yogurt. I’m not ready to give up sushi, I love sushi.

So, I won’t.

I’ll do things at my own pace. I don’t need a label, I don’t need specific rules to guide my life. I shouldn’t have to justify all my decisions to my friends. They should accept that I want to be semi-vegan/vegetarian without claiming I’m a “fake” or a “wanna-be”. (Hopefully my friends wouldn’t say something that harsh to me but you never know.)

This isn’t to say I’m not open to concerns, questions, or anything of that nature. I would prefer, however, the absence of hurtful comments.

Oh silly me.

Thank goodness oats are vegan. I had them this morning for breakfast (:

If I don’t like it, I’ll just stop. No harm done. (: This is college; time for some experimentation and change, non?

Tonight is history here at the University of Michigan! We are having the first night game in the 132 year history of our school. And guess who has a ticket…? (;

It’s very exciting. I’m praying that it doesn’t rain. It’s been so gloomy the past week and that has really been putting a damper on my mood. I’m so strongly connected to the weather. It’s unfortunate since I live in Michigan and it’s gray skies for 1/2 the year.

I wasn’t very into football (okay I was not into football) before coming here, but going to a big 10 university has changed my attitude a bit. Although our football team is not at it’s best, we aren’t awful by any means.

Next weekend I’m going to visit Adam at MSU. I’m looking forward to seeing what his life is like there. Seeing his dorm room, cafeteria, and allowing him to show me around. He can’t wait (it’s cute).

I miss that face ):

I think I am going to spend some time reading In Defense of Food by Michael Pollan. I read The Omnivore’s Dilemma this summer and, although it was quite dense, I loved it. This one is a much quicker read.

I also read French Women Don’t Get Fat. I enjoyed the book overall, but I felt like she was very condescending towards Americans sometimes. I understand that we don’t have a food culture that dates back hundreds and hundreds of years, but it’s not like we specifically chose the way our nation is. Some of her quips were a bit offensive. “You’ll never find a French woman on the stairmaster for hours working off a meal.” I’m sure French women still suffer from food guilt. There are eating disorders everywhere, not just in America. French woman choose to go about it in different ways. I loved the helpful tips and tricks… I simply felt that sometimes she pushed the “Americans have no culture and don’t know proper eating habits” too far.

She stated that we don’t eat the same way our grand-parents did. No we do not, because some of our grand-parents grew up in the great depression. With all the dramatic shifts that have happened over the last century, it’s no wonder that a dramatic shift has occurred in eating and food as well. France doesn’t have as large of a population as the USA, and suffers from different economic problems and policies than we do. It’s appropriate to draw some comparisons and conclusions, but cultures cannot simply be lumped in “Americans do this and that’s bad. French women do this and it’s good.”

Based off the title, you don’t read the book expecting a lot of science behind it. It’s mostly lifestyle tips and advice. If that’s what you are looking for, I would recommend it. As someone who has some experience with French culture through my education in the language, a lot of what she says makes good sense… just not all of it.

Namaste<3

Sophomore year!

I don’t officially start classes for another two days but I’m a sophomore in college! Woo!

No more silly freshmen mistakes like getting lost around campus or walking in groups of twenty around downtown. No more clinging to people once you know their name in the hopes of making friends. I have friends! I know stuff!

The girls in my hall are super nice though. They’ve all pretty much moved in (except a few stragglers are still unpacking). It’s great because they invite me to their movie nights & everything, so I don’t feel like a creep hanging out with them.

It’s wonderful to have Joe & Kayla finally back in town as well. We haven’t had the whole gang together for very long due to unfortunate weather that separated us, but it will happen soon (:

Speaking of the weather, we lost power for all of campus yesterday! First the football game was delayed, then came back, then 20 minutes later it started really storming and the game was cancelled. Apparently Western thought it wasn’t worth continuing later, so the game was called at 34-10, a win for Michigan. #itsgreattobeamichiganwolverine

After hauling our soaking butts back to the dorm (and Liz & Joanna ran to their apartment), we stayed in our respective places for the night. When the power went out for an hour, I played bananagrams with Kayla & Joe. It was nice and calming (: We had power in the hallways (emergency generators) so it was great to see everybody out in the halls bonding.

Tonight is the Taste of Michigan; I’m so excited for free food & samples! Oh, and the coupons. Gimme some coupons.

Unfortunately my parents couldn’t come visit me today because I had a “mandatory training” for working in the dining hall. The freshmen were shown around and taught different jobs but as “seasoned” workers, all the sophomores and up sat there for an hour and a half listening to our boss talk…. about absolutely nothing.

At least I was paid. Yeah $15.

I feel better about this year than last. It’s incredibly weird to walk around Ann Arbor knowing where I’m going. I like being able to stay in and watch movies versus going out in order to make friends.

Adam is coming tonight! I haven’t seen him in a little over a week now so I’m very excited. A Wolverine & Spartan living in harmony (;

I’m kind of zoning out as I type this because I’m chilling with Joe & Kayla, so I’ll write something coherent later.

Namaste<3

MIM

I am  Move-In-Maker. MIM.

Today I moved in… 6 people? Maybe 5?

There’s 1200 people in my dorm. Which means the next few days (especially tomorrow) are going to be a hot mess.

Oh and Friday is supposed to be 91 and humid. Lovely. I work 11-2:30, the hottest time of the day. #notwinning

On the bright side I like having the rest of the afternoon to myself, or in the case of today, visiting friends! Two of my good friends, Joanna and Liz, moved into their apartment the other day. I can’t wait to see them, along with Joanna’s boyfriend Nick and Liz’s friend Caroline. It’s seriously going to be a big party reunion. (:

Before that though, I am going to eat a peach. Well as soon as I am finished typing this post. I think I told you, but I got peaches from the farmer’s market on Saturday and they are to die for! So super yummilicious.

—-bathroom break—

I just met the cleaning ladies! They are so nice and friendly. Gwen & Betty. What sweethearts! Last year the woman who cleaned the bathrooms was very shy, but we always wrote nice things on the white board in the bathroom (:

I haven’t worked out in awhile. I woke up to go work out yesterday, and the IM building was closed! It opens up again next week ): At least I am going to be walking all over. I have to run to CVS today to pick up some prints of my pictures. The collages won’t be done for a few days but the prints are ready now. It’s so exciting that I will have my own pictures in my dorm room! Everyone loves the Christmas lights I put up.

I feel good. Today is another good day. I am taking 8 pills a day (7 of them are vitamins) and I wonder if those are starting to help. I am doing the organic skin care and makeup, and my skin seems to be doing better. It’s been almost a week since I started it so after about a month hopefully I will really see results! It’s the same as working out and eating right: it takes awhile to see results.

Speaking of eating right, I’ve been bad, oh so bad. I haven’t eaten a ton of sweets, I’ve just eaten a ton! I forgot what it was like to have all of this food around me all of the time, especially having it right in my room. Bah! Once I have classes and get into routine it will hopefully be easier. I’m not counting calories, I am just intuitive eating. Well, I’m going to be intuitive eating now (;

I absolutely love Coldplay’s new song, “Every Teardrop is a Waterfall.” It’s so catchy and upbeat. (Although I haven’t listened fully to the lyrics…)

Okay so the wind just blew the door shut and it scared the bejeesus out of me. Whew. Off to eat a peach and tumble.

Have a wonderful day bloggies!

Namaste<3

Oh. My. Goodness.

I finally got my DSLR camera! Merry Christmas to me… a wee bit early this year (;

I spent two and a half hours walking around town today taking pictures of campus and downtown; it was so fun!

The whole process of editing took awhile as well but here are a few of the finished products…

I’m pretty proud of them if I do say so myself (: If only I had this to take foodie pictures over the summer! Ah well, now I have it for the school year. It’s nice because I still don’t start classes for another week, which allows me plenty of time for exploring my new camera like I did today. I will be helping freshmen move in daily starting tomorrow, but it’s only during lunch for about 4 hours (which isn’t a lot when you have the rest of the day free after!).

It’s so wonderful being in Ann Arbor without the stress of classes. There’s some social life stress, I’m meeting a lot of new people which brings on anxiety. Of course they are all sweethearts though which makes things easier.

I feel as if I am the only one who doesn’t go out. It can be difficult being the only one who wants to hang out in the dorms. Tonight I think I might just watch some shows on netflix or something and hang out in my room (which I will have pictures of soon). I put up xmas lights! I guess I really am into celebrating early (;

I don’t feel ready to start college again. I suppose I’ve already started, but last year was so difficult. I feel better prepared at least… I already have noticed a huge difference just in my first few days being back. I really like my RA again, Emily. After meeting her and the other new RAs, as well as hanging out with old ones, it makes me consider applying to be an RA. Crazy right? I just feel so good when I can answer questions for freshmen, and I would love to help them find their way. I feel like I’m a pretty responsible person, and it’s not like I drink or party very much either.

Who knows? Like my parents said, there’s no harm in applying. If God feels I’m a right fit (and if I don’t mess up my application/interview), then it will happen. What will be, will be.

My IBS has bothered me a lot today. I’ve had a very flippy stomach and some fairly annoying, painful cramps. Why oh why did I eat the pasta at dinner? White carbs are a big trigger food for me 😦

I ordered collages and prints of my favorite photos. Instead of buying other people’s photos (posters) why not make my own, right?

The pre-school jitters are getting to me. I need to spend some time to myself tonight relaxing. After all, there’s no homework I should be doing (:

Namaste<3

All moved in!

I am finally all moved in! (:

Well kind of. I still need to get my futon tomorrow (and see my family!) and pick up a few other things.

I feel so happy. I feel like I’m going to cry.

Okay I just shut my door so I can cry. Maybe I should stop listening to my Norah Jones pandora station.

I love relaxing here and meeting new people. My new RA, Emily, is awesome. For seriously. She is so kind and she feeds me! She’s also a total type A like I am. And she’s a stats major, so she likes math like I do (did?). It’s basically amazing.

I’ve gotten along so well with my RAs. Last year, Chelsea was my RA and she is one of my good friends now. I can’t believe how quickly I’ve bonded with Emily. We ate crackers and watched Say Yes to the Dress last night at 11. These two have made me consider becoming an RA. I love the bond between all the RAs as well…. I don’t know! I always thought I would live in an apartment next year.. but maybe I could just rent one for the summer. #omglifechange

I haven’t felt this happy in awhile. This happy being the last few months. During my senior year I went through some rough times, and last winter was incredibly difficult for me. I have come so far… I feel like my life has focus and a purpose. I didn’t feel that way before.

I’m on one of my highs, but it feels so good. I need times like this to focus on so that when the lows come, I can look back to cheer myself up. Good times don’t last forever, but neither do the bad.

Tomorrow I have a few things to pick up, but I also have Monday. I start to help people move in on Tuesday, but my shift only lasts from 11-2:30 which isn’t bad at all. I’m not being paid but I get free food until next Friday, and I got to move in early!

I miss Adam, my family, and my babies (the puppies). They are growing up without me and it breaks my heart. The first five games are home, so unless I sell a ticket I won’t be going home anytime soon /: My mom is hellbent on visiting me this year though, so I really hope to see her more often. Seeing Adam on the other hand… that’s going to be difficult ):

Even though I’m in a single, I feel as if I have so much more room than last year! I think it’s because I am actually making use of all the space, and I don’t have to worry about encroaching on someone else’s. I’ll take pictures once I have it all together. I need some poster’s for these white walls though that’s for sure!

I think I’m going to go tumble for a bit. Maybe I’ll hunt down my old RA and play some bananagrams with her if she’s not too busy.

Namaste<3

Protein Bars & Summer fun

Well, okay. They are more like protein brownies. Fudgey yummy delicious brownies… that have lots of protein (:

NRG PROTEIN BARS

2 scoops chocolate protein powder

one scoop of fiber powder (if you have it)

1 C crunchy (or creamy) PB (we used Dark Chocolate Dreams by PB&Co)

1/2 C uncooked oats

1 tsp cinnamon

1/2 C honey

lots of raisins

Stir it all up and enjoy (: We just put ours in a pan. (my mom & I) After you make it, you should cover & stick in the fridge to keep them fresh.

They are so so so tasty. They are perfect for a snack that will fill you up with a small piece! Great for on the go.

So tomorrow… I move in.

AHHHHHHHHH!

It’s completely crazy to me that I’m already moving back into my dorm. Where did my summer go? Well here’s some highlights…

I discovered smoothies & oatmeal.

I ate a lot of sushi.

I spent time in the sun.

I broke the meat fast.

I spent a lot of time baking.

Tie-dyed with friends.

I had a photoshoot.

I ate more sushi.

I read the Omnivore’s Dilemma.

I camped with friends.

I went out with my boyfriend.

I celebrated Independence Day.

I saw the final Harry Potter at midnight (and made this t-shirt).

I got this tattoo.

We have two new additions to the family. (Zeus above, Cocoa Puff below)

(She likes sticks.)

And overall,  I just had a fantastic, amazing, and memorable summer.

What a way to live.

Namaste everyone. Have a peaceful and relaxing night.

Can I have some catchup with that?

I can’t believe I go back to college in a few days. Where did summer go?

To be fair I have made some great memories and done a lot of fun activities. The last few days of summer always leave me wanting more though… I feel as if I haven’t done enough. I suppose summer is about relaxing and enjoying nothing time sometimes.

I live and breathe summer. Sun-kissed skin, blonde hair, laying outside, playing outside… I am a beach bunny, not a snow bunny. I can’t wait to move down south when I’m older and experience summer year-round. #agirlcandream

I’ll do a summer reflections post soon so that I have something to look back on when times get hard. (Aka I am six feet deep in the white stuff and Christmas is already over. Talk about depressing)

I am going to make a goals list for this coming semester as well!

Today my mother and I received our very anticipated Arbonne delivery! Natural, organic face wash, makeup, and vitamins await me each morning. I can’t wait to see how much better my skin feels (and hopefully will look!).
I cancelled my dermatology appointment in favor of going all natural. The topical medication I’m on works about as good as a turtle trying to fly. #badcomparison so I’m going au natural for the next few months!

I was recently diagnosed with IBS (irritable bowel syndrome). I need to work on eating smaller, more frequent meals, finding my trigger foods and avoiding them, and cleaning up my eating. I eat fairly healthy, but I could stand to give up a few bags of chocolate covered raisins (mmmmmm)

Before I start popping an anticramping pill and whatever else, I want to try the digestive plus and extra fiber, along with the daily vitamins.

My health kick probably has been partially inspired by watching food Inc, and fat, sick, and nearly dead. (both are great, I definitely recommend them!)

I would love to go off about all of the food and how it’s made and everything, but I’m talking to my mom now before we go see the help!

I’ll type ya later<3

Namaste.