Wild Squirrel Peanut Butter

I have a confession....I watch Shark Tank and I like it.

If you don't know anything about it, here's the premise. Entrepreneurs pitch their big idea to a team of successful "Richy Rich" business people (the sharks) in hopes they will invest in their idea.  The Sharks include some well know faces like Mark Cuban and Barbara Corcoran, but the panel of five have all made it financially and can really make a difference to these starter companies if they can make a deal.

I love all the quirky inventors and ideas on the show, but I like the interaction between the sharks too.  Some of their comments can be snarky, but I find the whole thing very interesting and funny.

When it's a good idea, the sharks fight each other for a chance to invest. I can say I've learned some things about starting a business too.

One of my favorites
A recent pitch from two college undergrads who started making their own peanut butter because they eat so much of it pulled me right in! These girls were smart, confident and articulate and had a good idea with a catchy name Wild Squirrel Nut Butter.

My first reaction was, "Why didn't I think of that?" and then "Why aren't I making my own peanut butter?"  After that passed I knew I wanted to try their peanut butter. The flavors sounded unique and yummy. They make both almond and peanut butter flavors but these two sounded the best to me. The product is not in stores near me so I ordered mine online.

I chose the Honey Pretzel Peanut Butter.  It has crunchy pretzel pieces in it with a sweetness of honey.

The other one I got was Chocolate Coconut.  This is incredible!  Better than I imagined! But how could that combination be bad? You get the benefit of chocolate but it doesn't overpower the peanut butter taste like some other chocolate peanut butters do. It is great in smoothies! I've heard oatmeal too, but I'm not an oatmeal fan so I can't confirm that.

I have tried them both in pb & j sandwiches, on fruit, by the spoon, with marshmallow fluff (really like the chocolate coconut with it) and it was all good!

Not only is peanut butter tasty, it is made with real, natural food ingredients and no preservatives, high fructose corn syrup or palm oil.

Now that I'm crazy about this peanut butter I may be a regular customer.  Just in case your interested they are having a 15% off sale right now until June 17.  Just enter the code FATHERSDAY at checkout.

I am sharing this with you because its good food! I did not receive any compensation for my review, it is all my own.  I choose to support companies that share my approach to sustainable food production and make good food.

This weekend I am off to Chicago to run the Chicago 13.1 Marathon. I was lucky enough to win an entry from Emily @ Out and About.  Chicago is especially fun for me because I get to see my daughter Cate @ Good For You Blog and she is a great hostess. We have lots of food and fun planned!

Monster Bash Dash

Saturday night Dessert Man and I ran the Monster Bash Dash. We ran with a group of friends and called ourselves the Terrifying Teachers.  It was a trail run with frightening obstacles along the way.  The race started at 8:20pm. It was light when we started, but darkness fell soon after.

Source

 The trail was hilly, bumpy, sandy and twisty with the added difficulty of avoiding monsters and zombies along the way who tried to get you.

Really they were trying to grab one of two flags each of us were wearing.  Our goal was to finish the race with at least one flag left.

My strategy was to speed by the zombies while they were pursuing someone else.   They were tricky and that didn't always work.

We were required to wear a head lamp and I decided to wear one that attached to my running hat. Big mistake- it was so heavy that it weighed my hat down (note wonky tilt of hat in photo) and I had to take it off and hold it during the run.

They spent a lot of time preparing the course. There were skulls, bones and bodies scattered throughout. There were also sections that were covered in plastic tunnels that we had to run through, without much visibility.  A great hiding place for the bad guys.  

About halfway through I lost one of my flags to a zombie.  Not knowing what to expect in the second half, I was worried I may lose them both.  Despite the on-slaught of blood balloons, and determined zombies, I survived with one flag!

Those who finished with a flag were considered Survivors and received this shirt.

We also got a cool medal for finishing.

Runners who did not survive, like Dessert Man got this shirt. Not that I'm rubbing it in or anything.

This race was a definitely a different experience and very unique.  Running a trail at night with people chasing you is an adrenaline rush!  Glad it was just for fun. I am not cut out for horror films.

Do I need to update my activity tracking gear?

This is what I'm jonesin for 

BodyMedia Fit Armband

BUT this  is what I'm wearing 

Pedometer

Let's see...

*BodyMedia captures about 5,000 data points per minute and tracks your sleep habits the pedometer counts one (every step I take)

*BodyMedia costs $200 + a monthly subscription fee, the pedometer was free 

So the decision was easy - I have a pedometer and it fits nicely into my budget as well as letting me know in a glance if I am moving like a sloth or the energizer bunny.  

I clipped the pedometer on last week when I re-found it in my daughter's room. I want to know how active I am outside of my planned exercise. 

I work in a cubicle in an office building and although I sit on an exercise ball instead of a chair, I don't walk around a lot.  At home, I hardly sit down, but I want to know if that equals out, or if I am kidding myself.  

For now I am using the number of steps I take in a day to help me figure it out. 

  

My daily goal is a minimum of 10,000 steps or about 5 miles. I have been running at least 4 miles 3-4 days a week so on those days I am definitely moving enough. 

BUT - The results on the other days are dismal. 
I am barely logging in 3,500 steps by the time I get home (less than 2 miles)  Seeing these bad results, I have made an effort to move more but my typical work day is pretty sedentary.(sigh) 


I don't walk 10,000 steps without going for a run or a walk. That means I need to schedule one every day.  The thought of having to do that every day doesn't excite me. I like my rest days when I don't have to do anything even though I might choose to.
  
What I learn from counting my steps is good information, but I want more. 
I want to know exactly how many calories I burn doing regular every day things. And know exactly how many calories I burn on my slow runs versus faster runs, or weight lifting, cycling, gardening or housework.  That's what the BodyMedia can do and that's why I want it.  


I think knowing which activities burn the most calories will motivate me to do that more.  Right now I am cardio queen, but I know I should be doing more weight training.  If I found out that weight training was a good way to burn calories, I might do it more.  I am a fact kind of girl and you can't argue with data.

Right now, my practical side (the angel) is winning. But the other side is saying, "You need it, you should buy it"  I want the Body Media but I don't want to spend the money and then stop using it after a few months or be hasty and fool myself into thinking it will solve all my fitness/weight issues.


I need some help - If you have any experience or knowledge about this kind of system and its value. Please let me know what you think.

Terramundi Money Pots

I try to save money where ever I can. Couponing, bypassing toll roads, packing my lunch and cooking from scratch are a few of the things I do, but one of my favorite is saving silver coins in a Terramundi  Money Pot. After we received one as a gift, we have been hooked on them.  They are fun and come in all kinds of funky designs and colors.

Unlike a traditional piggy bank, you can't get your money out of these unless you break it open.  Each pot comes with a small card on which you record a wish and the date, then drop it in the pot with the first silver coin.   Once that first coin is dropped in, your money pot must be fed until it is full.  At that time 
you smash it while making a wish. 


When we couldn't squeeze one more coin in the pot we busted it open.  With our first pot we just  dropped the it on the sidewalk and then collected all the pieces.  Kinda of messy.

This time we put the pot in one of our reusable grocery store bags and whacked it on the ground.  A much smarter approach.  Not some many small pieces and everything was contained.


Before counting, we each wrote down our guess for the total.  Our pot was about 7 inches tall and was only filled with silver coins, no pennies.  Dessert man was only putting in quarters, but I  put in some nickels and dimes too, which I found out while counting was a BIG no-no. Ooops! "Think of how much more money we would have had if those other coins hadn't been taking up that space?" Uh - $5?


Be both over estimated the amount, but were happy to see we had $226.60 worth of coins. Sweet! Then we rolled it instead of taking it to the coin machine because we didn't want to pay 8% charge for the service.

We put the first coin in this pot on Dessert Man's birthday February of 2009.  You are supposed to write down a wish too, but for some reason we didn't. Neither of us can remember why. This was one of the smaller pots, but the larger pots can hold up to $500 in nickels, dimes and quarters.  Who doesn't love discovering a stash of cash you didn't know you had?  

I have since learned we should have opened the pot more gently by popping off the top  and could have saved the bottom piece for a planter or holder of something. Next time, I hope to open it like this:

I guess that means I need to buy another one.

I'm a Fan

... a fan of Jillian Michaels!

After hearing she has a podcast The Jillian Michaels Show (free on iTunes) I have been listening to her talk about many subjects.  She has been doing a podcast for a couple of years now so I have been catching up on the older ones too.  I have learned so much and I like her more with each show.

She is smart, funny, environmentally conscious and level headed.  A much more complex person than the one I got know by watching the Biggest Loser.  I liked her then, but thought she yelled a lot.  I guess they edited the show to highlight the personality they wanted her  to portray. She does get worked up, but only because she is passionate about what she does.

Okay, so after writing this I sound like I have a crush on her...maybe I do, but not in a stalker kind of way.  Although I would love to meet her!

She has so much knowledge to share and I have been interested in almost every show topic except  for a few like  how to eat if you want to get pregnant (I'm not in the market for more children) and pregnancy fitness for the same reason.

I have learned about, healthy eating, supplements, staying motivated, how to break through plateaus, managing stress, etc... Of course I have not implemented all I have learned, or I would look like her and I don't, but I have been making changes...

One big change I have made is to increase the amount of whole foods I eat instead of processed foods.  I am not a big "Diet Food" kind of eater but I occasionally buy lite or low fat  or reduced calorie foods.

One item in particular is the orange juice my husband drinks every day and I drink on occasion.  We have been buying Trop50. Tropicana's reduced calorie OJ.

Sounds like good stuff - Right?  Well, a closer look gave me a different answer.  Last week I mistakenly picked up the regular Tropicana OJ at the store and was going to take it back when I compared the labels.  This is what I found.

Tropicana Pure Premium

Trop50

I know the print is small so here are the highlights:

	Trop50	Tropicana Pure Premium
Calories	50	110
Sodium	10mg	0mg
Carbohydrates	13g	26g
Ingredients	Filtered water, not from concentrate pasteurized orange juice, modified food starch, citric acid, malic acid, natural flavors and Reb A (Pure Via)	Florida Orange Juice
	42% juice	100% juice

The Trop50 isn't orange juice, its 58% water/chemicals and 42% juice.  I was shocked! That's not what I thought I was buying nor what I wanted.  I thought I was good about reading labels, but I was duped by  savvy marketing. They told me what I wanted to hear and I believed them instead of reading it closely for myself.

What's in your food?
Saving a few calories is less important to me than eating/drinking real food.
Our bodies were made to process real food not chemicals.  As I learned in Jillian Michaels' book Master Your Metabolism many of the chemicals in our food, environment and beauty products are actually making our bodies less efficient (slowing down our metabolism).  I expected this book to be about exercise, but it was all about identifying and avoiding the toxins in our lives.  Really interesting stuff!

Sticking with the real thing!

Needless to say, we kept the real orange juice and will not be buying the low calorie version anymore. This experience has taught me a lot and all because  I bought the wrong orange juice.   Knowledge is power!

I  just picked up Jillian's new book Unlimited from the library and can't wait to get reading.

Blueberry Fruit Bars

Dessert Man loves Trader Joes blueberry fruit bars and eats one just about every day. We I do a pretty good job of keeping some in the house, even though we don't live any where near a Trader Joes.  (It is my job to stock up every time I visit Atlanta and Chicago) 


He got some bad news last week, when he realized  the cupboard was bare.  He had eaten every last one.  It would be a couple months until I could get to a Trader Joes again so we had to come up with Plan B. 


Make our own.

Before toasting

We pumped ours up with some toasted coconut and almonds.

After toasting

You want to  mix crust with a fork until it becomes crumbly and sticks together when you push on it.

The crust is just moist enough to press easily into the prepared 8 in square pan.  Lining it with aluminum foil just makes it easier to remove after baking and ensures nice, evenly shaped bars.

Because we are fans of peanut butter we had to try some as peanut butter and fruit bars, so we spread some out on half of the crust before adding the jam.  The heat from the crust, made is very easy to spread.

 After spreading the jam, the last step is to sprinkle on the toasted coconut and almonds.  This is where you can personalize the bars to your tastes and add you favorite toppings.

 Pulling the bars out of the pan by the foil gives you one nice square you can cut up into smaller pieces.  I cut mine up into 16 pieces.

This is what we came up with. They are not exactly like Trader Joes, but very good. This bar has a very crisp crust versus their softer crust and ours is open faced. I keep our in the refrigerator I like them cold.

Blueberry Fruit Bars with coconut, almonds and peanut butter


1/4 cup almonds, chopped
1/4 cup sweetened flaked coconut
1 cup flour
1/4 teaspoon salt
4 Tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
1 cup blueberry jam ( I used Polaner All Fruit)
1/4 cup peanut butter 


Heat over to 350 degrees.
Scatter almonds and coconut on foil lined baking pan.  Bake in 350 degree oven for 7-10 minutes until golden brown, stirring halfway through.  Keep your eye on these, as they can burn quickly especially if your oven heats unevenly.  I cook them in my toaster oven so I can keep an eye on them, but it can be done in the oven too.


Line 8 inch square pan with aluminum foil and spray with cooking spray.


Mix flour, sugar and salt in medium bowl.  Stir in melted butter and mix with a fork until dough is crumbly and sticks together when pushed.   Using your hands press dough into bottom of prepared pan. 


Bake for 20 minutes until golden brown.  Remove from oven and spread 1/4 cup peanut butter over crust.(If you're a peanut butter fan, you can always add more.) The heat will help it spread evenly.  Spread jam over peanut butter and sprinkle with toasted coconut and almonds.


Return to oven to bake for 20 minutes.  Let cool for five minutes and remove from pan using foil as handles.  Let cool to room temperature and cut into 16 squares.
At this point bars can be eaten, covered with foil and refrigerated, stored at room temperature, frozen, or any combination of these.


*inspired by Pam Anderson

Atlanta Half Marathon in Review

In March I ran the Publix Atlanta Half Marathon with my daughter Cate.  It was a last minute decision for me, but the timing was perfect. Cate was coming in from Chicago, I was up for a road trip and was looking forward to running the race with her.

Here's a look back at the race through photos...

Pre-race fuel.

I am a fan of these Clif Crunch Bars and this is the newest flavor. 

It is fantastic, but not yet available in Orlando so Cate brought one for me.

We took Marta to avoid the traffic, but so did a few others.  This was a BIG race, about 15,000.  Both the half and full marathoners ran together for the first 7 miles.  

This was my seventh half marathon and I can still remember how I felt after my first.  I thought it was the hardest thing I had ever done.  I couldn't imagine ever doing another, and I was sore for days.  I never imagined I would grow to like them, but here I was running my third one this year. 

We were in one of the last few corrals, but because they had a rolling start it only took 10 minutes for us to cross the start line by the CNN Center.

 The race course took us through many parts of Atlanta starting with Georgia State University campus.

Mile 2 - Publix Mile

Publix was the sponsor of this race and supported us with bands and messages of encouragement along the way.

Sunrise

Mile 3- 

A view of the Atlanta skyline from the Jackson Street Bridge. 

The residents of the 4th Ward dressed up their neighborhood and cheered us on as we passed through.  I learned this is the part of Atlanta that Martin Luther King Jr. is from.

We ran through many nice neighborhoods like Inman Park, Atlanta's first suburb and the course was not crowded at all.

Mile 4

Mile 5

This is where we parted ways with those running the marathon.

Mile 7

This guy gave us a good laugh and we saw  him in the newspaper the next day for his creative idea.

Yes, this is a bunny on a leash.  His owner said he was happy, but he looks a little scared to me.

Generous spectators handed out croissants at mile 8.  We couldn't pass that up.

This course was SO hilly.  This was just one of many.

Georgia Tech went all out and had an exciting section with music, balloons and "special" GA Tech water, so they said.

Mile 12

We made it and we treated to my favorite recovery drink- Chocolate Milk!!

The race ended in Centennial Olympic Park where they had a post race party with a band.

Goodies from the race included this great tech tee and a treat bag from Publix.  

The day turned out to be much hotter than expected, but the course was shady until the last few miles. I ran Cate's race and her goal was to beat 3 hours, she shattered that by finishing in 2:44!  We had a great time running together and sharing the experience. This race was the perfect way to see Atlanta's historic neighborhoods and city parks and I would recommend it.  Great swag, great expo, great medal, great course, hills and all!