Back at it...again!

So, I'm trying to get better at this blogging thing. Clearly I haven't been so good at it in the past....well 9 months. I mainly wanted to post some eats I've had lately, so anyone who has seen my Instagram pics can find pretty much any recipe for anything I post there on here.
My day started bright and early at 5:30 am this morning with a good, sweaty workout. Since, I have a 4-mile race on Saturday I kinda took it easy as far as the run went. 3.5 miles on the treadmill and The Fitnessista's WSU week #2 workout! ;)

(Not a great pic, but I feel like I'm finally getting stronger! Woohoo!)

So after getting all sweaty, I was starving. I made my FAVORITE pancake recipe this morning. I originally got it from The Fitnessista's blog and just adapted it a little. :)
Pumpkin Protein Pancakes:
Ingredients: 
-1.5 scoops vanilla protein (I used cookies n’ cream)
-2 T Bob’s Red Mill Gluten-free Baking Mix (can substitute with whole-grain flour of choice)- I used Hodgson Mill’s whole-wheat graham flour
-3/4 t baking powder
-1/2 t cinnamon
-pinch nutmeg (I used ½ tsp)
-pinch sea salt
-Stevia (optional) to taste (I used 1 packet)
-dash pumpkin pie spice (I used 1/2 tsp-ish)
-1/4 C almond milk (I used unsweetened vanilla)
-1/2 t vanilla
-1 egg white (3 T All whites 100% liquid egg whites)
-1/4 c pumpkin puree (I used Libby’s)

1. Heat a skillet to medium heat. While the pan is heating up, in a small bowl, combine the protein powder, baking mix, baking powder, cinnamon, nutmeg, Stevia, sea salt, and pumpkin pie spice and whisk to remove any lumps.
2. Whisk in the egg white, almond milk and vanilla. And then add the pumpkin and whisk all together.
3. (Add a little bit of water here so everything will mix together nicely-I've also noticed that this makes them a bit more moist)
4. Cook the pancakes for a couple of minutes on each side, until golden brown-although I may have left mine a little doughy, because the batter tasted SO good!

(Two pics because they were just that yummy!!)

After class today, I had to make a little road trip from Tuscaloosa home to my parents house so I packed myself an apple and some dark chocolate almonds for the trip!

When I finally got to my parent's house tonight, I was starving.I was in the mood for chicken salad...but the chances of buying that clean in this town are slim to none. So, I grabbed a bunch of ingredients that sounded good to me, threw them in a bowl, said a little prayer, and mixed them all up! Into my bowl went:
-2 T nonfat greek yogurt (Could have also used 2 T mayo with olive oil)
-a few red grapes
-leftover boneless, skinless chopped chicken (I probably used around 4 oz)
-a few almonds
-2 T dried cranberries
-2 tsp curry powder (on a HUGE curry kick since I tried Thai food for the first time last week!)
-dash of salt
 I just mixed all of it together and threw it on a piece of lightly toasted bread with lettuce and an orange on the side. Strange combo probably, but really yummy and only took about 5 minutes.

Hope you've had a great day!

Cinnamon Raisin PB Cookies!

So, this morning I was trying to decide what I was going to do with my Cinnamon Raisin Peanut Butter from Peanut Butter and Co. Don't get me wrong, I LOVE peanut butter...but, this was not a fav of mine. I knew I wasn't going to eat the peanut butter, but I didn't wanna waste it.So, I decided to try and see what would happen if I made peanut butter cookies, but used the cinnamon raisin PB instead of regular PB. The result? Absolutely amazing. These are definitely gonna be one of my new favorite recipes! They were so easy to make too!
Here's the recipe:
  Ingredients:
-1 cup(s) all-purpose flour
- 1/2 tsp baking soda
-2 egg whites
- 2 T promise butter
- 1/3 cup(s) sugar
-1 cup cinnamon raisin swirl peanut butter
-1 tsp vanilla extract
-1 cup(s) quick cooking rolled oats
-1/3 cup(s) dark brown sugar
  Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 325F.
2. Combine flour and baking soda in small bowl and set aside.
3. In a separate bowl, using a mixer, lightly beat margarine until soft, then add dry ingredients (sugar and brown sugar) and peanut butter.
4. Beat until smooth, scraping edges as necessary.
5. Add in egg whites and vanilla and mix well.
6. Now add the flour mixture and beat slowly.
7. Fold in oats using a spatula.
8. Drop onto ungreased cookie sheet.
9. These cookies don't spread very much so you can put them fairly close together.
10. Bake 8-10 minutes or until edges turn golden brown.
11. This recipe yields about 28 medium cookies.
12. Each cookie came out at about 82 calories- not too shabby!

Lemon Poppyseed Mini Muffins!

These are SOO yummy!!! The other day I was craving something anything lemon poppyseed, and went to none other than Pinterest (of course!) to find a recipe! I found a lemon poppyseed recipe that was perfect! I found it here! 
Here's the recipe:
  Ingredients:
-1 Tbsp poppy seeds
 -grated lemon zest, for this recipe, use 1 tsp
 -2 T lemon juice
 -1/4 serving(s) light vanilla soymilk
 -1 cup(s) white all-purpose flour
 -1/2 tsp baking soda
 -1 tsp baking powder
 -1/4 tsp table salt
 -3 T Cary's sugar free syrup
 -2 Tbsp sugar
 -1 T promise butter
 Directions:Preheat oven to 355 degrees. Mix dry ingredients. In a separate bowl, mix liquid ingredients (and poppy seeds), then combine and stir until just mixed. Don’t overmix. Pour into mini liners or spray a mini muffin tin with oil, and bake for 10-12 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean. Makes 12 cute lil mini muffins.

Update:

So, since I first made this recipe I've re-experimented with it-I really don't like to use white flour/sugar for things so if interested here is the "cleaner" version:

-1 cup spelt flour instead of white- spelt flour just will give it a nuttier flavor (if freaked out by the fact that they will be more of a brownish color than yellow-don't do this ;) ) 

-1/4 cup unsweetened almond milk - usually what I use for everything

-any sugar-free syrup

-unfortunately the 2 T white sugar are still in there- I haven't experimented with the 2 T stevia yet

-1/4 cup natural NSA applesauce instead of the butter

*Just a couple of ways to make them a little more nutrient dense.*

Enjoy!

It's Been A While!

So, earlier today I was thinking about starting up a blog-mainly because I LOVE to journal and it's a fun way to share different experiences and things that you like to write about (for me: Jesus, Health, Fitness) with anyone else who is even the least bit interested! ;) I went to create my blog and typed in my info and the website told me that I already had a blog!! Well, I started one last summer and...probably had it for about a month and poor little bloggy just kinda died. So, I figured why start another when I can basically pick up where I left off!? Things have changed quite a bit in the past YEAR since I've updated the blog! (Go figure) I GRADUATE COLLEGE (crazy, right?) in December!! I will officially have my Bachelor's Degree in Exercise Physiology and I also just became a certified Personal Trainer (something I have ALWAYS wanted to do)!! At this point in my life I am about to embark on an incredible journey that I feel like would have been completely impossible without the prayers of my friends and family. I was offered an internship-that I REALLY wanted- at UAB Children's Hospital! I will be working under a Clinical Nutritionist. I have orientation this Monday and I could NOT be more excited. Of course, the part of me accepting the internship was the easy part, but the real test will start next week when I begin my work with the hospital. I am a little nervous, just because I am a sensitive girl and can cry at the drop of a hat! I LOVE babies, little kids, etc and seeing them hurting won't be an easy part of what I'll be doing; however, I know the Lord has put me in this place for a very specific reason and I can't wait to see what it is.
    Like last summer, I will HOPEFULLY be chaperoning our sweet youth at my home church to Centrifuge in Jackson, Tennessee the first week of June! If my job permits, then I will be going! I can't wait. It will be my 7th year at Centrifuge and I have loved every year. It's always a great week to be able to worship the Lord in music, preaching, and PLAY!(or nap for the chaperones :) ) Centrifuge has always been very close to my heart because it's a refresher in my walk with Christ. I always learn something new that encourages me in my daily walk with Him. These are just a couple of things that are in store for my summer. I have a few other things planned also...like class(so,fun...) and DISNEY WORLD (one of my most favorite places on the whole EARTH) and family reunions (LOVE my sweet family) and a sports/nutrition kid's camp that I get to lead at University of South Alabama next month!
     Needless to say, the Lord is opening doors everywhere (!) and it's really exciting to be at the place in my life where graduation is soon and then grad school is next...but, at the same time terrifying because I have NO clue where exactly I'm going to live, work, etc. I keep having to remind my Type A personality self that I can't control everything-and that's okay because I'm not supposed to! One of my favorite verses that seems to fit:
*Jeremiah 29:11, "For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future."*

Greater than angels!

Today I started studying Hebrews 1:4-2:18. This morning I just focused on verses 4-14. This whole section shows the superiority of Christ to the angels. It's divided into 3 parts: affirmation, exhortation, and explanation. These verses show 7 quotations from the old testament proving that Christ is superior to the angels. 1. "He is the Son" (v4-5)-this name was uniquely given to Christ alone. 2. "He is the firstborn who receives worship" (v6) -this title is of rank and honor. the angels worshiped Him when He came into the world proving that He is God b/c the angels wouldn't worship just any old creature. 3."He is served by the angels"(v7) -angels are created spirits, they have no bodies (but, can assume human form when serving on earth). they serve both Him and us. 4. "He is God enthroned and anointed" (v8-9)-He is enthroned in glory and His throne is forever and ever. 5. "He is the eternal Creator"(v10-12)-one day He will do away with the old creation and bring in a new creation, but He will never change. 6. "Christ is the sovereign; angels are the servants"(v13-14)-Christ sits at the right hand of the Father (a place of honor).
I know what I read today may have already seemed obvious for those of us who have always grown up in church. I mean we all pretty much know that angels are spirits, Christ is Lord, the old is gonna pass away and He is gonna make a new creation, etc. But, it's always good to restudy these things and become aware of them again. B/c so many times we become wrapped up in other things that we don't take time to stop and realize that He IS real, He DOES reign forever, and He IS greater than all else!

My mind has been blown!

SO, whenever i decided to study through Hebrews, I really didn't know why the Lord had pushed me in that direction. I mean honestly I knew like one verse by heart out of Hebrews...maybe! i know a lot of verses, but Hebrews seemed like such a random book to study. But, I listened and here I am and my mind has been blown tonight. It's about my third day of studying Hebrews and I've really been focusing on chapters 1 and 2. Warren Wiersbe is an absolute genius and his commentary-like I've said in previous posts-is wonderful. Throughout the past spring semester at school I've had so much trouble staying consistent in my relationship with the Lord. Either school got in the way or work or just plain busy life and I was completely drifting away when I knew the Lord should be first EVERYDAY. So, as I was reading my commentary tonight Wiersbe pointed out several statements that convicted me and I just kept thinking, "oh my goodness, that's what I was going through. this is exactly what happened to me." and I just kept saying, "this makes so much sense now! thanks Lord. this is awesome. i get it." It wasn't until tonight that I truly understood why the Lord has me studying Hebrews. And there may be other reasons also, but I think a lot of it is to teach me. Warren Wiersbe mentions 5 exhortations in Hebrews and they are 1. drifting from the word. 2. doubting the word 3. dullness toward the word. 4. despising the word. 5. defying the word. ~all of these things completely meant for people who are truly born again, but if we get away from the word these are the effects. He also mentions that Hebrews is a book of Examination. We've got to make sure that we have our feet on a solid foundation of faith. One of the quotes that Wiersbe uses that he says he thinks is the key message of Hebrews is: "You can be secure while everything around you is falling apart." (b/c God's word is steadfast :] ) It's also a book of Expectation. He talks about living for the permanent and things that are eternal instead of living for the immediate and things that are going to pass away. He gives the example of Abraham and Lot. Lastly, he says it is a book of Exaltation. When you first start to read Hebrews it immediately describes Christ as high and holy and the entire book keeps this theme. This was to prove that He was higher than the prophets, which were the men that were held in highest ranking to the Jews (since this book was written to Jewish Christians). I like when Warren Wiersbe explains how Jesus Christ and God are one. He uses this illustration: Jesus Christ is to the Father what the rays of the sun are to the sun. He is the radiance of God's glory. You can't separate the sun's rays from the sun just like you can't separate Christ's glory from the nature of God.
All of the previous posts including this one have all stemmed from Hebrews 1:1-3. Yes, only three verses. If all of this came out of 3 verses, I'm extremely excited to see what the Lord has in store for the next few chapters. Starting tomorrow I'll be concentrating on Hebrews 1:4-2:18 :)

Saturday :)

Finally the weekend! I was so glad I finally got to sleep in this morning! I've been so lazy this morning, but have been reading in my new book, which by the way, I think everyone should buy b/c it's excellent! :) It's the one in the picture I posted today. It's the commentary I'm reading on Hebrews. Warren Wiersbe explains it really well. So, anyway before I continued studying Hebrews this morning, I did my daily devotional in my 'Experiencing God' book. Today was called 'A way that seems right.' The verse was out of Proverbs 16:25. It basically talked about how Satan can trick people into thinking that they are headed down the right path when really the path that they are taking is leading them to death. People seek God when the Spirit awakens our hearts and gives us a desire for Him and His word. We can't assume that every opportunity is from the Lord and we've gotta seek guidance in Him before making a decision. We need to trust Him as He leads us.
Next, I read about another characteristic of the Book of Hebrews. "it is a book of exhortation" exhortation can be translated as encouragement, comfort, or consolation. It talks about how this book is meant to encourage us. It opens up with "God...has spoken to us" and near the end closes with, "See to it that you don't refuse Him who is speaking." I like the way Warren Wiersbe put it-"God has spoken. We have His word. What are we doing about it?" This is a convicting statement as well b/c it makes you really think What AM I doing about it? In my daily life how am I showing people that I'm living daily in God's will?
Warren Wiersbe goes on to explain 5 "problem passages" or "warnings" in the book of Hebrews. I only read about the first today and it comes out of chapter 2:1-4. it's "drifting from the word" or neglect. If we don't really hear God's word then we drift from it. Neglect always leads to drifting-obviously. If you're not in God's word daily then you're neglecting it and will eventually drift away from Him and your walk won't be as strong.