A Letter to the Best Food Storage Systems EVER

Dear Fit N Fresh:

Thanks for making the best storage containers for my work lunches ever. Seriously, you guys rock. Gone are my days of carrying bags of tupperware around, with multiple containers that risked disintegration and spillage at every narrow doorway. Instead, I have one container that stays cold and allows me to bring multiple things for lunch every day.

Today I'm enjoying your Lunch Chiller, although I also have your Breakfast Chiller and your Lunch On The Go box that compete for my affections. And look at how great Lunch Chiller is doing at keeping my food cold and separated:

So thanks, thanks for providing products that allow me to eat a healthful lunch without having to carry around a bag full of plastic containers. And thanks for making your products pretty snazzy-looking, too. Even though you aren't as cute as Bentos I still love you.

--Becca

P.S. 1/4 cup ricotta with strawberries and granola on the left; stir-fried tofu, collard greens, broccoli and red bell pepper on the right.

Notebooks and To-Do Lists

I missed my bus to work this morning because I couldn't find my List Book. And then I realized - why does this silly little notebook matter so much to me? Are other people as dependent on notebooks as I am? I seriously cannot leave for work unless I have both of these in my purse/somewhere else easily accessible:

My two babies.

The one on the left is my food/exercise journal - I do write down everything that I eat/drink (except vitamins and water), as well as any exercise that I do. I also keep my Fritter Finder spreadsheet in it (weird combo, right? It just fits better in this one than the other one):

Fritter Finder (left) and food/exercise log (right).

The other one is my List Book. It has lists of phone numbers, to-do lists, grocery lists, menu plans, jotted down recipes, work-out plans, etc. in it. Seriously, I lose my marbles without this! It's without a doubt the most important of the two.

A sample page from my List Book.

I used to write lists of stuff I had to do or important numbers on scrap pieces of paper - which led to the problem of them either being unmanageable on a bulletin board, or lost in various bags and stacks. Notebooks are the key to my sanity.

Do you carry around a notebook or planner that you can't live without?

Menu Plan Monday

This week is nothing special dinner-wise... we have a pretty full freezer and fridge at the moment, so I think we'll mostly be using up what we've got! As always, check out Org Junkie's Website for more menu-planners!

P.S. The mac & cheese from last week's menu plan was sooooo gooooood that I wrote a whole post about it. I highly recommend it!

Monday: Stir fry of leftover veggies, served with brown rice

Tuesday: Ravioli from the freezer, served with steamed veggies

Wednesday: Breakfast for dinner - omelettes and Morningstar Sausage Patties and toast

Thursday (class night): Crockpot Vegetarian Chili

Friday: We'll have a friend in town, so probably dinner out

Saturday: Twice Baked Potatoes and baked tofu (marinated in bbq sauce)

Sunday: Leftovers - lazy Sunday!

Valentine's Day

Hope everyone had a happy Valentine's Day yesterday! I took a 2-day break from posting to spend a little quality time with Matt, and doing stuff around the house. I also had a group project meeting yesterday for school (seriously, who meets in the late afternoon for a school project on Valentine's Day??). I've been amazed at all the lovely things with friends, boyfriends, and other loved ones that people have been blogging about in the last 24 hours, so I thought I'd share some of the love I sent and received yesterday as well.

Our delicious Valentine's Day feast!

Matt and I had our feast of fondue (with apples and bread), wine, and love! Matt had cleaned off the table and put the candles on before I got home from school, which was a nice little surprise. Matt was also very surprised by his Valentine's Day present - a pair of Coachella tickets! Afterwards we munched on chocolate chip cookies and brownies and he let me watch 27 Dresses.

Some cards of "love" sent all over the world!

I am also a firm believer that Valentine's Day is for celebrating all of the loving relationships in your life - including friendships! So I sent out about 10 Valentine's Day cards on Friday/Saturday. The one going the furthest will be making it's way to my sister in France - might be a little late!

There are so many special people in my life that it really takes more than a day to celebrate them. Hope you all enjoyed your love-filled days as well!

Project 12 Update!

Well, it's been exactly a month to the day since I wrote about my first foray into the self-help world with the help of Simple Steps. And let me tell you, despite the simplicity of each of the items listed for weeks 1 through 3, they are NOT easy to implement when they're all put together! Even though I've been at this for over a month, I'm just starting on Week 3 of the program.

Honestly, the thing that's held me back from starting (and finishing) Week 3 of the program has mainly been the step that requires taking a multi-vitamin every day. I have some vitamin restrictions that drastically limit the brands/kinds of vitamins I can safely take to... pre-natal vitamins. Yeah. And we're not scaring people with that yet. So I'd been putting it off, until a trip during work to the local drug store when Rachel showed me that some old-school Flintstones Vitamins met my restrictions! YES, I have delicious, kid-friendly multi-vitamins!

Did you know they have adult instructions/vitamin information on the label? They're not just for kids!

Week 3 is already almost half over, so I'm hoping I can get back to the normal week-to-week pace and actually finish this process up. Week 3's steps include: taking a multi-vitamin every day, being aware of posture and breathing (this is hard, I'm such a sloucher!), cleansing and moisturizing daily, and keeping a clear desktop (I'm working on it!). Here are the things that the program has had me actually implement so far - basic, but again, it's a lot to do every day!

• 8 cups of water every day
• Walk 20 minutes every day
• Clean out one drawer/closet every week
• Save $2 every day
• Keep a food journal
• Isometrics every day
• Follow a to-do list daily
• Have an efficient laundry system

I'll give another update in a few weeks as I get further into the process. Wish me luck!

OH. MY. GOSH.

I just made the Macaroni and Cheese with Cauliflower from this week's menu plan, and it was the best. mac. ever.

A close up of a bite.

The only alteration I made was using McMenamin's Terminator Stout Mustard instead of dijon mustard - and maybe using a bit more bread-crumbs. But seriously? This is my new go-to mac recipe. The cauliflower-pasta-cheese blend is perfect! I highly recommend it.

The Dreaded Taxes

Does anyone actually like doing taxes? I personally don't mind it, although I can think of a million other things I'd rather do. But most people I know detest it and either put it off as long as possible, or hire someone/buy a computer program to do it for them. I think maybe I'll be changing my tune at this time next year, though, when there are more elements that I'll have to consider and keep track of.


I guess I'm still lucky in that my taxes are fairly simple and straight forward - I live in a state without an income tax, and my federal taxes consist only of my W-2, savings account earnings, education credits, and my 1040 Form. I still print the 1040 off of the website, fill it in with a pen while consulting my trusty graphing calculator, and mail it in with an old-school stamp. It's not that I'm not computer savvy, I just find it easier to finish them this way without having to worry about internet connections and program time outs, etc. Until the government makes me go paperless (or they get so unmanageable that I can't do them myself), this is how I will continue to roll.

I actually sat down and banged 'em out (with the help of the not-so-easy-to-navigate IRS website) in an hour last night, and was pleased to find that my return will be approximately $750 this year! Hooray! That's by far the biggest return I've ever had, and I'm not quite sure what I want to do with it when it comes. Realistically, most of it will go into savings and paying off my remaining student loans, but it'd be nice to get myself some sort of treat, too.

What are you going to do with your tax return this year?