A birthday wish, A thank you card, and Veggie Chips (a recipe for awesomeness)

I didn't post for you yesterday.. and I apologize! The Caveman and I were celebrating my birthday. 


Isn't it an amazing feeling to know that people are grateful you were born? To have hundreds of people stop their day to demand that YOURS is happy.. 
Try not to smile when you wake up to texts reading: Thank you for existing. Flowers that say Thank you for waking up next to me. A call from your Dad saying Thanks for being my daughter.


But with a birthday comes the stressful month before hand filled with questions about what you WANT.


I've been pretty broke.. so the answers are simple. Candy. I want a big box of chocolates..

 

I want a gift card that will buy me infinity Carmelicious Smoothies with an extra shot of espresso....










                               I want tank tops.. lots of them..














But.. I don't really Need those things. And the more I thought about it.. I don't NEED anything.


What I got was an amazing opportunity!
A friend of mine works for a local TV station and offered me the chance to come promote LockeYoga on their morning show!
Until now, all of my advertising has been through word of mouth among friends and former clients. This was a truly great opportunity and I am so grateful for it!


I'm relatively sure that my nerves got the best of me and I'm completely sure that I didn't say all of what I wanted to.. so I'm going to tell it all to you now.

• LockeYoga means a lot to me. It represents something I've done completely on my own. I didn't have investors or mentors. I didn't have years of experience in the field to get me started. I only had my deep desire to help people who couldn't come to a studio and see what a difference yoga can make. The people who need yoga the most are the ones who can't come to a studio. MS sufferers who worry that they're slowly losing themselves to their disease. Parkinsons patients who struggle to keep up. People with  Fibromyalgia whose bodies attack them without warning. Moms who don't want to leave their little ones behind.

• Whatever reason you have for not working out and not putting yourself first is legitimate. You wouldn't risk your health if it were an option. I've taken sessions at 11pm for people who have uncooperative schedules. I've incorporated the weight of the precious infant you can't bring yourself to put down into a private, in-home class. I've turned chair flow into a game of rocket ships for your 4 year old who 'wants to play yoga, too!'

• I was asked if I had any advice for other entrepreneurs.. and my advice to them is this:

Your business is a relationship. It's going to occupy all of your thoughts and all of your attention.. but you have to make time for your friends and loved ones. They're your support system. You need them.
        If your friends don't believe in your new relationship, the first time you complain about his affinity for drinking out of the carton, he's toast. There will come a day when you're in a horrible mood and you want to call it a day.. and they're all for it. No questions asked. End it.


And when your business gets difficult, (And it WILL get difficult) an unsupportive friend would help to convince you that you should accept a different job. Give it up and cut your losses.


That's why it's important, not just for business owners, but for ANYONE, to make friends with people who believe in you. I could never have come as far as I have without my friends and The Caveman. 
When I called my sister H crying, telling her I didn't know if I was going to make it.. she listened. Let me cry. Asked if I NEEDED anything. No.. I just don't know what I'm doing!


Yes you do, Sara. You've always known what you were doing. Keep trusting yourself. This is just a rough patch.


As I moved in with The Caveman I had to explain that I had never been a person to rely on anyone.. and that it was difficult for me to move in without a guaranteed paycheck.. maybe I should just take that bartending job I was offered??? 


No Sara. You've been trying to do this for a long time. I know it's hard and I know money will be tight for you, but if you need anything, just tell me. I promise, it's going to be ok. 


And 2 and a half years ago when I told my best friend that there was a need in Omaha I didn't feel was being met... something I thought I might be good at.. and would it be a terribly stupid idea to start my own small business..?


He sent me a congratulatory bottle of wine to toast my future success and lent his services as a photographer to help me put my website together.




My sister L turned my Logo photo into a sign to hang in my home as a Christmas gift.


My friend Jenny at Jenacious Inc built my site and cheered me on.. 


So what could I possible want for my birthday?
What could I ever ask for that could make my life better than it is? More time to spend with these amazing people.. but time isn't something that can be given. 
A better vocabulary to more eloquently thank the people who have loved me and believed in me since the first time I had to portion a jar of pickles as a week's worth of dinners... 


No.. What I want for my birthday is to help make someone else's life easier, like my loved ones have done for me. 


And I want you to help me!


I'm having a food and clothing drive and I want your unwanteds!
I've already collected hundreds of pounds and I'm calling The Open Door Mission tomorrow to beg them to accept our offerings. I'll be collecting until I've hit 700 pounds of donated goods. I'm so excited that my friends are so loving and caring and willing to help better the lives of people who are struggling in our city.


Thank you so much my beautiful, loving readers. I'm so incredibly thankful for every day I wake up to the life I share with you all! 


Veggie Chips!!!! 


Stuff you'll need:


Couple of sweet potatoes
1 bunch of beets
Turnips
Carrots
Sea Salt
Bacon Grease, Butter, Beef Tallow... Ok, you get it. Some kind of animal fat =)
Cinnamon (optional)


Turn on your broiler.. this is gonna go fast ;)
Either carefully slice your root veggies on a mandolin or be a cheating cheater like me and throw it in your food processor with the slicer blade

 
Drizzle your fat of choice and your sea salt onto your veggies and place in a single layer on your baking sheet. Broil for JUST A FEW MINUTES!!! Our dead battery in the kitchen smoke detector can attest to why you need to stay on top of this... 
Pull your veggies out and turn them. Toss em back in.. You get the idea. Easy Peasy =) =)

Take another little Pizza my heart now, baby..

Every now and again, I Benjamin Button.

Throw a tantrum.. pout. Kick stuff. Call everyone stoopid fayce dummy!

Seems that it's happened significantly more in the last 365 days. 

I feel I can draw an almost exact line from the time I was a real grown up who got through her day with a smile on her face and the last time Pizza passed my lips. 

Pizza. 

Not Paleo Meatza, which is NOT pizza. Not close. It's lots of meat with lots of cheese on it. I. Do. Not. Like. It. 

I want Pizza.

I capitalize Pizza like some people capitalize their children's names. The reason is simple. I have no children.. and thus, love Pizza more than I love any human. Even YOU!

Well. Maybe. I love a few of you quite an awful lot... 

But the fact remains. Something has been missing in my life. Something fundamental and meaningful. 

Something... Real.

I came to The Caveman in tears explaining I simply can't go on this way. Something has to change. A girl has needs and mine were not being satisfied. 

Cold. Hard. Truth.

He took the news pretty hard. We've been such faithful cave kids this last year.. shuddering at the thought of a cheat.. but he wants me to be happy. 

On the verge of a phone call to the hut of Pizza.. a game changer.

We found other paleo peoples who had the same needs as this cavegirl.. and could not be satisfied by bacon woven into a crust.

(Abrabacon is an enormous fan of this type of meatza.. and that's just fine. But when he makes it, I eat scrambled eggs)

This, my hungry friends.. is what we came up with:

PIZZA!!!! (With a Cream Cheese Crust)

Be warned.. this recipe is NOT for the Dairy Wary..

Stuff you're gonna need:

4 oz cream cheese

1/4 cup Grated Parmesan (Do it yourself, silly.. it's soooo much better that way)

8 oz Mozzarella (see above)

1 egg

Garlic powder

Oregano

Basil

Grate your cheese...

Mix Cream Cheese and Egg until they're light and fluffy. Blend in seasonings and add your cheeses. Mix into a batter...

Line your pan with Parchment Paper (Not Foil!! I know this is a picture of foil.. and that's why I can tell you NOT FOIL! For the love of Pete! NOT FOIL!)

And Butter your parchment.. cuz you can't be TOO careful =) =) 

Chop up some veggies.. Brown some Italian Sausage...

It is highly recommended that while you wait for your crust to bake, you snack heartily on olives and pepperoni.

And then bake it at 325 for about 20 minutes (or until it looks about like this guy) and carefully flip it.. you want both sides crispy =) =) =)

Treat it like the incredible culinary relationship it truly is.

Sauce. Mushrooms. Olives <3. Green Peppers....

Or EVERY MEAT EVER!!!

And when it looks like this (ish)

Pop it back in the oven until it's all warm and perfect <3

****I would suggest that you do not add cheese on top of this guy.. the crust is very rich.. delicious.. but rich. SO. Adding cheese on top makes it TOO much****

I woke up and birds were chirping.. the sun was shining.. the dog was dogging..

I dunno. You get it.

Sometimes.. food IS love.

And sometimes.. SOMETIMES..

It's Pizza.

Adventure or Bust.. A sunny winter Omaha tour and Our Dinner with Al Capone

One of my many failings as a ninja of happiness is my readiness to wilt when the sunshine has been taken away. I wither.. I fade. 
But.. I got an early birthday present this weekend... a sunny Saturday afternoon <3
The Caveman took this opportunity to take me for a walk.
We headed to a few little shops here and there and made a point to each show the other a place we'd never been. 
I took the boy to Penzey's, where we touched, taste, and smelled EVERY SINGLE SPICE in the shop. I was surprised he'd never been there before and we found some fantastic little gems. We also found out that your nose burns and you start sneezing after 12 minutes.
He took ME to Countryside Village.
He is staunchly opposed to caffeine consumption, but understands that a girl has needs.. so he brought me into The Village Grinder where I struggled to decide between a peanut butter mocha and the salted caramel (caramel won the day.. but just BARELY.. I'll be back for you, PB!)
This adorable little coffee shop (which employs only absolutely kind and clever baristas) is attached to The Bookworm. Books AND coffee... Grawr <3 <3

 

After an extended conversation with the proprietor about why vampires are a thing right now (It was decided that Cyborgs were in vogue when the Caveman was a teenager.. and that the vampire reign is just about over.. make way for Zombies) I was dragged kicking and screaming from the lovely establishment.

We found ourselves in Ferd's 

Before heading to Wohlner's.. Where we found.... Him.

This is an Al Capone Roast.

Never heard of one? Neither had we..

It is a pork roast pounded flat. It is then lined with Italian Sausage, Salami, and Provolone cheese.

I sprinkled the top with Garlic, Pepper, Basil, and Oregano.

Baked at 350 for 20 minutes per pound.

It was really reminiscent of many Brat/Italian sammich kind of meals I've had in the past, so I decided to slice some onione, red, orange, and yellow peppers.. halve some cherry tomatoes and throw them all in a skillet with some butter. Pan roasted them down into a tender, gooey, sweet, and vaguely spicy (I tossed some crushed red pepper in there while I was at it) side.. 

And just for good measure, I warmed up some kraut to serve with it.

It.

Was.

Magical.

The Packers may not have won (seriously.. did they? We had company but I do my best to ignore the shouting coming to, and from the television on game day) but this meal was a perfect success <3

Happy fooding, my friends!

Grabbing life by the bawls.. How I learned to cry it out, live up to my name, and get it together in time to put a roast in the oven....

I'm currently putting myself through a 30 day cleanse.. Cutting sugar and salt and drinking obscene amounts of water. Sweating for 2 hours a day. Giving away all of the things that still live in the garage (If I've lived without them for this long, I likely can continue living without them..)
In addition, I've started teaching a Mommy and Me class twice a week.. which is exciting!
AND! I've been invited to be interviewed on a local morning show for my business!


EXCITING!


But as I start checking things off of life's to-do list, I develop this crushing feeling. As I rush through each day, I just chalk it up to my constant busy-ness.. 
But now I've had time to stop and think. 
The overwhelming feeling is that I'm almost done.
My list isn't that much longer and is comprised of things like.. get married. Have babies.. move to a sleepy coastal town just outside a bustling city and raise a family.
Not things to step on the gas pedal for.. things you hit coast and slow down. Look around. 


So I cry a little sometimes. Because my right now isn't.. much.. enough. You know?
I just feel like.. There's gotta be more to life...


So here's what I need to do.. find that THING. The thing I've been afraid to do. The thing I always wanted and didn't think I deserved. I'm going to cry.. but crying isn't giving up. It's taking fear out of your heart to make room for more strength.. 
I'm going to stop trying to figure out who I am. I'm BEING who I am. Who I always was. 


I've been a business woman.. worn suits and heels and makeup to work every day at 7am. Worked 60 and 70 hours a week and used phrases like 'Every dollar not spent goes straight to our bottom line' and 'Tell the coffee guy that if he brings me decaf again he's going to be #46 in the 100 worst ways to die'
It didn't suit me.
I've been the super perky manager of a gym.. bouncing from the front desk through cardio, cheering people on.. hopping back to the weight room to say hi to The Caveman (before he was a caveman and I was a ninja) 

I've been a hippie yoga instructor. 




I've been Marry Poppins.

I changed my job.. I changed my hair.

But then I figured it out...

I just needed to change my perspective =) =)  (those are 3 of my gorgeous sisters, by the way...)
I have EVERYTHING. EVERYTHING! Look at my family.. those girls in that picture? They love me. A lot.
I've got yoga.. and I LOVE it <3
I have my volunteer ventures.. I am so grateful that even tho I don't have all the things I feel like a socially acceptable person keeps in her closet, I have enough to give to people who truly DON'T have what they need. NEED. And who cares about socially acceptable?? 
I've got Juno on my shoulder and Sasha on my legs. And I've got my Happiness Ninja-ing (the duties of which I have still not revealed ;) )

I have a boy who lets me cook for him and beat him in boggle.

I have a few close friends I can call when it's cry time.. friends who will hold my hand until I get to where I am today.. remembering that life is mine to take. And I'm taking it..

So, for the record. My life is amazing. Sometimes, I cry.. but when the awesomeness is used up, it just leaves my body through my eyeballs =) 
I have to decide.. India, or Rome? Input. Please!!! I have decided that 2012 will be the year of Adventure!
I had given up on the idea after how terribly 2011 shaped up.. but I've decided that there are no more excuses. I'm going. 
In the mean time.. wanna see the roast I made the other night? It was delicioussss!!!!

Starts easy peasy with a nice Chuck roast... Pat it dry with some paper towels, Salt it up, and sear it on High heat in a skillet.


Chop up some Carrots, Onions, Garlic Cloves, Celery, Mushrooms, Potatoes if you wanna.... whatever you like! 

Place your beautifully seared beef on top of your veggies and throw some Bay Leaves on top.
You can deglaze the pan you seared in with white wine, beer, beef stock.. whatever you fancy (I'm watching my salt so I just used water) Once the pan is deglazed, add the liquid to your roasting pan with your veggies and beef. When you have about 1/2 inch of liquid in the bottom of your pan, throw your lid on and toss it in a 275 degree oven for 4 hours (ovens vary, yada yada..)


Try to leave it in the oven until it's done.. around the 2 hour mark it's going to smell so good you're going to be in some trouble.. TRY to wait!! You'll be glad you did =) =) =)

Carrot Ginger soup

Mid-week recipe for you lovelies today =) Easy and warm and delicious <3
Also, I know a few of you are doing beginning of the year cleanses.. this soup is a delicious addition to any detox diet!


1 medium onion, diced

3 cups carrots, diced
1/2 inch ginger, peeled and grated
1 tbsp curry powder (optional for added heat)
6 cups of filtered water
Fresh parsley to garnish
Sea salt to taste

Place vegetables in a medium saucepan, and add ginger and water. Bring to a boil.
Lower heat, and let simmer until vegetables are soft, about 15 minutes.
Place all ingredients in a blender and blend until creamy. While soup is still in the blender, add salt to taste. You can also add more ginger at this point.
Pour blended soup back in saucepan, reheat, and enjoy!

Five Minute Fixes!! -And giving the gift of homemade-

While moving from my condo (a grown-up clubhouse, really) to the cave with Mr. Bacon, I began to notice a small hoarding problem. Specifically, fitness magazines.
Yoga Journal, Yoga at Home, Women's Health, In-Shape, Muscle and Fitness Hers... 4 years worth of subscriptions. Instead of throwing them away, I always keep them.. hoping that one day the promises on the cover will manifest in my life.

They're always pretty similar tho, yeah?
Great Glutes in 10 days!
Lose 1 dress size THIS WEEK!
5 quick fixes for figure flaws!
10 years younger in 10 steps!


I decided to go through and just pull these specific articles.. if I did ALL of them at once, at least ONE of them would work, right?


4 weeks.
I gained 6 pounds.


This was the beginning of a realization.. 
But I continued my research.


Get his attention! (and keep it) 5 steps to keep your man satisfied!
Find calm and balance in just 10 days!
Get out of debt! Your 15 step guide to financial freedom!!
Get a raise (and the respect you deserve!) Our get-rich-quick guide


Then I realized why none of them work.
I'm not expected to follow all 10 steps.
I'm not expected to stick with it for a whole week... So the first steps just need to make me feel miserable enough to think it's doing something. The middle step needs to be hard enough to make me quit. They never expected me to realize the last several steps do absolutely nothing. 
Because if I had that kind of discipline, I wouldn't NEED to learn 5 steps to fatten my savings account. I would already have my account set up to automatically transfer a percentage of each paycheck into my savings account. (more accurately, I would have the discipline to LEAVE it there once it's transfered...)


And instead of getting out of debt, I'm going to spend $22 a month on magazines trying to sell me debt-reduction.
Send me $29.99 and I'll send YOU my book on how to get people to send you $29.99!!!!


But I AM expected to have an unquenchable desire to better myself. 
And I do!
But there's a reason that even after you've bought a subscription, each magazine comes with an insert to subscribe. They're trying to plant seeds.. hoping that you take your magazine with you to the gym and it can drop those inserts and they will germinate in a land of insecurity. Another person will pick it up and see the 5 minute problem fixers and hope that it will be the answer to their prayers.
And when they see what a together, confident, successful person just dropped this insert... Well. Maybe if I subscribe as well, I can have great glutes like You!!


That's how they got me.


Now, I have a 3 step program to get great arms, de-clutter my life, and reduce anxiety and self-judgement!!


Step 1: Lift 4 years of magazine subscriptions.
Step 2: Carry them to the recycle bin.
Step 3: Stop listening to glossy pages. I'm pretty fantastic.. 


I feel 2 dress sizes smaller already =)


How Scrooge got her Groove back..


My friend LaLa and I use to do our Christmas shopping together. This year.. we didn't. We were both financially strapped. Stressed. Time strained... We use to hang out 4 days a week. This year, maybe once or twice a month. I started really feeling the loss of this friendship this winter as I realized we didn't have any pictures together this year.
And as Christmas approached and I headed to the dreadful mall solo, her absence was palpable. I HATE shopping. But LaLa makes it tolerable.. 
I re-wrote my list while sitting in Panera. I wrote everyone up for matching dirty looks and a touch of disdain.
I had lost my Christmas spirit. GONE! And worse.. I had lost my self. I'm a positive person.. or WAS anyway.
Then one day, she messaged me to ask which movie she should go to. There was a visually stunning animated film coming out.. and then there was the Lars Von Trier being released one week later.
We made a date to meet some friends for the latter. 
We didn't sit by each other. We didn't really talk.. 
Except when she complained about the new band I had just found and was excited about..
But it was a silly night like a million silly nights.. 


The next day, I found her the perfect tshirt. It's one of her favorite bands with an outline of a shark jaw.. You'd have to know her to realize this IS the perfect shirt...


And when we exchanged gifts, she gave me a jar of home-made roasted veggie marinara. She wanted to give something thoughtful, not consumerist. She's posting the recipe here this weekend, so check back!! So delicious!!!! It's vegan, so you can serve it to ANYONE.. it's delicious on EVERYTHING. Literally. I put it on more roasted veggies. Meat. Parmesan crisps. EVERYTHING!

5 minute fix to a bad mood? Call your friend. Watch a stupid movie and make some delicious food.
You'll be you again in no time =)

New Year's Revolution!! Bacon Ice cream and Meatballas (not at the same time!)

Happy New Year!!!


Happy... Arbitrary time to decide to start over.
We have New everything.. all the time. 
Our diets will always start on Monday.. even though it's been proven that diets started on Mondays are least effective. Followed closely by diets started for the new year.
We always start going to the gym on Mondays or right after January 1st. At the gym I managed, we called them 'New Year's Resolutioners'.
We figured them into the budget through February. After that, only 30% of them still come. 
Mondays were always really busy.. all day. By Thursday, we cut 2 people from staff. 
Yet every Monday, you try again. Every Monday you start out with a good breakfast and pack your gym bag in your car on the way to work. You aren't ready to give up.. and you shouldn't.


And today just seems like a day to wipe the slate clean. You're hoping that 2012 will be the year IT will happen.. and it probably can! If only you can get that fresh start...


And what is that fresh start?


Is it health? You just want to be able to say that 2012 is the year you didn't smoke.. and you needed this fresh start to say 'December 31, 2011 was my last cigarette!'
'I worked out 3 times a week, every week of this year.'


Is it more goal oriented? This will be the year you practice your Spanish Every Day.. You will take piano lessons. You will floss.
Really what we're trying to accomplish is: This is the year I forgive myself. I forgive myself for not sticking with a goal. I forgive myself for not being everything I know I can be. 
It's not the fear of other people's judgement that keeps us from trying harder. It's the fear of our disappointment in ourself.
So if you want a clean slate, allow yourself to have it this time. 
You're the only one who has stopped yourself  from being the person you know you REALLY are.


This has to start with being honest with yourself about what you can truly accomplish.


How long have you been short selling yourself? Making small goals so you KNOW you can accomplish them? Writing 'brush teeth' on your daily checklist, just so you can check something off by the end of the day?
I know you. I do.. And you're selling yourself short.
Please let this be the year you forgive yourself. 
Please let this be the year you reach so much further than you were brave enough to try for before.
I'm so excited for your New Year! I'm so excited to see what this world looks like next Christmas because you finally allowed yourself to be your incredible self! 


*climbs down off soap box*


So.. uhm. Oh ya!! You guys want a recipe?? 


Sorry to those of you who asked for the Maple Bacon ice cream info on Friday.. My incredible family had it's Christmas party yesterday and I got quite enveloped =) 
I love them... quite an awful lot =) =) =)


The ice cream starts with an Ice cream machine... but I bet you could get it done with a medium metal bowl, a large metal bowl, rock salt, and ice!! (and a whole lotta elbow grease...)
Aside from that, easy peasy!!

• 32 oz Coconut milk
• 2/3 cup pure maple syrup (ours comes in a jug that says Orange Juice.. his fam tapped it for us!)
• 2 tsp vanilla extract
• 3 strips of cooked bacon

Once the ice cream had solidified, The Caveman simply crumbled the cooked bacon into the ice cream churn and let it go another minute or two until it was mixed =) 




Meat Balla... A New Christmas Tradition!


The Caveman and I had a pretty low key Christmas Eve. We rented some silly movies off Netflix and lounged around in jammy pants all day. Pretty great, really =)
But I wanted something special-ish for dinner.. so we decided on a meat ball tour of the world! Haha.. Somehow, the things we do sound even sillier when I'm typing them...
All American Bacon Cheese Balla

• Ground beef
• bacon, chopped finely
• onion
• cheese (I believe we used cheddar...)
• salt and pepper to taste

Mix your raw chopped bacon and finely minced onion into your seasoned raw beef. Form into balls and bake at 375 for 20-30 minutes until cooked through. Melt cheese in a fondue pot, double boiler, or your trusty rusty microwave and dip =) Serve with pickles and Ketsup for your all American bacon cheese MeatBalla!


Ciao Italia

• Ground beef
• Minced onion
• Mozzarella
• Parmesan
• basil
• garlic
• salt and pepper

Season your beef and work shredded mozz into your mixture. Ball it up and bake like above.. Top with grated Parm and serve with your favorite Marinara!

Grecian Delight

• Ground beef (or lamb, if you're shmancy.. which we weren't that night)
• green peppers
• onion
• crumbled feta
• rosemary
• garlic

You're catching on =)
Serve on a big bed of Romaine with cucumber and tomato or dip in Tzaziki =) =) 

Cheers to 2012 my friends =)
Cheers to your clean slate <3