Thinking Out Loud #8

This week has felt so long for a multitude of reasons, like food poisoning, and I'm really just ready for it to be the weekend. The Michigan v. Michigan State game is on this weekend and that is a HUGE deal. It's a really big rivalry and I'm pumped to watch some good football and just relax. Once again get ready for a whole bunch of randomness in this weeks thinking out loud...

1. One more reason to love fall is for all the yummy squash. I eat squash pretty much year round but nothing tastes better than fresh squash in the fall. My grocery store finally has a giant selection of squash in and I couldn't be happier. I just roasted my first buttercup squash, my favorite, of the fall and have been eating it mashed all week😋

2. Bob's Red Mill oatmeal cups are seriously a life savor! I was traveling this past weekend and didn't have access to my kitchen but I still wanted to oats after my morning runs so I packed two of these to go cups. All you have to do is add hot water and let it sit for 3 minutes and BAMB done! I packed some fruit to throw in with the oats because doesn't everyone travel with fruit😜 

3. Speaking of getaways while we were out in Grand Rapids we trekked out to Grand Haven which is one of my favorite places. I could stay at the beach forever because it's so peaceful. Watching the waves and soaking up the sunshine is my idea of a perfect day. My soul felt so free at the beach and nothing beat walking along the beach with my favorite person. I was really sad that the pier which goes out to the lighthouse was closed because it is being rebuilt. We walked along the boardwalk and all along the beach. It hasn't even been a week but I miss the beach so much. 

4. I have a new favorite hangout place in Grand Rapids- Z's Bar and Restaurant. I talked about it in yesterday's post. It had a super casual atmosphere and tons of TV's so it was great for a night of football watching. They also make an insanely delicious margarita. Next time I am in town I will definitely be back.

5. Once I got over food poisoning (again see yesterday's post) I made the drive to an area health food store to pick up a few items. I needed some fruit so I picked up raspberries and blackberries because they were both on sale, but I also nabbed two packages of Purely Elizabeth granola because they were on sale 2 for $10! While I was there I also picked up a tropical trail mix sans nuts because I can't have the fats and they had Wild Friends pumpkin spice so I picked up one jar to include in a care package since nut butters still makes me sick😭 

6. Yesterday I was on the go all day, I actually got to wear heels and dressy clothes so I was pumped- I love an excuse to dress up and yes I am wearing purple pants. But because I had a prior engagement at 11am and couldn't pack a lunch I was stuck eating what I could carry on me. I packed a chocolate sea salt rxbar, my favorite flavor, and I had a banana in the car for once I got out. I don't normally have days like this but the rxbar did it's job of holding me over and not making me feel sick like other protein bars. 

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7. I'll end on lucky number seven again this week and leave you with this beautiful quote. I came across it while scrolling through Pintrest and loved it immediately. My mom always used to tell me that material things don't last forever but someone would never forget how you made them feel.

Have a great Thursday everyone! Do you have any fun weekend plans? Are you a college football (or sports) fan in general?

Weekend Dets and Eats

Happy Wednesday! Even though it's halfway through the week it's not too late to share a weekend dets and eats is it? It's been awhile since I've shared one and I had a pretty fun weekend for once that involved getting out and actually doing something-> wut🙆

Friday I was finally starting to feel a little bit better, this flare has been kicking my butt, but I was able to get normal food again. As much as I love oatmeal eating it for a week straight because it's the only thing I could keep down was a tad much. Friday I made a quick lunch before heading out to Grand Rapids for the weekend to celebrate one of my best friends birthdays. Lunch is one gluten free O'Dough's bagel thins topped with avocado, organic turkey breast, peach salsa, and goat cheese paired with a peach. 

After eating lunch and loading up the car I headed out to Grand Rapids. I was seriously craving Mexican food so we headed to On the Border for dinner. It was still happy hour when we got there and they had a special on margaritas so we got one and I split it with my boyfriend. I got a burrito bowl with chicken and it was SO GOOD😍 I didn't use the dressing that came with it but it seriously hit the spot and satisfied my Mexican craving (except I'm craving it again writing this).

We were pretty lame on Friday night and stayed in, hung out, and watched movies. Technically we watched Jeopardy first (because we are really 80 years old) but we were all getting angry because the categories were so stinking hard! I'm normally fairly decent at Jeopardy but the questions were ridiculously hard. Despite being up late I still hit the mini gym for a sweat ses before getting the day started. I got in four miles while upping the speed every few minutes and then I walked for a few minutes to cool down along with doing some stretching.

After cleaning up we headed over to my boyfriends cross country meet, which happened to be in Grand Rapids. We watched the guys race, holy smokes some of them are so fast!, and we stayed for most of the girls race before heading out to get some food and take a nap. After lunch and a mini nap we headed out to one of my all time favorite places- Grand Haven. I love being at the beach in Grand Haven because it's so relaxing, it's definitely one of my happy places. It was a gorgeous fall day with a light breeze and even though it was chilly it was perfect for walking along the beach and just enjoying each others company. 

By the time we left the beach it was getting close to dinner time, our stomachs let us know that loud and clear😋, so we headed to Carrabba's. I knew we were going to have a wait ahead of us because it was a Saturday night so I had part of the coconut chocolate rxbar I had packed, no one needs to be subjected to a hangry Rachael- it's not pretty😳 luckily I had a snack because we waited over an hour and a half to get our food and the restaurant was not even that busy. We were so frustrated because it was just pasta dishes and a salad for me. When we finally got our food there were pieces of chicken on mine that were not cooked all the way through and the dishes did not come out all at the same time. We were incredibly frustrated but luckily our waitress was great and the restaurant picked up our tab. Sadly we ended up getting food poisoning from there so needless to say Sunday and Monday were not a fun days and we will not be going back. 

By the time we left the restaurant we were frustrated (little did we know what was coming😳) and tired. We wanted to go out but we headed back for a quick nap first. Around 10 we headed downtown to head to Mojo's which is an awesome dueling piano bar in downtown Grand Rapids, but the place was packed so we ended up walking down the street to Z's Bar and Restaurant. It had a very chill atmosphere, the service was great and there were tons of TV's so we ended up watching the end of the MSU v. Maryland game as well as the OSU v. Penn State game, the cubs game and post game celebration, and the end of Red Wings game. We all ordered some drinks, I got a margaritas and it was one of the best margaritas I've ever had. It was so nice to just hangout together, relax and watch some sports- it was seriously an awesome night for sports🙌 next time we are in Grand Rapids we will definitely be hitting up Z's again. 

Despite not feeling the best we headed home Sunday morning. My food poisoning didn't hit until Sunday afternoon and it was not a fun 36 hours. Thankfully I am doing fine now, but I don't think anyone will want Italian food again for a very long time🙊

How was your weekend? 
Did you do anything or go anywhere?

Stovetop Protein Oats

Happy Monday! I hope you had a great weekend and got to enjoy some beautiful fall weather. I ventured out to Grand Rapids to celebrate one of my best friends birthdays and we had a great time hanging out and enjoying the city. As much as I love getting away for a weekend I love coming home to my kitchen and my regular gym. I definitely missed my regular morning oats while I was gone. 

Speaking of oats I tried stovetop oats for the first time and holy smokes they're so good!! I have been missing out on some seriously dreamy, creamy oats for a long time😋 Last week I was not feeling good so I practically lived off oatmeal but I wanted to switch things up so I opted to make stovetop oats. Now I'm in love and knew I had to share because they're so good.

Stovetop Protein Oats

• 1/2 cup GF oats
• 1 cup unsweetened vanilla almond milk
• pinch cinnamon
• 2 Tablespoons plant based protein (I like Nutiva hemp protein and Bob's Red Mill)

In a medium pot bring almond milk to a boil. 

When almond milk starts boiling stir in oats and cinnamon and turn heat down to medium. 

Stir oats occasionally for 1-2 minutes, or according to directions on oatmeal container.

Just before removing oats from heat stir in 2 Tablespoons of protein powder. 

When everything is fully mixed remove oats from heat, scoop into a bowl and add your favorite toppings.