Black Friday craziness

My sister and I attempted to go black friday shopping after Thanksgiving....and we were wildly unsuccessful!

crazy people

This year many of the sales started at 10pm. For some reason  I assumed the stores would close around 8pm and then open up again at 10pm. But that was not the case. The stores were open the entire day, and people started putting merchandise in their carts super early! I have no idea how early, but it could have been at any time during the day. Then, they waited in line until the clock turned 10pm and checked out. Therefore, when my sister and I showed up at 9:15, there was nothing left on the shelves for us to even try to purchase! SCAM! I don't think it was fair for the stores to allow people to stock pile their carts. What's more, is that I don't think those people really got to spend Thanksgiving with their families! They were busy at the store all day!

My sister when we first arrived---before we had any idea that there was no chance we'd find anything!

What about you? Did you attempt Black Friday shopping, and if so were you successful? Next year I'm going to shop online!

Thanksgiving wrap-up

I hope you all had a wonderful Thanksgiving! My family had a great one. I made a side dish from a Martha Stewart Thanksgiving recipe. It was honey glazed roasted veggies, including parsnips, sweet potatoes and carrots. It was as homemade as can be--I dug the veggies out of the garden before preparing!

I was supposed to roast these veggies, but my mom was hogging the oven with all of her other dishes, so I used a pan. It turned out great!

My mom made most of the other dishes---mashed potatoes, broccoli salad, brussel sprouts, turkey, gravy and stuffing.

My dad carving the turkey

my plate

homemade pumpkin spice latte's for dessert

the best part of Thanksgiving-- my niece!

feeding her a bottle

Shane and Natalie

Shane and I

and....pie!

After we ate, I promptly fell into a deep sleep. When I woke up, Natalie was in her swing in front of me and she was just staring at me. So sweet. Later, Shane's family came over to help us eat more pie.

How was your Thanksgiving?

Happy Thanksgiving!

Hello dear readers! I hope you are all beginning to enjoy your long Thanksgiving weekend, or will be soon!

I love this outdoor Thanksgiving table. This is absolutely not possible in Portland, Oregon, but a girl can dream! This year my family is doing what we usually do....staying home and cooking dinner! We don't have any family close by to share the holiday with, and for years it was just the four of us. This year we have my niece for her first Thanksgiving! The house will be busier with her there:) My mom and I started going to a Zumba class on Thanksgiving morning last year and hopefully that will become a tradition! Her Zumba teacher offers an extra class at 9am on Thanksgiving morning to work off those extra calories before you even eat them! It's a great work-out and super fun, too!

Comment with your favorite Thanksgiving dish or tradition! 

Last minute Thanksgiving side dish: Pumpkin Mac & Cheese

Looking for one more side for your Thanksgiving dinner? Here is a fun twist on one of my favorite comfort foods! The pumpkin adds a ton of nutrients and a thick, creamy texture to the macaroni and cheese. Plus, you can use way less cheese than normal to make this recipe a lot healthier than the traditional version. I got this idea from Christine over at These Happy Miles, who made Sugared Pumpkin Mac & Cheese a few weeks ago. Here's the result.

My roasted pumpkin, mashed with a fork

served with a side of broccoli

Pumpkin Mac n Cheese
8 oz Pasta

1 cup roasted Pumpkin
1/4 cup Milk ( I used coconut milk, you could use Almond, Soy or Rice milk as well)
2 cups Shredded Cheese, any kind. I used cheddar, but pepper jack, goat cheese, fontina or Parmesan would be good as well!
Salt and Pepper to taste

2 tsp Sage
1/2 cup Bread Crumbs
To see instructions for roasting the pumpkin, look here. Or use canned pumpkin:) Cook your pasta according to the package directions, but remove from the water about 2 minutes before it's done, until not quite al dente.
Preheat oven to 400 F.
In a large bowl, combine the pumpkin, milk, shredded cheese and sage. Season with salt and pepper. When the pasta is cooked, toss into the pumpkin and cheese mixture and mix well.
Spoon the pasta into a small casserole dish and cover with the breadcrumbs. Place in your preheated oven and bake approximately 20-30 minutes, until the cheese is melted and the breadcrumbs are toasted and browned.

The best part about this casserole is that I had leftovers for days! I think this would be a great addition to the Thanksgiving meal this year.

Stuffed Bell Peppers

What an easy way to make something look fancy! I stuff giant green bell peppers that I got at the Farmer's Market with meatloaf that I made with the following ingredients. I don't really measure so these are just some general guidelines---you can't really go wrong!

1 pound organic ground beef

a huge shake of dried parsley

5-6 generous turns of Trader Joe's South African Smoke Seasoning

Salt & Pepper

1 raw egg

1 shredded sweet potato

2 squirts of Sweet Baby Ray BBQ sauce

Mix together. Cut the top off of 3-4 giant bell peppers and remove the seeds. Fill with the raw meat and cook in the oven for about 40 minutes.

beef mixture with above ingredients

my new favorite seasoning from TJ's!

fill peppers, top with more Sweet Baby Rays and bake for about 40 min

dice up red potatoes, season and add olive oil

piping hot!

a delicious, easy and healthy meal!

and of course had to finish off the meal with an Apple Galette that I learned to make from Meg at Henning Love...

Running Hiatus

Yup, it's true, I'm still on hiatus from my old bff running. While running 20+ miles a week used to be no biggie, after I ran the Wine Country Half Marathon the week after running Hood to Coast, I totally burnt out. I used to crave running like a pregnant woman craves pickles, but after over doing it, I just don't crave it anymore. Now don't misunderstand---I am not just hanging out on my couch this fall/winter. I am still up in the gym 6 days a week and taking Pilates classes 3 times a week. Not to mention teaching a couple classes per week which ineveitably results in me working out a bit more (demonstration!) I have even begun to love spin class again. I especially love taking spin at 6am, which ironically does me more good than a steaming cup of coffee on my tiredest days. (Is tiredest a word? Yes, yes it is.)

I want to give a shout out to Christine over at These Happy Miles. She quoted Runner's World and it really spoke to me.

"It doesn’t matter how old you are or how many miles a week you run, a period of reduced volume and intensity will do your body – and your brain – good. Running day after day eventually leads to burnout, no matter how tough you are."

So there. The highly regarded Runner's World has confirmed that it's ok for me to take this break! Maybe not for much longer, but for now I'm content with spinning and Pilates!

Here is a photo of me running the Nike Women's Marathon, just for a little motivation and to help me remember running ain't a thang!

A-Z with Liz

I'm linking up to Liz from Explore.Dream.Discover to do an A-Z game! You'll learn a few new things about me and I'd love for you to do it too!

A. Age – 25

B. Bed size – Queen. I cannot go back to a full! I love that extra space!
C. Chore that you hate – I know its silly because this is true for everything, but I hate cleaning something that will just immediately get dirty again, like the kitchen floor, the bathroom mats, ect. I think it's mostly because I have roommates and I know I can't control what will happen to it!
D. Dogs – I looove weiner dogs. I grew up with one and my parents have since gotten another one. My heart pitter patters when I see them---they are so darn cute!
E. Essential start to your day – The local news. I turn on the news as soon as I wake up. I like being informed about the weather and what's going on that day, or what happened the previous day in Portland.
F. Favorite color – purple! It's beautiful.
G. Gold or silver – I used to say silver without a doubt and HATED gold. Now I actually like gold, but I guess I still prefer silver.
H. Height – 5’6"
I. Instruments you play – Back in the day I played piano, clarinet and flute. These days I can't really remember how to play them! Bummer....all that time practicing!
J. Job title – Product Development Support. You can't tell from the tital, but I help develop t-shirts for a major sports company for the NFL and Tennis styles. It's super fun! I love learning about the technical side of apparel creation.
K. Kids – Not now! I have a 3 1/2 month old niece and she is adorbs!
L. Live – I grew up in the suburbs of Portland, spent some time in Argentina, Spain and San Francisco before settling in NW Portland.
M. Mother’s name – Linda
N. Nicknames – My dad calls me Drew for some weird reason. Some friends call me Manders and I won't share the silly names that Shane calls me!
O. Overnight hospital stays – Once in college I stayed overnight with my college boyfriend in the hospital when he had a heart condition. It was really scary and I wouldn't leave his side. One of the nurses was really nice and let me sleep in the empty bed in his room, even though that is not allowed. The nurse came in every hour to check his heart monitor so needless to say we didn't get much sleep!
P. Pet peeves – When people do not pay attention to details. I think this is just because I am so detail oriented and would never miss a small detail.
Q. Quote from a movie – I am really bad at movie quotes! I watch a good amount of movies but when people quote them I often can't remember which movie it is from! So please don't try to joke with me about movie quotes....I probably won't get it!
R. Right or left handed – Right. What's interesting is what with exercise, my left leg is dominant. Especially in Pilates and yoga.
S. Siblings – One older sister, Sara.
T. Time it takes you to get ready – I am super quick---basically I'm up and out the door in less than half an hour, including making coffee! I never wash my hair in the morning so that saves time. I only wash it 2-3 times a week and its usually after working out either at lunch or in the evening.
U. Underwear – I think I'll pass on this one!
V. Vegetable you hate – I love vegetables.....can I switch to fruit? I think papayas taste like barf.
W. What makes you run late – Not much---I am hardly ever late. But if I am it's usually because I got to talking to one of my roommates! Or sometimes I am late on purpose, just because I don't want to be the first one there.
X. X-rays you’ve had – I've had teeth x-rays and an MRI on my left ankle when I stressed my posterior tibialis.
Y. Yummy food you make – Well, if you've read the blog you've seen tons of recipes. Go here to see most of them!
Z. Zoo animal – I always loved the polar bears because going into 'the cave' at the Portland Zoo was so exciting! I loved the little peep holes at different heights that little kids could look into.

I'd love it if you played along! Link up and tell me your "A-Z"

Decarli

I had some really delicious pizza at Decarli in Beaverton!

Decarli has some good happy hour eats and drinks but the seating is really limited. We had to awkwardly wait for a table and then snag it as quickly as possible when people were leaving. I have to say the pizza was worth the wait---it was super good and I will be going back!! Bonus---this place is located in Beaverton, which is great for after work because I work in Beaverton and many of my friends do not live downtown. My friend Kristy even got a great recommendation for her wedding, which will be in Kauai next year---and happened to be the hometown of our server!

Guest Postin' today!

Hey friends! I am so excited to be guest posting today over at Henning Love, in Meg's new Series called "From My Hometown To Yours". I''ll be talking about what we would do if Meg came to visit me in Portland!

Please go check it out!

http://henninglove.blogspot.com/

Pilates training

As you may remember, one of my dreams is to teach Pilates. This weekend I began the Reformer training for Pilates through Stott Pilates. This summer I took the Mat training and since have been getting through my physical review, observation and teaching hours that are necessary before I take the exam to get my certification. I love the reformer machine and I am enjoying this class even more than the Mat class!

Reformer

The good news is that I was offered an apprenticeship at Pacific Northwest Pilates in Portland and I start November 21st! I am so excited to start teaching real, paying clients! After the apprenticeship I will have completed all of my practice teaching hours and will take the exam for certification.



The Leaky Roof

The Leaky Roof is a quiet secret tucked away deep in Goose Hollow. It's down the hill from where I live on Jefferson, just a short walk. I've been here for breakfast tons of time but never had dinner until recently. You can get delicious bar food but they also have a nicer dinner menu that was great!

house caesar

stuffed meatloaf with mushroom gravy, garlic mashed potatoes and grilled zucchini

Country Fried Chicken

Chocolate cake and vanilla ice cream with cinnamon

I was in the mood for some comfort food, obviously, so I got the meatloaf and tasted some of Shane's Country Fried Steak. It hit the spot on a cold, dark and dreary evening after work when I was so tired I couldn't even think about cooking. The Leaky Roof is a tiny local bar but provides a homey atmosphere that we enjoyed. We talked about our upcoming trip to Hawaii as we sipped local King's Estate Pinot Noir. Thinking about relaxing in the sun seemed so much better than an Oregon fall evening!

More Festive Fro-yo

I am obsessed with how cute the fro-yo looks in the fall!! You can see what I got a couple weeks ago here. http://mandeepearson.blogspot.com/2011/10/festive-fro-yo.html

festive toppings!

Blog on Fire Award

A huge thanks to Britta at Bee's Kindergarten for nominating me for this award! I am touched that she enjoys my food and fitness blog although she blogs about her kindergarten adventures!

The award says to share 7 things about me and then nominate 7 more blogs for the award. Here goes with the things about me....

1.) I am studying to become a Pilates Instructor through Stott Pilates. I've always loved fitness and 3 years ago fell in love with Pilates. It is quite the process to get certified and I'm almost done with classes and onto the apprenticeship. I love it!

2.) My dad calls me Drew. I can't really remember why, maybe he wanted boys, but he calls me Drew and my sister Sara Bobby. We don't really question it, it just happens.

3.) I love love weiner dogs. Something happens inside my heart when I see a little weiner dog. I just melt! I grew up with one and my parents have gotten a new one since. They are so precious!

4.) I used to be a hardcore runner and since running Hood to Coast and the Wine Country 1/2 marathon in September, I have taken a break. I had a small injury and just haven't felt comfortable getting back into it!

5.) Because I've been missing out on that cardio from running, I've started doing spin class a couple times a week, and it is a great workout!

6.) I have a new niece---she is 3 months old! Her name is Natalie Jade and she is so cute. She is my sister Sara's first baby. The funny thing is that I have two roommates, and their names are Sara and Natalie. haha!

7.) I am allergic to strawberry plants. If I get too close to a bed of plants, I start to itch, sneeze and have watery eyes. But, I can eat the fruit just fine, with no problem! In fact, they are my favorite fruit!

Now the fun part: I get to award this to 7 other bloggers!

1.) Delighted Momma. I am a somewhat new follower to her and I looooove her recipes! I also love her series, "Things that Make me Say Yeay".

2.) Stephanie at The Rest is Still Unwritten. I love her blog because she is honest and open! She also has been blogging about her vacation recently and I love it!

3.) Meg from Henning Love. Meg is the sweetest blogger I know! She always responds to comments and is so interactive! She also asked me to guest post for the 1st time, and I am so exited about it!

4.) Caitlin at Miss Candyfloss and Persie. Caitlin is a fellow Portland blogger and she makes me laugh out loud! I love her witty posts about her hilarious city living.

5.) Meghan at My Kind of Crazy. Meghan is another Portland blogger I love. She is an amazing writer and that is why I love her posts. She has had some really exciting things happen to her in the past year so I would definitely check out her blog!

6.) Amanda at New Adventures Another blogger who is so nice and interacts with her blog friends by commenting and responding to comments! I love that!

7.) Christine at These Happy Miles. I love love love Christine's blog and she is probably one of the first running blogs I started following. I love her energy and how passionate she is about running! I also love her food posts:)

And that's it! Thanks again Britta for nominating me! I hope the other bloggers I awarded have fun passing it on!