Holy Cow!!!

Yep, it's been quite some time since I've journaled on here!!! I didn't realize how long!! Oh well. That's what happens when you get pregnant and sick!!!

It's a new year! yay! Unfortunately I haven't had time to even THINK about any type of new years resolutions. Altho, I don't normally do them, I do like to have a few goals every year, especially when it comes to exercise and whatnot!!! So I will think of that this week and hopefully get them written down on here soon.

Baby will be 3 weeks old tomorrow! So I haven't been doing any type of exercise yet. It's definitely driving me a little crazy. But I know that it's not time for me to be working out hardcore yet...3 more weeks!! :) I will survive! I did go for a very short walk yesterday and plan to get a walk in every day...to atleast get myself out of the house so I don't go nuts-o!

I have also cut out refined sugars and white flour. I don't eat white flour hardly ever anyway, so that won't be hard. But the sugar thing...hmmm...yeah. HA! The reason is to hopefully combat any post partum depression this go round. I had major issues after Rylie was born. I had my placenta put in capsules after having Charlie and that has done great so far...(if your reading this, and are interested in the benefits of doing this with your placenta, look it up...its AMAZING what the placenta can give you!!!) Of course the holidays for me were bad when it came to sugar. Especially because I just had a baby, and I was in that "I just had a baby so I can eat whatever" stage. I'm definitely glad the holiday junk is outta here!!! There were one too many "overboard" days....

So with cutting out the refined stuff, I am not limiting myself however to not eat any type of sweetener. Like raw honey, pure maple syrup...etc. I'm cutting out the other first...if I feel like that isn't completely working, then I will have to cut out the rest and go from there. For now, I'm okay with having the healthy stuff.

I'm back down to my weight that I was before I got pregnant, but my belly is still here. I'm excited to get back to exercising and get that taken care of!!! I'm trying VERY hard not to focus on it too much right now...I know it takes time for the body to get back...um, especially since this was baby number FIVE! (holy sheesh!!)

I have a few good recipes I'd like to post. Hopefully soon, when I have more time. We have been LOVING lentils around here. We make lentil tacos and we love this recipe for lentil chili too. I crave the lentil chili ALL THE TIME!!! haha. I'll post soon. And hopefully be better at posting this year, for my own sake of course...cz I don't know that anybody even still reads this! ha!

Of Course!

I'm all sorts of behind on my postings. The good news is, I didnt eat after dinner all last week! Until Saturday night. I was very proud of myself, there was a few HARD days!!! Actually should say nights!

This week I totally fell off that rule tho. Monday was hubby's bday, and then we had leftovers from his bday last night. And tonight...well, I'd rather not talk about it. :/

But going from what I did last week, to this week, there's a big difference on what I'm thinking about, where I'm putting my energy, what the kids are focusing on, when we end all eating with dinner. (I don't WANT my kids to expect a treat every night, and of course if I'm having something, then they are too. If they are genuinely hungry, they can have a raw fruit or veggie)

I've been having a bit of trouble w/my right knee when I'm running. It's not making me very happy. I can feel it doing other exercising sometimes too. This is my recovery week for P90X. Did power yoga on monday w/cute hubby (i don't use the one from P90X tho, I have a diff one I use) and yesterday I did Core Synergistics. Man, I was sore this morning from that one!!! Today was kenpo, but I did Taebo cz its basically the same thing. I did run a few miles Monday and Tuesday too, but didn't have the time today!

Tues & Wed

I'm already behind! Some days I just dont have time to get on here and write it all down, let's see if I can remember!

Tuesday:
Exercise: Ran 5 miles outside and Ab workout
Breakfast: I THINK it was my oatmeal/yogurt concoction
Lunch: 6 inch Turkey Sub w/ALL the veggies (from Subway)
Dinner: Family had leftovers, I was still full from the sub (and the handfuls of grain sweetened choc chips...i know, i know...they are healthier BUT they still have calories) so around 630 or 7 i got hungry and just had a few handfuls of baby carrots and then an apple w/almond butter.

Wednesday:
Exercise: P90X Shoulders and Arms, Also walked 2 miles on the treadmill on the highest incline...was all I had time for
Breakfast: oatmeal/yogurt concoction (I crave that EVERY morning, even tho I also love my smoothies)
Lunch: my plan was to have a smoothie or salad. I unfortunately am an idiot sometimes. I SHOULD have made my lunch b4 doing the kids cz I got all their stuff out to make grilled cheese sandwiches, veggies and fruit on the side of course. And I started munching on the carrots, and kept munching on the carrots. Then I cut their bread, and decided to have some bread, ate some of their grapes, etc, etc etc. By the time theirs was done, I had eaten my calories for lunch! So, I didnt make anything else for myself. LaMe i know!!!
Dinner: Mexican Salad....(black or pinto beans, lettuce, cucumbers, bell peppers, olives, corn, green onions...mix it all up w/a vinegrette dressing) Had some baked tortilla chips too.
And of course, there was choc chips in there somewhere during the day!

I have kept to my goal of NO eating after dinner. Altho, last night was HARD. I really wanted ice cream, or yogurt, or something! But i didnt. The end.

Monday 2.21.11

Woke up early and had a good workout. I always feel so GOOD when I wake up early and get my workout in!!! I did P90x, Chest and Back. I am FEELING it, thats for sure!! I did 1 to 3 more reps on every pushup/pullup then I have the last two weeks. My arms were DEAD by the end!!! Felt good to push myself harder. I then ran 3 miles on the treadmill, switching up the incline and speed.

Breakfast: Green smoothie....mango, orange, few frozen strawberries, celery and tons of spinach, ice and water.

Lunch: Huge salad....green leaf lettuce (fresh from the garden), spinach (fresh from ma's garden...ha), red peppers, carrots, tomato, cabbage, celery, zuchini and walnuts, topped w/a homemade vinegrette (sp) dressing from Robyn (Green smoothie girl). And i just realized i forgot the cucumbers on my salad!! I KNEW I was missing something!!! But I love, love, LoVe nuts in salads, so yummy.

Dinner: 3 healthy tacos. Used white corn tortillas, no frying of course. Just stick them on the grill for a few min on each side. I'll have to post the "inside" part of the taco when I have more time!

I did have a few handfuls of grain sweetened choc chips, but nothing after dinner time!

Did Better!

This week I felt so much better about my food choices! I love that!!!

I wanted to start taking pictures of my food again and tracking it better, but alas....I have no batteries for my camera! I was bummed:(

I may still just track my food here...and maybe workouts? Altho, I really do the same workouts, hmmmm, I'll have to think about that.

I have looked into getting a gym membership. So far, I'm not finding anything. Oh well. Maybe I can find some different videos at the library???!!! We shall see! Their selection for workout stuff doesn't seem to be that great.

I have done well with staying away from refined sugars this week! I do have some grain sweetened choc chips in my freezer that I've snacked on more then once, but thats a big step from downing bowls of unhealthy icecream!

I'm hoping that if I can start tracking my food better, it will help w/my portions. I have LoVeD the mixture of yogurt, oatmeal, berries, nuts and cinammon that I learned from Sara. I had that almost every morning this week for breakfast! And I did lots of yummy salads for lunch. Late afternoon, dinner and night-time are my HARDEST times for snacking and wanting FOOD!!!!

Personal goal for this week: NO EATING AFTER DINNER. Its gonna be a tough one, but I know I can do it!!! I better inform my husband so he doesnt try to tempt me. ;) I realize tho, that I'm more apt to go to bed early, spend more time w/my hubby, when I'm not focusing on "what treat can i have now that the kids are in bed???" I like that feeling better.

With doing P90X again, I'm loving how my arms are looking. I almost said a negative to that positive statement, but I caught myself! I want to be happy with that. I am really, really, REALLY working on being happy with myself again. Knowing that I am a strong woman and tho my body isnt perfect, and has flaws....I can love myself just as much as my husband does and my children do. Working out, eating right, IS important to me. But I'm not perfect but am doing the best I can in my life right now.

I am looking for a race to run in the spring. Even if its just a 10k. Its been far too long. OH!!! I ran 6 miles on saturday and it felt GrEaT!!!

Ho Hum....

Me again.

Good news: I ran 4.5 miles OuTsIdE today!! Wahoo!!!

Bad news is, I just ate a big fat bowl of icecream....for the hmmmm...let's see....THIRD time this week.

It was a perfect day for running. I'm glad I took advantage.

Sugar is getting to me. Sweets are getting to me. Why must I have this problem??? Why must I want it ALL the time...I hate it. I keep telling myself that we are going to do NO refined sugars, candy, etc. We will be strictly doing homemade treats w/raw sugar, coconut sugar, etc.

I think it's TiMe!

Side note: I went to a gym today, to get prices on joining. Why can't they just charge 5 bucks a month???!!!!! Boo

I am not perfect....

I have learned alot about myself the last few weeks. I am not perfect....and the awesome thing is, thats OKAY.

You see, I have a problem. A problem with comparing myself with others. I have had this problem for as long as I can remember. And most especially since having my cute little Rylie-Jane. I love her....and I'm learning to love the fact that my body is NOT the same since having her.

Yes I am thin, but I still have a belly. And Yes, people are going to say, WHAT ARE YOU TALKING ABOUT??? But I'm writing this for me, not you.

Ahem...

I try REALLY, REALLY hard to eat healthy. I am very picky about what my kids do and do not eat. I am very happy about this. I want to give them the best things for their bodies. Sometimes I do great at this, and sometimes I dont...and you know what, thats OKAY. Sometimes I choose great meals for myself, and sometimes I don't. But knowing that the good meals outweight the not so good...I'm okay with that.

The last few weeks have been hard. I've been sick, kids have been sick, things have been crazy around here. I have done my best to give everyone what they need, sometimes its worked, and sometimes it hasnt...and you know what? you guessed it...thats okay.

What is this thing I have with comparing myself to others? I need and should be happy with where I'm at. Just because this person does X, doesn't mean I need to do Y and Z. I need to find the "happy balance" thats just right for me and for my family.

My body is not perfect...and no, it won't ever be. But I wonder where I draw the line? I LOVE MY BODY, IT SERVES ME WELL. That is still all over my house. And I'm grateful for it. It helps me to remember. I don't like looking in the mirror and having bad thoughts about myself. I need to be happy with where I'm at (haven't I said that before) and continue on my journey.

That being said, (is anybody listening???) I miss running. Especially OUTSIDE. Life has gotten in the way. I have not been able to do a race for over a year, that makes me sad. And it's not because I don't run, its because I just haven't had the extra money to participate. I miss being in races...I miss having a schedule to go by. I have been thinking about running alot lately. I love the feelings that I have when I run. I hope to get back in my groove soon.

Life with 4 kids is busy. Life with 4 kids and homeschooling is busy. Life with 4 kids, homeschooling, piano and a husband is busy. Life with all of that...PLUS doing my best in exercise and healthy eating is BUSY. Sometimes I will do great and other times I wont. I need to be okay with that, and quit the guilty feeling business. I have a great body and my husband and children love me for who I am. Cant I love MYSELF that much too????

Do I have to have 6 pack abs to love myself as much as they do?

A New Year

I am so grateful for a new year. The opportunity for self reflection, much needed self EVALUATION. I am starting out the new year with a bang.

i'll be participating in a 28 day green smoothie/raw food detox. I'm excited, I'm scared.

My goal is to be 100% with this. I want to KICK my sugar addiction. (yes my whole family went off sugar for the month of november, but boy....december was NOT GOOD)

I want my energy back. I want my good nights sleep back. I want my confidence back. I want my healthy lifestyle back. Mainly...I want to feel REAL GOOD about myself again.

Recently I read a 4 series blog post from greensmoothiegirl.com She talked about our bodies, self esteem, loving ourselves. I LOVED what she wrote and refer to those blog entries often. I recently put up around my house papers that say "I LOVE MY BODY, IT SERVES ME WELL"

I love having that reminder around the house. And HOPEFULLY those words will "sink in" real soon.

Here's to a new year....Make it a good one.

Fri 11/19

Breakfast: Organic gala apple and 2 tbs almond butter

Lunch: single serving bag edamame, 1/2 pc homemade whole wheat bread w/1 tsp raw creamy honey (oh how i love my homemade bread!!!!)

Dinner: 3 egg whites w/red bell pepper, green onion and zuchini, 1 egg free whole wheat pancake

snack: raw trail mix (i need to start measuring this out for sure, i always eat too many handfuls!), 1 cup leftover pasta (this was after our softball games, definitely could have made a better choice but oh well)

Exercise: P90X Core Synergistics...felt like running but knew I had 2 softball games to play still so just did 2 miles! Played 2 hours of co-ed softball (yay for softball season again!!!)

Wed 11/17

Breakfast: 1/3 cup greek yogurt, 1/4 frozen blueberries, 4 strawberries sliced, 1/2 cup oatmeal...didnt add any nuts cz I ate 5 bites of Walkers granola

Lunch: Single serving bag of edemame. 1/2 slice of homemade bread w/1 tsp raw creamy honey (oh yum)

Dinner: 2 white corn tortillas, topped with 1/2 cup homemade refried beans, (not really fried of course...cooked my own beans and then mashed them and added salt, chili powder and onion powder...yum, my family loves them) white cabbage, cucumbers and green onion. I pieced some on the beans after dinner, so I'm thinking I had more like 3/4 cup?

Snack: 20 raw cashews, 1 organic gala apple

Exercise:Ran 4 Miles, also walked to and from Trader Joe's pushing the stroller with Rylie, and sometimes Walker!

I'm feeling better about my eating this week and am feeling alot more conscious of what and how much i'm putting in my mouth. Tomorrow I wont be journaling, we are fasting :) I'll be back friday!

Tues 11/16

Breakfast: 1/3 cup greek yogurt, 1/2 cup cooked oatmeal, 1/2 cup frozen blueberries, 5 raw almonds (chopped)...mix everything together (thanks for this one sara!!!) I love this breakfast, so yummy.


Lunch: 1 self serving bag of edamame (w/salt of course)...(my stomach is still feeling kind of weird today, wasnt really in the mood for eating lunch)


Snack: 1 (I REPEAT JUST 1!!!!) Healthy PB cookie

Organic Gala Apple, 3/4 of it...rylie stole some of it!

Dinner: Made homemade spaghetti sauce (very yummy), made whole wheat spaghetti noodles for everyone else, but i sliced up zuchini and steamed it...then put the sauce on top. I REALLY liked it!!!! I also had a SMALL slice of whole wheat sourdough bread. AND I made granola tonight, I cant NOT snack on it, its so yummy. I had about 1/3-1/2 cup of it. I had the calories to spare so I was fine with it.

Exercise: Taebo (55 min) and 3 mile run


Over the weekend, I bought a mix of nuts from Costco for when we ate after Abbys baptism. They were salted and I think roasted. I ate them, (too many) but boy did they not like my stomach. I am SO used to all my nuts raw, no salt or anything. I decided I like them much better raw. I mean, the flavor of roasted and salted was good, but I can only handle so much. They are much more healthier raw, of course, so I'll stick to what I always get!!!

Monday 11/15

I didn't eat breakfast this morning. I wasnt feeling well. Took the kids to piano lessons and then ran and got fruits/veggies.



Lunch: One Veggie Wrap on Flatout bread...spread a TBS of mashed up avacado (w/s&p) on flatout bread, 1/4 cup cucumbers, 8 red bell pepper slices, whole sliced roma tomato, and lettuce (was bummed i didnt have any spinach, i love it with spinach!!!)...also had big handful of organic baby carrots and 6 grapes (ha, thats all that was left in the bowl that were any good!!!)



Snack: 20 raw cashews, 1/2 piece of homemade bread



Dinner: 1 1/2 servings Zucchini Parmesan (we thought this was really yummy)...1/3 cup plain nonfat greek yogurt...1 organic apple

Workout: P90X Core Synergistics (50 min)



Zucchini Parmesan (taken from Enlightened Homemaker)

3 1/2 cups zucchini, coarsely grated
2 large eggs
2 C shredded mozzarella cheese, divided
1/2 C parmesan cheese, freshly grated
1/3 C Flour (I used whole wheat of course)
1 T olive oil
1 C Marinara sauce
1 tsp dried oregano
1/8 tsp crushed red pepper flakes


Press grated zucchini between paper towels or cheese cloth to remove moisture. Combine zucchini, eggs, 1 cup mozzarella, parmesan and flour in a bowl. Stir well. Spread in a greased 9X13 pan. Bake uncovered at 350 for 20 minutes. Remove from oven, brush with oil and broil 5 inches from heat for 5 minutes.


Remove from oven, spread on a sauce and top with remaining mozzarella, oregano and red pepper.


Bake uncovered at 350 for additional 20 minutes, lowering rack back down to the center of the oven.

I cut this into 12 squares. Each square amounts to:

Calories: 133
Protein: 8.7
Total Fat: 7.6
Sodium: 264
Cholesterol: 50 mg
Carbs: 7.7
Sugar: 2.6

A New Leaf

I'm writing here, in hopes of remembering how I'm feeling at this very moment.



Lack of self confidence.



The recent move has been a doozy. I have found comfort in food, sugar, ALL of the above. Then Halloween hit...and I wasn't fully prepared. But I did read an inspiring blog entry where someone paid their kids money for their halloween candy. Score! Halloween came, and I thought...and I thought...and I contemplated...(side note, about a month ago I wanted my kids and hubby to go off sugar...but I wasn't ready) If I bought their candy...I could throw it away...THEN I could maybe convince them of my plan of going OFF sugar....



It was late Sunday night. I took each kid individually and asked them about the candy. They all agreed to let me buy their candy for 5 bucks each. Walker promptly fell asleep...but the older 2 kids stayed up and we had a GREAT talk with them. About food, especially about sugar. I told them I had a challenge for them. I told them I wanted to go without Sugar until Thanksgiving. They agreed....and they were EXCITED!



This world is full of SUGAR. Treats are everywhere. It seems like everytime I turn around, they are getting a "treat" for something. And of course its candy...or cookies...or just CRAP. So, I told them, when they are given the opportunity to have something like that, they will need to say no thank you. And they STILL AGREED!!! HA



Now, truthfully, my kids don't get a lot of sugar around here anyway. And when they do get it, its because of me...becuase I want it, so therefore, THEY get it. So, we've been off the "refined" sugars bandwagon. No icecream, store bought anything. I did tell them that we were free to make our homemade treats, with sucanat, honey, maple syrup. The "real" natural sweetners.
Nobody has complained once....it makes me happy.

Even though we are making the healthier treats, I need to be reminded that they still have calories...YIKES....over the weekend my daughter got baptized. I ate one too many healthy cookies.

I have had a rough time with the whole "eating" thing lately. I don't know what my problem is. I actually do pretty well during the week, then the weekend hits and my good eating goes out the window. SO. I am going to try my VERY hardest to document all the food I eat this week. Keep track of whats going in my mouth...so that hopefully the "mindless eating" can slowly disappear and I can get back on track.

My old self has long since been lost since our move. I have been in a R.U.T. A Long R.U.T.

Am I ready to be myself again? Am I ready to focus on the good things? Am I ready to be accountable for where I want to go and what I want to become? I hope so....

Week in Pictures

Eating was good this week. I measured out almost all portions, I love having a little weight machine to measure with. We move this weekend, and food is scarce around here, I have no idea what the week will bring. And I'm EMOTIONAL and STRESSED...not a good combination when your an emotional eater. I'm going to do my best!!



Lunch: Edamame...i LOVE this stuff. Costco has single serving portions in a big box...LOVE it. It's a favorite and easy lunch...lots of protein in those little pods! ha! Had 1/2 cup plain yogurt w/blueberries and a few chopped almonds..

Breakfast: 3 egg whites w/bell peppers and onions...(would like to have more veggies in this but like i said, food is scarce around here)...and yogurt, blueberries, almonds (i don't remember the measurements but i did make sure i was doing correct portions...just dont have the time to write it all down at this point...)

Breakfast: Yogurt, blueberries, almonds...I like this...can you tell??

Lunch: Edamame and an apple

Breakfast: 3 egg whites w/bell pepper and onions, topped w/salsa. yogurt and almonds

Lunch: 2 hard boiled eggs, carrots, yogurt and 3 strawberries

Breakfast: 1 apple and 2 TBS almond butter

Breakfast: MMMMM...me love steel cut oats!!! w/frozen blueberries and fresh almond milk

Obviously....

I have had no desire to keep track of my food....take pictures...be accountable...and so on, and so on. Which is the reason I feel like crap about myself...I work out every day, but my eating isnt co-insiding (is that how you spell that word???) with my workouts. And every day I seem to let myself down. I cop out....its not that I'm eating fast food everyday...cz I just DONT do fast food. But my portions are needing some "pick me up" and the sweets have got to go. I need to find some balance....

Where are my goals?

I don't want "life" to get in the way...I want my eating and taking care of myself to be a priority...I want my "happy w/myself bod back"

Steel Cut Oats

I tried steel cut oats for the first time a few weeks ago...I am officially hooked...I love them!!!!

Wow, its been a while

Holy Shoot!!! Long time, no blog!!! I had a GREAT dinner tonight...so yummy and so healthy and I just had to take a picture and had to share. FULL of veggies, beans for protein and great flavor!!!

I hope to blog more...take pictures more...but you know, life just happens and time gets away from me and blah, blah, blah....

I AM excited to say that I have another race on the calendar. I have not done one since my marathon LAST october!! what the???!!!! I will be doing a 1/2 marathon at the end of october. Someday I will do another full marathon, but for now....it's just too time consuming to do all the training for another one. Four kids, work and everything else that goes on, it makes it hard to fit everything in. So, i'm opting for the 1/2 and i'm definitely okay with that!!!

I have been doing a lot more biking lately and am enjoying that alot. SOMEDAY I will do a triathalon...someday....

My cute hubby is now doing P90X....he is liking it, actually no, he's hating it, well....not really sure...HA At the beginning of the month I told him if he did P90x for just 30 days, i would go off sugar for 30 days...we are towards the end of week 2 and we are both doing good!!! Although, there have been a few times where I was ready for some icecream....er something....Sometimes we get to work out together, which has been fun...most the time because of time and schedules, we have to do it seperately. I think he will do the full 90 days tho!!! We will see....

Now for the yummy recipe...(BTW, this is a GREAT summertime salad...no heating up the kitchen required!!!!)

Mexican Fiesta Salad (Erleen Tilton):

Dressing: 1/4 cup apple cider vinegar, 2 tbs olive oil, 1-2 tsp hot red pepper sauce, 2 cloves garlic--pressed, 1 tsp salt

Salad: 1 cup cut corn (frozen or fresh), 6 oz. sliced black olives (drained & Halved), 3 cup beans (cooked, rinsed and drained...i actually did half black, half pinto), 1 red bell pepper diced, 1/2 c chopped green onion, 2 avacados diced, 1 head romaine lettuce (i just used an organic salad mix)

In large bowl, mix dressing ingredients...layer on salad ingredients...toss just before serving

MMMMMM, enjoy!!!

mmmmm...hummus

Me Likey Hummus....Last week I made a roasted red pepper hummus and its YUMMY. I love it with cucumbers and celery....and today, i tried it on a veggie sandwich...wow it was good...
note: spinach is our first pickings from our garden!! yay!!!!

Feeling Good

I'm starting to feel better about my running. I've done better at making it a priority...and I'm loving it!!! We are having great weather right now and that makes running even MORE better...I definitely need some new tunes for my ipod though....

For my bday I got this shirt...I saw it at the running shoe store and just HAD to have it. (Born to Run is what it says)
And my feet are happy once again...NEW SHOES!!! As usual, I was way overdue. I got the same pair that I did last time, Asics...Just got wide instead of regular. They feel better this time and I really like these shoes...

I'm hoping to get my miles back up again....but we will see. As long as I can atleast get out and do 3-4 miles I'm good. I would like to do more, but some days that just isn't possible. And I'm OK with that!!!

A Few Things

So I was at one of my FAVORITE stores the other day...Trader Joes...and they had a sampling...a very GOOD sampling, of Couscous. So, I bought everything while i was there, to make it...I don't remember what it's called exactly but its darn good!!! I made it tonight for dinner...Nathan, Rylie and I, all liked it...the rest...no. But I'll still make it because its THAT GOOD. (I'll put the recipe) Tonight I served it up w/grilled chicken (seasoned w/salt, pepper and tonys..love that guy...haha), steamed brocolli and zuchini.
Lunch the other day...Turkey sausage w/raw veggies...plain yogurt and frozen blueberries.

This was my snack one day...I usually eat yogurt w/fresh fruit. But I didnt have any except for apples. So, I decided to try some frozen blueberries that were in the freezer. OH MY GOSH. I was in heaven. It was SO GOOD, I felt like i was eating ice cream. This is definitely a treat:)

Couscous Recipe:

1 C Couscous (i bought the TJ's whole wheat brand)

1 1/2 C Pure OJ (not from concentrate, and NO PULP)

1/2 C sliced, blanched almonds

1/2 c dried cranberries

2 diced green onions

salt and pepper to taste

In medium pot bring OJ to a boil and turn off heat. Then add Couscous, put lid on until OJ is absorbed (took mine around 10 minutes or so). While couscous is cooking, put almonds in a single layer on cookie sheet and toast 5-8 minutes. When couscous is done, combine everything else in a bowl and serve! Its good warm or cold!

Can't wait for leftovers tomorrow!!! I doubled the recipe tonight, cz I wasnt sure how much it would make exactly. And we have plenty leftover for Nathan to take to work for a few days, and for me to munch on too.