I blame the remnants of jet lag (apparently it takes one day for every time zone you cross over to recover, in which case it will supposedly take me about 17 days for my body to return back to normal), the cold gray January skies, and my post-holiday depression (at this point, I really can't list any positives of a long-distance relationship) on the fact that I've been like this since I returned back to the states (refer to photo below):

Just like a dog. 

All I want to do is sleep. I've done two P90X workouts since I got home, and I didn't even have the energy to get through half of the second one. Everything I do is exhausting. I'd worry about myself, except I know that I am this way for the reasons that I listed above. 

With that said, I realize it's now time to socialize again, exercise again, and get out of bed when my clock says AM instead of PM. Many people experience post-vacation blues and live in cold winter regions, so I really need to quit this pity party that I'm having with myself. I need to live again. 

My classes resumed last Tuesday. I never have class before noon (which enables my ability to pretty much sleep as late as I want), but I'm not sleeping in tomorrow. I am getting out of bed several hours before class and am exercising. I will do the same thing the day after that and the day after that. No excuses. I will never feel better if I don't get back into my routine. 

At least I have this creature to make me feel better:

Jon dropped off Libby last Tuesday, and he's picking her up again tomorrow. She's been with us for a full week, and we've had so much fun. As always, she lives on my bed. She's an automatic mood-booster. 

Although I sleep a lot, I still make sure that I get good food. The first time that I went to dinner with my parents after I got home, I told them that I really wanted to get sushi. We went to Sushi Kushi San3 in Vernon Hills. The original branch is in Lake Forest, but  this one is much closer to us. 

The three of us split a massive plate of six different rolls. I can't begin to tell you what each roll was, but I know that I liked them all. All the way to the right (above), you can see that they gave us a side of tempura flakes as an added garnish. YUM. 

I also deviated from my normal cereal routine this weekend and made an egg scrambler for brunch (I can't call it breakfast, since I didn't wake up early enough for that). I whisked two egg whites and one egg yolk with a few drops Worcestershire sauce. I sauteed two large mushrooms (finely chopped) and then combined it with the egg, shredded arugula, and mozzarella cheese. It was the perfect combination for me. I thought about making an omelette, but scramblers are always more satisfying to me for some reason. 

I also peeled a grapefruit like an orange and placed it on my plate. It was all too much for one meal, but I managed to get it all down after a while with the help of the dogs Cody and Libby. I could never imagine that dogs would like grapefruits, but I guess you learn new and interesting things all the time. 

Guess what else we did over the weekend? We took the dogs to the dog park to play in the snow. 

What a pretty golden retriever!

We went into the woods, which we don't always do. I'm sure it's nice in warmer weather, but I think snow always makes things look prettier. 

So, I guess I got SOME exercise over the weekend. I'm just excited to pull myself back together and become a healthier and happier person again. I miss that. Bring on tomorrow!

Our friend Claire posted more pictures from New Years Eve, so I made sure to post them for you. That was such a fun night. 

Jewish or not, we have a tree every year. We cover it in blue and white, and it becomes a Channukah bush. Last night, we decorated it. 

I've been away for a few years, so I'm not up to date with all of our ornaments. Here are my current favorites:

The Cardinal on a Branch

The Flying Angel Mutt with a Bone

The Humane Society Loves Christmas Trees/Channukah Bushes

AND our Personalized Puppy Ornaments! I didn't even know that we had these. It was a little sad, because we have two additional ones for two dogs that we don't have anymore. These ones make me smile, though!

When the tree was done, I had a slice of home made pizza and a glass (or two) of wine.

I love Friday nights at home!

Hello friends! I am so tired and want to collapse in my bed right now, but I can't do that until I post something. I just can't. 

Today was my last day of classes for the week, because it's Thanksgiving Break! This is my first American Thanksgiving in three years. Wow. While I enjoy the holiday, the days around it are very hectic for me. My friends come in from all over the country, and there are always too many things to do. I don't mean that in a bad way. It's just not one of those relaxing holidays where the only thing that I have to worry about is petting my dogs, feeding myself, and trying to wake up before 2 pm. 

Anyway, you may notice that when I go up to a week without posting anything on my blog, my first post after my "hiatus" is a plethora of randomness and one thing has nothing to do with the other. You will notice that again today. I am also very tired, so this will be even more ridiculous than usual. 

First, I love Annie's Mac and Cheese. I crave noodles and cheese separately on a daily basis, so putting the two types of food together is just like peas n carrots for me. Not only are Annie's products tasty, but they are organic and are whole grain (at least the boxes I buy are whole grain). Extra fiber? Hell yeah!


I like to make the whole box (and save half for another meal or sometimes eat the whole box at once and then sit there and wonder why I just did that and say that I'll never eat a whole box again in one sitting just like people say that they will never drink again when they wake up with a hangover because I was just so damn full YAY I love run-on sentences without punctuation!) and then spoon a  meal-sized portion onto a bed of baby spinach. I also normally add a handful of shredded cheese to it while it's still hot in the pot and sprinkle some garlic powder on top. 

I liked the Creamy Deluxe (it's cheesier than the average Annie's mac and cheese), but there are plenty of other varieties that I enjoy. They all pretty much taste the same, but the shapes are different. 

Here's another thing I want to tell you: I understand why people like freezing their bananas. I can only eat a whole banana when it just turns ripe (I gag when they get too soft), so it's much more economical for me to peel and freeze them when they get to the gagging/brown point than throw them out.. I've been using my frozen bananas for smoothies, and you should do the same thing! Just make sure that you peel them before you freeze them. Can you imagine trying to peel a frozen banana?

Over the weekend, I made a smoothie with chocolate protein powder, my soy eggnog, a frozen banana, tart cherry juice, and frozen berries. It was too sweet for me, but I learned that eggnog is a great add-in for smoothies. I just don't recommend adding too much fruit, because it makes it sickeningly sweet! 

At least it looked purdy. 

Before I go faceplant on my pillow (or on Libby, who is sleeping on my pillow), I'm sharing dog photos. It's a passion of mine. 

A doggie friend visited our house on Friday. 

He made friends with one of our dogs. 

And then he made friends with our other dog. 

Puppy playtime!

Mickey loves it when other dogs come over to play. We think Cody likes it too, although it's hard to tell with him. He'll wag his tail at anything. Sometimes, we question if he can even tell other dogs apart. We're not always sure that he knows who we are....

Speaking of doggie visitors, Libby is here until Thanksgiving! My bed is still her favorite place in the world. 

She's lying across my pillows right now, so I have to move her over before I get into bed. She won't like that. What a poor puppy, having to deal with me taking over her bed space. 

BED TIME!!!!!

If you're in the US, have a wonderful start of the holiday!

My dog Mickey is a hoot. Our yard is surrounded by prairie, and Mickey runs into it when he's not wearing his electric collar since the plants are past the boundaries of our property. We always know when he went too far, because his long and thick fur always attracts burrs and seeds and other native flora. This time, he came back with a stick stuck in his tail. 

He's so cute, that I can only laugh when he comes back covered in plants. How can you not snicker when your dog is trying to act innocent but has a branch attached to him?

Another amusement is that my dad bought me gnocchi (since he knows how to make me happy) and didn't even know that the food expires on my wedding day. Out of all of the days it could expire, who would have thunk that it would be then?

Naturally, I expected this to be magical gnocchi. 

I made a batch last night and mixed in salmon from Sunday night's dinner. The salmon was good, but the overall meal was very unimpressive. 

For lunch today, I combined the plain leftover gnocchi with broccoli, pasta sauce and parmesan cheese. It may be the only way that I ever make it, but it's ALWAYS good!

I also have to share that it's eggnog season. If your tummy doesn't agree with regular eggnog, you can buy soy eggnog. I'm sure this is nothing new, but I've been out of the country for a few years. Cut me some slack. 

I woke up early this morning and did my Plyo X workout, which is my norm for Tuesdays since I started P90X. Plyo X is about 60 minutes (including warming up and cooling down) of nonstop movement. I was initially very scared of attempting this, because plyometrics can be very hard on your body. Too much jumping up and down could add stress on the knees and back. I experienced this when I did Zumba at my last gym. My knees were okay, but I always woke up the next morning with a sore back and leg (my right thigh that usually aches). 

One of the things that I really like about Plyo X is that you can modify everything. If they do an exercise such as a jumping squat, you don't have to do the high-impact version. You can do the squat without a jump. Usually, somebody will show you how to do the modified move. Tony Horton, the P90X instructor, also explains how to lessen your chance of injury while doing a high-impact move (land like a cat!) and stresses good shoes and a shock-absorbing mat. Once I learned that there wasn't a 100% chance of injuring myself, my attitude towards Plyo X changed. 

I started running two times per week at the same time that I started the program, but I soon realized that I was putting too much stress on my body. I wasn't a consistent runner, so my body wasn't used to that impact either. I may have been able to put up with it, but my right shin began to hurt when I walked. I stopped the running, and I used two yoga mats(one of top of the other) for extra coverage under my feet. Our basement floor is carpeted, but it's a very thin layer on top of a concrete floor. I'm sure that was one of the reasons that my shin ached. 

Since I "padded up", I've had a great time with Plyo X. I am huffing and puffing more than I am in any of the other workouts, because it's all cardio. We do a ton of different squats and lunges, so it's also very good for the lower body. I only need my mats and a towel (and WATER) for this, so it doesn't require as much equipment as some of the other DVDs. 

This morning, I was so exhausted towards the end of it that I literally wanted to curl up on the basement floor and go to sleep. I've never been that tired from this. I guzzled all of my water and then went upstairs for a recovery smoothie. 

It included:

• one handful of frozen berries (blackberries, raspberries, cherries)
• one splash of tart cherry juice
• one scoop chocolate whey protein powder
• one cup vanilla soy milk
• One tbsp instant coffee (I needed that coffee!)

 I drank it while I got ready for class. Do you like my thumb nail, by the way? It's a Sally Hansen Nail Polish Strip. They come in all sorts of crazy patterns. You just buy the strips, which are real nail polish, and put them on your nail like a sticker. You press them down on your nail and then use a nail filer that they give you to file off the excess part of the strip that hangs over your nail. Mine are starting to chip, so my flower child pattern is coming off soon. 

Bye bye for now!

Editor's note: The workout is called "Plyometrics X". I'm not really sure why I've been abbreviating it!