Working it out - on the open road

It’s time to announce to the world that I’m training for a 5k. I’ve gone and started a training program - you know - the one that everyone is doing right. now. Didn’t get the memo? Oh that’s ok. I didn’t realize until a week after I started the program. It seems as though 5k training is taking over the blogosphere!!! Hey, the healthier the better!

My hope goal is to be able to run 3 consecutive miles. Before the end of May! Nonstop. Continuous. Running! How awesome will that be?!

Week 1 has come and gone. I covered 6 miles over those three days of training. Lame. That sounds like an afternoon stroll. Trust me people, this is tough! So hard that I brought in reinforcement - Hubby is training with me!

Week 2 started this morning. Nike+ says that I’ve improved my mile time by 39 seconds over week 1. Word. I rock the shure shot! :) Today I covered 2.32 miles. Yes, those 2 hundredths of a miles are important to mention!

My schedule? Wednesday * Friday * Sunday

Want to help keep me accountable? Check out my progress? I’ll be logging my activity at Nike+

http://my.nike.com/AllieZirkle

For now I’ll be posting a Sunday recap and working to get into the swing of things.

Need some more training info? In the next few days I’ll set you up with some direction so you too can be running a 5k in 9 weeks!

PS- My apologies for seeming to have fallen off the face of the planet. Having a new little one has certainly challenged my time management abilities!

~Allie

Once a Month Cookoff Entry!

This month I decided to follow the February meal plan from Tricia's Once a Month Mom site. Wow! This process has been a blast! I had lurked the site, wondering if OAMC was for me. When I saw that prizes were inovlved, I decided to take the plunge.

I'm home on maternity leave with 2 of my 4 children; Ben is 2 and Aaron is 6 weeks. While this is a fabulous bonding time, it doesn't leave a lot of flexibility to dive in and cook. Luckily, I had FIVE days, back to back, to get cooking! I did run into a few issues...

While I was cutting chicken, Ben decided to change his clothes and run out front!


You can see what happened with the popcorn, 2 seconds after I gave Ben his snack! YouTube Video

And of course, there were the play times needed to get through the day (for my sanity too!) .


I took my time, shopping sales and finding steals. Fry's had boneless skinless chicken for $1.67/lb! I found 93% lean organic ground beef on clearance at Sprouts for $1.99/lb! That was the ultimate steal as it was regularly $6.99/lb!! I shopped Costco for the staple items and some produce. I shopped Frys and Safeway when I had a coupon to double. I took weekly ads to Walmart to price match, and that is where I got the biggest bang for my buck.

Get this... had I cooked the entire menu as Tricia had set up (12 breakfasts, 16 lunches, and 32 dinners), my total would have only been $165.17 or $2.75 per meal! Each meal is built to feed a family of four so that is less than 70 cents per person per meal! Wow!

Here is the link to the prices I paid, assuming I made the entire menu: OAMM OAMC February Price Google Doc

These recipes that Tricia provided were tried and true. My family is open to new recipes, but I figured that making FOUR of each meal (as I have no cooking partner) would not be wise so I dropped to two of each meal as follows:

Breakfasts:
2 Stuffed Pancake Cupcakes
2 Banana Pancakes

Lunches:
2 Beef & Lentil Stew
2 Sloppy Joes

Dinners:
2 Easy Taco Bakes
2 Pizza crusts & Chicken Ranch Pizza Toppings (With BACON!)
2 Curried Chicken Tidbits
2 Asian Pork Roasts
2 Black Bean Salsa Chicken

I ended up with chicken, ground beef, and steak left over. I used the oats, ground beef, and egg to make meatballs for spaghetti and sub sandwiches. I shredded the chicken to use for taco soup and chicken sandwiches for lunch time. The extra eggs from Costco went on to become hard boiled eggs for breakfasts and lunches.

I also tried Amy's Pigs in a Blanket as a breakfast option with turkey sausage rather than hotdogs. Yum! These were packed into lunches and eatten as a dinner. I was sad not to get any into the freezer, but I now know to add this to my next OAMC adventure as a breakfast and / or lunch option!

Each day ended the same, lots of dishes, a hungry mama, and wild boys. (Don't mind the pump pieces on the right... LOL)

We had a blast, and the the boys had a chance to better bond as Ben helped me feed the baby!

Whew! My freezer is full for now... With a total of 30 meals and fixings for a few more, my total came to $165/2 or $82.59!! At less than $0.70 per serving, I will definately be completing the March 2010 OAMM menu that Julie put together!



~Allie Z