Meet the Shaneyfelts

Food

A Day in the Life–June 22, 2015

The last time I did a Day in the Life post was on January 6, 2015.  And that was actually my first one to do.  I decided to do another because I want to be able to read back on the chaos that was my life during the summer of 2015.

I got up early yesterday morning to get my day started since I had a lot to do.

I went outside to run early yesterday morning and ended up just running (faster than normal) a mile and walking 20 extra minutes.  It was so muggy and too early for my body to be moving.

Rachel bought a Fitbit Charge HR last week so she and I could compete.  I’m all about a good competition, so I knew I had a lot of steps to get in today in order to beat her!

I got done running and made my breakfast smoothie–spinach leaves, vanilla Greek yogurt, frozen fruit, and water.  Notice the mess in the background?  We have no dining room table since Dustin stripped the ugly cherry finish off of it and has been restraining it a dark walnut, and our new sofa table is being used to hold all of my grad school work.  Oh, and he left me 
one chair to sit in.  He’ll redo that chair after we move in.  

After I showered, I had to go to the new house to meet the lady who was going to measure for blinds.  I CANNOT WAIT TO MOVE IN!!!
Back at the apartment, I had to work on our grocery list and do a semi-meal plan for the week.  It looks like I have a pretty easy week except that planner is deceiving!  I didn’t pencil in the time I will be spending doing statistics and my lit homework….or packing.  And the marked out closing on Wednesday….long story and stressful.  

I stopped by the post office to go ahead and forward our mail to the new house!!!

This might have been the cheapest grocery trip ever!  I pretty much just pieced together a meal plan for the week out of things that we already have, so I really just had to make sure Dustin had enough snacks for work this week and just a few odds and ends.

Lunch yesterday was a quinoa dish.  It’s Dustin’s favorite quinoa dish and the only one he will eat.  I made Enchilada Quinoa Casserole and it was wonderful!!!

I relaxed on the couch studying for my Bible study on Wednesday night while Dustin researched home stuff.

Dustin left for work at 4:15 PM and I finished reading my chapter in the Spiritual Disciplines book.  I took a quick break to look up home security system options while watching Friends in the background.  Can you see the boxes in the background?  They are everywhere.

I ate leftovers from lunch for supper.  I love this casserole and could eat it every week!  Also since we don’t have a table right now, we’re having to eat our meals either standing up in the kitchen or on the floor in the living room.  I chose to eat on the floor so I could watch a show I had DVR’d.  (We don’t eat on the couch because it’s an off white.)

I made my powerpoint for Bible study.  It took me around an hour and a half.  I love prepping and teaching this study, but it is time consuming during my summer of grad school 🙁

I put my workout clothes back on (yeah, they were dirty but oh well) and drove over to Rachel’s so we could get our 10,000 steps in today.  We are competitive!!  Oh, and we bought new bedroom furniture, so I can’t wait for it to be delivered to the new house!  This furniture that you see in the background will go in our guest bedroom in the new house and I have 2 duvets from Pottery Barn that I used in college.  I’ll put one of them on the bed after we get our new furniture.

Rachel’s dog, Ralph, likes to pretend he’s a cat.

Before our walk last night!  We walked a little over 30 minutes and it was so nice!  We decided that once I move and Rachel starts her new job, we’ll swap out where we walk.

Before bed last night, I took my nightly shower, watched a little HGTV, and did my quiet time.  Tuesday will be filled with statistics and getting started on my lit that’s due Saturday…eek!

Happy Tuesday!

Pistachio Ice Cream Sandwiches/Bar (Healthy!!)

I love ice cream sandwiches.  And I love eating healthy.  Who says you can’t have the best of both worlds?  I found a recipe on Pinterest last week, and of course I altered it because I wouldn’t be myself if I didn’t change a recipe before even trying it.

When these ice cream sandwiches were frozen, I had Dustin try one.  Right after his first bite, he said, “WOW!”  Apparently I outdid his expectations.  See for yourself!


Pistachio Frozen Yogurt Bars
-Graham crackers
-8 oz container of cool whip (sugar free)
-1 cup non-fat Greek yogurt, plain
-box of pistachio pudding mix
-1 tsp vanilla extract

1. Line a 9 x 9 or 8 x 8 pan with foil.  This will help when you have to cut your bars because you can lift the foil out of the pan and cut easily!
2. Break your graham crackers up into halves or fourths.  I did some of both in order to make everything fit.  Line them in the bottom or your pan.
2. Mix cool whip, Greek yogurt, pudding mix, and vanilla extract together.
3. Spread mixture over your graham cracker layer.
4. Top with the 2nd graham cracker layer.
5. Cover and freeze 3-4 hours.
6. Take foil out of pan and cut.  Serve cold!


My First Time to Cook Quinoa–a Recipe

I had always been intrigued by the idea of eating quinoa, but I was a little intimidated to cook it myself.  I had only had quinoa in two dishes–one in a roasted butternut squash spinach salad at a local restaurant and then in a broth bowl at Panera.  That was the extent of my quinoa consumption.  But I knew that it had huge health benefits (TONS of protein, fiber, B12, magnesium….that’s just to name a few).  And it was a grain.  I texted my friend Sarah last week while I was in Walmart telling her I was taking a leap of faith and buying a box and that I needed her favorite recipe.  Luckily, she was headed into Walmart and met up with me to talk about her favorite recipe.  She emailed it to me and I tried it a few days later!  

(Note:  I accidentally messed up on the recipe and had to alter the recipe super fast–like, in the middle of cooking because I misread the directions.  So this is my version.  But I really like Sarah’s as a dip–which is how she served it Friday night.)



Sarah’s Southwest Quinoa

I cup cooked quinoa
1 can drained black beans
1 bag frozen corn kernels
1/2 onion, chopped
1 red bell pepper, chopped
1/2 cup olive oil
1/4 cup lime juice
1 tsp ground cumin
1/4 tsp salt
1 clove garlic, minced (I used 1 tsp minced garlic)

1. Cook the quinoa and set aside to cool for 10 minutes.
2. Combine the black beans, corn, onion, and red bell pepper and sauté on the stove until onions are transparent (and corn is cooked thorough).
3. Combine all of the sautéed vegetables and cooked quinoa in a bowl. 
4. Mix together olive oil, lime juice, salt, cumin, and garlic and pour over the quinoa and vegetables.  Mix together well.

This will be served hot.  This can be a side dish or even your whole meal.  You can also add in grilled chicken!  I first ate it as a side in our meal one night and then ate it for lunch by itself the next day.  It was filling just by itself!

This is such an easy introduction dish to quinoa and will be on rotation in our house!