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writer-k-pop · 4 years

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Mornings (OT8)

굿 모닝. Good morning.

Description: Sharing a house with your 8 best friends means there’s never a dull moment. Though the toughest part is the mornings. Here’s why. Warnings: None Genre: FLUFF Word Count: 1.6k

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Rolling out of bed, I rub the sleep from my eyes and blindly reach for the door. I find the door and wildly, without making too much noise, open it and head for the bathroom. The lights blind my sensitive eyes and I grumble in annoyance.

After finishing up in the bathroom, I head towards the kitchen to make breakfast for the others.

Flicking on the lights, I nearly jump out of my skin. San is laying face down on the floor, limbs spread out. His face is turned towards me, eyes closed.

“Good morning.” He states and smiles at me.

“What the heck, San?” I ask, a hand clutching my heart. “Why are you... there?” I finish, unsure of what to call what he’s doing.

“I woke up early and couldn’t go back to sleep,” San explains, sitting up. “So I came out here, then I got bored looking out the window so I laid down. Then you showed up.” He finishes happily now that he has a morning companion.

I nod and continue on my way to the kitchen. First thing’s first, I need coffee.

“What do you have planned for the day?” San follows me into the kitchen.

I load up the Keurig cup and place a mug underneath, “I have some work stuff to do and then I have to go grocery shopping. We’re running out of food.”

“Ooh,” San leans on the counter, “Can I come along?”

I nod, the extra hands would be helpful. “Do you have any plans?”

San shakes his head, “Nope. Oh, I mean I have to do laundry but that’s about it.”

“Sounds fun.” I murmur as the smell of coffee hits my nostrils.

Shuffling slippers against the hardwood brings my attention to the hallway. Hongjoong appears rubbing his eyes and his hair is a frazzled mess.

“Morning.” I greet him and he responds with a nod and grunt. I laugh and sip at my coffee, letting the caffeine jump start my systems. “Alright,” I breathe out, “What do I make for breakfast?” I mumble to myself and open the fridge.

Upstairs, more feet shuffle and doors open and close signalling the awakening of the others.

I pull out the leftover rice from the night before and throw it in the microwave for reheating. Pulling out several different side dishes, I mentally decide that rice, side dishes, and omelettes will do.

San has moved to the couch and is talking Hongjoong’s ears off about the dream he had last night. Seonghwa is the next to appear, he’s dressed for the day and any evidence of sleep is gone from his features.

I crack eggs into a large bowl as he enters the kitchen.

“Can I help with anything?” He asks, eyeing the side dishes sitting on the counter.

I nod, “Can you plate those and put them on the table? And can you get San to set the table? Hongjoong looks like he’s not hearing a word he’s saying.”

Seonghwa looks over and chuckles, “San.”

San pops his head from Hongjoong’s line of vision, “Yeah?”

“Can you set the table?” Seonghwa asks him, already plating the black beans.

Immediately, San is on his feet, “Yeah.”

“You couldn’t have waited two more minutes?” Wooyoung questions, his annoyance evident from downstairs. “You do know we have multiple bathrooms around the house.”

“This one’s my favorite.” Yeosang’s flat voice floats down the stairs.

I laugh visualizing Wooyoung rolling his eyes at Yeosang but ultimately letting him pass into the bathroom. After the eggs have been cracked and whisked, I pull out a pan and set it on top of the stove top. Looking at the eggs, something is missing.

“Here.” Seonghwa hands me the container of cut up green onions.

“Thanks.” I take the container and sprinkle the green onions into the eggs.

As the first omelette hits the pan, Yunho walks through.

“Something smells good.” He comments before moving to sit next to Hongjoong. His hair is wet from his shower and his cheeks still show his morning blush.

“It’ll be ready in like ten minutes.” I inform them. “Will someone go wake Jongho and Mingi?”

“I’m not going back up.” Wooyoung comments coming to sit at the table in the living room where San is setting up plates and silverware.

“Yeosang!” Yunho yells and poor Hongjoong flinches.

“What?!” Yeosang yells back as the microwave beeps. Seonghwa opens the door and fluffs up the rice before taking it over to the table.

“Wake the others!” Yunho demands.

“Why do I have to do it?!” Yeosang tries to deflect the duty.

“Cause you’re already upstairs!” Wooyoung stonewalls him.

Yeosang scoffs but I hear his feet travel to their rooms.

Smiling at the mess we are in the morning, I roll up the omelette and set it on the cutting board before pouring more eggs into the pan.

“Why are you so tired, Hongjoong hyung?” San asks, taking a seat next to Wooyoung.

I slice the omelette into pieces and set it on a plate that Seonghwa got out for me.

“He was out late again.” Seonghwa answers for him, crossing his arms across his chest, “Woke me up.”

“I did?” Hongjoong worries with wide eyes. “Sorry, I thought I was being quiet.”

“Were you with her again?” Yeosang questions, appearing with Mingi and Jongho stumbling in after him.

I roll up the omelette while listening to the entire conversation from the kitchen.

Hongjoong nods, “Yeah, we went out for a movie and then lost track of time.”

Wooyoung giggles happily, “Are you guys going to date?”

San slaps Wooyoung’s shoulder, “Don’t pressure him like that.”

“Nah, they’re obviously already dating he just doesn’t want to admit it to us.” Jongho states, sitting on the other side of Wooyoung.

“Woah, Hongjoong’s got a girlfriend?” Yunho says with a wide smile, “Finally.”

“What do you mean ‘finally’?” Hongjoong defends himself.

“Get your own drinks.” I remind them pulling the third omelette out of the pan and pouring the final bit of eggs into the pan.

“What do you want to drink, Mingi, Jongho?” Hongjoong asks the two that are still in somewhat of a sleep daze.

“Water.” Yunho answers.

“Milk.” San adds.

“Oh, me too.” Wooyoung comments.

“I’ll get the milk.” Seonghwa announces noticing Hongjoong’s defeated face.

“Do we have juice?” Mingi asks, the smells of breakfast slowly bringing him to life.

“We have apple or orange.” I inform him, pulling the fourth and final omelette off the pan. I turn the stove off then move to slice the omelette and plate it with the rest.

“Apple.” Jongho gives his answer.

“Orange.” Mingi decides his beverage, his voice still not awake.

Hongjoong and Seonghwa work to pour the beverages while I grab the plate of omelettes and my coffee mug and bring it over to the table where everyone is sitting around. Jongho rises and moves to help Seonghwa and Hongjoong bring the drinks over to the table.

Spread out on the table are dishes of black beans, kimchi, fried anchovies, seasoned bean sprouts, namul, stir fried potatoes, omelettes, and bulgogi. Not to mention the large container of rice.

“Thanks for the food.” Seonghwa announces and serves himself some rice which allows the rest of us to start serving ourselves after reciprocating his thanks.

“These are really good.” Yunho compliments with a bite of omelette in his mouth.

“Thanks.” I take the compliment and scoops some beans onto my plate.

For the next few minutes, the only sounds are utensils hitting plates and napkins being crunched up.

Taking a sip of my coffee to clear my mouth, I inform the guys of my plan to go grocery shopping. “San and I are going to the store today, do you guys have any requests?”

“We need laundry detergent.” Seonghwa looks up briefly, “We’ve got like two pods left.”

My eyes widen not knowing we had gone that low on detergent. I quickly pull out my phone and add to the shopping list.

“Can we have chicken sometime this week?” Mingi asks, looking around for objections. “I’m craving it for some reason.”

“Oh, yeah, can you make that one dish that I like?” Wooyoung suggests, happily.

“That was specific.” Yeosang laughs.

“You know which one, right?” Wooyoung looks to me and I mentally go through my recipe book, “The one with the potatoes and the carrots? It has like a brownish sauce and I think you use the whole drumsticks?”

My mind immediately finds the Chicken Curry recipe my mom taught me years ago.

“The curry!” Hongjoong lights up at the memory.

“Oh, the curry!” I remember and Wooyoung nods happily. “Yeah, I can make that. When do you want it, Mingi?” I inquire from him, adding the ingredients to the grocery list.

“Uh, Wednesday night?” Mingi wonders, “I mean honestly, I do not care.”

I nod and continue eating.

“I want Goldfish.” Jongho whines, putting down his spoon.

“And popcorn.” Wooyoung pipes up, “And Chocopie.”

I type as fast as I can to get down all the snacks they want.

“Jalepeno potato chips, please.” Seonghwa smiles.

“String cheese sticks!” Yeosang adds in.

“And...” San looks at Yunho and Mingi.

“Peppero!” They scream in unison.

I laugh and add it to the list.

“Alright.” I lean back and look at the table of mostly empty dishes, “Should we clean up and start our day?”

“No.” Jongho mumbles while Hongjoong nods in agreement.

“Yes.” Seonghwa corrects them while standing and collecting a few dishes.

“You guys get to clean. I cooked.” I state, nodding my head towards the kitchen.

Yunho obediently obeys and picks up dishes as well. San, Wooyoung, and Jongho are in a heated discussion about the purpose of lamps. Mingi is on the couch with his eyes closed and I’m pretty sure he’s passed out again. Hongjoong and Yeosang also begin cleaning up the table while I get to sit back and watch the whole thing unfold.

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basketofverbiage · 4 years

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Breakfast in Bed

I’ve been so excited about the this one and the next two stories. They are all connected and I’ve been planning them since the end of November. They will be all about NamJin as husbands, the maknaes as their sons, and Christmas antics with Sope. I hope you love this as much as I’ve loved writing it.

Namjoon and Jin had been married for 4 years when their lives changed for the better. They had wanted to adopt a child, but they hadn’t wanted to rush into it. Namjoon, being the intellectual he was, did massive amounts of research and presented all the data to Jin. After listening to all the different ways to adopt, Jin was a little overwhelmed and took a few days to think it over before presenting an idea that Namjoon hadn’t even considered.

“Joonie, what if we foster some kids first? We would be helping some that need someone, and when the right child comes along, we can adopt them.”

Namjoon had been totally on board with that idea, so they’d registered a couple of days later. They’d taken some classes, had the home inspection, and been assigned a social worker to help them get prepared for when they were needed. They had two spare rooms in their house, so they put a set of bunk beds in the larger room that had a full-size bed on the bottom. They also made sure to have extra blankets and pillows on hand, along with some age appropriate books and toys of a variety of ages.

They thought they were prepared, but they were only expecting one child. The first call they got was at 2:30 am on a Tuesday. Their social worker, Ji-ae, called about twenty minutes before arriving with 3 small brothers. The older fraternal twins, Jimin and Taehyung, had been 4 while the youngest, Jungkook, had been 2. Namjoon didn’t think he’d ever forget that night. They answered the door to see both Taehyung and Jimin with large splotches of blood across their pajama tops and tears staining their cheeks. Jungkook was terrified, his eyes large and glossy with an endless stream of tears, but he’d lunged for Namjoon as soon as he’d seen him. Namjoon had held him tightly, rubbing his little back while he trembled in fear. The twins had wrapped themselves around Jin’s legs as Ji-ae explained that they’d been in the car with their parents and a drunk driver had hit them head on. Their parents had been killed, leaving the boys without anyone to care for them.

After Ji-ae had left that night, Jin had taken Jimin and Taehyung into their master bedroom where they had a large tub and had run them a bubble bath to wash the blood off. Jungkook’s clothes were clean, but he wouldn’t even let Namjoon set him down long enough to remove his shoes. Namjoon just held him until he stopped shaking while he listened to the splashes and giggles coming from the bathroom.

Over the next few weeks, they adjusted quickly to having the boys running around the house. Despite the trauma they had been through, they bounced back extremely well with the help of an age appropriate therapist. In no time at all, Namjoon and Jin had fallen in love with them and new that there was no way they could let them go. So, over the course of 2 years, they adopted the three precious boys that had brightened their lives. Over time, the boys moved from calling them Jinnie and Joonie to calling Jin “Appa” and Namjoon “Daddy.”

Jin had always been the one who cooked and maintained the house since Namjoon couldn’t cook to save his own life. But when their babies came to him, saying, “Daddy, we wanna make Appa breakfast in bed for his Christmas gift from us. Will you help us?” how could he ever say no? So, that’s what led Namjoon to take their rambunctious sons to grocery shop while Jin was at work.

“Daddy, what is Appa’s favorite way to have eggs?” Jimin asked.

“Can we make him an omelet?” Taehyung nearly yelled from excitement.

“What’s an om-yet?” Jungkook asked.

“I think we can manage an omelet, my loves. And we can get some of that cinnamon bread that he loves from the bakery and make toast. It’s simple, but he will like it because we made it and he loves us.”

“When we go to the bakery, can I have a pup-cake, Daddy?”

“Maybe we will all get cupcakes, Kookie,” Namjoon smiled.

They had decided to make Jin’s surprise breakfast on the day before Christmas Eve, or Christmas Eve Eve as the twins had been calling it. They had been so excited about it that Namjoon was surprised no one had spilled the secret yet. Namjoon had a difficult time getting them to sleep that night. Luckily, both Jin and Namjoon were on holiday from work through the new year to be with the boys and Namjoon’s brother, Yoongi, who was coming to visit.

At 5 am, Namjoon nearly fell out of the bed. Jungkook had tiptoed in the room to wake him up to make breakfast. Instead of saying anything and waking Jin up (he was amazingly sensitive to the boys’ voices and would wake up if they began to sleep-talk from two rooms away), Jungkook poked Namjoon on the nose. When he opened his eyes, Jungkook’s face was so close to his own their noses were touching. After his initial shock, Namjoon quietly got up and picked Jungkook up and carried him to the kitchen. Even though Jungkook was 5 and the twins were 7, Namjoon picked up the boys and held them close as much as he could because he knew they wouldn’t be small forever. When they got to the kitchen, he put him down and began making coffee for himself and Jin, and hot cocoa for the boys. Jimin, Taehyung, and Jungkook all had their own aprons from when they wanted to help Jin cook, so Namjoon helped them all tie their aprons on while the coffee was brewing and the milk for the cocoa was heating up.

“Alright, my loves. We have to remember to be as quiet as we can so we don’t wake Appa, okay?” He paused until they all nodded seriously. “Okay! The first thing we need to do is to cut up some veggies for the omelet. While I get the knife and cutting board, you pick out Appa’s favorite veggies from the refrigerator.”

The three were very serious as they opened the door and inspected what was inside. Namjoon smiled softly at them as he mixed up their cocoa and poured it into their three favorite mugs. He placed the mugs on the island for them and dropped in a few marshmallows in each cup. By the time that he’d put the marshmallows away, the boys were putting some veggies on the countertop. They’d picked spring onions, a red pepper, some mushrooms, a bit of spinach, and some leftover bacon from breakfast the morning before. Before Namjoon began chopping the pepper, mushrooms, and onions, he gave them all jobs of their own. Jimin was whisking the eggs, Taehyung was putting some pre-cut fruit into a bowl as a fruit salad, and Jungkook was waiting for the toast to pop out of the toaster so he could spread butter and jam on it. Once the veggies were chopped and ready, Namjoon grated some cheese in a bowl and heated the pan with some butter on the stove.

“So, we are to the part that I don’t think you boys can help with. While I cook the omelet part, why don’t you each make Appa a Christmas card?” Namjoon couldn’t help but giggle at the seriousness with which each of them were concentrating on their personalized cards for Jin, and he knew that they were pouring their love and appreciation into them.

In his worry about messing up this breakfast, Namjoon had called his brother in a panic a few days ago. Yoongi had laughed hysterically when he answered the FaceTime call and Namjoon begged him to teach him how to make an omelet at 3:3o in the afternoon. After a few minutes of teasing him, Yoongi had given in and taught him step by step what to do, then teased him more at the way Namjoon was frantically jotting down notes.

Namjoon sautéed the peppers and mushrooms in the butter for a few minutes before adding in the bacon and spinach. Once the spinach wilted down, he added the spring onions then the eggs that Jimin had whisked for way too long, but he had taken his job very seriously; the omelet would just be extremely fluffy. The cheese was the very last ingredient, and then came the hard part and the only part that Namjoon was terrified about: folding the omelet and getting it on the plate. But with enough prayers and begging any gods who were listening, and he got the omelet decently folded and on the plate when he could sigh in relief. Namjoon looked up and saw Jimin and Taehyung helping Jungkook, who was just beginning to learn to write, spell out all the things he wanted to say to his Appa. His heart squeezed with love and he had to close his eyes to keep the tears from leaking out. After he was able to control his emotions a bit better, he sat everything on the tray.

“Babies, are your cards finished?” he asked quietly.

“Yes, Daddy. Jungkookie just needs to finish writing his name and we will all be done,” Jimin replied.

“All done!” Jungkook announced proudly.

“Perfect. Appa’s omelet is done now too. I’ve got everything we made on the tray, but I want you to carry your cards for him. You guys lead the way, and pounce on him on the bed and wake him up.”

They all three immediately went running towards the bedroom where Jin was still sleeping and threw the door open. Namjoon walked behind them a bit slower so the coffee and orange juice on the tray wouldn’t slosh too much but made it into the doorway as Jin was sitting up and being swarmed by their sons pressing kisses all over his face. Namjoon’s heart lurched in his chest for the second time that day as Jin smiled and pulled them all into a big hug before meeting his own eyes with a dazzling smile.

“Good morning, my precious darlings! Is all of this for me?” he asked them.

“Yes, Appa! We made you an om-yet and some toast for breakfast. I hope you like them,” Jungkook shyly told him, looking at Jin with big eyes.

Jin could tell that Jungkook was nervous that he wouldn’t like the omelet, so he kissed his forehead before saying, “I bet I’ll love it because you made it for me, and I love you so very much.”

All three boys giggled and snuggled into him as Namjoon sat the tray down in front of him. “Good morning, handsome,” Namjoon smiled at him, kissing his lips gently.

“Good morning, Baby. Thank you for helping our darlings make me breakfast.”

“Of course. We all wanted to do something to show you how much we love you.”

Jin didn’t say anything in response because Taehyung cut into the omelet and held up a bite to Jin. “Appa, try it!”

He took a bite, then moaned exaggeratedly. “Yah, this is so good. You three are the best omelet makers in the world.”

Namjoon sat at the end of their bed, sipping his coffee and watching Jin eat the breakfast they’d made him and feed their children more than half of it. While he knew that the omelet was probably okay and not as good as Jin made it out to be, it filled his heart so much to see him with their boys and how well he loved them. Watching him with their sons gave Namjoon a greater gift than any of the shiny packages under the Christmas tree in their living room.

After they had eaten, Jungkook shoved his card at Jin. The card was drawn on green construction paper with a Christmas tree on the front. The inside had a picture he’d drawn of their family and a note. The note was misspelled, but you were able to figure out what he was trying to say. It said, “Thank you for being my Appa. I love you so very much. Merry Christmas,” with a big heart at the end. Jin read the card, and hugged Jungkook tight.

Jimin gave him his card next, drawn on pink construction paper “because it’s your favorite color.” He’d drawn a snowman on the front with snowflakes falling around it, while the inside had a picture of their house. Jimin had written in his perfect handwriting, “Appa, thank you for taking such good care of us and for loving us. Merry Christmas! I love, love, love you.” By this point, Jin’s eyes were shining with tears, but he was striving to hold them back.

“Here, Appa. Read my card now,” Taehyung giggled as he pushed his card into Jin’s hands. The card was drawn on white paper. The front had a beautiful rainbow on it with a Christmas present at one end. When Jin opened it up, there was a stick figure sitting inside the opened gift that had been labeled as Appa. Underneath, Taehhyung had written in, “You are the best present I’ve ever received. I love you, Appa.” When he read that, Jin made a bit of a choked sound as his emotions broke through the hold he’d kept on then.

“Do you not like it?” Taehyung asked, staring up at Jin with big worried eyes.

“No, TaeTae. That’s not it at all. I love it and I love you. I’m just so happy this morning. These are happy tears, Baby,” Jin replied, pulling Taehyung into his lap. “I’m going to hang all three of your cards on the bulletin board in my office when I go back to work so I can see them all the time.”

Namjoon picked up the tray and took it back into the kitchen, giving Jin some time alone with the boys. He did the dishes and turned off their coffee pot. When he finished, it was just after 6:25 am, and still pretty early. He walked back into their bedroom to find Jin asleep with Jimin asleep on his left side and Jungkook asleep on his right side, snuggled in close to him. Taehyung was lying on top of Jin with his head pressed against his chest, his ear just above Jin’s heart. Namjoon grabbed his phone and snapped a picture of them sleeping together and made it his phone background before climbing into bed with them and snuggling as close to them as he could get. They were his whole world.

#bts #bts fic #bts fanfic #bts scenarios #bts scenario #bts imagine #bts imagines #bts imagination #bts fluff #namjin #maknaes as kids #bts namjin #namjin fluff #namjin as dads #bts christmas drabble #the twenty-third day of christmas

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this-is-not-a · 4 years

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We can do better

Being the primary meal preparer between myself and Michela during quarantine also means that I strongly influence what we pick up on our weekly grocery trips. It’s not that I’m an amazing cook, but thousands of hours of food media have definitely emboldened me: I may not be amazing, but I am fearless in the kitchen. Some of our quarantine staples have been: pan fried chicken thigh, roasted broccoli, Chinese string beans, chili-lime kale salad, french omelette with cheese, kimchi fried rice, tacos with fajita veggies, and Chinese egg and tomato. We also cook frozen food, ramen, pasta, rice and other grains, and we also order-in a few times a week. We get variety, but I also have a bias towards familiarity so I don’t go looking for new recipes the way I did with Mark when cooking was a weekend activity instead of something I do to have food.

Michela and I have been reading about police abolitionism, which it turns out actually isn’t very radical. The main idea is just that most cities in the US today task their police forces with a lot of stuff that might be better handled by other organizations: answering calls about people living on the street, mental illness calls, and small crimes. Abolitionism is a call to shift funding from the police to these other organizations and social programs which reduce crime.

A few weeks ago when we went grocery shopping, Michela picked up some fresh rosemary. I was skeptical about how we would use it. She didn’t have a plan, and we’ve let food go bad accidentally several times in the last few months, so I’ve been trying to take a conservative attitude on groceries, only buying things when I had a plan to use them. The rosemary ended up sitting in the bottom of our fridge for several weeks, despite near-daily reminders I would bother Michela with, that we still needed to use the rosemary.

My first response to the idea of abolition was that it made sense but I wasn’t sure why it was preferred over reform. Reform has been “tried” but to the extent that it hasn’t worked I also feel like it hasn’t been wholeheartedly implemented. Part of the problem is that attempts to reform the police from the outside tend to be met with extreme skepticism and patronization from the officers, according to Vitale in “The End of Policing.” Vitale also calls out reformist policies like community policing -- the idea of some prototype of policing where neighborhood police are known and respected in the community -- which call for things like increasing reliance on Police Athletic Leagues, positive non-enforcement activities with youth, and more focus on getting to know community members, things that Vitale says do not reduce crime. It’s worth noting that community policing has been shown to increase trust in the police and decrease perceptions of biased treatment, even among residents in high crime and high poverty neighborhoods.

Yesterday we made rosemary pesto off of a recipe from the internet. It asked us to make the pesto in a food processor, which didn’t work for us because the rosemary needles just got mucky and wouldn’t pulse, so we scraped it out and chopped it up on a cutting board. The pesto was delicious after we added some lemon juice and pasta water. I’ve never cooked with rosemary before, and I probably wouldn’t have if Michela hadn’t pushed it on me, so maybe I should be less resistant to buying things I don’t yet know how to cook. Being forced to use rosemary taught me about it as an ingredient. It’s intensely herby and a little throaty. Fresh rosemary has a sort of bitterness to its aftertaste, but by adding more acidity and salt we were able to balance it out.

While there is room for investigation when looking at reform and abolition, I do think that from the current state of things, both kinds of policies move us in the correct direction. The rerouting of funding is overdue. As Dallas police chief David Brown said,

“We’re asking cops to do too much in this country. We are. Every societal failure, we put it off on the cops to solve. Not enough mental health funding, let the cops handle it ... Here in Dallas we got a loose dog problem; let’s have the cops chase loose dogs. Schools fail, let’s give it to the cops ... that’s too much to ask. Policing was never meant to solve all those problems.”

This blog officially endorses police abolitionism and rosemary.

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betweenpaperpages · 5 years

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Hear Me Still - Chapter Seven

Summery: A new store-front is set to open on main street in Storybrooke and with it brings new resident Mr. Gold to the center of attention. While he looks forward to this new step in business, it is yet unknown if his deafness will set him back once again.

Beta: @ishtarelisheba

Read on AO3!

[Chapter One] [Chapter Two] [Chapter Three] [Chapter Four] [Chapter Five][Chapter Six]

Chapter Seven: More Than Meets The Eye

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Acquiring his new library card was a simple and straightforward affair, and in a matter of a few minutes Marcus had it slipped into his wallet and a new stack of books to read. He should really head back to the shop to get some work done or perhaps take care of a few other errands.

Belle spoke up again before he had the chance to wish her a good day.

“How are you liking Storybrooke so far, Mr. Gold?” Belle questioned, handing him his books. “You haven’t been here long, have you?”

Marcus shook his head side to side lightly. “Oh, uh... no, not very long. Perhaps a month or so?” he answered, sounding unsure himself. “I haven’t been around town much… Busy putting the shop together.”

Belle smiled as she listened to his answer, enjoying the brush of accent across his wording. “I can imagine, you seem to have quite the collection there.” She chuckled.

“Y-yes well… one never knows what could be someone’s treasure.”

“Have you had the chance to explore town at all?”

“A small portion, however, Grace is determined to take me on an adventure and show me the entire town before school begins.”

“Grace? Grace Madden?” Belle questioned.

Gold nodded, his gaze slipping down to the books in front of him, restacking them from smallest to largest. “Yes, Jefferson’s daughter. Do you know her?”

“Yes, she comes to story time every now and then with -- “

“Hey, lassie!” a heavily accented voice called, cutting her response off. “Can you help me over here for a sec?”

Belle sighed in annoyance. Really, Merida should know to keep their voice down to a reasonable level. “Excuse me Mr. Gold, I’ll just be a minute.” She turned to walk around the circulation desk, brushing past him on her way.

Marcus shook his head as he looked back up to her. “N-no, please, go ahead. I apologize for taking up your time,” he managed to mutter, though he was certain half of it wasn’t heard.

“What can I do for you Mer?” Belle questioned.

The conversation drifted into background noise the farther the librarian walked away to help the young redhead, leaving Marcus to gather up his books and quietly heading back home for the day.

xxxxx

Marcus sighed as the door swung open, stepping into Jefferson’s rather eclectic home. While he wouldn’t call it his style, he felt fortunate that he was invited and encouraged to call the space home.

He took a step to the side, setting the library books down on the hall table and tossing his keys into the bowl before depositing his coat on the rack — which inevitably only stood to support Jeff’s favorite top hat.

The house’s silence hugged him as he made his way up to his bedroom, flicking on the lights as he went, confirming that both Jeff and his daughter were out. Marcus ran his hands through his hair, gathering the length together to tie off in a ponytail. It wasn’t an intended look - he more so used it for convenience, but it didn’t stop his family from pointing out the longer it got, the closer he was to having a man bun. He shook his head at the idea. Clearly he did not have the looks for such a style. Carefully, he reached back to each of his ears, clicking the off button and pulling out his hearing aids, setting them aside on the dresser.

Going from a world of sound, music, and chatter to one of near void-like silence had not been an easy transition. However, it was something he simply had to deal with at the time. There had been no time nor reason to wallow in self pity. After a while, one became accustomed to their inner monolog being a constant companion. There certainly would never be a day he wasn’t alone with his thoughts.

Marcus hummed ‘A Whole New World’ to himself as he made his way back downstairs. The song had been incessantly playing in his mind from Grace’s last rewatch of Aladdin. He only stopped for a moment to pick up the stack of borrowed cookbooks on his way to the kitchen.

Jefferson certainly had not skimped on the budget when he renovated the house. The kitchen had just about every element any chef, or in this case, a home cook could dream of. Large farmhouse sink, marble countertops, soft-close drawers, double ovens, a gas range, along with all other top quality appliances. Such a kitchen deserved a proper chef, but instead today it would have him for company again.

He settled one of the cookbooks into a nesting stand, flipping through the pages before settling on a vegetarian casserole. The kitchen was well stocked and easily had all of the ingredients he would need without making a run to the grocery store for any last minute items.

Marcus pulled out a colander to place in the sink before gathering his vegetables, taking a moment to make sure his shirt sleeves were well rolled, pulling on an apron, and starting to wash them up in cool water. Even though it was still summer it was a bit late in the season to plant anything in Jefferson’s garden. Perhaps if he was still living with the Maddens coming next year it could be his and Grace’s project.

Moving to the cutting board with the zucchini and heirloom tomatoes, he picked out a suitably sharp knife and began slicing everything to the appropriate size, glancing back up and checking the recipe book for any details. Marcus enjoyed cooking, but even at his age he could admit he was still learning quite a few things. The fact that he was cooking for others and not just himself made the effort worthwhile and that much more enjoyable.

As careful as he would be as if restoring an antique, he layered a baking dish with the vegetables along with fresh basil, garlic, salt and pepper, finishing off the top layer with a blend of cheeses. Sliding the dish into the oven and setting a timer, he washed up his tools and hands, moving on to pull out a small baguette. Quickly slicing it in half, he spread a garlic butter mixture on either side and set it to the side to be finished off at the last minute with the casserole.

Yet another benefit of living with the Madden’s was Jefferson’s intention on keeping up with the latest technology. If it was released, he was most likely to have already ordered it before it came on the market.

“Alexa,” Marcus called out, the small speaker unit hanging on the wall activating, “play Ludovico Einaudi.”

Faintly he could hear the computer respond to his request and with a few beeps it began to play one of his albums. The soft piano music twined beautifully with the string instruments, filling the kitchen with a gentle ambiance. It would probably be easier to use a device and place a pair of headphones into his ears to get the best sound without wearing his hearing aids. However, he much preferred for the drifting music to fill the space around him, pushing the wall of near silence back just a few feet.

xxxxx

Marcus had just slipped the garlic bread into the oven as he heard the high-pitched sound of the doorbell ring. Glancing up from his cookbook where he was leaning on the counter, he saw the LED light on the doorway flashing brightly. He set the book aside as he stepped into the hall when a small body with open arms crashed into his midsection without warning.

“Uncle Gold, we’re home!” Grace announced happily, resting her chin on his belly as she grinned up at him.

Marcus chuckled as he squeezed her back. “Yes, I can see that.”

Jefferson frowned as he closed the door behind him with his foot, shaking his head. “Grace, we’ve talked about this before.” He sighed as he set the shopping bags down on the hall table. “You have to give him a chance to get to the door before barrelling in like that.”

“It’s fine, Jeff,” Gold brushed off, his eyes having been glued to his friend’s lips to read them. “I saw the kitchen doorbell, it's not like she gave me a heart attack.”

“No, she knows the rules better than that. Grace, you owe Marcus an apology.”

Grace glanced to her father before back up to Marcus, biting her lip as she released him from her arms. “I’m sorry.”

He took a knee down next to his niece as he bopped her nose with his finger, offering her a smile. “That’s quite alright, I get excited to see you, too. Why don’t you wash up, dinner will be ready in a few minutes.”

“Okay.”

Jeff shook his head again as he watched his daughter take off up the stairs before. “You spoil her you know that?” he questioned, though there wasn’t much mirth to his voice.

“Not that much. She just has a lot of energy,” Marcus responded, pushing up off the ground. He picked up one of the bags to carry it through to dining room off the kitchen. “Alexa, pause music.”

“Still, she knows the rules. We went over them half a dozen times before you moved in. I don’t need nor want my child to give you a heart attack because you didn’t hear her.” Jefferson sighed, crossing his arms as he leaned in the doorway between the two spaces.

“Jeff, you’ve done more than enough to accommodate me. More than someone could reasonably ask. If I’m not paying attention to my surroundings and my heart is really that weak, then a heart attack is my own damn fault,” Marcus lectured. Really, the man had done more than enough to assist him with his transition into Storybrooke, let alone his business start up. Compared to what he had seen… Well, a young girl would hardly be the death of him.

Jefferson adjusted his weight against the door frame, his face holding a curious expression though it dropped with another sigh. “I suppose you’re right.”

His hands dropped to the side as he stood up, turning towards the kitchen and taking a large inhale of the attractive aroma. “Besides, looking at that apron, who couldn’t benefit from having Julia Child living with them?”

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marshmallowatheart · 5 years

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To All The Boys I've Loved Before (Part 46)

Standing with five hours of sleep, Veronica mixes together the ingredients for her classic Christmas sugar cookies.

Heather strolls into the kitchen, plops on the chair opposite her sister about to complain about her hunger when she notices Veronica's visible eye bags and drawn in expression. She knows something is wrong. She knows something's been wrong ever since she got back from her trip. "Ronica?" The girl in question hums as she focuses on her task at hand. "Are you okay?"

Veronica looks at her sister and gives her a mild nod accompanied with a reassuring smile. "I'm just tired."

she stares at her sister's face and says, "You look like a zombie."

Veronica halts in her movements, gazes up to her little sister with a mischievous quirked smile as she holds up her flour covered hands out to Heather's face and in her best zombie voice says, "I want to eat your brains."

Heather's eyes widen, shocked and panicked as Veronica rounds the counter with her messy hands. With a high screeching yelp, the little girl leaps off her chair and runs away.

Backup scurries to his feet, alert and looking for danger and then wags his tail wildly when he realises that there's no real threat to be seen.

Veronica grins, making a show of chasing her for a minute before retreating back into the kitchen, Backup follows and reverts back to laying down.

It doesn't take long for Heather to come back into the kitchen, this time with her purple skipping rope in hand. "Are you gonna be human again or do I have to restrain you to get my breakfast?" She asks, tilting her head with an arched brow as she pulls her rope in a tight straight line.

Veronica cocks a brow, eyes settling on her sister's. "That depends. Are you gonna be insulting again or do you wanna be my breakfast?" She grins, not at all threatened as she wiggles her fingers, showing Heather that she isn't afraid to get messy.

Heather swallows, lowering her skipping rope, she settles, "The option that gets Froot Loops in my mouth." She says it in the way that makes it seem like she's not at all forfeiting as she walks to the cupboard.

"The option that gets you Froot Loops requires you to wait 'cause Meg and Dad are out grocery shopping," Veronica tells her as she meshes together the dry ingredients and the wet ones.

"Urg," Heather groans, closing the cupboard door. "I'm starving," she complains, slumping onto the bar stool.

"You want some eggs?" Veronica asks, the first thing coming to her mind that she knows she had enough of.

"With some cheese?" The little Mars perks up in her seat. "And buttered toast?"

"Sure," she shrugs. "And I'll even throw in some hot chocolate if you help clean up afterwards," she bargains.

Immediately, she quizzes, "Do I get the tiny marshmallows?"

"Sure," Veronica agrees, setting aside the cookie mix for the time being as she goes to rinse off her hands and prepare the eggs.

Heather stays put, humming, hands on the counter her eyes follow her sister and then asks, "Is Logan coming to the Christmas party?"

Veronica stills at the question. She hadn't spoken to her family about Logan, about Aspen, about last night. She hasn't told them anything; she didn't know what to say to them. She doesn't know how to explain her situation with Logan without telling them everything that's happened and she doesn't want to tell them. They don't need the heartache. What good would it do them to learn about Lianne? There's no reassuring answers that mummy loves us in this tale and she doesn't want to bring that burden to her family. They deserved more than that.

"I didn't ask him," she answers in the most honest way she can. She gets why Logan's made the decisions he's made. Even when she'd thought the worst of him, she couldn't stop her heart from loving him. Right now, she just needs time to figure out how to trust him again.

He's kept this big thing from her, she knows he had the best intentions but his choices still hurt her.

Heather inquisitively continues to question her sister, "Why not?"

Dismissively, Veronica replies, "I don't think he wants to hang out with a bunch of deputies. Can you pass me the salt, please?"

Heather drags herself out of her chair and obliges, remarking, "I think he'd like to hang out with us."

Veronica knows she can't argue about this with Heather so instead she asks her to check on Backups water and fills the minutes it takes for her eggs and toast to get ready with menial tasks to avoid further questioning.

--vm--

When Keith and Meg come back home, Heather's got The Princess Bride playing on the television, munching on popcorn as Veronica doughs together another recipe off the list.

"I hope you're hungry, 'cause we've got Mama Leone's," Keith sings, dangling the bag tantalizingly in the air.

Veronica breaks out into a wide grin, "My favourite."

"I could eat," Heather calls out from her seat still munching on her popcorn.

"Veronica!" Meg loud-whispers, coming around the counter with a giddy smile. "You'll never guess who I ran into!"

"Hmmm," Veronica hums in fake thought, rolling out her cookie dough. "Was it Carlita, Biff, or Rocco? They always were our favourite imaginary friends."

Meg rolls her eyes good-naturedly, her smile never falling from her lips as she says, “Hamilton Cho.”

Veronica’s brow quirks at the enthusiasm radiating from the name. She knows him. Everyone does. His father owns Cho’s Pizza. He used to be in Meg’s class but she doesn’t recall them being particularly friendly. She doesn’t know how to respond to it so she says, “Was it awkward with you carrying takeout from Mama Leone’s?”

Her brows furrow at the question, shaking her head she dismisses it and continues, “Did you know he goes to NYU too? I mean, I’ve never seen him before.”

“It is a big school,” the petite blonde offers, shrugging.

“He wanted to hang out,” she says, biting her lip and eyes bright. “I asked him to come to the Christmas party.”

Duncan flashes through her mind like a red stop light and she fights the urge to question her sister about Duncan and if she’s sure about this. She fights it because the familiarity of standing in their kitchen with her hands pressed into cookie dough as they chat about anything and everything is something Veronica’s found herself needing ever since Meg left – and especially since Meg came back home.

Instead she grins and teases Meg with everything she knows about Hamilton Cho.

“The food is getting cold,” Keith calls from the lounge.

“Inconceivable!” Heather mimics loud enough for her sisters to hear.

Without missing a beat, Veronica quotes back in response, “You keep using that word, I don’t think it means what you think it means.”

--vm--

"What?" Veronica asks, she's got her leg up on the bathroom sink and tries to shave as quickly as she can without cutting herself while Mac's stands behind her, grinning as though she's got an inside joke with herself.

The brunette shakes her head, letting out a silent chuckle. "Miss Mars uses Venus razor."

Amused, Veronica smiles and remarks, "Because if she doesn't, her legs look like Pluto’s."

"And she's down-to-earth to boot," Mac quips with a grin and Veronica laughs.

For the last few days, Veronica had been cooped up at home baking for the upcoming Christmas party or helping Inga with the planning arrangements or at work. Wallace – demanding BFF time – had convinced her to take time for a beach trip. She knows he just wants to test out his toy plane (he’d just finished fixing it after an unfortunate collision with the wall).

--vm--

"Man, this new wet suits like a cheap motel. No ballroom," Dick says, snapping the latex suit against his crotch as he walks with Logan up shore. They’re both dripping with water having just finished a much needed surfing session.

Logan shakes his head at Dick, carrying his surf board with one hand and running his fingers through his wet hair with the other. They come to a stand still when a flying object comes crashing into the sandy ground. “Hey, look a toy plane,” Dick says, going to pick it up.

”Don’t touch the plane,” Wallace shouts from a few feet away, jogging to catch up to his plane while Veronica and Mac follow behind him.

Everything fades into background noise when Logan sees her, she stops shortly in front of him, her blue eyes staring into his and he silently sucks in a breath.

"Hey," she says, offering a half smile without turning her gaze away from him.

His eyes solely focused on hers as he takes in her presence and lets out, "Hey."

It’s in this moment that she truly feels how much she’s missed him, it’s only been a few days and this tug in her heart makes it feel it’s been months. She mentally checks herself, remember the rules, Mars – no pining, no whining. Keep it light.

“Hey hey, look who’s slumming it at the beach,” Dick grins, head bobbing up and down as he checks out both the girls. "Hey, we're blowing off a little dead-week steam if you kids want to hang.”

--vm—

While Wallace tends to his crashed plane, the rest of them make themselves comfortable on the benches - except it’s Dick that makes himself comfortable next to Mac and Veronica’s left to fill the space next to Logan which makes it all the more difficult for her to keep her cool.

"So,” he starts, eyes drifting over her form to the fading fire. He has so much to tell her. He wants to tell her how much he’s missed her. He wants to tell her that it seems like even his mother and Trina miss her. He wants to tell her that she’s all he thinks about even when he tries not to. “Heather wants me to come to the Christmas party," he glances at her and sees her brow pick up in surprise and her gaze land on him. "Is that cool?"

"You've been talking to Heather?" She swallows, trying to keep her emotions at bay but his question brings about agitation in her and she feels warmth surging from within; it’s this convoluted package of feelings that she had needed a break from so she could sort out her feelings between her head and her heart. Seeing Logan, being with Logan, speaking with Logan makes it impossible for her to make sense of anything.

He tries to keep his tone as casual as possible but he knows he’s not as nonchalant as he wants to him. Even a simple hey makes him feel things. "We have our matches more often now that she's on break.” He pauses, letting her process, assuming that this hasn’t come up in conversation between the two sisters. “She asked me if we broke up."

A quiet gasp escapes her and she stares at him in shock. “She asked you that?” She lets out a breath. “What'd you tell her?"

They were playing together in an online Mario Kart championship when she'd broached the subject of his and Veronica’s relationship. He'd tried his best to not say much, lightly joking that they were on a Christmas break - he hadn't wanted Heather to worry but in the saddest and quietest of voices she'd asked him, "Don't you love her anymore?"

It's the way she sounds that makes him wish he had lied and given her an excuse for not being physically present. "Of course I do," he says, honest and soft.

"Then why are you on a break if you still love her?" She asks, urgent and confused. She tries on concentrating on the game but she's more in tuned with the sound of his voice.

He sighs and he knows he can't explain everything to her so he gives her half a truth because despite his want to lie to Heather, he can't really bring himself to it. "Because I screwed up."

"How?" She demands, completely losing focus what's in front of her as she listens.

"I did something I shouldn't have," he vaguely says, knowing he should stop talking about this with her now. There's nothing more he can tell her. "Look, kid, you’re falling behind," he intentionally remarks on the game trying to take her focus from his relationship back onto the game.

Ignoring his last comment, she insistently asks, "Did you tell her you were sorry?"

"Yes," he sighs.

"Like, in a way so she knows you mean it?"

"Yeah. Look Heather, don't worry about it, okay? You need to keep your mind on the race, you're getting beat, kid."

"The truth,” he confesses. “The parts of the truth that I could tell her anyway. I didn’t know how to not tell her."

“She’s too nosy for her own good,” Veronica grumbles, sighing. She wonders if Heather gave the same inquisition to Duncan when him and Meg broke up or if she's over compensating now because she didn't.

He chuckles, teasing, “It must be in the genes."

She gives him a half-hearted huffing laugh before turning it into a little smile. “Thank you.”

His heart thumps. “For what?”

“Keeping your promises,” she softly tells him.

--vm--

Heather happy bounces in her room with the phone in her hand, Ophelia shakes her head chuckling at her overly hyped best friend.

“Hello?” Comes the voice of a groggy Logan.

Without wasting time on pleasantries, she speedily explains, "I called KRAC like two hundred times. I kept getting this recording, and then finally, I got through. They're gonna play my request."

“I really wish you hadn’t done that,” his soft voice comes through.

Heather chooses to ignore him, opening her room door, she yells with the phone pressed to her chest. “Ronica! You've got to turn on the radio."

"Why?" Her sister shouts back from downstairs.

Impatiently, Heather demands, "Just do it!"

“To a very special girl. So, if you're out there and you're listening, Veronica...”

Veronica’s eyes widen, she stills frozen in time as she listens to the DJ.

“This is from Logan. He's sorry, girl, and he wants you back.”

Meg lets out an audible gasp, eyes wide and giddy as the oh my god slips out.

Upstairs, Heather stands with complete and total satisfaction as she listens to Nick Lachey’s What’s Left of Me play from downstairs. “You’re gonna thank me,” she says with her smuggest tone as she ends the call.

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ktrxs · 5 years

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7.12.19

My bun is sick. I called two hospitals. One didn’t have their rabbit person on site. They referred me to the second. I call the second. They don’t take fucking rabbits.

I go to other vets around the area. The websites refer me to the second hospital. The hospital that doesn’t take rabbits.

The last time he was sick with gas, he acted a lot worse. I audibly heard noises coming from him. This time, he’s silent, so I have no clue what’s happening.

My only option right now is to hope that he gets better like he did last time. I’m going to force-feed him soon.

I just don’t get how veterinarians need a specialty for animals other than cats and dogs.

My only hope right now is that his energy isn’t as bad as last time. He’s still hoping around and doesn’t seem to be in pain. But the internet has me thinking he’s going to die.

Please, please, please be okay Rumple.

-------

I’m super late to work today. I have a huge writing assignment due at 10am tomorrow. I have to write for the biz. Brandon didn’t go to work until 2. We went food shopping. And then he was watching tv next to me. So of course I couldn’t concentrate because of that and

But of course, my mind is hyperfocused on the bun. I can’t stop worrying.

-----

I’ve been craving soda and coffee the last few days. I haven’t craved soda in so fucking long. Giving up soda was like the easiest thing ever even though I thought I wouldn’t be able to do it.

I’ve gone all of 2019 without a soda. Now, why do I crave one?

I saw a vegan mocha cold brew coffee today at grocery outlet. I wanted it soooo bad. But I’m not paying 2.50 for a sip of coffee.. So i paid the 2.50 on vegan icecream instead because at least it’ll last longer.

Also have i mentioned how awesome being a vegan is?

It’s never been so fucking easy to be a vegan than RIGHT NOW. TODAY.

Literally EVERYTHING I want, I get and no babies are being tortured for it.

Even if I want to feel included with the fam and have familiar, childhood, family foods like burgers and hotdogs. BOOM MOTHERFUCKERS.

Vegan burgers and vegan dogs. Right at Walmart. Easily accessbile.

Do I want cookies? BOOM Walmart, Dollar Tree. Vegan cookies. I even have a microwavable vegan cookie that I’ve been making (and basically surviving on since I no want to cook).

It goes: 3 tbsp oat flour (literally oatmeal through a blender). 1 tbsp SUGAR (i know, but it’s a fucking cookie). 1 tbsp cocoa (because you can have chocolate as a fucking vegan). 1tbsp of peanut butter motherfuckas (i used peanut butter powder). Literally mix that shit with 2 tbsp of water and microwave for 1 minute.

Fucking cookie in my mouth.

Do i want ice cream? Even Ben & Jerry’s are on board. I love chocolate fudge brownie. And I have enjoyed vegan Ben & Jerry’s chocolate fudge brownie. But it’s hard to find.

But So Delicious vegan ice cream is all over the place. BOOM! Ice cream.

What else... what else..... oh donuts. Well... i havent seen or eaten a vegan doughnut. I know of places within a 2 hour radius of me that sells vegan donuts. But... 2 hours. So you got me on the doughnuts. And i want one sooooo bad xD

But ice coffee? check. fried, junk, comfort foods? check. Cereal? Check. Going out to restaurants? Almost check.

I normally am able to find SOMETHING. Like I literally found dragon broccoli and fries on the menu at RED LOBSTER. My stomach was so full i almost died.

But, of course I wouldn’t go to a steakhouse or Arbys or Hardee’s. Like... I won’t even go to a McDonald’s now unless they bring the vegan burger to the USA. Wendys is out.

The selection there is so sad. Literally: plain baked potatoe. Side salad... pick off cheese. And Burger King, for reasons I will never know, changed their vegan veggie burger to a vegetarian one. We don’t stan a burger king anymore.

Pizza? My friends. there iz vegan pizza out there. it’s under some rocks but it’s easier than donuts.

I’ve order a custom vegan pizza from dominoe’s. Little Ceaser claims to customize a veggie pizza without cheese. If you’re near a Mod’s Pizza, get fucking vegan cheese!

There are also wonderful ingredients you can find to make your own pizza. Vegan crust. sauce. vegan cheese if you can find it and veggies.

I know my mind is all over the place but it’s only because I’m hungry and procratinating.

being vegan is so fucking easy. if you want to be a health nut with it, go. if you want to eat exactly like you do now, go ahead and make those tiny switches.

----

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thewanderingmacy · 7 years

Text

Brno (day 1 and 2)

Okay I’m gonna try to write as the days go on now. (I’m currently listening to the Ghostbusters (1984) soundtrack as I write).

So April 30th was a Transit day, as I traveling from 1:30pm-7pm. I had to check out at 11am but i had access to the kitchen, no chairs, though. I was a bus ride away from the city centre and had all my luggage with me, as these small hotels are so small, they make you call them to check in and just drop off the key in a mailbox to check out so they don’t have to pay someone at the desk to serve 2 people. So I’d dropped my key but still had 2 hours to kill. I’d previously bought flour for some mac n cheese I made, and had butter and sugar for food and tea, so I looked up a 3 ingredient cookie recipe and went for it. The first problem was that there was no oven, only a stove top. I read online that if you treat them like pancakes, it’s fine. Another problem was that there were no measuring cups so I just had to guess the whole way through. Needless to say, it did not end well. The cookies had burnt bottoms and mushy tops. The cleaning lady was in close proximity to me the whole time, cleaning the rooms, and I felt very judged as she saw me baking in a hotel, putting the mixture in a pot and, later, throwing them out. I tried to save some because the dough actually was tasty but the burnt taste permeated through the bag I left them in. So that was that. I took a bus to the bus station and began my journey to Brno.

I arrived at 7pm, after a stopover/bus switch in Prague where I was served a horrifically damaged burger at Burger King (smeared in mayo, then after I told them, lazily wiped off). I had some difficulties getting to the airbnb I’m currently at though because I took the streetcar #9, eastbound, as I should, but the #9 track went in a V shape where my board was the middle point. I was super annoyed and had to turn back. My phone wouldn’t let me text the airbnb host’s phone number adding more pain to the situation (I could text Mother though so I don’t know what happened there). I could call though and the host met me back at the main station, where I’d begun, and figured out how to get me to the place. I’d originally thought that this airbnb was a private room in a shared apartment but the guy left and I have the whole place to myself (I verified online that that is the actual case!).

Yesterday, I explored a bit of Brno. It was Labour Day (in May?) so some shops were closed but most of the sites were open, save for a museum. I visited a crypt which was absolutely horrifying. I’ve seen many a crypt here in Europe, quite a few bones (when I was at the Kutna Hora ossuary, there was an archaeological dig going on in the graveyard with the coffins of two, very dead people (i.e. just skeletons remaining) open for view) but this specific crypt’s bodies weren’t just bones. They had like very old and blackened flesh on them, and clothes. You could see facial expressions- like one person actually looked like they were screaming, like the dead bodies do in the movies, like the Scream mask. And sometimes, they had a plaque about the person, describing their life. I didn’t take any photos because it felt very wrong. I was also scared to breath in some dead body particles in one space because there was just some bars between me and the bodies of a family of brothers. It was really strange and horrifying. I still don’t get how the other tourists were taking photos. It felt very invasive. After that number, I wandered to the old town hall, and further, inside a mall close by to look for shoes (as mine have holes in them), a backpack (as mine broke) and sunglasses as my eyes are killing me in this sun (I literally can’t stop squinting). After that, I ventured up to a park, which was next to/part of the main town’s cathedral. It had a decent vantage point over the south part of the city but it offered a very modern landscape. Then, I tried to find the entrance to the cathedral. I walked up a staircase only to encounter a group of Asian people celebrating something, so I awkwardly walked down. I found the entrance to the tower and treasury and walked up it (oh how I hate staircases) and got some views of the North side of the city, where the historical buildings can be seen. I walked back down, and then found the actual cathedral part. It was alright. Nothing special, actually- just a minimalist space (for an old cathedral) with a few objects of interest. Then, I headed to a mall where I picked up some headphones I’d been eyeballing ever since NYC in November. I’d cycled through like 10 different pairs, always buying the cheapest ones I could find, but they’d always last maximum a month. So I invested a whole $13 in these (fingers crossed). Then I spent a solid hour in the grocery store, buying my goods for my 4 night stay in Brno. I figured the reason I love grocery shopping is because it combines my love of planning and my love of food. Planning meals is the pinnacle of pleasure for me. And that was it for the day.

Today, I slept in a bit and had to do a bit of soul searching to convince myself to get out but I did. I ventured out about 1.5 hours from my airbnb (airbob if you will) to Lednice castle. It’s a very pretty castle that dates to the 13th century, but is more of a converted palace in the 17th/18th century, with renos from the 19th century. It had some sick gardens and a huge outdoor landscape beyond those gardens with ponds and fields and forests. The castle itself was very large and confusing because I couldn’t find the main entrance, only a side entrance that tourists go through. I went on a tour of the princely apartments for 45 minutes, as they offered a few tours (it was the only way of seeing the interior of the castle). I chose this one because the other ones were less about the personal details of the castle, which I enjoy. There was like one of the state rooms, and that sort of thing. The tour was unfortunately in Czech but they gave me an English translation to read as I went along. It was done pretty nicely, I was satisfied, though I do wish I could’ve heard what was being said as the guide was offering a lot more information on specific things in the rooms. It was a good visit though, and I always love doing what I’d planned on doing so I was happy with myself.

And now, it’s almost midnight and I’m lounging, watching some TV, desperately trying to catch up on my Europe history book.

Macy

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instantdeerlover · 4 years

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Can a Cheese Plate Change Your Life added to Google Docs

Can a Cheese Plate Change Your Life

That Cheese Plate

For cheese plate-influencer Marissa Mullen, the answer is a definitive yes

A few years ago, I felt really fancy if I plopped a few bricks or wedges of fancy cheese on a board next to some crackers. Look, I went to the cheese shop, or at least the Trader Joe’s cheese aisle! I also put out a fig jam! But alas, such a display now looks like a child’s attempt at hosting with the rise of the maximalist cheese plate. You’ve probably seen them on Instagram — charcuterie boards overflowing with crumbled cheese, folded prosciutto, handfuls of almonds and berries and delicately positioned rosemary. The boards appear crafted with barest amount of order, exuding the aura of a farmhouse harvest, the bounty of the land piled and tumbling and ready to be casually snacked on.

Of course, these Instagram-friendly cornucopias are not actually how it looks when you — or even a professional — haphazardly threw a bunch of salami and goat cheese together. They are carefully crafted, and being able to pull it off has become a hosting flex, with a stable of popular influencers to prove it.

One of the most renowned is Marissa Mullen, who has dedicated herself to the art of the cheese plate. In the beginning, she used Tumblr and would post photos of plates she made for her friends. That turned into the Instagram @ThatCheesePlate, the catalyst for much the cheese plate envy in your feed. Then she made @CheeseByNumbers, which lays out step-by-step instructions on how to make these sorts of plates on your own. Then came That Cheese Class, her event series. And on May 5, 2020, she’ll publish That Cheese Plate Will Change Your Life, which will both feature recipes and guides for cheese plates, and argue that arranging one is a self-care tactic akin to flower arranging.

The rise of the an overflowing cheese plate as an aesthetic perhaps says something about these trying times. We crave beauty. We crave substance. We crave at least the appearance of homey authenticity. We want our friends to gather around the table and feel warm and welcomed. And more importantly, we want all that without having to cook.

We spoke to Mullen about the rise of the cheese plate, and why the #SalamiRiver is so satisfying. The interview has been edited for brevity and clarity.

Eater: When did it dawn on you that your career is being a cheese person?

Marissa Mullen: I know, cheese plate influencer, it’s so funny. For me, making a cheese plate was my way of just calming down after a stressful work week. I’d invite friends over, and sharing this creation because it’s almost artwork in a sense. My background is in photography. I love taking pictures of my food, and That Cheese Plate started in college as just taking pictures of my cheese plates and posting them.

The shift happened when I started the Instagram for Cheese by Numbers. When I first tried to pitch the book, I had about 30,000 followers on That Cheese Plate and I got rejected by every single publisher who saw it. Basically they all said I didn’t have enough marketing power. So I made Cheese by Numbers on Instagram, just to save the name. In November of last year, I got an email from the Rachel Ray Show. The first TV appearance with Rachel Ray led to my second TV appearance on Today, which led to Random House emailing me.

What makes Cheese by Numbers so appealing?

I call it “swipe to build.” Each frame in the Instagram swipe is a step in the process. People saw that and it really resonated because it takes something that’s so intimidating, like a cheese plate, and breaks it down and makes it really simple. I don’t know, it’s like chicken or the egg. I don’t know if I started the trend, or that people became interested in cheese plates this year, but I definitely saw an influx in the followers and momentum in only the past year, and I’ve had this since 2013.

Just from the outside, it really seems like random friends of mine are now posting fancy cheese plates when they have parties, and I’m like, “You never did this before!”

Yeah, it’s definitely a trend, which is awesome. It’s so fun. My favorite thing about cheese plates is that they just invoke this sense of excitement, because it does look so fancy, and everyone loves cheese, so it’s great.

If you look at some popular cookbooks right now like Alison Roman’s Nothing Fancy or Ottolenghi Simple, they’re all about simplicity with hosting. But making a cheese plate is a multi-step, involved process. Why is that something people are interested in, even though so many other trends are shying away from really complicated cooking and hosting?

I think with cheese plates, it’s more that they look very intimidating and a little bit more involved than they actually are. But when you break it down, there are ingredients that go on the plate that require shopping for, but you don’t really have to cook anything. The biggest thing that you do that’s complicated is cutting cheese, cutting vegetables, and folding meat.

But it looks complicated, which is why people gravitate towards it: You bring it to a party and it’s like, “Look at this beautiful spread I made!” It’s great because it’s something that you feel good about — you’re bringing this for people and you’re showing your own creativity.

For me it goes beyond cooking. It’s more a form of art in a sense. I do these cheese plate classes and it reminds me of the paint and sip classes. With my classes I basically have a cheese board. I go through the steps, show them how to make it, and then everyone makes their own cheese boards. And at the end of the class, not one cheese board is the same. You can flex your own creativity and put your own touch on it. I think that personality shines through and people love putting their own touches on it and showing that to their friends and bringing them to gatherings.

You have this clear aesthetic to your boards, which has become the aesthetic of cheeseboards in general. How do you feel about copycats of your work?

I’ve definitely noticed there’s a lot of similar photos out on the internet now, but I just try to stay in my own lane and keep doing what I’m doing. I think imitation is flattery, and although sometimes you can get wrapped up in looking at all these accounts and being like, well I did that first, it’s just a waste of energy. I know that I created my brand and everything that I put on the internet is my creativity. Someone can imitate a cheese plate that I make, but inventing these new ideas, I probably have a step ahead just because it is my initial creation, my initial idea.

For example, I’ve been doing these fun, more kitschy plates that are easy to replicate. I did a turkey for Thanksgiving and I just did one for Christmas called the charcuter-wreath. And I literally give step by step instructions how to make a cheese plate, so I’m not surprised that there are all these accounts popping up.

View this post on Instagram

SWIPE TO BUILD ➡️ That “Charcuter-Wreath” Plate as seen on @thatcheeseplate Let’s see you re-create this one for the holiday season! ⁣ ⁣ First, make your herb wreath out of rosemary, sage and thyme. ⁣ ⁣ KEY⁣ 1 - CHEESE: Goat Brie and Truffle Italian Cheese⁣ 2 - MEAT: Salami and Prosciutto ⁣ 3 - PRODUCE: Cranberries and Pomegranate Seeds⁣ 4 - CRUNCH: Dark Chocolate Covered Star Cookies ⁣ 5 - DIP: Honey on the side would be a great pairing for this board ⁣ 6 - GARNISH: Eucalyptus (around the plate) ⁣ ⁣ #Charcuterwreath #CheeseByNumbers #SwipeToBuild

A post shared by CHEESE BY NUMBERS (@cheesebynumbers) on Dec 3, 2019 at 9:02am PST

Given that you’re putting all these instructions on Instagram, how do you write a book that gives your followers something different?

The book is going to be 50 cheese plates that I haven’t posted on Instagram, for all different occasions. And then there’s recipes throughout the book. There’s a really good baked brie recipe. There’s a recipe for pimento dip. There’s a section about how to build a grazing table. It’s almost like I want it to be your companion at the grocery store. When you open up to a plate, it shows you a shopping list of what you need to buy with a picture of the cheese plate. And then the next page is an illustrated map of the cheese plate. I think it’s nice to see it laid out in this way, because on Instagram you have to swipe through. It’s hard to copy and paste captions to put it on a grocery list. It’s a little bit more complicated to go to a grocery store with Instagram, using that as your guide. But with this, it’s pretty much that you open it up and everything you need is right there.

So you started on Tumblr, and you’re on Instagram. And I saw you also have TikTok. What differences have you found between these platforms? Do your followers want different things?

Definitely. TikTok is this world that I am trying to learn. It is so intimidating just because there are so many amazing creators on there who have nailed the app. I feel like I totally understand every part of Instagram, but TikTok is just this whole frontier that I’m learning. I’ve deleted some TikToks because I posted something thinking it would do really well and then not one person sees it or likes it. I made a TikTok because there’s this one girl, @magsmeals, who makes cheese plates and tagged me in a bunch of her creations. I learned that she is TikTok-famous for charcuterie boards. I looked at her account, she has 100,000 followers. There are all these people on TikTok who love cheese plates, so I was like, “Oh my gosh, there’s this whole other community that I don’t even know about.” It’s a really popular app right now amongst the teens and college kids. I think college is a big market for cheese plates.

On Twitter, I trademarked the term Salami River, which refers to a meat flowing down the center of the plate on your cheeseboard. I’ve done funny tweets where it’s like, cry me a salami river, and then you copy that, put it on Instagram, and it blows up as a meme.

Have you seen any of the cheese plate parodies on TikTok?

No, I haven’t. Are they funny?

Yeah, it’s people being like, “Oh yeah, look at me, I’m going to make this beautiful, fancy cheese plate,” but it’s string cheese and gummy vitamins.

Oh my God, that’s hilarious.

At this point, how much cheese do you eat?

I honestly don’t eat a crazy amount. Pretty much every weekend, or every other weekend, I invite my friends over and make cheese plates for them with all of the cheese that I have from the week. So, I give it out to people. There’s been times where companies would send me cheese for a sponsored post and think that I work in industrial-sized kitchen, but I work out of my apartment, so I can’t have pounds of cheese. When that happens, there’s actually a really great church in Brooklyn that accepts all-size food donations. I definitely try all the cheeses on my plate, but I save going all in on it for special occasions.

via Eater - All https://www.eater.com/2020/2/21/21030000/that-cheese-plate-will-change-your-life-marissa-mullen-author-interview

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the-wellness-intermix · 5 years

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My beginner “diet”

Starting a “diet” (I hate the term diet, because if you care enough and are dedicated, it should be a dietary change that you are going to stick to not a quick thing to lose some weight and then fall off the wagon) does not have to be hard at all. In the beginning when your really feeling like you need to make a change in your life and are feeling unhappy with your body but you don’t necessarily know where to begin or your idea of a diet is bland, boring food and that you’ll always be starving; it definitely does not have to be, nor is it. All you have to do is start with little changes and then slowly work your way into bigger changes (but I will cover that in a separate post).

When I started really getting into weight loss I didn’t really have much of an idea on what I was doing. I knew the basics and knew I needed to exercise and eat less... of everything. Because I was pigging out.

As I mentioned in my post “the Stop and Start Method” I started cutting out fast food and junk food and sugary drinks. When I went grocery shopping I would start going with “cliche go-to’s.” I went to fruit and veggies. I like oranges and I, at one point, started doing frozen grapes because I saw it on Pinterest. They are pretty good. I also started buying Lean Cuisines. I honestly really like Lean Cuisines. They are the more flavorful diet meal compared to Healthy Choice and SmartOnes. But I used to eat those a lot.

Start with simple grocery changes. I’m going to give you my top 10 easy changes to make to help get you on your way (In addition to my Stop & Start Method).

Switch from white bread to whole grain or multi-grain bread. They aren’t all bad and don’t all taste gross, I promise.

If you are obsessed with coffee, that’s okay, just stop getting sugary drinks. Ease your way into using Stevia or even no sugar at all. That’s what I did. I started ordering unsweetened iced Americano’s and eventually grew to really like them.

Cut out chips and substitute for better snacks. We all love chips. Who doesn’t love chips? Doritos? My weakness. I literally can’t buy them because I promise you, I WILL sit and eat the whole bag. Switch to things like popcorn (preferably air-popped) and not the ones with extra butter, obviously. Even switch it out for veggies with Greek yogurt dip or hummus. Or reach for whole wheat crackers or Triscuits. I love Triscuits.

Ease your way into lower calorie/fat milks. Some people may be lactose-free already but if you are drinking dairy, work your way down to 1% or skim. When I lived at home, my mom always bought 2% milk and when I started trying to be healthier I made her start buying 1% and then I eventually switched to almond milk. But make sure your almond (or any nut) milk doesn’t have added sugars. Look for unsweetened or even unsweetened vanilla, that way there is a natural sweetness. You can get original as well, that’s what I buy often times. Or you can even go for the protein blend ones to add extra protein in your diet. These are usually a blend of almond and cashew milk.

Go for more fruits and veggies. Sounds like a simple cliche one but do it. But I want to say, don’t go crazy with buying them at first. I’m going to be honest with you, there’s a very high chance half or more will end up going to waste. You don’t want to bombard yourself with getting a ton of them because they are fresh ingredients so they have a shorter shelf life. I know sometimes it can be exciting and we feel like we need all of this stuff and you can get wrapped up in it and go over board but just try to be mindful and plan out your weeks and how you think you will utilize each fruit or vegetable. Get more of what you know you like and then buy one thing you’re not sure of and experiment with it. Some of my favorites are:

Watermelon

Cucumbers

Kale or Spinach

Apples

Carrots (with hummus) [Celery is actually an excellent one but I personally hate celery… Lol ]

Yellow Squash and Zucchini (Love to saute it. I’ll put up a recipe soon)

Spaghetti squash (use it like pasta and add some homemade, or no-sugar added, spaghetti sauce)

Oranges

Avocados

Olives and pickles (these are actually great snacks. I know they are love or hate for people but I LOVE olives. They are great for their fats and pickles are a great low-cal snack)

Ground Turkey or Chicken instead of ground beef. There is less fat and less cholesterol in turkey and chicken and you will hardly notice the difference. I love using ground chicken for tacos.

Check your labels and look for things like “No Added Sugars, Sweeteners, Colors, or Preservatives or Artificial etc.” This was a big thing for me. I got really strict about this because I wanted to be healthy and not eat artificial ingredients. This will help you cut down on your processed, refined sugar intake.

Switch out your regular pastas to either quinoa, chickpea, brown rice, or lentil pastas. You honestly will not know the difference. I personally like the chickpea pasta, I can not tell any difference at all.

I do want to add, however, try cutting down on the pastas in general. Cutting down on your carbs will definitely help lose weight. ESPECIALLY Simple carbohydrates. I don’t believe in doing a no-carb diet. This would basically be the Keto diet and I know a lot of people do this and see results but I don’t think that its practical and sustainable.

Eggs! Start eating more eggs. Omelets are great because you can add any meat or veggies that you want. It’s a great way to get more veggies. And you can add cheese but try to do low fat cheeses like Swiss. I always use Swiss cheese in my omelets. You can even make it and bring it for lunch, they heat up pretty well, as long as it is in the same day though. I don’t know about next day.

Another way to use eggs is hard boil them. I actually like hard-boiled eggs. I like them cold. I don’t know if that’s weird, I think warm hard boiled eggs are gross so I always make them ahead of time and refrigerate them. They are great as a quick breakfast or as an add on for lunches.

For my last suggestion, the one thing you could be waiting for, the sweets. A lot of us have a sweet tooth. I don’t have a crazy sweet tooth but I do often times crave a little something sweet before bed some nights. Eating cookies, candy, ice cream, etc. is one of the worst things you can do for your body, especially when trying to lose weight. So, the best way to combat this is find those healthier alternatives. Now keep in mind these may not be uber healthy options, but they’re going to be better than those other junk foods, and we are looking at baby steps here to get you on a path to shedding some pounds and build up to a healthier lifestyle.

Try things like Greek yogurts. Get the ones with fruit mixed in and yes, I’ll say it, try the mixable ones, like Chobani Flips or Fage Corners. Yes, there is still going to be some sugar but it sure as hell is going to be less fat and sugar than ice cream. And being Greek yogurt, it is going to have very little lactose so its not going to bloat the body.

Obviously, reach for fruits. You can even make a fruit dip with Greek yogurt and it’s really good honestly and pretty satisfying (I’ll work on a recipe post for that).

And for things like cookies, reach for whole wheat animal crackers. I’m sure this isn’t the most healthy thing but its better than an Oreo in terms of nutritional value. I believe Trader Joe’s has really good whole wheat animal crackers/cookies.

To wrap this up, I want to say a few things. Firstly, I DO believe in treating yourself once in awhile. Don’t take that as an invitation to eat everything terrible for you all in one day and call it a cheat day. What I mean is, allow yourself something that is your favorite like once or twice a week. I personally love french fries so, allow yourself french fries with your meal if you go out and indulge on those. Or ice cream once a week (I’d stick to once a week for something like ice cream). I don’t think completely cutting every thing you enjoy out is going to help you because more often than not, you are going to cave and just go in for a binge session and then hate yourself afterwards. I’ll be completely honest with you, I used to do the '“cut everything out” thing because I was so desperate to want to look skinnier (I plan on doing a separate blog post on my self-esteem and how that affected me) but it isn’t as enjoyable because I wouldn’t let myself even taste anything. If someone said “try this, it’s so good” and it was like ice cream or something, I would refuse. I mean, yeah it was strong will power and you really do need to keep up your will power but don’t drive yourself crazy over it and deprive yourself.

Secondly, I like to think about being healthier as, what things can you add to your diet as opposed to “what do I have to take away/cut out?” It makes it less negative and more exciting. Obviously, you are going to have to cut things out but you have to use your better judgement on that and with the ‘adding things,’ you inevitably end up cutting those bad things out.

And then lastly, simply avoid those impulse buys. Don’t be tempted to stroll through the candy aisle or look at the candy and chips in the checkout line. Be happy with your healthy choices you just through into your cart and don’t ruin it by those last minute things that will throw all the good choices down the toilet. Unless that little KitKat bar happens to be your one-time splurging choice, then I can let it slide, haha.

I know dieting can be difficult at times but that’s why I want to lay it out in such a way to make you want to stick with it. Make these small grocery changes and you will start to see results.

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artsoccupychi · 6 years

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Healthy Travel Food – The Ultimate Packing Lists for Eating Right on a Trip

I’m a busy single mom who does a lot of traveling, with and without my kids. Part of my journey to excellent health was learning habits and recipes that we enjoyed, that happened to also be really nutritious. But another major step was key to my being able to rehab my family’s health, many years ago when I got serious about ditching the Standard American Diet. And that is, learning how to be prepared, with ideas, and healthy options away from home.

In this article:

Finding Out How to Eat Healthy When Traveling

Packing for a Healthy Road Trip

A Healthy Plane Trip Food List

Tips for Finding Healthy Food While Traveling

Plan Your Food for Traveling

Packing Healthy Travel Food

Finding Out How to Eat Healthy When Traveling

Running kids to sports practices, attending “home” and “away” games for four competitive athletes, playing a traveling, competitive sport myself, and traveling all over the country giving lectures for six years, made me get creative about staying healthy travel food while on the road.

In addition to those times away from home, I’ve gone on vacations and humanitarian service missions, where I’ve taken my entire family to developing countries for several days or even weeks at a time.

How do I feed myself and my family well when I’m on the go and away from home so often?

I’ve been asked this question countless times, and I’m happy to share with you my strategies.

Packing for a Healthy Road Trip

Car trips are easier to plan for than plane trips because they are conducive to bringing coolers and a box of ingredients and equipment, and quarts of green smoothies for your first few days.

And more often, when you drive, you’ll have access to a kitchen, where you’re going.

You can eat healthy travel food even on long car trips, like one we took to Disneyland.

Our Disneyland Road Trip Food List

We brought enough food and snacks for two meals per day. (Make sure you book a hotel with a mini-fridge, but if you tell them you need it for medical purposes, they have to provide it.)

Then, I ask Siri for a salad bar or vegan restaurant nearby.

Our Disneyland healthy travel food packing, for a family of 6, looked like this:

In the Cooler:

Bags of baby carrots, sliced cucumbers, raw sweet potato sticks

½ gallon homemade yogurt

2 bags Costco organic mixed greens

1 bag Costco frozen mixed berries

a pint of soaked/drained sunflower seeds (to add to granola for breakfast)

a quart of alfalfa/radish/clover sprouts (to add to granola for breakfast)

In the Box:

BlendTec for a family, Nutribullet for a single person with limited ability to pack (can go in a suitcase easily)

Disposable cups, straws, bowls, spoons, and resealable baggies

Knife and cutting board for smoothies (I use it even on hotel room tables or vanities)

Containers with tight-fitting lids, for smoothies

Backpack for taking food to the parks

3 loaves whole-grain bread

organic peanut butter-honey (pre-mixed for sandwiches)

A gallon bag of homemade granola (*recipe below)

3 boxes rice milk

A gallon bag of soaked/dehydrated Teriyaki Almonds (*recipe below)

Tonya’s “For Cryin’ Out Loud Dehydrator Onion Bread” (*recipe below)

1 bunch ripe bananas (for green smoothies; also add to yogurt for breakfast)

bags of washed apples, pears, plums, celery sticks

Ziploc bags of dried fruit

Powdered greens and a shaker cup

5-gallon jug of filtered water

Avoid Processed Food Overloads

Not only did bringing our own healthy travel food to save us a lot of money, but we also didn’t feel horrible and sleep 10 hours a night to recover from a day of trans fats, chemicals, food dyes, and sugar from eating Disneyland food.

Our digestive function didn’t shut down, we didn’t struggle with blood sugar lows and resulting crabbiness.

Save Money and Eat Healthy

All in all, we may have enjoyed our vacation much more, in addition to saving a boatload of money compared to what we saw others doing.

When you travel, if you don’t think ahead about healthy travel food, you are more likely to be trapped in the worst of the Standard American Diet!

Tip: Try this make-ahead mix to travel with, for a healthy flax muffin-in-a-cup made in your hotel room!

A Healthy Plane Trip Food Packing List

Traveling by plane for an extended trip (especially with children) takes a little different planning.

For example, Europe for 3 weeks was a tricky trip. I want to share how we went and ate well (5-10 raw vegs/fruits daily) without hassle or excessive expense.

Making do Without Appliances

We had no green smoothies as a crutch because you don’t go to little European hotels with an appliance, nor will an appliance company cover your warranty if you blow it out with the weird plugs in various countries.

Plus, we had flights from Venice to Barcelona, and Barcelona to Paris, with strict weight requirements. A turbo blender is just too much weight.

We packed these healthy travel food options in our suitcases to take with us.

The Best Travel Food to Bring with You

1. A good organic powdered greens product. This saved us, nutritionally, in the absence of green smoothies! I stirred a large spoonful into a glass of water for everyone, morning and night. (If you would like to order from our friends at Organifi, use coupon code ROBYN15 at checkout–you’ll get 15% off your order!)

2. Grape Nuts, Shredded Wheat, Costco Granola, and Rice Dream. Double bag the rice milk in gallon Ziploc bags: two fit perfectly in one bag (you’ll need to put liquids in your checked baggage, not your carry-on).

Remove the Grape Nuts from their boxes (we bought the big Costco ones) and add another layer of protection with a gallon freezer bag. You don’t want these things exploding in your suitcases.

3. Gallon freezer bags of homemade granola, and pint bags of dry, raw seeds like pumpkin and sunflower, on a trip, are lifesavers.

Along with a box of rice milk you bring, they’re a breakfast that will serve you well for the most important meal of the day, helping you avoid a crappy hotel continental breakfast, which is never, in any country, an option that will give you sustained energy for the day.

Soak the seeds when you get to your destination, pour the water off the next morning, and use the seeds stirred into the baked granola, for living enzymes, the world’s healthiest fats, and powerful nutrition to power through until lunch!

Even restaurant breakfasts (which take time from your touring and are expensive) are pretty much never nutritious. We bought bananas in the market, upon arrival, to add to our cereal.

4. Paper bowls and plastic spoons (for breakfasts).

5. Snacks like sprouted Teriyaki Almonds (*recipe below), organic plant-based bars you bring from home, and apples travel well.

6. Frozen plastic pint and quart containers of green smoothies, or frozen green juice, double bagged, and rolled into pairs of jeans in my suitcase at the last minute.

This works when the hotel we’ll be arriving at has a fridge. If it doesn’t, you can get some ice and put green smoothies in the sink, with ice, to keep them cold for a couple of days. This is a bit of a hassle.

You can even get through Security with a pint of frozen green juice. (It’s not liquid!)

7. A 32-oz. bottle of water in everyone’s checked luggage, to tide us over till we’re able to stop and buy gallons of distilled or filtered water, so we don’t end up not drinking enough or drinking fluoridated, chlorinated water from taps or drinking fountains.

Make sure you’re drinking a lot of water when you’re traveling, especially with airline travel, because drinking lots of clean water is even more important than food.

Tips for Finding Healthy Food While Traveling

It’s not true that you can’t find something good to eat when you’re traveling. It is, however, true that you have to try a bit harder than when you’re at home.

Just know what you’re looking for. First and foremost, you’re looking for opportunities to get greens and vegetables (priorities #1 and #2) because those are the base of the pyramid, the most important foods, and also the hardest healthy travel food to find when traveling.

So when you can, find them, buy them, and eat them however you have to—even by the handful, plain!

More tips for travelers:

1. Look for Produce Stands and Local Farmers’ Markets.

You’re enjoying local fruit and vegetables in season, and can be part of your touring the area and experiencing what they grow there!

For example, when we went to Europe, we’d stop at a market and buy some healthy travel food options like this every day for lunch:

6 nectarines

6 large carrots (I never saw baby carrots in Europe)

A loaf of whole grain bread (a comedy of communication errors in a bakery in Paris taught me that “complete” is the word in France to describe whole grains).

Some local cheeses and mustard and tomatoes for the bread.

John Robbins | The Food Revolution

(Read John Robbins’ The Food Revolution on how European meat/cheese is highly government regulated and not full of antibiotics, steroids, infected pus and other lovelies like the U.S. products contain. Also, bread is made fresh, without hybridization of the wheat, without preservatives, and Europe does not have the glyphosate [Roundup] issue. So many people with gluten issues do fine with European bread.)

Shop at a Grocery Store and Eat Local Food

We’d wash the fruit and carrots, toss all the stuff in a backpack, and stop in a park somewhere to eat each day.

Part of the fun was going in the little local grocery markets to see what they have.

Finds like this make you feel at home in a strange city and add to the sense of discovery and accomplishment in your travels.

2. Know What to Look for in Restaurants.

While traveling to Europe (and often stateside), we would eat dinner in a restaurant. I’m certainly not going to take my kids to Italy without letting them try gelato and pizza!

Try a Lot of Local Cuisine

(Of course, the pizza bears no resemblance to what is offered here in the U.S. It is much better for you, and you can get many lovely vegetarian pizzas, one of the most popular varieties being topped with mounds of raw greens.)

Ditto Barcelona, where we enjoyed the paella (vegetarian, of course) and gazpacho.

And France? I did not, myself, try the white bread, but let the kids do it once because my then-husband thought it was somehow important in their “experiencing” France.

And of course, they did fall madly in love with crepes.

(Can you believe I had never tried that hazelnut/chocolate spread, Nutella, in my life, before France? Note to self: avoid at home. Wow, it was yummy on crepes. Do not include this as part of my “eat healthy” tips.)

Indulge and Eat Healthy

So, we did indulge, but always with a big green salad.

(I learned, after my childhood of severe hypoglycemia, that if one eats refined sugar now and then, it should be done only after a good, healthy, high-fiber meal.)

The Europeans have lots of watercress and other lovely greens that we consider exotic here. And amazingly, even without my green smoothies, and despite a few servings of gelato and crepes, I came home the same weight and had lots of energy each day for our adventures.

Healthy Fast Food Choice

Stateside, Subway is our standby as “fast food” on trips. Here’s what you do: get the “wheat” bread and order a Veggie Delite.

Tell the teenage employee to put on LOTS of cucumbers, bell peppers, tomatoes, and shredded carrots, and spinach if they have it (skip the iceberg lettuce). For a sauce, we just do brown mustard.

Order a Large Veggie Sandwich

Then, your sandwich lies there, open, looking a little skimpy.

The “sandwich artist” awaits further orders. Do not, in the interest of being polite, leave with that skimpy sandwich. You say, can I have a bunch more tomatoes? Thanks! And how about a lot more cucumbers?

(Go through the whole vegetable lineup again if necessary. Smile and use all your chatty charisma, so as to not completely annoy the sandwich maker.)

The Perfect Packed Sandwich

When your sandwich is piled high with veggies, they manage to squeeze it shut and package it up for you, and you get a rather nutritious meal, at least compared to most fast food. I recommend the 12-inch to make it filling enough for hiking around, on vacation.

Look for Healthy Restaurants

Other restaurants we ask Siri about, on U.S. trips, are Cafe Rio or Bajio’s for the salad with whole wheat tortilla, no meat, lots of black beans, and extra romaine.

Think what chains you have found healthy options at, and look for them when you’re out of town.

How to Eat Healthy in Other Restaurants?

Robyn with her daughter Emma and Dr. Petra Wiechel, on her trip to WY, ID, UT.

If I end up at one of the really lousy Americana chains like Chili’s, Applebee’s, TGI Friday’s, etc., I ask for extra romaine on the side and dressing on the side (so you can use a minimal amount).

Avoid Mexican and Chinese restaurants, because they rarely have anything raw or nutritious on their menu.

Indulging While on Vacation

On a trip across the West with friends from Europe, at any of our given restaurant meal, some were having a couple glasses of wine with dinner, or dessert, or coffee after dinner.

All of us are very health-conscious people. My point is, we all indulge, on vacation. If we’re doing some great things, all day, to keep nutrient density high, hopefully, it’s enough to continue enjoying the vacation.

3. Look for Juice Bars and Salad Bars.

Greens are your #1 daily priority, and Google makes this easy.

I’ve found a juice bar and had a wheatgrass shot in the AMSTERDAM airport, and had another giant glass of made-to-order fresh carrot-celery juice in DOWNTOWN PRAGUE. That’s right, in the Czech Republic! Where a tour guide told us, “Our national vegetable is pork.”

Go for Green Drinks and Whole Foods

Buy green smoothies or no-fruit green juices, made fresh, with superfood additions. Some Whole Foods Markets have made-to-order juice bars.

In fact, Whole Foods was my go-to when I did my lecture tour for 6 years in 450 cities. in virtually every city we drove to, whoever isn’t the driver programs WFM in the GPS, to find the closest one. We’d get a giant salad bar to last lunch and dinner, plus a few healthy snacks and treats. It’s kind of an adventure, and it’s McDonald’s-like in that you know what you will get when you go there. Predictable and better than wandering around town hoping to find some reasonably non-toxic grub.

4. Don’t Buy Into the Idea that There’s Nothing Healthy to Eat in Airports.

You just have to look a little bit harder. I’ve found amazing quinoa/kale salad in the Phoenix airport recently, for instance.

Healthy Food Places in Airports

The Denver airport has a restaurant that serves only locally grown food selections. The Atlanta airport has a fresh juice bar. And you can get a green smoothie at Jamba Juice in most airports, though tell them to triple the greens and halve the fruit content.

Keep Looking

The point is, look around a bit, and you’ll find something plant-based, something whole, something that gives life rather than spends it. Anywhere in the world.

Here are some photos our readers shared with us, about healthy travel food “finds” on their vacations, plus a few of my own. You really can eat right, while traveling, with a bit of effort!

We got this healthy steamed and sautéed potatoes and veggies in a BBQ place in the Atlanta airport.

Look around after you’ve gone through Security and before you board your plane…Finding a good meal is a better use of time than sitting in the waiting area anyway. Survey what’s available and embrace the challenge of eating well. I found a kale-quinoa salad at a restaurant called La Grande Orange in the Phoenix airport.

And I found a juice bar inside an otherwise Standard American Diet place called Mediterranean Grill in the Detroit airport, where I get a celery/carrot juice, made fresh to order, anytime I fly through Detroit.

Check out this unassuming little place, on one end of New York City’s Canal Street, where Coach Judi and I got a 16 oz. organic, fresh-pressed parsley, cucumber, celery, carrot, and beet juice in two minutes flat. Vibrations high for the rest of the day!

Myra Johnson of Utah took her family to Rocky Point, Mexico on a humanitarian trip and stopped at “Mario’s” for food. Fresh smoothies were the main feature, with spinach, barley, flaxseed, and even asparagus! One of the smoothies Mario makes with his 11 blenders is called “Para El Estrenimianto”—for constipation! Myra took her family again the next day.

Our webmaster Jason’s wife and little boy enjoyed a green smoothie of peas, cucumbers, broccoli and spinach in a mainstream place you’d never guess would have such a great option.

Plan Your Food for Traveling

I hope these ideas are useful to you, and the recipes I made before our Disneyland trip are below for your enjoyment! And grab our Healthy Travel Food Packing List, here! It’s free and it’ll make eating healthy on your next road trip or vacation a breeze!

Special Offer! Want more ideas for healthy travel food while on vacation, on a budget, or with little time? Want to know how to get your kids to buy into healthful eating? Get my books How To Eat Right In The Real World and How To Raise Healthy Eaters at 50% off the already discounted set! Enter the coupon code ROADTRIP at checkout!

Recipes:

Teriyaki Almonds

Candied Almonds

Homemade granola

Tonya’s onion bread

What’s in your travel food list? Share them with us in the comments section below!

Disclosure: This post may contain Affiliate links that help support the GSG mission without costing you extra. I recommend only companies and products that I use myself.

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#infrared saunas #healthy

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canaryatlaw · 6 years

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tired, obviously. long day. Alarm went off at 7, got up and finished putting my toiletries in my bag, then got an uber around 7:30, and arrived at the airport at about 8:15 for a 9:30 flight, so pretty good timing. security was fine, not much of a line, and my gate wasn’t too far of a walk. I stopped at mcdonalds for a breakfast sandwich again (bacon egg and cheese on a biscuit but with a round egg not the gross scrambled one, it’s heavenly) and waited for us to board. Got on the plane, did the medium sudoku puzzle I fucked up on the last plane ride and couldn’t get all the way through, but I got a good amount of it. then I switched to reading fanfic for the rest of the flight, which was highly enjoyable and thankfully did not make me feel depressed about the current canon situation of the OTP. Soon enough we landed, got my bag and my mom was right outside waiting, which was a godsend because laguardia is a nightmare right now so having that timed perfectly was great. We stopped at a Starbucks on the way home because my mom really wanted a green tea latte (lol), then stopped by my dad’s office and spoke with a few people there, including a girl who’s a fairly recent law grad that I really hit it off with, and she was talking to me about what potential legal aid positions I could apply for here. When I told her plan A was to work for a nonprofit, she was like “is this like, top secret news?” because apparently my dad has been going around telling everyone that I’m DEFINITELY coming back to the Long Island legal scene and I’m just....I don’t know how many more times I can say that to them if they’re just not going to believe it. ugh. I continue to really, really hope this interview in the city works out, because it is really the PERFECT position for me, it’s close to home but not too close, it’s exactly the kind of work I want to be doing, and it’s an entry level position so learning the ropes is part of the deal, I’m not going to just get thrown in there without any help. And I can’t really find many other nonprofits who are hiring period, and most of the ones that are are looking for candidates with experience, so this opportunity could really be a godsend. I get stressed out thinking about it, but I just keep reminding myself God is in control and He will open the right doors at the right time. Anyway. we left my dad’s office and stopped by the specialty italian grocery store to get a mini-cake and some cannolis because it’s my brothers birthday so we were celebrating that tonight. Got home, dropped my stuff, hung out on my computer for a bit, then went to pick up my sister and her friend from the mall. Got back, ate dinner, did a bit more chilling, then did dessert with everyone, which was nice. I’m still making decisions are far as what foods I want to make for Christmas, my uncle is supposed to not be eating things with much sugar in them but he tends to be tempted very easily, so I’m gonna try to find some recipes that would be better for him dessert wise. so far I have the almond cranberry shortbread cookies that I wanted to make for thanksgiving but never got around to it, the white chocolate peppermint cheesecake bars that I’m obsessed with (it’s made with the “candy cane” hershey’s chocolate and it is divine), the toast marshmallow cheesecake I’ve been tweaking the recipe for for the past few years and have been really pleased with how it turns out, and I’ll probably do some more cookies, definitely the peppermint shortbread ones that you twist to look like candy canes and are delicious. After dessert we basically just chilled out some more before getting ready for bed. I get to sleep in tomorrow (hooray!) and then I’ll do some grocery shopping for ingredients, and hopefully get some time to work on one of the two take home finals I still have to do, both of which are due by 5 pm on Wednesday the 20th, so I’m not terribly concerned. one is supposed to be 12-14 pages, and the other should be around 15 pages, and I’ve never really had trouble filling space because I tend to be quite verbose in my writing. Anyway, tired and now it’s time for bed. Goodnight, sunshines. Stay bright.

#daily journal #December 2017

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marilynnewbury-blog · 7 years

Photo

My daughter, Julia Lotholz, posted an ode to Rachel Ray on social media.

She kindly agreed, with some reluctance, to let me share her writing on my website.

But first, let me tell you why my daughter's kitchen mentor was Rachel Ray - and not me, her mother.

Why I Did Not Teach My Daughter How to Cook

by Marilyn Newbury

My Mom, while alive, cooked, baked, preserved food, decorated cakes and experimented.

No recipe was too complicated and no kitchen task too formidable:

A piano-shaped cake for my sixteenth birthday - my most favourite, ever - complete with white and black keys

Baked Alaska, with several layers

Borscht Soup

Cinnamon Buns, her specialty, often started at 5:00 am

Cinnamon buns may have been the last thing she baked.

In her final season of life, with her body ridden with breast and liver cancer, she still baked and delivered cinnamon buns - to the new neighbours and to the doctor during three rounds of chemotherapy.

My mom, The Gourmet Cook, and my dad, The Shredded Wheat GuyWhen my mom was away, my dad was in charge of meals.The menu was fixed.

Shredded Wheat cereal, the go-to-meal or snack, any time of the day or night

Canned tomato soup

A can of pork and beans, if we were lucky

Possibly a piece of mom’s homemade bread

That is not to say my dad was not involved with the household. He parented us with loving firm discipline and was the primary taxi-driver to music lessons, often a weekly ninety minute commute each way. He took on side jobs to finance family camping trips, enlisting us as free labour to help build Westco grain elevators.

But most of all, I remember my Dad, with his larger than six-foot frame,down on his hands and knees washing the kitchen floor, often.

My parents made sure that we children also understood this principle of a common work ethic. We weeded the garden, snipped beans, shelled peas, and cleaned toilets, learning early that chores were as much a standard fare as the delicious meals my mom served daily.

I carried this expectation of shared household duties into my marriage and parenting. I created a rotation list of weekly jobs for our three children so they would learn how to clean - thoroughly.

(For years, until she had her own children, my daughter believed that the only reason I had kids was to have help with my housework. Now that she realizes how much work kids are, she recognizes that if a spotless house was the goal, remaining childless and using the extra disposable income towards a housecleaner would be a more direct route.)

My husband, however, did not share this communal view of household tasks. He had an excuse, a chronic joint disease, but even if he had been in perfect health, he likely would never have washed my kitchen floor on his hands and knees. His father had modeled a different lifestyle: while he provided for his family by fixing chain saws and making colourful fishing ties, the only way he ever graced the floor with his presence was to lie down on it to relax.

Eventually, I became overwhelmed with managing our home: three young children, part-time and full-time jobs, and all of the physical work to keep life running smoothly.

I decided that my husband could do more, rheumatoid arthritis notwithstanding.

Logic dictated that this more would be in the kitchen, given my questionable expertise in this area.

Growing up, I helped my mom by doing mountains of dishes and making an occasional recipe, but usually I was told me to go practise the piano instead. Maybe my mother wanted better for me, since she regretted her late start in music lessons, or perhaps she knew better than I that my passion would be found in music rather than in creative cooking. In any case, kitchen skills were not my forte.

My husband liked to cook, and his meals tasted better than mine. Besides, he even liked to test new combinations of recipe ingredients - sometimes.

I told him the ‘sometimes’ could become ‘always’. He resisted.The arguments in our Kitchen War flew fast and furious.

In desperation, I stopped preparing meals, resulting in his hostile takeover of the kitchen. After further non-negotiable discussions, and the added impetus of an empty fridge, my husband also agreed to do the grocery shopping.

Slowly, over time, my husband began to love his Kitchen Kingdom and his new role as the Family Chef.

He took his cooking to a new level when he regularly started concocting new dishes, including Dad’s Specialty, now a family goulash favourite. Meanwhile, I was ordered out of the kitchen if I so much as tried to butter a piece of toast. My children only vaguely remember me ever cooking or baking, and to this day, are surprised if I manage to make anything beyond canned tomato soup and grilled cheese sandwiches.

I admit, culinary proficiency is not my talent. My children are indeed fortunate that I did not teach them how to cook.

My daughter, Julia, inherited her grandmother’s cooking genes. During her high school years - with assistance from Rachel Ray - she started venturing into Dad’s kitchen domain, trying different recipes with exotic ingredients. A new Kitchen War ensued – a father and daughter competition. The grocery budget escalated along with increased anticipation for the new diversified menu.

Today, all of our children and their spouses are fantastic cooks. At family gatherings, I am not allowed kitchen entrance, except to wash the dishes, and perhaps to semi-annually wash the floor on my hands and knees.

Julia's Hummingbird Cake made for Easter dessert

An elaborate charcuterie board Julia made with a friend

an ode to Rachael Ray

by daughter, Julia Lotholz

Rachael Ray taught me how to cook.

there are numerous stories of ill-fated cooking attempts from my childhood, from feeding my brothers Cheerios soaked in water, to a near 3rd degree burn from making KD (I was reading an Archie Comic while stirring boiling water), to burning a plastic bowl full of raw chinese noodles onto the stovetop. I was destined to be the girl that was a disaster in the kitchen.

when I was 17, I took a semester off high school to travel with a guatemalan kids choir, and the tour ended a month and a half before the next semester began. a high schooler without a drivers licence, I was pretty well stuck at home, going stir crazy. I started watching the Rachael Ray Show every day at 2pm out of boredom, and eventually got tired of watching people eat food I couldn't even smell.

so I started printing off the day's recipe after watching her make it on tv, walking to the grocery store for the ingredients, and then trying my hand. my parents are wonderfully affirmative and appreciative when they taste good food, and it didn't take long before the fun of setting a steaming dish in front of someone and watching their reaction became one of my favourite things on earth.

I still remember some of the recipes I made that fall, even if I only made them once.

My girl Rachael has never failed me (actually, once, with a blue cheese buffalo chicken chili that was a big ol' pot of expensive disappointment) but otherwise, she's the queen of quick and easy family style meals.

I still pull up one of her new weeknight recipes every few months to cook for the fam, in honour of the woman who's never met me but taught me everything I know.

the first recipe of hers I ever made after watching it on TV: https://www.rachaelrayshow.com/rec…/15709_Sloppy_Taco_Stoup/ (I still make my own version of this on the regular, with an avocado salsa on top. We usually eat it with Tostitos scoops because what is life if not to be enjoyed?)

what's on tonight: http://www.rachaelray.com/…/butternut-squash-sweet-sausage…/

{that gorgeous wooden spoon in walnut is by Lotholz and Company}

Lotholz & Company is Julia’s husband Jeremy's woodworking shop. His beautiful woodworking creations are sold via his Facebook page.

Mother’s Note:

Julia and her mother-in-law, Ruth, are making sure that my granddaughter knows her way around the kitchen.

My granddaughter baking with Oma, her other grandmother

POSTSCRIPT

Julia's dad feels he should be given some credit for teaching his children basic cooking skills, so here it is:

Thank you, Cliff, for teaching your kids how to cook.

Hopefully, I am now vindicated.

Under no circumstance would I wish to jeopardize my daily breakfast in bed - graciously served by my husband!

Photo Credits:

Cinnamon Buns - pixabay.com

Shredded Wheat by Nick Saltmarsh CC BY 2.0

Butternut Squash, Sweet Sausage, Gnocchi, and Sage, Hummingbird Cake, Charcuterie Board, & Granddaughter Baking: Julia & Jeremy Lotholz

Originally published on https://www.marilynnewbury.com

#family #food #cooking #houshold chores #cancer #marriage #parenting #grandparenting #mother #daughter #father

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gastro-nomique · 7 years

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Meal Planning Made Easy – A Prep Dish Review

One of my big resolutions for the year is to finally get on top of meal planning. Yes, I’ve made this resolution in the past but this year I have a secret weapon; the meal planning service Prep Dish.

I asked my contributor, Kaley, to review it for me and, based on her experience, we’re starting at our house next week.

If you’d like to learn more, here’s Kaley with her thoughts…

Last year, my husband and I did the Whole30. For those of you who haven’t heard of the Whole30, it is very similar to Paleo, but it only lasts for 30 days.

We both felt amazing!

But the meal planning, preparing and cooking basically consumed my life for 30 days. Eating only whole foods is a lot harder than throwing together a box of pasta and a jar of sauce and calling it a night. It takes a lot of thought.

We really wanted to keep up with our clean eating, but needed some help.

We thought about signing up for one of those subscription food delivery services but the prices- ouch!

So I decided to try a free review month with Prep Dish, at only $14/month or $99 for the entire year (only $8.25/month!), it’s so much more affordable if we want to keep using it. Plus, I really like the model of

Plus, I really like the model of doing the prep on the weekend so that dinners are SUPER quick and easy on busy weeknights.

Prep Dish’s motto is “Shop once, PREP ONCE, enjoy healthy, stress-free meals all week!” which is exactly what I needed. And once I found out they had a Paleo version, I was sold.

What is Prep Dish?

Prep Dish is a subscription meal planning service that offers Paleo or Gluten Free menus, allowing you to streamline your meal prep, saving time and ensuring healthy, balanced meals.

The idea is simple:

Invest 2 to 3 hours prepping the meal on the weekend (or any day you choose).

Spend only 5 – 20 minutes getting dinner on the table the rest of the week!

The meals are heavy in fruits and vegetables and focus on seasonal ingredients. And although the menus are Paleo or gluten-free, they would work for just about anyone who wants to eat a little healthier.

Here’s what you need to know about the plan options:

The basic plan is $14/month.

You can save a lot of money by going in for the year subscription at $99. This takes your monthly cost down to only $8.25 per month AND with this plan, you get access to the archives of all the previous meal plans and Super Fast Meal plans – so helpful!

If you’re interested in starting off the new year with a Whole30 Reset plan the $149 Premium Yearly Plan is for you. It also comes with access to an Autoimmune Protocol plan and nutritional info. on each of the menus. The cost here breaks down to $12.42/month, making it the best value for what you get.

Each month, you get access to 4 weekly menus. (Both Paleo and gluten-free, so you can choose between the two.)

There’s also a Super Fast menu, which I think may turn out to be my favorite. Within each weekly menu, you receive recipes for 4 dinners, a salad, a breakfast, a snack and a dessert.

Follow along to see how my first week with Prep Dish went!

Grocery Shopping

Each weekly menu gives you a complete shopping list, broken down by category. This may not seem like a big deal, but it saves a ton of time in the grocery store!

I simply printed up this list, added a few of our household staples and I was on my way.

Following the list was pretty straight forward. I had to go to a few different stores to get everything I needed, but I think this had more to do with the small stores I shop in overseas than the actual list itself.

After grocery shopping, I had so much yummy food! And I loved that everything I came home with was fresh and super nutritious. I was so motivated to get going with the prep.

Prep Day

This is where things started to get a little crazy.

I was expecting to prepare each day’s meal separately. Instead, the menu has tasks broken down by chopping, cooking, blending, etc.

This is actually a much more efficient way to do things, it just took me a while to wrap my head around how it was going to work, and trust that everything would work out in the end.

I got right to my prepping. I had out all of my beautiful fresh food, cutting board, knives, containers to store everything in, pots and pans, blender…and then I ran out of room.

Attempting to prepare and cook 6 meals at once in my tiny European kitchen was quite a challenge.

So I moved half of my prep out to the kitchen table, and moved a lot of my ingredients onto trays that could be shuffled around the kitchen and dining room.

This worked fine and I continued with my chopping, sautéing, blending and seasoning.

When the prep was finished I had 6 meals that were nicely wrapped up in containers in the fridge. I was feeling pretty great about having the week’s dinners ready to go.

Dish Day

If I was feeling any doubt on Prep Day, it turned into pure joy on Dish Day.

The weekly menu tells you exactly what you need to do to finish the day’s meal, and it is usually as easy as throwing something in the oven, or pouring dressing over a salad. It was such a relief to come home after a long day and realize that dinner was already nearly done!

All of the meals were great, and I really appreciated that we were getting out of our dinnertime rut.

I feel like we eat the same things over and over again, simply because I can’t think of anything else to cook! But with Prep Dish, we were trying all sorts of new things.

This Pomegranate, Walnuts & Blue Cheese Salad with a Balsamic Vinaigrette was our favorite meal of the week, and it will definitely be in permanent rotation as long as pomegranates are in season. I loved having a healthy, delicious and filling lunch ready to go in less than a minute.

Prep Dish took all of the guess-work out of meal planning and preparation. I was able to keep up with my clean eating, without devoting half my life to planning our meals.

If you want to eat healthy, seasonal meals, and not spend hours in the kitchen on busy weeknights, you should definitely give Prep Dish a try.

What have you got to lose?

Again, here’s what you need to know about the plan options:

The basic plan is $14/month.

If you’re interested in starting off the new year with a Whole30 Reset plan the $149 Premium Yearly Plan is for you. It comes also comes with access to an Autoimmune Protocol plan and nutritional info. on each of the menus. The cost here breaks down to $12.42/month, making it the best value for what you get.

*Post contains affiliate links.

The post Meal Planning Made Easy – A Prep Dish Review appeared first on Modern Parents Messy Kids.

from boy child toys http://ift.tt/2jMLtqJ via boy child toys

#boy child toys

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