Just call me Martha..

Stewart that is..

I've wanted to write this blog since my recovery week after Ironman Texas, but instead I've been.. well, working, training, eating, sleeping, doing laundry, cooking food and keeping life going!! So, hence why I'm writing it now!

My week after Texas was a nice mid-season break.  I had a mere 6 hours of training and the timing was wonderful as it was right over a Holiday weekend and Kyle and I had a lot of different projects we really wanted to accomplish around the house (along with some nice R & R).

Of course, there was lots of sleeping in (always a plus!) and on Saturday we took a trip to the local nursery to get flowers to plant!

I've decided that begonias are some of my favorites because they give a nice pop of color

 Last year I talked Kyle into helping me put up these flower boxes off our porch that I could plant as well!  I really like the way they turned out and looking out over the porch into the yard with the flowers there makes me really happy!

There's something about digging in the dirt that I find very cathartic!  In the end, you also get to see the fruits of your labor and enjoy them all summer long!

Kyle also had some great ideas in mind when he purchased our seeds and plants for the garden.  So, after I finished with the flowers it was time to get busy getting the garden planted.  On the left are mellons.  When you create the mounts with the bowls on top it helps collect the water and keep them moist!

We have two raised beds which are where the plants really do well.  In this one are peppers - red, green and hot peppers!

This is my herb area with basil and some chives as well! I LOVE fresh basil to go with tomatoes and mozzarella!  I can taste it already!

There was even a little extra time for baking!  I had a few picnics to go to so I decided to make this Angel Lush Cake from Kraft Food and Family.  I've made it before and what it lacks in "healthy" it makes up for in taste!  It's easy, quick and I was on a little break from the "very little sugar" that is my normal diet so it was nice to indulge a little with some picnic desserts etc. 

I also made this bean dip which is a fairly healthy recipe and absolutely delicious!  It's great to just have with torilla chips OR even on a protein such as chicken or fish!  

The recipe is as follows:

2 cans black beans (drained and rinsed)

1 red onion (diced fine)

1 red pepper (diced fine)

1 green pepper (diced fine)

1 can white corn (drained)

1/2 cup sugar

1/2 cup vinegar

1/2 cup olive oil

1 Tbsp hot sauce

Garlic Power or Fresh (optional)

Just chop all vegetables, pour in sugar, vinegar, olive oil and hot sauce and mix! It's tangy with the sweet and sour of the vinegar and the sugar.  If you wanted to sub in less oil and less sugar or a sugar alternative like Stevia I am sure that would work as well.  This recipe is from our good friend Bonnie Johnson! 

I even had time to have a celebratory dinner with my previous boss, Franco.  He was very happy to see that things went well in Texas and he's just a wonderful man whom I will always cherish.  One of those people that comes into your life and you always want to keep that relationship because they are just so kind, humble and good to you.  

All in all, it was a great week.  It was just what the doctor ordered as about two weeks out from Ironman I was definitely getting tired of the "grind".  You know what I mean when I say that right??  Sometimes everyone just get tired of the going to bed early, smelling like chlorine and eating like a champion.  OH and I also drank a little wine!  I may not be Martha, but for me, this was a BIG week of being domestic.  I'm pretty sure Kyle didn't know who I was cooking new recipes all week and having all the laundry done at once.  Let's just say THAT's not happening again any time soon :)  

What do you like to do on your recovery weeks or mid-season break?? 

I was so thankful for the time off and now it's back at it!!  I've got two more blog posts up my sleeve so look for those soon (hopefully!).