7QT: Fashion, Fasciitis and Food, Oh My!

It's Friday, so linking up with Kelly and the gang.

1)

I figured out what I'll be wearing for Thanksgiving!  You know the scenario - you want to look slightly put together for family and friends on the holiday but you need to allow for your expanding belly. 

My face was being weird, so cropped out it went.

 This sweater hides the tummy and the pants are black and forgiving.  The necklace just dresses it up a bit.  Voila!  The perfect outfit for pigging out.

2)

Another reason I'm loving that roomy sweater is because I haven't been able to run or walk this week.  I have planter fasciitis, self diagnosed.  This is so so sad because not staying active really depresses me.  Also because this ailment usually occurs in middle aged and overweight people.  Um, thanks?  I am trying to rest it, and have ordered orthotics and wraps and a ball that are all supposed to help it go away.   Have my dreams of running another half this March vanished? 

3)

Because I can't pound the pavement, Phil and I made up a circuit training workout to do at home.  Last night, we put the littles to bed, and the older four kids worked out with us.  Our circuit has 20 moves, and we do each one for one minute.  We blasted music and it was so.much.fun.  For reals.  

I'll have to give you the routine in another post, maybe with photos of the kids trying to do some of them, they were cracking me up.  Maggie trying to do a side plank = Maggie laying on the floor.

4)

I think I've kept this recipe a secret for long enough, it's the perfect snack/dessert to make ahead and freeze and then take out when needed.  

It's Chocolate Pumpkin Bread (recipe from Declan's godmother) and it makes 3 big loaves or 2 big and 2 small loaves:

Chocolate Pumpkin Bread

3 ½ cups sugar                                       1 ½ tsp baking powder

1 ¼ cups vegetable oil                            1 ¼ tsp baking soda

3 eggs                                                   1 ¼ tsp ground cinnamon

1 can (29 oz) pumpkin                            1 tsp ground cloves

1 ½ teaspoon vanilla extract                  ½ tsp ground nutmeg

9 Tbsp of cocoa                                    2 cups (12oz) semisweet chocolate chips

3 ¾ cups all purpose flour

1 ½ tsp salt

In a large bowl, combine sugar and oil. Add eggs and mix well. Stir in pumpkin and vanilla and mix well. Combine the dry ingredients, stir in pumpkin mixture just until blended. Stir in chocolate chips. Transfer to three greased 9 x5 x3 inch loaf pans. Bake at 350 degrees for 55-65 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean. Cool for 10 minutes before removing from pans to wire racks. Wrap and freeze for up to 6 months. If you make small loaves of this bread, you will need to adjust the baking time to about 40 minutes.

Enjoy!!

5)

JP took a babysitting course and learned the Heimlich maneuver, when to call 911, home alone safety, you know all the things we would have learned as kids.  But they also had to teach them to stay off their phones and other electronic devices unless they were contacting the parents or making emergency call. 

 Funny how times change.

6)

Beth and Ellen posted soup recipes that we loved.  I think next time I won't even put chicken in the tortellini soup recipe, because I use homemade chicken stock and the chicken didn't seem to add much. 

 But try them out if you're looking for some comfort food :)

7)

Have you heard of TumbleDeal.com?  It's a site where they sell things at discounted prices and allow the price to drop until somebody buys it.  It's very addicting, once you get the hang of it.  I haven't actually purchased anything from it, but I like the chase.

Have a great Thanksgiving-prepping kind of weekend everybody!