Thanks & Beans!

Happy Thanksgiving y'all! I truly hope you get to have time to rest this week and spend time with the people you love the most. I have a lot of grading to do over the next several days but I'm grateful I can do that in my pajamas at home, on my own time. I am looking forward to the food and family time as always. Thanksgiving always reminds me how lucky I am that my family is healthy and that they will all be present at the Thanksgiving table. Not everyone has that luxury.

I was up a bit in weight this week but that was no surprise. Looking back over the course of the year, I haven't really gained weight. I've fluctuated a few pounds. Sometimes it feels like I'm gaining every year, month or even day but it was nice to know it wasn't as much as I thought. Weight loss is just as much (if not more) a mental game than anything else. I'm feeling very zen about it right now. I need to learn to love who I am and I'm working on that! I plan on doing my best when I can but not stressing. I decided not to weigh for a couple weeks. I'm also trying to depend less on the scale to determine how I feel about who I am as a person. We will see how it goes. The other update is that I've paused long runs for now. They were killing me. I'm not ruling out half marathon training forever but for now, I'm focusing on shorter runs to work on my speed and taking care of my body.

The only food I have to show you today are these awesome green beans I made. I used to only like canned green beans. Over the past couple years, my mom has converted me to a fresh or frozen green bean lover. She uses great seasoning and sautés them in the oven. Last week, I made Asian inspired green beans from an aging bag of frozen beans I had in the freezer. I made them as a side dish to a ground chicken/hash brown hash I made. Now, I will say, I like my green beans cooked practically death. I don't like the crunch as much. So, that's what I did. I added a bit of toasted sesame oil to the pan. It was about a teaspoon and then I added about a tablespoon of light butter spread. Then, I plopped them right in the pan. I added the typical salt, pepper, onion and garlic flavors. I also added Teriyaki sauce and soy sauce. When they were done, I topped them with some chopped peanuts and shaved parmesan. They may have been the best green beans I've ever had! They were so salty and good. They would go perfectly with any protein. I plan on making my next batch of stir fry the exact same way.

This week is also Iron Bowl week. Alabama will be faced with their last challenge before the SEC Championship. It's been a great year for Alabama football and I'm looking forward to watching them dominate on Saturday. I am so lucky to be able to go to the games with my Dad!