Hi, I'm Rachel.

A few years ago I could barely boil water.

True story.

Determined to be a kick ass wife, I developed a love for football and learned to cook in my tiny Jersey City kitchen. I spend my days working in Manhattan, my nights and weekends chasing after a rambunctious toddler, and the hours in between cooking with my husband and feeding my TV habit...oh, and I blog about it all! 

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Thursday
May142015

Happy Friday!

 

Happy Friday! Today I'm heading out of town for the weekend..alone! Shaun and Penelope are staying behind while I jet off to Dallas for my friend Tanuja's wedding. I'm so so excited to spend a weekend with some of my college girlfriends and watch one of my longest friends get married! I'm signing off quickly today as I have a plane to catch, but I hope you all have the most beautiful weekend and enjoy some Friday links below! If you want to follow along with all the wedding fun (including photos of me in a sari) be sure to follow me on instagram!

Have a great one! 

rachel zoe has got the whole employing moms thing down

20 productivity apps for your life

i can't wait to work this grilled buffalo chicken caesar salad into my summer repetoire

how non-bloggers can help their favorite bloggers

these orange creamsicle yogurt pops look like a great summer treat

these toasted marshmallow milkshakes are everything

john oliver nails it yet again...this time on our country's maternity leave policy

could there ever be too much vacation?

i can't wait to pick up the new sesame street cookbook...perfect for penelope!

iced coffee popsicles? yum!

10 beach reads for your summer vaca

 

 

Thursday
May142015

Back on Dukan

Yep it's true. I'm at it again.

{mother's day 2014 vs. mother's day 2015}

Last year I started the Dukan Diet right after Mother's Day and this year, I coincidentally found myself feeling ready to start again at the exact same time. So this week, I've been hitting the attack phase hard and I'm happy to report that so far it's been going really well.

When I first started this diet last year, I didn't know what to expect. It seemed really hard and scary and like I'd never get to eat 'real food' again. But over the course of the summer I lost and kept off 10 pounds. It may not seem like a lot but it was. I felt great and thought I looked great too. I was able to get into clothing sizes that I could barely wear even before I was pregnant with Penelope. I could wear anything. I wore a semi-backless romper, a tube top, short shorts in sizes that I hadn't seen in years. And well, I'm ready to go back to there!

My feeling with Dukan is that the first three days are always the hardest. There are no veggies allowed and so it's a lot of protein and dairy. This makes it a little tougher, however, when there are no salad options for lunch time. I've found that prepping is key. Having a fully stocked fridge and lunch bag each day makes it way easier. And my favorite thing about this diet? I can eat as much as I want. Sure it's approved-foods only, but there are no restrictions on quantity. And so if I feel like I need a snack every hour in the afternoon, then I eat a snack every hour.

Today is day 4 and I've lost 4 pounds. Not too shabby, right? Today I can also begin incorporating vegetables and I see a cauliflower pizza in my future for dinner tonight, which feels downright decadent. Tomorrow I'll be heading to Dallas for my friend's wedding, and while I'm super duper excited, I am a little worried about how I'll do with sticking on plan for the weekend. I have lots of plane snacks planned and from there, I'm just going to plan to do my best and not stress about it.

So here's a peek at what I've been eating this week:

Breakfast: 0% vanilla Greek yogurt, iced coffee (with cream! never giving that up)

Snack: string cheese & babybel light cheese

Lunch: 2 chicken sausages w/reduced sugar ketchup + yogurt, if needed

Snack: reduced fat cheddar cheese cubes + turkey pepperoni; 2% cottage cheese w/cinnamon & sweetener

Dinner: Dijon mustard chicken kebabs (grilled)

Snack: oat bran w/skim milk + sugar-free syrup

I've mixed up the lunches and dinners, but the snacks pretty much stay the same. This was not much of a change for me since I usually eat this things as snacks anyway! There is a lot of dairy here, but again, it's just for three days. Now that I can have veggies, I'm dreaming of carrot sticks and snap peas!

Another thing that has really gotten me through is diet soda, hot tea and iced tea. Flavored drinks feel like such a treat and have really been a crutch to get through not eating for the sake of eating. If I want to eat, but know it's not because I'm actually hungry, a flavored beverage has really helped. Sometimes I think it's just the ritual of drinking or eating that I'm craving, and a flavored beverage hits the mark!

So that's what I've been eating lately.

Have you ever done a diet like this before?

What have you been eating lately?

 

psst: your Dukan questions answered/traveling on Dukan/Dukan day plan ideas

Wednesday
May132015

Podcasts I'm Loving Lately


I've been down a black hole and it's called podcasts. I've never really been one for podcasts or really listening to anything that wasn't music. Like so many others, I became mildly obsessed with Serial back in the fall. I had never listened to a podcast before and didn't really have an inclination to, but never wanting to be left out of a pop culture craze, I jumped in with both feet and couldn't get enough!

Following Serial, I gave up on podcasts, but recently I was inspired to get back on board. I put out a call on Instagram for some podcast recommendations and today I'm rounding up some of my favorites!

Fresh Air. This is a great podcast for keeping up with pop culture. The first episode I listened to was an interview with Billy Crystal and Josh Gad and I was immediately hooked. Other episodes of interest: DJ Mark Ronson, Louis C.K., Graham Yost, who is the EP on Justified, an interview with a former SeaWorld trainer, and I have many more in the queue.

This American Life. I enjoy the randomness of this one. Lots of different stories about very different things. Yesterday, I listened to Same Bed, Different Dreams, stories of people who are tied together but have very different hopes and dreams.

Undisclosed: The State vs. Adnan Syed. This is kind of like a follow up to Serial, but by a different group of people. It's a different way of storytelling, and as the narrator admits, not a beautifully crafted narrative like Serial is. You need to listen to Serial prior to this one, so if you haven't...well what have you been doing for the last six months?

The Bugle. This was recommended by a friend whose opinion I trust implicitly, but I just haven't had a chance to listen yet. I have a few episodes downloaded though!

Nerdist. Love love love. I'm a self-proclaimed pop culture nerd and so is Chris Hardwick. It also now makes me appreciate his street cred prior to getting the Talking Dead gig on AMC (a post-mortem of The Walking Dead each week). This also features various interviews. I recently listened to Rob McElhenney and Glenn Howerton of It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia and I loved it.

WTF with Mark Maron. More pop culture here. Funny interviews with big stars, pop culture icons and more. I tend to prefer the style of Nerdist and Fresh Air a bit more, but this is also a solid listen with huge name guests.

Also on my list to try based on your recommendations: Spilled Milk, The Moth, America's Test Kitchen, Doug Loves Movies, Cashing in with TJ Miller, The Motivating Mom and The Chalene Johnson Show.

Do you listen to podcasts? If so, what are your favorites?