Last week was a tough week for me.  I’m not sure if it was the bitter temps, or the hubby traveling for the second week in a row but I admittedly found myself in tears more times than I care to admit.  My eldest daughter tried my patience, multiple times, and I found myself with my head in my hands choking back the sobs early Friday morning.  Could I DO this yet another week on my own?  And then at around 9:30 a.m. while I was at work I felt my phone vibrate in my pocket.  “I’m sorry for being grumpy this morning.”  Smiles…I immediately felt better.  It’s amazing what a simple acknowledgement to even unintentional hurts can do…so as the day went on, we planned a nice dinner out after school/work to celebrate another week of surviving Chiberia 2015.  J and S decided on our favorite Mexican place called Sergio’s.  If you are ever in the western suburbs of Chicagoland I highly recommend it.  It’s family owned and operated, has fresh ingredients, and SOOOO affordable.

Today, as most non-working outside of the house Saturdays go, I had a full schedule.  I had planned on meeting up with my run club for coffee after my dreadmill run, but I slept through my alarm and started my day an hour and a half behind schedule.  The hubby arrived home late last night, but only for his Army drill weekend so I saw him all of 30 minutes.  But that extra glass of wine probably was NOT a good idea seeing the fact I had 6 miles on deck this morning.  I got up, ate my tablespoon of PB with chia seeds, texted Maria, and hopped on the ‘mill. I knew immediately this was going to be tough.  Barely half of a mile in, and I wanted to cry.  I cussed quietly, at myself, the ‘mill, and anyone who would listen.  And at 60 minutes, the ‘mill reset, and real tears formed in my eyes.  I wasn’t quite finished with my 6 miler, but thankfully I finished.  That is all I can say.  I did it.  It sucked.  And Mother Nature could bring on spring like temps ANY time now…please…

After my run it was time to EAT.  It’s been a while since I said 6 miles was a long run, but I was famished.  What did I eat? Check it out…

And then it was time to shower, and tackle 3 hours of housework.  I turned up the tunes, scrubbed bathrooms, vacuumed floors, dusted, washed bedding, and mopped.  My house now looks and smells amazing! YAY!!  Then, it was time to shop for the week so the girls and I headed to Aldi to stock up on groceries.  I love this store sooooo much.  My basket was completely full of fresh produce, fish, chicken and healthy snacks for such a reasonable price. Winning!

So tonight for dinner I decided to make something simple after such a busy day.  I made a yummy gluten free pasta dish, that had my famous semi-homemade marinara sauce.

Here’s what you’ll need for the sauce:

1 package of turkey sausage links cut into bite size pieces

1 cup of diced pancetta

1 small white onion

3 cloves of garlic, minced

4 baby Portobello mushrooms, chopped

Crushed red pepper flakes, Italian seasoning, kosher salt and pepper to taste

Here’s what to do:

In a wide sauce pan heat a few tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil.  Add in your onion, garlic, mushrooms and red pepper flakes and saute for 3-4 minutes.  Add the turkey sausage and pancetta and cook through for about 12 minutes.  Season with kosher salt, pepper, and Italian herbs to taste.  Once the sausage is cooked through, drain off the grease.  Also, wipe your pan out with paper towels removing the excess grease.  Add everything back into the pan, and pour in a jar of your favorite marinara sauce.  Taste for seasoning, adding in more S&P if needed.  Let simmer for about 25 minutes.  The longer, the better…

I served over gluten free rotini, and as always it was a hit with my family.

Lessons learned this week:

1. Running is hard.  Running on the treadmill? Even harder.

2. Teen kiddos will test us more than nearly almost anything in life.  We won’t always pass, but there is always room for growth.

3. Knowing your passions in life, and participating in said passions is freeing…really.

4. Ask someone how THEIR day is, or what THEY are up to…it truly can make a difference.

5. It’s ok to cry. But don’t forget to wipe away those tears and move forward.

I am rounding out the week with 15 miles of running, 1 yoga work out, and strength training as well.

Questions!

How was your week?  How do you deal with one sided conversations?  What are your favorite “easy meals?”

❤ Michelle