Recipe: Vegetarian Cobb Salad

Do you ever have those evenings when you stare longingly into your fridge trying to figure out what to make for dinner? Well, I don’t – usually. I am great about meal prepping. We have even have themed meal nights (Meatless Monday, Taco Tuesday, etc). But on this particular Monday, when I had soup on the menu, the forecast here in the Inland Empire was a mild 90 degrees. Not great soup eating weather. So what’s a mom to do when a plan doesn’t work out quite as expected?

My go-to for “throwing things together at the last minute” dinners is salad! Thankfully I had just made a run to Costco just days before so I had bounty of veggies. And with a little creative innovation, the dressing turned out perfectly. This is a vegetarian cobb salad, but you could easily add in bacon, grilled chicken, or even steak to elevate this to greater quality.

Salads are great because you can literally just throw everything in a bowl. Because I have 4 fairly picky kids, I dress the salad, then leave the toppings on the side and let them add in whatever they want. This was a light, easy dinner and will be great for summer picnics, potlucks, or even quick lunches. Just throw your ingredients in a mason jar and shake. Keep it in your fridge for up to two weeks and you’ll be ready to go!

Dressing

• 1 Clove of Garlic
• 1/2 Lemon or Citrus on hand
• 1 T Dijon Mustard
• 2 t Worcestershire Sauce
• 1 t Honey
• 1/4 C Olive Oil
• 1/4 C Apple Cider Vinegar
• Salt and Pepper

I used a mixture of romaine lettuce and salad greens. It was the perfect combination of color and crunch!

These are the toppings I used – hardboiled eggs, shredded cheese, diced red onion, tomatoes, and avocado. You could add in a meat protein or blue cheese to elevate your salad.

Not sure why I’m looking so lovingly at my salad considering I devoured it a minute later!

Do you have a favorite go-to summer salad? Share it with me so I can try it!

Cheers to Living Unexpectedly!

National Wine Day!

I feel so blessed to be able to living in such a beautiful state! The sea, the sun, the surf. And the wineries! My husband and I, along with two of our friends, had the privilege of doing a wine tour last weekend in the gorgeous Napa Valley. With just a 7 hour car drive, we were able to visit some new treasures and old favorites. Here are some of my favorite moments of our wine weekend!

We found a hidden gem in Napa! The Napa Valley Distillery serves up house made cocktails and was the first distillery to reopen after prohibition. The drinks and the vibe were so fun! We will definitely come back next time!

What’s Next After a Job Loss

Two months ago, my world changed. After a nearly decade long career, I was laid off. My career started as a job. It was an outlet for me to get away from my house for a few hours at a time. It was a way for me to earn spending money. It was not ever meant to be a career. But I loved it, so that’s what it became. In fact, I loved it so much that two years ago, we moved our entire family to Southern California so that I could gain new opportunities within the company. My job was my family. My security. My retirement. And in a two-week time frame, it was all gone. I had no plans outside of my little bubble to pursue anything further because, again, I loved my job.

So, here I am, two months later. Rethinking everything that I thought my life would be. Don’t get me wrong, I’ve had some great highs! I’ve been able to travel and have adventures with my husband, kids, and friends. I’ve been able to do “mom things” that I couldn’t do while I had a wacky work schedule. I’ve hosted parties, worked out, and done my fair share of shopping. But with the highs, come lows. I’ve cried, been scared and stressed. I’ve redone my resume about a dozen times and written a new cover letter with each application. But I’ve still sometimes wondered if I’ll ever get back into the workforce. I’ve wondered, what’s next?

I don’t know what’s next for me. But I want to share some things that have helped me cope with trying to get back to work and waiting for my “what’s next.”

• Rethink Your Opportunities. About a year ago, my husband and I made a retirement plan, which involved me staying in my job for 10 more years. Then I could comfortably retire. I was thrilled that we made a plan. But that plan has changed and now I need to rethink what my job opportunities will look like. For some, it may mean trying a new career or going back to school. Maybe you’ve wanted to take some time to travel or pick up a new craft. It will look different for everybody, but try to think of a new opportunity you can create for yourself.

• Find Someone to Confide In. Having someone to share your fears, sadness, joy, and successes with can be a great outlet. For me, it’s been my husband, my friends, and my old co-workers. For others, it may be a therapist, a parent, or a life-long friend. It is healthy to talk about what you’re going through with others. They may not understand what you’re going through, but it is important to grieve and talking it through with someone will help that grieving process.

• Network. Whether it’s going to lunch with someone in your desired career or meeting people in your same field, even connecting with like-minded professionals via social media, networking can not only help you meet people, but it may lead to your next career opportunity.

• Take Time. If you can afford to take time to just let yourself figure things out, then do it. I used to imagine what it was like to be a stay-at-home mom, but I never had the time, money, or energy to find out. During my time, I’ve done my best to feed into my kids’ lives because I could never do it before now. It is not something that will suit me long-term, but for now, I’ve enjoyed being a smother-mother for them – even if they don’t love it!

• Do Something for Your Physical Health Every Day. Go for a daily walk or try weight training. Drink your water or try some new vegetables. Whatever it is, your physical health is at the heart of your mental health. They need to be aligned for your body and mind to function properly.

I’d love to hear your thoughts on how you have coped with a lay off or what your “what’s next” looks like. I still don’t know what’s next for me. I decided to start writing again, spend more time with my kids, and create fun adventures here in California. I’m not sure exactly what that means or where it will take me, but for now, I will enjoy this new opportunity before my next job.

Cheers to Living Unexpectedly!

Robyn

Recipe: Breakfast Salad

I don’t post a lot of recipes.  Mostly because I don’t consider myself a gourmet.  I do love to cook and I convince myself that I am creative in the kitchen.  But after watching Master Chef Jr. with my 10-year-old, I am, in no way, a chef.

This recipe has gotten a lot of buzz.  Salad for breakfast.  Sounds pretty disgusting even as I type it out.  Romaine, chicken, evoo, and balsamic?  No.  Thank goodness. This breakfast salad has exactly what you would eat in an omelette, just cold and in a bowl.

I like a good hearty salad.  So this one had to have a lot of texture to it.  I started with two handfuls of organic spinach.  I prefer organic spinach to non-organic because I think the flavor is stronger, kind of as it was meant to be.  I added 4 hardboiled organic egg whites.  Again, I always eat organic or free range eggs for the same reason.  They just taste better.  I also just use the whites since they are chock full of protein, contain no fat and no cholesterol.  Then I threw in about 1/8 cup of shredded cheddar cheese to add a bit more protein.  You don’t want to add too much cheese because it increases your fat and calories of the day, but add enough to taste.  The only other thing that I would’ve added would be some diced crispy bacon. I don’t buy bacon bits, but only use fresh bacon on my salads and didn’t have any on hand first thing in the morning. Top with the same ratio as the cheese.

For the dressing I use a simple honey mustard that I made from scratch:

1 part mustard

1/5 parts honey

2 parts evoo

1 part lemon juice

salt and pepper to taste

It’s sweet and savory.  Perfect for first thing in the morning or for an early lunch.

I hope you enjoy your breakfast salad as much as I did!

Airport Style

Who knew this was a thing?  Until very recently, I tried to avoid airports at all costs.  Not airports necessarily, but flying.  I’m a nervous flyer.  I have new-found coping skills, however, that make flying just a little more bearable.  And discovering new fashion trends via airport style has made it a bit more fun.  With my recent job transition, I will be spending some time at airports, so I’ve compiled a list of fashion trends that will make my escapades and escapes more like a fashion runway than an airport runway.

1. There’s no need to sacrifice fashion for comfort.  The perfect go to staple for airplane travel is skinny jeans.  I want to be able to move once I leave the plane and hit the airport, so I prefer the stretchy kind.  Another new favorite of  mine are “fancy” sweatpants, although I’m pretty sure that’s not what they’re actually called.  Both skinny jeans and “fancy” sweats can be paired with either a cute flat or, my favorite, a wedge heel.

2. Which brings me to my next point, SHOES!  For airport style, it’s important to be able to get those beauties off at a moment’s notice thanks to the TSA.  I find flats and wedges to be the most effective and either type of shoe can go with almost anything from jeans to maxi skirts.  To avoid having to pack too many pairs of shoes, though this is truly a hazard for me, try to find a pair that goes with just about anything in your suitcase.

3. Layers are crucial when traveling.  I live in Seattle, so it’s, more often than not, raining anytime I leave to travel somewhere.  I adjust for the change in climates by wearing layers, but avoiding coats.  It’s usually a t-shirt, sweater or lightweight jacket and a scarf.  This also helps me to keep warm on my flight and I can usually stow a layer in my small bag when I land, if I need to.

4. Sunglasses.  I learned this the hard way.  I always like to wear minimal makeup when traveling.  I think planes are dirty and being around so many people at once is dirtier, so traveling with light makeup is key since I know I’ll be cleaning up after I land.  But when I stumbled upon Chris Evans, aka Captain America, last week sans makeup, I decided that minimal makeup isn’t always the best idea.  My solution?  Travel with sunglasses at the ready.  This way I can still go eau natural, but hide my face with my cute aviators if I need to!

5.  Let your bags work for you.  You’re carrying around a portion of your closet, so why not make it a cute closet?  With keeping your wardrobe minimal, you can do it up bold with your bag!

Have fun traveling in style!  And watch for some favorite looks of your own whilst traveling.  If you have feedback or favorites, let me know!

5 Things I Learned From Russell Wilson

In the past few years, I’ve learned a lot about finding my passion.  Figuring out who God created me to be.  And what that means to my life. Things did not happen the way I thought they would.  Nevertheless, I couldn’t be happier with where I am and where God has placed me, in the right moments at the right time. Unfortunately for me, I learned this later in my life than some.  At 40 years old, I know my purpose.  I wish I had known back in my 20’s what I was doing.  But again, that was all part of God’s plan for me.

There is someone I admire who, I’m sure, doesn’t have it all figured out, but has let God take control of his life.  At the young age of 26, Russell Wilson knows what he wants and how to get it.  So, I’ve taken some cues from him, and applied it to some of my own life experiences and want to share some of his words, with mine.  I hope you can find some things that you can add to your own life.

1.  How do you promote positive self talk?  This is a big one for me because, as a woman, my negative voice is usually louder than my positive voice.  I hear things from back in my childhood and teenage years.  Usually from myself, but still things that resonate.  Why are my jeans too tight?  Why can’t I get that promotion?  So, how do you overcome these things?  Speaking positive thoughts to yourself, sometimes audibly.  Russell (because I’m on a first name basis with him now) continues to publicly promote positive self talk.  I didn’t get that play?  Well, next year I will. I wasn’t a first round draft pick?  I’m going to make other teams regret that.  Russell has said publicly, “What you say, will change what you see.”  This doesn’t mean you will always get what you want.  But speaking positively will change how you view yourself and your situations.

2.  How do you ignore the noise?  This one kind of goes hand in hand, with my previous point.  Promoting a positive self-image, while ignoring the negative public image.  Few people know what it is like to be viewed publicly and then hear people from all over the world giving their 2 cents about you.  Imagine having the worst day of your career and then knowing the entire country saw what you did.  How do you ignore that?  One of my favorite speakers, Eileen Hunter Wolf , used Philippians 3:2 as a reference, “Watch out for those dogs, those people who do evil.” Ignore the barking noise.  Those people who yap and bark.  Do they even really know you, anyway?  NO!  So ignore them.

3.  How do you recover from a loss?  In RW’s (yeah, I call him that sometimes, too) case, the loss is public.  In our cases, it’s usually not. But how do you recover from wanting something so badly, and then having it taken away in the blink of an eye?  This is something I continually learn from my daughter.  She is a budding actress and has had more losses than wins.  She goes on countless auditions, just hoping to gain one role, just a tiny bit of exposure.  She has experienced more loss in her young 15 years than I have in my entire life.  Yet she presses on.  How? Because she knows that the win is so much sweeter when you  have had the failures.  When your end goal is something that few people achieve and you’ve worked as hard as you can to get it, you keep pushing.  Even when it hurts and you feel like you have nothing left, you keep pushing.

4.  Who do you have in your life that’s pushing you toward greatness?  We all need a cheerleader.  For me and Russ (because I have nicknames for him, too), our cheerleaders have gone onto eternity.  My mom, my cheerleader, is not here anymore.  So who else do I have?  My husband.  My sister.  My kids.  My mentor.  Surround yourself with people who only want the best for you.  I have let go of anyone that does not support me, and some of them hurt to let go of.  But by surrounding yourself with like-minded people, who will make you a better person, you will become better and greater.  The bible says, “As iron sharpens iron, so a friend sharpens a friend.” Be around people who will sharpen you, not make you dull. Or as Russell says, “Eagles never fly with pigeons.”

5.  What are your next steps?  You have your goal, but do you have your plan?  I’m a visual learner, so I like to write my goals down then mark them off when I’ve achieved them.  Prepare for what steps you are willing to take. “The separation is in the preparation.  Chances are what you make of them.” Philippians 3:12 says, “I don’t mean to say that I have already achieved these things or that I have already reached perfection.  But I press on to possess that perfection for which Christ Jesus first possessed me.”  Find YOUR perfection.  And prepare for it. You were given a dream.  Figure out and plan for your dream.

How to not be a Stage Mom.

A little background about my younger self.  When I was about 18, I told my mom that I wanted to act.  Yes, I was scared about what to expect, but that’s normal, right?  After several conversations, my mom, bless her heart, decided that I probably shouldn’t pursue acting.  Nerves, cost, failure were all reasons for her decisions.  And being the obedient daughter that I was, I concurred.  After all, my mom knew what was best for me.  So, I put my dreams on hold.

Fast forward 6 years.

At 24, I married my husband.  Not only did he encourage me to pursue my dreams, but pushed me onstage.  Although only performing in church productions for 3 years (OK, they were huge church productions involving audiences of nearly a thousand per show), I decided to take the plunge into community theatre.  GASP!  Yes, I was nervous.  “But if I didn’t do it now, when would I?  I mean, I’m already 28 years old!  I’m getting up there!”  (Now, at almost 40, this makes me chuckle.)  After several workshops, auditions, and call backs, I decided that acting wasn’t really my thing.  Yes, I loved it, but it was more work and less glamour than I thought.  My dreams of acting turned into merely day dreams.  But I was OK with it!  I tried.  I liked it for a minute.  Moving on.

Fast forward 8 years.

My oldest daughter, Audrey, was cast in her school’s production of Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory as Charlie Bucket.  We were so excited for her!  Audrey had tried out for a few things at her new Jr. High and had not yet been successful.  But Audrey has a never-give up attitude.  Don’t ask me where she gets it.  People say it’s because of good parenting, but I’m not so sure.  I typically want to hide under my down comforter in my dark room if someone looks at me the wrong way at the gym.  But Audrey doesn’t stop.  She auditioned for this play hoping to get just a few minutes of stage time.  Her director saw something in her that, as of yet, no one had.

Of course, Audrey was a natural on stage.  She has a petite figure and a voice that hits the back of the theatre.  She was born BIG!  The stage is where Audrey wanted to be.  Forever. So, my husband and I decided that if this is what she wanted, we would support her.  A short 9 months later, she was on her way!

We did everything right.  We got head shots for her, an agent, and drove her to countless auditions, call backs, and performances.  Yes, we were the perfect stage parents!

At least that’s what I keep telling myself.  What you don’t know is that because I had a desire to once perform at a young age, I carry a lot of regret.  Yes, I did say that I was ready to move on from acting.  But what if I had started when I was only 12, like Audrey?  What if my mom let me get head shots and an agent.  Where would I be today?  Probably exactly where I am.  You see, Audrey has something that I didn’t have.

She carries a desire to perform.  She loves her craft.  The head shots and agent bookings are fun. But Audrey really doesn’t care about that.  She loves stepping into a role.  Becoming something that she isn’t.  Creating a whole world for a character.  Me?  I like the red carpet.  The cheers and flowers during final bows.  The glamour.

So, how do I not become a stage mom?  By being a mom.  By letting my daughter be what she was created to be.  If she decided to be a veterinarian, a gardener, or a lawyer, would I treat her any different?  My job is to support her, her dreams, and her goals.  Not mine.

I’m certainly not a perfect parent.  No one is.  But by being her mom, and not trying to live vicariously through her, Audrey can do whatever she wants.  It’s my job to love her, support her, keep believing in her, even when she doesn’t believe in herself.  That’s what moms do.

My beautiful daughter, Audrey Montague

I just like to remind her that she promised me that first guest spot when she makes it to the Academy Awards.  Yes, I still like the glamour.