Howdy Folks!
It was a fun but long day at the ole school system. I arrived bright and early, per usual, and met one of my coworkers at a middle school to conduct an annual audit of food safety and management practices. It was a great learning experience. I stayed from breakfast through lunch and observed taking temperatures, all corners of the cafeteria, the register in operation, production schedules, staff schedules, rosters, reports and more. I even washed some dishes when I had a little down time to help out. The staffs at these schools are so nice and fun!
AND I GOT TO WEAR A HAIR NET!!! They’ve come a long way in the 20-something years since I started school 🙂
Can you even see it!?!
VIDEOS
It just looks like I have FRIZZ!
On the menu for breakfast was an oat-based fiberific cookie. Pretty cool.
Breakfast held me over ~5 hours. Go oatmeal!! We broke for lunch at 11:30 – I was perfectly hungry and perfectly cold to eat some soup + hot veggies.
Cabbage (which was amazing!), pineapple, green beans, a whole wheat roll, saltines and MADE-FROM-SCRATCH broccoli and cheese soup. I saw the ingredient list and recipe and could have made this at home. It was pretty tasty too! I cleared my plate sans a cracker and a little bit of soup.
When we left the school an hour or so later I was still feeling a little hungry, so I whipped out my almond stash for a little more protein and fat. I had about 7 of ’em and they did the trick!
Afternoon tea
And energy for my 1.15 commute home.
The Larabar held me over perfectly from 4:30 when I started nibbling to 8PM when I got home from the gym.
Going to the gym after work is not fun, but once I get there it’s OK and the atmosphere is pretty hard core so I get more motivated once I’m there. I wore my GAP leggings from Saturday and they ROCKED! I loved the slight compression – I need to get some full length ones!
At the gym I rocked out the Stairmaster for 30 minutes (barely sweating – what’s up with me getting better at climbing the stairs having taken 2 weeks off of the machine during Xmas!?), 10 minutes on the Stat bike and 10 minutes of power lifting, which means I didn’t stop for breaks and just did every exercise I could think of with 15 pounders.
When I came home I was starving, but always prefer to eat nice and clean (mostly because I get cold if I eat in my wet workout clothes).
I totally rocked the wet hair + hoodie look for din 🙂
How’s this for some leftover love:
Last Saturday’s Black-eyed peas (on their last hour!) topped with Tuesday’s Pumpkin Curry Soup, some broccoli and some DELTA peanuts from my summer of travel:
[Matt was out at a beer dinner so I was on my own 🙁 ]
On the side – whole grains in the form of a Flax Oat Bran bun sandwiched with some cranberry goat cheese!
I miss using the ole point-n-shoot – it rocks!!! I need a new lens – a wide angle macro to be specific.
I was so hungry after my workout that this STILL hasn’t settled into fullness yet. Hurry up stomach!
So tomorrow another coworker and I are cooking oatmeal for an elementary school breakfast!!! We’re going to experiment with bananas and toppings and see how they like it. Afterwards we’re doing an in-school news show on eating more whole grains and oats. Fun! The catch is I have to BE there at 6:45, which means I have to leave the house at 5:45 and so on. I’m going to eat my breakfast there so I plan to pop in and say hello to you guys before I jet out. And I should be off earlier than usual and will fit in 3 posts tomorrow 🙂
Good night my <3’s
Your leftovers look really good! haha I like to eat once I am clean too! Too bad tonight I got home so late that I didn’t have that option or I probably wouldn’t be eating till 10 pm 🙂
What I find exciting about your dinner is the combination of all the flavors and textures and colors–seriously making good nutrition more fun.
Making breakfast oatmeal tomorrow sounds so fun!!!
Glad you had another good day! Leftovers are always better than the first time for me. The husband though isn’t a fan 🙂
Wow, school lunches have really come a long way! I can’t wait to hear what the kids think of the oatmeal. I had to eat dinner sweaty tonight :(… but only because my hubbyman already had it cooking on the grill when I got home from the gym! 🙂
Ooooh, it should be really interesting to hear how you make a giant batch of whipped banana oatmeal! Fun! Hope the kids like it…my 3yo & 5yo only like oatmeal plain. They turn up their noses if I cook it with banana!
I can’t get over how good your school lunches look — cafeteria meals have come a LONG way since I was a student just a few years ago!!
Good luck on figuring your best eating times with your new schedule.
I was starving when I made it home today, too. That school lunch looks way better than what my kids get.
You always have the best looking bread, buns, muffins etc…so jealous! I need a baker in the family…
Nice workout! And that goat cheese sounds delicious. I think I’m rediscovering my love/craving it. According to Avery(from loveveggiesandyoga), it’s more easily digestible because it’s more like human milk than cow or soy. I found that interesting and have to wonder why it’s not more produced
So fun that you get to cook oatmeal for kids tomorrow!!
I can’t even see the hairnet– amazing!! That’s much more discreet than the one I had to wear during my chocolate factory tour over the holidays 🙂
I did the same “out of the shower” dinner tonight haha. Yours looks great!
Killer hair net! It looks a lot cooler than the thick, black ones that lunch servers wore back in the day.
Your leftovers look delicious.
I hope the kids like your oatmeal concoctions and I hope they know they’re getting oatmeal from an expert!! 🙂
Wow – hair nets really have come a long way!
Glad things are going so well for you at your new gig!!
What a full day! Props to you!! and the hair net is too funny! almost invisible! I’m jealous that these kids are getting such good eats at school…I always brought a packed lunch cuz the stuff in the cafe was always so gross. Then again…who knows if I’d have been able to appreciate the beauty of cabbage, whole wheat and green beans at that age…glad I appreciate those things now.
Sounds like a busy day! You always have the most creative meals! Dinner being one of them!
Good night 🙂
I think it is so great that you’re getting this experience!! I’m a first grade teacher, so this is particularly interesting to me. Good luck with the oatmeal experiment!! Hope the kiddos eat it up!! 🙂
Yum! All those eats look wonderful 🙂
I’m impressed with the school eats. Very different than what I remember. And you totally can’t see the hair net. Weird.
I love how exciting you are about all of this! Awesome!
That’s an early morning tomorrow!
I’m glad your getting some real food in the school system. I always brown bagged my lunch because the food always looked terrible. The food you’ve been having looks pretty decent.
I’m impressed that you’ve been getting to the gym after work. I love working out before I shower but once I’ve showered I really struggle to get started.
Seeing the old cafeteria tray is so so hilarious. It’s surprising that hasn’t changed in SO many years!!
Hi there! I’ve been reading your blog for a little while now. I came across it when I was researching weight loss blogs, after starting one of my own. I just wanted to say that I love your blog! For some reason I’m always curious to know what you’re eating 😉 It always looks so good!
Brittany
Thanks!!
I almost always hit the gym late in the evening, though if I wanted I could go in the morning. I love how quiet my gym is in the evenings 🙂
That school lunch looks pretty good and healthy!
Yummy dinner of leftovers!
I think your job is so cool and interesting! Your so lucky!
Jenna
Ha thats crazy you really cant see the hair net! What a healthy lunch they served there. Good look tomorrow morning I bet that will be a blast.
You job looks fun! Great workout too!
Yum. Goat cheese.
And it’s truly amazing how far cafeterias have come.
wet hair and leftovers….what a monday night combination.
what a great school lunch, by the way. i’m super impressed.
I wanna eat leftovers at your house! They look very yummy. I just tried the warm butternut squash and garbanzo bean salad from SmittenKitchen.com and for some reason I think you would really like it. It has a lot of steps, but it makes a lot and it’s pretty versitile. For me and my husband we will eat it for dinner as a side to chicken then eat it over fresh spinach and greens for lunch for at least two days. It tastes as good as it looks. I might even cut out more of the garbanzos, a cup and a half instead of two?
http://smittenkitchen.com/2009/01/warm-butternut-squash-and-chickpea-salad/
Looks awesome!! Springpadit!
from the previous, are you afraid of the dark was so dope. loved. it.
and i know exactly what you mean about the ‘gym after work’ thing. i never wanna go, but dont make it a choice…just change, drive, walk in door. and so true! once i’m there, its hustling and bustling, and the energy comes. i was just thinking those same thoughts today.
love lookin at these school lunches, too. so nostalgic…except healthier.
Your house is so dang clean. And so his yo hair 🙂
Can’t see the hairnet at all 😉
I love the way you take your food pictures. So pretty.
Cookie for breakfast, yum!
It looks like the lunch is served on Styrofoam? Does that bother you?
Yes and yes.
School cafeteria food has come a long way since I was in school! And hair nets, LOL. Wow, can’t even see it. Cool 😎
Jenn
Oh, I hope the kids like the oatmeal. Lu won’t touch oatmeal at school but gobbles up Mommy’s banana oats! How much oatmeal do you have to make? That may be insane!
It’s crazy how you can’t even see the hair net!
Good luck with the oatmeal bar at the elementary school tomorrow, I hope they like it!
That hairnet is amazing! LOL! You can’t even see it!
How fun with the oatmeal tomorrow… you ARE the Master Oatmeal Maker. 😉
Your hairnet “frizz” looks better than my real hair. Come to think of it, so does your wet hair. Geesh.
I’m insanely jealous. I’m a teacher and I would kill for a decent salad bar. The stuff they serve the kids is too salty and fatty. Excellent lunch!
And I’m looking forward for more info on the new glass. 🙂 I’m wavering on a new f/2.8 zoom for faster night action shots. I have a macro and a separate wide angle and love them dearly.
Yikes you gotta get your booty up early!!! That is no fun!!
Gotta love rockin’ the hairnet!
good to see they’re making the hairnets a little more stylish these days 🙂
Glad you’re enjoying your Placement so far! Looks like fun!
I thought I was the only one who has to shower before eating. No matter how hungry I am, I always shower. It is great in the morning, because I am ready to start the day right after breakfast!
wow you can’t even see that hair net! If I work out I always shower before I eat!
I can’t believe a cookie held you over for 5hrs! What was the secret ingredient!?
I had oatmeal for breakfast – remember the whole post about it!? The cookie was just what was on the cafeteria meu
I find it very weird to see all the progress in cafeteria food BUT none when it comes to environment: all that plastic in cafeterias…What a paradox. It’s kind of sad.
I love reading about your experiences at the school. I worked in schools for 6 years before going back to school myself this year to be an RD. The students at the schools I worked in definitely didn’t have the oaty, fiberful cookies for breakfast or such healthy lunches. That district must be doing a great job! It’s great to see!
Looks like it was a great day. I hate it when my hunger is all consuming! When I am really warn out, I seem hungrier. I think my body uses food to keep it going! Have fun making oatmeal for the kids! I trust you can make it interesting!
Every time you post about the food at the school I am astonished at the quality and selection. The school lunches around here are pitiful and I wonder if the kids are really getting the nutrients they need. It’s nice to see that there are some schools out there that are striving for health.
I love that you’re into thick stewy soups like that! I love my soup extra thick and pureed… unfortunately, my husband is the exact opposite and likes thin, brothy soups. Oh well… to each his or her own!
That sounds like so much fun! I hope the kids like the oatmeal. I can’t wait to experiment with it and get my kids to try it someday (when I have them, ha ha).
I’m definitely impressed by the hair net makeover – they certainly aren’t as noticeable as they used to be!
I love that sandwich combo – what an interesting choice! Looks YUMMY 🙂
Wow-hair nets have come a long way! You hardly notice it!
Thats super cute that you’re going to beon the in school news show!! I hope it went well!
It seems like you like working in the schools!
I am so glad you are enjoying Rowan county. I lived there for 5 years and met some wonderful people. They have a lot of good cooks in that area.
Sounds like you had a fun time!
Your food looks so good 🙂 Glad you had a good day!
i’m very impressed with how far hair nets have come!