Sweet Potato Oatmeal

Ever heard of the total elimination diet?  Well, my doctor put me on that because I was having an allergic reaction to something.  It basically eliminates everything.  There is no red meat, shell fish or warm water fish, no sugar, no gluten, no dairy, no eggs, no peanuts, no caffeine, no alcohol, no citrus or strawberries.  It's is a super healthy, very lean diet.  At first it was super hard and I could not figure out what to eat and I was always hungry.  :-P But I'm almost through my third week of it, and I've slowly come up with different ideas of things to eat.  My biggest struggle was sweet stuff.  I used to put honey on my oatmeal in the morning but I can't have honey anymore.   So I tried to think of things that were sweet to put on my oatmeal... sweet potatoes!  So I found this recipe on this really cool blog called Noms For The Poor.  It turned out pretty good for having no sweetener what so ever.  I think I'm going to do it a little bit differently next time because my sweet potatoes didn't cook all the way and my oatmeal had a consistency that was very slimy.  Here is my version of the recipe, and you can get the original recipe from this page on Noms For The Poor... Sweet Potato Oatmeal.  

Recipe:

1/3 Cup Rolled Oats

1/4 tsp Salt

1 tsp Cinnamon

1/4 tsp Nutmeg

1 1/3 Cup Coconut Milk (Any kind of milk will do)

1 Cup Shredded Sweet Potato

1 Mashed Banana

Coconut Flakes

In medium sauce pan combine milk, spices, and sweet potato.  Cook until the sweet potato is no longer crunchy.  Then add the Mashed banana and oatmeal and cook until you have your desired consistency.  Serve and sprinkle with coconut flakes.  You can add a little coconut milk to the top too.  :-)

Yummm!

Happy 93rd Birthday To My Great Grandpa!!!

Happy Birthday to my great grandpa!  Today he turned 93 years old and he's still going strong.  :-)  He is such a great guy!  I always love listening to his stories every time I go visit him and my great grandma... even if they are the same stories every time.  He has been such an inspiration to me too.  He has always kept busy  with his various hobbies... model trains, painting, gardening (he has the most amazing garden), and many other things.  I think that is one reason he has lived so long.  I love you Grandpa Roach!  I hope you have had a great birthday, and have many more great birthdays in the future.  :-)

This is my great grandpa when he was younger!  :-)

To A Better Semester!

Hey everyone, it's been a while... like since the beginning of my first semester at CU.  How'd it go?... well, lets just say I grew a lot and learned way more than just music.  But, I can say that all the trials and hardships that I went through this semester made me a better person, and showed me just how strong I am and it made me even stronger than I was before.

There were some good things from last semester too.  I was able to prove to my harp teacher and orchestra conductor that I did have the skill level to perform one of the orchestra pieces... Tzigane by Ravel (it has one of the hardest harp cadenzas ever written).  I was able to make good friends with one person... Nicchi.  We had a lot of fun last semester cooking, studying, and our twice a week lunch before our history class.  She really helped me through my semester.  I was also able to pass all of my piano proficiency in one semester!  :-)  Oh, and I started learning French (J'apprend le francais.  Je joue le harp.  J'aime la musique.).  :-D

But enough about last year, I am about to start my second semester at CU and I am determined to make it a better semester and a better year.  I am already starting out the semester better because I found a new roommate... (the last place/roommates were pretty horrible).  The place is in a much better area of the city, and I'll have my own room... which I recommend for anyone in college, it can make all the difference in your college experience.  :-P  Oh, an my new roommate is awesome!  She is super sweet and we hit it off really well.  Our other two roommates are my roommates two guinea pigs, Fabio and Luigi.  :-)  I think that we are going to have a lot of fun this semester but it might get a bit confusing at times considering how close our names are... mine being Lauren and her's being Laura.  LOL

I have a few goals for this semester and for the rest of my time at CU.  I am determined to be a better, more dedicated student and musician and to blow my teachers away.  I have also told myself that I am done with all the drama that goes on at school... I am there to learn and to grow and all the drama just inhibits that.  I am also going to get along with and trust my teachers advice more.  :-)

My biggest goal is to try and remain stress free as I have about 11 classes this semester... but only about 15-16 units.  It's still very demanding.  But, I am super excited because I have three classes besides my music classes that I can meet people outside of the music department.  Those classes are French 2, Cross Training/Flexibility, and Ultimate Frisbee.  :-)

On a non school note... I'd like you to meet my families newest furry family member.  Her name is Penelope. She's eight weeks old and only weighs two and a half pounds.