Smoothies in Green and Pink

Since I am a smoothie loving freak of a woman, people always ask me about what I put in mine.  So, I have shared this important information with many of you before, but since you will ask me again, it will be here for all of time (or until the death of the internet as we know it).

I have a bunch of pain things to share about today, but this time, recipe first, bitching later.

I have used Spirutein shake mix for a long time now.  I have not had any other flavors beside chocolate because, really, what else is there?

You really have to mix this in the blender for it to come out tasty.  You use 1 scoop of shake mix per person.  Then 8 oz milk (dairy or almond or whatever).  Add 4-5 frozen berries.  I love frozen strawberries in it.

Organic frozen berries are not so expensive.  (You know what else is delicious?  Frozen organic cherries!  I love them heated up a little with some plain yogurt! - sorry for excessive exclamation points but they are so good!)

So if you blend up milk, protein powder and fruit, you get this lovely smoothie right here.  

Nate loves these so I'm guessing many picky eaters would like it.  It keeps you full for many hours.  Lately, I add 2 more things to mine:  Spinach and peanut butter.  I add a handful (1 C ish) of baby spinach leaves and 1 T of smooth peanut butter.  Then blend until no spinach is visible (chunks of spinach leaves is not desirable).  Then it looks more like this.  

I read about green smoothies and decided to try it since I can't eat salad anymore.  This smoothie is very filling.  I had this for breakfast today and I wasn't really hungry until after school (but my appetite is a weirdo anyway these days).  Your question, of course, is "can you taste the spinach?"  The answer is no, not at all if you blend it thoroughly.  I do think the addition of peanut butter helps make the spinach work.  

Enjoy.  What are your smoothie recipes?  Please share in the comments.

Okay, now for some sharing.  I went to the pain doctor today since it has been 22 days since the most recent epidural injection.  I've gotten significant relief but the past 2 days, I have had more leg pain.  Last week, I hardly took any pain medications and the doc and I discussed that I don't seem to have any issues of dependency (whew).  I am so relieved that when I need to stop these, I won't have any problems.  I got some new prescriptions since I was absolutely, completely out of medicine.  I always fantasize that I won't need more and wait until I have none to get more.  

The doc just had to put his 13 year old wheaten down last weekend and I practically jumped to talk more about Orso (pictured with me above).  Orso passed on about 6 weeks ago and my heart aches for him daily still.  I tell Nate everyday, "I miss Orso."  That's all I can really say.  

I went to fill the prescriptions.  I used to be totally anonymous in this town.  After teaching for 4 years here, not so much anymore.  The pharmacy tech is a student teacher at the high school.  She knows what I take for medicine.  I am not invisible.  One of the meds requires a waiting period because they don't store it in the store.  I would have had to wait 2 days, but the nice student teacher offered to drop it off at the other CVS so I can pick it up tomorrow.  She didn't think I was a junkie.  She thought I needed help.  Sigh.  I was so caught up in feeling self conscious, I almost missed a human being being super kind to me.  

The pain doc thinks it's really promising that I got some relief.  It means it's not hopeless.  The nerve is not permanently damaged.  He generally thought I seemed much better overall after the fusion.  That seems like really good news and feedback, but it doesn't actually go all the way into my brain.  As long as there is pain in my leg, there is pain in my leg.  

The other day in school this woman that I have never met took out her pointer finger and pointed at me up and down and said, "You got really skinny.  You weren't heavy or anything, but you got really skinny."  I tried to decide if this was a complement, a complaint, a general statement.  I said, "Yes."  I am such a wackadoo sometimes.  What should I have said?  

So I am starting to consider this week's baking adventure.  I have this lemon yogurt cake in mind and my friend made it and said it was wonderful.  I've also been wanting to reproduce Bertucci's rolls.  And I want to try to make chocolate eclairs!