Sunday Funday

Some of you may have noticed that I didn’t post pictures from dinner last night. Why you ask? Because I had a date last night. And it was a first date so I really didn’t feel like whipping out my camera because they could have made it awkward Anyways, I’ve been talking to this dude online for the past two wks and he seemed pretty cool so I decided why not?

We went to Encore which is a nice restaurant I’ve been wanting to check out for some time. I had the Pan Seared Tilapia with jasmine rice and seasoned vegetables. One of the best pieces of fish I’ve had in awhile! I think it went pretty well, good conversation throughout the meal then we had a couple of beers afterwards. I finally got home around 1230A and passed out from lack of sleep during the day and all the fun activities. So yay date

I slept in until 10A which was sooooo nice since I wake up early during the weekend. I had intentions of making an omelet with onions, cheese and avocado but it somehow turned out like this

Ugly yet delicious. Nothing wrong with that.

I have absolutely no meals for the week so I got working on pierogies since there’s none left from my last batch.

The potatoes with cheese and onions

The dough (which was way stickier than last time I made pierogies, anyone have any thoughts why or what I can add to make it less sticky?)

After boiling them (I made 13 with that little ball o’dough!)

I went to get a much-needed pedicure afterwards. I was super proud of myself since I didn’t get red this time like all the pedicures I’ve had and went with OPI’s “You’re a Pisa Work”

Target was the next spot and I went with the sole intention of just getting aluminum foil but made the mistake of wondering over to the clearance rack in the accessories section and found this beauty

 And how adorable is the inside?

I came home and got some Lincoln love

Then made a turkey and cheese sandwich on a Thomas Whole Wheat Bagel Thin with a side of honeydew

I’m going to pop in Couples Retreat soon and then get ready to head to Crave Dessert Bar for dinner and drinks with my women’s networking group. Never been there—excited And people who say Sunday is a day of relaxation? Liars, I tell you.

Oh—and click here for a chance to win a coupon for a free SILK ALMOND MILK (and one winner will also get a reusable shopping bag!)

Walk and goodies

Happy Saturday all! I woke up at 545A today which should just be illegal on the weekends. Registration for the walk was at 715 and I needed some food and coffee first. I wake up around that time during the wk but it was just rough today.

 I made a big bowl of rolled oats with peanut butter, baked apples and mini chocolate morsels.

I was off to Carowinds for the walk and it was absolutely packed! They already had a live band playing, Starbucks provided coffee (YAY!) and some snacks. I met up with the MeetUp group that was doing the walk and they were really cool. Meetup groups vary and really haven’t connected with too many people from there because I feel like everyone either knows each other or I don’t have that much in common with them so I was pleasantly surprised. We started the walk through the amusement park then continued on the road behind the park. It wasn’t timed so it was a pretty leisurely walk but they had people handing out water, apple and bananas along the way. My knee started to kill me around the second mile which sucked so I had to slow it down a bit but it was nice since I had someone from the group at all times there walking with me.

We got back to the park and got our post walk food which was provided by Jason’s Deli—I had a veggie pinwheel wrap and chips. Again, I would have pics but I was off to pick up my camera afterwards-happy

I went to the hood, got my camera and was back on my way home. I stopped at Harris Teeter and got some amazing deals and went to Kabob Grill for some lunch. Ever since going to Lebanese Taverna last wk, I had been craving Mediterranean food. I got the Pita Wrap Lunch Special with the Lamb Kabob Wrap, fries and a drink. Not too shabby for 9 bones.

Fabulous. I think next time I will get the Vegetarian Combo which is similar to what I had at Lebanese Taverna and more of a variety.

Now for the hot deals I got at Harris Teeter!

They had Buy 2 coffees, Get 3 Free!

$1 Chobani’s which just brought a smile to my face….I may have to go back and stock up on some more!

Amy’s Burrito’s for $2

Amy’s Bowls for $3 and Buy One Get One Free CedarLane meals

Nature’s Path Waffles Buy One Get One Free

Various Kashi Bars for $1

And I don’t even celebrate passover but EACH of these items were $.50

All in all, a bunch of good deals. I am happy for all my new stuff to try

Lincoln and I are tired so we are going to nap it up, hope everyone is having a fabulous day!

Yogi-fied

Happy Friday all! I went to Power Vinyasa yoga at Yoga One last night and had such a good workout!

I have only done one yoga class in the past and that was a good seven years ago so was a little nervous about the class. I do random yoga moves while working out at home but nothing like last night. The room was at 94 degrees which I thought was going to be worse but really wasn’t that bad. However after the class, I was completely drenched yet felt good! I never realized how good of a workout yoga is for both the body and mind. Maybe these yogis are onto something??! Needless to say, I will definitely be checking out yoga again. It just sucks though because I really like Yoga One but it a ways away from where I live. I am hoping to move closer to there this summer though and if I do, I am so there.

And it didn’t hurt that there was a guy who looked EXACTLY like Tom Welling from Smallville…..without a shirt.

Some men should not be so pretty but hot dam (pun intended) home boy had it going on. I know I was supposed to be finding my center and all but he can find my center any day he wants!!

I was amazed at how good I felt today…..physically and mentally. As you all know, my job stresses me out big time. I felt more relaxed today and more at ease than I have been in a while. Physically, I felt stronger and felt like my posture was better as well. I think yoga may have a new convert.

Thank God it wasn’t too busy at work today so I got to catch up on a bunch of stuff. And I was super stoked because the hippie farmers market stand people are back! This is how I know summer is right around the corner because they are out from April to September every Tuesday and Friday. They have amazing produce and it’s soooo much cheaper than going to the supermarket and love that I can buy locally grown produce easily. I got romaine lettuce, a red onion, red pepper, cucumber, garlic, oranges, an apple and zucchini all for $5.74—love it!

I had a fantabulous lunch but my camera died so no pics. It was a wrap filled with Trader Joe’s Chipotle Pepper Hummus, tomatoes, avocado and green cabbage. On the side I had a turkey burger patty topped with more hummus and the other half of the avocado.

I really have nothing going on this wknd and was perusing MeetUp and there is a group doing the Walk For Diabetes  tomorrow at Carowinds Amusement Park. It’s a nice 4 mile walk from what I hear so I can get a workout in and walk for a cause. Go me!

I got home and once again missed the UPS man who has my camera so I was pissed about that. But I can pick it up tomorrow so camera will be back and so will pics. Can I get an Amen?

I made a BIG salad for dinner and pizza topped with salami and mushrooms on Trader Joe’s Whole Wheat Pizza Dough. when I mean big, I mean BIG.

This was in a casserole dish It wasn’t the original plan but I had lots of add in’s like mushrooms, red pepper, tomato,cucumber, hardboiled egg with Trader Joe’s Feta Dressing.

Blackberry pics suck, I cannot wait to have my camera back.

***Giveaway fun—click here for a chance to win an Oikos Gift Pack!

Question: Do you do yoga and if so, what kind do you like?

Breathe

This will be me tomorrow night…..only inside….and a bit heavier…and not as still. I am trying Vinyasa yoga tomorrow with my women’s networking group and cannot wait! I haven’t done a yoga class in seven years or so. Mostly because I am a spaz and don’t follow directions too well. But after this week and the way work has been going, I think it will do me good. I do strength training and run and walk but think it will be fun to mix it up a little and who knows, if I really dig it, may just have a new love.

I don’t have any pictures from today since I left my backup camera at work—go me! I will post them whenever I do get it in my hands….and be posting more pics from DC once I have my main camera back. I made a yummy pizza for dinner with Trader Joe’s Whole Wheat Pizza Dough, mushrooms, salami and mozzarella.

I got my ass handed to me yet again at work and kinda told my manager how I was feeling via IM. I would love to tell him in person about the stress I am going through but fear I will start cussing and crying (which in turn would mess up my eye makeup…no thank you) but delicately said that I need a break and some help. I ended up catching up on 95% of everything but had to stay a bit late which was a bummer. I just need to remember to breathe and speak up if I get too overloaded. When I caught up, I showed some of my co-workers that I do like the head on a stick pictures and they loved it!  Since the yoga class is at 7P tomorrow I am looking to get out early so let’s hope that happens!

Random song of the day stuck in my head:

In the morning when I’m not fully awake, I need to sing a random song to myself when I turn off my curling iron, lock my door, etc. Oh memory, where have ye gone?

On another note, I wish I had the super power to know what people are listening to on their ipods. I think it would be really cool to know what some people are listening to and am sure I would be surprised. Like this afternoon waiting for the bus jamming to Captain and Tennille’s “Love Will Keep Us Together” b/c that? Is how I roll. But then afterwards Lil Jon came on….which would those two acts would be a bad ass tour.

And what’s up with me missing Glee last night?? I saw some people blogging about it but just thought they were enthusiastic about the show. Oops—hulu I must go! Not digging how both Glee and Lost are on the same night now…boo!

And speaking of boo–I talked to an ex-boo on Monday. He was an ex from college who I saw on Facebook (my best friend sent me his profile) and got talked into adding him as a friend this past girls wknd. We were going back and forth emailing on FB then we talked for a half hour. He was one of the guys I dated in college who I actually liked, seemed like a nice guy however I really don’t remember us breaking up, we kinda just did the fade away thing. Anyways, we spoke and he really turned into a jerk. It’s funny how people change so much and what life can do to them. Le Sigh.

Ok so this was a totally random post but this is what happens when I don’t have beautiful food pics to post!

Insert witty title here

Ugh, going back to work was rough. It started great—beautiful weather, rocking a new skirt that I bought this wknd and no line at Starbucks–yay! But then when I got to my desk it was like all hell broke loose. A bunch of stuff from yesterday wasn’t taken care of so I had to play catch up on my emails plus a few of my deals began trading today so a bunch of craziness. Unfortunately that took up most of my day and wiped me out mentally.

Another bummer is I forgot my camera in my friends car in DC but she sent it back to me so I am using my nine year old camera in the meantime so pics are pretty crappy!

I had Yoplait Greek Yogurt with strawberries, unsweetened coconut, strawberries, blueberry flax and granola for breakfast.

Now that I think about that, a lot of flavor going on!!

My phone was ringing off the hook all day and I wish I could have put Lady GaGa’s “Telephone” as the ringback on my work phone since I was screening all day. I cannot stand people who email me and then follow-up with a phone call. Hello, it’s 2010 email technology is pretty damn reliable!

I didn’t have time to make anything for lunch last night so broke out my freezer lasagne. I swear this stuff gets better the longer it’s in the freezer.

This afternoon was a blur since I didn’t even get a chance to A) Get water B) Go to the bathroom or C) Catch up on news online. I think I was bummed about C) the most since you know, that’s what work pays me for. I didn’t even listen to my dance and house music today since I swear my blood pressure was sky high from stress at work. It was put on my Sublime and Bob Marley station all day. Jammin!

I made chicken tacos for dinner. I wanted nachos but really need to start weaning myself off of my beloved nachos.

Chicken grilling

Salsa in my new condiment bowl (compliments of Ross—6 for $3.99!)

I topped with cheese, greek yogurt, tomato, onions and orange peppers

 So yeah, that’s it. I really have nothing witty to say or funny stories today. Which sucks but oh well, every dog has its day. I’m off to watch Lost and catch up on blogs. Hope everyone is having a lovely evening!

Head on a Stick

So, one of friends who was planning on coming to DC with us couldn’t come due to a death in the family. Sooooooo, what do you do? Put her head on a stick!!! Not literally though as my mom thought I did….thanks mom for the Polish stereotype lol

Oh….and my friend made me a gorgeous and delicious egg sandwich for breakfast!

Back to the head on a stick…..

She even got a seat on the metro!

And got a bird’s eye view at the street festival

She wanted a sip of iced coffee

I chowed on some pad thai for lunch at the festival

No festival is complete without funnel cake

She took a break while we ate

I heart people watching

 

 She headed over to the Washington Monument

Posed with men who were taking naps

Hung out by the cherry blossoms which sadly already peaked

Finding Waldo was much harder in the books!

We walked over the WWII Memorial which was amazing. I haven’t been to DC since they built it

But the fun didn’t stop there….we took her out at night! We didn’t need to fix her makeup or hair though which saved alot of time

We went to Rustique in Bethesda which is a newer place. They said they had only been open three months but offered a lunch only menu and no draft beer….funky.

She wanted to try some of my Stella

I had a turkey sandwich with avocado and pepperjack cheese with fries. It was so delicious but only had half so there would be more room for beer to swim around in my tummy

The girl likes her carbs

We hung out over there for a while, got moved over to the VIP Section…..which was a sofa in the corner but we got a free shot with it and then walked over to Union Jack’s. Now here is a fun story, I met this bouncer there three years ago and we kinda had a thing going on. I saw him a few times after that visit but things fizzed out.Anyways, I asked where he was and saw him and was like “Hi, friend”  and turns out it was his last night there—-what are the chances of that??

Mind you, we met before I lost all my weight. He just kept telling me how great I looked and that was a nice ego boost I lost his number but we ended up exchanging numbers later. Why you ask? I don’t know, I like things complicated that’s why.

Why hello creepy old man

So I accidentally hit my friend in the face with our friends head on a stick. I thought I was going to pee my pants from laughing

She’s ok though

She hung out with the dj

Met some boys

I tried to feed her nose with beer (check out the maker outers behind me!)

Fist pumping!!!

Oh yes, she had a great time in DC.

DC Recap

 I got back from DC this afternoon and took a much-needed nap. I had such a wonderful time with my friends and feel like we did thousands of things but didn’t hit everything up. I don’t think I will be moving to DC though as I hate the Metro, Beltway and the traffic. I think I would seriously kill someone and I really don’t want to go to prison. I took thousands of pictures but will highlight the fun stuff…..and of course, THE FOOD!!

Friday we were just running around and shopping….nothing wrong with that. I started the day with a sandwich thin with peanut butter, dried cranberries and banana with a side of grapes (and two cups of coffee of course)

We went to this thrift store called Unique Thriftstore which was half an indoor flea market and half thrift store. It smelled like mothballs but got some awesome buys

Don’t worry, I didn’t purchase this beauty….or get lice (I think)

Some other buys include

Hehe

After shopping, we ate at Lebanese Taverna for lunch.

I had the Traditional Mezza Platter which included hummos, tabouleh, baba ghanouge, a kibbeh, a grape leaf & two falafels.

I’ve never had Lebanese before but this was freakin amazing! I need to eat more Lebanese food this kept me full for so long.

We walked over to Whole Foods and could barely contain myself!

 After that, we went to Ross and TJ Maxx then I came back and took a nap while my friend hung out (she doesn’t like naps which I am still trying to wrap my mind around that notion).

For dinner, we met up with one of our sorority sisters for dinner at La Tasca in Rockville

Hello Sangria, I shall drink you….or two.

We all split a tapas special they had 10 for $60, not too bad for three people. We didn’t even finish it all!

Warning: Food porn below

 

Great minds think alike–we all had on black jackets and yellow purses. We looked like Steeler fans or bumble bees!

After that we headed to Buffalo Wild Wings (whose colors are black and yellow…freaky) for beers but we were so full from dinner we didn’t stay too long.

We got back home and hung out with the doggies

There is more of DC to come and you will soon see why it requires a post of its own……

On The Road Again

Hi all—what a day! I’ve been up since 515A but still going strong. I packed up the car (and Lincoln) and we were on our way! I had to get a MAJOR caffeine fix for the seven hour drive and luckily, there is a Starbucks two minutes away from where I live. I had a couple for a free drink so I got a Venti Skinny Cinnamon Dolce Latte with an extra shot of espresso and an egg white and turkey bacon english muffin sandwich.

 

Lincoln was intrigued by the sandwich and had reason to be, it was fantastic!

I jammed to Donna Summer and The Killers until I reached my coveted destination of Sheetz

For those who don’t know what Sheetz is, it’s the best gas station ever!! They have computers inside where you can select what you want—bagel sandwiches, biscuits, subs, wraps, nachos and more! Plus they have a coffee bar and you can order your drink on those computer as well. Unfortunately, I was still full from my Starbucks meal but stopped to use their restroom, take Lincoln out and revel  in the greatness of Sheetz.

Happy to be on the road!

I snacked on a Mojo Peanut Butter Pretzel bar on the way

Lincoln living the ruff life

A vision of Richmond for you

I found another Sheetz and ordered a large skim iced latte with sugar-free cinnamon and vanilla–it was almost Starbucks league

After some road work and bumper to bumper traffic, we finally made it to my friend’s house in Maryland!

The doggies got to meet and hang out

Meet Riley!

He’s a tad bigger than Lincoln

Lincoln likes to think that people are jungle gyms

We hung this afternoon since both of us were exhausting and then headed out to dinner. We  hit up The Vegetable Garden-a fabulous vegetarian, vegan and organic restaurant in Rockville, MD.

They had a combo meal that included soup and two mini entrees:

I got Hot and Sour Soup

Moo Shi Vegetables

General Tso’s Chicken

OMG—All of it was fantastic!  The faux chicken tasted like chicken so I am not sure how they make it taste so good. If you live near Rockville, try this place out, you will NOT be disappointed.

After that, we rolled over to water zumba. I wasn’t sure what to expect but it was like regular zumba just not as high impact. The instructor wasn’t in the water so it was easy to see what movements she was doing (because I wasn’t sure if we would be able to see what she was doing) . It involved a lot of arm movement,hip shaking and swishing around. I kept laughing because the instructor told us to shake everything and I couldn’t shake anymore–I felt like Tickle Me Elmo shaking everything I got! It started to rain and was lighting out so we didn’t get to finish the class but got a good 50 minutes of workout time in.

Now, we are just hanging and watching Clueless-love this movie! I cannot wait to sleep in tomorrow

Vacation Eve

I love Vacation Eve. I feel like I get so much more done at work than I normally do and am in such a good mood however hate the last-minute rushing around trying to get all of the last-minute stuff done.

I made oats with strawberries and unsweetened coconut for breakfast

And of course, had the Starbucks

While in line at Starbucks I was talking with one of the baristas who lived in DC and was telling her all about my upcoming trip. It wasn’t too busy for once and looked to see if there were a lot of people behind me because I didn’t want to hold up the line. And who was behind me? Scott Stapp lookalike!!! I was much cooler this time. I looked over my shoulder, batted my eyelashes, smiled and said “Hi” Go me for playing it cool. I almost said “Hi lova” ala Carrie on Sex And The City

My desk was completely dead today which was a nice change of pace for me. I walked down to CVS because I had an extrabucks coupon plus Loreal coupons and they had Loreal makeup for 40%!

All of that for $12–score!

I was supposed to workout tonight but remembered I had to clean my kitchen, do laundry, pack, etc. tonight so I took a walk on my lunch break. Some visions from the Charlotte Uptown area

Ummm, a creative way to keep your trunk door down?

I need to see who this dude is

I covered just over two miles, not too shabby for 33 minutes

I stopped at the library to pick up this book I had on hold. I saw it on Genesis’ blog and thought it looked interesting

I came back to work and nourished with a piece of lasagne

I spent the rest of this afternoon getting my workload ready for my backup and getting last-minute stuff done because I will be out until Tuesday!

I had an apple for an afternoon snack

I couldn’t sit still on the bus because once I get off the bus my vacation officially began! I came back and took Lincoln out and started dinner, plus put together some snacks for tomorrow’s car ride.

I made a turkey sandwich with cheese, dijon and baby spinach on Trader Joe’s Whole Grain bread for lunch tomorrow

Lincoln may have gotten a small piece of turkey

I wanted something easy for dinner and got to cooking

Trader Joe’s Low Sodium Roasted Red Pepper Tomato Soup

The last of my pierogies (we will have to change that soon) and grilled up some onions in pepper and evoo

All together

Great!

I didn’t want Lincoln meeting my friend and her dog dirty so I got my bathing suit on and got him into the bath tub. He has an amazing cherry pomegranate bubble bath that I bathe him in.

A wet baby is not a happy baby

Shaking it off

Here’s an interesting article about people who photograph their food, I found it amusing.

Ok, I’m getting off of here because I have too much to do—argh!!! I fear I won’t be able to sleep tonight because I’m so excited for my trip and anxious to see how Lincoln does in the car. We are kinda like Legally Blonde 2!!

Not sure if I will blog or not this weekend but if not, I hope everyone has an AMAZING next few days and I will catch up soon

Whole Foods Love

Hi everyone—hope all is well! It was 90 frickin degrees out today and not too bad of humidity. If only I didn’t have this little thing called work getting in my way. Le sigh…….

So as y’all know, I’m going to DC on Thursday. And what does DC have that Charlotte doesn’t? Ok well besides the obvious answers:

I’m so excited for this and starting a list of what I need to get there, happy

 I got around to trying the new Yoplait Greek Yogurt

I topped with even more strawberries, coconut granola and unsweeted coconut.

Verdict? I loved it. I liked the consistency of it and it wasn’t too sweet or runny like I had been expecting. And this had 130 calories and 12 gr of protein so that is a definite plus. My heart will always belong to Chobani but I would definitely buy this again.

Starbucks, you complete me.

I was pretty busy today since a lot of my deals are going on hold this week (of course when I go on vacation the work stops) which was nice. I hate it when it is super slow because I just want to do nothing and fall asleep. I caught a little break and one of my co-workers and I went on a 20 minute walk and covered a little over a mile.

Lunch was boring since I’m trying to clear out the fridge. Roast beef sandwich on Trader Joe’s Whole Grain Bread with dijon, one slice of cheese and baby spinach

Nothing too exciting but it was great.

 Random factoid about me….when I try to flirt I fail. Yet when I act like a bitch and standoffish, they come a’flockin.

Location: Work elevator.

Parties Involved: Scott Stapp look alike and I

Time: Noon

Scott Stapp look alike: ”Can you believe this weather?”

Me: “Yeah, it’s supposed to be hot”

And I may have done a mini shimmy.  Yeah, I am being serious. Oh God, I looked like a dork! But a dork who flashed her left hand to show there’s no ring so yeah!!!

I wanted to make tacos for dinner and stopped by Trader Joe’s and they were out of both tomatoes and avocadoes…..I’m being serious. I think it was guacamole Armageddon or something.

I came home to this lovely vision

“Hi, pollen. My name’s Tiffany, nice to meet you. What? You want to be friends? No? Ok I thought you did because you’re making sweet love to my car”

WTF is up with all the pollen?? I’ve never seen this much before and can’t breathe today, ridiculous. I would also like to know where spring has gone because her greedy step-sister, summer has come in to steal the spotlight.

I picked up a beautiful orange pepper at Trader Joe’s….it kinda looks like a pumpkin!

I made chicken tacos with chopped jalapenos,onions, shredded cheese, chopped pepper, green onions and salsa. Just an fyi….I make tacos a lot when it gets warm out. I love how colorful you can make it!

I was achy after dinner and needed some goof stretching. I turned off the tv and lights, opened the blinds and cleared out my coffee table. I got about 20 minutes of good stretching and yoga time in until someone decided to join me.

If this dog isn’t spoiled, I don’t know who is.

**Click here for a lunchbox giveaway!

I’m sitting munching on some Trader Joe’s Lite Kettlecorn waiting for Lost to get on

Desmond’s back, Desmond’s back!!! Cannot wait for Lost.

Fill me in: What perishable products do you pick up when you go to Whole Foods Market?