She’s Having A Foodbaby

This wknd a food baby was conceived. I was fine but from meal to meal, it was all eating out and some of the decisions were not the best. I’ve been outing out more since I moved to my new home a couple of months ago and definitely not eating at home as much as I previously have been. I have people in town all weekend which resulted in going out from restaurant to restaurant and eating more than I normally do. Friday night I went to PF Changs with some girl friends to celebrate one of them rejoining the work force. We all started with the PFX-X-RATED Fusion Liqueur, Mango Vodka and Pama Liqueur shaken with a splash of Sprite

Isn’t it cute? It looks like a pink lemonade. I had to stop myself from slurping it down in three sips.

We split an order of the chicken lettuce wraps and split entrees:

Lucky Cat Martini-Vanilla Vodka, Chambord, Pineapple Juice. This was a perfect finish to a tasty meal.

One of my best friends was in town and we went to The Flying Saucer  for lunch on Saturday afternoon. They have a kick ass selection of beer but Saturday was going to be one long day so I stuck to Diet Coke and got an order of the Bratwurst Nachos

Very tasty and it came with a side of jalapeno sour cream. I love jalapenos and love the sour cream so I was in piggy heaven. I hate how there can be a million thing on a menu but once I see nachos, my mind is made up. Since my friend is a Yankee and never heard of Cook Out, I felt compelled to introduce her to the wonderfulness of their shakes.

She got the Oreo Mint, I got the Chocolate Cherry

And wtf is up with the shadows on my forehead?

I saw The American on Saturday night. It was good but more like a foreign film than any of George Clooneys movies I’ve seen.  And you know what? Watching George Clooney do a prostitute doggie style with your dad right next to you is totally awkward. Just saying.

On Sunday, lunch was from Dean and Deluca. When my parents come into town, we go there to get free samples since  A) they are amazing and B) no pesky sales people watching you circle the place. When we arrived there, they must have known because there were no free samples. Thumbs down. Not to fear though, I got sushi and dessert to go

We went to Brio Tuscan Grille   for dinner. They have a lovely outdoor area where you can have adult beverages while you wait.  After watching The American (which is set in Italy), I was jonesing for some wine. I have a smooth glass of Trivento Pinot Noir

 I am really not too big of an Italian food fan since I can make it at home but they had a varied menu so I found something I was happy with-Artichoke Crusted Beef Medallions

Holy balls, these just melted in my mouth. This was as delicious as it looked but it was quite heavy so

Some of you may recall about my desire to check out Denny’s Fried Cheese Melt. I didn’t think we had Denny’s in Charlotte but apparently there is one in the hood. After dinner on Sunday night, I met up with another friend who was in town this wknd to conquer this bad boy and this is where the food baby was conceived.

Thoughts?

A) It did not look like the pictures I saw online

B) It did not come with the marinara sauce to dip it in

C) It was disgusting and not anywhere near as great as I thought it was going to be.

D) Even though my friend and I split it, we couldn’t even finish our halves. On the way home, she decided she had a cheese baby settling in his stomach while my food baby was just starting to sprout.

And she brought me pepperoni rolls from WV! I love my friends 🙂

I tried a fabulous new beverage, Sweet Leaf Tea. I had the Lemon flavor—it’s organic, has 70 calories per serving and while flavorful, it wasn’t as sweet as Arizona Iced Tea which is too much for me.

While at Ross on Monday, I saw something great

In Phoenix, I saw only the Tupac set but here they have the West Coast family set ??! Loves it!! I will be back for you, friend.

Lincoln got a new baby to add to his collection

For dinner, we hit up Cabo Fish Taco on Monday night.

I got the BBQ Mahi Tacos. I absolutely loved the shells they were on—they were light and fluffy yet crispy and durable. How they did that? No clue but I am a fan.

All in all, a terrific weekend. I would like this foodbaby to leave my body though, I am sick of wearing flow-y clothes.

Peace out.

We’re Out of Cupcakes

And break out the kettlebell I did. I had an awesome workout today, more awesome than the last few kettlebell sessions I’ve had.

Kettlebell-20 lbs

Side Bends (20 reps, 3 sets)

Shrugs (12 reps, 2 sets)

Windmills (13 reps, 1 set)

Halos (13 reps, 3 sets)

Swings (13 reps, 2 sets)

Squats (13 reps, 3 sets)

Plie Squats (13 reps, 2 sets)

Backwards Lunges (15 reps)

Dumbbell-15 lbs

Front Lateral Raise***first time doing it with a 15 lber-yay*** (13 reps, 2 sets)

Shoulder press (12 reps, 2 sets)

Curls (13 reps, 2 sets)

Concentration Curls (13 reps, 2 sets)

Dumbbell 10 lbs

Tricep Dumbbell Kickbacks  (13 reps, 3 sets)

Reverse Fly (13 reps, 3 sets)

Tricep Extrension (13 reps, 2 sets)

Lincoln and I went to the park for an hour and walked around. It was starting to get toasty by the end of our walk and his tongue would not go back inside his mouth so we packed it up and went back home

Pre-Walk

Post Walk

 Lunch didn’t go exactly as planned today and I was not too happy about that. These have been sitting in my freezer for a while and I wanted to try them out.

 

Well, I thought they would individually wrapped but no dice. I didn’t really defrost them at all so I had a big block of chicken patties and no way to thaw them out (This is when I miss having a microwave) so that was out of the question. I had a little leftover chicken sitting in the fridge  from tacos the other night  so I put them on the skillet to warm them up while I had mushrooms and red onion cooking in the stove. I made a side salad of red pepper, cucumber and carrot ribbons with extra virgin olive oil, white vinegar, black pepper, salt and garlic.

When the chicken was warm I placed on the tortillas with the mushrooms and onions and some salsa. I was giving the tacos a mean look because I thought they were going to suck. Wow, what does that say about me as a person if I am mean to my food? Hmmmm..

Anyways, the meal was better than I thought it was going to be but nothing out of this world. If I had cheese it would’ve been a whole other story since cheese makes everything better. The only kind I have is parmesan or mozzarella and both would have been nasty.

My Meetup group had a meetup at Crave Dessert Bar tonight and I was looking forward to it. I’ve only been once and was quite pleased with it. And Sundays are 1/2 price cupcake days so that is a nice ending to the wknd right? Right in a perfect world but when I asked out waiter about the cupcakes he said they were already out. Say whhhhhaaaaa??!! You are a dessert bar with a specific special on Sundays and already out? He said they ran out the night before and have been really busy. This does not jive well in my book at all. Can’t they make some more or walk over to Harris Teeter?  I would totally eat store bought cupcakes and probably wouldn’t know the difference. Once he told me that, I was in a bit of a sour mood. But the arms of red wine sangria embraced me and brought me back to my normal self

But still, them not having the cupcakes threw me off and I really wasn’t in a dessert mood anyways. I didn’t need cupcakes but I had a plan of attack when I was going to order them (they come in orders of two and you can mix and match), I was going to have one there then put the other in the freezer and enjoy later this week. Most of the girls got desserts but I went with the Combination Slider platter-one mini beef burger, one grilled chicken and one crab cake slider.

This was good but not anything to write home about. I had the hummus platter last time I went and wish I would’ve ordered that again.

One of the girls got the Julia’s Child-chocolate mousse paired with raspberry sorbet- and it was so pretty I had to take a picture.

Look at the mousse spilling over the cup!! Drool baby drool.

It was good to get out and have some nice conversations but it was kind of a let down after the first time I went. The no cupcake scenario just sucked but our server did as well. He was a tad on the snippy and sassy side and while I can respect that, be nice, you’re working for a tip. He was nice at first but then when we started to order, he got a little attitude and was taking his time with everything (and we were the only table at the time!)

Dear sucky, snippy, sassy server—When I ask you politely to take a picture of us, please don’t get attitude like I’m totally inconveniencing you. Also, if you could wipe the sweat beading down your forehead that would be great since I really don’t like a sweaty sangria. 

Suck it,

Tiffany

Tofu Win. Egg Fail

 Monday was meh Monday. Blech. Another Monday where I just couldn’t wake up, it was too humid out and my stomach was cramping. Suffice to say, not a good way to start the week. Plus the new guy on our team started today and I am helping with training so trying to be patient, enthusiastic and oh yeah, nice was stretching it a bit for me.

I thought breakfast would be rocking—I made an egg scramble with egg whites and one brown egg with avocado and tabasco.

To be honest, the eggs kinda sucked. I am used to eggs with ketchup and for some reason, don’t have any on hand. In my old apartment, I would have bottles of ketchup in the cupboard for this kind of situation. But now? None. Maybe someone decided to do their own intervention o’ ketchup since they know I love it so much but I honestly have no clue who that would be. And it’s not like I don’t go to the supermarket twice a week and live within walking distance of one that I can’t buy it, I just haven’t. End of ketchup rant. The avocado looked like it was ready to go on the outside and was tender but when I sliced it open, it totally wasn’t. I hate when that happens.

I had leftover  Linguine Pescatore for lunch

Now looking back, I was totally that obnoxious person stinking up the break room with my seafood. Oh well, sucks for them—it was worth it!!

Snacks for the day

There was a surprise anniversary party for one of the managers on my floor. And we all know what that means—cake. Lots of it. But I was surprised they had stuff besides cake like cheese, crackers and nuts.

I was quite proud of myself for passing on the cake but I would be lying if I said this plate was my only plate of cheese. I can’t resist the siren calls of dairy!

I bought some tofu awhile ago and needed to use it soon. Most of the tofu dishes I’ve made have been stir fry and to be honest, that gets a tad boring after awhile. I thought it would be fun and something different to try tofu tacos.

I got creative with getting the liquid out from my tofu instead of just pressing with a plate or paper towel. Who needs a tofu press when you have this? Actually, a tofu press would be pretty sweet but still I can save some money in the meantime by doing this.

I seasoned the tofu with salt and pepper then cooked with these two

The tofu was great-I’ve only made it one other time without breading or not fried and it turned out horrendous (on another note, that was one of my favorite posts to write). But this meal was fabulous, tasty and fresh, what more could you ask for?

As always, my little guy was right near me waiting for something to drop. Something tells me he wouldn’t discriminate against the tofu

I got my free drink coupon from Starbucks in the mail–now to think of what I will get and when!

If you’re like me thinking a peach and pomegranate smoothie would be a fun RSVP party in your mouth, you’re wrong. I made this concoction last night with almond milk, ice, xanthan gum and it was horrid. So horrid I didn’t even take a picture of it so yeah, chew on that (or should I say sip on that?) for awhile. Sometimes pairings that seem magical to you don’t turn out to be so magical.

Kinda like Crystal Pepsi

I used to not care for Tuesdays just like Amy but ever since I started going to zumba on Tuesday nights I have something forward to and am diggin that. I convinced one of my co-workers ( who has started to eat healthier and lost a ton of weight already!) to go with me and she seemed interested but I didn’t think she would actually go. She mentioned to me the other day that she will see me there tonight and I can’t wait to see her at zumba.

I also found out a restaurant near my place that has $2.50 fish tacos on Tuesday nights which could totally get in the way of my zumba time. But then I guess it all comes down to priorities right? Happy Tuesday all!

Muffins In Your Bag

Happy Hump Day! I am in a great mood because it feels like a Monday for me so excuse me if I am so happy. I took a new bus line to work and I was a little nervous. 1) Because it’s the local line as opposed to the express line. On the express line, we had cushioned seats, A/C and heat and looked like a charter bus. The local line? Well, it isn’t a charter bus, I can tell you that! Plastic cold seats with some sketchy characters on it so it gets an A+ for people watching. And the driver looked like this guy!

I love celebrity lookalikes. I almost wanted to start singing to him”Where would I be without youuuuuuu?” Well, I know the answer—the bus stop! Hahahahahah!

 When I got into work today our systems were down so that definitely was NOT the way to start the day for me. And I hate when people send out an email saying our systems aren’t working then when you walk in and haven’t even had a chance to set your stuff down, they come over to tell you it’s not working and they sent an email letting you and others know. WTF. Really? So you’re coming over to tell me what you emailed me about already? And after I am coming back to work after being off for four days so I probably have hundreds of emails to answer before looking at yours? Hello frustration, it’s nice to see you again.

At least I had Animal with me

Apparently, I had Animal sitting around in my old apartment and I threw him in my purse so that’s his new home. I think he is going to start going with me everywhere so look for him in pics. He may even become little a hidden Mickey and you will have to try to spot him in pics!

Lunch was leftover Pad Thai from the other night

One of my older co-workers came over to my desk and just said “I put some muffins in your bag” and I looked at her very perplexed as to what she was talking about it. I thought she was doing a little drug deal or something and got the wrong person and that was the code phrase. Little did I know she was talking about my lunch bag in the break room and muffins she made this wknd. She’s so sweet—she knows by the size of my butt I love the baked goods and made some lemon cream cheese muffins this wknd. 

 Inspired by Ja Rule earlier this morning, I got up and started breaking it down and rapping it “I put the muffins in your bag, put the the the the muffins in your bag” and even dropped it like its hot. She laughed at me and I love her for that b/c she is what I strive to be like when I am older. She’s in her mid fifties but has a garden, loves cold beer and wine, wears her funky jewelry and cusses. I always tell her I want to be like her when I am older and she almost smacks me each time I say that.

Oh yeah, guess I should show pics of the lovely muffins

 Another celebrity lookalike on the way home! This chick looked like a younger Frances Conroy (the mom from Six Feet Under)

Dinner was Black Bean, Mushroom and Pork Tacos topped with Avocado and Tomato

I broke into my Goya Recaito Cilantro Sauce. I saw this on Bikini By 30 last month ago and was intrigued since I love the ethnic dishes and love sauces.

I cooked both the black beans and mushrooms in it along with some chili powder and garlic and cooked the pork in Recaito sauce alone

Topped with Trader Joe’s Salsa Authentica…..love this stuff! I prefer their pineapple or mango salsa but seeing that I can down a jar of it in one sitting, I try not to buy it too often.

Delicioso!

Before I end this, I forgot about a perturbing part of my day. I have really funky dreams sometimes which I am used to by now. But last night was a really weird one involving another blogger, Mari.

Looks sweet and wouldn’t hurt a fly right? In my dream—big WRONG! I dreamed she was a serial killer but it was more like a Dexter-esque situation where she was taking out the bad guys. I remember that and how I was talking with her in a parking garage (which I hate parking garages because they are creepy and someone always gets murdered in them in the movies) and she was telling me how she wanted to stop but couldn’t. So thanks for not killing me in my dream, Mari! When I told her this morning that she was a serial killer in my dream, she asked if she had a theme song! I was like “WTF?” when I read this but she said that if she were ever to be a serial killer (not that she would ever choose to be one nor do I believe it’s in her genes if that’s your school of thought) her theme song would be “Itsy Bitsy Spider” and that just made me laugh because I never really thought what  my serial killer theme song would be. And a question that I have never asked in my life—–What would your serial killer theme song be?

Tonight was pretty quiet. Lincoln and I headed out for a walk and I wasn’t expecting us to go too far but we ended up going on a two-mile walk and getting our cardio in. Poor little guy was lagging on the way back but he was a trooper and kept prancing. I just love my new neighborhood, they were so many people out running, walking their dogs, cycling, etc. We even got a few honks and I will be nice and say they were for Lincoln haha.

Refueled with some M&M’s, damn you Valentine’s Day clearance candy! I don’t know what’s up with M&M kick lately but it needs to stop. These are a comfort food for me and take me back to childhood and having BOGO coupons for them is not helping me….or my booty.

Sidenote-why does fake ex con Leonardo DiCaprio look so good but normal Leo doesn’t do anything for me?

Do you have weird dreams?

 I used to have weird dreams alot but then I stopped drinking diet coke before bed and it stopped but still have some weird ones from time to time

 

Let Them Eat Carbs

I love double posting days!! I lasted at the pool for two hours this afternoon. I was sweating bullets after I hopped in the pool a few times and even had a little sweat rag to help me out a little. I really need one of those fans that mist water on you and then I will be all set.

I got back to the dogs and made chicken tacos with red peppers, onion and avocado for lunch topped with T Marzetti’s Light Ancho Chipotle Ranch (I am sure you are sick of seeing this but I am going through all of my food and still have half a bottle left!)

Scrumptious. Avocado, you never fail me. I was soon on my way to hit up some different stores in search of clothes for NYC this wk. I went to Kohls and got a cute top for $30, umm, yeah that’s expensive in my book. I used to love their stuff but lately find it a little meh. I was in a different area of town and saw a Ross and quickly turned that way to see what goodies I can find. I got two dresses, two tops and a new workout DVD all for $40! I love you Ross.

But the big event of the day was next. The big event that has been four years in the making:

YES!!!!! I haven’t been to Ikea since I lived in Tempe and we had one right near my apartment. We got Ikea this past year but it’s on a completely different side of town for me and I heard it is a crazy house there. I recruited one of my co-workers to meet up with me there since she has a truck and with list in hand, we got to shopping!

I ended up getting a bed frame, tv stand, kitchen cart, two rugs and some other random goodies

All of this came to $100 under my budget for Ikea so I was loving that. I was expecting to be absolute madness on a Sunday afternoon . It was crowded but nothing over the top and we got out of there within an hour and a half, not bad at all.

Dinner came next and I was at a loss as to what to make. I am loving this whole “Let’s eat everything in the fridge and freezer” but I don’t have anything that’s calling out to me “Eat me!!”

I noshed on the last of my Tribe 40 Spice Hummus with Cracked Pepper and Olive Oil Triscuits

And I present, a most random meal: Pierogies, baked sweet potato and zucchini

This wasn’t anything too spectacular. The sweet potato was too crisp and the zucchini too mushy. I normally cook my zucchini on the stove top and will be sticking to that routine from here on out. The pierogies were good but I usually make sautéed onions and mushrooms and a side of plain greek yogurt with them so it was a tad bland.

Random thought of the day: How does David Caruso have a job? I am watching CSI Miami right now (purely because I don’t have a remote control and am being lazy) and this is just horrible. Is his acting supposed to be a joke? Please someone fill me in because this makes me believe I can obviously become an actor or a big Hollywood agent, who helped him get this role.

Hope everyone is gearing up for a great week! It’s quarter end for me which means the next three days will be dead at work but then things pick up on the first of the month (wake up wake up wake up) but who will be off on the the first of the month? Moi. I need a day before going on vacation to get things in order, get last minute shopping done, lounge by the pool, get my nails and my brows did and sadly, take Lincoln to the boarding place he is staying. Also, there is a Charlotte blogger meetup in the works for this Wednesday so that is super exciting to look forward to b/c that will be my first blogger meetup and then when I go to NYC I am meeting up with the lovely Mo and Mari–can’t wait!

Memories

Happy Thursday! Thursday is my most favorite day of the week by far maybe because I was born on a Thursday or memories from college when it was ladies night?  We used to go out at 9p to catch all the specials—some had free drinks, some had specials from certain hours but we always got our drink on. One of the places had free wine and champagne for ladies from 9p to 11P and we thought we were so classy drinking that stuff since it wasn’t Natty Light or the Beast. Sad thing is that it was Franzia and probably champagne from Big Lots. We would go to the bar, grab three or four glasses and stock up. They also had $3 Captain drinks that night also so Friday morning was never a happy site. A normal view of our table on Thursday nights.

 I added half a packet of Amazing Meal Chocolate Infusion to my green monster this morning which made all the difference today. I felt like I was drinking an iced mocha and enjoyed it down to the last sip.

I was sitting at my desk noshing on apple pieces debating whether I wanted Starbucks or not (and I was not smoking crack, some mornings I have to think really long and hard if I want some joe or not). One of my co-workers came over to my desk with a bowl of something—turns out she made breakfast for me. Hello, I could really get used to that! She brought in some steel-cut oats, which I’ve never had before but read about all the time in the blog world and cooked with raisins and added fresh blueberries, Trader Joe’s blueberry flax and unsweetened coconut (I keep a stash of the last two items in the break room). I enjoyed this a lot, I don’t think I could eat it everyday but it was a nice change from the regular instant oats I eat most of the time

Shit went down in our meeting today. We have a roundtable at the end of each meeting and one of the girls on my team who is just as bogged down with work as I am said something about it. And I had her back 100%  but was trying to be civil about it. I keep a lot of things build in me and  I know it’s not healthy but that’s how I am. Plus, I am Italian so I kinda have a temper but have learned to keep it as minimum as I grown older. I basically said how it’s really not fair how some people (glaring over at Stinkalicious) take three or four breaks, a lunch, etc while the other girl and I barely have time to get up to walk to the bathroom(I have toyed with the idea of Depends). I offered some suggestions how to help, even if they just have 15 or 20 minutes out of their day. By that point I was talking really, really fast which with me either means A) I’m super excited! or B) I’m enraged. Guess which one it was? I shut up after thaton cool down but my manager brought us cookies, so that was nice and helped my mood a bit. I wasn’t going to have one but it would be rude for me to turn down a cookie from my superior right? Right. They were my favorite kind—chewy chocolate chip ( I don’t like hard cookies thanks to my sensitive teeth). You could totally buy me loyalty with baked goods.

But on a lighter note, our manager told us we have to start taking a 30 minute lunch b/c it’s kinda state law. I told her I really don’t have time to take one and she said someone will cover my work for so I can so today I got to take two breaks and a lunch! It was like I’m a normal human being who can step away from my desk, it was fabulous 🙂

I had some free time this morning and I went to Reid’s yet again. I heard a rumor that they were giving away free lunch today but asked three different employees and they knew nothing about that so whoever told me that, can suck it. I picked up a 6 pack of Diet Coke, kiwis, bananas, spring rolls and eel sushi –all for $11—not bad at all! I am cleaning up at Reid’s while I can, that really sucks for y’all who said places like you don’t do that when they are going out business!

I had the grilled chicken salad I picked up Reid’s yesterday for lunch today. I brought in my own dressing-T Marzetti’s Light Ancho Chipotle Ranch to top with. I think this may be a new favorite of mine. I love ranch dressing however as of late haven’t been really digging it on my salads. Now fries, pizza crust, sandwiches is a completely different story b/c those items just taste better with ranch. And I wonder why I gained so much weight eating all of that!

A close up of the cucumbers for Amy. Forgive me, I could not resist.

This was by far one of the best salads I’ve ever had. The grilled chicken was blackened which really added some zing to it and all the veggies were fresh. Along with a nice portion of shredded cheese? Yes please. The dressing is what really made the salad though, like I said before, this is a new favorite of mine.

I was jamming to my Pandora at work set on The Killers station. I just love when a song I haven’t heard in forever comes on and takes you back to when you first time you heard it or when it was popular. This song takes me back to senior year in college.

I graduated in December however the day after the ceremony, they told me I really didn’t graduate and still required one class–accounting. I was a journalism major so I was a little perplexed by that but since it was a core class, had to be completed. When I heard that, I was completely bummed because I had an internship set up with the minor league baseball team in Indianapolis and had to bail on that. I stayed an extra semester just taking that one class and waitressing the rest of the time. That’s also when I discovered the wonderfulness that was Dawson’s Creek. My sorority sisters used to watch it all the time and I would of course, make fun of them b/c thought it was so cheesy. Then TBS started playing two hours of reruns in the mornings and that’s when I got hooked. Team Pacey foreva!!

I dated a guy two summers ago who was a Pacey lookalike and that was a beautiful vision. Too bad he was addicted to the ghanga and smoked it when he woke up, in the middle of the day and at night while watching tv. And he brought some over to my place on the second date. Who does that?? If you smoke the mary jane, rock on, however I never even mentioned it and just brought a bag over like it was a bottle of wine. Sigh.

I snacked on some grape tomatoes on the way home

Dinner was an oldie but goodie–chicken tacos! Well, kinda chicken tacos. Maybe four or five little chunks on each topped with a crap load of veggies. I used Trader Joe’s Whole Grain Flour Tortillas.

Those Trader Joe’s tortillas? Sucked. They kept falling apart and taste like cardboard. Thumbs down, TJ’s, what are you doing to me?? You’re breaking my heart over here.

I had a fabulous workout after:

Kettlebell-20 lbs

Upright Deltoid Row (12 reps, 2 set)

Side Bends (20 reps, 2 sets)

Swing (20 reps, 2 sets)

Step Ups (30 reps, 1 set each leg)

Dumbbell-15 lbs

Close Grip Dumbbell Bench Press (13 reps, 2 sets)

Dumbbell Bench Press  (13 reps, 2 sets)

Shoulder press (12 reps, 2 sets)

Curls (13 reps, 2 sets)

Dumbbell 10 lbs

Tricep Dumbbell Kickbacks  (13 reps, 2 sets)

Zottman Curls (13 reps, 2 sets)

Tricep Extensions (12 reps, 2 sets)

Reverse Fly (12 reps, 2 sets)

Front Lateral Raise (13 reps, 2 sets)

In between sets, I did a bunch of jumping, kicking, calf raises and reverse lunges.

Dear old self who paid $50 a month for a gym membership and would only go on the elliptical  b/c you thought that was the best way to get a decent calorie burn—suck it.

And can I just say I totally aspire to be like Jenn one day? Her KB workouts amaze me and are straight up gangsta, she truly is a girl hero!!

It was time for green monster #2 of the day—with the rest of the packet of  Amazing Meal Chocolate Infusion, 3/4 of a packet of Justin’s Honey Peanut Butter  and almond milk

Now, I’m sitting here enjoying my tasty chocolatey beverage and listening to U2 and remembering how much I love The Joshua Tree cd. Anytime I hear U2 it takes me back to college, to the first man (I am being nice by calling him that) who broke my heart. Every night, I have the tv on but don’t really watch it and is on more for background noise. However, after reading this post by Shelby, I turned off the tv and have been listening to music. It’s so peaceful not listening to canned laughter, annoying advertisements that are played on a loop and so on.

Have a terrific night!

Relaxing

Happy Memorial Day everyone! Hopefully everyone had a nice relaxing day off like I did and remember why we are all off–can’t say that enough. Thanks to all past and present who have served and protected our country! Can it be a three-day wknd every wknd? I got an outstanding 10 hours of sleep last night, which is remarkable for me. I was in a lot of pain and there was tossing and turning but sleeping in until 10A just felt right. I will work extra hours and go in early, stay late, not take lunch (hold on, I already do that). I’ve been on a major egg white kick lately if you can’t tell so I decided to kick it up a notch for breakfast.

I made rolled oats on the stove top with almond milk then chopped up two Reece’s Peanut Butter Cups and dashed some cinnamon and peanut butter in the mix.

This was a great combination but it didn’t sit well with my stomach 😦 I was bored and watched Dr. Phil and The View for a while. There was a ridiculous rainstorm this morning and finally a break hit so I got ready quickly and hopped over to the supermarket. Not literally of course but the way my legs were feeling, it could have happened. It hurts to sit down and let’s not even talk about going down or up stairs.

I got a lot of good deals at Bi-Lo including my Chobani’s! They were on a sale a few wknds ago for $1 each and I went a couple different times and turned out none were left. But today, I cleaned house. And they even had the Pineapple flavor I’ve been hearing so much about and I cannot wait to try it!

I checked out and was super happy-my bill was originally $107 but brought it down to $61 with all of my coupons. Because I? Am awesome with being frugal. As I was checking out, the rain started yet again and it was coming down hard. Of course I didn’t take an umbrella with me because for some reason in my mind, I think “Oh it rained once today, it can’t rain again”. Grrrr. I waited in the lobby for 10 minutes and it let down a little and decided to go as fast as I could (which is not fast at all with the condition I was in) to my car.

Lunchtime was soon approaching and I made pork tacos. Are you shocked? I promise, I will start making something different soon. I had a bit of Frank’s Red Hot wings left in my fridge and hate when I have a bottle taking up space with just a little left in it. I cut up a pork chop with covered with Frank’s and let cook on the stove top

The tacos look plain but were really tasty with the Frank’s and avocado

 I spent the afternoon with Kim and Jennifer

I love Shape magazine and LOVE Kim K but wasn’t sure if I wanted to spend my money on it since the whole-she-endorses-diet-pills thing. But Janetha mentioned it was actually a good issue and I trust her judgement so I Kardashianed that bad boy up!

Along with that, I also caught up on some shows and a movie.

Umm, why have I never watched It’s Sunny in Philadelphia? I’ve had a lot of people tell me I would like it but never took their word. I added it to my Netflix queue and absolutely love it. With a little guy resting in my lap. I don’t blame him though, sometimes he does have a rough day of playing with his toys, going on walks, getting treats and such, he just has to relax.

I polished off the last of my Trader Joe’s Three Layer Hummus

And my battle wound from the rock yesterday is getting bigger and more colors. Yeah, it’s across my entire right thigh. Dear Grandfather Mountain-can I please have my skin back? Thanks, Tiffany.

 I made the mistake of watching the Tyra Banks show. I never had beef with Tyra, I actually used to like and respect her a lot. Kinda like a mini Oprah (pun kinda intended) in the making. But the more I watch her show, the more she drives me crazy.

I had my leftover Magical Mystery Tour Pie for dinner.

May Goal Evaluation

*Keep on running  -did not happen. I tried in the beginning of the month and my knee pain was growing worse so I decided to lay off of the running for now and just walk in the mean time.

*Think outside the running box in regards to workouts and mix it up with other things (kettlebell, yoga, etc.) -with my lack of running this has been going alright. I’ve been trying to work out with my kettle bell more and even put together a full body for out for myself with the kettlebell and different weight dumbbells I have.

*Be more aware of my sugar intake and try to keep it less than the recommended intake of 40g-I’ve been doing great with thise for someone with a sweet tooth. When looking over my food diary throughout the mnth of May, I was above 40g however those were mostly from fruits so I don’t consider that a bad thing. I think, it could be worse by having something processed as opposed to an apple or banana. I will continue to keep an eye on this though.

*Track my food and exercise on a daily basis–22 out of 31 days. Not too shabby in my book

June Goals to come tomorrow!

Has anyone else seen the new Huggies Jeans Commercial? Seriously creeping me out.

Wknd Recap

Hi all, been totally MIA this wknd but I am back. This was the first wknd in the past three I didn’t have to work so I was super happy about that.

I went to Pet Palooza yesterday with one of my friends and our dogs. It was similar to Bark in The Park with lots of vendors but not as much free stuff-boo.

Breakfast

And a fun graphic tee

I laid by the pool when we got back and got some reading time in. The actual pool isn’t open yet so I only lasted an hour and a half but that was enough time to get some color on me.

I made chicken tacos when I got back

I took a much-needed nap afterwards and got ready for my date so no pics there. And the date wasn’t that much to talk about either so yeah…….I got free beer and free sushi so I guess I’m happy about that. We went to Jade Asian Fusion and it was great–had various rolls and will definitely be going back, sans dude.  I really don’t even have any funny stories or anything interesting about the night.  I got home by 11, watched some SNL, passed out, woke up at 3, took Lincoln out then went back to bed and slept in until 10A—I can’t remember the last time I slept in that late! I felt like a million bucks and was ready to have a day of relaxation.

I made a big breakfast of Nature’s Path Pomegran Waffles and egg scramble with mushrooms and cheese topped with ketchup

I laid out by the pool again then went out to run errands. Nothing big, just the grocery store and Target. And I left Target spending under $50 and not going nuts on the clearance rack-yay!

I made a roast beef and cheese sandwich for late lunch with Kettle Brand Salt N Pepper Chips

It started to rain so Lincoln and I watched a movie then had some nap time action. I hate Sunday afternoons, it’s so hard for me to be at home and NOT nap.

For dinner, I decided to try something new. I butterflied two chicken breasts, spread Trader Joe’s Kalamata Olive Hummus on it and topped with feta cheese. I rubbed evoo on the breast and seasoned with pepper, garlic salt and oregano.

And of course, had a BIG Salad on the side with baby spinach, zucchini, cucumbers, tomato and cheese.

Absolutely delicious!!! I need to make this or a variation of this more. I really never eat chicken breats anymore (if I do, I cut into strips or pieces) do to an overload of it last yr but when dressed up like this, I don’t see how I could get sick of it.

I need to prepare for this wk (I have a Friday off–yay!!!) and off to catch up on blogs. Hope everyone had a fabulous wknd!!!

Goals, Tacos and Goodies

April Goal Evaluation

*Track my food every day online along with tracking my activity for the day. Result? 20 days out of 30. I was on vacation for five days just slacked the other ten.

*Work out at least 4 times a week (I will schedule what my workouts will be in advance so I can’t cancel out because I don’t want to). Result? Slacked on this big time, I averaged three workouts a wk and did not like having planned workouts at all. I’m more of a free spirit so I will not be planning out in the future but will be thinking about what I would like to do and when I can do it

*When I get a craving at night or on the weekend, I will give at least 20 minutes to think about the craving and if it’s something I really want. Result? Success! If I was wanting something salty or sweet, I would talk a walk with Lincoln, drink water or pop a Werther’s Original in my mouth

*Sign up for another 5K ! Result? Success–signed up to the do the Great Harvest Bread 5K on May 22nd

*Keep a positive attitude at work. Result? Success! As much as I complained on here, I tried to keep positive at work and did a great job. I think I only cried a few times at work the entire month (which is great seeing I used to cry every day there!)

All in all, I think April was a pretty good month but I definitely need to stay on the ball with tracking my food and working out. I did my measurements this morning and here are those results:

Lost 2 lbs
1” lost in bust
2” lost in waist
.5” lost in hips
1” lost in thighs

Another sleepless night. I really need to cut down on my caffeine intake but that is going to a major adjustment for me so I will have to bring it down slowly. Do I really need three cups of coffee a day? No. Do I want it? Yes. But then again, I would like to sleep for over six hours just one evening so a cutting I will do!

For breakfast I had half a container of Trader Joe’s Apricot-Mango Greek Yogurt, frozen blueberries, Trader Joe’s Blueberry Flax and Coconut Granola.

Along with a Venti Iced Coffee with skim milk and two splendas

And Starbucks is having a Frappuccino Happy Hour May 7-16th?? What What!!!

BRING
IT
ON

I haven’t had a Frappuccino in forever but I think it will be a sweet treat and an afternoon pick me up.

I wasn’t too busy this morning so caught up on my news and saw this story.How could someone go on a stabbing spree at Target? Target is absolutely one of the happiest places in the world (especially since they merged with Starbucks) and I can’t imagine anyone that deranged to do that there. Maybe because when you go into Target for aluminum foil and come out $150 later with clearance clothes, accessories and makeup …which always seems to happen to me. But still, I am not that crazed enough stabbing innocent people. Oh society, what happened?

I went to the hippies today and got some awesome deals—-organic spring mix, tomatoes, zucchini, cucumbers, apple, okra, potatoes and peppers.

All for under 10 bones too. Love the hippies 🙂

And look at this pepper-it is so beautiful and fresh I don’t want to eat it. But will……

Lunch was leftover lasagna.

I am a fan of any meal that I can freeze a month ago and then take it out, pop it in the microwave for five minutes and voila-a filling and tasty lunch!

I went to the library to get some reads because nothing is intriguing me these days. This book looked interesting-Holly’s Inbox

From Publishers Weekly
Holly Denham, the lead of this epistolary novel (and yes, the name of the author), is an overwhelmed receptionist at a major British bank. The reader’s access to Holly’s frantic life is via her e-mail inbox—the entirety of the novel, in fact, is e-mail messages sent by, among others, her gay best friend (a chick lit necessity), her brassy co-workers (another requirement), her meddling mother (check, again) and, of course, her would-be paramour (ditto). The plot runs along very traditional lines, and in the end overreaches for a happy ending, but this overlong novel’s saving graces are its fast pacing and very funny writing. Some of the best exchanges are between Holly and her grandmother, who sends e-mails that just read TESTING and signs her up for annoyingly spammy Web services. Despite the limitations inherent in an e-epistolary novel, the book is populated by vibrant, endearing characters, and Denham manages to juggle a dozen story lines at once. The ending’s contrived, but feel-good, which, in these gloomy times, might be enough to do the trick. (June)

Should be a good read!

And look how thick it is (that’s what she said)

 This shall keep me occupied for awhile…well until I get My Fair Lazy  (and the parental are in town this wknd so I think I will make them buy it for me lol)

I saw Scott Stapp lookalike a little before I left work and  he said “Hi”. We like that!! And I smiled and batted my eyelashes and said “Hey”. And I didn’t shimmy! Finally, I didn’t look like a herb in front of him. But maybe he is wondering why I didn’t shimmy and that I am not longer attracted to him. Anywho, I realized that he always does the no teeth smile so I really don’t know what his dental situation is. I think he has nice teeth but let’s just hope he is not like

Eek!

I had a surprise for me when I got home…….my package o’ goodies I won over at Savor and Stretch!

Jenna hosted an awesome contest for a whole bunch of stuff including:

Thank you Jenna for the wonderful package—I can’t wait to try all these goodies!!! 🙂

I wanted to use my produce right away and had frozen tuna defrosting in the fridge today and decided on Fish Tacos for dinner.

I cut into little pieces and let marinate in lemon juice for 20 minutes

I cut up the tomato, peppers and onion. Does anyone else find chopping therapeutic? I think it helps me  de-stress.

T is for Tiffany

I warmed up a tbsp of butter and then threw the tuna on the stovetop along with some garlic at the end.

The toppings

While the tuna was warming up, I threw some cilantro, jalapenos and lemon juice in the food processor to top the tacos with

Voila!

Fabulosity. I love the zing of the cilantro and jalapeno and of course, the freshness of the meal. I even had some tuna leftover to use for my lunch tomorrow!

I hung out with Lincoln then watched some tv and decided to get out for a run/walk. I covered almost 4 miles and had a pretty decent calorie burn…about 700 cals altogether (this picture is just on the way back since I took a water break at the pavilion)

I just wasn’t feeling it and really had to push myself. Again, the lungs were just not wanting to have me run so I walked a fair amount. I had a big water bottle with me and kept trying to hydrate but just not diggin the warm weather running so this may be a little issue since it’s going to be warm out for the next six months. Hmmmm.

My legs were jello my the time I got home and in excruciating pain. What could make me feel better? A green monster!! I made mine with Chocolate Almond Milk, Spinach, Vanilla Protein Powder and 2 tbsp Crazy Richards Creamy Peanut Butter.

I need to pass out soon. Hope everyone had a great Tuesday  🙂

I leave you with Lincoln Love

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?