Lookie who I’m hanging out with!

Hubby and I headed out to visit my fam and made a quick pit stop at Henry’s for eats.

Sweet tea for this gal.

Hubby and I split the regular sandwich plate with baked beans, french fries, cole slaw on the side instead of on the sammie.

A mini banana pudding shared for dessert.

We headed out to do some yard work post lunch.

I was in charge of watering the plants.

While the boys used some big tools.

Fresh air!

Later, I decided it was time for birthday cookies (since it’s my birthday month and all), so we hit up one of my personal faves – The Chocolate Shoppe.

We were greeted with the standard cookie sample – snickerdoodle was the flavor today.

Picked out a batch of various flavors to take home.

Downed this dark chocolate chunk first.

Mom and I went thrifting and I found this pretty painting for $1.50. I think it’ll look pretty nice in my turquoise room. I was hoping to find stuff for my holiday party, but didn’t find much for it.

Had to try another cookie flavor – chewy oatmeal. Nom.

The fam got busy in the kitchen for dinner.

Terriyaki shrimp, steamed green beans (from my parent’s garden) and fried rice.

Plus sis made white miso soup with potatoes and onions (a meal she said she had a lot in Australia).

Dinner was wonderful, per the usual.

And I even talked mom and sis into making a chocolate cake for my bday.

Speaking of which, this Darn-Good-Chocolate-Cake (from the Cake Doctor) is calling my name. It’s cake time!

Cheers!

What are you up to this weekend?

Thank goodness for a long weekend! Hooray!

Thank you so much for all the birthday tips and suggestions yesterday. If you have any to add, please feel free!

Lookie who I got to hang out with today – it’s Anne P of fANNEtastic food!

But first, we had breakfast:

Coffee, fried farmers market egg and coffee cake.

The morning was going well till I discovered something truly freaky!

(If you’re squeemish, you may want to skip over the next 3 photos quickly)

My twitter friends can probably easily guess what this 5 foot monstrosity is.

It’s a freakin SNAKE SKIN! Ewwwwwwwwwwwwww!

This totally caught me off guard today when I saw it in my backyard. Sooo freaky! I just hope it’s a black snake since those are the good ones.

Enjoyed a nice, giant yerba mate for a little pick me up in one of my favorite mugs. I adore the flowers on this mug…

…and especially the ones on the inside, which you can see once you’re done with your tea.

Lunch was another pantry raid. I didn’t do so hot planning lunch meals this week, so I relied heavily upon my well-stocked pantry.

Add in some udon noodles, frozen broccoli, soy sauce and sesame seeds and call it a day. Not quite as good as my 3, 2, 1 Veggie Noodles (click for recipe) but it was great, especially considering the convenience factor.

I snacked on some Dakota toast with Justin’s chocolate PB later.

***

Then, I rushed out the door to zumba! And guess what I wore?

So, did you guess right about my zumba top yesterday?

If you guessed I cut it, you guessed right! I was pretty nervous about cutting so much of my shirt off, but it turned out ok.

I was in such a rush today, I didn’t get any photos, but I promise to share some later.

Anywho, enjoyed an hour of zumba tonight! So fun, so energizing and just the right thing to get my weekend started off on the right foot!

After zumba, I took a quick shower and met up with Anne, Caitlin, Brittney, Greg (not pictured), Sarah, TK, and Kristien at Big Daddy’s

I got a small spinach salad with bell pepper, cucumber, avocado, tomatoes, blueberries, feta, walnuts and balsamic.

And Nick’s Patty Melt with sweet potato fries. I managed to eat about half of everything and saved the leftovers for hubby.

We even got a quick tour of Kristien’s new office! It looks fabulous!

Then it was time for froyo!

I got tart plain, taro, fresh fruit, coconut and of course…mochi cakes (which I convinced some of the others to try)!

Then it was time to go home and give Bailey and hubby a big hug and kiss.

***

If you need a good laugh, here are two hilarious web sites you must read…go now:

• The Four Levels of Social Entrapment – love the graphics on this thing
• Missing Missy – got this in an email awhile back. received it again this week and it’s still hilarious!

What are some funny web sites you’ve seen lately?

So I have two BIG plans in the works:

• Birthday celebrations
• A Halloween party

I’m pretty behind on the birthday stuff and pretty early for the Halloween stuff. Where are my priorities??? Doh!

See…September is my birthday month…and not just any birthday. I’m turning the big 3-0 this month! Eeks! When did I grow up?

I’ve said for years and years that while most women are sad about turning 30, that I want to celebrate it with a big party. I thought I’d be rich by now and would have a big bash like a fancy wedding reception, but…alas. I am not rich. So, instead of one giant bash, my new plans are to have several small parties and basically celebrate all month long!

What do you think peeps? How should I celebrate my 30th birthday party? I have some ideas in the works, but would love to hear suggestions! What’s the coolest birthday celebration you’ve been to? What was your favorite party of your own? Tips PLEASE!

And about that Halloween thing…well…Halloween is quite possibly my favorite holiday of the year. Don’t ask me why…I don’t know, but I love the costumes, the candy, the decorations and the overall theme. It’s just so fun.

For the last couple years (except last year since we had just moved into our house), I’ve had small Halloween dinner parties.

• Click here to view Halloween 2007
• Click here to view Halloween 2008 (oops, I forgot to post the party, but I did post my awesome cake!)

This year, I’m planning something a little bigger and will be sharing my projects and plans along the way.

***

Anywho, on to today’s eats!

Check out my oatmeal!

Just kidding, that’s hubby’s oatmeal and mine is on the right. He’s not big on breakfast so I just made him a mini bowl. Isn’t it cute?!

I made oats with 1/2 milk and 1/2 water, pecans, flaxseed meal and Justin’s chocolate PB.

Plus some “sausage”.

Today’s lunches was a success thanks to hard work from a couple weeks ago.

I looked into the fridge and didn’t really feel like eating anything in there.

Enter freezer stash of frozen homemade soups and constant stash of high-quality whole grain bread.

Soup and toast is one of my favorite meals because it’s so easy and tasty. Just pop the frozen soup out of a tupperware and into a pot on the stove (I don’t like to microwave it to heat it up since I try to avoid the micro as much as possible) and heat over medium low heat till it’s warmed through. Pop some toast down, add a dab of (real) butter and you’re done-zo!

A drizzle of EVOO and some fresh parsley from my garden make it extra special.

Nommm

Bailey was unamused by a little craft project I did today.

I cut a low-V into one of my zumba tops a la Tanya Beardsley (inspired by the latest ZIN DVD).

The only question I had was – to cut the top into a short top or not. Short tops are like the length of sports bras…they’re SHORT! But oh-so-cute!

I procrastinated deciding what to do with the top till late tonight, just before working on this blog post. So whatdya think? Did I cut the top or not??

***

ZUMBA!

I taught an amazing zumba class tonight! I think I was inspired by the latest ZIN DVD because I was really, really feeling the music tonight. I had a pretty tough playlist, too:

I actually did a last minute change because my class was looking really, really tired and I didn’t want to push them too far, so I removed the last high song (Say Na Say Na) and replaced it with Valio la Pena. I want to give my participants a hard class, not make them fall over!

I met fellow zumba instructors Megan and Erica (forgot to take their photo…doh!) for dinner post-class. We met at Panera and I got the You Pick 2 with a fuji apple salad and french onion soup, plus baguette and water to drink.

Megan and Erica scored free baked goods, which they snacked on before giving to me to take home. Score! Thanks guys!

After practicing on some zumba songs I want to bust out in class soon (Shake Your Pom Pom anyone?), I settled in and had some coffee cake. Yuuuum!

So…two things dear readers:

1. Do you think I cut my zumba top into a short top?
2. Send me your birthday celebration ideas!

Happy hump day friends!

I had an awesome morning today thanks to a little coffee meet up with a good friend.

You may remember my friend Kayte from my wedding photos.

We had a nice adult-y coffee break (I actually had a Thai tea latte) to catch up. It was wonderful!

Lunch was a delicious chicken burrito!

And post-work, I had fun plans to hang out with Emily + Casey and Michelle + Ben at Maria Bonita’s Cantina & Grill.

Michelle and I split some guacamole….

Plus this veggie quesadilla (with a nice mix of veggies may I add) with a salad and beans.

The bean presentation was pretty cool.

Then, we headed over to TCBY to meet up with more friends for Emily’s farewell froyo outing. She’s moving on Friday. *sad face*

I made a fun mix of froyo with a base of pistachio and vanilla on the bottom. On top: pound cake, cookie dough, brownies, nuts, coconut, and chocolate syrup.

Outside, I dog sat Clyde for a bit…

Before Bailey showed up with hubby!

And look…I take pictures of things that aren’t food…people photos!

Love the colors in this photo (I didn’t even photoshop it!)

I had SUCH a fun time chatting with bloggie friends and making new ones! We have some pretty awesome bloggers and readers here in town!

Back row: Brittney, Ann, Jen, Kelly, Jen, Lori, Emily

Front row: Brittany, Michelle, me, Caitlin

And I’m going to miss this girl so much! Emily, please visit soon and I’ll promise to do the same!

What do you usually take pictures of (people, food, landscapes…something else)? Do tell!

Thanks to yesterday’s comments, I know I have some really clean readers! Score! Three cheers for healthy hand-washing!

I have another fun recipe to share with you guys!

Here’s a preview…details soon.

I <3 COFFEE!

I had a granola bar for a quick breakfast this morning.

Funny how my eats revolve around homemade granola bars when I have them. They’re so irresistible!

***

Now…on to the kitchen experiment!

Take some Italian spices…

add balsamic vinegar

EVOO

salt + (cayenne) pepper

and VOILA!

Balsamic Roasted Chick Peas!

These are great to snack on in general…

…to replace popcorn…

…to replace croutons on salads (or just to add to salads in general)….

…to bring to potlucks…

or any other yummy way!

Balsamic Roast Chick Peas

Ingredients:

• 1 18-ounce chick peas, rinsed and drained
• 1 1/2 tbsp EVOO
• 1 tsp balsamic vinegar
• 1/2 tsp dried basil
• 1/2 tsp rosemary
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/4 tsp oregano
• 1/4 tsp thyme
• dash garlic powder
• dash cayenne pepper

Directions:

1. Pre-heat oven to 400 degrees F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper
2. Combine all ingredients except chick peas and whisk till emulsified.
3. Add chick peas and stir to chick peas are well coated.
4. Spread chick peas evenly in the prepared baking sheet.
5. Bake for 25-30 minutes, stirring halfway
6. Enjoy!

Lunch = a GIANT salad with baby spinach, baby lettuce, farmers market bell pepper, organic celery, hemp seeds and Italian dresing.

Plus leftover black beans and rice from dinner last night.

I couldn’t resist some doughnut holes hubby picked up for me today. I knew I shouldn’t eat it before my workout (even though it was a few hours away), but I couldn’t resist.

I know some people I work out with even eat fast food for lunch before an evening workout, but I get pretty particular about what I eat any time during the day when I have a big workout ahead. I try to avoid fast food and sodas (neither of which I eat much anyways) and sweets (sad face) before a workout. Especially 2-3 hours before, I try to eat light food that is easy to digest. Well, actually, it used to be I tried to avoid bad foods, but thanks to Thrive and Brendan Brazier, I’m starting to focus on easy-to-digest eats before workouts.

THanks to my twitter friends, I decided to wear pink pants tonight.

Bailey had other plans for my pants as he stretched…

…and then got comfy on them.

Too bad I had to kick him off so I could teach class tonight!

Don’t worry, he found another comfy spot on the couch.

Half a homemade granola bar made a great pre-workout snack – esp with all those dates!

I packed up 3 to freeze for later.

Hubby and I have been enjoying the bars so much, though, they’re not going to last long.

Anywho, got my pink zumba pants on and it was time for class.

I think I’m slowly starting to get the hang of putting together a good playlist. What I need to work on next is upping my stamina so I can make the playlist hard without passing out on my class!

Fave songs from tonight’s playlist:

• I’m in Miami Trick (I did this one at HLS!)
• Church
• What Is It

Guess I was in a hi hop mood tonight!

***

The Return of Project Hydrate

If you missed the last Project Hydrate, I’ve teamed up with No Fizz Clt to have another Project Hydrate Challenge – 60 at 60!

If you want to get better about your hydration, then join the challenge. It’s fun and free and will go on for 60 days – from September 1st (tomorrow!) to October 31st!

Click here for details

The challenge starts tomorrow!

***

Are you strict on what you eat before a workout? What “rules” or guidelines do you typically follow the day, afternoon or even hour before a workout?