Mar 29, 2012

Keep It Coming…

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Birthday Dinner Date

If you read my actual birthday post yesterday, you know that I pretty much LOVE my birthday! As a matter of fact I love it so much that I felt a little sad when I woke up today and realized that I wouldn’t have another birthday for another 365 days.

People keep warning me that the day after the wedding I am going to really feel bad… because you won’t have another one of those… well ever.

But last night I ended my birthday with a bang… Tim and I had a hot date to The Lockview Tavern in downtown Akron. I have been wanting to go here since Casey, Jen and myself attempted to make dinner plans there only to find out that they weren’t open for some reason that day (a weird sort of holiday maybe? I don’t remember). But anyway when Tim said we could go anywhere I knew I wanted to try somewhere we hadn’t been before and since we both L.O.V.E grilled cheese and because I wanted to not care about my waist line on my birthday we went to live it up with cheesy goodness smashed in between warm bread!

We actually made it there JUST in time for a few happy hour specials so I got a pomegranate martini (and I only had 1- not like my other birthday celebration at Flemings).

And in case you can’t see the true beauty of that girl right there I took a close up…

And Tim got this orange martini that had too many spices in it for me… but it did look really pretty!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

And because appetizers were half hour (for 3 whole remaining minutes) we decided the timing was right to order some of those too! So we opted for the macaroni and cheese bites (fried cheesy noodles- can’t go wrong) and a basket of tatter tots that came highly recommended by a co-worker.

After all of that food, even though we didn’t need it, we each ordered a sandwich since that was, after all, what we went there to get! I got the #2 and Tim got the #3 (and they need to update their menu online because I believe my sandwich was more than $6).

My review: My sandwich was good. Acceptable. Worth the money. May try it again. Tim’s sandwich was DELICIOUS. Perfect. Would have paid more. Will order it next time. Will make it at home.

There was something the spiciness of the peppers mixed in with the cheese that really hit the spot. The blue cheese dressing for dipping was also a highlight but you didn’t need it. Although Tim is amused that I dip EVERYTHING even before I try it. He keeps telling me that I should try things plain before I add more salt or a dressing yet I just can’t seem to break the habit of the dip.

We ended the evening with the peanut buttercup cakes that Casey got us from Pandora’s Cupcakes in Akron and well.. they were fantastic! Although I have to say I am really looking forward to Peggy from Just Desserts in Medina’s cupcakes for the wedding! These cupcakes were devoured while watching Whitney and some 90210! Looking forward to The Vampire Diaries tonight when I get home from my grad school class!!

 

Salmon Salad

I like egg salad.

I like tuna salad.

I like chicken salad.

So why shouldn’t I like salmon salad?

The answer is simple, I should!

We had left over salmon from the cookout with my mom the other night and wanted to put it to good use but wasn’t sure what I would do with it. I’m typically not a fan of re-heated fish. So I decided to make some salmon salad after being inspired by some blogs and recipes online. It was pretty simple

  • Shred the cooked salmon I already had
  • 1 hard boiled egg
  • Mayonnaise
  • Onions
  • Red peppers

Mix it all together, put it on some bread and you have a really taste and good for your sandwich for lunch!

This was so filling I could only eat half of my sandwich and it was so tasty that I am looking forward to making it again. The salmon egg mix is what really did me in I think. The unique flavors somehow someway blended together really nicely. All of that with a dash of salt and pepper on some whole wheat bread, some spinach, and some cut up tomato (which is hidden under there) and it is a lunch to be proud of!

My review: Loved it. Will have it again. Soon. You should try it.

 

Working Out

It probably goes without saying (since I usually update good workouts on here) that my work out schedule has been LACKING this week! Between birthday fun and and injury I sustained at last weeks soccer game I have been a little bit behind on my work out goals for the week. BUT I did at least get 1 workout in this week!

But to my injury. So the goalie and I got in a little bit of a fight till the death match at the game (he won I guess considering it resulted in no goal for me) and my knees took the grunt of the hit. Practically ripped off all of the skin on my left knee (and a little on my right) and it ended up throbbing for days! I did take a picture of it but trust me, it was extremely gross so I decided the right thing to do would be to delete it.

That darn turf really freaking hurts!

But on Monday I knew it was my one and only day to get a really good workout in (considering Tuesday was dinner with the parents for my bday, Wednesday was my bday dinner with Tim, and Thursday I have grad school class) so like the champ I am I wrapped up that knee and headed downstairs to complete a CrossFit routine.

Gross I know but I am glad I got the workout in this week! My mom had to tweak a few things for me (since I couldn’t kneel at all) but everything worked out and I was feeling great! My arms were a little sore on Tuesday but it was well worth it!!

It’s still feeling a little rough today but I can at least wear pants because I don’t cry when something touches it. As long as it heels by Sunday (when it is bound to happen again) I’m a happy girl!!!

The workout consisted of 1 minute work with 20 seconds in between and had…

  • Bicep curl and row on Pilates reformer
  • dip drive with Olympic bar
  • Skull crusher triceps workout
  • Press with the cable system
  • Sit-up with medicine ball side to side

Great upper body workout which was PERFECT for me since my injury really only held back the lower part of my body.

But oh my goodness those skull crusher triceps workout is HARD. I was just trying not to drop the bar on my head!

Filed Under: CrossFit-ing, Good Eats and Treats, My family is the best · Tagged: , , , , , , , ,
Mar 26, 2012

Runaway Weekend

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The title today definitely has double meaning. 1) weekends truly go by so much faster and for the life of me I can’t figure out why 24 hours feels like 12 hours on the weekends but like 100 hours during the week at work… it’s truly a weird phenomenon I hope to be able to explain some day and then 2) I had a great run this weekend I am excited to share!

Weekend Run

Saturday morning was the PERFECT morning for running. The sun wasn’t beating down and the air was cool but warm enough to run in shorts and a t-shirt. So I threw the hair up in a messy pony, pink Nike shorts on, Asics laced up and ready to go, and lululemon Headband in my hair and I knew I was ready to rock and roll.

My goal was simple…

Beat last weeks run

And so I did!

I completed 6 STRONG miles… I mean I was feeling really good almost all 6 miles. Of course I didn’t really hit my pace until 2 or 2.5 miles in but after that I felt great. The hills were hard and my breathing sounded closer to death than I wanted it to a few times but I felt great. My legs felt really strong and when my head started to go to that negative “I’m tired place” I simple said out loud (yes the cars thought I was talking to myself”) “you’re strong so be strong. be impressive” and I think I accomplished just that.

I will say it again and again, there is something so freeing about being on foot. Something that just makes you feel so independent and like the world you know doesn’t actually have a hold on you. It’s like saying look Murano I love you and you get me back and forth every day but check this out, look at what my legs can do.

The Murano usually laughs because she knows my legs can’t take me the 25 miles to get to work

Not yet Murano… not yet.

I think I just had a conversation with my car… on my blog… for all to read.

It sure is Monday, isn’t it?!

Birthday Celebration #1

After my run I ran some errands. I had a legit panic attack when I thought I got lost trying to get propane for the grill (I WON’T be doing that again) and acted like a real pain in the butt when Tim didn’t answer his cell phone when I was lost haha. I explained to him later that the nice old man who filled up the propane (yes I eventually found it) saved his life… because he gave me a tootsie roll.

Delicious.

I went to the jeweler and got my ring cleaned so that it was nice and shiny.

Then I went to the grocery store and picked up some treats for dinner on Sunday.

Then when I got home, I painted my nails and I feel asleep on the floor in the living room haha. I used the excuse that I was letting my nails dry when Tim came home and caught me passed out but I think he knew the truth… I just like to take naps! Mind you this was the second day in a row I managed to pass out on the floor in the living room… Friday, after enjoying a cold beverage outside, I also fell asleep on the floor with the sun shining in… it was heavenly!

THEN I got ready for my first OFFICIAL BIRTHDAY CELEBRATION!

It is has become a ritual for Tim and I to go out to eat with Casey and Mark whenever it is someone’s birthday (and most other times just because we want to) and Tim and I had scored some Flemings gift certificates other the holidays and I heard their happy hour was amazing so we headed that way!

Casey and I both had a delicious White Cosmopolitan martini (okay I had two) and we also each had a Pomegranate martini (if you are counting that meant 3 drinks for me… haha I was a bit silly).

We enjoyed some appetizers and then each had a burger… which was DELICIOUS and HUGE but mostly just delicious.

It was a really enjoyable meal and we will definitely be back for such a killer happy hour! $6 martinis and a $6 hamburger? Yes please.

After dinner we headed to…. get ready for it…

MENCHIES (of course right?) where Casey and Mark were kind enough to treat me to a birthday Menchies trip!

I just love that frozen yogurt. With so many choices I found it hard to decide but in the end the Angel Food Cake won the battle (against the cake batter and sorbets).

Added bonus is that Casey and Mark got me a gift card to lululemon! So I can’t wait to do some shopping soon!

Happy Birthday to Me!

Birthday Celebration #2

On top of a fabulous evening out with the Juve’s, I also got to spend time with my bestest on Sunday wedding planning and getting another birthday surprise! Bestest has the best taste in clothes so I am just always thrilled when she decides to get any of the fashionable items on my birthday list! This year I got jewelry AND shirts so it was the best 26th birthday ever!

On top of the birthday surprises we also finalized almost all of the flower arrangements for the wedding which is a HUGE to-do to cross off the wedding to-do list!

YAY for birthday surprises AND wedding things getting done!

Weekend Tasty Treats

As usual, I try to use the weekends to do a little more cooking since during the week my schedule is jam packed with grad school and workout classes. So Friday night Tim and I enjoyed a simple but tasty recipe brought to us by Kraft.

Have you used the Kraft Fresh Takes yet? It comes equipped with some shredded cheese and essentially shake and bake in two separate baggies that you can combine for a simple meal. We put this on chicken and both really enjoyed it! I tend to like my food spicier now a days so I think next time I’ll add in some red pepper flakes or something but it was good.

You just put the two together and then spread it on the chicken… voila!

On the side we had some peas (good old frozen peas in a steam bag- makes my life better) and some parmesan cheese and basis Orzo. You may remember my initial Orzo experience which ended up in the first batch burned but the second batch becoming one of my favorite things to make. In this case I started to just kind of make up my own recipe. So I used

  • 1 cup Orzo
  • 1 can (smaller can) Chicken broth
  • 1 tablespoon butter (or margarine if you want)
  • A bunch of dried basil (fresh would be 10X better but I just didn’t have it)
  • Few handfuls of Parmesan cheese (yea I’m not much of a measurer)Melt the butter in the pan then dump in chicken broth and bring it to a boil… add in the Orzo and let it cook until soft (only about 12 minutes) and then add in the cheese and basil.Stir it up and SERVE!

    Delicious with chicken for sure!

    Then last night (Sunday) for dinner my mom came over before my soccer game and brought a serious slab of Salmon. I wish I would have snapped a picture of this before we cooked it up I did get it after we cooked it..

    Was really simple but tasted great! Put some lemon herb seasoning on the salmon then threw it on the grill in foil for about 20 minutes. While the salmon was cooking I attempted to make some homemade sweet potato fries but well I burnt them so no success story there.

    So I ate some Orzo summer salad on the side with some spinach cooked up with veggies.

    Orzo Summer Salad (no clue what it is really called but The Mustard Seed Café inspired me)

  • Cooked Orzo
  • Olive Oil
  • Cut up Olives (green for me please)
  • Cut up tomatoes
  • Feta CheeseMix it together and service cold! You won’t be sorry.For dessert (which I did not get to eat because I didn’t want to throw up on the soccer field) was Angel Food cake with fresh strawberries and fat free whipped cream of course! My mom and Tim’s both looked delicious and and I think I’ll be enjoying some before bed tonight!

    P.S. We WON our soccer game and did AWESOME!

    Well I hope you all have a FABULOUS week… I know I will because it’s birthday week for me!!! Happy Monday =)

Filed Under: Good Eats and Treats, Primary Menu · Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,
Mar 15, 2012

Break the PLATEAU!

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Today’s post is truly all about RUNNING!

So last night after I got home from work it was a beautiful 68 degrees outside (yes 68 degrees in March in Ohio- a true miracle) and I knew that it would be a wasted day if I didn’t put on my Asics and get out for a nice run.

Plus, my mom had sent me a text message earlier that day that said she had run 5 miles at the park… motivation at its finest.

So after I walked in the door, checked facebook (of course) and texted Tim to remind him to pick up the birthday card and wine for Gary, I laced up my tennies and headed out the door.

Now, at this point my running had been capped out at about 4 miles. I had only run over that a few times and I hadn’t made a consistent part of my routine. Honestly, finding the time to run for more than 45 minutes can be a real struggle sometimes and on top of that the weather in Ohio is not conducive to running for oh about a good 4 months out of the year.

Although I am not complaining because it has been an AWESOME winter.

In any case, I promised myself that during that run I would break my plateau and go over 4 miles. I didn’t really care how much over 4 miles it was… 4.3 or 5 but I knew I just wanted to break it to see what it felt like.

To my utter amazement was something that caused me pure joy… after I hit that 4 mile mark I actually felt BETTER. There was something about achieving that goal that mentally made my mind so proud of my body. Without saying it out loud it was like my head looked at my heart, muscles, and lungs and said “Great job all of you, you are awesome!”

The last few runs I was really starting to feel like my 2 mile marker was my ready to go mark. The first 2 miles my breathing is heavy, my lugs want to quit, and my legs just quiver but after those 2 miles (and in the past for only 2 more miles) my body usually felt pretty good. My legs feel lighter, my lungs are less upset, and my head clears and all of those to-do lists and wedding planning that needs to be done disappears.

It is during those moments of clarity that I take a moment to be grateful for all that I have… including a strong body and a committed mind.

Here are my results… time isn’t something to write home about necessarily but it was pretty steady. I am hoping to get my time somewhere between 9-10min/mile by the time the half marathon rolls around in September but I’ think I’ll just try to get to the mileage first and then work on speeding things up!

I think I could have run a little longer than this but we had dinner plans to celebrate Gary’s Birthday!!

There was something about feeling so free yesterday- being able to run outside and go to so many locations on foot. It gave me hope that if I had to walk a very long ways to save my life that I could do it. I even explored a few new roads I have never been on so that was a nice adventure to go on.

Although at one point I was all turned around in this neighborhood I am unfamiliar with so I was pretty much lost. Lucky for me my girl scout instincts kicked off and I ended up just just following a few cars out of the neighborhood. Their greasy night out to dinner turned out to be my savior.

I even saw a fellow soccer teammate walking his dog- so apparently we don’t live very far from each other.

Have you ever noticed that what you consider to me FAR is only a couple of miles though? As I am running and my Run Keeper app is going strong I kept thinking I honestly would have thought that I ran 10 miles considering all of the places I had been but nope only ran 5.26. It’s just so weird to think about.

And then even weirder to  think about how quickly I can put miles on my leased car.

hmm.. things to ponder.

Well hope you had a nice week and if you live in the Ohio area or the surrounding states I hope you enjoyed the nice warm weather and that you were able to get outside and play a little!

I am looking forward to another great run this weekend!

Filed Under: Primary Menu · Tagged: , , , , , , ,
Mar 13, 2012

Weekend Recap and THE BACHELOR!

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Well, I woke up on the wrong side of the bed yesterday morning. Something about that “spring ahead” time change gets me every year. That means I go from my usual 7-8 hours to like 6 hours which is just not a pretty look for me.

But on a happy note this weekend was, as usual, packed full of fun and laughter!

 

Weekend Activity Updates

This weekend started out in a very adorable way…. two babies! So after Tim got home from work we went over to Katie and Corey’s to hug the boys because I am obsessed with them drop off a present to Corey. And since we were already there we were able to get in some floor time with the boys and play with them! It was right before bed time but they hadn’t quite hit their crazy hour yet so we were able to get some laughs and giggles out of Cam. Cal just started at me like he usually does haha. I can tell he wants to play with me but he just isn’t so sure why I am so loud and playful like a grown up kid. He is just too smart for this I guess.

On the way home we discussed where we were going to stop and get dinner because Tim’s belly was growling! Turns out the talk really did take the entire drive home because before we knew it we were pulling in the driveway having made the decisions that nowhere (out of the 20 million placed in Akron) were gonna do it for us. So we decided on some tilapia, stove-top stuffing (yes I LOVE it) and roasted brussels sprouts. First time I had made sprouts in the oven (inspired by my trip to San Francisco) and they were pretty delicious. Not quite the brussels sprouts chips but getting closer

Saturday was another fulfilled day with another adorable treat! Peyton and I had a girls afternoon eating lunch together, going to The Little Mermaid youth ballet in Akron, and then heading home for some Disney Scene it, dinner, and then out to Menchies for dessert. We finished off the evening with popcorn and a movie! Thumbelina… haha I think I enjoyed it more than she did!

Apparently the ballet wore her out a little bit because we were barely out of the parking garage (which took us 15 minutes to find our car in because I forgot to look at what level we parked on) and she was passed out in her car seat and ready for a nap!

Peyton is probably the funniest and smartest 3 year old I know (call me biased- I don’t care) and she just comes up with the most entertaining things.

For example… as we are sitting there watching the ballet enjoying our Ocean Spray fruit snacks she asked me why Flounder and King Tritan are all girls… I, as politically correct as I could, explained that there was only 1 boy in the ballet group and he had to play the part of the prince. Her response…

“That little boy should probably just take karate”

Ya know Pey, you may be right!

After our busy night, we went to bed and slept in! Then we had some reading time with my black babydoll (named Black Baby- I’m sure I owe you all an explanation- stayed tuned for that) and some breakfast with Uncle Timmy and her mom!

Sunday was an adventurous day with my mom! We attended a benefit for the Battered Women’s Shelter at the Oaks Lodge in Chippewa, Ohio. It was a great benefit with a lot of cool vendors set up and some pretty sweet raffle prizes (none of which we won- ugh). The $5 martinis were a highlight and the fingers foods were tasty. I even ran into a co-worker and an old friend from high school!

Then after the benefit (and 2 martini’s later for mom) we went to Buckeye Woods Park for a 4 mile run (see running updates below)!!

After practicing our flash mob routine (stay tuned for info on that) that we have to perform this Friday I headed out and ate some dinner before soccer.

My favorite dinner.

Mini meatloaves (taco style this time)! I just love those little guys!

Then I headed to my 8pm soccer game where we crushed the other team (who cares that they were all like 15 years old and had never played soccer before). It was still a “W” for us.

 

Running Updates

So as I mentioned above my mom and I enjoyed a nice 4 miles run at the park on Sunday. It was FABULOUS. The weather here in Ohio has been INSANE but INSANELY GREAT. It was a warm 65 degrees, the sun was shining, the wind was blowing just enough, and it was PERFECT running weather! We managed to maintain a 11.20 min/mile on average which is where I have typically been for a 4 or more mile run. Eventually I would like to see that number in the 9 min/mile area but for now I am pumped for that 4 mile achievement!

Reason # 5,042 that I should move to Charlotte… weather is 10X better and I can run more than than not.

I have also been pumping out some serious CrossFit workouts that I’ll get up here soon for all to try!

In addition to my daily workouts I am now committed to a few different runs this summer

- Lightning Bug Run- 5K (already sold out- sorry for those of you that wanted to try it!)

- Akron Half Marathon

- Susan G Komen Race for the Cure- 5K (you can access our team page “Tie-ght Titties” to donate or join the team if you are willing and able)

- Little Miami 10K

So far so good on the running and healthy lifestyle. Although I just ate a couple literally moments before I typed that sentence… hmmm the irony of that makes me laugh.

 

The Bachelor

Okay boys (Adam and Rich haha) you can click the little X in the upper right hand corner now… you may not want to go on (but I put this at the end for you so you weren’t forced to read through it- nice right?).

So for those of you that watch The Bachelor and all of its glory… what are you thinking?!

Here are my thoughts (and brace yourself if you are an official Courtney hater)… I disliked her A LOT at the beginning. So much that she was the girl that made me “threaten” to never watch the Bachelor again (yes there is always one of these girls- yet my DVR keeps running every Monday) but she sort of started to grow on me. I thought she was CRAZY and I agree with the ladies that it very much seemed she was only “in it to win it” and I loved Kacie B the most and if I was a boy I would have married her right away. And after Kacie was gone I loved Nikki so then I was once again disappointed and in the end my vote was for Lindzi but after it is all said and done Courtney grew on me a little.

Even though I could have killed her for being so mean to Emily because I wanted Emily and I to be best friends… something about Emily just seemed so wonderful like she would be a great best friend to have around! But in any case by the end of the show I kind of thought maybe she was just a little overwhelmed and insecure about herself and acted really poorly.

I will just say for the record that her weak display of affection and feeling sorry at that “girls tell all” episode was disappointing. I sincerely felt like her publicist could have done a better job coaching on that.

But when I saw her in her home town her entire family seemed to be just like her… ya know a little weird, quiet, socially awkward. And the way that she plays with her hair ALL OF THE TIME just screams insecurity to me so I’m just not sold that she is the bitch I thought she was at the beginning.

Don’t misunderstand my evaluation here.. Ben is an idiot. He should have picked Emily, Kacie, or Nikki BUT maybe Courtney wasn’t as bad as they portrayed her to be.

Also not to rock the boat here but I have a co-worker that has a daughter that was on a previous season of the bachelor that can attest to the fact that they “recommend conversations” and that they “encourage you to ask certain questions” AKA the show isn’t scripted but it certainly goes in the direction they want it to.

For example “Are their any girls in the house that didn’t get along with the other women” asks Ben’s sister last night… WHILE YES, YES THERE WAS! haha yea because that is just a normal question for a sister to ask.

Ugh.. ABC you better step it up because I am losing faith in you (if only that would actually stop me from watching your silly show).

Filed Under: Good Eats and Treats, Primary Menu · Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,
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