I Walk In This World

Hi kids.

GIVEAWAY Reminder.

How’s everyone?

I’ve had a great day with the sister.  We didn’t do anything special but I kinda think all time we spend together is special.

The sis unfortunately has a migraine.  She’s on the couch, camped out behind a stack of pillows a mile high, blocking out all light.  Poor girl.  She’s watching Ace of Cakes.  Anyone know this show?  It’s insane.  It’s where fondant and styrofoam meet and create bastard kids that look like castles, hot dogs, and space ships.  Totally rocks.

We did a lot of shopping today, with some errands thrown in.  And guess what.  I bought AND hung new curtains.  I am so tough and manly with my (husband’s) tools.  I shan’t report how many times I stripped the holes for the screws.  At the end of the day, I hung curtains.  For those of you not aware, I am immensely NOT talented with my hands and all things manual.  My sisters is a genius with this stuff, and I usually don’t have the courage to tackle projects like that unless she’s around to stear me in the right direction.

I’ll take pics once gravity has pulled out some of the wrinkles.  Yah.  I’m that lazy with home improvement stuff.  I don’t iron curtains.  Who has time?

Din was more of the Tuna + Kale casserole.  It is SO good.  A total winner for my recipe box.  Plus a salad and whole grain pesto bread.

Din…

• Tuna + Kale casserole
• spinach salad with green leaf lettuce, maters, carrot shreds, goat cheese, cranberries, roasted cashews, lf rasp walnut dressing
• broiled whole grain bread with pesto and a sprinkle dinkle of pecorino chz

We spent the afternoon shopping for doggie treats at Petco and new house stuff at BB&B.  I had supa coupons and the sister says she doesn’t know anyone who gets shopping deals like me.  Of course.  Cuz I rock.  Completely.

Lunch was had at the table, after doing a good hour’s worth of Wegman’s groceries.  The sister was mondo impressed with how I can go in that store and NOT buy every tempting beautiful food item on display.  I won’t lie.  It’s hard.  I strap on blinders, get a mini cart (for you Wegman’s bloggers, you tot know of which I speak), and tromp thru the store on a mission.  If I even glance up from my shopping list, and “browse” all hope is lost and I’m a goner whipping out the credit card to cover the eleventy billion dollars worth of groceries I just.have.to.have.

At the table…

• baguette with mozz (even tho I think it sucks), spring mix veg, maters, & proscuitt (average)
• carrot + PB
• kiwi

Actually, the fruit and vegs were better than the sam.  Eh.  Whatevs.

The late morning was spent catching up on chit and chatting about whatever.  I love doing that. 

We took Hillary for a walk to the bakery for Breks.  AWE-SOME.

For Breks…

• mango
• faux vegg sausage
• bits and bites of pastries (cheese danish, croissant, chocolate pastry, et al)

It tasted so good going in.  But a few hours later I felt like total krap.  Way too much processed sugars and non-complex carbs.  Good while it lasted tho, right.

Ack.  Am I on the verge of becoming a Clean eater? 

So.  Thanks so much to you sweet peeps with your sweet msgs and emails.  We shall see how tomorrow goes.  Tis all.

Nite.

Er

Need I say more??

FYI, I’m betting my sister is squealing looking at this photo right now.  If any of her coworkers are reading this, please let me know if she’s squealing!!

Breks this morning was awesome despite being scarfed down in the car, on my commute.

• eggwhites sauteed with peppers & onions
• 1 pz turkey bacon
• 1 pz American cheese
• HOT sauce
• whole wheat mini bagel

Where did I leave off yesterday?

Oh…lunch.  Lunch was quick b/c the hubz and I needed to go out to run some errands (groceries, pet store, donate clothes, etc).  So I heated up the remains of El Mexicano from the other night, wrapped it up in a whole wheat tortilla, and sliced up some pear.  Very filling!

We rushed out the door, after a morning of computer work, with our list of errands in hand, and quickly found that just about every store is closed on Easter. 

It was surprising to me that SO many stores were closed.  We bounced from empty parking lot to empty parking lot, getting more and more frustrated as the day went on.  Finally, we got to our grocery store, which was open.  The drugstore next door is going out of business, so we swung through to see if we could get any great deals of their selloffs (we did!).  Leaving the store, we head back over to get groceries, only to find it closed while we were putzing around the drug store.

I was livid at this point.  We gave up and went home.  LOL, must have been being punished for not being religious or something.

After all that frustration, I was starved… 

• Dubliner cheese on TJs whole grain crackas

And in need of a drink…

• Merlot with a side of cookbook

Does anyone else read cookbooks for pleasure?  This was how I chose to relax (on the chair-and-a-half).  Hillary decided she needed to do some reading too.

Um, please ignore my crazy hair and scrubs.  This was post workout (40mins in the gym).

I spent much of the late afternoon, early evening in the kitchen.  I made…

• creamy pesto sauce (for tonight’s din)
• Crockpot curried lentils and rice (debuting later this week)

Sunday nights we typically have pizza for din.  Well, even our dang pizza shop was closed.  So I resorted to homemade (it was grrrreat)…

• Boboli whole wheat crust with pizza sauce
• Asiago cheese
• peppers & onions
• sprinkle of hot red pepper flakes

With a GIANT salad

• spinach
• green leaf lettuce
• cukes
• carrot
• maters
• sprouts
• dried blueberries
• almonds
• goat cheese
• drizzed raspberry walnut lite dressing

The whole set (with a Shipyard IPA on the side)…

We ended the night with another Netflix…Reign Over Me (Don Cheadle & Adam Sandler).  It was a pretty powerful and very real movie.  I think Cheadle can act his ass off, and handle any role with brilliance.  And honestly, Sandler was outstanding as a regressed, depressed individual.  For anyone that’s dealt with major depression or mental illness, this film portrays a superb portrayal of the reality of it (not overly downer…just very real).  I highly recommend it.

Whew…bizzy day.  Hope y’all had good ones!

If you’re from Pennsylvania, raise your hand. 

*raises hand*

Now, who here recognizes this?

OR this…?

Oh!  I do I do! 

Growing up in PA, it was completely normal to see these easter egg trees in people’s front yards.  Completely.  The more plastic eggs strung from string, THE BETTER!

I am not making fun, simply pointing out one of those little regional things that stirs your heart when you move away from home, and stumble across something like this.  For me, today, that was easter eggs trees. 

Are there easter egg trees where you live?!

The husband and I went to PA to help the sister & her fiance shop around for a rehearsal dinner venue for their upcoming Fall nuptials.  About 25mins after crossing the Delaware River that separates NJ from PA, we spied our first easter egg tree!!!  I was delighted. 

On to today’s eats (which were substantially improved from yesterday if you could all be dears and just please ignore the beer).

Brekkie was an outstanding Oatmeal Pancake, courtesy of Kath over at Kath Eats Real Food!  This was supa easy and even the husband said WOW while eating it.  We topped it out with some banana and REAL Vermont Maple.

Once in PA, and after visiting the first of 3 rehearsal dinner options (which was WAY too stuffy for everyone’s taste), we had lunch at the at a fabulous place that houses, oh, about 100 beers.

*faints*

 Here’s just a snippet…

I had one of THE BEST beers I’ve had the pleasure to sip.  Green Flash IPA, a beer brewed in San Diego County, CA.  Fantastic!

For Lunch I got the crabcake and corn sammy.  It came with some kind of aioli, which I promptly scraped off.  I also didn’t eat the bread, b/c it was soaked in butter.  Just ruined the lovely crab.  So I ate ~ 3/4 of the crab cake with the lettuce, and only about 10 of those chips.  Please IGNORE the blurry finger my supa mature husband is using to flip off the camera in the background.

This place was definitely a great rehearsal dinner option!

From there, we moved on to this Irish Pub.

Oh, you can just scroll on past this carrot cake.  It’s only my FAVORITE dessert evah.  And I didn’t eat any of it, so just scroll on past. 

**disclaimer**

I am Irish.  I was in an Irish pub.  The Irish are known for their ability to tell a yarn or two.  Please bear that in mind.

So while I was ignoring this cake and chatting with this gem of a man (owner of the pub…the most delightful creature I’ve met in many years!!!), the husband was busy getting drunk on 18 year old whiskey the owner was kind enough to “educate” the husband with.  Apparently, the whiskey the husband drinks at our local Irish pub (not this place) is true shit (imagine that’s said with an Irish brogue).

I didn’t want to leave this place, it was so joyful and fun!  But the husband and I needed to get back home to walk the Hillary dog, so we grabbed coffee (nonfat hazelnut latte) and headed back to NJ (home of eggless easter trees).

Din tonight was a simple Amy’s veggie burger on whole grains with low fat American cheese, and a tossed spinach salad.

Don’t forget to enter my POM & Oikos GIVEAWAY!!!!!

Now it’s time to catch up on my fav blogs and relax!

Nite!

Look at my sista in her wedding gown!!  The wedding isn’t until Fall, but the dress came in months ahead of schedule, so we had to run over and see it in person!!

Sisters!!

After seeing the gown, the sister had us (her bridesmaid & I) back to her place in the city for lunch.  Have a look at this spread (on her supa cute plates)!

At the cute table…

• Applegate Farms genoa salami
• Assorted cheeses (including a fabulous brie) & crackers
• Carrots, peppers

I brought a little bubbly to have a toast to a successful wedding gown visit!

We chatted for a while, while we noshed, and then did some other weddingy-stuff.  It was a great afternoon!  Then I had to zip home to take Hillary out for her evening walk. 

My travels today started with a jaunt to Cherry Hill, NJ, then into Philly, then a quick trip out to King of Prussia, back to the city, and then home to NJ. 

I feel like this is how I spent most of my day…

Exercise today was driving.  Just kiddin.  I managed 30 mins on the treadmill.  Nice and light.  No pics of dinner tonight.  A sick tummy meant laying on the couch and no photos.  :(  Hoping for good sleep and feeling better tomorrow.

Nite all.