Author Archives: Emily

Bring on the Produce, Tomorrow

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I caught a bit of a cold during my long airport day and I knew as soon as I woke up this morning that today would be less than productive.  What a correct prediction, not much work occurred but there was a lot of this –

I also made a point of eating the crappiest foods known to man all day.  Actually, that’s an objective term, no part of my sensibilities will allow me to call these ‘breakfast staples’ crap.

Oh yes I did stir good Green and Black organic cocoa powder into Ricemellow Creme.  And I only had a teeny bit left so I made/ate it in the container.

Consider this my twist on blogworld’s oats in a jar.  Actually, this ‘meal’ had less than 100calories and rocked my socks, so I consider it pretty damn successful.

You can’t follow up cocoa fluff in a container with fruits or veggies so I ate the other half of my cheddar and jalopeno bialy next.

And then I had a big bowl of brocoli and strawberries.

Oh, whoops, I guess that’s popcorn!  Who thinks that this was my favorite product review yet??

I needed some color so in came the jumbo Smarties.

At this point is anyone surprised that dinner was nachos?

From the bar downstairs, these were smothered in black beans, tomatoes, chicken, and spicy spicy jalopenos.  Yums.  But it did put me over the edge.  Bring on the produce tomorrow!

New Favorites for a New Year

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If the first day set any sort of precedent, 2010 is going to be a great year!  And in case I forgot that it’s not 2009, we got lots of new calendars for Christmas.

Today was all about errands; Office Max, grocery restocking, present returns.  I have my foot surgery this Monday so I’m trying to get all standing activities out of the way.  In between errands I had a lovely late lunch –

The pasta was a Lean Cuisine.  I love how packed with veggies it was, lots of zucchini and the marinara was delicious.

The bread made the meal however.  I don’t know how I managed to only eat half of this cheddar and jalopeno bialy!

Spicy and cheesey and yum!  I also had a tasty bite of Adam’s cookie.

Our final errand took us to the mall, where I discovered my new favorite restaurant – Jack Astors.  There were about 80 things on the menu that sounded good and pretty much everything was affordable.  The booze prices were ridiculous low.  Plus, they let you draw on the table!

Adam’s art was a bit less 6th grade than mine –

I promise I did my drawing before my drinking,

Raspberry Lemon raspberry vodka, lemon, sprite, and soda.  Yums, my favorite drinks are always sour.

And dinner was a Chopstick Chicken Salad Grilled chicken breast on a bed of mixed greens, red pepper, cilantro, toasted sesame seeds and cucumbers, drizzled with zesty sesame soy dressing.  Topped with crispy wonton strips, spicy pecans, and sun-dried cranberries.

Ah-maze-ing!  Next time I would ask for dressing, etc on the side but it tasted awesome.  We were running a bit late to see a movie and I ended up bringing the second half to the theatre and eating it with chopsticks mid-show.  Strangest movie snack ever?!  I also split a small popcorn with butter with the husband.

The only thing that could have distracted me from that salad was an incredible movie, and Sherlock Holmes delivered.  It was my new favorite movie!  It was funny as hell and fully captivating for 2hours.  I love love loved the costumes and setting and artistic shooting.

Now I’m planning on settling in to fill out my new planner before bed.  There is something deeply satisfying to me about a fresh, crisp planner and I’m so excited I could burst!  

Do you use a planner to keep track of your life?  Love or loath it?

Hello from 2010!

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Happy New Years!!!  I’m big on fresh starts, so I love love love birthdays and and January 1st.  And when we got home last night we fully unpacked our bags and put away the Christmas decorations, so things feel especially fresh.

I went to bed moments after the ball dropped and this morning I woke up at 7:30 easily, a half hour before my alarm.  What better place to go on January 1st than the gym?  I did 10minutes of slow walking (practicing foot placement) to warm up, and then 35minutes of walk/run intervals for a total of 3.55miles in 45minutes.  Afterwards I did my pt exercises and Adam and I stood on the bosu ball and tossed a medicine ball.  (1:08, 530calories)

We can’t eat until we get to the store so brunch and shopping are both on the agenda for today.  Before I go I’ll share my resolutions with you:

  1. Floss every day.
  2. Lose 15lbs.
  3. Build more strength and flexibility.
  4. Get on a healthier sleep schedule.
  5. Be less negative.

Of course I have more goals for this year (start a graduate program?!), but I like to keep official declarations simple.   What are your resolutions for 2010???

Monday Night – Tuesday Night

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Yikes, this is going to be a looooong recap.  And that’s if I keep the details breif!  We’ve had lots and lots of good food and fun the last couple days.

After my last post we drove out to Ashley’s to get chicken patties.  They were beyond delicious, but my camera seems to have eaten the picture, whoops!  Then my parents, Adam and I went out to The Point to explore a bit.  We sat and watched the waves hit the rocks and it was wonderfully serene.

For dinner we went to Lotus, my favorite restaurant on St. Thomas.  We took my parents along, even though it was our anniversary dinner!

First we stopped at Fungi’s for a beer,

and then we went to Lotus.  We did lots and lots of sharing and it was a pretty fabulous meal.  Uptown Wonton Soup chicken/cilantro/crispy shallots/white truffle oil.

We got some amazing rolls to share – 1. Joe’s Stoned Crab sea scallop/jicama/scallion/topped with sesame seeds and hot sesame oil.

2. Shaggy Dog tempura shrimp/scallion/avacado/topped with spicy kanikami crab mix/sweet amai yuzu drizzle.

3. Soho House smoked salmon/spicy blue crab/asian slaw/scallion cream cheese/entire roll tempura/spicy yum yum and amai yuza glaze.

Here are all of my servings –

I also had a few small bites of my parents Green Apple Pad Thai,

and a few bites of Adam’s Muy Thai Tofu.

For dessert we I got the Blond Brulee white choclate ginger mousse/crisp banana brulee.

I let everyone else take a small taste but mostly I dominated this, I was swooning!

When we got home I also had a small slice of my dad’s Lindt Sea Salt bar.

We got up beyond early Tuesday morning to join my aunt’s family over in St. John.  Due to our lack of planning and 7:30 ferry time breakfast ended up being less than stellar –

No matter, it’s hard to be hungry when these guys are staring into your car!

My family picked us up and we drove to Ram’s Head Bay for a day at the beach and a hike.  The hike was 1.6miles each way and absolutly amazing.  These are only a tenth of my fabulous pictures.

The hike was very, very hilly and quite a workout.  I drank water on the way and had a few big swigs of Adam’s soda and a cheese cracker when we got back.

Then I spent hours shell collecting.

Before we took a second shorter hike over to Drunk Bay.  The beach is covered with rock sculptures people have made over the years.

Adam added a unicorn before we left.

I was burnt to a crisp at this point – in spite multiple applications of 70spf – so we headed to Skinny Legs for lunch.

My Painkiller was nasty so I ended up leaving most of it.

But my sandwich hit the spot.  I got the grilled cheese with tomato and onion and asked them to add as many veggies as possible.

Devoured.  Then we went back to their rental house for showers and naps.  And more cheese crackers.

My parents came over in the evening and we got take out from “The Chicken Man.”

Plantains,

coleslaw,

small piece of white meat,

fries with amazing bbq sauce.

Mmmn.

My portions were pretty small and I definitly ended up getting nachoes once we got back to St. Thomas!

Finally, just so you know I am “skipping” the last two days of December.  I have a long flying day tomorrow and don’t want to start my new year with an “old” recap.

Friday Night – Monday Afternoon

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Hello, hello, hello!  I hope everyone had a great holiday, we sure did!  I am actually typing at an internet cafe downtown so I’m going to try to keep this as quick as possible, sorry!

Christmas

We did a huge (40+ people) family and friend dinner at my aunt’s house.  I hit this selection of cheeses and spreads pretty hard.

I had one nice cold Coors Light, but mostly I stuck to club soda.

Dinner was buffet style, my plate had tomato, sweet potato casserole, cheesey potatoes, turkey, and coleslaw.

And I filled up this small plate for dessert.

When I got home I was actually still hungry so I made turkey and cheese sandwiches on two small rolls.

It was a pretty fantastic day.

Saturday

We got up early and hurried to the spa with my aunt and cousins, I love my snazzy purple nails!  Afterwards we got food at Barefoot Buddah, my favorite spot!  I had a yummy mango coconut smoothie,

and a Bigfoot Bagel Sandwich.

Holy.Yum!

We hit up another favorite spot later on, Udder Delight, the milkshake shop run by the local dairy.

I got a Jamocho Shake, made with skim milk.

That night we went to another party.  I wasn’t feeling the buffet dinner, but I might have had a few of these jello shots!

We went out with friends later that night and Adam was the best husband ever, ordering me a grilled chicken caesar salad so I wouldn’t be hungry.

Good thing too, we closed down three bars and didn’t get home until 3:45!!!!  I had one or two beers, unpictured, but mostly stuck to soda.  We had a really good time catching up with some old friends!

Sunday

Remember our 4am bedtime?  Especially awesome because we woke up at 7am to go run in a race!  We participated in the Kwanza 7k (for the 7nights of Kwanza).  I tried out one of these for “breakfast” 5 minutes before the race.

My leg(s) have been hurting like crazy and I know I’m out of shape so my plan was to do the Galloway method, slowly!  Adam stuck with me and we just might have come in 2nd to last!!!  I didn’t care though, I was just happy I finished, the course was super hilly!  We finished in an astonishingly slow 54minutes.

Overall it was a great experience, I LOVE TO RUN!!! Plus on the last lap there was a young (high school?) boy in front of us walking and we made him run with us and finish strong.

My uncle and two cousins ran the race too so afterwards we all went back for a refueling breakfast.  The star of the show was this –

Aunt Else’s, who I sampled in SF, generously sent me an Aebleskiver pan and mix.

Aebleskivers are like round fluffy pancakes that you can fill with all sorts of things savory and sweet.  I made the entire mix so I spent a looong time in front of the stove.

The first few batches took a little getting used too, but then I figured it out and started cranking out some beauties!

We filled them with chocolate chips, cheese, chocolate and cinnamon, and jam!  De-lish-ous!  Thank you so much Aunt Else’s!!!!

I actually was so busy cooking that I missed the rest of breakfast, all I managed to eat was three ableskivers.  I was pretty hungry when we went to the movies that afternoon so Adam and my dad snuck in some healthy snacks for me –

cheese, apple slices and baby carrots!  We saw “Up in the Air,” and sadly the snacks were the best part.

When I got home I snacked on some cole slaw too.

Then we met the family for a nice dinner at their hotel.  First we watched the sunset and drank some wine.

I started my meal with two slices of bread and butter.

Then I ate half of a conch fritter with mango.

And a bowl of Callaloo, a traditional island soup made with crab meat, spinach, and okra.

Soooooo good!

Unfortunately my dinner wasn’t quite as tasty.

Jumbo shrimp with veggies and chive mashed potatoes.  I just wasn’t feeling it so I ended up giving away 2 of my 4 shrimp.

We played games afterwards and had a blast, but once we got home I was starving.  My mom pulled two slices of pizza out of the freezer and baked them for me.

Super tasty, but I was stuffed, I should have stuck with one slice.

Monday

This morning I had another tasty pineapple Chiobani.

And a teeny (adorable) glass of locally made eggnog.

And when we set out Adam and I split a soda.

Now we are trying (once I get off the computer!) to walk around downtown.  Gotta split!

P.S. Sorry for the lame-o post.

P.P.S.  Today is Adam and my 2 year wedding anniversary!!! I promise some wedding photos once I get back to Buffalo if anyone is interested.

Merry Christmas

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Happy Holidays Blog Readers!  I dragged my whole family to school so I’ll keep this quick.  I don’t have many food pictures today, so I’ll take a moment to show off all the red and green I’ve been rocking this week –

After my last blog post I spent the day setting up for our Christmas Eve bash.  I had some random snacks for lunch; carrots,

a Hello Dolly,

a few nuts,

and half of a tuna salad sandwich.

I did lots of nibbling during the party but I ended up not taking any pictures.  My parents had the lights low and there were a TON of people in our little house so I ended up skipping it.  A fabulous time was had by all though.

Christmas morning with my parents and husband was wonderful.  Just 3 years ago today, Adam was proposing to me under the Christmas tree!!!

My mom and I made a great, festive breakfast.

I had an eggnog scone that was super tasty, I plan on buying more packs from this company.

And we made scrambled eggs with red and green bell pepper and white cheddar.

Plus I had a small glass of nog, I think I actually like Silk Soy Nog the very best!

My dad’s sister’s family is flying in in a few hours and then we are all going over to my mom’s sister’s family’s house for dinner.  Merry Christmas, Everyone!

Tuesday Afternoon – Thursday Afternoon

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My family’s Christmas Eve party is tonight and we’ve got lots of setting up to do so this will have to be kept quick.

Tuesday Afternoon….

After my last post Adam and I set out for some exercise.  We ran on the waterfront downtown together.  We did walk/run intervals for 40minutes.  I’m not sure exactly how far we ran but I burnt 450calories.

Adam and my parents made chili for dinner (which I’m really not a fan off, unless it’s from ED&BV) so I pieced a few things together.  Like a smoothie –

1/2 cup low fat cottage cheese, 1/2 cup pineapple, 1 small banana, splash milk, squeeze honey.  Topped with nutmeg.

My mom also reheated me a slice of pizza from the freezer, Adam ate all of my half from the other day so it was just plain cheese.

We went out for drinks with some friends but I was the driver so I stuck to diet coke.  We stayed out past 1 though, so we were a little sleepy the next day! 😉

Wednesday…

Our plan was to go study at our favorite coffee shop, but due to our late start and some unexpected traffic it just didn’t work out.  I was planning on blogging too, but I forgot my camera cord, doh!  We did get tasty sandwiches to eat in the car while we ran errands with my mom though!

I got a whole wheat wrap with sweet potato, goat cheese, spinach, and spicy hummus, YUM.

I was feeling really sick later in the afternoon (NOT because of the sandwich, spicy food does NOT seem to affect my stomach) so Adam made me this yummy tasting plate.

Thankfully I rallied in time for dinner.  Adam and I cooked for my parents and grandparents, who are down visiting as well.

Adam made a Real Simple recipe for roasted red pepper turkey meatloaf,

and I roasted up some okra and green beans.

My mom provided dessert –

A teensy sliver of rum cake a parent brought her,

and a peppermint chocolate cookie.

I ate a snowball a little later too.

And a cup of Eggnog’n Tea.

And then we went out drinking way too late for the second night!  Good times were had by all, but I did stick to diet coke again.

Thursday Morning….

I think the no-booze rule saved me last night because I was able to get up this morning and go for a run!  I did ~ 45minutes/490 calories, and ~3miles.  I did my pt when I got home before I dove into this –

holy food am I glad I can find the pineapple Chiobani down here!

Although I was probably most excited about this Carebear spoon I dug up!

Now as soon as we leave the library we are heading home to prep for the party.  There won’t really be dinner or lunch today, more like lots of snacking on really tasty things.  🙂

I probably won’t be posting again until after this weekend, so to all my readers who celebrate – Merry Christmas!

Monday – Tuesday Afternoon

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Hello from sunny St. Thomas!  This will be the first of many recap posts since I only have computer access when I go to work with my mommy (my parents don’t have internet).

Things started up yesterday at 3:45am!! when we made our way to the airport.  The one benefit to leaving at that hour is we got to see the festive skyline in complete darkness.

Our flying day wasn’t so bad, we had 2 stops but at least everything went smoothly.  On stop #1 Adam bought Taco Bell at 8am!  I had one slice of his chicken quesadilla.

Our next flight was our long flight so I saved my eating for it.  I’m not gonna lie, I thought I was super clever to back a baggie of salad and a small container of Sabra Babaganuosh.

Yums, I think this is about as healthy as plane eats can get!

I also packed some sliced yellow bell pepper, cucumber, and Kerrygold cheese.

And I supplemented with a few buys from the airport store.  Dried bananas and cherries.

The price and nutrional stats on these were both pretty solid.

Any finally this 100 calorie pack of mini meranges.

They were super tasty and adorable.

I only ate about 3/4 of the pack though, for 100calories it was a LOT of food!

Our 2nd stop was Puerto Rico, which meant we had to take a teeny tiny Cesna Prop to get to St. Thomas.

I actually flew a plane that was just a little smaller for my last birthday so it was pretty fun; we were happy to be home though!

While we unpacked I ate a Dove Peppermint Bark candy.

And then we headed out to dinner at my parents’ favorite pizza spot.  It was dark, so you can assume the food was about 90% better than the pictures look.  Adam and I started by splitting a ceasar salad.

And then we all shared pizzas.  I ordered my half with – spinach, artichoke, pineapple, mushroom and no cheese.

Second piece.

Yums.

I was glad I went no cheese because I had room for a tasty snack when I got home.

Kona coffee with skim milk,

and two small pieces of 7-layer bar (Hello Dollies for you Southerners).

And……..bed!

This morning was supposed to start with a run but I was just to exhausted, I need to get myself on a proper sleep schedule this vacation!  I ended up waking up around 9 for breakfast.

Pom Chiobani and half a sliced banana.

We spent the day running errands with my parents; my family throws a huge Christmas Eve party so there was lots of shopping to do.  Here’s what I snacked on throughout the day –

An apple,

and a seasonal gingerbread Cliff Bar.

I also grabbed this package of trail mix as we headed out to school.

Now Adam and I are headed down to the school field for this morning’s belated run.  The next few days will be a whirl of baking and presents so hopefully we can fit in a little bit of fitness!  See you soon!

What’s the strangest plane food you’ve packed?