Shrimp, Granolas, Tina's PB Bars

Phew! I am so glad this is a short week- I don't think I could make it through a full length week! Did you have a good Monday/Tuesday? Quick review of mine:

Monday: Work, ran errands, taught Body Step, made a shrimpy dinner (boiled up some shrimp, peas, corn, broccoli and mixed it all with lemon juice, olive oil and salt and pepper and brown rice).

I also made up two batches of granola to bring with us to Hilton Head. The first variety contained 2 cups oats, 1 cup coconut, 1 cup mixed nuts (walnuts, almonds, pine nuts, sesame seeds), 2 tablespoons vegetable oil, 2 tablespoons honey, bake at 250 for 1 hour.

The second batch contained 2 cups oats, 1 cup coconut, 1 cup almonds/walnuts, 2 teaspoons cinnamon, 2 tablespoons vegetable oil, 2 tablespoons honey, baked at 250 for 1 hour. Once it came out of the oven, I added another 2 teaspoons cinnamon and about 1/2 cup raisins.

Tuesday: Work, more errands, made Tina's PB bars (I used honey instead of agave, deliciousness), taught Body Attack (air conditioning was BROKEN in the group fitness room blehhhh), had a huge salad for din din.

Josh's parents and brother arrived tonight!! Tomorrow I am taking Body Pump and then working from home. We are all going out to din din to celebrate Josh finishing up his MBA!! More to come. What are you looking forward to this week?

Peach Crisp/Weekend

Hope you are having a great weekend! Mine has been really nice but VERY busy!

Saturday: Taught Body Step and then ran home to throw together this Peach Crisp. I had picked up a HUGE basket of peaches from a local farm stand:

I cut them up and froze the majority of them. I used 9 big ones to make this beauty (using less sugar than last time):

After the crisp was out of the oven, I ran to get my hair done. Then Josh and I headed up to my parents house to see my sister and her husband (who were in town visiting) and to meet my new niece, Taylor. A few pics from the night, Josh and I:

Baby Taylor and my parents dog, Tedy:

Me, my sister, and Taylor:

For dinner my mom/dad made steak, corn on the cob, and spinach salad. Since I don't eat beef, I brought my own din din from home. I did however dig into the delicious corn and peach crisp ;)

Sunday: Up early to run/practice Body Attack a bit more. I then went to work getting the house fully cleaned before my parents, sister, brother-in-law, and baby Taylor arrived. I set out a few appetizers: crackers & pretzels, cheese, pepperoni, veggies, fruit, hummus (not pictured):

Lovely sunflowers I picked up at Harris Teeter for $1.99!
We met with the Realtor that helped Josh and I find our house to show my sister and her husband some potential homes (we're trying to get them to move down south!). Afterwards, we all headed to a restaurant called the Soda Water Grill for lunch. I had a boring salad ;)

Taylor kept dozing off in the car, so I was finally able to get a nice clear picture of her cuteness:

I think tonight will be spent mostly relaxing and doing some laundry! I am excited for the new Next Food Network Star and Kendra. What are you up to??

Finger Foods, Salads, Fresh Fish

We made it to Friday- hooooray! Lots of craziness going on in the world right now...between Farrah and Michael and the Governor of South Carolina...the news is just OUT of control. I am VERY excited that the weekend is here. My sister and her husband will be visiting this weekend and I will get to meet my niece for the first time! Onto a review of the last couple days:

Wednesday: Body Pump am, work, errands, RELAXING. For dinner. I made a mix of mostly finger foods. Fresh veggies and pretzels/crackers that I served with two kinds of Sabra hummus (pine nut and roasted red pepper).

Bananas and Pineapple served with a cool whip/yogurt mix:

I also made these crab cakes (no picture). Everything was totally delicious!

Thursday: Work, laundry, taught 45 minute Body Step, took 45 minute Body Pump, made din din. Dinner consisted of salads and FRESH red fish that my dad caught. Josh also had a baked potato.

Josh's salad- spinach, broccoli, broccoli slaw, pea pods, pine nuts, cheese with a drizzle of olive oil:

My salad- Romaine, broccoli, pea pods, tomato, apple, salsa:

I didn't get a picture of Jenny's salad. Red fish that I cooked up using this recipe:

Friday: Got up early to run through the new Body Attack full out (we're launching the new release next week!), ran 2 miles, work time!

I only have to work a half day today and am planning on going to the grocery store. We're headed out to dinner tonight to Crave. This is one of my FAVORITE restaurants near our house. Most of the fruits/veggies/seafood are local/organic!

What are you up to this weekend?

Cauliflower and Spinach Pasta, Caitlin's Savory Oats

How are you doing? I hope that the first half of your week is treating you well! Things are all good over here, although work has been a little slowww. I'm not sure about you all, but I would much rather be busy than bored! Below is a recap of Sunday-Tuesday with some yummy eats/recipes.

Sunday: Took Body Pump, cleaned the house, weeded the yard (it REALLY needed it), did a little shopping with Josh to get him shorts for our vacation (we're going to Hilton Head for a week soon!), made din din. For dinner, we had fruit (South Carolina peaches and banana):
and this lighter cauliflower and spinach pasta recipe:

Monday: Back to work (bleh!), ran errands, quick 2 mile run with Jenny, out to Los Arcos with Josh, Jenny, and our friend Jeremy. I had a shrimp salad (I know- you're totally shocked!) and some chips and salsa.

Tuesday: Work (they make me go every day...ridiculous ;)), house work, taught Body Attack, little shopping at Marshall's Home Goods (this store rocks), made din din. We had Caitlin's Savory Oats. I made a few changes- I used steamed broccoli, pinto beans, and added some hot sauce. They were fantastic! So yummy Caitlin.

We also had a side of watermelon. We picked this baby up at the farmers market and boy was it HUGE! It was so fresh, maybe the best watermelon I've ever had!

I went to Body Pump this morning and have started into my work day. Not sure whats up for this afternoon.

Whats your favorite summer fruit?

Weeeeekeeend/Jay Robb discount

Hope you're enjoying your weekend as much as I am! Here's the run down and some delicious looking food ;)

Friday: Work, Ran 4 miles, dinner with Josh and Jenny at Poe's on Sullivan's Island.

Josh and Jenny-

Me and Josh-

Jenny's Seared Tuna Salad-

Josh's Gold-Bug burger-

My Tavern Salad (we also had some chips and queso, un-pictured)-

Saturday: Taught Body Step, had Father's day lunch with my parents, Aunt & Uncle, Jenny and Josh. We went to Acme Cantina on Isle of Palms. I got the Cantina salad with shrimp and salsa instead of dressing...it was incredible!

Me & My Daddy at lunch:

After lunch, Jenny and I went to the beach for about an hour. It was 100 degrees (no really, it was 100 degrees!), so we couldn't take the heat for long! Then we went shopping at Old Navy and came home to make a delicious, easy, healthy dinner!

Brussel sprouts-

Tons of shrimpies (we couldn't finish all these)-

Papaya and Banana-

Tonight, Josh and I ran a few errands and we watched a movie. Not sure whats in store for tomorrow. What is your favorite easy/healthy meal (links appreciated!!)?

ALSO- do you love Jay Robb products or have you always wanted to give them a try? Jay Robb has generously offered to give you all a 15% off discount! Just enter the promo code BLOGJ9ITZY either via phone orders or at http://www.jayrobb.com/. Enjoy it! Jay Robb products rock!

Green Dog Wine Quinoa "Stew", Beef and Broccoli

Thank you all for sharing with me your favorite day of the work week! It was fun to read everyones reasoning behind their favorite day! I have to agree with those of you who chose Thursday solely due to the excitement of Friday approaching! Quick Review of my last two days:

Wednesday: Body Pump in the morning, work, hour at the pool with Jenny (!), trip to Whole Foods (Jenny's first time), a wonderful dinner of my version of Green Dog Wine's Quinoa "Stew". Josh had it with ground turkey:


Jenny and I had it with no meat, extra beans:

Thursday: Work (such a slow day today-bleh), little housework, taught 45 minute version of Body Step, took 45 minute version of Body Pump, made Beef and Broccoli for Josh and our friend Jeremy:

Jenny and I ate up all the leftover veggies and beans for dinner. We had gone a little crazy at the farmers market/food store this week and had tons of fresh stuff starting to turn bad in the fridge. You may have noticed based on my dinner descriptions, but I have decided to eliminate "land based" meats out of my diet. I am now eating a mostly vegetarian diet with the occasional sea based protein (shrimp, fish, etc). I made this decision for a number of reasons but mostly because I think it will ultimately lead to much better health.

Yayyy for tomorrow being Friday!

Spaghetti Squash, Kath's Hummus, Hangry Bars, Unpretty

Its been a pretty good week thus far! I am excited tomorrow is Wednesday. Wednesday is my favorite day of the work week because I get to work from home and I take Body Pump in the am (hooray for getting your workout out of the way early!). We had some yummy eats in our house this week but my pictures aren't too pretty- I think I need to finally invest in a good camera. Any suggestions?

Monday: Work, cleaned the house, ran 6.6 miles in the humidity with Jenny. It was a tough run but I felt very accomplished afterwards!! For dinner, I made up some spaghetti squash. Jenny and I topped our squash with tomato sauce, tomatoes, tiny black beans, and chunks of mozzarella.

Josh had ground turkey, tomato sauce, black beans, and mozzarella chunks.

Tuesday: Work, laundry/ironing, taught Body Attack, made up Kath's hummus and grilled pitas. When I saw her post, I KNEW I had to make it. The hummus is out of this world. Since we haven't gotten a new grill yet, I did them under the broiler. Josh had his pitas filled with spinach, roasted artichokes, hummus, and mozzarella. On the side he had fruit/corn.

Jenny and I had pitas with hummus, feta, roasted peppers and tomatoes. On the side we also had fruit and corn. Kath- the hummus is amazing! What a great din din idea.

Tonight, I also made up Heather's muffin bars!!! I had tons of frozen berries in the freezer and knew I wanted to make these bars when I saw her post the recipe today. Can't wait to try these tomorrow.

Do you have a favorite day of the working week?

Weekend Eats

For the first Monday in a while, I think I'm actually OK with it being Monday! My weekend was super busy and fun.

Friday: Taught Body Attack and then ran out to Whole Foods with Josh to hit up the salad bar. I made a beast (as Gina would say ;)). Romaine, peppers, cucumbers, cauliflower, broccoli, edamame, carrots, green beans, a couple potatoes, black beans, cabbage, a baked tomato (so yummy), and a few pieces of macaroni and cheese. It was delicious.

Josh and I also picked up these mini fruit desserts for the two of us and Jenny. They were 99 cents and very yummy.

Saturday: Taught Body Step, hit up Starbucks for a non fat misto and went food shopping with Jenny. Once we had gotten cleaned up, we headed off to the Isle of Palms to check out a potential wedding location for Laural. We also laid on the beach for about an hour.

After the beach, I did some house work and then we headed into Charleston for dinner with friends. We went to the South End Brewery , which I love! The inside looks very industrial:

And they have great food/beer! Josh got his usual, pulled pork. They put fried pickles on the top of every burger/sandwich. I got the Grilled shrimp and spinach salad which comes with apples, onions, goat cheese, almonds & a balsamic vinaigrette. I've gotten this twice and the shrimp have been cooked to perfection both times.

Sunday: Got up and headed out the door to my parents house. My Mom, Aunt, and I hit up the beach for about an hour and then got lunch. I got a garden salad (sorry no pic). I came home and started to get the house cleaned up. Then, Josh, Jenny, and I went and saw the Hangover (which was HILARIOUS). We came home and made up shrimpy salads (very similar to my dinner the night before ;). I cooked up some shrimp in a little olive oil with some Cajun seasoning. I then made up salads that fit each persons likes.

"The Jenny": spinach, peppers, shrimp, oranges, walnuts, feta, water chestnuts:

"The Josh": Spinach, water chestnuts, oranges, mozzarella, walnuts, shrimp, lemon/olive oil dressing and a baked potato on the side.

"The Erica": Romaine, peppers, oranges, shrimp, water chestnuts, salsa

Phew! Whats your week looking like?