What I'm Loving Wednesday, Er, I Mean Thursday (Summer Edition)

This post was meant for yesterday, but I was having trouble with my computer.  Hence the lack of pictures on this post. :(

1. Summertime!


I've said it before, but I just feel more like myself this time of year.  There are so many outdoor festivals and events going on and I love it!


2. Air conditioning


As much as I love summer, it.is.hot!!!  Already.  And it's only the beginning of June. I'm so thankful I have a home and a car with working a/c.


3. Popsicles


Another great way to beat the heat.  I've even started a Pintrest board (Click the link to the right to follow me!) devoted to the icy treats. My latest obsession is making my own, rather than buying the corn syrup laden grocery store versions.  I'll share some recipes soon.


3. Half Marathon training officially begins July 23 (aka the hottest part of the year).


My plan is to acclimate to the heat (which shouldn't be hard since they refuse to turn on the a/c in our CrossFit box) and run early in the mornings, before the sun is up.  All my workouts from July 23 to October 13 are scheduled and written out in my day planner.


4. Mini vacations


I went to Galveston for a long weekend at the end of May.  This weekend, I'm going to New Orleans.  I've got a trip planned to a resort on Lake Conroe at the beginning of August.  Then, I'll be going back to New Orleans for Red Dress Run.  At some point, I'm trying to make it to the Guadeloupe River for tubing. And I'd like to visit Clear Lake/Kemah/Houston/back to Galveston to see my bestie and his dog Saxby.


5. Pool days


Sunday, I layed by the pool and on a float in the pool all afternoon.  It was glorious.  I wish it was my job.  If anyone hears of a job opening for professional pool floater, please let me know.  I am highly qualified.


6. Garden fresh veggies


They are here!  Dad sent me home with fresh cucumbers and squash.  Now I'm just waiting for those tomatoes to get ripe enough to pick.  Yum.  They make getting my recommended daily servings of veggies a whole lot easier.




What are you loving?
What is your favorite season? Mine is summer, obviously.

Any vacays planned for the summer?

Giddy Grocery Trip and Other Good Things

Great things that have happened lately:

1.  Both Tuesday and Wednesday I arrived home to find packages at my door.

I love mail packages.  Especially when they are prizes I won from giveaways!

Not only did I recieve these oats and this adorable paisley bowl from Tina @ Trading Up Downtown (she also writes over at Carrots 'N' Cake) on Tuesday....

But also this smorgasbord of chips from Kelly @ Foodie Fiasco on Wednesday.

Thanks y'all!

2.  I finally did some Christmas shopping!  I'm a long way from done, but at least I started.  And the gifts are already wrapped and under my tree!

3.  Kroger had an insane sale on produce.  When I returned home and unpacked all my purchases, I was giddy with excitement!

The motherload.  Excuse the bad lighting...almost every bulb in my kitchen is burnt out.  And obviously the martini set was not a purchase on my grocery trip.

Highlights:
-all varieties of pear for $1 per pound. I bought one of each. 

- 6 kiwi for $1

-organic braeburn apples for $1.25 per pound

- roma tomatoes $1 per pound (I haven't bought a tomato since God was a boy because I prefer not to purchase them out of season, but for this price I couldn't pass them up!)

-yellow onions for $0.77 per pound (that is half their normal price!)
-sweet potatoes for $0.49 per pound
-$1 for a bag of 8 poblano peppers and a cucumber from the clearance produce section (I didn't know the cucumber was hiding in there until I got home...bonus prize!)
-$2.99 for 5 pre-made veggie shish-kabobs full off zucchini, squash, red onion, and mushrooms

I already grilled these up with some shrimp.  Yum!

- free bag of salad (I had a coupon)
- $0.79 for a quart of mint chocolate soy milk (it was marked down to $1.34 and I had a $0.55 coupon.  I've been wanting to try this but there was no way I was going to shell out $3 for a quart!)
-Kroger brand now carries frozen brussel sprouts! There frozen veggies are alwasy $1, and I keep broccoli, green beans, pepper mix, and spinach in my freezer at all times.  I'm so happy I can now add brussel sprouts to the stockpile! 

Also on sale: eggplant 10 for $10 and blackberries 10 for $10.  They were out of both, but the sale lasts through Wednesday, so I'm sure I'll be back.

4. My half marathon medal was added to my medal display. :)

5. I reached my 100th post!  This post is actually 103...I completely spaced and didn't even realize this was post 100.

Good things that are happening soon:

1. 8 workdays, then I am off for 11 days! 

2.  McNeese Cowgirls are playing LSU this Friday night.  Since all my friends will be there, it is becoming a sort of birthday party for me.  Basketball and beer at Burton for Becca's Birthday!  (since Burton Collesium is off campus, they are allowed to serve beer at NCAA games!)

3. Cake!  And lots of it!  Mom's birthday is Wednesday, dad's is Sunday, and mine is Monday.  That means german chocolate on Wednesday, yellow cake with pineapple (??) on Sunday, and carrot cake Monday!

I always insist that my birthday presents not be wrapped in Christmas paper!



Look at me...all positive and optimistic!  I'm definitely getting off probabtion in December!

Tell me something good.

Beer is Cheaper Than Juice! It's Paradise.

Finally, as I promised, here is the first installment of my vacation posts.  I went to Punta Cana, DR to celebrate my sister's 30th birthday with her and 4 more of her friends.

There are always so many little happenings on trips that get forgetten.  Hopefully by documenting this trip via blog, it will be a diary/scrapbook for me and a way to share my trip with y'all.

Day 1

It started at 2:45 AM.  The cab was late to pick us up, therefore I was in a little bit of a panic.  But it worked out perfect. By the time we got through TSA and I chugged some Starbucks, it was time to board. 

The only set back was that I lost my favorite beach hat.  It was too big and floppy to fit in my bag, so I was carrying it in my hand. I set it down on the check in desk while I moved my running shoes from my checked bag (which was 1.5 lbs over the weight limit) to my carry on. I guess that is where it stayed.  I tried lost & found on our way back through Houston, but no luck!

Here is my beloved, now lost hat at the New Orleans Food & Wine Festival with my Ponkies. 

We had breakfast while layed over in the Miami airport.  Egg white omelets are always a winner.  Then we bought booze at the duty free store, and boarded.  I sat next to a couple from Baton Rouge on the plane!  Gotta love finding fellow Louisiana's when traveling.

 

South Beach



Bahamas

More Bahamian islands

More Bahamas or Turks & Caicos?

 The Punta Cana airport is the only privately owned international airport in the world.  Or at least that is what someone told me. I didn't fact check this tid bit. 

Customs was a joke.  We could have smuggled chinchillas into the country and no one would have cared.

We all cramed into a taxi with our luggage and headed to our condo.



Sarah had to hold my bag in her lap in order for us to fit.

Once arriving to the condo, half stayed for a tour of the grounds and half went to the grocery store.  I was in the grocery store group.  Adventure is an understatement.  Our taxi driver came inside to shop with us and push our buggy, but he spoke NO english.  As a matter of fact, no one at the grocery store spoke english. 

Highlights of the grocery store:
-Avocados the size of canteloupes.  Linsey wouldn't let me buy any because she said I would get E. coli. :(
-Beer is cheaper per ounce than juice! :) 
-Nothing was priced in dollars and we had no idea what the conversion rate was.
-There were lots of American brands, like Lays, Tostitos, Yoplait, Ritz, etc.

our condo/villa

It was close to 6:00 PM when we got back to the condo (Punta Cana is Eastern time zone, so only 1 hour difference from home), and I just wanted to see the beach!  We put on swimsuits and walked 2 minutes to the gorgeous blue waters.

After frolicking a little while, we realized it had been over 12 hours since we had a proper meal, so we walked to a restaurant on property called Balicana.  It was Asian style food and was adjacent to the pool. 

Linsey and I jumped in the pool, but were told by staff that the pool closes at 6:30 so had to get out. :(

We ordered a round of Presidente, the national beer.  Then we ordered another round, and another round, and another round.  Sarah and I split some pad thai.  She said it was burnt, but I was too many beers in to even notice.

I was looking rough!  It was a long day.

Carrie and I found coconuts! I was so excited!  Little did we know they were EVERYWHERE on property.

We had an impromtu dance party back at the condo with Lady Gaga, then it was bed time.  We had to get up early the next morning to meet Rafael for surf lessons! :)



Where is the most beautiful place you have ever been?

I'm baaack!

So. I've had a litte hiatus from blogging.  But know I didn't abandoned y'all by choice....My computer cord suddenly stopped working and I have been so busy that I wasn't able to get to the store until today to buy a new one.

Needless to say I had 144 e-mails, 56 facebook notifications, and lots of blogs to catch up on.  So while I play catch up, here are some pictures from my vacation to Punta Cana, DR for your viewing pleasure.

Full vacation recap coming to a blog near you (this one) soon....

What I ______ Wednesdays, Vol. 8

I'm baaaack! 

The Dominican was AWESOME.  I hope to share some of the highlights with you over the next few days.

As great as vacation was, I am always happy to come home! 

What I Will Not Miss About the Dominican Wednesday

1. The language barrier.  Our lack of espanol vocabulary almost led to our arrest for trespassing!  Thank god for Linsey's paquito spanish skills.

2. The lack of water pressure and hot water.

3. The absence of my Lola.  I missed her!

4. Not eating produce for fear of Montezuma's revenge.  The grocery store had beautiful produce...Avocado's the size of cantelopes and carrots the size of my arm, but I was too scared to buy any!  I especially missed my greens.

5. My neglect of exercise.  There was a gym, but it didn't open until after 8:00 AM and had no treadmills. :( I'll share more about this later.

6. The harassment by natives to purchase various tchotchkes.

This post sounds so negative, but I promise I enjoyed my trip.  My next few posts will focus on the positives! :) 

I'm off to catch up on all my fav blogs!

What I _______(blank) Wednesdays, Vol. 6

I am leaving for vacation today!!! I am going to Punta Cana, Domincan Republic to celebrate my sister's 30th birthday with her and 4 of her friends.  We are spending tonight in Houston because our plane leaves from there at 6:00 AM, which means getting to the airport by 4:00 AM. 

In honor of my vacation, today is:

What I Packed for the Dominican Wednesday

1. swimsuits & cover ups

2. hats

3. dresses, dresses, & more dresses; one romper; & a skirt and a bunch of shirts

4. sandals & accessories

5. gym clothes

There is a gym at our condo.  I am going to take advantage of having a treadmill available and try to get in some incline running to prep for the dreaded bridge. 

6. Pajamas

7. Festive Island Jewelry

8. peanut butter, oatmeal, nuts, coffee, snack bars & homemade snacks

We opted not to go the all inclusive route, but rather rent a private condo.  This way, we can experience more of the country's culture and dine at some local spots.  We will also try to cook at the condo some to save money.

Since I won't be blogging from vacation, I have scheduled some posts for y'all! :)  I will be posting all my recipes of the snacks that I packed.  They are great, healthy snacks that are easy to take along, even internationally!

Check out this FitSugar article about how to prevent weight gain on vacation. I will be using some of these tips over the next week!

If you were going to be stranded on a desert island and could only pack one thing, what would it be? (Of course you would want to bring loved ones/pets, so let's assume they will be there)

Only 8

Is anyone else obsessed with Only 8 frozen yogurt?

                                                         

It is my saving grace.  We all know I LOVE ice cream; this yogurt is an almost as delicious and much healthier substitute. It has that cool, creamy consistency I often crave.

The yogurt contains only 8 (hence the name) all natural ingredients: (from their website)

"WATER, FRUCTOSE, GRADE A KOSHER WHEY, WHEY PROTEIN CONCENTRATE,
MALTODEXTRIN, NATURAL FLAVORINGS & STABILIZERS, CALCIUM,
ACTIVE YOGURT CULTURES (L. ACIDOPHILUS, L. BULGARICUS, S. THERMOPHILUS, BIFIDUS)"

                                                     

Em J's is the only place locally that serves this frozen delicacy.  They always have the standard vanilla and chocolate (which are both good choices), and the third flavor rotates.  I've tried strawberry, cheesecake, and pecan, which is my favorite so far.

I eat a small at least once a week.  A small is probably a little more than one serving, but heck, even if its two servings, you can't find another treat as sweet and delicious for 64 calories!

 Today, after lunch, I walked in to find a new flavor was in rotation...Pina Colada!!!!  It was exactly what I was craving on this sweltering summer day.  While it didn't trump my favorite pecan, it was a close second. And it made me even more excited for my trip to the Dominican.  Only 35 more days until I'm sipping REAL pina coladas on the beach!!!!

This is where I will be in 35 days!!!! Jealous?!?