Smoothie Time

I hope you're ready, because I have lots of bloggity fun coming your way today! I know I mentioned that I was at a cookout at my friend Kaitlin's house on Memorial Day. Of course, I indulged in a splurge day and ate typical "cook-out food" like taco dip, spinach and artichoke dip, cheesy potatoes, and pasta salad. Still, I did everything in moderation. You're probably wondering: Where's the meat? In typical Wisconsin fashion, we had brats! But lucky for me (and other health-concious attendees), Kaitlin's mom is a pretty healthy eater herself and was equipped with some spinach asiago chicken brats, in addition to the regular version. I discovered these links last summer, and they are pretty delicious and not so bad for you. 

However, since it was a special occasion, there were plenty of desserts on hand. I was pretty excited to enjoy one of my favorite cookies (not sure why I love them so much?), but I was too stuffed from food and drink to have a patriotic version of these bad boys ...

Darnit!! Well enough about the hot Memorial Day cook-out. On Tuesday, I woke up ready for a day of healthy eating. I warmed-up a VitaMuffin for breakfast and enjoyed it with some yogurt. If you haven't tried a VitaMuffin yet, you have to check them out! They are low in calories and fat, high in fiber and protein, and enriched with essential vitamins and minerals. According to my old Weight Watchers leader, they are just as healthy as an apple! (And they taste like dessert ...)

Then, I headed to the WAC where I had a full work-out schedule planned. First, I took a one-hour Pilates class. Before my next class, I snuck in about twenty-five minutes of running and walking on the treadmill. Finally, I took the Cardio Fusion class. This week, Julie had us spinning for the first twenty minutes of class. This was my first experience ever with spin. WOW! I was dripping sweat after those twenty minutes! How do people do this for fourty-five minutes or an hour? I guess I will find out when I finally get the guts to take one. I'll keep you updated ...


For lunch, I warmed up a piece of grilled chicken leftover from Brad's family's Memorial Day celebration. (I'm so lucky to have a mom and a "mother-in-law" who graciously donate food to my non-domestic cause. FYI: I would like to start learning how to cook this summer, so any suggestions are greatly appreciated.) I enjoyed my chicken with a salad with lots of veggies. After lunch, I headed over to the high school where Brad works to watch the girl's varsity softball game. (He's the coach!) It was a beautiful day, so it was great to spend some time outside ... and they won!


Before I headed to my own 7:00pm volleyball game, I wanted to have a snack that would hold me over until after the game, but not leave me too full to play. I came up with this interesting concoction: a whole-wheat tortilla with Weight Watchers cream cheese, sugar-free strawberry preserves, and fresh strawberries. I'm not sure where it came from, but it sure was delicious!

I packed some healthy snacks (grapes and peppers) to enjoy after the game, but I never really got to eating them. I may have indulged in some a lot of adult beverages. It was a fun night ... that left me feeling not so ready for my personal training session with Jenny on Wednesday morning. Oopsies! Still, I sucked it up and headed to the gym. I'm so glad I did! Jenny had prepared another awesome strength training workout for me that I can now use over and over again on my own. I will share the details in another post, since this one is getting pretty lengthy.


For lunch on Wednesday, I met up with a friend at Qdoba. Ok, he was Brad's friend first. :) Jimmy lives in Colorado right now and was back for a hometown visit. It was lots of fun hanging out and chatting for an hour. I had the naked mango chicken salad. Imagine this with no shell ...

Next on the agenda was stopping at the local elementary school for Brad's younger sister's Spring Sing. It was adorable, and I happened to run into the mom who I will begin nannying for in a couple weeks. It turns out that the little girl I am working with was in the concert as well. Double whammy! Finally, I headed to work where, again, I felt useless as I stared at Joe while he worked. Oh well! After work, I stopped at my mom's for healthy dinnertime. Pork chops, baked potatoes, and asparagus ...

After dinner, I decided to lay low last night. Considering the shenanigans of Tuesday night, my body appreciated it. :) Plus, I had to be up early for my kickboxing class with Jenny, which I followed up with an hour of yoga. After these two classes, I definitely had a total body workout. I'm currently blogging from the couch where I my muscles are enjoying some relaxation from Jenny's butt-kicking the past two days. 


Oooh, one more announcement before I sign off. How could I almost forget? My mom bought me a present today ... a Magic Bullet-wannabe! This makes me mucho excited, because I'd really like to start making smoothies! Through my blog explorations, I've also noticed that this appliance can be used for a few other purposes as well. I don't actually have it in my possession yet, but once I do, I'll be looking for suggestions ...

Where does a girl who wants to learn how to cook begin? Also, what is your favorite smoothie recipe?


P.S. Good news! My dad came home from the hospital on Tuesday. He's still on antibiotics, but it appears that his infection is clearing up. This makes me :D