What's for Dinner?

Hey peeps, happy Thursday! Is anyone else just barely hanging on until the weekend? And until March 1 hits, for that matter? For some reason I am dying for spring and summer, and keep telling myself that once we get to March winter is pretty much over. (Despite the fact that Colorado gets most of its snow in March, I mean. Heh.)

Today the weather was pretty accommodating, however, which is nice since today I was scheduled to help with the dog intake at the Humane Society. I keep trying to get clear shots of these dogs and puppies, but there's something about several hours in a van that makes puppies unable to stand still once they've gotten out:-)

We sure did have a cute bunch today, though. Check it out:

And, speaking of dogs, someone turns three years old today!!! (It's Haruki.) To celebrate I got her a birthday dog cookie to eat once David gets home.

And yes, I did consider trying the dog cookie, though after hearing that it was mostly chicken liver I decided not so much.

Instead, I treated myself to an overpriced smoothie from Whole Foods on the way home from the dog shelter.

AND...AND!!! I got treated to this view on the way home:

Dinner was somewhat less spectacular, and was just a hummus sandwich like the one I got at Whole Foods the other day.

That's pasteurized feta cheese on top. So salty. So good.

*What did you have for dinner?

Wednesday, Nacho Day!

No it's not national nacho day or anything, but I do happen to be eating nachos for dinner tonight. We're going on a walk with our neighbors this afternoon, after which we're making nachos for dinner.

Breakfast today was not nachos, surprisingly (right?), but cereal instead. It's been awhile since I ate cereal for breakfast, but today I did it up with sliced banana and everything.

Sliced banana in cereal = basically the same as making pancakes, at least in regards to fancy-ness of the breakfast. There's just something about slicing a banana that makes a regular bowl of cereal feel more like a prop on the set of a healthy lifestyle commercial.

Lunch wasn't too fancy--just a hummus sandwich from Whole Foods that I doctored up with some feta cheese. I ate this, once again, at like eleven o'clock, but at least I wasn't sitting in my car like yesterday.

I'm also upping my veg-intake by having some roasted squash and zucchini with parmesan cheese this afternoon.

And, to be as transparent as possible, I also ate four saltine crackers and half a KIND nut bar.

Now I'm settled on my couch, working on that f-ing dissertation

and wishing it was time to take a walk and eat nachos.

*What about you--are you friendly with your neighbors? Or are you like my family was growing up and you literally hide when your neighbor knocks on your door?

Funny Story

OK, it's not really that funny, but it is kind of funny that yesterday, while blogging about how beautiful Mexico was, Boulder and the surrounding areas were digging out from a major snowstorm that dropped over a foot of snow in my backyard.

This is during the storm on Sunday:

And of course it was bright and sunny by Monday morning:

This trend, when it snows a lot and then gets sunny and warm, is definitely a perk of living in Colorado that you just don't get in, say, Iowa.

Yesterday David and I took advantage of the big snowfall and went snowshoeing instead of hiking around our house. This gives you some idea of the amount of snow that fell:

And here is me after I sat in the snow for awhile on a break from hiking:

Is it just me, or is sitting and laying in the snow (while you're wearing snow pants) like, the most freeing and pleasurable thing ever? It's so refreshing, yes?

Anyway, it's also funny that I'm writing about Sunday's snowstorm today, since today we got hit with another storm and it has looked like this outside our window all day long:

I still got to the gym this morning, though, before it had snow too much. Since I knew the drive home might take a bit longer I even did something strange and bought an egg salad sandwich from Whole Foods. And I ate half of it in the car. See?

I'm an animal, I know. That was literally the only egg salad sandwich I've ever eaten or purchased, so that's funny too, right?

*Does it get sunny right after a storm where you live, or does it usually stay cold and cloudy for awhile after a storm?

Longest Hall Pass EVA!

Yah, that's right, I'm a delinquent. My bad, peeps. After not feeling well last week, we had to jet off to Mexico, after which I came home exhausted. I also have three weeks to completely finish my dissertation, so add all that up and you get one flustered little kaleater. Yah, that's a word.

Anyhow, the good news is that I'm baaaaack in the game, and with pictures of Mexico to boot! (Woot!)

Just to recap, we went to Punta Mita, Mexico, which is just outside of Puerto Vallarta on the Pacific side of Mexico. For her own seventieth birthday my mother-in-law treated the whole family, so a big shout out to Carolyn for hosting and organizing!!!

I know I said I hated Mexico the last time I was there, but this time it really grew on me. Perhaps that's because I was sharing a room with my husband rather than my twin brother. Or perhaps it's because my birthday happened to fall during the trip and everyone made me feel very special. Or perhaps it's because I'd been feeling particularly tired and needed a time out. In any case, being greeted at check-in with this view, along with chips and (the best) guacamole didn't hurt matters:

Also not so bad:

Sigh.

Our first full day in Mexico happened to be my birthday (I'm thirty two!!!! Yikes!!), so I was greeted with presents from my family as well as this lovely birthday treat from the hotel:

And as if that weren't enough, after dinner that night they brought out an entire mariachi band and this little treat:

This was the perfect birthday cake for me. The inside was a really smooth white cake, and the frosting throughout was light and not overly sweet. (I hate royal icing!!!)

During the day itself we went boogy boarding and played beach volleyball (my team won). We also spent a fair amount of time here:

with this view:

Like the cake, the food at our resort was also really good--especially breakfast. They had the most amazing and extensive buffet every morning, with every kind of fruit, pastry, and bagel topper, along with an omelet bar, a full juice/smoothie bar, and pancakes/french toast/waffles galore. Here's my breakfast on the first day:

That's beaucoup de fruit, a tasty juice that they made fresh for me, a bit of muesli, and a piece of french toast with peanut butter. So good.

Lunches weren't so bad either, especially given that you can actually order them from your beach chair.

It got windy here for a bit, which is why my legs are covered by this towel.

It was like heaven--I ordered a veggie burrito, and even though it didn't come with it and I didn't order them, I got french fries!!

All in all, I'd say Mexico really redeemed itself with me, and not just because I got to eat french toast, french fries, and birthday cake. But because everyone we met was exceedingly nice and the whole trip was really just a welcome respite from reality. I can't see myself going every year or something, but when I do go back to Mexico I know I'll look forward to it!

*Where have you been to in Mexico that you really liked? How do you feel about resort/beach vacations that aren't necessarily planned around outings, seeing sights, etc.?

Hall Pass

Hey friends,

Apologies for ruining your day (heh), but I'm under the weather and need to get a hall pass from posting for a few days. Thanks for understanding, and I hope you all have a wonderful Valentine's Day tomorrow!

xoxo,

Nikki

P.S. The next time you hear from me I'll have pictures of beautiful Punta Mita, Mexico... :-)

Annnnd Now Its Tuesday

Is it just me, or has the last week or so gone by incredibly slowly? Womp womp, I know. I would make a bad prison inmate for a lot of reasons, but chief among them is that I get really impatient when I'm waiting for time to pass. As I mentioned before, we're leaving for Mexico on Saturday, and I'm pretty much just ready for this week to end as a result.

Most of today has gone by fairly quickly, actually. This morning I went to the gym for this new class that I've signed up to take--it's called TRX. TRX is a suspension training system, and it looks like this:

http://www.centeredworkout.com/trx

Basically, you use these thick cords to suspend yourself in different positions so that you can then use your body weight for strength training. So far I like it, and it's a nice change from the BodyPump class I usually go to.

After TRX, I meandered to Whole Foods to kill time and do some work until meeting my Dad for lunch at Mod Market. I was considering having one of their pizzas, which I've never had, but instead I opted for their soup and salad combo.

Potato leek soup:

And the Wintergreen salad, which was mixed greens with walnuts, apple slices, goat cheese, and little slices of fingerling potatoes.

The salad was good but the soup was really good. That's soup twice in two days for me--maybe it's winter rearing its head?

*Do you eat a lot of soup in the winter? Would you or wouldn't you be a good prison inmate?

Food Photo Slurry

I'm afraid this post isn't going to be much more than what the title suggests--a flurry of photos, mostly of my weekend eats. The weekend wasn't too thrilling, and the highlights were a date night with a movie on Friday (we saw Identity Thief) and having our friends Scott and Dana and their son over for lunch on Sunday afternoon. We had (unpictured) pancakes and fruit salad, and I must say I'm enamored with fruit salad. So easy! So tasty! Who would've thought that this ex-Reese's eating girl--who always said that desert wasn't meant to have fruit in it--would really like fruit salad? Don't worry too much, though; I got a serious craving for cake earlier tonight, so I suspect that you'll be seeing some of that on the blog soon;-)

Here's dinner on Saturday night, with just me and David and our usual veggie burgers:

Part one of my lunch from today:

I only ate part of this because I was starving after my bootcamp class but I knew I had some delicious homemade soup waiting for me at home. The soup was courtesy of our friends David and Christine. My David had dinner over there last night and Christine was thoughtful enough to send some home for me! It was lightly snowing all day up at our house today, so a nice comforting soup--with crackers and crunchy pepitas(!)--was just the ticket!

And finally, tonight's dinner. I'd been craving pasta lately, so first I browned up some aduki beans and brussel sprouts before tossing it all with some whole wheat ear pastas.

Topped off with parmesan cheese, of course.

And with that I'm off to read before bed. Have I mentioned that I'm currently reading Les Misérables? Before you go all thinking that I'm really high-cultured, keep in mind that I'm really enjoying the book because I keep thinking how much better it is without all the singing. I haven't seen the new Les Mis movie, and while I am tempted (really by anything set in 19th c. Europe) I just don't think I can handle an entire movie being sung.

*Do you like musicals? What about noodles?

Stylish Sleeping

Hey y'all. Sometimes I wish I was from the South so that I could get away with saying y'all. It's feel right for me to say it. Actually, that reminds me of yesterday, when I got my teeth cleaned. My dental tech person has a strong Mississippi accent and I talk to her I find myself turning on a slight Southern accent--all when I've never had a piece of coconut cake in my life!

Anyhow, I didn't have coconut cake for lunch. Sigh. But I did have more eggs--go figure! With olives and salsa and brown rice chips, to be precise.

In addition to this thrilling lunch, I also took delivery on my new mattress and bed this afternoon! Yay! I'm finally a grown-up with a grown-up bed. Before I could get my bed, however, I had to tame Haruki so that the delivery guy didn't get mauled. Once I bribed her with a poor cow's bone she softened right up:

Just so you guys know, however--and by "you guys" I mean all my psychopathic readers--that wouldn't work if it wasn't me giving Haruki the bone. She really flips her lid when strangers come in or near the house. It drives me nuts but everyone says "That's what you want in a dog."

Anyhow, look at my new bed!!!

The mattress isn't eight years old! And it's not on the floor!! It's on a proper frame with a headboard and everything!! (Though I don't have a nightstand yet, and thus my alarm clock is still on the floor. Oh well.) Anyhow, I'm pretty impressed with myself. It seems like a big deal to have a cozy bed setup such as this one. What do you guys think? Isn't it a mark of adulthood when you stop sleeping on mattresses in rental apartments and really set up a bedroom + bed?

Despite having an old person's bed, however, I'm still going to see Identity Thief tonight. I just know it's going to be ridiculously dumb, but I can't help myself from wanting a really funny escape movie. Hopefully it's at least a little funny. Wish me luck, and have a good weekend your own bad selves!

*Do you have an adult-like bed setup? Do you think I'm reading too much into beds and mattresses?

Buster vs. Ruki

As I mentioned last week, I recently took all the photos off my old computer and transferred them to my current computer. In addition to exposing me to all of the rather unfortunate fashion and hair styles that I suffered through, it also exposed me to some pictures of my old dog, Buster. 

Buster was my childhood dog, and he was special to me because he was mine--all mine. My parents got him for me for my thirteenth birthday, while my twin brother only got a model stock car to race with his geeky stock-car loving friends.

Buster was a mutt, as you can see from the photo above. He also looked a lot like a little black bear, especially as he got older and a tad more plump.

Anyhow, looking through old pictures of Buster really made me a bit sad, mostly because now that I'm an adult and fully capable of caring for something or someone else I recognize that I could've treated Buster better. It's not that I abused Buster, or Be-bop, as I liked to call him (yes, from Be-bop and Rocksteady on Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles!), but that he was generally not my first priority. I petted him when I wanted and got frustrated when he wanted something and I wasn't in the mood. When he got older he developed a big fat tumor and an endocrine disorder, and I'm afraid that I wasn't there for him as much because I was away at college. Sigh.

Yes, those are hot pink khaki pants. I rocked those suckers.

In some ways I feel especially regretful that I didn't take care of Buster to the best of my abilities because now David and I both spoil the you know what out of Haruki.

She has, like, four different dog beds, she is allowed on every piece of furniture in the house, and the quality of her food rivals mine (and that's saying a lot).

She knows she's a princess. Mostly because David lets her know in every way and at all times--including dinnertime.

Thinking about Buster and Ruki, I'm mostly sad that they will never meet. It would be nice to have little Be-bop _and_ Ruki altogether here in our little mountain chalet. (Although Ruki would prolly attack and kill Buster.)

*What about you? Did you have a pet as a child that perhaps you weren't the best owner to? Or do you wish that your past and present pets could meet? (Or do I just have too much time on my hands?)

Recent Eats

OK, so there has been literally nothing going on around here lately. My bad, peeps. But, good news ahead! Next Saturday David and I are leaving for a quick four-day jaunt to Mexico! David's Mom is turning seventy this year, and to celebrate she is taking the whole family to stay at the Four Seasons in Punta Mita.

The only other time I've been to Mexico was about eight years ago with my family, and I hated it. In part I hated it because I was a single person sharing a room with my brother Brian. I also hated it, however, because resort vacations aren't my top choice as far as vacations go. It sounds so nice to sit around in the sun and drink free drinks all day, but in my mind that makes for a very long day.

The moral of the story, however, is that when someone offers to take you to Mexico, you just shut up and say yes. So at the very least I'll have some tropical pictures to share with you all soon. Until then, here are some of my recent eats.

Today's lunch:

Today's snack + work:

As you can see, I've been on a serious egg kick lately. Breaking news, I know. The slightly unfortunate part of my "kick" is that I'll prolly eat eggs everyday for the next three weeks and then feel sickened by the thought of them. If only I was mature enough to ration my little fetus-eating habit; then I could enjoy them for many more years. Someday.

*What are you eating obsessively at the moment?