H54F: June Already?

Happy Friday everyone! 

WOW, we're almost half way through 2013 already....

I'm swamped at work so just doing a quick Linkup with Lauren for High Five For Friday.

#1 - Healthy dinners at home - Baked Tilapia and Steamed Broccoli.

#2 - K and I went looking at new construction houses last weekend and ran across our dream pool. Timeline to achieve this is prob over 5 years but a girl can dream, right?

#3 - New flip flips from Express bought on sale.

#4 - We got our NY passes in the mail for our trip in 2 weeks. I'm super excited because I've never been to New York before. We decided to purchase the NY Pass because it gets you into over 70+ of the main attractions including a Cruise around the Statue of Liberty, 9/11 Memorial, Top of the Rock, Madame Tussauds Wax Museums (and all the main museums), and much more.

#5 - Cheese is my weakness - Brie, Havarti, Gouda, you name it....These cute Babybel cheeses are the perfect snack and all under 100 calories.

I hope everyone has a fab weekend!

A Healthy Twist

I experimented with this Mashed Cauliflower recipe over the weekend and it's a keeper to replace mashed potatoes. We've been trying to cut our carbs especially at dinner time so this is the perfect substitution. K also loves it because it seriously tastes almost just like the real deal carb-loaded mashed potatoes.

I found several recipes online that said to add a ton of butter, cheese, breadcrumbs etc. but honestly I only added a little bit of the following and it tasted great.

My Mashed Cauliflower recipe:

1 head Cauliflower, cut into florets

1 tablespoon butter

1/4 cup Parmesan cheese

1/4 cup grated cheese

Garlic powder to taste

Ground black pepper to taste

Directions:

Steam cauliflower florets for 10 minutes or until tender.

Use a potato masher to mash caulfilower (you can use a hand mixer or food processor)

Add all ingredients and blend. 

It's really that easy and takes less than 20 minutes.

We served it with Steak Kabobs on Memorial Day and it was delicious!

Memorial Weekend Sunshine & Festivities

What a fun weekend with beautiful weather here in FL! It's obviously never long enough and going back to work is like torture but at least we made lots of good memories :-)

On Friday night, K and I did our usual dinner and date night so we went to see the Hangover 3. We both thought it was funny and worth seeing in the cinema although the first Hangover is probably still the best of the three.

On Saturday we went to a friend's birthday BBQ & pool party, which was lots of fun with tons of good food, desserts, dancing and cold drinks. Roxy the English bulldog was a great host ;-)

On Sunday a group of friends headed out to the beach which was packed full of people. I guess everyone else had the same idea as us but either way, I was just happy to finally get to lay out and relax near the water.

  On Sunday, K and I did some errands and then went to our neighborhood pool to enjoy the final hours of our long weekend. We drank some mini bud lights and grilled steak kabobs to celebrate Memorial Day!

How did you spend your memorial weekend?

Linking up with Sami for Weekend Shenanigans.

Happy Tuesday! 

High Five For The Long Weekend!

How excited are you for the 3-day weekend??

I'm pretty stoked to finally be in the sun and working on my tan ;-)

Joining Lauren today for High Five For Friday.

#1 - My favorite things - sunshine, friends, beach, cold drinks.

#2 - My new turquoise fringe bikini top arrived just in time for the weekend.

#3 - A cute Tervis Tumbler cup is perfect to keep your drinks cold at the beach or pool.

#4 - New summer outfits - online retail therapy/damage done last week.

#5 - Have you tried Mio yet? This liquid water enhancer is amazing with zero calories, zero sugar etc. I also use it to spruce up my vodka & soda drinks on the weekend. So far I'm loving the Berry Pomegranate flavor. 

What's your plans for the long weekend?

Have a fun one!!

#TBT Memorial Weekend '12

Memorial weekend in Florida is one of my favorite long weekends. It's that time of year to head out to the beach or pull out the grill and lay by the pool with friends. We plan on doing all of the above this weekend! 

Last year a big group of us headed out to Cocoa Beach and had a great time for the holiday weekend.

As our Cocoa beach tradition goes, the girls must sneak off to the bar and do some shots. We then must buy some frozen drinks topped with a shot of 151. Good decisions?

For anyone visiting Cocoa beach, you must try the "Pain in the Ass" frozen drink. Ingredients: 1/2 Daiquiri, 1/2 Pina Colada with a shot of 151...yummy but strong!

Linking up today for Throwback Thursday.

 

Counting down til the weekend!

Summer Must-Haves

With the holiday weekend in just a few days, I wanted to share some of my summer must-haves and fave products for 2013.

#1 - Mix and match bikini tops & bottoms from VS.

#2 - Banana Boat Sport Performance Sunscreen - I swear by this sunscreen and have spent 5+ hours in the sun without burning.

#3 - A Nice Big Beach Bag - I got this one for free after spending $70 at VS. It looks small in the photo but it fits everything I need - 2 towels, a change of clothes, snacks/water bottles and everything else you need to take with you to the beach or pool.

#4 - Waterproof Mascara - I use Maybelline Volume Express Turbo Boost and it works great.

#5 - A Cute Hat - I found this Straw Fedora for only $9.99 from Charlotte Russe.

#6 - Self Tanning Lotion - I've been using ULTA brand (and Jergens Glow in the past) to get a little head start. It doesn't make you look like Snooky. Promise.

Joining the Wildcard Wednesday Linkup today for the first time...

What's your must-haves for fun outdoors in the sun?

Weekend Whereabouts

Hope everyone is having a great day so far!  My Monday hasn't been too shabby which is usually unheard of in these parts ;-)

Linking up with Sami today for Weekend Shenanigans.

On Friday night, K and I just went for our usual dinner and drinks. We decided to go to Outback because neither of us had been there in years. I tried their new Blackberry Sangria from the drinks menu which was delicious!

On Saturday morning , I went to get a facial which I got for free for voting for this specific spa in some local awards. They of course upcharged me $20 for the facial mask (which I didn't ask for). Ah well, when is anything really free?

After I met up with K at the gym and we worked out together and then went for a quick lunch.

On Saturday night, we headed out to the movies. We were hoping to see The Great Gatsby but it ended up being sold out, so our second choice was The Peeples. The movie got some bad reviews but both K and I thought it was pretty funny :-)

On Sunday, I met up with some ladies at a new brunch spot downtown. They had a delicious brunch spread with bottomless mimosas and sangria. It was a nice little get-together with good food, drinks and company.

 

Have a great week everyone!

Hello Fabulous Friday!

 Hey pretty ladies! I apologize for being MIA most of this week. My job has been consuming my life BUT it's Friday and I'm excited to relax and have some fun this weekend!

Linking up with Lauren for High Five For Friday.

#1- Excited for sunny beach and pool weather. My friend (and the groom from last weekend's wedding) and I popping a champagne bottle after our pool party got rained out. We transferred the party to the bride & groom's hotel suite.

#2 - I got my makeup done at the MAC store last weekend for free with the purchase of $50 worth of makeup. The makeup artist did my eyes a little bolder than I was hoping for but it's still a great deal and I'll definitely be going again for weddings and other special occasions.

#3 - My outfit for the wedding last weekend. Short navy blue dress with brown belt & shoes and my grandmother's pearl necklace.

#4 - I made Caribbean Curry chicken in the crockpot last weekend and it came out yummy! I cooked it on high for 6 hours, although it could of as easily been done on the stove for much less time. I used this recipe.

#5- I'm thinking of buying a Wall Decal/Sticker with one of those cute sayings for our bedroom. I spotted one at my Dr's office this week and she said they can be purchased at Joann's.

 

I hope everyone has a super fun/relaxing/sassy weekend! I'm already ready for a strong martini and it's not even noon yet ;-)

 

Weekend Wedding & Fun in Sun

What a fun weekend we had! On Friday night we went to a friend's wedding at one of the nice resorts here in town. 

All of our friends came into town for the wedding so we got some nice group pictures of the girls, while most of the guys were groomsmen in the wedding.

Mostly everyone from the wedding stayed the night at the hotel so we all hung out by the pool on Saturday..all 45 of us! That was a fun day and the first time we got to hang out by the pool for the year. 

We had a relaxing Sunday at home watching Dexter and ordering take out Chinese.

Now that the weather is warmer and sunny here in Florida, I'm looking forward to many more pool and beach days!

Linking up with Sami for Weekend Shenanigans ;-)

Cheers to another week!

Hello Friday!

I swear I've been running around like a chicken with no head for the past two weeks and it hasn't stopped yet. I'm rushing off from work to head to a wedding.... after staying out past my "bed-time" for the rehearsal dinner last night. Let the celebrations begin! Hopefully, I'll get to sleep like a baby on Sunday when everything has come to an end. 

Linking up with Lauren today for High Five For Friday.

1. I finally got to wear my new pink bubble necklace to the wedding rehearsal dinner last night.

2. K and I bought NY passes for our anniversary trip in June. It gets you in to all the main NYC attractions including the 9/11 Tribute Center, Madame Tussauds, Top of the Rock, Empire State building and about 65 other attractions. It saves you a bunch of money and works as a fast pass at many of the attractions.

3. I'm loving Green tea with Jasmine instead of coffee in the mornings.

4. Blurry pic from us at the Slightly Stoopid concert last weekend in St Pete. We had a blast!

5. Some of my favorite fruits for the detox diet we are doing this week. K and I feel so much better and are sleeping better. It's going to be a lifestyle change for us but we're going to allow ourselves to cheat on the weekends and for special occasions.

 

I hope everyone has a great weekend and Happy Mother's day to all the Moms out there :-)

The "Get Healthy" Challenge

My company has challenged us to get healthy. They are paying for our gym memberships and a Nutritionist for the next 6 months. If we pass the challenge, we'll win a 1 night stay at the Gaylord Palms resort along with a dinner party and a brunch. With that said, Game On!

Joining Erin & Alex today for Weigh-In Wednesday.

The first phase of the Nutrition program is the detox phase which is what I am doing right now. This phase eliminates carbs and red meat from your diet. You are allowed to eat white meat, seafood, fruits & veggies, which is good enough for me!  


The detoxification diet encourages you to eat 6 small meals per day (Breakfast, snack, Lunch, snack, Dinner, snack.)

One of the biggest challenges for me so far (other than craving pizza & milkshakes, of course) is that you definitely have to prepare your meals the night before. I cook dinners at home but I have to prepare breakfast, lunch and any snacks for the next day. Snacks can include hard boiled eggs or 1 cup of berries, melons, etc.

I almost forgot to mention WINE!! Wine isn't allowed in this phase. That's a pretty huge challenge for me as well!

Here's some other helpful nutrition facts that I found out in my first consultation:

- The best time to do cardio is first thing in the morning on an empty stomach.

- Milk is liquid sugar. If you are a coffee drinker, use a non-dairy powder sugar free creamer

1 gram of Protein = 4 calories

1 gram of Carbs =  4 calories

1 gram of Fat = 9 calories

One. Day. At. A. Time. 

Weekend Fun in Another Town

What a fun-filled and hectic weekend! Of course I'm completely exhausted  today which makes for a rough Monday... but it was all worth it.

On Friday, we headed out of town to St Petersburg, FL to see Slightly Stoopid in concert with a group of friends. We stayed the night at a cute boutique hotel in the heart of St Pete which was walking distance to the concert venue.

On Saturday morning we went for brunch at a cute Tapas Restaurant in St Pete and enjoyed some Bloody Mary's and Eggs Benedict with Smoked Salmon.

The weather was beautiful in St Pete on Saturday so we decided to walk around and explore the city. Everyone was out walking their dogs, eating brunch/lunch out on restaurant patios and we really enjoyed the vibe of this town.

 

We walked through the Farmer's Market, checked out the St Pete Pier and walked around the Tampa Bay waterfront.

 

After exploring St Pete we headed back home and had a quiet Saturday night. 

On Sunday, I met up with an old friend that was in town visiting. Since it was Cinco de Mayo we went for some drinks at a Mexican restaurant that had live music and good drink specials.

We then went for dinner at Kobe Japanese Steakhouse where the chefs cook on the hibachi grill in front of you and entertain with tricks and jokes. The food is always delicious too!

Linking up with Sami today for Weekend Shenanigans.

 

Cheers to another week!

High Five For Friday

Wow, this is officially my 100th post! I feel like only joined the bloggy world yesterday... but I'm happy with the direction it has taken and hope to continue to meet many more funny, beautiful and inspiring ladies in this space.

I'm also gonna have to start planning a giveaway to offer my lovely followers very soon!!

Joining Lauren today for H54F.

 

 (*sorry for the super tiny pics. My blog template restricts me from using anything bigger. I gotta get that fixed.)

#1: We're headed to St. Pete, FL tonight to see one of my favorite bands - Slightly Stoopid! I saw them about 5 years ago but their music has grown so much since then... I'm excited!!

#2: My new goodies from Ulta (saved $100 using my rewards card and several coupons & promotions currently going on). Several products I decided to try after reading Whitney @ I Work Yoga Pants to Work's "What's on my Face" post including Revlon's PhotoReady Foundation and Benefit's High Beam Highlighter.

#3: Having fun last weekend with one of my best friends and her housewarming party.

#4: New favorite snack - Flipside pretzel crackers, with pepper jelly and brie cheese. This is also an awesome finger food to serve at parties.

#5: Painted my nails for the weekend with a sheer pink nail polish called Sheer Blossom. Light or nude colors are much harder to mess up!

Cheers to the weekend!