Picnic Menu

hello lovers!

In all honesty, this week has not been going very fast at all, but i can't believe tomorrow is friday! I have been waiting for this weekend for months! why??

It is one of the busiest weekends of the spring/summer season for me - packed with fun and exciting things!

My little sister graduates from University of Maryland tomorrow! I can't explain how amazing she is ... she is graduating with honors from UMD in three years and is on to Ohio State Vet School later this summer.

When you are little you wish and hope and pray to the moon and back that you were born an only child.

I couldn't imagine my life without her though. Living an hour away we only see each other once or twice a month, but her moving away is going to be hard!

She was the first person I called crying to when Princeton passed away. We are so different, but I couldn't ask for a better sissy ... even when she is grumpy!

Us on my graduation day from college last year!

okay, okay... enough sappiness. you want picnic menu ideas!

This Saturday we are heading over to Wine in the Woods, a huge wine festival that I have been wanting to go to for years - but college and working stopped me. {Not this year!}

For five hours I will be picnicking with friends, sipping on 385374 different types of wines, laying out on a blanket soaking up the sun {it's been raining all week} and listening to live music.

perfect day. but what should i bring?

I have been searching and thinking of healthy things I could pack for lunch. We are headed out to Kent Island Saturday night for dinner and dancing and have an "adventure" 5k on Sunday so I don't want to be uncomfortable at all. I want something light, filling and delicious!

Here is what I am thinking along with the links to the recipes:

Lemon Orzo Salad with Asparagus, Spinach and Feta
Pulled Pork Sandwiches {not so light, but a summer staple}
Cranberry, Almond Chicken Salad with Greek Yogurt instead of Mayo
Fruit Salad
Mint Lemonade
Strawberry Swirl Cheesecake {low fat}

What I love to wear to outdoor picnics:

I love maxi dresses for spring outdoor events. It takes less time putting together an outfit that might look cute, but isn't designed for sitting in the grass all day. Maxi dresses are flattering on everyone and thankfully they are still in style this Spring!

Of course a spring floral dress with a brown belt would work perfectly fine too!

have any good picnic menu ideas? send them my way!!

today at 10 is the last time you can enter my giveaway! if you are a runner/athlete this is a great thing to use! it works wonders on my sore muscles after running! enter here!

Weekend To-Do List!

Hello Rainy Weekend! I won't let you get me down!

Actually, I am a little thankful for the rain because it has convinced the spinach seeds I planted on Tuesday to sprout out of the ground this morning! This calls for a celebration so of course I am headed to Home Depot today to see what other kinds of messes I can get myself into!

Thursday I went running with my girl Stacey at the B&A trail and she must have thought we had a 5k scheduled for next weekend {warrior dash} because she whipped my booty! The thing I love best about running with her is we both motivate one another to go the extra mile, we let each other run at their own pace {running with CL I've improved my mile time} and we have a blast getting together and talking {huffing and puffing} that I don't have to update my iPod as often.

If you want to semi-die this weekend you can copy-cat our routine below!

1 mile brisk walk to warm up {how far the trail is from the parking lot}
.5 mile run
lounges
.5 mile run
4 sets of 25 sit ups (regular, left side, right side, lower abs)
.5 mile run
3 sets of 10 push ups
Repeat steps 2-6
Brisk walk back while stretching to cool off

So all in all it is about 6 miles walk/run/toning. Not bad for a Thursday after work workout sesh.

Afterwards I had to try out the TheraPearl products Terri sent me to review on my blog! I was sore, and dirty from the sit ups and push ups {the grocery store check out lady even asked me if I fell on the way in}.

If you have never heard of TheraPearl before it is amazing and I highly suggest it to all athletes out there because it really helped my sore leg muscles after running. Don't run? Spas nationwide carry this product too! Want to hear some cool facts?

1. It's doctor-designed (she actually practices out of Columbia, MD and just designed the product for her own practice before it went to retail)
2. Their "Pearl Technology" is based on the concept of frozen peas... so they mold wayyyy better than a gel pack and aren't messy like a bag of actual ice
3. They can be microwaved or frozen {I microwaved mine}
4. Non-toxic, re-usable

See the steam inside of the bag? Felt so good!! I definitely recommend and it stayed warm for an hour after only microwaving it for 40 seconds. I hate when ice packs loose their temps quickly! I wanna relax!

Check back Monday because I may or may not be giving away some free products!! {hint, i totally am} I asked my boss to give a sports pack to her Husband to review over the weekend to get a guys perspective!

CL has been getting pretty serious about his workouts and eating habits again since it's "beach season" so last night instead of our usual burrito bowl we settled on a salad from chipotle. No carbs late at night I am told! That's okay with me as long as I can eat this every single night. ;-)

 

 

Yup, that's CLs body building mag and my weights for when I do ToneItUp or Jillian Michaels. Next weekend is going to be crazy! Wine festival, sister's graduation, CL's grandmother's 60th birthday night out, warrior dash and couples massages to end it on a high note.

So this weekend I am preparing! Today I have to...
1. Get a dress for the 60th birthday bash and wine festival, as well as a birthday present
2. Work out
3. Stop by home-depot {I'm obsessed with growing veggies I think!}
4. Grocery Shopping
5. Clean the house
6. Get ready for a night out with college friends!

What are your plans for the weekend??

LÄRABAR

What makes this woman think she can speak among men? Because only Spartan women give birth to real men.

Hope everyone had a great hump day! I had an amazing day - signed up for the warrior dash in May, went to kickboxing class and it's already over halfway to the weekend! I had so much energy today I blew through my kickboxing class with the high endurance moves for the full hour. Don't you love those days?

As mentioned before, Monday I was sent my amazing package from Erica at LÄRABAR to review four of their amazing energy bars. Miss that post? Here is how excited I was.

The thing I loved most about these bars was the fact that you can literally count the ingredients on one of your hands. They are made from fresh ingredients, are gluten, dairy and soy free, vegan and kosher. What more could you ask from an energy bar? You will be blown away with how moist each of them are too. I noticed all four of the bars they sent me contained dates... I see a new grocery item to add to my shopping list! I got all of these photos from their website, definitely check it out!

First on my list was Cherry Pie. This was by far my favorite bar. It was moist and literally tasted like thanksgiving in your mouth. Amazingly it is made from only almonds, unsweetened cherries and dates.

Next up was Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip. I shared this with my boss (since I am not much of a chocolate lover). Surprisingly I ate more of this bar than her! The nuts really stood out in this bar. It contained only salt, chocolate chips, peanuts and dates!

Chris scarfed this bar down one night while we were in bed. He let me have one nibble though. I was really impressed. It tasted exactly like banana bread. For all of you that love eating a slice of banana bread in the morning but don't have the time to make it stock up on these! They are made from dates, unsweetened bananas and almonds. Delicious.

Last, but not least, was the coconut cream pie. I was a little weary about this bar. I didn't know what to expect. It tastes exactly like an almond joy candy bar minus the chocolate. But don't let that stop you from dipping the bar in some melted chocolate. This was a dream come true for all chocolate haters! This had the most ingredients of the four. The five (i know!) ingredients were almonds, dates, unsweetened coconut, cashews and organic extra virgin coconut oil.

I also thought of some fun ways you could eat LÄRABAR everyday. You could crumble it and add to your oatmeal or yogurt. You could break it and add to your trailmix. You could even cut it in fours, roll into balls and dip in chocolate. The possibilities are endless! *These reviews are based on my own opinions!

This was my breakfast and lunch. Am I the only one who packs ketchup to bring to the office? Hello co-workers - please stock the fridge with some ketchup! I will love you forever if you do! I had another black bean burger with hummus and greens, a banana and some tangerines (not pictured) for a snack and a LÄRABAR for breakfast. Tonight's dinner is turkey chili. The easiest dinner meal possible because I think I used up the last of today's energy writing this post and in kickboxing class.

I am off to eat a big bowl of chili and watch Top Chef. Hope you have a great night!

Have you heard of the Warrior Dash? I am going to have to write a post dedicated to this! I was so excited my amazing friends decided to sign up with me! Have you ever tried LARABARs? What is your favorite energy bar? I think I am going to try to make these homemade! With only 4-5 ingredients I can't screw up too bad huh?