>They sandwich master

>Good evening! I hope you’re all enjoying this beautiful fall weather. I sure am!

Last night I met my old roomie for happy hour at Farmers and Fishers at the Georgetown Waterfront. If you are in the DC area and craving a margarita, you must stop by.

Silver tequila, cointreau, fresh lime juice, and organic agave nectar. 

Perfection? I think so.

Then I wandered to meet a friend at a housewarming rooftop party – so much fun!

———

This morning err afternoon, I woke and made His & Her smoothies.

HIS was extra packed with vitamins because the Manfriend isn’t feeling so great:

Vanilla whey protein, frozen banana, 1 cup frozen berries, fresh spinach, almond butter, honey, OJ, ice.

*I added honey to soothe his aching throat, and almond butter (as a source of fat) to promote absorption of fat soluble vitamins

And HERS:

Extra thick. I like mine almost like FroYo.

1 scoop vanilla SunWarrior, frozen banana, 1/2 cup frozen fruit, fresh spinach, tsp almond butter, stevia, xanthan gum (to thicken), dash sea salt, H20

HIS was accompanied with a glass of OJ…

While HERS came with the perfect cup of coffee, a la Keurig:

———–

For lunch, I was craving a childhood favorite: A turkey sandwich.

Why was I craving this, you might ask? Perhaps the fact that my sister eats one almost every single day, might have something to do with it!

Behold, a conversation with the Turkey Sandwich Master…

Me + Kelsey (sister)

ME: Kelsey, how many turkey sandwiches do you consume per week?

KELS: Umm, maybe 4-5. It’s better than college though..

ME: Lately what type of bread do you use?

KELS: Flat bread. You know, those bagel thins.

ME: Toasted?

KELS: Nope.

ME: Please describe the perfect turkey sandwich.

KELS: Funny you ask, I feel like I have developed the most ideal, perfect, and delicious turkey I’ve had in my entire life. It’s simple and to the point. On one side of the flat bread, smear one wedge of Laughing Cow Cheese. On the other side, put a layer of light mayonnaise. Next, place shredded turkey on the cheese side. Put the top side on, and smush it down with your hand to create the idea turkey sandwich consistency.

ME: Do you ever get sick of turkey and perhaps want something else, like tuna or ham?

KELS: Nope. I sometimes eat it for breakfast too.

Whelp, there ya go!

Kelsey nicely sent me a picture of her latest creation:

And here’s my version of perfection:

My players:

Whole grain bread, toasted

All natural deli turkey

Light Laughing Cow cheese

Spinach

Tomato

Organic low-fat mayo

The sandwich paired nicely with an organic fuji apple + peanut butter

———-

Well I’m off to do a little yoga, make dinner, then get ready for tomorrow’s 26.2K (16.3 mile) race! I’m VERY nervous!!!!

Stay tuned for an amazing guest post from Tina! She wrote a beautiful letter for the “Letters to Me“ campaign.

Questions:

What’s your favorite sandwich?

If you’re a coffee drinker, what’s your perfect cup of Joe?

Laur

>Randomnessss

>HI DARLINGS!!!!

How are you? Hope your week is off to a great start! I decided to make this post completely random and post pictures of food, activities, etc. from the past few days…

Made roasted onion and eggplant (boiled then broiled) and topped with curry, sea salt, pepper:

And topped with my current obsession:

^Seriously get a hold of this stuff. You’ll thank me later.

Snacked on this combo quite a bit:

^Kashi Go lean, Trader Joe’s High Fiber Cereal, raisins, sea-salted peanuts, Better N’ Peanut Butter

Did a little fitness reading by the pool. What do you think of Oxygen magazine??

^I think it has great advice/workout routines/etc. but think the overwhelming amounts of diet pill ads are pretty lame.

Snapped this pic because I think it delivers a GREAT MESSAGE:

^PREVENTION is KEY!

Received a Thank You card and picture for attending the wedding in Tremblant, Quebec:

^Seriously could they have bleached out our faces anymore??? Hello, Casper.

Did a quick grocery trip and came across this MASSIVE can of beans..

^Maybe not as funny as I found it?? HAHA

Came across some old home videos circa 1990:

^I’m at the bottom with the long hair (other two are my sister and brother)

Had the same breakfast (Chocolate Covered Strawberry Protein Smoothie) for the last 4-5 days and STILL looking forward to it tomorrow:

^Chocolate whey, frozen strawberries, ice, ice H20, pinch xanthan gum, stevia, dash sea salt.

Ventured to the Georgetown Waterfront to enjoy a cocktail with friends and the beautiful riverside scenery:

Swedish Embassy:

OK KIDS, I’m off to a BodyPump class then meeting Kels (sister) for lunch at Chop’t and a little Tarjayyy shopping then volunteering with ma kiddos!!!

Have a great week!!!

QUES: Whats the most RANDOM thing you did/saw/ate/watched this weekend???

XX

Laur

>Calm after the storm

>Hellloooo! Happy Father’s Day! My daddy-O is in NH so I’m sad I couldn’t be with him. What did you do to celebrate???

This weekend was a bit more lax then last few. Now that my clinical is over I can breeeeathe. Saturday I got SIXTEEN hours of sleep! HAHAHA! I was sooo tired after waking up everyday before 6am that by Friday night I was SPENT! Sometime around 7pm I called it a night, LOL 🙂

Saturday I woke up refreshed (!) and make my current smoothie obsession:

^Chocolate-covered strawberry: 1 scoop Chocolate Whey protein, ~5 frozen strawberries, ice, cold H20, 1 tsp xanthan gum, stevia

After browsing my fav blogs, sites, and maaaaybe doing a little online shopping, I worked on my M.S. Thesis for a while then headed to the gym for a GRUELING 45 min spinning class. Seriously, I think I sprinted for at least 20 mins total. Nuts!

And because we are COMPLETELY out of groceries I headed to Trader Joe’s and complied this in no time:

^HA! Seriously, we had next to NOTHING. Orrrr, I’m just a foodie and needed everyyything. OK, maybe a little bit of both 😉

I also ground my own coffee for the first time!

^Sorry for my icky nails and cut! LOL

Not sure why I haven’t done this before! For you Trader Joe’s fanatics and coffee lovers, any recommendations on a good TJ’s coffee??? I tried the Breakfast blend and its pretty good.

Later in the evening my long-lost-friend Ally came over and had a little dinnah party. On the menu:

^Veggies and laughing cow cheese (plus several kinds of hummus, no pictured)

Polenta pizza crust topped with diced tomatoes, EVOO, fresh basil, and fresh garlic:

^LOVE this. The hot (crust) and cold (topping) combo was amazin’

Bean salad from Whole Foods:

^Ally brought this because she loves me and is well aware of my bean obsession!

My plate:

And some WHITE SANGRIA!

^SO easy to make! We used Soverign Blanc, small splash peach schnapps and triple sec, dash stevia, and frozen fruit (we used pineapples, raspberries, peaches, and strawberries)

After our food coma subsided, we headed to the Georgetown Waterfront to meet our roommate Steve and my Manfriend for a cocktail. And by cocktail, I mean margarita – obviously 😉

Today I woke around 9:30, made another Chocolate Covered Strawberry smoothie (because I’m clearly obsessed) and headed to another intense spinning class. I really wanted to run outside today but by 10am it was already 90 degrees!

Later in the day I met Kels (sister) for a picnic at Georgetown. Georgetown University is seriously one of the most gorgeous campuses I’ve ever seen. I’d often sit in the park and study after class (almost) all year round.

Lunch was leftover polenta pizza and some fresh fruit (not pictured):

Well kids, I’m off to bed. Have a lovely Monday!!!!!

QUESTION: Who has seen Sex and the City 2 already???? I’m planning to go this week and can’t wait!!!

XX,

Lauren

>Go green AND lean!

>Hiii lovelies,

HAPPY SUNDAY! Hope your weekend was delightful 🙂

This morning I woke after TWELVE hours of sleep (!) and ventured to the gym for a spinning class since it’s SO HOT AND HUMID here in DC. I can’t understand how so many people run when it’s 85+ degrees in the beaming sun. Props to you if you can do this but me, I’d rather wait til the sun sets 🙂

Pre-gym I fueled with a delish GREEN MONSTER!

^Vanilla whey, frozen berries, 2 handfuls spinach, H20, stevia, 1/2 frozen nanner

And enjoyed it on our lovely new deck 🙂

So this morning I WENT GREED AND BURNED MAJOR CALORIES at the same time. How did I do this?

My gym recently renovated it’s spinning room and converted all spinning bikes to ones that HAVE GENERATORS attached. The longer/harder you spin, the more ENERGY GENERATED FOR THE GYM.

Here’s a pic of the bike. You can see the generator on the bottom right-side of the bike:

How cool!!!!!

After class, I stopped at Sbucks for an iced coffee (+ soy) and made this yummy egg concoction:

^Scrambled egg whites + spinach. Topped with Nutritional Yeast and hot sauce.

And not just any hot sauce….

^I’m OBSESSED with this stuff! Have you tried it???

Well I’m off to shop a bit with my sister then possibly hit the pool since it’s soooo HAAAWWWWTTT out!

HAVE A GREAT REST OF YOUR DAY!!!!!

Q: What was the best part of your weekend?? Mine was happy hour on the Waterfront on Friday. Nothing like a delish skinny margarita in the sun 🙂

Q2: Who’s watching Kourtney and Khloe Take Miami tonight?????

source

>Alright Funk, enough already.

>Hiiiii everyone!!!

I’M BACKKKKK!!!!! Thank you, thank you, thank you for your sweet comments on my last post! Y’all really made my day!!!! It’s seriously such a wonderful and supportive community in Bloggerland. I LOVE IT!!!

I am going to dedicate this post to what I tend to do when in a poopy mood, and what I DID to get me out of this terrible FUNK! We all have bad days, weeks, etc. and after all of the tears are gone, ya gotta pick yourself up. How do you do this????

For me, the last few days have been spent doing things that bring a smile to my face. Such as:

Spending time with close friends:

^Ally and I post-crawfish boil (details to come! Twas awesome!!)

Doing insanely sweat-provoking and endorphin-pumping workouts:

^Spinning kicks my arse every time. Seriously check out that SWEAT!

Splurging on nourishing meals (how I justify redic overpriced salads):

Making an (un)necessary trip to Tar-jay — just cause:

^Nothing like new workout and summer clothes to lift your spirit 😉

Letting your significant other take you on a fancy dinner date (like I’d ever say NO!):

^Rare seared Ahi Tuna

^Scallops over risotto

^Split this perfect concoction with the Manfriend (chocolate tart and ice cream over a caramelized banana)

Lounging in the sun by the Waterfront:

And staying til the sun goes down (and then some) for a riverside dinner:

^Sequoia at the Georgetown Waterfront

^Ahi tuna and avocado app

^Grilled salmon

And HAPPILY making some treats out of the INCREDIBLE GENEROUS package POM Wonderful sent me! Thank you again!!

^Shameless promotion (Manfriend’s friend Will on L, MF on R) of Blended POM Margaritas (clear tequila, splash triple sec, 1 tsp agave, splash fresh lime juice, 1/4 cup frozen raspberries, ice. Blended = Magic)

^POM margarita on the rocks (clear tequila, splash triple sec, splash POM juice, fresh lime juice, dash stevia, ice)

^POM protein smoothies (1 scoop vanilla whey, 1/4 cup raspberries, 1/2 frozen banana, splash POM juice, dash stevia, 1 tsp flax seed oil, ice, H20)….FANTASTIC!!!

And running your favorite and most scenic running routes. AND stopping at those that give you that aaaah feeling:

Let me know WHAT WORKS FOR YOU!!!!!! I’ll be back later today for a post about to the cause of my funk…and some other recent adventures 🙂

LOVE YOU GUYS!!!!!!!!!!!!!

xx,

Lauren

>Sweet sweet summatime and giveaway winner!

>Hellooo,

Que pasa? I’m just gonna throw it out there — I woke up on the wrongggg side of the bed this morning! Not sure what my deal is, I’m just feeling kinda funk. Perhaps it’s the rain, or the fact it’s only Wednesday, but I know I need to do something to snap myself out of this.

So I thought, what really puts me in a good mood??? The first thing that came to mind was duh… SUMMER! Now I know I’m not in college anymore, and I don’t have three months off to frolic on the beach, lay by the pool, and sleep in until 11:00 every day. Despite that, summer is still pretty awesome.

I’ve decided to dedicate this post to what I love most about summer! What’s your favorite part?

^Skinny margaritas; bet you are shocked by this (recipes here and here)!

Georgetown Waterfront:

Surfside!

^My favorite restaurant for fresh fish tacos!

Smoothies:

^I always crave cold breakfasts when its warm

Green Monsters:

Sangria:

^Recipe here!

Summer salads:

Running/biking around the Potomac River:

Kayaking!!!!

Iced coffee galore:

Bud Light Golden Wheat:

^If you like Blue Moon but prefer light beers this one is great!!!

Grilled kabobs and veggies:


Countryfest!

And (hopefully) some time spent poolside 😎

Well I wanted to say thank you to everyone that helped out with my survey! The Manfriend (a designer) is starting a women’s active apparel line! So when the samples start rolling in, check in for more giveaways (And Seth, I’ll always accept free-bees! ha)

Using a random number generator, the winner is #22 ASHLEY from The Vegster! Ashley, please send me your address (Biochemista@gmail.com) and I’ll send out your surprise package asap! 🙂

Have a nice night and fantastic Thursday!!

xx,
Laur

>Race fail, R&R success

>Hiiii,

How was your weekend??? Mine was splendid. The weather in DC was absolutely amazing:

^Sunshine!

^Crystal clear blue skies

Saturday we made it down to the Cherry Blossom Festival. I feel pretty bad for those out-of-towners because the blossoms peaked last weekend and were pretty non-existent this weekend. Fortunately for me however, I already saw them 🙂

It was a nice day nonetheless, we did a lot of walking around some perdy places:

Then ventured to the waterfront for some drinks in the sunshine:

^Outdoor seating (8 bars and restaurants) that face Potomac River

^Nick’s Riverside Grille. Those bartenders make killer drinks.

^Obviously I went for the margarita (tequila, splash triple sec, splash OJ, juice from 4-5 lime wedges)

^LOVE the waterfront. Can you believe this place is a 5 min walk from my apartment? Cause I still can’t!

After loungin’ in the sun all day, I went for a 5 mile run, lounged some more then put on my party dress and headed out to continue Kelsey’s bday celebration!

Check out ma shoes:

^Not super new, but I love em like they are! Bosssssaaay.

^Birrrrfday celebration clearly calls for champagne and strawberries, right?

The night was so much fun!! So much that I failed to take any pics except these two:

^Cuties (Michael and Andrea)

^Andrea, Kels (sistah), and the pup

The night was a blasssst but when I got home I wasn’t feeling so hot. Had nothing to do with the drinks (I was actually a good girl!) I think the Mexican upset my stomach. Unfortunately I was up so late with a bad stomach ache that I chose not to run the Cherry Blossom 10-miler 😦

I made up the 10 miles later in the day, so it’s allll good. Although I heard it’s a gorgeous race..

Instead of waking at 6:30am for the race, I slept in and the Manfriend had had breakfast together:

^Egg whites and spinach on Ezekiel bread for me

And tuna (don’t ask, he wanted it):

^Tuna, light mayo, dill, diced kosher dill pickles, pepper, dash sea salt, Ezekiel bread

Grabbed some sbucks:

^Iced unsweetened Passion Tea. So refreshing.

And headed to lounge in the park (Dupont Circle):

We basked in the sun (well I did, heh) while Seth worked on some sketches:

The best part of the day was listening to the music of the nearby dancers:

http://www.youtube.com/get_player

^How cool is that???

For dinner we went to my favorite salad restaurant, Chop’t. This place is SO GOOD!

Toppings galore:

Chop chop:

^Pretty sure my Chopper Man felt like a celeb when I snapped this pic, ha!

Finished product:

^Spring mix, arugula, roasted turkey, avocado, roasted artichokes, tomatoes, black beans, cranberries, sunflower seeds, balsamic vinegar and whole wheat pita. mmm mmmm.

Well kids, I’m off to bed. Have a fantastic Monday!!!

QUESTION: What was the BEST part of your weekend? Try new food? Get some R&R?? I think I got a little too much! ha

xx,

Lauren

>When did I become such a wuss?

>Happy Fridayyyy!! Whoop Whoop

I am so pumped for the weekend. It’s been an exhausting week in scienceland and I am greatly looking forward to spending some quality time with Sir DVR and some highly anticipated holiday shopping in Georgetown:

http://www.rachelleb.com/images/2004_11_28/buildings_light.jpg

http://static.panoramio.com/photos/original/10465055.jpg

http://www.janebtodaro.com/gallery.html

I love Gtown Prior to moving here, I had a very different opinion of the city in my head. I imagined it as a dirty, crime-ridden city, mostly concrete in appearance. But it’s quite the opposite. I hope I live here for a very, very long time…wink wink MF

It rarely snows in DC but this weekend we are expecting 8-12 inches! I’m not sure how the city is going to handle this (seriously). It’s quite hysterical to me as I grew up in NH (but you’d never know it, as turn into a toddler in the cold) and 12 inches, was just an average snowstorm. But really, how many companies exist in the south (OK, not technically the ‘South’, I have learned the difference from living here…ha) to deal with snow storms? Last year it snowed maybe two times (1-2 inches) and everyone in the city literally forgot how to drive and all schools were cancelled…Sorry I’ll stop bashing my city now, I really do love it here 🙂

Thinking of this impending storm, I thought about all the things I’m going to miss. Most notably, running around the Potomac:

http://www.janebtodaro.com/gallery.html

and around the National mall/Reflecting Pool:

http://harmonoutdoorsinc.com/images/travel/_DSC5016_National%20Mall%20view.jpg

(Looks like I will reacquainted with the spinning apparatus of death (Not sure which blog I read this term on, but think it’s hilarious..and might agree).

and of course drinks at the Gtown waterfront:

http://images.travelpod.com/users/washdcmike/washington_dc.1184438640.1-georgetown-water-front.jpg

http://z.about.com/d/dc/1/0/b/C/DSC00545.JPG

http://www.janebtodaro.com/gallery.html

Despite my clear hate of the cold, I am greatly looking forward to spending the holidays in NH! You see, it kinda works out well for me: Brave this “miserable” (ha) 40 degree winter in DC, spend the holidays surrounded in NH’s beauty (with snow for Christmas of course), then come back here and let y’all in NE brave the rest of it out for me…Sound like a plan? Okay, thanks so much 🙂

Whelp, back to staring at this beautiful image for the next hour or so…

(Gotta love Days-0-Excel)….Scienceland is quiet today, filled mostly with data (schmata? J/k labmates) analysis.

Have a great weekend! I leave you with some holiday cheer I saw last night (yep, antlers and lights):

-Lauren