I am going to be reviewing a product of my choosing from CSN Stores soon. I’m not sure what I’m going to pick yet–perhaps a new kitchen appliance, a yoga mat or a bookcase headboard….as a housewarming gift, ya know?

Today was quite a productive day. It was a different kind of ‘productive’ though. I got nothing on my to-do list checked off. I only spent about 15 min. Tweeting and reading blogs. I didn’t get my workout in (until just now) and I didn’t get a chance to work on the recipe I was hoping to get done.

Instead, I spent the day cleaning up the condo with my dad and then running errands all over town. I had some leftover junk in my room to sort through and I also cleaned my bathroom. I have a major bathroom phobia. Not just public bathrooms but my own bathroom too. Of course, I’m not above cleaning my bathroom, but I definitely have to hold my breath and scrunch up my nose to get through it. It is by far my most hated household chore. Washing dishes, folding laundry, vacuuming and Swiffer Sweeping, I’m totally okay with, but cleaning bathrooms gives me the heebie jeebies.

Anyways, I feel like I accomplished a lot today even though it is now almost 10 PM and I am just sitting down to check my email, write this blog post, and show you fragments of my eats.

Such is life.

***

This morning, I ate a bowl of pumpkin Greek yogurt mixed with eggy oats. Toppings included pecans, banana slices and cinnamon grahams.

I’ve been noshing on Newman’s Own Organics snacks all day long. I found this huge package at my doorstep last night filled with Newman’s Own Organics products sent to me for free. I’ve been eager to try some of these for a long long looong time.

I’ve already cracked open 6 of the snacks! Two of my favorites have been the Hermits and the Alphabet Cookies.

These Hermits are the bomb. I’ve been thinking about how to describe them all day. They’re a mix between an oatmeal raisin cookie and a Fig Newton (or Fig Newman I should say). They have a strong molasses flavor, which I love.

I’m trying to be smart about my snacking because I could easily go overboard with these snacks running loose in the house and end up completely ruining my appetite for real meals. As an avid snacker, I have to be careful not to snack through my meals.

***

My dad came home from Costco yesterday with this humongous pumpkin pie. Ohhh Peter.

Peter Peter Pumpkin Eater.

I’ve had small slivers here and there. It’s daaaarn good!

Allie Allie Kale Eater.

Doesn’t have the same ring to it, huh? I got a huge bunch of kale over the weekend and it’s been the only green leafy veggie I’ve had access to all week. I love that I can wash it, microwave it for 45 seconds and voila! I have a steamed kale.

Tonight, I threw it in a huge Green Smoothie along with spinach, strawberries, bananas, protein powder and almond milk.

My workout was 60 min. on the elliptical and some lower body strength training. It felt good to get my legs moving after yesterday’s run and then sitting in the car all afternoon.

Alright, I’m off to tackle my to do list now. Fingers crossed I’ll be back tomorrow with a recipe.

***

Tell me: What household chore do you hate the most? What are your strategies for preventing your snacks from overtaking your meals? Or maybe you don’t have that problem .

Sniff sniff.

Something smells like almond butter.

But wait, that can’t be possible….I’m at the gym. Barney and Justin are upstairs in my closet!

Something definitely smells like almond butter though.

Hmmm I wonder why.

I think I’m sweating out nut butter toxins/amazins.

Yep, my nut butter hangover has lasted 4 full days.

***

That was fast.

Really really fast.

I think it’s time I enter a multi-treatment rehab facility.

Eggy oats with banana and Blueberry Chobani

Just so you know, I’m not eating to go into hibernation or anything. There’s definitely something going on with my cravings this week and I’m trying to roll with it. I usually go through cycles where I crave high fat/high sugar foods for a week or so and then have zero cravings for them the rest of the month. Sound familiar?

It just so happens that my week of cravings coincided with my discovery of Barney and Justin at WFs. I know if I try to control or resist my cravings, they will just escalate. Ya gotta give your body what it wants. Apparently, mine wants Barney and Justin.

***

I’m working out too…or should I say sweating out nut butter.

• 60 min. elliptical
• 15 min. upper body strength training

***

The Chobe stash is disappearing before my eyes…

The 2% flavors have been my favorite. It’s amazing what a couple grams of fat can do in terms of creaminess. If you haven’t tried 2% Greek yogurt you must!

***

Thank goodness for some fresh fruit.

I found this in my crap-from-college bag…

Wow, have my eats been lame or what? The food options have seriously been limited in this joint. I held off on grocery shopping thinking we would be moving this week. However, our move got pushed back another week (no complaints here), which means…

It’s time to hit up TJ’s!

(woop woop)
***

I’m glad you enjoyed my dorky posts from yesterday. Did you notice the shrimp dish was plated so that the broccoli sat on the bottom and the other veggies + shrimp floated on top?

Yep, that was all Peter.

By the way, Peter was flattered by all your sweet comments on his cooking .

I kept thinking about the MGD 64 commercial as I was writing up that post. You know, the one where the guy goes ‘How is it that you’re still single?’ while his friend is doing squats to burn off his beer?

Yeah, I wonder that too…about myself.

If you haven’t seen the [most overplayed] commercial ever, here it is:

Barney? Justin? MGD 64 man? I’m single.

***

Tell me: What’s your favorite overplayed commercial?

Weren’t we just talking about Fall coming soon? Pumpkins, crunchy leaves and apple cider?

NOT.

By the time I woke up this morning it was 80 stinkin’ degrees. I braved the heat and went on a run outside ‘cuz I wanted to take advantage of the carb-fest that went on yesterday (more on that below). I almost always have amazing runs after a day of carb-lovin.’

Even though I found a shady trail to run on, it was quite steamilicious out there. I even tried thinking about my runs in the winter to cool down….like the day I was completely Fooled by the Sun. It was 40* F that day and I was frozen solid running along the WaDuke Trail. Sadly, that mental trick didn’t work too well today because I got tired…fast.

I ran 1.5 miles and then turned back around to walk the 1.5 miles back home. I felt defeated but I wasn’t about to give up just yet. I hopped on the treadmill and ran another 2 miles for a total of 3.5 miles. My goal was 4, but I listened to my body and that was as far as my legs wanted to run today. More on why I had a goal distance later .

I ended with a quick 10 min. of upper body strength training.

***

Afterwards I drank a Cole Dass Smoothie.

Made with vanilla whey, frozen strawbs, banana, wheat grass, frozen spinach, stevia and ice.

I froze some strawberries last week but I forgot to cut off the leaves. FAIL. Good thing I like green leaves in my smoothies, huh?

Eggy Oats with bananas and pecans

***

Did you know there was a Carb Festival going on this past week?

The Chunky Monkey Granola was devoured in just a couple o’ days. Poor thing! On it’s last day I used it as a topping for a bowl of TJ’s Euro yogurt + oatmeal <—really good together!

The base.

Plus banana, strawberry and granola.

And then I finished off the bag!

Abracadabra!

***

That was just the appetizer for Saturday’s main event. I was sent these chips from Boulder Canyon Natural Foods to review (for free). We purchased a large bag of the same brand from Costco a few months ago. Since we thoroughly enjoyed that flavor (Rice and Adzuki Chipotle Cheese) I was eager to try some other flavors.

I thought I wasn’t a big chip person, but apparently I thought wrong. I was under the impression that it was safe to open up a bag. Ummm nope! I chose the Hummus and Sesame Tortilla variety first and ended up finishing the entire bag throughout the day–so good! I really enjoyed the delicate yet crispy texture. It had a hint of hummus flavor but it wasn’t too strong.

Later that night, my mom brought me a couple bites of a dessert made out of dates. Upon eating it, I had an allergic reaction!

So what did I do? I cracked open another bag of chips to make it go away. I chose the Olive Oil Kettle Chips. Whenever I get allergic reactions, crunchy carbs make me feel all better. These chips did the trick. Unfortunately this happened at around midnight. Oof.

I most definitely had a migraine from [delicious] chip overdose and I felt really dizzy. Double oof.

***

Look what happened to my photography spot!

This week is officially moving week!

My worst nightmare.

It seems like we’ve been moving all summer long but this week is THE week. It’s down to the wire now, folks. My crap has either gotta get packed or thrown away!

So if I’m missing in action and/or eating super lame food, you know why.

***

Tell me: What is your favorite brand/flavor of chips? What’s your favorite carby food?

Cheddar Sour Cream and granola for me. Although, muffins are a close second!

After returning from my dish extravaganza yesterday, I was in serious need of some snax. Dish shopping is tiring when you’re lifting up heavy plates and imagining how they would look in photos with various foods.

I had a plate of dates with coconut butter. We finally finished our jar of almond butter. Now, what time is it?!

It’s sunflower seed butter time! I’m comin’ outta rehab .

I also finished off a tub of plain yogurt (~1 cup) with a banana. I love when bananas are at this stage–ripe with plenty of brown spots but not mushy yet.

Love green bananas? I read in the latest issue of Health magazine that slightly green bananas have more resistant starch. The starches turn into sugar as the banana ripens.

Workout:

60 min. elliptical + 10 min. abs and stretching

***

Dinner was a dish prepared by Peter, Head Chef at Peter’s Kitchen. It’s been awhile since his dishes have been featured here. I had something on my mind already but my dad insisted on cooking something for me….in less than 10 minutes.

I’m going to try and get him to write a guest post since so many of you ask for tutorials/recipes. Stay tuned.

Here’s a preview:

Peter, posing with a head of broccoli in his chef coat….errr Road Runner t-shirt .

After a humongous dinner, I somehow made room for some cantaloupe. So ripe and so sweet.

Then, I picked up a package from the HLS roomie Sarah!

Sarah is one of the first bloggers I met (back in Jan ‘09 when I was a blogless reader). We met up at a restaurant in Hillsborough, NC with Kath, Matt, and a few other readers. Several months later, after I started LLE, we began to communicate more and more. We sat next to each other at HLS 2009. Then in the Fall of 2009, we watched Food (Th)Inc. together, organized an NC blogger meet-up, and then had several more meet-ups! You can see all of my blogger meet-up posts on my Favorite Posts page.

Sarah has always been one of my biggest cheerleaders…at school, with Live Laugh Eat and in life. I’m so sad that we live hundreds of miles apart now .

P.S. I think Sarah has the best handwriting of any doctor I’ve ever known. I bet pharmacists love her prescription slips .

She is a big AllieBar fan too, so I brought her some when I went to HLS 2 weeks ago. She sent me this delicious granola made in Chapel Hill, NC as a thank you.

I’ve gotten Little Red Wagon Granola once before when I was living in Hilton Head. Of course I tried the Carrot Cake flavor. <–during my first week of blogging (!!).

I was excited to try another flavor last night, Chunky Monkey. It has banana chips, chocolate chips, pecans and almonds. Mmmm!

I opened the bag immediately.

….and went back for more and more and more…

…and more. I’m not sure if there are any chocolate chips or pecans left in the bag!! Thank you, Sarah–I miss you too!

***

Yesterday, I asked you where you take your food photos (if you do). Well, I thought it would be fun to show you where I take MY photos. You know, so you can see where the magic happens .

Usually, I go out onto the balcony for the best lighting….

…and get tangled in that hairy plant every time!

It has chairs that I can stand on to get a bird’s eye view….while getting some funky glances from the neighbors.

I occasionally use this little table when the sun is shining directly onto the bigger table. I try to avoid direct sunlight because it can be quite harsh.

Have you ever wondered why some of my photos have a blue blur in the background? Yeah, it’s that darn beach chair right over there.

If I feel like it, I typically grab a placemat on my way out. Don’t ask why the tags are still on.

If I’m lazy or don’t have the ability/time to take everything onto the balcony (such as when I’m doing step by step photos for a recipe), I use this lovely window sill by the kitchen table. It only gets good lighting during certain hours of the day though.

I would love it a whole lot more if those grey bars weren’t there.

Remember several months ago when all of my food was photographed on top of a concrete slab? Yeah, that was right here on the ‘porch’ of my apartment at school.

That apartment was like a cave and the only place I could get a good amount of light (or any light at all) was outside on the porch…or on my bed HA! It wasn’t the most modern looking apartment but we all know the air conditioning definitely worked!!

I went out there every single day, even when it was snowing.

I’m gonna have to find a whole new set of good photography spots once we move to the new house. The kitchen has a ton of windows though so it should be easy. Hopefully I won’t have to go outside when it’s frigid!!

***

Tell me: How do you like your bananas? What’s your favorite granola flavor?

I woke up bright and early this morning because I had a a meeting with the bakery owner. She was out when I dropped off my application on Monday, so I called to see if I could go back and chat with her for a little bit (proactivity!). I started off my day with a cup o’ [72% decaf] Joe in my AIM mug, while Google-reading and Twittering.

I swear AIM taught me how to type

…and gossip with friends.

Everyone eats with their Garmin next to them on the kitchen table, right?

***

Before I knew it, it was time to GO! I can be such a slow poke in the morning. Thus, I had to whip up breakfast in a NANA-second (Ha. Ha.).

Strawberry-Nana No-Bake Baked Oatmeal with yogurt.

For this batch of No-bake Baked Oatmeal, I added 1/4 of a mashed banana to the batter. I also experimented with egg whites from a carton. I got worried because the egg whites weren’t as goopy (compared to egg whites from whole eggs), but it worked well.

I tried microwaving them a little bit longer before transferring to the pan (~45 seconds). That way they would be more ‘cooked’ on the inside –> a more baked-like finish product.

Looks peaceful. Unfortunately, I had to wolf this baby down.

My please-hire-me outfit. A headless shot because I was too nervous to smile for the camera (or maybe I was too ashamed of my dirty mirror + room!).

Okay, here it is…my eeps-I’m-so-nervous face.

The bakery. So duuurn cute.

I know your fingers and toes must be cramping by now but you’ll have to keep them crossed for another week or two…or three? Hmmm.

***

On the way home, I stopped by HomeGoods (AKA Wonderland) to make good use of the trip and to soothe my soul. If you are not familiar with HomeGoods, it’s a store by the same company as Marshall’s and TJ Maxx (name brand products for much cheaper) but it’s all home stuff!

….like dishes and cookware!

I found some leaf plates <–my favorite!

Halloween stuff already!? Look at this precious little guy.

Could I brush my fruits ‘n’ veggies with this?

A tea pot on clearance for $5!! Doesn’t it kinda look like my tea pot from Target?

Londontown.

Mmm hmm! Tell it sistah!

The murmuring of ‘I want…I need…I must have‘ went on for a good 50 minutes as I weaved in and out of the aisles.

I wasn’t planning on spending a whole lotta money but I just couldn’t walk away empty handed. I just couldn’t.

So? What did I buy?!

A good reminder to eat mindfully .

Okay, duh! I wasn’t passing up on this deal. Oh no siree.

It even comes with a plate. Two birds with one stone.

A leaf bowl.

And the adorable cupcake/muffin holder. I think I can bake with this too, although I don’t think I will!

Guess how much I spent?

$21 buckeroos. Not too shabby, right?

***

Also, speaking of leaf plates, pumpkin, and all things FALL….who remembers my obsession (<–one of my most favorite posts ever) with Starbucks Pumpkin Spice [Crack-Laced] Lattes? I think that’s what I’m looking forward to most of all this fall.

If you weren’t around back then…long story short, I would get a venti P.S. latte/coffee every time I made the trip to and from school.

Speaking of school, boy am I glad I’m not going back there this week! I smile every time I remember that I graduated and will not be making the trek back to Durham this year.

HALLELUJAHHHH!

Have you seen the Featured Recipes section on the right side of the blog? These are three of my favorite original LLE recipes. I’ll be changing them up periodically so keep your eyes peeled!

***

Oatmeal.

A super food. A whole grain. A great breakfast food to keep your belly full. I just wish I loved it….again.

As I’ve explained before, oatmeal and I have a wonky relationship. I used to be a die-hard oatmeal eater. I ate a big bowl of oatmeal at least once a day, sometimes even twice. However, it was during my stint of restrictive eating and over-exercising when my love for oatmeal blossomed. As a result, I often associate oatmeal with that not-so-awesome time in my life.

I still enjoy oatmeal but I rarely ever crave it. I don’t even eat it enough for it to appear in my tag cloud (located on the right sidebar)! It’s fun to see which foods are the largest font size over there .

I love oats though (hello AllieBars?) so I am always thinking of ways to play around with them to create delicious breakfasts.

For example, I grind up oats to make my 3 Ingredient Oat Flour Crepes

…or cook them on the stove to make Oat Bran Danish Pancakes

…or bake ‘em up to make Quinoa Banana Bread Granola

Well this week it’s been all about No-Bake Baked Oatmeal.

I found myself craving oatmeal the other day. Not just any kind of oatmeal though….I really wanted to make some baked oatmeal. I like that it tastes fluffy like a muffin but it still has the nutty, chewy texture of oats.  However, turning on the oven for one serving of baked oatmeal would NOT fly in this house. Not to mention, it takes a little too long to make for this impatient stomach of mine. Thus, I’ve been making No-bake Baked Oatmeal, which take about 3 minutes to make.

The recipe is similar to oatmeal pancakes but not quite the same. I microwave the batter for 30-40 seconds (key part!!) to cook it a bit and then ‘bake’ it in a pan. That way it’s slightly soft on the inside and crispy on the outside.

I’ve made three different versions this week already. Could this be the recipe that brings oatmeal back into my life?

The first version was made with sweet potatoes and topped with banana soft serve. The warm oatmeal combined with the cold banana is superb. Try it for yourself!

No-Bake Baked Oatmeal

Ingredients:

• 2 egg whites
• 1/2 cup rolled oats
• dash of cinnamon
• splash of water or milk
• 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
• add-ins of choice (banana, sweet potato/pumpkin, fruit chunks, chocolate chips, etc.)

Directions:

Combine egg whites and rolled oats in a small bowl and mix until evenly distributed. Stir in cinnamon, vanilla and desired mix-ins. Microwave for 30-40 seconds. Stir with a spoon to break up the chunks. Form a patty with the partly cooked ‘batter.’ Pan fry both sides on medium heat until golden brown. Top with fruit, yogurt, nuts, nut butter, maple syrup, etc.

*Makes 2 small servings or 1 large serving

***

I also had a small serving plain topped with yogurt and blueberries

This morning, I mixed the blueberries into the batter.

Topped with banana soft serve and a side of sliced strawberries.

It could be that microwaving them prior to cooking makes no difference but that it takes less time to cook on the skillet. In which case these would just be glorified oatmeal pancakes. I like to think it makes the oats a little more oatmealy though. Perhaps I’ll have to try both methods side by side and compare the taste and texture. Or I could just whip up a batch of real baked oatmeal in the oven!

***

I’ll be back later to fill you in on my recent workouts, other meals ‘n’ snax and updates on the job search.

Tuesday was my last and final day in Chicago (wahhh!) and I was determined to take care of some unfinished business. There was no way I was getting on the plane without crossing off the one and only item on my Chicago to-do list. Thus, we headed back into the city for the afternoon before my 8:35 PM flight.

I took the day off from working out in exchange for a lazy, relaxed, Sunday-style morning. Breakfast was a bowl filled with my faves.

Fresh berries.

Plus kefir, yogurt, TJ’s Carrot Ginger muffin, Shredded Oats Cereal, and Crunchy Barney Butter <–Mmmm!

I want this perfect photography spot!

After packing up my stuff (sniff sniff), Lauren and I hit the road to pick up Joe from work and drive east into the city.

On the ride over, I had a pre-packed salad with baby spinach, mini peppers, shrimp and whole wheat pasta leftover from Sunday night.

I also had some chocolates <–story of my life this weekend!

and a Mary’s Gone Crackers Cookie from the HLS swag bag.

On the way to the destination, we walked through Greektown, a neighborhood filled with Greek restaurants, bars, cafes and clubs. There were Greek inspired decorations all around us.

Even the Walgreens signs were in Greek.

Doesn’t this window remind you of the movie Mamma Mia!?

After a 1.5 mile walk, we arrived at Starfruit Cafe!!

FINALLY.

Remember when I went there on Sunday and it was closed? Well, I absolutely could not leave the state of Illinois without tasting frozen kefir. No way, Jose.

Pure bliss.

So many flavors I had never ever seen in my life.

The menu included frozen kefir (soft serve style), parfaits and customizable smoothies, all made using kefir. If you are wondering what the heck kefir is and why I love it so much, check out my post Krazy for Kefir.

We were immediately offered samples. They sure knew the way to my heart!

I think Joe was even more excited than I was to go to Starfruit . You think I’m kidding…

I got the original and pomegranate swirl with mango chunks.

Too excited for words.

Not a drop left behind. Business…finished!

All in all I thought it was delicious (clearly). It didn’t taste as sugary and creamy as tart frozen yogurt from a shop. It also had a slightly different tanginess to it. I wanna open a shop now. I mean, I’m already making my own homemade tart frozen yogurt, I’m perfect for the job!

***

Fun facts about Starfruit Cafe:

• Starfruit uses Lifeway Kefir which is 99% lactose-free. Each serving contains less than 1g of lactose--woohoo!
• Lifeway Kefir is made with only antibiotic- and hormone-free milk from dairy cows in the midwest.
• Starfruit buys toppings from local farms to reduce the amount of energy spent on fuel and packaging.
• Almost all of Starfruit’s serveware is biodegradable.

Cool, huh?

The security guy recognized me from Sunday. I was the crazy tourist who asked 1,000 questions about why the shop was closed. Do you know why they’re closed on Sundays? It says on their website they’re open until 5pm. How far away is Lincoln Park? There’s another location over there…do you think I could walk there?

Lauren thought it was necessary to snap a photo together for the blog. This guy has no idea he’s now on the world wide web and linked to Starfruit Cafe forever .

Kefir twice in one day…it doesn’t getter much better than that, folks!

***

Next up: Dinner at a vegan restaurant!

I woke up Monday morning to breathtakingly perfect weather. The sky was a perfect shade of blue with not a cloud in the sky. The sun was shining but the sauna-like heat that we experienced over the weekend was surprisingly absent. To top if off, there was a cool breeze and I couldn’t help but close my eyes and smile.

I started off the beautiful day with a short run around the neighborhood. I ran 1.5 miles and walked 1.5 miles. Pre-workout, I had some of a TJ’s Carrot Ginger muffin with half caf coffee. Lauren even bought TJ’s decaf coffee for me!

Post workout I made a small parfait with two more of my favorites. Look at these familiar products–did I even leave home?!

I kept it light because we were heading out the door to brunch. Yogurt, kefir, berries and more crumbled muffin.

After brainstorming a whole bunch of possible things to do, we decided to visit Geneva, a cute town that reminded me of the South! I kept thinking I was in Charleston, SC.

Lauren insisted on eating at Egg Harbor Cafe, with good reason!!

There were a thousand cute signs hanging on the walls.

The menu had a plethora of healthy options. To give you an idea, these were the items that caught my eye: Portobello Benedict, Banana Bread French Toast, Swedish Fruit Roll-Up, Berry Granola Steel Cut Oats, Mediterranean Roll-Up, Key West Crepes, and the Dynamite Veggie Omelette.

Seriously? Seriously. Check out the menu for yourself!

I ordered the Chicken Pesto Egg White Frittata without pesto and cheese (allergic!!). It had artichokes, red peppers, and spinach. I subbed portobello mushrooms for the chicken.

The side of fruit was so elegantly displayed.

Whole wheat English muffin.

Lauren ordered The Harvest Salad, which we renamed ‘the hugh jass salad.’ It had chicken, dried cranberries, apple, avocado, Bleu cheese, slivered almonds, cucumber and raspberry vinaigrette.

Geneva has a bunch of old homes turned cute shops and bakeries. We started with The Little Traveler, a mansion filled with home goods and food.

Tea

I was worried about fitting the HLS swag into my suitcase, otherwise I would have bought one of everything!

We fell in love with the ginger snaps there.

We got to sample some candy too.

Fact: the pumpkin malt ball fell on the floor after I took a small nibble. I picked it right back up, blew on it for 2 seconds and finished it off. You know me…no shame.

I think I said “I want this!!” at least 956 times throughout the store. That is not an exaggeration.

LEAF PLATE!!!

Placemats galore!

The cutest tea spot, located in the courtyard of the house.

We stopped by Graham’s, a chocolate and ice cream shop just to take a peak.

A bunch of bakeries were closed since business is slower on Mondays . I guess I’ll just have to go back someday and check ‘em all out.

The “I want this!!” continued and continued…

Live LAUGH Eat

All these blocks are so ME .

Bumble bumble

More cute shops…

This bag was made out of plastic grocery bags.

I had no idea broccoli grew like this.

With the perfect weather and lovely company, I felt like I was walking through Pleasantville. For the first time in a long time, there was absolutely nothing in the world that could wipe the smile off my face. Nothing at all.

***

A preview of The Princess Adventures Part III…

(not the organ!)

Healthy Living Summit 2010 has officially come to an end! Major sad face. While everyone travelled back home today, I took a train to the ‘burbs of Chicago to extend my trip a wee bit. I wanted to take FULL advantage of my plane ticket!

I’m still behind on blogging though, so you’ll have to wait to see what I’m up to over here.

***

The morning after the HLS Cocktail Party came way too early. I had plans to run some hotel stairs at 6:30 AM but I decided against it as I didn’t fall asleep until around 3 AM (!!!). My mind was racing all night long–so many thoughts about life, new friends, and interesting conversations floating through my noggin.’ Just too excited!!

Saturday (conference day) started with an amazing breakfast buffet. The choices included oatmeal, granola, Greek yogurt, fruit, croissants, muffins, juice, tea and coffee.

I didn’t have a single serving of fruit the day before so I was more than ready to dig into some fresh fruit.

I also picked up a carrot muffin. Looks can be deceiving….those carrot chunks on top were the only ones in the entire muffin! I was totally shafted. I didn’t really care for the muffin so I just ate the top.

As I was walking to get some coffee, the fruit trays were magically replenished so I grabbed s’more berries.

I also grabbed a Chocolate Oikos. I wanted to try the caramel flavor, but they were all gone by the time I arrived. It was my first time trying this flavor…it tasted like chocolate pudding and yogurt mixed together.

Much. much. much. needed. coffee. (Still ~32% decaf )

I ended up adding the granola and berries to my yogurt like so. Surprise surprise, huh?

Afterwards, I loaded up on some more swag–this was only the beginning of the swag train….

A BPA-free water bottle and a thermos.

Chips and Attune Chocolate Bars.

Except my salty tooth friend, Meg (my exact opposite), loves chips and I love chocolate so we swapped.

Muahahaha.

After the first session, my roomies (M+S) and I went out for a 30 min. walk. We walked to the Bean and back to get our legs moving a little.

We got back just in time for a snack.

I picked the Chewy Cocoa Chocolate Swirl granola bar and ate about half during the Stepping Up Your Photography session. It tasted like a Cocoa Puffs bar!

Then it was time for lunch!

Check out this humongo platter of grilled veggies (!!!)

Various salads (greens, fruit, and chickpeas)

Quinoa, which had some sort of dressing mixed in…totally hit the spot.

I had some of everythang

+ fruit salad.

I grabbed a bag of Terra Chips but didn’t end up eating them.

Then came dessert!

I passed on the above because I had Gina’s life-changing macaroons on my mind! Let me tell you they were hands down, the best I’ve ever had. I also got to chit chat with the macaroon lady herself after lunch and she was such a doll. Of course we talked about our hopes/dreams of starting a baking business.

I also had a sample of Attune’s Apple Cinnamon granola with yogurt chips <–the best part!

Later in the afternoon, I won a giveaway from Stonyfield–a reusable shopping bag, a razor and a toothbrush made from recycled yogurt cups.

After the sessions, Meg and I head over to a super nice gym, XSport Fitness, to get in a workout. I had walked on Thursday and Friday so I was more than ready to get my heart rate uppity up. The gym provided HLS attendees with free guest passes.

I did 45 minutes on the ArcTrainer (shown below) while reading blogs, tweeting, and watching a tennis match. I used to use this machine almost every day in college–I sure missed it! Afterwards, I did a quick 15 min. on the good ol’ elliptical.

Post workout, I snacked on the rest of my rice cakes and sesame almonds while getting ready to head out to a lovely dinner.

To be continued….

I’m here!

Chi-town. The Windy City. Chicago! The last time I was here, I was a senior in high school auditioning at Northwestern University. I also spent 5 weeks at NU the summer before that.

I made it from my house to the gate in 36 minutes flat this morning! Can you believe it? I think 15 of those minutes were waiting to get through security. Surprising, considering there were about 8 fire trucks outside the airport and about 30 firemen huddled inside. I have no idea what was going on but for a second,I definitely had Chicago, The Healthy Living Summit and the highlight of my summer flash before my eyes (!!!).

I did manage to finish packing my suitcase, although as of 2:30 AM last night…err this morning, I was worried I wouldn’t ever finish.

Might I add, half of my suitcase was filled with 5 jillion AllieBars!! Whose idea was this?! My cocktail dress is rolled up as tight as can be just to make room for the bars….HEAVY bars.

Note: For once in my life I will go somewhere with more than I bring back.

The other half of my bag was filled with electronics and their respective chargers. PS I found the charger for my point and shoot. Thank gooooodness.

You would think that toting around 10 pounds of AllieBars would eliminate the need to buy any bars for the rest of the weekend.

Well, ya thought wrong! Less than 10 minutes into my trip, I found myself eyeing bars at a newsstand. I didn’t get just one bar, I got two. As a bar connoisseur, it is imperative that I buy bars I have never seen before that look interesting/delicious.

I also picked up the latest issue of Women’s Health Magazine with Brooklyn Decker on the cover. As Andy Roddick’s biggest fan, I feel the need to support his wifey too. Yes, I follow her on twitter. I love that she is a healthy-sized model.

This morning was filled with smoothie drinking, AllieBar munching, and iced coffee. Given my minimal amount of sleep, I made it about 62% decaf, rather than the normal 72%. You know, for the extra boost. Not gonna lie, I sorta wish it had been 1000% caf right about now!

I had a banana at the gate, pretzels on my flight and the Oskri Muesli Bar.

I love these kindsa bars! Seedy, grainy, crunchy, chewy.

***

I arrived and ran right into my roomies. We went out for a walk in search of frozen yogurt!

After walking for about 1.5 hours with no success, we found a cute tea shop to grab a bite to eat.

I got a Green Tea Parfait.

The granola was a bit mushy but the green tea flavor was lovely. I totally forgot that I’m trying to cut back on dairy. Oops!

We’re off to dinner now! I’ve got a packed schedule tonight so I’ll see you when I see you.

For the record, I’m pretty sure I made eye contact with my future husband at the gate. Seating was first come first serve and there was an empty seat next to me. Don’t get too excited, just as I thought the stars were aligning…just as he was about 3 aisles away, a lady plopped down right next to me. Sigh. Better luck next time.