Rainbow Sprinkles

DIY Tissue Paper Flower Pomanders

2013-01-22T09:00:00.000-05:00

As I started looking at all the things I wanted for my wedding, I realized how quickly the costs added up! I can't have everything I want, but luckily I am crafty so I'm planning on making some DIY decor for our ceremony. I came across these tissue paper flower pomanders on Pinterest, and it looked pretty easy and cute, but I was skeptical. I'm all for DIY, as long as it doesn't look cheap or tacky. I gathered enough materials to make just two pomanders to see how it turned out.

Well...they turned out amazing! And they are so super easy to make! If you are crafty at all, you will really enjoy making these pomanders. They are great for any occasion, not just a wedding either!

You will need:

Tissue paper, any color - I got mine at the Container Store
Glue or Hot Glue
Floral Wire (22 gage), any color- find at any craft store or hardware store
Wire cutter - comes standard with most tool kits
5 inch Styrofoam ball
Ribbon - I cut mine into 21 inch strips

Cut your tissue paper into 5 x 10 inch strips.

The 5 inch Styrofoam ball doesn't seem very big, but once it is covered in flowers, it will appear much bigger.

Now, take 6 pieces of the tissue paper, and starting with the smaller side, fold about 3/4 of an inch over, back and forth accordion style.

Take a piece of floral wire, and wrap the folded tissue paper.

Cut the ends so that they are rounded and not square. This will give you the look of petals. You can cut any rounded type shape you want to create many different looks.

Fan out the folded paper. Then gently lift each layer up towards you, careful not to tear the paper.

one layer up

3 layers up

all fluffed up


The bottom of the flower

lots of flowers

To attach the ribbon, I wrapped the wire around the end of the ribbon (the wire is pretty sharp, so you could thread it through the ribbon too)

Add a dollop of glue, and stick the wire into the Styrofoam ball.

All done

Once the ribbon is attached, start adding the paper flowers onto the ball in the same way as the ribbon, until you cover the entire ball. You might have some small spots that need a flower, so for those I made a flower the same as above, except used only two or three sheets of tissue paper to get a smaller flower to fit the size I needed to fill.

I think the finished product came out so cute! The petals almost look like hydrangeas. I'm not sure how long I'll need the ribbon to be, so I made them on the longer side. If they are too long, I can always cut them on the top and tie a bow to shorten them up.

I hope this post inspires you to try making one of these flower pomanders!

Here's to the next adventure!

2013-01-21T15:04:00.000-05:00

Well, hello again. I know it has been way too long since I updated this blog, but life kind of got in the way. And by life I mean...planning a wedding!!! Brian and I got engaged right before the holidays and it has been a whirlwind ever since. We are SO happy and excited.

I was completely surprised when Brian popped the question as I was wrapping Christmas gifts by the tree on a Saturday morning. Brian had told me that he was out shopping for Christmas presents with his parents earlier that morning, when in fact he was meeting my dad at Union Station in DC to pick up the ring. My dad spend the entire morning on a bus from New York to hand deliver the ring, which he created. AND turned right around and went back to New York, something only my dad would do! The ring was not only beautiful, but made with lots of love and care, which made it even more special.

Adoring my ring


On cloud nine

After the shock of it all settled down, Brian told me we were dropping off our dog and heading to an Inn in West Virginia for the night. I couldn't believe he had all this planned! After we dropped off Winston, we stopped at Brian's parents house to celebrate with some champagne. Then we headed about an hour away to West Virginia. We were led to a cute little farm house. Our room had chocolate covered strawberries, champagne, and chocolates waiting for us. After settling into our room, we headed to dinner in the main house of the Inn. It was absolutely wonderful, we had a five course dinner with wine pairings. It felt like the perfect setting to celebrate our engagement, just the two of us. With the holidays coming up, we had plenty of time to celebrate with family and friends.

It was an absolutely perfect and magical weekend. I still stare at my ring at random times during the day and can't believe it is mine, or that this is real.

Cute little farmhouse at Hillbrook Inn, WV

Now we embark on the next adventure in our lives...Marriage! We got right to work at looking at venues and already have a date set! November 23, 2013. That's only 10 months away and I know it will fly by. So far I am loving every minute of planning and can't wait to marry my best friend. I know that's cheesy but how can you write an engagement post without a little cheesiness here and there? :-)

I plan to keep this blog updated on the planning and any DIY projects I tackle in the coming months.

Hope you all are having a great day!!

St. Lucia - Day 4

2013-01-21T13:55:00.001-05:00

Day 4 of our trip in Pictures - Monday, August 20 2012

one of the many island kittens

open air restaurant where we ate breakfast

cocoa pods drying in large trays

the Jardin Cacao restaurant - where we ate lunch and dinner

the "crab claw" flower

gift shop

Anse Chastanet beach

our second snorkeling location

approaching Jalousie beach after a great day of snorkeling

the view of the petit piton at the top of our hike

all stocked up on the local jam to bring home as souvenirs

another great dinner

St. Lucia - Day 3

2012-10-15T20:40:00.000-04:00

Day 3 of our trip - Sunday, August 19 2012

We started the day with our usual delicious island breakfast: cocoa tea, coffee, eggs, fresh fruit, and guava juice. I also tried some type of fried bread which was very good. And of course we had toast with butter and their homemade mango banana jam. Seriously, I need to learn how to make this jam! It can't be too hard, and it is so so good.

Starfruit tree

After breakfast we hopped on the free shuttle from the plantation to Jalousie beach. Jalousie beach is supposed to be one of the most beautiful beaches on the island. It is nestled in between the two Piton mountains. We were told that the resort at Jalousie beach used to be a Hilton, but now it's just called Jalousie Plantation. We met a couple from DC on the shuttle, Jeff and Lara. They have been on their honeymoon for a little over a week and are leaving in a few days. They had already visited Jalousie beach so they were giving us pointers on where to sit and where to order drinks and food.

As the shuttle made its way down the hilly roads, we caught glimpses of the beach and blue waters. It was absolutely gorgeous. The resort property is very well maintained. Everything about this beach was amazing. There was a small area to the side where we could use the beach chairs for free, so we dropped off our stuff and relaxed. It was already very hot, so we got in the water right away to cool down.

visitor area

View of the Grand Piton from Jalousie Beach

soaking up the view

Brian sunbathing

Jalousie Beach

The right side of the Petit Piton

Beach Area

Panoramic of Jalousie Beach

Brian ventured off into the resort to find a gift shop to buy some cheap sunglasses. When he got back, he brought two Caipirinhas down from the bar to the beach. We love Caipirinhas because they are delicious and my dad makes them all the time. It is a Brazilian drink made out of rum, sugar and limes. The pink Caipirinha was flavored with rosemary and hibiscus. Both versions were very refreshing.

cheers!

enjoying a Caipirinha

perfect day

After soaking up some sun, we decided to head over to the resort's outdoor restaurant to grab some lunch. We ordered a cheeseburger and some fish tacos. It was pretty expensive, but the food was very good and fresh. Also, with a location like this, you can pretty much charge whatever you want and people will pay. It felt like paradise just relaxing on a chair, looking out onto the beach, and enjoying good food.

Lunch menu

view from lunch

After lunch, we both headed into the resort to buy an underwater camera at the gift shop. The resort is ridiculously nice. Here are some pictures from us just walking around:

Inside of the resort

lounge area

view from upstairs

gorgeous view

panoramic

pool area

After walking around and taking pictures, we went back to the beach and cooled off in the water. Jeff and Lara mentioned to us that a water taxi guy offered to take them snorkeling tomorrow for a total of $60, and if we were interested in coming, it would only be $50 a couple. Since we enjoyed snorkeling so much on our first day, we said sure. We headed to the bar for a margarita and a Piton beer. The shuttle picked us up at 4 PM to take us back to Fond Doux.

When we got back to the plantation, we headed to the bar to get some drinks to take up to the pool. We ended up talking with Johnson, the bartender for a while. He's a really nice, young guy. He was telling us the sports and TV shows he likes from the US. I had a couple glasses of their rum punch and brian tried a popular island drink, Campari and orange juice. Campari is a bitter italian liquer and the islanders love it.

We finally made our way up to the pool and met up with Aidin and Christiana. The area is a unique cascading pool made up of three smaller pools and decks. It was really fun and relaxing to spend time by the pool after a beautiful day at the beach.

upper pool deck

Brian jumping in

Spiky plant

Brian soaking up the view

cool pot/fountain by the pool

pretty yellow flowers growing by the pool

king of the world

view from the pool

After drying off from the pool we headed to our room to get ready for dinner. We heard a knock on our cottage door, and it was one of the security guards. He had picked some fresh coconuts for us and cut the top open so we could drink the coconut water. What an unexpected treat!

As we were walking to dinner, we saw a big frog hopping along our path and coconuts all over the place. I love the lushness of the property.

Birthday dinner!

We started off dinner with the small garlic bread toasts that they bring to each table and a bottle of Chardonnay. I had pumpkin soup and Brian had a salad as an appetizer. For the main course I ordered the seafood pasta, which was penne pasta in a white sauce with big chunks of fresh fish. Brian ordered the red snapper which was very good and fresh too. The little kittens that live on the plantation came by meowing for food. Since the restaurant is open to the outside, the kittens are free to come and go. For desert we ordered two cocoa fond doux drinks and a banana flambe.

It might sound like we drank a lot today, but it was Brian's 26th birthday! We had to celebrate. At dinner I told Brian about his birthday gift, which was a sunset cruise. They only do the cruises on certain days of the week, so we're going on Tuesday. We're looking forward to another snorkel trip tomorrow!

St. Lucia - Day 2

2012-10-11T23:06:00.000-04:00

Day 2 of our trip - Saturday, August 18 2012

Another day in paradise! We woke up on the second day of our trip and headed to breakfast. I took some pictures along the way.

Pathway on the property

Fruits growing throughout the property

interesting flower

I like to call this one the strawberry shortcake flower

Our plan was to take it easy and relax by the pool today. Breakfast was good, it was buffet style and there were a few other couples already there when we got there. We tried their local cherry juice, which tasted like a combination of oranges and mangos, toast with butter and their homemade mango banana jam, coffee, and eggs.

After breakfast, Brian and I were hanging out by the front office where they have Wi-Fi. We were checking out e-mails as I overheard a guest wanting to do a sail and snorkel trip but she needed a minimum of four people. When she saw us outside the office, she asked if we’d be interested in doing the sail and snorkel with her and her boyfriend, it was only $60 a person. They introduced themselves, Christiana and Aidin from Southern California. We said sure! They seem really nice. The office was able to set up the trip for today. Brian and I were both excited to meet other people here. They are staying at the hotel until Thursday, so maybe we will do other excursions with them!

The four of us met the taxi driver around noon and we headed into town. Our driver, Marcus, was really nice and stopped the car to point out the beautiful views along the way.

view of one of the pitons

As we drove closer to the port of Soufriere, you could tell it was a poor area. We met up with one of the guys who would be taking us out on the boat, Shae, who led us to a small shop to pick up the snorkel gear. Once we got our masks and fins, he took us to the boat. It was so nice and big and all ours for the entire day!

The views as we were pulling away from the island were absolutely gorgeous. Shae offered us drinks and we all enjoyed the local piton beer as we sailed our way north of the island.

Town of Soufriere

The captain of the boat was an older man named Andrew. After about 45 minutes of sailing, we arrived at the area we would be snorkeling, called Anse Cochon.

view of the petit piton

Brian and Aidin enjoying the ride

about to jump in!

As soon as we anchored the boat, we could see bright yellow fish in the water right away! We all jumped off the back of the boat and into the water. It felt nice and refreshing. I’ve never really snorkeled before so this was a cool experience. We spotted an eel, a turtle, sea urchins, coral, and lots of colorful fish. It was so peaceful and relaxing being in the water among all the sea life. A few local vendors approached us while we were snorkeling on their kayaks trying to sell us mangoes and shells and other island items. Christiana was pretty good at fending them off. We snorkeled for about an hour or so, and then got back on the boat. Aidin bought four mangoes from one of the Kayak salesman and gave Brian and me two of them. We bit into the fresh and juicy mangoes while we were still dripping wet from the ocean. I felt like such a true islander at that moment!

The four of us moved to the front of the boat on the way back to enjoy the views and take pictures. Christiana and Aidin were telling us about their long trip from California to St. Lucia and their long trip and layovers planned for the trip back home. In total, it took them nearly 24 hours to get to the island. That made Brian and me very appreciative of our direct flight!

a cave where there is a large population of bats

St. Lucia flag

When our boat docked, there were three or four young boys helping us step off the boat. They immediately started asking for money. We told them that we were sorry, and that we had none, but they made us feel pretty uncomfortable. They wouldn’t leave us alone. When we got off the dock, we spotted our taxi driver – good timing. Marcus took us to a local supermarket so we could buy snacks, wine, and beer.

When we got back to the plantation and settled back into our room, we realized Brian’s back was completely sunburned from snorkeling. Oops. We’ll have to remember to put more sunblock on next time.

We showered and got ready for dinner. By the time we walked over to the main restaurant on the property, we were starving. The waitress brought warm garlic bread to our table. To start, I ordered a salad and Brian got the black eyed pea soup (really good) and we ordered a bottle of wine. For the main course I got the Red Snapper which came with a fruit salsa and rice. Brian had a sirloin steak with mashed potatoes. For desert we ordered cocoa fondues -the frozen cocktail that we tried on the first night and tasted like red velvet, and a crepe flambe.

Well, the sun completely tired us out for today, but we still have lots of things we want to do this week: the plantation tour, climb the Gros Piton, maybe zipline, go to Jalousie beach, relax by the pool, and the surprise I have planned for Brian’s birthday on Tuesday. I’m excited that his birthday is tomorrow! It’ll be a nice relaxing day.

Currently

2012-10-09T17:38:00.001-04:00

I came across this idea from Simplistic Living and thought it was a cute idea:

Anticipating: The weekend. I know it's only Tuesday but I can't help it! I am always looking forward to the weekend, but this weekend is extra special because I get to go to New York to visit my parents, enjoy Oysterfest and watch the Gator game at SideBar.

September 2010 - Watching the gators play USF at SideBar

Oyster Bay, NY

Soda dispensers at Oysterfest

Lots of food choices at Oysterfest

Kettle Corn - my all time favorite snack!

Beautiful fall day at Oysterfest 2011

I’m also looking forward to dinner at Volt next week to celebrate Brian and my 3 year anniversary. Volt is Bryan Voltaggio's restaurant located in Frederick, Maryland. Its supposed to be really good!

Lastly, I’m anticipating the trip to Florida Brian and I am taking at the end of the month to visit my grandma.

Wanting: Some cute fall clothes since I am too lazy to unpack all my sweaters and boots from the attic.

Oh, and a day off from work. ;-)

Amazon.com

Reading: The Sweet Life in Paris: Delicious Adventures in the World's Most Glorious - and Perplexing – City by David Lebovitz

I just started reading it this morning and like it so far. It’s a mix of stories from an American chef living in Paris and there are recipes at the end of each chapter. I have always wanted to go to Paris…but for now I’m just enjoying reading about Parisian life, since it’s as close as I’m going to get for a while!

Watching: Homeland. I’m addicted. It’s such a good show, we even ordered Showtime so we could watch it on demand. We’re on Episode 9 of Season one – almost caught up!

Eating: Tuna salad sandwich for lunch with pumpkin Greek yogurt from Trader Joe's. Not sure about dinner yet!

Working on: Getting back into the gym and eating healthier. Also, I’ve been getting back into knitting and am working on a few different projects to give away as Christmas gifts!

Listening: Some nights - Fun

What about you?

Easy Pumpkin Waffles

2012-09-23T09:30:00.000-04:00

**I'm interrupting my St. Lucia posts with a quick recipe post. I just couldn't help myself from writing a food post after taking such a long break from the blog!**

Happy first day of fall! The morning air is starting to have a has a nice crisp to it, leaves are falling, and other Fall-y things are starting to happen. Pumpkin spice and salted caramel mocha lattes at Starbucks and fall decorations sprouting up everywhere are enough to get me in the Fall spirit! My friend Clare and I are absolutely in love with the salted caramel mocha. If you haven't tried one yet...you need to...now.

If you didn't already know this about me, I absolutely love anything pumpkin flavored. Last weekend, I woke up craving waffles. But then I thought about how it was almost Fall so it would be completely appropriate to make pumpkin waffles! I got so excited just at the thought of these that I dusted off my barely used Belgian waffle maker and got to work.

I had a box of hungry jack buttermilk pancake mix, but you could also use Bisquick, or any other pancake mix. I needed this to be quick and easy since I don’t like recipes with a lot of ingredients and I was hungry and ready to have me some waffles!

I found this recipe online and it was perfect. All you need is:

2 cups pancake mix
1 egg
3/4 cup milk
1/3 cup vegetable oil
1 cup canned pumpkin
1 teaspoon cinnamon or pumpkin pie spice
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Mix all the ingredients together until there are no lumps. Turn on your waffle maker and spray generously with non-stick spray.

all the ingredients ready to mix

pumpkin waffle batter

I dropped about 1/3 cup of the mixture into my waffle iron, but the amounts may vary based on the size of the waffle maker you have. The waffles took only 3 minutes or so to cook. Once most of the steam was gone, I knew the waffles were pretty much done. The end result are delicious waffles with a hint of pumpkin flavor. They weren't overpowering at all. I just had them with butter and syrup but I'm sure they would be great with pecans, cinnamon sugar, or brown sugar.

breakfast is served

my waffle assembly line

pumpkin waffles

Enjoy!

St. Lucia - Day 1

2012-09-19T22:45:00.000-04:00

Day 1 of our trip - August 17, 2012

We finally made it to St. Lucia!!

Breakfast at the airport

It's been months of planning in the making. It's even more beautiful and tranquil here than the pictures show online.

We got into New York late last night - around 1:45 AM, and we needed to leave my parents' house at 5:45 AM to catch our flight. I only slept about two hours. My dad was nice enough to drive us to the airport. Once we got there, it didn't take us long at all to check our bags and go through security. When we got to the JetBlue terminal, we had about an hour until our flight boarded. We decided to start our vacation off right and treated ourselves to a nice sit down restaurant to have a proper breakfast of eggs, toast, and breakfast potatoes.

JetBlue app showing the flight status

When we finished up with breakfast, we headed over to our gate. We noticed there was a mix of tourists and St. Lucian natives. I assumed that it would be mostly tourists, but about half of the people there were originally from St. Lucia! We boarded the plane. The pilot was really nice and made some jokes. Have I mentioned that I love JetBlue? Our flight was about four and a half hours. I started out watching TV, but nothing good was on. Once we took off, I read on my kindle for a little bit, but my fatigue took over and I dozed off for about an hour. Once I woke up, I saw that we were close to Puerto Rico, so I started to get excited and didn't want to go back to sleep. After a little while longer, we started our descent. The Pitons became visible. We've become somewhat familiar with them since we've looked at pictures online for so long. We were getting close!

The Pitons coming into view

The island is very mountainous, which you can easily see up in the air, especially if you're lucky enough to have a window seat. And have a boyfriend willing to take a middle seat. The landing was very smooth. In total, we were in the air for about four hours - not bad but I was ready to get off. We deboarded the plane and made our way through customs, which was a pretty painless process. Our checked bags came out right away, and we went outside to find the driver that our hotel had arranged to pick us up. There were lots of locals trying to push their taxi service, but we just told them we already had a ride and they left us alone.

When we met up with our driver, he led us to his car which had the steering wheel on the right side of the car. A dog nonchalantly crossed the road as we started the drive. As we continued down the road, we saw a lot of horses, a couple goats, and a cow or two. The roads were a tad windey but not congested with tons of cars. We passed by the local towns and houses and bars. I mentioned that it smelled like someone was grilling or barbequing, and our driver mentioned that since it was Friday, everyone gets paid and usually goes home and barbeques. As we drove through the island, I couldn't help but notice how gorgeous the island was.

Windey roads

Cow and duck

so excited to finally be in St. Lucia!

Once we arrived at Fond Doux Holiday Plantation, the driver took our bags and took us to the main office. Katrina, the front desk/reception lady took us to the bar for us to get our welcome drinks. I had a rum punch and Brian tried the local Piton beer. My rum punch was so delicious! It has a hint of coconut and cinnamon. As we enjoyed our drinks we soaked up the surroundings. The open-air bar and restaurant was quaint, rustic, and beautiful. Birds were even flying through the restaurant. There were lots of exotic flowers and fruits decorating the restaurant. We immediately knew that we chose the right place to visit. We truly felt like we were in the middle of the rainforest.

Our welcome drinks

When we were finished with our drinks, Katrina took us to our cottage. While we were passing the other cottages on our way to "Cinnamon Cottage," we couldn't believe the lushness and tranquility of the property. The pictures really do not do it justice.

walkway

exterior of the cinnamon cottage

Our porch

When we arrived at our cottage it already felt familiar since I've been looking at pictures online for months now.

inside of the cinnamon cottage

view from the bed

Although there was no air conditioning, the weather was nice and cool with a breeze, so it wasn't an issue. The border where the wall meets the ceiling is a mesh screen, so you can clearly hear all the wonderful nature sounds of birds chirping and cows mooing and who knows what else but it all sounded lovely together. The staff had picked some fresh mangoes and bananas and set them aside for us.

bathroom

Cocoa pods

Bananas growing right outside our cottage

We were so tired from traveling on such little sleep that we relaxed for a bit and took a nap before heading to dinner. It was nice that the the property was well lit on our walk to the restaurant. The evening sounds of frogs, crickets, and birds were so amazing.

Lights at night

When we were seated for dinner, we asked the waitress for drink recommendations. She said the "Cocoa Fond Doux" was very good and popular. It's made with amaretto, cocoa, coconut cream, milk and grenadine. Brian ordered the "Grasshopper" which had creme de menthe, creme de cacao, and cream. Both were blended frozen drinks and were really tasty. The Cocoa Fond Doux tasted like red velvet, and the grasshopper tasted like mint chocolate chip. I ordered cod fritters as an appetizer, and Brian tried the salad. The fritters were good and came with a creamy curry flavored sauce with lettuce and other veggies on the side. For the main course, I ordered the seafood kebab and Brian got chicken pasta. The seafood kebab was really good--it had a few different types of fish and shrimp, onions and peppers. For dessert we ordered chocolate cake with cinnamon ice cream.

Everything about our first day in St. Lucia exceeded our expectations. We can't wait for what the rest of the week has in store!

Island Life - A Quick Recap of Our Trip to St. Lucia

2012-09-12T17:30:00.000-04:00

Anse Chastanet beach in Soufriere, St. Lucia

I can’t believe the vacation we’ve been planning and looking forward to for months has come and gone! It was such an adventure and unforgettable experience. Brian and I are so happy that we got to do so many things and that the vacation was everything and more that we hoped for. I kept a journal of everything we did each day, so when I get a chance to type it all out, I’ll do a post for each day we were in our tropical paradise.

Relaxing before heading to the beach on Brian's birthday

Just a little background info/highlights: We stayed at a working Cocoa plantation called Fond Doux Holiday Plantation in Soufriere, St. Lucia. There are 10 cottages on the property, so we were able to make friends easily, as we saw familiar faces each day. We were there for one week, and although it is considered rainy season, it only rained one day, while tropical storm Isaac was rolling through. I thoroughly enjoyed the “island life”, so much so that I even forgot my flip flips on three different occasions, feeling no need to have shoes and or any belongings. I took over 1700 pictures. I know, a bit overboard for seven days but there was so much to see! So many new tropical flowers, plants, birds, fruit, people, and experiences that I had to capture.

Town of Soufriere, St. Lucia

After a week of being on vacation and feeling stress-free and well-rested, it’s hard to get back into the normal routine of waking up early and going to work. But I also have a new appreciation for how fortunate I am, and how people in other parts of the world live on so much less, but are still perfectly content. It made me realize that I don’t always need to have something new or expensive – I should appreciate what I already have. Soufriere is not the main tourist town on the island, so we got to see a lot of how the people actually live. Although we were a bit sheltered staying at the plantation, every time we left the property we saw how different their lives are from the typical American. Worn out clothes and shoes, older cell phones, older cars, small houses, etc. were the norm. As we walked around with our Iphones and camera, I quickly realized how fortunate we were.

The main things I took away from our trip to St. Lucia were the beauty of the island, the slower pace, or "island time", a few good friends, and the wonderful quality time that Brian and I got to spend together. I can't wait to share more in the upcoming posts! Stay tuned.

Cheers!

Being Present

2012-06-21T23:13:00.000-04:00

I recently noticed a book on our bookshelf that was gathering dust called How to Train a Wild Elephant & Other Adventures in Mindfulness. I started reading through the introduction chapter which describes that most people are not really present in their everyday lives. They are constantly thinking about the future, past, or in a fantasy and not experiencing what is actually happening around them. People are so worried about whats happening next, or what if, and it's a total waste of our time and energy.

Photo via Goodreads.com

"Unfortunately the mind, in its anxiety for us, tries to make plans for a huge number of possible futures, most of which will never arrive. This constant leapfrogging into the future is a waste of our mental and emotional energy. The most important way we can prepare for the unknown-to-come is to make a reasonable plan and then to pay attention to what is happening right now. Then we can greet what flows toward us with a clear, flexible mind and open heart, ready and able to modify our plan according to the reality of the moment"

"Mindfulness practice reminds us not to fritter our mental energy away in trips to past and future, but to keep returning to this very place, to rest in what is happening in this very time"

Although I don't think I am a negative person, I did benefit from making an effort into being more present this week. For example, this week I had a lot of meetings and work to catch up on. Usually this would stress me out, but by reminding myself to be in the moment and not to think of what could possibly happen at the meetings, if they would go well or not, helped me not to stress out about them. I just prepared for them as well as I could and didn't worry about it.

The book goes into specific tasks one can practice in order to be more mindful. I don't plan on trying all of them (there are over 50 different tasks) but I love the concept of being fully present to enjoy and experience everything life has to offer.

St.Lucia Here We Come!

2012-06-05T12:45:00.000-04:00

Brian and I are officially going to St. Lucia in August! I am SO excited! We bought the flights a couple months ago, but still hadn’t decided on a hotel because there were so many great options to choose from.


Cocoa Pods Source: Tripadvisor

As we were getting ready to book a hotel, I got an e-mail from Groupon for a deal at Fond Doux Holiday Plantation in Soufriere, St.Lucia. We looked into it and it really did seem like a great deal. Typically, I am wary of vacation “deals” because I feel like they can be misleading at times. However, we did our homework and researched the reviews online and it seemed like this place was the real deal. It even includes all food and drink (although it’s not typically an all inclusive resort). Fond Doux is a working cacao plantation. Each cabin is “nestled within Fruit and Palm Trees, with private balconies to relax and enjoy your corner of paradise”. There are no TVs or anything. Just relaxation!

One of the pools Source:Tripadvisor

One reviewer said, “We swayed in our rocking chairs on the front porch and read books and slept and laughed and picked fresh fruit from our yard. We walked through the gardens and saw flowers and trees that made our heart sing. It was amazing. And I can't wait to return. “

That sounds like paradise. We will be staying in the cinnamon cottage.

Interior of cottage Source: Tripadvisor

Source: Tripadvisor

They provide a free shuttle to Jalousie beach which is so gorgeous. It is right next to the pitons. A little fun fact: The finale for the bachelor with Jake and Vienna was taped on Jalousie beach in St. Lucia.

Beautiful Jalousie Beach Source: forums.beyondunreal.com

Source: au.ibtimes.com

I can’t wait to spend a super relaxing week here! We will be celebrating both of our birthdays (I’ll be turning 26 on the 26^th!). Since 26 is my lucky number I’m betting this will be a good birthday!

Gorgeous View Source: Tripadvisor

Have any of you ever been to St.Lucia? Any tips would be greatly appreciated!

Grilled Pineapple and Chicken BBQ Quesadilla

2012-04-27T10:05:00.002-04:00

Wow - it has been way too long since my last post. Things are pretty crazy at work and our social calendar is pretty full with weddings, bridal showers, baby showers, and other family stuff. We're heading off to Charleston, South Carolina next week for a wedding and it couldn't have come at a better time. We're staying for a few days and making a mini-vacation out of it with some friends. I really just need a break. Once I'm on the beach I'll be happy as a clam.

I have to admit I haven't been cooking or baking that much lately, since I've been working later and trying to squeeze in some work outs at the gym. Brian has helped out a ton by taking over the cooking or picking up takeout from our favorite Peruvian chicken spot, Don Pollo in Bethesda. He is simply the best.

He was actually the one who found this recipe. We enjoyed making these quesadillas together, but enjoyed eating them even more. Like I've said before, Pioneer Woman recipes never fail. This one was awesome.

Start by grilling pineapple on a griddle or outside grill. Season the chicken with salt and pepper and cayenne spices, and grill that too. Slather the chicken breasts in barbeque sauce.

Slice the chicken, chop up cilantro and jalapeno.

Melt some butter in a pan and toast the tortillas - this makes all the difference in the world and gives you a nice crunchy quesadilla. I never thought to do this before!

Assemble the quesadilla by layering shredded cheese, the grilled pineapple, grilled chicken, jalapeno, cilantro, and some more barbeque sauce

Place back into the pan to melt the cheese and warm everything through.

There you have it! These also heat up really well for leftovers too. So it's safe to say you'll probably want to make a few extra for lunch or snacks. Another successful meal thanks to our girl Ree (AKA Pioneer Woman).

Recipe from Pioneer Woman:

Ingredients

8 whole Flour Tortillas
Butter Or Margarine
2 cups Grilled Pineapple, Sliced
3 whole Boneless, Skinless Chicken Breasts
Salt And Pepper, to taste
3 cups Monterey Jack Cheese, Grated
1 whole Jalapeno, Sliced
Cilantro
3 Tablespoons Barbecue Sauce

Preparation Instructions

(To grill pineapple: cut wedges, stick on skewers, and grill over low heat. Cut into slices.)
(To pound chicken, place inside a Ziploc bag and pound with a mallet or large can to flatten to uniform thickness.)
Sprinkle with salt and pepper and Cajun spice (or cumin/cayenne, etc.) Drizzle olive oil on a grill pan and grill on both sides until done, brushing with barbecue sauce. Set aside and slice into very thin slices.
Warm griddle over medium heat and put sizzling butter or margarine in the pan. Slightly warm and toast tortillas on both sides, then remove from griddle and set aside.
To assemble, sprinkle four browned tortillas with grated Monterey Jack. Arrange chicken slices evenly over the surface. Add pineapple slices and jalapeno slices. Sprinkle on cilantro. If desired, drizzle extra barbecue sauce over the top. Add second browned tortilla on top of each one. (You'll have four complete quesadillas at this point.)
Add to oven to warm, or back to skillet to warm, until cheese is melted. Cut each quesadilla into six wedges. Serve with sour cream, pico de gallo, and lime wedges.

Boston Cream Pie Cupcakes

2012-04-04T16:37:00.000-04:00

Ever since I was a kid, I have loved those Boston cream doughnuts from Dunkin Doughnuts. They are my absolute favorite. I've never tried to make Boston cream pie cupcakes before, but they have the same components that I love about Boston Cream doughnuts: the pudding-like filling inside and the chocolate glaze on top. So I figured I couldn't go wrong with this recipe.

Gather the following ingredients:

Cupcakes:

1 box of yellow cake mix
3 eggs
1/3 cup vegetable oil
1 cup water

Filling:

1 3oz box of french vanilla Jello instant pudding
1 cup half-and-half
1 cup heavy whipping cream
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1/4 cup powdered sugar

Chocolate Ganache:

1 cup heavy cream
1/4 cup light corn syrup
8 oz semisweet chocolate
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

Prepare the cupcakes using the directions on the cake mix box. You can make a lower fat version by substituting the vegetable oil with apple sauce (I may try that next time).

While the cupcakes are cooling, prepare the filling. Combine the pudding mix and 1 cup of half-and-half, put to the side (another low fat option would be to use the Jello sugar free vanilla instant pudding mix - they usually taste just as good as regular). Then, in a bowl of an electric mixer with the whip attachment, combine 1 cup heavy whipping cream, 1/4 cup powdered sugar, and 2 teaspoons vanilla extract. Whip until soft peaks form. Fold the pudding mixture into the whipped cream goodness. Place the pudding/whipped cream mix into a piping bag with a star tip.

Fill the cupcakes with the whipped cream/pudding mixture by inserting the star tip into the middle of the cupcake and giving the piping bag a squeeze. Its kind of hard to tell how much gets into the actual cupcake, but just squeeze until the stuff starts spilling out of the top. Like this:

I wiped down the excess filling off the top so I could glaze them without making a mess.

Prepare the chocolate ganache by combining 1/4 cup light corn syrup with 1 cup heavy cream and 1/2 a teaspoon of vanilla in a saucepan over medium heat. The corn syrup gives the ganache a nice, pretty shine. When the corn syrup and cream starts to simmer, remove the heat and add 8oz of semisweet chocolate. Cover and wait 8 minutes for the chocolate to melt. Mix it all together and let it cool a bit (about 15 - 20 minutes). Dip the tops of the cupcakes into the chocolate ganache and place on a cooling rack on top of a baking sheet (just in case any of the chocolate drips).

How pretty are these?!

Last step - dig in!

Chocolate Chip Lava Cookies

2012-03-28T09:53:00.000-04:00

I saw this recipe on Pinterest for chocolate chip lava cookies. Once I saw the photo of the warm cookie smothered in vanilla ice cream...they had me.

Start with melting 1/2 cup of milk chocolate chips in a plastic bag in the microwave for 30 seconds, or until melted, set aside. (I used a sandwich bag but after microwaving it didn't hold up so well, so use something sturdier, like a freezer bag)

Cream one stick of butter with 1/2 cup packed light brown sugar and 1/2 cup granulated sugar

After creaming the butter and sugars for 3-5 minutes in the electric mixer, add one egg and 1/2 tablespoon vanilla extract...

swirls!

Add combined 1 and 3/4 cups all purpose flour, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and 1/2 teaspoon baking powder to wet mixture

Add one cup of chocolate chips. Then try not to eat half of the dough while you assemble the cookies - very important!

Using only half of the prepared dough, scoop 1 1/2 to 2 tablespoons into your hands and flatten it out, and place in a greased muffin pan (makes 10-11 cookies)

Now, grab the plastic bag with the melted chocolate.... It's time.

Snip of a corner of the bag with a scissor, and squeeze the chocolate in the middle of the dough.

Using the remaining dough, scoop and flatten out in your hands like you did for the first layer, and gently place over first layer and melted chocolate

Bake at 350 for 15-20 minutes. WHEN I make these again, I will bake them for a couple minutes less, just to leave the center more gooey. I was concerned that the edges weren’t getting browned, so I left it in for closer to 20 minutes. I would think 15 is probably perfect.

Cooling down

Oh look! I've got all the dessert I didn't need to eat lined up for the week!

I microwave them for about 30 seconds to get them really warm and then scoop some vanilla ice cream on top. It was like the cookie and ice cream were made for each other!

I'm so cute, you'll have to eat me

yum yum yum

Now, my diet isn't so happy about these cookies being in the house, but I say screw it! Live a little and eat some chocolate chip lava cookies once in a while :-)

New Camera

2012-03-25T19:12:00.001-04:00

I got a new camera this weekend, and I am loving it! I haven't had a nice camera in a long time, and with summer coming up there are lots of things I want to take pictures of and have some nice quality photos to look back on. So I just went around the house to take a few test shots....

Hope you are all having a nice, relaxing weekend!

Goat Cheese With Honey and Pistachio

2012-03-18T13:37:00.000-04:00

I love the combination of goat cheese and honey. It's salty and sweet and tart and delicious. It's so simple to make too! I usually just drizzle some honey over goat cheese on toasted bread, but this time I mixed it in with the cheese and I liked the consistency. The goat cheese has a crumble-y texture at first, but when you mix in the honey, it becomes soft and spreadable. My friend Ashley told me how she recently tried it with pistachios and that it went well with the cheese. I decided that I would give it a try and bring it to our most recent book club meeting, where we talked about The Art of Racing in the Rain (great book). So all you need to whip up this delicious appetizer are three ingredients: pistachio nuts, goat cheese, and honey.

shell some pistachios

break up some goat cheese and add to a bowl

Add a good amount of honey, I just eyeballed it. Mix together and then add the pistachios.

Finished product. I saved a few pistachios to put on top and drizzled some more honey.

French baguette and cinnamon crackers to spread the goat cheese on.

Spread it on bread or crackers, this is the simplest appetizer and such a favorite for me and my friends.

Toffee Latte Scones With Irish Cream Glaze

2012-03-04T21:35:00.003-05:00

I saw this recipe for Toffee Latte Scones the other day, and I thought they sounded sooo good, I had to try making a batch this weekend. I've never made scones before but it wasn't too involved and they turned out pretty great!

The recipe calls for 1/2 cup of toffee bits. I couldn't find any so I just chopped up three Heath bars. It was a little more than 1/2 cup, so I saved the extra to sprinkle on some ice cream for later.

Three Heath Bars

All chopped up

Next, melt 1/4 cup of vanilla ice cream

Melted vanilla ice cream

Then, add 2 tablespoons of instant coffee into the melted ice cream

Add two eggs into the melted vanilla ice cream and instant coffee mixture.

Next, mix 2 cups of flour, 1/2 cup of sugar, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and 1 tablespoon baking powder.

Then, cut 1/2 cup of butter (1/2 of a stick) into small cubes, and incorporate into the flour mixture. I used a pastry blender, but you could use a fork.

It will look something like this:

Add 1/2 cup of the chopped up toffee

Then add the liquids

Mix with a fork and dough will come together

Pat into 8-10 inch circle about 1 inch thick and cut into wedges

Bake at 400 for 10 minutes, then 300 for another 10 minutes

While the scones were baking, I got creative and decided to make a glaze to drizzle on top of the scones for some extra sweetness. I used one cup of powdered sugar and three tablespoons of Bailey's Irish Cream Coffee Creamer.

I let the scones cool before drizzling the glaze

Scones on a cooling rack

Everyone is glazed and happy

This little one has my name written all over it

I hope you all have a great week!

Two Ingredient Pumpkin Muffins

2012-03-04T10:00:00.000-05:00

Continuing on with my obsession with Pinterest recipes, I decided to try out this latest recipe. If you know me, then you know I absolutely love anything pumpkin flavor. It doesn't have to be Fall for me to enjoy a pumpkin treat. Even if you aren't as into pumpkins as I am, I think you will still like this recipe. Its fairly healthy too, with my rough calculations, they should be about 185 calories each if you make 12 muffins, which isn't bad if you're having it for breakfast.

This recipe couldn't be any easier, just one box of yellow cake mix and one 15oz can of pumpkin.

I have made a similar recipe before, preparing the yellow cake mix as directed on the box and adding one up of the canned pumpkin. It's one of my favorite cupcake recipes, so I was curious how this would turn out without using any of the oil, eggs, etc.

Cake mix and canned pumpkin

Mixing

All the pumpkin incorporated into the cake mix

The batter was thicker than your average cupcake, and didn't smell overwhelmingly of pumpkin.

I always like to use an ice cream scooper to divide the batter evenly into muffin sized cups.


I tried out different sized muffins

Bake at 350 for about 20-25 minutes and voila!

Baked and ready to eat

Of course I couldn't resist one

The end result is a dense, moist muffin with a hint of pumpkin flavor. Not too sweet either, just perfect, and it took little to no effort to bake these up. I will surely be making these again!

Salsa Verde Chicken

2012-02-28T10:00:00.000-05:00

Have I told you lately how much I love my Crock Pot? It takes such little effort to throw together a delicious home cooked meal. Also, I can't tell you how nice it is walking into an amazing smelling house after a long day at work, and having dinner already taken care of. I wasn't sure how this recipe would turn out, but Brian and I really loved it. Two ingredients....are you ready for this?

A jar Salsa Verde and Chicken. That's it! Just put the frozen or raw chicken breasts in the Crock Pot and pour Salsa Verde on top. You can also add any seasonings you like, or some onion or garlic. Cook on high for 4 hours or low for 8 hours. Shred with two forks.

This chicken goes great with rice, beans, and cheese, or in burritos, quesadillas, nachos, etc. I can already tell this is going to be a staple in our household!

Dinner is served!

Jello Shots

2012-02-27T21:33:00.002-05:00

When I saw this Pink Lemonade Jello shot recipe on Pinterest, I knew I would have to try it out for myself. It's so easy, just five or six lemons, one box of Strawberry Jello, one cup vodka, and one cup boiling water.

First, cut the lemons in half and hollow them out. Its easier if you use a small, sharp knife to carve the insides out. If you were feeling really ambitious, you could make lemonade with the juice, but I was not that ambitious. After scooping all the lemon guts out, I was tired.

Then, prepare the Jello as directed on the box, but substitute one cup cup water with the vodka.

Gathering the ingredients

Lemon halves all scooped out

Pour the Jello liquid into the lemon halves and refrigerate overnight.

Once the Jello has set overnight, cut the lemon in half to get these cute wedges. Then invite all your friends over and enjoy!

Party Time!

I'm going to try Raspberry Jello in limes next!

Toasted Ravioli

2012-02-17T12:55:00.000-05:00

My breading assembly line

This past weekend I was inspired to try making “Toasted Ravioli” (also known as “Fried Ravioli”, but toasted just sounds healthier so I’m going with that). You only need FIVE ingredients to make this delicious appetizer or meal:

Frozen Ravioli – any kind
Vegetable or Olive Oil
Egg
Italian Breadcrumbs
Marinara Sauce (for dipping)

I got this huge bag of spinach and cheese ravioli from Giant for less than $3

Heat up some vegetable or olive oil in a pan over medium heat. Bread the raviolis by dipping them into the egg and then coating with Italian breadcrumbs.

Coating the ravioli with breadcrumbs

All breaded and ready to fry

Fry four or five raviolis at a time, about one minute per side. Drain on paper towels. Serve with a side of your favorite marinara sauce.

Frying on one side

Frying on the other side

The ravioli will be crunchy on the outside and warm and creamy on the inside. These are so quick and easy to make and perfect to bring to a party or serve as an appetizer. Hope you try it!

The finished product - toasty goodness

Graffiato

2012-02-16T15:22:00.000-05:00

The simple menu

Brian and I recently ate at Graffiato for an early Valentine’s Day dinner. Graffiato is Mike Isabella’s restaurant located in the Chinatown area of DC. You may recognize his name from Top Chef. Whether you are a fan of him from Top Chef or not – this place is definitely worth checking out. We thoroughly enjoyed every aspect of our meal.

We were seated in the upstairs dining room, but as we walked up the stairs I noticed a large bar area downstairs which would be a great place to stop for a bite to eat or a few drinks before a concert or caps game. *Mental Note*

When we were seated at our table, I noticed that the room was small, yet comfortable. I also noticed that it was a lot more casual than I expected, which was nice too. Some people were a little bit dressed up, but a lot of people wore jeans and were dressed pretty casually.

Our server promptly brought water and a small dish of spiced pistachios to our table. It was a nice little treat to snack on while we looked over the menu.

Our yummy glasses of Prosecco

She started out by telling us about the Prosecco they have on draft and the flatbread and pepperoni sauce, which was only $5. She said, “You HAVE to get it”. She then explained that most of the dishes were small plates and that she recommends we each get three to four different dishes, and that the pizza counts as 2 dishes.

We started out with a couple glasses of the Prosecco and an order of the flatbread. The flatbread was grilled and warn and the pepperoni sauce was served in a small cup right next to it. The sauce was smooth, thick, and warn, and tasted just like pepperoni. Since the cup of sauce was pretty small, we finished it quickly. We were thinking how good it must be to have some to put on top of pizza!

Next we ordered the lobster risotto with mascarpone. O. M. G… It was to die for. There were large chunks of juicy lobster mixed into the perfectly cooked risotto. The flavor of the risotto was just so perfect and lobster-ey (yes I just made that word up). Seriously though, it was good. Like close your eyes while chewing good. I wish I had taken a photo of it, but that still wouldn’t do it justice. You just have to try it.

"Papa Smurf" pizza on top, "White House" on bottom

Then we each ordered a pizza. Brian got the “Papa Smurf” which had speck (a meat that looked and tasted like prosciutto), gorgonzola, caramelized onion, and potato. I got the “White House” which had mozzarella, ricotta, prosciutto, and black pepper honey. I wasn’t so sure how I would like the “Papa Smurf” pie because it had potato on it and that seemed like a lot of starch, but they were very tiny pieces, and the pizza dough was very thin. The caramelized onions were really sweet and a perfect contrast to the salty meat and cheese. There was just so much flavor in that pizza, I really enjoyed it. The “White House” was very good too, but was a little milder in flavor. I enjoyed it too, but not as much as I did with “Papa Smurf”.

Photo of Pooh's Lost Honey Pot. Source.

I don’t usually order desert, but since this was our valentine’s celebration and all, I decided to throw my diet out the window and order something off the desert menu. If you know me, you know I absolutely LOVE honey. There was a special desert called Pooh's Lost Honey Pot, in honor of Disney on Ice. Girl Meets Food blogged about it here. It is a small honey walnut cake with mascarpone cream in the middle, with honey mascarpone gelato on the side. We pretty much inhaled that along with two more glasses of Prosecco. I have to say this was one of the best meals I’ve had in a long time. Everything was perfect and I had some nice company too :-)

I can’t wait until the next time I get to go to Graffiato! It will definitely have to be before next Valentine’s day.

Five for Friday

2012-02-10T15:53:00.000-05:00

This Friday I am most thankful for

My new desk

1. Getting a promotion! A couple weeks back I applied for an open manager position in the department I work in (Finance) at the American Diabetes Association. Well, two weeks and three interviews later I found out that I got the job! It is a lot more work and responsibility but I am up for the challenge. I even get to move to a window cubicle!

2. Having supportive family and friends who were truly happy for me when I got the promotion. I’m also thankful for such a supportive boyfriend, who took me out to dinner this week to celebrate!

3. Going to see The Vow tonight with some girlfriends. Rachel McAdams? Check. Channing Tatum? Check. What more do you need? Oh yea…wine. :-P This should be a tearjerker! Looking forward to it!

4. Going to Graffiato this Sunday for an early Valentine’s day dinner. We’ve wanted to try out Mike Isabella’s new restaurant in Chinatown for a while now, and we finally found an occasion to go! I can’t wait to try that famous pepperoni sauce!

5. A new furnace! I know this may sound not that important, but the one in our house before was very old and loud and the landlord replaced it with a newer, quieter furnace. Winter – bring it on!

Book Club - The Paris Wife

2012-02-09T12:22:00.000-05:00

Some friends and I started a Book Club in January, and our first book was The Paris Wife by Paula McLain. We all gave suggestions for possible books and took a poll online to pick the winning book. I voted for this book because someone had recommended it to me, and it seemed to be a very popular book since I keep seeing it everywhere. Some of the members of the book club met this past Monday to have dinner, drink wine, and discuss the book. We went to Busboys & Poets in DC and I had a lot of fun. Busboys & Poets is a perfect place to have a book club meeting because it's a laid back, casual restaurant/lounge. It was interesting that only one person at book club actually had the physical book, the rest of us read it on our Kindles! I'm so glad we started a book club because it's a great way to meet new friends and stay current with reading. It's also nice to have people to discuss books with, especially when you just finish and have a lot to talk about!

I don't know what I was expecting from The Paris Wife exactly, but I didn't love it. It was OK. It took me about three weeks to get through it, which is a long time for me. I guess I couldn't really get into it. I did enjoy the story and felt as if the author took me along to Paris with Earnest and Hadley. However, I just felt that there were too many unnecessary details. I felt like the author was more concerned about all the little details here and there rather than the big picture. Also, everything was all about Earnest, which I expected. But I was looking forward to hearing Hadley’s opinion and voice, which I felt she was lacking until the very end of the book. Maybe that’s how things were in the 1920s but I was looking for a stronger female character out of Hadley.

I wish the story could have flowed better, as opposed to skipping weeks here and there based on what Earnest was doing or accomplishing. Earnest was just young and in love and they definitely rushed into the marriage, so I wasn’t surprised when it ended. They never built that foundation that is so important for a lasting relationship. I felt like the italicized chapters in Earnest’s point of view were important for me to see things from his perspective, but I felt that it was disproportionate to Hadley’s chapters, and seemed more like an afterthought.

Overall, I enjoyed the book and learned a lot about Earnest Hemingway and that time period. But, I did get very frustrated with Hadley’s weak personality and couldn’t understand her most of the time

Next month's book is The Art of Racing in the Rain by Garth Stein, which I have already read and loved. I'll consider this a month off from book club but I will skim the book to refresh my memory. It is such a sweet book and I absolutely LOVE Enzo the dog and this was one of a few books that have actually made me cry. It's going to make for a great discussion!

Greek Yogurt

2012-02-08T16:27:00.001-05:00

Passion Fruit Flavored Greek Yogurt

I tried Greek yogurt once when it first became popular and thought it was gross! It left my tongue feeling all weird and dry and the yogurt was not sweet at all. Well today I caved and decided to try it again…but this time I tried Chobani Passion Fruit flavored Greek yogurt.

I love the taste of passion fruit – it reminds me of mango and pineapple. And it really does sweeten the yogurt a lot. I actually enjoyed it! The Passion Fruit mixture is on the bottom of the cup and the plain white yogurt is on top. After mixing it all together, the yogurt wasn’t so thick. The only thing I didn’t like were the little seeds from the passion fruit, they had a bit of a nutty taste which I wasn’t expecting. Overall, I would definitely try Greek yogurt again and try out all the other flavors (like apple cinnamon - YUM!). It does have a bit more calories than regular low fat yogurt but there is a ton of protein, so I think it's worth those extra calories.

Apple Cinnamon Flavored Greek Yogurt - You're next!