Jamaica Me Crazy & College Football & Movies!

9/11 - a day that will remain in the hearts and minds of Americans for eternity. It's hard to believe it's already been 16 years! Where were you? I was a sophomore in college, driving to class. I remember sitting in nutrition, unable to focus at all, looking at the world through completely different eyes. What a sad sad day. Let us never forget.
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For a weekend that was supposed to be spent out at sea that wasn't, it actually turned out to be a pretty decent weekend!

On Thursday afternoon after work, Jason and I were invited to the annual American Cancer Society's Jamaica Me Crazy event. We didn't have tickets initially since we weren't supposed to be in town, so being invited at the last minute was a fun surprise! This would have been my first event to miss in years so I was happy it all worked out!

Totally nerd alert here - but I was so excited to see that the colors used at this year's event were my wedding colors (teal and pink)!

When you can't physically be out in the Caribbean on a cruise ship as planned, you take out some of your pre-packed dress clothing and attend a Caribbean themed event instead!

The food was AMAZING as always.

So was the dessert! YUM!

It was so much fun spending the evening with my friends and parents! Can't wait for next year!

On Saturday morning, I woke up to amazing weather and headed out for a long run. I'll share more on my long run in a later post this week!

After the run, Jason and I made breakfast.

Again, I'm sure you can see a theme here...we pretty much decided to do as many Disney-like things we could this weekend!

This turned into more of a "brunch" since we were eating closer to 11 p.m.

Jason's parents were also gracious enough to watch Brayden for part of the day, since they were supposed to have him anyway! 

One of the things we were saving for the cruise ship was movie watching. We didn't go see Guardians, Cars 3, or Spider-Man in theaters with hopes they would be available on the ship. Well, we decided to Red Box Guardians 2 and watch with our surround sound that we hardly ever get to use! We also blacked out as many windows as possible and loaded up on the snacks! No, we didn't eat ALL of that in one sitting! (I bought the Ghirardelli chocolates because they reminded me of Disney Springs and the Pineapple Fanta reminded me of Club Cool in Epcot!) 

After the movie, we met up with Jason's parent's in town and picked up Brayden for his first football game of the season! Our hometown college team is the Cowboys, so Brayden was decked out in Wranglers and Cowboy boots! :)

He did REALLY well for the first part of the game but started getting restless closer to half time. Our team was winning, so after half time and watching the band, we decided to leave. (They ended up winning in the end!)

On Sunday morning, we went to church and had lunch afterwards with my parents.

Brayden fell asleep on the way home and he seems to transfer really well from the car seat into his bed....so once he was sound asleep, I began the fall decorating process! I was going to wait until we returned home from the cruise but since that didn't happen, I decided with the gorgeous weather all weekend, I might as well!

Fall is one of my favorite times of year!

We spent the remainder of the evening in the pool! Perfect end to a great weekend!

For the record, my comments about a cancelled cruise are seriously tongue in cheek. I know Disney made the right decision and I'm not upset at all. Yes, I'm sad we didn't get to go on our cruise for now, but I feel worse for the people on those poor islands who had their homes destroyed by Hurricane Irma. 

So there you have it - for a weekend that started off with cancelled plans and ended with a lot of fun, I'd say it was a success!

How was your weekend? Any fun plans?

Labor Day Weekend

Happy Labor Day! If you have the day off of work today, I hope you have a fun day! We have zero plans and that's ok with me because this weekend was full of fun times!

It all started on Friday after work - I stopped by a local vinyl and design shop to heat press a few shirts I made for our upcoming cruise. I have never owned a heat press and these shirts have glitter vinyl on them, so I was nervous to use my at-home iron. I can't believe how EASY the heat press was to use! As a bonus, the shop only charges $1 per shirt to use the heat press, so I'm going to keep using them!

After heat pressing my shirts, I met up with Jason for lunch at Walk-Ons. This salad included strawberries, blueberries, apples, pecans, and chicken. I also used a Tabasco pepper-jelly vinaigrette dressing and it was delicious!

On Friday afternoon, we spent a bit of time playing with Brayden - in both the pool and on the swing! He sure loves the swing and we had a ball!

Saturday morning gave me the opportunity for another long run. The temps were just 69 degrees and although the humidity was up, it felt great outside!

Mid run, this dog came up behind me and scared me so bad! I was in my zone and didn't even hear him approaching (no headphones were in, either)!  He just wanted to say hello, but this incident made me realize that I definitely need to pay closer attention to my surroundings!

I went out for six miles and although my hamstring felt great for most of the run, it started bothering me during mile 5. I didn't want to overdo it, so I turned the rest into a walk-run. I also tried to KT Tape my hamstring and with a little tweaking, I think this will help tremendously.

After the run, Jason's family threw me a birthday breakfast. Yes, my birthday was last weekend, but this was the first time we had a chance to get together to celebrate!

It was so delicious!

Isn't the "cake" too cute? Such a clever idea!

After breakfast, my friends and I took a little girl's trip to Lafayette for McAlisters and ornament shopping at Hallmark! :)

We all ordered broccoli cheese soup in some form or fashion!

This trip was filled with so much laughter, it really felt good to just enjoy myself and spend time with friends!

After a couple hours of shopping, we stopped by our favorite cookie/ice cream shop for dessert and ended our night ended with the LSU game at home!

On Sunday, we went to church and had lunch with my dad and a friend of mine. After lunch, Brayden went down for a 3 hour nap which allowed Jason and I plenty of time to pack and get things together for our trip! 

In all, it was an amazing weekend and I loved every moment! 

Hope you all have a fabulous day! How was your weekend spent? Any Labor Day plans today?

Food Favorite: Whispering Canyon Cafe

Over the course of the past couple of years, I've shared my favorites about Walt Disney World. It's no secret that I'm slightly obsessed with Ohana and all things bread pudding with bananas foster sauce. However, I do have other food favorites around Walt Disney World - one of them being Whispering Canyon Cafe at Disney's Wilderness Lodge.

It's been a few years since I've eaten here, but I do love it for all three meals - breakfast, lunch, and dinner! 

Tucked just inside the grand lobby of the Wilderness Lodge is Whispering Canyon Cafe. If you happen to visit the lodge during meal times, you can't miss it!

Don't be alarmed by your server's name - they are in it to have a great time and you will too! The servers here are full of shenanigans and will leave you laughing until your side hurts!

Hands down, my favorite menu item is the "Skillet". It's an all-you-care-to-eat style option and comes with an assortment of great food items.

For breakfast, the skillet includes: Scrambled Eggs, Western Home Fries, Bacon, Sausage, Waffles, Buttermilk Biscuits, and Sausage Gravy.

For lunch, the skillet includes: Slow-smoked Pork Ribs, Barbecued Pulled Pork, Roasted Glazed Chicken, and Western-style Sausage served with Mashed Yukon Potatoes, Corn on the Cob, and Cowboy-style Baked Beans.

 
Finally, for dinner, the skillet includes: Mixed Greens tossed in an Apple Vinaigrette Dressing and Fresh-baked Cornbread (not pictured). Featuring Slow-smoked Pork Ribs, Barbecued Pulled Pork, Roasted Glazed Chicken, Beef Brisket, and Western-style Sausage served with Seasonal Farm Fresh Vegetables, Mashed Yukon Potatoes, Corn on the Cob, and Cowboy-style Baked Beans.

Apart from a slice of smores cake for dessert (which I don't have a picture of), I haven't tried any additional food options from this restaurant - although looking over their menu definitely makes my mouth water!

Another fun option here are the milkshakes - you can order a milk shake as your drink and it's also "all-you-care-to-enjoy"!

Not that anyone NEEDS that much sugar, but it sure is fun to order a refill! :) 

It's been a while since I've visited and this restaurant is included in our plans for February. I can't wait to go back!

Remember that "good time" I mentioned above? Well, if you need ketchup, your server might make you ask for it...really loudly...as in to the entire restaurant. You might end up with 12 bottles of ketchup on your table!! 

Also, if you've just run your very first full marathon that morning and can hardly move by the evening, they might make you stand and do the hokey pokey. Yep. True story.

The food options here make for a GREAT post-runDisney race meal, by the way!

We were told to "hold up our medals". Well, my husband thought he would be funny and hold up his "metal"...aka his fork. Lordy...see what I live with?! 

This restaurant is definitely best when visited with friends. Your servers will make sure you have a good time and laugh until your sides hurt! You won't leave disappointed, that's for sure!

Have you ever tried Whispering Canyon Cafe? If so, did you like it? What's your favorite meal to eat here?

Current Favorite: Breakfast

I love breakfast. Breakfast foods are an absolute favorite of mine – from eggs to bacon to bagels to English muffins to waffles and pancakes…ok, you get the picture.

I like to vary up my breakfast from time to time and throw new flavors in with each new recipe attempt.

When I was given the opportunity to try Sargento Thin Slices through Influenster, I jumped at the opportunity! Did I mention I also LOVE cheese?

I even got to choose my favorite flavors from their line of Ultra Thin sliced cheese – and only 40 calories per slice, too! Wahoo!!

Saturday morning after my run, I returned home and made breakfast for Jason and I. A new favorite of ours consists of eggs/egg whites turkey bacon, spinach, and cheese all piled inside a whole wheat English muffin. It’s pure heaven, I tell you!

I’ll leave you with the recipe!

Egg White, Spinach, and Cheese -
Whole Wheat English Muffin

Ingredients:

1 whole wheat English muffin (brand of choice)
1 tsp EVOO
1 egg (may substitute egg whites)
1/4 cup chopped onion (I used frozen)
1 handful of baby spinach or greens of choice
1 slice of turkey bacon
1 slice of Sargento Thin Sliced cheese (flavor of your choice)
Seasoning of choice

Directions

Lightly grease a small pan. Bring to medium heat on stovetop. Add onions and brown (about 3 minutes or so); add spinach or greens and allow to wilt (about 2 minutes). Add egg or egg white mixture to onions/greens mixture. Scramble until no longer wet. Add seasoning of choice if so desired.

Cook turkey bacon according to package instructions.

Toast English muffin until lightly toasted.

Once toasted, remove English muffin from toaster, add sliced cheese, bacon, and eggs – voila!

Serve and enjoy!

I chose Colby Jack cheese for mine complete with a cup of coffee.

Jason asked for Pepper-Jack cheese on his and preferred a glass of orange juice.

Both sandwiches had an awesome flavor, I wouldn’t say I liked one over the other!  At only 40 calories per slice, I knew I found a favorite!!

Disclaimer: Although I received this Sargento promotion without cost through Influenster, I’m a lover of cheese and wouldn’t tell you it had a good flavor if it actually didn’t taste good. I did not receive any additional compensation for this review.

What’s your favorite breakfast item? Have you tried anything new lately?

End of the Season Party

I had a fabulous weekend, how about you guys? I spent a bit of my weekend alone because my husband spent time camping with friends. I enjoyed the quiet, but I definitely missed him! With him being gone, I was able to catch up on a few chick-flicks on my DVR and was able to rent Safe Haven (which I loved, by the way)!

Even though Saturday morning was incredibly humid, it was a beautiful one. The view from the lake was breathtaking..…or wait, maybe the humidity was making it hard to breathe?



Well either way, it was a beautiful view! I met up with Heather, Kelli, and Rebecca - all of us ran different mileage but were running together at one point or another. I finished my goal of 8 miles with no knee pain, thanks to my coach’s advice of adding lunges to my foam rolling and icing routine! Yay!

After our run, Kelli and I changed direction from our usual post-run routine and enjoyed breakfast at Cracker Barrel!


I’ve been hungry for French Toast lately, so that’s what I ordered. BOY did I get a ton of food! I ate half, then took half home for Sunday morning breakfast! :0)
As if I didn’t eat enough food at breakfast, I enjoyed even more at dinner! Our annual running group end of the year party was held at my coach’s house and we had a great time.



I loved being able to see my friends and fellow runners in “normal” clothes. It was fun to meet their families as well! :0)



These are the only pictures of people that I took at the party because I was too busy eating and talking the rest of the evening!



I didn’t miss out on the chance to take pictures of my food, though. I had to laugh at all of the runners I saw who fixed hamburgers minus a bread bun! I was guilty, too. I chose to eat my carbs elsewhere…as in dessert!



We had a great evening and really enjoyed spending time away from the roads with my friends and fellow runners!

How did you spend your weekend? Are you a part of a running group?