Goodbye Summer, Hello Fall

What a fun filled weekend! I have not come back to work feeling so refreshed in a long, long time. LOVE those weekends!

For starters, on Friday in the office I opted not to dine out since I’d already done that once the day before, so I had this Lean Cuisine Mushroom Pizza. I hate the sodium counts in these, but they’re a nice quick and tasty meal.
pizza

And for dessert I had a Mini Hershey Bar
chocolate

Dinner was non existent. The fiance and I stayed in to watch Death at a Funeral (HYSTERICAL) and munched on some gouda and crackers, and I had some white wine.
chees

I woke up bright and early on Saturday morning to pick up my friend to go to a Weight Watchers meeting. I went about three years ago (and was still down about 8-9 pounds from where I started then), and despite the fact that I have this blog, I really need the extra accountability and in a weird way, competitiveness, to get down those last few pounds before the wedding (6 months from yesterday!). I love the program, and the weekly meetings are a good check-in for me. I really don’t think it’ll be any different from what I’m doing now, just a little more tracking of my diet to make sure I’m shedding those lbs.

After the meeting I ran next door to Starbucks for a Skinny Vanilla Latte and a new Berry Stella. Those stellas are really good. A perfect blend of sweet and sour (a little from the berries).
coffee

The fiance and I hit the gym for an hour where I did 40 minutes on the elliptical and arms. When we got home we made a quick lunch. I had a Morningstar “Chicken” Patty with Buffalo Sauce on 100 Calorie Arnold Bread.
burger

After showering we hopped in the car to go to Mervis Diamond to try on wedding bands! My engagement ring is a three stone emerald cut in a platinum setting so really the only band that looks good paired with it is a plain platinum band, which is cost effective. The way I figure it, I can save more diamonds down the road for anniversaries and birthdays and Christmases and just becauses. Ahem, fiance.

Before we went to try on rings, we stopped at Lazy Sundaes. They only have homemade ice cream and constantly change the flavors. I had Cafe Oreo. Ah-ma-zing.
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We then came home to prepare for our friends Amy and Kim’s Annual Dog Barbecue! I brought my famous Spinach Dip. Here are the ingredients. It’s so easy, and honestly the best dip ever. I modify it by using light ingredients.
chees

Here’s an early party shot. I think there were about 30 dogs altogether at her house! It was so cute, she had doggie cupcakes and ice cream for the pooches and on every table there were centerpieces of vases with dog treats in them and poop bags, because, well 30 dogs and one lawn – think about it.
piknik

Here is some of the spread. There’s my spinach dip in the bread bowl. My camera died before I could capture my plate. I had a skewer of chicken satay, some sesame noodles, some spin dip and veggies. I also had 1.5 Yuenglings
food

My friend Kim attempted to make veggie burgers from scratch, but they just didn’t turn out. She gets an A for effort though.
kabab

Another partygoer, Linda, made these AWESOME egg rolls. I had one.
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We left the party early at about 9:30 and I headed to my friend Emily’s Bachelorette Party in Georgetown. She was in town from San Francisco and we definitely showed her a good time. We started at Tony & Joe’s, moved to the Guards, and then Third Edition. I felt like I was in college again. I had two vodka/sodas the ENTIRE night. But, I didn’t get home til 2:30. Phew!

Sunday morning I had oatmeal with some banana, but I accidentally deleted the picture. Just imagine it….

The fiance and I hit up the gym for some lifting and then picked up some lunch at Surfside, a new restaurant in Glover Park. I got the Bali Salad which had chicken, peanuts, oranges, tomatoes, and honey peanut dressing. I added just a bit of the dressing and didn’t eat most of the chicken. It didn’t taste fully cooked and I didn’t want to risk getting sick. Otherwise it was great and the fiance really loved his meal.
salat

Then we headed to Great Falls with Thumper for a big hike! Look how happy he is running through those woods!
dog

And the beautiful falls on a beautiful day.
wather

Thump really wanted to take it all in.
Thumper laid in a pool of water/mud on our hike back so we knew he needed a bath. We stopped by our friend Amy’s (dog bbq host) to borrow her hose and dog soap. She just so happens to live next to a Baskin Robbins. I had Peanut Butter Cup — the kids size.
iceream

Dinner was an ode to summer. We had Teriyaki Burgers and Corn on the Cob. I mixed teriyaki sauce with the ground beef and a little salt and pepper. We then served the burgers on English Muffins. I love a burger on an English muffin. I think they taste so much better. Yum!
popcorn

I had 3/4 Cup of Puffins for dessert. I love these as a little snack.
After the gym this morning (45 minutes elliptical and abs) I had two Multigrain Waffles with 1 Tbsp Syrup and a Half a Banana.

cake

Looking forward to beginning this week on a great note!

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By: Updated: September 22, 2008