Simplicity at it's best

Today was sooo relaxing. I really needed it!
I made myself a late lunch before I headed to the gym- a toasted ham & swiss sammie made with 4 slices (extra protein power!) honey ham, 1 light laughing cow, spinach and dijon mustard on an Arnold's whole wheat sandwich thin. I heated it up in the toaster oven for the ultimate toasty sammie! I also had a big honey crisp apple on the side.

Afterwards I went to the gym where I attempted my usual routine but had to cut my strength a bit short- the gym was so packed I could hardly move in the weight area! I got in 30 minutes of cardio on the elliptical and 20 minutes of arm work.
I showered and headed out to pick up my sister and her boy Tom- he's such an amazing kid- only 15 and he's lived in Italy,Holland and 3 states in the US! So I spent about an hour at Starbucks (he'd never been and quite enjoyed his caramel macchiato!) chatting with him so I can profile him for my writing class! My sister's a lucky girl, he's a great guy! =) My afternoon snack was one of my holiday time favorites- a grande nonfat gingersnap latte! Mmm, sweet and full of enough protein to keep me going through the evening!

Dropped my sister off, accepted this caramel candy from my sister's pumpkin/caramel cake supply stash and headed home.

Of course when I got home I was starving and I didn't want to whip out anything new because I'm leaving early on Friday and don't want leftovers to spoil in the fridge! So I cooked up a simple, yet incredibly tasty and filling dish. Second to stirfrys, the easiest college-student staple I could think of was pasta, sauce, protein. In my case I healthified the usual hot-dog, white pasta, alfredo combo (oh yes, I've seen it done) and opted for whole wheat rotini with some pan seared salt & pepper shrimp (frozen so I could ration out a single portion!), 1/2 cup sweet basil tomato sauce and the last of the leftover steamed green beans on the side. I made 1 cup dry pasta, and it made a HUGE filling serving! Of course I ate every bite because it was just so darn good =)


Ok, blog friends- here's the deal- I have a couple things I need to discuss with y'all.

#1- Turkey Day
I mentioned in my FAQs post that I was participating in an eating contest of sorts on Thanksgiving. I have to admit, this is true. I don't usually agree to such unhealthy practices, but I figure it's one time, it's for fun and I will for sure forfeit if it gets too out of hand! As tiny as I am, I eat a lot. Portion control has always been one of my biggest struggles because I'm literally a bottomless pit. I used to say the only person that could out eat me was my dad, Nick proved this wrong... but they're pretty much the only two guys who can eat more than me! Generally I choose to eat until I'm 80% full- usually this holds me over enough I don't go overboard. Every once in a while though I need something else! In a discussion on holiday indulging my cousin, joking with me about my healthy habits claimed she could eat more than me because I'm so small. I said she surely could not, I love my food! So she had the fun idea to have an eating contest on Turkey day and see who can really put the food away! Like I said, if I feel too full or I'm 3 plates in and not feeling too great I'll stop. I'm not crazy! But I'm just giving ya the heads up that sometimes my competitive side gets the best of me!
I AM going to a spin class at 8 in the morning to pre-burn some stuffing calories and I plan on eating very healthy on the way to Canada Friday!

That brings me to discussion #2...

#2- Canada
As I've mentioned in passing, bright and early Friday morning I'm taking the 10.5 hour ride up to Ontario with the boy to surprise his parents for the weekend. (Yes, I'm meeting the parents... gulp). First off, I will not have my laptop with me because it's too much of a hassle to bring my converter, etc- and I won't have the internet so there's really no point. Second, since I've never met his family before, I haven't decided whether or not it'll be a good idea to whip out the camera before I take a bite of the delicious food they prepare me... If we go out, I'll photograph. But if we're just at home, I might not feel comfortable opening the blog conversation. But, we'll see. If they seem like they'd be cool with it or if Nick mentions it, then I'll try! If not, I promise I will be back on Monday with a full descriptive re-cap on my Canadian adventures!!

Hope you all understand!
Off to do some more Thanksgiving prep! I'm so excited it's only 14 hours away!!