Happy Tuesday! It’s difficult heading back to work, but I’m trying to make the best of it 
The remainder of my weekend in Wilkes-Barre was lovely. I started off Sunday morning with a sunny breakfast on the back porch: coffee, OJ, and a whole grain bagel with peanut butter & honey.
After breakfast, mom and I ventured out on a day full of errands. Our first stop – Sanitary Bakery! If you read my blog often, you may remember my previous visits to this local gem:
4th of July cupcakes and cookies
Mom and I arrived to see that the case was PACKED full of delicious homemade goodies:
One of the best things about this bakery is the super-affordable prices. Check out this beautiful red velvet layer cake for $7.99 -
And homemade pumpkin and apple cider donuts for 45 cents! Mom and I split one in the car. Good news: If these baked goods are making your mouth water, Sanitary Bakery apparently delivers nationwide. And no, I am not their official PR person
After the bakery, it was time for new running shoes (Asics Gel-Nimbus), Target, and the grocery store. After a few hours of shopping I started to get that annoying shaky, lightheaded feeling. I ate a 1.5 oz pack of mixed nuts and that helped a little, but I didn’t start feeling better until after I had a big bowl of spicy red lentil soup from Wegman’s. I don’t know what’s going on with my blood sugar level lately – it has been dropping very suddenly and making me feel yucky.
Once the errands were finished, I camped out on the porch with my laptop. Since I wasn’t feeling well, my mom brought me out a pillow and blanket. I was able to get a wireless signal outside and it was the perfect set-up. Visiting home is a lovely break from grown-up life
Dinner was made on the grill and the meal contained 5 different types of vegetables!! I think I was more excited about this than anyone else in my family…I made myself some veggie kabobs (everyone else had chicken + veggies) : grilled green pepper, sweet onion, cherry tomato, and squash with some BBQ sauce on the side. A little low in protein, but I think that’s alright since my lunch (mixed nuts + lentil soup) was full of that good stuff.
For a side dish, Holly the Healthy Everythingtarian was my inspiration!
I washed and quartered 2.5 lbs of baby red potatoes. Then I mixed the potatoes with 1 Tbs canola oil and 1 packet of Hidden Valley Ranch Seasoning. I covered a baking sheet with foil and lightly oiled it and then spread the potato chunks on the pan. I roasted the potatoes for 45 minutes at 400 degrees. I stirred everything after about 20 minutes. Makes about 4-5 servings. Yum!
My plate (plus seconds of grilled veggies and potatoes!):
Finally, the best part of the weekend – marble cake with vanilla butter cream icing! Hooray for birthday celebrations that last all week long
A 5-year old would love this cake.
With a scoop of neopolitan ice cream:
This cake is delish, but veryyy sweet. After licking the icing from the cake knife and serving platter, I was approaching a sugar coma!
FYI: A study in the Journal of Applied Physiology found that beet juice help us exercise up to 16% longer! The researchers found that the beet’s nitrate content reduced oxygen uptake, which made working out less tiring. Read more about yummy ways to eat your beets!
Cobblers and crisps are a year-round treat, use berries in the summer and apples or pears in the fall. Check out this yummy recipe from Skinny and the City!
Celebrate national yoga month with a FREE one-week pass at a participating studio. Ommm.