the great spending freeze of 2014

The cat is about the leave the bag guys....

Manfriend and I spend a lot of friggen money.

On trips, and food, and coffee, and everything really.



that's a $12 frozen glass of sin right there....

I mean, I literally have some sort of a disease where I can't stay out of Target and as a result I buy so much shit I don't need.
 

After our little jaunt to NOLA I realized we had spent a small fortune in  just three days. Like so much I don't even want to think about it or I might barf. It was worth every penny and I don't regret it one bit, but I do need to behave here for a few weeks.
 

It's just so hard because Jose and I are really good at living like rich people but according to our paychecks we are just regular people. Weird I know.

I have a trip coming up next month to Austin where I'll no doubt blow the bank and we are going to a concert in DC in just a few weeks which always runs us a boatload of money what with our drinking habbits and all, so until those things happen I am going to be making a vallient effort to not spend money.

No coffees, no dinners out, no bars (we have so much booze in our apartment we have no need to leave), no shopping, I repeat no shopping.

I have somehow convinced Mr. Spendypants to go on a spending freeze with me too. I imagine we will only last a week but we are shotting for three. Wish us luck.

 

that gator knows we're poor. He likes us anyway.
 

 

I confess...

 

-I plan a lot of fake vacations. I could tell you what it costs to fly from DC to just about anywhere in the world because I spend so much time browsing Orbitz for flights. One day I will make it to all the places on my bucket list, in the mean time I will fake travel.

-I spend a lot of time browsing Petfinder too. I just can't get over how cute dogs are (mainly pitt bulls) so I search for them on a regular basis. I also Google pictures of puppies quite frequently.

-I have a real mean streak. It doesn't come out that often but when it does it does. My boyfriend just says I'm sassy, but it may be a little worse truth be told. I get into little spats with people when I don't like their attitude and I should probably cut that shit out. But as it stands I just prefer dogs to people.

-I rarely brush my hair. It is so long, it would just take too much time. The messy waves will just have to do, I am sure it looks terrible most days but whatever.

-I have no idea how to work the thermostat in my apartment. It works to manfriends advantage because he is always hot and I am always cold, so therefor our apartment is always really chilly. I try and try but can't learn to work that damn thing.

-I spilled red nail polish all over my carpet the other day, I tried to clean it and in the end just wound up moving the ottoman so it's hidden. whoops.

Now go read more confessions at the blog Vodka and Soda, I guarantee they are funnier than mine.

because eggplants are better

As I talk about probably more than you care to hear, I am all about balance in life.

This applies particularly to my diet.

One of the things I firmly believe in is eating the things you love in moderation.

I follow this rule when I eat shit like pizza. No matter how you slice it pizza is not the healthiest option for you, it has carbs, fatty cheese, and often fatty meats on it. But it is also delicious.

I will never stop eating things i love like pizza, but when I do order it I go for a lighter version think all veggies instead of peperoni, because it still tastes amazing and cuts a lot of the calories out.

I try to eat things that only have one super heavy element to them. Like if I eat beef I pair it will all veggies, carb heavy dishes with no meat, if something has a lot of cheese I keep the meat out of it, etc..

Likewise if I am drinking copious amounts of booze I forgo snacks that day. (wise I know)

One of my favorite examples of this philosophy is my eggplant lasagna. I can even get my meat loving man friend on board with this one, because it honestly doesn't taste much different than regular old lasagna.

You will need:

-One eggplant peeled
-Jar of tomato sauce
-Garlic
-Mushrooms
-Light ricotta cheese
-Parmesan cheese

Directions:

-Pre-heat oven to 350.

-Peel your eggplant and cut it into long thin strips (they are essentially your lasagna noodles so try and cut them like that).

-Place one layer of eggplant in a square baking dish mine was 9x9.

-In a bowl combine one cup ricotta with a few cloves of garlic (I used about 4 but I am a freak), and a tablespoon of your tomato sauce.

-Add a layer of the ricotta on top of your eggplant.

-Now add a layer of sliced mushrooms and top that with a little more ricotta.

-Add another layer of eggplant and top with a cup of tomato sauce.

-Bake for 40-45 minutes or until eggplant is tender, sprinkle Parmesan cheese on the top for the last ten minutes of baking.

This dish is super rich and filling, it tastes naughty but with the use of low-fat ricotta it is actually fairly light calorie wise.

it doesn't really get any cuter

Want to see something that will melt your heart into a bazillion tiny little pieces, even if it is ice cold like mine??

Well here you go.

I mean come on. Kenny is just too much and that baby (my nephew who hates me) isn't half bad himself.  Happy Friday bitches.

shit I ate in NOLA

You want to know what was amazing about New Orleans other than everything?

The food, that's what.

If there are two things I love putting in my mouth it's hot sauce and seafood and NOLA had me covered.

I figured I would tell you guys about some of the restaurants I chowed down at in case you take my advice and plan a trip there anytime soon.

Also, because after the copious amounts of booze I took in during our visit I won't be eating for several weeks and I want to relive the glorious food through blogging....yum.

So without further ado, here are some can't miss joints in the Big Easy.



I love drinking on the street...I feel so naughty.

Evangeline- This was our first stop in NOLA. A cute little bar that was right near our hotel on Decatur Street. It was casual but a little classier than your average bar. The service was great and the catfish jambalaya was really good. Manfriend got down on the shrimp and grits and it was pretty good, but I think mine are better.

Cafe Beignet- We went to the carry out version of this famous cafe because it is situated in a gorgeous courtyard on Bourbon Street with live music going at all times. We did not try beignets, because I prefer my calories come from booze and am not much of a fried food gal, but we did have a bowl of gumbo here and it was pretty good. Nothing to write home about, but the ambiance could not be beat and the prices were cheap.

Carousel Bar- We did not eat here, but we did get a kick ass bloody mary. This bar is located in the beautiful Hotel Monteleone and guess what?? It friggen spins! Just like a real GD carousel. It was honestly a little much for me and we only lasted two rotations and one bloody, but it is definitely a must check out, because it is just so crazy.

Grapevine- Hands down the beast eats of our trip were had at this romantic little wine bar. I made best pals with an old man named Harrison at approximately 4am Friday night at a little bar called the Turtle and he insisted this was the best restaurant in town. I think he was right. Manfriend and I enjoyed three small plates in lieu of entrees and I am so glad we did. I had a nice glass of red to start and we ordered the bacon wrapped scallops with wild rice, mussels topped with crab, and Angus steak bites. It was all heavenly. Perfect date spot.

 

Kingfish- Sunday night we decided to drink our dinner instead of eating it, but we did save a little room to try an appetizer here. I can't recall the name of the dish seeing as I mainly drank dinner but it was a waffle topped with grilled shrimp and it was friggen good. This was one of those spots where everything sounded amazing and I had a real hard time picking an appetizer. We ended up making the bar tender decide for us, and he did us well.

Antoine's- Probably the best bar we randomly stumbled into just so happens to be the second oldest bar in the country. This place is pure class and elegance. Super ornate and gorgeous decor and a friendly staff serving up craft cocktails. I always love a bar where the bartender gives me the left overs of every one's drinks she is mixing and I get to try things I would never order like a gin fizz for example...surprisingly delicious. The coolest part was at one point the bartender told us and the couple seated next to us to grab our drinks and come on the tour. She then showed us around the entire gigantic restaurant and gave us the history as well as dropped names of all the famous folks who have dinned there. So cool.

Cafe Soule- We had a great breakfast with the world's wackiest waitress at this joint. I had the craw fish eggs bennie served on grit cakes and it was so rich and delicious I only was able to tackle half of one. If you know me you know I rarely don't clean my plate, but it was just so much damn food.


 

A dilly green bean makes a bloody even better, just so you know.

The Coffee was pretty amazing and strong everywhere.


 

Not gonna lie, I feel a little fat after writing down all the crap we ate, but in my defense I drank way more than I ate and we did walk about 6 miles a day....



some reasons working out does not suck...

Every New Year bazillions of people around the globe make the resolution to get fit and loose some weight.

I myself have made that very resolution many times in the past. In fact, this year is the first in a very long time I have not felt the need to loose any pounds and let me just tell ya it feels pretty damn good.

That being said, I struggled with getting into the whole fitness thing for years...like ten to be exact.

That's a lot.

I have recently been watching and hearing about friends and acquaintances in bloglandia and the real world struggle with this very thing.

I am here to tell you, it is not easy to start a work out routine. Not easy at all.

In fact it's hard as shit.

I spent so much time trying to get into it and just continued to fall off the wagon time and time again. And to be honest, I am not sure why it finally clicked but it eventually did and now I work out like a maniac. Every day. Yes, every single day.

I am not trying to toot my own horn not at all actually trust me I used to work out once a week max I know the struggle, instead I just want to share some reasons why I think working out is amazing in hopes that it helps some of you out there who are struggling to find the Fitness Jesus as my buff pal Kathy likes to call it. Because once you find it, you will fu*king love it. I promise.

1. You can eat a lot. I hate diets. I hate counting calories. Sure I pay attention to calories a little here and there, but for the most part I can eat what I want when I want. Burning lots of calories means you can take in more calories. I actually eat more than ever and have lost weight.

2. You want to eat better. When I started my little quest for healthy living I decided not to change my diet and just start working out everyday. And guess what? Within a week or two my diet just changed. Not because I said it had to, but because I wanted it to. When you are doing good shit for your body via exercise you just want to do good for your body via what you eat. I eat clean because I know how hard I work at the gym and the little angel on my shoulder with a six pack makes me feel disgusted at the thought of eating certain foods. It literally just happened, I never planned it. I bet it will work for you too.

3. You sleep so much better. I am a bit of an insomniac. That has not completely changed, but I sleep a thousand times better now that I am actually tiring myself out.

4. Relaxing feels so damn good. I used to come home everyday after work, walk the dog, then plop my happy ass on the couch in front of the TV, only getting up to make and eat dinner. I always felt lazy, and guilty, but I was in a rut. Now when I come home after work and two hours at the gym I love that couch. It feels good to sit. I promise you will appreciate your couch so much more.

5. You are more comfortable. I blame yoga for this one, so do yoga...for real, just do it. I remember always struggling to get comfy in the car, or when I had to sit on the floor, or in conferences and things. Now that I am as stretchy as gumby I can find a comfy position in just about any situation and it is pretty great. Also, if you are running or lifting weights or anything like that, yoga is an amazing idea, it soothes your achy muscles and makes your butt look nice.

6. You are genuinely hungry. Some nights I come home from the gym or after a long run and am legitimately famished. In the past I never went long enough between feedings to be starving and man oh man does food ever taste good when you are really hungry. (Can you tell I love to eat yet?)

7. Clothes. My god the clothes. It had been years since I enjoyed clothes, and now that I am proud of the work I have done to change my bod, I love clothes again. We all have our ideal weights and looks and I am by no means skinny or even close, but making a drastic change will make anyone feel good, and you will be amazed how quickly things do change, and how quickly you will be feeling better in the things you wear and that my friends is fun.

8. Confidence, becoming stronger and healthier makes you feel infinitely better. I started feeling amazing after week one of working out really diligently. I certainly didn't look any different after just a week but I felt better. I have never felt better, you want to feel like that trust me.

9. Strength. It is friggen cool to see how strong you can become. And how much endurance you have. It builds quickly and it is so awesome. The body is an amazing thing. I started my fitness journey thinking I could do very little, but you will be amazed what you can do when you push your limits. And you will be even more amazed when you see how quickly you improve.

10. Balance, for me the best part about exercise is the balance it gives my life. I will never give up eating chocolate or drinking copious amounts of wine or watching too much TV for that matter, but I also do something active every single day so I don't feel guilty if I have an extra slice of pizza or drink a little too much one night. In the end it all evens out. Even when I travel, I don't kill myself but I go for a run or do some yoga every morning so I don't need to worry about watching my calories or limiting my booze intake on vacation, because really who wants to do that.

this one time in New Orleans

Guess what??

Friday, manfriend and I jetsetted off to the Big Easy...just because.

True, we just returned from a nine day vacation in Michigan.

Also true, we took a mini getaway to Baltimore to ring in the new year in a nice hotel.

Even truer, we are broke.

But hell, we love to travel so we did.

It was the first visit for both of us and we spent Friday-Monday doing all kinds of ragin' cajun shit.

And it was fabulous.

I'm not really sure what I expected but the Big Easy exceeded it.

I loved the food, the people, the music, my god the music, the booze, the energy, the beautiful buildings, the history, all of it.

We got real rowdy Friday and Saturday night, kept it a little classier on Sunday and spent our days walking around every inch of the gorgeous city.

We ate like fat kids, and drank like drunk kids. I managed to escape hangovers and even went for a nice run one morning.

If you have ever thought about going, just do it. You won't be sorry.

our sweet ass room at the Blue Green Resort

 

the buildings killed me.

before I lost the ability to walk...

 

just a little mansion, no big deal.

 

giant ass frozen sangria!