New Apartment

Best parts of my weekend:

• I moved into a new apartment!!! It's still a work in progress, but it's looking so good!

Our living room looks amazing! I wish I could say I contributed, but I owe this room 100% to Cameron and her mom. We're getting a cream colored slip cover for the couch, but I still think it looks ok how it is right now.

Our dining room looks really good too! Once again, I wish I could say I contributed...

I would show you my room, but it's really messy right now, so I'll save it for another post.

• I ate at Urban Cookhouse for lunch. So happy it's so close to me now!

I ordered the Chipotle Braised Pork with roasted veggies. Delish.

• Jackson's takeout was my first meal in my new apartment.

Sonora Wrap- Southwest shrimp, pico de gallo, guacamole, provolone, and tomato with salad on the side.

• On Saturday morning, I went on a 4 mile run at Jemison Park. It was so enjoyable.

Perfect way to start my Saturday.

• I went to a Halloween party with my nice friend. We had a small photo shoot before we left.

This is my nice friend, Will.

We debated costume ideas for awhile (Occupy Wall Street protestors? Yeah, not my idea...), but eventually decided on pirates. I've had this costume since my freshman year of college, and he agreed to go along with my pirate theme. He ordered his costume online- pretty impressive!

We make pretty cute pirates.

So exhausted from a such a fun and exciting weekend. Hope your weekend was as great as mine!

Moving Out

I'm moving tomorrow!!! Can't believe I'm growing up so fast- so excited to start a new chapter in my life, have new exciting adventures, and live with one of my best friends!

In other news, I passed my Adult Weight Management post-test and am now officially certified! It feels good to have that out of the way before the big move tomorrow.

I haven't been doing a great job about posting regular meals lately, but the good news is that I've still been taking pictures along the way to share with you. I've still got a lot of packing to do, so here's an essentially wordless post....

Greek yogurt, Kashi Heart to Heart Warm Cinnamon, sliced banana, blueberries, almond butter.

 Crispy Oven-Baked Parmesan Chicken with LOTS of vegetables- broccoli, squash, Brussels Sprouts, and sun dried tomatoes. SOOO good!

My mom's leftover whole wheat linguini with bacon, mushrooms, onion, bell peppers, cherry tomatoes, spinach and tossed with Zoe's Greek dressing.

1/2 C oats, water/skim milk, 1 T ground flax, 1/2 sliced banana, dried cranberries, 1 T SmartBalance Crunchy PB.

Taziki's Mediterranean Salad with grilled chicken.

Zoe's Greek Salad with grilled chicken.

Blueberry Oat Bran Muffin from Magic Muffins. Yummm. One of my favorite breakfast places!

Quinoa pasta, sautéed spinach, tomato sauce, and chicken sausage.

Pumpkin Banana Oatmeal!

1/3 C oats, 1/4 C pumpkin, water, 1/2 sliced banana, 1 T Barney Butter, cinnamon.

Scrambled eggs with sautéed spinach, onions, red bell pepper. Didn't have cheddar or salsa on hand, so I improvised with mozzarella and tomato sauce. This does not look appetizing at all, but I promise it was really good.

My mom's turkey meatballs and all my favorite roasted veggies- sweet potatoes, butternut squash, and Brussels sprouts. This is a classic meal in our house, and I am going to miss it when I move out!

Have a great day!

Great Weekend

Great weekend so far!

On Friday night, my nice friend and I went to dinner at GianMarco's, a cozy little Italian place in Homewood. 

Our waiter listed off about ten amazing sounding dinner specials- it was really hard to remember everything, so forgive the vagueness of details in this dinner recap.

We each started out with a glass of Pinot Noir. That is my nice friend's arm in the background.

The bread display was pretty.

We split some kind of oyster appetizer. There were fried oysters and then some kind of baked oysters with spinach and breadcrumbs. I have no idea what it was, but it was delicious.

I ordered Red Snapper, one of the fish specials, for my main course. It was coated in breadcrumbs and it came with potatoes, asparagus, tomatoes, mussels, and some kind of delicious sauce.

For dessert, we split the Pumpkin Bread Pudding and Cinnamon Ice Cream. Amazing. It's nice to have dining companions who are as fond of pumpkin as I am.

Such a good meal! After dinner, we went to Above, a bar at the top of the Redmont Hotel that overlooks the city of Birmingham. It was a really fun night.

I also spent Saturday with my nice friend. The day consisted of running errands, lunch at Chipotle, shopping for Halloween costumes, watching football, watching movies, a "hipster dinner" at Bottletree (no pictures cause the lighting was too dim), and an evening walk around Railroad Park.

Chicken Burrito Bowls with sautéed veggies and guacamole are always a good call.

Breakfast this morning was a bowl of Kashi Heart to Heart Warm Cinnamon, skim milk, and a sliced banana.

Today, Cameron and I went to church and ate brunch at the Village Tavern. I ordered the Oven Roasted Turkey Sandwich- it came with sautéed mushrooms, Pepper Jack cheese, lettuce, tomato, and mustard sauce on French bread. I selected fruit as my side item.

Basic but delicious.

After brunch, we went to Target, Bed Bath & Beyond, Pier 1, and Pottery Barn to look for stuff for our new apartment. Can't believe I'm moving on Friday! I haven't even started packing yet and definitely don't have everything together. Just got really stressed about everything I need to do this week.

Got to get busy!

Williamsburg

Finally home!

Overall, I really enjoyed the conference. I thought the speakers were really interesting, and I learned a lot. Topics included obesity and genetics, clinical management of overweight and obesity, popular diets and weight loss programs (my favorite lecture), physical activity, behavioral management of obesity, medical complications of weight loss, bariatric surgery, OTC dietary supplements, and pharmacotherapy. The conference was really interactive, including case studies and lots of group work/discussion, which kept me from falling asleep.

I was definitely the youngest person there but loved being able to meet some older, more experienced dietitians. Everyone was so nice! I just have to take a post-test by next week and if I pass, I'll officially be certified in Adult Weight Management.

Got back into town last night. My nice friend picked me up at the airport and even surprised me with flowers!

Pretty :)

The flowers made up for the fact that earlier in the day airport security confiscated my Trader Joe's Almond Butter and Fig Butter. I didn't check any bags and forgot about the whole "no liquids over 3 oz" rule. It was really sad. Oh well, whatever. Guess I'll have to make trip to TJ's next time I'm in Atlanta.

Meals:

Since I went to the conference by myself, I wasn't too adventurous with trying out new restaurants- pretty much all of these meals came from the hotel's restaurant.

Breakfasts:

Oatmeal. Every day. Sorry, I'm boring.

Lunches:

The Virginian Sandwich- fennel roasted pork loin, provolone, caramelized onions, pepperoncinis, baby spinach, and pesto aioli with fruit on the side. Delicious!

Lunch and Learn Meal: spinach and portabello panini, veggie orzo soup, and field greens salad with pecans, dried cherries, and dijon vinaigrette. Perfect dietitian-friendly meal!

Herb Grilled Tuna Nicoise Salad- french beans, roasted potatoes and artichokes, and balsamic vinaigrette.

Dinners:

Verde Flatbread- spinach, arugula, basil, feta, and serifina cheese.

I did manage to venture out into Williamsburg on my last night for dinner. I found the cutest coffee shop called Aroma's. They had a great menu, free wi-fi, and even had a band playing jazz music! Reminded me a lot of Chloe's Cup in Tuscaloosa.

I ordered the Asian Salmon Salad- mixed greens, carrots, onions, cucumbers, tomatoes, chow mein noodles, and sesame ginger dressing. This salad was amazing!

Here are some pictures I took while strolling around Williamsburg...

Love this.

I want a garden.

Open.

Secretive.

Quaint.

Artsy.

Rustic.

Have a great day!

Mitsitam Cafe

Hey everyone!

I've been having a great time at the Certification in Adult Weight Management conference but am so exhausted! I finally ventured out into the town of Williamsburg tonight after not having left the hotel for about 36 hours straight. It was nice to get some fresh air!

I'll get to Williamsburg and the conference in a later post- but first, here is the rest of my trip to DC....

On my last day in DC, my cousin and I went to brunch at the U STREET CAFE. It was an adorable little place.

Look how cute and local!

I ordered the Veggie Goat Cheese Scramble, which was filled with spinach and mushrooms. It came with buttered wheat toast and fruit. This combination never lets me down.

 I've officially decided that brunch is my favorite meal of the day.

After we finished eating, we went to check out a few more museums that we didn't get around to the day before. 

Our first stop was the Air and Space Museum.

Wright Brothers.

Amelia Earhart was legit.

Next, we went to the National Museum of the American Indian. My cousin told me it was her favorite hidden gem in DC. I agreed- it was so interesting! 

Rainbow lighting makes me look cool.

We ended up eating lunch at the museum's restaurant, the Mitsitam Cafe. 

Fun Fact: "Mitsitam" means "Let's Eat!" in the Native language of the Delaware and Piscataway peoples.

It was a really cool place- here's some more info from the website...

The Cafe features Native foods found throughout the Western Hemisphere, including the Northern Woodlands, South America, the Northwest Coast, Meso America and the Great Plains. Each of the five food stations depict regional lifeways related to cooking techniques, ingredients, and flavors found in both traditional and contemporary dishes. Selections include authentic Native foods such as traditional fry bread and corn totopos as well as contemporary items with a Native American twist—think buffalo burgers!

After walking around to the different stations at least ten times, I finally selected the Chipotle Chicken Taco from the Great Plains menu. It seemed to be a popular choice of the day. They also had a lot of veggie dishes that looked incredible- so many butternut squash and pumpkin items! 

The taco came on yummy fry bread, and all of the ingredients were so fresh! Could definitely tell the chicken was high quality.

After we finished lunch, it was time to go back to my cousin's apartment, so I could get my stuff and head to Union Station to catch my train. I know I've mentioned this before, but I really like train rides.

My train was delayed for over an hour, so I had plenty of time to grab dinner to take with me on the train. Union Station is a really cool place and has lots of shops/restaurant options.

I went to the Corner Bakery and got the Spinach Sweet Crisp Salad- baby spinach, sliced strawberries, oranges, red grapes, dried cranberries, goat cheese, and raisin pecan chips with pomegranate vinaigrette.

Colorful.

The conference ends tomorrow at noon, and I'll be getting back to Birmingham tomorrow night. Have had a great trip- I just love the Eastern coast!

Have a good one!

DC Weekend

Hello from Williamsburg!

I had such a great weekend in DC! My cousin and I stayed pretty busy and we packed a lot in, so I'll have to keep this post to just Friday night and Saturday.

Also wanted to share the exciting news that I have now joined the rest of America and am the proud owner of an iPhone 4x! I also got a really cool polka dot Kate Spade cover that I'm kind of obsessed with.

All of the pictures below are compliments of my new phone. 

Friday Lunch:

I decided to wait and eat lunch during my layover in Atlanta, but the airport options were pretty limited. The Wall Street Deli ended up being the best choice out of what was available.

Turkey and Avocado Sandwich on whole wheat with a fruit cup- pineapple, mandarin oranges, and grapes.

Friday Night Dinner:

My cousin met me at the airport when I arrived in DC, and we took the metro back to her apartment. I dropped off my stuff, and then we headed to Ben's Chili Bowl for dinner- it was just a short walk from her apartment. This place is kind of a big deal. My trip to DC would not have been complete without it.

I ate where President Obama ate!

I ordered the veggie chili, which came with cheese, onions, and saltines. Warm, hearty, and filling. Perfect for a chilly autumn night in DC.

Dessert:

Afterwards, we stopped for gelato. We both ordered a mix of Butter Pecan and Carrot Cake. Amazingly delicious!

Night Life:

My cousin and I also went out for a couple of beers on U Street and had some good conversations.

I don't know the name of this, but it tasted good.

Saturday Brunch:

I went to brunch with my cousin and her roommate at Busboys and Poets on Saturday morning. Such a neat place- I loved it! 

I ordered the Egg Wrap- scrambled eggs, onions, peppers, mushrooms, and cheddar in a flour tortilla with pico de gallo and fresh fruit on the side. Yum!

Chinatown.

Museums:

After brunch, my cousin and I went to the National Archives to see What's Cooking Uncle Sam? - an exhibit about the government's effect on the American diet. It was right up my alley and super interesting!

Here are some cool posters from the exhibit....

We also went to the Museum of Natural History and the Museum of American History.

Meet me cousin Sarah. She knows a lot about history, which makes her the ideal tour guide.

Highlights of the Day:

The Hope Diamond.

Dorothy's Ruby Slippers! The Wizard of Oz is a favorite of mine.

Teddy Bears are cute.

Lincoln's Top Hat.

Other Cool Things:

Lovely.

Reminds me of Paris.

US Navy Memorial.

FBI Building.

Saturday Lunch:

After touring a few museums, we ate a late lunch at Teaism, an Asian-inspired tea house.

I went with the Veggie Bento Box- rice, tofu, grilled veggies, sweet potatoes, and edamame. Nutritious and delicious! I loved every bite.

My cousin ordered the Chicken Curry. She was kind enough to go along with me and let me take a picture of her meal for blogging purposes. I tried a bite, and it was incredible. Would order this if I ever make it back!

Afternoon Treat:

After lunch, we made a special pilgrimage to Georgetown for baked & wired cupcakes!!!

baked & wired!!!

Long line. Worth the wait.

Although everything looked delicious (Chai Tea Cupcake? Yes, please.), I went with the Pumpkin Cream Cheese Cupcake. It even had pumpkin seeds on top! I just can't not order pumpkin when it's in season.

 Best cupcake ever- the cake to icing ratio was spot on!

My cousin and I also tried a little of this Salty Oat Chocolate Pecan cookie we got at Teaism. My cousin said they were top notch, and I couldn't leave without trying one. Definitely one of the best cookies I've had- loved how dense and thick it was and am always a fan of the salty and sweet combo!

Georgetown/ Foggy Bottom:

Scenic. I want to come back here one day and have a picnic.

We stopped here and ate our cupcakes. We both agreed that eating cupcakes on a beautiful day with gorgeous scenery equals happiness. It runs in the family.

This is the Old Stone House. It's the oldest standing building in DC and is also Washington's last Pre-Revolutionary Colonial building on its original foundation. Thanks, Wikipedia.

Willow trees are pretty. I want to have a picnic here too.

Trader Joe's:

Because I'm nearing the bottom of my beloved Trader Joe's Creamy Almond Butter with Sea Salt, I requested that a trip be made. I always have to stock up on TJ's items when the opportunity arises. The check out line wrapped around the entire store, but it was worth the wait!

I got Almond Butter, Fig Butter (keep reading about this on Kath's blog and wanted to try it), and Dark Chocolate with Caramel & Sea Salt (best chocolate ever). I would have bought more- if only I could fit more stuff in my suitcase!

Due to the lateness of our meals (brunch at 11 and lunch at 3:30) and eating a massive cupcake and part of a cookie at 5:30 PM, dinner didn't exactly happen. After a long day of sight seeing, my cousin and I crashed when we got back to her apartment. We stayed in and watched Bridesmaids- never fails to make me laugh. I ate a bowl of cereal with frozen strawberries on top for a late night snack and called it a night.

Will finish updating about the rest of my trip tomorrow. Got to get to bed to be well rested for a full day of conferences tomorrow- have a good night!