i enjoyed reading about all of your weekends so much that i almost forgot i still had to write about my own! but because nothing too epic occurred this probably won’t be all that exciting. the fact that is was just a ho-hum weekend is not going to stop me from rambling though.. sorry guys, you can’t get rid of me that easy!
i left off on friday where i did a fun flashback friday post about penelope.. you should all probably check out susan’s, tay’s, deb’s, averie’s and elizabeth’s flashback friday posts. did i miss anyone?
my last post also had some talk about the scale and it generated a LOT of feedback. i think the very last comment, left by my favorite snackface, said it best: “I wish everyone who commented would read over this comment section again. It is clear that an overwhelming majority of women feel nothing but dislike for the scale. Which makes me wonder: why are we still stepping on them? There is no point.” so if you have time.. and are interested.. go have a read. there are some awesome replies and i want to thank you for all sharing your point of view on the issue. it seems to be one we all have strong opinions about! good stuff.
allll right, onto friday shenanigans!
like i said, my brother and sister in law had their annual halloween party. i was in charge of the desserts.
first i whipped up a batch of mini white chocolate cheesecakes but i subbed oreos instead of graham crackers so the crust would be black, then i colored the filling orange so they ended up festive for halloween! i know, hold your applause, i am a genius.
the only gaggy part was scraping all the cream off the oreos so i could use the cookie wafer parts. ugh, i loathe the cream part of the oreo. so nasty!
the finished product did get the izzy seal of approval!!
next up was a batch of my go-to dessert, peanut butter bars! everyone loves these. i make them for basically every social function i go to.
i could easily eat the whole pan.
when my mini cheesecakes were done.. i decided to have a photoshoot. what, isn’t it perfectly normal to pose your baked goods and photograph them?? i thought so.
after the baking extravaganza i changed into my costume which you all got a sneak peek of in my last post. no, this was not some elaborate, expensive costume.. but hey, i am broke. and if i did have money i wouldn’t spend it on a halloween costume, true story. the only thing i had to buy for this was a set of ears!
and what does a mouse love most?
CHEEEEEESE!
yes. my boyfriend was cheddar cheese. :) i obviously had to give him a few nibbles.
the food for the party was brought to us by lorena’s.. i really delicious mexican restaurant i grew up with. it was by no means healthy.. but it was fantastic! fresh homemade chips, spicy salsa, warm tortillas, refried beans and the star of the show: the best chile verde around!
my plate~
after eating we played some games including catch phrase and apples to apples.. two of my favorites! it was really fun to dress up but by the end of the night everyone had somehow managed to take their costumes off.. halloween fail! oh wait, that kind of sounded like everyone got naked. not the case.. just so you know.
saturday i did something i hadn’t done in over a week. any guesses?
WENT. TO. THE. GYM! i was so happy to finally get to the gym. i am now totally over my sickness and it felt so great to get a workout in.
i did my 20-15-10 HIIT routine that can be found here. yes, the only move i have listed on my moves page.. i am a total failure.
i didn’t really take photos at all on saturday.. after the gym i worked on packing things up for the big move and then that evening marshall & i went to dinner with his dad & step family for a belated birthday celebration. speaking of birthdays, it was also my nephew’s 3rd birthday. happy birthday to luke!
we went to the old spaghetti factory which is pretty tasty when it comes to eating italian on the cheap.
i started out with hot bread and a salad with pesto dressing on the side..
for my entree i chose the baked chicken with whole wheat pasta+marinara+mizithra cheese
sorry about the horrible lighting. what can ya do? hmm. the chicken was a tad on the oily side but the pasta was delicious!
and no trip to the old spaghetti factory is complete without the signature free spumoni ice cream.. um, if you know me.. i DON’T pass up free ice cream. ever.
annnnd it is now sunday!
today has been the perfect balance of productivity and laziness. this morning i started things out with a bowl of cereal & coffee and then my mom, dad, marshall & i went to my house and loaded up 90% of my stuff.
we moved it all over to my new house in one big trip (with two pickup trucks and my mom’s SUV). it was nice to get all the furniture moved and most of my belongings. i still have some clothes and odds and ends to move this week, but at least it is all stuff i can move with my car.
moving from start to finish surprisingly only took about two hours! i still have to put my bed back together and unpack.. but that is a job for another day.
marshall & i went to eat at blue plate diner~ a breakfast favorite!
for some reason i was not that hungry.. weird, and totally not like me. i ordered the classic blue which was 3 eggs over medium, dry wheat toast and a side of fruit (instead of home fries).
the fruit was out of season and i only ended up eating half of it.. and then i realized that it wasn’t even tasty and stopped. no use in eating something that isn’t good just because it is there, right? however, i did polish off every last drop of my runny yolks! eggs: one reason i could never be vegan.
the rest of my sunday was spent being incredibly lazy. marshall & i watched the latest episode of the office and the final episode of true blood season 2. and now i am typing this! i am really not ready to go back to work tomorrow, but honestly i think ridiculous amounts of time could go by and i would never say, “oh boy, i sure am excited for monday morning at work!” so.. i guess i will grin and bear it.
tomorrow should be good.. in addition to a full work day i will be going to the gym, shopping with my mom and out to dessert with the fam for my sister suni’s birthday. another busy week ahead, starting out with a busy monday!
well.. this is long enough! hope you all enjoyed your weekend, only one more left in the month of october! crazy!
Qs~
1. do you have any goals this week? now that i am back to my healthy self, i aim to workout consistently for the next 6 days and i also aim to get my gallon of water in every day. i have been slacking!
2. what is your “go to recipe” that you always find yourself making and taking to social functions? i always make my peanut butter bars. i also have a spinach poppyseed salad that i always fall back on. i sometimes wish i was more creative at times but you can never go wrong with a recipe you already know people love!
xo. janetha b.
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Wow, you were such a rock star in the kitchen this weekend! I want to eat all those goodies!
1. I am still aiming to increase my protein intake–suggestions always welcome:)
2. I always end up bringing pumpkin bread or graham cracker brownies–they never fail!
My goals for the week are to stay healthy and get excited for my half marathon this weekend (and to not die while running it).
My go-to is eggplant dip with crackers, so yummy! But I’ve also made your PB bars several times and they are always a hit as well, you are so smart!
cheesecakes look fab. you and your boy are cuuuute!
1. goals? drink less, sleep + run more. word.
2. homemade hummus with whole wheat pita bread (store-bought). it’s simple and boring, but most non-foodies are impressed with the idea of homemade hummus. yep.
Can you come to my party? That food looks delish!
1) Goals – fruits, veggies & RUN – rather indulgent weekend!
2) Go to recipe – bolognase sauce or my cowboy stew – easy and always crowd pleasers!
I am loving all of the Halloween Stuff!!
you are the cutest thing!!
a mouse and cheese!? I love it!
Those halloween treats look fabulous! Your baking photos are adorable :)
GOALS- i am seeing a nutrionist.. so nervous :(
Go to Recipe- tempeh in “brown sauce” or black bean soup
Your nieced looks like a mini Janetha! I bring PB chocolate chip cookies to a lot of functions. It’s my own recipe and it’s super quick to throw together!
In that picture of you making the cheesecake – what is that above you head? It looks like something’s sticking out from your head!! haha
1. GOAL – stay on track with studying, and DON’T procrastinate!!!
2. My mom’s chocolate chip cookies – delish and always a hit!
Love the recap.
Thanks for the FBF shout. Not sure why you couldnt see the pic of me and the pups, maybe if you click off G Reader and onto my post itself? No one else said anything but maybe they were just too nice LOL.
Your costume = you’re looking adorable and hot all in one.
Your last post bout the scale. I enjoyed it and will reread some comments when I have a few mins.
Black crust–hon just next time take 1 c of almonds plus either 1/4 c agave or a couple dates and a dash of agave and mix it all together. Then, add 2-3 Tbsp or 1/4 c cocoa powder, the Hershey’s Dark would be nice…and in the span of 30 secs you would have had raw vegan black crust. Next time :)
Your PB bars look decadent.
And those white oreo innerds…I would easily have had a break in my vegan mojo and woulda eaten those. OMG they are my fave! Well used to be when I was younger!
xoxo
I love your mini cheesecakes! They are so cute! And the peanut butter bars look yummy… :)
1. Goal this week: make some time every day for myself. Something I tend to forget when things get hectic.
2. In the summer, I bring my “Summer Salad” which has tomatoes, corn, black beans, etc. And the rest of the year I usually bring a broccoli salad.
Have a great week!
You look so freakin cute! I LOVE the costume. How cleaver. ;) You are Marshall are adroable, I love it! :)
Wow, cheesecakes and PB Bars! I am book marking these recipes. How delicious.
Glad you had a wonderful time at the party and it sounds like such a fab weekend. Take care love!
1.) take care of ME
2.) blondies!
horay for these halloween baking goodies!!! they’re sooooo cute! I want to go a party that you organize someday, you know how to treat your guests! :D
lazy sunday same here… I just love the feeling of doing whatever I can and feel guilty free!!!
You’ve finally moved? so fast! two trucks? woooo…. you have some good stuffs there!
good luck with the unpacking which is the least fun part of the moving I think.
I’m looking for get back to a normal work week… i took a week off from work and kind of feel guilty now. :)
Janetha–next time you need to scrape all the GOOD part out of the oreos, you just let me know–I will be more than happy to take care of that for you :)
My family LOVES the spaghetti factory. It’s ridiculous. We eat there every.single.time. they come out. Good grief.
1) Make it through
2) I don’t go to a lot of potlucks, but whenever there is a birthday at work, I always get the request to make german chocolate cake. It’s kind of a specialty, but ironically, I think it’s disgusting and won’t eat it.
I’m with you on the costume thing. It’s fun, but I can think of a million other (grocery) ways to spend $40 :)
And I’m just hoping to get through this week, as we have an overnight retreat for work Thursday-Friday that is not veggie friendly. So, get through that, get home and recover over the weekend :)
I’m big on my chocolate oreo cheesecake when I need to be a bit fancy, a triple layer toffee torte or some type of trifle (around the holidays). If I’m lazy, peanut butter cookies. Simple is good!
Those mini cheesecakes are sooo freakin’ adorable. And the peanut butter bar?! Must try now.
You and Marshall’s costume’s are very cute. Great way to spend less but be creative :)
have a good one, Janetha!
oh my gawwwwwwwd I’m TOTES making those little pumpkin cheesecakes for the halloween party I’m going to on Saturday. whatuuuuup!
HAHAHAHAHAHAHA seriously it’s so early and I’m so not awake but marshmellows halloween costume is off the hizzie dude. end of story.
scales should only be for lizards and fish (amphibian like creatures) that’s how I feel about them. eff them scales
YUM, i WANT both of those desserts you made! i’m sure that i too, could eat THE entire pan!
cutest couple costume i’ve seen YET! B and I considered being a plug & socket and then quickly abandoned the idea! hahaha, yours is MUCH cuter!
goal for this week : get most, if not all, of my stuff sorted and packed for the upcoming move! :)
go to baked good: the simple chocolate chip cookie .. i should branch out
My favorite part of this whole amazing recap was when you said you took a few nibbles of Marshall. Adorable.
Thanks for quoting me, pooks! And hello, baking queen! If I were sick I would be like, eff it, y’all can make your own baked goods.
This week I hope to NOT save everything for last minute. I’ve been so bad about that lately!
And as far as a go-to recipe for gatherings, I haven’t had to worry about that yet. No clue what it will be. MamaJ’s is mini-cheesecakes, though, with individual gingersnaps as the crust. Yummm. xoxo love you feel better!
mmm…i feel the same way about eggs :)
your little cheesecakes are SO cute!!!
Hey – the name of our hotel is the Hotel Vitale, I think? I hope I get to meet you next weekend!
What a cute couple costume idea! HA! We never do those. I just come up with own crazy ideas and Nick does what ever the heck he wants. REBELS!
My goal for the week is to perfect zombie makeup application and make my dress as bloody as possible. Lame? I DON’T THINK SO!
I have this hot cauliflower dip I make. Not quite healthy but hey, at least I use veggies. I boil it, mash it, add sour cream, salt, pepper, cayenne, shredded parmesan cheese, scrape it in a baking dish and broil it. Then I top it with more parmesan cheese. DONE! I serve it with thinly sliced French bread. TO DIE FOR! Also good if you add artichokes.
you baking diva! :) I love the orange/black combo! :) (i ONLY like the cream part of the oreos!)
You are Marshall are too damn cute – love the costumes!
Awww, are you not the cutest dang baker I have ever seen?!
haha I actually like the creamy part in the oreo, but thinking about your pile of it and that MUCH in quantity DOES make me queasy!!
the pb bars are so beautiful!!!
and omg how cute is Izzy! That’s an adorable child!!
Love the pics of you and the boo!!
HAPPY MONDAY LOVELY JANETHA!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Gosh, I love the oreo innards. I love you, but we might be from different planets :-D
I live for runny eggs. Gosh, I could never be vegan either for that reason alone.
Will re-read your scale post- I’ve avoided it like the plague but with very good reason :-P
Goal for the week: Get back on track
Go-to: My “world famous” guacamole- so easy so tasty so fast!
HAHAHAHHAHAHAHAHAHAH omg I loveeeeeeeeeee your halloween costume! I can never think of clever stuff like that!!!!!!!!!! love it!!!!
and I LOVED your halloween mini cheesecakes!!!!!!!!!!!!! GENIUS!!!!! ;-)
great pics! All of the food looks fabulous – especially the Halloween treats! My go-to food is usually cream cheese brownies – my mom’s recipe – love! Those costumes are awesome btw!
Cute costume, I love easy and cheap ways to dress up. I’m wearing my wedding dress for Halloween and buying some makeup to make myself look like the corpse bride….just hope I don’t get it all over my dress!
Those mini cheesecakes sound yummy and would you mind shipping me the insides of the oreos? I could just eat that HFCS/trans fat laden-crap plain!
1) Goals are to work out 5 days before going to my parent’s for Halloween and making sure I start keeping track of my workouts someplace other than my blog.
2) I normally make a 7 layer dip for football parties or bake something like choc. chip oatmeal cookies or banana bread.
Oh man I could definitely eat that whole pan of chocolate peanut butter bars too!!
You and your boyfriends costume is darling!!
Your mini cheesecakes are adorable! I bet they were pretty darn tasty too!
I am totally with you on the eggs! #1 reason I could never be a vegan.
1) My goal this week is to get a job. Same as every week! Haha
2) I always bring guacamole to parties!
I love the mouse and cheese and I am glad you are finally feeling better.
My goal is similar to yours. To get back to working out regularly. I clicked on your link last night to your body for life challenge and you totally inspired me. And made me jealous!
And I usually bring crab dip. No fail, always good and people love it.
All those desserts looks so scrumptious. I think I’d be tempted to eat the whole pan too.
Just fyi – they sell oreo “crumbs” without the filling. You can buy just the cookie part so you wouldn’t have to scrape (and waste $).
http://eatventures.wordpress.com
I love how your “not so epic” weekend is still 10x’s more epicer (?) than mine.. those cheesecakes are the cutest thing in the world. I’m coming to your place for halloween next year, ya dig?!
I love snackies two cents on the scale issue — she is such a ball of wisdom and positivity! Love both of your honeys :)
hope you are having a beautiful monday thus far miss J! love and hugs para tu! xo
omg your costume is SO cute. I love the mouse ears. And your mini white chocolate cheesecakes look AMAZING, well so do your peanut butter bars too. I may have to steal these ideas for this weekend!!!
My goal this week is to not get down this week. I am blah in my job right now and blah in general, but I am keeping positive because I don’t really have anything to complain about! I’m just being a whiner :)
ahhh i went to monty’s blue plate diner this weekend. coincidence? i think NOT.
your weekend looks like so much fun, and i enjoyed reading each and every detail. i should have sent you some wisconsin cheese to go along with your halloween costume.
my goal for this week: go on a run with my coworker chris (which we just decided on right now).
my go-to recipe – spaghetti! soooo easy, you can just throw in whatever you have. LOVE YOU!
That mouse and cheese costume is so cute! I make a avocado feta dip a lot for parties. And sometimes if it’s more of a potluck, I make vegetarian chili.
Haha before I even read your goal I thought well I’m going to drink more water every day!! You know brilliant minds and all that stuff :)
Glad you are totally healthy and back to the gym, it always feels so good to get back at it!
My go to recipe hmmmm does fruit bowl count?!
xoxoxo
Looks like a fun weekend! I can’t believe it’s the end of october either.
Your eats look great- those desserts had me drooling! I always bring cupcakes of some sort to get togethers!!
And my goals for this week… filling out and submitting some VERY important forms (finally!)
xo
K
Love your costumes! Cheese is a genuis idea..my hubby is a Green Bay fan, so he’s got two of those ridiculous cheese heads..it could so be pulled off.
Your PB bars look awesome too! My go to recipe is salsa. Every party or dinner I get invited to I get asked to bring my homemade salsa…so thats about all I ever do.
I went to Blue Plate yesterday to! I looove that place!
Glad you’re feeling better! The weekend looked far from ho-hum to me! Loved your costume. Have I ever mentioned that you and Marshall are too cute? I think I have.
Impressive moving time. I have twisties and turnies in my tummy about having to move soon. I hate it so much.
1. I went a little hefty on the junky eats this weekend, so I’m going to try to lay off that for the week.
2. I just started having the courage to make food for other people, so I don’t really have a sig dish yet. I hope that happens soon tho!
Have a good Monday chica :)
omg, i want to be wherever you are on halloween!!
oreo insides are NAST. izzy is too cute!
Love the costume idea…cheesy but cute (pun totally intened…I kill myself)!
1) That was my question today! My mini goal is obviously the am workouts. I feel 1000 x better throughout the day. Overall I just want to hunker down and start following BFL by the book!
2) My fall back on recipe is a salad too. Usually spring greens, gorgonzola, apples, walnuts, and a light raspberry vinaigrette. So easy and delicious!
Those are some delicious looking baked goods! I’m going to put the pb bars on my to-do list. I can’t resist anything with peanut butter :-)
Goals for the week: spend more time stretching and strengthening my IT band/hamstring
Fall back recipe: homemade macaroni and cheese! or oatmeal-chocolate chip cookies if I need something sweet.
Does hummus and pita chips count as a go-to recipe? LOL!
LOVE that you and M were cheese and mouse. Awe.some.
MMM love spumoni at the Spaghetti Factory! so good!!!
Never met anyone who hated the Oreo fillings! Regardless, your baking turned out lovely :) And you make a darn cute little mouse!
Actually I think the lighting is pretty good on your Spaghetti Factory photos–it’s always so hard in restaurants! (TWSS?) Did NOT know they offered WW spaghetti…it’s been a while since I have visited. I like what you ordered!
1. Get back on the wagon. No explanation necessary, right?
2. Cookies :)
Eggs are exactly the reason why I failed as a vegan!!! Yes, I was a vegan for a month, got the flu and couldn’t eat for three days, and the only thing I could stomach when I felt better was a fried egg sandwich. Quite possibly the best sandwich I’ve ever had :P
1. Apply for some part-time jobs! I’m b-to-the-roke.
2. Hummus or salsa. Boring too, but people always gobble it up! I’ve also been making the same chocolate chip oatmeal cookie recipe since I learned how to turn on the oven.
SO happy to hear you’re feeling better, back at the gym AND moved into your new home sweet home! :D
I am absolutely DROOLING over your desserts – and that is one of the best couple-costumes I have EVER seen :)
Cute halloween goodies, and couple!! :D I love/hate how the dressing on the side of your salad is pretty much the same size as the salad ha
I LOVE it when you bake and seeing all your creations. Your Halloween Party Cheesecakes turned out super cute.
I am so glad you are feeling better – I’ve missed ya!
My goto most requested thing is my healthy vegan pasta salad or the sun dried tomato pesto cream cheese spread you had me share before :)
Good luck getting settled and have fun getting desserts tonight!
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