Exciting News...

I just found out some exciting new- I get to do some traveling for work! And it's to a place I've never been- CALIFORNIA! How exciting is that?

My destination is the Oakland area, which I never realized was so close to San Francisco and the Redwood Forest. I'm only going for two weeks, but at least I might be able to rent a car and do some exploring on the weekend.

Most people probably don't like traveling for work, but I don't mind it so much especially because I'm young and don't have a family that I'm leaving at home. Sure I do have a husband, but he's pretty self-sufficient so I'm sure he'll be okay- though I will miss him! It would be great if he could join me for a few days, but it's just not possible with his schedule and the long flights.

Anyone know of any must do activities or restaurants in the Oakland area?

In the middle of the night I go walking in my sleep
Through the desert of truth to the river so deep
We all end in the ocean, we all start in the streams
We're all carried along by the river of dreams
In the middle of the night
-River of Dreams, Billy Joel
(an old one, but a good one)

Busy, Busy, Busy....

Last time you heard from me was the end of June- the 27th to be specific. After I finished that last post on the kitchen Matt and I began a whirlwind vacation, and now on July 14th I'm finally settling back into life and have a chance to catch you all up.

July 1st through July 6th we were on vacation, in one of the world's most relaxing places- MAINE! The 9.5 hour drive to Maine is worth every minute on the road, not only for the beautiful ocean views but it is also a great time to relax with family.


We spent our time in Maine swimming, boating, kayaking (yes I learned and didn't tip the kayak!), and most importantly enjoying great food. Between Aunt Maripat and Aunt Kathy there is endless amount of amazing food for every meal, and of course a lobster. Yes, I ate a lobster. I think I like lobster, but all the work involved in getting to the 'meat' takes away the enjoyment for me. (Momma always said not to play with my food!) Everyone else enjoy at least two of the tasty creatures....I went back for seconds on the salad.


(Note: These aren't the actual lobsters because I kept forgetting my camera.)

4th of July in Maine brings many traditions. We start the celebration with the annual softball game- everyone arrives at the field, teams are picked, the national anthem is played on the trumpet, and everyone exclaims "PLAY BALL!" My team made an effort and we did manage to score few runs the last inning- but not enough for a win. Usually after a few beers or cocktails all is forgotten...

After playing about four innings we head back to the house for the festivities which means FOOD! Don's Sausage and Peppers, pasta salads, flank steak, and many other snacks. Trust me you can never go hungry...

Unfortunately all good things must come to an end- and we had to leave on Tuesday and begin to make our way back toward Buffalo. This time we made a stop in Liverpool to swim with my little brother and to visit my grandmother. Unfortunately we arrive at 8pm and left the following day after lunch so we didn't get to see everyone- but we had to head back to Buffalo to prepare for more fun.

Back in Buffalo we unpacked, then repack our bags in preparation for the Taste of Buffalo! Each year we volunteer on the Logistic Committee and assist in preparation from Thursday evening through Sunday evening. We are the first group to arrive and the last to leave- sometime not until 1 or 2 am Monday morning.

To give you a little background Taste of Buffalo is an annual food festival held on the streets of downtown Buffalo the second weekend of July. It is the largest 2-day food festival in the United States. This year feature 55 local restaurants offering four different food options- one of which must meet healthy requirements. Each year many people head toward their favorites from the prior year, but also venture out of their comfort zones to try new things from new restaurants. Here are some pictures from high above the event...

In addition to all the food visitors also can listen two live music on two stages, visit the Boy Scout of America's obstacle course, check out Zhu Zhu pets, climb the Lunchables wall, or watch a cooking demonstration. Matt and I took sometime to watch a cake decorating demonstration for a local shop called Zilly Cakes. The owner, Zilly Rosen, showed us how she makes her gauche, frosting, fondant, and sculpting- she created a beautiful buffalo and we even got a taste. It was amazing!!!!

I think that brings you up to date on our latest and greatest adventures...from here we plan to continue on with the kitchen journey. Our counter tops have been measured and will be arriving on July 23rd, so in the meantime will be working on the cabinet fronts, cover panels, installation of the dishwasher, working on installing the butcher block top, and many other things...

Plan to hear from me soon about a book I read on vacation. And you'll also get to hear about the page turner that I just picked up yesterday. I need to get a library card....

How to make a long week better...

It's been a long week, but a did a run this morning doing my 3 miler in just 32 minutes (4 minutes less than normal!) I was dealing with a headache the whole day. The great news is I made it, although I figured I probably would. So to cap off long week I...


Had a beer...


Bought myself a small present...



And now I'm getting ready to go see Celia!!! And I get to meet her husband and baby! Isn't it great to get to see a friend that you've haven't seen in almost 5 years, and the even better part is that we'll just pick up where we left off. I'm renting a car and hitting the highway! I'll fill you in on Sunday. Have a great weekend!

I did it!!!

What did I do, you ask? Well, I got up at 4:45am to run. Yeah, I know that I'm crazy- but it was nice to get my run done first thing in the morning. I woke up, ate half of a Glo Bar, then took my water and headed down to the treadmills.

I don't currently feel comfortable enough with the city to head outside in the dark at 5am, so the treadmill works just fine. The only problem I found was that the gym was like a sauna- a steamy 75 degrees at 5am.

The rest of the day was spent in a very hot office prepping for the upcoming training class, but the day went pretty quickly considering. For lunch I got a bowl of soup with a small salad and fresh fruit. I had half my morning glo-bar at 10am and around 3pm I had some grapes for a snacks. Dinner was at a local restaurant called Jason's Deli. I got the salad bar with a side of chicken for protein. The salad bar was awesome so great fresh veggies- I'll definitely visiting that restaurant again.

One more fun item I didn't get a chance to mention, I saw someone famous while waiting for my baggage! It was chef Curtis Stone, some of you might know him others might not. He had a cooking show called - Take Home Chef at one point in time, but I think he just did Celebrity Apprentice. I really wanted to say something, but feel that it would be annoying to have someone always chasing after you. I snapped with the iPhone, but it didn't come out well.

Alright well off to do some a little more prep work!

I have arrived...

Well it was a full day of travel, but I've arrived safely in Dallas and have settled into my hotel. It's only 7pm here right now, but it feels like 8pm. I took some pictures during my travels today to share with you, check them out.

During my layover I got a bottle of water (which I refilled), and a turkey wrap. Not the best food, but better than greasy pizza or McDonald's.



The next three pictures are my hotel suite, it's like having a small apartment. Very nice!




After I got my bags mostly unpacked, I hit up the local 'grocery' store for some food to have available for meals at the hotel and snacks to take to work. My co-workers don't eat six meals a day, but I still do.




Then it was dinner time so I decide to meet my two co-workers for dinner, one is actually my boss and the other is from North Carolina. We went to a Mexican restaurant within walking distance. I ordered a grilled chicken bowl with steamed veggies, rice, and beans- super yummy! I took a picture, but blogger thinks I have too many pictures so it won't load another.

Alright off to finish settling in...

Business Trip

I get to go out of town for training in March, yes I know that seems far away- but I plan ahead. I like business trips because it give me a little variation to my normal schedule. This time I'm headed to Philadelphia for 9 days. Business trips provide variation but they are provide a challenge.

What challenge? Staying on track with my health and fitness goals. Typically during training sessions people have very few options to prepare their own meals, and rely on the federal building cafeteria and local restaurants. Which means that each night people break off into little 'groups' and go out in search of food.

It may sound bad but I try not to become part of these groups, they probably think I'm being anti-social but really I'm just trying to maintain what I've worked so hard for. So I typically return to the hotel and do some sort of workout, depending on the gym provided. I try to keep things similar to I normally go about my day, plus I don't like to eat dinner until after I work out. During previous trainings for my job, I actually had a co-worker who knew that I wanted to get a gym workout in each night and knew that foods options should be generally healthy, and she would wait for me before going to dinner. She won't be there this time.

So I'll go it alone. I already know where the local Whole Foods store is and where the indoor market is, so I will just have to do my best. I will certainly get lots of walking in as I travel to these places. And hey, maybe someone else at training will be health-minded too!

More to come related to how I plan to stick with my plan despite not having a fridge or stove available. I've got some time to plan it out, maybe it will even help you when you have to head out of town for business or pleasure.

Do you have any ideas you want to share?