Last day of July!

And this is what our fridge looks like:

SO SAD! Looks like we are way overdue for a trip to the grocery store. Can't live on condiments alone! And you thought I was kidding when I said condiments out number food in our apartment ;p

Nothing too exciting going on over here...just the usual Friday of DCCK and job number 2, which was incredibly slow today - don't people have long runs to purchase gels for? Body Glide? ANYTHING??

We got a bunch of Luna Moons in this afternoon and I started drooling when I saw the pack of watermelon. My stomach doesn't usually take solids well during runs (don't want to re-live my first dance with the Shot Bloks), but I might be willing to give these a chance. Anyone a Luna Moon fan?

Jamie took charge of tonight's dinner - Linguine with Shrimp
I think this dish killed the rest of the pasta sauce we bought earlier in the week. Yes, that is pasta and yes I am going running tomorrow morning. :p

I'm quite excited about tomorrow morning's run. I upped it a mile to an even 10 so we could run my favorite 10 mile route. The last time I ran it, the miles flew by and I'm convinced it's because of the scenery. It starts off on the Capital Crescent Trail and then spits you out along the Georgetown Waterfront, past the Kennedy Center, across the Memorial Bridge and you turn around at the entrance to Arlington National Cemetery.

I'm going to take a blogging break this weekend because after our run I've got a ton of errands to take care of before we head up to Baltimore for a friend's wedding! Yay! Anyone have fun weekend plans? Good long runs? Catching up on blogs? If you're making the blog rounds, why don't you mosey on over to a fun new blog brought to you by B.o.B and the Redhead. Check it out here. Their blogs are awesome so you know it'll be fun :)

It's OFFICIAL!

I'm all registered for the Marine Corps Marathon! WOOO! SEE??

I was SOOO excited to see this in my inbox :)

Just a little background - I entered the lottery for NYC, didn't get in. Found someone on Craigslist who DID get into NYC but had a Marine Corps bib to spare. She's been awesome the whole time and agreed to do the official transfer online when it opened up. Unfortunately the MCM folks took their sweet time posting the transfer form and she went off on vacay for a couple weeks. I've been SO anxious I couldn't even stand it and today I officially completed my end of the transfer process! Let the training excitement begin!

I know I know, I'm technically in the middle of week 6 of training, but I've been hesitant about getting excited and preparing for the race. I knew my girl wasn't going to let me down with the transfer, but you can never be too safe...I mean, she was just a stranger on Craigslist. There were times where I got all panicky wondering what if she found someone else to take her number...for more money?! Plus, I didn't want to start announcing to the world I was running (though, I suppose I was announcing it to the blogging world!) MCM just in case things did fall through. But today everything fell into place and I was SO excited for my 6 mile run :)

Even though we weren't meeting up w/the regular running crew for tonight's run, Jamie and I decided to do our 6 miles downtown. It definitely makes more sense since I can't seem to find routes around our apartment that don't involve gigantic inclines! Do you know what made an appearance on tonight's run?? Dumdumduuuummm....

You bet I was going to try to tackle this monster again! Especially since I failed last weekend. Unfortunately my mapping skills have failed me once again (ahem, someone can really use a Garmin, ahem) and we ended up only running 5.76 miles. Could have sworn it was the same route as the last Hains Point attempt! GAH! SO confused! Whatevs. Close enough ;p

Since it was almost 8 by the time we got back to my office (gotta stop with the late starts!), Jamie and I decided to stop by Naan and Beyond for a quick dinner. I've passed by this place a bunch of times, but haven't stopped in so I figured eh, why not give it a shot. Plus, my tastebuds had a CRAZY craving for Indian food. Do you ever get weird post-run cravings??

I got the Tandoori Chicken Tikka Naan Sandwich (sorry, no pics since I didn't pack my camera) and Jamie got the Tandoori Sheesh Tikka Naan Sandwich. SOOO YUMMY and reasonably priced too! Definitely hit the spot and there were three different sauces we grabbed on the side - Mint, Mango and Spicy Chutney. I could DRINK the Mango sauce it was that good. I was bummed that we didin't catch the dinner special sign! I'll definitely be adding this to my lunch list :)

I'm off to shower and sleep! Hope everyone has a fantastic Friday :)

Decided!

It’s Wednesday!! Only one more day in the office for me!!! Man, I might be getting used to this 4 day work week thing haha.

It’s been pleasantly quiet at work this week so I was browsing the Google Reader (might be the best thing ever!) and saw that Julia over at Chocolate Shoestrings passed the Honest Scrap award to me. YAY fun! :)

Here are the deets:

The rules are to link back to the presenter, share 10 things about yourself that your readers may not know that are true, and then pass it on and notify the people you pass the award on to!!

1. I'm picky about socks - like weird, fit-throwing, won't put the same pair on even if they were only on for a split second.
   
2. My guilty pleasure/I don't have to cook for anyone dish - Instant Mashed Potatoes, Corn, Cheese and Hot Sauce...all mixed up in a big bowl.
3. Cashews make me nauseous.
4. I'm convinced the girly gene got knocked out of me at some point - I can't accessorize or decorate to save my life. I dress for comfort and cuteness is an afterthought/perk.
5. I wear one piece of jewelry at all times - a Tiffany bean necklace I got in HS. I don't ever take it off...mostly because I'm too lazy and/or will promptly lose it.
6. Jamie cooks all the rice in the apartment because I'm terrible at making rice.
7. I talk a lot when I'm nervous, which is weird because I consider myself to be pretty introverted.
8. Condiments out number actual food products in our apartment.
9. I can only swim underwater and the backstroke. I look like a drowning child when I swim freestyle.
10. I think I'd like to eventually take on a 50k or (if I ever get that swimming thing down) a triathlon. We'll see...

While I’d like to pass this on to a bunch of fellow bloggers, I'll just keep it to a select few faves that haven't done something similar to this:

Mel at She Runs Brooklyn – her posts always make me chuckle in the morning!

Paige at Running Around Normal – she has great food and workout posts! Plus her pup, Niko, is ADORABLE ;)

Marathon Val & Rosey Rebecca - these girls are awesome! I love reading their blogs because they're fun, informative and sometimes I'm amazed at the random things we have in common!

You should definitely check these bloggers out ;)

While I was typing this, I saw a little comment email pop up from Special K over at The Special K Treatment. Her ME Meal post is AWESOME. I thought it was timely since I mention my guilty food pleasure above ;) What do you crave/make when no one else is watching?? C'mon. You know you want to say it...

In keeping with the list thing (because my brain is tired), I've made a few decisions:

1. New blog title has arrived - Run Beans, Run. I'll eventually explain where the 'Beans' came from. (There will be a few more blog changes in the future (mostly layout), but hopefully you don't freak out when you see a different title pop up!) I've asked my talented graphic designer friend to work on a header graphic for me, but she's pretty swamped with designing wedding invitations for friends...so it might be awhile til that gets updated!
   
2. Parks Half Marathon it is!
3. Running after I work both jobs on a weeknight is just not going to happen. It's about time I accepted this.
   

Since my belly was grumbly/hurting after job number 2 today (I really need to pack more food), I said no to the run and a much needed yes to food. Jamie prepared some peanut sauce per the recipe Monica posted yesterday so all I had to do was cook some soba noodles and blanch some veggies!

Jamie's bowl with just snap peas and cucumber
And mine with all the green veggies (snap peas, cucumber, broccoli) in our fridge!
Overall I thought it was a tasty sauce! It was a tad spicy (even for me!) so we threw in some more honey and peanut butter. Next time I'm thinking about eliminating the chili flakes or reducing the amount of chili sauce. I also had visions of maybe inviting some fish sauce to the party?? I know, I know, I like to add fish sauce to everything.

Is there a condiment that always finds its way into your dishes?

Decisions, decisions...

So many to be made!

As you may have noticed, I’ve had the Philly Distance Run on my to-do list for awhile now. I’ve wanted to run this since earlier this year when I read so many great things about the flat, fast and scenic course. However, I can’t really justify a weekend trip to Philly right now – I’m assuming the cost for accommodations would do me in. Plus, it doesn’t quite fit in properly with my MCM training schedule (even with some moving around).

While slacking off at work yesterday, I started digging around for some other race options (can you tell I have an addiction??) and came across the Parks Half Marathon that conveniently starts in Gaithersburg, MD and ends in nearby Bethesda. It also happens to fall on a 13 mile training run weekend…hmmm. It’s a smaller race and goes through a few parks and trails in Montgomery County and has a few rolling hills. It could be fun?

Why on earth do I want to run a half marathon so badly before October? Because I feel WEIRD not doing it…like my summer is empty if I don’t have a race to run. Plus, I do love running a half marathon here and there. It might be one of my favorite distances to run, next to the 10 miler. Am I slightly nutters? Probably. Which race would you choose? The large, probably pricier one, that doesn’t quite fit into your schedule but you could PR at OR the smaller, low key one that fits into your schedule but will be a tad bit more challenging for the legs. Wait, as I type that, I think I just answered my own question. Anyone want to run the Parks Half Marathon with me??? haha

Am I alone in this whole 'must find more races to run' thing? Do you find yourself scheduling runs way in advance? I was reading Val's post this morning with the "You know you're a runner when..." list and chuckled at my desk. You should check it out too!

Here are some of my faves, plus a few more I am guilty of:

• you've lost a toenail. And you tell people, "It's not that bad."
• you smirk when non-runners ask you, "So how long is this marathon?"
• you get an invitation to a wedding and you automatically think about what race the date will conflict with
• you wear your running watch even when you're not running.
• your running partners know more about your bodily functions than your significant other
• you use the words "easy" and "long run" in the same sentence.
• you cross the finish line of a marathon and you start considering where and when the next one will be.
• You think 40 degrees is warm, and the ideal temperature falls between 45 and 60.
• You know, in tenth of a mile increments, how far everything within a 10 mile radius of your house is, and describe how to get places as “the short and fast way”, “the long and EZ way”, or “the hilly way”.
• You generate more laundry than a newborn.
• You believe a T-shirt sleeve is a perfectly acceptable substitute for a tissue.
• No one believes you when you say “never again”.
• You plan vacations and family outings around races.

Runners = fun :)

Now that I think I’ve finally gotten a grasp of juggling 2 jobs, volunteering, blogging and running, I think it’s time to revamp the blog. I secretly (and now not so secretly) hate the green. I want a clean and simple template! Since I’ve found the one and only Run, Eat, Repeat (and she’s now in nearby Maryland!), I think it’s about time I re-thought my blog title. This is no small feat – it took me quite some time to come up with Run, eat, repeat…and apparently it wasn’t even original! I was thinking about just going with Run Beans, Run since it’s already in my web address. Thoughts?

Enough about running...on to my other favorite thing: FOOOOD!
Prepare yourselves folks, DC Restaurant Week is among us (well, almost)! From August 24-30, over 180 area restaurants will be offering three-course, fixed-price meals for lunch ($20.09) and dinner ($35.09). Thanks to foodwanderlust for the reminder!! Be sure to make your reservations early :)

I know you New Yorkers have restaurant weeks, but what about everyone else? Is there anything similar where you live?

Tonight's HOT and HUMID 3 mile run wasn't exactly fun, but we chugged on through! I was starving when we got back so I whipped up what I am going to call Pizza Pasta:
It was everything leftover from our pizzas mixed in with pasta and it tasted deeelicious :)

Pizza Pasta
2 cups chiocciole pasta, cooked and drained
1 tbsp olive oil
1/2 small onion, sliced
1/2 c fresh mozzerella, cubed
1/3 c pepperoni, sliced
1/2 bag baby spinach
1 1/2 cups pasta sauce (I used a jar of fra diavolo)

Heat olive oil in a pan, saute onion for 3 minutes and add pepperoni. Cook for 5 minutes. Add spinach and stir constantly until spinach is wilted.
Add pasta sauce, reduce heat and simmer for 3 minutes. Remove from heat, add pasta and mozzerella.

Stir to combine and serve immediately.

SOOO YUMMY :) I betcha it would be even better if you switched out the spinach for arugula ;)

I'm off to shower and foam roll. I leave you with this fun bottle cap from Jamie's post-dinner/soccer catch-up beer:

Wow, I forgot a title!

Happy Monday everyone!

Hope everyone is enjoying the last week of July. How crazy is that? Where has the summer gone?? I think yesterday was my second pool day ALL summer! Agh!

So I watched He's Just Not That Into You after dinner last night. I must say, I thought it was going to be like HA HA funny...not subtle funny. I found it entertaining and, sadly, I felt like I could relate more to Justin Long's character since I don't know...I like to think I can be the voice of reason for most of my friends? Ginnifer Goodwin is awesome at playing the awkward girl (yes, I also saw Win a Date with Tad Hamilton :p) and I feel bad for her at times during the movie, but for the most part I just wanted to shake her and say 'stop being so nutters!!'

I dunno, I thought it was a decent movie...not what I expected, but enjoyable since I could think of friends/family/acquaintances that have been in similar situations and similar conversations taking place. I'll also admit that I loved Ben Affleck's character when he showed up to do the dishes. *sniffle*

I continued with the sappiness as I picked up my book for some bedtime reading. How many times can I tell you I love this book? It's so not what I typically read, but I just can't stop reading it. The last time I read a somewhat sappy novel was in high school when I dove into A Woman of Independent Means - I think I saw the TV movie and decided to read the book? Ah well. I definitely recommend it :)

Since I worked both jobs today and Jamie just got back from Ohio, we met at the Giant to shop for an easy dinner. What did we end up with?
and some personal sized whole wheat pizza crusts for....
I'm definitely not going with the Giant brand pizza crusts again...they were really funky textured and tasted like we were eating pizza toast :( Shoulda gone with the Boboli (or even the trusty Pilsbury)!

The toppings and sauce were great though. These will definitely show up again on better crust!
Jamie went with pepperoni, sliced tomatoes, fresh mozzerella and some parmesan. I decided I needed some green in my life so I used some arugula and just a few pieces of chopped up pepperoni.
Finished dinner up with a nice piece of...
You guessed it! WATERMELON! I might go into watermelon overload one of these days haha. Some days I think I could seriously finish a small one on my own. I mean, I may or may not have finished a whole canteloupe once :[ What are some of your favorite fruits? Ones you just can't get enough of??

I'm off to go dream about my possible creation for this week's BSI. You should check out this week's ingredient too :)

I'm just not that into Sunday night...

because Monday is the next day! *sigh*

I hung out poolside for a couple hours and couldn't put my book down! I might just have to see the movie too ;) To quench my thirst, I grabbed a bottle of this:
I'll admit it, I have a POM Tea addiction (our cabinet of glasses is full of POM glasses). This flavor was particularly delicious and refreshing...LOVE passion fruit!

Dinner tonight was an eggplant experiment because I saw some fun small ones at the grocery store. I decided to go with a Spicy Stewed Eggplant (sorry for the lame title, but that's really the only way I can describe it).
Spicy Stewed Eggplant
1 small eggplant, cubed and roasted
1/2 red pepper, sliced
1 small onion, thinly sliced
1 tomato, diced
1/2 package seitan, sliced
1/4 c szechuan sauce
1 tsp creamy peanut butter
1 tbsp sesame oil
1 tbsp vegetable oil
1 tbsp oyster sauce
1 tbsp soy sauce
1 egg, beaten
splash mirin
handful spinach

Combine szechuan sauce, peanut butter, sesame oil, oyster sauce and soy sauce in a bowl, set aside. Heat vegetable oil in a skillet and saute onion, pepper and eggplant until onion and pepper begin to soften. Add tomatoes and cook for 3 minutes.
Add mirin and cook for 1 minute before adding sauce mixture.
Stir and reduce heat to low and simmer for 10 minutes.
Add half the beaten egg and stir constantly to ensure the egg is fully incorporated. Cook for another 5 minutes. Add 1/4 c water, seitan and spinach and cook for 3 minutes. Serve immediately over rice.
Kinda not what I had envisioned, but tasty. I had visions of this szechuan eggplant dish I've gotten before that was a lot saucier and had more of a soy taste to it. When I opened the bottle of sauce for a taste test, it was peanutty so I kinda ran with that. Hmph. Anyone have a good szechuan eggplant recipe?

I'm off to get my last sappy fix of the weekend before Jamie comes home...I'm FINALLY watching He's Just Not That Into You. I must be the last person to see it. GAH!

Long run + humidity - people + late start = epic fail.

Definitely caught up on my sleep...I slept until about 9:30 this morning! Part of me wanted to just push my run off until the evening, but I know from experience that it's better to just get it over with as soon as possible.

I finally left the apartment around 10:30 with a pretty decent route that took me along the Mall and Hains Point (yes, I wanted to tackle it again) ending at Lafayette Park so I could walk to the Borders before hopping on the metro. Unfortunately, I got about 3 miles in and started getting a terrible queasy feeling and thought I was going to yak in the bushes :\

I think I've finally figured out why I have such issues with running long runs on my own. I just can't seem to pace myself properly when I run alone. I got to (what I always assume is) the 1.5 mile mark on my run and I was definitely running too fast, so I tried to slow down but it just didn't happen. Of course I'm not going to last the whole run! UGH. So frustrating. It's like running and talking with people gets me to slow down and not burn out. Perhaps this is reason number one I should get the Garmin I want ;p

Ah well, at least I got out there and did A run this weekend...it's something, right? It's definitely better than what I did while training for Chicago, which was skip some weekend runs entirely.

Since I was in Farragut North, I stopped by the Borders at my old office to pick up a copy of this:
Whenever Jamie is out of town, I tend to get into sappy movies and crap like that. I saw a preview for The Time Traveler's Wife with Rachel McAdams and Eric Bana. Pretty sure I want to see it because my sappy factor kicked in this week hehe. I did some googling and decided I was going to give the book a shot. I'll let you know how it goes :)

Before jumping on the metro home, I walked up to Dupont to check out the Farmer's Market. I was psyched that I was finally able to catch it, but when I opened up my Fuel Belt pouch, I discovered that in my haste to get out the door this morning, I didn't pack my ATM card and I didn't have enough cash to buy the stuff I wanted :( Ah well, it was a bit too crowded for my liking so looks like I'll have to check it out another weekend.

I'm off to the pool now to enjoy some much needed vegging in the sun. More this evening!

OMG! I totally gave myself food poisoning!

Or at least that's what I've convinced myself :\

So that pasta dish from last night that tasted so DELICIOUS? I woke up at 1:30am with a queasy feeling and proceeded to vomit for a good 2 hours! AGH! Needless to say I didn't make my 12 mile run before work this morning.

I'm convinced it was the chicken sausage I used. I usually go with the Aidells fully cooked chicken sausage, but I decided to give a new brand a try. The rest were fresh veggies so I really don't know what else it could be. UGH. I'm SO bummed! That pasta was so freaking good and now I'm too scared to eat the leftovers...AND I have 3 more links of that damn sausage! Fail!

I was able to stomach some breakfast around 10am.
Went with the standard Fage 0% Total Yogurt and topped it with some honey, pumpkin seeds, french vanilla granola and crasins. By far the best yogurt combo I've had so far :)

Before I left the apartment, I made a piece of toast with peanut butter and grabbed a Peanut Butter Chocolate Luna Cookie so I didn't starve through the next 7 hours of work. Once I got there, I found out that my manager thought he gave himself food poisoning as well since he found himself in a similar situation last night! Then I realized that we both got chocolate frozen yogurt at some point yesterday afternoon...perhaps that's the culprit??? But wouldn't that have kicked in earlier? Stumped. Think I'll blame the chicken sausage.

When I got home from work, I wasn't exactly starving, but I knew I had to eat something so I decided to do some more experimenting (yes, before my second attempt at my 12 mile run). I picked up a bag of Kashi 7 Whole Grain Pilaf - Fiery Fiesta
And a package of seitan
It looked tasty and interesting at the store and I must say, it wasn't bad. Good texture - like extra firm tofu. I'd totally get a different flavor next time and use it in a stir fry or something! Fingers crossed this experiment goes well ;p

Since I never like to eat packaged items on their own, I decided to heat up the Kashi Pilaf with some leftover canned corn, chopped up arugula, a handful of chopped seitan, and half a tomato. I also decided to troast (toaster oven roast) the rest of the broccoli I bought yesterday.
Since I had half an avocado leftover from my sushi bowl, I sliced it up and topped my bowl off :)
Ok, maybe not the prettiest dinner bowl, but it was pretty tasty! The Kashi pilaf had a slight kick to it and overall, good flavor. I mean, the corn that was in the pilaf was a weird texture so I'm glad I added my own in. This is definitely going on my quick and filling meal list!

I'm off to catch up on sleep (since I really couldn't sleep after all that sickness) so I can get my run in tomorrow. Agh. I feel like such a slacker :\ This one will be TOTALLY alone! Wish me luck :)

Why can't I ever remember pine nuts?

I don't know why, but every time I want to put pine nuts in a dish, I ALWAYS forget to pick them up. And of course I realize this after I've walked too far from the store! Ah well, I made do with my ingredients and made myself a broccolicious BSI dinner while watching Say Anything. You know you're jealous ;p
Chiocciole with Roasted Broccoli, Red Peppers and Chicken Sausage
1 1/2 c chiocciole pasta, cooked and drained
2/3 c broccoli florets
1 tbsp olive oil
1/2 small onion, thinly sliced
1/2 red pepper, sliced
2 chicken sausage links (I used Roasted Pepper and Asiago), sliced
1 small tomato, diced
2 tbsp parmesan cheese, shredded
salt
pepper

Line a baking (or toasting) pan with foil and spray lightly with olive oil. Spread broccoli out in one layer and spray with some olive oil. Sprinkle salt and pepper on broccoli and roast at 400 degrees for about 10 minutes.
Heat 1 tbsp of olive oil in a pan and saute onion and chicken sausage until onion starts to soften, about 3-4 minutes. Add red pepper and saute for another 3 minutes. Add tomato, lower heat and let cook for 5 minutes.
Add pasta, broccoli and parmesan and cook for another 2-3 minutes. Serve immediately.
I know, I know, you're probably thinking 'wait, didn't she just say she can't do pasta before a long run?' I usually don't...but I made an exception tonight so I could submit to this week's BSI! Plus, there are more veggies than pasta ;) I really wanted to do this with some broccolini, but there wasn't any to be found in the THREE stores I went to!

I might love this dish - the fun pasta shape and the roasted broccoli (WAY more fun than just steamed) were awesome with the rest of the ingredients!

I'm headed to bed early tonight...12 mile run tomorrow morning (1st half is all by my lonesome until I run past running buddy 1's house to pick her up). My goal is to get a brief post in pre-work because I picked up some fun goodies at the store this evening. Hooray for fun breakfast :)

Multi-tasking at its best!

This might be the most productive weeknight I've had in months!

I got home at a fairly decent hour and decided to get a quick 3 mile run in on the treadmill since it was POURING by the time I got home. Not going to lie, I kinda love when I'm the only girl at the gym and I end up out running all the frat-tastic guys :) Broke in the Inspires, paid close attention to my form and knocked those miles out in 27 minutes! Woooo :)

I finished just in time to switch my laundry over to the dryer, popped in a new load and got started on my Sushi Bowl dinner. It's essentially chirashi but with no raw fish because I don't trust myself with raw fish.
I followed this recipe for the sushi rice and then topped it with some toasted nori, cucumber, shrimp, tamago, avocado and a spicy crab mixture.
When it comes to sushi, I'm very anti-brown rice. I've tried brown rice sushi and I don't think the flavor is bad, but the texture is just a little off. The balance of white rice, sweetened vinegar, fish and seaweed is perfect as it is and I think it's just a bit wrong to alter it. But that's just me.

This totally hit the spot after my run...the combination of salty/sweet, spicy, briny, and creamy made my mouth soooo happy :) I finished my meal off with two juicy pieces of watermelon. Mmmmm!

So now that I'm all settled and caught up with things (sort of), I can FINALLY write about yesterday.
I sarted the day off with my new breakfast of choice - Fage Total 0% Yogurt with honey, granola and slivered almonds. I also brought a banana (too ripe for me!) and a Chocolate Chip Zbar to tide me over since I was meeting Sophia and Rebeca for a late late lunch.

I cabbed over to Busboys & Poets a little before 2 when it occurred to me I had no idea who I would be looking for. I just remembered reading on Sophia's blog that she was a skinny Asian girl, but that really wasn't much to work with ;p

This was my very first blogger meet up so I was kinda nervous. I stood in the vestibule for a bit, texting Sophia that I was there and noticed there was another girl just standing in the vestibule as well. I felt REALLY WEIRD asking her if she was there for the blogger meet up (because what if she wasn't? I didn't want her to give me the shifty eye!) so I kept to myself. Thankfully she got on the phone and (nosy me ;p) overheard that she didn't know who she was looking for either! So I turned to her and asked her if she was there for the meet up and SUCCESS!

Rebeca and I chatted for a few minutes as we waited for Sophia and it turned out that we had each been to Busboys before. I went post bevvies one night and Rebeca had stopped by for a poetry slam awhile back...so it was like we were checking it out for the first time.

When Sophia arrived we headed straight to our table and started chatting about everything and anything, including how overwhelming the menu was. I had done some reading earlier and a lot of people raved about the Avocado and Roasted Red Pepper panini. So what did I get? Yep.

It was ok...a little bland - I think my tastebuds were thinking roasted red pepper HUMMUS. oops. You know what DID taste delicious?

My heaping pile of sweet potato fries! Oh my goodness, I could have eaten a whole plate of these!

We had tons of time to chat about blogs and life in general. Sophia is just as sweet and genuine as she is on her blog :) She's quite the roaming gnome lately with trips to California and NYC so be sure to check out her food adventures (pretty sure she's in NYC next weekend NY area bloggers)! I'm hoping I can meet up with her again before she leaves us east coasters for sunny California in the fall! Rebeca (whose blog I had not read before, tsktsk!) has a background in elementary education and came to DC to take on the DC public school system. She mentioned some of the tough situations she's seen her kids in and I admire her patience and persistence. We totally need more teachers like her!

My sandwich managed to keep me full well through job number 2 so I just had a small bowl of Lentil Salad for dinner.

Lentil Salad
1 c dry lentils
3 cups water
1 small tomato, chopped
1 handful arugula, chopped
1/3 c reduced fat feta, crumbled
1 tsp salt
1 tbsp olive oil
freshly ground black pepper
1 tsp lemon juice

Boil 3 cups of water and add lentils. Cook for 15-20 minutes or until tender. Drain and toss with remaining ingredients while still warm.

Jamie made this before he left for the weekend, so all I had to do was scoop and eat :) Snacked on some watermelon, watched a sappy movie and crashed fairly early. Exciting evening, right?

I'm off to finish up the laundry, foam roll and sleep. Long day ahead of me tomorrow that I hope will end with a delicious broccolicious creation for this week's BSI :)

I will leave you with the answer to Monday's question: we're spending Labor Day weekend in Budapest! Has anyone been? Any suggestions for things to check out? I'm already excited about all the architecture and river views I can photograph :)

Almost forgot! Check out foodwanderlust's post about some great pre-DC restaurant week deals...I know I've got my sights set on The Source's lunch deal ;)

Humid Hains Point

Grrr.

Tonight's muggy 6 miler took me, Jamie and running buddy number 2 (RB2) out to scenic Hains Point.
What I call Hains Point is really East Potomac Park (actually, I don't think I've ever heard anyone call it East Potomac Park). Hains Point is just the tip of the peninsula where the Anacostia and Potomac Rivers meet and make a stink ;p Anyway, most people enjoy Hains Point for running and bicycling since it's quiet, scenic (great views of the Jefferson and National Airport), and flat as flat can be. For the rest of us (or at least I hope there's more of you out there than me!), Hains Point can be the longest and mentally draining 3.2 miles EVER.

Hains Point and I go way back...like 2007 way back. I will always associate Hains Point with my worst/most painful training run - the run I had to wait 6 miles to pee. I mean really, how are ALL the restrooms at ALL the monuments locked? While I was thankful to finally see an open restroom on Hains Point, it seemed like it took forever to finally get to it!

Hains Point take two...Cherry Blossom Ten Miler 2009 - I've run Hains Point twice and I know exactly where things are and how much further I have to go. I think that is to my advantage. WRONG! It felt like I was running FOREEEVVVERRR. GAH!

I thought it would be different tonight, but no. I found myself struggling and wondering 'ARE WE THERE YET??' That's bad. Very bad. Hains Point makes up Miles 12-15 of this year's marathon! SO thankful it's no longer Miles 18-22! I know it's totally a mental thing and I'm determined to beat it.

Toward the end of our run, I managed to get a little more spunk in my step as I tried to focus on a faster, shorter stride. My calves were definitely feeling the burn from the forefoot striking, but I felt a lot more energized and bouncier! Like I was light on my feet! That was my nerdy form moment for the night :)

We finished at just under 10 minute pace and walked back to my office for some much needed cold water. Dinner was boring and fast - Potbelly. Yes. Sometimes you need it.

I'm off to do some foam rolling and drink some Nuun. Tomorrow's going to be an early day at work so I can meet up with Sophia for a late lunch! Yay blogger meet up :)

Monday...again.

Today was just one of those days where I felt like I was taking crazy pills - nothing made sense and I think I was constantly giving people the 'are you kidding me?' face. Ah well.

Worked both jobs today and was somewhat inspired by our display of gels and what not at job number two to write a post on nutritional options, but I think I'll save that for another day. For now I think I'll just enjoy the fact that Jamie started cooking dinner on his own before I walked in the door :) AAAND Vacation 2009 is coming up in just 1.5 months (damn skippy I'm starting the countdown)!!

Can anyone guess what Central European city we'll be visiting over Labor Day weekend??
Hint: Europe's second largest river runs through the city.

Tonight's dinner (started by Jamie and finished by yours truly) was a quick Chicken and Tofu Stirfry.
No clue what Jamie used to marinate the chicken, but they were super flavorful and tender! I'll let him add the details later. I threw in some soybeans, shiitake mushrooms, green pepper, oyster sauce, a splash of rice wine vinegar (random), soy sauce and the rest of our black bean garlic paste. Not a bad stir fry if I do say so myself :)

Jamie's off to Ohio this weekend so I might just bring back my favorite veggie while he's away...
BROCCOLI!!! Oh, how I've missed you! I got really excited when I popped over to Chaya's Comfy Cook Blog, this week's BSI host, to find out that broccoli is this week's ingredient!! Yes, broccoli makes me so excited that it gets two exclamation points.

I'm off to attempt some work before hanging out with my foam roller friend and crashing. Tomorrow is 6 mile Tuesday and I couldn't be happier about it (even though the humidity is back - btw, check out Val's Marathon Monday post about heat, hydration and gels...VERY important stuff!) :) Is it strange that I really hate the thought of doing my 3 mile runs? Ha. Two years ago, I NEVER would have typed those words...

G'nite :)

Moving eats at Saint-Ex

Hello again! Just got back from helping Susan move into her new home (in a pretty sweet location I must add). After lots of sweating and lifting (my chicken arms can only handle so much ;p) we did an early dinner at nearby Cafe Saint-Ex. Yep, paella got put on the back burner.
I've only been to Saint-Ex for beers before (pretty decent selection!) and have been a bit curious about their food. Another perk was that they had outdoor seating - perfect for tonight's weather :)

I was a little shocked when I saw the prices, but Jamie happened to notice that they offered a three course $32 prix fixe option before 7pm. Since we were early birds, the three of us decided to do the prix fixe option and sample each others dishes. *Since they change their menu frequently, I can't seem to find any of these dishes on the website so I'm doing my best to recall the details of the side dishes!

To start we got Grilled Georgia Shrimp (with barley salad and cheddar), Chicken Confit Sliders, and P.E.I Mussels (with sausage).
Notice the beady eyes on the very much attached head?? I chopped those suckers off and gave them to Jamie. Though I'm kinda curious about the whole sucking tasties out of shrimp heads (because that's supposed to be the best part), I really wasn't feeling it. The barley salad was nice, but the cheddar was a little random. The shrimp was grilled so it gets a thumbs up for that, but it was a little dry and salty closer to the tail.
The sliders tasted a little like chicken salad sandwiches...not bad, but not exactly what I expected. Totally addicted to the spicy onion relishy thing on the side though.
I feel like you really can't mess up mussels...unless you add really random ingredients to the broth. I have a soft spot for steamed mussel dishes that have bits of sausage in them. There's something about that combination that just does it for me. This one had a ton of onions which made for fun dipping.

Our main course options took a little more time to decide on (we ended up with two different menus at our table so once we decided on entrees, we found out some were not correct or had different sides). We ended up with Wild Alaskan Salmon (with toasted almond quinoa and fennel slaw), Grilled Sirloin (with wild mushroom risotto and baby corn), and Eco Friendly Foods Pork Chop (with crispy potatoes, onions and tomato)
So my salmon was REALLY REALLY orange. I don't know if I'm just eating some sad salmon or if this was just crazy colored salmon or what...it was good, but a little charred (as you can probably see). Loved my quinoa, but when do I not love quinoa ;) I was even ok with it having golden raisins in it! Slaw was nice and tart!Jamie's sirloin was nicely cooked and the mushroom risotto went perfectly with it. The baby corn was a little random, but whatever...it's corn and I love it.
The pork chop was nicely seasoned and the really beet red tomatoes (we thought they could be cherries because of the color, but they definitely tasted like tomatoes) were great with the pork. Even better with the pork - that red onion relish thing that came with the sliders!

Jamie and Susan (total sweet tooths) thought deciding on dessert would be easy, but no no...not when you can't double up on dishes! muahahahaaa! We decided on a Homemade White Chocolate Ice Cream, Carrot Cake and Coconut Creme Brulee.
The white chocolate was pretty good with the mini snickerdoodle that came on the side. Definitely home made too - it has this texture that I've started to notice when Jamie makes ice cream...something you don't get from store bought ice cream.
Don't even have words for the cream cheese frosting and candied pecans. Had me at first bite.
The creme brulee had great flavor - very rich and coconut-y, but I definitely didn't expect the grated coconut. I thought it would have the standard creme brulee texture with coconut flavor. Nope.

Overall, I thought it was a pretty good deal considering the standard entree prices were about $23 each. I don't think I'd order a la carte. The flavors were ok and portions were reasonable...not bad for upscale bar food.

I was eyeing the sweet potato fries. Guess I'll have to check those out during a happy hour!