Family for Dinner

We had some family over last night to try our favourite fish burritos.  We started with a few snacky items:

Then came the fish burritos:

And finally dessert (we also had brownies, but I forgot to snap a picture):

We'll be eating leftovers today, and then tomorrow we're on vacation!  

Las Vegas - here we come!!  

I won't be posting for about a week, but will have a lot to share when we're back.

Do you have any vacations coming up?

3 Days and 4 Restaurants

I don't usually eat out at restaurants this much, but things come up!

Monday @ Flip

Fish tacos and a peanut/cilantro soup.  Both were just alright.

Tuesday @ Leopold's Tavern

The veggie burger was dry, crumbly, and flavourless, and the fries were undercooked.  Restaurant fail.  I hope the other things on the menu are better.

Wednesday @ Fireside

Ginger beef Thai wrap with brie and mushroom soup - pretty good

Wednesday @ The Free House

Christopher and I shared two appetizers and 1 entree:

Dinner was at home tonight, which was nice.  We just had sandwiches and salad in an attempt to use things up before a little vacation we have coming up!

 

Have you eaten at any restaurants lately?

 

The 8-Week Healthy Skin Diet - Book Review

The lovely people at Robert Rose Inc. sent me the book The 8-Week Healthy Skin Diet (by Karen Fischer) to review.  Although the book was provided to me at no charge, all thoughts and opinions on this book are my own, and I was under no obligation to review it.

I've read many nutritional books, but I found that I still learned new things while reading this book.  I was constantly making little notes in the margins, which I rarely do. 

This is a very user-friendly book.  Some of it's organized features include:

• questionnaires for the reader regarding skin type, etc..
• 8 basic and easy-to-follow guidelines for healthy skin
• specialized programs for those with acne, eczema, psoriasis, etc..
• a three day cleanse plan
• a 14-day healthy skin menu/activity plan
• over 100 healthy skin recipes

It is easy to read and is broken up nicely with text features such as clear headings, lists, little info. pieces in the side columns,  Did You Know? sections, FAQs, charts, questionnaires and diagrams.

I was impressed with the quality of research and great deal of references provided in this book, and was pleased that the information in it aligned with all the other research I have done in the areas of food and nutrition.  This book provides a very comprehensive look at diet/lifestyle and healthy skin.

I look forward to trying the recipes in this book, and like that they include easy-to-find ingredients, many of which I have on hand all the time.  Also provided with each recipe is a breakdown of the nutritional information.
 

I definitely recommend this book to anyone who would like to improve their complexion, or maintain healthy skin.  If you'd like to read more about the book or buy it, check here.

The dinner that we had last night included foods that are all very nutritious, and skin friendly.

Grilled tofu, sweet potatoes, garden salad

Road Tripping Weekend!

This weekend was a blast, and full of many laughs, good eats and some live music!  Let's rewind a bit ...

On Thursday evening we had a great dinner to use some stuff up in the fridge.  We had BBQd chicken and one of my favourite pastas.

On Friday morning I had egg in a hole & some iced coffee.

Later in the afternoon on Friday we headed on a little weekend road trip to Saskatoon.  We ate dinner at a restaurant downtown called Woodfire Grill.  Christopher had the falafel sandwich and I had some of the best mushroom soup I've ever had with a side salad.

Saturday evening we went to Taste of Saskatchewan in the park right beside our hotel.  We went to see our friends' band The Fortunate Isles play a sweet set, which provided some nice relief from the slew of cover bands we had heard through our hotel room window all weekend.

Group photo! (I took the photo, so you won't find me ... but in my place, a photo bomber at the very back!)

We also tried a bunch of food from the booths (we shared everything so that we could try more stuff).

Mmmm, Korean food!  The BEST of the day.

Deep Fried Pickles ... don't mind if I do!

Vegetarian Pad Thai (this totally needed tofu, lime, cilantro and fatter noodles)

Baked Potato "Poutine"

Dry Ribs

Booster Juice (*shout out to my gorgeous hand model!)

Ridiculously YUM Dumplings with Sriracha

Other things we did on the weekend included visiting my mom, and eating a fantastic breakfast in our hotel.  I had a fritatta with fruit and sausage, and Christopher had a poached egg on 1/2 a scone, fruit, and cottage cheese. 

Ahhhh, I love weekends.  This one was awesome, but I have a feeling next weekend is going to be even better!  Next weekend's road trip is going to be a little further ...

How was your weekend?  What was the highlight?  Did you eat anything delicious this weekend?  Do you have any summer road trips planned?

What I ate Wednesday

Breakfast this morning was soooo good!  I had a mango, two little bruschetta style toasts, and a fresh juice made with 2 mini cucumbers, 1 grapefruit, 1 green pepper.  

At noon I met my friend Shauna for a smokie from a cart in the park.

Dinner this evening started with Ukrainian beetniks (dough wrapped in beet leaves, in a dill cream sauce).

Then rack of lamb and a medley of veggies done on the grill. 

(Rubbed with this)

(Zucchini, cucumber, red pepper, carrot, mushroom, onion, mixed greens, fresh herbs, shallot oil, etc.)

Christopher cooked the lamb perfectly, and I've only had lamb a handful of times, but it was the best I've ever had.

What did you eat today?  Have you ever had beetniks?

My Borrowed Child

I spent the day with my favourite little person today, my nephew Giovanni.

I picked him up around 10:30 a.m..  We stopped at Robin's so I could get a coffee.  The cashier thought that Gio was so cute that she passed a free doughnut through the window for him.

After a bit of playing inside, and a long game of catch outside, we walked to the park for a picnic.  

We had stopped at the store earlier so that Giovanni could pick out whatever he wanted for the picnic.  He chose sushi (no surprise there), watermelon, sparkling water, cheese, and some chocolate for dessert.

He saw quite the dance when he said, "Auntie, you have a GIANT spider on you."  Yeah, he wasn't lying.  Once I came to calmed down, we continued to enjoy our sushi.  We polished off most of the sushi and watermelon, but had no room left for the cheese or dessert.

While walking back home Giovanni spotted an injured butterfly (moth?) with a burned wing.  He was devastated. 

The wing was crispy  :-(  We tried to find a safe spot in the grass where he wouldn't get trampled.

Throughout the day we played FOUR(!?) different types of hockey.

We had fun at the Science Center.

And we played a round of mini golf.

To top off a fun-filled day, we had a little bit of fro yo at Menchies.

 

After dropping him off at home, I grabbed a pizza and pint with my dad at Bushwakker.

Okay, time for bed!