The French Market: A Creperie

So over the weekend we took a little tiny trip to Knoxville which is about 2 hours away. Sometimes you just have to not be at home, ya know? My friend Paige and I went down Saturday morning and then our men met us after they got off work. We ate some tasty Mexican food, saw a movie (Underworld=boring and dumb), and stayed overnight. But the best part was this amazing crepe place we ate brunch at on Sunday morning.

Totally adorable with a zillion different crepes and the sweetest people.

We got three crepes. The hub got a crepe with potatoes, bacon, peppers, and onions. I got one with eggs, cheese, tomatoes, and spinach. And then we got a nutella and strawberry crepe to share. Ah-mazing.

Super excited for his crepe. And looking super French right? Ha. I think he called this his rock star outfit. Since he uses the word "outfit" and stuff. Oh wait...

The best crepe ever.

Friends, if you are ever in Knoxville, get yourself to the French Market. Thank me later.

Oh, here is my outfit for Saturday. It was raining and I thought I was being super cute and clever. Then it stopped raining and I looking a little silly. Oh well.

Yay for weekends and crepes and rain boots!

DIY Sugar Scrub

I have something magical to share on this rainy Saturday morning. It's called sugar scrub. Between nasty hospital dry air, cold winter, and drying heaters, my skin gets kinda gross in the winter. So I googled "sugar scrub" and came across this link for homemade sugar scrub.

Here's what I did: took 1 1/2 cups of sugar and 1/4 cup of olive oil, put them in a mason jar, and shook it up really well. That's it. I keep it in the shower and exfoliate a few times a week. The original recipe calls for massage oil to scent it, but I don't have any and I don't care about scent anyway. The olive oil moisturizes your skin and the sugar makes it nice and smooth. I wash off after with my normal body wash so I don't smell like the kitchen.

It hangs out next to my hub's Axe body wash and the clearance shampoo. Keep it classy.

I give it a good shake every time I use it.

I don't use it on my face/neck/chest since I'm a little sensitive. But its amazing for arms, legs, and feet!

Get your sugar scrub on, people!


PS. Happy birthday to my sweet momma! I love you!

Well hey 2012! How bout some taco soup?

Happy New Year! Yep, I realize this blog was a little MIA over the last couple weeks. But no fears, the Tennessee documentation has not ceased! We had a fun New Year's celebration with some friends, some sushi, and some fireworks. It was a good time. The best  part though, was that we both had the whole weekend off and got to spend some good time together. (FYI: don't got see Mission Impossible 4 in the IMAX if you are afraid of heights and you want to keep your Twizzlers down.)

But now its January. I literally just got done taking down Christmas decorations. I like to hold onto the holidays as long as possible. The best part of January is the fact that you can make some resolutions/goals/lists. And I do love a good list. I think resolutions are a tiny bit silly but making a list and a plan is super appealing to me. So I do it. 

So here are my 2012 resolutions, in list form. There is a theme. See if you can guess it.

1. Lose 5 lbs in the month of January. And every month after that until I reach my goal weight. Which shall not be disclosed at this time.

2. Give up all soda during the week. 

3. Go to the gym on all my days off. 

4. Eat at least 2 fruits and 2 vegetables every day.

5. Food journal it up!

6. Scrapbook and organize all my wedding and honeymoon things. Since I've been married for two years now and I'm not moving a bin full of that stuff anywhere else.

Yeah, these are super simple. But they need to be. Or else I won't do them at all. I was further motivated in my health driven resolution theme after I had the following exchange with the housekeeper at the hospital the other day:

Me: "Good morning!"

Housekeeper: "Hey, how are you?"

Me: "Good!"

Housekeeper: "Girl, you are really putting on some weight, aren't you?"

Me: "Umm...yeah...I guess so??" (walking away quickly)

HA. Don't worry, my feelings are unscathed. But honestly, who points that out? Thanks, housekeeper!

I have still been going to the personal trainer (who swears he can tell I'm losing weight...) and he has been attempting to help me with my basic food choices. Which include eating breakfast, not drinking soda, and not eating carbs and dairy at night. Which is super hard for me. Because when I get home from work around 8pm, all I want to eat is a bowl of cereal. Or three. But this taco soup recipe fits the bill, is delicious, and so easy! It's a Weight Watcher recipe that I got from my sweet coworker, Lynn. And it is only 2 points per cup. Amazing! And I maybe lie to my husband and say it's chili. And forget to tell him that it's kinda healthy. Oops. Get your taco soup on, New Year's resolutioners.

Taco Soup

1 lb ground beef

1 onion, chopped

3 cans beans (any beans you want...drain kidney beans but leave all other undrained)

1 can corn, undrained

1 can diced tomatoes, undrained

1 can chopped mild green chilies, undrained

1 small (8oz) can tomato sauce

1 pkg taco seasoning mix, dry

1 pkg Hidden Valley Ranch buttermilk dressing mix, dry

Brown beef and onion, drain. Combine all ingredients in crock pot. Cook on low all day. (I start that crock pot at 6am and don't even worry about it till 8pm, works great!)

This time I used 2 cans chili beans and 1 can black beans. I mixed in a cornbread muffin and put a dollop of plain Greek yogurt on top. Yum.

Oh, and I'm getting my scrapbook on. Starting right now. As soon as I fold the laundry.

Happy New Year!