Is this week going by quickly for anyone else except me?  Time always flies fastest for me when I’m really busy which has been the general tempo all week now. 

Yesterday I had a yummy lunch of turkey burger with goat cheese and tomato on an Arnold’s multi-grain sandwich thin paired with an orange.  Definitely a winner and a nice switch up from the eggs I usually eat for brunch pretty much daily.

After lunch I was running around (literally).  I went for a 4 mile treadmill run in the gym, had class 3-5, then tutoring until about 8.  After then, Joe and I had a bit of a dilemma when it came to dinner.  After not cooking fish for weeks, we got salmon and tilapia this week when food shopping (salmon was eaten on Monday).  We had planned on having the tilapia last night, until it hit me that the week also had two mandatory non-meat days due to lent starting.  I wasn’t really excited at the idea of four non-meat dinners, so we switched a few things around and went out to dinner last night at The Dandelion.  We were planning on having a date night Wednesday at the dandelion but I wanted to have the option to try a meat dish if one looked good.  Of course you know what happened…we both got fish.  Go figure.  How was I supposed to know the fish and chips was their specialty???

The Dandelion is a Stephen Starr restaurant/gastro-pub that was awesome!  Joe had recently received a good recommendation so it was on our list of places to try.  When we walked in, the restaurant looked small, but there were two additional stories of tables so in actuality the restaurant was HUGE.  It was decorated like the inside of an old English home, with fire places, lots of large tables for groups, and a dark atmosphere. 

We split an appetizer which was AMAZING.  Super creamy and definitely a worth-while splurge.

House-made Ricotta with extra virgin olive oil, dried herbs, and toasted sourdough

Both of us got the same entrée which Joe had hear was their specialty.  The fish and chips.

Beer Battered Fish and Chips: line-caught Chatham cod, tartar sauce, triple cooked chips

Please excuse the bad, dark iPhone pictures.  Pictures of the restaurant are linked to the original sources.  Despite my bad photography, this place was amazing.  The only negative was the price.  Stephen Starr restaurants are known for their hefty price tag, and this wasn’t cheap although it was too terrible.  I would also definitely consider coming with a group because of the great (and different) atmosphere.  Overall, I highly recommend it.

After dinner it was back to school work for me.  Today’s breakfast was a quick bagel before my early morning lab and lunch was a non-meat one due to Ash Wednesday.  I had an egg salad sandwich, half of a grapefruit, granny smith apple, and some guacamole flavored tortilla chips which were so good.  Crystal light pink lemonade to drink. 

In between classes I managed to squeeze in a quick workout.  I did 2 miles of treadmill interval walking in 30 minutes starting at 0,5 incline and adding an additional level until 15 minutes then took off a level until 30.  It was a good mid-day burn to break up the day. 

I really need a good night’s sleep tonight.  Lately, I‘ve actually been feeling pretty refreshed when I wake up in the morning, but I’m always so beat by the end of the day!  Trying to get any work done post-dinner is brutal.  Such an old lady…

Good evening!  Today has been pretty jam packed with my graded seminar meeting with my advisor in the morning followed by 4 hours of class then tutoring and some food shopping.  I’m getting exhausted just typing about it.  Luckily the meeting went well, and today has been a pretty great day!!!  Aren’t good days just the BEST?

Here are highlights of the day:

Dressing up in cute professional outfit.

A yummy pre-important meeting hearty breakfast:  Turkey sausage, turkey bacon, fried eggs, onion bagel with reduced fat cream cheese,

Crystal Light Pink Lemonade

I brought crystal light back to this apartment…and it was oh so missed.  Crystal light is always a summer staple at our shore house, and this calorie free sweet drink always hits the spot when I want an alternative to soda or water.  Plus it reminds me of spring and summertime…which is coming up soon!

Surfing the web for Tory Burch Handbags…drool.

Healthy snacks in between classes.

A healthy home cooked dinner.  Fresh salmon, corn cut off the cobb, and sweet potatoes. 

The new season of Bethenny Ever After!

Entering in a contest to win 5 free spinning classes.

Which needs your help…if any of you would be so kind as to like Body Cycle Studio on facebook and comment (not like) under my picture which is the picture below, I can win free classes and gear!  There is only one other person in the running as of now, and most comments get the free rides!  I also get 5 free for a friend if you are local!  So please do me a solid!

What was the best part of your day today?

It is a wonderful 50 degree Saturday here in Philadelphia, and I am enjoying every bit of it.  I’ve decided that Saturdays are my new favorite day of the week.  Just wanted to share that.  When you work on Sundays, Saturday becomes your only weekend day, and I’m beginning to cherish the time. 

Yesterday, I worked all day on my seminar before calling it quits and heading out for a few drinks with Joe and his friends.  I didn’t end up staying out super late (which was good today when I woke up refreshed instead of groggy), and it was a much needed night out for this little stress ball. 

This morning, Joe and I met some of his cousins and his mom at a restaurant in the graduate hospital area of Philly for brunch to celebrate his mom’s birthday!  Joe had been to this restaurant once before, and he raved about the breakfast burritos.  So much that I actually thought that it was a specialty and they only served breakfast burritos, which was not the case.  Side Car is actually a little off-beat bar that is open for brunch on the weekends.  Everything on the menu looked amazing, but I had heard so much about these breakfast burritos that I couldn’t resist trying them.  Joe and I spit two different kind of burritos which came with potatoes and a side salad.  Everything was delicious!  I already can’t wait to go back to try some other menu choices that were jumping out at me.  If you try it, the bloody mary’s looked amazing, but I didn’t try any due to the fact that I have to be productive today.  Dratz!  Maybe next time!

Holy Chorizo burrito: Egg, mexican chorizo, red onion, cheddar
Potato and cheddar burrito: Egg, potato, cheddar, bacon, caramelized onions, smoked tomato mayo

Since I was already downtown, I decided to make the most of my time by staying downtown until spinning which was at 3.  I had a few hours to kill, and first stop was Rittenhouse Nails for a much needed manicure.  My un-polished, bitten down from anxiety nails were looking pretty bad, and this week I have my advisor meeting for seminar so I decided to polish them up a bit.  While the nice lady was trying her best to make my stubby fingers look presentable, I noticed two women who were getting chair massages behind me.  I decided that if when your stressed to the max isn’t a time to splurge on the 10 minute chair massage then I don’t know what is.  It was 10 minutes of heaven and when I got up I felt like I could breathe again.  I decided that it was money well spent considered it cost the same as two Starbucks lattes.  I walked out relaxed, with presentable nails (in a new, more professional, color) and I was feeling great. 

I then decided to get a little bit of work down at the Starbucks that is right around the corner from my spin studio.  Spinning starts in 30 minutes, and I am definitely excited to relieve even more stress on the bike.

I tried to dress smart for today’s little excursions, and I decided to wear a pair of black LuluLemon under wunder crops with a tank top and jacket.  This way, when I hit spinning, I just have to switch to a different tank top and throw on my spin shoes.  I am so happy to be rocking my new Tory Burch aqua flats for the first time today.  I am definitely in love with them.   Cute, comfy, and so much smaller to throw in a bag than a pair of tall Uggs.  I hope the weather just keeps getting warmer and warmer so I can continue to wear them!

Awkward picture of me taken by Joe.  It looks like a birds eye view shot because he’s really tall.  I promise I’m not actually that short. 

The rest of the weekend is going to be a bit boring for me, I’m afraid.  I have tutoring both today and tomorrow, lots of lecture to re-watch, and my seminar to practice.  Oh and I’ll be working all day tomorrow too, can’t forget about that.  Not too much longer until some of the stress is gone and spring hits! 

I cannot wait for a change!