Sweetness Explosion!

Wednesday night for dinner we grilled~we like to take advantage of the nice weather. Grilled chicken, grilled potatoes and lima beans. SOOOO good. I love grilling!

 

After dinner I made some special treats for dessert tonight at my cousin Gina's. I of course had to try one to see if they were worthy of serving them to others. HOLY SWEETNESS. These are prob the sweetest dessert I have ever made. WOW. Intense. You definitely don't need more than one of these bars, in fact, you could prob get away with 1/2 a bar!! Hope no one gets an instant cavity tonight :)

 

Last night Abram changed the oil on my car at his friend's house so I was home alone. I read some more of The Help and watched a new show on TV called 'Love in the Wild' did anyone else watch this show? I kinda liked it :) Reality TV Lover.....guilty as charged. 

This morning I wasn't much in the mood for breakfast so I just made a something quick. Whole wheat english muffin, egg white & veggie bacon.

 

For lunch I had vanilla greek yogurt, grapes, & my all time fav, Kashi Honey Sunshine cereal. For snack I had a couple (3 is a couple, right?) of my Funfetti Granola Bars. YUMMMMY. 

 

I came home to this sweet face. She sits in the window sunning herself and when I came up to the door she smiled. Melted my heart. Abram says she looks old, poor thing. haha!

 Now we are headed to Gina's for Mexican night! Hope everyone likes my dessert!! See ya tomorrow, smile because it's FRIDAY!!!!!! 

Question: Is there such a thing as a dessert TOO sweet?

Desserts GALORE!

It's Wednesday! Half way thru the week! Then it's a holiday weekend so we probably all have off of work Monday, yay! This morning I had a lot of time on my hands before work so I made Funfetti Granola Bars but this time I used honey instead of light corn syrup. For breakfast I had 2 whole wheat waffles with light syrup. YUUUMMY!

 As you can tell, Misha wanted in on these goodies too! I made them in small muffin tins so I might limit myself on how many I eat instead of the whole pan :) I honestly like the corn syrup in these better than the honey. I'm not a huge fan of honey for some strange reason. But don't worry, I won't let these pretty little babies go to waste! After work I ran to Target to get a few ingredients for a new dessert I am making for tomorrow. We are having Mexican night at my cousin Gina's. From the few ingredients I bought, I can tell this is gonna be a good one!!

 

Also while I was there, I found these little gems. I couldn't wait to dig in a try a couple. 

 

Looks like I am gonna be on a sugar high for the next few days! That's okay by me! I'm off to watch last night's episode of Pretty Little Liars and go for a run on the treadmill. See ya tomorrow!! 

Question: Do you like baking? How often do you bake?

Sorry about the lateness of today's post!

Hi friends! Breakfast today was oatmeal w/ some homemade peanut butter granola :) It FILLED ME UP!

 

After my breakfast I ran 2 miles at home on the treadmill and watched my DVR'd shows from while I was gone on vacation. Teen Mom & Intervention. After my shows were over I got ready for work and then read some more of my book, The Help. It is so good, I love this book so far. The Kindle says I am 49% done with it. I hate when books end, I wish they went on forever and ever :) I got hungry around 12:30 so I made some lunch. Today was a whole wheat english muffin with 97% fat free ham, cheese & turkey pepperoni~all toasted and melted. Tasted just like a stromboli. On the side was cottage cheese, strawberries & grapes. 

 

I also read some while I was eating, outside of course. The sun was shining for a couple minutes today! It was my first day back at work since vacation, it was a good day back. After work Abram and I went over to Gina & Vic's so Abram could play on computers with Vic and I could play with my little cousins. That's why tonight's post is so late, I am sorry :( Forgive me. See ya tomorrow!!

Question: Do you get sucked into books and are you sad when your done reading them?

Lots of creations!

This morning I woke up and cried a little. It was 54 degrees and I was in PA not in FL. I thought for sure it was a nightmare, but nope, it was real. I went to make coffee and Abram reminded me that we don't have any creamer....I cried a little more, haha! We needed to grocery shop BAD so we went down to Sheetz, grabbed a coffee and went shopping! After we got home we were both hungry (we had to go to 3 different grocery stores to get all the stuff we wanted) it was almost 10:30 so we made something quick~ whole wheat waffles with lite syrup.

 

After breakfast I went over to my cousin Gina's house to babysit Helena & Tiya while she ran a couple of errands. We played outside in Helena's new car, she just turned 3 :)

 

I left there and went home to grab some lunch with Abram around 12:00, we had a date for the gym at 1pm so I wanted to eat a little while before we left. Today's lunch was vanilla greek yogurt, Kashi Honey Sunshine cereal, strawberries & grapes. DELICIOUS. I missed this combo!

 

I also read Women's Health while I ate. I have a lot of magazines to catch up on from vacation. At the gym today I ran 2 miles in 18 minutes, then hit the weight room for about 25 minutes. Glad to be back at the gym! After the gym we came home and I did some laundry and made some of Julie's Peanut Butter Granola! It was really yummy, thanks for the recipe Julie!

Tonight's dinner we grilled. I wanted to recreate a portabello/red pepper wrap that I had in Florida at a restaurant called Snapper's.  It was so incredible I had to try to make one of my own. Abram grilled up some burgers for him, and a portabello mushroom & some red peppers for me. Dinner~La Tortilla Factory wrap, Laughing Cow swiss cheese wedge, pesto sauce, portabello cut in slices & 1/2 a red pepper in slices. IT WAS SO YUMMY!!!!!!

 

On the side I boiled up some corn on the cob, which was really good too! All in all, a great day of food. That's one good thing about being home....ya don't have to eat out!! Well, Abram and I are going to take Misha for a walk and then I am going to read some more of The Help.  

Question: Do you try and recreate your favorite recipes from restaurants? 

Home (bittersweet) Home

Well, after 30 hours of travel we FINALLY made it home. The train ride was a lot less comfortable on the way home~our seats weren't as comfortable as one the way down (or so we say) there was an annoying child running back & forth and screaming (let's say we were not friendly with him after a couple of hours) and NO ONE seemed to care how loud their conversations were past 10pm. After we got off the train, our car was the very LAST car to be called. JUST OUR LUCK. By this time we were all a little cranky and out of it. I pretty much fell asleep as soon as my butt hit the seat in our car. I dreamed of going back and seeing this instead of green trees and gray skies.

 

It was so nice walking into our house & finally being home. But I wish our home was here and not in PA :(

 I'm going to miss: my morning runs in the sweltering heat, sleeping in the same bedroom as my sissy, waking up to my dad making coffee and *trying* to be quiet, being in the same house as my mom again, seeing ocean on both sides of me as I drive down the road, easy going attitudes in the Keys, jumping in the cool water, the sun warming me, boating, palm trees....oh I could go on for DAYS. 

 

One GREAT thing about being home is Misha~she was so happy to finally be home! We took a 2 1/2 hour nap with her :) Now we are going to just relax and hang out tonight. I made chicken noodle soup for dinner and we don't plan on going anywhere. All errands can be done tomorrow. Well friends, I am back home so I will be putting up daily posts-keep an eye out ;) 

Guest Post ~Sweet Tooth Sweet Life~

Today's Guest Post comes from one of the first blogs I found and instantly became one of my favorites to read daily~Sweet Tooth Sweet Life. Thank you Courtney for sharing this delicious recipe with us, I can't wait to get home and make it!!!

Hey everyone! My name is Courtney and I blog over at Sweet Tooth, Sweet Life. I love blogging about healthy foods, (as well as indulgent ones), fun workouts, my cat Cody, fashion, and the rest of my daily shenanigans. It’s quite a party, so feel free to stop by and say “hi” anytime. I love visitors!

When Bethany reached out to me asking if I’d like to guest post, I was more than happy to do so! Thanks, Bethany! So now while she’s out enjoying her fun in the sun down in Florida, how about we take a look at one of my favorite recipes…

One thing that I really enjoy doing is baking up sweet treats. Usually, cupcakes are the name of the game in my house, but I’ll switch things every now and then to feed whatever I may be craving. One recipe of mine that never gets old? My favorite Apple Crisp!

First, you’ll need to peel, core, and slice your apples. Or go ahead and use your apple peeler and make things a whole lot easier on yourself. If you don’t have one, you should really consider it. Here’s the one that I have, from Bed, Bath & Beyond: Apple Peeler/Corer.

Next, mix together your flour, brown sugar, and cinnamon,

Let them cook for about 10 minutes, just to get slightly soft and super aromatic.

While your apples are in the oven, begin mixing together your topping.

Flour…

Brown Sugar…

Cinnamon + Nutmeg…

Once your dry ingredients are combined, it’s time to cut in your butter. If you have a pastry cutter, then I would recommend using that. But if not, I’ve found that a couple forks work pretty well too.

Truth be told, this step is the one and only step that prevents me from making apple crisp more often. I despise cutting in butter for recipes!

After what seems like an eternity (but really only a couple minutes…I just like to whine about it) you’ll have a soft, crumbly topping.

Your last step? Add the OATS:

Now feel free to sample a bite or two… 

 Spread your mixture evenly on top of your partially baked apples, and pop it all in the oven for another 30-35 minutes.

Then you’ve got yourself one tasty dish of apple crisp!

My favorite way to enjoy my apple crisp is when it’s still warm, topped with a little vanilla ice cream + caramel…

Courtney’s Apple Crisp

Ingredients:

Apple Base:

·         2-1/2 lbs. tart apples, peeled & thinly sliced

·         1/4 cup packed brown sugar

·         1/4 cup flour

·         1/2 tsp cinnamon

Topping:

·         3/4 cup flour

·         1/2 cup brown sugar

·         1 tsp cinnamon

·         1/2 tsp nutmeg

·         6 tbsp cold butter or margarine

·         1 cup old fashioned oats

·         1 cup chopped nuts (optional)

Directions:

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Place sliced apples evenly into the bottom of a 9×13-inch baking dish, sprayed lightly with non-stick cooking spray. In a small bowl, mix brown sugar, flour, and cinnamon. Sprinkle evenly over sliced apples. Bake for 10 minutes.

In a medium bowl, mix together the flour, brown sugar, and cinnamon. Cut in butter, using a pastry cutter or forks. Stir in oats (and nuts if desired) and spread evenly over the top of your apples.

Cook for 30-40 minutes longer, or until lightly golden brown. ENJOY! 

The apple crisp is definitely best served warm, and topped with some vanilla ice cream or whipped topping. Try your best not to eat the whole dish in one sitting. 

The best part about this recipe is that you could so easily just substitute in whichever fruits are seasonally available, or whatever you love most: blueberry, cherry, peach…you name it! I’m sure they’d all be delicious! ENJOY!

and sprinkle over your sliced apples.

Guest Post~Gourmet Runner~

Hi Everyone today's Guest Post comes from Vanessa over at Gourmet Runner! I hope ya enjoy her post about running & blogging, I did :)

Hello everyone! Since Bethany is off vacationing in Florida (I’m only a little jealous, I promise) she asked me to write a guest post for 101 Sprinkles, and I’m glad to do it!

I blog over at Gourmet Runner, and I thought this post could be about--well--blogging. Bethany and I share a love for exercise and sweet things, but we also share the fact that we reveal our personal lives on the internet almost daily! Here are some tips I wanted to share about blogging that I’ve picked up along the way: 

1)  It’s ok to be real. Yes, it’s great to post happy things all the time. But sometimes, it’s fine to say that you weren’t having a good day, or you didn’t enjoy your run. Being real is what connects you to your readers.

2)  Don’t write something you’ll regret. I see often people blogging about something that they later take offline. If there’s even a chance you’ll regret it, don’t post. If you have a fight with your hubby, don’t write about why you’re angry with him. I promise, it will come back to haunt you!

3)  Pictures, pictures, pictures! The best blogs that keep you interested are full of photos. Get in the habit of taking your camera with you everywhere, and snap pics of things as you see them. The posts come naturally when you have great colorful inspiration.

4)  Take a break! If blogging starts to feel too much like work, or there’s pressure to post a certain number of times each week, step back a bit. Sometimes a few days off is all you need to remember the joy of blogging, and learning and sharing with others.

Time to take off my teaching cap! Really, I’m still very new to the whole blog world but I’ve found so much inspiration from reading from like-minded people. There’s nothing like hearing about someone’s Boston Qualifying Marathon time to get you in the mood for a quick 5k outside!

Do you have any advice you’ve picked up about blogging?

Any questions for me about my blog? Just post them in the comments and I’ll link to your blog and reply there!

*KEY WEST*

We spent the day in Key West today. Took a tour on the conch train, ate lunch at Red Fish, Blue Fish (grouper sandwich) and Abram and I shared a cup of homemade peanut butter ice cream for dessert. It was DELICIOUS. We are home for the evening to relax and then tomorrow is our last day :( I will be putting up a guest post tomorrow and Saturday so look forward to those!!!

Waiting for the tour trolly....

Key West

Abram, Me & Toni

 

 

 

Running girl aka ME :) 

Alright friends, have a great night! I know I will, I'M IN FLORIDA!!!!! XOXO <3

Hungover Boating

Last night got out of control. TOO MUCH VODKA. Barfffffff. I don't think I'll be taking another drink of vodka for a long, long, longgggg time. This morning I woke up and ran, I didn't feel terrible. Ran 1.7 miles and it wasn't too terrible hot out yet, it was about 8am when I went.

I love being able to run here with just a sports bra and shorts. In PA I just don't think it's acceptable.

Today we went boating for the last day here, tomorrow we are going to Key West and Friday we will probably just lounge around. We might visit Theater of the Sea and see the dolphins & other sea creatures. Tonight we are having a baby shower for our friend Maggie, she is having a baby boy and she is from California so we don't get to see her very often. Her and her husband Mike are here with us on vacation too.

Lovin the Florida Keys life. 2 more days of it, then back to reality :( I'm going to rest, this vodka still kicked my bootaaay. See ya'll tomorrow with exciting pics from KEY WEST!!!!!