Oh, Hi ~ it’s me again 
I kinda sort of haven’t been home all weekend and you know kinda sort didn’t do any blogging all weekend. You know what ~ it was actually kinda sorta awesome because we were off having a bunch of fun!
Sorry to neglect you all,but, I am back to make it up to you with 3 posts + 2 FUN announcements today and a whole lotta Friends for Weight Loss FUN too!
I was up bright and early on Saturday morning so I decided to hop on the treadmill for a nice run/walk. I went for 35 minutes and ran a little “uphill” keeping my grade at .5%
I think I have decided that hoping on the treadmill on a Saturday morning is the BEST way to start your weekend…..I LOVE how I feel AFTER I workout.
Post workout ~ Venti Iced 2 Pumps Coconut Americano with a splash of half & Half and a banana (2 points+).
Then, we were off for road trip #1 ~ the Napa Farmer’s Market & Pica Pica with Tracey of TJ’s Test Kitchen.
Tracey has been wanting to try Pica Pica since I have been raving about it for awhile.
I LOVE how they put everything out on display so you know what you are ordering.
We started off with fizzy water and since there were three of us ~ shared a bunch of things!
First up ~ Two Grilled Corn Arepas ~ Picture mini corn/tamale like tacos, grilled and stuffed with goodness.
The Pernil (Pork) was tasty because it comes with AVOCADO!!!
Chicken Salad with Guacasaca ~ new to me! Grilled Chicken with a ton of AVOCADO goodness. The Husband was totally going to have some of this one until he saw the peas ~ ha!
I had 1/3 of the pork and 1/2 of the chicken (6 points+ estimate).
Tracey decided we should try the Cachapas ~ like a grilled corn fritter.
OMG ~ this is by far my new favorite ~ it’s slightly sweet (like corn bread) and the salsa beef, plantain and cheese just all go together and melt in mouth.
I had 1/3 of this but totally think I am ordering a whole one next time! (4 points+ estimate)
Our trip to Pica Pica wouldn’t be complete without Yucca Fries!!! These are my favorite (I may like garlic better!) Yucca is slightly sweeter and creamier than a potato. I had 1/3 of these for 5 points+ estimate.
The Husband got two BEEF Arepas himself….so proud of him for being adventurous!
We also ordered the Bululu Salad to share but none of us has room. Tracey took it home and had it for dinner saying it was AWESOME!
Here is what is in the box.
Roasted Corn, Bell Pepper, Jicama, Pineapple, Quinoa, Daikon Sprouts, Mixed Greens with a passion fruit vinaigrette.
After lunch, we headed out to do some shopping for…….DRUM ROLL……
WAIT FOR IT……..
ANNOUNCEMENT #1
An IPAD 2!!
Things I learned about shopping for an IPAD 2:
* Apple prices everything the same no matter where you go ~ no need to go to 5 stores checking them out because they will be the SAME PRICE either way.
* You can get an IPAD with or without 3G (anywhere wireless) but once you make the decision either way there is no going back ~ we got 3G you know, for the train
!
* Apple products do NOT support FLASH anything
I might’ve considered the Motorola or another version if I knew this.
* Not having FLASH isn’t as big of a deal as I thought because WE LOVE IT!
Since it was blazing hot here and we had a big lunch ~ We both were not super hungry for dinner so we just snacked on a bunch of fruit.
Then headed out to watch SUPER 8 ~ It’s pretty good ~ definitely suspenseful, but, not in a freaky horror show kind of way….the kids totally make the movie great!
SUNDAY
I couldn’t wait to dig into my Farmer’s Market goodies. I started out with my Bolani Bread.
My FAVORITE is the Pumpkin ~ 2 Points+ for 1/2, 4 points+ for a whole one.
I had two toasted slices (1/2 for 2 points+) ~ it’s slightly sweet, pumpkin-y, spicy – good!
Plus a Morning Star Veggie Sausage (2 points+)
and a big bowl of the sweetest Farmer’s Market Fruit!
After breakfast we were off for Road Trip #2 ~ to meet up with my parents.
We picked up Venti Iced Coconut (2 pumps with 1/2 & 1/2) Americanos (2 points+) for the ride.
I was actually really excited for lunch because it has been wayyyyyy too long since we went to Jack’s Urban Eats ~ The BEST SALAD PLACE IN THE WORLD!
You pick your type of salad, the homemade dressing you want, 6 toppings and meat/none then they toss it all together.
My greens came up to 11 points+ and I am pretty sure I kept saying how good it was like a million times lol.
* Mixed Greens
* Pickled Red Onions
* 1 Tbsp Cranberries
* 1 Tbsp Honey Walnuts
* 1 Tbsp Kidney-Garbanzo Beans
* Cherry Tomatoes
* GRAPES!
* 3 oz (they measure it!) Grilled Chicken Breast
* 2 Tbsp Homemade Balsamic Vinaigrette
The whole purpose of our trip was for ANNOUNCMENT #2!!!
We finally picked out our tropical vacation and it will include:
and….it’s all BOOKED ~ gahhhhhh, we are SO EXCITED!
To celebrate, we all headed over to Olive Garden and broke open the wine!
I am pretty sure I NEED to buy some of this Boscato Red Wine. They serve it chilled and it’s a sweet red wine because they use a form of Muscat Grapes. I had half a glass for 3 points+.
I was actually starving so I couldn’t wait to dig into the breadsticks. I did good at having my token 1 for 4 points+.
Plus a little salad (4 points+)
I actually didn’t plan out what I was going to get beforehand, so I picked one of the few things that I knew would be lower in points+ and was less than 1,000 calories.
The Oven Parmesan Crusted Tilapia ~ baked, not fried comes in at 590 calories.
Served with plain pasta and Italian Veggies.
I only managed to eat about 3/4 of the dish (it’s a lot of food!) for 11 points+ ~ not too bad, huh?!
After dinner, we all went to see Larry Crowne ~ it’s pretty cute and predictable. I LOVE that Julia Roberts and Tom Hanks still have it ~ they made the movie fun to watch and full of laughs.
On our way home we met Tracey & Sean for Froyo at Over The Top Shop. I made up the tri-fecta yogurt mix and would totally NOT recommend it because it doesn’t go good together lol.
Vanilla + Chocolate + Root Beer Float with sprinkles & caramel sauce = funky flavors.
(6 points+)
Coming up at some point today…….
* The Month Supply PopCHIP’s Winner……you can enter until I draw!
* My Weekly Menu & a whole lotta BBQ FUN today!
* A NEW Friends for Weight Loss Guest Recipe, Tip & Challenge
Stay tuned…………
You are Going to love St. Lucia. I visited in March for one day while on a cruise. If you can, it is a must to see the pitons and the beach that is nestled between the beautiful mountains which is called Jalousie beach! I can also recommend an awesome tour company called Cosol tours. My boyfriend and I did an Island tour with them, they provide food and alcohol! 😉 check them out http://www.cosol-tours.com/
Oh my does your vaction sound wonderful, when are you 2 going? Ipad very cool I would love one or heck just a new computor would be great!! Now Iam totally hungry guess I better go find something yummo..I have been 1/2 on and 1/2 off need to get my butt in gear and get back on 100 %!! Happy 4th !
FUN announcements!!!! We’re thinking of an Ipad, and will definately get 3g if we go that way. Your holiday plans sound wonderful. VERY worthy of a celebration. Enjoy your 4th!!!
Did you know that you can order plain breadsticks at Olive Garden? They have to make them so they come out extra hot and yummy and I don’t even miss the butter / garlic part. I always do that and enjoy dipping it in the sauce with my meal.
You will love that beach. It looked just like St. John which is one of my favorite beaches in the world. Yes world.
When you’re at Kissimmee you’re only an hour from me. If you want a lunch date, just let me know and I will so be there!
That food looked fabulous!
When will you be in Hilton Head? I live in SC! You will love Hilton Head, it’s gorgeous!
Oh wow that Pica Pica place looks so good! YUM!
And so jealous of the iPad and the vacation!! Lucky girl!
And Olive Garden is our celebration place too!
You deserve to have a weekend free of posting!! Your trip sounds great! How long??!! Olive Garden is celebration place for lots of people ;). AHhh and the Ipad, nice, so fun and great for your train. I am an Android girl myself and went with the Motorola Xoom, love it! How is your garden box doing?! Update us please :).
We went to St. Lucia for our honeymoon – it is absolutely gorgeous! You’ll love it! 🙂
Hi Josie,
We are going in November when it will be cold here 🙂
Hope you had a great 4th too!
Danica
Hi Lyn,
No, but, I LOVE the idea of getting breadsticks right out of the oven. I am all over trying that next time. I wonder if it saves on points+ ~ hmmmmm!
Danica
Hi Debby,
Yes!!! We totally have to meet up for lunch. We will be in Kissimmee for a week and we could totally travel that way too.
Danica
HI Leslie,
We will be there in November ~ how far are you from Hilton Head? I know we could use tips on things to do but I’d also love to meet you too.
Danica
Hi Pat,
We are heading out for about 3 weeks! Originally we were just going to do 1-2 but my parents surprised us and asked if we wanted to go for 3! Like minds….I took pictures on Saturday to share of our garden that went up last night 🙂
Is there really any difference with the Motorola Xoom? I am honestly thinking of going to check out a few sites that do flash to see if it can do it – that is one thing I am all torn up about. I have a DROID X, always have and probably always will – I LOVE my Droid but wanted to give Apple a try.
Thanks,
Danica
Danica, I am from Venezuela and arepas and cachapas are from Vzla. I have not had either of them in a very long time (20 yrs 🙁 ). Looked up the website for Pica Pica and the closest one to me is NYC (8 hrs). I guess I have to have my husband go with me.
Ipad 2, I have been wanting one, but debating if I really want to get one. Vacation sounds really nice, congrats!
Gah. Jealous. Take me with you?
Janetha,
Sure! The more the merrier 😀
xoxo,
Danica
I have an ipad (one of those rickety ol’ ipad1s) and I love it. I don’t miss flash often but there are browser apps out there that let you get around that anyway. They don’t work quite as well as a normal browser (and the one I used wasn’t free, it cost a dollar or two) but if I really want to watch a flash video or something, it does the trick. If I’m watching videos it’s usually on netflix or hbo go. I’m totally open minded to an android tablet, but the different OS versions and certain apps not working on certain tablets blahblah etc makes me reluctant for now.
Aaaand that’s enough nerd babbling! Your vacation sounds FANTASTIC!
I am totally behind – catching up on posts after the 4th of July holiday – but had to leave a comment because I LOVE the pumpkin bolani. It is soo good. I have never toasted it before, but will have to try it. I recently tried to make it myself. It was good, but didn’t come anywhere near the real thing!