Good morning everybody!
Well – I did it! The “how to start and run a website” presentation went really well…I think/hope!! I remember not exactly loving having to get up for 8am class when I was in college, so hopefully the students thought the information and discussion was worthwhile. I’ve been asked to come back next semester… that’s a good sign, right?! 
No matter what, I’m glad I challenged myself by willingly going into an uncomfortable situation like speaking in front of an audience. Thanks to the class for listening to me chat – and here’s to small personal successes!
In the spirit of “giving myself credit” for going outside my comfort zone, I picked up a Sugar-Free Vanilla Chai after class from one of my favorite local coffee shops – Smokey Row.
I used to drink chais all the time in high school when I worked at a coffee shop and I’ve recently re-kindled my love thanks to Smokey Row. Their SF vanilla chais are perfectly sweet, spicy and rewarding.
I’d like to give a shout-out to one of the best, recent inventions in the hot beverage industry – the sip hole stopper! I can’t tell you how many times my coffee has sloshed out the top of my cup after stopping suddenly or turning corners in my car. These babies are a God-send!
After work, I went over to babysit my nephew Finn. We played…I saw him smile for the first time…my heart melted… Ugh, I love that child to bits. He kept randomly falling asleep, because didn’t you know? Being a baby is hard work! 
This morning after one of the chilliest morning Mom walks of the season, I whipped up a huge bowl of Apple Crisp Oatmeal…with a Honeycrisp!
In the mix:
- 1/2 Honeycrisp apple (peeled, chopped and microwaved for 90 seconds)
- 1/2 cup each old fashioned oats, water & skim milk
- Sprinkle of toasted, sliced almonds
- Drizzle of sugar-free maple syrup
- Spoonful of almond butter
The almond butter took it riiiiight up to the edge…my toes were dangling over. Amazing…
I don’t know why I haven’t tried baking or cooking with Honeycrisp apples sooner than this – they turned out perfect. Sweet, yet tart, and held their shape very nicely!
Last night after I got home from watching Finn, I cooked up a late dinner of sirloin steaks and roasted broccoli. I mostly made them so I could use the leftovers to make a killer salad for lunch today - a Steak, Apple & Roasted Broccoli Salad!
In the mix:
- Romaine hearts
- 1/2 Honeycrisp apple
- Roasted broccoli
- Sirloin steak
- Feta cheese
Aka…the best salad ever. This would seriously sell for $10-$11 in a restaurant. I made this for change at home. Got to love that!
Well everyone, would you believe me if I told you it’s Thursday already?! That means…it’s Three Question Thursday time: “This or That” edition!
1. Peanut Butter or Chocolate
2. Twitter or Facebook
3. Righty or Lefty
My answers:
1. BRUTAL!! If I must choose…I must chose chocolate!
2. These days, I’m all about Twitter!
3. Righty
Chocolate
Facebook
Righty!!
What a sweet baby…I love holding sweet babies!!
1. Chocolate! (Dark, that is…otherwise, peanut butter!)
2. Depends on your purpose, really.
3. Righty!
Yes, sip hole stopper’s rock, although I nicknamed them ‘magic sticks’ lol.
1. PB Chocolate
2. Facebook
3. Lefty!
Congrats on the great presentation, sounds like you did a fantastic job!
1. gahhh decisions… ok chocolate wins :/
2. twitter
3. righty
Happy Thursday!
Oooh that Chai looks amazing!
1. Chocolate
2. Facebook
3. Lefty!
I’ve never seen the sip hole stopper! Where did you get it??
-Chocolate
-Facebook
-Righty
I haven’t been to Smoky Row yet. Do they serve lunch?
1)Dark Chocolate!
2)Neither – old lady here
3)Lefty!
honeycrip love! haha. we’re totally going back to the farm to get more .. we used them all in the apple crisp & i was really sad i didn’t get to try one on its own!
1. chocolate
2. twitter
3. righty
oh & that salad looks awesome! cheap AND delicious? yes please!!
1. Peanut butter, I don’t think I can go a day without the stuff.
2. I’m kinda obsessed with Twitter as well.
3. Lefty
Chocolate
Neither ( don’t have ANY desire to join either!)
Righty
I love that sip hole stopper. I always get tea all over when I’m driving.
Congrats on a successful presentation!! Your nephew is precious!
1. Chocolate! But I love some PB too!!
2. Hmm.. right now I say Facebook but am trying to get into my Twitter groove as we speak!!
3. Righty
Have a great day!
That salad looks delicious!! And thanks for posting the pumpkin butter recipe, I’ve been dying to try some! Now to find a crock pot I can afford on Ebay…
1. Ouch, toughie…chocolate wins though!
2. Facebook! I still haven’t totally caught the twitter bug
3. Righty! (Both of my parents are lefties though, isn’t that weird?)
Is that chair a regular chai with SF vanilla syrup? Or an actual SF vanilla chai mix?? Sounds sooo good. I also fell in love with chai’s when I worked at a coffee shop…we had a SF white chocolate chai mix that was amazing with a shot of espress
Your nephew is down right adorable. Chubby baby cheeks are the best.
1. This is the kind of question you would only get me to answer at gun point. HA! I guess I would say chocolate in the end
2. Twitter!!
3. Righty for writing, Lefty for drawing !
Glad your presentation went well! I think it’s a VERY GOOD sign that they asked you to come back eheh
That oatmeal looks FANTASTIC.
1. Chocolate!
2. Twitter, definitely. Facebook is boring.
3. Righty
Have a great day!
1. Peanut butter! Easy.
2 Facebook – I like being able to look at pictures
3. Righty!
So wait – did you buy the sip hole stopper? It looks metal? I’ve seen plastic ones at starbuck’s before…
WOOHOO! so glad the class went well
I love those sip-hole stoppers too, i have so many drips in my car from sloshing!
1. Chocolate, for sure
2. Facebook
3. Righty!
Congrats on a successful presentation! I’ve been a bad blog reader and have been reading your blog for a couple months now and am OBSESSED with it
. So today is the day to finally comment because I feel the same way about presenting, I don’t hate it but definitely don’t love it, so that’s great you did it!
1. Chocolate, hands down.
2. Facebook – all about the pictures for me too!
3. Righty!
Chocolate
Twitter
LEFTY
1. chocolate but only if I HAD to pick!
2. do neither-don’t have the time right now!!1
3. righty
Peanut butter, facebook, righty!
Peanut Butter
Facebook
Righty!
Glad that presentation went well. I hate getting up in front of groups.
1) peanut butter
2) facebook
3) righty
(DARK) chocolate
Facebook, fo sho.
Righty, but recently trying to eat with my lefty to slow things dooowwwnnnn : )
ah! 1. peanut butter, crunchy
2. facebook HOLLAH
3. righty.
glad the presentation went well! That’s awesome!
1. Chocolate..or both together
2. Facebook. I don’t tweet.
3. Lefty!
That salad looks great! I love steak salads like that and you are right, they cost way too much when you go out!
Chocolate. Twitter. Righty.
Sounds like a great salad! And Finn is just getting cuter and cuter! I wish I had a baby to play with
1- Both! Together! Unstoppable. But if my life depending on me picking just one, chocolate. *sigh*
2- Right now, Twitter. At least you can personalize your layout
3- Righty, but I have a strong left hand too (piano players tend to be this way)
Glad your presentation went well! Your applecrisp oatmeal looks and sounds delish!!
as for your questions:
1)BOTH.. together.. lol
2)Facebook!
3)Righty
Love the drink stoppers. One place I used to to go to had sticker-like stoppers with inspirational sayings. It was a great start to the day.
1. If I have to choose – PB
2. Twitter
3. Lefty! I love being a lefty – annoying at times, but I feel a little special because of it!
SO glad that the presentation went well!!
1. DARK chocolate
2. Facebook
3. Ambidextrous
Aww, your nephew is just adorable!!! Babies are so sweet!
1. Peanut butter. My hubs always thinks I like Reeses cups. . . but really, it’s the Pieces that rock my world!
2. Facebook.
3. Righty!
Your nephew is sooo cute!!!
1. Ahh this is the hardest question I’ve EVER been asked… but I think chocolate [preferably DARKK!!]. I think a combo of both is even better though… I mean, Reese’s peanut butter cups!? Or.. dark chocolate dreams PB!? My two loves in this world.
2. Facebook! Even though Twitter is growing quickly on me!
3. Righty! Even though both of my sisters are lefties.. weird?
Hmmm…you look mighty happy with that baby in your arms! Just sayin’…
Chocolate – very hard decision!
Facebook
Lefty – the few, the proud.
I’m glad you rocked your presentation and faced it head on!
1. CHOCOLATE makes the world go round.
2. Facebook
3. Righty
1. peanut butter (only recently, but now I could put it on anything)
2. I suppose Facebook, though Twitter’s been sucking me in…
3. Righty
way to go on the presentation, that is wonderful!! Sorry did you say how you got asked to do it? I’m way behind on reading with all the moving stuff
Peanut butter
facebook
righty
The apple crisp oatmeal? That sounds delish! My boyfriend loves, loves loves apple crisp and I think I might surprise him and attempt to make something on the similar of what you made. Thanks for the tip!
ahhh congrats on the speech! that is awesome! and yay for finn – he IS adorable!
peanut butter
facebook
righty
that was a hard PB or choco decision, by the way
Finn is absolutely precious!!!! I just LOVE that baby smell. Absolutely nothing beats it.
1. can I pick both? okay…chocolate. If I HAD to choose.
2. Facebook…it’s hard for me to get into Twitter!
3. Righty.
1. I love peanut butter and chocolate TOGETHER. But, if I had to choose, I’d pick peanut butter because I eat it ALL THE TIME!
2. Twitter!!
3. Righty
I’m glad the presentation went well!
1. If I have to choose…chocolate.
2. Facebook
3. Righty
PEANUT BUTTER!!!!
Facebook
Righty
1) Chocolate
2) Facebook, I haven’t gotten into Twitter yet, just do not have enough time……
3) Righty
P.S. I love using apples in things too, like oatmeal, tuna salad, salads, etc………=)
1. chocolate
2. facecrack
3. righty
what a cute cute baby <3
Definitely Chocolate
Facebook
Righty
1. Peanut butter! Surprised myself there …
2. Twitter, more and more everyday anddd
3. Righty!
Good local coffee shop coffe is the best. I saw those little hole stopper things while in Colorado and raved about them. They girl behind the counter thought I was crazy.
1. Peanut Butter lately but used to be all about the chocolate.
2. Twitter but more friends are on Facebook so I do both.
3. Righty or Ambidextrious. I can do lots of stuff with both except write.
1. Peanut Butter…or Peanut Butter and Chocolate?? C’mon Reese’s Pieces!
2. Twitter
3.Lefty!!!