Back from Hot-lanta

That's right--I've returned from my weekend trip to Atlanta. My family and I had a great time getting to know the fishies, doing a little shopping (at Crate & Barrel!),and dining out. You can probably guess what my favorite part of the trip was...eating at Cafe Sunflower! More on that later:)

Here are a few pictures from the Georgia Aquarium. By the way, did you know that they ship sea animals via UPS?! I guess UPS handles more than just my shoes from Zappos! Onto the eats:

Friday
I made a simple banana hemp shake on Friday evening. This was so simple but so tasty. I added some chocolate syrup and coconut at the last minute. Good call!
Saturday
Before hitting the road on Saturday morning, I packed up some snacks for the car: Primal Strips (soy jerky), low sodium V8, Dr. Weil bars, peanuts, and a few snack boxes of cereal. I ate about half of this throughout the weekend.
I managed to eat some breakfast before our departure as well: flax waffles, kiwi, and plain soymilk.

For lunch, we stopped at Moe's Southwest. If you're unfamiliar with this chain, it's like Subway, except for Mexican food. I got a vegetarian salad with lettuce, tomatoes, salsa, black beans, and guacamole (I asked for extra guac!). I also got a Diet Coke, but ya know, I really just don't like it. (Diet Pepsi is another story). My brother in law, Major, wanted to make his Broccoli Hut premiere, so here he is enjoying his Saturday lunch, a meatball sub from Lenny's. (FYI, he is not a vegetarian, haha).
After a trip to Ikea and checking into the hotel, we went to Cafe Sunflower. This was my first vegetarian restaurant experience, so I was super-psyched. I am so jealous of you bloggers who have this kind of dining available all the time; I would eat at Cafe Sunflower every day if I could! Anyway, here's what I ordered: a blueberry iced tea (unsweetened), starter salad with soy sesame dressing and a whole wheat roll, grilled veggie dumplings, stuffed acorn squash, and carrot cake, which was shared by the table. Whew! Everything I ordered was meat- and dairy-free. Woohoo! I will definitely try to recreate that stuffed acorn squash--the combination of vegetables, cranberries, and walnuts was just amazing! It won't be too hard to recreate this dish--I purchased the cookbook while I was there, and I even got the author to sign it!
Sunday
Free breakfast at the hotel the next morning was a little disappointing. Usually I load up on the free fresh fruit and snack-size cereal boxes, but the offerings at this hotel were a little different: scrambled eggs, sausage, bacon, and pancakes. At least I got some perfectly cooked oatmeal, lots of watermelon, and I *might* have stashed a few of the Tazo teas...
We went shopping at a few of Atlanta's local malls later that day, so lunch was at the food court. I opted for the Mediterranean place, where I got the 3-Salad Combo: Garden Salad, Hummus ( I guess that's considered a salad?), pita-ish crackers, and Mediterranean Salad. I didn't end up eating the garden salad because I didn't realize it was already dressed with a creamy dressing. Later, I had a big red apple that I swiped from the free breakfast.
Once home in Birmingham, I made a quick grilled Tofurky and mozzarella sandwich on the GF (George Foreman). I also had broccoli, lots of salad (making up for my lack of veggies over the weekend), and Dreena's Banana Cashew Ice Cream for dessert.
For my shake, I wanted something sweet (shocker!), so I made another chocolate one--special dark cocoa is a recent favorite of mine.
Monday
Today was the first time all summer that is has simply been too hot to run outside. It was 86* at 8AM! After a pleasantly cool indoor workout, I made a hot bowl of oatmeal on the stovetop with whipped banana and almond butter. How did I ever live without almond butter?
Quick lunch before class today: absent egg salad (vegan) with Ak-maks, Romaine with raw cashews, and an orange.
Now, I am off to make dinner and study. Enjoy your evening!