A Very Merry Caroline

As of 11AM this morning, I am officially 21 years old! I am very merry today not only due to the holiday activities, but also because I have spent the day enjoying life's simple pleasures: eating breakfast at Whole Foods, taking a refreshing run around the neighborhood, watching Rachael Ray, and reading my new Self magazine. It's been a fabulous birthday:) What have you done to relax today?

As I mentioned in my last post, my family and I celebrated my birthday on Monday evening. We ate dinner at the Silvertron Cafe, and then returned home for cake and presents; I got quite a few "foodie" gifts that you all might appreciate...Here are a few pics:
Check out the new coat!! Oh, how I love colorful outerwear...

Onto the food! We've got a full evening planned!

Monday
At Silvertron, I ordered the black bean hummus appetizer as my entree. I also had a side salad with champagne vinaigrette.
Once home, I snacked on a Christmas cookie while I was waiting on my cake. I don't actually care for cake itself very much...but I love icing. Hence, the heavily frosted cake:) I washed my frosting down with a cup of almond milk, using one of my new glasses. Also note the lovely "Happy Birthday Jesus" plates.
I still had room for a smoothie, although this one was a tad healthier than others due to my birthday indulgences. I had a blueberry hemp smoothie using blueberries, soymilk, and hemp protein.
Tuesday
I tried an oatmeal recipe from my friend Ruby yesterday morning. This bowl featured oats, banana, cocoa powder, cinnamon, almond milk, and maple syrup. I added some chocolate PB to complete the choco-nana theme.
For lunch, I made a simple burrito out of chili beans, avocado, salsa, and a little spinach. I had an apple and a salad on the side.
Dinner consisted of an old favorite: Cashew-Ginger Tofu. I served it alongside some leftover rice, a salad, and pineapple.
My shake of the evening was delish! I combined chocolate Spirutein, frozen banana, strawberries, soymilk, and chocolate syrup.
Wednesday
My dad and I go out for breakfast on my birthday every year. This year, we decided Whole Foods would be the obvious dining locale. I started out with a hot tea, then loaded up on berries and walnuts at their breakfast bar; I supplemented it with a beautiful whole grain roll and a Fage. Perfect.
We tried a new place out for lunch, Maki Fresh. I ordered a veggie roll, which I served alongside some stir-fried veggies and tofu with cashews, and a few clementines. So satisfying!
Now I am off to prepare dinner and get ready for church. I wish you all a happy holiday, and may you all be as blessed as I have been this past year. Merry Christmas and Happy Hanukkah!

Matrimonial Frenzy

Whoa. This past weekend was crazy! I headed to the church shortly after my last post--we took several hours' worth of pictures before the ceremony. The service was beautiful though, and I cried like a baby as I came down the aisle. I was sniffling the whole way through the ceremony too--so much for the notion of an elegant maid of honor! I love my sisters so much, so I was a little sad to see the last one be "given away" by my father. My crying subsided when I realized how happy the couple would be together:)

On to the reception! The party was a blast, complete with fabulous guests, crowd-pleasing music, and divine food! I made a particular effort to take a picture of the cake as soon as I got to the reception, because last time I never got to see the cake before it was devoured. This creation was a basic white cake with raspberry filling and vanilla buttercream frosting. Instead of a groom's cake, we had cupcakes in three different flavors: chocolate, lemon, and carrot cake. Katie and I enjoyed a few carrot cupcakes together:) PS, Can you tell she likes monograms?

I should probably tell you about the meal I had beforehand too! There were three different stations with unique themes for each one. #1 was Mexican, from which I got a black bean and corn salad, and chips with guacamole and fresh salsa. Other offerings included chicken enchiladas and quesadillas. #2 was Southern cuisine--I loaded up on berries from this station. I wanted to take the whole fruit platter but decided to get my money's worth and choose the expensive blackberries and raspberries. This station also had shrimp 'n grits, macaroni and cheese, and a carving table. I'm not sure what #3's theme was, but I just got some raw veggies and some marinated artichoke hearts. There was some sort of creamy pasta with sausage on this table as well. I washed it all down with a glass (or two) of white wine. Here's a picture of my plate:

Afterward, I headed to the dance floor with family and friends. I was unable to attend the after party with some of the bridesmaids because I was the only one underage. Boo! I was pretty beat anyway, and I don't really drink either, so it was OK actually. I was in bed by 12:30!

The next day we had a brunch for out-of-towners at my house. We had it catered (to keep my mother sane). There were a few egg casseroles, muffins, Danishes, ham, biscuits, and fresh fruit. I ate about a pound of the fruit by myself, but more on that later. It was great to talk to my relatives, but my social battery ran down by afternoon. I ended up chilling with my brother-in-law Ryan for most of the day.

Whew! Here are a few picks of the other grub I ate, in between gatherings:

Saturday

Lunch was assembled amidst bridesmaid hysteria, with hair dryers and bobby pins flying. Here is my hair:

And my lunch, which consisted of an Amy's Bistro burger on whole wheat, a spinach salad, almonds, and an orange. Lindsay, you'll be happy to hear that I detected no mushroom flavor!

See above for Saturday's dinner...I apologize for the disorganized nature of this post!

Sunday

Due to my relatively early bedtime the night before, I was able to get up for some exercise before the brunch on Sunday. After an hour on the stationary bike, I headed upstairs for a bowl of oat bran with peanut butter and some more of those amazing cherries.

For lunch, I ate mounds of fresh fruit salad, plus a black bean burger (with salsa) on whole wheat, organic greens, and a handful of cashews.

My mom understandably served leftovers for dinner last night. I opted to make a simple hummus wrap, a side salad with avocado, and some plain soy yogurt with raisins for dessert.

Monday

Today was all about getting back into a routine. I made myself a luscious smoothie from Silk Light Soymilk, vanilla extract, and frozen strawberries. On the side I had some Kashis with peanut butter.

Lunch was simple today. I didn't much feel like cooking before class this afternoon, so I heated up another Helen's Kitchen creation. This veggie chili was unlike any other that I have had--the chopped tofu steaks make a big difference, plus there were chunks of real vegetables. Love it! I will definitely buy this in the future. I also had some couscous and some leftover fruit salad. After class, I got caught up in doing homework, so dinner kinda snuck up on me. I had intended on marinating my tofu before assembling some tofu skewers, but I ultimately just grilled them plain, then added seasonings afterward. On the side, I had a salad with sliced almonds, an Ezekiel pita, and some soy yogurt (not pictured).
Well, I'm off to finish some reading for my nutrition class. Enjoy your evening!