Sunday, October 30, 2011

The Seasons 52 Experience

Tonight was a genetics kids reunion and a Taste of the Big City!

Jack and I met up with three of my old genetics club kiddos for dinner to spend some time and catch up.  We went to Seasons 52 which is this great farm-to-table restaurant that boasts a menu where every plate is under 475 calories, including desserts!

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We were seated at a great round table and immediately started perusing the gorgeous seasonal menu.  We decided to split an appetizer to start:

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I then chose a dish I had been hearing superb things about:

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Jack chose a meat dish:

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May I just say that the dishes were great??  I got six scallops on my dish (almost unheard of!) and they had a very light sauce on top.  They could have used a bit more seasoning though the caramelization on the outsides was delicious!  Jack’s steak originally came rare when it should have come cooked medium so we sent it back and when it got back to the table it was cooked perfectly and he scarfed it down.

When it came time for dessert we checked out the mini indulgences.

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Apparently this restaurant is actually they one that pioneered the shot glass dessert craze.  Cool.  I chose the pecan pie with vanilla mousse and Jack got the classic red velvet cake.

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I could have easily eaten seven.  =D 

The night was a success for sure since we all basically couldn’t stop laughing the whole time.  One of the best moments of the night: Anna’s tiny espresso cup.

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She said it made her feel like a giant!  We giggled.  We hugged.  We wished each other well and made a pact to do it again sometime.  I cannot wait.  They are fantastic people.  Love them to death.

Question: How do you feel about the 475 calories/plate concept?

Halloweekend

This weekend has been a blast.  It all started on Friday, a day I couldn’t believe was already here.  It came on so quickly!  I pre-fueled with a date stuffed with honey roasted almond pecan butter.

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Pretty massive date, huh?

For the fitness portion of the day, I decided to get my iron pumping on.  In the weight room I did the following two sets, three times through at 10 reps per exercise:

  • Bicep curls with 10lb dumbbells
  • Tricep dips under bodyweight
  • Inclined pushups under bodyweight
  • Lat pulls at 40lbs
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  • Rotator cuff external rotation with 10lb dumbbells
  • Standing weighted oblique crunches with a 10lb dumbbell
  • Weighted squats with 10lb dumbbells
  • Olympic presses with 10lb dumbbells
  • Wall sit with 10lb dumbbell rotations

After this great little workout was finished I did 20 minutes on the stationary bike and then headed back to throw my baked French toast in the oven and shower.

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All dressed and clean, I enjoyed my simple slice with 5 fruit protein frosting, chia seeds, and maple syrup.  Awesome tasting brunch if I do say so myself.  I then hopped in the car to go to a hospital up north for a renal ultrasound.  Like I mentioned earlier this month I have kidney problems so I wanted to get a good look at them in order to make sure I didn’t have any stones forming that I should be aware of. 

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When I finally made my way into the US room and the tech took a look I was pleased to find no stones hiding.  It feels great to know that I won’t be cringing in pain in the ER any time soon.  *knock on wood*  So thankful!  Funny note: You can actually see a “dent” in my kidney from a past surgery.  Weird!

The rest of the day was spent working and such.  I paused for lunch a bit later than usual but it was worth it.  I made a mustard, bacon, and mozzarella grilled cheese with a side of Bold Chex Mix and muddy buddies for my sweet tooth.

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Yum.  Later in the evening, the main event arrived: Jack!  He came down bearing all sorts of ingredients for our impending bake fest but we decided that dinner was up first.  I chomped on leftover roasted veggies with beans, ketchup, and parmesan cheese.  Wine was also served.

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Then we got our bake on!  We wanted to contribute to the party we were attending on Saturday so we went all out.  We made candy corn fudge and Reese’s fudge pie along with more of these Oreo bad boys.

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Needless to say, we were on a sugar high when we finally went to bed.  It’s a good thing we slept though because Saturday was a long but awesome day.  It started out similarly to Friday with a nut butter stuffed date for pre-run fuel.

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Jack and I then tackled the fitness center together.  I set out on my long run, breaking in my calf/shin compression sleeves, and let me just tell you: it was the most comfortable run I have ever had.  I finished my set 4.0 miles and I could have easily done another mile but I told myself just another quarter and then I should stop to not overdo it.  I did a five minute cool down and was more than pleased!

We went back to the apartment and Jack made us a lovely recovery breakfast of eggs and bacon and I made us toast.  I had mine with a little butter on the bread and some creole seasoning on the eggs.

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It was so delicious and perfect that I’m fairly sure I moaned through the whole thing.  Awkward, maybe.  Showing proper appreciation, yes.  =D

We both took the next hour to get a bit of work done and then we headed out to our Halloween Party host’s house early for some wine tasting.  The place we went to was a local winery that makes all it’s varieties in house (though they import grapes). 

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We got the chance to try five kinds and while nothing knocked my socks off, I did find something I might get at some point:

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It’s a chocolate wheel specifically designed to pair with certain red wines.  Cool huh?  I might know someone who would relish this gift… Can’t tell you who though!  Post wine-tasting we looked around the shop for a bit and found some cute trinkets and such but these napkins took the cake:

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Haha.  We all giggled and then headed back to the host’s house to find it all decorated.

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We also helped to prep the last of the food for the party.  The spread was awesome: everything from peanut curry meatballs and chicken fingers with romesco sauce to chocolate cupcakes with pumpkin frosting, caramel apples, and a homemade cheeseball in the shape of a pumpkin.

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Our additions were also a hit.  The candy corn fudge was a straight sugar rush so while people liked it, most couldn’t eat more than a few bites.  I don’t blame them!  Favorite on the night: the Reese’s fudge pie.  However, I would like to say that I could have eaten that whole table myself everything was so good.  I did show restraint though, maybe I only ate half the table. Tehe.

After the party wrapped up, Joshua decided that a celebration was in order.  Two things of note: he reached his goal weight (being the beast he is, he lost 50 pounds!!!) and I was two years free of my ex-fiancĂ©.  Celebration indeed!  We drank some peach sparkle wine and dug into carrot cakes that he had made for us.

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It was a wonderful end to the evening.  Jack and I left around 12:30 in the morning and fell asleep fairly quickly after arriving home.

This morning I woke up and did a bit of work before grabbing a dried apricot with peanut butter and heading to the gym.  I did 30 minutes on the elliptical followed by 18 minutes on the bike.  It felt good to get moving after last night’s food coma.  When I returned to the apartment a bit before noon I showered and then woke Jack up for breakfast.  I decided savory was the way to go after all the sugar from the party so I whipped up oats with milk, an egg, a bit of butter, soy sauce, and some nutritional yeast.

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We added the last piece of crumbled bacon on top for garnish.  The bowl, or rather coffee mug, full of oats was just what I wanted.  Nothing sweet about it, all stick to your ribs.  I spent the time after breakfast working on role play prep and finishing up database work.  My late, light lunch consisted of a very Halloween-y apple and yogurt parfait.  I included some cinni-crunch cereal and candy corn for a perfect fall feel.

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It was delish and now Jack and I are off to run some errands and meet some friends for dinner at Season’s 52.  I can’t wait!!!

Questions: Did you attend a Halloween party? If so, how was it and what did you dress up as?

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