Tag Archives: tennessee

Tennessee Recap: Part Five (Grand Finale)

7 Nov

Morning! I’m about to head back to work for the first time in over a week thanks to Snowtober. I really can’t complain. I was fortunate enough to have power back by Wednesday, and work and class cancelled. However, that doesn’t mean I can’t be bummed about going back to work. I’ll miss cafe days and morning workouts. What I am glad to get back though, is routine. I definitely thrive on it and now my days will be much more plan-able.

I don’t event feel like I am coming off a weekend – just a long vacation! It really feels like forever since I’ve gone into the office. It also feels like forever since I started telling you all about my trip, but I finally am gonna conclude my story today, so we will be back on track to regular posts tomorrow – I already have SO much to catch you guys up on that’s happened since I returned!

Anyway, so ended the surprise-extended Tennessee vacation. Yes, I’m on the level of calling this a vacation, not a trip. There’s a difference, agreed?

Monday (Halloween!) morning, I did a workout (30 minutes incline walking, random upper body free weights) and went to meet my sister at an Einstein Bagels on campus. I was supposed to start my paper, and ended up writing a paragraph and spending the rest of the time on the blog. Oops.

UT has SO many chains on campus. I can’t believe it! At UConn we just had a few chains in our Student Union, but their University Center has a ton, and this Einstein’s wasn’t even in that building. We had UConn-branded cafes, but they have branded cafes, and I like it better.

The Einstein’s was filled with the smell of toasted asiago bagels. The menu was impressively extensive! I kept it light because I was eating an early lunch, and had one of the best fruit cups I’ve ever bought (usually they’re sucky, but this one had a ton of fresh pineapple and strawberries) and a very good coffee with steamed skim milk.

Later I got to go to my second chain-mission, Chik-fil-a, for my very favorite fast food sandwich: the Char-Grilled Chicken Sandwich. I am OBSESSED with their honey BBQ sauce and pickles. Chik-fil-a is slowly spreading up north and is in Mass now, but still not CT. COME ON UP Chik-fil-a, we are ready for you!

Headed to the airport after that and spent the first flight with my book and a nonfat chai tea misto from Starbucks.

When we landed, we had a couple of hours to kill in between our connection, and I was STARVED. We passed a Chili’s and I knew immediately what I wanted – Mexican food!

My mom got a large Stella and we shared chips and salsa to start. They really hit the spot.

I ordered the chicken fajitas, because this Chili’s was a Chili’s Too and had a limited menu and didn’t offer the shrimp tacos I usually get. Change is good though, I was just a little chickened out (ha) after this meal after having chicken earlier for lunch! This dinner was, by the way, one of my earliest ever (4pm). Takes me back to the days of waiting for the dining halls to open for dinner at 4:15.

I didn’t have any of the tortillas or guac since I had filled up on some chips, but I did pour all the salsa on top of the chicken and veggies, as well as a side of black beans. I polished off that entire thing. Yes I think that made about four servings of chicken that day – ha!

Thank you for following my recaps of my little getaway – I hope you enjoyed!

Are you a Chik-fil-a fan? What about Chili’s? How are you feeling on this Monday?

Tennessee Recap: Part Four

6 Nov

Thanks to daylight savings, my 9pm bedtime last night (aided by me being a grandma, and the glass of wine I had with dinner) combined with the time change had me awake at 5:30am on this lovely Sunday morning. As in, the gym was not even opening until 7am. I looked at my phone and saw 28 degrees – a run was out of the question. So I did the P90X Yoga video I have on my laptop for these very occasions. I hadn’t done this since I was without power/gym access during Hurricane Irene, and though it was tough to get through the 90 minutes (I’m more of a short and sweet workout person), it was really a good thing for me to stop myself from fast forwarding through stretches and through corpse pose at the end. The workout also had a lot of heat in terms of lower body. I really like this video – it’s all-encompassing!

The video also includes one of my favorite poses: standing shoulder pose. I actually used to do this all the time when I was little without even knowing it was a yoga pose, so I guess it’s always been my favorite!

I still have more to share with you guys about my trip to Tennessee - food and shopping, I’ve got it all!

On Sunday I woke up thinking I’d be headed back to CT that day, and ended up having a full Tennessee experience after we found out that due to the snowstorm, we wouldn’t be headed back home for another day. But before that change was made, I put on my sparkly orange hat and went to Starbucks with my sister and my Nana Connie, one of our traditions.

Looking hairless?

I had the usual, a nonfat bold misto. Hannah had the same and sprinkled cinnamon dolce powder on top of hers, looked so cozy!

The coffee came to us so hot that it was time for brunch before we were done, so I kept it classy and poured the rest of my coffee into one of the hotel restaurant’s cute mugs.

I have the spindliest fingers of all time.

I ordered a salad of baby field greens, cocktail shrimp, mango, sundried tomatoes, celery, and balsamic on the side. It was AWESOME. I love being impressed by restaurant salads, it’s always a pleasant surprise. Hannah had a Greek salad with grilled chicken salad and let me finish hers off.

Funny story: The first time I ate cocktail shrimp, I ate the hard tail part too – I didn’t know you had to remove it!

My mom had a veggie egg white omelette with home fries and an English muffin. She gave me the rest of her home fries and they were AMAZING, especially dipped in ketchup.

My dad had a sausage, green pepper, and mushroom omelette with home fries and wheat toast. The toast looked crisp and hearty.

Hannah and I took a walk to her dorm after brunch, where we decided to stay the extra day. I worked on blog stuff in her room while she showered so I brought my backpack along. Don’t I look legit?

We went shopping later and couldn’t help but buy some tasty-smelling candles at Bath & Body Works – they were having a sale AND handing out coupons!

I got these four candles – oatmeal raisin cookie, gingerbread, s’mores, and eggnog – for $20! And it’s a good thing since I headed home to a power-less house the next day.

We stopped at Wal-Mart, and I know they have some questionable corporate practices, but I am impressed by some of their grocery areas. It was clean in there, well-organized, and there was a huge variety. I have to admit that for someone on a budget, Wal-Mart is an affordable grocery option, and even has a fair amount of healthy choices at affordable prices, which I think is something our country is seriously lacking.

I love displays of Halloween treats at grocery stores too. These treats looked so good!

I loved the selection of University of Tennessee by Pink gear at Victoria’s Secret. I really wanted some of that underwear, but couldn’t let myself pay $26 for just three pairs.

I came out of this shopping trip very well stocked. A little too well stocked, I’d say. I’m putting myself on shopping sabbatical until Black Friday.

In addition to the sparkly hat...TN cap, football jersey, and boxers!

Workout gear: Old navy running capris/top, and PINK yoga pants.

Who knew Old Navy sold cute Colts gear? Buy 1, get 1 free!

We went to dinner at one of my favorite chains, Bonefish Grill. Unfortunately they aren’t chain-like enough to extend any farther north than Poughkeepsie, New York (I’ve checked…many times). Whenever we vacation anywhere south of that city, we’ve got to hit up a Bonefish. Our extra night in Tennessee gave us a chance to do just that!

Their bread is beyond amazing. It comes with olive oil, pesto, and herbs for dipping, like Bertucci’s and Carrabba’s, two more wonderful chains. I’m beginning to see a trend here.

I got the swordfish special, with broccoli and steamed veggies on the side instead of potatoes. It was so great. I had every last bite, plus my mom’s leftover fish and Hannah’s leftover broc.

So ends my last full, but not my last delicious, day in Tennessee!

Have you ever heard of Bonefish Grille?  What do you think of Wal-Mart and their grocery sections? What was your last shopping purchase?

Tennesee Recap: Part Three (Game Day!)

5 Nov

Thanks so much for your valuable insights on getting caught on comparison traps in yesterday’s post. It’s good to know I’m not alone in this and I appreciate everyone’s encouragement!

I come to you today live from Barnes & Noble, mooching off wi-fi while I wait for my car to get its “check-up”. Car check-ups are way more expensive than human check-ups, unfortunately. And who knows what else they are going to tell me the car needs done to it – we’ll see.

I am going to be behind on recapping my days for eons on end if I don’t keep telling you guys about my Tennessee trip so I’ll waste no more time on getting back to it.

After a Quizno’s lunch of dreams, I vegged out in our room a little until it was time to head over to tailgate with my parents’ old friends. It was great to meet them, and their setup was incredible! When we arrived a Sysco truck was there setting up bratwurst, a nacho bar, hamburgers, hot dogs, chili, and desserts. Restaurants and brands send extra food they have over to Sysco, who provides it for free at these games as a form of advertising for said restaurants and brands! Pretty sweet deal if you ask me – the only thing that costs anything was the Sysco van’s sketchy-looking bar setup, which asked for a contribution toward the booze and mixers.

I brought my own Bacardi Green Apple though, and had that on the rocks, but my parents enjoyed the beers, ready-made mojitos, and Bloody Marys!

I wasn’t very hungry at all during the tailgate so I decided to save my appetite for the buffet we’d be offered at the game (we were sitting in box seats), but that food did look GOOD.

Condiment bar for nachos, hot dogs, chili, etc.

Condiment bar for burgers, plus sides.

My sister's burger! She said it was amazing.

It was someone's birthday - though not sure who?

My beverage definitely got me pretty buzzed and I had a great time with my family. I always have a good time, but let’s just say it was a little better than usual!

Nana Connie (grandma), Hannah (sis), and I.

Showing spirit with my hat and hair ribbons!

The Vols parade to the stadium!

My mom and I have quite a height diff, no?

My mom and I started getting pretty cold when the sun began to go down (story of our lives) so the fam trekked over to our box about an hour before kickoff. I was ready for dinner at this point! I was also very grateful to not be sitting outside because I honestly don’t think I could have even made it through a quarter. Now do you see why I dream of leaving New England? I can’t even survive fall in Tennessee!

I felt pretty special to have a reserved seat in the box, but then felt very un-special when I saw they’d spelled my name wrong.

I had barely even sat in that seat for a few minutes before deciding that it was buffet time. And oh, what a buffet it was.

Corn on the cob, shrimp, and potatoes.

BISCUITS

BBQ pulled pork...

...and so much cheese!

Got back to my seat and settled in with my plate. What a great view! Of the food, and the field :-P

I had another plate almost equivalent to that one, plus a cookie on my way out. I ended up leaving at half time because I was STILL cold in the box, despite the fact that I was inside, and Nana Connie was cold outside. She and I walked back to the hotel together and I was asleep by 11, just the way I like it.

There is still more to come in my Tennessee weekend recap – imagine how many recaps I’ll need to get through my week-long trip to FL in December, geez!

Have you ever been to a college football game? What’s the best tailgating food?

Comparison Traps and Tennessee Recap: Part Two

4 Nov

I wanted to get something out that’s bothering me today before I continue my recap of my Tennessee vacation. The issue of comparison traps was on my mind this morning after my trip to the gym. I got up a bit later than I’d have liked but still made it in time to catch the last 30 minutes of spin class. I worked hard and got in a great cardio workout. A couple of others came in late too, but when the class ended, they both stayed for the next class. I was all ready to go do some abs and be on my way, but it immediately bothered me that the other women were staying and I was not.

I started wondering if I was being lazy, if I should stay for the next class. I thought of all the others who were leaving when I was, but had been there the entire hour, not just 30 minutes.

Then I tried to tell myself – I did what I wanted. I sweated, I feel good, and now I can go about my day. And that’s what I did, and I’m proud of myself for that, but it’s STILL bothering me! I often get caught in a comparison trap, even though I know when it comes to working out, quality > quantity and I certainly had some quality time with that spin bike.

Does anyone else get suckered into comparison traps, and getting caught on quantity instead of quality when it comes to working out?

Enough of that – thanks for letting me vent, and now I’ll get onto my Tenneseee recap, which oddly enough starts with workout talk!

As I mentioned earlier, I did manage to get in a few workouts on this trip. Each morning I woke up and headed down to the hotel gym.

Classy mirror shot and morning eyes.

Conveniently enough, coffee was set up each morning by the elevator for those of us (aka my mom) that cannot work out without caffeine first. Luckily I can save my coffee as a post-workout reward! I prefer it that way.

The hotel gym was fairly nice and had a TV with an accessible remote – a must when I am doing cardio without a class to drive me! I had magazines just in case, but the TV was preferable for my elliptical/treadmill sessions.

I used that weights machine to do some stuff, but mostly stuck with body weight moves or the free weights.

Creepy dark corner with yoga mats and a stability ball! I did some abs over there and felt sketchy.

Our room was pretty nice too! We stayed at a Four Points Sheraton and used our Starwood rewards points to get a good deal. Not only was free coffee at the elevators and in the lobby each morning, but there was also a fresh basket of apples at the front desk 24/7!

We had a fridge, microwave, and sink in the “kitchen” area, so there was plenty of storage for snacks and (mostly) libations. My family has a Diet Coke addiction – my brother and I are the only ones that do not partake.

We had two of those TVs, one in the “living” room and one in the bed room! What was funny was if one was on, you could definitely hear it from the other room, so watching both TVs at once would prove to be difficult if we had run into that situation.

Something I liked about this place that may sound weird was the design they chose for the bottles of shampoo, conditioner, and lotion (see above). I hate it when hotel toiletries are in those stiff bottles that are absolutely impossible to squeeze. I know, I know, first world problems. But does anyone else feel me on this?

The Four Points Sheraton does need to keep in mind though – ROOMS NEED TWO BARS OF SOAP! One for the hands and one for the bod, no? We could barely even get them to give us extra soap when we left a note and a tip for housekeeping. My Nana Connie has had the same problem there and always packs extra soap now when she stays there. Weird!

We took a nice walk around the campus on our second day (Saturday) and headed to the book store for some SHOPPING! I love Vol gear. For those of you who are confused, yes I went to UConn. Yes, I root for Tennessee. I was raised that way and it will never change! There’s nothing like SEC sports anyway (sorry Big East). And now I have not only my parents to support, but my sister the new Vol as well!

The bookstore had some pretty random stuff, but also some really cute purchases for me!

Immediately after I jokingly posed for this photo, someone legit exclaimed that they wanted to buy this?!

Unfortunately, my Nana Connie said this pasta isn't good at all.

I tried on a sparkly orange hat as a joke, but ended up realizing after we left the store that I really loved it, so we went back before the game to get it! I pretty much haven’t taken it off since.

Giving off a power-errand-runner vibe.

After cleaning out the book store, my mom and I walked to get a special treat for lunch that we can barely find in CT nowadays – QUIZNO’S!

The beloved Q! Spotted: the mom taking the pic.

I had two chains I aimed to visit on this trip – Quizno’s and Chik Fil A (that comes later). Quizno’s is my favorite sandwich chain of all time and its slightly higher prices (compared to Subway) are completely justified by the quality of its ingredients.

Any place with a pickle bar is a winner.

I knew there was plenty of food coming at the tailgating and game later that day, so I went with a small Veggie sub on wheat. It had lettuce, tomato, pickles, olives, banana peppers, sautéed onions and mushrooms, cucumbers, and guacamole. With a million pickles on the side, of course.

Beams of light shine on the holy Quizno's - behold!

What follows is my favorite food photo I’ve ever taken so far – hopefully that will happen more often once I get my new camera!

This sandwich was SO GOOD. Quizno’s never disappoints me!

Next up, I’ll recap the tailgating and the football game itself!

Do you typically drink your coffee before or after your workout (or both)? What’s your favorite sandwich chain? Who do you root for in college football?

Tennessee Recap: Part One

3 Nov

Still no power at work so I am back at Whole Foods hangin’ out and blogging. I just cannot stay in my house, I need to be out and about and around background noise. People are confused as to why I’m here since I’m in the lucky 50% of the town that has power back. But I just like to be out and about! It makes me feel better about sitting on my butt and using the laptop for an extended period of time…anyone else feel me on this?

I got in another morning workout today – a Pilates Ball Fusion class at my gym, followed by 30 minutes on the elliptical to get my sweat on. The pilates class was very good for my tight muscles, and the elliptical allowed me to start a new issue of my favorite magazine More. Does anyone else read this? It’s for women over 40 but I honestly love it…so informative and there are always both inspiring and practical articles!

In book world I just finished Jennifer Weiner’s “Fly Away Home“ and really liked it more than any Weiner book I’ve read yet, probably because it wasn’t full of cheese.

I started a new book last night, Jodi Picoult’s “The Pact“. I’m already so intrigued and anxious to see how it ends. I could barely put it down after the first chapter – I think this will be a good one.

And finally, I’m going to get to work re-capping last weekend’s trip to Tennessee!

My adventure began on Friday. I finished packing right before we left (while managing not to forget anything, score) and had a pre-flight snack of half a toasted Fiber One whole wheat English muffin with Beltane Farms chive chevre.

I packed a nice, big salad for the plane because I am not usually a fan of airport food. We ended up sitting on the runway for about 20 minutes before we could even take off, so I ate it before we got up in the air. I used the beans and ground turkey from my mom’s latest chili creation for the salad’s protein, and it was good! I think packing food for airplane travel is the smartest choice to save money and ensure that you have food that you will enjoy and that will not leave you dragging in the rest of your travels.

That being said, when I was younger my favorite airport travel treat was a Cinnabon cinnamon bun. And the Biscoff cookies!

I went Biscoff-less and opted for a pretzel and peanut packet once we took off to make my own little trail mix. I was super hungry that day for some reason – I also had another packet of peanuts and a pear before our travels were complete.

My mom went wild and used a free drink coupon (we are a family of coupon-ers) to get a vodka cranberry. Keep it classy, Mom!

Our second flight was only 26 minutes long, a fact that I didn’t discover until we started descending, so that was a pleasant surprise. I ended up doing none of my paper and watching four episodes of “Entourage”. I’ve finally made it to season 5!

We landed, picked up some snacks and alcohol, picked up my sister from school at the University of Tennessee, and dropped our stuff off at the hotel. I was ravenous and had a few Special K crackers to hold me over.

We went to eat a great seafood place called Chesapeake’s. It was filled with the usual nautical décor and reminded me of somewhere we’d go to on a Florida vacation.

Hannah showing off the nautical decor.

They were packed, so even though we had a reservation, we did some waiting at the bar. I decided to get a glass of wine because – when in Rome! We were seated as soon as I got my drink (Cabernet), conveniently enough.

The specials menu alone had so many great options that I didn’t even really need to look at the full menu (but you know I did).

It took me awhile to decide but I ended up with the Red Snapper, minus the herbs, with the roasted garlic cream sauce on the side. I selected the veggie of the day (asparagus), sans lemon butter, as my side.

I love bread baskets with variety! I had a corn muffin as well as half of a croissant. The corn muffin was definitely the best – Southern corn bread, not that sweet Northern stuff.

I was so impressed with this House Salad that came with my meal. It was awesome! Field greens, fresh veggies, feta, garlic-y croutons, and even sliced almonds. I ended up donating the croutons to my dad and taking off some of the cheese/almonds. Oil and vinegar served as my dressing.

I loved the generous portion of fish, as well as asparagus (five spears is such a tease, but some places give only that much). The garlic sauce on the side was great too. I dipped my fork in it before some bites, a trick I picked up from some magazines. I’m glad I didn’t skip the sauce completely because it was tasty! I prefer grilled asparagus to steamed, but this still had a lot of great snap to it and I really liked it.

My dad got salmon with Hollandaise sauce and a baked potato with butter. I ended up finishing about a quarter of his fish for him, as well as his entire baked potato skin. I had a feeling he wouldn’t eat it, so that’s why I got a veggie as my side! My master plan worked perfectly. The salmon was great too.

Hannah kindly displays her plate (hand model?)

My sister got a filet, cooked medium, and she said it was perfect. And she was kind enough to donate a few asparag-i (that’s my own plural form of asparagus, thank you very much) to me!

We had a great time at Chesapeake’s and left satisfied and ready to REST after a day of travelling! Getting to a destination is usually stressful, but once I’m arrived and have had a real meal, I always feel so much better and sleep quite well. That’s exactly what played out here!

Stay tuned for more details on the trip – I doubted I’d have enough content for more than one entry, and now I see I’ll need at least three posts to sum this all up! Just so many good eats and so much fun!

What are your favorite air travel foods? How about your favorite post-travel foods? Do you watch “Entourage”?

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