Wow, guys, your response to my Holey Donuts giveaway has been amazing so far. You are just as excited about these as I was when I first found out about this company. I love all the stories about your past donut experiences and why you’d love to try this better-for-you alternative. Keep ‘em coming!

I have to work today (boo on a Sunday) but I’m in great spirits because yesterday was such a nice day that I feel like I took advantage of my weekend already! Better weather just makes life so much better. I started the morning with blogging (finally finishing my Holey Donuts review) and then made a quick green monster to go. Adam and I went kitchen shopping – sounds so adult, no? We are really close to buying a condo and the kitchen will need to be gutted, so we wanted to get some idea of what this might cost. Apparently the stuff we like is unique and kind of expensive. Why do we always pick the expensive stuff?!! Anyways, back to the green monster – here is the big guy:

1 frozen banana, chunks of frozen mango, 1/2 cup soy milk, 1/2 cup water, a bunch of baby spinach. Yum! [239 calories]

On to the way the stores, I enjoyed this bar:

[160 calories]

This was my first time trying this Clif Nectar lemon, vanilla & cashew bar and I have to say I was really impressed! It didn’t taste lemony at all (fine by me, although I like lemon too) but was rather fruity and perfectly sweet with an almost dried apricot flavor (there are no apricots in the ingredients list – maybe dates + goji berries taste like apricots when combined? ). The cashew chunks were large but they also kind of melted in your mouth, they were not crunchy at all. I like crunchy nuts but I also enjoyed them in this form. All five ingredients (dates, cashews, goji berries, lemon concentrate, vanilla – all organic) just blended perfectly together and complemented each other really well. Adam really liked the few bites I was kind enough to give him This bar goes to the top of my list (together with KIND bars and a few others)!

After lots of kitchen shopping, we got home STARVING! I wanted to stay healthy but also was craving something a little heartier (a salad just did not sound appealing despite a great combo I recently discovered). So I made some chicken quesadillas again, just like here. Quick and delicious! Loved it!

[277 calories]

Finally we packed up and went to a bbq at our friends’ house. It was so much fun!!! We brought some healthy foods with us too, so my belly was perfectly happy the whole night *I get a little cranky when I am hungry or presented with greasy foods and cheap beer as the only option* Lunch filled me up quite a bit, so I ended up grilling a lean burger just for myself hours after everyone ate. I totally loaded this guy up!

[425 calories]

This is a 96% lean burger with 1 slice of American cheese, a slice of tomato, some avocado slices on a Food for Life english muffin. I also grilled up some asparagus for a side. This was SO yummy and hearty! I think everyone was a little jealous of my meal (Adam of course had to steal a bite!)

After a few bites, I remembered that Tiffany (our hostess) made an awesome German potato salad, omitting the onions just for me! I had to help myself to some (there were more bites straight out of the serving plate over the course of the night…).

This was SO delicious (and healthy!). Very garlicky (I LOVE garlic), fresh and summery. There is no mayo here, which I loved – just a whole lot of garlic, some herbs and EVOO (?). I think Tiffany was afraid to tell me there was some form of oil in here, but I don’t fear oils, especially the heart healthy ones. Adam and I definitely spotted some oil in the plate, so Tiffany – what was in this yummy salad? Please share the recipe with us in the comments!

I enjoyed an M&M cookie for dessert + a bunch of vino throughout the night. This wine is our new favorite for the summer and it’s only $5.99 at Trader Joe’s!!!

[150 calories]

[~240 calories? I assumed I drank 12 oz]

The cookies were SO calling my name so I reached into my purse for emergency back up… pistachios! Yes, bring on those heart healthy fats. And cookies, stay away from me! I already had one of you!!

[100 calories]

Finally we moved inside the house for some poker action, and I couldn’t help but have another turkey dog. It was perfectly burnt on the outside and soft and delicious on the inside. I probably didn’t NEED it, but I really wanted one so I had it. It was a fun night and I didn’t want to worry about food too much and tried to keep somewhat healthy choices without feeling deprived. I think I did ok.

And guess who whopped my husband’s ass in poker? This girl!!! There was so much hilarious trash talking throughout the night but I held my own. It was awesome!! Look at all this money!

And look at Adam’s loot:

Oh wait, there is nothing in that picture? That’s right… because I took it all!!!! Haha. We didn’t actually play for money, just for “pride” and Adam ran out of his stash THREE times. Hilarious! I tried to take a picture of the loser but he hid his face. I think we still know who this is

What a great night!! Total calories consumed ~ 1850-1900. And now I’m off to work… Have a great weekend everyone!