Yesterday was another busy day as I was trying to tackle the rest of my to-do list, complete a longer run, and prep for a casual bbq. Adam was a HUGE help. I gave him a grocery list with like 50 items on it (some kind of obscure) and he bought everything but one (which I was fine without at the end of the day). Awesome! I love grocery shopping but sometimes a little help in that dept helps!

My long run was kind of bluh. It was HOT out by the time I got out (almost at noon) and I took lots of water breaks and gave up kind of early. I think I covered 8 miles (maybe a bit more) but maybe ran 6.5 of them and not all in a row. Oh well, hopefully there will be better runs this week!

My breakfast/pre-workout meal:

FFL english muffin with BB, strawberry rhubarb jam and 1/2 banana + coffee

Sorry for the terrible photo. I wasn’t even going to take a picture because you’ve seen it a million times, but then I took a quick one just in case. haha

I ended up kind of grazing for the rest of the day, so let’s call the eats below snacks, lunch and dinner.

Shrimp, mango & avocado ceviche in mini fillo shells. I think I’m going to submit this recipe to the phyllo contest. It turned out delicious after a few tweaks.

I munched on an orange and some cottage cheese while prepping these babies (unpictured).

Then the boys brought over some chips and salsa to munch on during the Celtics game. OMG, this black bean is like crack. So spicy and flavorful. I wanted to eat a whole jar with a spoon and call it dinner.

Let’s see the label a little closer. You guys need to find it asap!! I added it to my grocery list right away.

I did eat an actual meal eventually – Applegate Farms grass-fed organic hot dog & sauerkraut + grilled veggies

Did I mention how much I love grilled veggies? I think I did.

Dessert: bake-off test recipe #1 – break-up bars (recipe here)

I tried these  bars for the first time at the cookie swap party in January and they were definitely a favorite. I omitted the toffee (couldn’t find it + they are rich enough without it) but otherwise followed the recipe closely.

I’ve never baked with so much butter (more than a whole box was used for this batch) but man – these truly are incredible!! They took a while to set (I suggest throwing them in the freezer as the last step) but the wait was well worth it. So rich and decadent. I cut them into 64 little two-bite pieces and I think they can be enjoyed in such moderation guilt free (I had one of the bars pictured).

Shortbread + caramel + fudge = sounds like a winning recipe to me!!! I’ll keep on testing though, just in case

My birthday is this Saturday so I’m calling this my birthday week. I’m actually excited for it. See you later!

I’m going to be honest. I wasn’t sure about these guys. Fresh basil and mint scares me in large amounts and the herbs were sure to stand out with such a short ingredients list. Furthermore, right before heading home to make these for lunch, I read Liz’s less-than stellar review of these and got scared even more. I am happy to say everything went without a glitch!

I cut the amount of rice vinegar in the sauce by half (saw the too-vinegary complaint in several reviews) and the sauce was perfect. Nice and spicy (and a little sweet), well balanced. The rolls were an ease to roll too – way easier in fact than I thought they would be. I made sure to soften the rice paper one at a time, and then quickly stuffed it with all the cut-up veggies, shrimp… and noodles?

Oh yes, noodles! After taking the above 3 photos, I realized I forgot about the noodles. I made them, but they were on the other side of the table and totally escaped my mind. So now that I caught this little mistake, the other 3 rolls had their noodles. See the 2 rolls on the left in the pic below? Yes, much better!

Last thing I forgot to mention, I used my mandoline to finely cut the carrots and decided to do the same with some fresh zucchini I had in the fridge. It was a good call, I’d do that again. And yes, I would make these again. Go light on the mint, heavier on the shrimp (1/roll is not enough!) and definitely keep the zucchini addition. Adam’s only complaint was that there weren’t more of these. Success!

I can’t wait to make other types of summer rolls too since I now have about 300 rice paper rounds left. Any filling ideas?

****

After work, I got back to my kitchen to bake some cookies. Adam and I are attending 2 parties this weekend. What better gift to bring than some freshly made vegan cookies!

First party – all ready for travel!

Dreena’s super-charge me cookies

I used a combo of raisins and cranberries as dried fruit. I’d add even more dried fruit next time – maybe some tart dried cherries? Mmm, cherries.

And Dreena’s “you got peanut butter in my chocolate” cookies (also from Eat, drink & be vegan; recipe can be found here)

.. and then I went a little crazy with the photo-shoot.

So here is the verdict on these 2 recipes. I liked the super-charge me cookies. I enjoyed the oats and the combo of the choc chips with dried fruit. I really think some tart cherries will be perfect in these. I’d even add more than 1/2 cup as per the recipe. Load ‘em up!!

The choc/pb cookies came out pretty flat and tasted a bit burnt to me. I cooked them for exactly 11 minutes as per the recipe, so I’m not sure if this was the intended taste or if something went wrong in my kitchen. I *may* make them again. We’ll see. Everyone at the first party we went to liked my cookies. We’ll see what the other reviewers will say tonight.

Have you ever made vegan cookies before?

Any fun plans for this weekend?

Ok, so back to yesterday. It was such a great day. The crazy awesome weather called for a super girly outfit and despite the fact that I only got to go outside for maybe 10 minutes during the day, I still felt like summer was here. Combine that with a kickass workout during lunch and the fact that I was hours away from not seeing the office until mid-next week, the day just flew by. It ended on a high note too – my photography class was awesome!! You see I was actually kind of dreading it because I wanted to enjoy the aforementioned sunshine with maybe a nice glass of sangria in my hand, but alas, I paid for the class and I am determined to get the most out of it. Guys, learning what your camera can do is the coolest!!! The second I stepped foot in the class, I was just so happy (forgetting about the traffic jam and detour that cost me an hour of my life I’ll never get back… oh and that 20 minutes I was looking for parking afterwords). I get it now. I GET IT. Wanna see a little sample of what your camera sees on automatic? This is obviously a white peace of paper (on a light gray table).

Looks dark and grayish, right? Here is what the picture looks like at 2 stop higher.

Ahha, that’s what the white paper actually looks like. The exposure meter gets confused sometimes – it wants to take all the pictures at light gray. That’s why using the camera on manual really does make the difference. Our cameras are smart but sometimes they are just off. Pretty cool, right? I was super intimidated to use the camera on manual mode before, but now I’m excited. It’s really quite easy and you have so much more control over the final photo. Instead of the camera deciding what looks best, you get to do that. I can’t wait to learn more over the next few weeks. I hope to be an expert by the time the class is over.

All right…. how about some food photos?

BREAKFAST

2 banana walnut muffins with peanut butter and cherry preserves + coffee

Close-up…

I ate them like little muffin “sandwiches”

Who says healthy food is boring?

PRE-WORKOUT SNACK

WORKOUT

Abs + spin + stretch. Every part of this workout made me feel out of shape but it felt so good to sweat. I am still surprisingly tight from the patio work on Sunday. I guess I was squatting for hours and this did a number on my legs.

LUNCH

I thought I could make a turkey sandwich for lunch but apparently we had no turkey at home. Oops. I grabbed every veggie and spread from the fridge and threw it in my Baggu for work. This is what you get as a result…

ww toast with baba ganoush + ww toast with hummus, 1/4 large avocado and cilantro + carrots and daikon radish and sprouts

Random, I know! Quite yummy though.

DINNER

IT’S CEIMB Thursday! (Well, I ate it on Wednesday but blogging about it on Thursday, so it counts.) This week’s recipe for garlic basil shrimp (recipe here) was chosen by Tea and Scones. It was a bit ambitious of me to cook something right before my photography class but it seemed easy and quick enough.

Can I share with you one of my pet peeves when it comes to recipes? Including “cooked” ingredients that you normally wouldn’t already have cooked on hand. I get cooked chicken or something. You may have leftovers of that, but I doubt anyone in the world just has cooked orzo hanging around the house.

So I skimmed the directions for the recipe and didn’t see a grain and decided to serve the shrimp with quinoa since it’s quick. Only later I realized that it was supposed to be served with orzo and I think that would have been much better. This was quick and easy. Adam’s review: “Nice simple dinner. I like it!” … but I wasn’t blown away (neither was he). I think the orzo could have really absorbed more of the wine sauce, while the quinoa was too hearty for it. I’d give this recipe another go. Definitely a good one for a weeknight (short ingredient list and quick). I bet feta would be a nice addition too.

SNACKS

“I’m stuck in traffic and I’m hungry” snack – KIND almonds & coconut. VERY sweet but I like the whole almond chunks!

Post class snack – I’m always hungry for some reason after class! So I accidently bought 4 jars of almond butter at Shaw’s yesterday. I couldn’t help myself – both kinds were on sale. Here is a little comparison of MaraNatha and Barney Butter.

Their ingredients list is identical but look at the color difference between the two. Are they using different kinds of nuts?

I had mini toasts with each nut butter (added some banana slices after tasting them plain). My verdict? Both are awesome – in fact they are pretty darn close in taste. It’s hard for me to cheat on my beloved Barney Butter. Ideally I would actually love to recreate it at home, but until then, I would probably buy whatever is cheaper (without the sale, Barney Butter is usually cheaper).

That was the perfect way to end the night, although I was totally pumped and couldn’t go to sleep. I kept telling Adam all these new things I learned at photography class. I guess I’m a geek.

All right, I’m off. Going to the Taste of the Nation event tonight and will do a review of that event soon (most likely will write it on the plane tomorrow morning and will publish it as soon as I can). It should be an amazing event for a great cause (all proceeds go to stop childhood hunger) and they are all over the country so if you like what you see, maybe you’d want to attend your local one.

A few other “logistics” – I am not sure if I’ll be able to blog during vacation. I’m sure I’ll stop by to say hello at some point, but I probably won’t do full day recaps. We’ll see how it goes. It’s hard for me to stay away from this blog. In the meantime, I’ve received a few guest posts which I will feature during my absence. So definitely check in and say hello to the wonderful ladies that wrote such inspiring posts. Happy Thursday! I’m off to pack….

BREAKFAST

TJ’s organic moral fiber blueberry muffin + coffee

Those clementines in the box in the back were calling my name, so I finished breakfast with one

MID-MORNING SNACK

LUNCH

Lunch was SO good! I go home for lunch on Mondays… love that! I just threw a bunch of frozen and fresh veggies + cooked wild rice + shrimp in the wok and voila – delicious lunch!

Stir fry with cauliflower, broccoli, red pepper, carrots, wild rice, shrimp with Jenna’s sesame sauce + sesame seeds

Yes, it tasted as good as it looked

+ another clementine

MID-AFTERNOON SNACK

I am once again obsessed with KIND bars. I need to stock up. These bars are a little too sweet but the whole nuts are the best. This bar had whole almonds and macademia nuts. I’m nuts for nuts!

WORKOUT

I went back to one of my favorite classes at the gym after work – Rack it Up. It’s basically Body Pump/Group Power with a different name, and I LOVE this class. It’s been forever since I’ve been but I was able to lift the same weight as before (surprised myself actually!). The only thing was my legs. I used to lift 53lbs (includes 3lbs for the weight of the bar), but yesterday 33lbs almost instantly gave me leg cramps. I went down to 28 for the lunges track and still my legs were shacking. I hope I can run today! Anyways, I felt super strong and find these types of classes very inspiring. The guy next to me said he loves when I come because I can lift more than any of the guys (that included him, btw). Haha, love that!

DINNER

Leftover turkey, mushroom, spinach and cheese lasagna. Still awesome!

LATE NIGHT SNACKING

Oops, another one caught mid-bite

+ an orange and a zbar. I’m going to try to start “closing the kitchen” after dinner + dessert (if I need it). All these snacks add up!

Where would you go on quick vacation if you had a few days to kill?

BREAKFAST

This morning I was quite productive making breakfast…

1 FFL english muffin with Barney Butter and apple butter + pear slices and pom seeds

Pretty and yummy

[388 calories]

MID-AFTERNOON SNACK

3 AK MAK crackers with laughing cow cheese and avocado

[190 calories]

So creamy – I love this combo! Isn’t laughing cow cheese so versatile?

WORKOUT

I attended a pilates class during my lunch hour today. I planned on also doing a 3 mile run before or after class but I was “done” after pilates. I thought I’d be able to come back to the gym after work so I can cross both workouts off the list, but my husband surprised me with an earlier arrival from his business trip… so instead I went on a little date.

LUNCH

I bought all sorts of fun convenience foods at Trader Joe’s yesterday – mostly cut up veggies and lots of fresh produce but these fresh spring rolls with shrimp caught my eye and I thought they’d make a perfect lunch one of these days. I was right! Super fresh and fun!!

The rice wrapper was stuffed with vermicelli noodles, steamed shrimp, cilantro and carrots. The dipping sauce was sweet with a bit of spice. I really enjoyed this after my pilates class. I felt like I was at a spa.

[330 calories]

MID-AFTERNOON SNACKS

A bit of sugar was consumed in the afternoon… good thing I stock my drawers at work with lots of healthier sweets.

[120 calories]

These really satisfy my brownie cravings on a good day (sometimes I still need the real thing though!). It hit the spot today.

4 chocolate coconut macaroons – so satisfying!!

[120 calories]

After a super productive work day, I definitely deserved a little impromptu date my husband. I’ll share it in a separate post. Check back tomorrow afternoon if you want the details.

The first thing I did this morning (after making some coffee) was to google what that meant. Eek, maybe not the best idea! People out there have some whacky interpretations, although I did find that it’s a very common dream. Have you had it before? Not fun, not fun at all. Some interpretations did say that it means you may be worried about expressing something and that your voice may not be heard. Before going to bed last night, I was prepping for a presentation in front of our credit committee. Maybe I was worried about that? I plan on kicking ass during committee today – no need to lose any teeth over it.

Now let’s rewind back to yesterday’s eats. It was one lazy day!

BREAKFAST

Mashed banana, pb & j sammie on a FFL english muffin + coffee

+ 2 coconut macaroons

[all together = 430 calories]

LUNCH

Mixed greens, pinto beans, avocado, corn, salsa and grilled shrimp

I cooked the shrimp on the George Forman grill… quite the set-up!

The salad was awesome. If I can make a healthy meal like that without a kitchen, anyone can!

[330 calories]

SNACK

Power bran muffin + Barney Butter

This guy was the last one in the freezer from a batch I made last month

Barney Butter – I’m all out now

There was about 2.5T left. I made sure to get every bit left.

[439 calories]

[180 calories]

DINNER

Ham, avocado + dijon mustard on ww pane + a half-sour pickle and baby carrots

So, so good…

GETTING SNACKY AT NIGHT

[70 calories]

[73 calories]

[200 calories]

Do you ever remember your dreams? Ever tried to figure out what they meant?

BREAKFAST

A “green” monster + a power bran muffin

In the monster – 1/2 frozen banana, frozen blueberries, 1/2 cup skim milk, large handful of baby spinach + Amazing Grass Green Food packet… it kind of came out black but still delicious I loved getting so many servings of fruits and veggies by 8 am!

The bran muffin was toasted from frozen and was still yummy although a little dry.

[405 calories]

MID-MORNING SNACK

1/2 cashew cookie larabar. I love this flavor!!

[105 calories]

LUNCH

Lunch was the aforementioned date with Mary Kate at Tossed. I got a giant salad with mixed greens, grape tomatoes, cucumbers, mandarin oranges, snow peas and cajun shrimp + dijon mustard dressing on the side (I used about a tablespoon).

So much veggie awesomeness!

After paying I realized adding the shrimp cost $5!!! I will say the shrimp was delicious.

[~272 calories]

Mary Kate, I had a great time catching up with you. I’m looking forward to future lunch dates

When I got back to my desk, despite feeling uncomfortably full, I wanted chocolate in a bad way. A little calcium did the trick. Taking vitamins is so hard. lol

[30 calories]

MID-AFTERNOON SNACK

The craving for a baked good hit later in the day. This chocolate brownie zbar really satisfied me today. I used to eat these all the time and forgot how good they are. I think I need to stock up  – these are great and are only 120 calories!

[120 calories]

DINNER

Dinner was unphotogenic but very delicious. I made Ellie Krieger’s nutty sweet potato soup, hosted by Popsicles and Sandy Feet this week on CEiMB. I think a dollop of greek yogurt on top would have made it a little prettier but we are all out. I tried crumbling some goat cheese on top but it just sank. In any case, the soup was hearty, flavorful and just the right amount of spicy (I used 1/2 amount of cayenne). The only little problem I had with it was the texture – my peanut butter didn’t melt that well. Once in a while there were pb chunks on the spoon. Not the worst problem but I was hoping for a super creamy consistency. Probably my fault.  On the side I enjoyed 1/2 FFL english muffin with some four pepper goat cheese. A perfect meal on a cold winter night!

[399 calories]

NIGHT-TIME SNACK

Once again I haven’t had enough calories during the day. I was craving white chocolate and I was cold. I grabbed a piece of chocolate and went to the cupboard for tea… and then I saw hot chocolate packets! Brilliant

These are fancy shmancy French hot chocolate packets we got at a gourmet cheese store last year. I used 1/2 cup of 1% milk, 1/2 cup hot water and the whole hot cocoa packet to make my hot chocolate. This was so rich and satisfying that I ended up only eating 1 little square of the white chocolate. Yay for listening to my body and being reasonable around yummy foods!!

[~155 calories]

Total calories consumed: ~1500

I’m going to dinner at Oleana in Cambridge tomorrow night with the hubs. Calories will not be counted at dinner but every bite will be enjoyed. This is how I keep myself sane!

Happy Thursday/Friday (if that’s when you read it)!!

On a somewhat related note – did anyone see the Biggest Loser this week? What an intense episode!! I actually couldn’t fall asleep last night after we got back from San Antonio so I decided to catch up on my BL. Well THREE hours later, I was in tears, yet so happy to see the eliminated player’s progress (I don’t want to spoil the surprise for those who missed it). Did you notice that they didn’t show *her* “after” footage? I went online and found the video, as well as the additional interview. One of the questions actually related to staying away from unhealthy treats. She said that before she puts anything into her mouth, she evaluates whether it will bring her closer or further from her goal, and always chooses the one that gets her closer to it. I think that since most of us don’t have a lot of (or any) weight to lose, and are not on a competitive tv show, we get a little more room for “error,” but I do think that it’s important to stop and think sometimes – and make the “right” choice most of the time. I’ve let go recently, and this reminder will hopefully help me get back on track! I’ll definitely keep you guys posted on my progress Now enough talking, let’s get to today’s eat!

BREAKFAST

Nonfat yogurt, organic apple chunks, Kashi Heart to Heart cereal oat flakes with blueberry clusters, and ground flaxseed + coffee

The cereal was a sample I got in the mail, and I really enjoyed it. Lots of crunch and delicious sweet (but not too sweet) blueberry clusters.

LUNCH

V8 garden vegetable blend soup + Ezekiel english muffin

I ate this in 2 parts (double the soup) since work got crazy busy, and it satisfied my hunger for hours! I am definitely going to be shopping for more V8 soup in my future! It was the perfect “I have nothing in the house but I want a healthy meal” meal

SNACKS

New strawberry oikos

I liked it overall but it was a little too sweet for my taste (plain is totally the best!!).

Trader Joe’s crunchy pb granola bars

DINNER

Given that today is Thursday, I wanted to make another Ellie Krieger recipe. Since I was on vacation for a week, I decided to make last week’s chosen recipe - linguini with shrimp (I had all the ingredients for it at home and this week’s recipe in all honesty scared me a bit ). I cut down on oil, used 2oz of pasta/serving (instead of 6) but otherwise followed the recipe with no substitutions.

It came out quite delicious. After nearly a week of Mexican food, a big bowl of healthy pasta really hit the spot!

Is it me, or is something missing from today’s eats? Oh yeah – dessert!! I have some healthified brownies with cherries in the oven that I can’t wait to sink my teeth into. Healthy “indulgent tasting” treats are what keeps me in check. I am proud of today’s food choices. Are you proud of yours today?

PS – Happy blog anniversary, An Apple A Day! Check out her awesome anniversary giveaway here

Also, win a gift certificate for Stogo here.

EDITED TO ADD: Mmm, brownies….

Do you like stand-up comedy? When was the last time you’ve been to a show and who did you see? Anyone famous?

BREAKFAST

A delicious blueberry bran muffin from Whole Foods (+ coffee) that Molly brought over on Sunday before our run. Oh did I mention we went for a 5.25 mile run on the rainiest day ever… and we’re not even training for anything?! We’re pretty hardcore, huh? Running with Molly is really socializing for me, while incidentally burning calories, so I don’t think of it as running. With that said, with our warm up and cooldown walks, we covered 6 miles in just a little over an hour. I say that’s pretty good for a day we’d otherwise want to be lazy on! This is the kind of running I plan on keeping up – social running.

Buttery delicious muffin. Definitely a treat!

LUNCH

Random plate of goodies:

Meatloaf stuffed with mushrooms and eggs, prepared by my mom:

Chicken thighs with mushrooms and raisins (also prepared by mom):

1/2 FFL english muffin with hummus (gotta have carbs!)

Freshly roasted red peppers (yup, mom made them):

+ a cabbage salad and grape tomatoes (see above) for some veggies. I usually don’t like meals that are more like random snacks put together, but this ended up being well rounded and satisfying. Thanks, mom, for sending us home with some extra food!

SNACKS

There was A LOT more candy than this. Halloween will be the death of me if I don’t nip this candy eating in the bud. There is candy available all year round – no need to consume ridiculous amounts of it in the month of October, especially since there will be much more worthy treats in the office in November and December, with “real holidays” coming up.

This bar above has artificial stuff in it. I found it in the back of my desk drawer and really enjoyed it but you definitely won’t see me buying more of it in the future. Otherwise, if you’re not artificial ingredients averse, it is delicious – kind of tastes like snickers with the nougat filling and peanut chunks.

DINNER

I had about 5 minutes to make dinner last night. With all the candy consumed I thought about just grabbing a banana to go, but on the way home I brilliantly came up with a quick dinner plan instead. Shrimp, corn, and salsa quesadilla – now that’s a great quick healthy dinner!

Not photogenic but super flavorful! Corn is becoming my favorite random ingredient – remember corn and tuna pizza? Delicious!

During the show, I also had 1/2 of Sencha Tea bar (I decided they were a bit weird and since they’re expensive, you won’t see them on the blog again). There were also some chocolate covered edamame consumed as a dinner dessert. Serious sugar overload. I am committed to treating myself with more respect than that. As Jillian Michaels would say – think through you choices! Next time I’m grabbing candy bar #100, I’ll try to remind myself this!

Speaking of sweet things… check out a sweet giveaway at Tri to Cook.

It killed and I loved every minute of it

BREAKFAST

Food for Life (FFL) cinnamon raising english muffin with Barney Butter and apple

LUNCH

Leftover veggie stir-fry with brown rice:

+ raisins

SNACKS

WEIL chocolada walnut bar

The ingredients list of this bar is stellar: organic dates, organic almonds, organic dried unsweetened coconut, organic walnuts, organic natural cocoa, organic vanilla extract. That’s it! I love it when the ingredients list sounds like a recipe! With that said, although I picked up this bar at the grocery to try (before my bar purchasing ban) I wasn’t that excited to try it. I’m a chocaholic and it’s hard for me to satisfy my sweet tooth with anything but real chocolate (and real chocolaty baked goods). I was surprised to be really enjoying the first few bites of the bar – a little firmer than a larabar (good chew), definite coconut flavor and lots of chocolate! I decided to close my eyes and forget that this thing came out of a little package and is date based and enjoy it like a real treat. It worked! I need to start rethinking my idea of healthy bars. Some of them may potentially be used instead of fatty treats. I think so much of it is in the presentation. If it came from a healthy bakery on a pretty plate, I’d probably be willing to pay big bucks for it and start craving it. Who knows?! Are there healthy bars that would satisfy your craving for a cookie or a brownie?

DINNER

Yesterday was Thursday but I chose to skip CEiMB for a week. I knew my husband would enjoy these shrimp cups much more.

I had some wonton skins left from last week’s chop suey and decided to make some pastry cups with them. Upon a quick search in Cooking Light I came across this recipe for chipotle shrimp cups. The recipe is super easy, which makes it perfect for a weeknight meal. I used regular size muffin pans and doubled up on the skins and the filling since we were eating them for dinner (mini ones would be perfect for a party to serve as finger food!). I had 3 of these with some cabbage/cucumber salad (let me know if you’re interested in a recipe for that. For some reason I feel like people aren’t too much into cabbage )

The wonton skins got really crunchy in the oven, a little too crunchy for my taste. Something more buttery like puff pastry would put them over the top but of course would be less healthy. The filling was great – shrimp, cheese and roasted red pepper go really well together. The cups kept all the filling juice inside them, which made for very juicy bites (keep napkins close by ).  Adam LOVED them!! Everything about them. He ate 6 and had to restrict himself from eating the rest. That’s what I call dinner success!

Mission accomplished – chocolate covered almonds GONE. Phew!

See you later alligators! I can’t wait for the weekend – we’re getting our place painted. It may be time for some before and after condo pics after that