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My Weekend in Review

Last week I had a lot going on at work - not only did I have all my weekly clients and meetings, but I was also facilitating a dietetic intern through the University of Minnesota.  While I love being a preceptor (so weird to think just 6 years ago I was an intern myself)! I was definitely in need of a relaxing weekend. 
 
First up was a much needed girls' night with my college friend Haley!  After work on Friday we met up and decided to try out a brewery nearby.  The pictures online looked cool, and even though the outside of the building was decorated....
 
...The condemnation notice below is what we found at the door.  Safe to say, we had a good laugh about it, and chose a different (and safer) hangout for the night.

 After our first brewery debacle, Haley decided on a bar she had visited before called Lucky's Pub. The one we checked out was in Mendota Heights, but they have locations all over MN.  We had appetizers and drinks upstairs, then later we hit up their "speakeasy" downstairs (see below).

 It had such a cool vibe, and later in the evening a jazz band performed - the saxophone soloist stole the show for sure!!  We spent at least 6 hours drinking wine and catching up on our lives...boy, has "going out" changed since our college years! ;)

Saturday and Sunday were mostly spent with just me and my lil' man, as Dee had a dance workshop in Iowa.  To show my home state some love in Minnesota, Eli rocked a somewhat 'vintage" Iowa State sweatshirt my aunt gave him for Christmas...


 ...and then he decided to "help" mom clean.  Needless to say, I won't be contracting him out anytime soon! (Hence, the messy living room behind him). ;)


 
On Saturday and Sunday, I also experimented with two new recipes from a food blogger a client recommended to me.  She has a cookbook with 77 slow cooker recipes ranging from desserts, chicken, beef, & seafood (yuck!) dishes.  I tried the Chicken Tikkha Masala and Slow Cooker Huevos Rancheros .  Dee and I were a little underwhelmed with the Indian dish, but did like the slow cooker egg bake (link above).  In addition to the recipe's ingredients, I also added in half a chopped onion, as well as some additional taco sauce - due to my own personal preference, I swapped out flour tortillas for corn tostada chips (after cooking).

 
*Note: My client brought a hard copy of this particular blogger's cookbook to our session.  The RD in me feels it is a duty to forewarn all readers that if you do purchase it, she does have her own opinions on what a "healthy diet" is.  In no way am I endorsing her beliefs by sharing her recipe link, but I will give her the credit of compiling a few decent recipes that'll put my Crockpot to good use. 
 
With home-cooked meals on the table all weekend, I was actually excited to watch the NFL playoffs on Sunday, as the Minnesota Vikings were playing.  I'll admit, I've never EVER been a real football fan, but all the Superbowl hype going on in the Twin Cities is pretty neat to experience first hand.  I have been kicking myself in the foot for not purchasing a "Can you DIGG it?!" t-shirt, and am even more bummed the Vikings won't be playing in their hometown February 4th.  BUT, there's always next year!
 
While the weekend has already ended, and my "work week" starts (We are currently in a Winter Storm Warning, expecting 4-8" of snow, and I have taken PTO for the rest of the night due to client cancellations) - the good news is I'm also starting off 2018 with new contacts!! I've been waiting 6+ months to get new ones with my new insurance, so I'm happy to finally check this off my "to-do" list!  While my eye appointment was less than amazing (i.e. it was the worst bed-side manner from an optometrist I've EVER experienced)! -  He did point out a possible correlation between my headaches & a potential eye issue called Convergence Insufficiency - basically my eyes strain to turn towards each other causing double vision at times, and those awful headaches between my eyebrows.  He's recommending visual therapy, so I'm really glad I stocked up on my flex spending account this year! 
Another day, another smile :)
Happy end of January, 2018!
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