Another One Bites the Dust......... a.k.a. Stephen's Birthday

Over the past weekend, I celebrated my 28th birthday. I decided that I had been working too much and not taking a chance to relax, so I took off the weekend, packed my bags and Jesse & I went to Houston. I enjoyed spending my birthday with family as my parents also drove over and we all stayed with my sister and her husband.

To show how much relaxing we indulged in, below are the pictures of our breakfast as we left out of Baton Rouge on Friday morning. Lets take a wild guess at who has which breakfast??

If you guessed that I enjoyed the traditional Chocolate Milk and Mary Lee Donuts, you would be correct. Jesse enjoyed a nice breakfast from Community Coffee House consisting of a Latte and cake.

Of course after Jesse enjoyed breakfast and we hit the open road, she quickly pulled out her favorite travel companion, her pillow and blanket. Can you feel the love from her on my 5 hour drive as she sleeps? Not to fear, about an hour and forty-five minutes in, we had to stop in for gas. As I woke her up to let her know we were having a fill up with gas, stretch, and bathroom stop, I jokingly said, "Want to go hold baby alligators across the street??" Granted I've seen this place a bunch of times driving to Houston, but have never stopped to go. But to my surprise, she responded, " Heck yea I wanna hold a baby gator." So hopefully she'll forgive me for posting this picture below, but she was already in her sleep portion of the trip when she was suddenly woke up for this experience.

On Friday night, before dinner, Jesse and my sister and mother went and enjoyed a pedicure in Rice Village. After returning, my sister and brother-in-law wanted to take Jesse and I out for dinner to get to know her a little better, since this was the first time since we started dating that they had a chance to meet her. So we decided since it was still Lent and on a Friday, to head over to Woodrow's in The Heights for some boiled Crawfish.

Jesse and I decided to grab and early morning run on Saturday. Since the train and dogs woke us up early, we headed out about 8 am. We went to the nearby Buffalo Bayou Walking trail. We started towards downtown Houston, unfortunately it was rather foggy still, so in the pictures you couldn't see the sky-scrapers. Instead for your viewing pleasure, we provide a stretch of the trail through the trees.

After we finished our run, we headed back to my sisters to clean up and grab breakfast. My brother-in-law once again out did himself on the breakfast prepared for six people at 9 am. It was a good start to the day, which parlayed into our trip up to Cypress to the Houston Premium Outlets. This was a major item on the agenda for both Jesse and I as we had both been getting into better shape and as everyone knows, when you lose weight and inches exercising, your clothes begin to fall off and no longer fit. So Jesse was mainly looking for jeans, shorts, and some cute tops. I on the other hand had a main focus on jeans, with the wondering eye looking out for dress pants for work, some new khaki shorts, and some casual shirts. My sister and mom took the opportunity to go with us as well and the below shot of Jesse's SUV shows everyone's success in Cypress.

After the outlet mall, we made a quick b line to Chuy's Mexican Restaurant for dinner. We met up with my dad and brother-in-law, Mike. As always, Chuy's hit the spot with the delicious food, even though I was a little disappointed they would not substitute beef for chicken on the chimichanga.

Sunday morning, Jesse and I went with my parents to church in Memorial park for Palm Sunday. I must admit that having the priests we did was enjoyable. One of the priests was from the United Kingdom and he waved the palms around as someone at a sporting events would wave a rally towel. Unfortunately, my mind continued to wonder and somewhat have the occasional laugh at the thought of him at a Manchester United match. Like I said, my mind can wonder at times. But my mom looked it up when we got back to Baton Rouge and apparently the church wants us to celebrate with the palms as he was doing.

After church we stopped at a local nursery and picked up some herb plants to bring back and rejuvenate our herb garden. We then met up with everyone at Saltgrass Steak House for my birthday lunch. Aside from the pair of screaming kids next to us just to hear themselves scream, as the parents laughed and didn't try to calm the situation, it was a great lunch. I enjoyed the 6 oz. Filet Mignon wrapped in bacon topped with Bleu Cheese crumbles and melted butter served with mashed potatoes and caesar salad. Jesse enjoyed a 6 oz. Sirloin Steak served with soup.

Jesse and I broke away and headed to the Galleria to walk around and look at various stores, but I learned a quadrant to keep her away from. I know in a few years that I will need to keep her away from the quadrant of Sephora, Tory Burch, Burberry, Louis Vuitton, Kate Spade, and Zara. Other than that quadrant, her eyes never really lit up.

After leaving the Galleria, we headed over to Trader Joe's to see what we've heard so much about and get a preview of what's coming to Baton Rouge. We grabbed some great things which aren't available in Baton Rouge, so we'll definitely be shopping there when it opens. And of course, I can't go without saying that while Jesse was having a pedicure, the men headed to Spec's and I was able to find one of Jesse's favorite wines, Covey Run.

It was time to head back to Baton Rouge and what does Jesse do?? And of course, she grabs the pillow and blanket out. 

We all enjoyed the nice break from the busy schedule and getting to relax in Houston for my birthday was the perfect choice. Even though I hate the fact that I'm climbing in age, at least with Jesse by my side and family around, I'll be aging like a fine wine only getting better as the years pass by.

Another Birthday for Jesse!!! And Stephen's isn't far behind :/

Over the past weekend, Jesse celebrated her birthday. She undoubtably did not enjoy making that leap of age into the late twenties. I really have no room to talk, I'm already in my late twenties and have accepted that I'm not going to get younger in age by number, but I can get younger, faster, and stronger in ability of mind and body.

I never realized what kind of girl I fell in love with, apparently I didn't notice she is a four year old trapped in an aging body who is over the age of twenty one. What makes me have this comment?? Oh just the fact that the breakfast she asked me to make her on her birthday morning was a banana cake batter protein pancake with sprinkles baked inside, topped with bubble gum flavored icing, sprinkles, & candles.

Even though she is a kid when it comes to her birthday, apparently I have blonde hair that is just colored wrong. Last night I cooked a dinner for Jesse and my parents. How simple is cooking chicken wrapped in bacon?? Not only did I mess it up, I burned the heck out of the first two pieces of chicken.

My only defense was that I was using my cast iron skillet for maybe the third time, used a little too much extra virgin olive oil, and had the temperature raised too high for too long (I didn't think the skillet would heat up that quickly).

I will admit that there are no pictures of my disaster, only because my plate did not resemble the fact I was eating chicken wrapped in bacon, but Jesse made some delicious twice baked potatoes. She'll have to give the recipe just in case you don't already know how to do it, like me.

Unfortunately for the two of us, we've been rather busy and fell off the healthy eating and working out schedule we had created. Fear not, we will be jumping back on the wagon after this weekend and/or whenever we get back from Houston for my birthday weekend.

Stephen's Weekly Recap: A Slice of Heaven

Little did I know that an ordinary Wednesday could help turn this week into an outstanding week, might I even say "A Slice of Heaven?"

Everyone always thinks that it's the major events in a young couple's relationship that helps shape the direction they end up going. I agree to some degree, but my thoughts are that Jesse and I seem to be able to stray away from the major events and let the everyday events shape our relationship.

Valentine's Day was a nice occasion to celebrate, but it shouldn't be just once a year that you give of yourself to your significant other, but often throughout the year.

Sunday
"A Slice of Heaven" comes to mind when I recall the life I've been fortunate to lead ever since Jesse stepped into it. There is a time when people consider their lives to be too fast or just plain ole busy; I felt that way this Sunday after my shift at work. Even though I just wanted to come home from work and relax, Jesse and I chose to go to church almost immediately after I got off. It's nice to know that, despite my coming home from work completely worn out, we both believe in something so heartily that we choose to spend an hour of together in silence for something we value so deeply.

Monday
Jesse had work while I was in class, and then I went to work after class. Luckily for me, Jesse wasn't too far away, volunteering with a local non-profit (Project Purr) at kiosk nearby. Granted it was not the best time at work having customer issues, but Jesse said something to me that made me realize just how happy I am with her: "Even when you are having the worst night at work and are so frustrated that you are angry, you treat me no differently than you have before. You gave me the gentlest hug and sweetest kiss as if nothing were wrong in the world." That made me realize that I treat and act with Jesse like I did when I played sports. When I cross the chalked line and onto the playing field, I block out all the exterior events and noises and only focus on whats going on inside the chalk. 

I surprised Jesse by stopping by after work to see her, even though I had said I needed to relax so I wouldn't take my bad day out on her. My stress relief is typically to cook, so Jesse was shocked when I decided that at 10 P.M., we were going to have a crab boil, minus the crab, but with red potatoes, sausage, garlic, and mushrooms.

Crab Boil Potatoes, Sausage, Mushrooms, and Garlic

Yum!! Sorry the picture is minus the mushrooms.

Yes, I did have a little too much water in the pot,
so we had a mess to clean up. (Jesse, you were correct.)

Recipe:
65.5 oz  Red Potatoes 
(roughly 25 potatoes)
28 oz   Jennie-O Turkey Kielbasa (14 servings)
8 oz (or more) whole button mushrooms
1 head of garlic
5.5 oz  Louisiana Fish Fry Crab & Shrimp Boil

The serving sizes for the following nutrition:
2 oz of Sausage
1 Red Potatoes

Nutrition Per Serving:
Sausage:
Calories: 90, Fat: 5g, Cholesterol: 30mg, Sodium: 897mg, Carbs: 1g, Fiber: 0g, Sugars: 1g, Protein: 8g

Red Potatoes:
Calories: 10, Fat: 0g, Cholesterol: 0mg, Sodium: 194.4mg, Carbs: 2.3g, Fiber: 1g, Sugars: 0.5g, Protein: 1.4g


Tuesday
Just an ordinary day with school and work for both Jesse and I. After we both got home, I had the brilliant idea of going to Walmart at 9:30 P.M. to buy groceries. I say brilliant considering I hadn't eaten dinner yet, and Jesse ate dinner four hours earlier. Needless to say, we might have been buying groceries with our stomachs rather than our initial "shopping list" plan. Granted we did buy healthy items or ingredients to make healthy dishes, but we also learned to eat dinner before making a grocery run.

I think there are some things people dread doing, and grocery shopping is typically one of those things. As I said earlier, it's the little things that shape a relationship....even going grocery shopping is enjoyable for Jesse and I to do together.

Wednesday
Not only did I get a nice stretch in at the gym before class, but after class when I got back to Baton Rouge, Jesse and I enjoyed a nice jog around the LSU lakes at sunset. We both built up a nice sweat in the cold, but if the frigid (Yes, I said frigid.... we are from Louisiana and frigid is anything below 60 degrees) wind can help you lose weight, we should have lost an additional 10 lbs each.

Taken at the 2 mile mark of our 4 mile run!
Having a great jog in the winter night.

After our run we met up with my parents for dinner since they hadn't seen Jesse in a little while, nor myself all that much. Unfortunately, we all have such busy schedules that even though we live in the same city, we only get together for dinner once every week or two, if we are lucky.

We all enjoyed Zippy's in Baton Rouge, LA. The easiest way to describe Zippy's is a mom-and-pop Subway for Mexican food. How healthy was it you might ask? Probably not that great, but we tried to make good choices. Jesse had a veggie burrito, minus the flour tortilla. So basically she had a bowl of veggies (grilled onions, bell peppers, mushroom, black beans, corn, salsa, and a little rice. No cheese or sour cream; she's going dairy-free for Lent). I can honestly say she eats less meat than I do vegetables, haha. I, on the other hand, had ground beef soft tacos (ground beef, cheese, and salsa). Soft tacos homemade tend to be healthier, so I am content with the decision versus getting a quesadilla or a chimichanga.

What better way to end the night?? No other way except to stop in at Whole Foods for some fresh fruit and coconut yogurt (for Jesse's dairy free life) to prep for our first try at protein pancakes. Yes, we are taking part in National Pancake Week. (I think IHOP invented it for a promotion, haha)

AND... my parents texted me on the way to Whole Foods just to say how much they enjoy having Jesse as a part of my life. I mean, how nice is it to have family that enjoys spending time with their children's significant others?? I always hear horror stories about in-laws from all my married friends.

Thursday
We had a pretty standard day as usual with both of us at school during the day. The great thing about it was that I was off from work for the second night in a row, so I could spend some time with my sweetheart.

When I first got to Jesse's, we left out and stopped at Whole Foods for some Almond Milk. Jesse ran in while I was on the phone with my mother. My mom had been up at the hospital earlier in the day for a relative's injury, which spurred her to think of me and Jesse. A relative had been in the gym and apparently brushed up against a machine and had a cut which got infected over 2-3 weeks time. While my mother was at the hospital, the doctor was telling the relatives that it is actually a common thing for people who typically go to the gym to get an infection such as this. The doctor stated that if the infection gets down into the bone, then the leg or arm has to be cut open to clean all the infection out, with the worst case scenario being amputation. So after my mom heard this, Jesse and I received a phone call warning us about wiping down all the equipment before and after use and to wear pants and clothing that covered bare skin to help prevent cuts that could be infected.

While I finished the conversation with my mom, we drove over to the local animal vet office to pick up Marco (the foster cat) from being neutered. Fortunately for us there were no issues, unlike the young girl behind us in line. As we are waiting for Marco to be brought from the back of the office, the lady behind the counter asks the young girl if she needed help. The young girl steps forward and responds, "I'm not sure if I spoke to you on the phone, but I called about this earlier. I brought my dog in here back in April 2012 to be neutered, well..... he's still got his testicles. I know he has one for sure, I've seen it hanging." The look on most of people around the counter was priceless, and almost immediately and involuntarily I say, "Well this just turned rather awkward for him." Needless to say, we grabbed Marco and ran for the car, hoping they took care of him correctly.

After we got home from picking up Marco, we moved some furniture around in the living room so that we could do a core body circuit.

Core Body Circuit:

• Wall Sit
• Lunges
• Squats
• Planks
• Sit-Ups
• Push-Ups
• Leg Raises
• Bicep Curls
• Chest Expander
• Superman's

Each exercise was 1 minute, with a 15 second rest in between each rotation. We ended up completing 2 rounds of the circuit before we were worn out and starving.

Next up on the agenda was our first try at protein pancakes, which were delicious might I add. We finished up eating dinner and watching The Biggest Loser episode from Monday on the DVR.

Question: You've seen the type of week we've had, what kind of week would be your "Slice of Heaven?"