Our crazy Labor Day Weekend was such a great success! Everything turned out so great and the weekend was fantastic!

It started off at the bridal shop, where I got to try on wedding gowns for the very first time! It was such a crazy feeling to see myself in them! It really made this chapter in my life feel so real!

I invited all my bridesmaids to experience this special moment with me, but only Lauren Shulman & Schmucker, Loreyn and Christie could make it. They brought champagne and we had a celebration right there in the shop!

Immediately after the dress fitting, the girls and I headed to Quiet Waters Park in Deerfield Beach to celebrate Jordan's birthday. It was so hot, but Nicole brought tons of delicious foods prepared by her mother, who owns an Italian restaurant with her father! :) 

Saturday was definitely an eventful one! Brett and I headed straight to the Marriott after the party, where we met with his parents and my parents already preparing for the engagement party the next day! We all hung out together and got some dinner at Johnny Longboats, a cute little restaurant on the strip near Singer Island Beach!

The food was great, and I was still trying to be healthy for our photos we were taking in the morning! I got grilled fish with a house salad and grilled veggies! Mmm....I couldn't wait for the party so I could eat some carbs!


Sunday morning, Brett and I woke up super early to get ready to take our Engagement photos! I was super excited about this, but also a little nervous! It was scorching hot out! We had to dab ourselves with towels every 15 seconds so we didn't look sweaty in all the photos! They came out amazing, though! I am so thankful that it was so sunny and beautiful out, even though I melted, because the colors look fantastic! (We finally got copies of them! Check out a sneak peak of some of our favs here!) 


That evening it was time for our engagement party! It was so much fun! Everyone said they had such a great time! We played "The Newlywed Game" even though we aren't married yet, but it was still fun! Paul made a cute DVD of our favorite pictures that he had taken that day and played it for everyone to see, which was a real hit! Take a look at some of the festivities! 

The party was such a success! My mom, with Debi's help of course, did a great job with everything! We had tons of food left over, which served as our breakfast and lunch the next two days!

I had nothing planned for Monday, so I was really excited to just relax! My Mom and Dad and Brett and I headed down to the pool in the morning to hang out and get some sun. Brett and I stopped off at the bar first to get a delicious frozen beverage, we like to call Lava Flows, also known as a Miami Vice. 

Of course, the one day we had to relax by the pool, it started to thunderstorm at around 4:00pm! We decided to head up and relax before heading to an early dinner at Max & Eddie's, an Italian restaurant that has been near the resort since we started going there! We indulged in two large pizzas loaded with delicious meats! Yumm!

Tuesday was our last day down in South Florida, and we had scheduled our first tour of a possible venue to have our wedding. We headed down to Hollywood, Florida to visit the Westin Diplomat Resort! Check out what we found on my wedding planning page! Click here!

Friday is finally here! I feel like I have been waiting for this day to come for months! I started off the morning strong with my usual spin class, and a little extra weight training. I was pretty hungry when I got home, so I decided to make a miniature egg white, canadian bacon, and cheese omlete, which hit the spot as I gobbled it down in 5 bites!

I get to leave work early today at 1:30pm for the holiday weekend, and Brett and I are heading straight down to West Palm Beach for the long weekend! We have a jam-packed weekend ahead of us, and the plans are as follows:

Saturday:
·         At 10 am in the morning I have my first dress fitting! I am bringing some of my bridesmaids, and my mother of course, so it should be quite an exciting event!
·         Straight from the dress fitting, I will be heading down to Fort Lauderdale with the girls to celebrate Nicole’s boyfriend, Jordan’s birthday! She rented a picnic area for us at a park that has zip line wakeboarding! We are all going to grill, drink beer, wakeboard, and celebrate the day there, so that should be fun!
·         While I am at the fitting, Brett will be golfing with Paul in Fort Lauderdale, and will meet us at the park afterwards.
·         Saturday night, after Brett’s parents arrive at the Marriott, we will be meeting up with them that evening for dinner.

Sunday:
·         Bright and early in the morning, Paul is coming up to take our engagement photos! I am so excited!
·         After the photos, we will probably head back to the hotel to set up for the engagement party that my parents are throwing us! Should be a great time with so many people! The party starts at 5pm.
·         Sunday evening will consist of drinking wine, gossiping with guests, and maybe even a little hot tube time after sunset! J

Monday:
·        A day of relaxing...hopefully, and maybe a nice early morning run on the beach!

Tuesday:
·        At 10am in the morning, we have our first wedding site visit at the Westin Diplomat in Hollywood, Florida! My mom and Dad are coming with us, it should be a treat! I am excited to see what it is like!
·        Afterwards, we are heading back to Orlando! Phew! What a weekend!

So this weekend, Brett's fraternity little brother, Paul, is being so kind to help us with our engagement photos! We are so excitied that he is helping us with this, not only cause he's a good friend of ours, but because it will be a huge help on the budget! He has so many great ideas, and I am so excited to see how they come out!

Because the photos are being taken this weekend, Brett has decided to put us both on a 5-day fitness plan, to slim down for the photos, so we look our best! I was all about it and ready to "Bring It!" as they say in P90X.

Brett's plan is a low-carb, low-calorie, high intensity exercise plan. The menu will consist of the following...for all 5 days. (Woo-hoo how exciting dieting is! hehe)

Breakfast:
·         2 egg whites
·         1 fat free/light yogurt
·         1 6oz glass of Odwalla Original Superfood™ Micronutrient Fruit Juice Drink

Lunch:
·         ¼ pound of reduced sodium chicken breast from the deli, with deli mustard, wrapped in an iceberg lettuce leaf
·         Side of tomato and cucumber salad with balsamic vinegar and pepper

Snack:
·         Piece of fruit

Dinner:
·         Lean meat such as pork or chicken, or fish
·         Non-starchy Vegetable

The Fitness Plan is as follows:
All daily routines consisted of either 3 or 4 exercises, of 4 sets each, starting with very heavy weight and less reps, down to lighter weights and more reps.

Monday:
·         10 min cardio warm-up
·         Chest
·         Ab Ripper X (From the P90X series)

Tuesday:
·         10 min cardio warm-up
 ·         Shoulders
·         Obliques

Wednesday:
·         10 min cardio warm-up
·         Biceps 
·        Ab Ripper X

Thursday:
·         10 min cardio warm-up
·         Triceps  
·         Legs

Friday:
·         My usual morning spin class
·         Back
·         Lower Abs & Obliques

When I got home from work on Friday, Stephen was already here and we said our hellos, hung out for a little while over a couple of beers, then headed out to meet Brett's other cousin Lindsay for dinner. 

We went to BJ's Restaurant and Brewhouse, which is actually right by Brett and I's apartment, but neither of us had ever been there. 

I was pleasantly surprised at how good the food was! I was expecting more of a corporate feel to the restaurant, where everything is pretty much pre-packaged or pre-made, but all the food was really fresh and delicious! 

Since I am not a professional blogger yet, I of course forgot to take pictures of the food, but I will tell you what we ordered! We started off with chips and salsa (which by the way are better than Chili's, which are my favorite and I would never go against Chili's, but kind of have to in this case!) and tomato and mozzarella salad, with a balsamic glaze. I got a Chicken Teriyaki Stirfry, for my main course, that I gobbled up too quickly to even pull out the camera, anyways! I would definitely go there again!

At least I got a picture of the fam!

We had a fun night at dinner, and even spent more time together at a pool hall, called Backstage Billiards, right around the corner from our house, before heading home for the night.

In the morning, I woke up before the guys so that I could get some running time in. My times are getting a lot better, and I up-ed the speed to 5.9, which I haven't done before! Check it out:

I was pretty excited about the run, but I had to get back to the apartment to get ready so that we could head to Tampa. The boys were waiting for me to get ready when I got in, so I quickly showered and dressed so we could hit the road.

I only had time fore a Luna Protein Bar, which I ate in the car and was looking forward to Peggy's famous greek salad!!

We were heading to our Live Fantasy Football Draft at our favorite pub and eatery, Peggy Oneil's. Every time I go I get the greek salad, because it is authentic with the homemade potato salad at the bottom! 

Our live draft was chaotic, but really fun, and we all had a really great time picking all of our players! Lunch was our halfway point, so that salad was a nice little break!

I was last in the draft, so I got to pick twice in a row, but my quarterback, Drew Brees, was long gone by then! So was Adrian Peterson! But that's ok, I think I made out pretty well. Here is my starting lineup:

Quarterback: Kevin Kolb, Eagles

Running Backs: Pierre Thomas, Jamaal Charles

Wide Receivers: Wes Wellker, Larry Fitzgerald, Donald Driver, 

Tight End: Brent Celek

Defense: Baltimore Ravens

Kicker: Stephen Gostkowski

So far the matchup is 90 points (me) to 98 points. Let's hope they pull through for me!

The Live Draft pretty much took up most of the afternoon, so when we were finished, it was time to head to the Bucs vs. Jags preseason game!


We got a really good deal on tickets in really good seats, with a parking pass! It was a lot of fun...minus the rain delay...but we had Miller Lite so it was ok! The stadium is awesome!

It was definitely a fun-filled weekend, and little Winnie sure felt the same way! This is his sleeping in the car on the drive back to Orlando!

So, I was bad today! It is not my fault though! Today at work, at around 3:10pm (which is my mid-day snack time) our banquets department delivered us 4 trays full of our Award-winning pastry chef, Laurent Branlard's  chocolates! They are like little bite size mystery chocolates, kind of like the ones pictured here:

Of course I had to try them all, they just look so interesting!
 
My favorite one, though, didn't look like any of the above chocolates. There were different versions of them with a glod of either white, dark, or milk chololate, with dried pineapple, craisions, pistacios, and almond slivers on top! It was like little bite sized trailmix! What a perfect little snack, but I had to force mysef to stop eating them. Good thing I am going running after work tonight!

T.G.I.T. (Thank Goodness It's Thursday!) has become Brett and I's new thing, because he doesn't have to work on Fridays, and we can stay up a little later together, so it's kind of exciting for me too! :)

I woke up extra early this morning to fit in a Powerflex class. I woke up almost simultaneously with my alarm clock and hopped right out of bed to get ready! I think it's because I took it easy yesterday and Tuesday and was ready for a full on workout! (Working all this overtime really puts a lot of stress on my back, and makes me extremely tired when I get home!)

After the powerflex class, I felt a lot better, but my stomach was ready for some fuel! As much as I was craving a big bowl of my cereal again, we were all out of milk, so I had to think of something else! :(

It's ok though, because my Egg McMuffin sandwich hit the spot!

Brett finally came home from his 2 nights out of town for work. Finally! You know when he's home when I get cooked big meals like these delicious Turkey Burgers! Yumm!

I had two Claussen pickles on the side. The best kosher dill on the market!

After dinner, Brett and I talked about the week, and our plans for the weekend, and just caught up on everything pretty much. It's surprising how much you can talk about when you haven't seen each other in 3 days!

I had a lot on my mind about wedding save the dates, going back to school, and plans for the weekend.

So, to elaborate:

1. Wedding Save the Dates: I found this website that I absolutely love, that has all types of wedding invitations and other stationary, personalized party favors, and wedding party gifts. (www.weddingpaperdivas.com)

I found these save-the-dates that I fell in love with that I wanted  to purchase after we got our engagement photos taken. I know that I have a while to think about what I want (we haven't even set a date yet!) but I was adding up totals and wasn't really into the idea of spending $100 on save-the-dates!

So, I was trying to be a DIY Bride-to-be, and think of clever ways to re-create the save-the-date I found from the website, in a cheaper version. I did some research and found some great tips from other brides that sparked an original idea of mine! I am a loyal patron of Walgreens photo, and always get my prints from them. They have really great gift ideas like calendars, mugs, mouse pads, and collages. I am working on a design of my own that would only cost .29 cents a print at Walgreens! I will keep you posted on how that turns out!

2. Going back to school: I have been thinking a lot about this recently, and I think the Back to School hype that is going around right now is really pushing me into high gear. I love my job and the Marketing aspect of it, and would love to learn more about graphic design, in the Marketing industry. I talked it over with my mom and Brett and they both think that it is a great idea. I am really excited about it as well, because my company has a tuition reimbursement program that I am going to apply for. I am going to start the process, and see what happens!

3. Plans for the Weekend: This weekend, Brett and I, and his cousin Stephen, who is visiting us from Boston, are taking a trip to Tampa for our Live Family Fantasy Football Draft! Brett and I are so excited, we even typed up our players to bring with us to the draft! This weekend is perfect too, because the Tampa Bay Buccaneers are playing the Jacksonville Jaguars in Tampa on Saturday night! We don't have tickets yet, but we are hoping to get some good priced ones, once we get into Tampa, so that should be a lot of fun!

Ahh, now that I got that off my chest I can rest a little easier! On with the rest of the week!

I have been on a cereal kick this week! I have had cereal every morning so far, and I can't get enough!

I made my usual cereal with berries, but this time I mixed my two (new) favorite cereals: Kashi Heart to Heart Cinnamon and Kashi Go Lean Crunch Honey Almond. Delicious!

I love the crunchiness of the Go Lean Crunch and the flavor of the cinnamon from the Heart to Heart! Plus I can't get enough of the little cereal hearts!

After breakfast, I took Win out for his morning walk. Lately, the weather in the morning has been beautiful! It is probably because of all the rain and afternoon storms, but it didn't show this morning! There was a gorgeous cool breeze and no humidity. It made the walk alot more enjoyable.

The sunrise was also quite a site this morning. The sky made a really neat pattern and had such rich colors!

So, last night I was on my own for dinner because Brett was out of town for work. I had no idea what I was going to make but had an itch for some pizza.

I thought to myself, "Hmm, I have cheese, sauce, toppings, put what to do about the crust?" I looked in the fridge and had some low carb tortillas and thought that they could make a good low carb, thin crust pizza.

Alright, let's do it! I had no idea how it was going to turn out, but I actually enjoyed it immensely!

I baked the tortiall at 400 degrees for about 5 minutes, to crisp it up. Then I added the sauce, fat free cheese, broccoli, more cheese, and oregano. I baked it for about another 10 minutes, or until the crust was a golden brown, and the cheese was melted, and wha la!

Today Brett and I have plans to go golfing!! Well, not really golfing because I am just learning, but to the driving range to practice. 


I woke up bright and early to go to the gym before hitting the links. (I love saying that :) ) I also made Brett and I a healthy breakfast sandwich to fuel us for the day.

I scrambled up 2 egg whites with a little pepper in the skillet and topped them with a little fat free cheese, toasted an engligh muffin and warmed up a slice of canadian bacon, then put it all together. I have never bought canadian bacon at the store before, but thought it might kick up a breakfast sandwich a notch....and it did! It added a really good salty flaver and made the sandiwch what it was! I enjoyed a cup of Newman's Own Organic coffee on and fresh blueberries and strawberries on the side.  

I love trying new athletic things, like sports, or running races and triathlons. It is great to get outside and practice and when you hit that ball straight in the air, it feels so good! I was impressed with myself today at the range and actually made contact with almost every ball. (And that is way better than I have done the previous times I have been there!)


We played at the Rosen Shingle Creek Resort and we love the service there. They also give Rosen Student a great discount, and since I went there, I consider myself one....still. :D

That was fun!


After we hit up the driving range, I begged Brett to come to the mall with me because Macy's was having a huge sale! I really wanted to pick out a pretty dress for our engagement photos and engagement party my mother is throwing us when we go down on Labor Day. There was so much great stuff I probably could have spent all day there, but Brett was getting anxious so we had to actually leave. I think I found one though, Let me know what you think:

I worked up an appetite at the mall and was excited to make lunch! I made a delicious hummus wrap with carrots, iceberg lettuce, cucumbers, green pepper and calamata olives. 

Paragraph.

My next plan was to lay out today, but it is currently raining, so Brett and I are going to go watch a movie. We have plans to meet up with Jessica and Michael for dinner tonight so that should be fun! So you later!