Memorial Day Hike

Since sleeping in is basically unheard of in this household, we were up bright and early on this lovely holiday.

Ryan, my sister and I started our day with an easy and delicious breakfast by Van’s.

Van's French Toast Sticks

The Van’s cinnamon French toast sticks were a hit all around. All three of us enjoyed the crispy sticks topped with syrup.

Memorial Day Breakfast

Since we wanted to take Sadie hiking before the real heat of the day set in, we changed into our hiking clothes and hopped in the car.

While on our way to Weikwa Springs State Park, I drank a strawberry smoothie made with ice cubes, frozen strawberries, strawberry protein powder and ice cold water. I wanted a little protein in my belly to keep me full on our hike.

Strawberry Protein Smoothie

When we arrived, we decided to do a large loop, which we figured would take us around two hours to hike.

Sadie, Leslie & Ryan

Ready for Hiking

The Hiking Gang

Not even a half of a mile into our hike, we came across a deer!

Though he ran before I got a chance to snap his picture, I did manage to capture a little of his hiney!

Find the Deer!

We also stumbled upon a small tortoise, which Sadie wanted to make her new best friend.

Sadie + Torty

Hikers

Hot Dog

I wore my Garmin on our hike to see exactly how many miles we covered.

We ended up hiking just shy of six miles in a little less than two hours.

Hiking Stats

After a morning full of activity, we were ready for a filling lunch.

Lunch

To me, Memorial Day = BBQ time!

Ryan threw some hot dogs on the grill which we enjoyed with cucumber and sliced green and red pepper.

Memorial Day Dog

Peppa

My Plate

After lunch, we headed out back to soak up some sun and read our books. We didn’t last long though because it is H-O-T!

Now it’s time to run some much-needed errands, including a trip to the grocery store.

Question of the Afternoon

What’s your favorite food that’s traditionally served at a BBQ?

I love corn on the cob and watermelon. Yum!

Off to California…

…Pizza Kitchen, that is. ;D 

California Pizza Kitchen

After a good workout yesterday, my sister, Ryan and I had some grumbly tummies. I suggested grabbing dinner at California Pizza Kitchen because I recently received some “pizza dough” from the company to sample their new small cravings menu.  

Apparently they got wind of my intense love for CPK frozen pizzas and figured I might enjoy some of their restaurant fare as well. 😉   

Smilin' Sisters at CPK

We sat down in a comfy booth and immediately ordered two items off the small cravings menu to share: the Mediterranean plate and the crispy artichoke hearts. 

Mediterranean Plate

Mediterranean Plate: Our original recipe of Tuscan white bean hummus, Feta cheese topped with extra virgin olive oil and a Greek salad with cucumbers, red onions, fresh Roma tomatoes and Greek olives in our homemade lemon-herb vinaigrette. Served with our traditional pizza-pita bread. 

Hummus + Feta + Greek Salad + Pitas

 Crispy Artichoke Hearts: Artichoke hearts lightly fried with Japanese panko bread crumbs, then sprinkled with Parmesan cheese. Served with our homemade remoulade sauce. 

Crispy Artichoke Hearts

Both small cravings items were light, flavorful and would pair perfectly with a bowl of soup for a light lunch. 

The Greek salad included on the Mediterranean plate was my favorite. The saltiness of the olives and the fresh, crisp flavor of the cucumbers and tomatoes really complimented each other. 

For dinner, the three of us ordered two pizzas to share. 

Margherita Pizza: The classic Italian pizza. Made with imported Italian tomatoes, Mozzarella and fresh Mozzarella cheeses topped with fresh basil and Parmesan cheese. 

Margherita Pizza

Cheesy

Greek Pizza: Mediterranean spiced grilled chicken and Mozzarella cheese topped with a chilled Greek salad of cucumbers, red onions, fresh tomatoes, Greek olives, Feta cheese and a lemon-herb vinaigrette. Served with our homemade Tzatziki sauce and chopped Italian parsley.  

Greek Pizza

Lots o' Veggies

Both pizzas were really tasty. I loved all the veggies on the Greek pizza and CPK’s homemade Tzatziki sauce was fantastic. 

The Margherita pizza was prepared on a thin crust with lots of cheese and fresh tomatoes. It tasted the way a gourmet classic pizza should taste. Very good! 

I had two large slices of the Greek pizza and one slice of the Margherita pizza, but still had room to share a dessert with Ryan and Leslie. 

We opted for the hot fudge brownie sundae, which, according to the menu is an old fashioned chocolate brownie, served warm and topped with Häagen-Dazs vanilla ice cream, CPK’s triple-thick hot fudge, fresh whipped cream, pecans and a cherry. Are you drooling yet? 😀 

Ryan's "I'm Full but Still Have Room for Dessert" Smile

Hot Fudge Brownie Sundae

I think the sundae lasted about 60 seconds once it was placed in front of us, and that includes the time I took to snap a quick picture. 

The warm, fudgy brownie was moist and perfectly sweet. When paired with the creamy, cool vanilla ice cream, hot fudge and whipped cream, we were all in dessert heaven. 

We all agreed our meal at CPK was a-okay! 🙂 

After dinner, we walked around the mall where the restaurant was located for about 10 minutes before heading home to relax for the evening. 

Today’s Plans 

Today Ryan, my sister and I are hoping to head out to some nearby trails with Sadie for some Memorial Day hiking. I’m hoping to bust out the grill for a classic Memorial Day BBQ when we return for lunch! 

What are your Memorial Day plans?