Wedding Cake: The Selection Process Begins

Today’s lunch took me out of the office!

Several of my coworkers and I headed to Dexter’s, a cute restaurant in Thornton Park, for make-your-own sandwiches!  (You may read about my past lunches at Dexter’s here and here.)

I ordered a roast beef sandwich on whole wheat bread with all the veggies and Dijon mustard. I didn’t snap a picture of my meal, so please enjoy this replica from a past lunch at Dexter’s when I ordered a turkey sandwich!

Replace the Turkey with Roast Beef in Your Mind!

The whole wheat bread at Dexter’s is delicious and has lots of seeds throughout the slices which gives it a nutty texture that I adore.

A Peek Inside

I ate every last bite! 😀

Though I typically prefer to each lunch at my desk to save moo-lah, it was really nice to get out of the office and chat it up this afternoon!

Wedding Cake

I am unbelievably excited for this weekend!

Ryan and I have some seriously fun wedding-related appointments on the agenda, one of which is tasting and selecting the design of our wedding cake!

There are so many different cake designs to choose from. One thing Ryan and I know for sure is that we want a tiered cake with only white icing. I think cakes with colored icing can be adorable, but we both prefer a simple, color-free look.

I would love to incorporate some beautiful flowers from our florist into the cake, preferably on the top, as I think flowers on a wedding cake can add a pop of color and a romantic, feminine look which appeals to me.

I am pretty much obsessed with Jessica’s wedding cake…

The "How Sweet It Is" Wedding Cake

Isn’t it amazing? (Aside from looking breathtakingly beautiful, it also had a chocolate fudge center. Heaven.)

Though Ryan and I were asked to select several cake flavors to try during our tasting this weekend, we selected only one (red velvet cake) and told the pastry chefs to “surprise us” with the other flavors by selecting popular flavors people seem to enjoy.

I’m excited to see what they have in store!

Blowing Out the Candles on My Red Velvet Birthday Cake

Side note: If you are a red velvet cake fan like we are, definitely try making these red velvet cake brownies. SO tasty!

Question of the Afternoon

• What was the flavor (or flavors) of your wedding cake?
• If you’re not married, what flavor wedding cake would you like for your big day?

Typical Lunchtime Sides

Meat ‘n’ cheese. The old stand by!

Roast Beef + Provolone

Sometimes I forget how delicious a simple sandwich made with lunch meat and a slice of cheese can be.

The Spread

Today I was reminded of just how tasty this elementary school staple is when I bit into my roast beef and Provolone cheese sandwich.

I used a slice of Land O Lakes Provolone cheese with smoke flavor in the sandwich, which was fantastically flavorful and packed a protein-punch (6 grams!) to boot . Yum!

I included fresh spinach, deli mustard and sauerkraut on the sandwich to make it a little more “adult.” 😉

Spinach + 'Kraut

On the side, I snacked on green pepper slices and two large handfuls of cherry tomatoes.

And a Side of Nutrition, Please

I love eating fresh, raw veggies at lunchtime. They fill me up, pack a nutritional punch and aren’t too bad to look at either. Talk about vibrant color!

Though I love raw veggies now, when I was growing up they rarely made an appearance in my lunchbox.

As a kid my side items of choice included:

• Gushers (Seriously, how good were these?)
• Hi-C fruit snacks
• Fruit roll-ups
• HoHos
• Apple slices

I also remember always feeling jealous of my friend Kristen’s bag of Harvest Cheddar SunChips!

When you were growing up, what were your typical lunchtime “sides?”

Ladies Who Lunch

According to Wikipedia, ladies who lunch are “slim, well-off, old-money, well-dressed women who meet for lunch socially, normally during the work week. Typically, the women involved are married and non-working.”

Well, today I was a lady who lunched with two friends, but all of us are employed, and only two of us were married (Not me… at least not yet!)… We’re off the mark a bit from Wikipedia’s definition, but I think that’s a good thing. 😉

Lunching Ladies

Are you a “lady who lunches?” If not, would you want to be?

I’ll take the old-money, well-off, slim stuff… but the “unemployed” part throws me for a loop! I think I function better when I have more stuff on my plate, and without kids or anything to occupy me in the day, I think I’d go crazy without a job!

Lunch

Today I met up with my friends (and former coworkers) Ryan and Ashley for lunch downtown.

Ryan and Ashley

I enjoyed a roast beef and provolone cheese unwich (a sandwich made on lettuce rather than bread) from Jimmy John’s.

Jimmy John's Roast Beef and Provolone Cheese Unwich

We had a nice time catching up over yummy food.

Ashley got married in the beginning of January and I haven’t seen her since her wedding. I loved hearing about her newly married life.

Ryan ran her first half marathon at the end of February and I was anxious to hear about her race. She did awesome! We’ll both be running in a 10K on Saturday which should be lots o’ fun. 🙂

Q & A Update

Last night I took a lot of time revamping my Q&A page. I added a bunch of the questions I received multiple times during the Ask Me Anything week to the page and I think it’s a lot more comprehensive. I hope you enjoy! As always, if you have any questions, I’d love to hear from you at pbfingers@gmail.com.

Tonight

After work today Ryan and I are taking a mini road trip (Does a one-hour drive count as a road trip?) to Winter Haven to check out some scuba diving equipment that my dad found on craigslist.

The pricing seems great and we’re anxious to see if the stuff looks good in person. The couple is about our size so hopefully everything will fit and be functional.

We’re hoping to get some decent scuba gear as the summer approaches because we want to be able to dive a lot!

Are you a fan of craigslist? Have you ever bought anything from someone who posted something on the site?

I love craigslist. I’ve found three apartments and a couch on craigslist. I’m quite a fan!

Day Date

I love a good date in the middle of the day!

Something as simple as meeting up with Ryan for a quick lunch at a nearby sub shop makes my day a little brighter. 😀

Ryan + Bootlegger Club Sandwich

(Doesn’t his new haircut look cute?)

Ready to Dig In!

Ryan met me on the first floor of my office building and we walked to Jimmy John’s, my favorite chain sandwich restaurant. When I moved away from Illinois, I thought I’d never see a Jimmy John’s again, so I was super excited when they started popping up in Central Florida.

I ordered a roast beef and provolone cheese unwich (aka a lettuce-wrap sandwich) with all the veggies (except peppers), while Ryan opted for the Bootlegger Club on 7-grain bread.

My Unwich

Bootlegger Club

Both were delicious!

Cold Weather… What Cold Weather?

What’s a girl to do when the cold weather hits?

Daydream of hot summer days, of course!

Yes, it’s not even March. Yes, I’m wearing a sweater today. Yes, I check weather.com regularly to see when this cold will let up. Still, none of these factors deter me from perusing the Victoria’s Secret Web site for cute bikinis.

I still have money leftover on a gift card to this fantastic retailer from Christmas, so I decided to put some of the funds towards a new bathing suit and a pair of cropped yoga pants.

Which one do you like better?

Bathing Suit A:

Numero Uno

Bathing Suit B:

Numero Dos

I can’t decide! I’m not sure what my gift card balance is at the moment, so that might make the decision for me! 😀

Lunch Date with My Mate

What a treat! Today I met up with Ryan for a quick lunch date at Jimmy John’s.

My Date

Lovin' My Lunch Date

Ryan met me at work and we walked a block or so to Jimmy John’s, possibly my favorite sandwich chain.

Today I opted for the Bootlegger Club… a turkey and roast beef “unwich” (aka a sandwich with lettuce in place of the bread) with all the veggies and avocado spread.

Turkey and Roast Beef Unwich

It was delicious and really filling. I am always surprised at how filling this sandwich without bread can be, but I think the double portion of meat and the avocado spread really help make it a more substantial meal.

Ryan ordered a beach club sandwich on 7-grain bread.

Ryan's Beach Club

“#12 Beach Club: Fresh baked turkey breast, provolone cheese, avocado spread, sliced cucumber, sprouts, lettuce, tomato, and mayo! (It’s the real deal, and it ain’t even California.)”

JJ’s really knows how to make amazing bread. I ate a few of Ryan’s crust scraps and enjoyed the fresh, doughy goodness.

Wanna know what else I like about Jimmy John’s? The fact that they cannot seem to let go of the holiday season either…

Merry Christmas! Love, Jimmy John's

This weekend I am making a promise to myself to actually get around to taking down the holiday decorations.

Is it weird that I’m still plugging in my Christmas tree every night?

How long do you wait before you take down holiday decorations?