Oregon/Washington Road Trip: Days 4 & 5

Day 4 we were heading from Albany, OR to Port Townsend, WA.  But we couldn't pass up Portland without trying some hole-some {see what I did there?} goodness from Voodoo Doughnut!

Doughnuts & that is it!

Box of yumminess!

Gary got the Old Dirty Bastard {it had Oreo on top and was drizzled with peanut butter}

And my taste buds enjoyed a Portland Cream.  We bought the rest for my family to enjoy.  I am NOT a doughnut person....I can walk by a box of them without trying to inhale that special doughnut smell.  So let me tell you, these doughnuts were VERY good!

We then spent some time in Powell's City of Books.  To be honest, I didn't have as much fun as I thought I would.  This place is huge and a bit too overwhelming for me.  Maybe because I knew we didn't have too much time, I felt anxious, but at least I can say I've been there!

We walked through Portland for about an hour then had to get back in the car and drive for a few more hours.

Oh, Washington, how we have missed you!  Gary & I have a 5-10 year plan that includes moving to Washington State.  Each time we have been, our souls feel at peace.  This trip reinforced that WA is where we want to call home by the time we hit our mid 40's.  

We stayed with my Aunt Vickie & her husband Michael in Port Townsend.  What a great community!

Our first few hours there and we were impressed by their automobiles. ;-)

It was a bit too chilly that first night, but still gorgeous.

SHORTY!! This dog cracked me up the whole time we were in Port Townsend.

The next day was the 4th of July and MUCH sunnier, so Michael took Gary downtown while Vickie and I went grocery shopping and got ready for a BBQ later that day.

When the guys got back, we headed over to my cousin Lisa's home for a festive BBQ.

I thought he was going to bite my arm.

If you are going to read ONE portion of this blog post, let this be it.

See this house below???  Well, my cousin and her husband designed it themselves.

Oh, and THEY BUILT IT!  Not like "we hired someone to build it for us" built it, but actually built it all themselves.  I am 153% serious when I say that you can feel their love in every beam, window, door, etc. that is a part of that house.

I am in awe of how awesome they are for being able to do this!

They also have the biggest dog I've ever met, Argus.  

Yup, I'm drinking out of a mason jar.  That's how I roll!

We were spoiled with a tasty BBQ and met a bunch of their family who were so kind to include us in their lives for a day.

After that we headed to Fort Worden for a hike and {later} a fireworks show.  Fort Worden was where "An Officer and a Gentleman" was filmed.

Me & my cousin, Lisa

Lisa's daughter, Rosie, Lisa, and my Aunt Vickie.

Stars and Stripes Forever

Gorgeous view

The moon was extra amazing on the 4th.

We didn't get to bed until almost midnight on the 4th and had to wake up at 6am the next morning to meet Gary's family, but we had the best 4th of July in a long time!

Oh, Vacation!

I know I normally get a post out first thing Monday morning, but guess what??  I completely forgot to get something together this weekend. I guess my brain is on vacation already!


I don't have any pictures from this weekend, but it was a GREAT one nonetheless! 


On Saturday my Aunt in Jackson hosted family BBQ so everyone could meet the family visiting from Holland.  It was so nice to get together with everyone that I haven't seen in ages.  We all keep up on Facebook, so that's nice, but there is nothing like seeing family face to face!  


BBQ + Family = 2 of my favorite things!


Yesterday morning I woke up before 5:30 with a very upset stomach {I think I enjoyed the BBQ a little too much - I seriously had 4-5 ribs and 2 chicken drumsticks}.  By 10:30 my stomach calmed down enough for me to run some errands.  Once I came home, I was in full cleaning mode!


I did a few loads of laundry, then I finally went through my wall closet, where I house all my pants and tried on EVERY SINGLE PAIR!  Now it is super organized by shorts, capris, jeans & dress pants.  I also have 2 shelves of pants to try on in a month or two.  They were just a bit snug to wear right now, but if I keep my weight loss up, I can fit into them soon!


This morning I woke up at 7, had breakfast, then headed for the GYM!!!  It's been a long time since I went there.  All my exercise lately has been walking and jogging on my own, but I want to get back into the habit of switching up my outside runs with some inside workouts.

Oh, fancy action shot!

 I was a bit excited and tried to do too many different things in one workout...walk/run, hills, sprints.  By 30 minutes in I was pooped, but I just kept walking.  Next time I am going to stick to one workout plan!

Not bad for my first time back!

 I packed small container of the following for a post workout snack:
1/2 cup Greek Yogurt
1/4 cup frozen organic blueberries
1/2 packet of stevia

REFUEL!

It was the perfect snack since I had to head down the street to Costco.


I LOVE shopping at Costco when it is empty...I can just explore every aisle that I want to!


So now I am home, doing more laundry and about to get my lunch ready {leftover chicken wraps} - YUM!


**What's your favorite machine at the gym?**


**Do you have a go to post workout snack?**

Top 5 Friday {Summer Loving}

Top 5 {+1} Things I LOVE about Summer:

1. Flip Flops - for home, the pool, the store....it's prefectly acceptable to wear flip flops all day long!  {Just have a cute #2 to show off}

2. Pedicures - I rarely get pedicures during the cold months, but once I start showing my piggies off to the public, you KNOW I'm going to keep them looking cute!

3. BBQ - Whether we're BBQing with friend, family or just the 2 of us, BBQing is an event for Gary & I. 

4. LIGHT - Gone are the dreary winter months.  We're enjoying the sun from 5:30am - 9:30pm for the next month!

5. Vacation - Doesn't matter if it's a day trip, a weekend trip, or a 2 week road trip {yay!}, this is THE time to hit the road and enjoy the scenery outside of your city.

6. Adult Beverages- A mo-garita at noon?  Sure!  Some wine with dinner?  Okay.  Even though we've pushed pause with alcohol recently {which I KNOW helped us lose weight}, it's still fun to indulge in a few drinks over the summer months.  Anyway, the heat burns off all alcohol calories - Mo Law.

***What's on your Summer Loving list??***

Sloppy Joe Wraps {Recipe}

Since we are in BBQ season, I wanted to create my own, healthy BBQ Sauce.  There are BBQ sauces you can find at the store that are pretty healthy, but I am all about controlling what ingredients go into my food.


As I was in the kitchen creating, I thought "Damn!  This would be a GREAT sauce for Sloppy Joes."


Guess what??


I was RIGHT!!

Ingredients:


1/2 onion
2 6oz. cans organic tomato paste
3/4 cup apple cider vinegar
2 tsp. garlic powder
2 tsp. onion powder
2 tsp. liquid smoke {hickory flavor worked GREAT}
2 tsp. worcestershire sauce
Stevia to taste {I used one small packet}
salt & pepper to taste
1/2 cup organic chicken broth


Directions:
Chop 1/2 onion into small pieces {I just threw into my mini food processor and pulsed a few times}.  Throw onion into a medium sauce pot and a splash of water or chicken broth.  Saute onion on med-high heat for a few minutes until soft.  Turn heat down to low while you add the rest of the ingredients EXCEPT the chicken broth to the pot.  Mix together, then turn heat back up to med-high.  Bring to a boil, while stirring every minute or so.  Lower heat, add chicken broth and cook for another 5-7 minutes. Turn heat off and remove pot from heat source.  Let cool for about 10-20 minutes, then pour into a glass jar to keep in your refrigerator.


If you want to make this a little more BBQ saucy, add another 1/2 cup or so of chicken broth.


I let it sit in the fridge for 2 days for the flavor to strengthen.


When you are ready to make your Sloppy Joes, here's what to do.


Brown 1 - 1.5 pounds of ground beef with some chopped onions.  When meat is about halfway cooked, pour in the Sloppy Joe Sauce and mix well.  Let cook for another 15-20 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Once meat is cooked, take a clean lettuce leaf... 

...and spoon some of the mix into it.

Enjoy every bite, because these will not last long if you need to share with others.

                         But I guess it IS nice to share with others!

Honey BBQ Meatloaf

Meatloaf.

That word sounds so....gross.  Who wants to eat a loaf of meat??

Me, obviously.

And trust me, this recipe is one loaf of meat I could eat all by myself, in one sitting, if my dear husband would let me.

Which he won't.

Honey BBQ Meatloaf

Ingredients:

1 Pound Lean ground beef

1/2 Onion, chopped

3/4 Cup Almond meal {or 1/2 cup bread crumbs}

3 TB Coconut Aminos {or you can use Worcestershire sauce}, divided

1 TB Mustard

1 Cup BBQ Sauce

4 TB Honey, divided

1 tsp. Pepper

Directions:

~Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

~In a large bowl mix together beef, onions, almond meal, 2 TB aminos, mustard, 1/2 of the BBQ sauce, 2 TB honey and pepper. 

~ Place mixture in an oiled baking dish and shape evenly.

~In a small bowl mix together the remaining BBQ sauce, honey and aminos.  Spread half of this over the meatloaf prior to cooking.

~Bake for 45-60 minutes.  Slice, serve, and drizzle with remaining sauce.

You want to know what the best thing about this recipe is?

LEFTOVERS!

I chose to have mine in salad form, crumbled over a lettuce mixture, using just a touch of my Creamy Honey Mustard Dressing and some blue cheese.  It was TO.DIE.FOR!!