Look what I got!!!!!

Best boyfriend ever.  Look what I got for our 2 year anniversary (which is tomorrow)!

I wasn't sure if I wanted to spend the money to purchase a Garmin.  I figured I was going to start just by mapping my runs out at DailyMile and calculating my average pace over the distance.  Well now my world has been rocked.  I am SO excited to play with my new toy.  Right now it's on the charger but I'm definitely going for a run with it tomorrow (as long as I can figure it out)!

More good news, I went for a run last night and I didn't have any hip pain today, yay!!!!!!!!  I ran 1.81 miles at an extremely slow pace and even walked 0.2 miles in the middle.  I didn't want to push myself, but it felt so great to get out.  I have a pretty random running playlist on my phone and when James Brown came on belting out "Owwww, I feel good, I knew that I would now" I was beaming and thinking, yes this is my jam!  I did a lot of stretching and foam rolling when I got home and I was very pleased when I made it through today without developing any pain.

This injury has taught me that running is a privilege, not everyone is able to go out for a run whenever they want.  I need to take care of my body by providing it with the proper equipment (aka good shoes!) and not adding more mileage than my body is ready for.

Have you ever taken something for granted until it was taken away from you?

Weekend Shenanigans & Taco Dip

Despite being sick this weekend, Dave and I still had some fun.  He had tickets to the Flyers game on Saturday afternooon, so we cancelled our Friday night plans to stay in and get some rest.  Saturday morning we got up and took the train into the city and for some strange reason, we got to ride the regional rail for free both ways, win!

The game was a bummer because the refs were awful and the Flyers were not playing well.  We left at the end of the second period when the Flyers were losing 0-6.  But of course after we left they scored 4 goals and the refs actually let them fight.  Womp for us!  To drown our sorrows we headed over to Nodding Head Brewery to grab a drink with one of my friends from work.  It was a pretty cute place and the beer was tasty.  And omg, the fried mac and cheese!

The rest of Saturday we did some more bumming around because we were prepping for our Super Bowl Party... aka my family of Giants fans yelling in the living room.  Even though our little shindig wasn't anything too fancy, we had a great spread: wings, pizza, and some taco dip!  It's so easy to make that you don't even need a recipe but you're in luck, I'm giving you one anyway!

Taco Dip

Ingredients:
- Cream cheese
- Queso
- Salsa
- Mexican blend cheese
- Chopped lettuce (I used a prechopped bag because I am lazy)
- Tomatoes (I used canned, fire roasted - make sure your drain them!)

Directions:
1. Spread the cream cheese on the bottom of your pan.  You can use sour cream but the dip can end up watery.

2.  Lay all ingredients as you wish.

I tend to add some random layers of cheese throughout.  You can't go wrong with cheesy layers!

3.  Enjoy with whatever chips you like.  I recommend some Scoops, we love the whole grain version!

This recipe is so great because there are so many possibilities.  You could add some refried beans mixed with some taco seasoning, black olives, some guacamole, some avocado chunks, maybe some onions and peppers, whatever you want!  I love making things that you can't mess up.

And now it's Tuesday, I'm still relishing in the Giants' win and I'm not sick anymore!  Well I'm still friends with the tissue box, but I'm feeling a lot better!  I even made it to the gym last night and went for a run tonight, woot!  I hope your week is starting off on the right foot :)

Did you do anything fun this weekend?  Did you watch the game?  What's your favorite party food?

Garlic Herb Chicken and Veggies

I think it's pretty clear at this point that I'm a lazy cook.  Maybe one day I'll make my own marinades.  Gotta dream big!  But for now, there's Lawry's.

Garlic Herb Chicken and Veggies
(This recipe is a Dave special!)

Ingredients:
- Chicken
- Mushrooms
- Red peppers
- Green onions
- Garlic
- Butter
- Lawry's Garlic & Herb Marinade

Directions:
1.  Melt a hunk of butter over medium heat, add chicken.

2.  While chicken is cooking slice up those green onions and your pepper.

3.  Add all your veggies and a heaping spoonful of garlic to the pan.  Give it a generous squirt of marinade.

4.  Simmer on medium heat until the veggies soften and the chicken is no longer pink inside.

Turn down the heat as you go to avoid overcooking everything.  If you get impatient or worried that your chicken isn't cooking through, you can cut it into cubes in the pan.  I think the chicken probably soaks up more of the marinade this way too.  I like to cut everything up into bite size pieces while I'm waiting anyway.  We also like to add extra marinade to act as the sauce for the dish.

5.  Serve over rice, enjoy!

I don't think these pictures really do this dish justice but it is delicious.  If you like simple recipes and something you can't really screw up, this one is for you.  Added bonus if your boyfriend will cook it for you!

Does the man in your life have some skills in the kitchen?