The theme of this afternoon and evening could definitely be: I WANT MORE! Everything that I have eaten since lunchtime has been absolutely delicious. I just want to eat more of it!
Snack
After work, I came home and enjoyed a big bowl of Galaxy Granola with banana slices and non-fat milk. It filled my stomach right up, but I wanted more! (I may have grabbed a small handful of granola on my way out the door to meet Marie. 
)
(Granola is heaven.)
This afternoon, Marie and I were supposed to have a gym date, but we opted for a manicure date instead. Getting our nails done was much more fun than riding the elliptical for 45 minutes!
Marie has been raving about OPI’s new Axxium Soak-Off Gel Lacquer System, which is basically a gel manicure (or pedicure) that is cured with UV light. The system allows your polish to stay perfectly intact for 2-3 weeks. Marie says her manicure has even lasted up to a month with very minimal chipping! I destroy manicures in less than 24 hours, so I obviously needed to see what this Axxium thing was all about.
I picked a boring shade of light pink for my manicure with the hope of it lasting until next weekend. (I’m going to a wedding.) If it lasts, I’ll definitely try a color next time. The only reason I avoid color is because my nails look terrible once they start to chip.
I love the way that my nails look now! Nice and neat! They were so nasty before! I’ll let ya know how the Axxium stuff holds up.
After getting our nails done, Marie and I drove over to Marathon Sports to pick up our race stuff for Sunday. I’m getting excited! (Hopefully, we don’t get rained out! 
)
Dinner
I arrived home to the most delicious smells coming from my kitchen– my wonderful husband cooked dinner for us! What a guy! He’s THE BEST! 
Inspired by one of Real Simple’s recipes, Mal created a fantastic barley dish with tomatoes, arugula, onions, brie, Parmesan, and chicken sausage. (The folks at Coleman Organic sent me a bunch of their products to sample.) I must say, the chicken sausage totally made the meal. It smelled amazing and added so much flavor to the dish.
My husband is truly a cooking genius. I still can’t get over how great this meal turned out. I wish he’d make dinner every night!
The recipe called for dry white wine, so Mal and I each enjoyed a glass with dinner. This meal definitely left me wanting more!
Guiltless Goodies
Yuuummmm! This Guiltless Goodie was especially tasty! It might just be the best one yet! 
Swanson Vitamins sent me some coconut flour to sample the other day, so I decided to give it a try this evening. Check out what resulted!
Almond Joy “Ice Cream”
Serves 1
Ingredients:
- 1/2 frozen banana
- 1 tbsp coconut flour
- 1 tbsp chocolate protein powder
- 1 tbsp almonds
Directions:
- Combine all ingredients in a food processor or blender.
- Serve cold.
Omg, this Guiltless Goodie was delicious!!! The consistency was nice and smooth, and a very subtle, yet sweet, coconut flavor dominated. You’ll definitely see this goodie on the blog again in the near future. I already threw two more bananas in the freezer for future treats. I want more!
Enjoy the evening! G’night!
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You seriously have gorgeous nails!
That “ice cream” sounds delicious! I love Almond Joys
Interested to hear how that nail system holds up!
Tina, I’ve been looking everywhere for a salon in the Boston area that does the Axxium polish! Thank you thank you thank you! And ps- your food looked delicious today too, as always.
Sometimes i just get super bored with the gym, so manicures would def be the winner for me too haha.
Btw, I am way impressed with your husband’s cooking- looks delish and like you were served in a restaurant!
I got the OPI gel manicure for the first time this past Saturday and I love it! I got color (Lincoln Park After Dark…my Winter fave) and it’s still perfect; my nails look great…make sure you keep us posted on how yours holds up!
My nails are SCREAMING for a manicure! Yours look fabulous (as does that faux ice cream)!
I love the opi gel polish…I have had trouble finding a place in Boston that has it, where did you get it?
Hi Tina! I’ve been reading your blog for a while now – I love it!
I lost 30 pounds a year ago, and now that I’m in college, I’ve crept back up some. I’ve kept it under control and I know longer am freaking out about the scale, just about how I feel. The subject of the post “I want more!” is how I ALWAYS feel. I love good food – I’m probably addicted..
I love talking about it, cooking it, researching it, etc. and I seem to have the mindset that I have to have all the good food right this second. Is there anything you do that could possibly help? Or is this just something all of us have grow to accept and develop the whole “moderation” thing?
Thanks! Jackie
I am looking for healthy ice cream recipes so I can stop eating junky desserts. I love this recipe! thanks
love that you got a manicure instead of the elliptical too btw.
That sounds like such a good use for coconut flour!
I’ve wanted more and more and I’ve been feeding myself more and more as a result–yikes! Time to brew some Sugar Cookie Sleigh Ride tea and put my sweet tooth to rest.
All of the coconut craze in blogland is making reeeeeaaaallly wish I liked coconut. Unfortunately, it’s the ONE food I don’t like… Go figure
The almond joy ice cream sounds amazing! I always forget to freeze my bananas…I keep eating them when they’re ripe
Ugh, I cannot stop eating today. That almond joy ice cream looks delish!!
The new manicure sounds awesome…can’t wait to see if it lasts. I have trouble with manicures too – they always chip within a few days. I have better luck when painting my own nails. Enjoy your night!
When I get manicures I only get clear for the same reason. I love the shape but hate the chipping of colors.
That coconut almond ice cream looks awesome!
galaxy granola is soooo good!! I keep forgetting to pick up a bag.
also, the nails go beautifully with your ring
sweet dreams <3
Be careful with coconut flour… I don’t know if you’ve used it before, but it’s SUPER fiber-rich and can cause “musical” evenings!
ooh, i’m jealous, i’ve been wanting to try coconut flour!!! gonna pick up my packet tomorrow
dinner looks fab, too, way to go mal!
Nice rings
I can’t wait to hear how the Axxium holds up!
Gotta love a manicure date
I desperately need one!!
Girl, have you ever had an extremely bad binge? If so, how did you manage? What did you do to get over it?
YUM!!! What delicious eats!! And you are so luck your husband cooks… and is good at it!
I always get a light pink too! although colors are nice- they chip within only a few days! i think light pink looks clean-cut- but people make fun of me for always being boring..oh well!haha
yummmmm – what a lovely dessert creation. And Mal didn’t do too bad, either — after all, he learned from the best!
ahhhh Almond joy ice cream sounds amazing! I am a sucker for anything coconut and almond! I’ve heard so many good things about that nail salon!
I would never think to use coconut flour in ice cream, but it makes sense! YUM.
I can’t get enough of the galaxy granola. I just picked up a new flavor today. It’s so yummy and healthy.
That new manicure sounds pretty cool! Your nails look great! I agree on the granola!! I love granola!! The ice cream looks great too!
You are always so creative with your desserts! I love it! I want to try that new OPI stuff, I love wearing nail polish but rarely do because I hate chipping! It’d be good if there was finally a product that prevents it, I’m hoping
That “ice cream” sounds fantastic! I’ve been on a complete frozen dessert/smoothie/shake kick lately.
You are so lucky to have a hubby that can cook! I’ve been trying to teach my boyfriend how to cook but it has been a slow progress.
He knows how to make canned beans, Kraft Dinner, chicken nuggets, and rice. It is a start!
One of my biggest pet peeves is chipped nail polish, so I rarely every paint my finger nails either. I’ve never heard of that type of manicure – your hands look so fresh : )
Sometimes you just need a mental break instead of a physical release at the gym. Pedicures do wonders for the soul! Good luck with the nail polish! My 30 manicure that I got less than a week ago started chipping 3 days ago! Annoying!
i’m so jealous of your nails…mine are crap pretty much all the time! the day before my wedding i got a mani and then 5 hours later went to decorate the church and all the polish chipped off!! i couldn’t believe it, but there was no time to re-do it so i just took it off. i’m not much of a polish on my nails girl anyway
interesting! i have never heard of coconut flour before
What beautiful wedding rings you have!!
I love the look of that dinner recipe, I think I might give it a try too
Have a great day!
I almost bought coconut flour the other day, I have been dying to try it!
Wow, that Almond joy “ice cream” sounds so good. I can’t wait to try this recipe!!
Barley and brie? Sounds like my kinda meal! Lovely shiny nails, too!
Hi Tina,
That is probably your body telling you that you need more calories! Especially since you have been doing so much working out!
I really like the sound of the Axxium polish! I usually can’t get a manicure to last more than a few days either, which is a shame after paying the money for one! I’ll have to be on the look out for a salon with Axxium polish in DC.
That looks great! I had never heard of coconut powder!
I have never heard of that kind of manicure! Be sure to let us know how it works out. I want one!!!!
great looking dinner and the wine was a must if the recipe called for it!
My manicures always chip too, which is probably why I never get them
Can’t wait to hear how this new product works
I destroy manicures almost instantly, I don’t even bother getting them anymore. Plus my nails chip and peel the second they start to grow into the white part.
I wear nail polish very rarely … I just can’t keep it on for more than a couple of days without picking it all off! And I find that no matter how long I wait, I’ll always do something to wreck the polish on a nail. That always happens!
K
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