Debate Anyone?

Up for a good little debate with some people?  Take a look at THIS ARTICLE and see if it doesn't make you want to debate the points in it with a few people.  Food for thought?  I think so.  Choose whichever side you like, but I'm certain it will get your wheels turning.

Brazzaz!

Tonight I was treated to a wonderfully amazing dinner at Brazzaz, a Brazilian Steakhouse.  I'd been to one before, about five years prior.  As an intern for a Chicago company, one luncheon all the interns attended was at a Fogo de Chao, another Brazilian steakhouse in Chicago.


Here is what I learned between visits 1 and 2, even though they were five years apart.  


1)  The salad bar is yummy, but remember you're paying for the meat, not the salad.  Don't Fill Up There!


2)  Ask yourself the following when eating something, "Is this good enough to take away stomach space for the other options?"  If the answer is "NO," STOP EATING and wait to enjoy something worthy of your remaining stomach space.  If the answer is "YES!", then SAVOR, SAVOR, SAVOR!


3)  Expect to take a good two hours to eat.  The slower you eat, the more you enjoy, the more patient you force yourself to become, and therefore the less likely you are to "scarf down" food.  No one likes meat-induced stomach pain.


4)  Picaña is AMAZING, at least at Brazzaz.  It was hands down my favorite, followed closely by the filet mignon.  It was like peppered, crispy, heaven, that melted like butter in your mouth.  I think I had fourths tonight.


Brazzaz is absolutely a better option.  Sorry Fogo, but I vote Brazzaz.  So on your next romantic getaway, dinner with your best friends, or simply a treat unto itself, a little "well done" reservations go a long way.

Label and Ingredient Education

it saddens me to know that people have become so good about reading labels on things like their food, understanding hormones and chemical additives in things like their milk or vegetables, but still have so little an idea on what impact their skin care products have on their bodies.


Think you know about your products?  Think you know about Cetaphil?  Read This and then take a look at your own product labels.  What you put on your skin is ingested into your blood stream in under 30 seconds.  Maybe it's time to rethink some of those bathroom faves.  Don't just be concerned with your edible health, be concerned with all of it.

Holiday Treats!

Admittedly, lie most other people, I'm a sucker for holiday treats.  However, they may not be the same treats you had in mind.  Don't get me wrong, I love a Reese's peanut butter cup or bag of M&Ms, but I'm more talking more about seasonal love, the things you only get during the fall holiday time.  


LIKE....PUMPKINS!!!!!  I LOVE PUMPKIN EVERYTHING!  Pumpkin bread, homemade pumpkin pie, pumpkin pancakes!  Yum Yum!  Even putting a little pumpkin pie filling (from the can) in greek yogurt with cinnamon!  Wow.  Haven't tried it?  Highly recommend it!  Plus, then you get to cook the pumpkin seeds and carve fun faces into the hollow shell.  Thanks so much to boyfriend's uncannay knack for taking photos on his iPad, these are some of the holiday photo fun.  Recognize this guy?  Jack Skeleton from Nightmare Before Christmas.  (Sad to admit, had never seen it before.  I'm a huge scardy cat.  That absolutely played a huge part in that decision.  And, also admittedly, Tom Burton is a little terrifying.  It's a wonderful produced movie, but absolutely horrifying.  As a little kid, I would have had nightmares!)....
...wait...as a big kid I still do.....hmmm.....oh well!

Need a good pumpkin seed recipe?  Parmesan Cheese, garlic salt, olive oil, and really good oven.  Watch out, they get crispy quickly, but they are absolutely worth the work!

And, of course, last but not least, mulled apple cider!  We paired ours with bacon cheesy mac (yes, I said cheesy mac!).  Trader Joe's Mac & Cheese with Rice pasta is phenomenal, whether you're gluten free or just looking for a yummy alternative.  And the combined flavors, plus the cinnamon apple cider:  an explosion of amazing flavors!  You feel a bit like Remy in Ratatouille when everything blacks out and all you see are colorful swirly things and hear music in the background.  Yes, it was that good.

Now....what's next.... :-)

Here Comes the (Lake Geneva) Bride

That's right, Lake Geneva bride.  This weekend I had the privilege of being invited to a good friend's wedding.  My boyfriend happened to be in the bridal party, which helped because we knew most of the people there, but even just the scenery was gorgeous.


The bride and groom chose Lake Geneva for their wedding.  It's their favorite place, as they make frequent trips during the year and also happened to get engaged at this lake...ergo making it extra special.  Having never been myself (at least not since I was 7 or 8 and therefore it not counting), I had no idea what to expect, and WOW....I was amazed.


Our accommodations, although not cheap, were great for the area.  We stayed at some Lodge on WI-50.  The rooms were huge and the bathrooms some of the nicest I've ever seen for a hotel of that price.  The even better part was that the reception, at Geneva National Golf Course, was just literally a half mile down the road, so the hotel was able to provide shuttle service between.  


With an outdoor wedding, the golf course was prime real estate.  Uncertain of the weather, we were all slightly weary for most of the morning, hoping it would be only mildly cold and not windy, and boy did we luck out.  It was perfect - a little on the chilly side, but perfect.  The view was phenomenal, and easily one of the best I've seen.  If we could just duplicate that for every wedding that would be great.


So, in all, great weekend, and I've discovered a great and cute little vacation spot only just outside the city!