Oodles of Reviews (2 books & 4 movies!) and Two New Recipes: Breakfast Chicken Sandwiches and Bacon Mac!

Before starting - I want to say thank you for all of your sweet comments about my new outfit! Can't wait to wear it this coming Friday! I wrote back to all of you in the commments. :)


So I also forgot to tell you guys – I finished listening to At First Sight on Friday!! It was pretty good. SPOILER. I personally thought it was going to go a totally different direction – like I thought she really was cheating on him. But then for her not to be cheating and all of that to be wrapped up so quickly? And for Mayor Gerkin to be the best man? What? And Alvin was doing all of that? I dunno. I just found a few things silly and then with her dying at the end I was like what?? So sad. I enjoyed listening to it though – easy to keep it up and the story had good pace. Did I find it kind of annoying that the narrortor was a man reading as a southern woman a lot? Yes, but I got over it and, overall, I would give it a 3 out of 5. I’m going to start listening to another Sparks’ book – The Notebook. I loved the movie so I’m excited to listen and see what all they left out!

I had a yummy food day but had to stray from my plan a bit because we ended up having pasta salad for lunch which wasn’t the plan, and then we were at Linc/shana’s so it was chili time – woo!! I had a hard time guessing on the chili but figure it’s close – probably a little high but whatevs!! I ended up at 1,984 calories, 228 carbs, 62 fat grams and 93 protein grams. Here’s what I ate.

When we got up the next morning Austin was craving Chick-Fil-A, but it’s Sunday so he was tres disappointed. But I thought it would be fun to try to make something similar, so we swung by Publix for a few staples we had run out of (which included red pepper flakes hehe). We got home and I made Breakfast Chicken Sandwiches! Here is how I did it for two:

2 English Muffins
6 oz. chicken
¼ cup (28 grams)Plain Panko Bread Crumbs
1 egg
2 tbsp ketchup
Salt and Pepper to taste
Spray butter
1 tsp olive oil

Cut muffins in half, spray each side with spray butter and set aside. Add olive oil to large pan over medium heat. Get two shallow bowls and crack an egg in one, and put bread crumbs in the other. Sprinkle salt and pepper onto eggs, and whisk. Put chicken between two sheets of wax paper. Hit with flat side of tenderizer until ½” thick. Then dip chicken into egg, then into crumbs. Set on wax paper. Repeat until all chicken is done, then add all now-breaded chicken to the pan at the same time. Cook for 2 minutes on each side, flipping until all pieces of chicken are browned. Toast muffins. Add ketchup to muffins, top with chicken and serve. Each sandwich has 335 calories, 40 carbs, 6 fat grams and 27 protein grams. Please note: there will be a lot of egg left over- easily enough egg to make 2 batches! Good stuff! Afterwards we split up – me for movies, Austin for video games. I watched:

The Happening. So I don’t go for scary movies, but I do go for movies that involve armageddonesque circumstances. This, falling in that category, meant I could watch it in broad daylight without getting nightmares. It was pretty good. The acting was laughable but the story was good and there were some scenes that were downright creepy and in-your-face. They definitely didn’t leave the suicides to your imagination if you know what I’m saying. I’ll give it a 3 out of 5.

Nights in Rodanthe. I also don’t really go for romantic movies, but this one appealed to me in the previews, and I heart Diane and Harrison. The whole time I watched it I felt like I’d seen it before. Nothing too original. The acting was GREAT though, the scenery was pretty and you could keep up with the story while doing other things for sure. In the end it was sad…. I’ll give it a 3 out of 5, too.

Swing Vote. This was so not working for me that I had to stop it…. so I guess a N/A for rating.

Bedtime Stories. This was ADORABLE, but I haven’t finished watching it yet as my mom/sister stopped by for a visit (and we watched the pilot of Glee – again – love it!). I’ll watch Bedtime Stories tonight – so cute so far.

After they left I headed over to the gym for a 4-mile walk., then came home and made Bacon Mac from cookinglight.com. Here’s the recipe for THREE servings:



1.5 tsp salt, divided
6 oz. penne
2 tsp all-purpose flour
¾ cup skim milk, divided
½ cup mozzarella cheese, grated
½ cup cheddar fat-free cheese, grated
1/8 cup sliced green onions
½ tsp hot sauce (I used siracha)
1/8 tsp pepper
4 slices turkey bacon, cooked and crumbled
Cooking spray



Preheat broiler. Bring water and 1 tsp salt to a boil. Add pasta; cook 8 minutes or until al dente; drain. Combine flour and ¼ cup milk in a small pot over medium heat. Gradually add rest of milk; bring to a boil. Cook 1 minute, stirring constantly. Remove from heat; let stand 4 minutes. Stir in ¾ cup cheese. Add ½ teaspoon salt, onions, hot sauce, pepper, and bacon; stir. Add pasta; toss. Spoon into a 2-quart broiler-safe dish coated with cooking spray; top with ¼ cup cheese. Broil 7 minutes. Nutritional Information: 367 calories, 47 carbs, 8 fat grams and 26 protein grams. It was really good and surprisingly really filling!

After dinner Austin totally threw me off – he was like come on, let’s go to Time Traveler’s Wife. As you know, my book club tried to go together and the projector wasn’t working. We’ve been trying to regroup for 2 weeks and it’s just not working out. So Austin knew how excited I was and decided even though he didn’t want to see it AT ALL he would take me – woo!! I hopped in the shower and we headed out, and I quickly decided to make popcorn my dinner. Yesssss. I LOVED the movie. SPOILER!!!! Yes, there were a lot of things left out, but some things I was fine with. Mostly, I felt they made it softer – his mother’s death less dramatic, his injury toned down, his father’s alcoholism toned down, etc. Also – the movie focused heavily on the end of the book – like the were married within 15 minutes of the beginning I felt like! So that was weird for me! Also there was no Ben, no Ingrid, no hidden feelings between Claire and Gomez. A lot of things were moved around and out of place but it worked fine. I definitely want to see it again but just be able to enjoy it instead of watching it and always thinking what was missing/what was different/etc.! I will say that Rachel McAdams did an amazing job – totally bought their romance. And it was great to see their home, the meadow, her art, etc. “in person.” I’d give it a 4 out of 5!

We got home and I was SO tired. Austin had a video game sesh with the boys so I read Caprice Crane's Stupid and Contagious and finished it! This book was just SO CUTE. If you’re into 90’s alternative (like me!!) it made it even better. I laughed so much – very cute, quick read with a happy ending. Slightly predictable but who cares? It was fun to follow and just really cute. It read like a Reality Bites meets Nick and Norah’s Infinite Playlist. A fun and simple read I recommend! I give it a 4.5 out of 5!

After I finished the book I passed out! I had 1,609 calories, 211 carbs, 52 fat grams and 80 protein grams. Here’s what I ate. I’m so glad I got a walk in and SO GLAD I got to see the movie. Thanks, Austin! :)

I don’t know what we’re doing today… it’s only 9 a.m. right now… Hmmm. I’m definitely going to the gym! But I don’t know about anything else. Love it!!