Purse Heaven, A Giant Breakfast & Food Finds

Part of the whole reason I decided to start this blog stemmed from one of the best shopping experiences of my LIFE yesterday. I gandered over to TJ Maxx with the best of intentions. I had a wedding to attend, and I had already purchased a dress, but with the Chicago-like wind, I needed some type of cover-up and if the opportunity presented itself, perhaps a new pair of shoes as well :) So I walked into the store and I took the obligatory walk over to the purse area, you know, 'just in case', only to find a whole three shelves of Michael Kors purses (LOVE). I have a beautiful Fulton purse that my boyfriend bought me for my birthday and it is in a very classy cream color, but I'm so worried about marking up the leather, I really wanted to give it a break. So, imagine my excitement when I saw a black Fulton tote sitting on the shelf, 50% off of retail!! I couldn't resist. So I bought it for $140, and I came home to Google it (naturally), and I was more than okay with my purchase after finding it on Zappos and a few other sites for the full $268 retail price. Ahhhh, satisfaction!

On this same shopping trip, I found a lovely BCBG dress for $40, down from $210 retail. I even ended up wearing it to the wedding I was attending since I wasn't loving my original option.

As far as food finds go, I've had some major favorites lately. I'll start with the breakfast I made this morning. My boyfriend and I were borderline wanting to go to a local place for breakfast called Sin of Cortez (so good), but they only take cash, and with $20 on hand, an ATM trip sounded a bit extreme, so I decided to whip something up with what we had available in our fridge. I made an egg white scramble using All Whites, which I'd highly recommend to anyone as a staple.

To the egg whites (1/2 cup), I added red onion, a bit of Lucero's tomato tapenade, a few mild pepper rings, 1/8 cup of fat free mozzarella cheese, and some sauteed asparagus. I wouldn't have been full just eating the scramble, so I also had a Van's Light Waffle (you can have two of these for 140 calories!) with some light butter spread and sugar-free maple syrup. I was more than satisfied after eating my giant plate, and it was well under 300 calories, which is great for me since I usually have a mini-meal between meals. I wish I'd taken a picture of my plate, but I demolished it before I had the chance. Maybe next time :)

As far as some quick, convenient finds, I'm really loving Luna Protein bars in Cookie Dough

Hinode Rice Thins in Sour Cream & Onion

Laughing Cow Garlic & Herb Cheese Wedges (especially good on the rice thins above or with some Light Salami)

And last, but certainly NOT least, PB2. This stuff is amazing. It's a little weird since it is a powder, but you add water and it turns into peanut butter! I know you're thinking this must be over-processed garbage food, but the ingredients are literally roasted peanuts, sugar (minimal), & salt. Two tablespoons amount to 45 calories, 1.5g of Fat, 1g Sugar, and 5g (!) of Protein. I love it on celery or green apple, but you can use it on anything just as you would regular peanut butter. I especially like the chocolate version.

Well, I've sufficiently rambled on for today. I promise I won't be this lengthy all the time :)