{weekend notes}

Good Morning! I can’t remember the last time I wrote morning. I’m no ally scrambling at 4pm to get this post live. Today is a special Monday. At 8am, I’ll be headed to Occidental, CA with Bays 6th grade class for one week of camp. Bays so excited she could hardly sleep. Me, on the other hand, savored every last minute in my nice, warm, cozy bed lol. Have a great week and keep your eye out for a week dedicated to Trader Joe’s. Each day will be a new TJ’s recipe. Hope you like it.

Intentions for the week:

~~Survive Alliance Redwoods 6th grade camp~~ – such a cool experience as a parent
NO online shopping for a week (no phone service will help with that) – EPIC FAIL!!!
~~Find the perfect one piece #mombod~~ – found it and I’m gonna tell you all about it
~~Come up with a cute Dime-A-Dip dessert~~ – Bay made the cutest pig cake
~~March budget spreadsheet…..just a little late~~ – done
~~ONLY 1 grocery store trip. Unless I run out of wine 🙂~~ – hit TJ’s once…record breaking
~~Tackle my closet~~ – feels so good to see all my money hanging again
~~Figure out a new way to organize shoes~~ – bought some organizers, stay tuned!
~~Clean out the pantry~~ – done
~~Make a yummy granola~~ – coming next week, maybe?

Last weeks Intentions: {weekend notes}

Highlights from the weekend……

Friday we headed up the hill to spend the weekend in snowy Lake Tahoe.

Pit stop at Strawberry Lodge. It’s a tradition. Minus the blizzard.

Waking up to lots of fresh snow.

The road had a little snow too.

I braved cold toes to get this shot lol. I could resist. Our cabin, the cabin my grandpa built, is a natural beauty.

Snowshoeing was added to the Winter To-Do’s list, not 100% intending to actually do it though. You see, I kinda hate the snow. I’ve never been a fan of snow sports. But I’m always up for an adventure.

The original plan was Fallen Leaf Lake. With all the snow and crowds of people, we ended up at Camp Richardson.

I never knew that this is a major snowshoeing spot. Cross country skiers + snowshoers paradise. Trails that take you along the lake side.

Wish views like this, hit play ▶️

This is what the trail looks like….

Callie had the best time. Running through the snow. Chasing squirrels. She even jumped in the lake going after some ducks.

Crossing bridges like this

Beach entrances like this make me crave the summertime

Lunch stop with a view

Callie girl ❤️

Our lunch/beer break spot

We started at Camp Richardson and made our way to Kiva Beach. Realistically, it’s not very far. But when you add fresh snow and snowshoes, it is really far lol. I think it took us a little under an hour. The trail continues as far as you can see.

We stopped to build a snowman using our leftover snacks. Sierra Nevada bottle cap eyes (which I replaced with leaves when we left). A pretzel thin nose. Blood orange smile. He turned out pretty cute 🙂

The verdict….

I’ve already googled snowshoes. I loved it and can’t wait to get back to Tahoe and try out Fallen Leaf Lake next.

Reward: Rum Runners

Dinner at Scusa was a treat. Linguine + clams. Salmon scaloppine. Bottle of chard. Heaven!!

Live jazz music!!

I clearly like to party 🎊

10 1/2 hours of sleep later.

Avocado toast with leftover salmon from dinner. Bomb.com.

Markleeville, Ca

30 minutes from our cabin you find this little gem.

Grover Hot Springs.

104 degree hot spring pools with a view.

Pit stop at the old Sloughhouse

Made it home just in time to catch the Oscars with my girl. Gummy Bear Oscar BINGO.

Last week I asked if you, my readers would be interested in my TJ’s haul with shopping list + recipes. I had lots of thumbs up + hell yeah’s. So, this week is being dedicated to go ol Trader Joe’s. What I buy and how I use it! Each day will feature a new recipe using some of my go-to Trader Joe’s gems. In case you can’t tell, I’m a TJ’s junkie. I joke that I could easily speed half my weekly pay in Trader Joe’s and be the happiest girl in the world. The other half….Nordy’s + J.Crew, obvi. A girl can dream!

Trader Joe’s has a plethora of healthy options. Lots of very unhealthy options too. One rule…stick to the outside perimeter of TJ’s. I try to keep my nose out of the freezer section (dead center of the store). It’s dangerous. Most items you find here are NOT on your grocery list! I sneak in at the very end of my shopping trip to grab frozen brown rice + cauliflower rice.

We all need to eat. I prefer to eat healthy. Other than my pizza fetish. Oh, and I kinda love carbs too. But, on a good week….you’d see something like this going down in our house.

This isn’t everything. This is all I could get in a photo and still make it look decent…lol. The struggle was real. A true eeny, meeny, miny, moe happened.

Menu:

Roasted Brussels Sprouts Cauliflower Pizza

Halibut Taco with Roast Corn Salad

Beef Stir-Fry over Bok Choy + Brown Rice

Turkey Meatballs over Sweet Potato Ribbons

Sheet Pan Sausage + Veggies with Pesto Tortellini

Hard Boiled Egg Avocado Toast (minus the toast)

What do you think? Sound good?

I found these great meal planner + grocery list printables….

The Every Girl