This weekend was the best kind of weekend.  It was the kind of weekend that has felt endlessly long, but not because I was bored, but because we have done so much in just two days!

The weekend technically starts on Friday afternoon when classes are finished, but this past weekend began on Thursday.  I had grand plans to snuggle up in my sweatpants and my chemistry book on Thursday night, but those plans were shattered as soon as Christine texted me and asked if I wanted to go out for a few hours.  I agreed under the conditions that I would be fast asleep by 12:00 am.  We got dressed and headed to happy hour.

It was a lot of fun!  It reminded me of how much I actually enjoy going out once in awhile.  Unfortunately, there was a band at the bar that is usually packed with a lot of people dancing, so we didn’t stay out too late. 

I was fine with heading home early, since I was planning to wake up and head to the gym before class.  Despite 5 hours of sleep, I convinced myself to go 🙂

Friday was a lot of running around and studying.  I went to Hillel’s Shabbat service on Friday night before heading to the train station to pick up Russ!  I’m always excited to see him at the end of the week, so I rushed over with a full plate of food that I snagged for him.  We spent the night relaxing and watching TV since it was an early night for an early Saturday.  Christine and I headed to the gym as soon as it opened and then caught up with Russ for brunch.  I love starting my weekend with a fairly relaxed workout, especially when I plan to do homework all day, which is what we ended up doing on Saturday.  I know most dining hall food is sub-par, but brunch on the weekends is my FAVORITE!  They always have waffles, omelets, pastries, bagels, fresh fruit and salads, french toast, etc.  I love all the options, but I stick to oatmeal.  It’s delicious!  I had to scrape the pot to get this bowl.  Completely worth it.

I topped it with a bit of peanut butter and strawberry jelly.  I also added a spoonful of banana’s foster.  Holy moly, it was yummy!  I ate that alongside a bowl of orange slices and grapefruit.

The rest of the day was spent in the library with Russ and Christine.  We got a ton of work done, but by the time we left, we were starving!

Russ and I had plans to go out to eat.  We tossed around a few ideas, looked up a bunch of menus and reviews and then decided to eat at Nooddi Thai Chef.  We have been there a couple of times and we always love the food, so if it ain’t broke, why fix it?  West Chester has a lot of great looking restaurants, so I would actually like to venture out a bit a try some of them.  One day!  We got dressed and headed right over!

We were quite hungry when we got there, so we shared a bowl of coconut soup.  It was good, but a little too sweet for my taste.

I chose the Masaman Tofu for my entree, which is tofu, carrots, onions and potatoes in coconut peanut sauce.  I’m a huge fan of curry, but I wanted to try something new, so I basically tried it’s cousin 🙂  I also love anything with peanuts, so I really liked this!  It was a little bit spicy, but the coconut milk was sweet and cut the spice.

I was so full when we were finished, but with Kiwi Yogurt right around the corner, I couldn’t pass up dessert.  We shared a cup with a whole jumble of flavors.  We always seem to go a little overboard when it comes to frozen yogurt, but who says that’s a bad thing?

After dinner, we had another relaxing night in front of too many hours of TV.  This morning, we did a little food shopping before I headed home.  I had plans to spend today at home so I could see my family (and raid the fridge and pantry and do some baking!).  My dad and I had lunch together and then we took a walk over to the local co-op.  It was so warm and sunny out today, so we definitely needed to take advantage.

I have a new-found love for the BULK BINS!  My dad walked away from me while I was there and I couldn’t stop filling bags with nuts and grains! 

I ended up buying whole almonds, slivered almonds, coconut, cashews, peanuts, walnuts, wheatberry, flax seed and raisins.  I had big plans to make nut butters and granola bars, which is exactly what I did.  As soon as we got home, I made almond butter, peanut butter and cashew butter.  I LOVE the almond butter.  I didn’t make much of it, but I definitely will soon!  I’m interested in seeing if making it at home is any less expensive than buying it in the store?  I also (tried) to make granola bars.  I didn’t add enough wet ingredients, so my granola bars basically turned into a big container of granola.  That’s okay, they both taste great 🙂

Mom and I (well, mostly mom) made baklava together.  I have a few professors that were kind enough to write recommendations for me, so I wanted to give them something as a thank you. 

The baklava looks awesome and tastes even better!

We just had dinner-homemade spinach lasagna and green beans.  Coming home always reminds me of what I’m missing at school and how great being here really is. 

School is great, but there is no place like home.

I had an awesome weekend with great people, delicious food and good laughs.

Busy week ahead.  Hopefully I can pop in here a couple times!

Enjoy the rest of your weekend!