The "Unwich" by JJ (Jimmy John's)

This week, after a bit of convincing from a coworker, I finally gave the "Unwich" a try.  Why, you ask, was this so hard??  Well....I'm a bit of a carbaholic bread-lover.  Have you ever walked into a Jimmy John's?!?!?  It smells like heaven...

Anyway, I was hesitant and pretty sure that my "unwich" was just not going to satisfy me like my good ole #4 Turkey Tom normally would.  I looked up the nutritional info...which made my decision for me.  Say what?!?!  Under 300 calories!!  Shoot...Go For It!!

Less calories actually, because I always do E-Z mayo

Like always, Jimmy never disappoints when it comes to speed.  I swear that sucker is at my office front desk before I have a chance to go to the kitchen to get an accompanying beverage!

Here she is!  #4 Unwich

After a few bites of turkey yumminess

Eating the unwich is kind of like eating a big burrito...only more slippery delicate.  For under 300 calories though, I found it pretty dang tasty and fulfilling!  I had to grab a yogurt snack about 3 hours later, but that didn't bother me at all.

Advice

• I found a great image online from inside a Jimmy John store that said "Don't unwrap it".  In hindsight, I think that is the BEST advice for eating this puppy...unwrap only enough to not get a mouth full of paper.
• Do NOT order this if you're on a date or eating with someone you don't mind looking a bit sloppy in front of.  (why are you on a date at Jimmy John's??)  There is no way to eat this and look lady-like.  Period.  I'd compare it to eating ribs...
• Add veggies.  Might as well and it gives it a little more substance!

Taxes & Tacos....oh, and Valentine's Day

Well, it's Valentine's Day...and I had a hot date with my tax professional.  Hot.  Happy Valentine's to me, right?!?!?  Well, it kind of was...I'm getting a refund, so that's awesome.  As a treat, I made a spur of the moment decision involving a hasty lane change...Taco Bell.  Tasty.

Taxes: If you can do them yourself, bravo to you.  I can't.  My stuff is more complicated than my limited very limited tax knowledge will assist me with.  Mortgages are complicated.  In my humble opinion, I'd rather pay to make sure it's done right!!  And my time (especially these days) is valuable.  I'd prefer to not spend it translating, preparing, checking, double checking, and crunching numbers.  Booooo.  I like gathering my stuff, taking it to my person and walking away with a smile an hour later :)  No worries and a guarantee.

Tacos: The new cantina things at Taco Bell....not a fan.  It was ok I guess, but not the kind of zest I was hoping for.  It ain't no Chipotle!!!  Oh well.

Valentines Day: hmmmm, well I'm getting a refund, so that's Fun #1!  And they gave me a rose as I walked out accompanied by a "Happy Valentine's Day!".  Fun #2.  Maybe I'll pick up a mini dessert when I grab my salad from Schnucks...round it out to a solid Fun #3.  Exciting, haha.

By the way, if anyone wants a referral to H&R block, let me know...it will get you a discount if you use my super secret code to hook you up :)  Who doesn't love a discount, right?

Better Life Bags...aka My Newest Bag Obsession!!!

If you know me, then my "obsession" with bags is not news to you.  I like love them.  Period.  Purses, clutches, totes of all sizes, cross body, satchels, etc etc etc...   Before you judge, you should know that I use them all.  I cycle through whenever I'm feeling bored and this keeps me from buying new!  Smart strategy, no?

A few years ago, I started to limit my collection to what would fit into ONE storage container (the size of said storage container is private).  I also made a rule for myself that every new purchase would require at least one or more existing bags to exit the premises.  This was a little tough to get used to, but it did help me evaluate a little better.  I even installed a system so I could hang/display my favorites.  Pretty Pretty Pretty

However, as I've been purging my possessions more recently, I've parted ways with quite a few.  I plan to go through them a few more times in the next 2 months--every time gets easier and easier after all.

WITH ALL THAT SAID, I officially want one of these bags...check them out!  Better Life Bags are custom bags with a story.  Not only does she give a percentage to her community and developing entrepreneurs through kiva.com, but she hires women that couldn't otherwise work to create these awesome bags!!  That's style & charity people.

Some of my favorites are:

• Clara Lynn: I love a great tote!
• Tracey: I recently discovered I kind of dig the wristlet concept
• Laptop Cover: for obvious reasons
• Beverly as shown in the pic above.

I'm not sure what fabrics I'd get, but these are definitely going on my list next time I'm treating myself to a new bag!!!  Or if anyone needs gift ideas....

Apple Nachos...A Friday Night Experiment

Friday night...salad...super exciting.  Yeah right. 

Soooooo in an attempt to bring a little bit of actual yumminess to an otherwise ho-hum Friday food, I created a twist on a random recipe I found online.  I bring you the most simple-yummy-can't believe this is mostly healthy-snack...ever.

APPLE NACHOS

What you need:
1 medium apple sliced in about 1/4" slices
1 tablespoon of natural peanut butter (I like Smuckers)
1 teaspoon of hot fudge (again...Smuckers)
1 teaspoon of caramel (and again...Smuckers)
Almond slivers and crumbles.  As many as you like!!

1.   Slice your apple.  Thinly.

2.   Throw your peanut butter, fudge and caramel in the microwave if you need to get them oohey-goohey    drizzle worthy.  Then GO TO TOWN!!!  Drizzle to your heart's content.  Add more if you want...it's dessert after all!!!

3.   Sprinkle your almond slivers and crumbles all over.  You could also add more twists such as: coconut, mini chocolate chips, other nut crumbles, or anything that sounds interesting.

Go crazy.  I'm pretty sure you can't mess this up.

The Limited FREE gift!!! (and other reasons they rock)

I left for work in a pretty great mood this morning...but then again, Wednesday mornings are often great these days!  But when I got the mail, what did I find?? A random FREE gift from The Limited!!!  woop woop! Hello even awesomer Wednesday!!  (is awesomer a word??)  Check out that cute wristlet!!  How cool am I?!?!

I've been told this "free gift" thing is something new they're trying--a reward for their loyal and repeat customers.  Yeah, I think I definitely qualify as that! haha.  More times than I can count, I've looked at myself in the mirror and thought "yup, I'm a walking Limited ad".  I've been a big fan for quite a while now, but more so in the last year and a half as I've been refining my "style".  They have so many pieces that can go from work to play AND interchange with each other.  Their sizing is pretty consistent between different styles and cuts (which makes online ordering so much easier).  I wear the same size in dress pants as I do pencil skirts!  As silly as it sounds, it's actually not that common.

They have GREAT coupons and deals, offer free tailoring, and have some pretty helpful chics working there...at least at my store they do.

Did I mention they also sent me a 40% off coupon??  Totally awesome.  I'll be going there over one of my lunches in the coming weeks!!!  Grab my best work buddy (Shan)--do some shopping--maybe grab some panda.  A pretty good little lunch break :)