What I'm Loving Wednesday -- Birthday Edition

Well, tomorrow I turn 24. For some reason, 24 feels quite a bit older than 23. Perhaps that's because I'm just so much more wise and experienced now. (Do you hear that Mom?) Anyway, here's what I'm loving today. 

1. My awesome boyfriend.  Goose Creek was up for restaurant review last night in my Patch.com rounds. No one wanted to drive to try this cute little Cuban place with me. For awhile, it looked like I'd be dining solo. My boyfriend volunteered to be my date as well as my passenger seat navigator. Unfortunately, the restaurant was closed when we got there. Closed for business permanently, in fact, but the fact that he, a non-foodie, volunteered to try something that wasn't exactly within his comfort zone earned him major brownie points.

The candy bar is actually called "Annabelle's Big Hunk" 

2. Trader Joe's. Currently can't get enough of:

Barbeque Popped Potato Chips: not baked or fried these babies are the perfect substitute for BBQ potato chips!

I'm a sucker for Indian food. This curried eggplant is very flavorful, addictive and totally vegetarian.

Chile and Garlic Edamame are little healthy flavor bombs. A nice break from the normal sea salt edamame pods.

3. This photograph was taken during my roommate's birthday. I'm being fed a baked yam. Who knew an iPhone camera could make this happen? (We're thinking it was the simultaneous taking of two photos-- one with a flash and one without that caused this.)

4. Emma, who has become more and more like my own dog. She spent Thanksgiving with me and my family this year. She's so sweet and a total ham-- what's not to love?

The Dock Days of Summer

To say I’ve been stressed out lately is like admitting the U.S. needs a solution to the deficit. I haven’t had a chance to work out a single time this week and I haven’t meditated or gone for a run. I have turned my back on all of my normal stress-releasing activities during one of the most stressful workweeks I’ve had since I started my new job. I’ve had trouble sleeping and I’ve been weirdly short of breath—even lying in bed. I may or may not have broken down in tears twice this week.

Luckily, my boyfriend had a solution for us (he’s had a tough week, too): the dock. His family has property on a creek that flows into the Cooper River. It’s quite possibly the best place in Charleston. Friday after work we took tail-wagging Emma and headed for paradise. Walking down the long dock to the creek is like time travel. With every step the weight of the week, or perhaps the world, falls away. By the time you’ve reached the water you’re standing a whole lot taller. 

Post-work Paradise

We swam and caught up on our reading (him: Entertainment Weekly, me: The Happiness Project) in this:

My kind of recliner.

Saturday afternoon my mom and I headed to Trader Joe’s. To no one’s surprise, it was busy. I found some fantastic stuff, but I’m most excited about:

Mango Chile Fruit Floes and Raspberry, Lemon, Strawberry whole fruit popsicles!