An Early Valentine’s Surprise

by DanicasDaily on February 11, 2010

Today has to start off with a little ChocoLOVE Confessions from last night.  The Husband was admiring our ChocoLOVE stack and really wanted to dig in.  I told him he could pick ANY bar he wanted and he picked the Toffee & Almonds in Milk Chocolate.

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Since it is Milk Chocolate it doesn’t have as good of stats, but, still not bad 1/3 of the bar is 4 points.

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Think I joined in ~ ummm….YA!!!! Especially when he was eating the entire bar :)   OMG this bar is AMAZING!!!  Seriously…it’s like a SKOR bar with roasted almonds, but, better ~ crunchy, melty, caramel crunch.  I was seriously in CHOCO-LOVE!!! :D (ya, I am dork like that!)

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This morning I woke up to an AWESOME Husband!  He seriously must be trying to get in his Valentine’s presents early.  He was listening to me ramble on about not really feeling any breakfast foods lately as I packed my lunch.  He offered to get us Starbuck’s and surprised me with this.

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A Dirty Latte (of course) for 3 points and then their Low-Fat Very Berry pastry that I pondered eating for a bit.  It was 7 points and well, 10 on breakfast is pretty steep.  So, what did I do??  I planned out my food for the entire day and realized I could totally fit it all in – woohoo!  It was awesome and surprisingly kept me going all morning. 

Well almost ~ I was STARVING after 5 hours of waiting for the work BBQ to start, so I caved and snacked on a few Trader Joe’s Pita Puffs (30 of them for 2 pts).

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I have to admit I was thoroughly impressed with our WORK BBQ!  Our head honchos were throwing a BBQ to make the rain go away which totally worked because it was BEAUTIFUL and SUNNY all day. 

They created 3 FANCY salads that used THREE NEW Annie’s Naturals Dressings.  I LOVE that Annie’s is now expanding their line of FAT FREE and LITE dressings and their sleek new labels look pretty cool too!  If only the picture would come out better ;)

source: Annie's, Inc.

* LITE HERB BALSAMIC

* FAT FREE MANGO

* FAT FREE RASPBERRY BALSAMIC

I scooped up each of the 3 salads, a ton of veggies from the veggie tray, GUACAMOLE, Jalapeño Artichoke dip and a few Pita/Kettle Chips. (guesstimate 5-6 pts)

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Plus a Boca Burger with Annie’s Organic Ketchup & Organic Honey Mustard.  I LOVE Boca Burgers – I don’t know why I don’t eat them more for only ONE POINT EACH!!!

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All washed down with my FAVORITE 0 point Sobe POM Yumberry Life Water.  I am super proud that I resisted the HUGE cookies they had for dessert.

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The rest of my day dragged on, but, I had the COOLEST SURPRISE waiting for me when I got home.  The Husband is ALMOST finished with my Raised Garden Box….he was adding the finishing touches when I got home.

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LOVE HIM!!!!

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This might be my FAVORITE stone ever…..

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He did such a great job, now, I just have to figure out the what and when to plant ~ SO EXCITED!!!

So, since I know a bunch of your are Twilight Fans including our niece, I had to show you all the funny Edward Doll we bought her for her 9th birthday this weekend ~ Think it’s cool? How many of you want him the doll? ;)

I had a different dinner planned tonight using a super cool technique I’ve been wanting to try…but, honestly, I just wasn’t feeling it.  So, I pulled out these Cool Putney Pasta Whole Wheat Spinach/Cheese Ravioli’s from the freezer.

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6 pts a a serving, not bad.

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GASP ~ GOAT CHEESE!

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I LOVED their packaging and character ~ they are funny.

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I thought I’d whip up some Zesty Ravioli’s but I realized I didn’t have the ingredients ~ oops.  Instead, I just cooked the ravioli’s for 5 minutes in TJ’s Marinara, added some crushed red pepper and spinach, then, cooked for 2 minutes.

Topped with some freshly shaved parmesan.

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I LOVE how the ravioli’s actually had HUGE pieces of spinach that looked fresh.  The cheeses were super creamy and I LOVED the al dente texture.

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I had a 3 point slice of Texas Toast Garlic Bread on the side.

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What do you all think we should grow first in our Organic Garden?  I would LOVE any and all advice you would LOVE to share :)

I am off to indulge in some reading ~ I am so pumped for another 3-day weekend!!!  One more day to go……

Night all!

{ 23 comments… read them below or add one }

chari February 11, 2010 at 9:56 pm

wow, that chocolate!!! yum!!!

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connieb February 11, 2010 at 10:44 pm

don’t you just love that sobe water?!?!? I have some on hand most of the time!

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janetha February 12, 2010 at 6:28 am

jay is the sweetest ever! and that looks delectable. i miss you!

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nd February 12, 2010 at 6:48 am

I love the garden! aww! And all the food looks great!

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Emily (The Experimentarian) February 12, 2010 at 6:52 am

Oh wow! three things I am dying over in this post: Pita Puffs–who knew they made such a thing?? Amazing! And I am going to AZ for work next week, so I will FINALLY be able to hit up TJ’s for some treats. Thank goodness we’re flying SOuthwest so I don’t have to pay to check my bag (full of groceries!) on the way home :)

Second, that Annie’s dressing. I am so excited for the mango flavor! yum, yum! Do you know if those are out in stores yet?

Lastly, your garden. that is so sweet and makes me anxious for spring so we can start on our own garden! I know it’s cliche, but I would grow zucchini, tomatoes and hot peppers. Think of the possibilities! xoxo

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Jenn @ Watch My Butt Shrink! February 12, 2010 at 7:59 am

Awe, your husband is super sweet! I wish I could have a garden – but we have so many deer and critters in our yard, we’d really have to build a substantial fence to make sure nothing eats our grub!
Those ravioli look AMAZING!!!

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Alicia February 12, 2010 at 9:16 am

Yum! That chocolate looks awesome. The ravioli’s look great! Where’d you get them? TJ’s? :)
Your garden looks great. A lot of what to plant depends on how much sun you get. If you have a lot of sun I’d recommend a few tomato plants (their pretty easy to grow, they almost thrive in abuse and sun) but remember that you get a LOT of tomato’s from each plant. Cucumbers, squash, and zucchini do well in sun too. Herb’s like mint, basil, and etc. do ok in sun as long as they are watered a lot, otherwise they do better with a bit less intense sun. It looks like you have great soil in there so that will help with keeping moisture around longer.
Keep in mind that you can get more of a “bush” plant such as bush cucumbers and modified cherry or regular tomatoes so that they don’t take over your garden. If you have the space, you can grow whatever. I’m not sure how many plants you’ll have.
OK that’s about all I’ve got for now (daughter of a former greenhouse business owner). Can’t wait to see it all planted!

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Food Makes Fun Fuel February 12, 2010 at 9:19 am

I just love the Chocolove, too. Do you collect the poems? I just have 1

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Kristin (Cook, Bake and Nibble) February 12, 2010 at 12:09 pm

1. I love toffee, especially with chocolate,
2. I love sobe water!!
3. Your hubby is the sweetest.
4. DELICIOUS looking dinner! I had pasta and garlic bread last night too =D

xo
K

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katie February 12, 2010 at 12:23 pm

OH my gosh what a great husband! you are both blessed!! love it!!

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marie February 12, 2010 at 3:31 pm

The raised bed looks fantabulous! I’d recommend peppers first. They’re super easy to grow (I’ve had pepper plants that kept producing ’til they literally froze), and yellow/orange/red bell peppers can be expensive, at least in my neck of the woods.

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Melissa S. February 12, 2010 at 4:54 pm

tomatoes and strawberries!!! ok, i’m biased because they’re my favorites. but if you need an herb, basil is my favorite too! fresh margharita pizza every day!!!

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Angie (Losing It and Loving It) February 12, 2010 at 5:08 pm

That garden box looks fantastic! I have no clue what you should plant because I have the blackest thumb you would ever find.

I was just at Trader Joe’s today and wish I would have read your blog post before to check out the pita puffs. Next time! Dinner looks fab!

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kristin Pizzi February 12, 2010 at 5:25 pm

oh wow, your hubby is too cute. How romantic.

How grown tomatoes are really yummy. I don’t have a green thumb, but my mom does. They are awesome.

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Paula February 12, 2010 at 6:39 pm

Oooh! I love your finished box garden. My husband and I started one last year. This will be out second planting season. I didn’t get any cute ” I love you” signs though :)

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whitney February 13, 2010 at 5:34 am

your dinner looks fabulous. I can’t wait to buy those ravioli’s from Trader Joe’s. I swear Trader Joe’s has the best products and you are a great promoter for them. That garlic bread looks awesome too. Gotta love garlic.

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terri February 13, 2010 at 9:56 am

oh my gosh~how sweet the garden markers ARE! what an adorable hubby! happy v day to both of you~terri xoxo

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Lauryn February 16, 2010 at 8:36 am

What a SWEET husband!!!!! Ill have to get mine to take a note of that!! Haha. Awww…and a ? about Bocca burgers…are they good? Ive had morning star…but what kind of bocca burgers do you eat?

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DanicasDaily February 16, 2010 at 9:31 am

Hi Lauryn,

Yup ~ he is totally over the top awesome and so creative. I think he definitely more creative than I am for sure.

I have only had two types of boca burgers ~ Grillers and Original ~ and I like them both. They honestly do taste like a smoky burger to me and I tend to like them more than Morning Star….however, they are just different in texture and such than MS. Does that help at all?

Danica

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DanicasDaily February 16, 2010 at 10:44 am

HI Alicia,

I bought the ravioli’s at our local grocery store, Raley’s, not TJ’s for once -shocker, huh?! If you click the link to their site, they have a product locator so maybe you can find them near you?

Wow ~ I LOVE all the advice on what and how to plant. I think the modified bush plants are a great idea – who knew they made that. I am sure I’ll be emailing you for advice. My parents are awesome at growing and my dad is a Master Gardener, but, somehow I didn’t get the trait from them :)

Thanks again for all the great garden info,

Danica

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DanicasDaily February 16, 2010 at 10:45 am

Hiya Evan,

You know, I didn’t even think of collecting the poems. Do they change with each bar within the bar? I mean, I know that they are different between the bars, but, I wonder if even the same flavors have different poems.

Ok….I am not sure I am explaining that right, so maybe I’ll just stop now with the questions. I’ll keep the ones I have to see now :D

Danica

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DanicasDaily February 16, 2010 at 10:49 am

HI Emily,

Yeah for a trip to TJ’s and Arizona!!! I can’t wait to find out what you buy :D

The Annie’s Dressings should be coming out in stores soon if not already. They are all pretty tasty.

Thanks for the advice on what to grow – I am making a BIG list :)

Have a great trip!

Danica

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Irene February 15, 2012 at 11:00 am

Bad gardener, not enough sun in the past two years in the East Bay for decent tomatoes, but the green beans, Kentucky Wonder and Romano, kept on keepin on. Chard did well, too. Have fun with your garden! “The Husband” is fantastic!

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