You're Not Supposed to Touch Wet Paint?

After a fun night out that included card games at a friend's apartment, a 1/2 birthday party, and dancing, I slept in this morning and was excited to make myself some pancakes for a Sunday brunch. 

I followed this recipe for "Hot apple pie pancakes," using whole wheat pastry flour, 1 packet of stevia, and almond milk.  I actually meant to add oil but completely forgot, and I didn't miss it at all.  Pancakes are not my specialty so I was a little unsure of how these would turn out, but they were absolutely delicious.

Before I cooked the pancakes, I cooked chopped apple pieces and a sliced banana in a bit of coconut oil on the stove for a few minutes, until they started getting slightly brown and soft.  This really brought out their natural sugars, so it was the perfect pancake-topper.  I also put some sunflower seed butter and cinnamon on top of the pancakes, along with the cooked fruit. 

I used this fun cappuccino maker to make myself a cuppa joe.  I found it at Bed Bath & Beyond years ago (while I was shopping for a present for someone else, naturally).  It had been a display piece so it didn't have a box or manual, but it was super cheap - I think around $18, and it retails around $90, so I couldn't pass up the deal.  I thought my dad could figure out how it worked, and sure enough, I left it on the counter while I was out of the house for an afternoon, and when I came back he taught me how to use it :)

So much foam!

It was a tasty brunch that kept me full until mid-afternoon!  This is a very rare occurrence, I assure you.

 And for dinner, I decided to try out something new-to-me: spaghetti squash.  I cut the squash lengthwise (the hardest part of this meal!), placed it cut-side down on a baking sheet, and baked it at 375* for 40 minutes.

The right half is what it looked like after I used a fork to scrape out the "spaghetti" pieces, and the left half is what it looked like right out of the oven.

I thought it might take some time to get the technique down, but it was super easy to just use a fork and scrape from the outside edge toward the middle, and the "spaghetti" strands came right out!

I topped the spaghetti squash with this pasta sauce (made locally in Ohio) and some nutritional yeast.

Simple spinach salad with Italian vinaigrette and sliced almonds to start, and some veggies on the side - broccoli, grape tomatoes, and spinach cooked in olive oil, garlic, chopped fresh rosemary, dried basil leaves, and sliced almonds.  I boiled the broccoli for 1 minute before adding it to the skillet with the olive oil and garlic. 

I usually take Sundays off from the gym, and today I had the best intentions to do some yoga but never got around to it.  I did have to make 5 trips up and down the 3 flights of stairs in my apartment building in order to do laundry, though, so we'll call that my light activity for the day.  I passed lots of these signs on my trips up and down the stairs:

Was it really necessary to tell us not the touch the wet paint?  I think a simple "Wet Paint" sign probably implies that warning.  Although the other day I was leaving for school and grazed some wet paint in the stairwell, and the painter had to wipe off my coat with a rag...  In my defense, there were no signs up at all.  Perhaps the painter added that extra warning for me.  Hmm.

A new season of the Amazing Race started tonight!  I love that show, and I also love when things start mid-season.  Is anyone else an Amazing Race fan?

Well, time for me to clean up around here and get ready for a new week.  Back to the grind!  Hope you all had a great weekend :)

Song of the Day:

"Shadow People" by Dr. Dog.  This entire album, Shame, Shame, is really excellent; the songs are catchy and upbeat, and they have an old-school sound.