Di Monforte

Quick breakfast before hitting the gym

Just finished the last of my apricot/dark chocolate scones. They were definitely a hit.

Gym: 3 sets, 15 reps

• dumbbell curl
• lying dumbbell extension
• dumbbell shoulder press on swiss ball
• abs: reverse crunch, plank for 1 minute, swiss ball curl ups, v-sit twist
• concentration curl
• tricep kickback
• upright row

we started off with a bottle of their house white

Dinner last night was an Italian joint in the Islington neighborhood; about a 15 minute walk from our place. But shhhh.. we decided to cab it since I was SUPER sore from teaching/running/zumba-ing all day!

in house bread with a delicious aubergine* (I think) tapenade. It beats the standard bread and butter!

http://www.dimonforte.co.uk/

I had the calamari to start with tartar sauce. It was the right balance of crispy breading and thick pieces of squid. Yum!

T had the seafood risotto that I kept sneaking bites from. It was super good!!

My entree of seabass and asparagus. It was pretty decent. I wasn't too crazy about it, just your standard olive oil preparation. It might have even been a bit too oily for my taste.

 

T's lamb chops and potatoes. His potatoes were soft and delicious and the lamb was well prepared.

These pictures are about 2 days old. I hate that our internet has slowed down and I can't blog as frequently as I used to. The pictures take forever to load so I just kind of gave up on it .... for now at least. I picked up a salad from Pret a Manger after my workout on Thursday. I love this Superfoods salad. It has a bunch of healthy but tasty ingredients like beets, chickpeas, lentils, greens, and hummus.

I met a friend at Somerset House to browse Ai Weiwei’s Circle of Animals exhibit. Free to look :)

http://www.somersethouse.org.uk/documents/press-releases/Press%20Release%20l%20Ai%20Weiwei%20First%20Outdoor%20Public%20Sculpture%20in%20London%20l%20Somerset%20House%20l%2012%20May%20-%2026%20June%202011.pdf

It was cute to see all the kids playing in the water. It is really beginning to feel like summer! Yippee!

I was half tempted to grab my swimsuit and splash around in the water ;)

I'm the rat: born in 1984 and is hardworking and thrifty..hmm I don't know about that classification

T was born in 1981 so he is this rooster. It's the ugliest one unfortunately!! It looks too real. ew! He is resourceful and adventuresome.. or so it says-ha!

We got a snack to share from Tom's Deli and sat outside to make the most out of a sunny London day. They may be numbered

carrot and ginger cake

We decided afterwards to take a walk around the Southbank Center

I perused the used book section and bought two books. I love looking for hidden gems among the used books.

New reading materials for me :-). I must be in a somber mood as these books aren't the most uplifting reads. I guess I could use a bit more seriousness in my life.

 

haha too cute.. I think this sandbox is the closest thing these kids have to a real beach in London. 

My dumbbells finally arrived. Happy Friday to me! I'll be using these light dumbbells at home for when I don't feel like going to the gym. I've developed very good habits over the past two weeks. I've been going to gym about 4-5 days out of the week and doing zumba on the side. I can already tell the difference in my mood and I'm beginning to feel that strong and empowered feeling again.

It even came with a chart for any newbie lifters.

Quote of the day:

 "The only way to learn forgiveness is to be betrayed. You might understand the intellectual concept of forgiveness, but you will only learn how to truly forgive when someone has done something that requires you to love them and let it go. Life demands these hurtful experiences for you to learn how forgiveness feels, it could be no other way. If there is anyone in your life that you must forgive, instead of seeing them as someone who has hurt you, try to see them as someone who was sent to teach you forgiveness and thank them for this precious gift - then forgive them, and let it go."

- Jackson Kiddard