I was so thankful for a “not so bad” Monday – how about you? Is it bad that at the end of the day on Monday I sort of have an internal celebration that I’ve made it through the first day of the work week? I might be the only person who does that, I guess.

Last night I stayed up and watched Downton Abbey – and after the episode I had a hard time winding down for sleep. So, I read for about half an hour and thankfully got to bed before 11 o’clock. My alarm went off bright and early at 5:30 in the morning. I was concerned with the weather forecast, which called for a snow and / or ice mix starting in the Boston area at 3 o’clock this afternoon. I really hoped I could get to work by 7 o’clock so I could get my work day underway and leave by 3:30 before the roads and traffic became difficult. I left the house at 6:25 (not 6am like I had hoped) and got to work by 7:20 AM. Not bad!

I was starving on my ride into work today. I was happy when I got to work because I could make a quick cup of coffee and eat my breakfast while I went through my e-mails. My breakfast was great. Greek yogurt and granola:

At 10:30 I was starving yet again. I opted for a second cup of coffee to see if I could get past my hunger. No such luck – and at 11 o’clock I ate a handful of unsalted pistachios. For the record – I just adore pistachios.

At 12 o’clock I took my lunch break and used it for an amazing walk outside. There was not any wind and it felt down right warm after the freezing cold weather we have had lately. I enjoyed a brisk 30 minute walk. It felt so wonderful to get outside!

Lunch was a great chicken caesar salad that was left over from my lunch out yesterday. The dressing was on the side and I used a spoonful of what was in the container to dress the entire salad. I also had a small piece of bread on the side (I am really trying to cut down on the carbs these days. I did really well last week, but there is room for improvement over the last couple of days – I figure everything is a work in progress.) Besides that, lunch was fantastic:

At 3 o’clock I had a sandwich thin with a tablespoon of peanut butter. I drove home at 3:30 this afternoon. It was snowing hard, but I got home safely and I was very thankful for that.

I did not go to the gym tonight due to the weather. I knew the later I was on the roads, the slicker they would be. So instead, I went home and was productive around the house. I made my lunch for tomorrow. I did a load of laundry. I did sit ups, crunches, planks, push ups and try-cept ‘bench dips’ using my coffee table. I figured some ab and strength training would be better than not doing anything tonight! I rotated between the exercises for 30 minutes.

For dinner tonight, I was so happy for another bowl of the Pioneer Woman’s chicken tortilla soup. This soup is fantastic – I can’t say enough about it. I added this fixings again – cilantro, scallions, cheese and a few tortilla chips:

Tonight I am catching up on Homeland. I am almost done with Season 1. I hope you all had a good Monday, too. I’m off to figure out what to make for dinner tomorrow night. See you son!