Outerbanks Update & Recipe

Happy Friday! 3 more days left on Vacation I thought I would give you guys an update on how my vacation is going so far by playing the number game. Here it goessss.

27 

trips so far down the stairs to the beach

15

pounds of candy brought

11 

times the boys have planked/owled

4

theme nights so far (Italian, Hawaiian, Mexican & American)

1

restaurant trip (which was AMAZING)

Sweet Potato Biscuits

House salad w/ feta red wine vinaigrette

Fresh Rockfish in a mango coulis with blueberries, rice & broccoli

 The restaurant won best dessert. Would it shock you to tell you I picked the peanut butter chocolate chip cheesecake? Didn’t think so.

5

Happy Hour’s attended (at home)

Watermelon Spritzer

2

trips to Harris Teeter. LOVE.

1

beautiful sunrise (i’ve been sleeping in!)

3

times I’ve complained that I’m SO burnt.

but I keep laying out

6

desserts made and still 4 more to come

300

good memories and lots more to come

1

recipe to share with you

This is a staple in our family – We make this ALL the time because a.) it’s that good and b.) it takes about 5 minutes. It’s not exactly “homemade” but nobody would ever know.

Strawberry Banana Pudding

Ingredients

• 1 Large Box Sugar Free Vanilla Pudding
• 1 Small Box Sugar Free Vanilla Pudding
• 2 1/4 cups of COLD unsweetened Almond Milk
• 2 Tubs of Sugar Free Cool Whip
• 5 Bananas
• 2 lbs of Strawberries
• 1 box of Mini Vanilla Wafers

Directions

• Whisk almond milk and pudding in a large bowl
• Fold in bananas

• Fold in 2 containers of cool whip

• Add one layer of mini vanilla wafers to a 9×13 dish

• Add 1/2 of pudding mixture on top of vanilla wafers
• Add another layer of vanilla wafers on top of the mixture and spoon remaining mixture on top of cookies

• Cut strawberries in half and add to the top

• Cool in fridge until ready to serve or serve immediately

Warning: You will not be able to settle on one serving of this.

De.freaking.licious.

Now if you’ll excuse me i have to go soak in the sun.

QUESTIONS: Do you take family vacations? Whats your favorite memory??

Good Advice from Alyssa #2

My vacation is half way done As you all know I just moved to Hoboken to be with my boyfriend where I know not one single girl. My girl Alyssa moved to Virginia Beach last year and seems to be miss popular so I asked her for some advice! Take it awayyyy.

I’m Alyssa from Life of bLyss, where I blog about running and getting big muscles, my puppy, my adventures, and some food. As my twittersays, “I’m driven by fun, food, undercooked brownies, and too much wine. I like to run till my legs hurt, pretend I’m Ke$ha, and paint wine glasses.”

It’s all true.

I’m careful to say I’m from South Jersey to avoid the “Noyth Joysey” remarks, the “dirty Jerz” comments, and the “armpit of America” cracks.

If you can’t tell, I get a little defensive of my home state.. and for a good reason. I grew up in the pretty suburbs in the Pinelands. It’s really nice. I swear.

Which is why the OTHER Alyssa (you know, the girl whose blog you’re presently reading) is so lucky to be relocated to such a great place. And she has asked me to indulge you guys in a little How To post.

How To Meet Friends …in a New State. ;)

I’ve now lived in Virginia Beach for a year. I knew almost nobody upon moving, so I’ve learned a lot about meeting new people.

1. Reach out.

Use your Facebook and other social networking. Ask everyone you know if they have any friends who live in the area where you’re about to move. You may even be surprised – old high school friends you rarely speak to may live right near your new abode.

2. Do your research.

Put that Google search bar to use. Google “fun things to do in _____.” You’ll learn of all kinds of fun places to visit where you may meet people like you.

3. Take advantage of coworkers.

That donesn’t exactly sound right. But if you have a job already, ask your boss/coworkers where they hang out. Invite them to have happy hour after work with you. They’ll know all the good local spots, and you may turn a coworker into a friend!

4. Don’t fear the locals.

If you’re shy, this can get difficult. But I’ve learned the locals ALWAYS know best, and they’re typically pretty happy to help.

Unless your new home is in New York.  (…that’s a joke )

5. Get into your hobbies.

When I moved to Virginia Beach, not only did I need friends, but I also needed running buddies. I Googled a running group in the area, picked one, and showed up. Everyone was so nice, and I’m so glad I tried it.

6. Join a gym.

Well, this is an obvious. But the same people generally go to the same classes at the same time. Built in friends and fun activities. BAM.

7. Use your bloggy connections!

If you’re a blogger, you’ve got tons of friends from all over the country at your fingertips. Tweet it out! Ask them if they live nearby, if they ever have, or if they have friends in the area. I bet you’ll come up with more than you think.

Fun Fact: I met one of my closest friends in Virginia Beach thanks to blogging. Jamie found me from Julie‘s blog, and now we’re gym buddies, bar-hopping partners, and, well, I love her. She’s my VBBFF.

And know what’s weird? She’s from ONE TOWN OVER from me in New Jersey. We went to rival high schools and played on the same field hockey field together!

 And now we just can’t stay away from one another.

So get on out there, be friendly, and people will just be begging to be friends with you. Let me know when you do, too. I’ll be over at Life of bLyss waiting for pictures of you hugging your new bff.