And the Birthday Wrap-Up… Late Edition Faves and Raves

My birthday week continued…

Wednesday we began the day with Yoga Weight-Loss Workout For Dummies… it has a 20 minute standing flow and then 15 minutes on the floor and Chris Freytag is a good instructor. Her cuing is very good and although I cannot do all of the poses very well, I do like this DVD. It is one I would purchase for our collection.

Then later we took in 2 moves at the nearby IMAX Theatre… Vikings: Journey to New Worlds and Madagascar, Island of Lemurs.    And I loved them both.  I don’t think I have been disappointed in any of the IMAX shows we have seen yet and I am really happy we purchased the annual passes at Christmas. 

We followed up the movies with a fabulous sushi lunch at a new-to-us restaurant just a few blocks from home, too.  So nice to find one we like as we have been looking for a while.

On Thursday I was scheduled to work two Weight Watchers meetings…  one over lunch time and another over dinner time. We started the day with an early morning walk along the Strait.  And then when I got home from my evening meeting, The Captain had wine and appies ready for a nice and relaxing after-work snack.

Friday we had planned a lunch outing to an oyster bar downtown, but the weather was a bit gloomy so we decided to put if off for a nicer day, and hit a local mall for lunch ands some shopping.  I found an ankle length Summery skirt and we also picked up 3 nice shirts for The Captain.

The grand finale to the week was on Saturday… my actual birthday day.  It was a beautiful morning so we walked to Clover Point to watch the start of the 5 different Swiftsure races… and The Captain also partook of  the ham and pancake breakfast put on by the local Lion’s Club.  I had packed along some yogurt and strawberries, so we sat in the sunshine, enjoyed our breakfasts and coffees and then cheered on the sailboats getting off to a good start on such a windy morning.

Start of the main race

Later we headed to the Empress Hotel to the Bengal Lounge, and thoroughly enjoyed the traditional Indian Curry Buffet…

Oh so lovely… I did sample most of the dishes… loved it all, especially the lamb and I have to say the Chai Creme Brulee was unusual to me and quite delicious.  After lunch we enjoyed a leisurely martini before coming home and relaxing for the evening.  It is a beautifully and tastefully decorated room in the old and elegant hotel… leather and dark wood… very British and formal.  I have been wanting to do this for some time so was really pleased to be celebrating my birthday here. 

Thanks to everyone for all the Happy Birthday greetings and messages. I feel totally spoiled and so thankful for it all!  And it is a good thing it is over… I need to get back on track with my food plan TODAY! 

Here are some great blog post finds from the week:

• The Guide to Clean Eating on Autopilot at Workout Nirvana

• 5 Training Elements to Include in Every Workout at Fitknitchick

• How To Burn More Calories Without Exercising More and Eating Less  at Go Fit Gals

• 5 Steps to Overcoming Negative Thoughts While Running at Running With Ollie

• Tips To Stay Safe While Running at You Signed Up For What?

• Learning to trust the journey is hard. Where do you find inspiration? at Love Life Surf

• What are Strength Exercises for Runners? The Science and the Programming at The PTDC

• 3 Dimensional exercises to correct tight hip flexors at Run to the Finish

• High Protein Snack Ideas at A Happier, Healthy Bear

And I also viewed some very worthwhile videos this past week, too.  You all know I am not a huge V-log fan but I do occasionally like them when they demonstrate how to do something:

• Why You Should Foam Roll at Eat Spin Run Repeat

• The Best Core Exercise For Proper Running Form at Running Competitor

• Yoga For Runners — Pigeon Pose at Running Competitor

How about you?  Are you V-log fan?

Have you ever been to an IMAX movie?