Friday Favorites.

Yes, I know today is Thursday.  But tomorrow Tim and I are heading to the airport bright and early and tomorrow night we'll be having a fab time with my mom, dad, sister and Tay.  So...here are some of my favorites for Friday...tomorrow!

1.  L'Occitane hand cream.  I spied this little goodie on a blog that I follow and made a little mental note that I should pick some up after the holiday.  Well - little did I know my wonderful mother-in-law, Jody, had picked some up for me!  She must be a mind reader because I didn't tell a soul that I was jonesing for some of this nice hand cream.  It is simply wonderful.  Doesn't leave your hands greasy and it smells amazing!

2.  Stila lip glaze.  Picked up this one from a blog too!  Lots of pretty colors to choose from and I like the little brush on the tip.

3.  Quinoa.  I love this little protein-packed seed.  Pronounced "keen-wah", most people think of this food as a grain, but it's actually more closely related to beets, spinach and tumbleweeds (thank you Wikipedia).  Quinoa is one of the only vegetarian foods that provides all of the amino acids.  One cup has about 5 1/2 grams of protein.  One of my favorite ways to make/eat quinoa...

• quinoa (prepared according to package directions - it's super easy, if you can boil water, you can cook quinoa)
• one package of mini-mozzarella balls (I normally don't use the entire package, but use however many you want!)
• grape or cherry tomatoes (again, as many as you want!)
• chiffonade some fresh basil (chiffonade is a fancy word for cutting leaves in long, thin strips.  just stack a few basil leaves, roll them up and slice away - thinly!)

Throw it all in a big bowl, season it up with salt and pepper, and drizzle with olive oil and some balsamic glaze (reduced balsamic vinegar).  Delish...and healthy!