When you work full-time, it’s inevitable that some days will seem monotonous, no matter how much you love your job. One thing that always breaks up a mundane day is a birthday celebration!
Today’s birthday celebration included cake, cookie cake and mini cupcakes! I had a little bit of everything (the cupcake went straight into my mouth). I also went back for more cake frosting because that’s clearly the best part of cake.
Fortunately the birthday celebration occurred after lunch, so I didn’t fill up on cake before my mid-day meal.
Today’s lunch included salmon salad on top of a toasted sandwich thin.
I prepared the salmon salad by combining approximately 3 ounces of salmon with about 1.5 tablespoons of onion and chive cream cheese and one sliced celery stalk.
Pepper slices were served on the side.
Revamped leftovers rule! 
Dog Park + Dinner
Once the workday was over, I came home and headed to the dog park with Ryan and Sadie.
Sadie loved every minute we spent throwing the ball for her. She was a sprinting machine!
Such a happy girl!
Eventually our stomachs told us it was time to head home for dinner.
On the menu tonight was a random crock pot concoction!
Before heading to work this morning, I combined the following in the crockpot:
- 2 chicken breasts
- 1 can chicken broth
- 5 carrots, chopped
- 1 onion, chopped
- 1 green pepper, chopped
- Thyme, to taste (about 5 shakes)
After cooking all day on low, we had a delicious veggie-packed chicken dish to enjoy for dinner! 
For being made with a random assortment of stuff I grabbed from the fridge, it was a pretty darn good meal!
Before signing off for the night I want to thank you guys for your amazing book recommendations. I feel like Ryan and I now have a great list of books to read in the upcoming months.
Up first: Water for Elephants by Sara Gruen.
I’m excited to get readin’! Apparently there is a movie-version of the book coming out in April, so I think we will be reading it at the perfect time.
Off to chill with Ryan and Sadie. I’m sleepy tonight.
(P.S. The Fashion page was updated this evening!)
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Yes. Frosting is clearly the best part of cake. I hope you got your fill! 😉
I love cookie cake – that looks so good!
Water for elephants is one of my favorite books! The trailer for the movie looks fantastic, can’t wait for April 22nd!
HAHA that is a GREAT picture of Sadie!! My mother in law RAVED about Water for Elephants. Hope you enjoy it!
Fun post!
I used to work full time at an office and could always count on birthday cake at the beginning of each month. It was AWEsome. And I’m with you all the way: frosting is clearly the best part of the cake : ) That’s why I get the corner pieces every time.
Good night! Happy reading : )
I’ve made a very similar recipe before – love the simplicity (and comfort!) of crock pot meals!
what size crock pot do you have ?
we actually have one with three interchangable sizes (2, 4 & 6 qt. options). it’s a hamilton beach crock pot and we love it!
i’ve never even heard of that…sounds amazing! what size do you use most frequently
Since there’s only two of us we typically use the 2 qt size most often.
You had me at Cookie Cake! When I was in college, we used to make one for each of my roomies birthdays. Ah, the memories 🙂
water for elephants is an excellent book I just finished it myself. It starts slow but is great enjoy!
Hi Julie, I am a daily follower/blog reader of you from Canada (I don’t have a website or blog…but Twitter :-)…when you mentioned the book, “Water for Elephants” I had to reply. I could not put down this book – so descriptive and you can’t help but become taken in by the characters and love who they are. I hope you enjoy this read and thank you for your daily inspirations and updates. Diana
ooh, now i’m even more excited!
I love Like Water for Elephants too!! I hope you love it!
A couple days ago, I ate a QUARTER of a can of cream cheese frosting with ONE small cupcake. It was the perfect frosting:cake ratio. Frosting really is the best part!
Water for Elephants is amazing! I finished it in under 24 hours… I couldn’t tear myself away.
Hope you enjoy it 🙂
I finished Water for Elephants in one day last weekend! It was great and I can’t wait to see the movie! Your blog is great, I always look forward to your posts. Enjoy reading!
Mmmmm cookie cake! I haven’t had that in a LONG time! 🙂
Isn’t it great how almost everything thrown into a crockpot turns out tasty? I haven’t read Water for Elephants yet but it’s another one that’s been recommended to me. Can’t wait to hear what you think!
I really enjoyed Water for Elephants. Also, I made a turkey crock pot meal today. Like yours, I threw veggies that I had in there and it was delish!
Haha, there was a Seinfeld episode about office birthday parties! One of my favorites! 🙂
I agree, the frosting is the best part of those treats! I always pick the pieces with the most frosting. I am surprised you didn’t do that with that chocolate chip cookie pie piece you got on your plate there!
I made really good angel food cupcakes with fluffy white fat-free frosting. The frosting is so good and I flavored it with almond and cherry extracts 🙂
See them on my blog today.
That’s some frosting I don’t mind eating a bunch of since it’s fat-free!
It seems like there are so many opportunities to indulge (office birthdays, going out with friends, etc) that I OVER indulge too much! how do you monitor yourself?
I love surprise office cookie cakes – and I’m with you…the frosting is always the best part 🙂
Office birthday parties are the best days!! 😀
Awesome book!
YUM! Work birthdays are sweeeeeet!!
I LOVED Water for Elephants. Loved Loved Loved it.
enough to comment.
SOOOOOOOOOO good.
Hi Julie! I have noticed that a lot of the dinners you make tend to be high in protein and veggies-usually no carbs/starch. I was wondering why or if you try to not eat carbs later in the day? Let me know! Thank you!
hi laura! i got this question last night from another reader, heather, so i’ll just copy/paste my answer here:
it’s really not intentional. i love carbs, but am not a huge fan of rice and like to eat pasta as a main dish, so ryan and i often eat veggies & protein for dinner unless we’re eating ravioli or pasta… mainly b/c i’m too lazy to cook up a potato or rice or something to go along with it. also, after dinner i’ll often eat something w/ more carbs… like fruit, toast w/ peanut butter or a small bag of popcorn as my evening snack.
You guys will really like Water for Elephants. It’s intriguing on many levels, and a great read!
Ohh, cake. I love a great store-bought birthday cake. Agreed on the frosting being the tastiest part!
I LOVED LOVED LOVED Water for Elephants!!! Its really awesome! One of my favs in a long time!
If you enjoy Water for Elephants you must read her latest Ape House…both are excellent
Thanks for the great pix of Sadie…she makes me smile from ear to ear everytime I see her!
Janet
Sounds good….I’ll have to try that book out 🙂 p.s. I heart random concoctions in the crock pot!
Water for Elephants is a fantastic book. It made me cry! I cannot WAIT for the movie. Enjoy it!
I love all of your random crock-pot meals. I’ve never experimented with a crock-pot, but once I get my own kitchen to cook in next year I surely will be excited to try it.
I want to read that book before the movie comes out too!
oh ive never even heard of that booK! let us know how it goes! and crock pots seem awesome! ive never used one!
That chicken looks wonderful!!!!
I was always the kid who asked for a giant cookie on my birthday instead of cake……=D
Cookie cake is so underrated!!! I actually think it’s so much better than regular cake. It’s my weakness at office parties.
I agree with you…the frosting is the best part! A little part of me dies every time someone says, “Ick! There’s too much frosting!” There is no such thing, people!
Water for Elephants is a fantastic book, I could not put it down. Enjoy it!
I read “Water for Elephants” a couple of years ago and just LOVED it! That’s why I’m excited (although skeptical) about the movie!
I love office birthdays and cookie cakes! I agree with you on the frosting. It’s the best part! 🙂 I’ve never heard of Water for Elephants. I cant’ wait to hear your opinion of the book.
You guys will LOVE Water for Elephants. It is one of my favorite books and great for both men & women!!
Water for Elephants is a wonderful book – and you will really enjoy it…glad it’s up next for you!
I love office birthdays — the treats are always fabulous and who doesn’t like wasting time for about 20 minutes during a work day? 🙂
I’ve heard Water for Elephants is wonderful, I hope you like it!
Julie – We keep reading the same books! I finished all of The Hunger Games and then immediately started Water for Elephants. I’m now on The Help in case you need a another recommendation.
Love your blog!
did you like water for elephants?
Yep, I did. I always read the book before I see the movie and with the movie coming out soon I had to get to the book first. I thought it was good and read it really quickly.
Ahhh cookie cake is the BEST! My mom used to always make that for us when we were little. It was always a hit 😉
Umm yes the whole point of eating cake is the frosting!! 😀 Also I love how you plate many of your meals with sliced bell peppers…I do that too and all my coworkers and classmates make fun of me!
stand strong with the peppers!
Not to be a party pooper but I am really over office birthdays. It seems like someone has one every day around here–enough already! But I do love cake…
Water For Elephants is my all time favorite book! It’s such a great read!! It’s right up there with Tuesday’s With Morrie by Mitch Albom! You and Ryan could proably read that in one sitting, so touching! 🙂 Enjoy your reading!
tuesdays with morrie made me cry! i made ryan read it after me and he loved it, too!
I actually couldn’t even get through the entire book for “Water for Elephants” I think I gave up 100 pages in because it was so boring!
I would recommend all the Dan Brown books because he is an amazing writer!
I have heard so many good things about “Water for Elephants!” One of my co-workers raved on and on about it! I hope you enjoy!
I just started Water for Elephants and am seriously addicted. I can’t put it down! Can’t wait to see the movie.