"meat" is good

i am still sore as all hell. but it's not as bad today as it was yesterday. and i did the shred yesterday despite the pain - and was a little surprised to find that while it hurt like hell because of my sore muscles, it was ever so slightly easier to get through. yay!

the bean is funny. she would look at the tv, glance at me, look at the tv again, and just watch in bewilderment. and when i did the jumping jacks, she would imitate me - but she can't jump very well, so she just waved her arms around and squealed "wheeeee!" hilarious.

and when i got down on the floor for the abs circuits, she thought it was great fun to hop on mommy like a horse. then when i was down again for some strength training (for which i still can't find my weights, so i was using two cans of beans - how appropriate), she decided it would be a good idea to lay on me and give me big hugs. so supportive!

after showering and getting cleaned up, we took off to meet my mom for lunch at a chinese vegetarian restaurant. there are quite a few to pick from, and we ended up choosing one that mom had been to before - fine garden restaurant in san gabriel. as we drove, i told the teen that it used to be called "veg table," and although i cracked up, she just looked at me blankly.

"come on! veg table. vegetable! get it?"

at last the light bulb came on, and she giggled. "ahhh, i get it! hahaha!" oy.

and then we were there.

the bean had fallen asleep in the car, but woke up as i pulled her out of the car seat. and she sat on my lap for a while, just chillin' and checking out her surroundings. after several attempts to play, her lola (who was rocking a short and sassy straightened 'do, quite fabulous) finally got a chance to get some snuggles in.

we placed our order, and then the waitress brought over a plate of chinese bread. i dug it - chewy, soft, slightly sweet. reminded me of cha su bao, without the filling. mmmm.

the bean finally allowed us to put her in the high chair, where she decided to squish the bread in her hands and pick it apart.

next was the tofu soup and porridge. it looked promising, but this shit was nasty, yo. it was lukewarm and tasteless, and just gross. ew.

but when our entrees arrived, they made up for it.

the teen's sweet & sour "chicken."

my kung pao "shrimp." i don't know what they used to make the mock shrimp, but it was really tasty. while it looked a little off, the flavor was dead on, and so was the texture. i liked munching on the mushrooms and peanuts, too.

mom went with the vegetarian "fish" in brown sauce. this, too, was delicious.

my mom announced at some point that she, too, had decided to go vegetarian. my family is killing me with the no meat, y'all. first o, with the vegan diet. then the teen, turned off of eating flesh since watching some show on the discovery channel about slaughterhouses. last week, i learned that my sister had become veg months ago and recently decided to go, uh, full hog (how inappropriate of me, i know it) and switch over to veganism too. and now my mother??

killing me. but i'm supportive. i respect their choices - to each her own, right? and hey, more meat for me. ha!

we saved room for dessert - sweet almond tea in puff pastry. i first learned of this yummy treat via the monkey's blog, and tasted it for the first time while having dim sum with her and a few others. i'd seen it on the restaurant's online menu, and i'm a little embarrassed to admit that that was why i was excited to come here for lunch. heh.

look at the flaky, golden deliciousness! the teen liked poking through the top with her finger.

my mom, being more adventurous than me when it comes to food, took one for the team and ate the funky ass fruit at the bottom of the cup. she didn't know what it was, and didn't love it, but at least one of us tried it. and after sharing some with the bean (the teen didn't like it at all), i finished it off happily. all gone!

outside, we played "pass the bean." when my mom took her and said "okay, come on, let's go!" she said "bye!" and waved at us as she clambered into the back seat.

good times.