How to start a rumor

Apparently all you have to do as a 20 something girl is to throw up at your desk! 

I felt fine all day yesterday until after lunch.  I felt a little queasy but figured it was just the fact that I was really tired.  Well I was wrong!  Mid conversation with a co-worker I felt my whole lunch coming up, with no time to make it to the bathroom I threw up in my desk trash can.  I quickly ran to the bathroom to clean myself and then was told to head home and get some rest.

I guess that enough people saw and grossly "heard" me getting sick that they all started to think the same thing.  Apparently the only reason a 20 something girl throws up is because she is pregnant!  I was shocked when I walked into work and my co-workers asked if this throwing up thing was going to be happening often with a little wink ;-)  I couldn't believe it!  Now I love my co-workers so I didn't take offense to it but I was shocked that me throwing up one time after lunch could cause everyone to believe something so big.  Now for the record I know for a FACT that I am NOT pregnant (don't make me get into details) but it does make me chuckle a little to think that everyone would immediately think it! 

Guess these are the things that keep work interesting LOL

Feeling the burn

Training for the Disney half-marathon officially begins next week, so I decided to take this week to use up my groupon at a local fitness club.  The club is geared towards boxing but they offer all types of classes like TRX, zumba, and a little class called intensity. 

Tuesday I took a Zumba class which is one of my great loves since I grew up my whole life dancing and my legs were surprisingly sore yesterday.  However, I still decided to take the Intensity class last night... BIG MISTAKE!  Let’s just say I can't walk, lift my arms, or bend from side to side without making a little squealing noise from the pain.  Now I know this is the "good" pain like I know I didn't strain anything but man does it hurt. 

So what is Intensity???  Basically it is Tae-Bo on crack, the instructor owns the club and runs it like a boot camp, heavily motivating you the whole way through and pushing your body to its limits.  There are no weights, props, or machines the whole thing is a mix of plyometrics, kickboxing, and basic movements like squats and lunges.  Also there are about 40 people in the room so the temperature alone is enough to make you want to give up, and to make you sweat like a pig.  The really cool part though is that at nights the class is called "Club Intensity" because the instructor also acts as a DJ on a real DJ booth and turns the lights off and has a mix of club like lights going along with the music.  The energy in the room is enough to keep you going for the full hour!

So today I am going to take it easy, do some elliptical and get a good stretch in so that I can hopefully move a little easier tomorrow lol

Oh and the one and only Ms. Britney Spears came on my Pandora yesterday and I decided that this photo is officially my new motivation.  Now I know she has photoshop, trainers, chefs, and whatever else she wants but why not have some awesome motivation to keep me eating right and working my butt off!!

Oatmeal Smoothie

I of course found this recipe on Pinterest and tried it for the first time this morning.  The oatmeal threw me off a little and I ended up eating it with a spoon since it seemed a little more natural than drinking it.  But it kept me really full.  This does make a double batch, which I didn't realize at first, but drinking the whole thing was actually too much food for me in the morning.  For half it is about 200 calories, 12 grams of protein, and 5 grams of fiber, perfect for morning meals!!

Ingredients
1 cup of ice
1/2 cup frozen raspberries
1 small banana
1/2 cup plain greek yogurt
1/2 cup dry oatmeal
1 cup skim milk
Sweetener of choice (I use splenda)

Directions
Place all ingredients in blender and blend until smooth.  Enjoy!


If you like this recipe check out my new recipe for Chocolate Oatmeal Smoothine

All about the food

I love food, I love making it, eating it, and sharing it!  But sometimes that can get me in trouble.  Now I have been blessed to have a pretty naturally slim frame, however; I do have to keep myself in check.  Every year I tend to flucuate up or down in about a 10-15 lb range, basically enough so that I never have to buy new pants HA.  For me it is mainly about feeling good about how I look, there is no better feeling then looking in the mirror or slipping on a pair of pants and feeling good about yourself. 

Now I don't beleive in diets, since well they work for a hot minute then just go away so for the next and well I am never really good at sticking to them.  I don't have a little thing called willpower when it comes to my food so I tend to fail whenever someone has any type of sweet or tasty morsel!  So here are a few of my key tricks to help me get back on the healthy eating bandwagon.

1) I use my APP:  So since I do splurge every once and awhile I have gotten really good about using the MyFitnessPal APP for my phone. It works well for me because lets say I do give into an office donut in the morning I can add it to my app and then adjust my eating for the rest of the day to keep me on track. 

2) I plan: I tend to make a lot of lists and a lot of plans, and they really to help keep me on track.  Planning out most of my meals for the week gives me the ability to plan and prepare ahead of time to prevent last minute quick foods like pasta or going out.  Once I make my plan I make a grocery list and then make ahead anything that I can.

Last night for example I made a big batch of quinoa that I can throw onto salads, into soups, and eat with veggies as a great side.  I also chopped up all of my veggies for quick salads and omelets!

3) I pack my meals:  going out or picking up breakfast/lunch on the work weeks not only kills my wallet but also my calorie intake.  So everynight I pack my meals.  Breakfast is often oatmeal, yogurt and fruit, cottage cheese, or even just a protein bar.  Lunch is anything that is left over, salads, flatout wraps with tuna or other meats, soups, and then sides like fruit, veggies, string cheese, or low cal crackers. 

> Breakfast: An oatmeal smoothie (recipe to come in another post) which was surprisingly good, although it was a little odd to eat my smoothie with a spoon lol

< Lunch: Quinoa, spinach, feta cheese, and craisins.  Sounds kinda odd but this is actually one of my favorite lunches

4) I stock:  Again with that willpower thing, whenever I am in the mood for a snack I am the first one to run to a candy dish or to the vending machine.  And at home I will grab whatever sounds tasty in the cabinets.  So I make sure that I only stock my cabinets and desk with healthy but still tasty things.  For savory I love Ranch and BBQ mini rice cakes (maybe a little too much) and for sweet I love teddy grahams or apple cinnamon rice cakes with PB.  So I make sure to always have them on hand.

5) I enjoy myself:  If I am going to put in this much work most of the time I will let myself enjoy anything I want sometimes.  If the BF and I want to make an awesome pasta dinner, or go out and grab pizza I will.  There is no point in not enjoying food or the fun things in life like parties or potlucks.  I try about 90% of the time and for me that is good enough!  Lets hope I can now keep it up for a few weeks and feel a little better slipping into my skinny jeans!

Back in the mitten...

...and man is it cold!  I have never been and never will be a cold weather person and coming back from 70 and sunny makes it even worse.  But to make me feel a little better about being back in the cold and back to work I figured I might as well blog!  This weekend was amazing, I know I use that word a lot but it's because it's really true.  We were so lucky with amazing weather, fun food and drinks, and awesome family time. 

Getting there was a little rough, we got all settled into our flight, door shut, ready to go, when the flight attendant informed us that we would have to deplane and wait for another aircraft to become available.  Well anyone who travels on Thanksgiving will know that flights and crews aren't just readily available.  So we made it into Marco 3 hours later then we were supposed to at 1 a.m.!!!  Thank goodness that was the only hitch of the trip.

Thanksgiving was wonderful.  I haven't had a true family thanksgiving in ages and being able to celebrate with the BF and his family really made me realize how thankful I am to have him in my life.  He has really made every piece of my life more wonderful and it just keeps getting better.

The rest of the weekend was a blur of drinks and sun which is by far the best blur there is!!!  Sadly I didn't get many photos, which is really really odd for me, but these sum up pretty perfectly!

Still trying to get my brain back into work and workout mode, I think it’s going to take a few days lol.  I def fell off the wagon since it was so much more enjoyable to chow down on awesome food and layout instead of running on the beach but this week that will change.  Tomorrow I will have my workout and food plan for the next few weeks!  Fun Fun Right?!?!?!?!?!

Turkey and Sun

Only a few more hours stand between me and vacation!  The BF and I are heading down to Marco Island Florida to celebrate Thanksgiving in some warmth.

His whole family will be there including his sister who I have never met before, I am so excited to be able to spend it with them in such a beautiful place.  His family really is as wonderful as he is and everytime I have been around them I just feel comfortable and welcomed.  Bf's parents own the condo so we were lucky enough to visit them back in February (Where my main blog pic came from BTW) so I am looking foward to being back!  Some of my favorite things that I am looking forward to:

1) The most amazing lobster ravioli with vodka sauce I have ever eaten
2) The Gulf of Mexico being only steps away
3) Family Time
4) SUN

Hope everyone has a wonderful thanksgiving!!!

Creamy Garlic Mashed Red Potatoes

After a long day BF and I decided to make a crock pot pork loin and I wanted a quick side to go with it.  I picked up the red potatoes because I knew they wouldn't require peeling but wanted a new recipe for making them into a mash.  I usually try to make my dinners on the more healthy side but tonight since we were eating a low calorie protein and just some steamed veggies on the side I decided to splurge just a little.

The heavy cream, butter, and seasonings make this taste like something special.  The sugar in the ingredients threw me off for a second but it really does add something different.  This is my new go to for mashed potatoes and hopefully it will be yours too!

Creamy Garlic Mashed Red Potatoes



Adapted from AllRecipes



Ingredients

8-10 medium red potatoes

1 teaspoon crushed garlic

1/4 cup (1/2 stick) butter or margarine

1/2 cup heavy cream

2 tablespoons white sugar

1/4 teaspoon garlic powder

1/4 teaspoon onion powder

1/4 teaspoon Lawry's

Salt and Pepper

Directions

1) Cut potatoes into quarters, place in large pot with water and boil 10-15 minutes until easily pierced with knife

2) Drain, then place in large bowl

3) Add in all other ingredients and mash with fork or potato masher until desired consistency.  Salt and pepper to taste

4) Enjoy!

Weekend Recap

Ugh Monday, no one ever likes Monday's and today I just wanted to lay in bed with BF and do nothing.  However I have one of those silly little things called a JOB and I had to be here at 6:30 (yes I am blogging from work it will keep me from having to check emails HA).  So instead of concentrating on the fact that I don't want to be here I figured I would recap the weekend!

Friday:  Friday was a good day!  BF came home, we had an amazing sushi dinner, and drove out to Kalamazoo where I graduated college and where my sister currently attends.  Before this though I got my nails done and splurged for a pedicure as well because I decided that I deserved it and that I will be on a beach this weekend so my already winter feet needed it!



Saturday:  I lived life like a college kid and realized that I am not sure how I survived.  We woke up obnoxiously early to attend the Turkey Trot 5K which my sister helped coordinate.  We got home about 9:30 and the tailgating began!  We first went to a bar, then we went to the tailgate lots, and by the time we left I was more than a little tipsy.  The game was good we sadly lost but it was still fun to be there with the BF, sister, and her friends!  This was then followed up by another trip to the bar and a late night passed out on a futon mattress..... ahhh good times!

I am not sure what it is about being back in my college town that instantly turns me into a fat kid but all I wanted that day was french fries dipped in some awesome ranch, pizza, and of course Taco Bell.  All were devoured except for the TB thank goodness! 

Sunday:  Capped off my fat kid/college weekend with a hungover breakfast at Cracker Barrel which I forgot is the most amazing place on earth and then drove my booty home for some much needed recovery time. 

Hope everyone else had a great weekend!

Today will be a good day!

I have decided that today will be a good day!  Thanks to some amazing girlfriends and roommates I was able to take last night to lay in bed for an hour and look at pinterest as if the rest of the world didn't exist and then grab a few fancy schmancy cocktails.  So this morning I am refreshed and excited...... it may only be 7:30 but things are only going to go up from here.  WHY?? Well let me tell you

1) I only have to work a half day... thanks to some overtime I get to leave a few hours early!

2) I am getting my nails done, I have a slight obsession with having my nails be perfectly polished and it always seems to make me just generally happy every time I get them done.  Thinking this will be a pink week because that makes me even happier!

Yup I think I like pink

 3) The BF is coming home, 2 weeks felt like torture so I can't wait to have him back!

4) I get to see my sister and act like a college kid all weekend.  BF and I are heading to WMU this weekend to tailgate and get rowdy with my amazing little sister which is exactly what I need! This time I don't think I will be bonging vodka and orange juice at 8 am but who knows LOL

Hope everyone else has some amazing things to look forward to today and the weekend.  Life can get out of hand but concentrating on the good things will hopefully make it more manageable!

A need to breathe

In one word I am overwhelmed!

 For the last two weeks my work has become more than I can seem to handle in a 9 hour day (I work 9 hour days and get every other Friday off, which I have been working to catch-up anyway).  I never understood how people could be too busy to eat lunch, or would have to work at home but now I do.  I love my job and have taken on a few projects that are more fun such as planning holiday parties and such but it seems like everything just hit at once.  When it rains it pours I guess and for the next few weeks it will be pouring without much help.  The only nice side is that there is a light at the end of the tunnel, by New Years everything should start slowing down but to make it until then I will need to learn how to manage and breathe.

 I didn't want this to be a whiny post but more about me needing to learn now to not get so stressed out and to enjoy the things that I get to do outside of work.  When I am stressed I shut down, I get exhausted, moody, short, and completely isolated.  I need to learn how to manage my stress and to work through it instead of letting it get to me physically and emotionally.  Maybe I need a barnes and nobles run to find some time of feel good book or something but all I know is that I need to learn how to deal now or I won't make it to 2013 a sane woman lol!

 P.S. I do love these even though they are so overused!

Cranberry Oatmeal Cookies

Today was cold and rainy and put me in the mood to bake.  Oatmeal has been a new staple in my diet for the last few weeks and I have been craving oatmeal cookies.  I have also learned that I am much more of a craisin fan then a raisin fan so I decided to adapt one of my favorite oatmeal cookie recipes into a cranberry oatmeal cookie.  These made the whole house smell like fall and taste like it too!

Adapted from SmittenKitchen

Cranberry Oatmeal Cookies

1/2 cup (1 stick) butter, softened

2/3 cup light brown sugar, packed

1 egg

1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

3/4 cup all-purpose flour

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg

1/4 teaspoon table salt

1 1/2 cups rolled oats

3/4 cup craisins

1) Cream together butter, brown sugar, egg, and vanilla

2) Mix together flour, baking soda, cinnamon, and nutmeg in separate bowl then mix into butter mixture

3) Mix in oats and craisins

4) Bake at 350 degrees for 10-12 minutes, place on cooling rack about 5 minutes after removing from oven

5) Enjoy!

Extras

- I usually make pretty big cookies so this recipe only gave me about 16 cookies if you want more I would either double or make smaller cookies

-The original recipe stated that refrigerating the dough before baking would make them chewier... I am not a patient person so I never do this step but you could try and let me know if it makes a difference LOL

TRX kicking my butt

So yesterday I woke up to attend a TRX class at 7:30am (go me). So what is TRX? Well it is technically referred to as suspension training and it is the best full body workout class I have ever attended.  Basically you have a set of straps and through the whole class you do a variety of exercises for every muscle in your body.  The best part is that no matter what exercise you are doing you have to engage your core and man am I sore!!!  I would def recommend it to anyone looking for something fun and challenging should check it out.

I capped of the day dancing with my one of my good friends and I am feeling all of the effect today.  It is nice to feel like the hard work paid off and hopefully if I keep it up I will be able to see it.

On to the next one

Soooooo...... after my first half marathon a few weeks back I had pretty much decided that there wasn't much that would get me to run one again.  Well I found the one reason I would ever run 13.1 miles again.... DISNEYWORLD!!! 

I am officially registerd for the Disney Princess Half Marathon on February 24th 2013.  I am super excited to be able to run through Disneyworld especially since I have never been before and that the BF will actually be running it with me (even though its his birthday weekend, yes I am thaaaat loved). 

I will be using this blog to be tracking my training and all the prep that it will take me to get there.  It is nice to know that I don't have to start all the way at the beginning again, but I will be following a 12-week training plan that I still need to find.  I am giving myself until after thanksgiving to keep up with the kickboxing and yoga classes I have been doing almost daily and then I will start to mix the two with the running program.  Lets hope I can stick a little closer to my training this time and hopefully it will be an amazing experience!

Random thoughts of the week

Nothing big or important to say per usual but I have bunches of random little thoughts that I figured I might as well share!

1) My hairdresser is a god!  No seriously this man can take my uber curly mousey brown hair and turn it into Kate Middleton's (yes I am a little obsessed).  I've never been picky about my hair or who touches it but that has all now changed, pretty sure going to anyone else at this point would give me anxiety lol


Right after getting my hair done!

2) Good girlfriends are a necessity!  Last night I was lucky enough to meet up with my best friends KRae for dinner.  We live about 1.5 hour from eachother so we were able to meet in the middle.  There is something so comforting about sitting down with someone whom you have known for years and just being able to talk, and laugh, and be yourself.  I'm so happy we are able to have these times and I can't wait for many more little dinners!

3) Little things make me the happiest!  There is a little breakfast place me and the BF love to go to on the weekends and it is super tiny and usually packed.  It is worth the wait so we understand when the waitresses get a little flustered or forget something. Sunday she forgot my hot chocolate and when she remembered not only did she not charge me but it came so cute.  It made my morning, its the little things!



4) I miss my BF!  He took a new temporary job within our company that has him traveling about 75% of the time.  Since we've started dating we haven't had to be apart for more than 3 or 4 days and this trip he will be gone for 12!  Absence sure does make the heart grown fonder but it still sucks to miss someone!

5) Last but not least, I will never rake a leaf again in my life!  I am a girly girl and yardwork and I don't really get along but I somehow thought raking leaves would be a fun thing.  WRONG!  After 2.5 hours I was left with torn up hands, a sore back, and a clean lawn that will probably only last a day with how many trees we have.  Only plus side is that I burned about 400 calories according to my fitness app and I learned that I need to start saving for a lawn service when I own my own home!

Thats all :-)

Spinach Tomato Orzo Soup

Well here in Michigan Fall/Winter is in full swing!  This is the time that most people including myself start to indulge a little more in hearty "comfort" food.  The issue is that comfort food usually ends up making me feel quite uncomfortable once its time to dust off the bikinis!  So last night I set out to find an easy and hearty soup that wouldn't bust my calorie counter.  I have to say I think I found it!


Adapted from Babble



Ingredients
-1 medium onion peeled and chopped
-1 TBS Olive Oil
-1 clove garlic peeled and chopped
-1 package sliced mushrooms
-1 15 oz can diced tomatoes with basil/garlic/oregano
-1 package frozen spinach thawed
-6 cups chicken broth
-2 cups water
-1 TBS red chili flakes (if you want to add some heat)
-1/2 box Orzo pasta

Directions
1) Heat olive oil in large soup pot; add in onion, sauté 3-4 minutes
2) Add in garlic and mushrooms, sauté another 5 minutes
3) Add in tomatoes, spinach, broth, water, and seasonings
4) Simmer 15-20 minutes
5) While soup is simmering cook orzo according to package directions and set aside
6) Place 1/3 cup or more according to how you like it of orzo in your bowl and ladel soup over it
7) Enjoy!

Extras
-I don't add the orzo to the soup until serving because it will absorb most of the liquid if stored.  For me this makes enough for many meals and I recommend but placing the amount of orzo you like in your bowl right before eating and re-heating!
-I added some chopped chicken breast to my bowl as well to bump up the protein and to help make it heartier, this can be done bowl by bowl or you can add a few cooked chopped chicken breasts to the whole soup
-Replacing the chicken broth with veggie broth would turn this easily vegetarian

1 Year

Sorry friends but this will be one of those lovey dovey posts that will make some people gag.  However, it is totally worth it since this weekend marked my 1 year anniversary with BF.  I still can't believe how lucky I am to have him in my life. 

This pic was taken on our first real dinner date.  Funny enough we ended up having "our date" with 12 of my friends at a happy hour and one of them decided to snap this pic.  What's crazy to me is that I have been this happy ever since.  Since this pic we have been on a whirlwind of a year, we have fit more adventures, vacations, dates, and firsts into one year than most people are lucky enough to have in 5.  Each moment has been better than the last, and each one somehow made us happier and stronger then we were before.

 In my life I have seen both my relationships and those of the people closest to me fall apart for so many various reasons, many of them painful.  This set me up to believe that chasing a fairytale was foolish and that to be truly happy with someone you would have to compromise some of the things you wanted or needed.

This man proved it all wrong. He proved to me I was worthy of an unimaginable love, proved to me that I can make someone happy for being me, and proved to me that the fairytale does exist.  Every day I fall in love with him a little deeper and in a new way.  I can't see what the next weeks, months, and (fingers crossed) years hold for us.

Setting some goals

So since the half marthon I have done nothing physical, like zero.  No long walks, elipticals, classes, runs, or lifted a weight.  Having such a big goal really helped keep me motivated so I feel like this place will now be my motivation.  Since this is a new month I figure its the perfect time to set some new goals!

1) Run 10 miles per week:  Not at all once but at least combined a total of 10 miles I figure that isn't too much to ask and will keep me buring some calories

2) Do 1 class a week:  this is more because I am a groupon addict and currently have 20 passes to yoga and 10 to a kickboxing studio HA

3) Fill out my calorie tracker every day but 1:  I love my FitnessPal app on my phone and really do care a little more when I commit myself to filling it in. I do give myself a day off though usually on Saturday when I don't fill it in and take it a little less serious.  Oh and I also don't ever count in booze so I never delete all the walks I take at work which usually add up to a mile a day... I know its not even but a girl needs her wine!

4) Bake more:  I used to bake at least once a week and bring my goodies into work, with all of the chaos of summer and training I really slacked on baking and it truly is like therapy for me.  This will not only make me a happier person but everyone around me as well!

Here is to a new month!!!