Friday, September 28, 2012

Fashion Friday: Peachy Keen

 
This is sooo a Sunday Brunch Outfit lol.
 
 
 
 
{Dress and Heels: H&M}
{Cardigan: F21}
 
It is bright and happy and makes me feel chipper. Pretty soon it will be all tights, scarves, and hevay knits though, so trying to take advantage of the warmer weather while I can!
 

Tuesday, September 25, 2012

Running Program Week 1 Day 1

 
I just successfully completed Day 1 of my new 4 Week Running Program!
Yay! *loud applause and cheering*
 
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For those who do not know me, waking up anytime before 10 am can be a challenge. Waking up at 5:30 after going to sleep at 1:00 am, and being alive enough to have everything I need for the gym and work packed and ready, is almost laughable.
 
And yet, I stand victorious! Woot for me.
*happy dance*
 
So the deal is, I am a very goal oriented person, and since I don't actually want to lose weight, I have  always been sort of lackluster as far as finding motivation. My ideal goal is to gain a good amount (10-15 lbs?) of muscle mass, and maybe lose like 4 lbs of flabby fat. Reasonable enough. I chose running because its the most obvious goal oriented fitness, and uber inexpensive. I am also excited because my fellow buddy, who is recently a new little Momma, is also going to begin a running program as soon as her doctor releases her for exercise, so I get a fellow sufferer hehe!
 
This specific 4 week program is meant for beginners to be able to run for 30 minutes nonstop. HA! I think if I tried running nonstop now, I would get to like 4 minutes and then die lol. But I am hopeful this will really help me achieve my goals. I was able to do the first day no problem and feel great.
 
And as a bonus, there are so many little 5K and 10K races set up around Dallas every month for charity causes, that as long as I can run 2.5 miles I can begin participating in running socially as well! Ever since volunteering at a local bike race to help raise money for medical research, I have really loved the idea of being a part of something that helps human beings live better lives by contributing to medical research or local charities, promotes fitness in general, and makes me healthier too!
 
Being in the medical profession, the importance of maintaining one's health is always sort of at the forefront of my mind, yet living in America its really pretty deplorable to watch all our daily life habits destroying our bodies through our own laziness. Not something I want to be part of my life or my children's if I have them. So on top of avoiding processed foods as much as reasonably possible, I really need to focus on this other aspect of my health as well. Do you know a person's muscle mass is directly proportional to their life expectancy, and becomes more relevant the older one becomes?
 
I am very excited for this to become an integral part of my life now. Exercise and physical fitness were not in any way a part of my family life growing up, and that is just so vital now! You form the bones of your adult life when you are a child! It really is crazy to me to think about, specifically since when I think about raising a family and all those ideals, physical fitness and eating healthy meals are a very important part of what I would want my family's life to be.
 
If I could redo my childhood and make it everything ideal, I would want my everday life to include:
 
1. A regular sport (horseback riding, dance, soccer, volleyball, something!)
2. Healthy meals using fresh produce and meats (no casseroles ick!)
3. Gardening and nature (hiking/camping/canoeing)
4. Reading including all the importance classics as well as family nights (such as harry potter reading nights with the whole family or some such equivalent)
5. Some form of art/music
 
Plus of course fun kid stuff lol... like girl scouts and camp and such.
 
But this is my chance to make my life everything I wished it had been, so here is another step towards that :) If I have children I want to focus on those things, as well as some form of political involvement and religious faith. Considering both my parents are super conservative I do not regret being thrown into that at all... and their views on religion are also sort of standard ick, so I am cool with the lack of religious indoctrination. I still turned out to have a pretty good faith despite my many mornings of skipping church and wandering through the woods contemplating my sinful soul. I thought more about my faith then than I ever did stuck in the classroom surrounded by annoying stupid children complaining about their spoiled rich lives anyway.
 
Of course I want my children to grow up with the church family that I never had, as well as gain a well rounded understanding of our political system and develop an opinion about what the role of government should be in our lives.We will see how that goes though lol. I guess an important part of that will be to have open discussions where the kids feel no criticism or censure for voicing their opinions (no matter how silly they might be initially). A good education though will be huge in helping that along. Private school?  Ok getting too involved now lol.
 
Back to today! Yay me lol. Lets see if I can keep it up!
 
I will also be working on healthy protein pumped recipes and snacks to help me develop muscle as well. So far I just have Kellog protein bars and smoothies lol.
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

Monday, September 24, 2012

Fall Foods! Yum Yum!

 
Oh Fall. How I love cooking in this cool breezy weather the smell of autumn in the air. These are some of the recipes I am hoping to try in the next few months to warm up my toes for the coming chill!
 
Now if only I can get them to fix my oven lol.
 
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{Martha Stewart Mac N Cheese}
 
I love cheesy goodness! The last recipe I tried with a bit of dijon mustard turned out super yummy, so interested to compare.
 
 
 
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{Roasted Fall Dish}
 
Ok, this just looks sooo filling and perfect for the upcoming cold months!
 
 
 
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{Roasted Stuffed Portobello Mushrooms}
 
 
Its like a super healthy pizza!!! Mmmmm I heart these things! This also reminds me of Grilled Portabella Mushroom Burgers... those are one of my favs too.
 
 
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{Creamy Mushroom Soup}
 
omg I love mushrooooooms. lol.
 
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{Italien Soda Bread}
 
I have never actually made homemade bread before, but would love to try this out!
Baked bread + cold weather = amazingness.
 
 
 
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{Salted Caramel Fudge Cake}
 
Random sugary indulgence hehe!!! Damn this looks good... Wow. Okay seriously I need to get my oven fixed lol.

Friday, September 21, 2012

Thrift Store Finds: Coffee Table

 
I finally found an acceptable coffee table!!!

In my mind, the perfect find would have been this table from Pottery Barn. Buuuut I think the $500 price tag is just a bit steep, eh?



I have an off-white slip cover for my loveseat that I was planning on combining with a dark wood coffee table just like the above. I also love the storage beneath (I need somewhere to put my card games, books, and current knitting projects!). Since I often end up eating my meals on my couch (I am single; I get to do that lol), this would have been perfect for me.
 
 
But alas, I am not rolling in the dough... hence requiring another trip to CCA. I found this coffee table for $15, and it was sort of a light walnut color with nicks and dings and such. I thought about staining it dark as well, but because of the rattan shelf I chose to go with white paint instead.
 
Supplies:
 
1. Coffee table- $15
2. White paint and sponge brush- already had
3. Polyurethane sealant and bristle brush- already had
 
I painted several coats of paint (since I had to cover a darker wood color) and that took a day. Then I coated this with 3 layers of poly the next day and let dry for 24 hours.

 
 
 
The reason I chose this was because the style fits with my living room, the size is perfect, and the shelf provides storage space I need for knitting projects, books, and such.


Very content!

The holidays are going to be so much fun lol...

Fashion Friday: Twenties Twilight

 

{Lace Top: F21}
{Blazer: H&M}
{Pillbox Purse: F21}
{Shoes: Payless}

My go-to black dressy heels. They have a bit of a platform so the actually arch is very minimal and they are super confortable to stand and walk in for hours at a time. And I just love the way they look...  :D

Lace top is one of my favorites from a couple years ago. Classic 20's style lace.



And I added a pop of color just for funsies!
 

Wednesday, September 19, 2012

The Adventures of Sasha


I heart my kitty.





I discovered her here like this, literally within 15 minutes of coming home with this basket to store my yarn lol. She made record time... And of course about 15 minutes later, she was  running across the living room with one of my yarn balls in her mouth like a mommy... If you are a knitter, you know the feeling that produces lol. *gasp dramatic noooooooooo!*




 
Every morning, making my bed becomes an insurmountable challenge as she transforms into an immovable mass of stubbornness hehe. She is so silly.

Monday, September 17, 2012

Thrift Store Finds: End table



Piano bench made end table! Oooo! Aaaaah! hehehe.

Picked up this little guy at a thrift store for $10, and spruced it up a bit to fit with my little living room. This was my first sanding/staining experience, and boy was it interesting. I borrowed an electric sander, but was surprised by the strength needed to really get the layers of stain off! Whew my arms were tired lol.



Supplies:

1. Bench- $10
2. Electric sander- borrowed
3. Stain + brush- $7
4. Polyurethane sealer + brush- already had

I used a dark walnut stain to get the espresso look like my bookcases, and then applied 3 coats of polyurethane sealer. The sanding took me a couple of days just because I was tired, and then another 2 evenings for the staining and sealing.





Et viola! I absolutely love it! I am so glad I did not give in and paint it while like some of my other pieces. Since my couch will have the white slipcover (soon to be made), I really needed a darker piece in this area.


Friday, September 14, 2012

Fashion Friday: Gold Fever






{Top: H&M}
{Skirt: H&M}
{Shoes: Payless}
 
 
 
{Necklace: F21}
{Purse: F21}
 
Nothing flashy, but I like the overall look, and its pretty comfortable.
 


Monday, September 10, 2012

A Promise of Fall



We had our first cold front this weekend. The mornings were so beautiful; 60 degrees with a cool breeze rustling the tree leaves. Although I know we will get back to the 90s soon, it sort of spurred me into thoughts of the upcoming fall.



Things I am looking forward to:
 
 
Oversized sweaters
 
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Trees changing
 
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Picnics
 
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Cooking
 
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 Halloween
 
 
 
 
Knitting
 
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Friday, September 7, 2012

Fashion Friday: Rose Petal Pink

 
God I hate trying to take pictures of myself. So freaking annoying.
 
Anyway, this is suppose to be a motivating positive weekly post lol, so I will switch gears! I am trying to get back to doing this post every week again, despite my lack of a tripod or photographer lol. Or a good camera. One day, I am sooo getting a DSLR.
 
One day...
 
This is one of my fav outfits for work! Mainly because of the color combination... its very girly lol.
 
 

{Shirt: Forever 21}
{Skirt: Charlotte Russe}
{Heels: H&M}



 I won't lie, I really loved finding these heels! I stand and walk a lot at work, so comfortable cute heels are a huge plus point for me; wearing 6 inch platform pumps are a bit difficult to carry off painlessly lol.
 
These are a suede material, and I actually scotch guarded them lol. I learned that trick from a fellow blogger, Heritage Knitting, and it really has been very useful!
 
 
{These pictures are really crappy, I know. I will be attempting different things in future lol}