Happy Leap Day

Oops! Was staring a post on the bus just now and it accidentally published. Happy leap day everyone!

Made these last night when I got home from the gym,



They are delicious!





Was listening to Pandora on shuffle and it should know by now that I despise the Red Hot Chili Peppers. I wish I could block Pandora from playing them and Jason Mraz. Sorry if you love either, I just don't care for their music.





Thanks for all of your comments on my career dilemma. I just feel bad because I have already been to grad school and I earned a certificate in another grad program. I feel like it is money down the drain.

How appropriate that this question came up on the Women's Health giveaway entry!





Well it's time for me to read my book on
my commute into work now. Have a lovely day!

Contemplating my career

I'm not a big soup person. However, it is a nice quick meal and last night, I didn't feel like eating much except for the Amy's lentil vegetable soup I picked up at the store over the weekend.



The flavor of the vegetables was reminiscent of other Amy's products. The soup didn't taste salty and the veggies tasted fresh. I'd buy it again.

I had half of it for dinner last night and half for lunch today. I dipped a Wasa cracker in it and also added some monterey jack cheese, which was a great addition.





My afternoon snack was a blood orange Chobani. Thanks for all of your giveaway entries so far! I knew my readers would love Chobani as much as I do! If you haven't entered, remember that you have until Friday.





I spent some of my day contemplating my career. This article entitled "Advocates for good eating habits" was in the paper yesterday that really made me think I ought to go back to school to become a Registered Dietitian. It has stability and I need that in my career right now because I am not getting it from my current field.

I'll end with this quote, which is along the lines of how I've been thinking lately. I agree, but I can't help but get very excited when I think about going back to school to formally learn about nutrition.

"For many people a job is more than an income - it's an important part of who we are. So a career transition of any sort is one of the most unsettling experiences you can face in your life."-Paul Clitheroe

Do you like your job? If not, why?

Chobani GIVEAWAY

If you have been reading my blog for a while, then it's no secret that I love Chobani yogurt. I eat it every day. I am excited to share that love with my readers today by hosting a giveaway for the new flavors: Apple Cinnamon, Blood Orange and Passion Fruit!







Had the Apple Cinnamon with lunch on Friday.





My favorite is definitely the Blood Orange! The Passion Fruit is growing on me though.

A huge thank you goes out to Chobani for sending me the new flavors.

To enter--please leave a separate comment for each of these that you do.

-Leave a comment with your favorite flavor of yogurt or favorite way to eat it (with granola, cereal, etc.). It doesn't have to be greek or Chobani.

-Tweet about the giveaway and link to it.

-Link to the giveaway on your blog.

Open to US residents only.

I will announce the winner on Friday, March 2nd. You have until 7 p.m. Central time to enter.

Good luck!

Weekend scenes

I can't believe the weekend is almost over! I need an extra day off of work soon.

Here's my weekend through less text and more pictures for the sake of time.

Was happy to get a package from White Girl salsa yesterday. I won some last year and it finally came. I was so sad to pick up the box and see stuff was leaking. Even more mad when I sliced my finger on a piece of glass, even though I was very careful opening the box.





This came as a sample in our newspaper. I had it after the gym and thought it was pretty tasty.





After a shower and lunch, I was just as tired as my three boys. I read my book and fell asleep for about five minutes.





Traded in an empty bag of Starbucks beans for a hot cup of coffee. I was one of the few who didn't get a love cup around Valentine's day, so I was happy to randomly get one. I tried the blonde roast for the first time and I liked it. I usually like darker blends of coffee, so the taste of the lighter bean was different at first.





Grocery shopped. Just needed a few things to get us through the week.





Shopped at one of my fav local grocery stores, Sendik's.





Got these for free using a coupon sent to me by the company. Will let you know how they are!





Had to get this salad dressing at the store because I love eating salads, but love them even more when this dressing is on top.





Got my ring cleaned. It's all shiny and looks new now!





Weekend movies/shows. Can't get enough of Downton Abbey still.





Read a little. Not as much as I would have liked. My eyes keep getting so tired!





Karma is always on my lap when I am curled up on the couch with a blanket.





If you want to enter to win 12 of the new Chobani flavors, come back tomorrow because I'll have a giveaway!

Life is Precious

I had something very scary happen to me yesterday as I left work.

I walked to my bus stop as I normally do. The walk signal came on and I crossed the street. As I was halfway through the crosswalk, I saw this white car come out of nowhere and the driver was turning left right into me. Her car actually did touch my leg. The next moment was one of the weirdest I have experienced in my life. I told myself that if I didn't get out of the way really quickly, I'd end up under her car or thrown into the street. I literally hopped to my right and looked back at the driver and gave her a look to communicate "what the hell are you doing, watch the road" and she mouthed "sorry" as if it was nothing, but I could see the shock in her face. She almost hit someone because she came down the hill too quickly, saw the green light and probably was only focusing on that, not on the pedestrian crossing in street.

I got to the corner safely, unharmed obviously, and a woman about to get on her bus asked if I was ok. As that bus pulled away, I started crying from the shock of almost having been hit. I was mad at first, but then realized that I could have been that driver and we all have close calls like that in life. I was shaky and really emotional about the fact that it could have been worse. Life is precious and in a split second, an action that you can't control can change it.

As I sat on the bus and tried to relax, I couldn't help but think of Emily from The Daily Garnish. She got hit by a car a year and a half ago and retells her story here. She will deal with the effects of that driver's actions for the rest of her life.

Next time you are driving and there are pedestrians crossing, please be careful. This is why I prefer not to talk on the phone while driving anymore. I just feel too distracted.

I appreciated the fact that I could get up this morning, make my coffee, read a book and make these yummy pancakes. I could have been lying in a hospital bed instead and I am so thankful for being safe and unharmed.









Love this fluffy pancakes recipe. It was the first time I used vinegar and milk in homemade pancakes and that was definitely the trick to making them fluffy and delicious! I also liked that there wasn't a lot of sugar in this recipe.





I've got to get to the gym today and watch lots of Downton Abbey! Have a lovely Saturday.

Addicted to Downton Abbey

I'm not one to watch that much TV. I'd much rather read or play on the computer.

Last night, I stayed on my sore butt (delayed onset muscle soreness from Monday's fitness class) and watched three episodes of Downton Abbey. I literally sat and laid on the couch from 6:15 until about 9 p.m. Um, I am a bit obsessed with and addicted to the show! I know I am not alone because I keep reading and hearing about more people just like me.



source

I love the characters, historical references, romance, the British accents, the mystery, the clothes, etc. I could go on and on. I am one episode away from finishing season one, so I am a bit behind considering the last episode of season two just aired. I had to sign up to get season two from the library and I hope it comes in soon so I can have another marathon!

I ate some thin mint ice cream while I watched. :)





I got my sore butt to the gym tonight. I worked through the pain and it felt good.

After I got home, I made my lunch for tomorrow--a spinach salad with peppers, mushrooms and cheese. Kind of a weird combination, but I have been craving peppers and mushrooms lately.





Aldi had a sweet deal--I got all three of those peppers for 99 cents total. Score!





I saw Jenna review this book on her blog and when I looked it up on Amazon, I was impressed with the five out of five stars from other readers. It came in at the library and I picked it up today. Yet another book that is set partially during WWII. I guess I can't get away from the subject this year, no matter how much I try.



I am looking forward to this book and I think it will be a much better read than The Tiger's Wife! There's a bonus of some lovely German recipes in the back of the book too, so maybe I'll attempt to make some of them. I love German desserts.

Time to get ready for bed and read that book. Have a good night!

Y-Triple Threat and Tempeh

I tried a new group exercise class after work tonight. It's called Y-Triple Threat. The teacher said that the class was setup like the Tabata one in the last session, so I was kind of excited as I had been wanting to try Tabata for a while now.

Here is the class description from the YMCA's website:

Knock your socks off with this three-tier total body workout! Participants will work through a combination of exercises encompassing Cardio, Strength and Core. This class offers variety and modifications for all fitness levels.

It was a fun, but tough class. I did find myself really sweaty and red at one point and had to run for an extra sip of water. It felt good to get my butt kicked though! :)

I feel like my exercise routine has been too boring lately, so it was nice to switch things up tonight.

I came home and knew exactly what I would have for dinner--tempeh. I love this Lightlife flax kind I got at Whole Foods. It's definitely been the best tempeh I have tried so far. (Sorry for the yellow photo).





I cooked it in soy sauce and had it with a side of asparagus and a berry protein smoothie.



I really like this protein powder. It doesn't taste chalky or thick like some others do.





I had better luck with curling my hair yesterday. We went to my in-laws' house for dinner, so I thought I would change things up with my hairdo. They all liked my hair a lot.





I can even report that I slept on my curls last night and they still looked good this morning, so I didn't wash my hair. I just dry shampooed it and refreshed some of the front curls. A co-worker also commented on my curls and wondered how I got them to look like they did. Love having a new style to experiment with!

On the bus ride into work this morning, I decided that I'm giving up on The Tiger's Wife. Just can't get into the book and I am about 35% through it. I have plenty of other things to read! Life's too short to read bad books.

Any book suggestions for me? I have a bunch of stuff to read, but has anything grabbed your attention lately?

I'm only two episodes into the series, but I am loving Downton Abbey so far! I am off to catch another episode now before bedtime.

Enjoy the rest of your Monday evening!

Lunch and Costco with mom

I haven't hopped on my laptop much this week, so that means I've been slacking on the blog front! Sorry about that!

It was a busy week at work, so I have been consuming lots of Yogi Green Tea Kombucha, which comes along with some lovely positive messages.



Tried a new Luna bar flavor this week. Loved it!









Mid week, my flat iron broke. The plates no longer heated up. As a result, I was left with some pretty awful hair. I didn't realize how much I depended on the flat iron to make my hair flat and frizz free.

I did lots of research on ghd and was pretty close to purchasing one. We'll see as further along in the post, you'll discover why I might wait.





It was a beautiful sunny Saturday here! Makes me so happy to see the sun (and some cumulus clouds) when I barely see it throughout the week.





I met my mom for lunch at Cafe Manna today. I started with limonade and we munched on the crackers and hummus.





Mom got the Cafe Manna burger (made of lentils). Her only complaint was that it was messy to eat.





I tried something new and got a raw vegetable wrap, which was delicious. Here's the restaurant's description of it: A soft dehydrated veggie tortilla filled with crisp fresh vegetables, creamy avocado, nut cheese, pepitas and sunflower seeds. Served with raw dill “potato” salad.





After lunch, it was off to Costco with mom. I spent way too much money, but a lot of what I bought will last us a while or they were bigger things, like this Conair curling wand and flat iron.

I originally went to Costco thinking I would buy a curling wand like this if they had it. I had seen it on Janetha's blog last year and her curls looked so pretty!

I was very excited to see that it also came with a flat iron! I'll try it out and see if it works well.





Here are pictures of my food purchases. I also picked up some Cetaphil, tan Kenneth Cole pants, tortilla chips, Fage yogurt and Ecos laundry detergent. We tried lots of yummy samples too. :) Love Costco!









Apparently the idea of aging is scary to me because I bought so many products that are high in antioxidants!





On my way home, I drove through a subdivision to check out some new houses. It has a model home that I admire the pictures and floorplans of in the Sunday newspaper. Turns out, my mom likes the houses in this subdivision too and I had no idea until I told her I stopped in there to look around. I wish we could buy a brand new house and move soon. We really could, but I think we'll stay in our current house a couple more years to save some money.

Isn't she a beauty? All I want in a new house is a dishwasher, bigger kitchen, walk-in pantry and a garage to put my car into! That's not asking too much, is it?





This one was pretty too.





I had to try out my new toy when I got home! I think I curled a little close to my roots, but I'll experiment and figure out what works. I like the curling wand style so far though! It's so weird not to clamp down, but it's great because I don't have those crimped ends to worry about.









Gotta go meditate and then watch part of Midnight in Paris!