3.31.2013

Pinteresting # 2

Life has been busy so my Pinterest activity has decreased significantly. It’s probably a healthy vacation considering my slight obsession with the site, but I still managed to find some goodies in my spare time.

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1) Easter Cupcakes 

2) Hangry Pillow – Of course this doesn’t apply to me..

3) Houzz – Another shopping site! This time for house accessories.

4) Hakuna some vodka – For some reason this really made me laugh. Probably because it reminds me of my University party days.

Told you it’s decreased, but suddenly I miss it. Guess it’s time to start using my Pinterest phone app a lot more.

3.29.2013

High Five Friday

Can you believe March is almost over!? This year is really flying by, although the weather seems hesitant to go with the flow. What was meant to be the first week of Spring really didn’t look much different than the whole month has been. Lack of good weather is a bummer but I didn’t let that get me down this week. Here’s a few of my favourite moments:
1. My beautiful co-worker and good friend is getting married in May and this past weekend was her wedding shower. It was an amazing celebration and I can’t wait for her big day.
2. I had my first trip to Target and although it was hardly what I expected I did buy a new top. Mission accomplished?
3.. My camera is back in action! I haven’t been able to use my camera since the summer and wasn’t sure why it wasn’t working. After a few experiments I finally figured out it was the battery and with a new one in stow, be ready for picture overload.
4. We finally received our gifts from the Blue Jays and although the jacket is not for me I couldn’t wait to try it on. 
5. Much needed dinner with one of my besties. Catch up sessions are key and Swiss Chalet isn’t so bad either.
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Apparently I’m loving the thumbs up this week… Happy Easter Everyone!

3.27.2013

Lessons Learned

I was never a big fan of school but I love to learn!  There’s not a day that goes by that we don’t learn something new. It could be the simplest little fact or something that is life changing, but these facts and lessons are what make life so interesting.  Here are some of the lessons life has thrown at me recently:

1. Never get married and if you do then go for it but elope. Just kidding mom! But seriously, weddings as beautiful and wonderful as they are, are wayy to expensive!

2. Never believe a groundhog. Early spring? My ass!

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Excuse my confused face. This was taken the 2nd day of Spring.

3. Kids (although I highly doubt any kids read my blog), when your mom says wear your hat? Do it! Apparently windy weather can cause some mean ear aches. Weird eh?

4. Try new things! I tried a dance class I never thought I’d do and I absolutely love it. A little courage goes a long way.

5. Don’t stress the little things. If you go through life with a smile I’ll betcha you’ll enjoy it just a little more.

Let me remind you, I’m no life expert here but I try. What’s something you’ve learned recently?

3.26.2013

To the gym I go!

There’s no way to make a gym bag seem classy even if there are a ton of cute bags out there. If you really think about it, the main main purpose of this bag is to transfer stinky shoes, sweaty clothes, and a few other not so glamorous bits and pieces. My gym bag sure gets its use for all of those things but yeah it is pretty cute.

Here’s a look inside my gym bag. I did zero preparation so really, it’s a free for all folks.

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1. My gym shoes - These shoes rock my socks! (no pun intended?). A Zumba instructor of mine suggested these and they are the best shoe purchase I have ever made. They are light, ultra comfy, and help me bounce around in both cardio and strength classes. I would recommend these for everyone and anyone who spends a lot of time in fitness classes.

2. Bottle of Water - Obviously a vital part of any workout. Surprisingly enough I still manage to forget this more times than not. Hence the toonie, I always have money just in case.

3. Lock for my locker

4. Tic Tacs - I bring these with me everywhere! Never know when your breath may not be at its greatest and when you’re breathing like a mad woman it’s probably best to keep it in check.

5. Hair ties/Bobby Pins

6. Face wipes – I found when I was working out a lot and not using these, my face really broke out. I can’t say I have a baby smooth face but it does seem to help a bit.

7. Body Spray – Sweat Pea – My favourite bath and body works scent

8. Dirty socks (told you it’s not glamorous)

Just the basics with a few twists. Gymming is no rocket science.

3.25.2013

Pinspiration

It is no secret that I am just a tad bit obsessed with Pinterest. It’s full of endless possibilities and quite a few unobtainables, but dreaming is totally healthy. Like that big mansion-esque bathroom with an in-ground bathtub or the dream vacation which probably costs like half of my yearly salary. Sure I know I will probably never have these things, but boy are they awesome to look at.

I’ve heard it’s important to share your dreams, so here’s just a few (the extremely short list) of my favourite completely attainable dreams from the week:

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1) Gummy bear popsicles.

2) Mini Egg Brownies

3) Nail polish remover in a pump bottle

And a totally true quote to finish it off….

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True story! There’s not a day that goes by without singing to myself after someone mentions a certain word or situation. Music pretty much rules our worlds.

Follow me on Pinterest! I’d love to see what you’re pinning about.

3.15.2013

High …. Friday

I am always so excited when Friday hits. Whether it’s been a long week, short week, or somewhere in between it is the most amazing feeling to know that two days off are ahead. This weekend is going to be a low key beauty, despite the fact that it’s St. Patties. Call me old, I know, but this year we will be skipping the celebrations for some much needed down time. This seems fitting after a very uneventful week. So uneventful in fact, that I couldn’t think of a couple highlights yet alone five. So I’ve decided to take a different approach.

When flipping through the photos on my phone I realized I’m a bit of a tourist in my own city. I stop, mid tracks to take pictures of all the things Toronto has to offer. Let me be more specific, I take lots of photos of the highest point in my city, hence high Friday. This, to those who are not so familiar with Toronto, is the CN Tower.

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It really is such a cool building but sometimes it gets forgotten when you see it day after day. It becomes normal, and not so exciting anymore. But it is exciting! It makes me smile when I see tourists looking up in awe of how big it really is because once upon a time that was me. Kids get a huge kick out of it and the excitement in their faces makes me remember that I’m lucky to see this hunk of a building every single day. We really should take some time every day to really see what’s around you, it’s kind of awesome.

This being said, there is no chance I will be going to the CN tower anytime soon as it’s a pricey visit. For tourists, I totally say it’s a must but once you’ve done it once… well that’s enough.

If you’re on the adventurous side (and have spare cash) there is always the CN tower edge walk. It looks pretty awesome but I’ll pass.

Have a safe but rowdy St Pattie’s Y’all!!

3.14.2013

A to Z of Being Me : E is for Eating…in a picky way

When I realized this week is the letter E I was not too thrilled. What words come to mind when I think of E? Well there’s a bunch. E is for Elephant, which I would say I can’t really relate to although they are such an interesting and amazing animal. E is for Eggs, which I hate. E is for English, which I speak but that’s not very exciting. Yikes, these are plain right terrible. What in the world do I actually like and relate to that starts with E!? Oh right… only my favourite activity in the whole wide world. EATING!

I love to eat and I’d say I do it well. I also happen to be a very picky eater which is one of my more annoying traits. Foods that look weird, smell weird, or have a weird texture are not for me. Here’s the short list of foods I am not a fan of and usually get weird looks about:

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Peanut Butter – It’s definitely the smell that puts me off but I did take the brave step once to take a taste test. I was not impressed. This is probably the food I get the most questions about. “How can you NOT like peanut butter!?” “Are you allergic to nuts?” “Are you crazy!?” … No folks, I just don’t like it. Wish I did, but I don’t.

Mushrooms – I can’t even have mushrooms touch the foods I eat. Gross! This one is more of a texture problem I have and the taste just doesn’t do it for me either.

Eggs – This pickiness makes it really difficult to go to breakfast diners. Most big meals, which a pig like me would adore, include eggs. Why can’t I just be normal?

Coffee – This one is rough. There are days I need nothing more than a cup of Timmies but I can’t even down a few sips. I tried the whole coffee and hot chocolate mix dulling down the taste but it was still too strong for me. Taste buds, smarten up! I need this one.

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Now lets talk about foods I do like because besides me being a picky eater there are tons of them! I love dessert of any kind. Cake, Brownies, Cookies…Mm Mm Mm. Baking may take patience but it is so worth it! I love pasta & pizza and swear I should have been born Italian. These two are more often than not the reason I fail at diets. I love chicken wings, but only boneless ones. I love chocolate in many forms, and candy just the same.  I really love fast food and Wendy’s or McDonalds are a must have at least once a week. Basically, like most human beings, I love anything that’s not good for me.

Now I have to stop stop while I’m ahead because this post is seriously making me hungry! I could totally order a pizza right now, but I won’t. Happy Eating Y’all

3.13.2013

A Dangerous Addiction

Thanks to the blogging community, from time to time I find a hidden gem. A sale, an app, or in this case a very addicting website, there is so much to discover. Ladies and maybe a few gentleman let me share the love… Welcome to Wanelo.

I can’t remember exactly what blog introduced me to this site but I don’t know whether to say thank you or I hate you. For now I’ll go with the first one but if this addiction doesn’t quit soon we may have an issue. At least my bank account may.

Wanelo

Wanelo is kind of like Pinterest but for products. It’s a place to share clothes, jewelry, neat gadgets and all sorts of stuff that you think are totally awesome. Luckily for me I am not totally on board with online shopping just yet but I can see it become a new love of mine.  See, when I shop in store I tend to be extremely picky, especially regarding the fit of clothing, so I don’t know how well online shopping would work for me. If I can just get over that, Wanelo will be heavenly.

Here are a few of my favourites from the past week:

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(1) Victoria Secret Bathing Suit (2) MLB love shirt (3) Underwear drawer organizer.

For those of you who like to save money like me, there’s an app that’s the perfect pair.

Hukkster

How often have you fallen in love with an item only to cry later when you see the price? All the time people! This app allows you to tag the item and the site will let you know when it goes on sale. You can request three different options; when it goes on sale, when it’s at least 25% off, and when it’s at least 50% off. Amazinggg! If a product goes down in price I see it as fate, and you can’t test fate girls! Buy this item right away.

Happy online shopping y’all!

3.11.2013

What it takes for me to get fit

I am a non-believer in New Year’s resolutions, and I make it a resolution of mine not to make a resolution every year. I realize I’m three months late discussing this topic but that’s because it’s taken me three months to realize what may actually work for me.  My goal (or resolution if you want to call it that) is to be more fit by the Warrior Dash this summer. I completed the 5k mud race last year and did fairly well considering I had zero training, but this year I want to do better. I’ve been experimenting with different tools and exercise types but I think I’ve finally found something that works for me.

Food

I am a sucker for dessert, junk food, and anything bad for you so this is definitely my weakness when it comes to being fit. I don’t reach anywhere near the recommended servings of fruits and vegetables in a day and don’t even get me started with my lack of dairy products. Has this changed? Not nearly as much as it should but I have started to opt for salads a little more than I have in the past. I also have made it a habit to take my vitamins daily. If I don’t do this now, I know I’ll suffer later.

I’ve also realized the importance of drinking lots of water. I’ve been pretty much addicted to pop most my life but have recently cut it down to one a day. This was hard at first but with the help of Crystal Light Singles, water has become much more appealing.

My last food “tip” is one that I’ve read in about every women’s magazine out there. Don’t eat late at night. This one is tough when I have a fitness class mid-evening but my goal is not to eat anything after 7:30pm. No more late night snacks!

Now, the real secret between my food tracking and the App of choice to help with eating habits…

My Fitness Pal

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I love this App! It lets me keep track of everything I eat and makes me more conscious of what I’m putting into my body. It caters your calorie amount based on your current weight, age and goal weight and it shows exactly how many calories you have left after inputting an item into your food log. My favourite part of this app is the scanning feature. You can use your phone’s camera (Android and iPhone) to scan barcodes and it’ll put these items into your food log with all of the nutritional values. It’s so easy to use and extremely helpful. I would recommend this app for anyone and everyone.

Exercise

I love Zumba and I’ve always known this would play a huge role in getting fit. My ideal life would include Zumba at least 3 times a week and finding a gym that can cater to this has been difficult. I finally found one that for the most part meets my requirements. There is potential for me to do Zumba as many as 4-5 times a week if I choose to and they have so many other fun classes available. I’ve been doing a trial run and so far I love it. The boot camp classes they offer have left me sore as ever but I can already feel a difference in my muscles and it’s only been 2 weeks! My only recommendation here is to do something you love and it’ll make exercising something you look forward to rather than dread. It’s really that easy!

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FitBit

As I’m not a treadmill or elliptical kind of girl, tracking these non-standard ways of exercise can be difficult when using a calorie counting program. Because of this I asked for a Fit Bit for Christmas. This little gadget attaches to your pants or bra and tracks steps taken, stairs climbed, and calories burned. I think at times it definitely overestimates what I do so I keep that in mind when eating but it gives me somewhat of an idea as to what I’ve burnt for the day. There’s a few too many days I forget to take it with me though and it’s small so I have a tendency to “misplace” it.  Overall I think it’s awesome and I would try it out if your looking for this kind of tool.

 

I’m definitely not a fitness expert by any means but this is what works for me. Everyone is unique and finding what works for you is key! It’s a trial and error kind of thing, so keep trying and when you get it, you’ll know!

3.10.2013

Back in Action

I am so so so sorry for going MIA. This week started with a complete blah feeling and I slacked on my blogging because I felt I had nothing good to blog about. Truth is, there is always something to blog about. There’s so much going on in the world that there is never a day that I can truly say there is nothing I can write about. If I have something to share with the people I see day to day then I have something to share on here too. Long story short, I was a slacker last week and I’m back to where I should be.

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I actually had a good week life-wise. Last night I refreshed with friends and I’ll start with a real post tomorrow. Here’s my promise to get my act together.