I LOVE BREAKFAST!

Can I just tell you about the BEST breakfast I had this morning after my run???

Ok..not the BEST breakfast, but it was REALLY good for being (mostly) healthy!

(Shana and Amber...this meal is not for you. Stop reading.)

My favorite grocery store is Fresh and Easy. They have so many fun products! 

Here is what I found for breakfast...

Van's Natural Foods has a great variety of waffles. I grabbed these for the extra protein and fiber!

When it comes to diet-y syrup, I'm always skeptical. It NEVER tastes good. It's usually runny and tastes like some sort of imitation sweetener. 

Not this stuff! It's GOOD! It's thick like maple syrup and tastes just like maple syrup!

 

I bet you're thinking "If it tastes good, it can't be that much healthier than normal syrup." That's what I thought too, but check this out!

I added some blueberries and cinnamon and a couple spritzes of I Can't Believe It's Not Butter spray. So yummy! And to cut down on the already low calories, I only slightly dipped each bite in the syrup. I washed it all down with a big 

(Care Bear) glass of water.

I felt so great after my early morning workout and yummy breakfast.

I went off to work a very happy girl. :)

Happy Leap Day!

Eating, Eating and More Eating.....

Part of my new healthy lifestyle involves eating more. 

Well...eating more....but only healthy choices. 

I never realized how much effort goes into packing for a normal day at the office!

Breakfast- Check!

Snack- Check!

Lunch- Check!

Snack- Check!

It's taking some getting used to and I'm realizing that I'm going to have to get more organized with my planning. But...I am still learning and I already feel better even though it's only Day #2. :)

For my outfit today, I wanted to be very warm and cozy. It was supposed to be in the 50's today and I was very excited to bundle up!

Ok...it's time for me to get ready for bed. There's a treadmill with my name on it and it's reserved for 5:00 a.m. 

Good night!

Day #1

Once upon a time, I trained for a marathon. 

I trained for a marathon.... yet..... 

never ran that marathon. 

In fact, I only made it to about 10 miles in my training before I decided, 

"I'm kinda sick of running." 

And that's where that story ended.

Lately I've been feeling pretty lazy and out of shape. I've been slacking on  my workouts and slacking on my blogging. I realized I needed a new focus. 

Ladies and Gentleman...

I officially signed up for a half marathon that will take place May 5th.

I am nervous and excited all at the same time for this challenge. 

Today was Day #1 of my training. All I had to do was run 3 miles...which is no biggie for me. But as I was jogging along, I got a little nervous thinking to myself, "Umm..this is as EASY as it's going to get. Pretty soon I'll be WISHING I only had to run 3 miles."

So...over the next 10 weeks I'm going to be training for this race. I've changed my diet and I'm even sacrificing my love for wine. 

(I know...it's SERIOUS.)

I'm excited for the upcoming changes in my body and I'm excited about feeling better overall. 

I apologize for the lack of posts. I'll try to remedy that, because honestly, blogging really does make me happy! :)

So, for your enjoyment, here are some pictures of Shana and I a few years ago. 

What happened here was that we were late to a 5K that we signed up for and didn't get to run it. So, we did what any normal person would do. 

We took fake running pictures. 

Amazingly enough...we won the race!

My Favorite Theme: Love.

If you've followed me for any given amount of time, you know how much I ADORE themes.

I especially love Valentine's Day. A day that celebrates LOVE and HEARTS and PINK... I can hardly contain myself!
Here are just some heartfelt pieces from my work week.

So, you can understand my excitement to celebrate my first Valentine's Day with A.B.! 

(I didn't think to warn him.)

I kicked off this day of love with cranberry mimosas and heart-(ish) shaped cinnamon rolls. 

These were far cuter BEFORE I put them in the oven.

Later on, I began working on my tablescape for dinner. I made a vegetarian lasagna and salad...but who cares about that? All I cared about was the table! 

 

I feel so lucky on a daily basis with A.B., so I hope that my little "day of love" made him feel just as special as I do. 

Hope you all had a lovely Valentine's Day!

Feeling Lighter

 Do I look lighter?

I didn't lose weight....physically speaking. 

But...I DID lose a whole lotta stuff at a yard sale this weekend! Hooray!

If actually losing weight made me $105 in cash on the weekends, I'd be parked on a treadmill.

Today the weather called for rain. To me...I hear rain and I immediately think boots.

Sometimes I find it easier to start from the bottom up when planning an outfit like this. I actually put on tights and boots first and stood in front of my closet for a solid 15 minutes.

I think it paid off. I was comfy and liked the mix of prints I picked out. :)

Besides getting rid of some clutter this weekend, I had a pretty special early Valentine's dinner! Can't wait to tell you about it tomorrow! 

Good night! :)

Spring Cleaning

 This weekend I will be purging myself of all sorts of things I don't need anymore. 

And although it's not Spring yet, it will feel great to clean things up a bit by ridding myself of unnecessary clutter!

As you can see....even my back patio needs an overhaul. 

(Check out the weeds to my left....yuck!)

For now...here's my Thursday outfit!

It was a beautiful, sunny day today and I felt like being comfy (i.e. not wearing heels)

 After all my cleaning is over and done with, A.B. and I have quite a few projects up our sleeves. 

I'm REALLY excited to start sharing them with you!

But for now....happy early Friday!

February...Long Beach style

It's SO rough living in Southern California. 

The winters here are brutal. 

A.B. and I toughed it out and had a beachside lunch on Sunday. 

So gorgeous! And what a way to end the weekend. :)

Love it here!

Ready to button up the week? Yep.

Is it Friday? Is it Thursday? Ok..is it at LEAST Wednesday? UGH...no. It's Tuesday. 

I couldn't be more excited for the weekend to get here! Lots of fun plans this weekend with A.B. :) 

But more on that later...

 Even though the weekend is so far away, I was very excited to see that the forecast called for rain today! I love rain! 

(I think Tuesday was just sucking up.)

I decided I definitely needed to button up for the chilly, rainy weather.

Bright side? Tuesday is better than Monday. :)