I am not sure if you may have noticed but I have been a bit absent recently. Every time I thought it was the day I could actually start writing again something new would pop up. Many things have happened since I last wrote {wedding venue shopping, D graduating, an unexpected extend trip to New Jersey} some of which I will share more in-depth in the near future. But for now, I thought I might get back into the groove of things and share a few instagrams I have taken over the past couple weeks. Hope all of you are having a wonderful May!
I am a sucker for a good chevron print. My work shares an office with a custom print shop and girls upon girls come in with all kinds of chevron color combination fabrics to make greek letters. Since JMU colors are purple and gold I desperately wanted to make a card for the girls graduating that was gold and purple chevron print. In your head this seemed like an easy thing to do, well let me tell you it most certainly was not. After 4 trips to Michaels, 5 different types of adhesives, and 3 forms of glitter I was able to get exactly what I had envisioned in my head.
When I tried to use regular glue and glitter I found the paper changed shape and the glitter was getting everywhere even after it had dried over night. When I tried using glitter paint I found the paper still changed shape and the glitter stayed on the paintbrush and not the paper. There were many other attempts but none worked and all looked like something a first grader would bring home to hang up on the fridge. Below is the best option I found and quite frankly I think it is the perfect option.
I chose to use glitter tape, which if you live in Harrisonburg is found in the paint isle. After stenciling, cutting, pealing, and sticking the chevron pieces I was left with a flat, crisp, flake free glitter chevron card. I think I will use this glitter tape for future projects as well. It is a fantastic way to incorporate glitter into projects with minimal mess.
I know spring just began but can it be summer already! I am ready for a slower pace, warm after dinner walks with lil man and D, and for Harrisonburg to be a little less “crowded”. But until then, my busy schedule just keeps on buzzing. Since it was too chilly to go on a walk after dinner I decided to catch up on the sites I read. I found this article about how Ms. Frizzle is one of the most stylish ladies out there.
At first when I read this I could not believe Lucky would write such a thing. My memory of The Magic School Bus consists of watching it before school and singing the theme song at the top of my lungs with my brother while we waited in anticipation on where the gang would be going this episode. Most of the time it required the class to go into someones body, toilet, or someplace equally as yucky. So how could Lucky be making such a bold claim?! After reading the article and looking through the slideshow {I can not get enough of Lucky slideshows} I thought, “wow Ms. Frizzle was a pretty stylish gal”. Not only do her outfits fit the adventure of ever episode, but her outfits are beautiful eclectic prints I wish I had in my closet!
Check out how you can be equally as stylish as Ms. Frizzle in the article. Doesn’t it make you want to sit down and watch a couple episodes yourself?
{photo via – tumblr}
Helllllloooooo. So you know how I said my week had calmed down, yeah that was a lie. This has been my busiest week yet and I was really counting on having some time to finish up graduation presents, schedule venue appointments {so excited!}, and of course writing some solid blog posts. I am getting all of the above done but on a slightly different timeline. With that said I have been meaning to share this fantastic article by D’s old roommate Neil who is a personal trainer in Rockville, Maryland. Neil even set up the diet and exercise plan that D and I started at the beginning of the month. Hope you enjoy Neil’s article!
The Truth about alcohol consumption and weight loss…
If I had a nickel for everytime someone told me they drink straight liquor to consume fewer calories, then I wouldn’t have blown half my paycheck on St. Patty’s day. We all hear pretty regularly about the well meaning guy or girl who is trying to drop a few pounds and decides cutting the calories on a sweet Saturday bender will help do the trick. Unfortunately this couldn’t be any more wrong. Don’t panic, that’s why you’ve got me. Allow me to walk you through the alcohol-weight loss minefield. Be prepared, what you learn here cannot be unlearned.
Alcohol is more than just calories. That’s the first thing we all need to realize. Everything we put into our bodies is made up of more than just a random caloric number. Everything that we eat and drink is made of something, and every one of those somethings has an effect on the body. A protein is made up of amino acids, for example an egg protein is not a steak. The 5g of carbs in a candy bar is not the 5g of carbs in a Triscuit. The caloric value of a given food or drink item is really just the macro method of helping people understand what they are putting in their bodies. However, alcohol is a tricky bastard.
To start, there are different types of alcohol in existence. The alcohol that is consumed by people in beer or liquor is ethanol. Once ethyl alcohol enters the body it’s immediately assaulted by a few different enzymes. During the first conversion process undergone by the alcohol it is converted into Acetaldehyde. Hopefully you notice that Acetaldehyde looks kind of similar to the embalming fluid, fromaldehyde. It’s just as poinsonous too. I know right? Not cool. How could you do this alcohol?? How could you be so good and yet so evil?? I digress…
The body is not a fan of poison. You can take that one to the bank. So as fast as the body can it starts taking the Acetaldehyde and shipping it off to the Krebs Cycle. In the Krebs Cycle the body takes stuff and breaks it into other stuff (it gets complicated). What you need to know from this is that the Krebs Cycle creates a by product known as NADH which is later used in the oxidative and phosphogenic energy pathways creating ATP or energy. WOOHOO ALCOHOL GIVES ME ENERGY! Well…yes. Sort of. I guess. But we aren’t done yet…
Since the body is so fucused on not dying this Acetaldehyde is the only thing being metabolized. You read that right. The giant plate of nachos, the large Chanello’s pizza and whatever else you’ve eaten while you’re drink is not getting metabolized. It’s just sitting there…waiting.
So let’s turn this into a scenario. Francesca wants to lose fifty pounds. She decides that in order to do that she is gonna take a page out of LMAFO’s book and just take shots (see what I did there?). Before she goes out she has a great chicken salad…she is eating healthy and feeling good. Francesca has eaten good all week actually. When she goes out tonight she gets bombed. We’re talking straight up plastered. As soon as that first shot is taken her body stops metabolizing the salad as there are more important things that need to be removed. Then around 1AM Francesca is hungry. Being both hammered and starving Francesca decides to throw caution to the wind and order a pizza. She has eaten good all week so a pizza will be good! The pizza comes and she eats 3 pieces leaving the rest for her roommate. Taking shots and only 3 pieces of pizza…maybe 500 total calories…not a bad night! Except that none of the salad or pizza is being broken down. Poor Francesca is about to pass out and wake up the next day with 500 calories ALREADY waiting in her body to be metabolized. She is starting off her daily calorie bank at 500. If she tries to eat only 1,200 a day, she is already halfway there…but she doesn’t know it.
So what’s our conclusion? Pretty easy. The calories in alcohol don’t matter, it’s the very chemical make up that gets you. So what can you do? Forget about it. If you’re going to go on a bender that would make Kanye West blush then do it. Have fun. Get a daqueri. Just keep the rest of your diet on point and even the occasional wild night won’t derail your success.
As I mentioned yesterday, D and I started this new diet that minimizes our intake of processed carbs and sugar. Since starting the diet it has been a unique challenge {I use challenge in a good way} to find snacks and meals that are lighter on the carbs and sugar but still fulfilling and delicious. One snack that I loved making growing up is stove top popcorn. This simple snack is healthy, filling, and super fun to make as well.
Unlike packaged popcorn which can be packed with artificial butter and ingredients your body could do without, stove top popcorn is pretty much you get what you see, kernels, oil of your choice, and salt. Another added benefit to stovetop popcorn is you are not ingesting diacetyl, which is a common chemical used in microwave popcorn to create the buttery taste and smell.
A 2009 study done by pulmonary specialist at Denver’s National Jewish Medical and Research Center, Dr. Cecile Rose, found that employees from popcorn manufacturing plants that used diacetyl had a higher rate of lung disease than those plants who did not use the chemical in their product. After Dr. Rose’s findings we made public the Flavor and Extract Manufacturers Association recommend that the plants using diacetyl reduce the amount of chemical in their products.
Two years later, another study by University of Minnesota drug-design expert Dr. Robert Vince found that not only did diacetyl increase the risk of lung disease but it might be linked to an increase risk of Alzheimer’s. Dr. Vince found that diacetyl can cause a person’s brian proteins to misfold into beta amyloid, which have been linked to Alzheimer’s. Although, this study has only been performed in test tubes it is enough to scare the crap out of me! So I have opted for making my own popcorn from now on since it is just as easy as popping a bag and the extra clean up is minimal.
To add some flavor to my midday snack I zest a lemon or lime {depending on my mood} into the popcorn as it is heating up on the stove and then after I have transferred it into the bowl when it is done. I also use olive oil to give it a similar buttery flavor but without the scary diacetyl chemical. Do you have any healthier snacks D and I should try?
{via – tumblr}
Oh boy these past three weeks have been hectic as all get out. Just when work seemsto be settling my todo list grows another mile long. But here’s to hoping that life will get back into its natural rhythm and the weather stays exactly this temperature.
My week will be filled with coming home from work and starting off my Spring cleaning and brainstorming some good dinner ideas now that D and I are actually eating healthy. I will also be mourning the loss of some yummy fellows below that I will have to wait to enjoy only on special occasions.
Hope you have a fantastic week and enjoy the beautiful weather to come!
I can not believe that it is almost April! When January 1st comes every year it always seems like I have an eternity of time ahead of me but really it goes by so fast and soon I am thinking ‘wow it is April”.
Thankfully this weekend is the first laid-back one we have had all month. Completely looking forward to watching Office episodes while scrolling through Pinterest, starting a new book, and grabbing drinks with friends. With so many things to be thankful about recently I thought I would share a few of the smaller things around the house that made me smile this week. Do you have any exciting or excitingly low key plans for the next couple days? Whatever you end up doing have a terrific weekend!
{stovetop popcorn}
{this little guy in our shower}
{red tulips}
{crystal – wishbone – gnome – branch – umbrella }
The ring that D gave me is actually my grandmother’s ring. When my mom and dad got engaged they were both right out of grad school and had quite a lot of student loans to pay off {Stanford and Duke are not cheap} so my mom opted for just a wedding ring instead of an engagement ring. With children, big moves, and just a fond attachment to her current ring my mother never wanted to get a proper engagement ring. Still not having an engagement ring of her own when my grandmother passed away it was decided my mother would receive my grandmother’s engagement ring.
For years I coveted the ring, letting my mom know early on {when I was 13} that I wanted that very ring when I got engaged. Now that that decade long wish has come true I love looking down at my finger and knowing my grandmother, mother, and now I have worn the same ring. Both women have been such a profound part of my life and each had/have an amazing marriage with a terrific man.
Since the ring means so much to me not only because D gave it to me but also because of the history behind it I try to keep it as pretty as possible. Normally anything goes with rings. Whether it be potting plants, cleaning dishes, or using glitter my rings stay on my fingers. But not this ring, I make a conscious effort to take it off when I am doing anything that requires getting dirty. Terrified it might get lost, I have been putting it in a cupcake liner in a cabinet far away from the sink. Though this is only a temporary solution, I am looking for a cute and unique ring holder. My favorite so far is the wishbone ring dish but I also found a handful that are in the running as well.
Checking the weather before stepping out of the door has never been something I have done. Most of the time it works for me, but every now and then I end up spending the whole day in rain boots when there is no cloud in the sky by lunch. So I am on the hunt for a fantastic weather app. Something that is great to look at, somewhat accurate, has important information {wind speed, humidity, perception chance}, and an hourly breakdown. Good Weather is the best app that I have found so far. Made by Fried Cookie, this app does not only look amazing it entertains as well!
Depending on the current weather the color of the app changes as well as the fun game you can play to pass the time. With over 10 different games Good Weather is not just useful but fun. I only wish the app had hour-by-hour breakdown but other than that this app is pretty perfect.
Surprises have been popping up all over the place. After a great weekend at home seeing family and friends it was so delightful to wake up and find that our already long weekend turned into an even longer one. Lil man is having a blast jumping through the fresh powder that keeps falling from the skies above. With my cashmere socks snuggly on my feet and a heavy cable knit blanket wrapped around me it is the first time in the last couple days that I have had a chance to enjoy all the good news.
To add another surprise to the plate, it is International Waffle Day. I am not sure if my love for waffles has come from the excitement of breakfast for dinner growing up or the insane amount of delicious waffles I consumed while studying abroad in Belgium but if there is ever a reason to whip up some waffles I am taking it! This recipe is one my mom sent me a couple years ago while she was visiting close family friends in Dallas, TX {some of the best waffles come from Coppell and are served around a large deep wood round table}. The recipe below is exactly what my mom sent me but I like to add another 1/2 tablespoon of sugar {Belgium has high standards}. Hope you enjoy eating these as much as we did this morning!
I use a professional waffle iron, like the ones you find on the hotel continental breakfast bar. This was a gift but making waffles any other way seems so wrong now. If you have waffles every weekend it is totally worth the investment, if you make them every-now-and-then {which will surely change after you try this recipe} putting it on a registry or dropping a hint to a relative is not a bad idea.
- Recipe -
- Ingredients above
- Combine flour, baking powder, and salt
- In a separate bowl beat egg yolks and sugar together until lemony yellow and light, about 2-3 minutes. Keep the whites, you will be using them later
- Add melted butter, vanilla, and milk to yolk and sugar mixture
- In another bowl beat egg whites until soft peaks form, about 3-5 minutes
- Fold egg whites into yolk and sugar mixture and add dry ingredients
*Makes about 7 large Belgium waffles
