cut, sew, glue

So this one time in Vancouver..... my "louis" carryall died. Every. Single.Strap. Broke. Off. so that was neat. BUT!!! its way cooler now. I got a 5 minute sewing lesson last night. This machine is my new obsession. Anyways here are the before and after shots. Just feelin so proud right now.                              BEFORE:

 AFTER:

Power-house cereal

I looooove cereal. But I try not to buy it because I can eat copious amounts of it in one sitting. Not pretty. The other day I was really craving it so I rummaged through my cupboards and came up with this:

1/3 cup hazelnuts or almonds or both (slap chopped)
1 1/2 Tbsp buckwheat groats
1 Tbsp dehydrated coconut (you can get huge bags for 5$ in the raw section at Planet Organic)
Handful of raisins
dash cinnamon
tsp vanilla

serve with your milk of choice I suggest my homemade almond milk. sooooo good.

Looking outside I have decided it's a spin class kind of day. This is what it looks like out there. minus the beach and Lykke Li's perfect voice.

Happy neverendinggrey Sunday!

Raw Challenge (halfway point)

This never ending winter has taken its toll on my mood, my drive and has lead me a little off track with my goals. Last weekend I decided Monday would be the start of something fresh and new. A challenge to keep me interested and goal to work towards. I have been testing out a lot of raw recipes... and I am not really one for diets or cleanses... so I went with a raw challenge. It is in no way a diet as I am not decreasing calories or fats. In fact, I am probably taking in more with all these nuts I have been eating.

My take away from the experience thus far has been positive. I pack enough lunch and snacks for work that I don't find myself nibbling on the cookies or treats that are in the back. Money is being saved because I no longer drink my "double americano non-fat misto with one pump of chocolate please". I go to bed satisfied but never guilty (yes I do get post pig-out guilt). It might be a placebo effect but I do feel like I have more energy in the mornings which gets me to the gym faster.

The only 2 things that I have had this week that aren't raw are edamame beans and coffee (it's a challenge not torture) I have been making the most delicious salads, shakes, and cereals (made of chopped nuts, groats and almond milk). My goal for this week is to make some really challenging and cool raw recipes. I will post them when I make them!

If you're like me, you need to constantly be challenged in order to stay interested. It doesn't have to be food or fitness related. Choose things you have always wanted to do, give yourself a by-when, get creative and have fun doing it!

ps. Icing on the cake? I have lost 2 lbs... first 2 lbs I have managed to lose in over a year!
HAPPY DAYLIGHT SAVINGS!!!

appreciate.

I finally got around to calling my best friend Bri's dad tonight. All of you who know me surely know about Bri but for those of you who don't, Bri passed away a year and a half ago. Her dad is still living up in small town Alaska where she passed away, going blind, is broke, depressed, on numerous medications, etc. He has had to move out of his home and into a care home. Across the street from the care home is the house of the man who ran over his daughter, driving his brand new truck and goes home to a family every day. His health and his lack of funds has kept him from going to all the spots Bri loved to scatter her ashes. So they sit in his house. Oh and the guy who killed Bri already had other previous charges against him that should have put him in jail long before the accident. It is a sad sad sad story. Bri was her dad's whole world. Her mom passed away when she was a teen but she was out of her life before then. She always said her daddy raised her and she didn't care she didn't have her mom because she had the best dad in the world. She called him AT LEAST everyday when we lived together. We may have even called him a few times in the wee hours of the night(morning) from downtown Reno, he would just laugh. They were just the bestest buds.

It is so frustrating to be so far away and not have the means to help him or go visit him all the time. All Bri wanted was to become a nurse and take care of her dad.

Appreciate those you love. Celebrate them everyday. And if you start feeling sorry for yourself because you woke up on the wrong side of the bed, remember it really ain't so bad.

much love.

Peanutbutter Cup Mylkshake

So I wasn't going to post this recipe because it is a variation of an earlier post and that just seemed boring. Then I went to work today and proceeded to tell everyone about this glorious desert drink I created, so I figure this post is just meant to be.

2 cup almond mylk
1 tsp cacoa nibs
1 tsp natural peanut butter
2 ice cubes

Blend!!!

This is such a delicious treat and tastes just like a peanut butter cup. mmm. Sorry, I don't have a photo to post because I already drank it. Again.

Classy Fridays

I can remember Fridays when I was little kid. They consisted of my dad giving me 5 bucks to get a movie, "borrowing" a looney from my brothers coin stash to grab a slurpee, followed up by dinner in the form of : grey meat, hot dogs, or something ordered in, usually pizza but on the rare occasion chinese. MMMM ginger beef. I was really missing those carefree Fridays from the past.... so in honour of them I made this for dinner.

Veggie dog with mustard/ketchup swirl? check

wannabe chinese veggie stir-fry? check

I feel like some of my other blog posts may have lead people to believe I am a snobby eater. I'm not. I eat what I'm served because thats what dad said to do, however eating healthy keeps my head in a positive space which is way better than a bag of potato chips... cus they just get stuck in your teeth.







I was a bit of a consumer today and got soooo many good finds. Here they are! But Joni (my car) already ate my new Lykke Li cd so thats neat.  (paying for music is making a comeback)

banana chocolate mmmylkshake

I planned on making the standard vanilla almond mylk tonight, then I decided to add cocoa to half the batch, then took half the chocolate batch and blended a banana in it... and found heaven. Soooo delicious and healthy!!!!!

2 cups vanilla almond mylk (http://living-itup.blogspot.com/2011/02/almond-mylk-bliss.html)
1 tablespoon cocoa
1 tablespoon cacao nibs
1 banana

Blend!

Ps. make sure your blender is on high... then you won't have almond crunchees at the bottoms (thank you Adrian)