Healthy Breakfast / Cardio-Mania

Cardio-mania begins today again....I took the recommended 2 day break and I'm back in full swing :) My day began with a delicious breakfast; I started by pouring about 2 table spoons of olive oil in a frying pan and added the following organic items
garlic
cilantro
spinach
green pepper
onion
tomato
I lightly cooked them and then added an egg and a dash of salt, once it was cooked I added a whole weat sliceof bread and that was my breakfast - I drank water : o) I think a fried egg is 95 calories but I dont know how many calories the other engredients contain, regardless I feel like I'm on the right track...don't you?

Day 6 feels like I'm climbing a steep hill

I'm tired and sore.... *sigh*.... My butt hurts....sorry I'm wining like a baby....I've been doing my 30 minutes cardio a day "religiously" and eating my delicious but repetative vegetable garden salad, I took a picture of it below (must admit I am having major carb withdrawls) ...um........I must come clean and confess that I did cheat 2 days in a row by having pizza hmmmm does thin crust have less carbs? (please say yes) I'm scared to see how much carbs they contain :o(

I started my 30 minute cardio on the 6th of Jan and havent skipped a day - Yay It will be fun to see how much weight I lose by Jan 31st!!! - Its bikini weather in the caribbean and that's where I am heading - YEAH!!!!!!

In order to aid my weight loss and rid myself of toxins ( alcohol, meds, etc) I am going to do an intestinal cleanse so I decided to get the one from Dr Schultze here  I've done this one before and I highly recommend it!!

Catch you later I am off to do my 30 minutes of cardio...maybe next week I'll kick it up a notch ...maybe..:o)

I promise to post a DIY project real soon

xoxo

Tape it!

I am so in love with these lovely tapes..who knew that tape could captures ones hearts so :) You may purchase these lovlies here:

http://www.happytape.bigcartel.com/

http://www.etsy.com/shop/PrettyTape

http://www.tapeswell.com/

http://www.etsy.com/shop/nothingelegant

http://www.cutetape.com/

you may also find some kawaii tape here: http://stores.ebay.com/I-Heart-Kawaii

xoxo

New Year New Me

Every year I make resolutions and every year I end up breaking at least 2 of them....at least! This year I once again dug deep in the resolution waste basket and recycled my "lose weight" resolution and put it on my 2010 list.... aaaah... we'll see.... I attempted at achieving my goal by jumping on my treadmill last night and doing 35 mins of cardio!!! I ran/walked for 35 mins and burnt 200 plus calories  (on the steep incline) -  Go motivation!!!!! I had an asian chicken salad with dried cherries + water for dinner

I have also cut back on eating beef permanently and will only eat it when on vacation, I will however continue to eat organic chicken and increase my vegetable intake.

About 5 mins ago I finished doing another 30 mins of cardio on my treadmill burnt another 200+ calories - feeling like a star!!!....on my way to the spa to get a facial :o))....let's hope I keep up the momentum.

xoxo

Chat later

Alcohol Induced........

A few weeks ago I wrote the following post and I just found it in my drafts....ooops...hehehehe guess that mishap was alcohol induced!!

I've had a great Friday night , we have friends in town for the weekend - yay!!! They are around town enjoying themselves which gave me some "blogtime" I love entertaining :o) My hubby and I cooked a cuban inspired meal for them last night ; he made beef fillets  which he marinated from the night before and I cooked yellow rice, black beans (cuban style) and friend green plantain (tostones) I also made a yummmmy fruit spanish sangria which I am enjoying as I type hehehe (pardon any typos) see the recipe below!

Savi Sangria
2 bottles of Rosemount Shiraz
1 Apple cut in dices
1 Pear cut in dices
1 pack of Strawberries
1 Orange or Grapeffuit cut in half slices
1 Cup of Orange Juice
2 Cups of Apple Juice

Mix it all together, squeeze some l lime in said concoction...taste it to make sure it"s to your liking...taste again....and...again...and...
voila!!

** Keep in mind there is no right way to make a sangria, let your taste buds be your guide**

Pretties - DIY Garland

I just came across this gorgeous cupcake liner + fabric garland - precious!! get instructions on how to make your own HERE

I will attempt to make this later today and post pictures but ONLY if you promise not to laugh :o) you can make yours too and I will post it here

xoxo

Salvation Army - Ring a Bell

Christmas time is always such a joyous season, I can honestly say it's the most wonderful time of the year for me, I find people are a lot nicer, more giving, and all around in just a better mood (except the ones in queue at the mall) However this is also the time of year when the weather gets extremely cold and harsh and the homeless are faced with a whole new dilema that some of us will never face and for that we must be thankful.


As I was driving home the other night after watching  The Blind Side (of all movies) I noticed a homeless old man standing with his little vet sign asking for money with no coat on!! I swear it must have been 35 degrees ....poor fella....well I gave him a few dollars and wished I had a coat or something I could give him and it left me feeling sad and depressed as I know there are millions of people around the world in similar or worst state. ...I know that some of these people are slackers but my view is this; regardless of what his/her reason may be for begging , it is still a tough thing to do when it's obvious they are hungry and cold and would rather be sleeping in a warm comfy bed at 12am.


Though I wear my heart on my sleeve and would love to help by going to out to fund drives for the needy and ring bells for the homeless I have a job and family that keeps me extremely busy but since I'm too caring to be deterred I looked online for ways that I can offer my help using my computer instead of just leaving it up to everyone else...this is afterall the spirit of sharing and giving and I am giving back with all my heart...


If you are wanting to ring a christmas bell that will be heard worldwide... this is a good place to start...feel free to visit them online at  The Salvation Army to make a donation or click on my widget below.

I am in the process of packing 2 boxes full of clothing that I will be donating to to Goodwill tomorrow, those in turn will be sold in their stores to help fund job training programs, employment placement services and other community-based programs for people who have disabilities, lack education or job experience, or face employment challenges.


If you feel like donating, use the goodwill locator to find the closest drop off location in your area, find a box or a bag fill it with gently used clothing you may have around the house and drop off your donation.


* Did you know that besides cleaning out your closet, garage, etc and helping someone in need; your donation can also lead to generous tax deductions. Take the following steps to ensure you get a proper tax deduction for your goodwill donations. You will be surprised at how it might add up! fist see this goodwill valuation guide  then visit their tax deduction page and be sure to get a receipt from goodwill to use for your taxes next year.

Happy Holidays!!

Herb Garden

I've had a pretty great Saturday, went to my favorite coffee house and had a *Huge*  Chai Latte - I'm craving another chai right now because it's so cooooold even through my extra wooly socks :o)... after my yummy chai tea I scooted to the nursery next door and bought some herbs, I bought  Cilantro, Spearmint, and Peppermint and the nursery was nice enough to give me free containers for the garlic I planted a week ago - I will post pics of those next week....I'm super excited that my herb garden is slowly growing.....

I spent the rest of the day doing "oddities" around the house...i.e cooking with said herbs :o)As always, it's been a pleasure...see y'all tomorrow - same place!

Green Lifestyle

While I was visiting my in-laws for the thanksgiving holidays I managed to pick up this lovely rosemary wreath plant that smells divine!! A great addition to my herb garden...I think I may need to repot it soon. I am in need of a herb garden book like this one at Amazon, may need to drop hints to "Santa"

Here are my other plants that wanted to say hello! My garden is my 2010 biggest project wait till you see what I do to it next year!! Below is my tabasco tree and the 2nd pic shows the peppers I picked today :o)

Then comes my showy kale...they love to display their pretty purple hue in the winter months to add color to my otherwise dead garden.

My Thanksgiving & DIY Treat

I had a wonderful thanksgiving and I hope you all did as well, I feasted, feasted and then feasted some more... I also  took down some serious red wine with my mother in-law and my sister in-law, I'm usually high strung (or so I'm told  :-p) so this helped to let my hair down so to speak.... and .....r.e.l.a.x.....

    

The countryside is so beautiful and peaceful...sometimes I wish I lived there .....sometimes.....then I mentally come back to reality!!

Since I was surrounded by such peace and tranquility I was tempted to catch up on some reading so picked up the book Precious and ended up reading it in one sitting, it was so moving and it's definately not for the faint of heart, (holy language!!!!) that's all I'm saying as I don't want to spoil it for you.  It's a MUST read.

.....  once I finished reading Precious I needed something a little uplifting as it left me feeling sad so, I picked up The Gorgeously Green book my mother in-law had on the kitchen counter and love it! Go GREEN! See their website at http://www.gorgeouslygreen.com/

I try to do my part in helping this world I live in by recycling and  incorporating earth friendly practices into my everyday life, recycling, buying organic, buying local etc (makes me warm inside) and some of the DIY projects in there are super cool not to mention very easy on the $$ I bought a used copy on Amazon (recycle when u can!) for $3.50 thats a savings of $13.45 - Score!!!! BTW this would be an awesome Christmas gift and you can buy it new at Amazon for about $4 - **highly recommended**

While I'm on the subject of DIY projects....
I came across this fabulous pumpkin pom pom tutorial and couldn't resist but to post it here for you, get step by step directions on how to make it here and flower pom poms here, the pdf is here and mini pom pom tutorial here

Mailing Christmas Presents

Have you started your christmas shopping yet or are you like me and waiting until the very last minute to hit the mall and buy all your gifts at once ??? Well this year, since I am on a shoestrig budget, (Oooh this hurts me) I've decided not to play santa claus by giving gifts to everyone in my family and friends list...though my guilt kills me at the thought of this I am going to try real hard  ( hehe maybe not so hard) to supress those feelings deep within  for the better of my bank account which has taken a VERY hard hit this year....

I am planning on buying all my gifts early ( I pledge) this year through the stores online that offer FREE shipping and then mail them out early ...as in, they'll be in the mail box by Dec 5th.

Here's a little info to help you sort out your mailings....

First Class Mail  VS  Priority Mail
Packages include boxes, thick envelopes, or tubes. If your package is 13 ounces or less, First-Class Mail offers the best value for your postage dollar. If your package weighs more than 13 ounces, you can use Priority Mail.  (16 ounces make a pound )

Print your postage online and get a disount (use the calculate shipping tool)

New Priority Mail Prices going into effect Jan 4th 2010

!!Hold your horses!!
You may want to put that light item in an envelope rather than a box!

xoxo

The Weekend is Here!!!

I am SUPER excited that I get to see the new twighlight movie tomorrow - I'm over the moon about New Moon!!! * hehehe sorry for being so corny, I couldn't help myself * I'm staying in tonight with my honey {it's raining} the weekend chilax time will be great...aaahh....

I am thinking of going to my local farmers market tomorrow morning bright and early to pick up some veggies - yummy!...I try, I try, I wane back and forth from being a super healthy eater one month which gives me extra energy and a bounce in my step to stuffing my face with Mickey D's, Pizza, Fondue and anything that is over-indulging...what is wrong with me??? I am lucky to maintain a small figure but my lack of commitment to my treadmill, elliptical, yoga ball, hand weights and zumba cd's {$$ down the drain} have me baffled..... what gives jelly bean????  I need motivation, nothing works *sigh*...must find it after thanksgiving....

Ok gotta run...lets hope it doesn't rain tomorrow....have a happy Friday :)

60's Fashion - Its a Mod Mod World!

As an avid antique collector I always find myself "brushing elbows" with fashions of yesteryears as I visit the local antique shops for my next prized possession, which is why today I am blogging about one of my favorite fashions of eras past.

The Mod fashion started in the 60s and revived in the 70's and then again in the 90's.... some say it's here to stay and I think they're right. The style can best be described as a touch of French class with a dash of Italian cool, combined with American Ivy League style to create this timeless, classy look. The video below can best describe what I have to say

I'm twirling my locks and thinking I may try the "beehive" hairstyle this weekend -Groovy Baby!



You Dont have to go to Carnaby street to dress the part check out Ebay or Etsy for similar fashions!