The Little Girl Inside - Christmas Link Up

I found this picture and couldn't resist. What a vicious child!

 I was excited to hear that Helene from Helene In Between and Taylor from The Daily Tay were doing a Christmas related link up this week! I love any excuse to write about Christmas, but to be able to reminisce on my blog about being a kid during Christmas is exciting! I love that feeling I would get right before the holidays.. Once school was out for Christmas Break, then it was literally 'go time'! First of all, remember what it's like to not really be able to keep track of time once school was out? I would have to ask my mom or siblings what day it was and how many sleeps that meant before Christmas. I used to measure time by t.v. shows. I would go to the park and my mom would tell me to be home by two Sesame Streets. Oh, being a kid is the best.

 A hugely fond memory that stands out will always be decorating the Christmas tree. We would go out to the bush and pick out our very own tree. Rudi would chop it down and we'd all bring it home. Once it was home, it was always-
1. Cold in the house from the door being opened while my parents lugged that awkward, sappy tree through the door.
2. Time to be quiet and patient. It was a bit tense while they were trying to get that tree centered in the tree stand. For some reason they always had a hell of a time getting it in properly and straight. (Perhaps they should have bought a better stand).
3. Exciting because we knew that we would be decorating our tree the very next day!

 Mom always put the lights up the day that we got the tree. Then the next evening we would all get to decorate. Of course everyone had their own decorations that we liked to put up. The bunnies, Mom's mouse, the owls and the love birds. We would play Christmas music, drink eggnog and take our time because we never wanted that moment to end. Once the tree was all decorated, us three kids would crawl under the tree with our new colouring books and colour together, by the light of the tree. Colouring under the tree will always be a memory I will cherish. My sister's little ones now colour under their Christmas tree and once Alina is old enough, she will too.

 The best part of Christmas would have to be the night before Christmas. There was a time and it could have just been the one time, but it stands out so much in my memory that I can't help but think it was for a couple of Christmas'. An "I Love Lucy" marathon played all night long on Christmas Eve. My sister and I always shared a room and on this night, every year, my brother would sleep on the floor of our room so we could all wake up together. I remember them sneaking the t.v. on so we could watch the marathon, with basically no sound because we were being that quiet. (Yeah right. Our parents probably heard us and just let us think we were being sneaky.) That year, like every year whoever woke up in the middle of the night, would be in charge of waking the rest of us with a flashlight in hand. We would creep out of our room and check out first, the stockings to confirm that Santa came. Then we'd seek out our presents! We would point out the big ones to each other. I have no idea how we fell back asleep afterward. Oh this memory gives me festive butterflies in my tummy thinking about it! Heehee.

 Christmas morning. I can't help but think of all of those mornings of the past with a goofy grin on my face. One Christmas morning Santa left junk cereal under each one of our stockings. I got the Pac Man Marshmallow Cereal and I knew Santa was real because my mom would never let us have cereal with marshmallows in it! Another Christmas to remember would be when I got my first pet, Doodle; the hamster. I felt so special because I was the only kid in our entire history of Christmas' to get a pet for a gift. One year that really stands out is when I started to doubt Santa's existence. I wrote him a long letter asking for proof, a picture, anything to lead me to believe he was real. That Christmas morning I received a note with one word written on it in Santa's messy writing; BELIEVE. That's all the validation I ever needed.

 Let's all note a couple of things in the bottom picture... Let's start with our matching couches and end off with our gorgeous, one of a kind mustard yellow SHAG carpet. Hellooo 1989!

 Each year I feel the tickle of excitement in my tummy, at 28. I continue to have a hard time falling asleep on Christmas Eve. I still creep out in the middle of the night before Rob wakes up to take a sneak peak at my presents. Some things just never change at Christmas and that's the little girl that lives inside me. She comes out for a bit during this time and I have a sneaking suspicion that I'm not the only one . . .

 Thanks girls for giving me a reason to sit down and remember some of the fondest memories I have stored in the ol' memory bank!!

Tis The Season ...

Christmas is a time for sharing, for festive joyful spirits.. It is for baking cookies, Christmas parties and it's for kind, selfless gestures in the name of Christmas!

 Which brings me to Saturday afternoon. Rob, Alina and I went on a search for a nice, warm toque (Warm winter cap) for Alina. We're going to Thunder Bay to visit Rob's family for Christmas, so we need to buy some warm clothing. We looked all over the mall on Friday with no luck! We went to a consignment store nearby and I discovered a bin full of toques! It wasn't long before I found the perfect toque for my Alina! The cherry on the sundae! Or the strawberry on the shortcake, in our case. We put it on Alina and it was so cute. It was a strawberry cap with a green top and everything. It's Rob, Alina, myself, the store owner and one other shopper in the store. Rob and I took Alina over to the mirror with her new cap on and I tell her that she looks so cute in her brand new toque! We snap a few pictures of the two of us because we just can't resist and we're all pretty excited about it. Rob continues to put different hats on her head and we're giggling at some of his choices. I put her new scarf and strawberry cap on our buggy and join Rob and Alina in the hat fashion show.

 After a few minutes we decide that we're all finished. Rob asks me where I put her cap. I scoff and say, "It's on her stroller with her scarf.. just look!" We can't find it. I'm very vocal about insisting to Rob that I know I put it where I put it. The other shopper is paying at the till and I am frantically looking for this cap. The owner of the store finishes up and asks us what we're looking for. We explain that we put a strawberry toque on our buggy and now we can't find it anywhere. She gasps and says, "That lady just bought a strawberry cap!"

 My jaw practically hits the floor. I couldn't believe it.

 So the lady that quietly shopped around the entire time that Rob, Alina and I were there deliberately snatched the cap off of our stroller. She heard us talking about how cute Alina looked in this hat. She saw us taking pictures of her in it. How bad is it that someone could be that awful to take something from another person's stroller!? It wouldn't be as bad if she just walked into the store and saw that we had something she wanted and snatched it out of being competitive and unfair. But she was there the entire time we were! There's no way that she didn't hear us ranting and raving over this cap. We were so excited that we finally found something we both really liked. She literally experienced the joy it brought the young couple and their baby girl and she still took it. I honestly think that there must be something off with her to do something so ... wrong.

 I realize that it's just a hat. Alina didn't know the difference. It wasn't like we already bought it and then she took it from our Jeep. But the act was nasty. I didn't like how it made me feel. It was mean spirited and it made me feel ... bad. I mean, it's Christmas time!

 So in the end- I know Alina simply wasn't meant to have it. But the lady that literally stole from a baby will have some bad karma coming her way. Nothing big, just something that will cause her to have that bad, ugly feeling in her gut- just like I had.

 Thank goodness there is more good in my life to balance the bad that happens every now and then! So the next time you're at a door and a busy shopper is up close behind you, on their blue tooth yapping away unaware, open the door for that person. Or if a pushy driver is signalling to get into your lane, just let them. After all Tis the Season to be Jolly and Considerate and Kind! Oh and the next time you see something you want, but someone already has it ... DON'T TAKE IT.. bitch.

That's okay- Alina found an elf cap in our Christmas decorations to wear.

Mission Hot Bod- Week Two

 Another Friday has arrived. First of all, I want to give a shout out to the weather! That's right, I just 'shouted out' the weather because I'm cool and this is my blog and I can do that. It has been chilly, but the sun has been out and it's been absolutely gorgeous out. I live on the West Coast of Canada, people. It is always raining during this time of year. To put it into perspective for all of you that aren't from Canada, I live in a province above Seattle. I just heard a collective "ooooooooh" from my American readers... Now you get it.

 Friday means that I have completed my second week of RushFit. I feel pretty awesome about it too. I even had a bit of a speed bump that would normally deter me from working out. Anything would stop me from working out before, but nothing will now. (Hopefully!!!) My tummy was a bit bloated and I was a touch crampy, if you all are picking up what I'm putting down. A little bit of TMI, but again- that's okay.

MONDAY-

 

  Day One was the "Strength and Endurance" workout like last Monday.
 Goals:  I haven't used actual weights with the workouts just yet. I'm seriously very weak and didn't want to overdo it and discourage myself right away. But I plan to use weights after this week.
Improvements: My push ups and plank side stretches were a bit easier to do this week.
 I bought a new mat for my living room floor and for my Tuesday classes and it is working quite nicely. It sure beats the baby puzzle mat I was slipping on all last week!

TUESDAY-

 Day Two is always Cardio with RushFit but it is also my Happy Fit Day! I go to a neighbouring town and meet up with Lisa from Happy Fit for our Stroller Class. This time around Lisa brought her camera and I also made note to snap a couple of pictures of the girls. The class was more challenging than last week, which I was excited about. Lisa taught me how to do a push up properly, which is sad because I don't think in my entire life, that I have ever done one right. Lisa incorporated workout stations and I was a big fan of those.
Goals: I want to be able to do twenty wall push ups without almost collapsing. By push up sixteen my arms were trembling violently!
Improvements: During the stretches at the end of class I think I had a better time figuring out which leg I was supposed to put where. I'm impossible with my sense of direction so I think I improved slightly!

WEDNESDAY- 

 Day Three was "Abdominal Strength" workout like last Wednesday. I was seriously pretty sore in my arms and shoulders from those wall push ups from Tuesday. My legs were sore as well from two days worth of lunges and squats. But Wednesday was not a rest day, so I had to push through and take it easy on the exercises that hurt.
 Goals: I want to be able to do a full back bend, where you are on your back and then you lift up on your feet and hands and your head is in the position where you would be doing a head stand. It is really difficult to do without collapsing. I used to be able to do it before, so I know it's in me!
Improvements: I have improved on the Combination workout in Round 5. (Navasana- Sit Thru- Hindu Push Up- Sit Thru)
 After my workout, I had to get baby up and ready for our walk at the beach with some of our friends. We met at a coffee shop and made our way down to the boardwalk in another neighbouring town. It was quite chilly but it was a gorgeous day with the sun shining brightly on all of us. I ended up doing my RushFit in the morning and then I did a little bit of pleasant, easy cardio in the afternoon. I'd say that's a pretty good day!

THURSDAY-

 Day Four was a full on Rest Day! Hallelujah! I really needed the rest day because my body was feeling a little beaten up. So on this day, I just hung out with my baby girl and wrote a blog post about my Snail Mail Collective Experience #2 and if you didn't catch it, go and read it. It was a good one! Alina is watching her first snow fall in the first picture, right after waking. She's reading her book she got from Stephanie and she's eating her chicken and broccoli in the last. She started saying "ba ba ba's" that morning and she started her sitting version of dancing to some Raffi. It was a very productive day for my little Alina girl!

FRIDAY-

 Day Five was "Fight and Conditioning" workout. It was interrupted right after I finished the warm up because Alina woke. I tried feeding her to get her to go back to bed, but she was up..! So Rob took the baby girl and played with her for a bit. Later she watched while I grunted, gasped and sweated it out!
Goal: I want to get better at the combinations. (Jab, jab, cross, back kick, level) I need to improve on this so that I'm not wasting the entire round trying to figure out the combination. Before I know it, it's over!
Improvements: I have figured out the ground work. Before I wasn't taking it as seriously because I was frustrated and getting mad. Now I have it figured out and am not wasting time being pissed off anymore.

 Week two has been really awesome! Currently my legs are a bit sore. My right ankle, the one I have injured a few times is feeling a bit tender. But now I have two days of rest before I start at it again on Monday morning! This is all starting to feel really, really good.

Snail Mail Collective - What Are You Grateful For?

 Last month I signed up for The Snail Mail Collective. This would be my second time participating in the SMC and I was excited to see who my partner was this time around! My first experience with the SMC was good but I was eager to try it out again, seeing as I had a bit more time to really put a nice package together.
 My partner was Stephanie from Stephanie Leigh. She lives in New York City with her boyfriend. She enjoys basketball, traveling, running and snowboarding. (She didn't confirm the traveling, but I'm going to go ahead and assume by having "talked" with her a few times, that she does.) Stephanie exceeded my expectations of a partner this time around. She was excited, so friendly and personable and easy to 'talk' too. It was Stephanie's first time participating in the SMC and so I wanted to make sure she had a  really good experience.
 Alina and I slowly went shopping around town for Stephanie. I always cheat a little bit and buy more than what I actually make. I also spend a teeny, tiny bit more than five dollars. It's too hard to find things for people with only a five dollar budget. But I didn't go way over budget, I promise. We ended up sending her a funky bracelet, some earrings, Canadian mittens and a few other things. I did draw a caricature of Stephanie and her boyfriend because I had to do something creative this time around. Never mind what I did- you can read all about what I got her HERE..!
 I received Stephanie's parcel last night on my way home from the grocery store. I was super excited to open it and happy that Rob was home to enjoy it with me.

Here's a shot of my loot! Stephanie put a lot of thought into her package, with creative ways to show what she's grateful for. She sent Swedish Fish and a soup recipe because she LOVES food. (Just like me!) She sent neat little pictures that her friend makes to show how she appreciates and loves the good friends that she has. She sent two funky bracelets from Thailand and she made me a really cute headband because she loves living in a world where she can be herself, no matter the style. She sent me a pink warrior fighter figurine to show that she is grateful for laughter. (It's an inside joke.. Yeah, we already have those.. no biggy.) I saved the best for last; she sent Alina a book to teach her basic colours! I'm mostly excited about the book because I knew when I opened the package that Alina would just LOVE it and I was right, she totally does. She likes crinkling noises and books. This book has crinkles in it for her to poke and of course, she loves to chew on the cardboard pages. Stephanie was a total sweetheart for thinking of my girl and it made me realize how grateful  I am for blogging and link-ups like the Snail Mail Collective. My experience with Stephanie was a really nice one and I'm so glad that we were paired together.

Alina enjoying her new book today!

These are my favourite things that Stephanie sent me. I can't wait to make that soup! I am also really excited to wear my bracelet because I have been searching for a simple, but braided, brown bracelet forever!

I started by putting him in the fridge with the milk.. Then I decided to let him "surprise" Rob next time he was reaching for something. I'd like to think that the Pink Fighting Warrior is giving Rob a high five at a pretty deserving moment....!

 It was absolutely a pleasure having Stephanie as my SMC partner. I'm so glad I had a chance to converse back and fourth with her. I have another person to add to my list of blogging friends now. I really am serious about one day going to NYC for Christmas. Perhaps when that time comes, if we're still in contact, we can meet in person and have a drink (or five) together. 

 To sign up for the Snail Mail Collective, you have until December the 7th. It will be the final one that the girls will be doing. I'm sad to hear that it's the last one, but I'm sure they have their reasons for that. So thank you so much to Melyssa and Chelsea for creating such a great link up to be a part of for the second time!

Oh and this video is for you Stephanie, in case I don't get to meet you.. I wanted Alina to show that she is grateful for her new book, in her own way... 

Afternoon Bliss

 My idea of the perfect outing, that doesn't cost much money or effort on my part would have to be exactly what I did on Saturday afternoon...
 Rob is a volunteer fire fighter for our community. His title is "volunteer" but really, all of fire fighters are paid on call. So every time they answer a call, they are paid a rate. Say Rob made $15 per call. As soon as he gets to the hall and signs in, he automatically gets $15.  I believe he gets a bit more if he is on the call for longer. I'm sure of it, but I can't quite remember the specifics. Once a year he is paid right before Christmas for an entire year's worth of fire calls. It works out really nice because it's like a little bonus cheque before the holidays! Every year he gets to spend some of that cheque on himself, obviously. He earned it and deserves a chunk of that money.

Via

 This year he wanted to go to the mall, without me in tow tapping my toe in impatience and buy himself some clothes. He still wanted me to come along for the drive, but I decided to go to Chapters for a browse and a read. Chapters is a Canadian version of Barnes and Noble- for you Americans out there and for everyone else; it's a big, glorious book store. Aka- my personal idea of heaven. Or, the perfect way to spend an afternoon. Rob wanted Alina with him; bonus! So I was really happy to escape my little family and have some me time!

 I browsed in the gift department which is always really enjoyable for me. There are always really cool gadgets you can buy, especially around the holidays. They were selling marble cubes to act as ice cubes for hard alcohol drinks. So, instead of using ice and having the ice dilute the booze, you have marble cubes. Talk about hardcore drinking! I snapped a few shots of some of the products I thought were entertaining..

  But the best part of my little outing, was when I went to the Starbucks attached to the book store and bought a Chai Latte, a little treat and a seat to read in....! I obviously never get out much, but this was seriously such a great time for me. I started off in a seat in the middle of everyone and later when people left I relocated to the comfy couch facing everyone. I was so content, sipping my drink and reading my book. But, I was also really aware of everyone around me. Normally that would bother me while I'm trying to read. But because it was the first real shopping weekend for Christmas there was a buzz of excitement in the air. It was busy, but in a enjoyable, joyful way. I loved every minute of it. I read, I took pictures, I slyly people watched. Ahh, pure bliss. As much as I yearn to get a moment to myself everyday, I found that I missed my little family. I think I was away from them for about an hour. I received a text from Rob of Alina in her new jacket he bought for her. The image just brought a smile to my face and when he asked me how much longer I thought I'd be, I gladly told him that I was finished. I ended up walking over to the mall and meeting up with them for some lunch. It was so nice to have an hour to myself, but it was that much better reuniting with my people.

 You always want what you don't have... But always remember to appreciate what you do have because everyday is a gift. Truly.

(BUT, it is important to get time away because if you don't... mama might snap.)

What is your idea of the best way to spend some "me" time?

DIY - For Sophie- Love Auntie

 It's a complete miracle! Not only did I attempt a DIY ... I succeeded in completing and creating something that I had originally thought up in my mind! A bloody miracle!!!

 I wanted to create something special for my niece Sophie. She is a little spit fire of sass and a total goofy gus. We all just met her this August and I fell in love with her even more. She is a little red head that reminds me of her mom, my best bud and sister.

This is a picture my sister put up on Facebook this weekend. This is Sopha in a nutshell...!

 I have been itching to make something since I rejoined Pinterest months ago. My sister in law Erin is a DIY machine of a human being. I wish I had photos of some of the masterpieces she's created over the last year. She is the one who has been inspiring me to make something. I thought up the idea a couple of weeks ago and then this Friday (BLACK FRIDAY- duh.) I ventured out into the city, to the mall to buy my supplies.

 We went to Michaels for my craft supplies. Rob likes to refer to it as "Geekles" and I corrected him and said that "Nerdles" is much, much funnier. Whatever Rob! I like to craft okay!!!? I was telling Erin on Friday that I would love to craft more, but that I don't have the space.

Me: "I wish I could do more but I just don't have the space around here. I would just love to be able to get my Harry Potter box full of crafts out, colour and draw my caricature birthday and Christmas cards and just leave my supplies lying around." 

 Rob so graciously added that what I had said was simply the nerdiest thing he had heard in a long time. Whatever Rob! I like to craft and have a Harry Potter box that I keep my crafts in, okay!? (I ordered my hard cover Harry Potter books from Amazon like a zillion years ago and they came in this really "cool" Harry Potter box. I had to save it.)

What you will need to craft a personalized jewellery box for a toddler:
( I say it's for a toddler because it's a pretty amateur job. I'm not sure if a teenager or an adult would want something like this. So be easy on me.)

//1 ** Pictures! I ended up ordering some pictures of Sophie, Alina and I the day before. So the idea is to find a theme for the jewellery box. Mine is "The Shea's". My middle name is Shea and Ky named Sophie after me and I named Alina after me as well. I have always liked my middle name and wanted to keep it in my family. (Pronounced Shay)

//2   A wooden jewellery box. I purchased this box at Michael's for $9. I found some smaller ones at a garage sale last weekend. I bought those for .50 so it all depends on where you go and what you're looking for. I didn't end up using the smaller box because the pictures I had were quite zoomed in.

//3  Appropriate brushes. I ended up buying a little cheap starter kit for my project. Luckily if you are already into crafting, you probably won't need to buy the brushes. Decoupage or Mod Podging requires a foamy kind of brush. (pictured above.)

//4  Paint. I bought a Pepto Bismol pink colour! It ended up looking alright but it was pretty pink. I bought brown paint to paint the little wooden hearts that I planned on attaching to the jewellery box. The wooden hearts can be found at Michael's as well. I bought a bag of assorted hearts from the garage sale that I went to last weekend.

//5 I noticed that one of the most important tools is not in the picture I posted. It's the Mod Podge glue or adhesive. It is what you apply on the back of the pictures and over the top.

** After reading articles on how to decoupage a picture onto a wooden surface I realized that I was supposed to print my pictures on High Quality Glossy Photo Paper. Oops, I didn't.. So I tested out the Mod Podge adhesive with another picture on another piece of wood and it appeared to work. Perhaps, for your best results print your pictures on the paper. 

 So I got started on painting the jewellery box. It was a Saturday night and I was listening to some music and I decided to make some Hot Spinach Dip (Will add recipe later) and so I was inspired to have a little drinky-poo along with the beer I was enjoying. What better way to craft and make a DIY project than a shot of Sambuca to warm your belly!? Yes, I'm a mom. Yes, I was alone, crafting and making spinach dip. No, I am not ashamed. For the record; Rob was in the living room watching hockey so I wasn't alone, alone. Oh hell, even if I was, I would have done it! It made the crafting that much more enjoyable. As you can see by my face, I haven't done a shot in awhile.

 I ended up painting the jewellery box and some of the hearts I wanted to use. I didn't tackle the decoupage part until the next day. I decided which pictures were going to go where and I added the adhesive to the back of the picture. It is important not to put too much on the back because it slips and slides a bit when you are decoupaging the front of the picture. Put your picture in place and with your sponge type brush, smooth a small coat of Mod Podge over your picture. I also had a pair of tweezers handy in case, like me, you bought cheap paint brushes and the bristles fell off in your paint. Remember it takes about twenty minutes for the Mod Podge to disappear. But it goes on streaky and white at first. I put two coats over my pictures. 

 It was an easy project to do because it didn't take very long at all. It took me two days but I was taking my time because I was enjoying myself so much. It could probably take two hours to do, uninterrupted. Oh and the Spinach Dip pictured was a-mazing. I really enjoyed eating most of it Saturday and a lot of it for lunch on Sunday. (Spinach is healthy.....!)

 I'm proud of myself for making something special for my girl Sophie. I think it's something she'll have forever. She can keep dirty rocks and leaves in there when she's five. Or she can keep her birth control and love letters in it when she's in her twenties. I know it's something that she will look at when she's older and she will know how much she is loved by her Auntie. Mission. Accomplished.

Mission Hot Bod- Week One

 It's Friday, which means that it was my fifth day of taking RushFit seriously and working out according to the fitness calendar. I honestly feel so alive and good right now, it's pretty unbelievable. Exercising is like a well kept secret that people discover and then forget about over and over again. I forgot how good it feels to accomplish a workout, even if I had to get up early and I was pretty tired crawling out of my puffy cloud of warmth and comfort of a bed!
 I wanted to use my Friday post as a way to recap how my week of working out went.

MONDAY -

 Day One was the "Strength and Endurance" workout. This is one of the tougher workouts but it's a good one to start with because my body was fresh and not sore. In the second picture I am showing how sweaty and tuckered I am. The workout did what it was supposed to do. I started Monday very bitchy. My attitude sucked and Rob was there for the first part of it encouraging me all of the way. He pointed out as he was leaving for work and I was going into my third round of the workout, that I sounded a lot happier. The truth was; that I was a lot happier after having worked up a sweat. I weighed myself after the workout as I was getting into the shower (yes.. naked) and I believe our ancient scale read 139 pounds. As I mentioned before; if I feel and look better, it doesn't really matter what the scale says at the end of the day. Day one was a success!

TUESDAY- 

 Day Two was a Cardio day. I had previously committed to going to my friend Lisa's Happy Fit Stroller Sample Class.  I have never been to anything like this before and I really enjoyed it. Not only was it nice for me to have a reason to leave the house by ten in the morning, but it was also really nice to meet up with other moms and of course, Lisa. There were three moms and three little ones with us. We ran with the strollers and at times, we parked the babes while we did drills. At the end when we were stretching, the kids were placed on a blanket in the middle and they all got along really well.  I didn't think to take pictures at the stroller class, so I took a couple from Lisa's website. The picture in the middle is the emblem for Happy Fit. The third is a picture of Lisa holding one of the wee ones that attended one of her stroller classes back East.

WEDNESDAY-

  Day Three was the "Abdominal Strength" workout. In the picture of me in my bedroom I look less than impressed. Alina ended up waking up half way through round five, so I had to feed her and stop a couple of minutes early. I skipped any of the squats in this workout because my legs were pretty sore from day one and two of squatting. But, I feel like I sweat enough on day three, so mission accomplished. For lunch I ate Lisa's Bean Spinach Salad and it was very satisfying and most importantly healthy.

THURSDAY-

Day Four was another Cardio day and I went to the fire hall to jog on the tread mill. Before I started RushFit I was getting up in the morning to run at the fire hall everyday but it became too mundane and repetitive. Plus I don't really enjoy running or jogging very much. So it's nice to reduce the running to twice a week. I am enjoying RushFit because everyday is different. It provides me with variety and that's what will keep me exercising. I had to capture the sunrise I saw as I was heading home to share on my post today. That's another reason why it's nice to exercise. I was outside early in the morning, I felt refreshed, energized and I got to experience a beautiful sunrise!

FRIDAY-

 Day Five was the "Fight Conditioning" workout. Five rounds of combination kicks, jabs and uppercuts. It was definitely hard on me because I'm not very coordinated. I'm especially bad with watching someone kick their left leg and jab with their right arm. But considering how hopeless I can be, I did very well. Any workout that includes a "roundhouse" kick is definitely okay with me. I felt like Patrick Swayze kicking ass in the movie "Roadhouse" during this workout. I have been eating porridge for breakfast every morning and I am making sure to eat a lunch as soon as I get hungry again. Exercise is important but eating properly goes right along with it.  I am beaming with joy in my Day Five picture because I am so happy to have accomplished a full week of my workout. I did it!

Via (best photo ever!!)

 Week one of exercising has gone better than I could have imagined. I feel a bit sore, but not too much and in all of the right places. Already, because I've been working hard, I don't want to eat badly this weekend. I hope to keep up and not cheat by missing any days next week. As long as I'm consistent with working out, I should be successful.

 Until next week . . .

Lisa's Spinach Bean Salad

I'm wishing a Happy Thanksgiving to all of my American Bloggers out there. Enjoy the long weekend, with your family, friends, beers, football and stuffing your faces. Amanda from Rhyme and Ribbons asked me to join her and some other bloggers to give thanks for what we appreciate the most in our lives. You can check out what I am most grateful for on Amanda's blog - HERE!

 I'm going to keep my post simple today because I'd like to write a big recap post about my progress in my first week  working out tomorrow.
 My first ever recipe post had surprisingly great feedback, so I figured I'd give it another shot. This time I will be introducing a salad that I just learned about from a new friend, Lisa, from Happy Fit . Lisa is a certified personal trainer, a certified kettle bell and joint mobility and movement instructor, a pre and post natal fitness specialist and precision nutrition trainer. So basically she is just plain awesome at everything fitness and nutrition. Plus to top it all off; her and her husband just moved to our neck of the woods (no one moves here) and the two of them are really nice, personable people. As long as they stick around, they will be friends of our's, for sure. (That's a threat.. DON'T leave....) Lisa and Josh had us over for dinner a couple of weekends back and Lisa introduced me to this salad I am completely obsessed with. I had it as a side salad for dinner last week, we're having it again tonight and I believe Rob and I have both had it a couple of times for lunch this week.

I'll call this salad, "Lisa's Spinach, Bean Salad."

What you will need:

 

//1  Any kind of Spinach from your grocery store. 

//2  A can of drained red kidney beans.

//3  Shredded cheddar cheese. (I'm sure any kind of cheese will do.)

//4.  Rice Works brown rice crisps. (Obviously not everyone will be able to buy these, depending on where you live. So just find a crisp that you like, that is healthier than say a Dorito Chip. Or not! It's your salad, after all. In which case, I bet a Dorito would be really, really good...)

//5  Diced tomatoes and chopped green onion.

//6  Catalina salad dressing. (Again, you can choose whichever dressing you prefer. But to get the full effect of this particular salad, go Catalina all the way.)

Basically that is it.. 

All you need to do is pour in the amount of spinach you plan on scarfing back. Add a handful of kidney beans, sprinkle with cheese, onion and tomato. Crush up a handful of crisps and pour your desired amount of salad dressing over the salad and bingo bango; you have yourself a delicious lunch, or dinner salad. 

 The reason I'm so obsessed with this salad is because I'm new to Catalina dressing, I love the Rice Crisps, they add a crunch and a nice taste to the salad. Plus, I think it's great to find a way to eat kidney beans other than in chili. 

 This picture was taken for my weekly workout recap. I regret my terrible photography skills now that I'm centering a post around the salad. But, just trust me; it's worth making and definitely worth eating! Plus, after this weekend of pigging out on stuffing, turkey and mashed potatoes I have a feeling that salads just may be the thing everyone will be wanting...

 **Update: I made the salad tonight with dinner, so I decided to take a little bit of a better picture of it to add to my post today.**

Mommy Haley Wants To Be Wedding Haley Again

 I posted THIS in August, talking about how we, as women are too hard on ourselves. We see ugly when we look in the mirror because we judge ourselves too harshly. Later in my post, I showed a very embarrassing photo of myself at the beach this summer. I am by far, in the worst shape I have been in my life. Obviously it's because I had a baby eight months ago. But that was eight months ago and it is time for some changes.
 Rob has been faithfully going to the gym before work since August and he is beefing up quite nicely. He feels good and looks even better. Sadly I see less of him because once Alina goes down at eight, he is falling asleep on the couch within minutes. But he has inspired me to get off of my flabby ass and to start pushing myself. I had no idea how hard it was going to be to start exercising again. I have never, ever been this out of shape before. When I was pregnant, it became increasingly difficult to do simple tasks, like walking to work or bending down to pick something up. I was used to being pregnant for nine months, then I became so busy being a new mom and then I just didn't have any interest in working out, with a baby, that the result is I've let myself go.
  Sarah from Venus Trapped In Mars also inspired me with this post to document my goals on my blog in order to commit to them. That way, if I say I want to do something I will be more likely to, if all of Blogland (the small portion of bloggers that visit my corner of the interweb) knows about it. It's like going to the gym vs. running on a treadmill in your living room. I always push myself way harder because I am so aware of all of the other people in the busy gym. I think (for some crazy reason) that everyone is looking at me, judging how fast I go or how long I run for. But that's what motivates me to run my ass off without breaks. If I'm alone on a treadmill, I am more likely to take little breaks and to walk instead of run. So Blogland will act as my eyes at the gym. Even though you all can't see me working out every morning, whenever I post about my progress, I'll have to be honest.
 My method for working out is through a program called RushFit. Rob and I have both done RushFit in the past and it worked tremendously for us. I used to come home from work and go through the work out everyday and I was in shape in no time. I just have to commit fully and just follow the videos and the work out calendar.

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This is the first four weeks of the program and then I can work my way up accordingly. I have this on my iPhone to refer to everyday.

 My goals are simple. I don't want to look anything like I do now. I want the flabbiness of my belly to be tightened back up the way it was before I carried Alina around like a sack of potatoes. I simply want to look as good, or as tight as I did in 2010 after my wedding. My legs are and have always been my trouble area. So I would also really like to tighten those up. The flabby thighs and cottage cheese ass can hit the road as well. Those are my goals. My weight is currently 139 pounds in the morning. The day I found out I was pregnant, July 15, 2012 I weighed 136 pounds. That was actually the heaviest I had been in awhile. I was actually at the point where I knew I needed to start working out again and then I got pregnant. It would be ideal for me to reach 135 pounds once everything is said and done. But if I stay at 137-139 pounds but look and feel better I will consider my goals met.

 The pictures on the left were taken of me in August, 2013. I had Alina five months before that. I would like to think that I don't look that flabby and awful now. But, let's just assume that I do. I did take a picture of me on Day 1 of my work out. So I'll be able to compare my progress through pictures once a week.
 The pictures on the right were taken of me July 11, 2010. The day after my wedding. I was in the best shape I had ever been in. I didn't even work out, I think it was due to all of the stress that comes with getting married. Plus I looked so well groomed because I just got married. I had my nails done (um, first time ever), eyebrows freshly waxed and dyed (done once before), my hair was freshly cut and dyed, I was super, duper tanned and skinny as hell. Plus! I was super happy because I was a newlywed.

  Okay, okay, I realize that this isn't a fair comparison at all. I literally just popped out a baby in the first picture, so I look like serious hell. I have huge bags under my eyes, I'm pretty sure I pushed so hard that my eyeballs are sticking out of their sockets a little and luckily there isn't an image of me in a bathing suit after I had Alina. All I can say is that the sack of potatoes that was my stomach would have looked like a very empty, saggy sack of potatoes. Plus the picture of me all gorgeous, tanned and skinny was again, right before my wedding day. But if I have this awful picture of myself to look at, I can really feel motivated to look better!

 So here's to looking great, feeling even better and to wearing my regular bathing suit to the swimming pool again! (After I saw the picture of me on the beach in August, I carefully tucked that bikini top in a safe place and replaced it with my maternity top. I haven't worn anything else since..!)

And since I put up so many BAD pictures of myself today I have to counter balance with some good. So here's that same picture of me in full bathing suit, the day after my wedding. I looked hot, felt hot and want to look hot like that again damn it!!!!


*** Oh wow- I just found THIS POST from 2007. That was the best shape I've ever been in. I remember now that I was working out daily and running. But I'll stick with looking like Me in 2010. Me in 2007 was 21 with plenty of spare time to devote to my body!***

John's Burning Log

This morning I woke up slowly with Rob and Alina. Rob left the room for a minute and returned with purpose. He just looked at me quite seriously and pointed the remote at the t.v. to turn it on. On the t.v. was the Shaw Holiday Burning Log. Now, this burning log has been a part of all of our Christmas' together. Our t.v. provider; Shaw Cable always features a Christmas fire 24/7 until the holiday season is over.
 There is a story behind the burning log. The burning log is a twenty minute clip of a fire crackling in a fire place and from time to time an arm will stoke the fire or put fresh logs on. We always wondered who the arm belonged to.. Well, the arm belongs to a man named John that worked for Shaw Cable in 1999. He decided to film a fire for Shaw to show on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day to avoid himself or any of the Shaw staff to have to work during the holidays. Shaw Cable would just play the fireplace on a loop all day. When the burning log failed to return the following Christmas, a group of university students in Victoria petitioned for its return. They won and the burning log has been on the air ever since.
 Like I mentioned, we are big fans of the burning log. We include it in all of our Christmas pictures throughout the holiday season. We have a 46 inch television and so it seems like there is this big fireplace in the center of our living room. Plus, the sound effect is the best part. It crackles and pops and it feels like you are sitting in front of a warm, cozy fire.

 The collage is just a sample of all of the times we posed with the burning log throughout the years. Rob with his cotton Santa beard at my sister and brother in law's apartment in down town Victoria, in 2007. I posed with Rob on my lap, with a similar Santa beard in 2009. Before my Christmas party all dulled up, in 2010. There are two pictures of me pregnant with Alina last Christmas, decorating and then on Christmas morning. This year, Alina was introduced to the burning log while we were in bed. She must be related to us because her attention was all over the holiday fire. (Don't mind her crazy morning hair.)



  Christmas is in the air! Once the burning log was reintroduced to our lives, we couldn't help but hum Christmas tunes and discuss what weekend we want to put the tree up. Rob ho hummed if he was going to put the outside lights up or not.. By noon the decision was made; and he was outside trying to remember what lights went where. I tried to write this post earlier but Rob wanted my help and Alina woke from her nap, so I dressed her up warm and Christmas-y and we kept him company while he did all of the work.

  I leave you with the Shaw Burning Log.. please enjoy the next thirty seconds and just imagine having this on in your living room while you sip hot chocolate and read a good book, or blog... Ahh, bliss. (Unless, of course you have an actual fireplace and then you can just call me deprived.)

Haley's Mom's Teriyaki Chicken Wings

This will be my FIRST EVER recipe post! I will always remember my mom's teriyaki chicken wings. Seriously, they are to die for delicious! She would make at least one hundred wings when she made them. It would take her all day, but the result at the end of that long ass chicken making day was just pure finger licking goodness.

I have made these wings a zillion times but I am always this happy when I get to eat them again!

 Ingredients:

For the Sauce:

3 Tbsp Kikkoman Teriyaki Marinade and Sauce (see pictured)
3 Tbsp Water
1/2 Cup of Vinegar
1 Cup of Sugar
(Yes, I realize that that is a lot of sugar. But trust me, these wings are worth all of that sugar intake!)
1/2 tsp Salt

2-3 lbs Chicken Wings (I don't even know how much that is. I usually just use a family pack size of chicken drumettes.)
1 Cup of Margarine OR Butter (I have margarine in my fridge, so I just use Margarine)
1-2 Eggs
1 Cup Flour

Okay, so the beer doesn't go into the recipe. But it does go into the person cooking the wings!

I usually use two pans so that I'm not waiting around forever for my wings to cook. Set your burners to Medium Heat. Melt butter or margarine into pans.

Dip wings into beaten eggs and then into the flour. Fry all of your wings until golden brown.

 While your wings are frying, mix all of your ingredients together to make your sauce in a medium size bowl and stir together.

Ignore the pot on the stove top. Rob's sister is a vegetarian and I was making her French Onion Soup for dinner..

 Place cooked wings in a casserole dish or turkey roaster and pour small amount of the Teriyaki Sauce and Marinade over the wings straight from the bottle.

Once all of your wings are ready, pour the teriyaki mixture evenly over the wings.

 

Set the oven to 350 degrees and cook for 40 minutes covered. I do check on the wings just to ladle the mixture over the wings as they cook. After 40 minutes, remove the lid and cook for another 10 minutes. You don't want to overcook because you don't want your teriyaki sauce to burn. The wings should be candied when finished.

It's pretty easy to do and like I said, the result is amazing. I also encourage you to save some for the next day, or later that night to eat cold. They are the best, in my opinion, when they're cold!

 If Kikkoman Sauce isn't available to you where you live, I'm sure you can substitute with another equally good Teriyaki Sauce/Marinade and the result will be the same. 

A "LINC"-Up

 This will be my second time participating in the "Boys Behind The Blog" link-up. Five questions are posted on Mal or Stephanie's blogs on the first Thursday of the month. These questions can be asked to any of the men in your life. It could be your husband, brother, dad, uncle, etc. The link-up is always on the third Thursday of the month and it is really fun to see what your favourite blogger's men are all like.

 This month, I introduce BlogLand to my big brother, Lincoln. He was born... a baby. (Major points for the person that can tell me what movie that quote is from.....!?)

 Linc and I were introduced promptly after I was born in July of 1985, by our mother. I think he was pretty excited about me at the time. But the excitement wore off once I started talking and annoying him. One thing I do remember is that Linc tolerated me a lot more than I've ever given him credit for. I followed him everywhere. I wanted to be where he was. I wanted to play G.I Joes even though I liked my Barbies and Polly Pockets better. I wouldn't care what we did, as long as I was included. In Kindergarten we had to dress up like our heroes and I went as Lincoln. I wore his baseball hat and clothes. Later in life, I was in grade seven and for Halloween I went as him again. I looked pretty cool, if I'm being totally honest.. A little bit like a lesbian, but a cool lesbian. The point is, that I've always loved my brother, since day one. I still do and I was excited to interview him for my blog. He was cooking supper when I asked him over the phone, the five questions. The questions couldn't have been more suited to him and his tastes. He loves music and so it was an easy interview.

 Again I will write word for word what Lincoln said as he answers and I will commentate when I feel like it..

//1  Who is your favourite band or musician? 
Linc:  For Punk bands- Mad Caddies, Bouncing Souls and Green Day. For Rock bands- The Beatles. Let's just stick with those four because that is a really hard question for me to answer.

 I am surprised that the list wasn't longer. I know for a fact that Linc would have me on the phone any other time, for hours telling me who all of his favourite bands are. But, it was right before supper on a week night, so I don't think he wanted to keep me. Lincoln is the type of person to have me listen to a full song over the phone because he loves it so much.

That is a typical picture of my brother as a teenager. Notice the Beatles poster on the wall and his coveted c.d. collection. Also note the look of annoyance on his face.. I must have taken the picture. (The upside down rainbow wallpaper was already on those walls when we moved in.. just so everyone knows that my parents weren't super goofballs.)

 //2 What was your first cd/tape/record? 
Linc: Tape was Copperhead Road by Steve Earl. CD was Weezer, self titled and Foo Fighter's, self-titled. Record was Michael Jackson's Bad. He's wearing a white suit and somewhere on the record there's a picture of him petting a tiger.

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 Does this picture bring back any memories there big brother!??! Oh and I talked to my mom yesterday and told her about this post. She corrected Linc and said that his first record was Beat It. This would explain the white suit and tiger a bit better.

3. Who was your first concert?
Linc: New Kids On The Block all the way, fourth row. The security guard let me sit on the top of the bleachers so I could see and Donny looked at me.

 When I read that question I actually laughed out loud because I knew that New Kids was Linc's first concert. My sister, mom and him went and had a really good time. My mom said at the end of the concert the girls all rushed the stage, so she had to elbow, push and punch people to keep them from trampling my siblings. Good ol' mama bear.

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Yes, I hoped to find the cheesiest picture of the New Kids.. and I believe I more than exceeded my expectations....

4. What is your favourite Thanksgiving Food?
 Linc: Stuffing all the way with gravy on it.... I'm sick of turkey.

We're sick of turkey because Thanksgiving was last month! I am sick of turkey too. I always make turkey pies out of all of my left overs and we have already eaten both turkey pies that I froze.. I'm with Linc and happy to wait another month for turkey again!

The year I made turkey dinner on my own. BUT- Lincoln was there to coach me on how to make the gravy. (Linc used to be a cook and taught me well!)

 5. Finish the sentence, I am thankful for . . . 
Linc: Money... no, I'm kidding. No, I'm thankful for baseball. I'm thankful for family, but everyone says that. (Long pause.) Looking at pictures of the babies (his nieces and nephew) and stuff makes me smile more than anything. So yeah, family for sure.

Amen brother. I am with you on the family train. Nothing makes me happier than a bunch of drooling, babbling mini-drunk/zombie-like infants stumbling around the backyard. I love kids and especially when we get credit for how cute and funny they are! Oh.. and baseball. You know I love me some baseball! 

Like I mentioned, I always copied my brother.. So it is obvious that I would also be into baseball and actually- I'm not half bad at it. I can thank my brother and dads for that. (Playing catch in the backyard for years and years really does make a difference!!!)

Linc with those babies he was talking about.

  Thanks for getting to know my bro a little bit better. I am really enjoying the "Boys Behind The Blog" link-up every month. Also, a super duper big shout out to my brother, Lincoln. Thanks for playing along!