valentine's day decoration...

last night i was feeling inspired to decorate for valentine's day, and i recently saw a craft on pinterest that involved making felt hearts.  i pulled out my craft box and got creative. 

i went through my fabric and felt and decided to go with a non traditional valentine's day color pallet of blue and yellow.  then i cut out hearts, stitched them together with gray yarn and stuffed them with cotton balls.  when i had 15 hearts completed in various sizes and shapes, i strung them together with black thread and hung them on a branch.

items needed:

fabric and felt swatches in color pallet of your choice
scissors
yarn & needle
cotton balls
thread
branch

this craft took me about 3 - 3 1/2 hours and it makes a fun valentine's day decoration, mobile or gift.

peanut butter powder...

some of my favorite food combinations are with peanut butter, i LOVE peanut butter...especially if it is the chunky, salted, natural kind.

peanut butter and chocolate
peanut butter and jelly
peanut butter and honey
peanut butter and banana
peanut butter and bacon on a burger

but this high calorie nut butter can have a lot of added sugar and fillers, making it not always the best choice.  i recently found that they make peanut butter powder, which is very finely ground peanuts.  this powder can be mixed in with water to create a lower calorie version of  peanut butter, or used for baking or smoothies (my fav way to use it).

it has significantly less calories while maintaining the peanut butter taste we all love.  for 2 tablespoons it is 65 calories compared to normal peanut butter at 190 calories.  i bought the brand "PB fit" which is gluten free, GMO free and all natural.  the 15 oz jar runs about $13-$15 on amazon, and it lasts a long time. 

peanut butter banana protein smoothie:

1/2 frozen banana
1/4 cup full fat greek yogurt
1/2 cup water
2 T PB fit peanut butter powder
1 t cinnamon
3 t chia seeds

take a walk...

i came across this quote and it really made a strong point.  we often use food to cope with stress, anxiety and boredom.  food can either be the best medicine or it can be a poison to our bodies.  and what would happen if we chose to exercise when we felt those symptoms of stress instead of eat?

i've been trying to make better eating choices all around, and i am going to be more aware of this stress eating trend.  sometimes i have my best ideas or do my best problem solving while at the gym or exercising.

i have a goal to sweat everyday!  and when it comes to food, i do better when i don't focus on meals as breakfast, lunch and dinner, but rather 3 meals a day and eat what sounds good.  as long as i am getting protein and limit my carbs, then it's okay to eat eggs for dinner or chicken and veggies for breakfast. each day is a new day to recommit to your goals and make good healthy choices.

pet owners are never lonely...

a girl and her book
a dog and his bone
when you have a pet
you are never alone

music..."prayer in c"

heard this song recently and it has been on repeat!  i especially love the remix version.

lilly wood & the prick and robin schultz, "prayer in c"

click here to watch the video!

produce pick me up...

do you ever have produce that is still fresh, but is a little wilted or limp from the refrigerator?  most of the time you don't have to throw it out, but can give it a little pick me up.  this morning i was planning on what i wanted to make for dinner, and i noticed my asparagus and lettuce could use some much needed hydration.  i cut the woody ends off of the asparagus and the tips of my lettuce stalks and placed them in water.  within a half an hour the lettuce and asparagus were crisp and perky. 

super bowl redondo beach 10k...

about a month into my training with jarad, we started to incorporate running into our routine.  i absolutely hate running!  and i haven't ran a mile since junior high.  i was hardly able to run a minute straight and we kept at it and then eventually one saturday morning we ran a mile on the hermosa beach strand.  well it has been about 8-10 weeks later and i just completed my first 10k!  that was the goal we were building up for and i did even better than i thought i would.

my goal was to do it in at least an hour and a half, which would be about a 15 minute mile.  that seemed reasonable and realistic to me.  when i got going i noticed that i was averaging a 12 minute mile, so adjusted my goal to finish in an hour and 15 minutes.

i had my mom to cheer me on at about 2.5 miles in and even though jarad finished before me, he turned around and came back to run the last mile with me.  i finished in 1 hour and 14 minutes, and it felt good to accomplish a fitness goal that i never thought i could be good at.  i still don't like running, but i do enjoy the challenge and of course i like to see the results and improvements.

they give you 2 beers at the finish line, along with a t-shirt.  we enjoyed sitting in the shade and sipping on our beers and then had a lovely brunch at the cheesecake factory and sat outside on the marina.  and we even walked home after all of that, another 1.5 miles.  it was a fun morning and i feel really proud of my accomplishment and that i did even better than i expected!

here are my stats:

Your final time is 01:14:39 at a 00:12:02 pace.
You finished 2298 out of 2735 in the 10K RUN.
You finished 158 out of 197 in your class F30-34.