OAHU!

I am so sorry it's been so long since my last blog post.  My husband and I finally got to go on our honeymoon to HAWAII!  We enjoyed a week on the breathtaking island of Oahu.

We rented a beautiful place on Kailua beach! 

We were so pleased!  It was 100 times better than a hotel an was away from all of the hustle and bustle of the more crowded areas like Honolulu and Waikiki.  Our hosts were amazing and so helpful.  They have created a literal paradise garden at their home and it leads out to the beach! 

Our backyard!

We had to hula on the Star of Honolulu dinner cruise.

Amazing view from the dinner cruise! 

A monster of a hike!  After a whole day of rainy it was so MUDDY!

I almost made it without falling! 

View from the top of Maunawili hike. 

We could never get over the AMAZING views! 

Nutella & banana crepes at Cremes No Ka 'Oi
(No, these don't help you fit in skinny jeans - but how often can you have Hawaiian crepes?)

Carl enjoyed the Bishop museum (I enjoyed that it was used in the filming of LOST). 

My favorite thing we did was to go on a self-guided LOST tour!  We are huge LOST fans and really enjoyed finding some of the places that were used during the filming of the show.  You'll have to check out my next blog post to see all the LOST sites we visited!  

The Dharma Barracks & Others' Homes @ YMCA Erdman

We had an WONDERFUL trip!  It was truly paradise. We'll go back again someday.

ALOHA!

Menu Board

I had a fun afternoon doing Pinterest crafts with my friends Amy & Sierra!

Amy is showing off her new menu board while I am intently paper cutting. 

One of the projects today was a menu board!  (A big thanks to Amy & Sierra for finding the idea and getting the supplies.)  We used a fabric quarter to hot glue fabric to a cookie sheet.  We attached magnets to the back so it attaches to the refrigerator.  Amy found two little wooden boxes that worked perfectly to hold menu ideas.  You could also attach a notepad to jot down your shopping list.  

Simply add mini clothespins and some labels made from scrapbook paper and voila - a homemade menu board.  Now it's time to put it to use!  Hate arguing over what to do for dinner each night?  Tired of last minute grocery runs?  Well this is a great solution!  Also, the best way to stay on track with healthy eating is to plan, plan, plan!  

Amy's  menu board turned out BEAUTIFULLY!

RipDeck

Remember the Deck of Card workout that my boot camp leader showed me?  Well... there's an app for that!  It's called RipDeck and is available on itunes for $1.99.  (I downloaded it on my ipod touch - thanks, mom!) 

You can choose one of the existing workouts or make your own.  I chose to make my own with sit-ups, push-ups, squats, jumping jacks, and burpees (as the Jokers).  No equipment required - I don't have a pull-up bar at my house, so I had to omit that.  There are lots of possibilities: dips and step-ups using a kitchen chair, kettlebell swings, mountain climbers, high knees, lunges, dumbbell presses, etc.  Their facebook page also features some different variations.  You can adjust the workout to fit your ability level - just alter the exercise, the amount of cards, or omit suits.  

The app works the same as a literal deck of cards.  You just tap the screen and it flips the card for you.  It took less time between cards because I didn't have to stop and look at a chart to see what I had to do - it just told me. 

It was great at the end to see how long the workout took me.  It even kept track of how much time it took to do each set and each exercise overall.  My workout took about 25 minutes!  I could do this one while I'm waiting on dinner to bake.  No excuses!  Crank up your music and knock out a workout.  

A 'Fresh Take ' on Dinner

Looking for something quick and easy to make for dinner?  Don't feel like spending a lot of time on dinner after a long day at work?  Try a Kraft Fresh Take - this has become a regular in my house!

It's simple... pick up a pack of chicken, pork chops, or fish and a Kraft Fresh Take (in the refrigerator section with the cheese).  Open the fresh take and mix the bread crumbs with the cheese.  Then simply roll each piece of meat in the bread crumb mix (I coat my meat in egg beaters to make it stick better).  Then I sprinkle some extra of the mixture on top. 

The baking directions are on the package.  Chicken is baked at 375 for 28 minutes.  In 30 minutes you have a simple but delicious dinner!  We've tried all the flavors.  Our favorites so far are the Smokey Mesquite BBQ and the Cheddar Jack & Bacon.  

          

1/6 of the package adds only 100 calories to your dinner!  Yum!

Simply add some corn and green beans and you have your whole meal!  And for dessert?

A delectable Chobani bite - raspberry with dark chocolate chips.  Only 100 calories - and worth every last one! 

Envelope #2

I reached my 2nd goal and got to open my next envelope!  My reward for losing 10 pounds was new makeup!  I picked some makeup goodies from Mary Kay & Target. 

 I can't wait to meet my next goal!  My reward for losing 15 pounds is a mani / pedi at Salon Biyoshi.  I have never been there, but have heard it's great.  My sweet mother-in-law bought me a gift card there for my birthday and I can't wait to use it.

Happy Birthday to ME!

Happy Birthday weekend to me!  I promised myself I wouldn't - but I did.  My present to myself this year was supposed to be staying on track, but it didn't go exactly as planned.  I worked out, but I definitely indulged more than I should have - and boy do I regret it.  The saying 'you are what you eat' rings true.  After a weekend of eating 'junk' I feel like just that -- JUNK! 

But it's okay!  I'm not going to beat myself up about it.  I'm going to pick up and get right back on track!  There are 4 weeks until Spring Break and I am going to make the most of them.

I have a hard time having A splurge. It turns into a downward spiral for me, which is exactly why I cannot use food as a reward.  I found an article called 8 Reasons Why You're Not Losing Weight, and it really hit on some important points - consistency, eating the right kinds of calories, not letting your "cheat days" cheat you, and understanding that it's a combination of exercise AND diet. 

How do you pick yourself up after a slip?

Strawberry Creams

Here's a low-calorie treat - we enjoyed them on Valentine's Day.  Only 145 calories per serving!

This is the bag of JUNK from all my students.  NO WAY!!

I managed to avoid eating all this junk and the Salsaritas & 'Goodie' day at school.  In order to not feel deprived I found a recipe for a sweet treat I could enjoy and still stay on track.  

Ingredients:

8 strawberries

2 oz. vanilla Greek yogurt (I used Chobani)

1/2 small banana

1 tablespoon sliced almonds

1.  Mash the banana.  Stir in the Greek yogurt. 

2.  Use a knife to core the strawberries. (The best way I found was to stick the knife in the middle of the banana and twist it around.  The more you get cored out, the more cream that will fit in them.)

3.  Fill the strawberries with the cream.  Garnish with the sliced almonds.  (You could also top with granola or blueberries.)

Makes 1 serving.

ENJOY!

I tripled the recipe so my mom, husband, and I could all enjoy a Valentine's treat.