Buggin'

Last night a little, tiny, annoying bug found it's way into my left ear. I'm pretty sure it was just a gnat, but when we looked through a magnifying glass my nephew said it looked like a spider; but I think I'll maintain that it was a gnat.

Anyway, just in case you ever have a bug in your ear, this is what you do (if you can't/don't want to go to the hospital): First you want to lay your head down with your "bugged ear" facing up, then you want to drip in some baby, mineral or olive oil (if you don't have either of these I think some water would be okay). The oil will kill the bug and stop it from moving around (possibly the worst sensation ever). Then you want to flush your ear with warm water, this will hopefully flush the bug out. My dad used a sort of syringe thing (took the needle off) to squirt the water in. You have to watch for the bug carefully because it can be hard to see it come out (we were almost ready to go to a clinic because we couldn't see it anywhere).  After my Dad was about ready to give up I lifted my head off the towel in hopes he had missed it, I almost did to.

I read online that bugs usually aren't able to make their way back out of your ear on their own. Although, I did read a few testimonies of people who said that after they shined a flash light the bug came out (but I think all of those cases involved cockroaches). Also, it said to not wait too long because a frantic bug can cause serious problems (someone said their jaw was hurting a lot, weird).

Weekly Tidbits

I'm all about these cool wooden dowel trivets, and they are totally DIY and I even have a link for the DIY here. Definitely want to make some of these, and how cool do they look just hanging on the white washed wall?

Lovin' the stripes that are constantly everywhere (I think I instagramed a picture of 7 striped shirts I own that are all very similar) and this rug is so cool with the pop of neon. The original rug that you can buy with the stripes is from Kira and costs a bajillion dollars, no joke. So just buy the crate and barrel rug, way cheaper and do it yourself. I basically copy and pasted this idea from Apartment Therapy. But, it's so cool I just had to post it.

I am seriously on the lookout for a good planner, and this one seems to have it all, weekly pages and monthly pages with plenty of space but it's not a crazy huge planner. I honestly can't remember where I saw this planner (on someone's blog) but you can get it here. Also, if you go to Poketo's site please look at all the stuff they have in their stationary section because they have awesome stuff, I basically want all of the pens and notebooks and everything they have.

J.Crew had this belt and it cost about $52!!! I wanted it so bad, but it never went on sale and it was so spency. Then on this newfound amazing blog I found a diy for it and I can NOT believe I didn't think of it before, seriously it couldn't be easier. Can't wait to do it.

Breakfast Week 4

This week's breakfast is a lot like last week, or maybe even the same some days. I still have some spinach and ham left over, so I'm going to be having some more of the "green eggs and ham" omelets and I bought some green bell peppers to use as well. I really liked my omelet's last week so hopefully I'm not going to burn myself out on omelets.

I'll definitely be changing it up next week, maybe some variations of oatmeal with some flaxseed? There are so many options to pick from in The New Abs Diet Cookbook that it's sometimes hard to decide.

FIrst Frisbee of the Year...

Last Saturday was amaze-balls weather. So natch we took advantage and played frisbee, invented some weird game that revolves a lot around Boyf. and probably isn't very safe. Afterwards we enjoyed State Street Tacos and slurpees. I have totally forgotten how delicious slurpees are.


We may or may not have gone to see The Vow at the dollar theater after.....

Breakfast Week 3

Remember how I was supposed to mix up the omelet with these waffles last week, and instead I just ate toast on the waffle days? Consequently this week's breakfast is Kashi Go Lean Original 7 Grain Frozen Waffles. As much as I like eggs and omelet's this may be my favorite breakfast so far. Yeah, it's pretty much the same thing as toast, but they aren't, okay? Or at least, in my head I feel better about popping these in the toaster than my bread. And, from my extensive (or not so extensive) research these are better for me than the loaf of bread sitting on my counter.

For these waffles I pop them in the toaster and then spread a little of Justin's Honey Peanut Butter and some raspberry jam and they are delicious, especially when you have some juice in the fridge to pair them with. Yum!

"Last Night"

Remember "last night" I said I would post a photo of my "green eggs and ham" omelet? Well, true to my word (or not) here it is.

Look at all that yummy ham and spinach. There was also some low-fat mozz. sprinkled on top once it was flipped.

Breakfast Week 2

Last week's breakfast went pretty well, there were two days that I didn't eat oatmeal but I still had breakfast those days (toast and peanut butter).

For this week's breakfast I chose two different meals, a "green eggs and ham omelet" and some frozen wheat waffles. The omelet consists of 2 eggs, spinach, canadian bacon and a sprinkle of low-fat mozz. 

The omelet is delicious and while it's only at 220 calories (not counting the glass of juice or milk I drink with it) I still feel full for about 4 hours after. However, I will completely admit that I haven't tried a waffle yet....and today I only had some chai tea for breakfast (oops). But, so far I'm really optimistic about this breakfast plan. Tomorrow I'm having another green eggs and ham omelet and I'll be sure to photograph it for you! 

I checked out "The New Abs Diet Cookbook" from the library and am choosing one or two breakfast options from it a week. So far it's one of the best "healthy" cookbooks I've read. I may end up ordering it from amazon.

Kitteh Alarm Clock

...aka I am basically a closet cat lady (I can't really be one until I own three cats). In any case Boyf found this video for me (he feeds my cat obsession) and I hardcore giggle through it EVERY time I watch it. I wish I knew a cat that did this.


I think in reality I am just a crazy animal lady because I am obsessed with all things kitteh, bunny and dog and pretty much anything cute and fluffy. Although you all know my dream is to have a dog and bunny or dog and kitteh that are bffs. 

Oatmeal with Nutella

I would have never thought to mix the two, but I do what Cooking Light tells me to do and it told me to mix 'em. What a great way to add some chocolate to my oatmeal.

Mmmmmm....Breakfast....

errrr....I mean.......uh....

Okay, I have this problem where I sleep in till the last possible moment (meaning I shower at night most often) and I often don't give myself any time for breakfast.

I'm trying this new thing where I take better care of myself (eating better, exercising all those things we're supposed to do for ourselves) and my goal is to eat breakfast everyday (because apparently breakfast matters).

This week's breakfast menu is.....(drum roll)......OATMEAL!!!!! Yay. I think that there is nothing grosser than plain, mushy oatmeal. However, I truly think it's delicious when you can add a little cream, or brown sugar or fresh berries. So far (today) it's going great. Also, my breakfast plan for Sunday is yummy german pancakes (that is my reward for eating breakfast everyday this week).

I'm really striving to love myself and take better care of me. It has taken a while to realize that no one can really love me the way I love myself. And in doing so I feel as though you are better able to take care of yourself. So here I am, working on that. I'll let you know how the week-long oatmeal breakfasts turn out.

Kitteh Gifs

These bring me joy.

Weekly Tidbits

This past week all I have been thinking about is buying new things for my apartment. Ever since I saw this bedroom makeover (from my newfound favorite blog) it is really always on my mind and I wish I could just transport everything from their room to mine.

My cute orange geometric designed shower curtain from Target is failing me. The orange colored pieces are flaking off and sticking to the side of my tub (it looks kind of weird and gross) so it needs to go. I am thinking that this blue coral curtain will go well with my orange towels and bath mat.

And, I want these for my sink in the bathroom. I'm a sucker for monogrammed things and these are so cute (would definitely match my blue and orange bath theme).

My blankets consist of a leopard print snuggie, a baby themed crocodile small quilt I made at the age of 12, an awesome big purple and blue quilt my sister made me a few years back, and this (so soft) red king size blanket from Target that sheds more than any dog in this world. So, with the exception of the quilt my sister made my blankets are a little sad. I am seriously thinking about getting one of these. They aren't too spensy and yes I do know that it will be summer soon, but maybe it could be my bed blanket in the summer?

I'm basically dying over this side table. I want it next to my bed with a cute lamp on it and maybe a book or two.

This kids duvet is awesome. I actually kind of wish I could just buy a print of this and frame it (it would go nicely with my stuffed bunnies)

and before you ask or say anything or make fun of me, yes, I do love West Elm. 

Dino Case

It took me a while to decide on a case for my new lappy and after seeing sooo many beautiful cases that ended up being way out of my price range (hello, I just spent a BUTT LOAD on a lappy, I can't afford to spend the same amount on a case too) I picked this one. I bought it from Lollington on etsy. I think he's pretty cute.

Lemon Head Cookies

I saw these cookies on a friends pinterest and thought I'd give 'em a try (I love cookies and especially lemon cookies). They turned out amazingly good. Seriously, so good. The website where the recipe originates from is here. I didn't make any frosting for them the way the blogger does, but I don't think they even need it.

Ingredients:

1 Cup of Butter

1 Cup of White Sugar

1/2 Cup of Brown Sugar

The zest from 1 Lemon

2 Tsp of Lemon Extract

2 Eggs

1/4 Tsp of Salt

1 Tsp of Baking Soda

3 Cups of Flour

6 oz Bag of Lemonheads-Crushed into smaller pieces

First, cream together the sugars, butter and lemon zest. Next add in the Lemon Extract and the eggs as well; Mix until everything is incorporated.

Now we get to add in the dry ingredients: Salt, Baking Soda & Flour.

You want to add enough flour to make a stiff dough. 

And finally, add in the crushed Lemon-heads.

Bake in the oven @ 350 degrees for 10-12 minutes {just a little golden, mine took exactly 10}.  When I take them out of the oven, I let them sit on the pan for another minute or two to set up.  You don't want to eat one of these lovely's right out of the oven because of the melted candy-you don't want to burn your mouth.  After a couple of minutes, I then transfer them to a cooling rack to cool down.

Side note: The candy gets a little stuck to the pan so when you slide them off with the spatula you have to be a little careful not to break the cookies into a million pieces (as I did with the first few when I wasn't careful with my spatula).

Best Spaghetti Sauce and Roasted Cabbage

I promised I'd report on the spaghetti sauce and roasted cabbage. So here I am, fulfilling that promise. Just in case you aren't up to speed I decided to try out this recipe for spaghetti sauce. It was easy, fragrant (smelled great as it was on the stove) and pretty flavorful. I will say this, make sure you do not add too much ricotta because that will make it too sweet. I've linked the recipe for the sauce about three or four times in the past two weeks so I'm not going to write out the recipe here. Also, I could not find a can that claimed to be plum or cherry tomatoes, but I will keep looking (I'm wondering if the new fancy Harmon's downtown has them).

As for the roasted cabbage it was AMAZING. I seem to forget how much I like cabbage. I found it via Budget Bytes. I have also linked the recipe several times lately but basically you cut the cabbage in half and then in wedges from there (keep the core intact so that it doesn't fall apart in the oven). Then generously brush some light caesar dressing all over the wedges. And make sure to use a NON-creamy dressing (like a vinaigrette). You'll bake/roast the cabbage at 425 degrees and half-way through flip the wedges. I made this twice last week and the first time it was a tad crispy (I waited 15 min to flip and then only cooked them 10 min after the flip). The second time I cooked them for 20 min total. I think 20-25 min is the best but you can judge for yourself (and it depends on how big you cut your wedges).

Anyway, the final verdict is that they were both pretty good. I added a little too much ricotta making it a little too sweet, but it was still delicious! And the cabbage will become a great staple for me in the future, so easy and absolutely delicious.

Draw Something

Are you in on this yet? Someone told me I should get it I did and then I think the next week everyone on FB had this game. I am VERY good at this game. Well, I am really good at guessing but this is how good I am at drawing:

Weekly Tidbits

I made myself German Pancakes last week after seeing them on Rockstar Diaries. The recipe definitely yields enough to make at least two but I just make one big fat one and it was delicious. I don't know why I've never made one before but seeing on her blog made me really want to try it out.

Boyf. Knows my love for Batman and showed me this batman themed hotel room in Taiwan. Batman is my fav superhero hands down. Now if I could only find a way/excuse/money to stay there. 

Last Thursday I discovered this blog, and can't wait to try out some of her recipes. I think I mentioned this blog in my last post; it's a vegan cooking blog and it just seemed so accessible to me. I feel like there are so many cooking blogs out there but this one I was able to connect with. I printed out five of her recipes and thought I'd be able to get to them by the end of the month, but that is THIS week. So, I'll say I will get to them by the end of April. Anyway, you should check it out, I think we could all stand to be a little healthier, including eating less meat. 

Tomorrow I am going to try the "Best Spaghetti Sauce" according to the Wednesday Chef via Cup of Jo. I am going to pair it with some roasted cabbage via Budget Bytes. I may be more excited about the cabbage, but I'll definitely let you know how they turn out.

I did it. I went ahead and ordered these for myself. And let me tell you, they may be the best shoe purchase in a long time. They are the most comfortable heel I have ever worn and I get compliments non stop (comfy enough to wear to work at the crew for 5 hours, which means constant walking and standing). Pick yourself up a pair here or come by the new crew at City Creek

The Walking Dead

Have you been watching The Walking Dead?? I only just finished the second season finale this past weekend and zombiepocalypse is all I have been thinking about for the past three weeks (Time it's taken me to watch it all). I've pretty much come the conclusion that I would be fairly useless in a zombiepocalypse. However, after watching the show I would be at the very LEAST as useful as Lori or Carol, you know, I could do the laundry, and cook.

But in all honestly this show is so captivating. And it's interesting because I seriously dislike half of the, what 10 (?), characters and yet I was so sucked in. There's something about dystopian civilizations that are so captivating, no? Thinking about how you would fair in such a world.

Even though I dislike half the characters I will say that this show has had some of the best character development that I have seen in a long time. Daryl Dixon, the hate-able, vulgar redneck turned into the best character the show has to offer. I can't tell you how many walking dead memes about Daryl my friend found for me over the weekend.

I don't know how you feel about zombie's, but I highly suggest you give it a shot. The first season is on Netflix.

Help! Help! Help!

Guess what?

Dress code at the crew has changed once again. We are not allowed to wear denim without a blazer and I can't wear my pixie pants either (the BEST pant I have EVER come across (that's not denim)). This is the major problem, I do not look good in blazers, I just can't pull them off. They drown me and the crew blazers are a bit too spensy for me to buy just to wear to work; and the cheap ones from Forever 21/H&M have shoulder pads. Why? I just can't make that work.

The silver lining here (if you can call it that) is that I can wear some chinos with just a button up (no cardi or blazer necessary). BUT, I am not in love with the Crew's chino's. They just aren't made for curvy ladies, and my thighs are a bit meaty (or cottage cheesy as I'd like to call it).

Here's where you can help me, I need your suggestions on where I can find some chinos that fit curvy bodies well? I do have some chinos from Gap that I really liked when I first tried them on (see previous post with red pants pic) but after you wear them the knees get all loose and big. Maybe I just need a smaller size? Anyway, any suggestions would be much appreciated.

Thank you.

It's Been Awhile

....and apparently none of you think that Fox video is as hilarious as I do. Every time I show it to someone their only response is "What's that sound in the background?" Come on, like I know? Also, the fox is licking glass, so I'd say it's safe to assume this video was probably taken at a zoo and there is some zany animal in the background making that noise. Sheesh people, it's funny. Laugh.

In other news, I had a whole weeks worth of blogging planned and it didn't happen. But I'm still planning on posting about those things.

I've taken a huge step in my life (yes, my brain is weird) and finally purchased a brand new Macbook Pro. This is huge for me. All I think about during the day is how I can go home and do stuff on the internet, the thing is, I'm not used to having that all at my fingertips about 5 minutes into lappy time I draw a blank and can't think of what I should be reading about, or what video I should be watching and consequently I have done no blogging on it, yet.

Also I am working on eating healthier and in that process I have stumbled across this blog: For the Love of Food. What I really like (so far) about this blog is the blogger (what word should I be using here?) is totally vegan and while I do not plan on becoming vegan anytime soon all her recipes are healthy but not overwhelming, I feel like I could make these recipes and while doing so not spend a freaking fortune at the grocery store. So far I have printed out Five recipes and my goal is to have tried them all by the end of the month.

I Have Never...

...Seen a fox make faces like this before.

Sunny Days Ahead

Monday was absolutely beautiful! Do you remember? It's kind of hard because of how crazy cold it was yesterday and then all the snow on Tuesday. I took a few pics to document the day. And to celebrate I wore my new red pants and took a long walk, buying some grape soda along the way as well as a loaf of bread from Great Harvest.

I saw this dino on my walk and thought it photo worthy. The kids that live here must be very proud of their house.

Also, Monday was a great day all around, I found out I am getting more than double I expected from my tax return. Hello, new laptop.......

Experimental Pasta Sauce

I love me some pasta (like I've mentioned before, I love carbs), and decided to try and make the pasta a little more substantial and came out with this:

It has, a can of sliced olives, one zucchini, a can of garbanzo beans and a can of tomatoes with some garlic and oregano. I also added a little extra sauce. Anyway, I pretty much added it all together and let it simmer for about 7ish minutes. It turned out great! Although, I'm thinking next time I'll cut the beans to maybe 3/4 a can or even 1/2; they were a little overwhelming.

What are you fav. pasta sauces?
I'm going to try this one next (that I found on one of my new fav blogs), it's supposed to be amazing (and sounds like it!). 

It WAS there

This past weekend we spontaneously went out to eat at Thaifoon, probably around 10pm with some friends. A friend ordered some creme brulee, didn't like it and passed it on to me and Jas. I of course just dug in. After taking the last bite, Jas looked at me with the most disappointed face. Yes, I had eaten it all before even giving him a taste. I am a greedy, greedy girl when it comes to desserts. Or really any food for that matter. 

Sweet Hearts

After discovering washi tape I've been kind of obsessed and on the prowl for a good vendor to buy myself some and found this shop on etsy. You can buy a pack of 8 different tapes, 2 feet long each (minimum, you can get more if you want) and it's only, like, $6!! That was the answer for me because I am slowly dipping my toe into the world of DIY projects but don't have the money to go crazy and buy all the things. Anyway, I ordered some washi tape from them, some bakers twine (I love bakers twine, something about it is so romantical for me, not sure what I'm going to do with it yet, but I love it) and some natural jute twine.

Around Valentines Day I found these printables and decided they would be so cute strung somewhere. Then I decided that somewhere would be above my bed and I would use the twine and some cute polka dot washi tape I bought from etsy. I thought it seemed a little too cheesy at first, and I may change it later, but for now I think it's sweet and fits in nicely above my bed.

So here you can see the washi tape I used and the Jute twine.

Dried Strawberries - Fail

I tried my hand at this recipe I found on Pinterest for dried strawberries. They didn't turn out so good; they weren't dried enough and they were still a bit soggy and squishy. I'm thinking they didn't cook long enough. It says to cook for 3 hours which I thought was plenty of time. When I took them out of the oven I noticed they weren't quite dried enough and I thought that just letting them sit out would do the trick and that didn't work. The hard thing is the recipe doesn't really give any tips or much direction, just pop em in the oven at __ degrees (I think it was 225) and cook for 3 hours. I do want this to work out for me though, so I'm gonna try again and after 3 hours keep watch and most likely cook longer.

I will say this, if strawberries were SUPER cheap I would "cook" them all the time because cooking strawberries yields the most heavenly scent.

Green Smoothie

I have finally found the perfect combo for a green smoothie. I have  been interested in green smoothies because I  am not the greatest at finding ways to incorporate spinach or kale or other leafy greens into my diet (unless I'm having a salad, which I really enjoy, but I feel like this is just another way to get in a veggie for breakfast). Anyway, I've tried about 5 different combos and none of them have turned out that great. Most have been okayish but I could still tell that I had a leaf in my drink.

It has four ingredients which I love because it's super cheap and I also feel like there is a lot of room to experiment.

Green Smoothie
1 1/2 c orange juice (I use trop 50)
1 frozen banana
1 pear
1 c frozen kale

Blend all ingredients and drink up! I don't have a blender, just my blending stick, so there were still little tiny pieces of kale whereas I think if you use a blender you can completely get rid of the pieces. Also, I'm sure you could substitute spinach and your greens wouldn't have to be frozen, it's just cheaper for me that way.

I'm gonna be honest and say that the orange juice base is the strongest flavor, and I'm also pretty sure that's what I was missing with my other recipes. Not necessarily the OJ but something other than milk as the base. I'm pretty sure I'll be making variations of this for breakfast several times a week! Yum!

Let me know if you have a good green smoothie recipe! I'd love to hear 'em

delayed...

Well, I was going to add a few posts this morning complete with pictures, but then I left my phone at a friends house last night (my only form of communication, good thing I came to work today where there are phones and internets).

Anyway, I was going to post a green smoothie recipe (the best one I've tried so far, out of.....5?) and a dried-strawberries-result, which didn't work out so well....

Anyway, stay tuned for a few updates.

Recipes coming up

I am going to attempt to try my own dried strawberries. Natch, I found this recipe on Pinterest, and I really need to rethink the snacks I take to work. Too often lately I have been visiting the vending machines, and buying big carb-filled muffins (I LOVE carbs, I constantly crave them and it's becoming a problem).

And for dinner this week I will be attempting these Black Bean Quesadillas that I also found on pinterest. The recipe is from the blog Budget Bytes which is an awesome resource for someone like me that wants to cook at home more, but doesn't want to spend a lot of money. I highly suggest you check out her blog, she's really smart, breaks down the prices for you and I've tried a few of the recipes from her blog before with success. Plus, most of her meals make enough for four servings, so that's enough for me, Jason and some left overs.

I will, of course, post the results later.

Early Spring and Summer Wardrobe

I have gotten the jump on my spring and summer wardrobe early. Really early, in fact, I have basically no budget left to buy clothes. Except for pants. I am hoping to lose some weight so I can fit into some cute colorful pants. Probably from Gap or H&M (cause the colored denim at the crew is over $100!! Ridiculous).
Anyway, here are the pieces I've picked up

 Rugby Stripe Dress, J.Crew

Jardin Skirt, J.Crew

No.2 Pencil Skirt in Double-Serge Cotton, J.Crew

No.2 Pencil Skirt in Double-Serge Cotton, J.Crew

Leopard Tank, J.Crew

Tova Sandals, J.Crew

Yeah, yeah, I know, everything is from J.Crew but I really can't help it when I work there and get a discount. Plus, you have to buy this stuff when it first comes out or else it goes on the "exclusion" list (like the sandals no doubt will) which means that I can't get them at a discount price. So the sandals will probably sit in the closet for a while, but that's okay it gives me something to look forward to wearing. I love J.Crew but lately I've been wishing there was a Madewell closer (J.Crew's sister company). Too bad they aren't coming to City Creek, oh well, maybe in a few years?