To Read or Not to Read

Hobby of the day: Reading

I love to read! I am an avid reader. My dad got me into reading and my mom too, but more my dad.  I was read to every day and night when I was little.  My mother was an elementary art teacher now art professor and she writes and illustrates children's books- so there was always a plethora of books within my reach. 

 I love introducing my students to new books and sharing my favorite stories with them.  I especially love introducing them to something that isn't Junie B or Fancy Nancy.  Hot Wheel books and Lego books were not the big rage when I was little.  Where are the Laura Ingles Wilder books? What about the American Girl books, when there were only 3 girls, Kirsten, Samantha and Molly? Now there are like 10! Actually I don't even know that.  

My favorite series that I read in elementary and middle school were Nancy Drew- my father and I would read them together or we'd trade books once we were finished. I also loved C.S. Lewis the Chronicles of Narnia and the Hobbit trilogy. One of my favorite past times was reading with my dad.

I love anything Chris Van Allsburg, love Maurice Sendeck (Where the Wild Things are), David Weisner, Lois Ehlert, Mercer Mayer.... I really love children's books if you can't tell.......

Some of my last favorite Non Fiction books were: 

• Seal Team Six
• Unbroken by Laura Hillenbrand
• Look me in the Eye by John Elder Robison
• Same Kind of Different As Me

Some of my Favorite Fiction books are:

• Harry Potter- All
• Kristin Hannah- Anything
• Lord of the Rings
• Emily Griffin Novels- Author of Something Borrowed
• Sophie Kinsella- Author of Confessions of a Shopaholic

Anyway..... the reason for my post, other than recommendations for books is: One of my F-A-V-O-R-I-T-E authors is coming to town! She just published her latest, Home Front....so far I have only cried twice.  I usually cry repeatedly throughout her books. I always cry when it comes to relationships good or bad haha.  I guess I put myself in those situations. When I saw P.S. I Love You - dragged the hubby to see it I cried the WHOLE time.  Of course now I own it and I read the book....I came out of the theater could barely see because my eyes were so puffy and red and Gary's shirt was very wet.  Can't wait to see The Vow! I'm sure I won't have much time to talk to Kristin Hannah, but at least I get to meet her and get her to sign my book and tell her I love her writing!!! SO EXCITED!

What are some of your favorite books to read? Both adult and childrens?

Free Pizza!

Hobby of the day: Foodie! 


Ok, so who doesn't love free anything?!  We certainly do, especially free food! I didn't know, but thankfully my friend told me that Papa John's was giving free pizzas away if the coin toss for the Superbowl came up heads!  50/50 chance.....and BOOM!  Giants win the coin toss and it lands on heads! Wahoo!!!


Apparently you only get the pizza if you have a Papa John's points account, which we do. SCORE! I didn't get my code in my email, but I could have them resubmit it to me. This weekend we will most likely be wining and dining on a delicious pizza.  While I don't mind chain pizza restaurants, pizza from NJ and NYC is by far the best! 


Anywhere else, I order extra cheese with light sauce.  Somehow every other state puts too much sauce on their pizzas.  This my sis-in-law loves, she's a ketchup girl, ketchup on EVERYTHING, so extra sauce is her forte.  Garlic butter sauce, yes please and pepperocinis.  Yum!  

I'm also a huge fan of pizza for breakfast....cheese, bread, veggies?!  Cold or Hot? Doesn't matter to me. Pizza the breakfast of champions!!

I'm not afraid of the big bad carb. LOL!  

Did you get your free pizza? You had to have signed up for the points account before the game began on Sunday.

Double Work Out

So, today is day 23 of Jillian and day 15 of doing it on level 2.  I am a little nervous to move it to level 3.  I am still no perfectionist at level 2.  I figure the title of the video is 30 day shred.  I'm probably going to go longer than 30 days, but I have to say I have seen some change, especially in my push-up ability and toning of arms.  I think that I might even be toning out the stomach section....maybe..... 

I also have one of these:   I got it because I had ordered P90X.  I have absolutely NO upper body strength, or at least I didn't used to.  No I can actually do 2 sets of three pull ups. When I say that I "can" I don't mean that I am amazing. My husband laughed at me because I don't lower myself very low. When I first bought this I was terrified that I would hang on it and pull the door frame down- I didn't....nor did my husband or friends. PHEW!

This is why my thighs and arms kill, well...one reason

Today my body is angry at me.  Yesterday I did my 20 minutes of Jillian on level 2 and then took a break and that night went to Pole Class. Yes, Pole.  No, I don't have another profession and I'm not looking to start, although an extra grand a week?! I could go for that! No, wait I couldn't justify that at all.  Pole is AMAZING! That has also added to my upper body strength, trying to lift my body off the ground with my hands/arms and stay there without plummeting to my demise- you better believe I am HANGING ON FOR DEAR LIFE! My hands kills after that class from gripping so tightly.  One of the instructors lost something like 50 lbs doing Pole and another classmate has dropped something like 30lbs.  Pretty intense, but they also did it like 5+ times a week and most likely have their own poles which I do not in our teeny tiny condo.  But you sure need both abs and arm muscles to do some of the, most of the work.  Flexibility is also somewhat necessary, but not a requirement.  I am NOT Flexible. I would LOVE to be able to touch my toes or do a split.

I CANNOT do this 

I will keep working.......

NYC- the mani/pedi

Hobby of the day(s): Pampering in NYC

I HEART NYC!
 If I could, I would move there ASAP, but I want to live in Manhattan and I need a dwelling bigger than a glorified closet.  Well that and a job.  I love EVERYTHING about the Big Apple, the smells, even the foul ones, the CONSTANT horn honking, crazy yellow taxis, little bistros and Pizzerias everywhere.  Places to get your nails did. HOLLA, who doesn't love a cheap mani/pedi.  On Capitol Hill a "nice" place costs $30 for just a pedi.

Let's just say there are nail salons EVERYWHERE!  I mean I walked 4 blocks and passed like 6, that's definitely more than 1 a block.  I ended up getting a mani/pedi for $30, plus an extra long foot/leg massage and then while your nails are driving you get a back massage...I mean thank you! Also thank you to YELP .  They also didn't have your typical massage chairs, instead they had "couches" with pillows. Then they asked you what scent you wanted your feet soaked in, I couldn't understand my lady, so I just asked what she recommended, the lemon.  She added it to the water and it turned into this amazing yellow gel.  FABULOUS! 

Fun Feeling Lemon Gel

OPI Lincoln Park After Dark 

Love the style- Black, white and Bright Pink, classic NY chic

The name of the salon was Black Label Nails & Spa.

~**InSpIrAtIoN **~

This is a pretty accurate depiction of what I probably do indeed look like lol

**SnOw***

What would I really like at this point in the year?!  SNOW!


I want THIS MUCH!

Peace and Beauty

It's February 5th and we have had maybe 1/4 of an inch of snow. It's not that we live somewhere that's supposed to get TONS of snow, we are south of the mason dixon line, but a few inches or feet, would be great.  I love cold weather. I love taking walks with my husband and dog in the snow.  It's one of our favorite traditions.  Snow makes me sooo happy.  It covers everything and makes things look pure. The rush of city life slows down, well because it kinda has to.  Better safe, than sorry. :-) I love how when snow is falling it is so peaceful and quiet. There is nothing better than walking after midnight with the snow falling down.  

Love being able to walk down the MIDDLE of the street- apparently it was cold too

Snow makes me feel all giddy and excited! I revert to my childlike state.  Unfortunately, so do my snow pants, as they are child's size...but they are so much cheaper!  
Being in the city, we don't have to do tons of shoveling, but I like it....
PET PEEVE: When people don't shovel their sidewalks and it melts and than refreezes and gets super icy and deadly.... people have 24 hours after the snow stops to clear their tiny little areas of sidewalk...maybe like 5 feet. I mean come on! Also....people who don't shovel out their parking spots, they just plow their way out.  We shovel out our spots so it's easy to get in and out for ourselves, or other cars.  I also can't stand when people just throw massive amounts of snow back into the middle of the street and then I end up running over huge lumps of ice and almost bottoming out!  


Do you love snow as much as I do?

Chia Seeds

So apparently the new "it" thing or things are Chia Seeds  the ancient super-seed.


Dr. Oz talked them up I believe.  Yes, Chia seeds are the same thing that grows this:  

I hope I don't start looking like this....EEEK...so far no grew sprouts....YET

You can mix them in with pretty much everything. I've mixed them into my cereal into my Naked juice which PS I LOVE, the juice, but the seeds don't really affect it, maybe thicken it a little and add a little texture. I've added them to soup, I tend to stick with liquids, otherwise they are kinda crunchy.  However, people have also added them to salads and pastas, etc...

I just made the chia gel, now I have a texture problem so big globs of gel/goo make me gag. The recipe calls for 1/3 cups of the chia seeds to 2 cups water, mix for 15 sec, than let sit for 1 min than mix again.  Refrigerate and mix into other items.  I don't understand what the difference between just adding the gel and just adding plan seeds.  

Chia seeds are high in omega-6 and have more omega-3 fatty acids than salmon...this tiny little seed has TONS of nutrition. 

I got these at the Whole Foods, they have organic and not organic. Since organic was twice as much and I'm not fully sold on the whole organic thing, I bought the cheaper as this was my first time.  

Here are some chia seed websites:

Top 10 Benefits of Eating Chia Seeds

The Chia Seed

Chia Seed Recipes

Shape

Ten Raw Chia Recipes

I decided to try chia seeds for 1) weight loss and 2) for running

Ray Rice is doing it, leading rusher for the Baltimore Ravens.... Check it out

It is supposed to help with ultra running, however I am NOT an ultra runner.  But I am hoping it increases my stamina/endurance as well as helping to help me feel more full without losing nutrients.  


Mixed it all the time with one of my favorite juices, next up to blend chia gel into......smoothies!