Bringing Blogging Back

I'm baaaccckkk 👋🏻😄

It's been awhile since I last blogged. After having some down time on my summer vacation I have spent some time reading some of my old posts. It reminded me how much fun I had blogging and well to be honest - I enjoyed reading what I wrote. 😄 Like this. 😜 Also my mom said that she liked reading my blogs. That counts, right? 

A lot has changed, but a lot of things have stayed the same. A quick Katch-up with Kim post since we really haven't been keeping up. 😉

Some Things That Are The Same:

1. My love for good food and restaurants. Bar time still a thing? YES. 

😉😍

Speaking of food, tonight I recreated one of my favorite go to salads at one of our local spots. Kim sized and Kim approved. 

Butternut squash 

Grilled chicken

Pecans

Goat cheese 

Mesclun lettuce

Balsamic dressing... ON THE SIDE (OTS) 

2. Fitness Fanatic. Yes I will wake up at 4:45am to get my workout in. Excuses. Running, spinning, weights - all apart of my usual routine. However something new into the mix are my Orangetheory Fitness classes (OTF). More on that in another post. 🍊💭 (Get it? "Orange theory") 😉

 Stay tuned for my favorite at home HIIT workout. 💪🏻 

3. Being gluten free. Don't really have a choice on that. 😬 Don't worry, I can assure you my diet tastes a lot better than

cardboard.

4. T1D. Yes I still have Type 1 Diabetes and no it was not caused by eating too much sugar. There are some new and exciting tools in the mix that I hope to get my hands on one day. Until then, still dealing with this. 🙄

I've heard cinnamon is the magic cure? Still waiting on that to work. 

Things that have changed:

1. My job. Good bye high school math - hello middle school! I'm excited. 😊

2. Aruba. I use to travel to Aruba., but... LOL JK BUT NOTHING. Aruba is still the best place in the world (in my opinion). The countdown is on. 😎

3. #3 will be popping up on the blog I'm sure. 😉

😍☺️

4. Kim The Cook? Trying at least. Zucchini Linguini with veggie burger. Veggie Burger with Zuccini Linguine. 😏

Hey - it's better than where I was at the last time I blogged. Don't get me wrong though - I'm still a big fan of RESERVATIONS. 😉 

Well that was fun! Sort of - my original post disappeared somehow. It has been awhile. 

Keep your eyes open for my next post. Will it be OTF? Or about my celebrity doppelgänger? 🤔 

Pay It Forward

More like "pay it forward for a pat on the back." I'm sure by now you have all heard of the idea of paying it forward: someone does something nice for you - so do something nice for someone else. Don't get me wrong, it is a great idea with great intentions, but when people do it for the wrong reasons it IRKS me til no end.

If someone happens to go out of their way to do something nice for you or does a good deed that helps you out, that is great! By all means go and do something nice for that person or someone else you come into contact with, but don't post  boast about it on Facebook. The point of paying it forward (to my understanding) is for the fact of doing something nice - not about the recognition. This world needs more random acts of kindness, but what it does not need is people to brag about the acts of kindness that they perform.

I see a lot of people post something to the effect... "thank you to the nice lady in (some restaurant) for finding my phone in the booth and returning it to the manager. So I paid their bill. Least I could do!"

Are you kidding me? What am I supposed to say to that - you should have paid that and then their mortgage too?

I can see how much of a hassle it would be for you to actually lose your phone. The process of cancelling that one, getting a new one, etc...not a huge deal, but still an annoyance. I too would be thankful to said nice lady for saving me an inconvenience. But people looking for a pat on the back just totally reverses the intention of the good deed!

Its like your status screams "Hey! Facebook friends... look at how much of an AWESOME person I am! Tell me nice things about myself! Like my status!"

I was always taught that if you do something nice for someone and more than two people know about it (you and that person) you did it for the wrong reasons. My best friend Tanya knows what I'm talking about....

:)


Another one of my favorites is "I treated her to (enter meal/coffee/whatever). Good for you! Why is that important to the conversation? Did someone ask if you treated the other person? Friendship should not be about tallying points. You treat - I treat - sometimes we split. Don't do me any favors by picking up the entire tab if you are only doing it for some type of status. Believe me, I can very well afford to pay for my appetite.

Anyway - end of rant, but I was triggered last night by another Facebook Bragbook post.

I'll hold off on the rants for a while, but next will be on the topic of "Sympathy Status" another topic on which I have lots to say about. :)

The Struggle Is Real

Rant of the day: Why is it so much work to be a female?

Nails, hair, other grooming that needs to be done. I know these things are not "necessities" but lets be real here - if you want to be the best version of yourself (especially on a first date) these expenses definitely help. If you are in the forever dating world (like myself) they add up pretty quickly. With another "outing" coming up for me this weekend I of course made sure to get these appointments on my calendar.

Then I wondered, is the other party going through all of this effort and expense? Don't get my wrong, I enjoy having freshly manicured nails and a fresh blowout - what girl doesn't? But why is it so much more effort for females? These guys today (not many) will maybe go get  a hair cut day of. $9 - maybe $12 with a shave + tip and they are good to go. For us females that will maybe get us our hair wash and a partially blow dried head.

Then, what gets me is that the majority of the time all of this prep isn't even worth it! Like its one sided! Do people not care about making a first impression? Sometimes I feel when first meeting someone I might as well have just strolled over in my gym clothes straight from SoulCycle. Its true! One time someone met me for the first time after a track meet! 

I really do not know where I am going with this rant, but I'm sure the ladies out there can relate. Its like forget about just going for a spontaneous manicure or blowout when you feel like it, because you try and save it for when you need to "make an impression." Well regardless of my rant I am still going to the appointments I made - LOL. Who knows - maybe it will be worth it for once.

SoulCycle High

If you have discussed workouts with me lately in person, you probably heard me profess my love for SoulCycle which I recently started going to. I have been spinning for about 3 years, but my outlook and love for indoor cycling changed when I tried SoulCycle.

What is so great about it you ask? Besides the buckets of sweat that you will release...the energy, music and atmosphere of the club make it totally different than any other cycling class. Even after class when 45 people are drenched in sweat and making their way out, the club still smells fresh. In a way it is the mindset of yoga and the intensity of cardio combined. You leave class drenched in sweat and on such a high for the rest of the day.

45 minutes flies by with sprints, tap backs and crunches. There is even an arm series with light hand weights. You may only be lifting 1-2lb weights, but after 5 minutes your arms are BURNING.

The candlelit studio and motivational words along the walls help you to stay fierce. (Thanks to my friend Kristi for sharing this pic!)

I love that they have numerous class times so there is something to fit in to every schedule. During the week I have been making it to the 4:15 classes which are PERFECT for me. I shoot over to the Woodbury studio straight after work, stop for Starbucks, and ride the afternoon away.

Last week I even invested in my very own #Soul apparel. Now I really fit in!

This mornings' class included some of my favorite tunes like Fancy by Iggy Azalea and Style by the one and only Taylor Swift. The energy by the end of class was definitely turned up as we all swung our towels around in unison.

So that is the deal with SoulCycle. You leave class and that high is with you for the rest of the day. There is always a motivational message to take away with you which can really help turn your day around for the better.

More Bubbles Please

Yesterday I went for one of the most exciting hair treatments I have ever received. A Blowout!

With CHAMPAGNE! (Nicole I know you must be going wild).

We will get to that in a minute, but first let me back up.

Like most women, I HATE having to do my hair. It takes a good hour AT LEAST to make it look decent, and usually it winds up looking flat and boring. Lately I have been seeing $20 blowout specials near me so I have been giving them a shot. It beats having to do it myself and since I am on vacation I figured why not.

Last weekend I passed a relatively new place by me called Bubbles Blow Out Bar. Immediately after returning home I googled it and saw they offered $25 blowouts. Appointment booked.

I arrived for my 12pm appointment yesterday and was impressed by the clean and cute establishment.

Even the bathroom was cute. I saw this and knew I needed to blog about it.

After being washed by Imari, one of the stylists, I was asked the usual "would you like any coffee, water or tea?...or champagne?"

My reaction, I wish it could have been captured. CHAMPAGNE AND A BLOWOUT?! YES.

After about 45 minutes of hair TLC and some bubbly the finished product was the icing on top of the cake. (Or the fizz inside of the champagne glass in this case)

TA-DA!

I will definitely be making Bubbles one of my usual spots. I mean its totally worth it and the atmosphere and friendly staff add to the enjoyment.

Going on day 2 an my hair is still bouncing as if it were just done! 

Cheers to that! 

It's Going Down

A1C that is!

Today was my 3 month endo check up. We all know how much I LOVE going to this appointment. Not.

Well it was nice to finally leave with a smile on my face after seeing an improvement since my last visit in November. At that check up my A1C (which is a 3 month blood sugar average) was at it's highest at 8.0.

:(

Today my result = 7.2... well on my way to meeting my goal of 7.0 which I hope to do by my next visit.

:) !!!!

Thanks to my new insulin pump I am able to have better control and more flexibility at any moment of the day. So far 2015 has been off to a good start on that end!

Some other things I've been up to this week on vacation...

Valentines Day Massage 

Dazies! 

Kim Crocker 

Eyeglass shopping 

Stay warm! 

Ride For A Cure

"Happy" Valentine's Day. I figured I would fill you in on something that I really loved from this past week.

Last Sunday I attended Ride for a Cure - a fitness fundraising event for JDRF. Intelligent Fitness hosted a bunch of classes that morning to choose from. Either TRX Training or Spin. I made it to the 8:30 & 9:30 spin classes. Wish I could have stayed for the 10:30, but I had things to do and nails to get manicured! :)

Not going to lie- felt pretty good to spin for 2 hours. People without T1D don't realize the planning and prep it takes for anything we do. I was worried I wasn't going to make it, but luckily I got a great workout without any lows. 

It was my first time at this gym, but it will not be my last. I had so much fun spinning. There was great music, motivating instructors and a great spin studio. Not only was it something I love doing, but for a cause so important to me! With the help of my CGM and newest addition - insulin pump, I was able to ride strong and adjust accordingly. 

Looking forward to taking more classes there this week during my February break!

(Need to burn off those chocolate calories!!)

Wishing I was somewhere warm this week - getting pretty tired of this cold!! On the bright side, being off means more blogging. :)