Go Go Go Gurrl

Good Morning my loves! I was def. a girl on the go yesterday and I could not be happier about that. Don't you just love it when you get those things that you have been putting off FOREVER done?! I know I do.

So my day started off with some breakfast and the writing/research for my last post.

Cherry Yogurt with Sliced Banana

Whole Wheat Toast with Apricot Preserves...notice the outline for my post in the background...yes I make outlines, yes I am a teacher!

After breakfast I did some MAJOR remodeling in my house. My roommate and I are turning one of the rooms downstairs into an office for me. Because currently my laptop-ing is done on the dining room table. I wish I had a before picture of this room because it was HELL! But after literally HOURS of work, look at it now:

Here are some key points to notice about this room:

• I displayed my first book that I recieved from student teaching for my classroom library on the shelves. It is Curious George and the Fire Truck, because I did a unit on fire trucks for the whole six weeks of student teaching!
• The drawers on the shelve are animal print...so is just about anything else in our house.
• My diploma is meticulously placed on the the table. I need to frame it.
• For now I am doin it Japanese style and sitting on the floor at the table, but today my mom is supposed to be bringing me a desk.

So there you have it. The fruits of my labor!

After I finished that up it was time for some FOOD!

Turkey Wrap on Italian Herb Flat-Out

After lunch I got ready and went to work to check out a new shipment of dresses that we got in!

Which reminds me...a lot of you asked about my shirt from a few posts ago (the one with the back cut-out) and I got it from the clothing store that I work at...MAXRAVE. Currently I don't think that you can order online, but you can go to maxravestores.com and find out where the closest store to you is.

When I got done with lunch I sat down to download some new music for my runs. I had been listening to the same songs over and over for way to long. I don't know about you, but music is everything when it comes to my workouts. If I am bored with the music, I usually get bored with the workout and quit sooner. If I have something fun and upbeat to listen to and hold my attention, I can go WAY harder and longer. (thats what she said!...right Brooke?).

So here are some of the new songs that I downloaded.

1. Madcon - Beggin'
2. The Dream - Walkin' on the Moon
3. Mario - All the Above
4. Keri Hilson - Knock You Down
5. Jennifer Hudson - Spotlight (Remix)
6. Ciara - Never Ever
7. Metric - Gold Guns
8. Lil Wayne - At War
9. Lupe Fiasco - Real
10. The Decemberists - Oh Valencia

There are lots more, but that is what I have currently been playing. Quite the mix. I never just listen to one genre of music. There is so much good music out there...why limit yourself?!

Last nights dinner was spaghetti at the parents house. My mom makes the BEST spaghetti, but like they say on Sesame Street "Its a SOMETIMES food". But I think that may be just about every meal eaten at the parents. haha.

This morning I am enjoying a bowl of "Banana Pancake Oats" and a laptop full of blogs.

For those of you who were wondering "Banana Pancake Oats" is just a simple recipe, but it reminds me of banana pancakes.

• 1/2 cup Oats
• 1/2 cup Vanilla Soy Milk
• 1/2 Banana
• 1 tbsp. Maple Syrup
• LOADS of Cinnamon

I plan on a run later...gotta rock the new jams! My 5k is coming up and I really wanna run it in less than 28 min. My friend Ben has challenged me, but he claims he can run it in 22 minutes. I can't hang with that...but I think he may be lying ;)

Hope everyone is having a MARVELOUS day!

Lots of Love, <3 Ems.

Less Sleep = More Energy?

It was so weird because even though I got a total of about 4 hours of sleep the night before last I had so much energy and got SO much done! Yesterday before 1230 I had:

• Gotten Fingerprinted for Subbing
• Went to the Gym and did a freakin' STRIAGHT HOUR on the eliptical - I have NEVER been able to do this, the most I have even done straight through was 45 minutes. But yesterday I set the timer for 35 minutes, but after it was up I felt like I still had so much energy, so I just kept going and ended up doing a full hour!
• Went to the mall where I work to pick up my manager.

Have I mentioned before how much I adore every single one of my co-workers?! Just look at how cute my two managers are:

Kelli, the one on the right ,was actually a finalist to be on America's Next Top Model, but she did not make it onto the show because she was too short BY ONE INCH! geeeez Tyra!

Moving onto the subject of lunchie: I had bought some tofu, determined to make a Sharon inspired sammie. But the idea has scared the hell out of me, because I have no idea how to cook tofu! But I decided to bite the bullet and give it a try. Im adventurous! And it actually turned out pretty darn good. Have a look for yourselves:

Close-Up/Break-Down:

The ingredients include:

• Tofu
• Red Pepper Hummus
• Spianch
• Tomato
• Spicy Mustard

It was soooo good! And I was pretty proud of myself for stepping outside the box and trying something new. I have def. had tofu several times, but never cooked it myself. I also had an apple, some grapes, and some carrots on the side:

After lunch I got a little cleaning done (see I'm tellin' ya guys, SO much energy from NO WHERE!) Then I hung out with the room mate a bit and watched some SpongeBob SquarePants. I dont care how old you are, this show is hilarious! Oh man, I just realized what a huge kid I am...yet again!

I finally decided to get up and take a shower and get ready for my Sat. night out-on-the-town around 8 'oclock! But not before throwing together an awesome mix for din-din.

This was a great mix of ingredients, it was another one of those things that I just threw whatever I could find in, and it turned out tasting great! The mix included:

• Left Over Moroccan Curry Pilaf
• Diced Green Pepper and Tomato
• Sauteed Spinach and Mushroom (Underneath the Rice)
• Steamed Broccoli
• Red Pepper Hummus (Mixed In)

Last night ended up being a lot of fun with a huge mix of friends. I meet up with my friend Jamie and her boyfriend for coffee and I Spy books for a little while, and then met up with some other friends for a few drinks at my all time FAVE place, Stir Fry Cafe. I just love mixin' and minglin' with different friends, and I definitely have an eclectic mix of friends!

As for my Sunday you ask?...Well, as of this morning there has been a national state of coffee-crisis declared, so some grocery shopping is a necessity. Also, I think I may head to the gym and do a little cleaning. We shall see my friends, we shall see.

Oh yes, and Strawberry Shortstuff is having an awesome giveaway, so go check that out.

Edited to Add: My gal Emily is also having a contest for an awesome reusable water bottle, so check that one out as well. If not for the contest, then just because she has a kick-ass blog and a pretty cool name to go with it ;)

Hope everyone is having a relaxing Sunday, tomorrow its back to the ol grind! Lots of Love <3 Ems.

Snowy Day = Warm Eats!

Today is definitely one of those days were you just want to stay in, sip some hot tea, and watch cheesy romantic comedies....I may just do that ;)

What is your favorite romantic comedy???

It also happens to be one of those days to eat warm foods! So of course this morning I had to make me up some FRENCH TOASTS! So I mixed together my 2 egg whites, 1/4 cup vanilla soy milk, and cinnamon...

Placed my whole wheat bread in the mixture...

Flipped it over...

Placed it in my pan, that is sprayed with non-stick cooking spray...

Fixed a nice cup-o-joe while it browned on both sides, and then placed it on my nice big plate...

Wait! Its lonely...it needs a friend ;)

Thats a little better...top it with some maple syrup and blackberry preserves....

And there you have it...the PERFECT warm in your tummy breakkie for a cold snowy day! <333

After breakfast I lounged around a little and decided to get up off my butt and hit the gym. It was another one of those day were I really had to motivate myself the whole way there but once I got there I got in a pretty good workout, which is usually how it happens, once I get jump started I can just keep going and going and going....ok, maybe not THAT much, but you gets what I'm sayin. My workout was:

• 35 minutes on the eliptical
• 30 minutes doing intervals on the bike.

So over an hour...not too shabbyyy for starting out being less than enthused about it. I usually try to spend at least an hour at the gym when I go. I mix my cardio days and weight training days, so on cardio days I'll do an hour of cardio, and on weight days I'll do 30 min. of cardio and 30 min. of weights.

By the time I got home it was starting to full on snow! The college even canceled classes for tonight...which RARELY happens. I think we are supposed to get around 7 inches! I was hungry and in the mood for something warm when I got home so I made a toasty sammie.

This one had deli sliced turkey, spicy mustard, deli american cheese, LOADS of spinach, and salsa. With a side of sun dried tomato wheat thins.

Also, HangryPants is having an almond butter giveaway contest...so go check that out.

Hope everyone is having a wonderful Monday! I'm supposed to hear back about that job that I interviewed for today, so keep your fingers cross for me pahleezzzeee!! much love to you beautiful girlies, mwah! <3