Vodka and Soda

weekly smiles

 

who says you have to spend top dollar for cute jewelry?  2 necklaces + 2 bracelets = $23, courtesy of Forever 21.

 

 

tough mudder training in full effect. and ignore the state of my basement; it has vomited fitness equpipment everywhere.

my core-toning goal is coming along nicely - i'm starting to see more definition all over, including that lower-ab "v" shape and more definition in my obliques thanks to Beast Abs (Body Beast), Core Attack (Les Mills combat), KB training and p90x2 XCore workouts.

i've also started doing most of my weight training using a stability ball or balancing on one leg which improves overall balance, adds intensity and strength to your legs and core and jacks up caloric burn.

 

 

...and thanks to fitness, i'm able to wear a dress that i haven't worn in years (when i was 108lbs even though i'm nowhere near 108lbs) and that vest that i bought 14yrs ago.  the other day, i went to a baby shower, saw a friend i haven't seen in about a year and he said to me "wow, you look really strong".  secret gloating ensued.

 

 

in less than a week, i'll be here :  Aruba!  we leave on march 4 and come back on march 12.  don't hate because you're jealous.

 

finally seeing die hard 5!  it was good but not as good as die hard 3.

 

 

Toms now has strappy sandals!!!  totally going to order these two when i get back from vacay.

and i forgot i had those cute fur-lined booties! 

 

 

winning a free coffee from Timmy's famous "roll-up the rim to win" contest.

 

 

a surprise (late) bday gift from galpal leesh.  i LOVE this!!

 

 

and finally, my dear sweet Kayla...it seems the rhythm is gonna get her (or has got her already).

 

motivation mondays: point zero

 ***I've decided to start a series called Motivation Mondays that will be dedicated to fitness inspiration... or something to that effect***

 

too many times, people quit even before they start. 

"it's too hard".  "i don't have time". "i don't know what to do".  "i've tried before and it never worked".

these are all things i've heard people tell me but to be honest, they're all excuses. every last one of them. 

i should know, because i've said them before.

weight loss/fitness is WORK.  hard fucking work.  anyone who has hit their goals or working on them right now will tell you this.

don't know what to do?  research.  that's what the internet is for. ask those who are into fitness or in the industry. people aren't born with fitness knowledge; they learn it.

don't have time? what about the time you spend on the phone, on the computer, lying around watching tv?  make the time: take half the time you spend doing those things and workout instead.

you've tried before and it didn't work?   how hard did you really try?  did you really work hard to clean up your diet and make time to exercise on a regular basis?  if you only did a half-assed job, ate like crap and sort of worked out or didn't even bother changing your diet, then you didn't try hard enough.  fitness is about learning what works for you; it's about dedication and putting in the time to figure out what are good foods to eat and what exercises are best to achieve your goal(s).

 another big reason why people find fitness daunting is the challenge. they look at themselves and all the work they need to do and immediately plant that seed in their head; that self-fulfilling prophecy that "they can't do it".  they've in fact, quit before they started.  they also look around and see fit people at the gym (or running or walking around) and feel worse about themselves or feel embarassed to be working out near them.

what they don't seem to realize is that those people - their bodies - were not born that way; they were made through months/years of hard work, discipline and dedication to proper nutrition and exercise.

muscles are made.

fat is created through a bad diet but eliminated through a clean one.

 everyone, even the fittest athletes, started out at point zero; where their muscles were weak and their cardio endurance was nil.

they trained hard, ate well and created a discipline that only athletes and those truly into fitness have.  they have the bodies and fitness level to prove it.

so when you start living  healthy lifestyle whether you're a newbie or a veteran, remember that everyone has/had a point zero. 

remember that while you may have trouble with that weight or cardio program today, you're a lot better and farther than you were yesterday. 

remember that with every clean morsel of food you put in your mouth, your body is gobbling it all up and doing wonderful things internally that externally, you may not see just yet.

 we all have a point zero; the question is, do you want to stay there?

 

weekly smiles...

 

since i started working again last week, the last thing i want to do is come home and blog.  i'm still trying to get into the swing of things and i'm still in the "i would rather stay home" phase and "why the fuck am i dressed with pants on at an office" phase so needless to say, it's going to take me a while to find my groove.

in the mean time, enjoy a pictoral explosion of what's been happening lately that made me smile....

  i love the age of 4.  kayla has been expressing interest in the same things as me, namely getting dolled up, wearing shiney/fancy things and loving every second that she's being pampered.  i took her to the salon with me the week before i started work.  she even got some "makeup" done. the other day, she followed me into the change room and wanted to try on some clothes too.

 

 

another DIY thanks to pinterest.  i got sick of my cluttered bathroom counter top so we went to ikea, spent $6.99 on these spice racks and got organized. 

 

 

stella and dot were having a promotion where you buy $50 worth of stuff and get $25 dollars back.  hello, it was practically free so hell to the yes, i bought some things. 

 

 

my two bffs on my arm:  stella and oia :)

 

 

 

waking up before 5am to work out....this ain't right.  but alas, you gotta do what you gotta do, right?

 

 

 

clean eating 24/7.  every sunday, i prep my meals and snacks for the entire week ahead.  everything is individually wrapped or packaged and ready to grab 'n' go.  saves me a ton of time!

 

 

i had to lug this giant box of healthy snacks on my first day back at work but at least i have cabinets that are now fully stocked!

 

 

after living in yoga pants as  a housewife for the past 9 months, i realized that i didn't really have any 'work clothes' (read: shopping haul!!).   i found a bunch of really nice things for 50% off or more and much of them are lacy pretty things.  for some reason, i really like lace this season.   i got an oakley spring jacket for $50 (from $150!) and i also bought a new hair straightener because i recently stumbled on how to create soft, waves with a straightener. 

 

 

....and these are the soft waves i was talking about.

 

my new favorite lip balm.  it's soothing, moisturizing, non-greasy, smells yummy and all natural.  while a little pricey ($19), this works amazingly well.  i hate dry, chapped lips and this definitely keeps my lips soft and kissable.  i won't post a picture of my soft, supple lips because you'll probably try to make-out with the your screen.

 

 

shit just got real.  i registered for tough mudder as did a few of my friends so we're going to be heading off to mount st. louis ski resort on september 28 to kick some serious ass. training has already begun but now it's gonna get serious.

 

hope you all have a great weekend!

weekly smiles

 

seeing kayla dressed like this when i picked her up from school.  she was pretending to be the principal.

 

getting back to reading.  if you want a "can't put it down" book, you must read these two.  now that i've finished them, i'm all empty inside :(

 

 

running 20K just because.  at the end of my first run, i wasn't tired so i did another round for fun!

 

 

finally looking lean and like i actually workout when wearing regular clothes.  btw, these are the awesome 7 for mankind jeans that i bought in orlando and they fit like a glove.  i LOVE them! 

 

 

getting ready to make my christmas cards.

 

 

enjoying the two warm days we had earlier this week and walking to school with my baby girl

 

 

updating my and kayla's christmas list.  this app is the best when it comes to creating your wish list, sending/letting others view it and allows them to indicate what items reserved for purchased/has been purchased.   allwantforchristmas.com

 

 

bluetooth wireless headphones.  i HATE wired headphones because the cords always get in my way.  volume and skip forward/back buttons are right on the headphone, allowing me full control over my playlist during my runs without having to dig out my phone.  it even has a mic if someone calls me!  the most awesome thing ever for runners

 

what made you smile this week? 

weekly smiles

 

wreck-it ralph opened on the weekend and was so funny!  i loved all the retro character references and the adults in the theater were the only ones who were laughing through the whole thing.   by the way, your childhood was awesome if you recognize those video game characters.

 

 

david's tea.  there are SO many great teas, my fav being:  pumpkin chai, chocolate chili chai, genmaicha, toasted walnut.  the weather has been shite all last week and this week so i spent many afternoons sipping hot tea, curled up on my couch while watching Friends reruns or reading.

 

 

i can finally wear this dress without  1) a muffin top showing  2) needing to suck my gut in and 3) needing to wear any sort of body shaper.  by the way, i've never worn this dress and it's a few years old (i think i got this back in 2007).  i bought it during a summer sale and over the winter, the junk food mauling occured,  my muffin top made an unwelcomed appearance and didn't leave for a while.  it's a lycra/spandex blend which makes it very unforgiving to lumps of all shapes and sizes so you can guess why i never wore it until now.

shit, i really am built a freaking domino.  why is it that when when i lose weight, my chest and hips are always the first to go?  *sniff*.

 

this conversation with my mother the other day:

mom: you are too thin!  look M, she's so skinny!  even J (my sister) says so!  i'm jealous, i wish i could be that skinny.

me:  well, it took me nearly a year to get this way, i should hope i've lost some weight.

mom:  that's so good.  hey, where did your bum go?

me:  i don't know but it just won't quit *slaps ass*.  true story.

this is coming from a woman who feels no way about telling me "you're too fat! you need to lose weight!" so i take this as an official validation that i am now skinny.  oh, the brutal honesty of old school parents.

 

 

warm scarves.  it's been so chilly and windy that i actually busted out my scarves to stay warm.  

 

 

i channeled my inner Debra Morgan and bought some cozy checkered shirts that only cost $12. i'll be rocking these with dark skinnies and boots.

 

 

 my new  earrings i bought from foxy originals.  i saw an ad (promo code) on some site for 25% off your entire foxy purchase so i tried it and it worked.  i just hope they don't irritate my ears but aren't they adorable?

 

 

finally! the OOAK show is coming this month.  Leesh and i bought tickets months ago and we have this annual tradition to go every year.  our calendars are booked to meet up on the 22nd and i can't wait!  i love walking around looking at all goodies and purchasing awesome things from our fav vendors.

 

hope you all have a great rest of the week!!

 

me so happy: vacay haul

 

if there's anything to get you excited about blogging, it's to post about your most recent awesome shopping haul!

first, the condo.

we stayed at BlueGreen's Fountains resort- a 1300 sqft, fully equipped, 2-bedroom condo that fit 7 people perfectly with more than enough space. 

the resort itself is gorgeous and i loved the fact that we had a full kitchen to cook our meals which not only meant healthy eating but much easier on the wallet too.  however, with 7 people in the house, it seemed as though we were hitting up Publix (grocery store) every day.  thanks to our pal, Roger (who is a great cook), we ate like kings pretty much every night. and i'd like to state for the record that the rest of the folks went on massive junk-food sprees while i sat there, seething with jealousy but staying dedicated to my healthy eating. 

i will also be posting another update with Disney Park pictures and St. Pete's beach but i'd rather get on with the goodies....

 

there were 2 outlets near the hotel; one with 150 stores and one with 180 stores.  there was also a target around the corner so needless to say, we went there with lots of money, came back with nothing plus an addtional huge credit card bill that i'm afraid to get in the next few weeks.  since i've come home, i've been praying for amex's data systems to miraculously fail and wipe out all customer charges. a girl can only hope, right?

 

i love target.  when we first landed in Orlando, we drove right by our hotel and went straight to target.  priorities, right?  this place is worse than costco! you think "oh, i'll only buy a few things" but walk out $200 lighter.  i stumbled upon a few good buys but the best was finding my fav protein bars in an awesome flavor and then getting 6 boxes for $5 each.  they retail here for double that price.

 

 

the tank top is so light, airy and incredibly comfortable and Gap's racerback bras are so comfy it doesn't even feel like you're wearing a bra!

 

i had a tiny orgasm when saw the outlet for 7 for all Mankind and i did the most damage here.  it was racks upon racks of designer jean heaven of all styles and washes; basically anything you find in the high end stores they have it here.  i stopped buying designer jeans years ago because i could no longer rationalize spending over $250 for a single pair of pants however, at $119 a pop, that's a damn steal so i bought two of the Roxy Classic Skinny.

Joe's Jeans is another favorite.  the denim is one of the softest and of the highest quality that molds to the shape of your body so that it fits like a second skin. You bet i snapped up a pair when i found out they were only $98!

 

i am completely in love with this top.  3/4 length sleeves with a low-scoop back, the tie at the waist gives this beautiful top an elegant feel and depending on the accessories and bottoms, you can dress this up or down.  i plan to rock this with my black Toms wedges and dark skinnies. 

the best part was not only were these items a bargan on their own, but the nice sales lady gave me a coupon book that someone left behind (read: discounts for all stores at the outlet) so i got an extra 25% off my entire purchase! i nearly leaned over and kissed her!

 

i've been looking for sweaters that hit at the hip and these are perfect; even more perfect that i got them at 70% off so i bought 3!

 

i didn't intend on buying a bag at all; in fact, i was lusting after a messenger bag when i stumbled upon this gem.  it was 60% off which i still wasn't willing to cough up but when the guy told me it was an additional 25% off, i shouted "DONE!" and slammed down my credit card.  true story.

 

and don't even get me started on what my husband bought.  that one loves to shop more than me so you can imagine all the stuff that he hauled.  let's just say that we ended up bringing more luggage back home.

 

 

 

DIY: jewelry organizer

 

enough with the fitness posts, right?  let's move onto to something fun... like my new, awesome jewelry organizer!

my last organizer was also a DIY but not as efficient and by efficient, i mean it was just a different way to dump my shit in a more organized manner and by that, i mean it wasn't really organized.  it was still hard for me to find my bracelets/rings and the only things that were easy for me to find were my necklaces.

when i went to my cousin's house, i saw her organizer (and loved it) and i simply stated: "i have two  of those at home.... and i'm going to totally steal your idea".  however there was one glitch:  hubs uses this organizer for his nuts, bolts and screws which meant he was going to have to find somewhere else to store them.

 

folks, this is a carpentry organizer for screws and such, hence the ugly blue color.  men don't care for esthetics and neither does home depot or rona.  i'm still trying to figure out if i can repaint this but that would require some work (sanding and spraying with color) and i'm not about that.   the best part?  these are stackable!  you're not looking at a single unit but a series of units all put together.  how awesome is that?

these are also over 20 years old as it was my dad's who, bless his soul and heart, kept it in pretty good shape.  when he passed away and we moved from the old house, hubs had the foresight to keep this which i'm thankful for because at the time, the jewelry gods hadn't activated my probe yet.

 

hubs:  just dump the screws and crap in this bin;  i'll organize it later and put them away.  I LOVE THIS MAN

 

cleaning it up.  i used kayla's baby wipes - stronger than paper towel and chemical free!

 

 

while cleaning out the drawers, i found some things that brought back memories as well as some tears.  the first picture is a pendant that my father gave to my mother when they were dating.  on the back, his initials are inscribed.  this made me bawl my eyes out. 

the middle picture are the studs from when i first got my ears pierced... when i was 5 years old.  i really don't know why my dad kept these... probably for the same reasons why i would keep something like this of kayla's.  by this time, i'm a weepy mess.

the last picture is a bracelet that my mom kept.  how fitting that in the midst of all the screws and other stuff in here, i find jewelry. i think this organizer has fulfilled its destiny.

 

i lined each drawer with non-slip foam shelf liners courtesy of the dollar store.  actually, i had lots of left overs from when we moved into this house so i didn't have to spend a dime.  i love not spending money.

 

the finished product:

LOL i just noticed kayla snuck a few things of her own in here (she was helping me clean this up) -- can you spot them?

 

you can find these stackable organizers at home depot for $19.99.  they've probably updated the look but for $20, you can't go wrong.    also, the bottom drawer spans across the entire length so i can lie my cuffs flat. 

i'm so in love with this thing.. and the fact that this was my dad's just makes this so awesome. 

weekend recap: KOA Kamping, massive haul

 

dear readers, do you remember this sign in a previous post?  around the same time last year, i was at KOA in niagra cooking my ass off in their shitty non-air conditioned shit hole kabins.  seeing how it was the opposite of awesome last year,  you could imagine my chagrin when my family wanted to do it again. 

i just came back from another KOA campsite (thousand islands) however, this time i had rules since it was no longer my first rodeo.

i made sure we rented an air conditioned unit and a bonus -- we also had a bathroom with a shower in-room.  the washroom was a fucking hike and a half (three minutes) but that three minute walk in the dead of night is unacceptable.  besides, how could hubs walk me to the bathroom (to protect me from the campsite knife-wielding killer of course) and leave kayla in the room by herself?!   well played, kathy; well played *pats self on back*.

the weekend was awesome and fun.  the kids had a blast and on saturday night, more relatives drove down to join the party and what a party it was.  a huge dinner (i'm pretty sure it was a 12-course meal), lots of kids running around playing, fireworks, a campsite movie, a firefly show and kayla's bedtime was basically shot (11pm!!!)  but she had fun and that was the whole point.  

 

our kabin | kayla looking around.  we had a bunk bed with a double to kayla's left.  washroom was in front of the bunk beds | kayla chilling out with her cousin and grandpa | family dinner

 

we drove up on friday and left on sunday and i'm proud to say that throughout the entire trip, i ate healthy and clean 100%.  no smores, no junk food, no nothing.  the only thing that a damper on the weekend was that i fucking left my burberry sunglasses at the campsite!!!   imagine my horror as i'm sitting in the car - 30 minutes after we drove away - realizing my sunglasses were missing.  my beautiful, expensive, make-me-look-glamorous-even-if-i-looked-like-shit sunglasses were gone.  and i saw them in my mind - in the campsite washroom, sitting all alone on the toilet paper dispenser wondering where i am.  oh, how my heart weeps.   

whenever something shitty like this happens, i always think: why karma? WHY?!?  what did i do to deserve this?  i'm a good person.  i don't steal.  i help people all the time.  why do you do me like this?!  and it was then that i realized the burberry sunglass gods were angry at me for lusting after some rayban aviators the other week after i promised i would never look at another pair of sunglasses when i shelled out a fuckload of money for my burberrys. i guess they certainly gave me the finger.

 so today, i was on a mission to find another pair.

 

 

sunglass hut was having a  special - buy one get the other half price - so i hauled these two amazing aviators.  i normally don't suit aviator styles but these are the exception.  i'm still trying to decide if i need or want both of them but i might end up returning the raybans and keeping the maui jims.  the unusal thing is that i normally never even look at gold-rimmed sunglasses however, the maui jims actually look really nice.  

on my way back to the car, i felt something yanking my geek boner and when i went to investigate, i somehow found myself  in front of the HTC One X phone.   it's obvious what happened so i won't go into details.  i seriously love this phone so much i want to have sex with it.

 

how was your weekend?

the culprit!

 

[source]

 

for a while, i've been going crazy trying to figure out what was making my skin freak out.  i'm talking about red, irritated, extremely sensitive, blotchy skin and no matter what i did, nothing worked.  for several weeks, i walked around looking like this:

this crappy illustration doesn't justify the hideousness of those red patches on my face.  it really looked like i was a meth head tweaking out and scratching the fuck out of my skin on a regular basis, it was so bad.  they were red, inflamed,  swollen and extremely sensitive and i did everything in my power to relieve the irritation with zero results.

it wasn't until last week when i discovered the culprit - the laura mercier primer i bought last month from sephora.  the day that the culprit was discovered, i went to apply the primer and all that came out of the tube was water.  i thought hmmm that's weird...  so i shook the tube and tried again with the same results - water coming out of the tube but this time, bits of white, curdled primer was mixed in, like it had a fucking yeast infection.   wtf? are you fucking telling me that i was putting  yeast infection primer on my face  for weeks which was causing my skin to react?!?  and here i was blaming my hormones!.   according to my skin forum, laura mercier shipped a bad batch of primer to all sephora stores so i wasn't the only one who was dealing with the expired product (or angry, irritated skin).   luckily, sephora was very good with giving me a new one even though i didn't have a receipt and didn't give me any grief about it either.

it's just been this week that my skin has calmed down and recovered.  this fucking $40 tube of (bad) primer cost me over $250 (from buying other products to help my skin) and hours of frustration and pain that i haven't even taken the new primer out of the box because i'm scurred!  i'm thinking of just returning the primer for a credit.  what would you do?

weekend recap: beauty board, family time

 

i had a fabulous weekend.  weather-wise, it was decent but had a blast with family, friends and discovered a great new sushi restaurant, thanks to a friend's reco.   

 

cuddles with her new (lootbag) toy | cuddles with daddy |  kayla enjoying the new sushi restaurant.  i'm so glad that my kid is adventurous with foods.  what toddler loves fish eggs,  miso soup and sushi?

 

on sunday, the long-awaited beauty board finally arrived.  twice a year, i'm stoked to attend this event put on by stephanie daga of blushpretty.  it's a fun-filled afternoon of mingling, networking, meeting great vendors, trying on makeup, great eats, great music and best of all (or worst of all?) - shopping.   oh, the shopping.    this year new vendors participated:  pure + simple, splat! hair color, eco tools, flirt lashes, apotheKerri cosmetics, a paper story, batiste dry shampoo, ella botanicals, silpada jewelry, kaia naturals.  

 

some of my favorite brands at the beauty board:  

pure + simple |  cheeky monkey | kaia naturals |  consonant body

 

the swag never disappoints!

not only is this one of the most awesome events i attend on the regular, but the swag is the best.  we're talking about full size products, not those bullshit department store samples which gives you nothing.  

do you see that kabuki brush peeking out from behind the pantene shampoo?  i've been searching for that brush for months and when the lady from ecotools showed me what she put in each swag bag, we both squealed in delight.  

 pure + simple also gave a "summer prep" kit which i'm dying to rip into.  i haven't looked inside yet but their stuff is great.

 

the reasons why my wallet is sobbing and bleeding:

cheeky monkey nail colors:  "social climber", "BFF" and "i like it on top" top coat.  for the events, there was a buy 2, get 1 free promo....  how could i resist?

consonant body:  antioxidant serum because mother nature, i'm adding things to my arsenal and will continue to fight you all the way.

pure + simple:  all natural sunblock, SPF 30.   i love that it contains natural ingredients, is sheer and doesn't leave a white cast or make you look like an oil slick.

stella and dot has some competition with silpada jewelry.  while i was >thisclose< to buying a bracelet from S&D, i didn't because it was a different sales rep and that would be like cheating on my regular rep.  instead, i ended up getting these two necklaces from silpada.  i was just going to buy the one on the right but i loved them both so why the heck not?!  i've been busting my ass at work, working out like a mofo, denying myself the pleasures of desserts and other yummy foods  so mama needs a treat for herself, goddammit!

kaia naturals:  bamboo, all natural face wipes.  soaked in yummy vitamins, these wipes (in convenient, individually wrapped travel packs) makes taking your makeup off easy-peasy.  when i tested the product, not only is it super soft but it smells divine and great for sensitive skin.

and now, another ass work week begins but at least i have goodies at home waiting for me and my necklaces are on the way.  in addition,  i've been wanting to host mini-giveaways for the month of april for all of you awesome readers as a way to 1)  say thanks for following me and keeping up with my random drivel and 2) to celebrate my 2 year blogaversary.   stay tuned; i'll be posting the first yummy giveaway this week!

 

 hope you all had a great weekend!