Hi friends! Happy Monday (sad face). Today’s post is going to be short and sweet since I have a lab quiz and comparative literature midterm to finish studying for. Here’s what I’ve been up to!

New haircut/partying with the girls!

After not going to the salon for over half a year, I got a looooonng overdue haircut and decided to go for bangs! A small change, but it’s always nice to switch things up. 

Movie date with the boy 🙂

Great gym workout and the best omelet ever

World Cup finals!

Current food obsessions 

Annndd now it’s time to get back to the grind. Hope you all had a fantastic weekend!

Hello, hello friends! Happy Thursday! Today I’m linking up with Amanda’s Thinking Out Loud series to share my random thoughts.

1.     First off, thank you all so much for your support on my first income report for June. To be perfectly honest, I was pretty nervous about pressing the submit button, but I’m glad I did and was able to offer you guys some helpful tips on what’s been working for me.!

2.     With the weather being so gorgeous lately, I’ve been trying to move as much of my exercise outside. A few days ago Kyle and I did a quick track workout before going hiking in a canyon in our hometown (we went home for the weekend).

The sun was shining and there was complete visibility of the ocean. I ended up with some sore calves from the hills and the WORST tan lines ever. And I mean THE WORST. 

Remember this workout top?

Yup, that patten on my back. I tan really quickly and have that basically tattooed 4-5 shades lighter than my surrounding skin. The minute Kyle saw it he burst out laughing and I have to admit, it’s pretty bad hahah. 

3.     Soooo the Brazil vs. Germany game. I think this picture says it all.

4.     On the topic of the World Cup, the games always happen to be riiiighht at the time when I’m either in my ochem lab lecture or in the lab itself. I was pretty bummed to be missing the game, but was able to catch some of it since my lab teacher streams it on his laptop while we worked. After the fourth goal, though, I couldn’t watch anymore. My ethanol distillation was taking forever so I passed the time texting Amanda lab selflies and browsing Pinterest 😯 . And yes, those goggles are cover my entire face. They also leave the cutest indents on my skin after I take them off. Tan lines and goggle lines that last for a solid 45 minutes… I’m looking’ good these days.

5.     Finally reunited with our favorite local Vietnamese restaurant <3. 

6.     How cute is this?! I was sent a mason jar fruit infuser from the kind people from Balance Bar as part of a review pack for their Summer Shape Up program. More on that in a little, but prepare yourself for a giveaway! 

So now not only do I have a cute indie mason jar, but can throw in all sorts of organic fruit to spiff up my water. This makes me hipster, right? 😉

Happy Thursday!

Hello hello! Happy Wednesday!

This post is going to be short and sweet since I already wrote up a post on The Best of June and I spent most of my free time watching Orange Is the New Black on Netflix. I’m getting to the point where I really just need to finish the new season so I can move on with my life and actually be productive. It just sucks me in everytime I’m near my laptop 😯 .Then, all of a sudden I’m  4 episodes in and haven’t checked anything off my to-do list. Woops. 

Anyways, FOOD! More specifically, fruit. I just could not get enough today.

Breakfast: 

I really had zero appetite this morning so I just whipped up a serving of steel cut oats cooked with vanilla extract and cinnamon and topped them with blueberries and a bit of honey.

Then, it was off to my comparative literature class. In between that and my ochem lab, I grabbed a quick build-your-own salad.

Lunch:

Lettuce, carrots, beets, corn, chicken, a little tuna salad, and craisins. All topped with honey mustard salad dressing.

Post-lab snack:

Mangoes and dark chocolate with coffee <3. 

Also, how gorgeous are these mangos? I don’t think I’ve mentioned this yet, but about a week ago the body part of my camera decided to randomly insert a huge black bar into all of my photos. Turns out the sensor was deciding to be a butt and, long story short, I ended up having to shell out some big bucks to buy a new one. I slightly upgraded to a Nikon D5200 (from a D5100) and LOVE it. I didn’t think it would make too much of a difference since I’m still using the same lenses, but I’ve been getting great shots with my new D5200 on the first try and without having to do any editing. Not complaining!

Dinner:

A massive pile of Garlic Balsamic Roasted Brussels Sprouts and pan-fried chicken. An un-pictured whole wheat english muffin on the side. 

Post-dinner snack:

More blueberries. I blame Trader Joe’s for selling a huge 1.5 lb container of them for just $5. I bought them yesterday and they’re all gone excepts for a puny 1/2 cup serving that I’m planning on having tomorrow morning. 

So there you have it!  A day’s eat in a quick nutshell.

Question of the Day: What’s the best thing you’ve eaten so far this week?

Caesars Palace Blackjack Chicken Salad

I absolutely love making themed food for a party and recently we had a casino night where all our dinner dishes were inspired by Las Vegas. I wanted to make something fun and healthy so I came up with Caesar’s Palace Blackjack chicken salad, clever right?

This recipe was perfect as its packed full of protein and the dressing added an extra zing, erasing all ideas of a boring old salad! I’m usually not big on salad as mains, but this one was so much more than just the usual layers of leaves, and everyone loved it.

I even made the croutons myself and coloured them red and black to fit the theme. It was really easy, and I will definitely add this to my regular meal list as it’s perfect for a summer’s day when you really hungry, but want something that doesn’t make you feel too full.

So if you have a casino-themed night and think making a soufflé may be a bit of a challenge, why not try my delicious Caesar’s Palace Blackjack chicken salad? You won’t regret it! To add a realistic touch to the evening you can have some fun playing online slots with your guests.

For the yummiest salad sprinkle the parmesan shavings on just before serving and add crispy bacon and avocado as an extra!