WIAW: Garlic Asparagus Chicken Pasta & Circuit Workouts!

July 30, 2013 by Christine Skari

Hello lovelies, happy Wednesday! Like usual, I’m excited to share my eats from Tuesday and participate in the What I Ate Wednesday fun! But first, my workout!

I mentioned in my last post that I felt like I was in a slump in regards to my workouts since I got back from vacation, and I got some great tips from you guys! I’ve looked into taking some group classes and have pinned some workouts from Pinterest as well :). Today I made up my own circuit, and man, was I sweaty by the end. After 25 minutes of intense incline walking, I set up a nice little workstation to kill my legs (in a good way!) and finished the circuit twice through before calling it a day.

On to the eats!

Breakfast: a whole wheat english muffin topped on one side with peanut butter and the other with jam and Norwegian goat cheese (I promise, it’s DELICIOUS!). A banana on the side and plenty of coffee to wash everything down.

Lunch: quinoa salad with chicken, onions, carrots, black beans, corn, and brussel sprouts!

I also nibbled on some pineapple. Mhmm!

Dinner: a delicious whole wheat spaghetti dinner made with chicken, tomatoes, garlic infused olive oil (drool), asparagus, and parmesan! This one turned out really well, recipe below :).

[yumprint-recipe id=’4′]

I followed dinner with a latte and coconut white chocolate shortbread cookie from Hawaii. Society says not to drink coffee at night for no reason, but I don’t give a pickle, you hear?! Guess I’m just a certified badass. Actually, I’ll probably regret it when it’s 3 o’clock in the morning and I can’t sleep. Womp womp womp.

The life of a badass is one of constant struggle.

That’s about it for today, can’t wait to see what all of ya’ll have been munching on!

Happy eats to everyone!

xo Christine

Tuesday Thoughts: Shopping Splurges & Body Love

July 29, 2013 by Christine Skari

Howdy everyone! Long time no talk. I’m back from Hawaii and ready to get back into my normal routine (especially with blogging!). I had the absolute worst internet connection in my hotel room and felt so isolated from all of you guys ;).

Anyways, here are some random musings as of late:

1. I’m missing Kyle like crazy.

He’s off in Europe with his parents and younger brother for his Mom’s birthday and currently in Rome. He’ll be back in about a week (he’s already been gone for about 1 already) and I’m excited to see him again! He sends me emails and pictures everyday, though, so I’ll survive.

2. Makeup shopping is overwhelming.

When I was in Hawaii, I went to the local Sephora to try to find some new makeuping tools. I usually stick to drugstore brands since they’re much more affordable, but vacation is for splurging, right ;)? It was fun to sit in one of the stations and have a makeup artist try out some of the products on me. When I first walked into the store, I felt SO lost. They have approximately 535,830 brands of eyeliner alone and I would have left empty-handed if a sales associate didn’t come to my rescue! They also have an interesting new tool that is based off skin graft technology that analyzes your skin tone and brings up exactly the right products. In the end, I got a new foundation, eyebrow pen (I have the most nonexistent eyebrows ever and it actually looked pretty good on), bronzer, and mascara. I mean, how could you resist a mascara named “Better Than Sex” hahah?

3. I LOVE shopping at TJ Maxx.

There is probably nothing better in the world than the satisfaction of getting a really really really good deal on cute clothes. Okay, maybe eating a huge slice of chocolate cake or petting a really cute puppy OR eating a huge slice of cake while petting a really cute puppy, but I digress. Just go with me on this one. Hooray!

4. I can’t get over how powerful this video is.

My friend posted this on facebook. It definitely spoke to me and is so worth watching. Let me know what you think.

Mary Lambert: I Know Girls (Body Love)

5. I’ve missed my kitchen and recipe experimenting.

Even though I love going on vacation (who doesn’t?), I also love my routine at home. I guess I still have Maui on my mind, though, since the first thing I cooked up was some Swai fish with a panko, pecan, and coconut crust! I accidentally used sweetened coconut, so it was a bit sweeter than I would have liked. Oh well, you live and you learn!

6. I feel like my workout have been so uninspired lately.

Not sure why, but I have basically no motivation to go to the gym and everything I do there seems to be a bit half-assed. I think it might have something to do with Kyle being gone, since he’s my “fun” workout buddy and we spend at least one day of the week either playing tennis or going hiking. You get back here quickly, Kyle, or I’ll probably turn into either a couch potato or slug! Or some weird hybrid and everyone will make fun of you for dating a couch slug. OKAY? Okay.

I don’t feel too comfortable going out on a hike by myself, so if anyone has any tips to make exercising more enjoyable, I’m all ears!

Anyways, that’s all I can think of at the moment. It’s good to be back!

xo Christine

Quick Hawaii Update!

July 26, 2013 by Christine Skari

Aloha! Hawaii has certainly be treating me well. I’m sorry for not replying to comments on my last post, the internet connection here is a bit spotty and half the time I try to comment, it deletes my message or says that there isn’t good wifi access. I’ll be able to get back to you guys soon! It’s driving me crazy to see how many unread blogs I have in my bloglovin account. I have a lot of catching up to do once I get back to California!

Anyways, here’s a photo dump of what I’ve been up to! For the most part, my days start early (Hawaii is 3 hours behind Cali) with a morning workout before grabbing some breakfast. The fruit here seriously tastes like candy. Don’t even get me started on the pineapple! There isn’t anything better than seeing a delicious breakfast spread on the table after a ridiculously sweaty workout. Grandmas are the best!

I’ve been enjoying so much good food over here. There’s a yogurtland right off the beach and for dinner today, the gang went to one of those sushi restaurants where the sushi and other delectables go around on a revolving table. So much fun!

Sorry this post has no structure, I’m beat and need to catch some Zzzs :).

Hope your week is going by quickly!

Christine

WIAW: Maui Edition!

July 23, 2013 by Christine Skari

Hey all you party people! Time for some fun with WIAW: Maui edition. I’ve been soaking up the sun all day in Hawaii! The weather here is amazing and the water is the perfect temperature!

My day started off on a super sweaty note. My younger cousin, Olivia, and I headed down to the gym at 6 a.m to get in a workout! I didn’t do anything fancy, just 20 minutes on the elliptical and my Flaming Calves workout, but I felt like a coffee machine with the drip drip dripping that was happening on my face. Seriously, guys, someone implanted a million baby waterfalls in my pores. (Haha, gross).

After we came back up to the hotel room (which is gorgeous and has the most amazing views!) I showered and then proceeded to eat some breakfast and then went directly back to bed for a morning nap. Hey, that’s what vacation is for, right?

Breakfast was a simple yogurt bowl with grapes and some frosted mini wheats (un-pictured). Satisfying and cool!

After lounging around after our naps, my sister, cousin, and I headed over to the beach for some swimming and cliff jumping! I swear it seems 5452424 times higher up once you get up there! Holy mother of flying turtles, did I scream when I jumped! We swam and enjoyed the sunshine and surf, then grabbed some Starbucks for lunch. I love the refreshers that they have! SO good! Since it was so hot, the only thing I felt like was a big ol’ salad.

Then it was back up to the room for another shower (I can’t stand the feeling of sand or chlorine on me for too long) and some serious snackage. I feasted on coconut M&Ms, more frosted mini wheats, potato chips, and fresh mangoes. Mhmm.

The rest of the day was spent reading and relaxing. Dinner was at a Thai restaurant and was a bunch of dishes shared potluck style, so I didn’t get a very concrete picture. Just believe me, it was delicious!

Tomorrow’s plans include another great workout, the pool/beach, shopping, and some lava flows (yum!)

Hope everyone else is having a fabulous week!

xoxo Christine

MIMM: Healthier Banana Nut Muffins, Dinner Dates, & Maui!

July 21, 2013 by Christine Skari

Happy Monday everyone! It’s especially marvelous for me since I’m headed to Hawaii today!

Since I haven’t posted in a few days, I have lots of wonderful things to share with you guys, notably this healthy (er) banana nut muffin/bread recipe! Trust me on this one, it’s actually REALLY good. I sometimes feel like people try to over-healthify recipes, which result in things that taste a bit like cardboard and take away from the treat itself. While these don’t have the nutritional profile of kale, they taste fabulous and are filling to boot. They’re even better as time goes on and the flavors start to develop. I’ve been enjoying one or two each day with breakfast or before a workout! Try them!

Ahhhhhh! Rogue muffin on the loose! Hide yo kids, hide yo wife.

Marvelous is relaxing beach runs!

Since I live by the coast in California, I’m lucky in that I get to escape a lot of the summer heat! I enjoyed a 4 mile run on the beach with my younger cousin. He’s actually ridiculously fast (think a personal record of 4:40 minute/mile), but asked me to take him on a nice and slow recovery run. The breeze was a dream and we got to watch a beautiful sunset! I love it when runs leave you feeling worked out, yet wonderful at the end

Marvelous is spending time with family!

I love family BBQs and spent some time with my younger cousins by the pool. There’s something about little kids that bring out the life and excitement in everyone.

My youngest cousin is sure to be a pro athlete when he’s older. He’s already learning how to use a foam roller ;). (It’s bigger than he is! Aww!)

Marvelous is date nights!

Kyle and I grabbed some asian food before seeing Pacific Rim. I actually thought it was a really fantastic movie! To be honest, I usually get bored during longer movies, but this one really held my attention because of its interesting plot and great effects.

Marvelous is a chocolate pie made with a twist- tofu!

I can’t stop raving about how delicious this pie was. Everyone was stunned to hear that this smooth and rich dessert was made with tofu as one of the main ingredients! I hardly could believe it myself- it tasted like it was made with heavy whipping cream! Unbelievable. Recipe to come soon

Marvelous is crafting with Kyle!

We spent some quality time shopping at Home Depot and making some backdrops for my photography. The project turned out really well and we got all of the supplies for less than $20! Score!

Hope everyone has a fantastic week!

xo Christine