My Otter Half

Want to spread some love on Valentine's Day? Here's a few fun-lovin' things for V-Day 2012!

Here is a sketch I planned on coloring before today, but life has been pretty crazy lately! For those of you who don't know, my dad went in for surgery last week for prostate cancer and is home recovering...so far, so good! The Bocks really enjoy kicking cancer in the tuchus.

Happy V-Day to all my loves...

Also, try this workout today if you want to feel the burn on this Valentine's Day! It is harder than it looks...and the girls are super-cute!

Another way to share the love today? Email Love Grown Foods today with your address (LOVE@lovegrownfoods.com with 'VDAY LOVE' as the subject), and they will send you (and your Valentine!) a free bag of their granola. Yesssssss.


Doing anything fun for V-Day? I am celebrating by eating chocolate and doing a Barre class and some yoga. ;)

xoxoxo

And congrats to all my Tone It Uppers who finished their 7 Day Slim Down today. You girls rock!

As for the Slim Down, today is technically my last day....but I have not been following the plan as closely as intended. Which is okay! I ate cleaner and more raw, but still had some diversions in the form of chocolate, Greek yogurt, wine, quinoa, peanut butter...and even with that, I still have a tighter belly and lost some bloat. The effects of this plan are amazing, and I can't even imagine what they are like if you actually stick to it for the week. After the first four days, I felt great and was ready to incorporate my carb-loves back into my life...plus, my workout routine is too intense not to. I will definitely do the Slim Down before my vacation in March, but for now, this mini-SD was exactly what I needed. <3

Rest Days

Hello there!

Finally back into the swing of things....regular gym-going, healthier eats, more arting.

Veggies, get back in my life.

My newest flavor love, Chobani Apple Cinnamon.

Lots of the best flavor of Larabar (thanks to chocolate chips, this is the winner).

My black bean soup!

Saturday we had a little party for my mama's birthday.

For prep, Friday night was shopping trip number one for our food necessities. I dragged Allie along with me to WalMart, where we found Oscar (Allie's boyfriend, if you are new to the blog).

An uncanny resemblance to our Oscar. We also found some pantyhose on the wasabi popcorn. Uhhh?

To add to our adventure, I had to climb a fixture in order to get the last bottle of lime juice. Unfortunately, the only pictures we have of that are mental ones.

After some kickass BodyCombat and BodyPump classes the next morning, I headed to the grocery store to pick up some last minute things for the night.

Family and friends came over for the football games, complete with my parent's homemade wings and lots of pizza. I also made some buffalo chicken eggrolls and my buffalo dip (we had buffalo chicken on buffalo chicken!!!) and they were pretty tasty.

She even got a froggy funfetti cake (she collects frogs).

It was lovely and I think my mama had a fun birthday!

Sunday is normally my exercise rest day, where I can usually be found taking Koda for a nice long walk and/or spending the day watching football in Philly in my yoga pants.....sans the yoga.

And I did both of those things this Sunday. Starting with The Monster's walk (he's a ferocious beast, I know).

Along with a little drawing. Although I usually limit my alcohol consumption to once (occasionally twice) a week, a leisurely beer or two is usually consumed on Sunday. Like this week's local microbrew:

Obviously.

The brewery is in Allentown, where Coop's alma mater is located. Muhlenberg!

I did take off Monday from the gym as well, which is usually a BodyPump class and some cardio. I just wasn't feeling it yesterday; I was absolutely exhausted after work (didn't have off for MLK like all of you luckies!) and in a bit of a weird funk and just wanted to lay on the couch all night and take a bath. Definitely my body's way of begging for some extra recovery time after a hard week at the gym and a double sesh on Saturday morning, so that wish was gladly granted. That means I had time to scour some new magazines for recipes that I want to try.

^Had to buy this one due to this show (please watch this;....you are welcome):

Our new obsession on the Food Network. And my new obsession with the extreme weirdness that is Aaron Carter.

But I ended up loving Every Day with Rachael Ray...who knew! This thing is chock-full of awesome recipe ideas that are organized so well. Can't wait to try my spin on many of them.

Plus, I needed my rest. It will be an exciting week at the gym...new BodyCombat launch tonight with all of the instructors, and a new class on Wednesdays called Fight Club! So I got to buy these pretty little things:

As time goes on, I am becoming more and more passionate about becoming a certified instructor/trainer. Something that is a huge goal of mine for the year. I am just loving the way these classes have been transforming my body! And I am loving being back in a class mode and pushing myself to the max...reminds me of my dancing days.

Other two big goals for this year? Getting my finances in order and trying to consolidate some things, and to move out! These are all very doable, and I am in super-saver mode. Which means my extensive Lululemon collection is going to have to stay content in its current state at the moment. No new additions. That is, unless I find the perfect long sleeve tech shirt in the perfect color...

Some illustration coming at ya later this week!

xoxoxo



How often do you take rest days? Usually 1-2 days on a normal week for me, unless I am traveling/on vacation. I get grumpy when I don't work out!

Happy Thanksgiving!

Well, happy Thanksgiving Eve!

(Source)

I am really excited for Thanksgiving; it just may be my favorite holiday....

It's the official kick-off to the holiday season (for me, anyway, and I can finally allow myself to decorate, wrap, and listen to Christmas music to my little heart's abandon), I get to see a bunch of family that I usually only see once a year (all of whom I am incredibly lucky and thankful for), Coop and Oscar are joining us this year and being introduced to even more family...oh yeah, and the drinking and eating, which comes in abundance.

Shenanigans always ensue...one year, my cousins discovered a little blue bottle of "Mad Dog" amongst all the liquor and wines, which the boys (including my dad) thought they should chug. Not after giving my grandma a shot first, of course.

It was her first shot ever. What?


Also can't wait to see my cousins (two of whom are currently adorably preggers) who also happen to have the cutest kids ever. It is always a fun group.

I'm excited to recap my Boston mini-trip...great company, tons of walking and seeing all the 'hoods, and soooo much delicious food. I want to do a two- or three-part recap once I get more (and better) pictures from my friends, but until then, here is a little preview of some fun things we did.

The food we ate was un. Real.

Hot Lobster Roll

Philly Cheesesteak Eggrolls and Fried Clams at Davio's

Spinach,  Egg, Roasted Red Pepper & Fontina

Yet, I reenforced the fact that I just do not like goat cheese, try as I might.

Tastes musty....blech.

Want to see a 5' girl next to a 7' (+?) college basketball coach? Sure you do!

(Is that unreal or WHAT?)

Had a wonderful time at a beer fest with my fellow Dogfish Head lover.

Sah' tea is AMAZING.

Offshore Nutbrown Ale...oh. My gosh.

And just seein' the sights!

The verdict? It is easily the cleanest, most walkable city I have been to on the East Coast...absolutely gorgeous, tons of culture and great architecture, so many awesome restaurants...I can't believe it took me this long to get up there! If it didn't get so freakin' cold, I could totally see myself moving there.

Speaking of great cities, I'm still learning and loving mine. I was really excited when I got this interview from Yelp in my inbox yesterday...Top Chef alum Jen Carroll, a Philly native, talks about her favorite places around town.

How cute is she?
(Source)

I love some of the places she talks about, and some I have yet to try. She mentions Race Street Cafe, our go-to spot.

(From their Facebook page)

I am loving exploring the city I grew up in a suburb of and yet never really got the chance to immerse myself in since I moved across the country for years. Plus, it makes it all the more fun having a really good lookin' tour guide.

I am super sore after intense cardio, BodyPump, and BodyCombat this week. Going to start my long weekend off with a BodyPump class right after work and possibly try out some Tabata intervals...but don't hold your breath on that one. I have a fabulous blister on my heel from walking around Boston all weekend, so those may hafta wait for a few days. I'm looking forward to some serious yoga on Friday, and another two-hour Pump/Combat challenge on Saturday. All in preparation for the holiday eats (no restrictions over here) and a day off on Sunday.

I have a fun little thing planned on that day....stay tuned ;)

• Where are you having Thanksgiving? Hosting it yourself? Traveling somewhere? For as long as I can remember, we have traveled to Baltimore to my Aunt and Uncle's house for a big ol' family get-together.
• Do you have any favorite spots in your city? We love Race Street Cafe in Old City...not just for the amazing food, but also their spectacular beer list. And the Bloody Marys, I'm in love...the place is a late-nighter or a bruncher's dream.
• Have you ever tried a Tabata interval workout?

Safe travels, and Happy Thanksgiving!
xoxoxoxo

Thrown-Off Workout Plans

(Not to be confused with the Kanye Workout Plan.)

Howdy howdy howdy.

How's your week?

As usual, mine has been pretty jam packed.

Finally about 90% done this drawing I have been working on forever...I just cannot get the background right!!!!

I will finish it this week, and it will free up the first few days of next week to work on my Christmas cards. I hope to order them around Thanksgiving. Woo hoo! I am so pumped for Thanksgiving in Baltimore and Christmas in New Hampshire this year....it is going to be a fabulous holiday season for sure.

Thrown-Off Workout Plans

I have a lot of fun things coming up, and in my preparation (and a hair appointment Tuesday and a Flyers game tonight), I have had to miss the gym twice this week.

Does anyone else get an awful feeling when your workout routine is thrown off?

I set my alarm for 5:30am and then 6 this morning...but of course, I didn't get out of bed until after 7 due to a husky licking my face and prancing around on my bed.

Oh. Good Morning.

I hate feeling guilty like this, but I have to remember that a few days won't undo all the hard work I have put in. Just like my food philosophy (eat well most of the time...when you splurge, do it up big and be guilt-free...you'll get back to it tomorrow, or Monday, anyway!), I think that applies to exercise, too. Work hard, play hard. I may or may not have a few crab fries tonight though. ;)

I am all for a rest day (or two) throughout the week, but I know with my impending weekend getaway tomorrow, I probably won't be doing much working out this weekend. However, pretty sure we will get in some bonus cardio with walking around the city, a run by the lake one morning, and lots and lots of party rockin' and shufflin'.

Hints?

(Okay, not the trickiest "hints". So you don't have to be a rocket scientist to click on the pictures and see their names that I was way too lazy to change ;) Orrr you could just click on the link below.)

Somehow I have never made it there before, despite being the home to one of my best friends for a few years now.

We also have this on the agenda!

I wanted beer.....and now I'm gonna get it. Look at that brewery list!!!!!

I am also really excited to check out lots of restaurants and places unique to the city.

Here's to hoping this coming weekend is just like this:

(Monday night....gorg)

Looks like we will have nice (albeit a lil' chilly) weather this weekend....yet I have a feeling this is gonna be one of those little getaways where I need a vacation after the vacation. But I wouldn't have it any other way. :)




Sidebar: I planned on getting together a post about my fave core workouts this week, but due to my lack of consistent work in the gym and studio this week, I am going to save it for later. Look for that, Christmas cards, new drawings, travel and holiday recaps, a giveaway, and some other fun things spread out over the next few weeks.

Lululemon and Black Bean Soup

34 degrees and sleety/rainy/snowy? Really? It's not even Halloween yet!!

I am not a morning person and it was so tough to get out of my cuddly bed this morning, but I am so glad I did. As Julie says, "You never regret a workout!"

I took a two hour mash-up of BodyCombat, BodyPump, and conditioning, and it was killer!! Seriously. I am gonna huuurt tomorrow (actually, I'm a little sore already!). I also took my first Zumba class last night since my yoga studio just started offering it on Friday nights. I always thought it would be kind of corny, but oh man! I was dripping sweat, and loved the instructor! We had a lot of fun, and it felt great to be dancing (read: shakin' it) again.

Then I braved the rain and sleet in just my Lulu jacket and stopped at the grocery on the way home to snag some strawberries for a smoothie and luckily they had a huge stash of avocados on sale for $1 each...score! Guacamole will be in my near future.

PS, if you are looking for a super comfy, lightweight, and very flattering jacket (with a hood! And thumb holes!) to wear during warmups, on runs/dogwalks in slightly chilly weather, or to throw on before and after the gym/studio, get this jacket!!! So worth the money, as are all Lululemon products. I'm addicted....Cool Racerbacks and Wunder Unders are my other go-tos. They are worth saving up for! They fit perfectly and last forever.

Get the Dance Studio Jacket here. It looks like they are low on options right now, but they often restock. I also like their Scuba Hoodies and want the Live Simply jacket.

Deepest pockets ever! Love.

Finally got my big bag of SunWarrior Warrior Blend protein yesterday, so I was excited to make a smoothie (...now if only I also had a Vitamix....). Four fresh strawberries, a small banana, a splash of skim milk, scoop of the vanilla SunWarrior, a couple handfuls of spinach (you can't taste it! Promise), and some ice was all I needed. The texture of SunWarrior protein is different than others I've tried, but I really like it.

Check it out here.

I am heading up to Philly in a bit, but before I head out, I have to share this with you. What is perfect for a day like today? This super easy Black Bean Soup!!! I made it earlier this week since I haven't been able to find a canned variety that I loved.

Black Bean Soup

Ingredients:

1 TB oil (I usually use Extra Virgin Olive Oil)

1 small onion, diced, divided in two

2 large cloves of garlic, roughly minced

2 cans black beans, drained and rinsed

Adobo with Cumin seasoning

Cayenne Pepper

2 cups of water

1/2 TB chicken stock (I use Minor's)

1 cup of corn (I used corn cut off the cob that was frozen)

2/3 cup of jarred salsa

1 TB lime juice

Shredded cheese (optional)

Plain Greek yogurt (optional)

Cilantro (optional)

Directions:

Warm oil in a pot and add half of the diced onion. Saute until the onions begin to turn transluscent. 

In a blender, add one can of the drained black beans and the other half of the onion, as well as the garlic cloves. Pulse a few times.

Put the other can of black beans into the pot and then add the blender-pulsed mixture. Stir in two cups of water and the chicken stock (to make a sort of chicken broth), and season with the Adobo and cayenne to taste.

Add in the corn and salsa and continue to stir.

Stir for a few minutes, and when your soup is hot enough, turn off the heat and add the lime juice.

Pour into bowls and top with shredded cheese, plain yogurt (as a sour cream sub!), and cilantro, if you choose.

Make this soup! Even my picky little sister loved it. Full of fiber, protein, and deliciousness. Koda wanted a taste as well.

I am ready for a bite now.

Oh yes, and I did decide to buy the new Coldplay album....glad I did, it is beautiful and is a nice change of pace for me in regards to the other types of music I listen to. The songs are all so atmospheric and gorgeous and just have so much sound, and each song flows well into the other when listened to in order. Fan!

Off to Philly after having a bowl of soup. Have a wonderful weekend!

xoxo

Give Me Everything Tonight

Holla!


I was excited for BodyCombat 48 release yesterday. The sixth track was alllllll kicks. Oh my goodness. And the core and pushups conditioning at the end was absolutely killer. I did BodyFlow after and had a tough time through the ab track after doing Combat's. Here is the tracklist for Release 48:


1a: In My Head (Kris McTwain Remix Edit) – Henry Blank
1b: Airplanes (Kris McTwain Remix Edit) – Groove Chasers
2: Smooth Criminal – Badlands Inc
3: We Dance On – Subz Project
4: Come In Hard (Don’t Like Rock ‘N’ Roll) – Hardknox
5: If I Were You – Breeze & Ritmen
6: Drummer Boy (MoDrums Remix) – Alesha Dixon
7: The Last Fight – Bullet For My Valentine
8: Everywhere (Breeze & UFO Remix) – Master Blaster
9: The Time (Dirty Bit) – Red Beans & Rice
10: The Silence (New Single Mix) – Alexandra Burke


Sad I am missing the new BodyFlow launch tomorrow...but the plans I have instead pretty much make up for it. 


A night in Philly and the Flyers game? Worth it. So happy hockey season is BACK (well, preseason)! And hopefully my boys will look better than they did last Wednesday when I went...yeesh. At least Chickie's and Pete's crab fries and beer made the loss a little more tolerable. 

(Source)

We lost the core of our team and it'll be interesting to watch all the newbies get used to playing together. Although I gotta say....new goalie? Did not look so hot on Wednesday. Hope you were worth it all, Bryz.

(Source)

So uh...finally ready for a new drawing??


Still putting some little touches on the sand and the background in general, but here you have it. Some things bug me about it here and there, but it is just a drawing for fun, so I am not going to do much more to it.


Avalon seagulls (they are snack thieves), inspired by my beachy East Coast summer.

Thanks to this guy, I made lots of awesome new friends during the summer of 2011. Thanks, guys, for letting me be a part of your beach house (cough, cough, freeload, cough). Love you all!


It was definitely a summer to remember....perhaps my best yet.

Rehobeth dates with my Boston BFF

And South Jerz dates

My 24th birthday

And celebrating Grandma's 75th

One of my very best friends got married!!!

So we danced....

...a LOT.

Avalon Sunday Fundays

Dewey Beach nights

Reading The Help while drinking Bloody Marys

Becoming friends with our regular waitress at Tonio's

My very first White Brier Happy Hour (please ignore the atrocious state of my hair here)

And my first Tour de Shore at Golden Inn!

So many great times.


And these two songs will forever have Summer 2011 emblazoned in my mind:

Long live shufflin'.

So long, sweet summer. 


Already counting the days until spring. Until then, I will be freezing my tuchus off and reminiscing about my days in Arizona and Nevada and California. 
(Although I will see you in MARCH, Vegas!!!!)


BodyPump again tonight, first time doing it twice in a week. Yikes! (Perhaps I just want to hear that Tiesto song again.)


xoxoxo