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Hey there! I'm Holly. A 40+ year old insurance-nerd wife, mom, beauty lover, and about a million other things in between.
This is the place where I share about our lives, what I'm currently loving, books I'm reading, plus-size style, beauty recommendations, health + fitness endeavors and anything else I'm finding interesting at the moment.
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Monthly Archives: July 2012
Two Days of Turquoise
Last weekend was oddly busy.
Obviously there was lots of beer and wine to drink and cheese to eat pre-Whole 30, but also in the span of 48 hours we watched the Olympic Opening Ceremonies while partaking in British Themed Menu, attempted to attend a wedding where the groom rode in on a horse, worked our asses off in the gym – partly, of course, to work off that British Themed Menu (I did so many overhead squats MY ABS ARE SORE. That’s a lot of squats. 50 to be exact!), drank beer at one of our favorite breweries while watching Beach Volleyball right before enjoying basil gimlets at a swanky restaurant, watched an awesome fashion show, listened to DJ Shadow and lamented our aging, danced like crazy people while watching Chromeo perform, cooked a lot of Whole 30 approved food, and helped friends christen their newly remodeled kitchen. Honestly, I’m tired just writing about it, but it was a damn good time.
Friday started with basically all of the brown and yellow food.
Delicious food, but still. Can I get some chives up in here to dress that up or something? I made a Paleo version of this Shepherd’s Pie recipe and served it along side some of Mel’s delicious Paleo Scotch Eggs. AMAZING, all of it, but I totally should have made a salad. What did you think of the Opening Ceremonies? I liked that it was whacky and centered around music, but I know it got panned by a lot of folks.
Saturday I did the following workout and then wanted to die:
Run 800 m
200 double unders
150 sit ups
50 Overhead Squats @ 65lbs
Run 400 m
No pictures of that. Just imagine a giant pile of sweat and spandex. That’s what I looked like. 🙂
I did take pictures of my Saturday night outfit and my Sunday afternoon outfits though…
On the left: Pants: Gap Always Skinny Skimmer (cropped) in Turquoise, Tank: scored at Ross. Some weird brand. Shoes: Merona. (old) Love you Target! Earrings: Target (old)
On the Right: Tank: Old Navy (old) Skirt: Gap Outlet (old) Shoes: Mossimo Target
I guess I was in a turquoise mood this weekend! Not a surprise, it is basically my favorite color. Saturday night we went to an event called Launch that was a giant festival of fashion/music/art. We went out to support Garrett’s friend Nicole who designs pretty amazing clothing with her main squeeze Justin. I figured if there was any night that I could get away with wearing skin tight turquoise pants, it was at a fashion event, right? Check out some of the FREAKING AWESOME looks:
photos courtesy of Shannon Schureman
Creative people make me happy.
After the fashion show DJ Shadow and Chromeo were performing which was just an absolutely fun combo. The people watching during DJ Shadow was ON. POINT. Lots of girls in way-too-short skirts gyrating with men wearing jeans that were just a little too skinny. It was funny. We felt old. But then Chromeo came out and we were back in our element. I do not have a single running mix on my ipod that does not include Chromeo. They are hilarious and great workout music. Highly recommend!
Sunday I went to Costco to get Whole 30 ready. Check out this overflowing grocery cart!
We’re as ready as we’ll ever be, I think.
Then in the afternoon we went to a Kitchen-warming party. Wait, wait…a what??? Friends of ours just remodeled their kitchen so they threw a BBQ to test out the new digs. Lots of good sangria, good people and good food. Also? BOCCE BALL. Which is seriously super fun and totally not a random senior citizen game as I may have previously thought. 🙂
I can’t believe we crammed all of that in to our weekend. But I guess it’s good since we have managed to orchestrate a pretty calm August. I’m planning to sleep a lot, workout a lot, cook a lot, and watch a loooooooooooooooooooooooot of TV. (Guilty Pleasure Goal! What???)
Holy crap, you guys…AUGUST IS TOMORROW. I don’t know where the time goes!
Whole 30 Talk + A Promise That This Won’t Be 30 Days of Whole 30
Hoooooooooooray! It’s Monday again. Oh wait, that can’t be how the expression goes, can it?
Eh, whatever. I’m feeling chipper this morning even despite the Universe trying unabashedly to screw me up, so TAKE THAT. I’m full of vim and vigor (or rather coffee and a delicious breakfast) so my plan is to take this day by the horns. Oh and also, to do Angie. (Yikes! Pray for me!)
Anyway, I wanted to have some Monday Morning Coffee Talk to chat about a few things:
Namely that THE WHOLE 30 STARTS IN TWO DAYS.
OH EM EFF GEE.
Actually, I am now officially totally stoked on it. This weekend we cleared the crappy condiments out of the fridge, ate all the cheese (Goodbye cheese, you’ll be missed) made some salad dressings (minus the honey, obvs) bought some new groceries (fridge pics coming this week) and cranked out some homemade mayo and some heavenly frittatas. On top of that, I really thought about the point of this 30 days, the challenges I foresee, and my strategies. Also: WHY THE HELL I DO STUFF LIKE THIS. I’ll tell you about all that in one second. Hold tight.
Before that, it’s worth mentioning that I will not ONLY be talking about the Whole 30 for the next 30 days. I thought a lot about how I could approach documenting this experience for those who are interested while not boring those who aren’t, and I think the only way to do that is to ensure it’s not the only thing on the agenda. It’s going to be a lot of work, but here’s the thing: I’m a blabbermouth. And I have lots of regularly scheduled stuff to say anyway because OHMYGOD CAN’T SOMEONE SHUT HER UP??? So that was your friendly warning that you might be hearing from me QUITE A BIT over the next month. 🙂 I’m a chatty dork like that. Don’t believe my dorkiness? Maybe this can convince you:
Don’t make me pull out the finger guns, okay? They clash with my sweeeeeeet Hobie tank top.
Today, however I’m going to talk a bit about the Whole 30, because HELLO, it is starting right quick!
The Point
Why the heck would you do that? This is the question that has popped up the most on facebook, etc. This makes me so happy though because here’s the thing — this isn’t THAT different from how we usually eat. So people’s shock at the things we are giving up hopefully means that I am not a giant food douche spouting off about my dietary preferences to anyone who will listen all the time. Awesome. I’d like to think I’m serious about what I eat but not preachy. Fingers crossed.
The point (for me) however, is a month of diligence. Really putting my effort into cleanly fueling myself, which means paying attention to some of the things that I let slide regularly: seed oils, options when dining out, dairy products and booze. It’s the A++ version of how we normally eat, and I’m excited to see the results of our efforts — whether they are dramatic or not.
Also: I love the experiment! Every time I do something *dramatic* (and really, by dramatic I just mean something that I am making a real concerted effort at) I learn new things about myself. And I also pick up new efficiencies, solidify some better habits and overall I improve. I like doing things like that. You may have cooler hobbies than me, but experimenting is one of my favorite things to do! Maybe I should have been a scientist. Missed opportunity, man. I probably wouldn’t look very cute in a lab coat though. So boxy!
Understanding The Challenges
Even though this isn’t a dramatic overhaul of our diet, it is not without its challenges. We have 2 social occasions coming up this month that are decidedly un-Whole 30 friendly (aka they mostly revolve around food and booze.) I’m not too worried because you know what — it is two days of my life. I CAN DO ANYTHING FOR TWO DAYS: including abstaining from booze and non-compliant food. I’m looking at it as a challenge — how can I do it without being a wet-blanket? It will be a good exercise in discipline and strategizing and when I think about it that way, I’m almost looking forward to it. War Games: The Food Edition. MUAHAHAHAHAHA.
This may also have to do with that fact that I’ve been watching The Olympics all weekend and am totally walking around the house humming Chariots of Fire and fist pumping all of the Americans Triumphing Over Crazy Odds! (Those human interest pieces have had me weeping all weekend. I’m kind of a mess.)
I also know that I am going to be challenged with the sheer amount of food prep this month is going to require. I definitely rely on things like Post-Workout protein shakes and some pre-made convenience items right now that probably aren’t doing me any favors. Eliminating those will be different, so for me, I have to make it fun. I’ve got a calendar chock full of awesome recipes that I am SO STOKED to make, and post work out options that are fun, fancy and WAY MORE DELICIOUS than a shake. I’ve got to make it fun or I’ll want to quit.
The Strategy
My mental approach over the next month is going to encompass these three things. Mantras, if you will…light up the patchouli sticks, y’all:
# 1: Get through it, Holly it’s only 30 days.
You’re not living out on a life raft punching great white sharks in the nose without water. You are avoiding cheese and saving the wine for September. Get a Grip.
#2: Where there is struggle there is strength.
When you come to something that feels challenging, take the time to sit in it and figure out why. Then figure out how you could have avoided it so you will know for next time. Maybe all of that self-analysis will distract you. 🙂
#3: Be as prepared as possible, but know your strength, girl.
Don’t get it twisted, you can do this. But you know — fail to plan, plan to fail and all that mumbo jumbo. Prioritize your needs and don’t apologize. You are stubborn as hell, remember that when you feel weak. You are going to do this, just by nature of the fact that it is hard and YOU LIKE HARD THINGS.
If you just chuckled like a 12 year old boy, you are my people.
Alright, alright. Pep talk done. Now…who is doing this with me? Do tell so I know who to aggressively high five this month! And if you are interested in Whole 30 food porn, I’ll be posting most of my meals to the Holly Would If She Could FB Page. Come by and say hi!
Five Fun Things On Friday
1. My garden finally produced some tomatoes!
This year the garden is not quite as abundant as it was last year and I was starting to get depressed and wonder if I was just going to have boxes full of green tomatoes all summer. Last night I walked out to check and found a bounty of delicious looking tomatoes. We sliced them up and ate them STAT and they were so worth the wait!
2. The Olympics start today!
I’m so stoked to watch the opening ceremonies tonight and I hit up the grocery store just to get some ingredients for a very British themed dinner. Yep, I’m that big of a dork. I’m making Mel’s Paleo Scotch Eggs (check out her Olympics Opening Ceremonies Menu if you haven’t yet) and then my favorite Shepherd’s Pie recipe. We’ll be cracking open a delicious bottle of wine and camping out in front of the tube tonight and I think that sounds just perfect!
3. Our DVR is working!
Speaking of the boob tube, last night we had a major DVR scare. You may have seen me live-tweeting my panic. All week I have been sort of burning the candle at both ends and decidedly avoiding relaxing in front of the TV. I tried to sit down and watch some fun stuff Wednesday and FELL ASLEEP. Fail. (Well, except not really because obvs I was tiiiiired.) So last night I was determined to catch up on my guilty pleasure TV, so I got all comfy, poured myself a glass of wine, made a couch fort and just in time to have our DVR crap out! It’s been acting up for a while, but there was a serious Slow Motion Scream when it happened. So inconvenient! Especially on the cusp of all the Olympic events I plan to watch. Garrett sort of took it all apart and then as a joke lifted it over his head and shouted “BY THE POWER OF GREYSKULL…” and what do ya know…it’s back in business!
4. This Book!
I’ve made my way through this book over the last couple of days and it is really charming. I am a huge fan of eating dinner together as a family (it’s how both Garrett and I grew up and how we hope to keep our home once we have kids) and I love the author’s philosophies and tips and how to make that happen (and be special) whether you are just married, with little ones, or with a full blown enormous family. The recipes are simple and inspiring (many aren’t Paleo, but you know that never stops me from checking cookbooks out) and it’s just all around a pleasant read.
5. Big Plans!
I plan to spend my weekend reading magazines and cooking with a few mellow social excursions thrown in. Is there anything better than that? I argue there is not.
***What are YOU up to this weekend? Will you be watching the Olympics?
Thirsty Thursday: Wishful Drinking
My Whole 30 starts in exactly 6 days and I will not be drinking for the entire duration. Even though I don’t drink very much anymore (maybe twice a month?) I ALWAYS enjoy a good cocktail, a cup of red wine, or a glass of beer from my favorite liquor store, and I’m going to be completely honest the thought of NOT HAVING THE OPTION TO DRINK for 30 days does get the low-grade anxiety pumping. But I’ll do it, and I’ll deal with it and I’m sure I will survive, but this weekend — I may have to mix up a last cocktail hurrah. 🙂
Perhaps you might like to also? If so, here is some inspiration:
1. The Salty Chihuahua
Have I ever told you about the drink that changed my life? It was a Greyhound made at a random bar in San Francisco called Lion Pub. Well, perhaps it also had to do with the fact that instead of a random bowl of beer nuts they had an awesome cheese tray. That helped too.
This looks like that delicious greyhound mixed with a little margarita action. I feel we’re doing SOMETHING healthy for ourselves even though we are drinking, right? (sigh!) I’m a complete sucker for drinks made with fresh squeezed juice, plus I love the mix of sweet and salty. Such a good flavor combo! And giant bags of grapefruit are so cheap at Coscto right now. Tempting.
2. Ruby Red Cherry Citrus Sangria
Hello lover!
It’s no secret that I love a good sangria, and we probably do not need to beat the dead horse that is my love for stone fruit. This is obviously right up my alley!
To be honest, this one might actually get made this weekend if I can figure out what the hell “Cherry Herring” is. In case it doesn’t can someone make a batch and drink it for me in August? You know, pour one out for your homie? Come on!
3. Creamsicle Mimosas
I have an entire bottle of champagne leftover from our Bodega Bay Weekend. I am as shocked as you are. While I don’t have Marshmallow Vodka, I do have a bottle of Whipped Cream Vodka that may make a nice substitute. Perhaps we will have a fancy breakfast cocktail this weekend.
Man, I’m just envisioning a drunken weekend all of a sudden. That is not the point of this at all. It is tempting though…very tempting! 🙂
As strongly advised by the authorities to never drink and drive. If in case that you are involved in an accident and get charged with dui, take note that you are entitled to have an attorney.
******
I’m being a little bit dramatic and I certainly don’t intend to binge on alcohol or crap food prior to our Whole 30 experience, but I am definitely giving some thought to the things that I think I *will* be missing and trying to devise some strategies to change my perspective or help myself ignore the issue altogether.
Have you ever given up alcohol — or anything you really enjoy — for an extended period of time? I would love to hear how you did it!
Things I’ve Worn Lately & Where To Find Them
I mentioned shortly after the Summer Survey that many of you wanted to see more style related posts. One of the repetitive requests was “HEY-O where do you buy your clothes?” Ok, maybe I am paraphrasing, but you get the idea. After last year’s 30 Days of Denim, the on-going joke was that all of my clothes basically come from Target or The Gap, and while those are certainly favorites, I have branched out a tiiiiiiiiiiiiny bit. Baby steps, you guys. I’m trying to keep you on your toes! 🙂
I post an outfit of the day on Instagram (@follow_holly) just about every morning on my way to work, but I don’t necessarily share all the details there because it’s 7am and I am usually running late. This is real talk, friends. So I thought it might be helpful to pop in here every once in a while to break down what I’ve been wearing and where it came from for a couple of reasons:
1 – I am not a supermodel (shocker, I know) but in fact a regular gal rocking a size 14/16. I always find it more interesting to hear about where the average person buys their clothes. (Wait, you mean stores at the mall? SWEET!)
2 – I reeeeeeeeeeally enjoy fashion and style related things, but my current clothing budget is pretty small. Just about everything I wear is either SUPER affordable, On Clearance, or (in my opinion) worth paying full price for. That’s my shopping philosophy summed up — especially since I’m still losing weight.
So, with that said — here are a few recent Outfits of the Day (complete with dorky mirror pics!):
Dress: Daisy Fuentes for Kohl’s (bought with $20 of Kohl’s Cash so it was only $12!)
Belt: Target
Earrings: Target
Bracelet: Target
Wedges: Target
Look I said I was branching out a little bit. Not a lot, okay? While I love this cozy dress like red short tight prom dresses for it’s a little bit too short for sitting at work. And I wore it out last night too and paired with a cross-body bag that kept making it static-y and stick to my slip. I will definitely wear it again, but without the purse and probably not to work.
*****
Skirt: DownEast Basics (On Sale now for $25)
Shirt: Banana Republic Outlet
Necklace: Premiere Designs
Shoes: Payless Shoe Source
Speaking of last night, I went to a Blogger Event at DownEast Basics at the Roseville Galleria, and along with being super impressed with all their cute and well fitting stuff, I picked up this skirt which I’m wearing today.
The silhouette is different for me, and the little ruffle on the side is out of my comfort zone. But that’s what’s fun about style, right? Trying new things? I like the colors and the swooshiness (technical term) of this skirt, but also the fact that it is still pretty body conscious, which for me is necessary in a skirt. I’m always attracted to floofy, but it is NOT AT ALL flattering to my mid-section.
*****
Shirt: Lauren Conrad for Kohl’s (I am totally on the Kohl’s Train lately)
Skirt: Ellen Tracy purchased at Costco for $12 — GET ONE. It is the yoga pants of black pencil skirts)
Necklace: Banana Republic Outlet
Shoes: Missoni for Target
I purchased this shirt after watching a marathon of The Hills recently. I am a marketing person’s dream clearly. Lauren Conrad is kind of annoying, but her affordable collection for Kohl’s? REALLY cute. I’m impressed that it was versatile, reasonably priced, and came in a variety of sizes.
*****
Shirt: Gap
Skirt: Denim Pencil from The Gap Outlet last summer
Belt: Target
Flip Flops: Old Navy
Sunglasses: At Target finding perfect pair is very easy
Bag: H&M
I wasn’t kidding when I said I was obsessed with Kelly Green! This striped shirt is super comfy, but now that I’ve washed it a few times it has stretched out and gotten kind of shapeless and yucky. I’m surprised at how baggy it is considering it’s a Large, from the Gap. It’s good for running errands though, and this was TOTALLY a day when I just threw on that Garnier BB Cream with some lip gloss and hit the road!
*****
Shirt: Apt 9 for Kohl’s (curiously unavailable on website, despite being a recent purchase)
Pants: New York & Company (I have to buy them in Long. Grr)
Shoes: Payless Shoe Source
Earrings: Silver Hoops. Let’s be real, probably from Claire’s.
Lately I’m not that into wearing pants to work, but this felt office appropriate, conservative enough, but also still a little fun. Maybe it was the polka dots? I need to get inspired before fall/winter because pants just aren’t doing it for me.
*****
Dress: Gap — currently on clearance — GET ONE!
Belt: Target
Shoes: Target, last summer
Bracelet: Target
It made me happy to pair red and green and not feel like A Christmas Nightmare. I think it was the addition of gold. But of course when you wear Red, Gold + Green you then get Karma Chameleon stuck in your head all day, so just be warned.
*****
Pants: Gap Sexy (ha!) Boyfriend Jeans
Shirt: INC at Macys
Shoes: Target Clearance
Bag: H&M
I love this shirt — it’s striped, obviously I love it! But also because it is flattering while feeling like softest cotton ever. It goes without saying, I think that I love Casual Friday, right?
*****
And that’s what I’ve been wearing, and well — mostly where to get it.
Any glaring omissions?
July Favorites
This might be my favorite “favorites” list yet because all of these things have been making me so freaking happy this month!
1. Game of Thrones
Remember how at the end of last month I was all, “Boo Hoo…I never have any time to watch tv” and then I had the grand realization that I make the friggen schedule? Well. I have rectified that and made myself some time to sit down and watch Game of Thrones (Season One) and it has been delightful! Well, maybe delightful is the wrong word, what with all the killing people and random naked women. But if you watch it, you probably understand where I am coming from. If you don’t watch it…well I guess judge that how you will. The thing is I am always game (ha! see what I did there!) to watch a show that has lots of characters, families, dramas and story lines. Epic television, if you will. Of course, I actually have to watch it with the captions on like a dork, and after every episode I have to read plot summaries on line to make sure I got everything. But I like multi-media experiences like that, so YAY! I’m in love.
2. Stone Fruit
So, you know, I try not to eat too much fruit like a good little Paleo Gal Trying to Lose Weight. I keep my carbohydrate consumption to fun things like greens and veggies and what not. But let me tell you something, all of that goes out the window when the summer stone fruit shows up. Peaches! Nectarines! Plums! Cherries! I really can’t get enough right now and have been totally enjoying Mother Nature’s delicious candy. Oh my god I can’t even take myself seriously when I say use that expression. 🙂 I know I already mentioned this, but it is worth repeating because OMG SO GOOD.
3. Garnier BB Cream
Despite its stuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuupid name and ubiquity on The Internet, I actually really do like this product And it’s a buck cheaper on Amazon than at Target (holla!) Anyway, BB Cream. That name is stupid. Saying it out loud? Stupider. It is a “perfecting” lotion that is supposed to even out skin tone with the added benefit of sunscreen. Well I rarely find that a lotion makes my skin look “perfect” but I’ll tell you why I love this — because it makes it look pretty good. And on the weekends, sometimes that is all I care about. This has become an absolute staple on Saturday and Sunday mornings when I want to go run errands but don’t want to put on makeup. BB Cream (barf!) and lip gloss make you look a little less bedraggled and a little more put together. BB Cream — making lazy people less scraggly since 2012! Yes I realize this is the worst marketing copy ever written about a product, but it is true. And less scraggly for the lazy person is *totally* worth the $10.
4. Tri Tip Steaks
I’ve long been a Tri-tip fan, after all I’m from California. This is our meat claim to fame. But to grill up a Tri-tip Roast it takes anywhere from 40-45 minutes and a lot of monitoring. Lately I’ve been seeing Tri-tip steaks everywhere and it is the same delicious cut of meat but in a little mini-steak form. It’s perfect! 10 minutes on the grill, one flip, and it’s a simple weeknight dinner that tastes like time consuming weekend-style bbq. I am in love with the convenience and flavor. If you see them in your Whole Foods or Costco (the only places I’ve seen them here) PICK THEM UP!
5. Kelly Green
I know summer is for neon and clothing that appears to taste like sherbet, but dammit I’m loving green. Kelly green, in fact. It’s just such a versatile color. The blazer on the left is suuuuuuuper old. How old, you ask? It is from back in the day when Old Navy made clothes that were made to fit really well. Can you remember back that far? I’m talking YEARS. The top right dress is from the Gap but I can’t find a link for it. Hmmm. And the bottom right tank is from Old Navy. (Here is one that is almost identical – and $10) Not the well fitting era, but the material is light and crepe-y and perfect for 100+ degree weather. Uh, just don’t put a hot pink sweater over it obviously.
6. Sunset Magazine
We’ve had a subscription to Sunset for basically FOREVER and I really really enjoy it, but I’ll tell you it is particularly awesome in the summer. I just love reading the tales of local travel, the recipes for fresh food, the landscaping and gardening tips and food adventure inspiration. I just find it particularly inspiring and I will take my inspiration anywhere I can get it. It’s not quite as juicy as Cosmo and Glamour, but I’m pretty sure at this point I am okay with that. 🙂
*****
So that’s what I’m loving this month, what about you?
Bodega Bay Weekend — The Last Hurrah
I took the end of last week off and on Friday afternoon we hit the road. Destination: Bodega Bay — a sleepy little beach town most notable for being the back drop in Alfred Hitchcock’s The Birds. When we got home yesterday afternoon I realized that have taken our last scheduled weekend away this summer, and true confession: I’m kind of glad.
I always start summer looking forward to traipsing around the state and staying at new places and seeing new (or just old and beloved) things. But by the end, my inner introvert comes out and all I really want is to be at home enjoying my house and my yard and my routine.
Oh, how I’ve turned into such an old lady! 🙂
The mission was a to get away and celebrate our friend Matt’s 30th Birthday. The mission was accomplished!
The scenery was pretty stellar, the house perched on a golf course that overlooked the ocean, and the weather really cooperated. Bodega Bay is known for being very coastal and foggy, so we were surprised by how much sunshine and warm weather we experienced.
I really can’t say enough about how beautiful Sonoma County is. Garrett spent the first 10 years of his life there and my grandma moved there when I was 10, so it’s a place that sparks a little nostalgia in both of us.
There was a good amount of boozing and relaxing and eating ALL the salt water taffy, so it should come as no surprise that we are now *actively* looking forward to our Whole 30.
As nice as it is to get away, sometimes it feels just as sweet to be home! I took today off work to get my wits about me and get some stuff done around the house, and that’s just what I plan to do. I’ll be back tomorrow with some of my favorite things this month, and the rest of the week I have lots to say about Whole 30 strategies, new recipes I’m loving and our scientific taste test (ha!) of about 10 different types of coconut water. And uh, they DO NOT all taste the same.
Hope you had a great weekend!
Christmas in July
I’m going to make a pretty bold statement and I invite you to agree or disagree: It feels harder to eat healthy in the summer than it does over the holidays. This sounds sort of counterintuitive I realize, but hear me out for a minute.
Yes, Thanksgiving is a food centered holiday and the month between that day and Christmas are often filled with excessive foodie/boozie opportunities to party with friends. I definitely see treats around my cubicle filled office, and everyone seems to want to show their love for each other with baked goods and See’s Candy. The season is stressful, and I get it. At times we want to “reward ourselves” with a delicious taste of something. We want to “let loose and celebrate” with the people we love. And I do agree that this can pose some challenges. I am not made of wood, people — the holidays are certainly a temptation. But let’s talk a little bit about summer.
First of all summer is THREE MONTHS LONG. I’m not talking four or five weeks of forced decadence, I’m talking an entire quarter of the year where deliciousness abounds and everyone acts like “Oh Hey — No big whoop!” You’ve got 12 weeks of BBQs, Birthday Parties, Weekends Away, and Legitimate Long Vacations where you feel determined to Treat Yo Self! It is the reason that Cobbler and Fresh Whipped Cream were invented. And all of this goes on all summer long! And don’t even get me started about the appropriate ratio of summer nights to summer cocktails. OY! I can’t even go there or I will want to pour myself a drink.
Oh wait, I just did. You see what I’m saying?
While fall and winter lend themselves to cabbage-dense soups and roasted vegetables, summer is filled with ALL OF THE BEST FRUIT IMAGINABLE. I realize this is not a complete tragedy, but as someone who tries to keep the sugar they eat low (usually I have *maybe* 1 serving of fruit per day), I am definitely struggling right now to not eat ALL OF THE PEACHES DAILY. There is an entire box on my counter top and it basically sings to me all day long.
I know you think Christmas parties are bad, but seriously I can only eat so many cheese filled appetizers or iterations of white chocolate desserts. But if you left me alone with this box of peaches right now, you would come back only to find me covered in a puddle of sticky fruit juice, laying on my kitchen floor in a diabetic coma. Luckily summer also has lots of amazing vegetables and great weather that leaves no excuse not to get outside and be active, but I’m sticking to my hypothesis here. Summer is nuts. Right now I am freely admitting that I am roaming around being a poster child for this movement:
Speaking of that 20%, last night there was a Food Truck Festival in the Whole Foods parking lot behind my house. Please don’t get Portland PTSD on my behalf, we made it out alive! I had actually totally forgotten about it and then I opened up our windows and heard the DJ in the parking lot. Hello, siren song. Sing to me…
We headed out just to see what they had to offer, and hopefully find a few mostly-Paleo options.
Instead, the first truck we saw was a Belgian Waffle Truck, which of course instantly made us nostalgic for our Portland Appetizer Waffle and we needed to recreate that experience by splitting one immediately. Nice rationalizing right? So the night started off with a Nutella and Whip Cream covered BANG! (OHMYGOD)
We waited in line at the slider truck hoping to score some burgers on a bed of lettuce to kind of make up for bathing in Nutella, but as we were in line THEY SOLD OUT OF FOOD. The Universe was clearly not on our side. So we headed over to Drewski’s Hot Rod Kitchen where they were serving…SANDWICHES.
And that’s where this night sort of went of the rails. We ordered The Mustang with some Sweet Potato Fries (doing what we can here! Sweet potatoes! ha!) and let me tell you, it was OUT OF THIS WORLD. Korean Braised BBQ Beef shredded to tender perfection, Kimchi with a touch of spice (Hey look! I’m eating fermented food! Points, right?), Shredded Daikon, SRIRACHA-WASABI AIOLI, and aged Havarti all served grilled cheese style.
Oh you guys…I’m sorry I’m not sorry.
Since we had split everything, we decided it was only right to get a tiny little mix of Vanilla Bean + Nutella gelato to wash it all down. Ok that is a bold face lie. I wanted the gelato, Garrett said “Holly this is a terrible idea and you will regret it.”
I did not, in the moment. Shortly thereafter my tummy was telling another story. I hate it when Garrett is right.
In conclusion, Summer is haaaaaaaaard. But this is probably as good of a time as any to mention the following:
On August 1st Garrett and I are starting our first Whole 30!
Hey — how crazy do I sound juxtaposing pictures of me eating a sandwich with basically the strictest 30 day Paleo challenge ever? HA! Probably pretty crazy. But we are actually really excited about it and have been contemplating it since May. June and July weren’t really going to work since we were traveling so much, but we have decided to get back to our Happy Place during the month of August and embark on probably our biggest nutritional challenge together since we started exploring Paleo. We’re knee deep into planning, prepping and strategizing for a really eye-opening month. I can’t wait!
As usual, I am happy to document my food exploits for your benefit so riddle me this, folks:
*What elements would you like to see surrounding this Whole 30? Recipes? Pictures of Food? Our reasoning behind doing it? Strategies? Resources? Nothing at all, shut up about what you are eating already, Holly?
and then tell me this…
*YOU would have opted for post sandwich gelato too, wouldn’t you?
I knew I liked you. 🙂
Life Snapshot: The Seed
Yesterday I woke up at 5 am and made Monday my bitch. I had a quick lunch, was super productive in the afternoon and by 5pm I was at the gym sweating like my head was a water faucet (it wasn’t even that hot!) The workout was brutal — Cleans and Cleans and MORE CLEANS, but since I have been working reeeeeeeeeeeeeeally hard to improve my clean form the past 3 weeks I wasn’t all that sad to see them on the menu. There is something incredibly satisfying about doing hard work and actually seeing progress. I left the gym exhausted and molded myself right into the scorching leather of my car’s seat and headed home.
Halfway home I decided this gorgeous evening called for some sun roof action. It was super windy and even in a ponytail my hair was kind of blowing all over the place. I clicked through some radio stations playing endless iterations of teeny-bop boy bands and as I got to my last pre-set this song came on:
It’s a song that I must have listened to a thousand times the summer I met Garrett and instantly it reminded me of hot nights, drinking beers on patios, playing darts, feeling the twinge of butterflies and getting to know someone new. I smiled a little bit to myself, turned the radio up way louder than appropriate for a 33 year old woman driving a Subaru and drove home thinking that this song was indeed a seed planted all those years ago. And almost 10 years later I am just so happy that it is still growing.
Other People’s Thoughts on CrossFit
Liz wrote a great post about Religion and CrossFit. Well, more specifically, how the discussion of both subjects are similar. Most people who include CrossFit as part of their fitness routine love it so much that they do have a tendency to evangelize.
I understand this. You could put a podium in front of me right now and I could INSTANTLY preach. But preaching is sort of obnoxious, yes? So I try not to do that around here, but since Fitness-Talk is one of the core themes in this space I will certainly do so more than the average bear. That said, I really enjoyed her points. Especially this one:
In other words, I’m trying to limit my fitness douchery, and thinking about it context of religion is helpful for that. The satisfaction I get from this lifestyle is not from convincing others it’s the right way to live, but by just living it for myself.
And I find it exceptionally helpful to think about CrossFit Talk in terms of Religious Talk when trying to measure where I am falling on the Evangelical Douche-ometer.
******
Speaking of CrossFit (and eventually again of douchebags, you just wait) my box was mentioned in our local paper and it was a really lovely article. Almost two years into to working out at American River CrossFit it still blows my mind that I feel pride about…my gym???? I mean, dude, you guys that is weird. Who has pride about their gym? But it is the truth. There are so many good people within those walls and I’m a better person for working out there. And if you’re ever curious about enhancing your experience or looking for unique additions to your fitness journey, take a moment to find out where to buy a sword for an intriguing and empowering twist to your workouts.
The comments on the article, of course, are RIDICULOUS! Typical random, ignorant, anonymous internet opninions. Some were so damn hysterical though that my abs still hurt from laughing. Especially this one:
“While most of these “no-gym” workout programs do see to have an effect let’s recognize what they are based on: prison-cell workouts.”
OHMYGOD…..SNORT!
I’ll be rocking my prison cell workout today at 5pm, and I totally can’t wait!
******
Garrett and I spent the weekend nerding out in front of the new computer we got from 25pc.com watching the Spectator Stream at the CrossFit Games and man there is inspiration oozing out of every pore of my body today.
Prison Workouts or not, CrossFit creates some pretty awesome athletes.
*****
Did you watch The CrossFit Games?
