March Craziness + Anniversary Fun

I realize I haven’t posted in about 3 weeks…the truth is, I seriously have not had the time to! This time of year at my job is pretty busy and exhausting. The cool thing is– my kids already took their first SOL! (For those not reading locally, that’s our state standardized test). 5th grade takes the writing test in March while the others will begin mid-May. I felt really good about the test this year and I think my teammates and I prepared them pretty well for it. I have never seen those kids work so hard on anything…they were truly rockstars!

Onto a completely new subject: Jason and I celebrated our first anniversary last weekend! We spent a lovely evening together going out to dinner and enjoying a replica of the top of our wedding cake. 2 weeks from tomorrow, we plan to continue the celebrations over spring break when we embark on Royal Caribbean’s Grandeur of the Seas to sail to the Bahamas. I actually booked our trip the day after we returned from our honeymoon last year– it is Jason’s 30th birthday gift plus our first anniversary celebration. Also, the reason why I will be working over the summer…but hey, totally worth it! It may be our last “luxurious” weekend until after we buy a house. Saving for a downpayment in the D.C. area is not an easy thing, let me tell you!

A little toasting on the anniversary of our big day.

A re-make of the top of our wedding cake. It was identical!

Speaking of houses– after a couple of years of indecision, my parents finally decided on moving to South Florida. They will be moving close to my hometown of Boca Raton to an area called Parkland. The house they purchased a couple of weeks ago is new and will be absolutely gorgeous. From what I can tell, the community itself looks like the resorts we saw last year in Punta Cana. I’m super happy for them, but I know the distance is going to be really hard for me.

I feel like there’s a lot to look forward to this spring. Spring break for starters. Although, ask me 3 weeks from now if I still feel the same way. I think I’m just really excited for our vacation. I’m also excited for sunny weather, spring dresses, my birthday and the end-of-school-year festivities. Summer vacation will be pretty cool, too. We will be taking our yearly trip to Michigan at the end of June to visit Jason’s family. I will also be teaching advanced academics summer school again. Do I even need to mention the pool days? No, I don’t.

I hope everyone else has something nice to look forward to as well and that my teacher friends are remembering to breathe.

That’s all for now.

❤ M

Who doesn’t love free stuff?

I mentioned in my last post that I was going to share about some goodies that recently acquired. I signed up for an Influenster account a few months ago after seeing an Instagram shot of a friend’s Vox Box she received. I signed up, took some surveys, wrote a few reviews (it’s almost like Yelp for materialistic people) and a few months later, I finally qualified for my box of free stuff! I opened my door the day after V-day to a pink J’Adore Vox Box. What’s cool about the stuff is that most of the things were full-sized samples and I actually used them!

My favorite product in there was the Boots Botanics Ionic Clay Mask. I have to rave about this product. I never really wore masks until recently, and I wish I had! That stuff is great. You can literally see the gunk coming out of your pores and my skin felt amazing after for a few days. I will continue to purchase this mask. Apparently, it’s only $10 at Target, and it has a ton of other good reviews. Why didn’t I discover this before my wedding? (I also wish I would have strength trained my upper body, but we won’t go there right now!)

The Red Rose tea in the box was fantastic as well– it turned me on to drinking tea, actually. Unfortunately, I have not been able to find it in stores which is kind of a bummer…maybe it’s not super mainstream yet, so I’ll give it a few months. I hope that I can continue to get these boxes in the future– it’s the little things, man.

I’ll be sure to keep you posted on other cool things I try!

❤ M

Winter, I’m ready for you to leave.

Life just seems to be whizzing by lately. I can’t believe it’s been almost 3 weeks since I’ve updated last! And what do you know, it’s another snow day. This winter seems to be never-ending– one of the craziest winters I’ve seen in Northern Virginia since I moved here almost 13 years ago.

I’ve been pretty busy over the past few weeks. I’ve amped up my daily routine a little bit to get more done. I finally convinced Jason to join the gym with me, so we get up at 4:15 AM every weekday and are at the gym by 4:45. We do a mix of cardio and strength training and are home by 6:15 to get ready for work. After work, I have been spending my evenings doing stuff for school and going to bed by 9! As you can see, I’m not left with a ton of time to update!

Last week was the first full week of school we’ve had since December with no 2-hour delays or snow days. That didn’t last very long, since we got 2 snow days so far this week! We did however, get a little snow last week, but it didn’t stick to the roads so we were still in school. I took my students outside at recess to measure the snowfall throughout the day and they measured 2″-2.5″! That was a first.

This past weekend was Jason’s 30th birthday. Jason isn’t big on birthdays to begin with, and since his big present is a cruise ticket for spring break next month, we kept it low-key and had friends come over to our place. We all had a really good time and it was good to catch up with everyone! I wanted Jason to have something to open up on his birthday so I got him a Fitbit Zip– hopefully he ends up enjoying it as much as I do.

In other news, I have been trying to make efforts to eat a little better, without jumping on the Paleo or Eating Clean bandwagon. I call it “eating cleaner”. It’s my version of saying I will eat more vegetables, more protein and less processed food. I mean, let’s be real here. I like food. This food includes pizza and sometimes cupcakes. I workout 6-7 days a week so that I can still eat this stuff. It’s about moderation. Last week, I tried making spaghetti squash for the first time and totally nailed it. Aside from the actual action of cutting the squash in half, it was a piece of cake. I put olive oil, salt and pepper in each half, turned them over on a baking sheet, baked at 350 degrees for 45 minutes and scooped out the squash with a fork. Pour spaghetti sauce and a little cheese over the top and you’re ready to go. Now the next step is getting Jason to eat it.

  

Yesterday, I was feeling particularly disgusting from all of the birthday cake and cookies, so I decided I would push myself to run a 5K on the treadmill. My goal was to be under 40 minutes, since the last time I ran one, it was around that time. I am not a fast runner by any means and to be honest, I kind of hate running. Ever since I was in high school and discovered I had exercise-induced asthma, it’s always been a challenge. Over the last year or so, I’ve been working on my endurance and making sure I’m pushing myself each day a little more. I was pleased to say I ran a 5K in just under 36 minutes. It only included a couple of walk/water breaks. Who knows, maybe I’ll sign up for a race one day? The thought of running outside and not on a treadmill kind of freaks me out for some reason, so I’d need to overcome that.

It looks like that’s all for now. Stay tuned for more updates– I’m going to share about some goodies I’ve acquired recently!

❤ M

Recent Happenings.

I feel like winter is just going on and on and on. Now that holidays are over, it seems like this part of the year is just boring and slow-moving. It’s also the time of the school year where I’m starting to get anxious about all that’s to come in the second half of the school year! My fifth graders are closer to sixth grade than they are fifth and testing season starts in about a month. Where did this school year go, anyway? Oh yeah, it’s been buried under snow!

Today is our second snow day this week– which just so happens to also be Valentine’s Day. I was extremely grateful for this lovely break extending the weekend. I have not been on my game this week…you know it’s bad when my students are asking, “Mrs. Murray, are you okay?” several times a day and calling me out for being so out of tune. You could say it’s the winter blues mixed with sleep deprivation. Miss Lilly had been keeping me up at night because she stopped sleeping through the night in her crate. Luckily, with the help of family and friends, one of them being Lisa, the dog trainer at Canine Performance, the issue is now solved. Lisa recommends keeping your dog’s crate outside of your bedroom, because your bedroom is your own crate. Great idea– I have slept just fine the past three nights and haven’t heard a peep from tiny chewbacca. Thanks, Lisa!

Even though I’ve been feeling fuzzy lately, I have been very good about getting my workouts in. The last few weeks I’ve gotten a workout in 6-7 days a week. I don’t know where the energy comes from, but I am grateful– I feel great and my clothes keep getting bigger on me. I’ve even started making it a point to add running into my workouts. My goal is 2 miles a day along with my other cardio. This is a big step for me because when I first started, I could run VERY slow for a small fraction of a mile before having to stop. The snow did not stop me yesterday– even though I couldn’t drive to my normal gym, I walked to the gym in my apartment complex. No excuses, right? You can see the fashion statement I made below with my compression pants and Hunter boots. So chic.

My plans for Valentine’s Day? Well, as of right now, it’s kind of your typical day. Spiced up my pancake recipe for a V-day breakfast for Jason (see below!). Gym, taking care of things at home, doing some planning and prep for work and then tonight Jason’s girls and Marisa (my sister) are coming over for the weekend. My friend Jaimi is also bringing over her adorable pup Niko for us to puppy-sit. Looking forward to some down time with good company. There’s never a dull moment when Marisa is around!

Well, Valentines, I hope you have an awesome V-day and happy Friday and perhaps maybe even a snow day if you’re in the D.C. region! Stay tuned for more updates!

❤ M

5 Sweet (Some literally) Valentine’s Ideas

One of my favorite holidays since I was a kid has always been Valentine’s Day. Yes, they can tend to suck if you’re single, but why not rock some red, buy yourself a box of chocolates and enjoy it anyway with your best friends? That’s how the picture below was born that my college roommates found hilarious. Jenn and Annie, if you’re reading this, you’re welcome for bringing this picture back!

I decided I’d share some of my favorite V-day ideas below that I found on Pinterest. Take a look, use these ideas this week, share them with friends, or just enjoy looking at them once because they’re cute anyway.

1. Crushed conversation heart cookies…check out the cute proposal hearts here!

2. Valentine’s Day bunting banners (I am collecting banners for each holiday…love them!). You can find similar ones on Etsy.

3. Valentine’s Day cookies– you can’t go wrong with cake-mix cookies like these:

4. Creative and possibly corny Valentine’s:

 

5. Valentine’s Chex mix (because who doesn’t love this stuff?!)

Now that you’re probably close to being in a diabetic coma just looking at these, why not choose one to try out this week? Enjoy, Valentine’s!

❤ M

Fitness trackers: Why you need one!

Allow me to preface this post by saying that I am a loyal Fitbit user for over a year now. Fitness trackers seem to have become popular over the past few months as they were without a doubt one of the top gifts this past holiday season. I’m not trying to say that I had one before they were cool, but instead, that I’ve been using one for a while now and I believe that my opinion matters more than some of the other reviews you’ll read online.

Here are the top reasons why I personally find it necessary not to leave the house without wearing it:

1. It’s an eye opener to see how exactly active or inactive you are. Experts recommend about 10,000 steps a day (approximately 5 miles). Where do you stand?

2. Motivational tool: This little thing has made me think that a “lazy Sunday” is for the birds. Keeping that 10,000 step goal in mind, you have a job to attempt to complete each day. If I see that I logged 2,000 steps only walking around my home, it makes me realize that I need to do more. There’s also a feature where you can see how many steps your friends have taken as well. Some people just like to compete and that’s motivation enough for them. I realize that some of my Fitbit friends are training for marathons so I’ll let them stay in first place 🙂

3. It zaps laziness. I have no problem taking the long way, taking the stairs, or parking far away now. If it gets you extra steps, why not?

4. Syncs to 3rd party applications: I have linked my Fitbit account with my MyFitnessPal account. The two go hand-in-hand nicely– when I log onto my Fitbit Dashboard, I can see my caloric intake and output for the day.

5. Fitbit Aria Scale: Trackers sync to the scale you can purchase. Your weight and body fat percentage will then automatically be updated to your account via wifi connectivity (to be kept private, of course). The best thing ever was watching the numbers on the scale go down over time and logging into my account to see a line graph showing this information.

If you’re thinking about getting one, I highly recommend it. I use a Fitbit Zip— the little thing that you can clip to your pants or inside your clothes. The Zip model is one of the few that the company sells– I chose it due to the size and that it can be worn discreetly.

Fun fact: I even wore it under my wedding dress, and logged almost 9,000 steps that day from all the dancing!

❤ M

Recipe: Easy bagel pizzas

It seems kind of ridiculous to post a recipe for something that seems so easy to make. I’ve had many of these over the course of 26 years and surprisingly, I found that I didn’t particularly care for them. I either found them too saucy, too greasy, too messy, too bland, or a combination of those adjectives. After a few tries, I came up with just the right combination of ingredients for these to be an easy and enjoyable weeknight dinner.

You need:

• 1 bagel per serving (I use Thomas’ Everything bagels)
• 2-cup bag of mozzarella cheese (I use the reduced fat 2% milk kind)
• small can of tomato sauce (1 can can be used for 2 servings)
• bag of Hormel Pepperoni minis

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees and cover a cookie with aluminum foil to catch any ingredients that fall.

2. Cut bagels in half and lay them on cookie sheet. Add spoonfuls of tomato sauce to the tops. You may need to do this a couple of times since the bagel will absorb the first layer.

     3. Next, add cheese. You can use as much or as little as you want.

     4. Now, it’s time for toppings. I choose to use the tiny pepperonis so the pizza doesn’t get too greasy, but you can add things like olives, mushrooms, etc.

     5. Place in oven and bake for 12-15 minutes. Keep an eye on them– I believe the cooking time will depend on how much ingredients you put on.

Hope you enjoy– I usually serve with a side of salad.

❤ M

Review: Old Navy Active Pants

      

One of the most annoying things to me is how no matter what, I never seem to have enough workout pants and I’m constantly needing to do laundry because of this. I am trying to shift away from wearing Victoria’s Secret Pink leggings while working out, because they were not made for that purpose and I’ll leave it at that.

Everyone knows that compression pants are the best to exercise in. Earlier this year, I bought an amazing pair of Under Armour crop-length compression leggings and I absolutely love them. Perfect fit, clean look and very comfortable. They cost around $40. I wasn’t about to buy 5 more pairs of the same exact pair of pants and pay a pretty penny for them, so I had been on a mission lately to find the perfect pants for a more affordable price.

I bought a few pairs of pants from Target which I liked. Not as great as the UA pair, but I’ll take it. Target’s active wear tends to be pricey as well, and I find that it’s a little bit cheaper than the brand names. At that point, it’s only worth it if their stuff is on sale, which sometimes happens.

Last week, I ventured into Old Navy to see what they had after a friend recommended their workout pants. I was pleased to see that they had crop-length compression leggings on sale for $12 a pair and full-length ones for $15! I tried them on and loved the fit– they are cut similarly to the UA ones, although the material is a little different. I ended up buying three pairs and wearing them to the gym over the last week and loved every pair. They do not slip down while running, nor did they stretch out in awkward places. The best part is that for three pairs, I only spent about $40 (the cost of one UA pair). Even if you find that they are selling for full price, they are worth it.

Will I stop buying name brands like Under Armour? Heck no. But I don’t feel the need to spend hundreds of dollars at a time on their clothes either.

❤ M

Recipe: Mallory’s pancakes

In my last post, I mentioned my love for breakfast food. Since it’s a snowy day here in D.C. and most people are trapped at home, I figured it would be the perfect time to share my pancake recipe. I make these at least once a week. I adapted the recipe from one I found online. The good thing about them is, if you bake and cook a lot, chances are you already have the ingredients in your fridge and pantry.

The recipe below serves 2-3. Double up depending on how many people you’re cooking for.

Here’s what you need:

• 1 1/2 cups flour
• 3 1/2 tsp baking powder
• 1 tbsp sugar
• 1 tsp salt
• 1-2 tsp cinnamon
• 1 1/4 cups milk
• 1 egg
• 3 tbsp melted butter
• chocolate chips (or whatever else you want to mix in)

Directions:

1.     In a large mixing bowl, mix together flour, baking powder, sugar and salt. (Save cinnamon for later).

2.     Pour in milk, egg, and melted butter. Mix until well-blended.

3.     After everything else is mixed, pour and mix in the cinnamon. Here’s where you get to decide how much you’d like to use. I like mine really cinnamon-y.

4.     Pour about 1/4 cup of pancake batter at a time onto lightly greased griddle. AFTER you have done this, sprinkle chocolate chips on top of batter. (I do this because it keeps the chocolate chips from sinking to the bottom of the pancake batter)

5.     Wait until batter begins to stiffen and bubble up, flip over when slightly browned and cook the other side.

And….voila! Serve with bacon, sausage or whatever tickles your fancy. Enjoy!

❤ M

Good morning, sunny Saturday.

          I’ve pretty much accepted the fact that my life is too busy during the week to be able to post. Working full time as a teacher is incredibly tiring and then when you get home, keeping up with a household, taking care of a puppy and making sure I get a workout in is another full time job in itself! Like every other married female who brings home some of the dough, I look forward to weekends because I actually have time to breathe and enjoy some free time. So, here I am. 

          Last night, Jason and I enjoyed a night in. We ordered Chinese food from our favorite take-out place and watched a few episodes of one of our favorite shows, Parenthood. I absolutely love that show. I think the producers did an amazing job developing the characters and the story line. My favorite character is Max, a now teenage boy, with autism. I loved watching him grow throughout the show. If you haven’t watched it yet, I highly recommend it. It’s on Netflix and the current season is on Hulu. You’re welcome.

          I also spent some time putting up a few decorations for Valentine’s Day. I love seasonal decorations and I’ve been gathering little nik naks for the past couple of years for the main holidays. This year, I was surprised to find that the dollar section in Target had some cute things. I decorated my mantle with some, which is pictured below. I also put heart felt garland over my three bay windows in my dining room. Even if you’re completely single, why not be a little festive? Who doesn’t love a little red and pink in their life? My good friends may be reading this thinking it’s no shock that my bridal shower last February was Valentine’s Day-themed. (Which reminds me, I’ll post some pictures of that day soon, since I failed as a blogger during that exciting time!)

          This morning, I got up and made a home-cooked breakfast. This is pretty much a weekend ritual in our household. My love for breakfast food is like that of Ron Swanson and Leslie Knope’s. Gimme all da waffles. But seriously. This morning, I made an egg scramble that was inspired by the western omelette. Ingredients are below, and the final product is pictured at the top of the page. 

• 5 eggs, uncooked
• 1/4 cup diced red pepper
• 1/4 cup diced green pepper
• 1/4 cup diced or sliced ham (I sliced up lunch meat)
• 3 tbsp milk
• 2 slices of cheese

          I’m assuming you know what to do after that. I put the peppers and ham in  the skillet when eggs were about halfway cooked. Serve with bacon (obviously) and toast if you’re not counting carbs. Enjoy!

That’s all I’ll leave you with for now. I think in the future I will post more of my recipes and go into more detail, so stay tuned for those.

Have a fabulous Saturday, friends!

❤ M