MIND AND BODY KICK START

With time slowly winding down before my one month vacation has finally ended, I have decided to take it upon myself to a 30 day challenge in order to improve not only my overall body and fitness but also other aspects of my life as well.

As I wandered around Indigo, meticulously looking between pre-teen covers of vampires and science-fiction heartthrobs and trying not to be obvious as I drifted back and forth to the romance section, I finally came across the peaceful self-help area of the store. Being quietly tucked away behind the crowded Starbucks café, this lovely little place distracted me for most of my time waiting for a call from a friend. Truthfully, I didn't know what to expect (maybe people in pretzel yoga stances or prayer beads?) but I found it comforting finding both men, women and people of every age surveying the shelves.
                       
                                   Great, maybe I wasn't the only one needing a little self-help!

With that little enlightenment, I came across the book "The Happiness Project" and after reading a few pages, I contemplated what really did make me happy in life- good friends, a loving relationship, financial stability, a happy household, successful at my job- well the list goes on. But how do we get there and more importantly, how do we sustain it?

I think it is rather difficult and in fact, misleading to think of happiness as an end goal and I think this is what the author was getting at in her book. In order to be happy, we need to set small, attainable goals that will contribute to our happiness rather than get us to the imaginary promise land of "happiness."

And as a result of this, I have decided to take a 30 day challenge not as a way to always assess what makes me happy, but to document what does and then go from there. In all honestly, a large part of this will be related to beauty, mind and fitness as this is where a large part of my time and energy goes into. However with my looming job hunting over the horizon, I know it will expand into much more important parts of my life.

The point of this is to kick start my mind and body into a happier and healthier life. So have fun and enjoy the ride with my as I share with you my journey to find my little brightsides! xo

THINKING OUT LOUD

Writing can be a difficult task for anyone, but with university life only a couple months behind me, I am currently stuck in that "academic, must find reliable sources" phase. I am currently tackling a new project for a non-profit organization I work for and with this new task, I have the amazing opportunity to write a children's book that will be sold at the store front. But how can I possibly move from being chastised for using "I" to now writing solely from a child's point of view? With time and practice I tell you. With this new experience, I finally took the time yesterday to head out to my neighbourhood's Starbucks to sit down and write out my thoughts. Here's what I decided to wear on the lovely sunny Toronto day!

 

I haven't had the chance to wear shorts this season and it was great busting out an old pair from Urban Outfitters. I paired them with a silk top and bandeau from Aritzia, a camo jacket also from Urban Outfitters and my new Zara flats. My flats are actually proving to be very comfortable but my heels do tend to stick out a lot. Oh well, c'est la vie!

 

 

I absolutely love pairing edgy, street clothes with more dainty, feminine pieces. I chose to pair my camo jacket with a soft silk tank from Aritzia to add some contrast and texture. To make the outfit even more interesting, I added a pink lace bralette underneath to peek out from my silk top. Paired with my Casio watch, it was a perfect blend of my favourite styles.





My mind was exploding with new ideas for the book but nothing sounded quite right when it appeared on my laptop screen. I tend to have this habit to over doubt myself and this time wasn't any different. But I guess this is how all writers feel sometimes. After submitting the "roughest of rough drafts" I proceeded to second guess why I even sent it in the first place. But I believe now that half the battle of writing, is having the guts to press "send" and wait for feedback. So that is what I am doing. Do you have any tips for first time writers? Let me know, xo

X DETAILS

With summer slipping away in this poor Toronto weather, I am slowing trying to transition my closet from shorts and tanks to basic fall pieces. I love this time of the year, not only because the weather is slightly cooler and more comfortable than earlier before, but also because it is finally SALE SEASON! With stores making room for their new fall stock, old summer and even spring items are left to be manhandled by us bargain shoppers. With that being said, I went into Zara yesterday hoping to find some great work pants only to pick up these lovely pair of leather flats.

 

 

The tag on them states "authentic leather" which makes me wonder how I got them on such a good deal. I picked up a size 6 in this footwear after trying on the 6 1/2 and finding my feet slip out at the ends. I have to admit however, the size 6 is a bit snug but based on past experience, I am anticipating these shoes to stretch a little. And if not, well at least I look cute in them. My favourite part about these shoes are the skin texture detail at the top. It's s a great little twist on a such a basic wardrobe staple.

 

With an original price of $69.90 and being discounted to a whopping $25.99 I can definitely say I made a wonderful purchase! I can't wait to start wearing them and working them into this cooler weather. Until then, happy shopping xo,

Vegetarian Stuffed Tomatoes

Happy Thursday everyone! It's been a while since I've logged on to my laptop, but I can definitely say that I am back and ready to do some much needed writing therapy. Furthermore, I am happy to announce that I am finally finished university as well as my student teaching for a lovely grade 6/7 classroom and cannot wait to see what the future has in store for me.

With that in mind, here's a super easy and healthy recipe to add some flavor in your life (especially if you are in that post-grad couch potato phase like me). And of course, with 3 weeks left for my much anticipated vacation, I am doing my best to limit the amount of process or fried food into my diet. I am so happy I now have the time to cook, workout and enjoy a little vitamin C!

What you will need:

1. 1-2 large tomatoes (I made 2 but I couldn't finish both of them)
2. Croutons or day old bread
3. Basil
4. Dried Oregano
5. Parmesan cheese
6. Olive oil
7. Salt and pepper
8. 1 egg

Instructions:

1. Cut an opening at the top of the tomato. Using an ice cream scooper or small spoon, scoop out the inside of the tomato leaving 1/2 inch at the bottom and the sides.
2. Mix together the croutons/bread, dried oregano, parmesan cheese, olive oil and salt and pepper together in a separate bowl.
3. Place stuffing inside tomato being careful not to overstuff it.
4. Put in a 400 degree oven for 15 minutes.
5. Take stuffed tomatoes out of oven and break an egg directly over the opening of the tomato. To ensure the egg does not leak over the side, make a small ditch in the stuffing to hold the egg in place.
6. Put back in oven for 18-20 minutes.
7. Serve over arugula or other mixed greens you have in your fridge.

That's my little brightside, what's yours? xo,

Small Steps, Big Successes

Happy start to the week everyone! With reading week finally at a close, I can honestly say it's sort of refreshing to finally be back in the cramped classrooms of university life. Mind you, I know March will be full of study sessions and long nights, but we'll cross that bridge once we get there.

All in all, this week has been very productive for me. I'm finally back teaching at Story Planet and on top of that,  I plan to get started on my 2 essays due in the next couple weeks. With that in mind, I'm happy to say that I a managed to fit in 4 days of fitness last week and plan to do this same for this time slot. I've been working out since January but for the most part, my workouts have been focused around cardio-the bike, the row machine, the elliptical, you name it. But as I have indicated in my last posts, I have finally decided to incorporate weight training into my routine! Exciting!

So, who knew that the weight machines actually weren't so scary? In all honesty, I had to go to the YMCA gym with my boyfriend to muster up the confidence to first start on the machines but hey, we all need to begin somewhere! I am really not the type to try and depend on a man to feel strong, but my boyfriend is a great source of emotional support, and it felt great to work out with him (something we haven't done since the beginning of my university days). Currently, I can't really lift more than 35 pounds in ANYTHING, but I am happy to be taking the initiative to feel fit.

Anyways on top of all this, my biggest success came today when I finally used the weight machines at my university's gym! I guess it's really all about finding the right time when the gym isn't too hectically busy and overcrowded and I can take the time to read the machine's instructions. I'm assuming most people don't work out at 12:30 because it's lunch time, but seeing as I head there right after my 12 o'clock class, you can't blame me for my good timing. As of today, I realized my legs definitely need some work, seeing as the senior lady beside me could do more leg weights than me *cry* but I can undoubtedly say that I feel that my upper body is getting much stronger and leaner! So far I can really only do 3 sets of 12 reps (and less with my legs) but I am happy at my slow progress. I really do need to do more research about when to do certain weights and for different parts of my body, when to do cardio and eat my protein. I still have a long way to go, but I hope to gain at least 3-4 pounds by the end of March. With that in mind, I feel so proud of myself...but that also might be the soreness in my body. Happy Tuesday, xo