A Week In My Life | First Day of Trout

Hello!

I've been so incredibly busy with work lately. I've been switching from one position to the next cross-training. I absolutely love it. I'm learning new things and it keeps things different and changing. It's not fun doing the same thing every day. This girl needs variety.

The other day my Mom dropped me off at the gym while she did some errands. 1hr. and 45mins later, I was so very happy. The staff at the gym are so friendly and one of my friends ended up being there and we worked out together. The gym is starting to become a stress-relieving place. A good run always does good. Also, down 2.5 pounds, so happy!!

A guy she landscapes for needed someone to pick up sticks in his yard and I was lucky enough to get the job and I picked up 7-9 big piles of branches.twigs from under the tree, got some sun on the skin. It was nice getting the fresh air.

Two hours later, I was hangry and getting tired. We'd spent earlier the morning looking around for some clothes. Most of my shorts from last summer don't fit. Of course. Somehow, everytime I wander in a store for summer clothes, I come out with fitness clothes. No regrets.

We went to Barnes & Noble and I got a KIND Blueberry Cashew Vanilla bar. Those things are the most amazing granola bars ever. Oh, and a coffee frapp. I'm usually not a whipped cream person, I get it more for the way it looks and don't drink it. I was so hungry and thirsty it was gone in like 5mins tops.

Giant Eagle has a sale on their granola bars, a lot of only $1.00 so I snagged up a bunch, it's cheaper, plus it's a good chance to try different ones. the Belvita's were free with the ecarbs. Hello, blueberry. Also, why are like 90% of granola bars chocolate? Not everybody wants chocolate flavored stuff. More blueberry please!!

Saturday morning I got up early to meet with my Pap for the first day of trout. Not being a huge eater before going out, had a banana and 1/4 of the Lenny & Larry's Complete Cookie. My goodness. They are sooooo good! It's soft and chewy, no GMO's, protein packed, and is so good. Unfortunately, Wal*Mart has had them out of stock for the past 3wks and it's driving me crazy. Need more!

Not a single catch. We had a nibble, no luck on catching any. The people to the left of us got a few, but none of us to the right did.

After a VERY eventful morning of fishing, I was hungry so I made a delicious smoothie.

Along with a chicken veggie mix. I've decided to step up my game and learn to finally cook meat. So I baked some chicken then heated it in a non-stick skillet with a smidge of olive oil, added some steamed veggies of Steamfresh Water Chestnut, Carrot, Sweet Peas, and Broccoli mix, along with some fresh sugar snap pears then spinkled it with ground turmeric and pink Himalayan salt.
Couldn't finish the whole thing, but it was really good.
Vegetables are starting to become a craving, it's a great feeling.

Top 5 Favorite Healthier Snacks

I'm what you call a 'grazer'. I'd much rather have a bunch of small snacks throughout the day as compared to a few larger meals. Also, I seem to have a major sweet tooth. Eating healthy has always been a struggle for me. When I was younger I was very much overweight, I lost weight, just hitting the "normal" BMI, stayed steady for a while and then hit a major wall where I got obsessed with calorie counting and was walking down E.D. Lane.
These past couple months I've been managing much better, joined a gym, not so strict when it comes to calories but rather paying more attention to what I eat, and trying to keep portions under control.

Here are some of my favorite snacks that are healthier compared to a pack of pop-tarts, or those gross cheese curls that are orange on the inside.

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These So Delicious Coconut Almond bars are AMAZING. They're made with coconut milk which have amazing benefits to help with healthy hair and skin. Coconut milk also has properties that help fight against viruses like influenza.
These are also gluten free!

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Surf Sweets has a large variety of sweets that "Anyone can enjoy Surf Sweets because our candy is free of high fructose corn syrup, artificial colors and flavors, and the top ten allergens." - Surf Sweets.

Me, being a jelly bean addict, are absolutely in love with these! They taste SO MUCH BETTER than the artificial flavored stuff. These actually taste like fruit, and I feel a lot better about the ingredients in these as compared to artificially made.
P.S. The gummy bears are amazing too!

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You can never go wrong with popcorn. Especially when you have the munchies. You can make it yourself and top it with whatever you're craving, or simply get a convenient bag to have at the ready.
This is one of my favorite brands. They offer so many different flavors that it would be hard no to find one you like.
Personally, I prefer the simple Sea Salt, Kettle Corn, or the Pink Himalayan Salt. 

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Annie's Cheddar Bunnies are SO MUCH tastier then Cheez-its. Not going to lie.
These are made with organic whole wheat flour and real cheese. They, too, have a wide range of snacks from cookies, to crackers, and really good yogurt. The only thing I wish was different is if they had the Whole Grain stamp on their products, and a gluten free version of these.

Larabar's are another great sweet treat. They're made with dried fruit and nuts. My favorite is the blueberry muffin. The lemon bar is really great, too! These are great for on the go or after a workout. Usually I workout after I get done with work and don't eat something until after the gym, which is like a seven hour span between my breakfast and 'mid-morning snack', The blueberry has 4g's of protein, it's not a lot, but it is something to feed those newly sprouting baby muscles!

 

 

Bookstores and Fishing License

This has taken much longer then expected to update. The lack of taking pictures for anything has been real. When I'm not working, I'm just mostly trying to relax. I'll try harder though.

Bookstores are a wonderful place, filled with so many stories and adventures.There just isn't enough time in the world to read all the books. It's upsetting to be honest. It's so easy to spend hours in there just looking at all the different stories.

Finally got my fishing license. The first day is coming up and I need to get some practice in. It's been years since I've fished but the past couple years I've been really wanting to start up again, just hadn't gotten around to it. Now it's just time to practice.

 

Misty has been a personal heater lately. She either curls up beside me or lays on my feet. It's so nice.

City of Lost Souls by Cassandra Clare | Book Review

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The on thing about Cassandra Clare is that she never fails to leave her readers guessing.
City of Lost Souls is the 5th book in the Mortal Instruments series. I just managed to get around reading this one after the long admiration of having it on the shelf. Just about the whole entire time I was reading it I'm pretty certain my jaw was dropped with shock, as soon as you think you've got it figured out-BAM-plot twist.

In this book Jace has gone missing and Clary, along with the Lightwood's, are doing everything they can to try to find him. The problem? The sassy smart, confident Jace isn't really himself. Clary makes the choice of going away to hang out a bit with him and Sebastian while keeping a physiological connection with her best friend Simon in another 'realm'. After a bunch of twists, turns, surprises, demons, and blood Clary has to make the decision between her life and Jace's soul.

There wasn't a moment of this book that felt boring or lacking, it constantly had me interested and just wanting to be able to read faster and to read it all at once to find out what happens next.
The worst part of it was the ending. Oh the ending...

This book is a must read for anyone who loves fantasy-fiction.
Be careful though... you might just get addicted. 

A Hike In The Woods

This warm weather has been so wonderful lately. I'm finding out that I'm a summer child. Warm weather + sunshine = happy me. The other day me and my mom went for a 'walk' in the woods, that turned into a hike.

It was my fault it turned into a hike instead of a leisurely walk. I wanted to keep going further into the woods. We weren't seeing birds or anything. Although the peepers were very loud. What's a hike without birds or creatures?

THEN we lucked out. Out of nowhere there was this loud whopping/bigfoot call. I almost thought it was a dog at first. Silly me. Dogs don't sound like this.
It's 2 Barred Owls calling eachother. It was one of the coolest experiences ever. We didn't see them, but I did get a video of the sound.
Sorry for it being sideways. *shrugs*

I'm Back!

Hello!


Long time, no talk! I know it's been a long time. I've been so busy with work, school, and just running around. Usually when I get time off I want time off just to wind down and not have to worry about anything.

On the contrary, today felt like a good day to do a post.
So let's catch up!

We've gotten a crazy snow storm a few weeks ago and I got out to take some pictures before helping shovel the sidewalk. By the time I went back inside and my jeans were soaked up to my thighs. It was so cool though. Those are the winter days I like.

After much convincing my Dad finally agreed to let me get a pet rat. We went to a couple different places looking at all the different rats, you know, scoping out options. At a pet store they had this really cool Fischer's Chameleon, I believe it's called. He was the cutest little thing. One day, hopefully. I think they are one of the coolest creatures.


The next day I got my pet rat.

Her name was Hedwig. I tried SO HARD to make this work. We got along, she liked me from the get-go, the problem was her cage stunk SO BAD. I'd clean it than two hours later I had my blanket over my head trying to hide the smell. It just didn't work. I couldn't take it any longer.
We ended up taking her back. It wasn't a good day.

This was such a great experience.  My Mom and Pap were gonna take a shooting class together and he offered me up the spot if I wanted to go. Not thinking much of it, I said yes.
Best two seconds of courage ever.
Our teacher was wonderful. He's very nice, funny, knows his stuff, and seems like a Christian man.
The first class we covered some chapters in the handbook, he gave us donuts(mine had blue icing. Blue icing is the best icing), we found out there would be a test the following week, than we shot a series of different .22's.

The next week, we got there, went over a couple more chapters, had another donut, then we went over the test. We got certificates which had to be one of the best feelings ever. Then we shot bigger guns. The range is 50ft.

It was such a cool experience. The first week there was an ex-marine who helped with the class in the range and he wasn't to fond of my form when shooting. He was very particular. This week though he wasn't there and our main teacher was just fine with my form.
It's gonna take practice but I'm really really excited about it.



Also, the last thing is that I joined a gym. It has been one of the greatest choices ever. Been there for almost a month now and going a few times a week. I'm already starting to notice some changes, and I'm getting used to the growing hunger, but it's been a great choice. I'm thinking of doing some posts or something on it. Haven't quite decided yet.



Hope you all are doing well!

What I Accomplished in 2015 (Based On My Pinterest Board) | 2015

Last year I created a board on my Pinterest of things I wanted to do during this year. I wanted to create one for next year too and thought I'd share what I did out of the billion things pinned on what I managed to do.




1. See Inside Out - Check! Loved it

 
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2. 15 Books to Read Summer 2015    I read half of the 2 books (Paper Towns by John Green and Aristole and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe by Benjamin Alire Saenz) on the list. I honestly hadn't paid much attention to it because I was so busy trying to read the books I wanted for my GoodReads Challenge.
- Paper Towns was great, I'd read it previously I didn't get to finish it because it needed returned to the library.
- Aristole and Dante wasn't up my ally, I only read the first few chapters and decided not to finish it. It's not my first choice of a storyline.


3.  Tye-dying in the summer. - Check! Did many different shirts.


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4.  Get a pair of Vans. - Didn't happen. It wasn't my first priority, nor did I have the money to really get a pair.


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5.  Have a flat stomach. - Fail.

6. Go to the beach. - It was planned but didn't turn out last minute.

7. Get a Mint Chocolate candle from Bath & Body Works. - Slipped my mind.

8. Get a Christmas mug. - HAPPENED. It's an adorable polar bear shaped mug with a blue and red scarf.

9. Have an unforgettable summer. - It was great, but not the unforgettable I had in mind.

10. Read the Bible in a year. - It started out great than I just got lazy with it, unfortunatly. Hopefully this year will be better for that.

11. Go to Comic Con. - It was planned, but like the beach, fell through last minute.

12. Save money - Check!

13. Trace my family history. - Semi-check. Haven't gone deep enough.

14. Go to a concert. - IT ALMOST HAPPENED.

15. Go camping. - Didn't happen.

16. Feel confident in a bikini. - Yes. Not so much now. Thank you holidays and lack of self control.

17. Buy a big teddy bear. - Didn't happen.

18. Get a tan. - Rain made this impossible.

19. Complete a scrapbook. - No.

20. Do a 365 Day food log. - Yes, bad idea.

21. Improve my flexibility. - Yes, but didn't keep up with it.

22. Take a picture of my outfit everyday of the year. - Not even close, lol.

23. Go to Rhode Island. - Nope.

24. Pass my driving test. - Didn't take it.

25. Own a cat. - Nope.

26. Finish a book in one sitting. - Multiple times.

27. Collect every can on arizona iced tea. - I keep having mixed feelings of having empty cans lying around, lol.

28. Read 52 books in a year. - YES.

29. Get off my computer and explore the world. - Yes.

30. Go to an aquarium. - No :[ Darn you weather!!!

31. Read all of the Harry Potter books.  - I'm ashamed to say no on this.

32. Go on a road trip. - Nooooo.

33. Eat more vegetables. - Yes, I had accomplished this greatly.

34. Buy a stay positive hoodie. - No, but it's been on my mind.

35. Dye my hair black. - Technically yes, technically no. I have a job so I'm unable to dye my hair like I used to, but the under half of it is currently black.

36. Re-paint my room. - It is the most beautiful shade of blue in the world.

37. Redecorate my room. - Completed.

38. Try a cotton candy frappicino. - It tastes like french vanilla with flavored syrup to me.

39. Read the entire Hush, Hush series by Becca Fitzpatrick. - I read the first book, didn't get around to the rest.

40. Make homemade jam. - NOO, I still really wanna do this.

41. Take a photo everyday for a year. - Nope.

42. Keep a journal. - Yes, I'm very pleased with this.

43. Adopt a puppy. - My Dad is being very stubborn with not wanting more than 2 pets, lol.

44. Get braces. - No, thanks to the wonderful perks of a part-time student.

45.  Try a Starbucks coffee. - I haven't had their straight hot coffee, but I did try the coffee frappicino and it was okay. I couldn't decide if I liked it or not while consuming two thirds of it.

46. Own an apartment. - I really hate that this didn't happen :/

47. Dye my hair red. - Nada.

48. Own cowboy boots. - Almost happened, than didn't.

49. GoodReads Reading Challenge of 52 books. - As of today, I've read 81.



Even though I didn't get to do everything I wanted, I've gotten to do other things

1. Got my first job.

2. Taking college classes

3. Have my drivers permit.

4. Went shooting.

5. Made new friends.

6. Gave more this year than I felt like I've done previously.

7. Improved myself, my mind, my attitude towards other people.

8. Lost weight.

9. I'm learning how to manage myself. This has been a huge year for me in the way of coping mentally. I'm learning how to handle my negative mind and emotions and trying my best to take care of me both physically and mentally. Some days I feel like I'm drowning, and other days I feel like I'm on top of the world.

As hard as this year has been for me, it has been an important year, and that's what's important.