Viva Las Vegas!

I'm in Vegas Baby... Well at least for a few hours. My move to Colorado Springs began yesterday. I was suppose to wake up bright early and get a start to my trip with my mom on Monday morning, but we didn't end up leaving until almost 1:00pm. Vegas is about a 5 hour drive from LA, so we figured it was money better spent to stay in Vegas, rather then a small town in the middle of nowhere. To our surprise, it was much cheaper to stay in a nice hotel on the strip, rather then a not so nice hotel in the middle of nowhere.

I'm not really a partier or a gambler (and it turns out, I'm not an iPhone photo taker either. Sorry for the lack of photos). But, I am a people watcher and Vegas is one of my favorite places to people watch. We spent most of the night walking around the strip and checking out some of the newer hotels. We had a quick dinner and made it back to the room by 11:00pm. 

We are now just getting ready to hit the road again! It's about 7:00 am local time, so we ended up staying here in lovely Las Vegas for about 12 hours. 

I will try my best to keep the blog posts coming, but I can't promise much. 

Have you ever stayed in Vegas for less then 24 hrs? 

High 5 for Friday!! - Last time in LA :(

This week has flown by! I can't believe it is already Friday and I move on Monday. I am no where near where I should be on the packing department, but I'm ok with that. It is also my last day at my current job. This whole week has been like the last week of college. You know that feeling you get when you know there are things that could be done, but you just can't seem to focus.

1. I started the week off at my favorite place on earth... Disneyland. I took my two sisters and we had a blast.
2. My new Mac Book Pro! I have been going back and forth on if I really needed a new laptop, my current Mac Book won't really hold a charge. I got it while I was in college, so it was time for a change. There is no better love/hate feeling then treating yourself to a nice gift.
3. After working a block away from the famous lights at the LACMA I finally wen to go take the require picture. It is so neat to see all of those street post at night.
4. Food Trucks!! I love Food Trucks - I was told by a good friend that I criticized his choice of eating at a food truck once. I don't remember this story, but if it did happen, it was because he was eating a regular old food truck. But these trucks are special. They have amazing food in them. I was so happy the other day that I have a girls night with Ana tonight to go to one last Food Truck Friday.
5. Denver International Airport here I come. I am so excited that I will be working at DIA. It's so amazing to be able to do what I went to school for AND be in the same area as Joe.

So many other amazing things happened this week, but the link up is 5 things. I also have so many fun things planned for my last weekend in LA. I hope I can fit in all in.

 I hope you have an amazing weekend! 

Link up with Lauren Elizabeth of H54F!

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July Cara Box - Link Up

cara (car-rah) noun : beloved friend
Awesome things in the mail + Meeting new women + Encouragement = Cara Box

Thanks to the wonderful lady of Wifessionals for creating this monthly box swap. 

This month I participated in the Cara Box exchange for the second time. I was much more happy with the results this time around. Last time, I got a partner that was "too busy to send a package". But Kaitlyn took great care of that. I wasn't so much disappointed that I didn't get a box, but rather that I didn't get to meet another blogger/write a post about my box. 

This time around I sent my box to Casey  and I received a box from Ashley. 

Both ladies were very nice and I had a lot in common with them. (on a side note, this is my 2nd month blogging and I find it so strange that I have so much in common with sooooo many bloggers. It's a good thing for sure). Casey is a newly wed that has moved to Up State New York to be with her sweet husband. She is currently training for her first 1/2 Marathon! Ashely is a mommy and wife and is a fitness enthusiasts. She introduced me to an amazing community of fitness junkies, like me, called Sweat Pink! 

What's in the Box:

• Airplane Necklace- I love this!!! 
• A Lily Pulitzer Craft Caddy - Perfect place to store my care package goods
• EOS Lib Balm - My Favorite 
• Glass Jars - Perfect for my new house
• Sweat Pink Shoe Laces - I am a new Sweat Pink Ambassador 

I love everything in the box and I feel like Ashley really got a good feel of who I am as a person. Thank you Ashley!! I can't wait to get to know these two girls even better! 

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Sister Time - Disneyland

 

My favorite place to visit in LA is DISNEYLAND! I am slightly obsessed...ok who am I trying to fool, I am OBSESSED! I am currently an annual passport holder and have had either a Disney World or Disneyland annual pass for as along as I can remember! I grew up at Disneyland and spent most of my college years at Disney World. I ran my first half marathon at Disney World and will run my first marathon there. I love that my family will often meet up at Disneyland on a random night just to go hang out for a few hours and it is very evident that we all really enjoy our time together. This past Saturday I went with my sisters for a sister day at Disney and we had a blast! 

We arrived around 5pm and to our surprise, it wasn't too busy! Stevette and Stevee where able to get on the water rides that they have been wanting to go on for awhile now and I got to sit back and enjoy my favorite (Joe's Favorite) snack. It's always nice to have a pass because you don't have to feel like to have to get everything done. We have been trying to go on the rides that we haven't gone on in awhile.

 

We ate some dinner then headed over to Cars Land. Our favorite land has to be Cars Land! We love the rides and the best time to visit Cars Land is at night! Disney did an amazing job with the details (as Always). 

After cars land we headed over to the other side of California Adventures and took some photos with some characters. 

 We made it to Disneyland just in time to catch the fireworks! Everyone, including Joe doll, tried their luck at the Sword in the Stone. Then we went on a few rides and called it a night! I am so lucky and blessed to have such a great relationship with my sister and have the ability to do fun things on "just another night!" We will be heading back to Disneyland one final time this Saturday to make some more memories before I leave.  AND as an extra bonus, I will be back for a weekend of Disney fun and running Aug 29- Sept 2 for another 1/2 Marathon at Disneyland!

 

What is your favorite theme park?

Are you obsessed with anything and everything Disney?

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What's for Lunch? - Food Truck Addition

As my days here in LA begin the dwindle I want to take advantage of what is here. So today, instead of sitting at my desk for lunch I went for a walk to go to eat at the food trucks! I'm not talking about your average food trucks, here in LA we have food trucks for every type of food you can imagine.

Even though I try to my best to eat healthy, I'm a foodie at heart!! I love trying new things and food trucks give me that opportunity.

Today I had a two sliders, one Thai Pork Belly slider and another Thai Sweet and Spicy  slider with a side of curry fries. Everything was AMAZING! The fries were from one of my favorite trucks and the sliders where from a new truck. I'm so lucky to have such great food just a short walk away from my office. 

This great food truck experience makes me want to go one last time to Food Truck Friday!! It's where over 40 trucks meet near my house! I think a food truck review is on order ;) 

Have you ever had food from a gourmet food truck? 

What's your favorite food truck food? 

 

 

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I am Moving to Colorado... in a week!

I am very excited to let you all know that I will be moving to Colorado a lot sooner then I had originally planned.

I received an email last week about a job that I applied for last December and interviewed for in March.  I was under the impression that the job was a mute topic, although they said I was still on the short list, so I was already planning for alternative jobs. But out of no where they called and I had a final interview. The interview went well and I was offered the job on the spot. I am very excited that I will be working in aviation, doing what I love, while we are living in Colorado. This job is a great opportunity and I feel very blessed that things just seem to be working out for me.

But there is one big problem... The job starts very soon. So, I am going to pack up my life and head to Colorado. This makes me very anxious because I am a planner. I need to know what I am doing at all times. I have been looking for houses online and have not gotten very far, how can someone just find a house on the internet and move in, sight unseen? I guess this will be somethings that I will have to work on. But for now, I will just see how things turn out.

Have you ever had to move very quickly?
Do you have any advice for my move?

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Green Drinks Galore!

One of my favorite go-to healthy drinks are green drinks! I love that you can really make them whatever you want and, as an extra bonus, I always just put in the fruit and veggies that are about to go bad, so they really have been saving me money! This week I  went to my local farmers market and bought a ton of organic produce and organic kale was on sale!! Only $.99 a bunch! I know that they don't look the best, but they taste really good! There are many ways you can make them, but I just use a BlendTec Blender. 

Benefits of a Green Drink:

• High in Fiber
• Low in calories
• Rich in vitamins 
• A quick on the go meal
• Good way to get all of your veggies in
• Good meal anytime of the day ( I like to drink mine for breakfast or lunch)
• Great use all of your left over veggies and fruits

My Favorite Green Drink:

• 1 pear 
• 1 banana 
• 1 cup of spinach 
• 1 cup of kale 
• splash of orange juice 
• dash of chia seeds 
• dash of flaxseed

Mix in a blender and enjoy!

Dr. Oz Green Drink

Makes 3-4 servings (about 28-30 oz)

• 2 cups spinach
• 1/2 cucumber
• 1/4 head of celery
• 1/2 bunch parsley
• 1 bunch mint
• 3 carrots
• 2 apples
• 1/4 orange
• 1/4 lime
• 1/4 lemon
• 1/4 pineapple

Combine all ingredients in a blender. Serve and enjoy!

Don't forget the seeds! Always add Flaxseed and Chia Seeds to my drinks. If I had to choose only one I would pick Chia Seeds. They add fiber, omega 3s and protein. 

Do you make Green Drinks?

What is your go-to Green Drink?

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H54Fitness...eh I mean Friday!

I am so happy that it is Friday!! This week has gone by so quickly and I think most of that is because I am officially back to my fitness routine! Most of my pictures have to do with fitness. :) which is fitting because I am also the newest Sweat Pink Ambassador!

  

1. I woke up bright and early on Saturday to go for a 2 hour hike! It was amazing. I went with a friend of mine who is also in the aviation industry and we talked shop as well as caught up. It's always so nice to have friends that know what you are talking about when you are talking about your job. 

2. On Wednesday I met up with Ana for my first Zumba class in over 3 weeks. I was measured and too my surprise I lost about a 1/4" everywhere. It's not much but I'll take it! I thought I would have gained a bit from my 3 weeks of no working out. 

3. Kale was on sale!! $.99 for a large bunch of organic kale, I couldn't pass up this deal and I have been drinking green drinks daily! (Check back tomorrow for some of my favorite recipes) 

4. I finally went to go pick up my Bruno Mars tickets for a concert on July 27! I won these things back in February and I have been really looking forward to it! I'm so excited. 

5. I did it!!! I ran 7 miles after 3 weeks of no running. This was just one of many runs I had this week. All of the others were 5 miles. 

This post is short and sweet, but I have a lot of life changing things going on. I'll be sure to share once it's official! But please send me good vibes today!! I need them. 

Hope you have a fabulous day!! 

Link up with Lauren Elizabeth of H54F!

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Boys Behind the Blog - Link Up

Two of my favorite bloggers have an amazing link up called the boys behind the blog and Joe was very excited  happy to participate. I really like the idea, it has opened up some very interesting topics and we are only on the first post. I can't wait to continue to follow along to see what other fun questions these girls come up with.

 I am pretty sure that Joe checks my blog more then I do, I think that is because he is deployed and doesn't have much else going on. Just a ton of work. But I will take his blog attention while I have it. I doubt it will last after he gets home from the deployment. The other day he made a funny statement. He said, " I have been looking at a ton of blogs and I noticed 2 things, 1. It's so easy to just click around and before you know it you've seen a ton of blogs 2. After clicking around for a while, I didn't see a single male blogger." haha I don't know if I should be concerned. He is wonderful and always seems to really take interest in whatever I am interested in at the moment.  Anyways on to the questions:

1. What celebrity would play you in a movie about your life? I would like to think Channing Tatum but my girlfriend would probably choose someone like Daniel Radcliffe.

I can see it! ha Channing on the left, Joe and I on the right.

2. What is your dream car?Phantom Rolls Royce, with a personal driver.

3. Do you have any tattoos? What, where, why?
If you don't know the answer to this you can see for yourself next time we skype.

4. Boxers or briefs?  Boxer Briefs.  Briefs are for young boys, boxers are for teens, boxer briefs are for men.

5. List 3 random facts about yourself...
I have been to Antarctica, I am a Syracuse Orange basketball fan and  I went to my first NFL game at the age of 28.

I hope you enjoyed his answers. 

 

 

 

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Hello Summer - Care Package

Another Care Package sent and received, means that I am two more weeks closer to seeing my soldier! I must admit, I try to think out side of the box when it comes to care packages, rather then just going with the normal holidays, for very selfish reasons. I am the worse person when it comes to shipping things. I can't seem to get anything in the mail at a reasonable time. So rather then meeting a deadline for a holiday, I just do random care packages. 

This time around I was very all over the place when it came to the theme. I really wanted to do a Hawaii themed box with all of the goodies that I brought home from my awesome trip to Hawaii in May (see I told you I am horrible at shipping things in a timely manor). But for some strange reason, I couldn't find any Hawaii themed scrapbook paper. You would have thought that all of the time off I had for my surgery that this package would have been amazing! But I must say, it was just mediocre.

.

For this package I sent all of my Hawaii stuff along with photos from my photo shoot! I think that was the saving grace, because Joe seemed to LOVE it!

I included the following:

• Photo book made with all of my photos from Hawaii - I made it with MixBook
• Photos in magnetic frames - his walls in his room are metal so they are perfect to hang up the photos
• Stephanie Doll - He was very excited to get this. You can get one of yourself or your soldier at www.daddydolls.com
• A Nike Running Watch - We are running our first full marathon in Jan 2014! So he needs to start paying more attention to how long his runs are. I was a bit nervous to send the watch (it is the highest price item that I have sent) but everything arrived safely!
• Mauna Loa Chocolate - This is from Hawaii and so yummy. I am sure that my days of sending chocolate are over. This batch got to him melted, but he ate it anyways. 
• Gourmet Pineapple Bits- Also from Hawaii
• Loofah Soap - From Hawaii, it has some stuff in it that repeals bugs.
• A hula girl for his desk- From Hawaii
• Ghirardelli Squares - Melted...
• Jif To Go- Chocolate dip, this looked so good. He loves chocolate, if you haven't been able to tell. I may be able to send this to him because it is suppose to be melted.
• Other snacks - Gold Fish, Graham Crackers, Gum, Chocolate!
• Baby Wipes- Sometimes I will send him things he needs. I am not completely sure what he uses the wipes for, but I have sent them a few times. 
• Air Fresheners - for his room and office.

Although this box had no real theme, I am happy with the result. It's always nice to send things he needs with the things I want to send to him.

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#NOtivation: My Rewards

Living a healthy lifestyle can sometimes be a challenge. I have always given myself something to look forward to. My ultimate reward would be living a happy and healthy life. I never want to not be able to do something because I am not in good health. But let's face it who doesn't like to get things?

I always am setting fitness goals, but I rarely reward myself for the goals that I met.

Here are a few tips on how to keep the goals you set:

1. Be sure that your goals are realistic:  I will most likely never look like a Victoria's Secret model. I may get really fit and firm, but I will never be 6 feet tall. I am OK with that. Instead I try to focus on goals that are reachable. Like keeping up with my training schedule or being able to go 30 minutes on the stair master with out stopping.
2. Don't plan a fitness routine that you can't keep: I have made my training schedule on the days that I know that I have time to workout and that there will be no excuses. It always feels nice to have a schedule in the books, but what is the point if you miss half of  your workouts?
3. There is ALWAYS time to workout: Some days I feel like I don't have time to do anything, let alone workout. But the truth is I do have time, I just have to be more creative to find it. Instead of watching a hour long TV show, go for a quick 3 mile run. Working out always makes me feel so much better and gives me the energy that I need to tackle my busy day. It really is a win/win!
4. Share your goals with other people: Tell your mom, tell your best friend, tell your workout buddy, post them on your blog. Sharing my fitness goals makes me more accountable. I feel like I really need to get my goal done for both myself and for all of the people that I told!

This weeks #NOtivation has given me the inspiration to set goals with rewards and put them out there in the blog world. 

• Go to the gym 3 times a week for 4 weeks - New workout shirt
• Go 4 weeks straight staying on track with  my training schedule  (get all of my miles in) - New Sports Bra
• Lose those last 5 lbs - Massage
• Have a New PR for my upcoming 1/2 Marathon - Michael Kors Watch

I am really loving this weekly link up with Mal and Hallie! You should link up too! I would love to read about your fitness journey!

What is a reward that you give yourself for reaching your fitness goal?

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Back on the Wagon!

The past two and a half weeks has been very tough, I have not been able to work out because of my eye surgery. But, I have been given the ok from my doctor and I am back at it. I couldn't be any more happier. I really did miss my workouts. It is amazing how quickly you can "fall off of the wagon"! In just that short amount of time, I was tired and making poor food choices. I would be in bed by 9 and sleep until 6:30. I didn't want to do anything.

Last night I debated on going for a run or just starting my running on Monday. I am only 7 weeks away from my race and I am very behind on my training. So, I decided it was in the best interest of my health that I just get up and go for a nice 3 mile run. I went for a run with Stevee around dusk and it felt amazing (Stevee felt otherwise)! For the first mile, we were able to maintain an under 8 minute per mile pace!!! We slowed down for the next two but I easily finish the 3 miles. After my run I went for a brisk 3 mile, uphill walk with my mom. 

This morning I woke up at 6:00 to meet a friend at a hiking trail at 7:00. We went on a great 2 hour hike. It was nice to catch up, talk about aviation, and get a good work out in. After the hike we went to a local breakfast place and I had an egg white omelette with avocado and tomatoes with a side a fruit. 

I think it's safe to say that I have caught up to the wagon and jumped back on!

What's you favorite weekend fitness activity?

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We Call HER Stevee!

This is Stevee hard at work!

Let me tell you about my best friend... HER name is Stevee, yes you read that right Stevee. That is her real legal name. Well, I guess she is not my best friend. She is my sister! I was never super close with my sister growing up. We never fought either, she was just there. This past week she admitted to my mom that she doesn't even remember being my sister. Who says that? ha Stevee does. She says a bunch of random things. But, what I think she meant to say, is that she doesn't remember me being around. I am 7 years older then her and left to go to college in Florida when she was in the 6th grade. So I guess I really don't blame her. I don't really remember what happened last month let alone when I was in elementary school. But ever since she spent her last summer with my in Florida we have gotten to know each other well! We ran our first half marathon together, go hiking together, and even travel together. I always remember Stevee as being a shy, nice little girl and now she is out going, adventurous young lady! We have a ton of things in common, even if she doesn't want to admit it.

Here are some fun facts about Stevee:

• She is a really great artist. She is going to school for graphic design but I really think she has great drawing skills as well.
  
• She has over 20 pairs of Classic Converse All Stars.
  
• She loves to go to Disneyland.
  
• We ran our first 1/2 Marathon together- The Disney World Princess 1/2 Marathon in 2010. We will be running another one together in less then 2 months!  - Disneyland 1/2 Marathon.
  
• She is really good at doing nails but will never do any nails but her own. 
  
• She is about 4 inches taller then me. 
  
• She just got her drivers license last week, at age 20. This was her choice. She really had no want or desire to drive. 
• She has been on Pretty Little Liars, The Big Bang Theory, and a few Disney Shows.
  

 Do you have any siblings? Are you close with them?