Flowers that brighten my path

Lately I've been walking in to work.  I have to get up a little earlier to make the trek (it's about a 35-40 min walk instead of a 10 minute drive or bike), but it's totally worth it.  Not only is it a great way to get more movement into my day, but I say hello / good morning to people I pass by, I listen to music or a podcast or a book, and stop to smell the flowers. 

Yep, it's a great way to start the day! 

I have been noticing all of the flowers coming into bloom lately along my path to work, and I thought I'd share them with you!  

I think these are cornflowers?  I'm not sure, but I absolutely love them (and their color).  They make me smile every time I pass them! 

I love the color of these ones too.  Gosh, I kinda wish I knew the names of all these flowers!  I know the roses of course (haha), and I could guess on some of the others.  But it would be cool to be able to identify all of them! 

I LOVE this one. 

This is one of my new favorite photographs. :) 

I caught that little busy bee going to work on that flower!  How cute is that little guy??  Poor bees, they get such a bad rap.  They're good lil' buggers. 

Sometimes slowing down before you have to attack your day is a nice way to keep things stress-free.  I know that I always feel so much more relaxed after my morning walk! :) 


What do you do to stay relaxed?

Yoga Beautiful

I came across this video a while ago, and I finally found it again.  It's so beautiful!



Isn't it amazing what our bodies can do with training?
I think that our bodies are so beautiful when they are strong - inside and out.  Not thin.... STRONG. :) 

Kendra and I were going to a free yoga class once a week at a local college, but unfortunately they just ended due to summer break (doggone it)!  I guess we'll have to figure out another way to mooch free yoga classes now, huh?  Haha!

Of course we aren't anywhere close to where this girl is (shoot, I can barely do a headstand, let alone a handstand), but it's nice to dream isn't it?  :) 

Chocolate Pecan Pie & Taco Dinner

Friday night, John and I went over to Ryan & Amanda's place for dinner.  

I told them that we would make a dessert since they were making dinner, so I pulled out my new favorite pie cookbook that I got for Christmas last year, and picked out a recipe! 

I decided to go with the Chocolate Pecan Pie, because it sounded decadent but simple at the same time.  

Seriously, I'm in love with this cookbook!  So far I've made 3 different pies from it (Bean Pie, Coconut Pie, and this one), and they've all turned out utterly delicious.  I love that they're really not terribly complicated to make, and she always gives a brief description of the pie's history & origins.  You get to learn while you cook!  Yeah!! 

Look at that FILLING - doesn't it look amazing!?  It's basically butter, chocolate, sugar, & corn syrup - then you add in the eggs and vanilla.  I think mine got a bit screwy because I realized we only had margarine left (not real butter), and I had about 1/2 a cup less corn syrup than was required.  I think that caused it to be a bit "liquidy" in the end, but everyone still gobbled it right up!!

The leftovers were even better the next day - straight out of the fridge. :)  This pie would be AH-MAZING with a big scoop of vanilla ice cream too - or even better CARAMEL ice cream.  *drooling... 

For dinner, Ryan & Amanda made tacos, and they were SO GOOD.  

Just sauteed veggies (meat for the carnivores), salsa, tomatoes, black beans, freshly made guac & cheese.  They were scrumptious!!  

OM NOM NOM!!  TACOS!! :D

John always knows how to make a picture perfect! 

 

 Amanda & Ryan! 

After dinner we had pie, and daylight turned into twilight - then into evening.  It was a totally gorgeous and perfect evening, so we sat out on the porch & started playing cards! 

A friendly game of "Oh Hell" to be exact.  We played it all the time when I was in Florida with Garvey & Amanda a couple of years ago - it was super fun.  You have to bid on how many "tricks" you're going to take for each hand.  It's really fun (and hilarious)!

I apparently forgot everything about how to play the game (and lost miserably the first round), but started getting the hang of it again, and came back eventually.  We laughed, and talked, drank wine, ate pie... all in all, probably one of the best ways to play a beautiful Spring evening! 

My empty pie plate.  Yeah, it was pretty darn good. :) 

Best Reading Spot in Denver

About a month ago I discovered the perfect reading spot in downtown Denver.

It's down by the Platte River Trail, right across the street from DU's Auraria campus.  I used to read at one of the tables in Writer's Square, but I kept getting interrupted by someone trying to sell me hair care products, or trying to get me to sign a Greenpeace petition, or a crackhead asking for money (the ones who ask are definitely on something, trust me).  There's nothing I hate more than getting asked for my money - especially when I'm reading on my lunch break!

Sigh - finally a place where I can be at peace with my book! 

I love listening to the babbling river, and so far (knock on wood), I haven't been approached by anyone for money.  WIN!

A beautiful day for reading.

And there's a shady spot under a tree that makes it even more perfect!
Sometimes there's a guy that sits and smokes a cigar nearby - or someone sits near me that smokes cigarettes - both are equally annoying, and make me have to move.  (Ugh, why do people still smoke?  It's SO. GROSS.  And as a former smoker myself, I believe it should be illegal to smoke EVERYWHERE.  It ruins the fresh air, if you ask me.)

Sunshine, a rainbow scarf, a little bit of shade, and a good book.  That's my favorite way to take a break from work. :)

Hairdye Inspiration!

I've been thinking about changing my hair for a little while now.  I still want to grow my hair out, so cutting it won't really work right now - therefore I must turn to fun hairdye!

This is the initial photo I found that inspired me.... 

My hair is so similar to hers right now (with the length, and the bangs), the only difference is the little highlighting at the bottom - I kind of love it!  Very subtle, but kind of awesome.  That got me thinking of gettin' myself some bleach again, and lightening the tips of my hair at the bottom! 

This is more like dark roots over bleached hair, but it still looks pretty rad. 
 

This is how I imagine it would look when I started growing it out (snipping the lighter ends, or just dyeing light brown color over top).  I like the fade a lot! 
 

This is a bit drastic, but kind of fun / funky!!  Definitely not what I'm going for, but I came across it, and thought it was fun. 
 

Dyed tips on lighter / dirty blonde hair.  Love it. 
 

I've always LOVED Drew Barrymore's hair.  This is a messy look for her, but again, I'm loving the lightened ends! 

I was also thinking that once I got tired of the blonde tips, I could add some kind of funky color to it to spice things up!  Maybe something bright red or orange? 

I actually kind of love this turquoise color with the black though - those colors have always looked gorgeous together!  Fun! 
 

I've never been a big fan of the super yellow dye, but this girl kind of rocks it.  Not for me, but I love it on her! 
 

I'm certainly not a blonde, but I love these subtle pink tips over the blonde hair.  SO gorgeous, and what a fun yet gentle addition of color! 

So we'll see.... maybe by tomorrow I'll have a new style to show you!  :) 

Outdoor Party Decorating

My little sister is graduating from college next weekend, and we're throwing a backyard barbeque party for her at our place!  

I'm so happy that I finally live somewhere that has a backyard, but it definitely needs some improving.  I really want to make it bright and happy and fun for our first cookout of the year, so I've been searching everywhere for a bit of inspiration! 

I remember this idea from Real Simple Magazine - it's so cute and simple!  You just use drinking straws to make the flowers stand up straight - it's so bright & happy.

I'm in love with these triangle banners - I've been seeing them everywhere lately.  They look REALLY easy to make, and I'm thinking of using old magazines instead of fabric so that I don't have to buy anything that I don't already have.

I think this idea is adorable, but I probably won't do it for this party.  I don't own any globe lights anyway!

I love the idea of using long drapes or sheets to create a "room"outside.

Obviously we won't be as formal as this, but I love the look of this porch!

Love the colors in this - and again, the banners!  They really make the space look bright and cheerful!

Such a cute & simple idea.  I have a lot of old jars I've saved, so maybe I could create my own version of this.  I may even paint some of them so that the light shines through the colors.

I love a couple of these ideas - the thought of making S'mores - AWESOME!  We have a fire pit in the backyard & everything (the only thing right now that makes our backyard awesome), and what a fun idea to have supplies for making your own S'mores.  I definitely think I'm going to do that.

I love the idea of using wildflowers as part of the centerpiece of the table too.

So many ways to incorporate all the bright & beautiful colors!

This is the backyard I'm starting with....

Ugh - isn't it BORING!?  Haha!  I love the fire pit that John dug out in the middle, but everything else.... ick.  I gotta spice this baby UP! 

Any thoughts on other ways to make my backyard pretty for the occasion? 

Spending Fast Update: 4 Months Down - 8 to Go!

This month began all the spring-time-fun-stuff, which made it challenging for me to not spend money!  Luckily going to the park & playing outdoors doesn't cost anything, so I've been finding my own ways around it.  

I realized this month that because of the spending fast (and because of doing Weight Watchers again for the last couple of weeks), that I've been drinking a LOT less alcohol.  I mean, I don't think I drank that often before but I guess I drank a bit more than I thought!  Now I can actually feel a bit lightheaded after only a couple of drinks, and honestly it makes me want to stop all together when I start feeling that way.  It's kind of an awesome thing actually, and I was SO PROUD of myself over this past weekend. 

My sister bought John and I a big ol' case of light beer to kind of pay us back for letting her stay with us for free for the past month.  I was so excited about chillin' out and drinking a few this past weekend, but I was out of "cheat points" for my Weight Watchers plan!  I was dissapointed at first, but I realized that I could have them next week if I wanted to - I just had to be good this weekend and stick to my plan.  And I managed to make it through Saturday AND Sunday without having one beer - and it felt GREAT. 

GO ME!! :D 

Here's my recap for April for money that I DIDN'T spend (but wanted to):

APR
Date	Not buying	Approx $ not spent	Total $ Saved
4/1/12	Derby Dues	$50.00	$50.00
4/3/12	Wine for movie! (Taryn's treat)	$7.00	$57.00
4/4/12	Dinner with Renee & Katy (we brought stuff to share instead of going out)	$25.00	$82.00
4/5/12	Clothing swap (instead of shopping!)	$80.00	$162.00
4/6/12	Drink at Jackson's	$5.00	$167.00
4/6/12	Drink at Mile High Sci-Fi	$4.00	$171.00
4/10/12	Didn't go to a show that only cost $1.  How lame am I?!	$1.00	$172.00
4/12/12	Really wanted a coffee on the way to work this morning	$4.00	$176.00
4/12/12	Really REALLY wanted to order take-out instead of cooking	$30.00	$206.00
4/14/12	Sean's Birthday - would've gotten a drink	$6.00	$212.00
4/14/12	Falling Rock - wanted to stay & get a drink	$6.00	$218.00
4/13/12	Wanted to get a bottle of wine to bring to friend's house	$10.00	$228.00
4/22/12	Thai take-out (Taryn got dinner for the two of us instead)	$15.00	$243.00
4/27/12	Lightrail Pass (took Taryn's school ID instead)	$10.00	$253.00
4/27/12	Snack (really wanted one today - ice cream, anything!)	$6.00	$259.00
4/28/12	Brunch (was going to go out)	$20.00	$279.00
4/29/12	Concert - I really wanted to go to this! (April Smith & the Great Picture Show)	$10.00	$289.00
4/27/12	Glass of Wine at a play (mom bought instead)	$7.00	$296.00

Unfortunately I haven't paid as much off my debt as I've wanted to this month, due to a couple unforeseen circumstances (a late 1099 that I had to pay taxes on, insurance I didn't know I'd have to be paying, etc).  

But the GOOD news is, that I'm only $88 away from being BELOW the $10k mark.  I haven't been below that mark in a very long time.  At least 3-years, I think.  So I am pretty sure I'll be doing a little celebration dance when I get down into the $9k range.  :) 

As always - thanks to everyone for your continued support & encouragement!!