crèpes!

Just wasn't feeling like cereal this morning (ok ok! afternoon) so as the coffee brewed I searched my cabinets and fridge for something else to have for breakfast...

eggs? no...  french toast or pancakes? no syrup... bagel? meh... yogurt? maybe... crèpes?! YES!

Now I have never made crèpes before. Ever. Never seen anyone (except on TV) make crèpes. Never tried to make them. But for some reason this morning I was inspired to try!

I got out my little iPhone and started googlin'

I used the first recipe I came across (http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/basic-crepes/detail.aspx) added a little vanilla extract, ground cinnamon, and freshly grated nutmeg and started crèpe-in!

I was surprised how easy it was! My pan was a little big but that's ok. They didn't need to be perfect. I halved the recipe above and ended up with 4 crèpes...perfect serving for the two of us. 

When the crèpes were done I filled them with pomegranate blueberry yogurt à la Dannon light and fit and fresh slices of banana then topped them with a little powdered sugar and a dusting on cinnamon and...

voilà!

HOW GOOD DO THOSE LOOK!?!

I was practically squealing when I finished these and was taking pictures! I'm awfully proud of myself, not only for making something new (and kind of intimidating) but mostly for making something from scratch out of my pantry without having planned it!

My mother and sister will understand what an accomplishment this is for me.

I hope this inspires you to dive into your fridge and pantry and come up with something fun and new to make. Make a crèpe! They're so easy! 

with love and (hopefully!) inspiration, 

Katie

btw these were absolutely DELICIOUS! I told Joe "Now that I know how to make crepes we can move to Paris!" haha!

to ombré or not to ombré?

I've been eyeing this hair trend for a while now. Celebs have been rockin' it for over a year so maybe I'm a little behind the times but "they" say its still in style this year, hooray! Ombré hair, for those of you who don't know, refers to hair that is darker at the roots and gradually lighter on the ends. This can be done all over the hair like so...

...or it can be done with more subtle highlights throughout the bottom of the hair like so...

either way i kinda love it! Not only is this style super easy to maintain (hello! no root touch ups necessary!) but it ads a little somethin' fancy to your otherwise monotone hair. Finding a stylist that knows how to do this may be a little tricky but I'd venture to say most have figured it out since its been on trend for a while now. 

Armed with lots of pictures I finally made an appointment a few days ago to get my ombré on! I wanted my hair to be more subtle like the second picture (that was my favorite) or Jessica Alba's here...

We decided to do ombré highlights on the front half of my hair. She teased random sections and painted the bleach onto the hair, a technique called balayage I believe, and then left me to process. 

Here's the before...

and after!

Yay! I kinda love it! I took lots of pics so you can see it from different angles...

So there's my experiment with ombré! If you're thinking about trying something new I say go for it! I'm in love with my new 'do!

What do you think??

on my day off...

I slept in
I woke up to freshly made coffee
I did some yoga (which I never do and was AWESOME btw!)
I went to World Market and the grocery store
I tidied my house
I went to the gym
I showered
I made dinner with my bff and my sister
I got a surprise visit from my Momma who got to see the new performing arts center tonight (so jealous!)
I cleaned up dinner

and

I wrote a blog!

Yay for a productive awesome relaxing day off...

now to sit on the couch, watch some sex and the city, eat some dark chocolate, and ponder my life

good good night,
Katie

slacking...

Friends, I have got to tell ya... lately I have been a MAJOR slacker! I've kept up with working out, so that's good but as far as the diet goes...whoa buddy! bad news! It's not like I've been eating cheeseburgers and french fries and chicken fingers and pizza (doesn't that all sound delicious though?! haha!) but I have been sneaking in a lot more little bites of chocolate here and there, or an extra little helping of dinner, and I most definitely let loose in the alcohol department. Womp womp :(

IT ALL ENDS TODAY!

Im giving my self a kick in the pants and getting back on track! I made myself an omelet this morning with 1/2 cup "better n eggs," (60 cal) some diced onion, (we'll call it 0 calories!) and 1/2 an ounce of reduced fat cheddar (45 calories). I served it up with some fire roasted salsa I had in the fridge (10 cal) and it was delicious! Personally I don't count calories but I thought I'd throw them up there for those of you who do. Served it up along side 1/2 a slice of milton's fat free multigrain toast from trader joe's with a little I cant believe its not butter and for under 200 calories (and only 3 WW pointsplus points for those of you on that system) I had a pretty tasty breakfast! I got 12g of protein just from the eggs! 

Can you tell I'm a little proud of myself?

Also, I make a mean omelet, let me tell you! I should have taken a picture of it...I will next time I make one.

Enough bragging, the point is, I'm rededicating myself to eating healthy and staying on track. I have definitely started to notice a difference in the way I feel after eating and drinking all this junk again and IM OVER IT! "Nothing tastes as good as skinny feels" my mama used to say! (OK some things definitely DO taste as good as skinny feels but that's for another day! haha!)

Let me know how your health journey goes and I'll keep you posted on mine. We can do it together!

Love and healthy eating!

Katie

man its hard...

There's a sign on the door of my gym that says something along the lines of "know that getting here was the hardest part" and ain't that the damn truth?! I've been going to the gym approx 4 days a week as of late and working out a 5th day outside or at home (doing dvd's and exercise-tv type dealios) but man I tell ya, getting there is never easy! You may have also heard that getting into your workout clothes is the hardest part. This, I think, is even more accurate. Once I get off my butt and actually put that sports bra and running shorts on I'm usually good to go! Having cute (and comfortable!!!) workout clothes helps immensely. I have recently invested quite a bit of money in various workout shorts/pants/bras and tank tops and even asked for more for my b-day.

insert awkward picture of my favorite under armor running shorts
(which i now own in two colors! thanks bmax!)

under armor tank courtesy of my favorite cousin and aunt

Not only does having a few cute options help motivate me to actually get into my workout clothes it also keeps me from making excuses. When you have 5 workout outfits you have no excuse to not work out 5 days a week! Haha! Sometimes you just have to trick yourself to get things done...or maybe that's just me!

ANYWAY what I'm getting at here is that it is HARD! Its hard to get my butt to the gym 5 days a week. Its hard to get off the couch and put the workout clothes on! Its hard to get in my car and drive to the gym! Its even hard to run the X amount of miles I have told myself I have to do each day (some days its harder than others and that's ok.) But man... I'll tell you what... it feels sooooo good when I'm done!

I never leave the gym stinky, and sweaty, and with wobbly legs, thinking UGH I wish I hadn't done that! haha! Some days I wish I had done a better/faster/longer/harder workout but I think that's normal.

Why is it that even though you know how great you'll feel when you're done its still just as hard to get up and do it all over again tomorrow? Whats with that?!

Oh well. I'll just keep pushing on and refusing to allow myself any excuse not to go... except of course, when I really do have a good excuse not to go! Right? right...?

Me: "I keep telling myself 'I get to go the the gym today! I GET to go to the gym today!' "
My friend Emily "Huh... How's that working for ya...?"

LOL

"Work hard...work hard..."

Sending lots of motivation your way!
Katie

changing things up...

In the past few months I have...

-gone on vacation 

-become a runner

-ridden a bike like...5 times!

-practiced my mad (haha) makeup skills with some fun new products

-spent WAY too much money

-given myself a pedicure WITH self done flower detail

-lost a few more lbs

-had a birthday

and...

-neglected my blog!

IM SORRY! Thanks for still being here. Thanks for reading.

From now on the conversation is going to be a little more casual... I hope thats ok :)

LOVE Katie