Bag-O-Fun 2nd Activity Report : (

Not much to report this week.  I got hurt this weekend so we couldn't do our chosen activity.  I think it will go back into the back to by chosen for another weekend.

Apps I Like Post 1

I took several screen shots of my iPod that show which apps I have been using.
I really like the Pinterest and Pandora app.  The Pinterest app is really easy to use, but I wish you could change the view to landscape.  This is an issue I'm finding on many of the apps that I use.  The Pandora app is a family favorite.  We love how we can choose the type of music we want to listen to and it's free!
  

In my Social Folder I have 7 apps.  My favorite thus far has been the Google Voice Phone.  You can make phone calls and text from this app.  You do need to be by WiFi, but it's cheaper than being on a 2 year contract with a high monthly fee!  I also learned how to use Messages.  This is Apple's texting app.  We have an iPad and I saw it, but didn't quite know what to do with it.  Since the iPod is mine I've been playing around with the different apps and I'm not worried about messing it up.  I also like Talkatone, but I think this is linked to Google Voice (?).  The Facebook app is nice, but again you can't put it in landscape view and that makes it difficult to type.  This is my opinion.  Messenger on the other hand is linked to Facebook and you can message people and put it in landscape.  I like this, but my wrists and thumbs do get tired.  I have been using Pinger for awhile.  I only text a few people with this app.  I don't normally check it so my friends who do text me on this app know to call if they don't hear back from me in a timely manner : ).  I just really can't get on the texting bandwagon.  I like email better.  The last app that I need to talk about is Twitter.  I don't really get Twitter, but it was neat to use it this morning.  I Tweeted to a news station to find out why a helicopter was circling my neighborhood and the news person got back to me with the information.  Other than that I don't know how to use this app.

Birthday Present from my Mom : )

My mom gave me a new iPod Touch 5th Generation!  I have an older Touch (3rd Gen?).  I realized it was getting slower and didn't have the perks of a camera/video camera.  Also, many of the newer apps and updates wouldn't run correctly.  I've had a couple of weeks to play around with my new toy and I am really happy!  My mom also got me a case and some screen protectors.  I still need to put the protectors on, but I really like having the wallet case.  Here are some pictures of my new toy!

I picked out the pink iPod Touch.  I realized that I really like pink!

Here is the wallet case that I picked out.  The Ipod snaps in easily.  There are also little pockets for credit cards or business cards.  You could probably put in paper money, too.  I haven't tried that yet.  I like having my regular wallet.

Here is another position you can put the iPod in .  You can pop it up if you want to watch a video.  I like to have it propped up when I FaceTime with my mom.




This is really a neat gadget.  I know that lots of people have an iPhone, but I just don't want to pay the high monthly fee.  Having the iPod is like getting all of the perks of an iPhone without the 2 year contract and paying $80-$100 for a plan.  My cell phone plan is really basic.  We have two numbers on the account and pay $78/month if I stay under our minutes.  We don't have texting or data attached to our plan.  It is strictly a phone plan with 700 minutes shared between 2 numbers.  I am learning how to text now.  My next post will be the apps that I really like!

Bag-O-Fun 1st Activity Report!

This past weekend was our first activity from our Bag-O-Fun and it was fun!  We had a 3 day weekend and it really did feel nice and long.  I think it was because we did lots of different things.  I finally got back in the water and surfed two times and caught about 6 waves.  Not too exciting, but it's a start.

Right now I'm in the middle of winter cleaning.  Monday I cleaned the house and started to organize.  Now I'm clearing out emails from my work inbox and will start on my personal inbox.  January 2013 is coming to a close and my goal is to have less clutter at the start of February!

Found a New Soup Recipe

It is still cold here in Southern California.  I know it's relative, but it's cold for us!  We don't have central heating so we are always cold during this time of year.  I like having soup for dinner because it warms us up and is nice comfort food.  I found a chowder off of the Martha Stewart website that I pinned.  I made a couple of changes to the recipe.  I bought a rotisserie chicken and used that as the protein instead of bacon.  It turned out really yummy and I am looking forward to having leftovers for lunch today!

Here is my version of the Broccoli Chowder with Corn and Chicken!

 Here is Martha's Version:

http://www.marthastewart.com/314674/broccoli-chowder-with-corn-and-bacon

I also used my Chop Wizard to prep the veggies.  I realized that I need to cut the onions smaller so I get a diced effect.  I've been cutting the onions in half like the instructions say, but they a too big for my taste.  I like them chopped up a bit more.

I'm off to eat an early lunch.  It's so cold in the house my fingers are freezing up and it's very difficult to type! : )

Bag-O-Fun!

I sort of fell off of the Happiness Challenge.  Their emails kept getting sent to my spam box and I would delete the messages before they got read.  The activities they did recommend and that I read always revolved around quality of food you eat and activities that you do each day.  I get that proper food and fitness helps, but what I was looking for was how to keep my happiness levels elevated during unsavory tasks that I have to do each week.  This is an area that is a work in progress and hopefully will change for the better during 2013!

On to the Bag-O-Fun!

I know it sort of looks like something that was spit out of your paper shredder, but it is a bag of activities that my hubby and I can do throughout 2013.  We have tried to do new things each weekend, but always end up doing the same stuff.  He surfs, I surf with him or go to the gym, he plays video games, I hang out on the couch with the animals and we eat at the same restaurant every weekend.  (They know us so well they don't bother giving us a menu!)  It's actually a fun and relaxing way to spend a weekend, but we do it 3 out of the 4 weekends each month.

I made 52 slips of paper and we split it in half.  We each wrote down what we wanted to do.  There are some doubles since we didn't tell each other what we wrote.  That's ok since things like taking the dogs to the beach and going bike riding are always fun activities to do multiple times.

We picked out our activities for this weekend.  The first one was to choose a venue to see a musical act sometime in 2013 and to pick another activity for this weekend.  DH wrote that one.  We checked the calendars for venues in our area, but their 2013 calendars haven't been updated so we'll keep checking. I got to pick another activity and we are going to get lunch and drinks somewhere different this weekend.  The place we are going has been remodeled so it will be fun to see how it looks!

What do you all have planned for this third weekend in January?

Connect 2 Happiness: Days 2 & 3

Well, I'm still working on day 1.  I need to find a notebook to jot down my ideas.  I know I have one laying around somewhere.  I don't want to go buy a new one.  If you have read the 1st Shopoholic book you'll understand why!

On Day 2 they recommended getting "Grounded".  What I got from this recommendation is to slow down and just take in your surroundings.  It's a bit cold here so I don't want to be without my socks, but I am taking the time to sit and observe the people and animals I cherish!

Day 3 wants you to "Boost Your Endorphins" and get moving.  I get this.  Working out makes me feel better.  I usually never regret a workout, unless I'm sick and I get worse.  Since I'm fighting a chest cold I think I will get moving, though at a slower pace!

Have a wonderful weekend!  Tomorrow's my birthday and I'm looking forward to opening my mom's gift and playing with my new toy!

Free Downloads from Crate & Barrel!

I just flipped through the new Crate and Barrel catalog and they have some neat music and game downloads!  I usually just throw away the catalog so I'm not tempted, but today I took a peak.  I think I will look through them before I toss just in case they have more freebies!

Happiness Challenge!

I got an email from Gaiam and their Connect 2 Happiness 30 Day Challenge.  This is another area that I would like to work on this year.  This is an area in my life that struggle with and would like to change my outlook on.  Overall I am a happy person, but I do have my moments.  I need to remind myself about what I enjoy and love.  This will help take the focus off of parts of my life that are not so much fun.  Here are the questions they posted for Day 1:

1.  What makes you happy?
2.  What are you passionate about?
3.  How can you bring more of that into your life?

I think these are good journal prompts to write about.  I don't think I will express my thoughts and feelings on this blog, but I will post the questions they give so you can journal about them if you like!
2) What are you passionate

Pinterest Recipe and Chop Wizard Review!

Last night I made the Spinach Tomato Orzo Soup I found on Pinterest.

YUM!  I played around with the recipe after reading some of the reviews.  I added two cans of diced tomatoes, Trader Joe's 21 Seasoning Salute, 4 red potatoes and used vegetable broth.  I also topped it off with some shredded Parmesan.  It was a bit bland, but I added a little salt to liven it up.  Some of the suggestions were to add hamburger meat or Italian Sausage.  These sounded like good ideas, but I wanted to keep this vegetarian.  Next time I might try to add meat if I am in the mood.  This recipe made a lot!  We are set for the remainder of the week and weekend!

I used my new Chop Wizard to chop up the onions and the red potatoes.  This was way easier than cutting it with a knife and using my other chopper.  The clean up was a snap, too!  I am looking forward to using the Chop Wizard for other recipes.  I found a yummy looking mini apple pie recipe I think this would work well on.  I will do a post when I try this one out!

I'm off to eat some soup and get some sleep.  Tomorrow is going to be a long day and a hectic one!  I'm also fighting a cold and I want to be well for this weekend.  My birthday weekend!

I walked the dogs!

I think I need to make a schedule and post it so I am accountable.  My poor poochies haven't been walked in so long.  I feel bad and need to make a point of taking them out on the days that I have free.  It will be good for both of them and for me, too!  I took 7119 steps.

Trip #2 and #3 with no clothing purchases!

These past few days have been very social ones!  I met with my friend Sheryl for lunch on Friday, Sarah on Sunday and Lisa on Monday.  On Friday, I met with Sheryl and we did a bit of window shopping at Bed Bath and Beyond.  She showed me a cooking gadget that she uses to prep her food: The Chop Wizard:

I've seen the infomercial for this gadget and always thought it was a neat tool, but I already had my Cuisinart Mini Prep.  

I think they will compliment each other and hopefully cut my prep time down.  Also, I've gotten close to cutting my finger many times and maybe it will save them from future harm ; ).  

On Saturday I met up with Sarah.  She came down to treat me to an early birthday lunch.  We usually meet at a mall to eat and shop, but instead we met at my place and walked to lunch.  It was a little over a mile each way and it made eating not feel so bad!  Maybe this year due to my resolution we can change our monthly habit and walk to places instead.  I am also hoping to get back into the water.  She and I used to surf in the morning and grab breakfast/lunch after.

Yesterday I met up with Lisa at the same shopping center that I went to with Sheryl and I didn't buy anything!  Lisa wanted to do some shopping so we did try stuff on, but I didn't blow my Loft store credit on something just to get it.  I realized that it's making me look at clothes and I'm actually thinking if I really need it and if I have something similar.  I did get a pair of undies from Victoria's Secret.  They sent me a $10 off anything birthday coupon so I got a pair of their Pink line undies.  They were $9.50 so I didn't even have to pay tax.  Lisa was in a shopping mood and found some cute walking pants and a PJ top at H&M.  I would have gotten a pair of the walking pants she bought and was really tempted.  They are great for walking our dogs.  The pockets zip and they are light weight.  They reminded me of the Lulu Dance Studio Pant that I keep eyeing.  I reminded myself that I have plenty of pants that I wear when I take the dogs out and I have a little purse I use to keep my stuff stashed and safe.  I'm sure next year H&M will have similar pants and if I need them I can get them, but for now I need to walk my dogs more than I need a new pair of pants!  

Speaking of walking the dogs I think I am going to walk them this morning!  Have a great Tuesday!

Sparkpeople.com

I am starting to log in my workouts again. I used SparkPeople consistently for a while, but then stopped. Once I get their app installed on my new iPod it will be a lot easier to log in my food, water and exercise. (Their app used to be free, but is now $2.99 or $3.99) This year I want to start back up with a weight training routine and work on getting my pilates and/or barre certification. I had a hysterectomy in mid September 2012 so my core is really weak. I think it will take me awhile to get my core strength up to par to get a pilates certification. The SparkPeople exercise tracker will keep me on track so I do my strength and pilates exercises.

Shopping. Grocery Shopping! : )

Last night I realized that we were starting to run out of food for dinner. We had lots of miscellaneous items such as grapefruit cups, yogurt, milk and beer, but not much to make a meal out of.

I was able to scrounge up enough ingredients to make quinoa black bean chili. I modified this chili recipe and used quinoa instead of ground meat. (Cook the quinoa prior to simmering the beans and tomatoes) I used the red quinoa so it looked sort of meaty. It made quite a bit so there are left overs for lunch until the weekend! This is my favorite chili recipe. I highly recommend it!

It's a bit chilly here in Southern California so I decided to break out the crockpot and start making some soups. I found some yummy looking ones on Pinterest. The one I'm making tonight is Cheesy Vegetable Chowder.

I used:
1 Yellow Onion Diced
4 Small Red Potatoes Chopped
4 Stalks of Celery Chopped
Tbsp. of Minced Garlic
Trader Joe's:
Organic Foursome
Frozen Broccoli Florets
Low Sodium Vegetable Broth (2 Cartons)



I started it a bit late so I put it on high and hopefully it will be done by the time my hubby gets home! I am going to add the flour, milk and cheese about 30 minutes before serving. Check out the link to the recipe and I'll post an update and let you all know how it turned out!


***Update***
Well I used my crockpot and this didn't turn out like the picture. I think I added too much broth and the frozen veggies might have also diluted the soup. I added more flour and cheese to try to thicken it up, but it was still really watery and the flavor was a bit bland. I will try this again maybe next month, but will go use the stovetop method.

I think I might cook up some white quinoa tonight to add some oomph to it tonight!

Trip #1 to the mall and no Clothes! I got candy instead!

Ok! So I made it to the mall and didn't buy any clothes, accessories or make up! I did get myself a new workout mat so I can practice pilates and get my core strength back : ). I found my old mat last night and it had a film of mold on it so I tossed it. My other mats are dusty and need a good wipe down, but they aren't moldy. I did use our See's Candy gift certificate : ). It wasn't too difficult to not spend. I only went to the stores that I had gift certificates for and I stayed out of the ones that were tempting. I found an article on Yahoo that gives strategies to help you keep your resolutions: Seven Strategies for Highly Effective New Year's Resolutions. It was very interesting and well worth a look. I have also been checking out my Pinterest Board for new recipe ideas. I want to see if we can go a week without eating out, then two, etc. My hubby said we should try to only go out once a month. I think we can do this. Last night to ring in the New Year we splurged and bought lobster tails for dinner. It was a bit pricey, but the dinner cost us approximately $30 with four tails, a loaf of French Bread and head of lettuce for a side salad. Well, I'm off to find a yummy recipe to cook tonight!

Happy New Year!

Happy 2013! I hope you all had a wonderful 2012 and an even better 2013! Yesterday was my last chance to make purchases and I bought 3 pairs of boots from DSW online. I plan on keeping one pair and returning the rest. I have been looking for black leather boots that I will have for a long time. I purchased and returned 3 pairs of Frye Veronica Slouch and Veronica Slouch Backzip boots. They were too narrow in the toebox and too loose in the heel. They were really cute, but for the price I needed them to fit perfectly. The pairs that I ordered from DSW were not as expensive, but I hope that at least one of them works! Here are links to the boots that I ordered:, Steve Madden Frannk Boot, Steve Madden Baxter Boot and  Two Lips Jealous Riding Boot. The boots are pictured in this order: Steve Madden Frannk, Two Lips Jealous Riding Boot and Steve Madden Baxter Boot.

Steve Madden Frannk Boot

Frye Veronic Slouch

***Review of the Steve Madden Frannk Boot:***

I received these on January 8th!  They came quite fast.  This boot look very similar to the Frye Veronica Slouch boot I had been coveting.  I did order 3 paris of the Veronica Slouch style, but none of them worked.  I was hopeful that the Steve Madden pair would fit since I really like the look/style of this boot and they were less expensive.  Well...this pair didn't work either.  The Frye boot's toe box was very tight and my heel would slip around.  I figured if I was paying $300+ they should fit perfectly.  The Steve Madden pair had a similar fit, but the toe box was more forgiving.  I wish these had worked, but they are going back.

Steve Madden Baxter Boot

***Review of the Steve Madden Baxter Boot***

This boot was really cute when I took it out of the box.  I also liked how the zipper is on the outer part of the boot.  I have another pair that zips like this and it's a fun alternative.  These fit so nicely when I zipped them up.  I did notice on my left foot the area where there is a fold cut into the top of my foot, but the leather felt like it would stretch out.  The sole is also very rugged and I was looking for a boot like this.  When I started walking around my house I noticed that on the right side the sole felt weird.  When I would take a step it felt rounded and uneven.  I took the boot off and inspected it and it did look a bit bulbous there.  I am on my feet a lot for my job so I don't want to take a chance and throw my balance and my back out.  So, these are going back. 

Two Lips Jealous Riding Boot

***Review of the Two Lips Jealous Riding Boot***

Ding!  Ding!  Ding!  We have a winner!  I zipped these puppies up and they felt really good.  I wish  they were tighter in the calf area, but they worked.  The buckles are on their last notch so I need to make sure I don't stretch them out.  The sole felt normal, my heel stayed put and my toes didn't feel squished.  The foot area is roomier than the other two boots, but I could wear thicker socks if need be.  I wore these to work today and I didn't really notice my feet slipping around and I didn't get blisters either.  I was debating on keeping the black pair and exchanging them for the tan pair (or buying a second pair in tan).  I started to debate myself and justifying it because I was returning the two boots that didn't work.  But, I reminded myself that I was on a search for a nice pair of black boots and not tan.  I have several pairs of brown and taupe boots and I didn't NEED another pair in this color scheme.  So, I kept the black pair and will not buy the tan pair.  

Well this is the last new wearable item I will be getting in 2013!