Feeling Jolly

Jolly Jar on top of my hard-drive and out of my reach!

Lately I have been trying to cut down on my sugar intake (yaa, yaaa, somehow I have become a little health conscience), but weeks ago I somehow ended up with a giant bag of jolly ranchers (actually a pretty funny story, but too lengthy to write here). I am one of those people that cannot be trusted with large quantities of candy, chips, or sugary breads in their possession, so in order to limit myself I brought my 1 pound bag of candy to work. One of the many things that my mother has taught me is that presentation is everything, so I knew a torn open plastic bag just won't do, not to mention it takes up too much room on my desk. So, here you have my feeble attempt at making an inviting candy jar. 

Necessary Items:

Mason Jar: I used an old spaghetti jar that I had been hoarding

Washi tape: Patterned Japanese tape, can be found at the shop on Stampington.com 

A (clever) label: I decided to go super cheesy with my design and it reads, "Have a JOLLY good day, Mate!" because let's be honest, we all need these words of encouragement to get us through the day at the office

Jolly Ranchers

I did have a lid on top, but that seemed to make my co-workers think they were to keep-out (quite opposite of what I am going for). Simple, easy, and done... and feeling like Pam on the Office during her reception days. 

National Tie One On

A co-worker of mine brought this great charitable act to my attention and I wanted to pass it on in the blogger world... 

Basically, "Sometime before Thanksgiving, pause in the preparation of your own meal, wrap a loaf of bread or other baked good in an apron, tuck a prayer or note of encouragement in the pocket, and tie one on … an apron, of course! Deliver the wrapped bundle to someone without your bounty … a neighbor, friend or family member in need of physical or spiritual sustenance, a bit of recognition, or just a kind word."

What a great way to reflect on all the gifts in your life and reach out and give to others. Women from my company will be donating our Aprons and Breads  to Laura's House, an abused women's shelter based in Ladera Ranch, and I will definitely be participating (I think I am going to back a pumpkin bread)... Hopefully I will have some photos to post afterwards. If this sounds like something you would like to do, please join in! I have placed the link below if you wish to find out more.

National Tie One On Day

A Blogger's Guilt

Forgive me Blogger, for I have sinned.
It has been 58 days since my last post.
Forgive me for I have found myself tempted with other sites such as Pinterest, Facebook, and Google Reader.
Forgive me for I have been distracted by work, working out, social outings, and cooking.
Forgive me for I have been lazy and too tired to blog due to the darkness outside when I get home.


I am sorry for these and all the sins of my past blog-life.


My penance shall be to start updating once a week, no matter how dull its contents may be... and may you all show mercy on my posts! 

Austin City Limits

Arriving back to our appartment at 11 last night after partaking in a three day music festival...

Waking up at 3:40am this morning to get to the airport...

Waiting for my first flight for 3 hours...

Spending about 10 hours between airports, plains, and cabs...

Spending way too much money...

Body and mind totally exhausted...

ALL WORTH IT! although I wish I could be back home with a snap of my finger, I had an amazing time at my first ACL trip. Great performances by Foster the People, Kanye West, Arcade Fire, Fleet Foxes, Alexander, Santigold, and sooo many more.

Published with Blogger-droid v1.7.4

A HO-HUM BEGINNING

This morning started with a knock on the outside of my bedroom door, a swift back-aching jerk to look at my clock, and a jump to my feet while frantically looking for work clothes to throw on. It was already 12 minutes past the time that I normally leave for work. Instead of making my carpool tardy as well, I sent them on their way and decided it best to drive myself. After a few stumbles, a washing of the face and a brushing of the teeth, I made it out the door and into my car to find (and remember) it's about empty gas tank. Of course my debit card gave the gas station fits and took longer than normal making me get on the freeway at perfect rush-hour traffic time. All of this and arriving to work to find the hot water not working for my oatmeal, looking at myself in the mirror looking like a hot-mess (so much for the theory, "dress for the job that you want"), and just the fact that I was at work put me in a ho-hum mood.

But after a few hours sitting at my desk working away, listening to Pandora, and drinking my coffee I decided that I am not going to waste today away in a ho-hum mood! So, I began making my "this makes me not so ho-hum today" list. So far I have:

Receiving an email from my friend Katie who is currently living in and loving England

Pandora... Original Motion Picture Scores station (I know I am weird)

White Chocolate Caramel Latte creamer from Coffee-Mate and 4 cups of coffee... oops

A DIY friendship bracelet tutorial (Found on an awesome site: http://honestlywtf.com/diy/diy-friendship-bracelet/) that lets me know what I will be doing tonight while watching the U of A football game against Oklahoma State

Knowing that in a week I will be on my way to Austin, TX for Austin City Limits Music Festival

And keeping an image of my family on my desk that I get to look at all day

ahhhh sigh, now I am relaxed and not so ho-hum. Hope your day is going well, and if not, just make yourself a list and you will find your attitude changing for the better. Think happy thoughts 

I have recently found a new ingredient that I love to cook with. I guess it's not really new to me because my mother had introduced me to it a couple years ago but since I didn't cook back then, I couldn't really understand all the possibilities. I am talking about Broccoli Slaw (found at Trader Joes). It is pretty simple, just sliced broccoli and carrots, but it is so fun to cook with and is a nice substitute to spinach, salad, or cabbage. I have tried it in wraps and omelets, but my favorite two recipes are listed below. The next time you are in Trader Joes, definitely give this bad boy a try!  

Soon, I want to make a Chinese Chicken Salad with it and add some peanuts. Can you think of any other ways to use broccoli slaw? 

August Rush

New desktop background I created

Toffee latte and fruit tart... delicious

Outside of Alta: you can see my parked bike kind of

Ok, so today's post title is ripping off the movie August Rush, but it has absolutely nothing to do with the film.

It's the middle of August already... Can you believe it? With work being so busy and friends and family being able to come visit, the past couple months have flown right by. Don't get me wrong, I love when life is full of fun events, socializing, and working hard, but this past Sunday I made sure to stop the rush and have a little date... With myself.

After taking Cortney and Elise to the airport (which was a bit depressing), I arrived home to an empty house. I wanted to take a nap, but decided I would be happier if I used the time to meander around the penninsula. I road my bike to church listening to my Radiohead Pandora station. Church felt great for my soul and spirit, I don't know why I stay away from churh most weekends. Afterwards, I took a little bike ride to Alta, this amazing coffee shop. Ordered myself a little (ok, BIG) treat, and then sat on a bench and watched the sun go down behind the bay.

How do you unwind and take a break? Do you have a special escape?

Published with Blogger-droid v1.7.4