My Dirty Little Secret

Man, have I been slacking on this blog!

The truth is, I haven't been writing as much as I want to/should be for a few reasons:

A.) Comcast is dumb, and shut off my internet because of their own billing mistake. That leaves me with no internet, except for at work until things get straightened out.

B.) I've been feeling guilty about my bad choices, and I haven't wanted to come clean to you until now...

I know that two weeks ago, I spouted off a lot of encouraging words about getting my act together again, and getting focused. (Read more: here and here) And then, I went to the beach with my family...

I ate somethings I probably shouldn't have-- and then came home to discover that Safeway was selling Chips Ahoy "Buy One, Get One Free." 

Say what???

Yes, I wound up buying 4 bags and eating 3 1/3 of them.

DIY Dog Car Blanket

Some of my goals for 2013 included: Creating a Balanced, Organized lifestyle and Being more Creative.  To do both of those things, I've been cleaning out the house, the car, the garage and the yard.  I've also been spending more time on Pintrest.

I stumbled upon this pattern a WHILE ago, and ran out and bought all the materials to make it-- and last week, I finally got to sit down with my mom and put it together.  

I've been wanting to make a dog blanket for the backseat of the car for months now.  Basically ever since we started walking everyday with Khloe.  To tell you the truth-- she's an absolute mess, between the rolling in mud, dead animals and poop to the splashing in mud, water and a mixture of both to the constant shedding from the month of April through August.  It makes the car smell, and it's hard to clean.  So when I stumbled upon this pattern, I knew I needed to make it.

Original Tutorial can be found: HERE.

One thing I loved about the tutorial, was the woman who wrote it knew what she was doing.  She'd obviously written directions before.  With Pintrest you never know, right?  I did wind up making a few changes to the pattern, though...

1. I didn't make it a "Canopy" blanket.  Khloe likes standing on the center console way too much, and I'm pretty sure a canopy blanket would be torn up out of frustration.

2. My mom had be do a double stitch around the edge of the blanket.  So there was a row of stitching a quarter of an inch in to hold the blanket down.  Then there was a row of stitching on along the outside edge to reinforce the stitching and hold the edge down.

3. Instead of using a zig-zag to attach the straps to the back of the blanket, I stitch a square around the strap, and then stitch an x on the inside.  It holds just as well as the zig-zag stitch-- except I feel like it was easier.

This was an easy project once I had my mom help me figure it out--- what can I say?  She's my sewing security blanket :)  I really want to make a few more without the straps for the beach or picnics.  They're incredibly durable and thick, so there are no worries about getting your butt wet or dirty from sitting on the ground.

Wahkeena to Multnomah Falls

** I meant to post this on Wednesday, but I have been preparing for the beach trip I'm on now!  So here it is for you, a few days late :)

Two weeks ago-- wow that feels like a long time-- Jason and I continued our goal to hike ever trail in the gorge from Portland to Hood River.  After Angel's Rest the week before, we decided we wanted to do an easier hike-- but not too easy... so we went with the Wahkeena Falls to Multnomah Falls loop.  We even had company on this hike!  Jason's college friend Brendan joined us for the trip.

The trail combines the one mile hike up to Multnomah Falls with the short trail to the top of Wahkeena falls.  It's a total of 5.5 miles round trip.

Strawberry Oatmeal Smoothies

Happy Tuesday All!

Now that I'm back on the healthy track (read more here)  I thought it would be a good idea to introduce to you my all-time favorite breakfast recipe.

Courtesy: Martha Stewart.com

Thank you Pintrest and Lauren Conrad for introducing me to this delicious smoothie.  It's quick to make and delicious!  So delicious, that I didn't even make any changes to the recipe (hence the screen grab)

I like to pair this smoothie with an energy ball before Jason and I hit the gym.  It's filling and gives my 2 servings of fruit for breakfast.  And the balls give me the boost I need to get through my workout!

This recipe makes one serving-- so double it if you're making it for two people.  Although, you're going to need a bigger blender to put twice the ingredients in... just a warning.

Book Club Postponed

Hello fellow book fans!

Since it's the 6th of May, and I haven't posted anything about the next book club pick, or the book I assigned last month-- I figured you may be wondering what's up.  I'm postponing the book club until June.  That means you have extra time to read "Bossy Pants"  or pick something else up.  Life and work have been crazy over the past month with lots of schedule changes, etc.  So I haven't had a chance to get through the book at the speed I would like.  Never fear!  I will have time to read this month, and I'll be bringing you a kick-ass review later on.

I hope you enjoyed, or are enjoying the book!  We'll discuss soon :)

Kerstin

Cheat Days

Since I started this journey to trim down I've heard one phrase over and over again from the people around me:  "Cheat Day."   Anytime there are cookies or candy or pizza brought in to work, I try to abstain .. but someone always says to me, "You're allowed to have a cheat day."  And eventually, I give in.

Courtesy: Four Hour Body Couple

A Week (or two) of Less-Than-Great Choices

After last week's posts about my battle with depression, I decided to take the rest of the week off from writing.  My thinking was, I just dropped a heavy topic on you and it didn't feel right to post anything else.

But, now that it's the start of a new week, there is something I want to bring to your attention... I've been having a hard time staying on track. In the past two weeks, as I've dredged up this emotional stuff to talk about with you and with my thereapist-- I've also eaten an ENTIRE back each of Fig Newtons, Oreos and Potato Chips.  I've also eaten some ice cream and lots and lots of cookies brought into work by my evil co-workers.

Dealing with Depression Part 2

Welcome to Part 2...  If you missed Part 1, you can read it HERE.

Before I begin, I just want to say thank you for taking the time to read my story.  It's not easy to put it all out there like this, especially when you're just trying to be objective and factual. Yes I know that's my job as a journalist, but when you're dealing with yourself it can be hard to remain neutral.

Now for the continuation of my battle with depression...

Dealing with Depression Part 1

I abandoned you!  My loyal readers for the entire week.  I didn't even post anything on Facebook or Twitter to tell you I was alright.  I just unplugged from the world, and enjoyed a somewhat blissful week filled with sunshine and no electronics.  It was wonderful!  We hiked in the gorge (blog to come) and I got to spend some time rummaging through old photos of my adorable younger self with my parents.  And as much as I missed writing on this little blog o'mine... I needed the time away from it all.

But never fear!  Even through the unplugging and resetting process, today's blog topic has been on my mind for the past two weeks. Early last month, I told you that I was depressed and that when I felt more comfortable with my feelings, I would discuss them with you.  Well, I've been feeling comfortable for the past two weeks, but I haven't quite known how to get started.  Hence, the week of thinking and no writing.  But now I've finally figured it out... So, sit back and relax-- it's a long one today, folks!

[** I have in no way overcome my issues, I'm a long road from that.  But I do intend to be as honest as I can be about my experience.  Part 1 and Part 2 of this post are not meant to call anyone out, make anyone feel bad, or blame anyone-- it is merely an example of how I got to the point where I recognized there was a problem. **]

DIY Workout Shirts

This week I have a crafty little tip that will make your workouts more comfortable.  I don't know about you but I hate wearing t-shirts when I work out.  In fact, I pretty much hate wearing t-shirts in general.  So when I stumbled upon the awesome idea below-- so I just had to try it.

Courtesy: Rabbit Food for my Bunny Teeth

Of course I found this on Pintrest-- and when I saw it I knew what I was going to do with all of my old t-shirts that I never wear because I hate t-shirts, like I said before... so, during a night at my cousin's house, I sat on the floor, gossiped and cut up all of my workout shirts.

Aren't they cute?  They're super comfortable, too.  The only thing I would suggest is that you cut the neck a little deeper, and the shoulder straps should be thinner.  Only because I feel like the shirts are choking me when I'm working out.

These are the perfect workout shirts, especially if you sweat a lot!  Which I totally do.  :)

Do you have a favorite workout shirt?  Is it something you've made, or something you've bought?  Where did you find the pattern or the shirt?  Leave your feedback in the comments below.

Frozen Peanut Butter and Banana Treats

Are you an ice cream addict like I am?  If not, what the hell is wrong with you?  If you are-- have I got a healthy way to get a sweet frozen treat without compromising your calories.

These little bundles of joy are Peanut Butter-Banana bites, and you can have 7 of them for only 160 calories.   Honestly, I have 2 or three when I get home from work after a stressful "I NEED ice cream" kind of night, and I'm good to go.  I got the original recipe from FitSugar.com, but I made a few minor edits of my own.

Cannon Beach, My Happy Place

Have you ever had one of those days where you just felt like you needed to get away from it all?  That was me yesterday.  I came off of a rough day at work Monday, after the twin bombings at the Boston Marathon.

AP Photo/The Boston Globe, John Tlumacki

I'm sure you were all pretty shocked and saddened by the whole thing, and so was I.  Working in a Newsroom on days like Monday are especially tough.   Having to see that video over and over again, hearing those screams, let's just say by Tuesday I was in no mood to stay at home and clean the house.

(side note:  One of my favorite stories from Monday)

Success is so Sweet!

Happy Sunday loyal readers :)  It's been a week since we joined the gym, and I'm already starting to feel the difference.  If you follow my Facebook Page you know that I'm down just shy of 28 pounds.  That means I have about 30 more before I strut my stuff in a swimsuit for all to see.

The gym is great.  We've done Zumba twice.. and I think I'm starting to become a convert :)  We've also done some Pilate's and Yoga-- both of which I LOVE!  I only managed to make it to class 3 times last week, and I'm hoping to add more days.  But, with my work schedule changing a lot this week-- it might not happen.

I just realized that it's been well over a month, and I haven't even given you a picture update on my progress like I promised I would when I wrote about our new journey to "Sweat for Seoul." (See pictures above) I can already see the difference in a month.  A: my face has thinned out quite a bit.  B:  I'm actually smiling :) and C:  I have the confidence enough to not hide behind a baggy sweatshirt.

Angel's Rest

Yesterday, Jason and I had a day date to hike Angel's Rest in the Columbia River Gorge.  If you've been following along, you know I have a goal of hiking every trail in the gorge from Portland to Hood River.  We started this goal late last summer, and I've been regaling you with those trips on Wednesdays since the beginning of the year.  But yesterday we finally got the opportunity to get out and explore the gorge this year.

Above is one of several gorgeous views from the top of Angel's Rest.  But before I tell you about our trip yesterday, I need to give you some background on my battle with this particular hike.  On three separate occasions in my adult life, I've failed to make it all the way to the top.  This is a somewhat difficult hike.  And try as I might, something has always held me back.  The first time, my childhood dog I was walking with was old, and couldn't finish the trip so I had to turn around.  On the other two tries, my mind was holding me back.  Essentially, I gave up on myself.  But yesterday was different...

DIY Yumm Bowls

As promised last week, it's time for me to teach you how to make Yumm Bowls.  This is a perfect Lunch or Dinner.  It's filling and healthy and you can doctor it any way you want.

Take the below ingredients and layer them in the bowl the way they appear. 

1 cup cooked Brown, White or Jasmine Rice

1 cup black beans (warmed)

2 tablespoons Yumm Sauce (recipe for the homemade version here)

1/2 cup of cheddar cheese.

Olives, Tomatoes, Avocado (all are optional)

1 tablespoon Salsa

1 tablespoon Sour Cream

A pinch of Cilantro

You can add chicken, tofu or the protein of your choice, but I've found the plain version is filling on its own.  Once everything is layered-- dig in!