Fashion Friday: Christmas Clothes

Remember when you were younger, and all you wanted for Christmas was toys? Some of my favorite presents from Christmases past include a dollhouse, an Easy Bake oven and Beanie Babies…good times As I’ve grown up, though, my Christmas wishlists have been pretty much been devoted to one thing–clothes. As an aspiring fashionista, I have an obsession with clothes shopping and I feel like I could never have too many outfits. This year, as in recent years, I got quite a few wonderful things not on my wishlist (such as pink-colored office supplies–my dad knows me too well–and a new blingy phone case) but most of what I received was clothing-related, or could be used towards buying clothes. And you better believe I was thrilled about our family’s post-Christmas shopping trip in Denver!

White easy fit sweater: Abercrombie & Fitch. Royal blue chiffon skirt: Abercrombie & Fitch.

This was the outfit I unwrapped on Christmas. They were actually wrapped up separately but they go well together. I’m planning on wearing this during the winter paired with grey tights and my grey wedge booties and in the spring sans tights with a cute pair of flats.

Sparkly pink makeup bag (Forever 21) and a handbags daily calendar.

These were two unexpected fashion-related gifts but I love them! I was in desperate need of a new makeup bag as my old one was starting to rip, and this calendar is perfect for the designer bag-lover in me.

The riding boots I’ve been wanting for months!

Once I unwrapped these, my Christmas was complete. I’ve been wanting a nice pair of riding boots since at least last Christmas, but haven’t been able to track down the perfect, inexpensive pair. My mom got these from Macy’s and they’re just the right color and style to go with everything.

White flower bouquet ring: Forever 21.

I’m a sucker for cheap, quality jewelry, especially rings. American Eagle used to be my go-to but now I prefer Forever 21 and ALDO Accessories for their wider selection. This ring was under $4! The only thing I hate about shopping for rings is finding my size–I wear a 6, which is sometimes even too big so I always have to try before I buy.

Light blue faux leather jacket: Forever 21. Dark wash jeggings: American Eagle.

This jacket is probably one of my favorite purchases from my haul, or possibly one of my favorite buys ever. I almost convinced my sister to buy it but I ended up with it, and for under $25 too! Forever 21 is a lifesaver wallet saver for sure. My only issue with shopping there is the ridiculous selection–it’s such a giant store.

Jacket closeup.

I love the detailing on this jacket. It makes me feel like a bad ass More like a bad ass vegan who likes the look of leather but not the cruelty aspect of it!

Navy easy fit sweater: Hollister. Pink plaid PJ shorts: Hollister.

Hollister was having a huge post-Christmas sale (50% off everything in clearance!) and I had a gift card there so I went a little crazy. Okay, not really, I only bought 4 things but I only ended up having to pay $10 for it so that was a nice surprise. The PJ shorts might not get too much wear until spring but I love them so much that I might be willing to freeze my legs off to wear them earlier. The sweater is a basic but I like the looser fit and it’ll look great with anything.

White sheer sparkle tank: Hollister.

Another basic–you can’t go wrong with a white tank, especially when it has some sparkly details. I’m planning on pairing this with my burgundy jeggings and my brown faux leather jacket.

Coral easy fit sweater: Hollister.

Another favorite buy–I just love the bright color of this sweater! Besides getting a lot of sweaters for Christmas, they’re also all easy fit sweaters which I like because they’ll look great paired with skinnies and jeggings. Loose+loose and tight+tight are no-nos but pairing a looser top with tighter fitting bottoms definitely works! And this sweater isn’t too heavy either so it’ll work into the spring months.

Do you prefer looser/longer sweaters or tighter/shorter ones? Did you get or buy any clothes for Christmas? 

The End is Near+Kelp Noodle Stirfry

Well guys, here we are again, at the end of another year. I hate being cliche, but where the heck did 2012 go? I feel like as I get older, the years fly by so much faster than when I was a kid. Not that I’m complaining, but it’s crazy to me that I’m practically done with college!

I’m really excited for 2013. I have no idea exactly what will happen, which scares the type-A planner in me, but it’s exciting to think about all the things that could happen this year. For one, I’m finally turning the big 21 in July. Don’t get me wrong, I’m not big into drinking or anything but it’ll be nice to be able to order a good drink in a restaurant sometimes, or enjoy a cool cocktail at home. Also, I might possibly be graduating in December–crazy talk! I really want to get all my credits done in time so I can graduate a semester early and get started on my first big girl job. I know a lot of people would rather stay in school as long as possible but I’m so excited about my future career (hopefully as a meteorologist) that I want to get a head start!

I don’t want to drag this post on forever, so I’ll just share some brief highlights from the year with you and then give you a delicious, quick recipe at the end.

January

I finally got a Twitter, I experimented more with raw recipes and I overcame my hatred for hot tea. 

Raw carrot cake bite with peanut flour frosting.

February

I tried a bunch of new-to-me products, did a raw food challenge and went to a father daughter dance with my sister and dad. 

Dressed up for the dance.

March

I reevaluated my recovery journey and eating habits, got an internship at a local TV station and made a bunch of recipes over spring break.

Enjoying the sunshine during spring break.

April

I celebrated Easter with the fam, tried Zevia for the first time and got ready for summer food & fun. 

Coloring Easter eggs.

May

I finished up my sophomore year of college, made my first pancakes from scratch and celebrated my blog’s first birthday. 

Peanut flour pancakes with homemade strawberry vanilla jam.

June

I talked about why I eat healthy, made a goal to stop counting calories and moved to a new house. 

Eating applesauce on the go.

July

I embraced my love of healthy fats, made my go-to meal for the first time and celebrated my 20th birthday. 

The delicious vegan cake I enjoyed on my birthday.

August

I tried vegan sushi, almost saw the President and started budgeting my grocery shopping. 

Vegan sweet potato tempura sushi rolls.

September

I overcame my fear of coconut, had jury duty and embraced fall. 

I also did my first giveaway!

October

I participated in Vegan MoFo, started my addiction to kabocha and broke some fashion rules.

My first Fashion Friday post.

November

I shared my Christmas wishlist a month early, proved that vegans can get protein too and spent Thanksgiving break writing papers. 

Almond cake vodka on Thanksgiving.

December

I proclaimed my love for the Whole Foods salad bar, stressed out about finals and had an enjoyable (while sick) Christmas.

It was a white Christmas after all!

 And now for the recipe! I don’t know about you, but after Christmas, some nights I’m feeling lazy and I just want a quick dinner to throw together so I have more time for family game and movie nights. This stirfry recipe comes together in 10 minutes and is easy to customize to your tastes. I used kelp noodles as the base because I love their texture and how they can bulk up a meal without adding any calories but you can use rice or soba noodles if you prefer.

Coconut Curry Kelp Noodle Stirfry (vegan, gluten free, grain free)

1/4 cup light canned coconut milk (can use full fat)

1 tsp curry powder

red pepper flakes, to taste

1 tbsp peanut flour (or peanut butter)

1 tsp coconut aminos (or tamari)

1/2 cup kelp noodles, rinsed and dried

fresh or frozen veggies (I used shredded carrot slaw and fresh green kale)

1/4 cup fresh or frozen pineapple (or chopped fresh orange)

1/2 cup shelled edamame

In a small bowl, stir together coconut milk, curry powder, red pepper, peanut flour and aminos until thickened and combined. In a medium pan over medium heat, cook edamame, veggies and pineapple in a small amount of coconut oil. Add in kelp noodles and stir sauce over noodles. Cook for 5 minutes or until mixture is hot and sauce thickens up a bit. Serve topped with shredded coconut, chopped peanuts, pumpkin seeds or a drizzle of sriracha. Serves 1. 

What are some of your favorite memories from 2012? What’s one new thing you tried this last year?

Recipe submitted to Healthy Vegan Friday #23.

An Unconventional Christmas

Hey there Hope you all had a very lovely Christmas (if you celebrate)! As usual, it went by wayyyyy too fast but at least there’s still New Years and post-Christmas shopping to look forward to.

You might be wondering why I titled this post ‘An Unconventional Christmas’. While it was definitely enjoyable and memorable, there were a few unexpected things that happened, some good and some bad. Let me explain…

The huge, beautiful Christmas tree at church!

It all started out on the morning of Christmas Eve. I woke up feeling out of it, sick and nauseated. Not the best way to start any day, but especially not Christmas Eve. I hoped it would pass but it didn’t. I spent most of the morning trying to fall asleep so I wouldn’t have to focus on feeling sick. My mom was prepping food downstairs and literally every smell made my stomach churn, even the smell of fresh-baked cookies. Yep, it was that bad. I attempted some toast but couldn’t stomach it and spent the afternoon watching Friends with my mom and sister. I still wasn’t feeling great, but I was determined to go to our church’s annual evening Christmas Eve service so I stuck it out and got ready for church. By this time I had started to feel achy and had chills. But the church service itself was beautiful, as usual. We sang lots of traditional Christmas hymns and the best part, as usual, was singing ‘Silent Night’ by candlelight. I always feel so emotional after the Christmas Eve service, and I was glad I didn’t let my sickness get in the way of soaking up the experience.

My present for my mom. She loved it

Back at home, we started watching ‘A Christmas Story’. It’s a tradition for us to watch bits and pieces of the 24 hour marathon they play every year–I love that movie! But I still wasn’t really feeling that great and I was kinda upset that I wasn’t going to be able to make my planned dinner for Christmas Eve–coconut curry tofu. This year marks my second Christmas as a vegan, and I was disappointed that I wasn’t going to be eating anything special…or much of anything really. I was able to have a bunch of water and some applesauce but that’s about it. The worst thing is, I had been telling myself for days prior to Christmas that I was going to relax my food rules over Christmas–I was still going to be eating vegan, but I wasn’t going to count calories, or worry too much about fitting in all my usual exercise and I was going to eat things that I wanted, when I wanted. So I was upset that I couldn’t eat the things I wanted, let alone most foods.

Waking up to snow on Christmas morning is always magical!

But I don’t want to go all Debbie Downer on you guys. I most definitely enjoyed my Christmas, sick or not. One ‘unconventional’ surprise that was good was getting snow on Christmas. I’ve lived in CO for most of my life, and one of the misconceptions a lot of non-Coloradans have about the state is that we get a LOT of snow. Not true, unless you live in the mountains. Living just east of the Rockies and being at a higher elevation, we do tend to see some snow throughout the winter and early spring, but CO rarely gets a white Christmas, especially a real white Christmas where it snows on Christmas. Even though I knew that snow was in the forecast, I was still thrilled to see a few inches of snow on the ground on Christmas day.

Stocking…

…and stocking stuffers!

My family does things a little differently on Christmas. We’re only allowed to open our stockings before breakfast and getting ready for the day. This year I got lots of beauty related things in my stocking, and of course, a bar of my favorite dark chocolate!

My family’s Christmas tree on Christmas morning.

After getting all ready for the day it was finally time…for presents! As I’ve gotten older, I still love getting Christmas presents but I appreciate all the other parts of Christmas–the family traditions, the story of Jesus’ birth, the lights and the music and all the excitement that the holiday season brings. However, I did receive many wonderful gifts this year. Some of my favorites include a pair of dark brown riding boots (I’ve been wanting these forever!), a pink blingy cell phone case (my old blue one was falling apart), a heart-shaped donut pan, a couple of vegan cookbooks (Veganomicon and Practically Raw) and some clothes/gift card to Hollister. Honestly, I really love all the presents I got, no matter how small, because I know my family took a lot of time picking out things they knew I’d like.

So excited to try out some vegan donut recipes with this bad boy!

The rest of the day was pretty chill. We just spent it relaxing inside, since it was below freezing outside! My dad got a Google tablet for Christmas so he spent most of the day playing around with that, and the rest of us listened to Christmas CDs and watched the rest of the ‘A Christmas Story’ marathon. Even though I started feeling sick again later in the day, I still thoroughly enjoyed my Christmas.

Me and my little sissy. Some people think we look alike?

Christmas wasn’t what I was expecting at all, between getting sick, the snow and cold weather and of course the presents I got, but it was still a wonderful day, filled with love and appreciation. I’m glad I didn’t let my sickness ruin Christmas for me–after all, it only comes around once a year, and even though it isn’t always ever perfect, it can still be an amazing day if you spend it with those you love.

P.S. I’m feeling better now…so you better believe I’m trying out some of the recipes in my new cookbooks!

Did you have a normal or unconventional Christmas this year? What’s one of the best gifts you got?

Healthier Vegan Baking Tips

‘Tis the season for desserts, right? I don’t know about you but I’ve got a major sweet tooth. Breakfast is my favorite meal of the day (and I hate savory breakfasts), I can’t live without dark chocolate and I could eat fruit all day every day.

It might seem like vegan baking is always healthier than traditional baking that incorporates eggs, butter, etc. That’s partly true, but not always the case. Some vegan dessert recipes call for tons of white flour, dairy replacements and lots of sugar and oil. Not exactly the healthiest thing. Now, don’t get me wrong, I’m all for more indulgent desserts but I’d rather save those for special occasions when I happen to find an amazing vegan baked good at Whole Foods or a restaurant that might not match up to my normal nutritional standards but it looks/sounds so good that I’ve just gotta try it once. Even those are a little more healthified, but when I make desserts at home, I like to make sure I’ll feel good eating them. With that being said, I’ve got a few tips just in time for the holiday baking rush. This is all about vegan baking, because that’s what I have the most experience with, but I think even non-vegans can appreciate these!

1. Coconut oil > vegan “butter”

I used to be deathly afraid of coconut products. Why? Because they’re loaded with saturated fats! Of course, now I’ve learned a lot more about coconut nutrition, and they are really good for you. Coconut oil is one of the healthiest oils you can use for cooking and baking and if you buy the refined kind, it doesn’t add any coconut flavor. I prefer unrefined for a little extra taste but even unrefined isn’t too coconutty. Vegan “butter”, on the other hand, is filled with lots of unnatural oils and other unnecessary ingredients. It may be lower in fat than coconut oil, but a bit of natural fats are healthy!

2. Go for whole food subs

If you are a vegan, you’ve likely tried or at least seen some popular subs for meat-and-dairy filled products. Things like vegan cream cheese, soy yogurt and egg replacer powder aren’t hard to find anymore, but they aren’t as good for you as whole food-based options. If you want to make vegan cheesecake, try cashew cream instead of vegan cream cheese. If the fudge recipe you found calls for soy creamer, try using full-fat canned coconut milk instead. Again, whole food subs may have a bit more fat but at least you know exactly what you’re putting in your body.

A raw vegan cheesecake made with whole foods: cashews, dates and almonds!

3. Try out gluten free flours

I’m not strictly gluten free, but I like to use gluten free flours instead of whole wheat because they can add an interesting taste and texture and I feel better when I limit wheat. My personal favorites are almond flour and buckwheat flour. Both are higher in protein and fiber than whole wheat and all purpose flour and they’re great to use in recipes that call for a bit more chew and a stronger flavor. I used almond flour in my Pumpkin Chip Muffins and I used buckwheat flour in my Festive Garland Bars Take Two. I would suggest searching for vegan gluten free recipes so you know they’ll work without eggs (GF flours sometimes work better with an egg but they can be made into vegan treats).

4. Stick with natural sweeteners

I typically use pure maple syrup in most of my dessert recipes because I love the subtle taste it adds and it’s also one of the most healthful sugar sources. Stevia is a good option if you want to cut down on sugar and calories, but I usually use it combined with maple syrup to make the texture of the baked good more like a typical dessert. Coconut nectar/sugar is another healthier option, as is raw honey (if you aren’t a strict vegan). Dates and bananas are a great way to sweeten desserts without any added (non-fruit) sugars but remember that they have a stronger taste than other sweeteners.

5. Experiment and have fun

I’ve veganized my fair share of dessert recipes and that can be a lot more fun than following a vegan recipe ingredient-for-ingredient. When I want to make a dessert, I usually search for a vegan (and gluten free) option first and sometimes combine multiple recipes into one to make my own. And don’t let these guidelines make you feel like you can’t enjoy dessert. If you want to enjoy a more indulgent vegan dessert, go ahead. But you may be surprised by how tasty a healthified vegan dessert can be too!

A less healthy (but still delicious) vegan ice cream pie.

Do you like to healthify the desserts you make yourself? Have you ever enjoyed a healthy vegan dessert?

I’ll be back after the 25th to share some recipes and all the Christmas festivities I’ve been enjoying! If you celebrate, I hope you have a very merry Christmas

The Liebs(ter Award)

I’ve been seeing the Liebster Award popping up all over the place lately so I was thrilled when the lovely Lacey over at Life Hands You Limes nominated me for the award. Thanks, girl

Rules:

1. Write 11 random facts about yourself
2. Answer the 11 questions given by the blogger who nominated you
3. Create 11 new questions
4. Nominate 11 bloggers and mention them in the post
5. Thank the blogger who nominated you and tell the bloggers you nominated

Random Facts About Me

1. I am a super klutz. Seriously. I haven’t had too many major injuries, other than a fractured ankle in 4th grade, but I’m constantly tripping, randomly injuring myself and spilling all over the place. Yeah, I have issues…
2. I have a tooth that grew in backwards. Right before I got braces in 9th grade, I had my last baby tooth pulled so I could get braces. The tooth didn’t grow in by itself so when I got my wisdom teeth pulled a year later, they also had to pull my adult tooth out from under the gums. Turns out, it was growing in facing the wrong way! My orthodontist wanted to try to turn it around to face the right way but that would have caused more dental issues so I just decided to leave it in backwards. It’s one of my molars so no one else can tell that it’s facing backwards.
   

   Brace face

3. I am totally OCD about some things. Before I go to bed every night and before I leave my apartment, I make sure the stove and oven are off and I check and re-check the lock on my front door to make sure I actually locked it. Hey, you can’t be too careful!
4. I got my ears pierced when I was 11 but haven’t worn earrings since. About 6 months after I got them pierced, one of them got infected and I had to go to urgent care to get the earring taken out and my ear sterilized. Since then, both me and my sister have had no interest in having pierced ears, it was kind of a gross and traumatic experience!
5. I am a procrastinator, but also not. I would freak out if I had to pull an all-nighter to finish a 10 page paper or cram for finals, so I’m not that bad of a procrastinator but I definitely don’t usually start assignments right when they’re assigned, especially if I have a month or two to do it because then I figure I have plenty of time!
6. My voice doesn’t match up with how I look. People always think I’m still in high school because I’m small and sometimes wear kids clothes and my face is really young looking. But my voice is kinda low for a girl–I think it should be higher pitched but whatever!
7. I love the taste of onions, but I think I’m somewhat allergic to them. I used to only have breath issues after eating really onion-y salsas and stuff but now when I eat dishes with onions in it, they hurt my stomach. Bummer, because so many things have onions in them so I try to just pick around them. Garlic, on the other hand, I love!
8. I think I’m more sensitive to cold weather because I was born in Arizona…in the middle of summer. I think my mom said the day she had me, it was like 115 degrees or something crazy like that. I’ve been in Colorado since I was 2 though and I live for the winter days that are like 60 degrees. I’m pretty much always freezing inside my house and I love cranking up the heat when I’m in my car. I think snow is pretty but I like warm weather, thank you very much!
   

   Me as a baby in good old ‘Zona.

9. Caffeine doesn’t really have much of an effect on me, unless I have too much of it. I’ve figured out that I can order a tall at Starbucks and feel just fine (it doesn’t wake me up or energize me though) but anything bigger than that gives me a giant headache and makes me feel nauseous. Oh, and coffee makes my pee smell like coffee (TMI!)
10. I’ve preferred dark chocolate over milk chocolate since I was a little kid. One year for Christmas, my dad got the family a bunch of fair trade dark chocolate bars from all over the world and I loved even the super dark ones.
11. I have a problem when it comes to shopping. I get way too excited about new products and new clothes in stores and I just have to have them. I’m a little better with clothes and try to stick to buying the clearance stuff in my favorite stores because the full-priced stuff tends to be expensive (that way I can buy more stuff!) but with food, I usually don’t care how much it costs–if it sounds delicious, I’ll probably buy it. Case in point, I just ordered a few things from iHerb and couldn’t resist buying some raw lemon pie macaroons that were like $7 for a bag of 8. They’re really good though, so I don’t care!

These are delish and well worth the price.

Lacey’s Questions

1. What is your idea of the perfect December night?

Other than summer months, December is my favorite month, it’s just so festive and cozy. My idea of the perfect night would be bundling up and driving around town to look at Christmas lights, grabbing a skinny peppermint mocha from Starbucks, watching Christmas movies and playing board games with my family.

2. What pets do you have?

None at the moment, sadly. My family used to have two hamsters, Peanut and Princess, and a couple hermit crabs a long time ago.

3. What 5 words describe you the best?

Sarcastic, sensitive, independent, fashionable and responsible.

4.What is the one thing you can’t live without?

My family, for sure. I have always been really close with them, especially my younger sister, and they’ve always been there supporting my dreams. Now that I’m in college and live 2 and a half hours away from them most of the year, I really treasure the times I get to spend with them (like right now!)

We’ve been best friends forever!

5. Why did you start your blog?

I started AlmostVegGirlie in May of 2011 because I was starting to consider veganism at the time and I really wanted to share my recipes and cool food finds with people. Now the name of my blog doesn’t quite fit anymore as I actually am vegan but I still love talking about food, fitness, fashion and life in general.

6. You just win a billion dollars, first dollar goes to???

First of all, this would be amazing! I think my first dollar would go towards paying off my college loans. Totally boring, I know, but I really would love to help my parents pay off the loans so they don’t have to go into debt and if I had a billion dollars I wouldn’t have to worry about getting a great job to pay it off.

7. Chocolate or vanilla?

This is actually a hard question, since I love both. But I’m going to cheat and say I prefer vanilla-flavored things over chocolate-flavored things, but I like actual chocolate in general.

8. What’s your favorite time of the year?

Either right now (Christmastime) because it’s so festive and exciting, or summer because there’s no school and it’s warm and my birthday’s in summer.

9. What is the one thing you wish you could do, but have never done (or tried)?

Snorkeling! I’m scared to death of scuba diving but I think snorkeling would be fun because it requires less equipment and you get to look at all the cool fish and sea life.

10. When was the last time you did something completely on a whim and what did you do?

I bought a pair of sparkly Converse-style shoes on Cyber Monday, just because they were on sale and cute. I normally don’t like tennis shoes, and I don’t buy stuff online a lot (other than stuff from iHerb) but I just couldn’t pass these up.

Aren’t these too cute?

11. Where do you see yourself in 10 years?

A meteorologist (weather anchor) for a TV station in Arizona or California. It’s my dream job (that I’m going to school for) in my dream location!

My 11 Questions

1. What fruit or vegetable best describes your personality?

2. What is your earliest memory?

3. Would you rather live in the mountains, on the beach or in the desert?

4. What is your favorite non-major holiday (like Fourth of July, Mother’s Day, etc.)?

5. What is the most dangerous thing you’ve ever done?

6. Salty, sweet or spicy?

7. What are you most proud of and why?

8. If you could only wear one color for the rest of your life, what would it be?

9. What’s one food you just can’t stand that a lot of people seem to love?

10. What’s your weirdest quirk or habit?

11. If you could change your name to anything, what would you change it to and why?

I’m going to tag anyone who hasn’t already filled this out who wants to do it! Have fun

Do you have any weird dental stories? What’s your favorite time of the year?

How I Spent My Thanksgiving Break

The title totally sounds like a middle school English class essay you had to write after coming back from Thanksgiving break, doesn’t it? Haha guess I just love reliving my younger years

My break isn’t quite over which I am very thankful for–the last three weeks in the semester are always the hardest because you just got a taste of freedom but then you have to go back and get ready for finals and write papers. Not fun. But this is how I’ve been spending the past few days, with a mix of the successes and struggles I’ve had along the way.

Struggles

Still dealing with ‘disordered’ thoughts. 

Thanksgiving is a tough holiday for a recovering anorexic. And as a vegan, I’m not that thrilled by the usual selection of holiday foods. So I did struggle a bit on Thanksgiving Day. For one, I didn’t have breakfast. Yep, I wasn’t exactly planning on it (I love breakfast and never miss it!) but I wanted to have a pumpkin waffle with plenty of real maple syrup but my mom ended up using my waffle maker to make waffles for the rest of my family, and I freaked out about the ingredients she used in the waffles and decided not to make a waffle. But I didn’t end up making breakfast at all because I just got stuck in my disordered eating thought patterns and was getting anxious about Thanksgiving. I also didn’t eat lunch, because our family just does a lot of snacks in the afternoon. So I did enjoy some snackage (homemade guac I made myself, rice cake with pumpkin butter/chocolate chips, raw carrots and cauliflower, amazing spicy salsa). I also had a few adult beverages but we’ll save that for the successes part! I think I did an okay job eating once the big meal went around and I even tried some of the vegan stuffing my mom made. But I definitely struggled with feeling okay with being a little full. The feeling of fullness still scares me to death so that was hard to deal with. I also had some issues with exercising. I told myself I’d take a day or two off from working out this week but that hasn’t happened. It’s still too scary for me to take full-blown rest days.

The cute plate I had my snacks on.

Never being able to make a really delicious dessert from scratch.

Lately, I haven’t been able to make a dessert from a recipe that I actually like enough to eat. For some reason, I like it when I’m tasting it in the cooking process but then once it’s made, it doesn’t quite live up to my expectations. And then it goes in the trash. I can’t keep wasting food, but I can’t figure out why I can’t make an amazing dessert. I guess I should just stick with my simple, throw-it-together desserts like coconut milk ice cream or ‘banana bread’ protein bowls. Those are always satisfying.

A delicious lunch at my favorite restaurant. Falafel, tabbouleh, fresh red cabbage, lettuce and hummus.

Body image issues.

This kinda goes along with the first one, but lately I’ve been really having a hard time accepting what I see in the mirror. I always go through phases where I either like what I see or I’m totally disgusted by it, and right now I’m dealing with the latter. Anyone who’s ever dealt with this knows how much this sucks, but I’m hoping I start moving out of this phase soon.

Going back to classes after break.

Not gonna lie, I’m already burned out by school. The hardest time for me is always the three weeks between Thanksgiving and Christmas breaks, especially this year when I’m buried with a million assignments. I’m simultaneously freaking out and feeling passive about finishing up the semester.

These almost look like stars, don’t they?

Successes

Enjoying alcohol without worrying about the calories. 

I’m not quite 21 yet (just 8 months to go!) and I’ve never been one of those people who partied hard in college but lately I’ve been more interested in drinking, at least on special occasions. On Thanksgiving, I tried some cake vodka mixed with a little vanilla almond milk (to die for!) and I also had some green apple liqueur at dinner and I enjoyed them both. I did NOT get drunk or anything but it was nice to be able to sip my drinks and not freak out about drinking OMGsomanycalories.

This was soooooo good!

Getting a lot of assignments done.

I was kind of dreading Thanksgiving break, because I had a lot of schoolwork to do during it. But I’ve been splitting it into manageable chunks and working on a little each day and I’ve definitely been making progress.  I’m still stressing out about some of them, but I’ve got a few more days to finish them up.

I love fall sunsets.

Mixing in fun with the work.

My break hasn’t been all work and no play though. Yesterday we went up to Denver for the day for some window shopping, a cheap lunch at Garbanzo (they were offering a buy one get one deal all day) and checking out a cool German Christmas festival. We also played tourist with my grandparents and went to Garden of the Gods and Old Colorado City the other day. It’s kinda fun to explore the sites in your own city even if you’ve seen them a hundred times.

The weather was gorgeous and so were the views.

What have you been enjoying over the past few days? Do you like to be a tourist in your own city?

On My (Wish) List

I don’t know about you, but I always made a “wishlist” of what I wanted before Christmas and birthdays when I was younger. Okay, let’s be honest, I still do that. I don’t really like surprises (unless they’re really good ones) so I’d rather give people a list of things I want so they don’t end up getting me something that won’t be used/worn. I’m just trying to be proactive. Anyways, I’ve also been compiling a wishlist of sorts for things I want this month–in life, with food and fashion and at school. So what’s on my list?

School

• Survive the next two weeks. This sounds a little extreme, but I get a little anxious around Thanksgiving break time. I still can’t believe it’s already November, so now I’m stressing about some of the assignments I have to work on before I can go home for an extended break (10 days, baby!) There’s no tests (thank God!) or major assignments but I should probably do some things so they’re not hanging over me over the break. And I just want it to be break already, so it’s hard to focus on writing papers and reading textbooks but I know I’ve gotta do it. Just 9 more days of classes!
• Appreciate my time at CTV more. I can’t believe there’s only 3 more weeks of broadcasts left in this semester…where has the time gone? I’ve loved being able to report the weather every week but I haven’t really appreciated it as much as I should have (I’ve also complained a lot about my crew position, but it’s really not that bad). Hopefully I’ll be able to do this again next semester but I still need to be grateful for the few weeks I have left this semester.

Food

• Vega maca chocolate bar and saviseed snacks

I love all the Vega products I’ve tried, especially their vanilla protein powders. I just wish they weren’t so expensive! But they recently came out with some new ‘superfood’ products that I’m really intrigued by. The maca chocolate bar provides a big dose of B12, which is always needed in a vegan diet, and the saviseed is a complete protein and has more omega-3s than wild salmon! How’s that for a healthy snack? Plus it comes in a caramelized and chocolate version, and who can pass up that? I haven’t seen either in stores but I was thisclose to buying the saviseed in my recent iHerb order…too bad it’s 9 bucks for a bag though!

• Garden of Life RAW Vanilla Spiced Chai protein powder

I literally picked this up the other day while I was at Whole Foods (it’s a Whole Foods exclusive flavor)…and then put it down. I just didn’t want to spend the money right then when I had just ordered some peanut flour and already had some vanilla protein powder at home. However, I am almost out of my chocolate version of this powder so I may get this one to replace it even though it’s not the same flavor. It just sounds so good, and I loved the chocolate. This protein powder is actually priced pretty well for a plant-based, raw protein powder.

• A decent Whole Foods salad bar box

I’m hoping I can fulfill this over Thanksgiving break. Because as much as I love the Whole Foods in my college town (it’s so close and well-stocked), it has a crappy selection of salad bar items most of the time. There are rarely many vegan options, and if there are, they’re totally processed (like faux chick’n salad). The WF near my house, however, is awesome. They almost always have an amazing selection of salad bar things and I can usually find something new to try, and it’s always worth the price. At the beginning of the school year, I would get the salad bar from the WF up here once every other week and I was usually not thrilled. I decided to stop wasting my money, but I still miss my WF salad bar dinners.

Life

• Enjoy the upcoming weekend with my family. My family is coming up to visit me this next weekend because my dad has something to do in a nearby town (well, not actually nearby, it’s the next state over but my college town is close to the state border) so my mom and sister decided to tag along too. Don’t get me wrong, I love being with my family but the visit is stressing me out. I’m worrying that I won’t be able to workout as much as I usually do, I won’t be able to eat my normal meals (because they might seem restrictive/weird) and that I have to be the ‘perfect’ hostess the whole time. But I want to enjoy next weekend, so I need to just remind myself that it’s a few days and I won’t die/get fat/lose my fitness. Besides, we all need breaks once in awhile.
• Plan for Thanksgiving break. This kinda ties into food, but I also just want to have an enjoyable break from school without worrying about the same things I mentioned above. I need to make sure I bring all my stuff home that I need to feel comfortable and try to plan ahead so I don’t have to do school things over break.

Fashion

• Riding boots

I’ve been looking all over, and I’ve seen some that I love, but right now I just don’t have the money for any of them! Why do nice boots have to be so expensive? I’m planning on asking for a pair for Christmas because I really like/need them–they’re so versatile.

• Sparkly Sperry’s

Ummmm, how cute are these? Unfortunately, they’re around 100 bucks, aka not affordable. I kinda want to ask for them for Christmas, but that would take out an even bigger chunk of my list than the boots, and I don’t want to just get some shoes for Christmas, you know? So maybe I’ll save up my money for awhile…

• Abercrombie & Fitch colored jeggings

What can I say, I’ve fallen head-over-heels in love with jeggings! I’m especially diggin’ the colored pairs, like this awesome blue-colored one from A&F. Actually, they have several colors I’m lusting over but some are very impractical…like the bright orange pair.

What’s on your “wishlist”? Do you like Sperry’s (or that style of shoe)?

Best Of…December!

Hey everyone! Have you been enjoying your weekend so far? I can’t believe we’re already a week into the new year, it’s completely crazy. I feel like just yesterday it was Christmas, but that was already 2 weeks ago!

Don’t worry, I didn’t forget about my monthly “Best Of…” post! I love recapping my favorite moments from the previous month, and even though I just did a 2011 recap post, I almost neglected a recap of December.

Best Recipe: Coffee Maple Pecan Butter

I probably had the most recipes ever this month, from raw salted caramel dip to nutty cherry chocolate chunk cookies to raw mini pecan pies. All were delicious and devoured (I was surprised that my dad ate half of the cookies–he really loved them!) but this nut butter takes the cake. It was my first attempt at making nut butter, and since it was so successful, I hope to make another kind soon.

Best Fun Post: Oh We Need a Little Christmas [Inspiration]

I love looking for random inspiring photos on Pinterest and weheartit, so this was just a fun little way to get in the Christmas spirit!

Best Challenge: Jumping on the Bandwagon

I joined in on the NaNeFoMo train, and I didn’t regret it. In fact, I want to make it one of my goals for this year to try one new food each month. Food ruts and ‘safe foods’ are fine and all but if I truly want to challenge my ED and find new food loves, I’ve gotta branch out and try new things. Kombucha and vegan marshmallows are still on my list!

Best Really Long Post: It’s the Most Wonderful Time of the Year

Super long post, but then again when isn’t a recap post really long, especially a Christmas recap post? Christmas 2011 was honestly one of the best Christmases I’ve had in a while, not sure why–maybe because we actually had a ton of snow and got to go sledding? Yeah, that was probably it

Best Fashion Post: Shopping & Sledding

Sadly, it was my only fashion post of the month, but I really want to get back to doing my Style Phile posts every once in a while. Fashion is one of my obsessions, so I’d like to include it a little more on this blog. After all, it’s not all about the food!

What was the best part of December for you? Christmas, and Christmas break!

What are you anticipating in January? Starting my new classes in about a week.