Movie Goer + Smoothie Parfait Recipe

Here we go again! Another Monday. And my last real Monday before my schedule starts getting crazy. Okay, not crazy, but it's my last week of freedom before I start having actual things to do with my days. I'm working a couple of Rice Volleyball camps, one of my friends is getting married, and I'm rounding out the summer with a trip to New York City. Because those three things are such a huge burden, so I am sure I am receiving all of your sympathy right now. But I am hoping to get a lot done this week, while still maintaining some regularity with this blog. Here's to hoping that I have a completed to-do list before I leave for a weekend in Austin on Friday afternoon!

Breakfast

I've got another new recipe to share with you guys today! It looks far more complicated than what it actually takes to throw this creation together. After waking up and going for a neighborhood bike ride, and running the hill up at Stratford, I was more than ready for something cool and refreshing. Thus, this smoothie "parfait" was born. 

Ingredients:
For the smoothie -

• Pink portion
• 3/4 cup sliced strawberries
• 1 sliced banana
• 1/2 cup almond milk
• Handful of ice cubes

• Green portion
• 2 handfuls baby spinach

For the parfait -

• Granola
• Blueberries

Directions:
1. Line the bottom of a mason jar with granola. I used my own version of this homemade granola, but any granola will work.
2. Place all ingredients for the pink portion in a blender, and blend until smooth.
3. Pour half of pink portion into the mason glass, over the granola.
4. This is where it got tricky for me. I happened to have blueberries handy in my fridge, and they are not the most buoyant fruit. They didn't sink to the bottom, but they didn't quite float on top of the pink portion. In any case, I added in blueberries as my next layer.
5. Add two handfuls of spinach to the blender, blending the spinach into the remaining portion until smooth.
6. DO NOT JUST POUR THE GREEN PORTION OVER THE PINK PORTION! Instead, and this is a bit more time-consuming, spoon the green portion over the pink portion, going around the edge of the glass first. Once one layer is complete, keep spooning the green portion into the mason jar until full.
It really doesn't take that long, and you'll get an Instagram-worthy breakfast.
7. Top with another spoonful of granola, and another handful of blueberries.
8. Enjoy!

Movie Mania

You guys may or may not know that I am not a big movie-goer. It's rarely something that I will choose to do, and even if suggested by another person, it's a 50/50 chance that I will actually go with said person. It's not even that movies have gotten so incredibly expensive, because they have, but it's that I often feel guilty about sitting for two hours, doing nothing but looking up at a big screen. I feel as though there's something else I could be doing, and while that is usually true, sometimes being still is exactly what I need at that point in time. And even then, I'll often choose reading over seeing a movie. Which is why I haven't seen a movie in theaters since October, when I saw Gone Girl (which, by the way, didn't hold a candle to the book).

However, when my uncle came to Houston in late April, he talked about how he spent an extended afternoon at Sundance Cinema downtown. And this wasn't the first time I had heard talk of Sundance. Many of the teachers at school frequent it, because it's the type of place that won't be overrun with teenagers. Not that we don't like teenagers, of course, but if how they behave in the classroom is any indication of how they behave when they are out and about, I can speak for all teachers when I say that we'd prefer not to share a movie theater with them. I'm just saying. Anyway, I had heard that Sundance is the best of the Houston movie theaters, so as a devoted Houstonian, I knew I was going to have to check it out. So after Friday evening's massage, I made my way downtown, drove around a bit trying to find the best parking (sidenote: Sundance will validate parking up to three hours. Score!), and ventured inside for my first Sundance movie experience. And after having a Sundance movie experience, I'm not sure that I can ever go to another theater. And here's why -

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1. Reserved seating. This isn't required, but if you buy your ticket online, you get to pick your seat. So if you have a favorite spot in the movie theater, you can make sure it's yours.
2. The seats rock, for lack of a better word. Roomy and comfortable, and the armrests are huge. Which is a nice plus because then you don't have to feel as though you're in your neighbor's lap throughout the entirety of the movie. It feels like you're on an airplane, you know, without the plane part. This would really be an ideal date night theater.
3. Though I didn't check it out, as I was riding solo this round, Sundance has a bar, with food and drinks that are made to be carried into the theater with you. Like I said, ideal date night theater. 
4. And mainly catering to the adult crowd, there are both indie and mainstream movies shown here. The prices aren't that much more than they are at any other movie theater, and to me, the experience was worth it. Though I don't see my movie-going percentage increasingly significantly, I will certainly be returning to Sundance the next time a movie craving hits.

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And I actually saw two movies this weekend. I know. We're going 0 to 100 real quick over here. Friday I saw Me and Earl and the Dying Girl, which I absolutely loved, but made me cry in such a way that no movie has done in a while. I'll even step out and say that this film was better than the film adaptation of The Fault in Our Stars. I didn't love that movie, though I absolutely loved the book. I digress. Me and Earl and the Dying Girl is actually based on a young adult novel as well, and it chronicles the senior year of three teenagers - Greg, Earl, and Rachel. It's the typical "high school" story - the relationship between a teenager and his overbearing parents, the reality of high school cliques, and the unique relationship between student and the "cool" teacher, but it does it in such a way that truly mimics reality. It captures the stereotypical high school moments, but not in a stereotypical way. It's tough to be a teenager, and that's highlighted in the protagonist, Greg, who is clearly not comfortable in his own skin, even preferring to call his best friend Earl his co-worker because he doesn't want to give someone the friend label and then be let down. High school is a time when self-esteem issues are commonplace.

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And then we have Rachel, the girl with leukemia. Something no teenager should ever have to face, but unfortunately, something that teenagers do face. Rachel isn't interested in those who pull the cancer card, and while Greg originally hangs out with her on his mother's request, a genuine (doomed) friendship eventually develops between Rachel and Greg. And Earl, too. Greg lets his guard down when he lets Rachel view the films he and Earl have made growing up, and they even try to put together a film for Rachel as her condition continues to decline. 

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I obviously have a soft spot in my heart for high schoolers. I really think they're the coolest. And I appreciated the way this movie captured the complexities of what it means to be a high school student today. Self-loathing, low self-esteem, selfishness, genuine friendships, feeling out-of-place, bumps in the road. And I really appreciated that this wasn't a cliche love story. Because believe it or not, high school boys and girls can just be friends. A raw and real portrayal of adolescence that gets five stars from me. 

Saturday's movie was an accident. I was hanging out with Gayle as she unpacked and organized her room from her big move home from College Station - okay, I probably distracted her more than anything - but she and a college friend who has also moved home to Houston had plans to hang out that evening. She invited me to join them, and it was decided that we would do dinner and a movie. Gayle's mom suggested we see Spy, but neither Gayle nor I am a big Melissa McCarthy fan. And I've heard only good things about Disney Pixar's Inside Out. So Inside Out it was. And I absolutely saw what all the hype is about. 

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Another coming-of-age movie, this one focuses on Riley, a girl who is taken from her life and friends in Minnesota when her family moves to San Francisco. As is the same with everyone, she is guided by her emotions - Joy, Sadness, Fear, Anger, and Disgust - the little voices inside her head who work in Headquarters to guide her through life. Joy prides herself on the fact that many of Riley's memories are just that - joy. But when she moves away from everything she knows, she begins to experience loneliness, isolation, and sadness. And I think what is most memorable about this movie is the importance of Sadness. Without it, Joy can't do her thing. It allows viewers to understand that sadness is real, sadness is normal, and that it's okay to feel it. We just can't be happy all of the time, and more often than not, sadness is what draws our loved ones closest to us, which allows us to feel that joy again.

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I won't even begin to pretend that this is scientifically correct, because I do remember some things from my AP Psychology class senior year, but I thought it was a wonderful presentation of the complexities of our feelings and emotions, and how it's okay to feel them. We don't have to put on a happy face all the time, and acknowledging these other feelings will often result in genuine happiness.

And with that, I'm off to sit by the pool and read before heading up to Bellaire for tonight's open gym. I've got my fingers crossed that I'll even get to play tonight, as many players are in New Orleans for Junior Nationals. Catch y'all later!

Green Smoothie Bowl

Happy Saturday, friends! I posted this picture on Instagram just a couple of hours ago, and I wanted to pop in and share this super easy, super healthy recipe with you guys. But let's back up a little bit. What inspired this recipe, you ask? Well, the sun has finally made its return! I was talking with a teacher yesterday about how I was worried it had lost its way, but we've got it for a little bit. At least, until the storms roll back in tomorrow. But let's not get ahead of ourselves. Because the sun has been on and off all day, I decided to get outside and take advantage of the weather by going for a run through my neighborhood. But it's always May in Texas, and that means it's hot hot hot! We creeped close to the 90's today, and my face was bright red for quite some time this afternoon.

It took me a while to cool back down, and during this cooling down time, my stomach started begging to be fed. I thought about just eating one of the salads I already had prepared and didn't eat last week, but that didn't sound appealing to me in the least. I knew I wanted to get at least one serving of veggies in me, though, so I pulled out the blender, looked to see what I had in the fridge, and got to work on this delicious green smoothie bowl.

Ingredients:

• 1 ripe banana
• 1 cup fresh fruit (stick with strawberries and raspberries if you want green to be the predominant color)
• 2 handfuls spinach (or kale, if that's your green of choice)
• 1 cup Unsweetened Almond Milk
• 1 handful ice cubes (if not using frozen fruit)

      TOPPINGS -

• Granola
• Chia Seeds
• Coconut Flakes
• Fresh fruit of your choice

Directions:
1. Slice banana and other fresh fruit, if using
2. Place all smoothie ingredients into a blender and blend until smooth
3. Pour into a bowl and top with desired toppings
4. Enjoy!

I told you it was easy! And full of fruits and vegetables. I personally prefer to use fresh fruit over frozen, as it always takes my blender forever and a day to blend fruit when it's frozen, but if you forgo the frozen fruit, be sure to add in the ice cubes. Otherwise, your refreshing smoothie won't be so refreshing. There are obviously so many options when it comes to recreating this smoothie. Adding nut butter, adding in peaches and/or mango, using nuts as toppings, and the list goes on. So let me revise my earlier statement. Versatile, easy, and healthy. A win-win-win.

Upper Body Superset

Happy Saturday! I am happy because we finally saw the sun here in Houston. Fun fact for you guys - we've had rain every single day this year. As someone who loves to spend as much time as possible outside, I am not a huge fan of that statistic. In fact, I planned to wake up earlier than I have been waking up this break so that I could go for a run, but the cold and wet weather was begging me to stay curled up in bed. So, I gave into that.

I did a little bit of school work before peeking outside and being met with a sun that was trying so hard to make an appearance. I laced up my running shoes and headed out for a 6.5 mile run. My run started out on a bit of a tough note - I just couldn't seem to get into a rhythm - but I quickly found my stride and felt as though I could have run forever. I will say that I did get a little bit warm in my leggings and dri-fit jacket, but there was no getting me out of my room in shorts. So, I was extra sweaty, but I'm not complaining. Fingers crossed that we'll be lucky enough to have weather like this for the half coming up in just two weeks (and one day)!

I went out to run a couple of errands - mainly getting ahead on making copies because I know the Kopy Kingdom will be a nightmare on Monday - and purchasing a new air freshener for my car. Because I was in the area, and I couldn't decide what sounded good to me, I indulged in a Spinach Berry Smoothie from Central Market.

This refreshing smoothie was filled with bananas, blueberries, strawberries, apple juice, chia seeds, and of course, spinach. I finished it while walking around on this beautiful Houston afternoon, before returning to my side of town and hitting the gym for a quick upper body workout. Remember how I said I was going to get better about strength training? Well, I'm making good on my promise.

This workout couldn't have lasted longer than 15 minutes, but my arms were shaking at the end of it. I completed each superset before moving onto the next one, and I used 12-pound dumbbells for every exercise minus the lateral and frontal raises, for which I used 5-pounders. I did 12 reps of each exercise, with the exception of the shoulder taps, for which I completed 20 (ten on each arm). I completed each superset three times, and gave myself 30 seconds of rest in between each one. None of these exercises are anything out-of-the-ordinary, but when you haven't done something as isolated as this in a while (read: me), you're certainly going to feel it!

Enjoy the rest of your Saturday evening!

Ambivert

Happy Tuesday! I'm feeling very refreshed after getting a full night's sleep. I stayed up far too late on Sunday night, so that 7:10am alarm was not my best friend on Monday morning. But I took a power nap after my swim yesterday and I managed to get to bed at a decent hour last night, so I am recharged and ready to go today!

Workout

Yesterday after work I took advantage of the sunshine (and furthered my ever-present one-piece tan), and walked over to Gregory to use the pool. As sad as it is that I will be leaving Austin and so many wonderful people, the thought of giving up the Gregory pool forever also brings a couple of tears to my eyes. Probably because I still don't know what I'm going to do about a gym membership this upcoming fall, and a good pool is a definite factor in my decision-making process.

I even swam a little butterfly for the first time in a while, and while it left me gasping for breath, it felt great, and I am slowly but surely going to have to incorporate that stroke back into my swims.

Dinner

I woke up from my nap feeling like my stomach was going to eat itself if it didn't get some food into it soon. I finished off the last of my food the day prior, and I honestly didn't feel like cooking anything up, so I went up the street to Central Market to fix myself a quick salad from the salad bar. I needed to pick up a few items anyway, so it was a win-win trip.

In my salad went: spinach, tomatoes, black olives, chick peas, grilled chicken, and when I got back home, I added some Vlasic Snack'mms Kosher Dill Pickles to the mix. I topped it with balsamic vinaigrette dressing and ate every last bite. Yum!

Breakfast

Today's breakfast is a little bit different than my usual scrambled egg whites and spinach, so just prepare yourself for this deliciousness. After my JuiceLand smoothie on Friday, I remembered my serious love for smoothies - I used to drink a Smoothie King smoothie before every single volleyball game in high school - and I decided to use up some of the frozen fruit in our freezer and create my own rendition of this refreshing drink.

Into the blender went -

• 2 Fredericksburg peaches
• 1/2 carton raspberries
• Sliced strawberries
• 1 sliced banana
• Handful of chia seeds
• 2 cups spinach
• 1 cup almond milk

And I blended it all up and put in my Longhorn Tumblr to take to work with me. It looks gross, but never judge a book by its cover, right? Smoothies are the perfect portable breakfast, and I see myself making them quite a bit next year. Hopefully this will lend itself to pictures that are more exciting than egg whites and spinach, though I wouldn't say this is much more aesthetically pleasing!

Sidenote: I didn't put any ice in my smoothie because I knew I was going to put it in the refrigerator for a little while once I got to SRD. If you want to drink it right away, I would recommend using either frozen fruit or adding ice cubes to the recipe to give it a little chill!

Ambivert

A few weeks ago when I attended the AP Summer Institute here at UT, we talked about a couple of other topics that maybe weren't English-related, but were absolutely classroom-related. We discussed the whole introvert/extrovert topic, which to someone who might potentially want to become a school counselor one day, really interested me. Over one-third of the population are introverts, and contrary to what many of them have been told, that's not a bad thing. We watched this TED Talk, given by Susan Cain, and if you have 20 minutes to spare, I absolutely recommend it. I'm not one for YouTube videos, but this one held my attention the entire time. 

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I see characteristics of both introverts and extroverts in my personality, as I am sure everyone does, but whenever I take personality tests, I find that I sometimes get labeled an introvert, and other times I get labeled an extrovert. And just a few weeks ago I learned that there is such a name for those of us who display qualities of both the introvert and the extrovert - ambivert. There are times when yes, I love being around a large group of people in a social situation, and there are other times when I want nothing more than to curl up in bed with a good book. Taking personality tests have always been hard for me, because my answer always seems to be, "It depends." And my status as an ambivert was further confirmed via these 20 questions, also answered at my AP Summer Institute. I answered 11 'yes,' and 9 'no,' putting myself smack dab in the middle of the spectrum. People tell me I'm a good listener, but I also consider myself to be the queen of multi-tasking.

And on that note, I'm off to bury my nose in my book. Have a great one!

P.S. I learned that yesterday was National Chocolate Day, a day that was essentially made for me, and I didn't even know about it. Good thing I still managed to eat some chocolate!

Fourth of July

And I am back with another post today! I hope your Fourth of July has started out beautifully - mine has been very low-key, yet productive. I have a lot to share with you guys in one little blog post, so I'll go ahead and get started with the basics.

Workout

Today's workout was a very new-to-me workout. One of my roommates is a huge advocate for Pure Barre, and after looking for a workout that would challenge me in a different way than running or cycling, I came across a newcomer deal that consisted of four classes for only $40. While $10/class may seem like a lot, I didn't want to commit to an entire month of classes just in case I didn't enjoy the workout. I didn't think that would be the case, but it's better to be safe than sorry, right?

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Anyway, I absolutely loved the class. It challenged my muscles in a way that I don't challenge them myself, and I was certainly humbled when all of these mom-aged women were showing me up throughout much of the class. I considered myself to have strong legs, but my thighs were absolutely shaking during much of the class.

What I loved about this 55-minute class is that it is a low-impact class that works your entire body. And while I could certainly tell that I was lagging behind some of the regulars a bit, it was very easy to follow, though I had to laugh at myself when we were stretching at the end of class and I watched many of my classmates easily slide into a split. I'm one of the least flexible people on this planet, so I'm really hoping that Pure Barre will help with my flexibility.

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I look forward to using my remaining three passes, and I might even purchase more once I've used those up. It was certainly a challenging workout, but I loved it, and the 55 minutes absolutely flew by.

Breakfast

Immediately after the class, I dug into two cuties as I made the short drive over to Town Lake to complete a run/walk loop around the lake. There were so many people in line to rent either a paddleboard or kayak, and the lake was already so full of people doing those activities. There were many families out there taking advantage of this sunny holiday, and I am sure this is one of the few days every member of the family has off of work. Better take advantage of it while you can!

After my walk, I was more than hungry, so I stopped by JuiceLand for a breakfast that was the perfect trifecta - healthy, delicious, and refreshing. I went with a regular Peachy Green, which consists of spinach, kale, apple, and peach. It was the perfect post-workout drink, and it fueled me for the crossing of another item off of my list -

Lyndon B. Johnson Presidential Library

I could not leave Austin without having taken advantage of the fact that there is a presidential library located a hop, skip, and a jump away from campus. It is free for UT students, after all, so I really couldn't pass up that opportunity.

I wouldn't consider myself to be the biggest history buff around - that title would go to my roommate, Jamie Lynn - but the lives of presidents really fascinates me. As weird as this sounds, I love all of the presidential conspiracy theories, and fun presidential facts interest me far more than the things I was supposed to have learned via my history textbooks.

I could go on and on about everything this library has to offer, but I'll just highlight some of my favorites. What really appealed to me was the current exhibit: Sixty From the '60s. It has been on display since March, and will be on display until January. It features "iconic photographs, historic objects and documents, books, clothing, posters, and artwork related to sixty Americans who made an impact on this seminal era and whose work continues to be relevant today." I got to read about LBJ (duh), the Kennedy's, MLK Jr., Harper Lee, Charles Schulz, Bob Dylan, Bill Cosby, and so many more.

I got to reminiscence on my childhood with Dr. Suess books, P.D. Eastman's Go, Dog, Go, Maurice Sendak's Where The Wild Things Are, Barbie, Audrey Hepburn in Breakfast at Tiffany's, the Operation board game, and so many more.

Actual dresses worn by Jackie Kennedy and Lady Bird Johnson were on display, and I even got to see the inside of LBJ's Oval Office. The visit was absolutely worth my time, and probably the little LBJ tidbit that has stuck the most in my mind is the fact that he was a "close-talker," in that he liked to get very close to people when he was talking to them. I value my personal space, so that would have been a pain, though I highly doubt LBJ and I would have had any sort of conversation, so it doesn't much matter what I think about it, does it?

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Overall, my visit to the LBJ library was well worth my time, and I even convinced my roommate Natalie to tag along with me. She is also quite the history buff, so though she had been there before, she said she thoroughly enjoyed it.

Four great Presidents and their First Ladies [Ronald Reagan to George W. Bush]

Layer Cake

I crossed yet another item off of my Summer 2014 To-Do List today - making a layer cake. And this might be the first and last layer cake I make. It's not that it was particularly difficult, but it just took quite a bit of time. It's not like I was doing much of anything else, so I had all the time in the world, but it sure took quite a bit of work. And I even used a box cake mix!

Anyway, today seemed like the perfect day to make a layer cake, because the Fourth of July provides the perfect layer cake theme. It really was very easy to do, in the fact that I simply prepared the batter according to the directions on the box, and then added some Betty Crocker Gel Food Colors to it (red and blue, obviously). But, I'll get a little bit more specific for those of you who might be interested in tackling this project.

I started out with three boxes of Betty Crocker Super Moist White Cake Mix. I only used about 2 3/4 cups of each, so I mixed all of the remaining batter in one pan so that I could bake it into a cake to make cake balls. Said cake balls have not yet been created, but just give it some time.

Anyway, I preheated my oven to 350 degrees, prepared the first box of batter according to the directions on the box, and added almost the entire tube of red color gel. I beat it well, and then put 2 3/4 cups of batter into a greased 9-inch round cake pan. My tip for greasing the pan so that getting the cake out in one piece is easy as pie is to spray the pan down with cooking spray, and then putting one spoonful of flour in the pan. Shake the pan around, and then get rid of any excess flour by pouring it into a sink. Trust me, it works.

I baked it in the oven for 19 minutes, and I repeated for the remaining two layers - substituting blue gel for the red, and adding nothing to the white layer.

Assembling each layer is also pretty easy. I started out with the red layer, and put a layer of Funfetti frosting all over it. I'm the worlds worst froster, so it took quite a bit of frosting for me to completing cover it without any crumbs showing. I placed the white layer on top of the red layer, and proceeded to put frosting all over it. The frosting in between the layers acts as the "glue." Once that layer was completely frosted, I placed the final layer, the blue layer, on top, and opened a whole new can of frosting to finish off the cake.

Easy frosting tip from my mom: Be PATIENT (something I absolutely don't have while baking), and let the frosting sit out before spreading it. It will be so much easier to spread once it's softened out, and it will prevent the crumb situation that I always seem to have.

And I originally planned on topping my cake with red and blue sprinkles, but in talking to Gram on Wednesday night and telling her about my grand Fourth of July cake plans, she suggested topping my cake with blueberries and sliced strawberries. I decided to do just that, and I think it made it look a bit more sophisticated. Because that's what people are concerned with when eating a cake, right?

All in all, a great Fourth of July, and the night's not over yet. Fingers crossed that it doesn't rain so that we can see some fireworks tonight, but I've definitely been hearing a few claps of thunder. But I don't need fireworks to remind me what a privilege it is to live in this country, so regardless of whether I get to see them or not, it's been a great day celebrating America's 238th birthday!

Hook 'Em Horns

And it's back. Longhorn football, that is. Though I did not order season tickets (I know, I know), I am still very excited for the upcoming football season. I have hope that we will make up for our dismal past three seasons, and maybe that we'll even beat that team north of the Red River. Our first game is tonight against New Mexico State, and I am hoping that we will see our beautiful tower lit orange!

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Workout

I woke up around 7:45 this morning and knew that a good run would be the best way to start off my Saturday. I originally told myself that I needed to run seven miles in preparation for my half marathon, but I can push that back a week or two, so I decided to keep it at an even five miles (actually, 5.4) using my 45-minute treadmill workout. The first few minutes were pretty rough, but I got into a groove and I felt as though I could have kept running for miles. However, Dylan and I both needed to return something to the Co-Op, so we decided it would be better to do that before things on campus got too crazy with the big game. It was pretty perfect timing as I managed to get home and take a quick shower before he got to my house.

Breakfast

I know you guys are getting tired of the scrambled egg whites and spinach picture, so I decided to keep things interesting and switch it up a little bit for you guys today. I originally had plans to try a new recipe entirely, but as I didn't get home from running those errands until after 11:00am, and I was still pretty hot from my run and walking down the drag, I opted for a smoothie made using frozen peaches, raspberries, flax milk, spinach, and chia seeds. This smoothie was a bit of a struggle to blend, as the peaches were pretty frozen and were giving me some serious trouble this morning. It was one of my thicker smoothies, but it was still delicious. The peach-raspberry combination is definitely one of my favorites!

But, be on the lookout for a new-to-me recipe on the blog tomorrow. It should be a good one!

And now I am taking a break from some school work to type up this blog post. I am currently posted up in the beautiful new liberal arts building on campus, as I tend to get distracted when I study at my house, especially when all of my roommates are home. It's no fault against them, but I often want to hang out with them instead of doing my work. Plus, it's really my last semester to take advantage of being on campus, and I plan to discover the best study (and lesson planning) spots around the 40 acres.

Have a great college football Saturday and Hook 'Em Horns! 

Smooth(ie) Start

Happy Thursday! I am not sure anyone is more excited than me that it is finally Thursday. I work from 2-6pm today, and that will conclude 19 consecutive days of work. Though not all of the days have been extremely busy, there have been some very crazy days as move-in day creeps closer and closer. Like I mentioned yesterday, I am heading home to Houston immediately after work, and I could not be more excited for a little rest, relaxation, and time spent with my family in one of my favorite cities. I am hoping to do a little bit of exploration while I am home, so I'll be sure to keep you guys updated on any of my Houston adventures.

Meanwhile, before I make my way over to the gym, I wanted to share another excellent smoothie recipe with you guys. Generally if I know I am going home, I do my best to finish up any food that might go bad before I get back to Austin, just so I don't get in the habit of wasting food. I had eaten up most of my fruit, but I had a few leftover strawberries, some frozen raspberries, and some very ripe bananas just waiting to be blended up into a cold, refreshing smoothie. So without further ado, here is what my morning smoothie consisted of:

Ingredients:

• 1 very ripe banana, cut into small pieces
• 1/2 cup strawberries, sliced
• 3/4 cup frozen raspberries
• 1/2 cup (flax) milk
• 1 cup spinach
• Sprinkle of chia seeds

I added all of that to a blender, and blended it all together until I ended up with a smooth consistency. The raspberry was definitely the overpowering flavor, but I found it to be a very good ratio of flavors. It was the perfect start to this Thursday morning, and I can't wait to try my hand at a few more smoothie recipes. The hot August days just beg for cold, refreshing drinks. And I'm off to get in a workout - I hope to be back sometime later today, but if not, I will talk to you guys from Houston!

Track Morning

I apologize for once again disappearing from the blogging world for a couple of days, but Sunday and Monday were both fairly busy days for me, and I didn't really have much to blog about. Amira left early Sunday morning after a three-mile walk around Town Lake and a JuiceLand run, where I indulged in my first green smoothie. I ordered the Hawaii Five Green smoothie, which contains pineapple, mango, spirulina, and lemon. Neither Amira nor I knew what spirulina was, and upon further investigation, I learned that it is some kind of algae. I'm not entirely sure how I feel about the fact that I just drank algae, but it tasted great, so I guess I can't complain too much.

Yesterday was a busy day full of work and hanging out (literally) with some of my YoungLife girls, and though I feel like I was running all over Austin, it was a very good day.

Workout

After a good night's sleep, I woke up this morning around 7:15am, planning to head to Town Lake to complete my favorite three-mile loop before a 10am Body Pump class, but as I excited the freeway, I changed my mind a little bit. Austin High School is located right across the street from Town Lake (lucky them!), and I decided instead to complete a very simple 2-mile track workout. In my opinion, sprinting is the hardest workout I can put myself through, so my decision to complete two miles of sprinting the straightaways and walking the curves was a tough one, but a good one. I started really feeling it in my legs by about the sixth lap, but I pushed through to the end. I finished the entire workout in about 25 minutes, which allowed me just enough time for a walk around the lake before heading to 24 for Body Pump.

I never get tired of this view

I would love to make that a regular part of my workout routine, eventually getting to the point where I can add a little bit of distance each time, but we'll see how well that plan holds up!

Body Pump was also great, and the fact that this class is always wall-to-wall people says a lot about how great the instructor is. She is easily my favorite instructor at 24, as she also teaches my favorite Austin spin class. She is sassy but encouraging, while still putting us through a challenging workout, all at the same time. I anticipate some soreness tomorrow, mainly because I do not do Body Pump on a regular basis. I am hoping to change that this year, though!

Lunch

After a shower and a couple of errands, I headed over to SRD for the afternoon shift. I came over a little bit early so that I could make myself lunch before my shift began. Potato crusted cod was on the menu for today, which I normally love, but I opted for another one of my grilled chicken salads with a side of fresh strawberries. My lunch was both delicious and refreshing.

And now I am going to finish up my shift here before deciding what the rest of the evening holds. I am thinking something low-key, but you never know what might pop up! Have a great rest of the day!