Black on Black

So this outfit is from two days ago (being Sunday).  Yeah, I know.  I'm late posting these.  But it's been a busy weekend!  I'm finally off of work for a few shifts, and I'm really looking forward to not doing anything.  I spent a little while tonight talking with one of my coworkers about changing up some stuff at work, which was actually really helpful and I'm glad we did it.  As much as I don't want to talk about work when I'm not there, sometimes it's easier to get things done this way.

This was the official first tights day of the season.  Of course, it's now back to being 80 degrees here, but it was nice for a while.  I'm very much looking forward to the fall weather.  This is one of my favorite over-sized sweaters.  It's the perfect fit for me.  I just wish it pockets, but that's okay!

Dress :: Thrifted

Sweater :: Thrifted

Tights :: We Love Colors

Shoes :: Via Pinky

Necklace :: Forever 21

For the rest of the night I am watching The Bling Ring and cooking up some dinner.  I'm concerned that I'm getting sick, so I think it will be an early night tonight!  I've missed the gym for a few days because of it, too.  I'm trying to get as much sleep as possible, which means forgoing my usual 6-7am wakeup in favor of an 8 or 9am one.  Hopefully I'll feel better soon and can get back on track.

xoxoxoxoxoxo

Crop-top

So I took half the amount of photos I normally do because about halfway through I realized you can totally see my bra through my shirt.  Now, I'm all about the visible undergarments trend, but that wasn't my goal here.  Anyway, I got kind of bummed and decided to give up on these photos.  But, I like this outfit, and I want to share it, so here it is!  They're actually not as bad as I thought, so that's a plus!

Top :: American Apparel

Skirt :: Made by Me

Belt :: Thrifted

Necklace :: Thrifted

Shoes :: Thrifted

I've had the morning off of work today, and it's been great.  I had a really good workout this morning, and then I made peanut butter cookies this afternoon.  I was feeling kind of bummed out last night after work, and I'm not sure why, but I feel a lot better this morning.  I'm generally a really upbeat and self-confident person, so the fact that I was down for no reason was weird for me, and probably made me feel a little more blue than I was already.  But I feel awesome now!

I know I haven't really posted anything about my actual workout routine (I can, though, if anyone is interested!) but I usually just do strength training in the gym.  I'm not a fan of the stationary bike or the elliptical, and the treadmill is boring.  I tried running for a while, but I'm just not really that into it.  Strength training is fun for me.  But I know I need to get some cardio in there, too, so I'm going to try running again.  We'll see how this goes!  I'll keep you guys posted!

I hope everyone has a great day!

xoxoxoxoxo

Meal Prep 10.2 - Pumpkin and pancakes and tuna?

Happy weekend!  Okay, I know that for most of you it's not the weekend, but it is for me!  I had yesterday off, I just work tonight and then I have tomorrow morning off, also.  Time to rest up and prepare for doubles all weekend!  That's why today was my meal prep day.  I'm going to make a few things tomorrow, too, but today was the main stuff.  I thought it might be fun to share with you all what I make to prepare myself and my kitchen for the long weekend!

So let's get started.  First, Brussels sprouts.  I like to just roast a whole bag of Brussels sprouts to pair with everything, or just eat as a snack on their own.

I cut off the end of the sprouts, and pull off all the loose leaves (anything that falls off with little to no effort) and then toss them all in a bowl with olive oil, garlic salt, and a little pepper.  Then, they go in the oven!  I roast them for about 25 minutes at 450, shaking the pan about halfway through.

While the sprouts were in the oven, I made chickpea "tuna" salad.  This is so good, you guys.  I had never had it before, but it was delicious.  I got the recipe from The Kitchn, and decided to try it for this week.  I added extra celery for volume.  I like adding celery to things because there are no calories in celery.  It adds volume, and fills you up, for no cost.  In this recipe, for example, it just makes the "tuna" salad go farther without adding any extra fat or calories.  Perfect.  (The recipe for this also calls for regular mayo and umeboshi vinegar, but I used Veganaise and red wine vinegar)

My plan for the tuna salad is to have it on sandwiches or wraps for lunch.  Yum!

Next, I steamed some broccoli and tossed that in a dish with some toasted sesame seeds, and then I made up a bunch of quinoa.  I don't have a specific plan for either of these, they're mostly just to have on hand as side dishes or additional dinners.

Lastly, I made pumpkin pancakes!  I'm so excited about these, friends.  I made a bunch of batter and saved it in a little squirt bottle in the fridge, and the extra I just made into pancakes and ate.  They're super delicious.  I thought these would be really good grab-and-go snacks or breakfasts for work in the morning.  I didn't save the link to the recipe, but I just googled "vegan pumpkin pancakes" and found it.  

So that's everything I made today, friends.  I'm definitely pleased to have everything prepped and ready to go.  I'm hoping to get a couple more things done tomorrow, and I'll be all set for the busy football weekend.  

Happy Wednesday!  Hope everyone has a wonderful day!

xoxoxoxoxoxo

What I ate 9.27

Morning, friends!  Welcome back to my blog!  This post is a few days old.  Actually from Friday.  It's been another busy work week and I just didn't have a minute to sit down and write this out until now.  But, the "weekend" approaches!

For breakfast, pre-gym, I had steel cut oats, almond milk, half a banana, chia seeds, some shredded coconut, and a little agave nectar.  I love my oatmeal in the mornings, and I think I'm going to love it even more once it gets cooler outside.  When I got to work I had an orange and little applesauce.  You all know I love my applesauce.

I had my first go-round at meal prepping last week.  On Wednesday, I spent a few hours making meals for Thurs-Sun (my busiest work days) and put them in little individual containers and everything.  I was super excited.  The first thing I made was black bean and greens stirfry.  It's just brown rice, black beans, broccoli, kale, and soy sauce.  I tossed some leftover tofu in there, also.  I brought this to work with me on Friday to eat between shifts.  It was super good and really filling, and super easy to make and store.  I'll definitely be keeping up with this meal prepping and be making this one again.

On Wednesday, along with the meal prep, I also roasted a big bunch of Brussels sprouts.  Guys, I LOVE roasted Brussels sprouts.  They're one of the greatest things ever.  So I roasted a bunch of them, and ate some then (obviously), but then I tossed some in the fridge and freezer.  Then I had some for dinner Friday night, with some leftover rice.  I love the idea of roasting a whole bunch of Brussels sprouts (or any other veggie) and just keeping them on hand for quick snacks or sides.  

Anyway, that's what I ate on Friday!  I've been noticing a lot of cravings recently for meat.  It's definitely hard working in a restaurant that pretty much only serves meat.  I have a hard time watching a plate of ribs or a burger go by and not wanting some, but I've been really good!  I have had a few weak moments with baked goods (two or three bites, tops!) but I haven't had any meat since I started this.  So I think that's good!  The only other thing I've been craving is dessert.  Cheesecake sounds awesome, and cookies too.  I think I might have to make a batch of cookies to keep here, just to combat this sweet tooth I've come upon.

Stay tuned later for probably an outfit post!

xoxoxoxoxo

Iron Man

Happy Friday, friends!  I'm sure for some of you this is a super exciting day because it means the weekend is almost here.  For me, this is the beginning of my work "week".  I've prepped my meals for the next 3-4 days and I'm all ready to work my butt off and make loads of money!

This is what I'm wearing today to go to work.  Obviously I'm not wearing it AT work, just to and from.  I also wore almost this same outfit on Wednesday night to go out with some friends, just with different shoes and accessories.  One of my favorite things to do lately has been buying large graphic tees from the men's section of stores and then cutting them up.  The men's section has way better printed tees and they're usually a lot cheaper.  This Iron Man shirt is from JC Penney and I'm super excited about it.  Also, apologies for my constant closed eyes.  It was incredibly sunny outside this morning.

I've been feeling really good about my gym going recently.  I went last night at about 10pm after I got home from work, and then I went again this morning at 7:30.  The only issue was that I think I didn't give myself quite enough rest time.  I had to cut my arm workout a little short this morning.  I still had a good workout, but I'll have to remember that in the future.

Also!  I can fit my hair into a little ponytail right now.  I'm trying to grow it out for Halloween, but I think I might get really fed up with it and cut it again.  It's so long for me right now!

Skirt :: Forever 21

Shirt :: JC Penney (altered by me)

Shoes :: Via Pinky

Belt :: Thrifted

Bralette :: Target

I'm off to work!  I hope everyone has a wonderful day!

xoxoxoxoxoxoxo

Bulu Box: September

Morning friends! I know it's been a little while since I posted. It's been a pretty busy week with the game day on Saturday and my birthday yesterday. I haven't had a lot of chances to take photos or actually post anything. I've also been getting back into going to the gym. I was seriously lacking motivation last week, but I'm doing better this week!

Anyway, last week I received my monthly Bulu Box in the mail. If you're not familiar with Bulu Box, it's a subscription service for health supplements and things. I really like it, but after this month I'm debating trying one of the other boxes out there instead. This month just didn't do it for me at all, and they accidentally gave me a couple of products that weren't vegan, which was very frustrating. There's an option when you sign up to specify if you need the box to be vegan or whatever you're dietary need is, so why I don't understand why they sent me non-vegan products. 

This is what it looks like opened up. They usually give you 5 samples, plus some sort of coupon for something else.  I do like that they include a piece of paper that has each sample on it and a place to write down how you felt before you used it and how you felt after. 

First sample - Erba Vita Propolis. This is a syrup that is supposed to help your immune system and respiratory tract. I haven't tried this, but the word "syrup" has me a little cautious. 

BSN AMINOx. I think this is like a post-workout drink powder. The flavor is watermelon, which I'm not that excited about. 

Simple Being Slimming Smoothie. This actually looks kind of good. I haven't tried it yet, either, but out of everything in this months box it seems to be the one thing that I would actually use. Unfortunately, it has whey protein in it, which is milk. So that's out. 

PacificHealth Labs Body Glove Surge Shot. This one isn't vegan, either. It also has milk protein in it. I actually was going to use this one morning, I think, and opened it up and realized that I couldn't actually use it, so that was annoying. 

Thirty30 Enliven.  This is like an energy supplement, I think.  I might actually use this one sometime, but I'm not sure.  Maybe before the gym one day.

So this was the coupon in this months box. I will most certainly not be using it. The idea of an Omega-3 gel supplement is very off-putting. I can kind of get behind the concept, but it's just not for me, I think. 

I was pretty disappointed by this month's Bulu box.  I think I might give them one more shot before I pull the plug.  I really liked the months prior to this, so that makes me think that this one was just a dud.  Though, if they keep sending me non-vegan samples, I'll definitely stop subscribing.

xoxoxoxoxo