{Valentine's Day}

Awwww... It's a day devoted to love:) Now usually I sort of think it's just a silly holiday...I mean do you really need a day devoted to love?!? I you love someone then you should show just how much each and every day!!

Usually my husband and I don't do anything special and that's the way I like it.

BUT this year he really surprised me!

He knows I have been in a bit of a funk....so yesterday we had a whole day of fun!! Including him going to lots of antique shops with me!!

Just look at that face! Can't you see his excitement!?!?

I love antique and thrift shops!! You never know what you might find!Letters...letters...everywhere!! He was such a trooper!! and I was so happy!!! After all that walking and looking at things....here's all I bought!

But it is the cutest frame!! I thought I would paint it the same color as all my other frames and use it to display my simpledaisy jewelry when I do shows!!!

Oh and take note of that ROCKIN' turquoise ring!! The hubby got that for me too for valentine's day! Guess he couldn't wait until today to give it to me!!

How nice!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Then we ended our day at one our favorites places!! And I got to enjoy a little vino....you know how much I love that:)After all those festivities yesterday.....I thought the least I could do is make him a nice breakfast this morning!! So I did...

Now it was a manly breakfast of fried bacon, eggs and french toast with powdered sugar and so I had to break out the safety glasses to cook the bacon!

The bacon always splatters so much when I cook it so I wear safety glasses in case it happens to splatter in my eyes!! Dorky ... I know... but safe nonetheless:)

And of course the girls were anxiously waiting for me to drop something!
After the house was full of smoke and the smoke alarm went off....breakfast was done!

I even tried to make heart shaped french toast!! I think he liked it!!

And I even serenaded him with a little valentine's guitar while wearing my ROCKIN' turquoise ring!Maybe one of these days he'll surprise me with lessons....hint hint, honey!!!!!!

I just have to say....that I feel so lucky to be so loved! That's priceless:)

Hope you are having a super loving Valentine's Day wherever you are~~

"True Love can neither be seen nor heard – only felt within the deep recesses of your heart."
Unknown

{Fresh Friday}

Hi everyone!!!
Thanks so very much for all of your comments that I might actually be inspiring you to become a little more fit and healthy!!
I am super happy to inspire people and I too am inspired by others!! I find it very inspiring to get so many nice comments!! So keep them coming...I appreciate it.
For me, inspiration turns into to motivation which then turns into action:)

Whenever you have health and fitness goals....I think there are some pretty important activities that will help you achieve or at least start on the path to achieving them...

....surround yourself with positive, happy people that will keep you motivated.
I am lucky to have great friends that are very positive about my goals and one is even a personal trainer...I mean, if I am not inspired and motivated by her abs....I don't know what would inspire me! Check 'um out~

.....read, read, read.
I read everything, blogs, magazines, books and anything else I can get my hands on to stay motivated! There are so many great blogs out there just full of inspiration and motivation...but don't stay on the couch too long:)
I also love, love, love Oxygen Magazine.. I think the girls in the magazine are more realistic looking (motivating to me) and more of what I hope to someday achieve. I am not much a fashion magazine kind of girl b/c personally, I don't find fashion magazine girls very inspiring or motivating. I think they look scrawny and hungry:) But that's just my opinion. I am motivated by fit looking girls~

.....keep it clean. Food that is.
don't make it complicated when starting out....just start eating things that are actually food! Whole grains, eggs and chicken (if you eat meat), veggies and fruits, beans, nuts, dark leafy greens etc.
See how easy it is?!?!? Then be creative in how you cook those things!! Don't be afraid to experiment!

.....move, move, move and then move some more:)
again when you start out...don't make it complicated just move! walk when you can, do squats when you brush your teeth,do side bends when your making dinner...you get the idea!
When you get used to all of this....then you can pump your workout regimine up!
I love to exercise and find that I am most motivated when I have goals I am working towards...see my right side bar....those are the things I have signed up for so far this year! So far it's a half marathon and a centruy bike ride!! But there might be more to come....woohoo 2010

As I move along...I am learning more and more and tweaking things that I eat and how I train so that I can be in the best shape I can be in:) Same for you....as you get going you'll keep learning and tweaking!

So there you go.....just start! It's as simple as that!!!!!!

Don't let those New Year's goals go by the wayside:)

OK....Now
One thing about eating...is that you have to find what works for your body and your morals....

I was vegan for a bit...but I just felt too restricted. And I never felt like I was eating enough protein for my activity level...So I have been enjoying some wonderful fish again!!!! But you have to do what works for you:)

~Seafood Spiced Mahi with Grapefruit Fennel Salsa~ Mahi Mahi....frozen unless you are lucky enough to live where you can get fresh:)
Any kind of seafood seasoning
cook the fish in the oven on 450 for about 20 min.

Make the salsa...
grapefruit
fennel
cucumber
red onion
lime juice
red wine vinegar
sugar
crushed red pepper
Chop everything up and put as much of everything as you want in a bowl

This was just so darn good!! I served it with asparagus and sweet potatoes. YUMMY!!

Now if you don't like grapefruit...that's ok..just switch it out with oranges, mangos or whatever else you might like.

That's the best thing about cooking...you can be creative!!! Be adventerous...try new things and don't be shy to swap things out in recipes.

Hope you have a happy, healthy weekend!!! TGIF~

"Success in anything seems to be connected with action. Successful people keep moving. They make mistakes but don't quit. They hang on after others have let go".
~ Unknown

{wishful Wednesday}

It's definitely one of those weeks were I keep thinking.....WHEN WILL IT BE FRIDAY?!?!?

The weather was putrid, I have an annoying sinus infection, work is beyond stressful....you get the idea!! :)

Well....I decided to take matters into my own hands and try to have a somewhat relaxing day!

First...during lunch {which, amazingly, was rather quiet....I am a teacher and lunch is usually anything but quiet} I went to flickr and started a slide show of Key West sunsets....

ahhhh....pure bliss~flickr

I got to pretend for my whole lunch that I was in Key West~

Do you ever do that with flickr?!?!

Then I came home and do what I love to do to relax~

Light a fire, candles and do

A little yoga...

I am laughing because my husband thinks I am nuts!! First, I am doing yoga and then because I am asking him to take pictures of me doing yoga:)

I think you can see that I am not really all that flexible.....but I try:)and then.....here is how I REALLY practice yoga~with Ruby constantly licking me!!

What I love about yoga...is really focusing on my breathing and getting my rate to slow WAY DOWN~

I don't know if you can really see it...but my heart rate is 57!!! Now that is a BIG difference from where I keep it when I run, which is around 160! I just do the yoga on tv with Steve Ross...but I love it. I get totally relaxed and zen like:)

After yoga I pour a nice glass of Cabernet and sit by the fire~

Now I try to keep it real here at simpledaisy...but I have to admit that the above photo is a re-take from the one below....where I saw a ginormous zit on my nose!! I ran and powdered my nose for the re-take! Seriously...I am pushing 35 and clearly should be finished with zits:)Owell...here it is in all it's RED glory:)

Lastly, by now you know I love to cook and especially love to make something yummy and comforting when I am all stressed out!

So I whipped up some vegan Cream of Mushroom soup from scratch~

I also made some pesto whole wheat "crackers" from some pizza dough I had in the freezer. Sometimes I make up pizza dough and then freeze it for times like this!

Anywho...since it's not Fresh Friday I won't bore you with the recipe with this .... but if you're interested in how I made it....give me an e-mail!! But remember....I RARELY use recipes and so...I just cooked what I thought would be yummy in mushroom soup and then threw it in the blender!!

Well happy Wednesday and remember....when you're all stressed out...try and take a minute to do something that will make you happy:)

"Movement is a medicine for creating change in a person's physical, emotional, and mental states." ~ Carol Welch

{Fresh Friday}

Good morning everyone!
Happy Friday and for me it's a real happy Friday since I am off work for Fall Break.....WOOHOO! Flickr
Who wouldn't want to enjoy a leisurely breakfast and a good cup of joe there?!?!

Since giving up dairy and eggs, breakfast has been a bit challenging for me. I used to eat egg beaters every morning. I am not a big oatmeal person and personally prefer to eat something kind of light.

Welcome to the TOFU SCRAMBLE~
My new breakfast friend:)
I love this because you can add anything you want and even put it all in a wrap if you prefer.
Here's what I made this am~
I use vegetable broth in the pan instead of oil. I would rather eat a handful of almonds for my fat instead of get it from the oil!Anywho....this morning I had
purple potatoes
portobello mushroom
onion
kale (one of the ultimate super foods)
tofu

Just chop everything up and throw it in a pan with some garlic, sea salt and pepper.It cooks super quick and wala......you have a super healthy breakfast full of many colors in the rainbow~

Trust me the photos don't do it justice! There was no sun this am to take better photos! Sorry~
Oh and I always start my morning with a hot cup of joe and just a titch of Sugar in the Raw.
That's the thing about health....you have to do what works for you and makes you happy!
There are many authorities that think coffee and sugar may not be so great for you and there are just as many that think it is great for you.........so just do what works for you!!
By now you have been through quite a journey with me....bicycling, running, eating, cooking etc. in my quest to become more fit and healthy!
One thing I have really learned is that
Fitness and Health are a Journey and NOT a Destination.
It's the everyday way you chose to live your life that matters.
Did you move?!?!?
How do you feel about the things you ate?!?!
How do you feel about the activities you participated in for the day?!?!
Once you start answering these questions you can start making little changes that make you more fit, healthy and ultimately healthy!

After the ride I did...I decided to once again switch things up and try plyometrics once or twice a week.....in addition to the other things I do....WOW...it is by far the most challenging workout I have ever done!

I am hoping it will make me stronger and more powerful for the next riding season! Oh and in case you haven't noticed I post my workouts on the right-hand side of the blog! In case you are ever interested in what an average girl does to stay fit! And I think it helps motivate me:) It makes me accountable..

Here are a couple dorky photos of me doing a p90x plyometric workout~(don't look at that wall....I really need to do something with it....but nothing has inspired me)
I usually do plymetrics at the gym where my friend teaches it! Unfortunately her children were super sick this week and so she had to cancel class.

Now I could have just said.....oh good I get a break....but nope I popped in the dvd and away I went! It felt great....WHEN I WAS DONE:) Even if you can't get to a gym there are a million things you can do at home to get fit or stay fit!

Just look how sweaty I got!Really glamorous:)

Whatever your goals are....just remember to do something everyday to help chip away at them! For me fitness is not about being able to run the fasted marathon, or being the skinniest girl in the room, or participating in weightlifting contests.....it's simply about being healthy and happy!!!! I do what makes me feel good:) What are your health and fitness goals?!?!

Hope you have a super happy weekend!!!!!

"A vigorous five-mile walk will do more good for an unhappy but otherwise healthy adult than all the medicine and psychology in the world." ~ Paul Dudley White

{Autumn Camping}

Happy Sunday to you:)
We just got back from camping at Turkey Run State Park with our great friends this weekend!! We had sooooo much fun!
The trees were absolutely beautiful~ Our campsite rocked~ We had twinkle lights....plenty of smut to keep us girls busy.....I enjoyed lots of vino from a plastic cup!! How classy is that:) We brought lots of chili!!Vegan chili for me and white chicken chili for everyone else~The dogs played all weekend and actually got tired...I couldn't resist taking some funny photos of Ruby...I was seriously cracking up b/c Ruby actually looked like she was passed out!

All the campsites were all decked out in Halloween decor! It was so festive:)

Michelle and I were in sheer bliss..
Nevermind that we're not wearing any make-up.....to me that's the best thing about camping...you don't have to worry about what you're wearing or what you look like! Even my hubby was happy~ We had lots of candy to pass out to the trick-or-treaters....
L.C. thought she would like to sample some {I didn't let her}
Someone....I won't say who...was eating it before it was even time to pass it out....Good thing we had some left for the trick-or-treaters....we had a lot of them! Just look how cute:)All in all it was a completely wonderful weekend!!!

How was your weekend?!?!

“A friend is someone who understands your past, believes in your future, and accepts you just the way you are.” anonymous