MEGA Favourites Round Up: Blogtober

Today is the last day of Blogtober, and I must say I am feeling a little sad! It has been so much fun brainstorming content for this little bloggy of mine, so I am thinking I am going to keep it rolling and continue blogging as much as possible. That being said, I wanted to do a round up of some of my favourites from this month. It's a mixture of food, fashion, skincare, blog posts - a BIG range of goodies comin' your way!

Let's get started : )

Blog posts I loved writing this month:

My running journey

Still in love with these under eye masks to make your eyes feel refreshed and more awake!

Why being positive is a much better way to spend your energy.

Fall sunsets and sunrises

A little fall shopping haul ; )

Lots of snuggle time with the pup and a good book.

Healthy morning habits to start now. Easy to add into your current morning routine!

Running the Victoria Half Marathon

My food philosophy

Trail dates with Nala bear : )

Why I am LOVING high intensity interval training

Getting my hair refreshed for fall!

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I hope you guys enjoyed Blogtober. I want to thank everyone who read even one post this month. I truly do love bringing you guys fun content, so please let me know what YOU would like to see next on the blog : ) Chat with you all soon!

Blogtober: Fall Shopping Mini-Haul

Good evening, friends!

This post is comin' at ya later in the day since I just got back from a day in Victoria with my sister. We had some pre-half marathon activities (I'm running a half marathon TOMORROW!) to attend to, such as the race expo and picking up my race package, and most importantly SHOPPING! When in Victoria, right? : )

Also, I need to boast for a minute here. We went into Lululemon, where normally I am sucked right in, but I tried on three things and didn't buy a single one. Am I sick?? Weird. You know when you try something on and you like it, but you don't love it? Yeah, that was me today. Oh well!

However, I did pick up some goodies that I wanted to share with you on the bloggy blog today. Here's what I picked up!

I have been on the hunt for a new purse for a few months now. The purse I am currently carrying is on the smaller side and can basically only fit my wallet and my phone. Not only is it teeny tiny, but the hardware on it was wearing off and it was looking a little sad and worn. Introducing, this upgraded baby from Aldo. Is anyone loving these darker wine colours? Anything that reminds me of wine, right? ; ) It is nice and roomy, and now I can actually pack snacks comfortably in my purse. That's the true test right there!

We also stopped into LUSH, and although I was wandering around not really looking at anything, eventually the bath bomb section sucked me in. The orange bath bomb is called the Yoga Bomb, and the purple-pink one is called Twilight. Both are on the sweeter smelling side, though Yoga has notes of sandalwood and Twilight has notes of vanilla and lavender. I actually have a small collection of bath bombs growing in my bathroom cupboard, but it doesn't hurt to add some more. Eventually they'll all get used... : )

Last stop was Sephora. The last and most dangerous stop. Actually, I'd say (on a normal day) that it would be tied with Lululemon. I picked up some essentials like my favourite charcoal face wipes and make up setting spray (which I recently discovered and love), as well as an old concealer favourite from Make Up For Ever. The lip gloss was kind of an impulse buy. I told my sister on the way home, "I bought lipstick AND ate a sandwich today. Who am I? I'm a new woman!" Weird for me but we'll see how much use it gets!

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I hope you guys are having a great weekend so far! Let me know in the comments what YOU love from Sephora, or if there are any drugstore favourites I should check out. Until next time!

Shopping Time: Beauty & Skincare Haul

Good evening & happy Monday everyone!

Three more work days and then I am on holidays. Can you tell I am excited? I have been waiting for this since I booked my vacation time back in January. It has been a long time coming, and the break will be so much needed!

What am I going to do? Get a massage and pedicure with my sister. Go on day trips with Nala and Ryan. Sleep in, work out, eat some good food. No vacation plans now, but we will find fun ways to occupy our time!

On the bright side, I can always do more of these skincare & beauty hauls for the blog!

But wait. That involves shopping. And spending money. I am not sure if I should spend all of my time off doing that, as much fun as it would be!

I will, however, show you a few items I have acquired within the last week or so.

We will kick it off with a prize pack I won at a free yoga night/open house at a local new juicery and raw food bar. My sister and I enjoyed 45 minutes of yoga, then as we were all blissed-out and zen we got to peruse all kinds of skincare, make up & clothing goodies from local brands and businesses in the Cowichan Valley. While we were there I put my name in for a draw (they were having several throughout the night), and lucky me - I was a winner!

In my prize pack were mini hand lotion samples from Kogi Naturals, made in Chemainus, as well as local soap, a bottle of yummy green juice from the juicery that hosted the event, and a one month GYM MEMBERSHIP! Yup, I'm going to have to take advantage of that! It was such a fun event, and I hope they do more in the future.

I also picked up a goat's milk soap & a skincare serum to try.

I have been using goat's milk soap lately and it makes my skin feel so silky smooth! On the same note, this face serum from Pure Anada makes my face feel like a baby's bottom and has a light fresh scent.

I just had to add this in here. After breakfast, Nala and I had some quality time on the couch where I finished up Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire. Oh, YEAH folks, I am still on my Harry Potter kick. So much so that I asked Ryan if he would have a HP movie marathon with me, and he just laughed and asked if I would even be able to stay up that long. Touche, buddy. I will try my hardest!

Today's workout: 45 minutes on the treadmill. Nice and easy watching YouTube videos, of course. All of my workouts are pretty darn relaxed this week because the big half marathon is on Sunday! I am excited, and frantically trying to plan our lives and make 100's of lists of what I need to bring.

Notebook from Chapters. Born This Way Radiant Concealer, Living Proof dry shampoo, Sephora brand eye mask, Sephora brand charcoal face wipes.

And finally, some goodies from my adventure into Nanaimo today. Nala had a puppy play date for the afternoon while I ran into Nanaimo to run some errands. I had a gift to buy for a certain event coming up (will share later), and while I was in the mall I had to, haaaaad to, stop at Sephora and Chapters. When in Rome, right?

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Any beauty or skincare recommendations? Or any favourites you have? Let me know in the comments!

Until next time, friends!

Sister Days & Life is TOO Short to Not Have Sweet Potato Fries

Alright, so we are BACK with another edition of the good ol' weekend recap post.

I know, I know. I didn't post on Wednesday, or on Friday as I had thought. Sticking to a blog schedule isn't hard per say, though I was kind of in vacation mode after Thursday.

Thursday was my Friday at work, and I was so ready for a longer (than normal) weekend. While I do have holidays scheduled in August, I was thinking that between now and August is a long time and maybe I wanted a little break sooner than that.

And a break is what I got! It was so damn nice, too.

Friday my sister and I went to Victoria for the day. Since I am still in training for the Lululemon SeaWheeze, I switched my long run to Friday morning and hit the trails for 11km before Sarah got to my house. Yes, having a plan is great, but having one where you can be flexible is even better! We stopped at a local vegetarian/vegan restaurant called Rebar downtown, refueled with some delicious enchiladas, and then headed towards Beacon Hill park. It had been a long time since I wandered around Beacon Hill park. It is such a beautiful park, and I highly recommend visiting if you have never been before!

They even had a gated rose garden. So beautiful, such an amazing fragrance!

The park was fairly busy with lots of tourists snapping pictures and admiring all the sights. Of course, Sarah and I had to partake in this, too!

There were soo many ducks, and gorgeous peacocks as well, as seen in the first photo of the post.

Sarah saw this sleeping moss lady online and was determined to find her. We were probably an hour and a half in before we found it, but there she is!

And a selfie to celebrate, duh ; )

Then we came back to my place, Ryan made turkey burgers for dinner and we watched tv before Sarah headed home. After all, we had a big day ahead of us on Saturday!

Aaaand of course I didn't get any pictures, but we went to Vancouver for the day!

One of my best friends (we worked together when I was living in Vancouver, in 2011/2012) lives there and it was almost a year since the last time we saw each other. In fact, the last time we got together was during my show weekend last year! We all went out for lunch, then Sarah and I got some shopping time in along Robson St. So much coffee, many drinks, and lots of treats were had. You know what though? I didn't even worry about it. I had fries at lunch AND at dinner, because why the hell not. Life is too damn short to not have the sweet potato fries, ya feel me? Besides, I was more into making memories than constantly thinking about how many vegetables and healthy foods I was consuming during our sister weekend. Life is all about balance, and that to me means enjoying myself when the time is right.

When I woke up Sunday morning it was 10AM - this is unheard of for me, considering when I "sleep in" it's usually until 7:30AM or 8:30AM at the latest. My body must have been tired from the long run and all of the walking Sarah and I did over the past few days. Judging by my health app on my phone, my steps were through the roof Friday and Saturday! That being said, the solid 10.5 hour sleep was much needed. Once we were up and moving, Ryan and I got our stuff together and headed to Costco to get groceries, and then spent the rest of the afternoon lounging. Seriously, I even lounged, and I'm not much of a just sit-back-and-do-nothing kind of person. We watched a movie called Draft Day (oh my GAWD it gave me the feels and had me engaged - not literally people - the whole time), then had some delicious fresh cod for dinner. It was such a nice day and evening spent together - low key, just the way we like it.

#retirementvibes

(Not kidding about that)

And here we are at Monday. 

This is how the day has gone so far:

Wake up, run for 35 minutes, down pour of rain starts approximately 3 minutes into run, trudge along anyway because you are already outside and might as well get it done, also quitting is lame and the half marathon is coming up in 8 weeks and 4 days, come home and chug water, read a chapter of Harry Potter & the Prisoner of Azkaban, get changed into yoga clothes, get gas, pick up groceries, go to hot yoga and sweat out of my toenails for 60 minutes, grab a delicious cookie on the way out, head home, have a shower, make breakfast, read more HP, do laundry, lounge, lounge, lounge, eat lunch, start writing a blog post. I even watched daytime TV which, embarrassingly enough, I actually love.

All in all, it has been a great break from the usual routine. If only every day was like this!

Until next time :)

Monday Mumbles & Weekend Fun

Hello, and happy Monday everyone!

I am here with a quick blog post before I head to my parents' house to celebrate my mom's birthday! I hope to get plenty of pictures tonight to share with you later on this week.

Since the last time we chatted, there's been a few work days and a weekend thrown in there. The weekend for me went by so fast!

Saturday after work I hopped on the treadmill to complete the second half of my run. Second half? Yeah, I was about 7 miles short of my weekly goal of 25 miles, so I ran four in the morning and then three after work. Fortunately, I worked up an appetite so I was more than ready for our dinner reservation at 6:30 that night! If you live on Vancouver Island, I highly recommend checking out the Dayliner Cafe. You will not be sorry! The food, the wine, the ambiance - ah! Both Ryan and I LOVED our meals. He had a fancy beef dish that I can't spell the name of, and I had the pasta which had a creamy tomato dressing, other veggies and some scallops. So, good! Plus you can also (each) get an appetizer and dessert. And wine, because who doesn't love wine.

All in all, it was a fantastic evening! When we arrived back home, it was time to get comfy on the couch and have some quality snuggle time with Simba. As crazy as that cat is, he is pretty cuddly! And to be honest, some nights I just want to stay in with my favourite guys and watch tv. Does anyone feel the same?

Yesterday the majority of my day was spent in Nanaimo shopping with my sister Sarah. We hit up the mall, Chapters, Home Sense, and of course had to grab a holiday Starbucks while we were in the area. I did not get any pictures of what I bought, as I mostly purchased gifts for people with the exception of my face moisturizer (which I'll talk more about in a post about skincare!).

So, here we are at Monday. I slept in to the glorious hour of 9:08AM and don't even remember Ryan saying goodbye before work. I briefly recall someone sitting at the edge of the bed, but to be honest I was just in la la land! The morning was spent making my usual every day oats for breakfast, drinking coffee, and doing laundry. When I have a relaxing morning, I find that my whole day feels more centered and less rushed than if I sprang out of bed and decided to be GO, GO, GO right off the bat. After breakfast (this was about 11AM by now), I went downstairs to the basement and hopped on my treadmill. I'll be honest and say that I don't like running in miserable, rainy weather, which has been the case here lately. So, I got in 8.3 miles (13.35KM), then headed back upstairs to shower and get myself ready for the day. I planned a few things in my planner that I wanted to get done, and checking things off my list is so satisfying!

A look at my planner spread this week. For those of you looking for a planner, I highly suggest the Erin Condren design planner as it has large boxes & is super customize-able! For those who are wondering (because a million bajillion people read my lil ol' blog), the candle in the picture is from Winners, and was a little find I came across today.

I hope you all had a wonderful day today! I am off to get ready & will talk to you all in the next one. See ya!

Birthday Fun: Commence Food Coma

Good evening, friends!

I hope you all had a great week. Mine was fantastic, mainly because I was counting down until my BIRTHDAY! More on that to come.

My days have been filled with working and going to the gym, as per usual, but I am extra excited to see the flowers in the garden start to bloom! They are so pretty and remind me that spring is around the corner.

So, let's get onto the birthday talk, shall we?

Sunday mornings start with posing practice at the gym. After I came home, I took a shower and relaxed with a cup of coffee & Ryan made me pancakes! I haven't had good, doughy pancakes in a long time. Way, way, too long. Rather than using wheat flour he substituted with oat flour, which happens to be friendly to my competition diet. I topped my pancakes with natural peanut butter, chia seeds, banana, and syrup. And yes, I did eat my weight in pancakes, and yes, they were amazing!

After breakfast, we got ready for the day. I requested we go shopping in Victoria, so that was the adventure of the day.

Outfit of the day: Sweater by Mink Pink (plain white tank top underneath from Forever 21), jeans by Guess?, necklace from Old Navy, light pink bead bracelet from Archer & Arrow (local boutique), and gold watch by Michael Kors.

My parents were also en route to Victoria, so we met up with them along the way as we were shopping. After visiting all of our favourite shopping destinations and spending way too much money at Lululemon, it was time for dinner. Maybe next week I will do a little haul/favourites post!

Hello, cheat meal! I tend to be fairly conservative with my reward meals. I'll either eat more carbs or I won't measure my serving of salmon, if that's what I'm having for dinner. OR I will eat dark chocolate, because I miss having chocolate. However, now I feel so much better without all that extra sugar in my system, so I suppose it's all about balance. 

Anyway, we went out to a restaurant called Bin 4 in Victoria. If you haven't been, I strongly urge you to go! It was delicious, decently priced, and I had the best company around me which made for a great birthday dinner. My burger of choice is called the Mr. Bean burger and is a hand-made bean and vegetable patty on a soft, squishy bun with lettuce, tomato, and red onion. And the FRIES. Oh, the fries were to die for. And ketchup! And garlic aoli! Oh my lanta. I kid you not. I unbuttoned my pants on the way home because I was so damn full. Food coma, commence.

A big thank you to my amazing family & loving boyfriend for such a special birthday. I am so thankful! Safe to say my belly and heart were full yesterday.

I hope you all have a nice evening! I am off to make some food. Girl's gotta eat.

Looking Back at July

Hey, hey, party people! Happy August. Who else is excited about the long weekend!? This girl sure is.

I wanted to do a post to highlight some of the fun shenanigans that took place in July. I don't have any monthly favourites for July (mostly because I am not using many new products), so I thought this was a good way to recap the month. Let's get started!

My sister took a trip to Europe and arrived home in July. Hooray, best friend forever (also by default) is home. She can never escape me, muahaha. Naturally I had to make her a sign complete with sparkly ribbons - oh, and my mom and I wore these crazy headbands and sunglasses, too. For whatever reason dad didn't want to take part in that. Sarah looks so thrilled to be home! ;)

Picking some giant zucchinis from my garden! I have two plants (one would have been sufficient, but, why have one when you can have two, right?), and they have produced SO MANY zucchinis! Seriously. The next time I post a picture of myself I might look like one.

But wait, there's more. There's more that need to be picked, too! I started giving them to coworkers to get rid of them, and Ryan and I have used quite a few in our cooking adventures. The zucchini madness just doesn't end.

A beautiful day spent at New Castle Island! Ryan and I spent a Sunday wandering the island, swimming, and we packed a picnic lunch to take with us. It was so sunny and gorgeous out!

Nothing beats freshly picked blueberries! Ryan and I did some work around his yard, and I spent a good chunk of the afternoon picking blueberries from the bushes in his backyard. From these I made a blueberry crumble and two batches of blueberry muffins (and there was still leftovers).

Shopping trips! "We're just browsing, thank you!" Pfft. Yeah, I kinda have a thing for tea and LUSH products. I can't help it. They are just so good!

Setting sail before the veil! My good friend is getting married in a couple weeks (so soon!), so we had a bachelorette/stagette party last weekend to celebrate. It was an excellent time filled with good friends and uh, quite a few drinks.

For after work runs when it is so ridiculously hot outside, I am beyond thankful for my treadmill! Treadmill running isn't exactly a highlight of the month (it's kind of a regular thang), but it's a certainly a savior in this hot, hot, heat!

Evenings spent reading at the beach. Sarah and I headed out earlier this week with Starbucks and trail mix in hand, plopped ourselves down in a patch of sunshine and just relaxed. It was so nice!

What are some things you loved this July?

Finding a Pair of Runners!

Running is a simple sport that doesn't require a ton of equipment. It can be as simple as you want it to be, but one thing is for sure: You need a good pair of shoes that are fit for your personal feet!

The number one mistake I made when I started running was going to a sporting department store and asking for a pair of runners. "Uhh... These ones are on sale..." the sales associate told me as he pointed to a wall of clearance runners. I was left blindly trying to pick a pair of shoes that were right for me. Sure, they worked for a couple months, but I was soon out of commission with a hamstring injury due to improper footwear. Lesson learned!

I brought those shoes to a running specialty store and immediately the owner said, "You got those at Sportchek, right? I can tell right away that you need different shoes." Getting an opinion from a professional will seriously save your feet and keep them healthier while you're on the run.

A few things you need to know before you buy a pair of runners:

1. Don't cheap out. Seriously. You may think that spending $120+ on a pair of runners is ridiculous, but they are well worth the investment. Buying a pair of cheap shoes just because they are cute, or just because they are less expensive than other runners, is not a good idea.

2. Running specialty stores are your friends. Department stores are not.

3. Consider your feet: What is your arch type like? Do you have flat feet, high arches, or are your feet neutral? Do you have wide feet or narrow feet? One thing I have learned is that sizing a half size up works best for my feet. This allows room for my feet to shift forward/backward when running up hills and on different terrain.

4. Measure your feet: When you are shopping for a pair of runners, make sure the salesperson measures your feet while you're standing up. This may seem like a, "Duh, why wouldn't they?" but it does give the most accurate number since your feet are not relaxed like they are when you're sitting.

My biggest piece of advice: Go to a running store and get professionally fitted for a pair of runners. Once they direct you into the right pair of shoes for your feet, you can then venture into different shoes with similar features. For instance, if you find you need more cushion and stability and you are running in, say, Brooks, you can look for cushion and stability features in another running brand if you want to try something different. However, make this transition slowly. Although buying a new pair of shoes is exciting (or is that just me?) you want to make sure you will actually use them! Running shoes need to be replaced every 300-500 miles, so be sure to keep track of your mileage from your first run in your new shoes!

Hope that is helpful! Happy Running!