I’m Back!

Posted in Everyday Life by

I’ve returned back to USA after my spring break trip! Two of my friends and I went to Punta Cana, Dominican Republic and had the time of our lives. We stayed at the Catalonia Resort and I would recommend it to anyone. The whole staff was so nice and so helpful. The resort offered so much to do, I never even felt the urge to leave to resort. I definitely wasn’t ready to come home! I hope you guys didn’t miss me too much. ;-)

How beautiful is this picture?! It really explains a lot about our trip. Sunny and blue skies! I loved how it was 85 degrees everyday yet there was a nice cool breeze. Plus, the water was clear which is something I’m not used to!

My wonderful friend Jessica and I.

My fantastic friend Michaela and I.

Reading on the beach – possibly the best thing in the world. I read the whole “Matched” series laying on the beach all week!

Unfortunately, I have a busy day ahead! I have to do a lot of unpacking, washing clothes, and cleaning. What a way to jump back into reality! I will be sure to start posting recipes and workouts regularly again this week. Thanks for being so patient all week!

Question of the day:

  • What is your dream vacation?

signature (2)

Some Weekend Pics

Posted in Everyday Life by

Hope everyone’s weekend is going great! I slacked on taking pics this weekend but here’s just a few:

Last night, my mom, dad, Josh, and I played monopoly together! We actually played a couple months together and we had a great time. We all get really competitive and laugh the entire time. We were really excited we all finally had a free night to hangout together.

My birthday isn’t actually until I come back from my trip, but we celebrated today. Last night, I was kind of bumming to Josh because I knew it would be the first year ever that I wouldn’t be having cake with my family (they all have to work). Well today when we were at my grandma’s for lunch, Josh surprised me and brought an ice cream cake so we can all celebrate early together. J

Gotta celebrate St. Patrick’s Day somehow! I love splurging and getting a green bagel with chocolate chip cream cheese every year.

Just so everyone knows, I will be MIA today since I am leaving tonight for my trip! I am spending the night at my friend’s house then we’re headed to the airport bright and early in the morning. I won’t be blogging or doing any work because I want to soak in all the relaxation that I can. I will be sure to take tons of pictures to show you guys next week. J

Question of the day:

  • What is your dream vacation?

signature (2)

Friday Favorites VI

Posted in Things I'm Loving by

Yay for Fridayyyy! What are you guys’ plans for the weekend? Hopefully it will be warm wherever you are so you don’t have to be trapped inside! I am more than ready for the summer weather to start hitting. Wednesday we got hit with snow, just as I thought winter was coming to an end!

Following the Friday tradition…

Friday Favorites

  • SPRING BREAK

Notice how “spring break” is in capital letters? That’s how I feel right now. Super excited! :-) I’m leaving Sunday to go to my friend’s house so we can catch an early flight Monday. I will be MIA all week since I will be vacationing – but I will be sure to share all the details when I return!

  • This Sign

Ain’t that the truth?! I saw this sign in the nursing building at school on the door of someone’s office and immediately had to take a picture. If only I lived closer to a beach… :-)

  • Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Yogurt

Okay, so I absolutely love snacking. I’m pretty sure all humans do at some point. But the problem is satisfying my craving yet not eating too unhealthy all the time. A close friend of mine told me she combines greek yogurt, peanut butter, and chocolate chips to have herself a quick, delicious snack! It turned out amazing and I will definitely be turning to this snack again very soon.

Growing up near Pittsburgh, I’ve come to realize it’s kinda hard not to love Pittsburgh. I will be passing through Pittsburgh today for a bit on my way home. Every time I see those tall buildings, I still get all warm and fuzzy inside because it’s such an exciting city! :-)

Previous Friday Favorites Posts:

Question of the day:

  • What is one thing you’re loving today?

signature (2)

Healthy Chocolate Chip Cookie Pancakes

Posted in Recipes by

Happy Thursday everyone! The week sure has continued to fly on by, only one day till Friday! And that means only one day until spring break officially begins. :-)

This morning started with some whole wheat toast with apple jelly on top and chocolate milk. What a great way to fuel my brain before an exam! Now that my exam is (finally) over, my brain feels a lot less scattered but definitely ready for a break.

As I talked about last week, Thursdays are officially Pancake Thursday!! This week I modified a recipe from Chocolate Covered Katie – love her healthy food blog!

Healthy Chocolate Chip Cookie Pancakes

Ingredients:

  • 2/3 c flour
  • 2/3 c oats
  • ¼ tsp salt
  • 2 tsp baking powder
  • 1 tsp vanilla extract
  • 1 c buttermilk (or any other kind of milk)
  • 1 tbsp maple syrup (or other sweetener)
  • Chocolate chips

Directions:

Preheat griddle to 375 degrees. Then, combine dry ingredients.

Next, whisk in the wet ingredients.

I chose to add the chocolate chips once the pancakes were on the griddle – I like them best that way. :-)

You now have yourself some delicious chocolate chip cookie pancakes that won’t make you feel so bad after you eat them. ;-) This recipe will make about 6 small pancakes.

Hope you guys enjoy this recipe! Here’s to hoping the day continues to speed on by. :-)

Question of the day:

  • What is your favorite healthy pancake recipe?

signature (2)

Yoga Day

Posted in Workouts by

How is everyone’s week going? Mine is going by pretty fast so far, I have a lot to do this week before spring break Friday so time is going by pretty fast!

This morning’s breakfast was whole wheat toast with apple jelly on top. I completely forgot to take a picture but I’m sure you guys get the gist.

As many of you probably know by now, Tuesday’s involve night clinical for me, so I only have my morning to get everything done that needs done. Usually I still try to make it to the gym for a quick workout, but I knew today that just wasn’t going to happen. I decided to make today a rest day and do some yoga.

Source

I’m definitely not a regular yoga-doer but I would definitely like to be! The first time I tried yoga was just 2 years ago during my freshman year of college. I went to one of the classes and realized yoga is not as easy as a lot of people may think it is! Since then I’ve only gone a handful number of times.

A friend introduced me to the website Do Yoga With Me so I decided to try it! The website includes many different yoga videos for people of all levels to try. I decided to do one of the beginner videos since I just wanted a good stretch for my muscles today. The girl in the video was doing yoga on the beach which made me a tad bit jealous! Anyway, it was a good workout.

This picture is actually a couple weeks old, but you can tell my friend and I get real into our yoga. ;-)

Hope you enjoy the rest of your week!

Question of the day:

  • Have you ever tried yoga?

signature (2)

Treadmill Circuit

Posted in Everyday Life, Workouts by

Happy Sunday everyone! Hope you’re enjoying your weekend. I’m pretty much hating the fact that tomorrow is Monday, the weekend went too fast!

This weekend I went home because I had to work Saturday. I’m a nurse’s aide over summer and winter breaks, so my boss agreed I can work just one weekend a month and still maintain my position.

After a long 12 hour shift Saturday, my family and I went to Red Lobster. It’s literally been ages since I’ve been to Red Lobster and it was a highlight of the weekend. :-)

I might have taken a bight of that tilapia before I took this picture. I couldn’t resist.

Since I didn’t have access to a gym while home, today I decided to do a treadmill circuit.

Nothin’ like a good circuit to get the sweat pourin’!

Now it’s time to get some items for spring break! I can’t believe my trip is coming up in a week, I can’t wait to feel the warmth of the sun on my skin. :-)

Enjoy the rest of your day!

Question of the day:

  • What kind of workouts do you like to do when you have no access to the gym?

P.s. I’m new to the Twitter world, so follow me.

signature (2)

Friday Favorites V

Posted in Things I'm Loving by

It’s finally Friday!!! My post would have been up earlier but I honestly had no time to write it until now! I had my two classes then drove straight to my hometown because I have to work here in the morning. After I arrived home, I decided to visit my grandma for a couple hours and catch up. :-)

Notice I changed the name from “Things I’m Loving Friday” to “Friday Favorites”? I’m playing with the names – let me know what you guys think in the comment section!

Friday Favorites

  • Overnight Oats


I literally made my first ever batch of overnight oats last night so I can eat it for breakfast this morning. I’ve read about bloggers raving over overnight oats, but I was never a fan of oatmeal. I decided to venture and try the healthy breakfast for myself and it was so good! I made up my own recipe which included peanut butter, cocoa powder, and chocolate chips – and it literally tasted like a no-bake cookie!


How fun are these leggings?! I recently discovered White Plum from Julie from pbfingers and I love all their leggings. I ended up buying two pairs of leggings and two long shirts to match. I wouldn’t be surprised if I found myself surfing their website more often. :-)

  • My Cat Steven


Yes, my cat’s name is Steven. And yes, Steven has a bow tie collar. If that doesn’t make him a cool cat (haha), then I don’t know what does.

  • Driving in PA


This is a picture from my drive home today. I absolutely love looking at the beautiful PA mountains and trees. And not to mention, the sun hasn’t been out in quite a while so it was necessary to take a picture of the lovely day! I can’t wait till the leaves start to grow back on the trees because it gets even more beautiful.

Well, now I am just waiting for my dad to come home and we are going to get some frozen yogurt! Enjoy your weekend. :-)

Previous “Things I’m Loving Friday” or “Friday Favorites”:

Question of the day:

  • What is one thing you’re loving today?

signature (2)