 I am so excited to add this section to my blog because I love interior design! I know I dabble in a lot of things like fashion and healthy living so that I can stay in shape but I've been decorating friends houses and friends of friends houses for the past year. On top of decorating their homes, I have decorated and redecorated my own apartment several times. I find it so interesting and love to mix textures and neutrals; just like I do in my wardrobe. I'm going to be blogging about some of my projects that I've worked on in the past and some of my current ongoing projects, tips on how to style certain aspects of the home, how to keep up with current trends without blowing your piggy bank and similar topics! Basically, my Pinterest board come alive and turned into words LOL. *Pictured* The recent decor of my new apartment... A new coffee table is in the works, just gotta find the right one! WHERE FROM? candle holders: AT HOME | pillows: AT HOME | curtains: AT HOME | blanket: Home Goods | rug: wayfair | coffee table/side table: IKEA | tray: TJ Maxx Can't wait to share yet another side of my left brain with you guys! 
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 Meal Prepping can be such a pain, but in the end is SO worth it! I live a very busy life because I love to jam my schedule full, so some nights I'll make the excuse of not having time and will end up stopping to get food. I try to choose something healthy but there are only so many fast food healthy options. Not only that, but that eats away at my budget. I'm am reading this book called "Rich Bitch" and it is amazing... HIGHLY RECOMMEND to anyone who wants to get their finances in order and plan for the future. Any way, I am trying to find ways to save more money, while not having to dip into my shoes fund. #priorities I get 99% of my fruits, veggies and meats from a place called Freshfield Farms. They purchase produce from local farms and then package it in house so they cut out the middle man and cut down costs. I got 2 containers of blueberries, 2 containers of raspberries, 2 containers of blackberries, 3 avocados, spinach, mushrooms, bananas, tomatoes, cucumbers, 6 zucchini stalks, 8 pieces of yellow squash, 5 lbs of chicken, 2 lbs of ground turkey and 1.5 lbs of ground beef for $55!!!!!! At Publix that would have easily been 75-85$. I obviously had to finish up my shopping with standard items so I bought 60$ worth of other items at Publix to begin my meal prepping for the week. I made chili which was the bomb.com especially because it was a yucky rainy day and who doesn't love chili when it's raining out? Also, even after we ate this for dinner tonight I have enough to last me a while for lunch! I'll just pack a small sandwich to dip into the chili and call it a day!  The recipe is super super simple for this chili and it is one of the healthier options! (Ground beef, pinto beans, kidney beans, 2 cans of rotel, chili seasoning packet, 1 green bell pepper, 1/2 a red onion, 1/2 cup of water... Brown ground beef in pan with onion and bell pepper, then pour everything into one large pot and let simmer for 45 min) DELISH!    A few tricks for meal prepping that I've come to learn:
- Clean the pots/pans as you go - Make things that will be good 5 days from now - Use Tupperware that has separate compartments - Steamed veggies are always yummy - Make a plan before you grocery shop (aka write it down) - Knock it all out in a few hours Some of the dishes pictured above: -Baked lemon garlic chicken with zucchini and squash, steamed broccoli, brown rice and quinoa mix -BBQ chicken, whole wheat pasta with zucchini, squash and balsamic glazed steamed tomatoes All of these were really easy to make especially because all of the chicken was baked. I just lined each baking sheet with tin foil and the clean up was a breeze! During the week there is not a chance in heck that I will sit and have a nice filling breakfast at my kitchen table. I would rather have the 15 more minutes of sleep in the morning. That being said I have had to find ways of having healthy breakfast options that are going to hold me over until lunch. I have listed my top three breakfast picks (besides the standard bowl of cereal): 1. Healthy Chocolate Chip Scones
2. Yogurt Parfaits I usually buy the 100 calorie Yoplait greek yogurt individuals and load them up with granola and berries!  3. Overnight Oats These are my four favorite flavors and my absolute favorite overnight oats recipe! (photo credits belong to anotherroot.com)   This is a long over due post. Any time I am at the gym I am constantly asked where I get my work out clothes... I never wear LULU Lemon even though that is usually where people assume I get them. My go to places like always... Forever 21, Target and my new fav; Old Navy. Also other places that sell name brand athletic gear (Nike, Calvin Klein or Adidas) are Marshals, TJ Maxx and Ross. I have linked several of the work out pieces that I've bought and loved. Click on each picture and it will take you to each site. OLD NAVY
Forever 21
Target
2. Try to avoid eating out
Living fast paced lives some times makes it impossible to avoid eating out so if you do choose places that are healthy and give you a lot of bang for your buck! My absolute favorites are Chipotle where one burrito bowl with two tortilla shells on the side runs 6.93$ and will feed me for two meals (I make two burritos out of one bowl) and I also love Sweet Tomatoes! They have an incredible salad bar, soup bar and you can take it home too! 3. Spice up healthy store bought items I usually buy my groceries from Walmart not only because it is the cheapest but because it is convenient. Buying healthier more organic foods can be plain and boring. The key is to take these store bought items and turn them into something delicious. For example, I will turn ground turkey, pinto and kidney beans, spices and vegetables into a delicious turkey chili that everyone loves! Using ground turkey instead of ground beef is a less fatty and less salty option. Another great meal makeover is turning a healthy canned chunky chicken noodle soup into a star by adding lime juice, fresh black pepper and drops of Siracha for flavor. It's all about creativity! 4. Find stores that cut out the middle man There is this magical place called Fresh Fields Farms that deals with local farmers and buys, packages and sells everything in house "cutting out the middle man." Their product is incredible and I can literally get two weeks of healthy and fresh groceries for under 100$. (You don't believe me)... The picture above was literally right after a trip to FFF. The entire left side of the fridge is mine and it is filled with pounds of organic vegetables and freshly cut meats. The bill that day was $98.76 and I still have some of the meats in the freezer. Other stores include local farmers markets, Trader Joe's and Aldi. 5. Embrace leftovers Some people can't stand the thought of left overs. I used to be one of them. The trick is... You cannot microwave everything!!! Leftover pizza (unhealthy but sooo yummy) can be eaten cold or even heated up in a skillet, this allows the crust to get crispy again and melt the cheese on top. Things like potatoes, breads or sandwiches can be re heated in the oven. At restaurants if you order a salad, only pour dressing on half of it that way you can take the other half to go and the lettuce won't be soggy and gross. Please leave comments if you have any other tricks to eating healthy on a budget as I am always looking for ways to add money to my shopping budget LOL!!
What is it? What does it do? How is it different from regular water? My current favorite combination is two small green apples, raspberries, lime and cucumbers. I will drink three of these tall Voss bottles for a few days straight and I really see a difference by day three!  Eating healthy is honestly half of the battle to being fit and in shape. Obviously working out is the other half. Being busy with work and school it is hard to not want to stop and pick something up on the way home or to not just grab something from the cafeteria at work for lunch. Today is day 1 for me in my journey to get the body of a Victoria's Secret model... Minus the fact that I'm only 5'3". A few things that I have already changed in my diet include cutting out all fast food and staying away from soda products. Actually any carbonation that I intake bloats my stomach area and that is where I am most insecure. I have started drinking a ton of water and even though I use the restroom nine times a day (exaggeration) I can see a difference. Walmart has these adorable tumblers for sale right now that hold 20 oz of liquid. If I can drink three of those per day, that is exactly what health specialist say is needed. A few items I love to buy at the grocery store that are healthy but actually tasty: Edamame w/ sea salt (pictured), rice chips, hot turkey sausage, skinny cow ice cream sandwiches (for a splurge), and egg beaters southwestern egg whites Good luck on your journey to be healthy!!
I have been on a health kick for the past couple months... mostly because bathing suit season is upon us and I want to look my best. I have always loved smoothies and when green smoothies became popular I fell in love with those too! I took the next step and tried a green juice from this cute little juice bar next to my hair salon and had never tasted something so healthy and wonderful all at once.
I didn't want to have to drive 20 minutes and spend $8 on a juice every day so I researched which home juicer was the best. The Hamilton Beach Big Mouth Juicer was by far the best option for the best price. You can buy it online at Target for $49.99 or in-store for $59.99 (they only carry the green and white in-store). Juicing is so good for you because you are getting all of the nutrients from a days worth of fruit and veggies in one cup! I usually substitute my breakfast for a juice or if I really want to eat when I wake up (or don't have time to juice) then I will make one for dinner and just eat something small with it. If you are unsure if you would like it, my suggestion to you is to find a local juice bar and go try some of their products! I can almost guarantee you will find a love for it like I did! Good luck :) Link to the one I bought here! |
