Tuesday, December 1, 2020
FASTer Way 5K 2020
Monday, November 30, 2020
A Real Hawaiian Christmas Tree
This year we treated ourselves to a real live Hawaiian Christmas tree!
We have been living abroad since April of 2015 and every Christmas we have decorated. Apartment living, especially in Asia, means small spaces. Small spaces = small decorations. Like most things, we have made the most of it.
Here's a look at some of our Christmas decorations over the years...
Shenzhen, China 2015 - hand-me-downs from another expat on her way out of Shenzhen.
Hong Kong 2016 - a little upgrade with the added poinsettia!
Hong Kong 2017 - upgraded our tree to a mini live branch, haha. We had a lot of presents because Grant and Georgia were both visiting that year. I don't remember where the green light came from??
Hong Kong 2018 - Not sure this is an upgrade since it's fake, but it did have lights. I bought this tree from someone who was leaving Discovery Bay and posted in the neighborhood "things for sale" group. The upgrade would definitely be the two new ornaments from Devan and Georgia (which were too heavy for our tiny tree, haha).
Kailua 2019 - another pre-lit tiny tabletop tree, but we upgraded to also hanging lights on the lanai. I always loved having lights on the house at Christmastime.
Monday, November 23, 2020
Monday Must Haves - 5 Beautycounter Products I'm LOVING right now + ON SALE NOW
Here are some of my 2020 work from home, Zoom ready favorite products:
Sunday, November 22, 2020
Cilantro Lime Black Bean Rice & Chicken Bowl
I used to be the girl that kept everything separate on her plate and ate one thing at a time...ok, I still do that sometimes, but now I am more likely to throw a bunch of different foods in a bowl.
A few nights ago, I was on my own for dinner because mrC was on a trip. I had spent most of the day getting work done and dropped the ball on meal planning for myself. Fortunately I had all the ingredients (well, most of them) for this yummy recipe from the FASTer Way meal guide.
*Every week, FASTer Way clients receive a meal guide as a resource. Clients are not required to follow it, but it definitely makes planning and coming up with ideas for meals A LOT easier. You can learn more here.
Most of the time, I like to use the meal guide as inspiration. I'll add some ingredients, substitute for others or just leave out what I don't like. That's how I put together this recipe for Cilantro Lime Black Bean Rice & Chicken Bowl.
My version:
1 cup baby spinach
1 cup read leaf lettuce
1/4 cup basmati brown rice
1/4 cup black beans seasoned with 1 tbsp lime juice, 1/4 cup frozen onion, 1 tsp dried cilantro, 1/4 tsp paprika, 1/4 tsp garlic powder
1/4 cup organic salsa
1 tbsp flaxseed and 1 tbsp pumpkin seeds (because I seed cycle)
4 oz grilled chicken diced
This recipe came together so easily because I had grilled a big batch of chicken earlier in the week and use pre-packaged rice (this is my favorite) and organic salsa from Whole Foods. I'm all about keeping things simple!
This is a great macro meal for days when you need all the macros! Plus it is packed with fiber to keep the gut a happy place. I encourage my clients to do meal bowls because they're more likely to have balance.
Do you like meals in bowls? What is your favorite combo?
Wednesday, November 11, 2020
Hiking: Pu'u Ma'eli'eli Trail (Digging Hill)
Our first attempt at doing this hike was postponed when mrC got an unexpected work trip. We did it a few days later under not so perfect conditions, but you can't wait for conditions to be perfect!
So, once again we headed to the trail even though the skies were cloudy and rain was in the forecast (same thing happened when we hiked Aiea Loop Trail). We parked at the Ko'olau Shopping Center and then followed the guardrail on Kahekili Highway to get to the trailhead. It was super easy to find.
After two climbs to get our legs warmed up right off the bat, I looked behind us at the Ko'olau Mountains topped with clouds. We see them in the distance every day, but I will never get tired of taking in their beauty.