You Scream, I Scream, We all scream for Army Green!

Hi lovelies,

As promised I have a gajillion outfit posts from the past few days. The weather is getting better and I don’t have to bundle up in a million layers with a jacket on top anymore. I get cold easy :)

Army green has always been one of my most fave trend. I love anything camo as well. I have been caught wearing army green and como even when it wasnt a trend haha. So ofcourse it isnt a surprise that I will immediately pull anything and everything army green out of my closet. This dress has to be one of my most expensive purchases as H&M butttttt I just couldnt not have it once I tried it on and I loved the gold detailing on the dress. Hubby and I went out to eat lunch and then we decided to stop by our public library for these pictures. It just recently got renovated and it has to be the cutest and most serene little place with little ponds and gardens. Hubby and I love books and reading so we plan to go back and stand an entire afternoon just looking through books – ah geeks much? :)

What do you think about the army green trend?

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Bracelet: 24kt Gold (gift from parents bought in UAE)

Dress: H&M (currently in store)

Sandals: Sigrid by Dansko

Sunglasses: H&M(currently in store)

Watch: 14kt Gold Kolber bangle style watch

About these ads

OOTD: Orange Skinnies Springing into Spring!

Hi lovelies,

It has been a long long time since I last posted an outfit post. I actually have accumulated quite a few posts and should be putting them up regularly. This outfit was worn a few weeks ago when I went out with my hubby and parents for lunch at Fogo De Chao. One of my fave Brazilian steakhouse. This is probably the first time I wore my orange skinnies and ever since then I have been obsessed with them! I dress slightly more conservative around my parents so I didn’t want to go over the top with showing skin. It’s a cultural thing we do out of respect for our parents don’t know how else to explain it. Anyhow given that fact this outfit will be perfect for a lunch get together in a more formal setting.

The pictures were taken at La Madeline where hubby and I later went for dessert since mom and dad had to rush off back to work. I love that place cause of their mini desserts and ah coffee that comes out  in a REAL CUP. I hate this about US, coffee is always given in to go cups well atleast where I live at.I miss Europe and middle east because of that.

Anyhow let me know what you think of the outfit and what color skinnies are you currently obsessed with?

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Belt: Target

Clutch: H&M

Jeans: Kardashian Collection – Sears (Currently in store)

Sandal: Sigrid by Dansko

Top: H&M

For a Good Cause- Beyonce H&M for water Haul! Bikinis and Dresses

Hi lovelies,

I recorded the haul last week when the line came out needed some time away from exams and such to edit the video and put it up so finally here it is!

I bought everything that I was dying to buy from the line and for those of you who are thinking and feeling guilty about buying into the whole collaboration fad going around this one is for a good cause. H&M for water is a charity where 15% off the sale proceeds from the Mrs.Carter (Beyonce) for H&M line will go to build and provide water in impoverished countries. So it is not that bad after all :)

Enjoy the video and let me know what pieces are your favorite or possibly are already part of your closet :)

Fitness 101: Delicious Healthy Banana and Peanut Butter Breakfast/Snack/Post work out Drink

Hi Dearies!

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        I am very excited to share this recipe with everyone because if I like it am sure others would love to enjoy it as well as I am very picky with food and drinks specifically breakfast. I had been drinking this on and off when I felt like it as a treat for the past year or two but recently with my I am going to get fit phase I ended modifying the recipe a bit to make it more health friendly. You can skip the soy protein if you dont care for this drink as a protein shake or booster and just enjoy this drink as a delicious treat with all the ingredients that most homes have at hand :)

This shake is like a milkshake you buy from the ice cream store! Trust me you do not feel you are drinking some protein shake what so ever! I mean Banana and Peanut Butter? mmmmm. Just finished mine for breakfast today and I am already looking at the empty glass wishing I had a second one. Well I wont recommend two glasses at once lol but its just too yummy to not want more :) Try it out and let me know if you like it.

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Ingredients:

1/2 Banana

1 tablespoon peanut butter

8oz (1 glass) Fat Free milk

1 teaspoon sugar (You don’t have to add sugar, I do because I like to make it just like an ice cream shake)

1 scoop Genisoy Soy Protein in Chocolate flavor

Instructions:

1- Dump all ingredients in the blender

2- Blend well

See how simple is that? Breakfast/Postworkout Drink/snack done in minutes and possibly gone even in less than minute cause its delicious :)

 

 

Fitness 101: Sudden Motivation and how to attain it!

Hey Guys,

Here is a picture of me from 2 weeks ago for motivation, sans makeup and hair perfection and oh I put on shorts without having exercised for 1 and a half month….lets get real here on my blog.

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  Been a while since I last did a fitness post or any post for that matter lol. But trust me my fitness posts are only going to get better because I have realized why most people have a lack of motivation when it comes to exercising and how you can go about finding the right motivation!

So I am in an uber hyped about the new Beyonce for H&M line or better Mrs Carter for H&M. Now you are wondering what does that have to do with my fitness post? Well let me explain. Most of us look at the media day in and day out. We look at magazine covers and what not and feel sad about the few bad spots on our body. It can range anywhere from I wish was shorter to I wish a leaner, to I wish was more tan or more curvy or less curvy etc. You get the idea right? We then one day decide to kick start our fitness routine and try our best to eat right and drink right and workout right to look like some super model that looks NOTHING close to what we can ever attain! I mean I am South asian, 5’4 and quite curvy due to being short and if I try to look like Giselle, its really not going to happen. So here comes Beyonce in the picture. Yes yes I know I am not black either lol BUT and this is big BUT we have some similarities in our body types! Beyonce although quite tall compared to me is still curvy. Very curvy at that. She is mastered the art of sculpting her curves into the right proportions and it looks good! No I don’t want to be her clone but it gives you motivation because you see a body similar to yours and you know its attainable maybe not a 100% but its a good motivation to LOOK IN THE RIGHT DIRECTION.

Now here is another bonus that you can look for when you are trying to set your eyes on a role model for your fitness: TRY TO FIND SIMILARITIES IN INTEREST. If you want to attain that body and follow a regime similar to that of your fitness role model you need to LIKE what they do! Quite easy for me cause Beyonce is a performer she loves to dance. I love to dance. I have been telling people around me for the past entire year that majority of my exercise is achieved by dancing. Ofcourse you can’t just get away with one form of activity you have to add alittle bit of this and alittle bit of that. Don’t forget to eat right. I’ll be dumping boat loads of posts in your lap soon in regards to healthy snacking!

And at the end of the day understand you don’t want to be Beyonce. You want to be YOURSELF! The best you can be, the healthiest you can be. You dont have to do crash diets and try to get it this summer. Little changes over time will get you to your ideal body and help you stay there. Crash diets will work for this summer and then come Fall you’d be right back where you started.

Who is ready start getting fit with me? Lets keep in touch by hitting that follow button trust me you wont be disappointed :)

I have got Updates!

Its been months since I last spoke to you all sigh! Things have been insane on my end for a bit. I even missed my one year blogaversary :( Oh well thats okay we will make up for the lost time.

But schedule wise things are doing alot better on my end. I have two more weeks of school which is making me sleepless for now. Two projects, two presentations, one 30 paper and one exam and I will be done with my first semester of School. Below are some highlight of my last few months good and bad:

1)Went on our first vacation to the beach. Got really cold the weekend we were there but I did throughly enjoy myself. Found some really brilliant places to eat which I will be sharing with you guys via food posts. For now enjoy this picture of the beach :)

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2) I am eating healthier than I ever had and I have tons of health snack options to share with you guys. I am going to start making that part of my weekly posting schedule.

3)I witnessed alot of ingnorance first hand, nearly lost it and had to shake my head and walk away. This will probably lead to several posts in the Deep thoughts section.

4) I ran! I finally ran well not for long but I ran for 2 minute the first day, then next day for 5! I am not sure how fast I can pick up my pace and speed but it didnt hurt as bad as I expected! For those of you who are avid runners I know this is nothing but ever since the foot injury I have been dying to run again like I used to back in High School. Used to be the second fastest in my school …I know know been a while :-p

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5) And I went crazy shopping. The biggest haul video ever recorded by me will be put soon so stay tuned :)

 

 

Haul- Lilly Pulitzer, H&M Mid-Season Sale, Target

Hi Sweeties,

Finally the editing is done in time so you can go ahead and enjoy some of the loot I grabbed from H&M, Target and Lilly Pulitzer. Can’t wait to wear some of the items especially the Spring Coat and the studded tops :) Let me know if there is a specific piece that speaks to you or you have in your closet as well!

Must Read: Is Being Civil Online too much to ask for?

 

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Hi lovelies,

As my regular readers most of you know that my blog was started as a positive space for women. Where I can promote love and civility between our female species. Unfortunately it saddens me to realize that somehow the message is getting lost in space. I need to find out a better way of incorporating that as a theme of my blog that will stand out enough for infrequent visitors of my blog.

I am tired of the negativity I constantly witness online being thrown from one female to another. The minor details sometimes someone will point out that wouldn’t stand out to a regular browser of the blog to give someone a bad day or feeling. Thankfully I haven’t had that many brush ups with negative comments as I have seen some really brilliant bloggers having to deal with. But of course atleast a few had to land in my lap too right?

I have numerous times talked about this issue in real life that people should look into details provided before laughing off an issue that potentially could be a serious problem with someone. But this seems to be a common issue with most human beings these days especially the female population that in order to make themselves look better, they would topple and climb over as many other females as possible.

I understand doing things like this in person or face to face because you don’t have enough time to process what comes out of your mouth but online? On a blog? as a blogger? on a post? Most bloggers spend time thinking, creating and editing their posts to provide quality work to their readers. So how come in this whole span of time someone thinks its appropriate to be mean? Its worst when it comes from a somewhat established blogger.

I have constantly also told people around me that it’s best to not say anything if you have nothing positive to say. It really makes me wonder people’s intention when they outgoingly say cruel things to their friends, coworkers or anyone else for that matter.

When all else fails and we know we can’t change the world right away. And that world can only be changed one person at a time. I am going to leave you with this message:

If you are on the receiving end of a negative comment and you did nothing to instigate it then you know you are doing something right. People spend time to make you look bad because they saw something in you to begin with in the first place that bothered them about themselves.

So ladies lets keep our heads high when those negative comments are thrown your way and keep your lips sealed when it comes to negativity because change needs to start from within us and we have to be the change we want to see in the world.

Oh I am in Love! Swedish Meatballs!

Hi sweeties,

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Its been a while since I did a recipe post. The plethora of my food posts is just growing in number with no time to sit, write and post them, at hand. But unlike fashion, food never goes out of style haha :)

Most of my regular readers already know that I moved to a new apartment recently and we all know it initiates atleast a dozen trips to Ikea. On this particular occasion I was famished after work and hubby and I decided to grab a quick bite at their food court before digging our hands into some shopping. There was this beautiful poster board displaying Swedish meatball platter. My heart skipped a beat and I begged God that please please let these be made out of beef (I don’t eat pork) But deep down inside I already knew that most European Countries and US states sell minced meat products made out of pork instead of beef or chicken. Sadly upon inquiring my fears came true and I couldn’t enjoy any swedish meatballs. To add insult to injury while I was frolicking around Ikea the ad on their speaker kept playing stating “Have you tried our Swedish Meatballs yet? You don’t know the pleasure you’re missing so stop by….” or something on those lines.

Last night while thinking what to cook an idea hits me. If I can’t enjoy them outside then I can make them at home! I went through a gazillion top chefs’ recipes online and then decided to tweak several of them into one, to get the most ideal recipe for my taste. Now I have never had Swedish Meatballs before so I can’t vouch for the taste but I can atleast say this much- Swedish or not….they turned out scrumptious! Hubby was happy and I ate two of them before I had even finished cooking! I am glad I have leftovers for lunch today cause guess what? Right after I finish this post I am about to dig in :)

Ingredients for Meatballs:

  • 1/2 Onion
  • 1/4 Cup Bread Crumbs
  • 1/4 Cup Milk
  • 1 Egg
  • Salt as per your taste
  • Pepper as per your taste
  • 2 Cloves Garlic
  • 1 Tablespoon Olive Oil for sauteing
  • 1 Tablespoon Olive Oil for cooking Meatballs
  • 1 Tablespoon Butter
  • 1 1/2 pound ground beef (you can use turkey or chicken if you like)

Preparing Meatballs:

1. Chop the Onion and Garlic into really tiny pieces.

2. Combine Milk and Bread crumbs in a small bowl and let them settle.

3. Heat oil on a skillet and then saute onions till they get soft.

4. Add garlic to the skillet next and then continue sauteing till onions turn translucent.

5. Take the skillet off the heat and let it cool off for a bit while you prepare the rest of the ingredients.

6. In a large bowl whisk the egg and then throw in the milk/bread crumb mixture, sauteed onions and garlic, meat and salt pepper.

7. Gently mix in all the ingredients together but make sure you don’t handle the meat too much otherwise the meatballs will turn hard.

8. Make about 20 to 25 tiny meatballs and let them sit on a platter.

9. Next heat the Olive Oil and Butter on the same skillet that you used to cook the onion and garlic.

10. Cook about 10 to 13 meatballs at a time. Brown them on each side, turning as needed.

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Ingredients for the Sauce:

  • 1/4 Onion
  • 1/4 Cup Flour
  • 1/4 Cup Heavy Cream
  • 2 Cloves Garlic
  • 1 Tablespoon Butter
  • 4 Cups Beef Broth
  • Salt and pepper according to your taste

Procedure to Make Sauce

1. Chop up onions and garlic

2. Saute Onions and Garlic in the same pan that you cooked the meatballs in. (Add more oil if needed)

3. Create a well of onions and garlic with a hole in the center.

4. Melt butter in the well of onions and garlic.

5. Pour the flour in the melted butter and blend in with the onions and garlic.

6.Once the flour turns brown (About 2 to 3 minutes) pour in beef broth slowly constantly stirring, to avoid the flour from clumping or forming

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7. Once all the flour and blended in the broth, pour in heavy cream and let the sauce simmer for a few minutes.

8. Add salt and pepper as per your taste.

8.Once a desired consistency is reached for the sauce (it will thicken the longer it cooks) drop in all the meatballs and let them heat through.

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Serve the Meatballs with pasta of your choice as I did or you can always serve it with mashed potatoes and cranberry sauce like in Sweden :) I was in a little hurry this time around so didnt go all out to make cranberry sauce or potatoes.

Hope you enjoy the recipe. If you do try it out, let me know if you like it or if any improvements can be made!

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Fun Health Experiment and Weight Update

Hi sweeties,

I am am super excited as today is Thursday and tomorrow is my last day at work before Spring Break starts. The staff only gets a three day break but I extended my weekend cause a few of my coworkers thought I really need and deserve a break. I currently have an hour between work and class so I thought why not start utilizing these breaks for blog posts. I am also planning to catch up on stuff during the break so you will see more of me regularly.

Anyway remember my Christmas Health Plan? Where I was dropping a half pound a week? Well that went alittle biserk once I moved to the new place which is 3 stories up with no elevator and then school started. I am constantly on the move and barely have time to eat…yes I said it. To some of you this might be shocking but thats what happens in my life, everything take precedence over sleep and food. It was very scary when I weighed myself towards the end of February and I had dropped to a mere 118 pounds from 125 pounds. That is when I decided to eat what can so I can to salvage what weight I have left. I ate pizzas everyday and burgers, started back on the snacks and brought my weight upto 119 which is where I want to stay. I thought this is a last ditch resort to make sure I don’t end up looking like a skeleton that I was in college (I was a horrific 89 pounds and couldnt seem to gain any weight)

Here is why this is important to you! This ditch effort proved as somewhat of an experiment! I would suggest not trying this at home lol

Remember the theory that you are supposed to consume 1200 calories a day to not go into starvation mode? Well I kind of utilized that. I was eating when I could which was pretty irregular and twice a day instead of three times a day. But I think my nasty, fatty and greasy food with empty calories ensured that I don’t loose weight and go into starvation mode. Now why is this something that most of you shouldn’t do at home? Well for one your empty calories add chubiness where it shouldnt be added, your thighs and stomach. Then ofcourse the emergence of cellulite is another disaster you dont want to witness. Now if I had continued exercising regularly it wouldn’t have mattered as much cause I would have burnt most of the fat off.

You must be wondering why this experiment helps you and why am I talking about it with you all. Then here is the answer: Empty calories will help you maintain your weight or even consuming empty calories in limited quantity might even help you lose weight too but its going to give you a less proportional shape. It is going to bring along with it cellulite and other patches of fat in places that you dont want when trying to look and stay healthy. This also proves that somewhat unhealthy eating can be managed with mostly healthy eating and a good amount of exercise. And in closing I will say the experiment proved that enjoying things you like in moderation and doing some form of exercise wether running, gym, dancing, yoga etc can get you to the healthy lifestyle you always wanted :)

With this in mind my healthy streak resumes starting tonight :) and together we will attain our goals of being the healthiest we have been all our life. Whose in with me?

Have you conducted any health experiments on yourself BY MISTAKE? if so please feel free to share with me :)