Carrot Cake Cupcakes

So, it turns out that even though I don't like soy ice cream by itself, I really like soy yogurt. Who knew? Anyway, forgot to buy some at the store the other day, so my carrot cake cupcakes from Vegan Cupcakes Take Over the World had some sour cream and therefore weren't 100% vegan. Then, I smothered them in cream cheese frosting, 'cause I wasn't desperately trying for vegan, anyway. They were pretty good and they went quickly! That's what I was going for, anyway.

Red Velvet Cupcakes and Cream Cheese Frosting

I made the red velvet cupcakes from Vegan Cupcakes Take Over the World a few days ago. Replaced the oil with half as much coconut butter and, since I didn't have chocolate extract (is that a Thing?), used the recommended extra almond and vanilla extract instead. Then, I put cream cheese frosting on them, so they weren't *actually* vegan. They were good, though! Good enough that I'm going to make them for the Mothers' Day Festivities tomorrow!

Super Sunday

Today, we went to breakfast at a little restaurant we've never tried before and the food was awesome! I got banana nut french toast and it was amaaazing. Then, we hiked up a beautiful hill next to a creek and enjoyed the sunshine and cool breezes.

After the end of the hike, we got to go see the animals at the farm there. They had chickens of several colors and lengths of feathers, three huge pigs (and six piglets!), a cow, and a couple goats. We came home, had some of the homemade pasta noodles Tony helped us make a while ago, half with delicious homemade pesto and half with my tomatoes and okra marinara.

Now we're watching Speed Racer (which I really enjoy so far!). Then, we'll have something simple and tasty for dinner and maybe some ice cream. Hurray for a great end to a lovely weekend! :D

Written April 29, 2012

Great Start to a Great Weekend

It started off over drinks with my coworkers after we left earlier than usual. Then, I had a relaxing evening at home.

Saturday, I went to Michael's craft store and looked at all the fun craft ideas they have while I looked for pipe cleaners. Then, Miss M and I super-saturated water with sugar and then with Borax and put pipe cleaners in them to start rock crystal formations. The Borax only takes 4 hours, but the rock candy takes two weeks. . . strangely, they both have about the same amount of crystals, so I think the recipe for the Borax may have been a bit off. . .  I'm going to play with that a bit and maybe we'll have a perfect recipe for another time.

Then, we went to Aaron and Miriam's for a delightful evening with a lovely meal and even lovelier company! A long-time friend of Jason's happened to be in town and he joined us for dinner, then we got to hang out with him a bit more that night. It was a wonderful Saturday!

Updates

I finished Anne of Green Gables and bought the rest of the collection for 99 cents on Google Books. I really liked the first book and it's fun to see that there's more to the story! Also, I love that I can just have the books in front of me the moment I want them: digital books rock!

My workouts have been pretty decent so far. I hope I can keep it up! Two weeks now, I've worked out 4 days. I can workout on the weekends, but this weekend I revelled in just relaxing. I do cardio every workout and lift weights on alternating days. Ideally, I'll lift on Mon-Weds-Fri. I started lifting last week and last Friday my team went out for a little fun after work. I'm glad I went out with the team instead of working out. It was really nice!

It's going to be my birthday soon and we're throwing a party this weekend! My parents will all be in town for it, plus my Gramma, most of my half siblings (all but one. . . :( so close. . .), an aunt and uncle and maybe a cousin plus lots of friends. I've got a bunch of games we can play and am thinking up what I'll do for drinks, but almost everything is figured out and ready! Here's hoping it goes well! :D

Life in General

I've been playing Sudoku on the elliptical machines at work and *loving* it! I can play a few games and almost totally lose track of the time! I haven't yet worked out more than three times a week, though my goal is still 5 times. I *may* get to 4 times this week. . . if I don't end up working late or something. I try to get done exercising in enough time that I can sleep at a reasonable hour (ideally, 4 hours before bedtime). It would probably be better if I woke up a little earlier, worked out at work, then did my daily shower and hair-drying at work. Totally do-able. . . but. . . I'd have to get to sleep earlier and get up earlier. . . haha Such a hardship, I know. I don't actually feel sorry for myself over it, of course!

Speaking of, you've probably seen this but if you haven't, look up the first world problems meme. AKA "White people problems" and "rich world problems." J teases me when I complain about something that's totally a first world problem. Sometimes, it's important to laugh a little at how silly my complaints are in the greater scheme of things.

Pleasant Walk Home

I've been working out more than usual lately. My company has a free gym, showers and a culture of people who work out a lot. This has been awesome for me. I lost the first 10 pounds by obsessively tracking my diet and I have neither time nor interest in keeping that up, so I hope to workout just enough to slowly drop those last pounds, (the loss of which is somewhere between a good idea and vanity).

I'm shooting to work out after work five days this week. So far, so good. I really enjoy taking a shower right after my workout! Then, as I walk home, the cool wind dries my hair. Often, I get to walk home with my husband and chat to him about the day. Then, I get home, throw my gym clothes in the washer (with what sometimes feels like a never ending pile of laundry), put on pjs, relax a little and later climb into my warm cozy bed. Sometimes I wish I could freeze time to re-live it again later. This is one of those times. I guess that's kind of what a blog is for, though, isn't it?

Written Mar. 13, 2012