Niki's Neverending Adventure

Hello friends! Sorry I haven’t written in a few days, I have been super busy with school! We started our Skills Lab this week which means I have to spend a lot more time at school. Skills lab was so fun this week! We learned how to intubate (put a breathing tube in)! Of course we used a dummy and not a real person, but it’s just so nice to actually start doing all the things we have been learning about! I was totally in my element and it makes me super pumped for clinicals to start in September! But there is a lot to get done between now and then!

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Workouts this week have been kind of random! Monday I did a really good Circuit Training workout that had me super sore! I’m still sore today! Yesterday, I took Sadie on a long walk, and then walked on the treadmill for 4.5 miles while I practiced my presentation that I had to give today! I was finally able to get out for a run today! But, holy wind! The wind was so strong, gusts 20+ miles per hour! That made this run tough! Other than the wind, the day was beautiful and I think the high was around 80! I ran 3 miles by myself (@ a 9:20 pace) and then picked up Sadie and we run/walked 2 more miles. We did run for 2 minutes, walk for 1 minute and she seemed to do really well with that! I love running with my girl!! After we got finished with that, I walked 2.5 more miles on the treadmill while catching up on some DVR. I guess today was all about some cardio! Haha :) Between all the miles I put in today and the soreness that I still have from Monday, my body feels beat! But in a good way of course!!

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I have been using my new French Press and LOVE IT!! It’s amazing at how much better coffee tastes when made by a French Press!!

 

It even has it’s own little “jacket” to keep the coffee warm!

Workin’ it’s magic

Mmm, mmm, good! Love the froth!!

If you don’t have a French Press, I think it would be a very wise investment! If you like coffee of course :)

Do you prefer French Press coffee?

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I don’t really have much else to talk about, my life is seriously overwhelmed with school right now!! I get to start eating meat again on Sunday (Easter) so hopefully after that I will start actually cooking dinners and have more recipes and yummy eats for y’all! Right now I feel like all I do is throw random things together and call it a meal! Haha :)

Alright guys, gotta jet! Hope y’all are having wonderful weeks! We are halfway to the weekend! Yay!!

Posted in: on Wednesday, March 31, 2010 at at 8:07 PM 2 comments    

Happy Sunday to everyone! I hope y’all have had a great weekend! Today was gray, cold, and gloomy here, and made me feel super lazy!! I went to church this morning, then hung out at my parent’s house for a bit before loading up all my shower gifts from last weekend and headed home with Sadie! I have missed having my sweet puppy face around! It’s lonely without her!

No running today. Like I said, I was feeling super lazy! I have got to get back on the workout/running train next week! I only ran 3 times this week :(    Luckily, the weather is supposed to be really nice this week, but I will also be slammed with school stuff. I’m gonna try to fit in as many workouts/ runs as I can!

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So, on to the main reason for this post: CHOCOLATE!!

The lovely people at Stonyfield sent me some free coupons to try out some of their Oikos Greek yogurt! I found these individual sized chocolate ones at Wal-Mart yesterday and knew I had to try them!!

HOLY YUM!!! This little container was chocked full of chocolate goodness!! There is a chocolate syrup at the bottom of the container, and when you mix the yogurt and the syrup, it looks like this:

Yum, yum, yum!! These containers are the perfect snack or dessert size and at only 110 calories, they are waist-line friendly also!! I HIGHLY recommend trying out this flavor of Oikos!!

Along with my yogurt, I picked up another CHOCOLATE find:

Dark Chocolate Almond MaraNatha. This is like a little piece of heaven in a jar! OMG!

I melted 1/2 TBSP of the Dark Chocolate Almond Butter and put it on top of some sliced strawberries! Y’all must try this!! Yummy!!

My dessert was amazing tonight!! I may or may not have had another small spoonful of the Dark Chocolate Almond Butter :) I found both of these items al Wal-Mart if y’all are interested! And I highly suggest you high tail it to the store and stock up on some healthy chocolate items!!

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I am super excited to use our new French Press in the morning (that I got at my shower)!! Can’t wait to see how much better my coffee tastes!!

Do you use a regular coffee pot or a French Press??

Well, gotta finish up some DVR watching and then I’m heading to bed! I have an early morning tomorrow! Good night!!

Posted in: on Sunday, March 28, 2010 at at 8:26 PM 3 comments    

Hey y’all! Hope everyone is having a wonderful weekend! I know I am :) My week has just been so chaotic with all the new floor “construction” going on! I am so happy to say that they finally finished my floors today! And I LOVE them!! And seriously, it really was like a construction zone in here! It’s amazing that I got any school work done!!

Chopping up the old floors

This is what it looked like the entire week! All concrete inside my house!

These are the old wood floors….

And my new ones!!

I chose a lighter color and a wider board than what the previous floors were. And I am so happy I did! I love the lighter color! Makes my rooms feel bigger! Plus it won’t show Sadie’s hair nearly as much as the dark wood floors did :) If anyone in the Memphis area needs new hardwood floors, I highly recommend Southern Hardwood Floors! These guys were awesome and worked super hard!! I have all their contact info if anyone is interested!!

So what do y’all think?? Like the new floors?

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Yesterday, I decided to spontaneously run a 5k race!! My friend Leah was racing in the Hope House 5k down in Harbor Town last night and I decided to join her! The race started at 6:30pm so I was a little nervous about how my tummy would act, since it tends to act up on evening runs. Harbor Town is a community in Downtown Memphis right a long the Mississippi River. It’s better known as “The Island”! It is a super cute area with tons of huge, gorgeous homes! The 5k took us all throughout the neighborhoods so I got to check out these huge homes!! The weather was nice, mid 50’s when we ran and it stayed light the entire race! Yay!! I really didn’t have any idea on what time I wanted since I didn’t know how my stomach would do!! I went out pretty fast, my first mile was around 8:35. I felt pretty good still and was thinking I could probably hold this pace and PR! I ran the second mile in 8:25, according to Garmie. My tummy started hurting a bit at this point, but it wasn’t a side stitch so I knew I could push through!! My last mile was right around 8:30 again and my official 5k time was 26:55!! PR for me!! Wohoo!! I was super proud of myself! I forgot how much I love 5k’s! It’s fun to really push myself and see how hard and fast I can go. Must sign up for more soon!!

After the race, we went to Huey’s to eat and get a beer!! I ended up having 2 Blue Moons, we were there for a while watching the games, and a Black Bean Burger with fries! It definitely hit the spot!! Sorry I didn’t take any pics, forgot I had my camera with me! It was a fun night especially for being spontaneous!! I am normally such a planner! Haha.

Are you more of a planner or more spontaneous?

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Let’s talk about the game last night… Tennessee vs. Ohio State. I was so SAD and MAD that UT beat OSU! Not only because it clearly ruined my bracket(I had OSU winning the entire thing) but because I can’t stand UT! Yes, I realize I am in grad school at UT, but I am a MEMPHIS fan all the way! Therefore, I cannot be a UT fan also! I love seeing UT lose! Too bad that wasn’t the case last night…. So sad :(            It was kinda funny because everyone in Huey’s was cheering on UT and I was the ONLY one cheering for OSU! Haha!! Oh well, life goes on. There’s always next year!! As long as Kentucky doesn’t win the tournament, I’m good! I’m currently cheering AGAINST Kentucky right now!!

Well friends, gotta jet! Time to go fix something for dinner! Have a GREAT night!!

Posted in: on Saturday, March 27, 2010 at at 6:04 PM 7 comments    

Nice title right? Haha!

Happy Birthday to my little brother Josh!! He turns 23 today!!

Ok, ok he’s not that “little”. Everyone always thinks he’s older than me! Haha!! I am heading to my parents house after class this evening for Josh’s Birthday dinner and cake!! We are also celebrating my precious pup’s birthday since it’s tomorrow! She will be 3!!

Sadie and Josh love to have their Birthday Parties together! Haha :) I can’t believe my baby is going to be 3! I have missed her this week since she’s staying at my parent’s house while my floors are being finished. I got her some cute toys and yummy treats for her birthday and my mom will be getting her and Georgia a birthday cupcake from Three Dog Bakery! She’s definitely NOT spoiled, is she??

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I decided yesterday I would “run” some errands! I ran to the new pet store to get Sadie her birthday gift! It’s totally fun to “run” errands!! I did a total of 4 miles at a 9:33 pace. It was warm, sunny, and beautiful! But the wind was pretty killer! So strong in one direction that I felt like I was barely moving! I made it though!!

Today is a rest day, mainly because it’s stormy and windy outside and I don’t have access to my treadmill (since I have no floors at the moment!). I’ve gotten a lot of work today and made some yummy Strawberry Cupcakes for my friend Blair’s birthday tomorrow!! They look so yummy! I only ate about 1 TBSP worth of strawberry frosting too! Go me!

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So, a little bit ago, I was in the kitchen, just finished eating lunch, and I heard one of the floor guys start screaming! My first thought was, “this can’t be good”, since they have been using saws all morning to cut wood. So I went to go see what had happened and one of the guys had almost cut his finger off with the saw! Yikes! Blood everywhere! Needless to say, I had to play nurse. I wrapped it up with a pressure dressing and sent him to go get stitches. It was cut all the way done to the bone and I’m sure it hurt like heck!! Poor guy, I felt bad for him!!

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Well, that’s all for now. I have to get to class in a little bit! Hope y’all have a great day!!

Posted in: on Thursday, March 25, 2010 at at 1:34 PM 6 comments    

Hey friends! Hope everyone is having a fabulous week so far!! This week my floors are being done!! Yay!! But, it’s gonna take ALL WEEK because it’s taking them forever to rip out the old wood flooring! Apparently they were glued down more than normal?!? Who know, but I have been dealing with hammering and drilling for the last 2 days and it’s soooo loud! Amazingly, I have been able to get a lot of work done! I’ll have to take some pictures to show y’all my ripped up floors! Haha. And tonight I have no furniture in my living room so I’ve basically been hanging out in my bedroom ALL DAY! I so wanted to keep taking naps! LOL.

I did manage to get out and go for a nice 6 mile run! The weather today was absolutely gorgeous!! I think it ended up being 70 degrees and super sunny!! When I headed out for my run around 11am it was 65 degrees. There was a pretty strong breeze, but it felt nice. I did the same hilly 6 mile route that I did last week and ended up beating my time! I definitely went out too fast because by the last 2 miles I was dying! I threw in a couple walk breaks at the end and still managed to have a better time than last week. That tells you for sure I went out too fast! Haha. I ran 6 miles in 57:19 with an average pace of 9:33/mile. I am happy, happy, happy about that! I managed to get a little sunburned too on my run. My face is pretty pink! Gotta remember to start using sunscreen! I also seemed to add to my sports bra tan. Not sure what I’m gonna do about this. I can’t have a sports bra tan for my wedding!

Calorie counting is back in full force! I am weighing myself every Monday morning to keep track of my weight. I ended up losing about 2 pounds last week. Fine by me! I don’t mind losing a few pounds at all, especially when I have a wedding dress and bathing suit to wear soon :) My eats have been good, just not really picture worthy! I’ve just been making random things! Hopefully, once I can start eating meat again I will be making more “dinners” again!

Well guys, that’s all for now! Gotta get back to American Idol! Oh and I am so sad that Sadie has to stay with my parents this week due to the work on my floors. I miss my sweet pup so much and her birthday is Friday! She will be 3!! Have a great night y’all!

Posted in: on Tuesday, March 23, 2010 at at 8:34 PM 1 comments    

Hey friends!! I had such a WONDERFUL time at my bridal shower yesterday!! I have the best friends and family ever :) My BFF and MOH Jaime was the hostess. Here she is preparing a marvelous fruit tray for our granola parfaits:

She did a wonderful job putting this shower together! Everything was so cute!!

This was the yogurt parfait station. Vanilla yogurt, berries, white and dark chocolate chips, and granola! Does she know me or what?!?

The fruit was TDF! They were all super sweet!! When we went to pick out the strawberries at the grocery store, the produce man told us that to pick the perfect strawberries, you had to smell them. If they smelled sweet than they were going to taste sweet! Did y’all know this trick? Well, he was right!!

Me and my mom! Isn’t she beautiful!!?!

Jaime and I

The food!! This was a dessert shower so we had tons of sweets! It was PERFECT!! We had Blackberry Cobbler, Oatmeal Raisin Cookies, Cream Puffs, and Muddy’s Mini Cupcakes!! Everything was so good!!

My friend Jennifer brought the cream puff tray, I thought it was so pretty! I love cream puffs!!

We had a blast! With the fiancé's family, there is never a dull moment! I think we were laughing the entire time!! We played a game where everyone had to write down answers to my favorite things. It was so funny to hear some of the answers and who knew what! The fiancé's cousin ended up winning! Haha. My mom and Jaime weren’t allowed to play because they knew every answer! Everyone seemed to really like that game!

Then it was time for presents!! I felt so awkward having all eyes on me! I am not a fan of being in the spotlight!! Ha! Here is some of the stuff I got:

Present time!!

His Grandpa picked out this frame with a quote that says “All Because Two People Fell In Love” all by himself! I love this and can’t wait to hang it on my wall at home!!

This is the dish pattern I picked out at Bed, Bath, and Beyond! I got all my big plates, bowls, and mugs!! Like the pattern? I love it!

Super excited about the gift Erin gave me!! Mini muffin pan, baking sheet, and a pan carrier/transporter her grandmother made(pictured below)!!

 

Yay for towels from my momma!!

Knife set from the fiancé's mom

My Le Cruset Frying pan from Jaime and Charlie!!

Waffle Maker from Jenn! Finally I can learn to make waffles!!

Orange Williams Sonoma dishtowels from my momma!!

Jaime and I

Jenn and I

Erin and I

Kinda blurry but Collierville High School class of 2003! Haha. Can you believe we all graduated together? I have been friends with Jaime since I was 10 and Jenn and Erin since HS!

Me and my future MIL!!

Sorry for the picture overload but needless to say, we had a GREAT time!! There were a lot of other people there besides Jaime, Jenn, and Erin, I just took lots of pics with them! Ha! Wedding showers are sooo fun! Kinda sad it’s over.

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I had a GREAT run yesterday morning!! I set out right after I got up, around 7:45ish. It was kinda cool, around 48 but felt really nice! I only had 3 miles to do so I ran HARD!! I ended up doing 3 miles in 26:00 exactly!! Yay! It was awesome!!

No running today, I did walk 3 miles on the treadmill while watching some basketball. My workout schedule may be a little lacking this coming week because my floors are finally being done and I have to sit around all day while they work on it. So who knows when or if I will be able to run for the next few days!

Calorie counting has been tough this weekend! I kept up with it Friday, but yesterday I didn’t. I was just eating too many random handfuls of this and that to be worrying about it. Plus it was a special occasion so I splurged a bit. I’m trying to get back on track today and definitely will be by tomorrow!

Well, I think this has been long enough! Have a wonderful evening!!

Posted in: on Sunday, March 21, 2010 at at 6:41 PM 9 comments    

Wohoo for Friday!! I am so pumped because tomorrow is my wedding shower and my BFF and her family are coming to stay with me! And they will be here in about an hour! Yay!! Finally doing something fun for Spring Break!!

I literally spent all day yesterday watching the NCAA tournament games and cleaning! There were some really good games on yesterday, mainly the Murray State-Vanderbilt and the Ohio-Georgetown games! Both were losses for me, but nonetheless great games!! I can’t wait to watch more today. My bracket is doing so-so. I had 9 wins and 7 losses yesterday. My teams need to start winning!!

It was gorgeous weather yesterday and I decided to go for a run, even though I had run every day since Monday. I just could help it :) Well, it wasn’t the greatest 4 miler but I managed and really enjoyed the weather!! I had to throw in some walk breaks and forgot to start my Garmin so I have no clue about my time! Haha. My legs definitely felt tired.

After my run I was HOT and wanted a Green Monster ASAP!!

I added extra H20 so I could have more volume. In the mix:

• 1/2 cup water
• 1/2 cup Almond Milk
• 1/2 frozen banana
• 1/4 cup frozen mango
• 2 cups spinach

Yum! Hit the spot for sure :)

My after dinner treat is also share-worthy!! I have made this many times before but had forgotten about it until everyone in the blog world started making it again!!

Banana Soft Serve

The only ingredient is a frozen banana!! Super healthy and yummy!! All you do is put 1 frozen sliced banana in a food processor and let it whirl! It takes a few minutes to get to an ice cream consistency.

 

 

 

I topped mine with 1 TBSP Dark Chocolate Chips. It was so yummy! Super sweet and bananay! Like frozen yogurt!!

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I got up this morning and did a circuit training workout. I was going to incorporate more running but my plantar fascitis was really hurting me this morning! So I ended up running 1 mile and walking 2 miles, with arms and abs incorporated in. Great workout!!

I had a special treat waiting for me this morning!!

Almost empty Cinnamon Raisin Swirl PB jar!! Yay for OIAJ!!

And today was Purple Oats in a Jar (POIAJ)

In the mix:

• 1/2 mashed banana
• 1/3 cup oats
• 1/2 cup Almond Milk
• 1/2 cup water
• dash of cinnamon and vanilla
• 1/4 cup frozen blueberries
• 2 TBSP Nonfat Plain Greek yogurt- stirred in at the end

Yummy!!! Purple Oats are so fun to eat because of the color!!

And the best part is the ooey, gooey PB waiting for me at the bottom of the jar!!

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Well guys, y’all doing anything fun this weekend?? I know we will be going out to eat the next few nights so I am going to try to order healthy and keep up my calorie count as best I can. So far so good! I definitely will be watching tons of basketball this weekend! Anyone else?!? And I hope to get some outside time in today because it’s supposed to be 70 and sunny! Already looks beautiful outside! Have a great Friday friends!!

Posted in: on Friday, March 19, 2010 at at 10:36 AM 2 comments    

Hello lovelies!! Happy St. Patrick’s Day! How is this fine Wednesday treating you? Good over here, definitely enjoying my Spring Break and getting a lot accomplished!! As you can see from the title of this post, there are gonna be a few changes going on here at NNA. I’ve been feeling just kinda blah about posting all my meals recently. Mostly, because I eat the same stuff over and over again and it just seems so dang boring! I’m sure I am boring y’all to death with the same oatmeal combo over and over! Haha. So, I’ve decided to forgo posting ALL my meals, and instead I will be posting all the GOOD meals and recipes as they come along! I feel like the focus of my blog had shifted to being basically all about my daily meals and that’s it. I want NNA to be not only about good, healthy food, but also about fitness and other healthy living topics! So that being said, I have only 1 food item to post about today!! My ALL TIME FAVORITE CHOCOLATE CHIP COOKIES!! I made these yummy little cookies yesterday (per the fiance’s request) and they are sooo good!! And listen to this… I was so good and portioned myself out 1 bite of cookie dough and that’s all I had. People, this is a miracle! Normally, I eat probably 4-5 cookies worth of dough! But since I am on this calorie counting kick, I am really doing well at moderation. Haha, who woulda thought, right?!? Anyway, I’ve posted this recipe before and it’s on my recipe page, but here it is again!

All Time Favorite Chocolate Chip Cookies

• 3/4 cup butter, softened
• 3/4 cup sugar
• 3/4 cup brown sugar
• 2 eggs
• 1 1/2 tsp vanilla
• 2 1/4 cups plus 2 TBSP all purpose flour
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 3/4 tsp salt
• chocolate chips**

**I used dark chocolate chips and Heath Bar pieces. I used 1 cup of chocolate chips and 1/2 cup Heath Bar pieces.

And if anyone cares, the nutrition info I calculated up per cookie (recipe made 40 cookies):

• Calories: 132
• Fat: 7
• Carbs: 17
• Sugar: 11
• Protein: 1

Directions:

1. Preheat over to 350*. Beat butter and sugars at medium speed until creamy. Add eggs and vanilla, beating until blended.
2. Combine flour, baking soda, and salt in small bowl. Gradually add to butter mixture, beating just until blended. Beat in chocolate chips until combined.
3. Drop by tablespoons onto parchment paper lined baking sheets. I used a mini ice cream scoop.
4. Bake for 9-12 minutes. Remove and cool completely.

Yummy, I love these cookies!

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Onto all things WEDDING!! I have received 2 wedding gifts to my doorstep the last 2 days and it’s so fun! Like Christmas time!! I love getting packages and when they are wedding gifts, it’s just even MORE fun!!

I have my wedding shower on Saturday and I’m super excited! I have been looking around for a cute dress to wear to it and I found one today at Ann Taylor Loft!!

It looks really purple here but it’s more magenta in person. Super comfortable!! I think it’s going to be too chilly to wear it as is, so I have a black short sleeve or long sleeve shirt to go under it so I will stay warmer. I’m pulling a Kelly! Haha, I love layering black shirts underneath cute dresses like this!! What do y’all think? Plus, it will be a great summer dress when it does warm up!!

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On the RUNNING front… I had an AMAZING 6 miler yesterday that totally came out of no where! I haven’t really been feeling like doing longer runs, so I’ve been sticking to anywhere from 3-5 miles. But yesterday, I decided to do 6 and am so happy I did! The weather was nice, low 50’s and just a little breezy. The only thing that would have been better was if the sun was out. But hey, beggars can’t be choosers right?!? I told myself to just go out slow, since I haven’t done 6 miles in like a month, but my body wasn’t on track with SLOW. At each mile when my Garmin beeped and I looked at my pace, I kept thinking, you are gonna regret going this fast, but I never did! I continually felt better and better! It was awesome! And did I mention that this was a really hilly 6 mile course?! Even better!! I ended up doing 6 miles in 58:04, a 9:41 pace! Not my fastest of course, but I was totally thinking I would be doing around a 10:15-10:30 pace on this run! Blew myself out of the water!! I also ended up walking 3 miles on the treadmill later that afternoon!

This morning, I got up at the crack of dawn (5:45) to meet Erin for a run! It was pitch black out for the entire run! Sun, please start coming up much earlier, thanks! Running in the dark is scary! At least we get to use our reflective bands and blinking lights we got for Christmas!! We ran 2 miles together and then I decided to run 1 more on the treadmill when I got home and then walked another 2. I was really into the show I turned on!! Erin and I both felt really tired on this run today. Guess our bodies need to get used to getting up at the crack of dawn again to run!! I also just finished taking Sadie on a mile walk because it was just too nice outside not too and she was begging me :)

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Day 3 of counting calories is still going well! Still enjoying it! I ate 1798 calories yesterday, so that is right at my goal of 1800. PERFECT. It may get a little trickier this weekend when I have friends in town for my shower and we go out to eat a few times. But, I’m sure I will manage!!

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Well guys, I hope you are excited about the changes to NNA and sorry if I was totally boring you before with the same food over and over! Haha! I hope y’all have a fabulous rest of the day and a Happy St. Patrick’s Day!! Did you notice all the green in this post? :)

Posted in: on Wednesday, March 17, 2010 at at 5:57 PM 4 comments