short showers

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I was up bright + early for some yoga this morning!  Again, it was FREEzing!  It’s been 5-15* for about a solid 4 days now.  “BRrrr” is an understatement!  I headed to Boulder to pick up Laura and check out the FREE yoga classes at the flagship Prana store on the Pearl Street Mall.  They offer free classes in their basement, twice a day, everyday!!  What a crazy deal!

Before I left I made a green monster to chug on the way.  It rocked!

  • Chocolate Amazing Grass
  • 1/2 banana
  • Oikos honey yogurt
  • 1/2 avocado
  • 1 glob Justin’s organic dark chocolate pnut butter!! [on sale at WF right now and sooooooo good!]
  • 1c. spinach
  • 1/2c. unsweetened almond milk

12oz. of delicious + filling GREEEEN!  

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We got to yoga a little late because the roads were pretty bad.  It was a Vinyasa Flow class, which I used to practice in Charlotte.  I liked the instructor and there were only 4 people total.  I’m sure the weather had something to do with that.  The Pearl Street Mall [outdoor mall in the Boulder college town area] was dead!  The store offers a few different types of yoga throughout the week.  I will definitely be back for more FREE yoga.  They did ask for donations but it is still totally worth it!  The only downside was that it’s below the store so you hear quite a bit of noise upstairs, but I can get over that :)

Laura mentioned wanting to try one of my “epic bowls of oats,” as she calls them.  So, I brought over a HUGE bag full oat mix-ins and toppings!!  Laura loves pumpkin just as much as I do, so that was the first bowl.

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  • 1/3+ c. oats
  • 1/3c. vanilla ricemilk
  • 1/3c. water
  • 1/2 banana
  • 1/3-1/2c. pumpkin
  • 1t cinnamon
  • few shakes of cloves + ginger
  • 1/2t. vanilla
  • walnuts
  • pnut butter glob

We split this pot of oats.  The recipe is for 1 serving, but I was making 2 kinds and split them both.  It was soooo creamy + delish!  The first thing Laura noticed was the texture difference between this and instant oats. 

She may or may not have made a lot of “mmmmmmm” noises while eating this…and said “oh my goshhhhh” more than once ;)

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Bowl #2: Chocolately Pnut Butter Coconut Oats

  • 1/3+ c. oats
  • 1/3c. vanilla ricemilk
  • 1/3c. water
  • 1/2t vanilla
  • 1/4t cinnamon
  • glob of melted cacao bliss
  • glob Justin’s Organic dark chocolate pnut butter
  • Yogi strawberry crunch
  • Unsweetened shaved coconut

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The melted cacao bliss was amazing.  Oh man were these good.  I think we were both making “mmmmm” noises during this one.  It’s amazing what you can do with a bowl of oatmeal.  Sometimes it seems like I’m eating dessert for breakfast. :)

Laura has the cutest little Christmas tree.  I didn’t get the best photo of it, but I love it.  It’s short and stocky and full of character. 

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GO BUCKS!

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So I found an organic dark chocolate bar from this Colorado chocolate company that I love so much.  Too bad their organic bar only comes in plain…although I love it plain!!  I am pretty excited because the organic does not use soy lecithin…I don’t get why they don’t use it in this bar and it holds together perfectly and tastes awesome but they use it in the non-organic.  It’s hard to find chocolate without soy.  I don’t have a soy allergy but stay away from it as much as possible.  It’s so insanely processed and refined and hidden in EVERYthing.  I have done a lot of soy research and I choose to stay away, whenever possible.

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Rich + Creamy.  Chocolate perfection.

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Remember my shower challenge!!??  I’m not sure if any of you timed yourselves but let me know if you did!  Here were my times:

Normal Shower

  1. 7m56s
  2. 7m45s
  3. 9m58s [shaving day]
  4. 7m34s

Trying to save water

  1. 5m58s
  2. 8m34s [shaving day]
  3. 6m10s
  4. 6m34s

I cut down by over a minute!!  One thing I am doing differently is while I’m scrubbing my face [first thing I do] I stand with my back to the water so I can get my hair wet + ready for shampoo.  Before I would stand with my face in the water and then have to turn around to get my hair wet.  That probably saved a good 30sec in itself!  Go me!  I also condition my hair and then scrub my body while the conditioner is doing it’s thing and then rinse that out. 

….

Shopping Tiiiime!!  How is everyone’s holiday shopping going?? 

How about some stocking stuffer ideas for the outdoor people in your life?? All under $15

An awesome gift for the hiker/backpacker, tested and approved by the hubs + myself:)

  • Garmin handheld GPS – This thing ROCKS.  I got it for Chris for his wedding present from me and we used it non-stop on our honeymoon in Ireland.  We always have it when we’re camping too and it’s great for navigating cities you’re in when vacationing.

If you’re crafty and have a lot of gifts to pass out to friends there are some great “make your own” gifts that will save you money and are fun to make!  You can get really creative with personalizing labels and buying some pretty ribbon to tie around them.

  • step-by-step cookie mix in a jar
  • make your own vanilla
  • spiced nuts [you can find sweet versions too] Line a little box with parchment and fill it up with nuts!  Check Michaels for cute boxes.
  • cheese straws Fill up a jar with these to take to a holiday party
  • make your own hot cocoa mix and put in a jar – Check for recipes on the back of cocoa powder containers

Recommended Books [by either myself or Chris]

  • Born to Run – Christopher McDougall
  • The Omnivore’s Dilemma – Michael Pollan
  • The Omnivore’s Dilemma For Kids – I’m super excited Michael Pollan came out with this book for kids!!
  • In Defense of Food – Michael Pollan
  • Slow Food Nation – Carlo Patrini
  • Under the Banner of Heaven - Into the Wild - Into Thin Air – Jon Krakauer [all highly recommended]

If you guys want more ideas, I will keep making more lists.  Let me know!!  If you’re looking for a specific gift and are stumped, let me know!

…

On another note, Chris and I went apartment hunting in Denver for 4 loooong hours today.  We didn’t find much…and it was totally exhausting!!  We’ll probably go out for round 2 tomorrow or Thursday.  I think we found a few nice loft-type apartments in a pretty nice area [LoDo].

Niiight :)

~Ashley