Dealing With Irritating People

Posted on July 22, 2016 by Alison @ Daily Moves and Grooves

It took me a few minutes to think of the title for this post.

What I really want to title it is: “What I do to calm myself down when I perceive others to be irritating, but really, I’m just hungry and tired and every little tick makes me slightly rage-y,” but that’s too long.

But first, thank you all for your feedback on my fitness post! I’m glad that it was helpful and that many of you related to my outlook on working out.

Before we get to Five Minute Friday, here are some scenes from the week:

It has been hot but gorgeous (just like you 😉 ) this week, so I’ve taken advantage of the green space at work to picnic outside during my lunch hour.

utilizing the Sriracha 2 Go keychain that Christina (@foodietunes) gifted me at Christmas ♥︎

This was nice until yesterday. I think I sat on an anthill or something, because ants were crawling all over me and almost into my pants.

Overnight breakfasts made my {sleepy} mornings a little more exciting.

Kylie’s banana pudding for breakfast

overnight oats in a Nuttzo jar

Madre has been killin’ it with meals this week. I love cooking, but it’s nice to have dinner cooked and ready for you when you get home from work 🙂 Thanks, Madre!

quinoa with mok fish (salmon and a little bit of egg binding steamed with lemongrass in a banana leaf) and roasted vegetables

Last night’s dinner was easy, simple, and so satisfying.

caprese + avocado toast

…followed by Greek yogurt + pb with dried figs.

p.s. my dinners look so puny here, but I promise I eat so many things before I get home for dinner…and then after dinner (I’m just trying to simulate those multiple-course cruise meals I guess).

And lastly, I just noticed that my leg looks painted with bruises. I was trying to “feel the steel” on my squat cleans yesterday, and I think I succeeded. Here was yesterday’s workout (after two lovely days of rest):

Screen Shot 2016-07-21 at 10.27.42 PM

This might mean absolutely nothing to you. Decoded version:

10 reps, 9 reps, 8 reps…etc. of squat cleans (at increasing weight) and burpee box jumps
Then 15 reps, 12 reps, 12 reps of reverse flies with 20 lunge jump med ball slams between each set
Then some random stuff: 10 ninja jumps + 2 sets of 20 alternating dumbbell snatches at 25#

I actually did three squat cleans at 85#, because I was feelin’ good (I had a good amount of rest between sets while changing the weights). Not heavy by any means for avid weightlifters, but I just started squat cleans with an empty bar just 6 weeks ago, so I’m proud of myself! If I went to the actual gym more than once per week, I could speed up the progress, but…eh it’s guatever.

Now for the vlog!

link to video!

Hope you all have a fun weekend! Madre just poured a crap ton of kettle corn right in front of me so imma eat some.

So tell me:

How do you deal with irritating people/situations?

What was the best dinner you ate this week?

Have you eaten al fresco recently?

Any accomplishments/progress (fitness or non-fitness-related) you’d like to share!

Day in the Life of a Third Semester Sophomore

Posted on September 25, 2015 by Alison @ Daily Moves and Grooves

What am I? First semester sophomore? Third semester sophomore (since this is my third semester of college)?

I do know one thing I am: frazzled. School is starting to pick up with exams and such, but so are activities. It’s such a blessing to be busy doing things that I love, but hellllloooo, long days.

Now that it’s been almost a month since I started classes, I thought it this would be a good time to share a day in the life again. I managed to document my whole day on Wednesday, which was one of my more packed (but fun!) days.

7:05 AM— First alarm goes off. Check emails on phone.

7:15 AM— Roll out of bed and go to the bathroom.

7:25 AM— Pray.

7:35 AM— Change and try to look presentable for the day.

8:00 AM— Walk to my favorite dining hall for breakfast in the gorgeous weather. Praaaaaaaise.

8:15 AM— Nosh on eggs, French toast with peanut butter and banana, and a glass o’ milk while studying a bit.

9:00 AM— Move outdoors to study in the [again] GORGEOUS weather.

10:00 AM— Head over to the admissions office to get ready to give a campus tour!

courtesy of the admissions office // also, this was taken a couple weeks ago, but this is the essence

11:45 AM— Finish up touring [in the gorgeous weather] and talking to a family from the tour. Walk back to my room to change into athletic clothes because: a) sweating in my jeans; b) dance later; c) living in anything other than stretchy, comfy clothes is overrated. Pick up a special package on the way home.

11:55 AM— Get back to my dorm room, open up the package {from the awesome folks at PJ’s Organics!}. Rip off my jeans like they’re ~~going~~ completely out of style and change into yoga capris and a t-shirt.

the joy of free pits and aeration

12:10 PM— Meet my friends (badass, Division I soccer playas) for lunch at the dining hall.

12:45 PM— We all walk to human physiology lecture (favorite class this semester).

1:50 PM— Get out of class and head to the Catholic Center to do some studying. Eat a banana sometime there. Talk with people because they’re really cool and fun and I like them. Ugh, so distracting.

3:10 PM— Walk to the gym for my modern dance class. ‘Twas an amazing and challenging class, leaving me feeling spent.

5:00 PM— Dance class ends. RUN [literally] back to the Catholic Center for a 5:00 meeting.

5:10 PM— Inhale a granola bar before walking into the meeting a sweaty, smelly mess.

5:50 PM— Meeting ends. Eat a peach that I snagged from the dining hall earlier.

6:00 PM— Go to another meeting. My lovely friend brings snacks (thank the Lord).

this x50 (not a hyperbole)

7:45 PM— Go to dinner with my friend. Salad, pork with mango salsa, oatmeal raisin cookie a la mode, and a bite of my friend’s chocolate fondue, because the dining hall had FONDUE!!!

8:30 PM— Walk back to my dorm. Showerrrrrr.

9:00 PM— Sit down to do work. Get semi-distracted talking to Rachel. Try to do more work. Give my roommate a massage. Mentally give up. Get ready for bed sometime in there. Pray.

12:35 AM— Hit. that. hay.

Phew. I was aware that I was eating kind-of-a-lot-of sugar, but heck, my body needed it.

Happy Friday, everyone! Hope you have a fun weekend 🙂

So tell me:

Is it jean weather yet for you?

Are your days short, average, or long recently?

What do you like to dip in fondue?

What are you doing this weekend? Today: class and catching up on work. Tomorrow: touring, jazz fest, celebrating a friend’s birthday, and a movie night! Sunday: choir, Mass, studying, laundry, and dinner with family friends.

Chronicles of Becoming a Grownup

Posted on July 30, 2015 by Alison @ Daily Moves and Grooves

Head over to Spoons for lots of thinking out loud!

1) I’m very tempted to see if I can cook an egg on the sidewalk. It is blazing hot here in New York!!! It was 92F yesterday, but I’m pretty sure it felt like 110.

for now I’ll stick to cooking my eggs on the stovetop

2) Let’s talk about transitioning into a grownup. I guess I’m at a point in my life where I have a million revelations about how the world works, how other people work, and how I myself work. It’s really cool to be learning so much about life through new experiences, rather than just learning about them through textbooks and lectures.

3) So here starts my chronicles of becoming a grownup. Account #1: I was taking in the trash bin from the curb, and the lid was open. As I went to close the lid, I looked inside and saw a profusion of maggots at the bottom of the trash bin. Cue ALL THE HEEBIE JEEBIES.

[source]

Rather than waiting for my dad to get home, I put on my big girl pants and used our garden hose + dish soap to spray the trash bin a bunch of times and rinse out the nastiness. Biggest accomplishment of the summer, in my opinion.

3) Account #2: I’ll clean the floors meticulously, admire the newly cleaned floors, walk two feet forward, and find more dirt/crumbs/scuff marks. Then I’ll clean that spot, walk away, come back to that spot 15 minutes later, and find that I missed a whole section of dirtiness thanks to the different lighting.

[source]

4) Account #3: I paid for my own year-supply of contact lenses for the first time ever ($$$$). Then I realized those contacts weren’t fitting my eyes correctly.

[source]

I’m getting that worked out, don’t worry.

5) Account #4: I’ve been making several doctor appointments, going to those doctor appointments, making decisions for myself (“OKAY I’LL TAKE THAT SHOT SINCE YOU SAY IT’S GOOD, DOC. I DON’T FEEL PRESSURED OR ANYTHING.”), and figuring out how insurance cards work…and stuff.

[source]

Copay? Erm, yes? No? Can I phone a friend?

6) I often wonder how I’m going to get through life. I’ve been raised in a comfortable, loving environment; I’ve been pretty spoiled. But I’m trying to learn as much as I can, taking each experience (no matter how ordinary) for all it’s worth, and slowly learning how to be a grownup. All with God’s grace. #LordHelpMe

7) And don’t get me started on the mental/emotional/spiritual changes and revelations that are occurring as I become a grownup. To be chronicled in the future…

8) Let’s lighten up this post with some food photos. I’d like you to know that pesto and goat cheese go together mighty well.

pesto chicken, goat cheese, greens on an English muffin

And that summer peaches are one of life’s simple pleasures.

9) I tried a sample Vega One French Vanilla nutrition shake (from Blend, surprise surprise) mixed with just water yesterday (since I was drinking it on the go).

in a Quest shaker bottle, also from Blend

I don’t know if I’m just not a fan of the whole protein powder + water thing, but this was gnarlyyy. In a bad way. It was kinda goopy and mealy, and the green color (from the veggie content of the powder?) did not help the cause. I still finished it, but it was a little bit of a choke.

I’m not discrediting Vega One. I’m sure it would have been great in a smoothie or something, but with just water? Never again.

10) This seems like such a complain-y post, but it’s all for a good laugh (if you’re not laughing, at least I’m laughing at myself). God is good, and I am grateful.

Hope you have a day filled with learning, discovery, and good vibes (<— idk, trying to be hipster).

So tell me:

If you’re around my age, what’s a recent experience that made you feel one step closer to being a grownup?

If you’re already a grownup, do you still have trouble doing grownup things? (This question is to comfort and console me for the future.)

Have you ever tried just protein powder and water?

Old-School Things That I Hope Never Die

Posted on July 14, 2015 by Alison @ Daily Moves and Grooves

Look what went down in our kitchen last night.

PeachBlueberryCobblerICannotContainMyExcitement. !!!!!!!!!!!

I used this recipe as a guide, which is different from the one I used last year. This one is more of a biscuit-topping-cobbler, while the one I made last year was more of a cake-like-cobbler.

I used a little too much fruit, because the cobble to fruit ratio was a little low for my liking. (I was seriously considering making another batch of the biscuit topping but decided not to be so greedy.) I also used lime zest instead of orange zest, and added ground nutmeg and ginger to the fruit, which made it somethin’ special. Dad and I enjoyed it a la mode of course.

Something about baking peach cobbler makes me feel like I should be wearing a 50s housewife dress and a white, lace-trimmed apron. That sounds so anti-feminist, but frankly, I think making something delicious by hand that brings a smile to someone’s face is anything BUT lame.

[source]

After baking fresh peach cobbler— a classic Southern dessert— I started thinking about some other old-school things that should never go out of style. For the record, this list does not include long-haired slick backs, white T-shirts, good girl faith, or tight little skirts.*

Old-School Things That I Hope Never Die

1. Sit-down dinners with family members.

Sitting down for dinner with family members is a privilege. I find that having dinner with loved ones not only encourages good conversation and slower eating, but it also helps foster greater gratitude for the food and people I have in my life.

2. Snail mail.

Seriously, there is no feeling like getting a letter addressed to you in the mail that is from a loved one and has nothing to do with bills, coupons, or local politicians.

During the summer I love taking the opportunity to find a couple pen pals and write back and forth a few times. It’s exciting receiving a letter and equally as exciting sending one, especially if he/she isn’t expecting it!

3. Late nights at the diner.

Diners seem to be more of an east coast thing if I’m not mistaken, but I love the casual, family-style atmosphere, as well as the comfort food (fries, milkshakes, pancakes, HIIIIII.)

Diners on rainy nights are quintessentially classic. Like, cue some Grease music, please.

4. Real books.

I know a lot of people would agree with me on this one. As much as I love reading blogs and I love the environment, you absolutely cannot replace the experience of reading a book with tangible, dog-eared pages and that glorious smell of…paper…when you flip through.

Although, I have issues taking care of my books, because I always tend to get them wet and wrinkly. The way I see it, the water damage adds character and vintage vibes to the book.

5. Ballroom dancing.

Secret sharing time! I used to take ballroom and latin dance lessons, and I would dance with my tall, skinny Russian instructor in shows (and in one competition).

Oh. Look what I found from six years ago…

So there’s that.

Anyway, amidst the grinding, twerking, you’re-a-jerk-ing, and pop-lock-and-dropping of this era, I like to think that ballroom dancing remains a respected art that displays romance in a classy manner. I think it would be a sad day if no men knew how to properly frame a woman for dancing (not the prom-style hands on hips, arms around neck thing).

Wait, have we already reached that day?

6. Sleepovers.

Not that I think this will go away anytime soon…for young girls at least.

Is it socially acceptable to have sleepovers with my girl friends when we’re out of college? (I could say “adult sleepover”, but that connotes something quite different.) Like, if/when we’re married and my husband is out of town? Can I invite my gals over for pajamas, nail painting, face masks, cookie baking, chick flicks, and TMI talk?

Imma do it.

________________________________

Call me a retro-wannabe, but I think some things are called classic for a reason!

*Reference to Taylor Swift’s song, Style, in case you didn’t know what was going on there.

Hope you cool kids have a groovy day! 😉

So tell me:

What is your favorite summer desert?

Are there any old-school things that you hope never die?

Do you agree/disagree with any of the things on my list?

Day in the Life: Internship and Domestic Duties

Posted on May 27, 2015 by Alison @ Daily Moves and Grooves

Another phase in life, another one of my favorite posts!

I use the term “phase” lightly, because I’m just referring to the in-school phase vsersus summer phase. No major life changes have occurred in the past two months (unless you count the hike up Bear Peak, which was pretty life-changing IMO).

Here’s what a typical summer day has been like for me! And since I’m sharing my eats, I’m also linking up with What I Ate Wednesday— still the coolest online food fiesta around.

5:55 AM First alarm goes off. Ignored.

5:58 AM Second alarm goes off (yes, I set an alarm three minutes after my first). Basically force myself to fall off the bed in order to get up.

6:05 AM Drive Pop to the train station.

6:30 AM Come back home and go back to sleep.

8:15 AM Wake up, take two. Go downstairs to start preparing breakfast, which was Amanda’s blueberry muffin breakfast bake!

8:35 AM Go back upstairs to get ready for the day, pray, all that jazz.

9:00 AM Dress up breakfast with Greek yogurt and banana cream sauce. Picture time!

9:15 AM Blog, pack lunch, and watch the Today show while eating. Dig in with a baby spoon in an attempt to savor it, but end up taking bites that were bigger than the spoon.

did you enter my big giveaway!?

10:15 AM Go upstairs to change out of PJs and put on makeup.

10:30 AM Leave for PT internship.

11:00 AM Arrive at PT internship and eat a Nature Valley granola bite (their new product coming out next month!) before heading in to start the day.

need one of those rolling standing desks for school

1:30 PM Snack break for a BelVita biscuit.

2:30 PM Lunch break. I packed brown rice with leftover pork, grilled shrimp, and veggies + the rest of the BelVita biscuits.

4:15 PM Leave internship and go grocery shopping. Take much too long looking for Enlightened crisps in the natural section (couldn’t find) and deciding whether or not I want to buy pork butt for pulled pork later in the week (didn’t buy just yet).

random selfie in which my eyebrows look like my eyes, or my eyes look like my eyebrows— squinty and black

6:00 PM Arrive home, put groceries away, waste time on social media, change into active clothing, and eat a few of these Somersaults that I just bought using a coupon from Blend (one of which you can win in the giveaway package!). I had to tell myself to zip up the bag before I ate them all if that says anything about how good they are.

6:30 PM Go for a neighborhood walk. Pray some, listen to music some. Enjoy the heat and sunshine.

7:05 PM Back home to do some bodyweight Bulgarian split squats and stretching.

7:30 PM Wash dishes that I left in the sink from breakfast.

7:40 PM Start warming up dinner. Hooray for grill leftovers! I had the same exact thing I ate for Memorial Day lunch and dinner.

8:00 PM Eat while starting this blog post, checking Facebook, watching Chopped, and texting my friends. Aka what you’re not supposed to do while eating a meal, but #sololife.

9:25 PM Dessert time! Vanilla bean ice cream with macerated strawberries and a peanut butter honey cookie from WB Kitchen (also from Blend swag). Start typing this post in real time.