I've got a fun post coming up in the next few days about Christmas Clearance shopping (how to score the best deals, and looking past Christmas to find uses for this stuff all year or for other holidays!)...but that's taking a bit to organize so in the mean time I wanted to post a fun bento picture. 

My mom got me a lot of new bento stuff for Christmas this year including these fantastic hard boiled egg molds.  They're super easy to use.  i love all things cute so these really appeal to me, but I also think this would be a fantastic way to get kids to eat healthier.  i don't know a single kid who wouldn't be more likely to eat healthy food if it was packaged fun and cute!

I was also super excited to use the adorable Hello Kitty bento I got.  It's a little small, about 5 inches by 4 inches, but I was surprised that it was the perfect size for lunch.  You can really fit a lot in a small space.

These are great for me because they really give you a variety of food (and thus nutrition!)  Plus this only took about 5 minutes to put together - so simple!

CSN Stores - $20 GIVEAWAY

I'm very excited to bring all my followers my very first giveaway!  CSN Stores is a fantastic company who carries everything from cookware, home decor and outdoor items to modern bedding.

The wonderful people at CSN Stores have graciously provided me with a one time use $20 promotional code for me to give away which can be used on anything at their 200+ Stores where you are guaranteed to find something you cant live without.

I had so much fun browsing their websites.  Whether you've got an eye for the whimsical and modern like these amazing Capellini and Walt Disney chairs which would make a bold statement in any room.

Or maybe like you me you covet anything to do with cooking....my heart went pitter pattern when I saw this adorable apron...I admit it, I have a secret love affair with girly, flirt aprons.  They make cooking anything so much more fun! And if this isnt your style the selection of aprons over at csnstores.com is amazing.  so many quirky and practical styles for adults and kids.

While CSN Stores will definitely allow you to splurge, they've got some fantastic bargains as well.  Just look as this complete 8 Piece bamboo kitchen utensil set for only 23.95  It's stylish and affordable!

By now you're probably all dying to get out there and start shopping, and are wondering how to win so here's the deal.  This post will be open until 12pm EST on January 2nd.  So what do you have to do?  Just comment here with "I love a bargain!" and just for fun let me know which item you covet from any of their websites. You must comment with a working e-mail address for me to contact you should you win. 

Since I know how exciting giveaways are I'm allowing everyone chances to earn bonus entries.  So if you share the link for this giveaway on your facebook, twitter, or your own blog just comment back here with a link showing me where you shared it and you will earn another entry!

Good luck everyone and have fun shopping!

Maintaining your Wallet, Waistline, (and Sanity!) this Holiday Season

The Holiday season is a joyful, wonderful time of year.  It's also busy and stressful for many of us which often leads  people to stray from healthy eating.  Whether its succumbing to temptation (there seems to be sweets everywhere this time of year) or just being too busy to plan ahead and seeking the convenience of fast food or eating out, many of us find ourselves gaining a few pounds around this time of year.

The one piece of advice I have; take 10 minutes for yourself.  This truly is a wonderful time of year, and giving and thinking of others is often at the top of the the priority list but its important to remember that we can only take care of others when we take care of ourselves first.

So think twice before having seconds of that dessert if you know you wont feel good after.  Or take 10 minutes in the morning to pack yourself a healthy meal or even just a few snacks if you know you're going to be out all day.  The best way to avoid temptation to be prepared!  Take for example my lovely little lunch I've packed for today, because my mom and I will be gone all day and I know its going to be crowded and busy and if I plan now I know I wont be tempted later.

Top tips:

• pack food - a lunch if you can but even a few snacks is great.  Besides the wait for eating out is so long this time of year ythat your wallet, waistline and stomach will all thank you for skipping the drive through.
• Never let yourself get too hungry.  Resistence to temptation is weakened when you're starving, and no one makes clear decisions (whether it be food or christmas shopping decisions) on an empty stomach. 
• Drink plenty of water.  It's easy to rush around from party to party, store to store, or just lock yourself in your house wrapping and forget that at least 8 glasses of water a day will leave you hydrated, clear headed and ready to face anything that comes your way.
• Before buying anything this time of year - from a sweet roll to a purse - stop and ask yourself if you need it or the person you're buying for truly needs it.  Many of us get caught up in the hustle and bustle and get carried away spending more money than we have or eating more than our tummies can hold.  It's certainly ok to splurge this time of year, just stop and ask yourself if you'll regret it before making any rash decisions.
• Enjoy every moment!  The Holidays only come once a year, so make the most of them.

Spotlight - Cherimoya

One big part of eating healthy (and enjoying every moment!) is to keep things new and interesting,and of course appealing.

So I wanted to spotlight a tasty fruit which may be an old favorite or something completely new.

The Cherimoya.

What's that you're thinking; Cherimoya is real?  Maybe you're like me, a girl who a few months ago thought that Life Water's Cherimoya punch flavored water was a made up flavor.  Then my world was rocked when I discovered it was real!  As a fruit lover I was surprised to find a fruit that I'd never even heard of.

The Cherimoya is a subtropical fruit which grows on trees (though not just in subtropical locations, my fiance's family has a tree at their home).  The fruit is lumpy and soft on the outside and is usually picked hard.  In order to eat it, you have to wait until its very soft to the touch.

The Cherimoya has a sweet, light and almost tropical flavor.  Once it's ripe you can simply split it open by hand and eat the flesh of the fruit, just remember not to eat the seeds or the skin!  The consistency is a bit strange at first if you've never had it, but the flavor is unlike any other fruit.  Definitely worth a try.

Fitness Review - The Wii and the Wii Fit

I feel great when I work out, but the truth is there are a lot of excuses not to – its too hot, too cold, too windy, too early, too late, too dark, etc…

I could join a gym, but I tried that once; the fees are outrageous for a struggling college student.  I did a trial run at the local gym and while I enjoyed it I realized that the quick drive to the gym about 7 minutes from my house was costing me almost 10 dollars in gas a week!  (Something I bet a lot of people don’t consider)  That meant my monthly fee essentially doubled.

While I love walking or jogging outside, the weather definitely doesn’t always permit.  Also living in a tiny space has meant that it is impossible to do a lot of work out videos.

Then I got a Wii.

(mine however is a fantastic red)

I am in love.

The Wii Fit is fantastic.  For someone like me who loves charts and graphs and goals it is amazing.  It calculates your weight and BMI any time you want to do your body test and then tracks it on a graph for you to see your progress (and it lets you set time goals for weight loss and fitness).

There are also virtual personal trainers and fitness tips.  Even more exciting (and practical), the Wii Fit will log together all the exercises you do in a single day to let you know how much exercise time you’ve accumulated.  It also lets you know how many calories you burn.

It’s really cool not just from a weight loss perspective too.  It’s a VERY fun way to get your body moving.  It also helps you see your improvement because it records your scores for games.  I’ve also realized I have even worse balance than I knew thanks to the Wii Fit board which tracks balance on many games.

For me, the Wii and the Wii Fit are very practical - small in size and doesn’t require a lot of room to play, the cost is actually fairly low compared to a gym (especially because everyone in your house can use it), it’s incredibly fun, its motivating and it helps you stay on track.

I’ve tried other games on the Wii like Wii Sports (a separate game from Wii fit) and those are also tons of fun, and while it’s not the same as running a marathon I can definitely get my heart rate up playing tennis or baseball if you really get into it.

All in all, a great buy!



Oranges!

There is nothing better than fresh, delicious fruit.  My wonderful fiance showed up at my doorstop with a gorgeous box of oranges today.  I had one tonight and they are sweet and juicy.  A super delicious and healthy snack!

Product Review: Polaner All Fruit with Fiber

I'm a big fan of jam/jelly.  Unfortunately many are sickening sweet and laden with sugar, while the lower sugar varieties are often flavorless and taste fake.  I often found myself having to choose between watching the sugar and calories or flavor...until I discovered this:

Serving Size: 1 Tablespoon

Calories: 35

Fat: 0

Fiber: 3 

Sugar: 6 grams

Yes that's right, a measly 35 calories, a scant amount of sugar (and sweetened only with fruit juice no high fructose corn syrup here) and 3 entire grams of fiber.  Even better, it taste fantastic!  The strawberry is by far my favorite, but the apricot is delicious as well.

Right now I can only find this jam at some Targets, but I'm sure availability depends on where you live.

I often find eating out difficult; partly because of the cost and largely because I'm always worried about the healthfulness of ingredients (and overall calories).

For my grandparent's 71st birthday we went out to an Irish pub last night for dinner.  I ended up getting an Irish Cobb salad which originally would have been very high fat but I skipped the corned beef (extra turkey instead) and got the ranch on the side and it was very healthy and super tasty!  I find that salads with higher fat ingredients (like bacon, blue cheese or avocado) are so incredibly flavorful I barely use 1/2 TBS of dressing if that.

My number 1 eating out tip...ask for what you want!  restaurants can and will make almost any substitutions if you ask and are very specific about your requests.