yummy smoothies!

so i've been trying to be better about 1) getting more fruit and 2) eating the despised breakfast and have come to the consensus that i like smoothies. no not your 1000 calorie smoothie king smoothies but rather some homemade goodness. here is the recipe i've been using for mine--i've noted the variations below too!


ice first in the blender--crushed would be ideal but we dont have crushed ice so i just put two handfuls in the bottom of the blender. then add the following...


1/2 cup plain (unsweetened/flavored) greek yogurt
1/2 cup milk or orange juice...oj gets you the tart taste, milk gets you smooth...if as you are blending its too thick, just add a tiny bit more of milk or oj
1 cup berries/fruit...i use a frozen costco bag of marionberries, blueberries, and raspberries (so pretty tart berries) but you can use fresh fruit too including bananas, pineapples, and more.


thats it/all that goes in there so blend it up really well, stirring as needed...and it makes a HUGE cup (largest tervis tumbler size) make sure to have a straw because its thick and yummy!


i've got mine ready to go in the car & heading to greenville to see the newly engaged Ali Poole!!!!

happy birthday alison!

mission: weight loss

welcome to the world of skinny fat! i am officially convinced (or so i'm telling myself) that to gear up for summer 2011 and beyond we've got to ditch the skinny fat. for those unaware of the term, its the people who look fabulous in everything they wear until they get to the beach or the pool and look like a hot flabby mess. i've always cringed at the idea of exercising when it comes to weights and strength training but since pure barre hit the scene, i've over it. 

the challenge this year becomes 1) eat better...2) work out more..sounds simple but for the girl who can't be in the same room as a cookie without eating it, i've got some self restraint issues to work on first!

on top of that...we've got this new food plate (the old food pyramid is cooked) that reminds us that half of every meal should be fruits and veggies...so this is my goal...to make recipes & meals that are at least half veggies and fruit. expect some good meal plans and recipes coming soon! 


link to new dietary guidelines: http://www.health.gov/dietaryguidelines/dga2010/DietaryGuidelines2010.pdf 

sweet leaf tea

so when we were in seabrook for an amazing vacation last week (see below for evidence) i discovered my new favorite drink...budget permitting. at $1.50 a piece it may be more of a special treat but boy oh boy is it amazing! 


sweet leaf tea out of austin, texas is my fave! i tried the diet seeing as i'm on a diet, and it tasted just like sweet tea and was totally refreshing (before my pina coladas) on the beach. 

below is the back label...which is proof that its as good as i say it is! 

DIET ORIGINAL SWEET TEA
 If you doubt that a zero-calorie sweet tea can taste as good as The Original, ask one of the thousands of people at Austin City Limits Music Festival, where we ran out of The Original Sweet Tea. We served them Diet for a few hours and no one noticed. True story.


find a bottle near you! 

how to dry hydrangeas

from this month's Southern Living for those of us who live in Georgia highlighted how to dry hydrangeas. i feel like everyone has at least one hydrangea plant in their yard/garden and i always wondered how people maintained the color in the dried ones! 


tips:
-use water (to preserve color)...cut blooms off of plant shortly after they peak, remove leaves, and place in a container with water covering 1/2 or less of the stems. after a few days, the water evaporates, drying the flowers. 
-add Rit dye to your hydrangeas in denim blue or royal blue to give deeper color. add a few drops to the water and/or dab the petals with dye to enhance as well.