weightloss is a rewarding struggle

It's basically like I'm writing this post "for the future" since it's Sunday afternoon and I decided to chill at Starbucks and get some writing done vs. waiting until the last possible minute and rushing something that would come out half-assed (how's that for a run-on sentence? ha). I haven't even written Monday's weekend recap post yet, but I wanted to write something a little more meaningful than what I spent my weekend doing. Anyway, I'm going to take things to a more 'serious' level today.

I haven't done any kind of health or fitness related post lately and I've had a few people mention to me that these kinds of posts are their favorite... So here I am. I'm not ready to talk about numbers with y'all... yet. But, I promise that I will do an actual post with numbers (meaning pounds lost, and possibly inches lost too) very soon. I am almost at a pretty huge milestone and as a celebratory post, y'all will get that kind of update.


It's crazy how much the shape of your face can change. I made this comparison for my dad this weekend.

So back in September, Amanda and I committed to doing a pretty intense 90-day challenge of cleaning eating, ramping up our workouts, and cutting out alcohol. I'm pleased to say that we have stuck with is, and we are almost 2/3 of the way finished. I'm not going to lie, we have splurged a few times and had a few "cheat meals" and an alcoholic beverage or two - but I am convincing myself not to feel bad about these choices.

I have learned a lot during this challenge, and I have learned what my body can handle and what it can't handle. Speaking of which, there isn't much that it can't handle. It's just the mentality that I "can't" do things. I'm doing things that I never thought I could do - physically and mentally - and trying to learn to try new things instead of convincing myself that I can't do them.


This picture totally stretched when I uploaded it... boo. But you still get the point.

Accountability, finding motivation, and dealing with the mental battle/struggles are the hardest parts of this journey for me. It's easy to get "down" on yourself and feel like you're not making good progress, or that one of your friends is losing weight faster (and seemingly easier) than you are. It's easy to tell yourself that you're not good enough and that you won't reach your goals. It's easy to hit snooze on the alarm and not get up and workout because "it's only one day, and one day doesn't count". It's easy to come home from work and not want to workout because you're tired and it was a long day at the office. It's easy to look in the mirror and see the same 'fat girl' staring back at you. The truth is that this whole journey and transformation isn't easy. It's hard. This is hands down the hardest thing I've ever done, but it is also the most amazing thing I've ever done for myself.

I have so much support behind me from family, friends, and even this blog, and I am so grateful for all of you every single day. However, most people don't see the struggles that I go through on a daily basis, or the amount of work I put into losing weight and exercising. I will get comments, texts, etc. from friends telling me that it must be nice to finally be "small" (which is not the truth, I'm only half way there). Telling me that they could never do it. Making comments about how easily I dropped the weight. Giving me excuses or reasons why I could lose weight, but they can't. Dealing with these kinds of comments and remarks is downright hard. This isn't a walk in the park for me.
I struggle. A lot.



I promised myself that I would be 100% open and honest about this entire journey, and I do my best to show that through my blog, Facebook, and instagram. I'm trying to be as real and honest with y'all as I possibly can. So let me reiterate all of this for you: this is hard.

Now don't get me wrong, I am not complaining or whining about the process. As hard as it is, and even though I have days where I want to quit, this is the best thing I've ever done and I'm loving every minute of it. If you are trying to lose weight, please don't compare yourself to me, or anyone else. If you're just starting out or if you have been doing it for a while - do not compare yourself to anyone except yourself. I find it easy to scroll through fitness accounts on instagram and give myself a hard time for not looking like those people. My way to avoid this is to remember how far I have come and how far I will have gone when I reach my goal weight. I compare myself to the 'old' me. Not anyone else.
But most importantly, I try and remember this quote:



I think I have rambled long enough, so I will leave you with this. Whether you are wanting to lose weight, just getting started, or have been doing this for a while: remember to believe in yourself and don't be so harsh on your progress. We all have to start somewhere. If you have any questions, or if you want help with ways to eat clean, exercise, or just to talk about wanting to lose weight or where you are in your journey right now - please feel free to reach out to me. I'd love to help in any way that I can.

Foggy Shenanigans

Happy Monday, friends.
Obviously I'm linking up with Sami today to fill you in on my weekend shenanigans...

one. I wanted to splurge and have a treat on Friday... but I'm a little complicated.
two. Snuggles with Roscoe, well... attempted snuggles.
three. I finally tried Chipotle for the first time on Friday night, and it was amazing.
four. Helped my friend, Jennie, move all day Saturday.
five. Selfie with Jennie in her new place.
six. So much Fall love. Boots = my favorite.
seven. It's hard to see, but this is a thick layer of fog over the city. We went up a mountain to see this. So cool.
eight. Amanda and I write motivational quotes on our whiteboard for workouts. This is my motivation this week.
nine. Driving back down the mountain, into the fog. It was seriously such a cool experience and really neat to see.

Hope your Monday is fabulous. See y'all tomorrow.

Sometimes I Wear Flower Crowns

Happy Monday, lovelies.
I had a pretty chill weekend, but I'll show you a quick glimpse! My weekend was full of workouts, spending time with friends, shopping, food prep, and a bit of relaxing.

Linking up with my favorite Princess of Shenanigans as always.



One. Flower Crown. Heck yes. It was from a work event on Friday night.
Two. Jennie and I at the work event.
Three. I bought workout clothes. Like legit workout clothes. I'm kind of obsessed with them.
Four. Favourite breakfast, ever. Scrambled eggs, bell peppers, spinach, turkey - topped with avocado and salsa.
Five. Vegan protein shake. So delicious.
Six. I was laying in bed watching tv shows by 11:30pm Saturday night. Be jealous.
Seven. Breaking in the new workout clothes.
Eight. Sunday morning cardio (running) + leg day.
Nine. Sunday's outfit. Proof that I wear real clothes and not just workout gear.

Some Typical Shenanigans

Ohhh hi, Monday.
Today is going to short and sweet because I really don't have too much excitingness to share from my weekend. Which just means that I will obviously have something more fabulous to share with y'all tomorrow.

Linking up with the Queen of Shenanigans today, obviously.



one. Pumpkin Spice Latte. I'm complicated.
two. Run in the rain (and thunder & lightening).
three. Fish lettuce wrap tacos. Nom nom nom.
four. Taking the skytrain home from the wedding I shot. I sat in the very front. Like a cool kid.
five. A shot from the wedding I photographed (a picture of the back of my camera).
six. I wore my polar for the 6-hour wedding, like a loser, just to see the calorie burn.
seven. Shameless Selfie.
eight. Food prep for the week. So. Much. Food.
nine. Selfie while I cooked.

And because I seriously have no shame, I feel like I should share these as well. Whenever I take selfies, I usually take 10-15. 90% of them look like the following pictures:
So many pics like this before I take an acceptable one for Instagram



Yeahhhh... I don't know how I'm still single.
But seriously, I don't understand how some girls take 'cute' ugly photos. This is what happens when I make ugly/funny faces. I just look crazy. Look at that middle picture - I can cross just one of my eyes if I want to, which means I can watch you and watch my nose at the same time. Awesome.

I'm done. See y'all tomorrow... if you even want to come back to this blog after those pictures. My bad.

Hana Pro Flat Iron

Happy hump day, friends.

I was born with wavy/curly hair. Well, I guess, technically I was born with pin-straight hair and it gradually progressed to wavy/curly by the time I was 10 years old. When I was a teenager, I lusted after having straight hair and I was jealous of all the girls that had luscious/straight hair. When I was 14 or 15, before I got my first hair straightener, my friends and I used to straighten our hair with real irons. We would bend over and lay our hair out flat on an ironing board and iron our hair.

My first straightener was complete crap. It lasted me (somehow) for 2 years, and it honestly didn't straighten my hair very well but I loved it and I used it every day to have 'straight' hair. My next straightener was also crap, and lasted all of about 6 months before it died and I was back to curly hair every day. Eventually, a few of my friends got together and bought me a professional straightener for my birthday one year, and I've had it now for almost 5 years. It works pretty well, and it does the job - but it doesn't straighten my hair without running it over the same piece 3x. Doing my whole head (basically) 3x is just NOT fun. It takes far too long, and it's not something that I enjoyed doing almost everyday. But we do crazy things for vanity. Pain is beauty, so they say.


Everyone has a bad hair day, but you don't have to.

A week ago I got the most glorious package in the mail. The contents contained a brand new, amazing, flat iron.

The Best Flat Iron. Seriously.

This Hana flat iron is fantastic. It is the best straightener that I've ever used on my hair, no joke. It glides easily over my hair, without yanking out strands at the roots, and straightens my hair so easily. I even used it on my roommates hair, and it worked just as well (and she might be slightly jealous). I've been using this straightener for close to a week now, and let me tell y'all - I haven't had one of these Michelle Tanner moments since I started using it.



I could talk about how this is the best flat iron, ever , until I'm blue in the face. However, I'll show you the proof that this flat iron takes my hair from drab to fab in a few quick minutes.

Having hair like this is just no bueno, and makes me sad. This is why I can't ever leave my house without doing my hair.

Straight hair for the win.

Since I had time to kill while my roommate took forever to get ready, I decided to test out how well this flat iron would curl. One of my biggest things is that I curl my hair with my flat iron, because it honestly works better than a curling iron. This flat iron passed my test, and I was able to curl my hair so easily.

There you have it, my proof that this is the best flat iron that I have ever used.

Check out Misikko, Hana Salon, and Misikko's Facebook Page

*please note that I was given this flat iron to test and review. All opinions, comments, and pictures are 100% mine*

Captain America, Pirates, and Jesus

So last night I was browsing the interwebz for a while - searching through mugshots. No, seriously.
I'm not going to name any names, but a friend wanted help trying to see if someone has been arrested and if they were/are currently on parole. During my search I came across some truly interesting mugshots, and I was encouraged to share some of this hilariousness... so here we go.


If I was a police officer, this is the EXACT way that I would make my grand entrance when busting someone.

Friendly Reminder: If you are arrested, your mugshot is able to be viewed by the public. There are public records, your picture is posted online, and if your mugshot is amusing - it could end up on a blog.
So don't do dumb shit don't get caught.

Captain Amurrrica


This guy is my favorite. This one is just too good. He was arrested for allegedly distributing Xanax on July 4th. At least homeboy is patriotic, I'll give him that.



Captain Jack Sparrow Meth


He's a pirate. Well, at least he thinks he's a pirate. He has fully committed to this lifestyle with those tattoos, so at least he is passionate about something. Unfortunately, he was also really passionate about meth.



Kangaroo Jack


He looks really creepy - but this poor guy was in the wrong place at the wrong time. He was kind enough to return a lost driver's license that he had found, only to be promptly arrested for being in possession of a pipe used for smoking marijuana. Karma just wasn't on his side, at least he has a kangaroo on his face to cheer him up. I'd also like to point out that he's possibly naked under the vest (which just so happens to be the same color as his skin).



"Pep" the dog


This is real life. This poor dog, Pep, was arrested. Why? You ask. Well, it seems like Pep got a little hungry and ate the governor's wife's cherished cat. I'm not kidding you in the slightest bit right now. Pep served a life sentence without parole.



Jesus 'James' Christ


At first glance, you might think that this is an 'accurate depiction' of Jesus, to clarify - you'd be right. Apparently 'James' was arrested for impersonating Jesus. No James, you are Jesus... I'm convinced. Someone left a comment on this arrest post saying 'What if this really is Jesus? What if the first time we crucified and killed him and this time we arrested him?' Touche random concerned citizen, lets just hope that James is really just James, and not in fact Jesus. However, if I'm wrong and the man arrested is, in fact, Jesus... well I guess I'm sorry Jesus. I think I just said Jesus 10x. Jesus.

To summarize - if you get arrested, I will find your mugshot, and if you look crazy, I'll probably make fun of you. Again, don't do dumb shit DON'T GET CAUGHT.

5 selfies you should have on your phone

Oh hey, Tuesday.
I'm not going to lie, I was pretty stoked to not have to work yesterday. Thank you Canada for an extra holiday weekend. Sorry to all of you Americans who worked yesterday. But today is my 'Monday' so don't feel too mad.

So last night I was preparing a post (which I I will share later this week) and got distracted by the selfies that I saw uploading from my phone to my computer. Fun fact: I'm guilty of taking super cool selfies. Seriously, I can't even.
So just sit back, relax, and take note of these 5 trendy seflies poses.

Warning: This post contains so much cool, it hurts. Just call me Cool Ethan.
If anyone actually knows what movie Cool Ethan is from, you are my new best friend.

Anyway, I'm rambling. Here are 5 Selfies you should have on your phone.



ONE. Duck face. Everybody HATES this face, but people keep doing it. I mean, only some people - like me - can pull it off. I'm pretty sure I nailed it.

TWO. Model. Everybody loves to strike their best model pose. I mean, purse those lips and smize, girl, smize. I'm pretty sure Tyra Banks would love this. Sierra and I should teach a modelling 101 class.



THREE. Token mirror shot. I'm pretty sure if you don't have a picture in the mirror, you're not cool. Some people take pictures in the bathroom - some in a dressing room, I opt for my super little and super dusty mirror that sits on my desk. This is the new trend, you're welcome. Just kidding, but seriously.

Some people take mirror shots like this [left], but I like my way [right].



FOUR. Look at my pet! Everyone posts pictures with their animals - dog, cats, even bunny rabbits. Since Roscoe refuses to take a nice picture with me, I took pictures with my other pet. I mean look at that thing, it's big enough to be a small dog. Eww, gross. Mr. Spider is gone now, so it's all good.

This is as close as I've gotten to getting a picture with Roscoe [left], so I settled for this.. [right].



FIVE. Cute-Funny face. Every girl needs to have a 'funny face' picture. It shows your fun and cute side. I'm clearly really good at making myself look cute.



*disclaimer: this entire post was a joke. if you couldn't tell that, then I'm sorry but you suck at sarcasm. I'll be the first to admit that I take too many selfies. So I'm pretty sure that I should create a Match.com profile and use all of these pictures, right now. Yep.
See you all tomorrow.

Vacation Shenanigans

Happy Monday (said no-one, ever).
It's a holiday in Canada today, so I'm going to enjoy this Monday a little more than normal. I might actually still be sleeping when you read this. My bad.
As usual, I'm linking up with the lovely Sami.



This time I'm doing something a little different. Instead of showing you all what I did this weekend - I'm going to show you all what my vacation (from a week ago, oops) looked like. Bring on the vacation shenanigans, they're my favourite.


One. Not being able to sleep on a red-eye flight = this face.
Two. Almost home.
Three. Re-united with two of my favorite guys.
Four - Six. I forgot how humid it gets in Nova Scotia. Mandatory pool time to cool off. Pool-side selfies with Jennifer and Ashley.
Seven. We're really really pretty. Also, love that frizzy humid-hair.
Eight. I was forced to sweep up the floor because I knocked the garbage bag over. Oops.
Nine. Love these kids.


One. A lot of kids on one couch.
Two. Road-trip to the valley.
Three. Delicious delicious ice cream. So good.
Four. My neck hurts just looking at this one. It's so awkward, I had to share.
Five. I tried to eat healthy if/when I could.
Six. Yep. This happened.
Seven-Nine. Selfies, selfies, selfies.


One. It's so hard to relax next to the hideous place.
Two. The humidity got to him.
Three. Nothing but fields out here.
Four-Six Selfies everyday. Also, I can't have straight hair in Nova Scotia.
Seven. Ashley and I had a Rummy-Cube marathon.
Eight. Bonfires are always perfect on a nice summer night.
Nine. Oh hey, puddle.


One. Why wouldn't I take a picture of sheep? They're cute and fluffy.
Two. Selfies in the washroom.
Three. Fire selfies.
Four. We might have done beer shots. Ha.
Five. I may have made Ashley chug wine.
Six. mmmm beer.
Seven. Typical.
Eight. My brother was cold..
Nine. Ashley and I struggle.


One. Ashley doesn't want to play games with me anymore.
Two. No truer words have ever been spoken.
Three. Always say yes to a Photo-Booth.
Four. Funny story about these cows - they were kind of humping. They stopped and stared when I tried to take a picture. Weird thing is that they're both female.
Five. New phone case from my cousin. Pretty princess case.
Six. Pistachio cake. It's one of the most delicious things in the world. Thanks Sierra for baking this.
Seven. How do you turn down tacos?
Eight. I don't even know. But look at that sweet 'humid hair'. I was so over it.
Nine. Rolling Rock beer.

This is hands down my favorite collage, ever. Sierra is basically my soulmate. Here is the proof:



My parents and I had to kill some time at the airport while we waited for my flight to take off. Obviously, we took some shameless selfies. It's just what happens.


One-Three. My mom is just so adorable. She's so little and I just want to put her in my back pocket. Also, notice the "bunny ears" above my head in #2, and dad creeping in the background in #3... he wasn't a fan of being left out of pictures.
Four-Six. Nobody ever listens to me aka 'the photographer' about the importance of back lighting pictures, so I humored them and took a picture of us staring directly into the sun. #6 is just a massive fail.
Seven-Nine. Dad refused to take a normal picture with me. #9 is the closest to 'normal' that we got.

On my flight home, I got a little carried away with pictures. So then I did the obvious thing and took selfies. I go from the most serious look, to the most amazing SMIZE that Tyra Banks would fawn over. I mean look at dem eyez. If you ask me, I think it's missing some googly eyes, and then it transitions back to air plane pictures.



Yep, I'm ending this post with the creepy eyes picture. You're welcome.