Good evening! [I don't know why but whenever I say 'good evening' I always picture myself saying it in a creepy dracula voice....muhauha....I'm weird I know!)

I hope you are all having a great weekend!

I have had a busy day- we have been doing laundry non-stop (it's amazing how much accumulates in 2.5 weeks!). We also had lots of errands to run today- Christmas shopping, etc.

I had to buy my secret santa gift which just so happens to be for my BOSS! Agh, could I have gotten a more difficult pick? How do you buy your boss a secret santa gift for $20 and not seem like a cheap skate. I think I spent about $25-30 on her even though the limit was $20.

I got her a set of 4 really neat looking Martini glasses (she always jokes that she's "going straight home to have a big, fat martini" LOL) and I got her some Bailey's chocolates. I hope she likes it! If not, I will pretend like I didn't get her. lol.

There is definitely a buzz of activity in all of the shopping centres- we even noticed a lot more traffic on the highway early evening, apparently everyone was leaving the malls and heading home for dinner like us!

When we got home we were quite hungry so I made us some mini pizzas with salad on the side. Quick and easy!

We did some Christmas decorating too...

Eric also put a couple red and green spot lights out front of the house and decorated a plant with lights indoors.

And they're spent...

We're supposed to be going to see the cartoon called 'Bolt' at the movies tonight, but I'm not so sure after seeing these two...lol. The fun never stops around here!!! haha.

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I also attempted to re-create the Pecan Pie Larabar tonight, with somewhat disappointing results...

Ok, maybe I am being a bit hard on myself. After the success of my Banana Bread Larabar, it was hard to take it when my Pecan Pie Larabar was not a spitting image (and taste).

I mean, it was only 3 ingredients, how hard could it be?

Attempt  1 Combo

• 1/2 cup dates
• 2/9 cup pecans (essentially 2/3 of a 1/3 cup) then I topped it off with almonds (1/3 of 1/3 cup)

Sorry to be so confusing, it has been one of those nights in the kitchen!

Attempt #1 proved to be quite sweet, and when I ripped open an actual Pecan Pie Larabar, my re-creation was much darker in comparison. *Sigh. It was still very tasty though! And I will certainly be eating Attempt #1.

Attempt 2 Combo:

• 1/3 cup dates
• 2/9 cup pecans (essentially 2/3 of a 1/3 cup) then I topped it off with almonds (1/3 of 1/3 cup)

I reduced the amount of dates in order to make it a bit less sweet, lighter in colour, and more pecan-y.

Directions:

1. Put dates in a food processor for about 45 seconds. Remove from bowl. Set aside in a small bowl.

2. Add nuts and process for about 45 seconds.

3. Combine and mix together with hands. Prepare to get sticky. (Remove Rings!)

4. Divide into two equal halves. Place each half in the centre of a piece of saran wrap and form into a bar shape (or whatever shape you desire!)

I guess I was so down and out about the outcome of this Pecan Pie attempt, I forgot to take a picture of the final product. I guess you will have to use your imagination! Or see this post!

I compared my result to the real Pecan Pie Larabar, and the real Larabar won hands down in taste. My attempt was still tasty, but I have by no means perfected it yet! I need to find the perfect combo of those 3 ingredients. Maybe someone else will have better luck than me??

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Some Barcelona honeymoon pictures:

Spinning Gelato. Need I say more?

On the hotel balcony

Being geeks

hehe...action shot opening the champagne!

Love that pic…its our champagne reflecting on the ice bucket

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Gosh now I can barely keep my eyes open! I guess the 6 hours of sleep is catching up on me!

See you tomorrow!

I learned that it is the weak who are cruel, and that gentleness is to be expected only from the strong.
- Leo Rosten

Hello everyone!

I hope you are having a great start to your week! My day has been pretty good so far, can’t complain!

Here are some interesting health newsbites that I read about today:

• A Medeterranian diet enriched with nuts cuts heart disease risk
• Scientists say healthy people should have the right to boost brain power with pills
• 1/2 dose of flu shot may be enough for young, healthy adults
• Want to beat holiday bloat? Try pineapple
• Are cold sores a risk for Alzheimer’s Disease?

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And now for 5 Reasons why you should visit Oh She Glows tonight!

1. The Homemade Larabar Experiment continues (with a yellow fruit!)
2. I will divulge the thing in my kitchen that I am most ashamed of…

Clue:

Any guesses?

3. I will give you a tour of my cookbook collection

4. FUN and inspiring QUOTES!

5. Random pictures

Honeymooning in Mykonos, Greece

Honeymooning in Istanbul, Turkey

Our first child....Sketchie...lol

See you tonight for a healthy dose of F-U-N!!!

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Success seems to be largely a matter of hanging on after others have let go.
- William Feather

Good afternoon!

I had a busy morning cleaning up after the Larabar Experiment, and then I did some unpacking and cleaning!

I had a great 4 mile run on the treadmill. It was nice and toasty inside while the snow started to fall outside.

[Not sure why this video is such poor quality, if you watch it in high def its a bit better ]

Workout details:

• 0.10 mile walking warm-up
• 4 mile run @ 6.5 mph, incline 5%
• 0.10 mile walking cool-down
• Total duration: ~42 mins.
• Max heart rate: 172 bpm (88% of max)
• Avg heart rate: 152 bpm (78% of max)

I was super sweaty afterward and bolted to the shower!

I am going to start my official half-marathon training this week, so stay tuned for that!

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The Larabar Experiment: Attemp #2

My second attempt at creating a homemade Larabar was even tastier than the first.

I don’t know about you, but I love cookie dough. When I bake cookies, I’m not sure whether more of it goes in my mouth or on the baking sheet.

So, I was naturally delighted when I found Camilla’s recipe for the Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Larabar.

 Ingredients:

 1/3 cup roughly chopped dates

1/2 cup raw cashews

 1 Tablespoon semi-sweet chocolate  (She recommends 1/2 oz. but I just used a Tbsp. as I wasn’t sure of the measurement)

 Pinch of cinnamon

 1/2 Teaspoon Pure Vanilla Extract

Follow the instructions in this post:

My pre-run snack:

The Healthy Gingerbread man....

You can get as creative as you want with these shapes! I thought my Christmas cookie cutters were a great ’seasonal’ modification.

The top and right bars are the cookie dough flavour and the bottom left are the Coconut flavour

Delicious!

Makes 2-3 bars depending on the size you want them. The Chocolate Chip Cookie Larabars have approx 210 kcal per bar if you make three out of this recipe.

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He who is not everyday conquering some fear has not learned the secret of life.
Ralph Waldo Emerson