blog – Page 11 – The Blonde Giraffe

blogging, fashion

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I haven’t been away from Logan much since he was born but I know the importance of baby free time. Not having family live near us makes me even more hesitant to leave him with someone I don’t know. Lucky for us, my mom is in town for two weeks and I’ve already had the chance to enjoy some much needed baby free time. This weekend was perfect. Friday night while Logan was asleep, Ryan and I got to enjoy some alone time. We spent it at the soccer field playing soccer and racing each other. We both love being active and our competitive sides always come out. We would much rather sprint up and down a field than run circles on a track.

Saturday night, we ventured to our old neighborhood to meet up with some friends. We started at our favorite coffee shop Cafe Solstice that was once our second home. This time we opted for some pre-dinner adult beverages. We ate dinner at Bar Cotto and ended the night with a drink at a speakeasy called Knee High Stocking Company. I would highly recommend this quaint Cap Hill hidden treasure. You need to text them to make reservations. There is basically no signage and you would never guess there was a bar inside. One of my favorite places in Seattle!

I will have my first night away from Logan this weekend. We are off to Whistler to celebrate six years of marriage!

baby, blogging, fashion, health

Outdoor Adventures with Littles: Sequim Lavender Festival

theblondegiraffe

July 19, 2016

11 Comments

This my first post for my new weekly series “Outdoor Adventures with Littles.” We are an active family that likes to be outdoors. I am hoping these posts inspire your family to get outside and not slow down your life just because you have kids. Of course, everything in life now takes tens times longer to pack up or complete. However, life sure is more exciting.

I had a hard time narrowing down our weekend plans especially since there were so many festivals and events going on in Seattle. I got the idea for the Lavender Festival from the Northwest Healthy Mama blog Friday link post. Her website provides so much inspiration! I researched the Sequim Lavender Festival and decided we needed to venture out of the city at least one day this weekend.

We started off catching the Edmonds ferry over to the Olympic Peninsula. Logan’s first ferry ride!!

If you love lavender, lavender products, food trucks and craft vendors, this is the festival for you. You can learn more about the festival here. You can buy lavender beauty products, lavender ice cream, lavender mixed drinks and more.

We stopped at the Jardin du Soleil farm first. The lavender fields were swarming with bees so I didn’t get any cute photos of us deep in the lavender. All the lavender was beautiful. We missed the demonstration the owner put on at 11am where he talked about the extraction of the lavender oil. This just means I will be back next year! This farm had a petting zoo and a craft tent set up for the kiddos. Logan spent most of his time in the Ergo and loved all the people watching.

I bought some lavender essential oil and have been using the last few nights. I put some on my pillow last night to help with calming and plan to start incorporating more into my life. Check out the Mind Body website for more ideas on how to use essential oils.

Next we hit up the Olympic Farm. What I learned here was there are so many different types of lavender.

We finished our day grabbing lunch at a cute restaurant near the street festival in the town.

My top is no longer available but linked up some similar ruffle camis and the rest of my look below.

DON’T FORGET THERE IS STILL TIME TO ENTER TO WIN A 16OZ BAG OF BOB’S RED MILL PROTEIN POWDER BELOW:
ENTER HERE

blogging, fitness, fitness fashion, health, seattle

Inspire Seattle

theblondegiraffe

July 18, 2016

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I love changing up my routine to stay active. I had the opportunity to try out a new studio that just opened in my neighborhood. It’s called Inspire Seattle. They must be doing something right because this is the third Seattle location opening.

According their website:
“Lagree Fitness™ is an innovative workout specifically designed to strengthen, tighten, and tone the body quickly and safely. This workout is largely based on the holistic principles of Pilates, but also emphasizes the strength training and cardio elements not inherent to Pilates to achieve muscle definition faster than traditional Pilates and/or weight training alone. All in as little as 40 minutes!”

Want to know my thoughts on the studio and workout? The studio is a gorgeous boutique style setting! There is even a Kombaucha bar by the front desk. You can grab one to go after a workout or just stop in the studio for a cup to go. Talk about cute and innovative. The studio owner is adorable and a total #girlboss. She shared her story about how she got into Lagree style fitness and her path to opening her studios. She was super inspiring!

Photo: Revolution PR

Now about the workout. It is a workout based on Pilates but way different than Pilates. The Metaformers are similar to Pilates reformers but set up to serve a different style of workout with more emphasis on strength training. The workout was tough and used a group of muscles I don’t use enough in running and Pilates. It will leave your muscles trembling and if you work hard, you will no doubt be sore. It’s a great strength training workout with good music. I would love to stop in a few times a month since it’s so close for an awesome forty minute workout.

Photo: Revolution PR

blogging, food, health

Clean Eating No Bake Chocolate & Oatmeal Protein Cookies + Bob’s Red Mill Giveaway

theblondegiraffe

July 15, 2016

4 Comments

I am a creature of habit. When I find a product I love, I am a loyal consumer. I have been using Bob’s Red Mill almond meal, coconut flour and brown rice flour since I moved to Seattle two years ago. When I had the opportunity to try out their new protein powders, I was super excited. I love that Bob’s Red Mill is already a brand I trust. Their protein powders are vegan, gluten free and loaded with probiotics.

I have experimented with these protein powders in smoothies, smoothie bowls and some cheat clean desserts. My best friend and her family were in town last week. We had three kids under the age of three. It was like a Christmas miracle when we had them all sleeping one afternoon. We decided to make the most in the zoo craziness to make no bake cookies. We talked through what ingredients we wanted in them and decided to use what I already had at the house for our recipe. Talk about nailing a recipe on the first try! I tried out the recipe measurements a few more times in more batches over the last week. Each time they tasted delicious. These cheat clean treats don’t last long at our house!

No Bake Chocolate & Oatmeal Protein Cookies

by Sarah Johnson

Prep Time: 10 mins

Ingredients (15 cookies)

1 cup of oats
2 tbsp of cocoa powder
1/2 cup of Bobs Mill chocolate protein powder
1/2 cup of chopped dark chocolate chips
1/2 cup of flax meal
dash of salt
1/3 cup coconut oil (melted)
1 tsp of vanilla extract
1/2 cup of almond butter

Instructions

Mix dry ingredients (oats, cocoa powder, protein powder, chocolate chips, flax meal, salt) together in bowl.

Melt coconut oil in mircowave.

Mix coconut oil, vanilla extract, almond butter together.

Add dry and wet ingredients together in bowl and mix evenly.

Create small cookies and place onto wax paper.

Cool in refrigerator and enjoy!!

*** You can add a dash of honey for a little sweeter taste!

I used the Bob’s Mill chocolate protein powder in my no bake cookie recipe and have tried them all out. I personally think the vanilla and chocolate are by far the best flavors! I actually like those two powders just mixed with almond milk after a workout. The vanilla tastes like a cake!! I am giving away a 16 oz Bob’s Red Mill protein powder to one lucky reader. The winner be allowed to pick their flavor of choice. Good Luck!!

CLICK HERE TO ENTER

If you wanted to see more of their nutritional boosters you can here. Bob’s Red Mill offers a monthly coupon here.

If you are active on Instagram, Bob’s Red Mill has a #SummerStrong Instagram Challenge going on from July 18-23. Follow me at @blondegiraffe_ and participate with us!

This post is sponsored by Bob’s Red Mill but all opinions expressed are my own.

blogging, fitness fashion, life

Take the Chance & Believe in Yourself

theblondegiraffe

July 11, 2016

8 Comments

“How do you go from where you are to where you wanna be? And I think you have to have an enthusiasm for life. You have to have a dream, a goal. And you have to be willing to work for it.” – Jimmy V

Getting out of your comfort zone is really hard sometimes. When I left corporate America and a steady paycheck it was really scary. I have felt strongly for the past four years about pursing a career in fitness. I am not going to lie and say I wasn’t scared. I was scared about the cut in income, scared if I would be good enough and scared about what others would think.

When I got pregnant and thought about what my future would look like, I was terrified. If I wanted to pursue fitness I needed to do it now. I made the decision and took a chance. I signed up to get certified in Pilates through Peak Pilates. I put in a lot of hours and hard work shaping into the fitness instructor I am becoming. Public speaking was never a huge fear of mine but something about teaching fitness made me nervous. It was way harder than I thought to talk for an hour and keep a class upbeat and flowing. I know the more I practice and continue to teach, I will only get better.

Whenever I need some extra motivation or inspiration I watch this ESPY speech from Jim Valvano. He coached my alma mater to an NCAA basketball championship in 1983 so of course I loved him. It is his inspiration and words that I admired most about this man though.

As I stay home with my son and teach fitness classes, I am also working to create an identity for this blog and small creative space on the internet. I work as much now as I did when I was at Amazon and other past jobs. However, for the first time in my life, I am happy when I work. There will still be the long nights, deadlines and anxiety that come with a job but for the first time in my life I get to answer to myself. I get to review myself and become a better version of me everyday!

Take a chance, believe in yourself and have an enthusiasm for life!

blogging, fashion, fitness, fitness fashion

Studio to Street

theblondegiraffe

July 6, 2016

2 Comments

I spend 90% of my time wearing workout clothes. I love when I can easily take an outfit from the gym and transition it to go out with friends. This Lululemon top is one of my new favorites. Change out your black leggings with some cutoffs and you are set!

This Lululemon top is sold out but linked up some of my other favorite tops and the rest of my outfit below. My necklace is from Rocksbox, use code BLONDEGIRAFFEXOXO at checkout to receive your first month free.

blogging, fashion

Independence Day

theblondegiraffe

July 5, 2016

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Hope everyone had a fabulous 4th of July!! My best friend is in town visiting with her family. We had such a fun weekend showing them why we love Seattle!

We spent most of the weekend exploring our Ballard neighborhood, eating the amazing buffet at Ivars on Lake Union and relaxing at Carkeek Park. We had some sick kiddos yesterday so we had to change our 4th plans. We enjoyed our time at the house, grilling out and catching the neighborhood fireworks. Now I am hoping for some warmer weather and clearer skies for their last few days here.

blogging, fashion

Golden Hour at Olympic Sculpture Park

theblondegiraffe

June 30, 2016

2 Comments

Photography: Jenna Lynn www.jennalynnphotog.com

Not sure how it took me almost two years in Seattle to discover Olympic Sculpture Park. What a city gem! My sweet blogger friend Kusum introduced me to the beauty of this park. We met up for a day date and strolled through the park located in the Belltown area of downtown. The park is located right on the water. Perfect for walking, running or biking through. If you are a Seattle local or just visiting for the weekend, I would put this park on the top of your list. Shooting this dress at golden hour was perfection with the sunset, water and mountains.

My Lilly dress is from a few years ago but linking some of my current Lilly favorites below.

My pink shoes are sold out everywhere but they come in other colors and are on sale! Accessories linked below:

We loved the park so much Kusum and I decided to host a little blogger pilates and wine happy hour Monday night. Here are a few snaps below from a perfect girls night! Thanks to Carleeh for always snapping some actions photos!

baby, blogging

Adventures After Baby

theblondegiraffe

June 28, 2016

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Life changes after you have a baby. Adventures also change but they don’t have to stop. Sometimes I find myself thinking “we can’t do that anymore because we have a kid.” While there are certainly places you can’t take your little ones and activities that aren’t baby friendly, there is still so much you can do. We put hiking on hold for a while after Logan was born but have realized hiking is one of the best activities we can do with Logan. It does take more planning, more packing and a little more patience. There is no reason we should have been passing on these adventures.

I am starting a new series on the blog. The series is going to focus on adventures with a baby. My weekly series posts are going to focus on outdoor activities and places to go with a baby. I grew up camping, playing in ponds, hanging on the beach and spending a lot of my childhood outside. I really want to raise Logan with an appreciation of the outdoors and I want him to know the importance of being outside in nature. Excited to share my first post with you next week!

Today, I am just leaving you with photos of our “wild” Saturday night we spent hanging out on our back patio. Our patio is covered so we can even hang out here when the Seattle rain decides to make a summer appearance!

Shop

Me: Lulus Top (similar) // Jogger Pants (similar) // BDG Denim Short // Bracelets

Logan: Tee (similar) // Pants (similar) // Copper Pearl Bibs (My favorite bibs!) // Silicone Bib (My favorite bib to use when Logan eats – so easy to clean) // Vtech sit to stand toy

blogging, food

Easy Egg Muffins

theblondegiraffe

June 23, 2016

2 Comments

Last week was a long week for us. I am still catching up. Logan woke up Monday with his first cold. He was quite cranky for a few days but he is finally feeling better. We have been spoiled with his night sleeping until this cold had him up two nights in a row. I knock on wood every time I tell anyone Logan sleeps through the night. I’m hoping it stays this way!

It didn’t take long until I caught the sickness. Being sick with a baby is tough. Our house has looked like a hot mess since last week.

When it comes to breakfast, I normally eat the same thing for about a month and then move on to something else for another month. It was a protein smoothie, then I moved on to dried oats with almond butter, honey and a few dark chocolate chips. Now it’s daily egg muffins.

I’m not a morning person. I like my sleep and will do anything to get just five more minutes of sleep. Breakfast for me has to be something quick and easy. This is my current breakfast rotation – egg muffins. Make these on a Sunday night and you will have breakfast for the entire week. Just heat up in the microwave in the morning and bam…a quick breakfast to go!

Easy Egg Muffins

Prep Time: 10 mins

Cook Time: 25 mins

Ingredients (12 muffins)

12 eggs
1/2 cup shredded mild cheddar cheese
dash of salt
dash of pepper
1 cup chopped cooked meat (I normally use deli ham but you can use sausage or bacon)
1/2 cup chopped vegetables (I normally use onions, peppers & tomatoes but mix it up if wanted)
1 cup spinach

Instructions

Preheat the oven to 350°F

Grease a muffin pan with coconut oil. (You can also use cooking spray).

Combine 12 eggs, cheddar cheese, salt and pepper into a large mixing bowl and whisk together.

In a muffin pan, divide the meat, chopped vegetables and chopped spinach evenly into 12 cups.

Pour egg/cheese mixture over meat and vegetables filling 3/4 the way up.

Bake for 25 minutes at 350°F

Let muffins cool for 10 mins.

Use knife to slide around each muffin to remove from muffin pan.

Eat and Enjoy!

I store in the refrigerator and heat 2 up each morning for breakfast! You now have breakfast ready to go for the week!