First, huge congrats to my dear real-life friend, Merissa, who won my C o m p l i m e n t giveaway! Merissa is one of my favorite people in the whole world, so I’m ECSTATIC that she won!

But, if you didn’t win, don’t be sad! Melissa, my friend and owner of the shop, is offering ALL of my readers a 10% discount and free shipping! Just enter “Just A Titch” in your note to the seller and she will get you all taken care of. I can’t say enough good things about her rings and how awesome her shop is!

Secondly…ANOTHER giveaway! You’ve read about my journey to smarter snacking and heard Bernie Salazar’s tips on snacking smarter, but today there’s a giveaway to help you get healthier.

Check out the awesome stuff you can win:

·         Two (2) boxes of Orville Redenbacher’s SmartPop! Pop Up Bowl Butter

·         Lululemon gift card ($75) for fitness apparel

·         CamelBak 1 liter water bottle

·         Resistance band

·         Moleskin wellness journal

·         Garmin heart rate monitor

This package is pretty awesome (and valued at over $150!) and I know you want to win. I mean, I want to win.

Here’s what to do:

1) Leave a comment with your best healthy living tip: a snack, a way to eat healthfully, your favorite way to motivate yourself to workout, the quote or mantra that gets you motivated. Whatever! Just leave me a healthy tip here.

2) Tweet about the contest. Say “I want to win a smart snacking pack from @amy_estes and #orville SmartPop” with a link to this post. You can tweet this each day (until the contest closes on Wednesday evening) for multiple entries. You MUST comment each time you tweet for these to count!

3) Post a link to this contest on your Facebook and leave a comment telling me you did so.

I will draw a winner on Wednesday night and post a winner on Thursday! GO! Good luck, friends!

Here are your questions and their answers:

Stay tuned for the final installment of this smart snacking journey, and a seriously killer giveaway on Monday!

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{Disclosure: Orville Redenbacher is compensating me for my time and effort on these posts, HOWEVER, you all know that I wouldn’t blog anything I didn’t believe in. These opinions and the GENUINE excitement behind this partnership is all mine, guys.}

I love these postcards…available here on Etsy. They include quotes from Romeo & Juliet. So lovely!

Happy Friday! I hope you had a lovely week. I had a long week: two nights of supervising basketball and lots of grading, but it was a good week. I am definitely ready for the weekend, though, as always.

I found a lot of awesome stuff online this week, so I hope you’re ready for a lot of links!

Maybe the best blog post I’ve ever read about changing your health and fitness habits.

Other people’s lives aren’t what you think.

Not apologizing for being your best self.

A winter wellness guide that’s seriously awesome.

Love your body, no matter the size.

A recipe for a good weekend.

Making time for creativity – really great post.

Loved this post about creating an environment where great things happen.

Honor the fact that life is short.

I’ve been really enjoying reading Kaileen Elise’s blog lately, just in general.

Finally, have you entered my giveaway yet? Win a gorgeous ring!

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What are you doing this weekend? I’ve got a lazy weekend ahead. I need to grade some papers, and I’m planning on seeing my family for Super Bowl Sunday, but mostly, I’m planning on hiding in my apartment and catching up on naps and time with Harry cat and Andrew. Being gone so much this week means I need a break.

The thing about trainings is that sometimes, it makes for a long week. I’m not complaining, but when your summer break is harshly interrupted by a return to “real life” it’s a big change. Anyways, this summer was different, because the training “strand” I attended was insanely awesome and helpful. And better yet, it was lead by someone I now consider a friend.

I think that meeting people you instantly “click” with is kind of rare, but it happened with Melissa. She was funny and dressed cute and was super good at training our group and it definitely made the week fly by. At the end of training, we exchanged contact information and got to chatting and seriously had so many awesome things in common: teaching, writing, crafting, love for our family and the San Francisco Giants and a love of cute accessories.

A few months after we became friends at training, Melissa opened up an adorable shop full of custom rings that are absolutely gorgeous called C o m p l i m e n t.

I have one of her rings, and when I wore it out for the first time, I seriously had 10 people ask me where my ring was from. They’re lovely. My favorite part though, is that each ring comes in an adorable little box, stamped with it’s own compliment inside. Mine nearly made me cry:

I feel the same way about her.

Not only are the rings lovely, she also donates some of her proceeds to a scholarship fund for students, donates rings for auctions and uses these beautiful products to do good on a large scale.

Melissa has generously offered to do a giveaway for you, my dear readers!

Here’s the deal: she is giving away two rings. One, for you to choose and keep and the second, for you to select for a friend. She will personalize it with a compliment and send it either to you, or to your friend. How awesome would it be to get this gift in time for a special Valentine’s Day gift for a friend or family member?

Here’s how you enter:

—Go to her shop and check out the rings. Leave a comment with the name of  which one you’d want if you win.

—For an additional entry, “Like” her page on Facebook. Please leave a separate comment letting me know you did that.

—For a THIRD entry, tweet the following: “I want to win a ring from @ShopCompliment that @amy_estes is giving away! #justatitchgiveaway.” Please leave an additional comment letting me know (I will be checking the hashtags, but just in case!).

I will be tallying up the entries on Sunday night, and posting a winner Monday morning. I’m already SO EXCITED for whoever wins, because these rings are awesome, and I couldn’t be more proud of my friend.

What are you waiting for? ENTER! GOOD LUCK!

Here are the prompts!

I’m SO excited for a second month, and selfishly, I hope that she continues on for the year. It’s been great fun!

If a monthly photo challenge sounds too overwhelming, I’m also hoping to participate in this My Day In Photos challenge:

If you’re going to participate in either one, please let me know! I’d love to follow along!

Have you ever done a photo challenge?

One of the hardest things about being a teacher is adjusting to having very little control over your schedule and “free time.” At other jobs, when I was at a desk, it was no big deal if I forgot breakfast or wanted a snack at my desk. I could run to the restroom whenever I needed to and didn’t ever stress about drinking too much water or coffee and being stuck, unable to step away. As a teacher, I’m not able to leave my classroom whenever I want for a quick break, and since I ask my students not to snack in class, I feel pretty strongly that I should set the example and not eat in front of them. Also, I’m usually so busy that a quick snack isn’t an option.

For a long time, I relied on things like granola bars, and if I’m being honest, way too much of the candy I use as rewards. It was quick, got my blood sugar up and I could shove it in my mouth pretty quickly. As I’ve tried to eat more healthfully, I’ve transitioned to snacking on either almonds or pistachios.

Can we just keep it real for a second? I am counting calories, so I measure my food. When I measure out a serving of nuts, my heart gets sad. I get all of 10 almonds for a reasonable calorie count, and pistachios are delicious, but when I’m done, I’m usually still hungry.

Enter popcorn. I’ll admit that I was hesitant at first. It seemed like a lot of effort, and since there’s a lot of butter involved in usual popcorn, I was afraid I’d feel really heavy when I finished my snack. I’ve been eating Orville Redenbacher’s Smart Pop, which still tastes delicious, but isn’t super heavy in calories. I’m full again. Before trying this snack and learning more about it, I didn’t realize that popcorn was fat free and has a ton of fiber, which makes you feel full without adding a ton of calories. Plus, for the same calories in 14 almonds, you can have SIX cups of popcorn. Not that I need that many, BUT I AM JUST SAYING.

It’s pretty awesome. I am definitely a fan of my new snacking routine, and I think it’s safe to say my students are, too, since I’m no longer grumpy and starving when they come to class.

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{Disclosure: Orville Redenbacher is compensating me for my time and effort on these posts, HOWEVER, you all know that I wouldn’t blog anything I didn’t believe in. These opinions and the GENUINE excitement behind this partnership is all mine, guys.}

I purchased the binder, core kit, and cardstock in Clementine. I also ordered the photo pocket protectors in Style B, which was pretty much all they had left. I’m really hoping that more styles become available ASAP, because it’s kind of a difficult set-up to work with.

Anyways, I started with my title page:

For my title page, I used the journaling cards, and then stamped (using some of Bryn’s adorable stamps!) and embossed the figures and the heart you see. I also used some puffy number stickers. At the bottom right corner, I did a little bit of journaling about how the year started off. All the paper came from the Clementine core kit. Awesome, right?

Next, I just went week by week to do the pages. I aimed to do a few things: a bit of journaling about the week and what took place, and to stamp the dates of the week, using a “normal” date stamp. On my first page, I also included my playlist for the month (I’ve been making playlists every month since I was 22 and have NEVER recorded them, which makes me sad, because I love music so much) and a blurb about the Photo A Day challenge I’ve been doing with Fat Mum Slim, because it’s been such a cool part of my month.

I printed my pictures using Rite Aid’s photo service. Which was okay for normal pics, but definitely didn’t work for Instagrams, which sadly were most of my photos. Thankfully, Bryn has an awesome printer and totally printed a ton of stuff for me. I need to figure out a better solution for the rest of my time.

A few things I want to be better about this month are:

• Taking more pictures! I take a ridic amount of iPhone photos, but I want to use my normal camera more often. I struggled to find things that I’d documented, and I need to do more.
• Holding on to ephemera. I was really glad I had some ticket stubs from our day trip to Chicago, but next month, I want to hold on to more things.
• Writing down ideas as I go. I relied on my planner a lot to fill in gaps and holes.
• Take pictures of myself and Andrew, as well as me with friends and family. I HATE taking pictures of myself. I’m not super comfortable in my own skin and I feel hideously unattractive in 99% of photos. This means I have a lot of pics of soup but not very many photos of me, or of me with those I love. I am trying to include one picture of myself in every spread, both so I can document me (and hopefully changes in my body) but also to get over this ridiculous thing I have with pictures of myself. I also want to do some serious documentation of our awesome time with my family (PREPARE YOURSELF, FAMILY!).

Yay, Friday! I’m so glad to see you!

On to the links of awesomeness!

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I love Alice Bradley, and this post about not being an object was beautifully and poignantly written. A good read for women.

On staying inspired. Probably my favorite read of the week.

On making things count. Good things, like dessert.

What to say to a friend after a breakup. We’ve all been there for a friend with a sad heart. Do more than stumble over your words.

My dear, sweet friend Kerri wrote about post-partum anxiety. I’m all about anxiety-talk being more out in the open.

A great interview with Lisa Congdon, an artist I adore after hearing her speak at Camp Mighty.

Loved this idea of adding color to your hair with chalk.

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What are you up to this weekend? I’m looking forward to resting. I’m planning on diving into my Project Life album with a friend and taking lots of naps in order to feel 100% for next week.

I am still suffering from an ear infection and spent yesterday in kind of a blah state. I meant to get a post prepared for today but didn’t…and then I read Elise’s post “right now” and decided that’d be a good route to go today.

Right now…I feel a bit anxious and unsettled about what’s to come. I need some sort of change and I’m trying to figure out how to make teaching/freelancing/blogging/other stuff work and I’m kind of exhausted. I have a lot of good ideas and opportunities and I’m trying to balance all of those and subsequently going a little crazy.

Right now…I am grateful that my job is generous with sick time and thankful that I know when to say “I need a day off” so I can heal and rest. It’s such a gift to not have to stress out over missing two days.

Right now…I’m feeling a wee bit discouraged in regards to weight loss. I have been cleaning up my diet but sadly, healthy foods still have calories and I am realizing that food tracking and lots of workouts reallyyyy need to be part of my life.

Right now…I’m thankful for friendships. I’ve made several new friends recently and those friendships are blossoming. It’s fun to have new people around and to have other friendships get deeper.

Right now…I’m excited about lots of stuff to come. I ordered a spin bike from Groupon with some credits I had and I can’t wait to do cardio at home. I’m excited about some changes around this blog. I can’t wait for NYC and Paris. I feel like I’m waiting for a lot of good things to happen and change and I’m trying to just figure it out.

Right now…I’m hoping to find a good yoga place to call “home.” I really prefer Bikram, or at least Vinyasa, and I’ve tried a few studios as of late that just didn’t feel right. I’m hoping to return to one I liked and try one more before settling in for good and really committing to a place and practice.

Right now…I’m loving the Photo A Day challenge by Fat Mum Slim on Instagram and excited for February’s challenge. I’m excited to dive into starting my Project Life album with a friend this weekend. I’m excited to carve out more time to feel creative.

Right now…I’m realizing I need to set better boundaries with my time. I find myself choosing other things over creative time, exercise or nights off. Granted, the past few weeks have been consumed with a freelance project, but still, I’m looking forward to getting into a serious routine and sticking to it.

Right now…I’m ready for the weekend. And some time to clear my head and feel better.

How are you doing right now?

If you’ve been reading my blog for any length of time, you know I’m a soup fanatic. Lately, I’ve been inching towards a vegan diet since dairy and I have officially broken up, and I’m trying to get healthier overall.

My friend Keith is an Ironman, cyclist, and all around active dude and he has recently converted to the vegan diet and loves it. He recently shared this recipe for Vegan Butternut Squash Soup and I made it last night. It is really creamy and delicious without any dairy. I modified it a bit (added garlic and omitted the nutmeg because I loathe sweet soups and left out the water because I like a thicker soup) but you can find the original recipe here.

Ingredients

5 lbs Butternut Squash (I bought three bags of the Trader Joes pre-cut butternut squash because I’m lazy)

4 cups Vegetable Broth

3 cloves garlic, finely chopped

1 Onion

2 Potatoes

Olive Oil (1/4 cup)

Salt

Pepper

Directions

Chop the onion finely and put in in the bottom of the soup pot with the olive oil. Saute until the onions are clear (about five minutes). Add the garlic and let simmer for one minute. Add the squash and the potato (both peeled and chopped into chunks). Add the broth to the pot, along with the squash and potatoes. Allow all of the veggies to simmer until they are soft (about 30 minutes). Add salt, pepper, and any other spices to taste. Next, blend the soup, either in batches in a blender, or using an immersion blender.

Enjoy!