Christmas in June

The beginning of summer is here and of course that means bikinis, late nights, and beaches...but for me, it also means beginning my Christmas stock pile. Yup, that's right, I said it...Christmas. Last year, I only did personal projects and I barely finished on time. This year, I have decided to take on smaller projects because I have custom orders, personal gifts, and I want to have stock on hand to sell. Crazy? Yes. But I've been told I am crazy plenty of times before. I am all about handmade gifts, and I thought these ornaments would be the perfect little gift for anyone. More styles are coming, but I am loving the way the desserts are turning out! If you would like to purchase your own, feel free to email me at emilydilldenton@gmail.com! The large doughnut is $7.49 and the small pastry is $4.99 or get both for just $11.99! All ornaments come wrapped with a bow!

Does Size Matter?

I got into a debate today over if size matters...about gyms of course, and I decided to prove that it doesn't! I have a membership to a very large, pretty high tech gym...but I usually don't feel like driving/it's late/I don't have gas/etc. and I just end up working out at our apartment gym. It is tiny. And I mean tiny. But it gets the job done, and that is what is important, right? Another positive is that I normally get the whole place to myself which means I can go headphone free, watch whatever I want, and sing and dance while I workout! This is also a great workout for hotel gyms. I was in a "I'm bored with my workout" mood so this kept things interesting and shook up my routine!

Apartment/Hotel Gym Workout...

Warm Up - Treadmill

Jog 5 mph - 12 minutes

Walk 4 mph - 5 minutes

Arms

5 bicep curls

5 shoulder presses

5 hammer curls

10 chest presses 

X3

Intervals - Treadmill

Run 6 mph/3 incline - 2 minutes

Walk 4 mph/3 incline - 2 minutes

Run 6 mph/3 incline - 2 minutes

Walk 4 mph/3 incline - 2 minutes

Run 6 mph/3 incline - 2 minutes

Walk 4 mph - 5 minutes

Legs & Booty

30 squats

Wall sit - 1 minute

30 hip thrusts

Core 

Plank - 1 minute 

Right side plank - 30 seconds

Left side plank - 30 seconds

10 sit ups

Cool Down - Treadmill

Run 6 mph - 5 minutes

Wall 4 mph - 5 minutes

Stretch 

Approx. 60 minutes, 500 calories burned!

And just for the fun of it, I threw in a progress picture!

Fudge Brownie Cookies

Fudge Brownie Cookies:

makes 30 cookies

150 calories per cookie

Ingredients: 

1 package of Duncan Hines chewy fudge brownies (mix only)

1 12oz package Nestle Toll House semi-sweet chocolate morsels

1 large egg

1/3 c. vegetable oil

2 tbsp. water

Directions: Preheat your oven to 375 degrees. In a large bowl, combine brownie mix, egg, vegetable oil, and water. Once combined, the mixture should have a cookie dough consistency. Fold in chocolate chips. Place slightly flattened tablespoons of dough onto a lined cookie sheet, they do not spread much so there isn't a need for much space in between cookies. Bake for 8 to 10 minutes. Allow to cool completely before removing from the cookie sheet. Enjoy!

These are not only delicious, they are great when you are on a budget. I made this batch for under $5! 

I'm Feelin' 22!

Holy moly I can't believe how fast this year has flown by! I can't believe how much has changed over this past year, and I feel so amazingly blessed.

It is amazing how well my boyfriend knows me. Instead of giving me material things for my birthday, he gave me one of the most amazing days of my life and recreated our very first date. I honestly teared  up when I caught on to what he was doing. We retraced every step, every stop, every treat from the market, and even recreated pictures...