Baby It's Cold Outside

Baby it's cold outside is right!  Somewhere in the last two days we went from wintery-like to frozen tundra.  If there is one thing you need to know about me it is that I HATE COLD.  I can't even really say I hate it, I more or less despise the cold with every essence of my soul.  Today was a blatant reminder of my sheer dislike for winter. In case you're not getting my point, It. Was. Cold! 

I feel like when its this cold out, I have a hard time putting energy into anything other than staying warm.  My apt for creativeness when it comes to cooking is also compromised because of this but I do try to work through it. 

Breakfast was more basic because I didn't have time nor energy for anything elaborate. 

 Raisin Bran, PB Puffins, Banana, Blueberries, Granola, TJ's Peanut Butter, Almond Milk 

It may not look basic but I usually don't eat just a bowl of cereal.  Especially without protein.  I need protein at breakfast and this usually comes in the form of Greek Yogurt, but today I reverted back to an old classic that I use to frequent. Cottage Cheese and Jam. 

1/2 Slice Ezikle Cinnamon Raisin Bread, Cottage Cheese, Apricot Jam 

Complete!  <3 

I stayed chilled all morning in the office and when it came time for lunch, I knew I needed something satisfying to warm me up. 

Thank goodness for Sushi dates with my friend Jess. 

I love having good friends at work.  We try to make weekly lunch dates and Sushi is our thing.  

Why is this salad so good?  

Rainforest Roll- Crab, Shrimp, Mango, Avocado

California, Tuna, Cucumber Rolls

 We split this feast over some warm tea and good conversation.  It was pure bliss.

So even though it may be cold outside, I can be thankful for one thing.  It is no longer raining.  Do you know what this means for me in particular?

Oh yes my friends, that would be our house.  These guys just put up the walls today!!!  They haven't been able to work for the past week because of the rain but today, they made up for a weeks worth of lost work.  I think they thought I was crazy because I not only drove by taking pictures, I even got out of my car to introduce myself.   They were not as excited as I was.  Possibly because I appeared to be some crazy girl paparazzi interrupting their concentration as the worked away in the blistery weather. 

Do you think I cared?  Not in the least! These pictures are priceless! 

Seeing this made me so happy for the rest of the day.  I can almost see the end result and its so so sweet! 

When I get off work, I run to my car and shiver all the way to the gym and keep thinking to myself this is temporary, you just need to drive a couple more minutes, change (which is the worst part) and then you'll be sweating in no time.  This acts as significant motivation mind you. 

At the gym, it didn't take me long to warm up and for some reason I had one of the best HIIT runs I've had in a long time. 

I was fast and and I killed those inclines and I wasn't even dying.  

6.5 at 0% - 5 min (warm up)

7.0 at 1% - 5 min

7.5 at 2% - 4 min

7.7 at 3% - 4 min

7.9 at 4%- 3 min

8.0 at 5%- 1 min

Repeat this

7.0 at 0% - 5 min (cool down) 

All together 4 miles in just about 34 min. 

When I got home, I was really feeling uninspired to cook and came so close to eating cereal for dinner, but then I realized cereal would just make me more cold and I needed something that would bring me heat. 

Spicy, mexican goodness was the answer! 

Tortilla Egg Scrambles 

This is such a simple and delicious recipe.  You take a few tortilla chips and drizzle them with taco sauce and heat them in a pan.  Then, I sauté some veggies (mushrooms and zucchini) in a little garlic, cumin, and chili powder.  Finally, you make the eggs (I like to soft scramble them with hot sauce) and top this off with some guac, salsa and greek yogurt.

So glad I inspired myself to make this because it made me warm and happy again. 

Now I'm contemplating some Hot Silk Mint Chocolate, a new love of mine. 

Good night.

Is Jack Frost Nipping at Your Nose yet?  Do you like or dislike the cold weather?