Cute cats!

Whelp. I'm sick this week & do not have the energy to compose my weekly blogpost. Instead I'll leave you with a song and a bunch of cute cat pictures. Enjoy!

Soft kitty

Warm kitty

Little ball of fur

Happy kitty

Sleepy kitty

Purr purr purr

And now for the pic of the week:

This is the full moon one morning hanging around after the sun came up. 

Mahalo!

Down the Pounds

My work is sponsoring a weight loss challenge. I teamed up with four other coworkers and we were tasked with losing weight over a 12 week period. I thought joining this challenge would be the kick in the butt I needed, but I've waited until the last minute to get serious (uh-oh). 

I've got my fitness routine down, but with the end of the challenge looming I've decided to focus on nutrition. I will be continuing high protein foods but will add in some complex carbs, up my veggies and try to limit my fat intake. All of this takes planning & prepping. So bring on the Sunday Funday foodprep!

For breakfast my favorite will always be eggs. 

This week I got everything to make a veggie scramble. I sautéed spinach, mushrooms, onions and garlic and added it to my egg white scramble. 

Here's the final product packed and ready to go. 

For lunch I took two pounds of of boneless, skinless chicken breasts and divided them into two quick and easy recipes. 

The first batch required an Italian marinade. I combined balsamic vinegar, EVOO, garlic and oregano. 

The second batch was more of a kickin' chicken. The marinade combined Frank's Red Hot, citrus and garlic. 

And for an after-workout treat, I made a special batch of overnight oats. 

Everything tastes better out of a mason jar, right?!?

Now hopefully all this prepping will pay off. I hate losing. But whether I win or lose at least I have all my meals taken care of for the week!

And now for the pic of the week:

This octopus adorns the wall outside of my favorite poke place, Ono Seafood. It makes sense since 3 out of 6 of their menu items are tako (octopus). 

Mahalo!

Lucky we live HI

There's a phrase you hear a lot on this island. And after spending some time here it makes a lot of sense. 

Lucky we live Hawaii 

Yes I have to go to work. Yes I have to everyday chores like grocery shopping, laundry and washing dishes by hand. But when I'm not doing those things, I get to pretend I'm a tourist. 

This weekend felt like an extension of my vacation from last week. On Saturday I went sea kayaking. We took rental boats out to a little island off shore of Lanaikai, Mokulua. 

On Sunday I went on a 3+ hour hike through a beautiful wooded area that eventually overlooked the island I was on the day before, Hahaione.  

Check out some of the pictures:

This lovely panorama shows the second Moke as well as the sea kayaks lined up on the shoreline. 

Don't be fooled by this posed shot... I had no idea what I was doing!

After all that paddling we deserved to sit back on the sand and relax. 

This hike was different than many of the others. We spent most of the morning under the shade of trees, some of them similar to the pine trees of GA. 

The hike also featured what I called "obstacles". There were roots, slippery pinecones and slopes that required a rope to maneuver up and down. 

The best part of the hike? The reward of the beautiful vista once we reached the top of the mountain. 

Luckily we were able to get a group shot that included the amazing view. 

After this busy weekend I'm refreshed, ready to go back to work and definitely feeling lucky to live in Hi. 

And now for the pic of the week:

This was a log hanging near the trail. What you can't see are all the little ants crawling on the bark. 

Mahalo!

Island lifestyle

This week was extra special. I got to share HI with my Mainland BFF. I wanted to show her the best Oahu has to offer so I visited all of my favorite spots. Although I had been to all these places before it was interesting seeing them through a new person's perspective. 

All visitors that come and see me start their trip off with Mai Tais, pupus and a sunset at the Moana Surfrider. 

To expirience some of the islands history we stopped by the Punchbowl War Memorial. I found a plaque that I've never seen before. This made me think of my Gpa (I sent both grandparents a text to let them know I was thinking of them). 

Valentines day on top of Diamondhead means a cheesy photo shoot. 

This was a great week to visit since Chinatown was full of excitement celebrating the new year!

This was a new scene for me. It was my first time to the Leeward coast with the gorgeous sunset at the lagoons. 

 Snorkeling at Hanauma Bay...one of the best spots in Hi. 

Hiking to the Lanikai Pillboxes on a weekday morning is a whole new expirience. . . Very relaxing. 

I've eaten at Cinnamons before, but never Cinnamons at Ilikai and never had the guava chiffon pancakes. Yum-o. 

Overall a chockfull week with lots to see and do. And now only two more days until the weekend ;-) 

Here's the pic of the week:

 I'm showing of the "guns" while hiking Diamondhhead. 

Mahalo!

B-E-A-utiful

When you stop and look around, the world really is a beautiful place. This is especially true when you live in HI. This week I found myself taking the time to enjoy all the beauty around me. 

On Sunday I got to expirience the best the island has to offer. The sky was blue. There was a slight breeze. And I got to join a group of friends for an amazing hike. With nothing more than a little internet research and directions stating "first hike to the puka, then keep going", we found ourselves hiking from the Makapu'u Lighthouse to Deadman's Catwalk. 

The hike followed the coastline with gorgeous views of the beaches and reefs. 

Here's the infamous puka mentioned in the directions. 

We hiked that whole ridge!

And our reward was the view looking over Deadman's Catwalk. 

On Saturday my focus was on making something beautiful. I took a class on washi chigiri-e, Japanese paper tearing. In the class they provided us with supplies, taught us the technique and guided us through our first project. 

Here's my finished product. The instructor told me my creative touches were "interesting". 

And of course the class was more fun because of the excellent company. 

And a week focusing on beauty wouldn't be complete if I didn't focus on myself. I spent Thursday evening with my friend (who happens to be a hair stylist). She pampered me, gave me a new look and helped me to feel beautiful. 

 

The top pics are the work in progress. The bottoms pics are the two different ways of wearing my hair: sleek vs. wavy. I love it. 

And now for the pic of the week:

I love this group shot at the Makapu'u puka. 

Mahalo!

Festival Season

Festival season was always my favorite time of year in Atlanta. When describing it to my Hawaiian friends I jokingly state it's the period between March and October where every weekend is filled with wine, beer, art and food. 

Right now winter is starting to feel like the Hawaiian festival season. A couple of weeks ago I was celebrating the New Year at the Japanese Cultural Center, this weekend was the beginning of the Chinese New Year celebrations. 

Chinese New Year is based on the lunar calendar so it's on a different date every year. This year the official date is February 19th though the festivities seem to be going on all month. 

Eat the Streets is a themed food truck event that occurs the last Friday. This month featured Chinese food, noodle dishes and a lion dance. Sadly my options for Chinese food were pretty limited, since every truck chose to use pork. Haha. 

Check out some pictures from the evening:

It isn't New Year without a lion dance!

I got a plate of garlic shrimp, mac salad and rice. More Hawaiian than Chinese, but still ono. 

The one "Chinese" special I was able to enjoy... dragon fruit lemonade. Check out how my drink matches my shirt that matches my glasses ;-)

And now for the pic of the week:

Mahalo!

Time for a Change

After a lot of thought I think I'm ready for something new. Some people might find moving to a new city, starting a new job and transforming my diet/exercise routine  to be quite a lot of change...but I'm not satisfied. 

So after a year of trying to grow long, luxurious "Hawaiian" hair I think I'm gonna go back to a shorter hairdo. Of course I've done my research and I've narrowed down my potential looks. 

This is what I always wanted my hair to look like, but try as I might I will never have a thick head of hair. 

So let's look at some more realistic options:

Choice #1: I mean, who isn't loving Taylor Swift's new cut!

Choice #2: The classic bob is always a winning look. 

Choice #3: Maybe with some stacking in the back I can "fake" thicker hair!

Choice #4: Maybe with shorter hair I can rock the "wavy-I-just-came-from-the-beach" look. 

If anyone has an opinion now is the time to weigh in...perhaps next week I'll have updated pictures of my new look!

And now for the pic of the week:

Check out this sweet ride. I think I may have found my next car...jk. 

Mahalo!