Color crush: Patriotic palette

Get into the 4th of July spirit with a little modern red, white and blue inspiration. Flag t-shirts and checkered tablecloths not included.

Wear your patriotism: Scarf / Necklace / Dress / Wallet / Eye shadow / Watch / Painting / Sunglasses / Tote / Bracelets / Shoes / Lipstick /  Nail polish / Jeans

Crush on more colors here.

To the river we go

A week of wakeboarding, camping on the boat, picnicking on the dock, swimming and catching up with family and friends awaits. We are so stoked to fly into the fiance's hometown today for the 4th of July holiday.

The majority of our vacation will be spent on the Columbia River, which is a special place to us. The fiance taught me to wakeboard and drive a boat there, and we've had our share of laughs while out cruising on the water. 

Below are some of the essentials that will accompany me on our aquatic adventure. I probably should've added a sweatshirt to the list considering it'll be about 30 degrees cooler in Washington. Yikes!

Grab the essentials: Sunscreen / Bikini top + bottom / WSU hat / Wakeboard / Sunglasses / Bag / Life vest / Camera / Coverup / Columbia River picture

A healthier me: Sassy support

Now that I've been working out for about a month, I figured it was time to treat myself to a little fitness gift. I'm the proud owner of new workout pants and two sports bras (including number one in this roundup). 

The philosophy I use in choosing gym attire is "function meets fashion." Just because you're getting all sweated out doesn't mean you can't look and feel cute. I've found that wearing materials like polyester and spandex (just say no to cotton) are best for moisture-wicking and breathability in sports bras. And those capabilities are key, especially now that I'm almost halfway through my running program.

Get the gear: 1 / 2 / 3 / 4 / 5 / 6 / 7 / 8 / 9 / 10 / 11 / 12

Check out more of my journey to a healthier me.

Better late than never

Time really does fly when you're having fun. I've been super busy getting ready for our upcoming trip home for the 4th of July (so stoked), but wanted to give you a little recap from our great weekend.

Lake Pleasant was a blast. We had an amazing time jet skiing, boating, swimming, cliff jumping, catching up with friends and meeting new people at our homie's birthday party Saturday. I'm so lame and got caught up in the fun and didn't take a single picture. Boooo to me. 

Sunday was low-key (aka spent recovering from said fun). We saw Bad Teacher (it was decently funny), had yummy dinner at one of our fave Pho joints and hit up Target for last-minute vacation supplies. Hope your weekend was lovely.

[via]

Five for Friday: A (not so tropical) heatwave

A hardcore heatwave has taken over Phoenix, so you best believe I'm counting down the minutes until the fiance and I head to Lake Pleasant for our friend and fellow WSU alum's (yay Danna!) birthday celebration. We're going directly to the H2O after I pick up the fiance from the airport. He's been gone all week on business, and I've missed him an ish ton!

The fiance has been cursing the humidity where he is in the South and longing for the dry Phoenix air. The funny (or crazy) thing is that it really didn't feel like 111 the other day. Maybe I'm acclimating to the AZ or my internal temperature sensor is fried. Either way, the time on the lake will be a nice tune-up for our trip back home for the 4th of July! Think lots of wakeboarding, swimming, sun bathing and laughter.

Before you head out to the fun times, behold the goodness from this week. Happy Weekend, party people!

1. Camping at Lake Pleasant

[via]

2. Ariel Gordon Jewelry

3. Klay Thompson getting drafted

4. The Couch to 5k iPhone app

5. Coppertone tanning lotion

The goodness of Friday's past awaits here.

From hippie to high fashion

For whatever reason, I have a bit of a fascination with tie dye. Maybe it's the abstracty patterns? Or the pretty colors? The modern and fresh take on the '60s and '70s staple is fun without being tacky. Do you wish this trend would go back to the original decades or is it here to stay?

Get the goodies: 1 / 2 / 3 / 4 / 5

Seen live: Thao & Mirah + Bobby + Led To Sea

Seeing Monday night's show featuring Thao and Mirah was about four years in the making. Their respective solo albums got me through many a stressful night working on deadline when I was in newspapers. 

So you can imagine my happiness when I read they were doing an album together. And I about passed out when I saw their tour would bring them right down the road from the townhouse to my fave Phoenix venue, The Rhythm Room.

Seattle violist/violinist Led To Sea and Massachusetts indie rockers Bobby opened the show. Unfortunately Bobby's set was cut short because of technical difficulites. But the three songs they played had me hooked. 

Thao and Mirah's set was a mix of their solo songs and tunes from their collaborative effort. I'm convinced there isn't an instrument that Thao doesn't play. The woman is a musical genius. And Mirah's sweet vocals floated effortlessly through the air. 

I met Led To Sea's L. Alex Guy (who is a fellow Washingtontian) and Thao after the show. Thao was super down to Earth. I thanked her for playing Arizona. In a time when many bands are boycotting for political reasons, it was refreshing to see an artist who cares and wants to make a difference. Thao and Mirah are also donating some of the proceeds from their tour to a charity in each city they play (such a cool idea).

Check out my past concert-going adventures here.

Hooray for summer weekends

Lots of fun ish going on around these parts. Summer is definitely in full effect here in the AZ, and the fiance and I are taking advantage. Hiking, delish eats, swimming and baseball were all essential ingredients to our great weekend.

Hike / Pad Thai / Workout clothes / Pool / Baseball game / Feline

Five for Friday: Escape the heat

The fiance and I will be spending as much time together as possible this weekend since he's headed to Kentucky and Tennessee for business next week. We're catching a Diamondbacks game tonight and have talked about taking a little day trip somewhere up north Saturday. Even though it's blazing here in Phoenix, the weather in the high country is perfect right now.

One of the things I love about residing in Arizona is that when it hits triple digits in the city, a cooler (and beautiful) reprieve awaits two hours north. If you ever visit the AZ, be sure to check out any (and all) of these places. Wherever you end up this weekend, may it be full of fun times.

1. Sedona/Oak Creek

2. Grand Canyon

3. Fossil Creek

4. Flagstaff

5. Prescott

See more of my Arizona adventures here and the Five for Friday archives here.

Fashion to furnishings: To-die-for tie dye

It hit 110 here yesterday (it really only felt like 92), so that means the summer uniform of fab dresses is here to stay. I'm digging all of the tie-dyed ish I've been seeing everywhere. We're not talking the hippie or 80s hypercolor crap. It's modern and oh so pretty. So when I came across this beauty that combines both, I was super inspired.

Get the goodies: Dress / Poster / Lamp / Rug / Tumbler / Console / Pillow

More outfits-turned-cool ish can be found here.

In the kitchen: Asian chicken noodle broth

It seems like Gwyneth Paltrow is everywhere these days: Singing on Glee, starring in movies, helping me in the kitchen. I discovered her lifestyle newsletter GOOP and was really impressed by the yummy recipes she features. In the name of my lifestyle change, I'm eating better (the fiance is along for the ride).

Looking for a nutritious yet tasty meal, I turned to Gwyneth. And she came through in her newsletter about Jamie Oliver's Food Revolution. Pretty sure his Asian chicken noodle broth created a revolution in our tummies. It was delicious, filling and super easy to make (and this is coming from somebody who has like zero culinary skills). Happy cooking!

Serves 2

1 tablespoon mixed seeds (pumpkin, poppy, sun flower)

a small handful of raw cashew nuts

1 quart chicken broth, preferably organic

2 skinless chicken breast fillets, preferably free-range or organic

2 teaspoons five-spice powder

sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

olive oil

a thumb-sized piece of fresh root ginger

½ to 1 fresh red chili, to your taste

4 ounces rice sticks or vermicelli

a handful of snow peas

6 thin asparagus spears or 4 regular-sized spears

6 fresh baby corn or 1/2 cup fresh corn kernels

soy sauce

juice of 1 lime

a small handful of spinach leaves

Check out my past cooking adventures here.

A healthier me: Where the magic happens

As a way to chronicle the journey to a healthier me, I'll write about different aspects of the process. It's mostly to keep me accountable, but it'll also be cool to reflect on when I reach my goal.

This week, I wanted to share where the pain magic happens. I'm lucky to have a nice gym in my complex. The "fitness center" in other places I've resided usually consisted of a busted treadmill and rickety '80s Bowflex equipment even the Goodwill would reject.

Sometimes there are nasty people who don't wipe down the machines (ewwwwwwwwwww) or those who are just plain psycho (the dude who tried to duct tape a laptop to the treadmill). But it's still better than nothing.

And I'm happy to report that I dropped seven pounds and successfully completed the first stage of my running program this past week. Go me!

[Top: The motivating view of the pool from the treadmill / Second: The cardio area where I spend the majority of my workouts / Third: The trusty stairclimber / Bottom: Gettin' swoll on the weight machines]

Happy Birthday, Mama!

Even though the distance separates us, you are always with me, Mom. I wish you nothing but the best in the upcoming year. Without you, there would be no me. I love you.

Five for Friday: Fun in progress

There's lots of fun (to me) ish going down this weekend. Getting started on another design project, finishing up my first week of working out and making progress on my latest furniture revamp are all on the agenda. I'm trying to convince the fiance to check out The Hangover Part II, but he's totally anti. I've heard it's pretty much the same storyline, but I laughed my ace off (and still do) at the first movie.

Here's to a non-sucky weekend!

1. Danika's gorgeous overlays

2. Kate Spade's expanded tabletop collection

1 / 2 / 3 / 4 / 5 / 6

3. Kelly's Skinny blog

4. Megan's boob paintings for breast cancer

5. Google's Les Paul Doodle

[My guitar solo]

More Five for Friday awaits here.

Take me out to the ballgame

Even though I live in Arizona now and have free season tickets to the Diamondbacks (who's gonna turn down free ish, especially free baseball?!), I'll be a Washington sports fan forever. The Seattle Mariners, in particular, will always be my team. They've had quite the turnaround and are second in their division after a dismal start.

My Mom and I had a mother/daughter day at a game when I was home in April, and it was a lot of fun. I get my love of baseball from her, so it's nice to share the experience. And it helped they won and it was Felix Hernandez bobblehead night.

Although it hasn't been easy rooting for my home state's sports teams the past few years,  I couldn't imagine cheering for anyone else.

Wear your fandom: Foam finger | Shoes | Shirt | Bows | Undies | Skirt | Bracelet

[Spending the day at the ballpark with my Mom during my trip home in April]

This makes me happy

[via]

Sentiment + typography + colors = Me likey.

A healthier me: Back at the beginning

Sometimes I don't know how personal to get in the blogosphere, but here it goes. I need to make a lifestyle change. And I need to write about it here to hold myself accountable. Weight is something I've struggled with, and I'm tired of feeling like ish.

It's easy to forgo fitness and grab whatever premade crap is available sitting at a desk or couch blogging and graphic designing. But the excuses stop today. Last fall, I lost 20 pounds, so I know it can be done. But my problem is sustaining the motivation to hit the gym and eat better once I've achieved my goal.

My 30th birthday is in October (yikes) and I want to slim down to commemorate the milestone. But mostly I just want to feel good about myself. Fitting in those skinny jeans wouldn't hurt, either. I'm far from the shape I was in when I was at the gym five days a week and running 5Ks, but I'm determined to get back there.

Dirty 6 Mud Run 2 / Saturday, Sept. 24 2011

Get the essentials: 1. SparkRecipes + Couch-To-5K apps / 2. WSU T-shirt / 3. Moisture-wicking pants / 4. Journal / 5. Water bottle / 6. iPod nano / 7. Supportive shoes

Color crush: Sunny yellow

With the blazing sun in full effect here in the AZ, bright yellow seems appropriate (gnarly sweat and heat stroke not included)! The citrustry hue makes me happy and has been a long-time fave. It was the primary color in my dorm room decor freshman year of college and is currently featured in the townhouse living room. What colors are you digging lately?

Get the goodies: 1 / 2 / 3 / 4 / 5 / 6 / 7 / 8

Love color? Me, too. Check out the other hues I adore here.