Things I Used to Love: Valentine's Day

A small sample of the Valentine's Day provisions at my local Target.

Since it's February 13, I figured there was only one appropriate topic for this week's Thing I Used to Love: Valentine's Day. My love for this holiday has prompted several displays of affection over the years, ranging from sweet to downright ridiculous.

To be clear, I embraced Valentine's Day with the objective of celebrating love. Not romantic love, necessarily, but love for my family, friends, and important people in my life. As Julie from The Real World: New Orleans (the one from 2000) once said, "You don't need a lover on Valentine's Day, you just gotta have love!" I couldn't agree more.

In high school, I wanted to show appreciation for the special people in my life, and take some of the focus away from being part of a couple on this day. If the world can assign one day a year to make people feel particularly bad about being single, I wanted to do the opposite: to make sure people felt loved, regardless of whether they were in a relationship. So I sent roses to my girlfriends and baked cookies to hand out to all of my pals. I was also a tad, uh, snarky in high school, so I would often give cookies to people I felt I had wronged. My senior year, I gave some to a younger boy I'd been arguing with a lot as a token of apology. I'm not sure he took it that way, as he avoided me for the rest of the semester as if I had confessed my undying love for him, but oh well. Better he felt love than hate, I guess.

In college, I had a huge crush on someone we'll call Movie Theater Boy. He seemed like kind of a lone wolf, and – at a small college where everyone eats together and has specific areas of the cafeteria where they always sit – I admired his ability to be content alone. I enlisted my friend Mo, who worked in the mailroom, to send him a anonymous valentine: a box of candy (generic in nature; a heart-shaped box would've revealed too much) with a note that simply said "Happy Valentine's Day!" I don't think he ever knew it was me – and no relationship ever developed – but I'm glad I sent it, just in case he wasn't as content with being alone as he seemed.

Once I transferred to CU, I left Movie Theater Boy behind and focused on building friendships. So in the days leading up to February 14, I made lots of goodies and shipped them to about a dozen friends, topped with a note with my favorite quote from Love Actually:

"Whenever I get gloomy with the state of the world, I think about the arrivals gate at Heathrow Airport. General opinion's starting to make out that we live in a world of hatred and greed, but I don't see that. It seems to me that love is everywhere. Often, it's not particularly dignified or newsworthy, but it's always there – fathers and sons, mothers and daughters, husbands and wives, boyfriends, girlfriends, old friends. When the planes hit the Twin Towers, as far as I know, none of the phone calls from the people on board were messages of hate or revenge – they were all messages of love. If you look for it, I've got a sneaking suspicion that you'll find love actually is all around."

Fast-forward to 2007: T. Bob and I had been together for nearly a year, and I knew I wanted to do something special. As a broke 22-year-old, a traditional romantic gesture like a trip to Paris or even a fancy night on the town wasn't really in the cards. So I focused on something smaller that I knew he would like.

T. Bob with his truckload of grape juice.

I waited until he left for work one day, then went to his house and filled the bed of his Blazer with grape juice, his drink of choice. He loved the surprise and enjoyed that grape juice for a solid six months.

Now that I'm more mature (or just old and married?), the societal pressure around Valentine's Day seems to have faded. I still try to find special little ways to let my friends and family know that I care about them, I just don't feel compelled to do it on February 14. But if you are feeling particularly lovey-dovey tomorrow, consider doing something special for someone to show them that you care. I promise you won't regret it.

High Five for Friday

Yay, it's really Friday! With the midweek holiday, I thought Tuesday was Friday and Wednesday was Sunday, so I'm all turned around. Since I didn't do a High Five last week, I'm just going to cover the whole holiday period, since it's really all a blur anyway. Some of my favorite things from the last two weeks are:

1. Time with friends and family: I tried to unplug some over the holidays and really be present while hanging out with my loved ones. Thus, I have zero photos of my various Christmas/New Year activities. Not great for blogging purposes, but I think it was easier to be in the moment and enjoy the company that way.

2. Cards Against Humanity: This game is similar to Apples to Apples, except waaaaay raunchier. Which is right up my alley, so I love it. We played with my family on Christmas Day (playing with your parents is an interesting experience), then again with pals on New Year's Eve. Good times.

A sample Cards Against Humanity round. These were chosen at random,
so it gives you an idea of how bawdy it is. Obviously, it's not a game for children.

3. My new gym bag: I've been using a giant reusable grocery bag as a gym bag for a few years (yeah, I'm cheap - and it was so big grocery store clerks seemed afraid of it, so I had to find an alternative use), but my mom got me an actual gym bag for Christmas. It's so nice! It's lined, waterproof, and super cute. Plus, having pockets for my electronic stuff (heart rate monitor, headphones) and a little pouch for my toiletries really cuts down on time spent rooting around while getting ready. It's something I didn't think I needed but definitely appreciate.

Showing off my new bag with my best Price is Right model pose.
Just pretend my sweaty gym clothes are a sparkly cocktail dress.

4. Getting back in the gym: I've been kinda half-assing it in the workout department lately (skipping my lifting days, cutting workouts short, or just not going at all), but I finally have my resolve back. I lifted three days this week, and while it was pretty dang tough (turns out consistency is the key to progress, who knew?), it felt great. I'll share more about this on Monday.

5. The Secret Life of Walter Mitty: I've been going to the movies like it's my job the past few weeks (all the big movies I've been waiting for are finally out!) and this was one of my favorites. I can be a snarky bitch sometimes, but at heart I want to be optimistic and take chances and embrace the good in life, and this movie totally appealed to that side of me. 

I hope you all have a wonderful weekend. I'm linking up with Jennie and Lauren; check out their blogs below. Happy 2014!

Gingerbread Two Ways

Plate of treats I made last year - including my beloved gingerbread, bottom right.

I've been known to make copious treats for the holidays. In years past, I've taken a vacation day in the week before Christmas and spent several hours in the kitchen, concocting 4-5 types of cookies and candy. This year, I decided to scale back a bit. I'm trying to lose weight, so I really don't need dozens of cookies around. And I just don't have the time or inclination to bake that much this year. Thus, I decided I would make only my very favorite cookies this year: gingerbread.

I came upon this recipe after going vegan in 2008. Some recipes can be "veganized" by subbing vegan margarine for butter, etc., but that can be hit-or-miss. This gingerbread, however, is what I like to call accidentally vegan, in that the recipe doesn't call for any dairy or eggs. I'd never been a big gingerbread fan, but this recipe changed all that. It makes a soft, spicy dough that you can cut festive shapes out of and pipe adorable decorations onto. Perfect Christmas cookies.

This year, though, something went awry. I think it was because I used blackstrap molasses instead of regular molasses (as it was the only kind King Soopers had, and I was too lazy to go to another store). The dough was so gooey it was nearly impossible to roll out, and it was so sticky I couldn't get the cut cookies off the counter in one piece. I tried chilling the dough for another hour, then adding some extra flour to dry it out, but it didn't help. I also tried cursing it into submission, but (shockingly) that didn't work, either. My first instinct was to just give up. This quote, from the excellent film Forgetting Sarah Marshall, came to mind:

I was disappointed, because baking is my thing and I make tons of treats every year and everyone would be expecting them. I thought about making a new batch of dough, but that would've put me way behind schedule. But then I remembered a Facebook exchange I'd had with an old friend after writing this post. I came away from it resolved to stop getting caught up in holiday crazy and focus on doing things I enjoy and spending time with people I love. So I decided to stop stressing and make it work.Yes, I wouldn't be making my usual gingerbread men that everyone thought were so adorable and yummy, but I could still salvage the approximately five pounds of dough I had (yeah, I tripled the recipe) and make something, right? So I rolled the dough into balls, popped them in the oven, and hoped for the best.

Gingerbread whoopie pies with peppermint buttercream filling. 

I ended up with super soft, really flavorful cookies. They're not terribly sweet, so I used some peppermint buttercream I had in the fridge (cupcake leftovers) to up the sugar factor. I sandwiched them together, crushed up some candy canes to coat the sides, and voilà! Cute Christmas treat. It certainly wasn't what I was expecting, but it still turned out just fine.

Gingerbread Cookies

½ cup brown sugar
½ cup shortening
¾ cup dark molasses (or blackstrap, if you're in the mood for whoopie pies)
1/3 cup cold water
3 ½ cups all purpose flour
1 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. ginger
½ tsp. salt
½ tsp. ground allspice
½ tsp. ground cloves
½ tsp. ground cinnamon 

Mix brown sugar, shortening, molasses, and water. Add remaining ingredients and mix until combined. Cover and refrigerate at least two hours. If you're aiming for whoopie pies, roll dough into balls and place on cookie sheet. If you want gingerbread men, roll out dough to ¼” thick. Cut cookies and place 2" apart on baking sheet. Bake at 350 degrees for 10 minutes.

The peppermint frosting was made using the buttercream recipe from Vegan Cupcakes Take Over the World, but I subbed peppermint extract for vanilla. If you choose to make gingerbread men, I usually ice them with a mixture of powdered sugar, water, and a dash of lemon juice (just add the liquid a tablespoon at a time to powdered sugar until you've reached the taste/consistency you want).

In closing, I offer you my takeaway from this experience: work with what you've got and try to enjoy the ride, because everything's going to be just fine. Happy Christmas to all, and to all a good night!

Things I Used to Love: Love Actually

My Love Actually poster. I got it when I worked at a video store in college and it's graced every home I've had since.

Since there's one Thursday left before Christmas, I have a final holiday throwback for you: Love Actually. I have to say, right out of the gate, that I still absolutely love this movie. I'm not really a fan of most traditional romantic movies: they're unrealistic, or they reinforce gender stereotypes I don't agree with (I submit Exhibit A for your consideration). And don't get me started on movies based on Nicholas Sparks books. But not only is Love Actually one of my favorite Christmas movies, it's one of my favorite movies OF ALL TIME. Top three, for sure. Something about it really struck a chord with me, so it’s easy for me to overlook any rom-com cheesiness involved.

The voiceover that opens the movie really sets the tone for the whole film. I loved the quote so much, I printed it on all of my Valentines the following February (I used to be BIG into Valentine's Day, but that's a story for another time):

"Whenever I get gloomy with the state of the world, I think about the arrivals gate at Heathrow Airport. General opinion's starting to make out that we live in a world of hatred and greed, but I don't see that. It seems to me that love is everywhere. Often, it's not particularly dignified or newsworthy, but it's always there – fathers and sons, mothers and daughters, husbands and wives, boyfriends, girlfriends, old friends. When the planes hit the Twin Towers, as far as I know, none of the phone calls from the people on board were messages of hate or revenge – they were all messages of love. If you look for it, I've got a sneaking suspicion that you'll find love actually is all around."

The movie follows the lives of several Londoners in the weeks leading up to Christmas. We have the more traditional, grand-gesture love stories: The Prime Minister (Hugh Grant), who develops a crush on his catering manager, Natalie (Martine McCutcheon). Jamie (Colin Firth), who harbors strong feelings for his housekeeper (Lucia Moniz) despite a language barrier. Or Mark (Andrew Lincoln), who has a complicated relationship with his best friend's new wife (Keira Knightley). But I really enjoy the quieter, everyday relationships: Jack (Martin Freeman) and Judy (Joanna Page), who start dating after working as (naked) stand-ins on a movie together. Or the aging rock star (Bill Nighy), who comes to realize the important role his manager (Gregor Fisher) has played in his life. I also like the familial relationships, particularly between Daniel (Liam Neeson) and his stepson, Sam (Thomas Brodie-Sangster), who charter a new course after losing their wife/mother.

I first saw Love Actually in December 2003 (a decade ago?!? Eesh). I had just finished my first semester at CU and decided to treat myself to a solo movie to relax after finals. I have a clear memory of driving home afterward: it was around midnight, snow was falling, and the world looked so peaceful. I felt revitalized and inspired to tell/show people how important they were to me. Since then, I make a point to watch it at least once a year, particularly around the holidays, and it always has the same heart-melting effect. Thus, I feel it more than earns its tagline of "the ultimate romantic comedy," particularly given that one definition of romantic is "inclined toward or suggestive of the feeling of excitement and mystery associated with love." It's not just about the guy getting the girl in the end, it's about being excited about possibility and investing in the important relationships in your life.

The film is not for everyone. I'll never forget sitting at Christmas Eve dinner and listening to my grandma call it "the best porn [she's] ever seen." I was horrified and tried to argue its virtues to her to no avail. And when a girl in my journalism classed called it a trainwreck, my only retort was: “But love ACTUALLY IS all around!” I don’t think I changed her mind, either. There's also plenty of online backlash, but I know better than to argue via online comments so I will just say haters gonna hate and let that one go. But in my eyes, Love Actually is about embracing love in all of its forms, and I really can't find fault with that.

Getting Busy

And by that, I mean my life is. Holiday activities are in full swing around these parts. For example, I meant to have this post ready to go for Monday morning, but this weekend was so chock-full of goodness, I just couldn't get it together until Tuesday. So, let's recap, shall we?

On Friday night, I met my sister, Mal, and some of Mal's family at Odyssey, a cute little Italian restaurant in Denver. The spinach ravioli was pretty dang tasty, and Mal's dad was a hoot! Then I headed home to bake, as one must on Friday nights when one lives on the edge. 

Cookies and cream cupcakes. The recipe will be posted at some
point, but I wouldn't recommend holding your breath while you wait.

On Saturday morning, I finished up my Oreo cupcakes, and we headed to Mal's graduation party in Centennial. It was fun to hang out with family and friends, and meet some important people in Mal's life. Her sister, Chelsea, also made a slideshow of photos of Mal through the years, which was totally cute. My favorite part, though, was Mal's reaction upon opening her gift from T. Bob and me:

So excited!

We gave her a Sega console (she'd been wanting one), and she was like a kid on Christmas morning. Completely adorable. We came home and watched Love Actually, which is one of my favorite movies – even though I may have fallen asleep by the end.

Sunday morning, T. Bob and I went to see The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug. What I saw of it seemed pretty good, but once again I fell asleep, so I don't remember much. There are a bunch of holiday movies I want to watch, so I'm hoping I can break myself of this habit to avoid missing them!

Rockin' our sweet 3D glasses after my refreshing nap.

Sunday evening, we headed downtown for our annual Christmas date. I like to find a holiday-themed activity for us to do every year – in the past, we've gone to Zoo Lights, watched Miracle on 34th Street at the Arvada Center, and gone shopping for gifts for children in need. Just a fun activity to get us into the spirit. This year, we went to see Cirque Dreams Holidaze at the Denver Center.

We started the evening at the Wazee Supper Club, which I had never visited before but really liked. The decor was cute and the food was really tasty. We had pierogies and stromboli, both of which were cheesy and delicious.

View from our table.

After dinner, we wandered around downtown, window shopping and looking at all of the Christmas decorations, before heading to the show. 

T. Bob with the windmill at the German holiday market, off 16th Street Mall.
They had food, ornaments, and roasted nuts that smelled amazing. 

The show itself was great, it was similar to a Cirque du Soleil performance, but it had some acts I had never seen before. My favorite was a couple who kept changing their outfits in a matter of seconds (seriously, like two seconds). I have no idea how they did it! But it was definitely fun to watch. Then we headed home and stayed up way too late to watch the season finale of Homeland (which was pretty intense! I'm not sure where the show goes from here, honestly). Overall, a great weekend. What did y'all get up to this weekend?

High Five for Friday

My dessert plate at my company party. That little holly leaf and tiny lemon slice are so cute!
Also, if you can't have four desserts at Christmas, when can you? 

Happy Friday, y'all! I've managed to banish my Scrooge-like attitude and have fully embraced the onslaught of holiday activities coming my way. Thus, this week's High Five is pretty Christmas-centric:

1. My company's holiday party was last Friday, and it was so much fun. Great food, cocktails, a white elephant gift exchange (where I scored a Vera Bradley wristlet!), and super-cute desserts. And it was great to spend some time with my co-workers outside of the office.

2. Gingerbread Oreos – tough to find, impossible not to binge-eat. Track some down, because they are delicious. I kinda want to go buy more now that I'm thinking about them.

3. The pug puppy version of Home Alone. So adorable!

4. I am done Christmas shopping and 90% of the gifts are wrapped and ready to party. I like to get that out of the way early so I can spend more time enjoying activities as the holiday approaches.

5. The arctic chill we'd been experiencing has finally worn off! It was downright frigid for about a week there, but the forecast is calling for highs in the 40s and 50s for the rest of the week. Not having to worry about your exposed flesh freezing when you go outside is definitely preferable.

So that was my week. Tell me about yours! As usual, linking up with the lovely ladies below.

Things I Used to Love: The Baby-Sitters Special Christmas

Ah, memories. This is exactly what my copy looks like, but I think it's tucked away at my parents' house somewhere, so this stunning visual is coming to you courtesy of Etsy. 

We're going to continue the holiday theme for Things I Used to Love with a real gem: The Baby-Sitters Special Christmas!

The Baby-Sitters Club started out as a YA (or even pre-teen) book series in the mid-'80s. It centers around a group of middle-school-aged friends who start a baby-sitting club. The Baby-Sitters Special Christmas is one episode of the TV show made based on the books, and it came out around 1991. I'm not sure how I came to own this VHS, but I'm assuming my parents saw it, knew of my obsession with the books, and thought it would make a great gift, which it absolutely did. I'm kinda surprised the tape never broke, because we watched this on repeat from Thanksgiving to Christmas for years.

The Special Christmas episode focuses on the baby-sitters as they prepare for Christmas, and hijinks ensue. Kristy, the president of the club, wants an expensive new baseball mitt and agrees to do extra chores around the house to help pay for it. The girls are also planning a party for the children at their local hospital to celebrate the season. And everyone goes Secret Santa shopping at the same store AT THE SAME TIME. But things take a serious turn when the focus switches to Stacey. She's diabetic, but she's been sneaking sweets and Dawn starts policing her behavior because she's concerned. Also, the younger Pete from The Adventures Pete & Pete is it is as a mischievous baby-sitting charge, so there's really something for everyone.

I'll admit, watching this as an adult I have to call it what it is: a total cheesefest. It's overacted, there's dramatic music to signify something bad has happened, and the plot points lack subtlety (to put it nicely). But it does have a good message (embracing the Christmas spirit and spending time with your friends and family above getting gifts). And it's only 29 minutes long, so you really haven't killed much of your life if you want to watch it. And since the entire Baby-Sitters Club series is available on Netflix, you can watch it anytime! Be sure to thank the sweet baby Jesus for that Christmas miracle.

Things I Used to Love: The Muppet Christmas Carol

I thought for this week's Things I Used to Love I'd switch it up from TV shows and make the leap to ... a movie! Quite a stretch, I know.

I'm pretty sure The Muppet Christmas Carol is the first holiday movie I ever saw in the theater. My sister and I were spending the day after Thanksgiving with my grandparents in Boulder while my parents attended the CU-Nebraska game (back in the day, when CU played Nebraska and actually had a decent football team). We arrived at at the theater early and waited with my grandma while Grandpa tried to find a parking spot, stopped at the concession stand, and made our way into the packed auditorium. Nowadays, that kind of crowd would drive me crazy, but for 8-year-old me, it just added to the excitement and novelty of the day. We spent many a gameday with my grandparents growing up, but this outing sticks out as one of my fondest memories of that time.

The movie is a take on Dickens' A Christmas Carol, starring Muppet characters – in case you couldn't infer that from the name: Kermit and Miss Piggy are the Crachits, Gonzo is Charles Dickens (who narrates the movie), Statler and Waldorf play the ghost(s) of Marley, etc. There's a few non-puppet characters as well, most notably Michael Caine as Scrooge. It stays fairly true to the original story, but it also has SONGS! I love me some musicals, so this is icing on the cake.

While the Muppets were my first exposure to A Christmas Carol, I try to watch a rendition every year. The Denver Center does an annual production that is great, if you're into live theater. I also watched the CGI Jim Carrey version that came out a few years ago, although I'm not crazy about it. But no matter the delivery, I love this story and think its message is particularly relevant this time of year. It reminds me to be thankful for what I have, and of the importance of goodwill.

If you're looking for a festive film this year, Amazon has it on Blu-Ray, DVD and streaming video. Although I loved this movie as a child, I still think this is a fine holiday film for the whole family. But I know that's a pretty crowded field, so I'll open it up for discussion: what was your favorite Christmas movie growing up?

It's Beginning to Look a lot Like Christmas

Now that it's December, I feel the holiday season has officially begun (I know it's already been Christmas for several weeks for some people, but I always like to hold off until after Thanksgiving to give turkey day its due). My weekend activities would certainly reflect that: I watched a couple of Christmas/winter movies (Frozen and Elf), put our Christmas tree up, ate some peppermint sticks, and started shopping for gifts.

Typically, I love Christmas. I spend a day baking around 10,000 cookies, and I plan out holiday shows and choir concerts to go to every weekend. I really like getting people gifts, particularly the excitement of picking out something I know they'll enjoy. And I love spending time with my family and friends who come home for the holidays. But as much as I want to be excited about this holiday season, I'm not. Maybe I'll get there as it draws closer, but right now I'm not really into it. I'm doing things I usually enjoy in hopes that they'll get me pumped about what's to come, but thus far it's not working.

Possible reason for my lack of Christmas spirit.

Maybe it's the fact that I'm getting a cold and not feeling awesome, or my dread of freezing temperatures (highs in the teens here starting Wednesday!). Or maybe I'm turning into a curmudgeon in my old age. But my Christmas spirit is definitely MIA. I'm hopeful I'll find it at some point in the next three weeks, but until then, I'll try to keep the Scrooge-like behavior to a minimum. If you have any tips on getting into the holidays (or you feel the same way and want to get together and shout "Bah! Humbug!" at people), please feel free to share. Happy Monday, y'all!

Thanksgiving Recipe Round-Up

My plate from last year's feast. All vegan, all delicious.

Happy Thanksgiving eve! In case you haven't noticed, I love me some food, so I thought I would compile some of my favorite recipes for this holiday that centers around it. So if you're one of those crazy people who hasn't ventured to the store yet, here's some ideas for you. :)

What I'm actually making:
We're headed to my uncle's house for Thanksgiving this year, so I'm only bringing one thing: vegan stuffing. Stuffing has always been my favorite part of the Thanksgiving meal, so I had to find a suitable replacement once I stopped eating meat. This stuff more than meets expectations: it's moist, flavorful, and so tasty. Plus there are a few other veg-heads on my mom's side of the family, so I like to bring a veganized favorite.

Vegan stuffing
1/3 cup Earth Balance
1/2 cup chopped celery
1/4 cup chopped onion
5 cups soft bread cubes (I usually use a loaf of French bread)
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon sage
1/4 teaspoon pepper
1/2 cup finely chopped parsley
1/4 cup (or more, I make sure it's good and saturated because I like it moist) No-Chicken broth (this is great stuff, made by Imagine. But you can use vegetable broth, too.)

In a skillet, melt Earth Balance. Add celery and onion and saute until tender. Toss in remaining ingredients and bake in a greased casserole dish for 20 minutes at 375 degrees.

What I've made in years past and loved:

Sweet Potato Apple Bake - from Aunt Stephanie, not sure of the original origin
2 large sweet potatoes
1 1/2 cups apple juice
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
3-4 coriander pods
1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
1/2 cup raisins
4 tart apples (like Granny Smith)

Peel potatoes and cut into 1-inch cubes. Mix salt and spices with apple juice. Combine juice mixture with popaties in a lightly greased 9x13" pan. Cover and bake at 350 degrees for about 50 minutes. While potatoes are in the oven, peel, core and dice the apples. After the 50 minutes, add the apples and raisins to potatoes. Stir, cover and bake for another 30 minutes. Remove cover and bake for a final 10 minutes.

Green Bean Casserole - from my sister Lindsay, not sure of original origin
1/4 cup margarine
1/4 cup flour
1 1/2 cups No-Chicken broth
1 tablespoon soy sauce
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
1/4 cup nutritional yeast
2 14.5-oz. cans of French-cut green beans (or you can use frozen, which I prefer)
1 2.8 oz. can French-fried onions

In a medium saucepan, melt margarine over low heat. Add the flour and whisk it continuously for 1-2 minutes until it forms a roux. Add the broth, soy sauce, and garlic powder, whisking continuously for 1-2 minutes until thick and bubbly. Add oil and nutritional yeast; whisk again until smooth. Pour sauce into small casserole dish, add beans and stir to coat. Bake for 10 minutes at 350 degrees. Add onions and bake for 10 more minutes until browned and bubbly.


What I'd like to make:
- This Sweet Potato Pie recipe from Joy the Baker looks divine. I don't love pumpkin pie, so I think this would be a great alternative. I might end up making it this afternoon, but that would mean going to the store and I'm not sure I'm willing to take my life in my hands.

I hope you all have a wonderful holiday filled with friends, family, and food. My gym is hosting a 90-minute Turkey Blast Off kickboxing class tomorrow morning, so I'm hoping to get a good workout in before the feast. Happy Thanksgiving!