Tag Archives: Christmas

Dec26

A Very Merry Christmas!

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A Very Merry Christmas!

Good Morning! I hope everyone had a fantastic Christmas! I personally had a wonderful holiday filled with lots of cheer.  We spent Christmas Eve at my Aunt and Uncle’s house celebrating with a Yankee swap, a Swedish Smorgasbord, and lots of family.  It was really nice to see everyone and catch up.  Yesterday my family opened gifts, had a delicious Christmas brunch complete with egg strata, fruit salad, and Swedish Christmas bread.  For dinner we had family friends over to celebrate with us! My mom made a delicious Prime Rib with all sorts of sides and Shrimp Bisque for an appetizer.  I’ll share my Christmas eats on Wednesday for the What I Ate Wednesday! I also learned how to make my Mom’s famous Chocolate Cream Pie on Christmas Day!

My mom teaching me to make Chocolate Cream Pie!

Santa brought me a few gifts that I am so excited about!  I finally got a Le Creuset pot.  I have wanted this for years and am so excited to get home and start cooking! I’ll definitely be making some soup in the next few days!  My mom got me Red which I love!

My New Le Creuset!

My brother got me some new yoga clothes which I absolutely love and can’t wait to wear in the studio!

New Yoga Tank!

He got me leggings with a cute skirt over the top which can be cinched to change the length! I absolutely love it and know I will wear it all the time to yoga, especially when I am running errands or meetings friends after.

New Yoga Pants!

He also bought me an adorable jacket to go with the outfit! It will be so cute come spring and I know I will wear it a ton!

Adorable New Jacket!

I’ll definitely be looking so cute in 2012! I also got some other great gifts including a beautiful pair of earrings and new things for my apartment! My mom also picked out some great new outfits for me! It was a success! My brother and I gave my parents an iPad for Christmas! They absolutely loved it! It was a great Christmas for everyone!

I’m off to enjoy my last day at home with my family! We are heading to my Aunt and Uncle’s to socialize with my cousins! It’s been a tradition for years and I’m really looking forward to it!

What was your favorite gift?  Did you get gifts that will help you eat healthy and live an active lifestyle?  What was your favorite part of the holiday?

Dec23

Five For Friday! Holiday Edition!

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Five For Friday! Holiday Edition!

Ah, Friday! This morning I’m sleeping in (thank you scheduled posts!) and am home at my parents house.  I have a ridiculously comfy bed there with super soft sheets and nice warm down comforter.  It’s pretty much heaven.  I’m really looking forward to this day.  Why?  Because I’m meeting up with two friends I haven’t seen in months!  One, is a woman who I helped coach Nordic Skiing with and went to elementary, junior high, and high school and was friends with her sons.  She has known me since I was a little girl.  I’ve always admired her.  She is a runner, skier, road biker, cancer survivor, great mom and friend and she loves to give back to her community.  I hope someday she’ll do a guest post here!  I haven’t seen her in over a year so I’m really looking forward to catching up.  We reconnected and arranged this thanks to my fund-raising for Team in Training.  So much good coming in my life from such a good cause! I’m also meeting up with a good friend of mine who I have known since I was a child.  We have always remained friends and kept in touch.  She lived in Boston for the last year and a half but moved to California in August.  I am so excited to hear all about California and her life out there.  We grew up taking ballet together and now she is a Physical Therapist and loves running and working out.  We have so much in common! I’m also going to get a manicure, it’s been ages and I really want one for the holidays and our trip to Montreal for New Years! It all culminates with Christmas at my Grandma’s with my Mom’s side of the family!

So today I wanted to share my top 5 holiday favorites! I’m more excited about the holiday today then working out or running and yoga and am pretty sure you all are too.  I’ll get back to running and yoga and healthy living on Monday…ok maybe Tuesday! 

Christmas Lights.

I love Christmas Lights! I love trees and houses all decorated and wreathes on doors.  I love it all.  Which is in part why I love this video!

The Radio City Christmas Spectacular!

Michael took me to see this for my Christmas present on Saturday night.  It was a surprise and I absolutely loved it! I love how high they can kick and how precise they all are.  I have the utmost respect for these women.  Did you know they do over 1,500 kicks a day?  Talk about a workout!

The Radio City Christmas Spectacular!

Swedish Meatballs!

I get these once a year and love them.  My mom makes the best and they are so delicious! I can’t wait for Christmas Eve!

Swedish Meatballs!

Vacation Time!

I’m on vacation for 11 days straight! This is the most time off in one chunk I’ve had all year so I am very much looking forward to it! I plan to sleep in, finish planning my fundraising event for Team in Training, create some vlogs for you all, socialize with friends and family, run in the daylight, get some studying done for NASM CPT, watch movies, relax and ring in the New Year in Montreal with Michael.  Yes, it’s likely going to fly by trying to fit all that in!

New Years in Montreal!

Gift Giving!

I love Christmas Shopping! I love taking the time to think about what someone may like and want and I always try to take the time to put a personal touch on it.  This makes gift giving so fun for me and I really love it!  I can’t wait to see my family’s reaction!

Gift Giving!

I hope you all have a very Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays! I am looking forward to reading all of your holiday recaps and hearing about how you spent the holidays.  Enjoy your family and friends!

What are your five holiday favorites today? What are you looking forward to the most this weekend? What are your big holiday plans? Do you celebrate with family and friends?

Dec22

Let’s Play a Game…25 Questions! Holiday Style!

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Let’s Play a Game…25 Questions! Holiday Style!

THURSDAY!! I am so excited and officially on vacation at 5pm today! I’m not working again until 2012 and it is fantastic.  I have lots of family things planned and some down time for myself and a trip to Montreal to ring in the New Year with Michael! I hope to relax, recharge and have some fun.  Since I’m in the holiday spirit and looking forward to Christmas I thought I share some Christmas Cheer! Athena over at Fitness and Feta did 25 Questions: Holiday Style and I loved her post.  I loved it so much I decided to do it here on LiveRunLoveYoga!  So let’s play shall we!

25 Questions! Holiday Style!

Eggnog or hot chocolate?

Hot Chocolate! Always! I am a huge fan of hot cocoa and drink it often in the winter months.  I love it with a dollop of whip cream!

Does Santa wrap presents or just sit them under the tree?

Santa wraps presents.  Growing up my entire family (all 20 or so of us) would stay at my Aunt’s house Christmas Eve.  In the morning we would wake up to a mound of Christmas presents surrounding the tree…seriously you could only see the top half of the tree.  It was essential all things were wrapped and labelled!

This doesn't really do it justice...

Colored lights on tree/house or white?

Colored! We always had colored growing up and it reminds me of my childhood.  Now that we are all grown up sometimes my Mom puts white lights on.  I think the tree looks gorgeous that way too but still prefer colored.

Do you hang mistletoe?

Nope, not our thing.

When do you hang your decorations up?

The Friday and Saturday after Thanksgiving.  When I moved to my first apartment I was 15 minutes from my parents house.  My Mom and I went and got all new decorations for my new apartment and made it looks so pretty for the holidays!  She still decorates the whole house that weekend, the tree comes in mid-December.

What is your favorite holiday dish (excluding dessert)?

My Mom’s Swedish Meatballs!! They are amazing and are the staple of my Christmas Eve meal!

Favorite holiday memory as a child?

We had a Christmas Eve snow storm one year and my brother and I went cross-country skiing because there was over a foot of snow! We skied until almost 2am! It was amazing and the streets and homes all looked so beautiful decorated for Christmas with the fresh snow on top!

What is on your Christmas wish list?

I don’t have a wish list!  My parents always get me gifts that are way better than I would choose for myself!

Do you open a gifts on Christmas Eve?

Not really, when we were a kid we occasionally got Christmas Pajamas we could open on Christmas Eve.  Otherwise no way!

How do you decorate your Christmas tree?

It depends on how my Mom decides.  Some years it is white lights and beautiful glass ornaments with ribbons and other years it is colored lights with red and gold garland and Swedish and homemade ornaments!

Christmas Tree!

Snow? Love it or dread it?

Love it! I’m a skier, need I say more?

Real tree or fake tree?

Real!

Do you remember your favorite gift?

Way to many good ones to ever have a favorite!  If I had to pick, I’d probably chose skis! When I was racing and competing I got them almost every year.

What’s the most important thing about Christmas for you?

Spending time with my family and loved ones! It’s what makes the holiday complete!

What is your favorite holiday dessert?

Holiday Cookies! I can never get enough of them! My Aunt makes snow men cookies that are delicious!

What is your favorite tradition?

The Swedish Smorgasbord! Christmas Eve my whole family gets together and celebrates.  We sing Christmas Carols, the kids do holiday skits, my Uncle makes homemade Glugg and we all enjoy the Swedish Smorgasbord! Swedish meatballs, red cabbage, beets, potatoes, fish, it’s all so good!

What tops your tree?

Angel!

Do you prefer giving or receiving?

Both! I love picking out gifts for people and seeing their reaction! I love receiving because my parents do an amazing job picking out gifts for me.  As does Michael!

Give or Receive?

What is your favorite Christmas song?

All I Want For Christmas is You by Mariah Carey!  Is there really another option?

Candy canes, yuck or yum?

Yum!

Favorite Christmas movie?

Miracle on 34th Street

What do you leave for Santa?

We used to leave cookies, milk and carrots.  Now we leave nothing. Boring I know!

Do you have a Christmas morning tradition?

When I was kid my parents would give us a Christmas movie as a gift to watch.  My brother and I would watch a movie until my parents woke up and then we opened stockings.  My whole family (yep, all 20 or so of us!) would have to be awake and then we would eat breakfast and finally open presents! Usually opening presents didn’t happen until 11:30 or 12 in the morning and would take us til about 3 or 3:30 pm.  Today it’s just my parents and brother, we keep to a similar routine but it moves along much quicker!

Christmas Morning as a Kid!

Do you prefer to shop on-line or at the mall?

Mall! It gets me in the Christmas spirit and I love all the holiday decorations!

Christmas letter or Christmas card?

Card! They are always so pretty!

Are you ready for Christmas?  What is your favorite holiday tradition?  What is your favorite holiday food?  Share Your Holiday Favorites in the comment section! I’d love to read them!

Dec21

Happy What I Ate Wednesday! Healthy Eats Before Christmas!

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Happy What I Ate Wednesday! Healthy Eats Before Christmas!

Happy Wednesday! I’m so excited, one more day of work left and then I head home for the holidays! I really can’t wait.  My family is Swedish so our holidays are filled with lots of Swedish foods like limpa bread, my Mom’s homemade Swedish Meatballs, red cabbage, beets, fish and potatoes.  It all contains lots of cream but it is so delicious.  Since I know my Mom will also be making an incredible Christmas dinner on the 25th the eating won’t stop on Christmas Eve.  This week I’m trying my best to stick to healthy meals and good for you options so I won’t feel so bad come this weekend.  A big thanks to Jen at Peas and Crayons for hosting this party all year!

My newest breakfast obsession is oatmeal with lots of delicious toppings.  I don’t have a ton of time to eat breakfast each morning and making oats on the stove just isn’t happening.  I buy the Trader Joe’s brand of oatmeal and microwave it with water.  I add a splash of Almond Milk on Top with Almond Butter, Honey Apple Butter and some walnuts.  It is so delicious! And perfect on these cold mornings.  I also have a glass of orange juice.

Oatmeal with Almond Milk, Almond Butter, Honey Apple Butter and Walnuts

Some days I like to mix it all together and other days I like to leave it on top and pick and choose what I add to each bite!

Since I’m heading out-of-town for the holidays I decided to only grocery shop for the essentials so I wouldn’t waste any food.  I had lots of lettuce and salad toppings so that is lunch this week! It kind of worked out perfectly since salad is a healthy, low-calorie lunch option.

Salad with Organic Caesar Dressing and Veggie Chips on the Side!

I kept my salad simple with just some avocado and cucumber on top.  I use an organic Caesar dressing litely drizzled on top.  On the side I packed some Veggie Chips.  They are so delicious, except the green ones.  I’m not a fan of those!

Snacks this week have been fruit and some of my favorite Trader Joe’s holiday cookies.  I love the Joe Joe’s from Trader Joe’s (that is a lot of Joes!) and they make them chocolate dipped for the holidays! I always treat myself to a box of them.

Clementine, Banana And Chocolate Dipped Joe Joe's!

I’ve been trying to keep dinner simple and delicious.  And quick.  I’ve been busy lately with holiday things, fund-raising, running, etc. so spending an hour preparing dinner is just not happening.  I grilled some thin cut boneless pork chops and baked some Brussels sprouts and sweet potatoes on 400F for 25 minutes.  I put some homemade pepper relish from my aunt on the pork. It was quick and easy and delicious!

Boneless Pork Chop with Brussel Sprouts and Sweet Potatoes

I also wanted to share some of the delicious food Michael and I had at Legal Seafood on Saturday in Boston!  We celebrated our Christmas by getting all dressed up, going to dinner and my gift was to see The Radio City Christmas Spectacular! It was a great night! At Legal we got the Legal Experience as an appetizer and 6 raw oysters.  We don’t normally get things like that so it was a special treat.  It had two shrimp cocktail, tuna sashimi, two shrimp wontons and two crab cakes!

The Legal Experience and 6 Raw Oysters!

We ordered a small salad and an entrée of mashed potatoes, broccoli, scallops, shrimp and sampler of tuna, salmon and swordfish all wood grilled.  We joke that we had the 7 fishes!  It was a delicious meal…thanks Legal Seafood!

How do you like your oatmeal? What are your favorite toppings?  What are your favorite holiday foods?  What are you looking forward to most and is a holiday treat? Are you eating healthy this week in preparation for all the holiday food?

Dec15

December’s Mid Month Update!

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Can you believe it is the middle of December already?!  Time is really flying by.  I’m looking forward to Christmas and seeing my friends and family.  I have a week of vacation and could really use the downtime!  If you remember I did my first video blog for you guys on the first.  If you missed it or want to check it out again you can find it on my You Tube Channel.  So let’s check in and see how I’m doing on my monthly goals!

I’m actually psyched to look back on them because it’s been so busy I don’t really remember what they were!

Study.

I’ve been on this! Not as diligently as I’d hoped but I’m trying to keep things balanced and at least some of it is getting done. My goal is to get through Chapter 9 which is half way through the material by the end of December.  I’m about to start Chapter 6 so I think this is possible.  I have some vacation time and down time in the coming weeks so I really hope to settle in for a few hours here and there to make this a reality.  Getting up at 5am has been the best scenario and is when I am most productive.

Studying at 5am is most productive!

Start Planning a Fundraising Event!

My fundraising event planning has been in full force.  I’m planning a fundraiser to do here, starting very soon,  with some really nice prize packs for you to all win.  So stay tuned for that!  I also am planning a fundraiser party with a few other girls from Team in Training.  For those in the Boston area it will be on January 7th at The Brahmin from 6 to 8pm.  We have lots of items for the raffle and silent auction! All proceeds will go directly to The Leukemia and Lymphoma Society.  I’d love to meet you Boston area readers!   I’m trying to hit the $2000 mark by December 31st! And ultimately have to raise $4000 before January 31st.  I have quite a way to go and would appreciate any support from the blogging community!  You can find my fundraising page here:

http://pages.teamintraining.org/ma/boston12/wolsonus9n

My page also shares why I am running and the story behind my motivation! I can’t wait to run the Boston Marathon!

Yoga!

I’ve been doing really well this goal! I’ve been posting about once a week about yoga.  I have a lot more ideas for yoga posts as well.  Michael and I have been taking a class on Sunday mornings at South Boston Yoga with David Vendetti.  His class is amazing! The flows and poses are so challenging! Michael and I are usually sore for days after his classes and my body always feels so aligned and strong after.  I am still practicing about 3 times during the week.  I love practicing 4 days a week.  It really takes your practice to the next level!

Yoga!

Keep My Balance. 

So far this goal has been going well.  Lists are keeping me sane and organized.  With my fundraising coming together I feel a bit less stressed but am still anxious about meeting my minimum.  I  have still found time to relax which is good.  And I’ve resolved to the fact that not everything needs to get done immediately and it’s OK if it takes me all week to accomplish my to do list.

To Do Lists Keep Me Organized!

Enjoy the Holidays.

This one is really starting to happen now.  Michael is surprising me on Saturday and taking me somewhere for my gift which I am so excited about! We also had our work Christmas party which helped to spread some holiday cheer.  I’ll definitely be in the spirit when I get home to my parent’s next week.  My mom always decorates our house, makes tons of amazing food and makes Christmas amazing!  And then for New Year’s Michael and I are going to Montreal to celebrate! I got the last of my Christmas gifts and am really excited to give them! This always gets me ready for Christmas!

My Dad and I Last Christmas

Are you keeping the balance in your life? How do you manage things when you have a lot going on?  Are you in the Christmas spirit? What are you looking forward to most this holiday season?