Puffy and Swollen

Yesterday I tried this new sunscreen…

Pure & Free my A$$!!!

… and now my face is puffy and swollen.  I’ve taken quite a bit of Benadryl so I’m hoping that I won’t fall asleep as I write this post lol.  Note: I am 97% sure that this sunscreen is the culprit because only my face, not my body, has had an allergic reaction and I didn’t have anything else on my face but my moisturizer, which I’ve been using for months.

Anyways, I’m still quite sore from yoga on Monday with Heather, who might I add, is super awesome!  We met up at Garden State Yoga and took a hot yoga class together.  I really liked that the yoga class was structured in a way where you didn’t feel forced to do all the poses.  I have learned 2 very important things from my first hot yoga class:

1. Do NOT wear lotion on any part of your body because it will make it very hard to do some of the poses (i.e. eagle pose).

2. HYDRATE! HYDRATE! HYDRATE!

Oh and before I sign off (feeling very sleepy right now), I went to Sephora today and asked for 2 samples of their most popular sunscreens for sensitive skin.  The salesman recommended: Shiseido Ultimate Sun Protection Cream For Face SPF 55 and Clinique Super City Block Oil-Free Daily Face Protector SPF 40.  So now I have 2 generously sized samples of sunscreen which I will test out after my face goes back to normal.  I LOVE that Sephora gives away free samples of their products at the stores because then you can try em’ before you buy em’ .  I’m crossing my fingers and hoping that one of the two sunscreens will work for me.

V is for…

Vibrams and Vitamix!

After reading Ashley, Sean and Crunchgear’s reviews, I was CONVINCED that I needed Vibram Five Fingers (VFFs) STAT!  So, I went to The Outdoor Store in Montclair and picked up a pair .

The sales associate in the store was extremely helpful and not pushy at all.  I was debating between the Bikilas and the Sprints but went with the former because it was more of a running shoe.  Truth be told, I was a little worried that the shoes would look too weird but the sales associate reminded me that I should choose the shoe based on function not looks.

My Vibrams!

I’m calling them my Keroppi shoes

Call me a huge dork but I was beaming when the sales associate told me that he’d never seen anyone put on those shoes as fast as I did .  He also told me to wear the shoes around the house for a few days before trying to run in them.  I will do a full review on these shoes after I test them out on the road but so far they are extremely comfortable. 

What’s completely ironic about my obsession with the Vibram brand is that I first heard of them in the Christian Louboutin section at The Purse Forum.  Many ladies who have purchased Louboutins also had their shoes resoled with Vibrams, which helps preserve the original sole and prevents the shoes from slipping.

My mom’s Vitamix also came in which I helped her order from Kristina’s Opensky store.

My mom wanted one so that she could make green monsters and other breakfast smoothies for my dad.  What are your favorite green monster recipes?

Anyways, last night I made Heather’s acorn squash stuffing and it was divine!

Mmmmm!

I still have half of a squash left so I’m planning on making Lea’s lentils and squash soup with it.

I’m so glad it’s finally fall!  What’s your favorite season? Also, I’d love to know your thoughts on Vibram Five Fingers shoes.  Would you ever consider buying them?

NJ Farmer’s Market

I was surprised to find a farmer’s market near my parent’s house in NJ.  It wasn’t your typical outdoors market; it was like a supermarket with a lot more produce and less prepackaged goods.  The prices were great!

99 cent herbs? Get outta here!

I was blown away by the selection.  For lunch I made some tofu soup and rice.

I have NO CLUE what this type of rice is called but it was really yummy.

My mom took charge of dinner and made stir-fried celery with tofu skins.

I’m missing Dancing With the Stars right now because I missed the beginning of it and I hate jumping into the middle of an episode . Are you watching DWTS?  Who are you rooting for?

Still Sore…

So it took me 12 and a half hours to drive from Chicago to NJ and it was quite an experience.  My arms and back are still sore from the drive so I’ve been dousing myself with aspirin (on a full and very satisfied stomach of course).

It rained quite a bit during the drive and I got lost!  I had missed a major highway in Indiana and drove into Michigan.  Luckily I was only about 10 miles off track and was able to find my way back to the right highway.

Near the Indiana/ Michigan border (Where I stopped for directions)

I took pictures of the “Welcome to ___” signs along my drive.

Note: taking pictures while driving is NOT safe

Ohio was 240 miles of farms and Pennsylvania was 310 miles of mountains.  I was SO HAPPY to reach NJ – it was too dark to take a “Welcome to NJ” sign though .

I got home at around 9 pm and went directly to bed.  The next day I woke up at around noon to a lovely lunch made by my mom.

String beans with garlic

Fried tofu = YUM!

In the afternoon we went food shopping and passed a few NJ “landmarks.”

The Brownstone from RHONJ

46 Lounge from Jerseylicious (yes the show actually exists!)

Anyways, tomorrow is the first day of voting for Project Food Blog 2010!  I am not participating this year but here are a few bloggers’ entries that I really enjoyed reading and will be voting for!

Allie (Live Laugh Eat)

Amanda (Vegacious)

Angela (Oh She Glows)

Caitlin (Healthy Tipping Point)

Evan (Food Makes Fun Fuel)

Gina (Fitnessista)

Heather (Hangry Pants)

Kath (Kath Eats Real Food)

Lynn (The Actor’s Diet)

Mara (What’s For Dinner?)

I know this list is pretty long but if you have the time, I would highly recommend that you guys read each of the entries.  Many a times, I start reading an already established blog without knowing the blogger’s personal history with food.  I find these entries very touching and entertaining to read.  Since I’m a total ignoramus when it comes to the foodbuzz website, I tried voting a few days ago and spent about 20 minutes looking for the “vote” button, then I realized that voting hadn’t even started!

Are you voting tomorrow?  Any additional profiles I should check out?

Driving to the Dirty Jerz

I am about to drive home to NJ for a bit to visit the ‘rents.  It’ll be a long 12 hour drive!

I’ll let you guys know if I see any of these ladies !

(Source)