Happy Halloween!  

I am looking forward to a day consisting of pumpkin carving and passing out candy to mischievous costumed trick-o-treaters while snacking on fun size chocolate bars and fresh roasted pumpkin seeds... so yummy!!! 

It's sad to bode October farewell, but the changing of colors from those bright summer pinks and yellows to those deep reds and oranges has me yearning for some leggings and boots all while snuggling up by the fire with a pumpkin latte in hand.

I know a lot of you already have gotten to indulge in those little pleasures, some even snow, but we Californians are late bloomers.

So here's to November!

Week's Munchies via iPhone

Left to right

-Keurig coffee con almond milk

-Turkey sandwiches with green apples and brie

-Sautéed apples with cinnamon and honey

-Yogurtland coconut yogurt with raspberries and chocolate chips

-Bison steak, maple steak and asparagus

-Dutch baby

I crave sweet.

You name it, I will put sugar on it.

If I could have one cuisine for every meal, it would be dessert...

....is dessert even a cuisine?

That's beside the point.

What i'm trying to say is that I should be 900 pounds.

Thankfully I have taken on life as an athlete which has prevented me from becoming morbidly obese.  However, the other day (on my half birthday) I had a revelation.  I won't be in my 20's forever and the likelihood of me maintaining my insanely active lifestyle is about as probable as me squeezing into a size 5 shoe.

Not going to happen.

And all this talk about dieting, I'm done with it.  It's time to change my lifestyle and what I put in my body because when my volleyball days are over, I WILL be 900 pounds and morbidly obese if I don't alter my ways.

My bestest friend Camilla could not be anymore perfect of an example.

She changed her life and is now inspiring others to do the same....even me.

I have started by finding ways to make dessert a bit more, sayyyy.....fresh?

Try this one.

Slice up an apple.

Drizzle it with honey.

Sprinkle it with cinnamon.

And pop it in the microwave for 1 minute.

AMAZING!

Next step:

Portion Control

That's going to be a tough one.

I have 4 days to get photo shoot ready.

Luckily my friend Michael just drove out here from New Jersey and he just so happens to be a stud and a workout fanatic.

{Remember that shoot I did in Portland? Well this is him taking charge on set and putting the rest of us to shame}
This morning he took me to school with the workout from H-E-Double Hockey Stick

Circuits and running and squats and lunges.....all in the sand!

This workout had nothing to do with targeting problem areas or firming up.  The point of our torture hour, which I learned much later, was about mental toughness.

He kept telling me that my mind would give out before my body and me being my naive self considered them to be erroneous claims.

Guess what....

he was right.

(It pains me to say that)

Don't get me wrong, my body is aching in muscles I didn't even know I had, but my mind is even more tired.

I think once we find a happy medium where I don't want to drug myself with pain killers before the following day's workout and Michael can still run me into the ground, I will share some of the things he is having me do so you guys can participate (possibly event join).

So, you know how I was telling you guys about how I would be sharing with everyone all the fun things I have been doing???

Yeah, well.....oddly enough I was on TMZ last night.

Not sure what to say about it yet.

Maybe a bow or curtsy is in order?

However I'm more of a high five, chest bump kinda girl myself.

2011 is finally winding down and it's been an absolutely crazy year.  I have been up and down and in circles and every which way trying to redefine my life and figure out which path I am supposed to be taking.  It has all been so confusing.  Before, I loved blogging and talking about all my great adventures and the direction my life was going.  I was confident in where I was and thought I knew exactly which road I was running down.  Little did I realize, what I was doing was not what was going to ultimately make me happy and to be quite honest, I am still not sure what it is that is going to make me happy.  Now I struggle to find the words to share via blog because there is no coherent thoughts that calm the uneasy nerves racing through my body due to the vast amount of uncertainty that sits in my foggy future.  But through all the chaos and confusion, I have learned that it's going to be tough, but the best thing I can do is enjoy the ride and always take the risks.  At this age, none of us have anything to lose and I know my path with slowly get clearer as long as I don't give up and I keep doing what I love.  So here, today, now I try to do what is going to make me happy. 

I spend time with people I love and don't waste time on those I don't.

I eat when I am hungry.

I exercise daily.

And I am learning to love me and finding out what makes me tick.

So now that everyone is caught up on why my blog has been abandoned for the past month, I now get to share with you the exciting things I have been doing to fulfill my life and occupy the last 30 days.

Here's to new beginnings!