If you are anything like me, you will probably LOVE this!

I came across something that totally amazed me the other day.  A photographer named Beatrice De Guigne  actually set up a wedding photoshoot with Ken and Barbie. Seriously. I'm not joking. The best part is the photos are actually modern poses we see all the time. Some of them remind me of my own engagement pictures! You must see for yourself, here a few of my favourites.

Is anyone else as impressed as I am? It's entirely possible I am just very easily amused, but I think these are totally creative and awesome! If you want to read the whole blog post and see a ton more pictures, click here.

xoxo,
Taren

Who Inspires You?

In my opinion, inspiration is the fuel of life. It lights my fire and gets me moving on things that are not easy. I have always strived to get in the best shape possible and I know that despite my passion for a healthy lifestyle, that has not happened yet. Now I realise that I wasn't training the most effective way and I need to clean up my diet even more!

This weekend I finished my Personal Training course. No, I'm not over the moon yet because all though my original certification education is finished (but education is never finished!) I still have to have a practical evaluation and take a 3 hour final exam. This is not as easy as it looks people! The registration process I am going though, BCRPA is not an easy one. They have the highest standards in Canada and  they do not want lazy, stupid, neglectful trainers so they make you jump through many hoops. The closer I get to the finish line, the more grateful I am for this.

What I learned in Personal Training: That most of the information out there for people trying to get into shape is not relevant or helpful to specific people. My passion is to help women who have struggled with their weight as I have, and I can't wait to get started. I have learned effective methods for fat loss and I now have a new workout program thanks to my personal training course that I can't wait to start trying it out on myself and let you all know how it goes.

I would like to leave you with someone that has inspired me. I have many, many people that inspire me but Taryn Shea Loughran is hanging on my inspiration poster. I was so impressed when I read her story in Oxygen magazine that I tore it out and hung it up. I also love that  she is Canadian and she has the same name as me! Click here to read her story! She has a Facebook fan page here and she is also launching a website September 1st.

Here is her before her fitness transformation:

After:

How inspiring is THAT? Who inspires you?

Taren

Lotsa Love

This summer has just been FLYING by! I can't believe it! Every time I go to write a blog post, another week has gone by. I have been so busy with different jobs and courses, but I am so excited about the direction my career is going!

Last week, I had an amazing surprise! I was just sitting at work (one of my jobs is front desk at a gym) when I saw my husband's truck pull in 2 hours before he was supposed to pick me up. Turns out he'd decided to surprise me with some new jewelry! Who does that?! My husband, apparently. I am a very lucky girl.

He got my a Pandora charm bracelet, which I have been wanting for awhile. I have always wanted a charm bracelet but I hate things that dangle so I never started one because I thought it would drive me nuts. Pandora charm bracelets are perfect because the charm wraps around the bracelet!

Leigh took this picture when he gave me the bracelet wrapped up all pretty: 

This is my bracelet with the charm he got me, which is called Lotsa Love. It has mother of pearl hearts all over it, which is awesome because the necklace he gave me for our wedding is mother of pearl as well!

Isn't my wrist bone weird? It sticks out a lot for some reason! Anyways, I am totally in love with my bracelet and my romantic husband!

In other news, I am making my lasagna rolls to take to my grandparents for dinner tomorrow. I am posting the recipe again here, because if you haven't made them yet you definitely should. Here's a pic of what mine look like instead of Giada's picture:

Mmm favourite dinner EVER! Can't wait to see what my grandparents think! 

xoxo,

T

Leigh and Taren's Anniversary Adventure

Yesterday was our 1st wedding anniversary. I'd been thinking about it for a few months, what we should do. Going away didn't seem to be in the cards. We didn't have the top tier of our cake due to gravity challenges on our wedding day. :-P

So we decided we would just have a fun day together. Leigh woke me up and dragged me out of bed ridiculously early. We got in the elevator and I looked at my phone: 8:30! I was like I should get a reward for getting up this early on a Saturday! But I'm glad we did because it was very nice out.

We drove out to Harrison Hot Springs, neither of us had been there in a really long time. It was so amazing there, I don't remember it being so beautiful! 

After that, we drove back and took a long way home through Fort Langley. We stopped at this little 50s style diner to have a bite to eat. Of course, they had Coke in glass bottles, which Leigh and I love (we always buy them for each other when we see them)

 We also found this amazing little candy shop in Fort Langley. We didn't buy anything because we were full and it would have melted in the car, but they did have all our fave British stuff!

So cute!

This is only 1/4 of the store!

After that, we headed home. After a nice long nap, we went out for dinner to the Keg, which is sort of our go to restaurant for special occasions. It started the night we got engaged. After Leigh proposed, I said "You gave me a diamond ring and I'm so buying you a steak!"

Martini enthusiasm!

Not enthusiastic about having his picture taken.

I like to order random things - iceberg wedge salad, twice baked potato and truffle mac and cheese!

Leigh's steak!

After dinner I was pretty much ready for bed, but we stopped for a coffee and watched Couple's Retreat when we got home.  All in all, it was a fantastic day!

xoxo,

T

Our First Anniversary

Today (officially because it's after midnight) is our very first wedding anniversary.

One of my absolute favourite wedding photos!

Having a snuggly moment

Honeymoon in Hawaii

 Just for fun - here is the link for our wedding slideshow, by the amazing Carol-Ann!!

I can't believe it's been a whole year at the same time it almost feels like a long year. So much has changed in our lives and we are constantly adapting to things. I am able to do this because Leigh is my best friend and he makes me happy, makes me feel loved and most importantly makes me laugh every single day. Happy Anniversary baby!

xoxo,

Taren

One more for the birthday girl!

Second post of the day! I decided I need to do a separate post for a birthday girl!! 

A loong loong time ago, in Grade 9 woodworking to be exact, I met a girl that I would end up being friends with well, forever I guess! Her name is Jen, and you probably know her as Jen from The Baked Life. This is a very exciting birthday for not because of the number but because she has something else baking in the oven right now... a baby!! I can't wait to meet the son or daughter of one of my oldest friends!!

Here is a few pics of us in our signature pose, both from our weddings! :-) 

Happy birthday Jen!! I hope you're having an amazing day! 

xoxo,
Taren

The Most Amazing Thing Ever

Another long weekend of the summer gone by! I hope everyone got up to fun things this weekend. I did not go away or anything, this is the summer of work and moving forward for me and I am fine with that! I did get a little reading/sun time in with a loaner Kobo that a friend gave me to use until I get mine back. I also got to attend a wedding of an amazing couple Sean and Megan!! Their wedding was so beautiful and so unique! The bride was wearing an amazing to die for one shouldered dress. They had the ceremony at the a museum and the reception at a wicked restaurant called the Alibi Room in Gastown. It had amazing food and a beer selection that made me wish I liked beer! Of course being the ditz that I am I didn't take any pictures.

Other than that the highlight of my weekend was last night. I decided to make a really yummy healthy dinner for Leigh and I and somehow convinced him to watch the Bachelorette finale with me.  This means that I got to watch with a running commentary from Leigh: "JP and Ashley are the WORST kissers ever! They're eating each others faces, I can't even watch!" It was a little heartbreaking to watch her break up with Ben, even though I totally called it and I was rooting for JP. Did you see that little book he gave her with the picture of them on the beach and the love letter? SOLD!

PS: That dress is 16 grand, and she went frolicking in the water with it. Not cool, Ash.

While we were watching the "so bad it's good" Bachelorette, I decided we needed a seriously veggie based dinner. So I made our favourite salad and decided to try this broccoli recipe I found on pinterest. Yes, broccoli. Now I personally LOVE steamed broccoli. But this...this is just....so freaking good!!!
 The recipe credit goes to Barefoot Contessa, but I modified it a bit ie took out things I don't like lol.

Ingredients:
4-5 pounds of broccoli (or two large bunches) chopped into florets (needs to be TOTALLY DRY!)
5 tbsp of olive oil
1.5 tsp kosher salt
1.5 tsp fresh ground pepper
4 garlic gloves peeled and chopped
1/3 cup fresh grated Parmesan
1 lemon (to juice and zest)

Instructions:
Either wash the broccoli and let it dry thoroughly or just don't wash it. At 425 degrees (which you need to preheat the oven to) the bacteria is probably going to be killed anyways. Your choice!
Toss the broccoli with the olive oil, salt and pepper and spread it out on a baking sheet. Put it in the oven for about 20-25 minutes. Check and see if the tips of the florets are starting to go brown. It should be "crispy tender" according to the Barefoot Contessa. When it's ready, take it out of the oven and zest a lemon over the broccoli, then squeeze the juice out of the lemon over the broccoli. Then you can sprinkle the best part, aka the cheese on top of the broccoli. The recipe I had didn't call for this but I stuck it back in the oven for a few minutes to melt the cheese.

I had heard such amazing things about this recipe I was nervous I would be let down. It is freaking amazing. You just seriously have to try it, even if you don't like broccoli. I could eat this every day, I'm not joking. I put the plate of broccoli in front of Leigh and he's like "What's so special about this broccoli, anyway?" I'm like "Just eat it!" and as soon as he took a bite his eyes went wide and he moved over on the couch so I wouldn't dig into his because I'd already finished mine! lol
I will definitely be making this again, it's so easy and simple. Let me know if you try it! :)

xoxo,
T