Hi friends! How was your weekend? I spent my Saturday in Anaheim for my very first time at Natural Products Expo West. The event brings together brands from a broad spectrum of food, health, and beauty areas to showcase their products. Last year, the event drew in 70,000+ attendees and had 2,700 companies exhibit from 113 countries! I met up with Sarah from Making Thyme for Health and Julia from The Roasted Root, who both flew in for the event, to explore the vast show floor together for the day. It was definitely the largest industry event I've been to, and I was both excited and overwhelmed to see so many great companies there. There was no shortage of food to try. The yummy samples were seemingly endless! I munched on vendor goodies for a solid 8 hours straight, and ... [Read More]
Archives for March 2016
Tomato, Artichoke & Spinach Pizza Bites
Hello! Whew, it's been a busy week - so busy that I didn't get to do my usual Wednesday blog post yesterday. I've been pretty consistent with a Monday/Wednesday/Friday schedule for awhile, and it's rare that I'm here on a Thursday...well hi friends! So shall we hop right into the topic at hand? Delicious food, of course. Last year I planted an herb and veggie garden, and out of everything, my tomato plant has flourished the most. It's a total hog that has crowded the rest of my raised garden bed, and at some point last summer it overtook the zucchini plant next to it. As it grows and spreads out of control, we continue tying it to new wooden sticks to hold its different ever-growing branches upright. Certainly no complaints here though, because it's been producing lots of ... [Read More]
Bernardo Mountain Summit Trail // Escondido, CA
Hi everyone! Hope that you had a fun, rejuvenating weekend. My weekend was pretty low-key, and one of the highlights was hiking a new local trail called Bernardo Mountain with my little family. Located in the town of Escondido within the 55-mile-long San Dieguito River Park along Lake Hodges, Bernardo Mountain is a dog-friendly trail that offers pretty views of San Diego County - and of the many mansions in the area. Bernardo Mountain is an out-and-back hike that's about 7.2 miles roundtrip. It was easy for us to get to the park from North County by driving east on Rt 78, hopping on I-15, and parking at the end of Sunset Drive. The trail starts off as a concrete walkway, where you walk underneath I-15 and find yourself next to Lake Hodges. I imagine that the reservoir ... [Read More]
San Diego Spotlight on Cafe Topes
Happy Friday friends! I'm here today with another post in my San Diego Spotlight series, where I highlight a local business that offers lots of deliciousness. Today the spotlight is on a breakfast & lunch spot in Carlsbad called Cafe Topes. Ever since I first found out about Cafe Topes and got to sample their signature cinnamon bun when I did the Carlsbad Food Tour last year, I've been itching to go back for brunch. With a style described as "American with a modern twist," Cafe Topes has been serving breakfast favorites to locals since 2013. The restaurant has a fun, modern feel to it, and one of the first things you spot when you walk in is a wall full of succulents. Open 7 AM to 2 PM every day except Monday, Cafe Topes has a nice sized patio so that you can enjoy ... [Read More]
My HIIT Studio 6-Week Challenge Health & Fitness Results
Hello, hello! Last weekend marked the end of a 6-week challenge that I participated in with my favorite HIIT studio, The Fit Mill. I collaborated with the studio as the health coach for the challenge, and was a participant as well. We're all a work in progress, and I had goals that I was striving to reach at the same time that I was supporting the participants in reaching their own. The premise? A 6-week "Transformation" challenge to kick off 2016 in high gear. The rules were that participants had to workout at The Fit Mill 4 days each week, and then the studio and I provided goals, recommendations, tips, recipes, and support throughout the challenge. Pre-challenge and post-challenge evaluations were held to take measurements and gage fitness levels on a variety of exercises. The ... [Read More]