How was your coffee this morning?

Today is an average cup of coffee kind of day.

Yep. That's how my day started. 

With an average cup of joe.

{well, prior to that, i woke up late} 

And as I took a sip of that cup of coffee...

I said a silent prayer,

"God. I pray this day isn't as sucky as this cup of coffee." 

And so far... it hasn't been amazing.

My eyelids are heavy. I'm seriously struggling at keeping them open.

My head feels foggy. And I feel a lot hungrier today than normal.

But it hasn't been sucky. 

So, thank you God. 

and so.. to help my mood, and yours.. here are a few things that made me giggle.

=)

FUEL.

Pain is weakness leaving the body.

I've blogged about this before, but just last year I wouldn't even think to consider myself a runner. Not even a jogger. Those two things... just not my thing. 

Reality was: 

*I was in bad shape

*I was not motivated

*I didn't think I could run

*I was lazy

But today, I ran the West Seattle 5k route in 28 minutes.

TWENTY EIGHT FRIKKIN MINUTES.

That's a huge deal for me. 

May 20th is the WS 5k and so, I've been running the route to get used to it and better my time. The run from the bathhouse to anchor park seemed easy peasy. But the run back... the wind was K-I-L-L-I-N-G me. But the whole time I kept thinking, "This wind... and this pain I'm feeling... definitely just all my weakness leaving my body." 

...And I kept going. 

I don't look at the time when I run. That doesn't make me want to run any faster. So today, I definitely thought I wasn't going to beat my last run time (32 mins). But when I looked at my timer when I got back to the bathhouse... I cut off 4 minutes!

I'm a happy girl.

Now, to celebrate with chips & salsa. 

Haha. 

Happy running. 

Happy walking. Happy run-walking. 

Whatever keeps you active, keep doing it. 

Day Trip : Tacoma, WA

I've got cousins who live in Tacoma. I've been there plenty of times. But I've never actually explored. 

The other day, I had my mind set on going to the tulip fields. And then it started pouring. Surprise. 

So, the next place I thought I'd go to was Tacoma. Stankoma, as people like to call it. 

It doesn't have a great rep in Seattle. Tacoma is one of the other big cities around Seattle... and when people talk about it, their minds generally go straight to gang shootings, the hood & white trash. 

BUT... I saw the other side of all of that. It's actually a really, really cool place. 

Here are some photos. 

I thought to myself, I want to get married in Tacoma. I'd get some great wedding shots. 

This reminded me of a huge rock candy sucker! 

I loved the Chihuly Glass Bridge. It reminded me of all the glass art in Italy. 

If you're ever in Tacoma, go to Caffe Dei. Order a Sweet Lavender Latte & any one of their grilled cheese sandwiches. YUM.

Since I was on a "mini vacation" ... I decided it was totally fine to order two coffees within the same hour. Anthem is a cool little spot right on Pacific Ave. Definitely have to check this place out too! Great atmosphere and great coffee. 

Wherever you live, I think it's a must that you go explore your own city. Or the surrounding ones. You'll never know what you'll find.

You might just fall in love... and that, I did. 

Tacoma, I do really, really like you!

this describes me, to a t. 

My Solo Wedding Dance.

This is my mom showing me what dance I'm to do at my wedding.

...... 

3 things I want to change - about ME.

This isn't a negative post. It's a hopeful one. 

Change is hard & uncomfortable but oh so necessary. 

1. I've got commitment issues.

Yeah, I said it. And I'm not very proud of that fact. I could go ahead and blame it on my generation, the culture around me, etc. but I'm just going to go on ahead and say - nope, this issue is solely based off of the fact that I don't want to be let down. I want my yes to be yes & my no to be no. It's so easy to say, "maybe" or "I'll think about it." But for me, those two phrases are such cop-outs.

This is one of the areas in my life I'm working on & want to grow in!

2. I love the comfort of my home & would much rather relax there than anywhere else.

Don't get me wrong - I love people. I love my friends. 

And all at the same time, I like "me-time." I could sit here and give all the excuses in the world why I think that's an okay thing but I won't. 

I'm starting to change this part about me and remembering that I am a FUN, outgoing & spontaneous person. First practical thing: I planed a fun little outing the other day and invited people I haven't hung out with in awhile. *pats self on back.

3. I love West Seattle and everything it has to offer but what am I offering back?

I'm all for giving back to my community. My parents taught me that a very young age. In moving back to West Seattle, I have realized that I want to give back to my wonderful community. 

This kind of goes with point 2 - but enough of being "me-centered" ... I want to get involved with my community a lot more than just being a resident. 

What are some changes that you want to make in your life?

Take a moment, write them down and start doing practical things to see those changes come to life. 

Happy, happy day. 

Insta-Sunday.

Insta-Friday, what? Yeah.. I changed it. I wanted my Instagram post to be on Sunday. 

So here they are!

Rosie... where were you lookin' my dear? 

This morning called for The Triple B waffle at Hangar Cafe. And a little disclaimer... I don't eat like this every day. And I try not to eat like this every week even. So you can now stop judging me ;)

How cute is that? This dog was just hanging out.. face out of the window & everything. It's such a nice day.. he had to get some sun too!

Hangar Cafe. Love this place! Georgetown Seattle. 

The old brewery. Amazingly beautiful. 

Happy Sunday. It's beautiful out there. 

Word on the street is its supposed to be 70. Laaawd have mercy!

It's Friday... Friday...

Today it's dark, cold & rainy. surprise. 

It's getting kind of old actually. 

They say it's supposed to be nice & sunny this weekend. Which, surprisingly, I believe them.

BUT I do wish it would stay nice & sunny until winter. 

one can dream...

On days like this, I want to stay home, watch movies and bake yummy things. 

Here are some of the things I've pinned to Pinterest  (click to follow me!) and I am telling myself that I should try to make them in the next couple weeks. One a week, maybe?

Beer & Brown Sugar Pancakes 

I don't know if I want beer first thing in the morning... but hey... it sounds good.

Overnight Peaches-and-Cream French Toast

I love peaches. And I love french toast. This is perfect for me.

(but probably not perfect for my weight loss goal...oops)

Triple Chocolate Chunk Muffin

(Knock off of Whole Foods Chocolate Muffins)

These muffins are supposed to be surprisingly healthy for me. Hard to believe. They look too yummy.

Well. If you're in the PNW (pacific northwest), happy rainy day to you. Maybe you should do some baking on my behalf, since I have to work. 

And if you're in a nice, warm, sunny place. I am green with envy.

I hope it starts snowing wherever you are.

....Okay, not really. That was mean.

Happy Friday! 

Wednesday's.

Sometimes I wake up and feel like having a nice refreshing mimosa & a waffle. 

And when I wake up feeling that way, the first place I go to is the gym. Yep. 

Exercise my butt off (literally...) so that I can enjoy those morning treats.

Gym.

One of my favorite places to eat breakfast - Luna Park Cafe.

Power walk all of the Alki trail. 

Breakfast for 1 today... because that's how I roll. 

My waffle of choice this morning. The Elvis waffle. Fresh made waffle. Lovely bacon. PB. Bananas. Pretty sure I could've made this myself... but there is something about eating at LP that makes everything special.

I loved seeing all the bird stickers everywhere. And Alki... boy where you looking beautiful this morning!

This is my attempt at trying to get a picture of the seal that was chillin' in the ocean. It was so cute! He's the little black dot in the ocean. Haha.

And I'll leave you with this picture. I love my little niece. She's probably the funniest 1 year old you'll ever meet in your life. And see how I'm squinting so hard as I'm kissing her? Well.. that's because she likes to stick her nose in my mouth when I try to kiss her... and I was preparing myself for the worst (kid snot, boogers, crumbs, etc.) haha.

Happy Wednesday!

70 Amazing Years.

Dear Daddy,

I adore you.

Thank you for continually loving me.

You've shown me the value of living, with everything I've got. 

Thank you for teaching me that every moment is an opportunity for fun. 

"Life is too short to be serious"- You taught me that.

When all else fails, just sing & dance. Of course, you taught me that.

Dad, you're the best.

Happy 70th birthday to you! 

Yesterday, my dad turned 70! The big 7-0. Crazy! I know. And look at him go! Those definitely aren't 70 year old bones. That's for sure. 

My family decided for his 70th, we'd throw him a surprise 70's Disco Dance party. 

It went SO well.

We just invited close family & friends and spent the night eating my dad's favorite foods, dancing to some of his favorite songs & most importantly, celebrating my dad's 70 years of fun living!

Thank you to all who came out last night. 

And thank you to those who have just been apart of my dad's life.. in any way.

We appreciate you more than you know!

From the crazy T family,

Love you & THANK you!!!

Paul Gauguin

The other day my sister Theresa, nephew Kingston & I went to see the Gauguin exhibit at the Seattle Art Museum! I've been meaning to post a couple photos of my favorite works of his. So here they are!

I've heard of Gauguin but never really looked at any of his art. Being that I'm an islander.. I loved his depictions of the island women. His paintings were beautiful and almost every piece of his, I told Theresa, "I want that in my house!" 

Walking around his exhibit made me want to do art. It inspired me to get back to drawing and painting. Even ceramics. It also inspired me to find more polynesian art. I came across this photo in my search... I just love it for some reason.

(two samoan women in traditional dresses)

A Beautiful Day

I'm sure I've mentioned this before, but I love when sunshine wakes me up. And right at 7 this morning, the sun wanted me up! Woke up, looked out my window and knew that it was going to be a fantastic day. 

And fantastic it was..

Spent my morning walking Alki and being blown away at how BEAUTIFUL it was today. For those of you who are my Facebook friends - I seriously could have cried. It was that lovely out. 

Spent the morning at the beach. Got home vacuumed & washed my car, cleaned the house and cleaned my room. Visited my old job - got to spend some time with the kiddos at Hiawatha Community Center. Had dinner at Tapatio for my dad's birthday (real bday is on Sunday!). Did some arm work at the gym. And now I'm sitting in bed, thinking about how lovely today was. 

As much as it rains in Seattle... beautiful days like this are worth it to me.

I was talking to my parents about time. Time is flying by. It's crazy. And the more I realize how time goes by so fast - and we don't ever get to buy back time - I want to make every moment count. Lately, I've been waking up super early because of the fact that I don't want to waste my mornings. 

I think mornings are rather lovely and should be spent doing peaceful things... other than sleeping. Weird. I know. 

But because I can tend to be such a busy body, I've also been realizing that I have to learn to keep a healthy balance of wanting to spend my every moment doing something AND also, learning how to just be & rest. Resting is essential to living - so if you're anything like me, remember: Rest is not wasting time. Resting & just being are definitely two things that will help you enjoy the time you have. 

The T's love Easter

We love Easter at my house. Easter means Jesus is ALIVE. Easter means family, friends & good food. Easter means yummy treats & eats. Easter means sunshine. Easter always means a good time at the T house.

 A little easter WDYW edition. I normally wear bright colors on Easter... but this Easter, I decided I'd stick with a more subtle look. I thought the stripes on the maxi skirt could be the "pop" of "color" this Easter.