Since I was young, I always had a sense that I would do great things…
And to begin with, I did. I was called creative and talented, and I loved it. That was my thing, that was what I was good at. I used to make the most random things, from a hut made out of my matress to rock pets ironically named Rocky…
The cat on the cup is made out of cheese. My mind flourished with crazy, random and fun ideas.. I loved to create strange costumes for halloween, such as the invisible man or the frozen girl from Ghost Whisperer…
And I drew. I loved to draw, all kinds of things…
I used to take a million photos, where only a few would look artistic but I kept trying. I tried tons of different things, from jazz ballett, soccer, line dance, art class, hip hop and baton twirling. I remember playing the most creative games with my cousin when I was young, from making “dinners” of seaweed, rocks, crabs and other things we found by the shore, to going out the rare times there were blizzards on the coast and “trying to save our life by finding shelter in the rocks”. We’d climb between trees and pretend the ground was lava, and we’d play house in the boat house attic… Our imagination was endless.
I still try to be creative. I enjoy being creative when I throw halloween parties…
I love being creative at work when I make sales areas…
But I feel as if I’ve lost a lot of my creativity. I don’t see the world as I used to. When I take a million picture, none of them turn out artistic. When I sit down to draw, I can’t figure out what to draw. I barely take the time anymore to read books (and I LOVE to read books). I can’t find my creativity anymore. If you ask me what my hobbies are, I can’t tell you because I don’t know. In some ways I feel like I’ve lost a big part of who I am, and something that made me happy. I don’t know how to find it again though, but I’m trying.
Sarah.
I may have forgotten to mention that I turned 20 one week ago. I had a wonderful birthday and celebrated it with my sweet boyfriend, who spoiled me rotten. We had my favorite food for dinner: sushi. I got some of my favorite treats and some classics as a gift:
And we went to the movies to see Silver Linings Playbook. The movie was great, definitely recommended!
I may or may not have mentioned before that my mom had told me she was planing my birthday gift since SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER last year. Needless to say, I’ve been dying of curiosity. Two weeks before my birthday I got my first hint:
Feel free to tell me if you got it at this point, because I definitely did not. A week later I got my second hint, a word: pastry. Nope, still didn’t get it. So I started to move on with my day, getting ready for work when the thought popped in my head. Oh no, did I know? Had I ruined the surprise? Did I say something? Or just try to act surprised? I kind of freaked out and decided I had to tell my mom what I thought it was. She logged on to skype and turned on the camera. I asked if croissant could have been an alternative hint to pastry. She looked around and said: “uuuh, oui”.
So to celebrate me having turned 20, and my dad having turned 40 this past November, the entire family + Paul will be going to Paris in the end of January! This was such an awesome, wonderful birthday present! I’ve always wanted to go to Paris, hence why I took 5 years of french classes in middle school/high school. Finally that dream will come true and I can’t even begin to explain how excited I am! Get ready, I see a Paris-pictured post coming up in the near future!!
Sarah
Suprise! I’m still here, haven’t left this time! January is halfway through, and I’ve been trying little by little to change some things and work on other things. As I mentioned before I’m trying going to lose some weight. At the same time I have to save some money because my new apartment cost a little more than the one we’re renting now. Given that we have had three months notice to cancel this apartment and the one we wanted was available NOW; we’re going to be paying double rent for 3 months. So in a combination of trying to be healthy and trying to save money I have some DELICIOUS dinners to share!
I’ve had a spinach fetish lately (that sounded weird but given my poor vocabulary I’ll stick with it). This salad is made up of spinach, some regular salad (hjertesalat in Norwegian), pasta, pork meat, red pepper, spring onion and feta cheese. YUM! Seriously one of the better salads I’ve ever had. I know I suck for sharing a dinner here without knowing the entire recipe, but Paul did the meat and made a kind of dressing to put on it. All I know is there was balsamico and white vinegar in it. *Drool*.
Last night’s dinner was surprisingly yummy despite it’s simplicity. I took some water, added some vegetable broth and cooked up pasta in that. Then in a frying pan I put some sliced smoked sausage (kjøttpølse), added chopped broccoli and cauliflower, some salt and pepper and finally added the cooked pasta. Cheap and yummy, not to mention filling!
At work we still have the big new years sale going on. There I found a pair of shorts I drooled over this past summer, but didn’t buy because to sum it up: I didn’t wear shorts that summer. I don’t care much how I’ll look in a bikini this summer, more so I want to wear shorts and not feel like a heffa in them. So I bought these shorts in the biggest size we had left: 40. Let’s put it this way; I used to be a 42, am currently 44. So they’re my skorts; SKinny shORTS, and my goal for summer is to get into them without looking like a muffin top.
And the good news is; I’m on my way! Since January 1st I’ve gone down 1,6kg (3,5lbs). I’m very happy. It’s a slow process but it’s also a lifestyle change. I feel super awesome every time I leave the gym, so hopefully I’m going to keep it up and reach my goals!
Thumbs up for looking piggypink in January! That’s a good sign in my opinion.
How are your new year resolutions going?
Sarah
Since I was working late last night I had a good excuse to try out my new crock pot again. After looking through crock pot recipes with my boyfriend (who I’m convinced is only days away from getting his own pinterest account to save recipes on), we found THIS recipe. Except forgetting to read the part where it says cook on low for 3-4 hours (I worked 5 hours + about one hour prep/post-prep time), it was delicious! I’m pretty sure you could make this in an oven as well, so I recommend trying it even if you don’t have a slow cooker. Nomnom, is all I have to say about that.
Though school doesn’t start until the 18th of January for me, I’m going to try to start studying some this week. Personally I didn’t feel my first semester went well because I couldn’t find any study techniques that worked for me. So I’m going to try again, round two, and hope I find something that works well! The adaption from high school to a university is kind of challenging, everything is different. I still have 5 semesters left though, lots of time to learn and change!
Do you or did you have any study techniques that worked well for you?
Sarah
I actually like exercising. I rarely feel bad after a workout, and I know I’m not alone about that. Getting out the door is the hardest part, but having someone to push you out helps a lot. I got up early this morning and prepped a cheesy new playlist…
The name of the playlist is the cheesy part, I don’t find Justin Bieber or Bruno Mars cheesy when working out. They’re some of my best workout buddies. I also love Ellie Goulding’s new album Halcyon, awesome workout music.
A cup of coffee and some smoked salmon on bread for breakfast, and I am now seconds away from getting through that door. Just need to brush my teeth so I don’t kill anyone at the gym with my fishy breath.
What’s your favourite workout music?
Sarah
Happy new year!
I love how a new year is synonymous with a fresh start, a new beginning, back to square one. We all know that in all honesty it’s not really true. What we did, ate, liked and hated last year is still kind of “here”. However, our wonderful little minds tell us that this is it, this is your chance to change and be awesome! I like it, it’s like a personal coach you get each January. Too bad that coach usually leaves by February. Oh well, I’m gonna try again!
I had a wonderful Christmas that I got to spend with the love of my life and my family. I had a great time and got AWESOME gifts, one of which was a crock pot I will try to share my experiences with right here on the blog. I also got awesome food, mama’s food. I think that says it all. After living with my boyfriend for 6 months, emphasized by Christmas, I’ve realized that I’ve fallen into that comfortable state in my relationship. In just the time I have lived in Oslo, I gained 22 lbs and got stretchmarks from the fast gain. Not even having turned 20 and never having had kids, this stung.
Now, thanks to my inspirational mother who has been doing super good since she started working on her weight and my supportive boyfriend who is trying to keep me “at bay” from snacking and such; I feel highly motivated!
Also, some exciting news! Me and Paul are moving to a bigger apartment! Our current apartment is 322ft2, with no bedroom, a tiny bathroom and an even smaller kitchen. It’s been cramped. The new apartment, however, is 592ft2 with a seperate bedroom, slim but bigger bathroom and this wonderful kitchen in the picture above! We’ll be moving in February and there WILL be interior decorating pictures, I promise.
Last news of what is to come on this blog in the year 2013; I am travelling to Vienna, Austria in February. I am very excited, with high hopes for some spectacular pictures of that beautiful city.
What are your plans for the first months of 2013?
Sarah
