Follow Friday

I can feel the satisfaction building up deep within my gut where I store all the words….I’ve written all day long despite feeling like I’m fighting off the flu and after a 3-hour nap I am almost feeling Liz-like again.

What are your plans for this evening/weekend? Tonight I’m going to watch the first Mockingjay movie in my coziest sweats and dream of a day in the future where one can simply snap one’s fingers and a pizza will appear.

Have a good weekend and here’s some awesome people/movies/songs/artists oh just things you should check out from around the great big cyber world…but seriously....CHECK THEM OUT.

Grab a box of tissues for this commercial!! IT'S SO GOOD! (What's up with all the caps tonight, btw?)

Any photographers, food stylists, or writers in the house? Check out Acorn Magazine and do yourself a favor and follow their Instagram page as well. Just yum.

Pink Martini fan?? Here's a list of their upcoming shows.....

As someone who really enjoyed the books and is a huge fan of Jennifer Lawrence, I cannot wait to see Mocking Jay Part 2.

THIS rosemary-caramel apple pie recipe is brilliant and as resident pie maker, I'm making this next week. Bam.

Into nail art? Then you definitely need to pay attention to what this lady is doing.

If you're trying to learn a language OTHER than English then I highly recommend downloading this app....

I bought this. You should buy this. Also, follow her on Instagram and be amused by her snarky comments and badass photos. You're welcome. 

xo xo Liz

Sundburnt Lips And Apple Pie

I am thankful for sunburnt lips that slurp hot tea,

Fingers that ache from use...callouses forming on palms and fingertips.

I am thankful for salty air and the palm trees standing like sentinels around my house and heart.

I am thankful for the fleeing of the words in my brain, because the return of their quiet chanting released the ache in my heart that I didn’t know was there.

I am thankful for the stacks upon stacks of books and notebooks that fill my room and for all of the adventures I will embark upon between their papery pages in the future.

I am thankful for the loaves and pies that take shape beneath my hands and the look upon friend and family’s faces as they feast.

I am thankful for early mornings and late nights because I don’t want to miss another hour of this amazing life I’ve been given a second chance to live.

I am thankful for brutal hikes, the rocks that scrape knee and fingers, and the tangle that is constantly in my hair because I live outside.

I am thankful for this life.

For the rotten-no-good days, and the exhilarating-uplifting-high-flyin days.

Thank you.

Thank you.

Thank you.

A Time For Thanksgiving

This night, I am thankful for the pain I thought would tear us down this year,

Because it ultimately made us stronger.

This night, I am thankful for the tears that ruined our mascara,

Because it made our smiles that much more beautiful.

This night, I am thankful for the tender moments we spent with loved ones,

Because it taught us what love should feel like.

This night, I am thankful for our triumphs,

Because they gave us confidence to ask for more.

This night, I am thankful for my life and all I have been given,

Because.

Just because.

xo xo Liz 

Buckaroo Barbie’s Post Thanksgiving Diet and Exercise Tips

So, the holidays are basically a diet and exercise booby trap. There’s the feast like, boozy dinners with family you haven’t seen in forever, you’ve haven’t eaten as healthily as you would have liked and thus don’t feel like exercising and pie, pie, pie and cookies and did we mention pie?! If you indulged a little too much this Thanksgiving (and who doesn’t during the holidays?), then follow these tips and tricks to help you get back on track.

·      Keep drinking enough water!!!

Your body needs at LEAST 64 ounces of water a day. You probably had some beer or wine or sodas or even spiced eggnog, like me, over Thanksgiving and alcohol dehydrates you. If you only apply one suggestion here, please let it be this!!

·      Put your workout clothes on first thing in the morning.

I’ve found that even if I really don’t want to work out, but if I get dressed in my workout clothes anyway, I go ahead and workout 98% of time. And it’s way better to at least do a little something, then nothing at all. If you tell yourself you’re only going to walk or run for 5 minutes, generally by the time the 5 minutes are up, you feel like finishing your normal routine. Exercise isn’t about trying to physically punish yourself for treats that you ate, it’s about making your heart healthier and your muscles strong…it’s a reward, not a punishment.

·      Get a workout/diet partner.

Whenever Adrian and I work out together, it’s WAY more fun. We laugh at each other, encourage one another and push each other. She also really helps me with my diet. Sticking to a healthy, clean, organic diet is really important for my health so that my Lyme doesn’t flare up. If I’m tempted to cheat, she encourages me to try a healthier version and doesn’t tell me “no”, just asks me if eating that unhealthy treat is really worth me feeling bad later. She’s basically the best. Having a workout partner can also help inspire you to try new things and spice up your routine. My friend Aleesha and I went on a run together last night and I would have never had the courage to try and to run that hill without her! I’ve effectively avoided hills for some time now and once I went with Aleesha, I was shocked to discover it was actually fun! Fun to run somewhere new, fun to try something new and really fun to have someone to laugh with while we were sweating! And kudos to all you moms out there, I only pushed the stroller with Aleesha’s two kids in it for a while…but dang ladies!! That thing is heavy! 

·      Don’t beat yourself up for crashing your diet or not exercising.

That shiznit is just not healthy. And the whole point of eating clean and exercising is to make your body and mind and heart and soul healthier and stronger. Just because you ate crappy until dinner doesn’t mean you have to blow your dinner as well. Make a change then. Start fresh and don’t be negative. Focus on what positive things you DID accomplish and don’t let a little thing like mashed potatoes and pie mess up your progress so far!

Keep it up, Dolls!

And if you ever need a cheerleader, Adrian and I are your biggest fans :)

xo xo Liz and Adrian 

Leaving On A Jet Plane

Look for a fun vblog tomorrow...Adrian and I are leaving first thing in the morning to catch an early flight to Oregon for a show, so we did a blog together on packing! Stay tuned, this Barbie is headed to bed, we will post it sometime tomorrow morning/afternoon! Hope you all had a blessed and wonderful day, spent with family and friends...Good night dolls!

xo xo Liz

Thanksgiving Through the Years

Today has been an adventure...the house is bursting at the seems with family, what feels like 500 dogs and so much food I can't even wrap my head around it. Because we spent part of our childhood in Europe, spending time with family during the holidays hasn't always been the norm, especially having them up to our home, way off the beaten track. We're treasuring the time spent with them and relishing in the stories that are swirling about our heads along with the smell of the roasting turkey. Yum.

I went for my first 2-mile run this morning since Adrian and I were in Texas and I didn't even feel like my heart was going to explode out of my chest...success! Adrian and I are doing MASSIVE amounts of laundry because we've been on the road a lot lately and we leave for a SHOW on Friday...whoop whoop! I'm carrying the official title of "Personal Assistant" now, and I'm very proud of it. It's pretty amazing when you get to travel and work with your best friend, who happens to be your little sister. Awesome!

I don't know how you spent your day before Thanksgiving, but I spent much of it (when I wasn't eating myself silly on my mums cooking, that is!), thinking about previous Thanksgivings, and how they've varied through the years. And being thankful that I wasn't shopping for last minute things at Wal-Mart....

There was the Thanksgiving we hiked through the mountains with leftover turkey and stacks of rice-crispy treats, for what seemed to be hours until my 4-year old legs gave out and I demanded substance. That one year of many we spent in Scotland, and drove 3 hours to a Turkish restaurant to have a celebratory meal of stuffed grape leaves and lamb...to last years holiday where I was going through a little life crisis, completely miserable not knowing what I wanted to do with my life and my stupid foot in a cast...to this year. This year of joys, hardships, triumphs and failures. But the difference with this year is I feel like I am exactly on track and exactly where I need to be. And the knowledge that with determination, hard work and the support and love of my family, I can't fail. And I know that is true for you as well.

I hope you enjoy tomorrow and I hope you realize that you are more beautiful than you realize, and capable of more than you would ever think is possible. And that family and the relationships we have with them are the most precious riches of all.

Good night, dolls!

Adrian and I woke up and put the exact same outfit on this morning! Holidays bring out our major dorkiness :) 

xo xo Liz 

Artichoke Dip and Politics

Adrian and I are snuggled up in our own bed this evening, tea cups wobbling on the bedside table, Roo and BF at our feet and the opening strains of The Holiday coming from Adrian's computer. Family has been trickling in since yesterday and this evening we sat down to a literal feast....artichoke dip, BBQ'd baby back ribs, green beans, loaded baked potatoes and finally an apple cake that was so delicious I'm seriously thinking about waiting till everyone goes to sleep and eating the rest of it myself. Just kidding, but no, really, I'm totally serious.

The sounds of my Uncle and dad having an EXCELLENT conversation on politics occasionally makes it way through the bedroom door. I love family discussions because Brannan's really enjoy nothing more than a good old fashioned argument. It's all in good fun and in our family you are not mocked or thought that you're stupid if you have a different opinion, so everyone can completely disagree and still get up from the dinner table as friends.  I'm getting bits and pieces from the last 4 left around the table and discussing....foreign affairs....and I literally just heard my father say, "I've advised men who ordered those attacks! I KNOW they take place!" I'm laughing so hard and am so thankful because I know that before too long, this will be a memory that warms my heart. I hope that you all enjoy this week with your families and friends and take the frustrations with a grain of salt, as well as the sweetness.

Sweet dreams, dolls! Enjoy tomorrow and enjoy your life...we've only got this one.

xo xo Liz