After spending time at a yoga retreat in Costa Rica and immersing myself in my practice, I came back to Seattle craving more. Since it's not realistic for me to constantly travel around the world chasing yoga {but boy if I could!} I decided I needed to find a studio nearby, and last November when I walked into Breath Body Soul I knew I had found my place. The gorgeous studio, housed on the upper floor of a warehouse just a few minutes from my house, is all high ceilings, wood floors, and big bright windows. At night, it's cozy with candles lighting the room and string lights in the colors of whatever holiday is nearby {green & red for Christmas, red & white for Valentines, and green right now for St. Patrick's Day}. The teachers at this mother/daughter owned studio are amazing - so encouraging, loving, and smiley, and every time I walk in I feel instantly like I belong. They encourage you to do what feels good and trust that you know what's best for your body which I absolutely love, but I also feel challenged and like I'm progressing after every class. I've been trying to go at least 2 or 3 times a week and though it's sometimes hard to get there right after work, I always feel like I'm at the exact right place when I'm sitting on my mat staring at those pretty twinkle lights. Even though it's not Costa Rica, this place definitely feels right for me and I feel so lucky it's right up the road. Namaste indeed :)
xoxo,
stephanie marie
Happy International Women's Day! Be bold, be proud, be strong, be you :) While I'm still going to work today {I'm so lucky to work for a company that values and supports all people}, I'll be wearing red to do my small part to support all of the amazing and strong women in my life. I'm so grateful for these people :)
xoxo,
stephanie marie
picture from my daily meditation app
Sunday morning I woke up knowing I had the whole day ahead of me to cook something but for the life of me I couldn't figure out what. I went through many cookbooks, magazines, and Pinterest pages but nothing really called to me, so I went to the source that never disappoints, The Pioneer Woman. For years I've always seen the Simple Sesame Noodles on her website and in her cookbook, but for some reason I never tried them out. However, this totally free Sunday felt like the perfect opportunity to give them a go. The recipe is incredibly simple, so I decided to pick up some shrimp, bell pepper, and mushroom to go with the dressed noodles. I'm not kidding when I say that the entire recipe took 15 minutes to put together - I was floored when I realized how little time this was going to take. While the noodles were cooking, I mixed together the dressing and cooked the shrimp and veggies until done. This would be the most amazing and easy weeknight meal or an instant crowd pleaser to throw together for your next gathering, and I can't believe it's taken me this long to finally discover it. Since all of these ingredients are staples in my pantry, I already know this is going to be a new delicious favorite.
Simple Sesame Noodles
Ingredients
12oz thin noodles {spaghetti, angel hair etc}
1/4 cup soy sauce
2 Tblsp sugar
4 garlic cloves, minced
2 Tblsp rice vinegar
3 Tblsp sesame oil
1/2 tsp hot chili oil
4 Tblsp canola oil
3-4 green onions, thinly sliced
Instructions
1. Cook noodles according to package directions. Drain and set aside.
2. While noodles are cooking, mix together soy sauce, sugar, garlic, rice vinegar, sesame oil, hot chili oil, canola oil, and 1/4 cup water.
3. Stir together and pour over noodles. Toss to coat then toss in green onions.
4. Eat immediately, let cool in fridge and eat as a cold salad, or top with favorite ingredients {such as shrimp, chicken, beef, veggies, cilantro, etc}.
Serves 4-6
adapted from the pioneer woman
xoxo,
stephanie marie
I bought a car! A brand new car!!! You guys - this is very exciting. You see, I've had the red Exploder for 14 years - we've been through some good times and bad and a few weeks back, we decided to part ways {not necessarily a mutual decision, but for the best}. I've been driving brother's beast of a truck {which I secretly love} but it was time to take the plunge and buy my big girl car. I tried out several, but when I drove this little Subaru Forester, I knew she was the one. I love the boxier look, the big windows, and the backup camera {which actually kind of confuses me}. And 4 doors! And Bluetooth! And working seatbelts for all 5 passengers! And I cannot wait to try out the AC when the weather gets a tad warmer {seriously - after driving around a 20 year old car, it's the little things I'm excited about}. She's a beautiful shade of charcoal grey, and I've nicknamed her Forester Gump {ok, maybe she is a he} for the time being. Going in to the dealership to buy this beauty and writing that check felt like such a grownup thing to do {even though I still brought my pops along for support} and now that I have a car payment and a mortgage, I'm adulting real hard over here. If anyone wants to go for a little ride around town, I'm your gal! But until then, I'll keep thinking of excuses to walk outside and smile at that shiny new car in front of my house that is all mine. Ah, adulthood :)
driving off the lot
xoxo,
stephanie marie
Happy Friday! Luckily, with lots going on this week it seemed to fly by. And I'm ready for the weekend! Between celebrating a friend's milestone birthday, hopefully making a big purchase, and cleaning up around the house {it's feeling neglected} it's unfortunately probably going to fly by too. But here's to a few lazy mornings and big celebrations! Also, happy March!
xoxo,
stephanie marie
pic found on pinterest by megan hess
Sunday afternoon Mom & I headed downtown to see Rent at the Paramount. I honestly am not sure how many times I've seen this show, but every time I do I love it even more. It's the show's 20th Anniversary {crazy!} and the music brings back so many memories of blasting the soundtrack in my car all throughout high school and college and belting out the songs at the top of my lungs {yes, I was that cool}. I could sing and recite the entire show, and it always leaves me feeling so many emotions - I've seen a lot of shows in my time, but this one will always be my favorite. After the show, we headed back to my house to watch the {now infamous} Oscars. I had bought us ingredients at Trader Joe's to make homemade pizza, and as we sipped our wine and ate our delicious pizza we bonded over critiquing speeches and Oscar gowns. It was a pretty perfect day :)
xoxo,
stephanie marie
Saturday night, Kelsey and I headed to the Westin once again to volunteer for the JDRF Dream Gala. We had such a great time last year doing our good deed to raise money for Juvenile Diabetes Research that we were super excited when the call came to volunteer again. We dressed up in our finest and this year we sold raffle tickets at $100 each for a chance to win a $10,000 luxury vacation anywhere in the world. Not too shabby, right? We roamed around the ballroom lobby, mingling with guests and convincing them to buy tickets from us {which was actually much more successful than last year} and before the event even started, we had sold 63 tickets! The theme this year was Dance Dance Dance, and everyone was dressed in their disco finest, making for quite the spectacle in the crowd. My favorite "celebrity" spotting? Jesse Jones, of local "Get Jesse" fame. Once the gala actually started and our job was done {and we had taken a few pics on the step and repeat}, we headed out for our obligatory celebratory drink for doing a good deed and helping in a little way to raise a lot of money. This event is always so much fun, and I already have the date on my calendar for next year!
xoxo,
stephanie marie
