Some days I like my job

The times I like my job are when I get to form a relationship with one of my patients and feel like I made an impact in their life or sometimes when they make an impact in mine.

Today I got to talking to one of our regular patients about traveling. She was telling all about her upcoming trips to South Africa and then to tour the Dalmatian coast. This lady is 85 years old and has been to well over 100 countries. Her stories were amazing and I can only hope that I get the chance to visit half of the places she's been. Her advice for being a world traveler were to get save up your money and retire haha.

Sometimes its the little things that can make your day great :-)

Yours Truly,
 Amanda

Nordstrom Anniversary Sale Finds!

Helllooo everyone!
So one of my favorite sales is going on right now! It's of course the Nordstrom Anniversary Sale
(NSale)! Now unlike most sales where the merchandise is marked down after being the in stores for a awhile the NSale has new merchandise for the upcoming season marked down and after the sale ends the prices go up to the regular price for the season. So it's a great way to stock up for the upcoming season at great prices!

Here's what I went home with!

Don't you just love a great sale!?

Yours Truly,
 Amanda

Zoo, New House, and Muffins!

Hey everyone!

On Monday we went to the Naples Zoo which is a really cute little zoo close to where we live. I had never been and was pleasantly surprised by the amount of animals they have and how close you can get to them!

My parents are building a new house that should be done at the end of August so we headed over there to see the progress after the zoo!

I'm most excited for this second floor verandah because its right next to my room!

Is it bad if I never move out of my parents' house??

Last night I made these banana peanut butter muffins from SkinnyTaste

Recipe

I used crunchy peanut butter in it which worked out great!

Hope you have a great Wednesday!

Yours Truly,
 Amanda

New Camera

I'm excited that I recently purchased a new camera. I felt that the camera I used for most of college was becoming outdated and wasn't taking as great of pictures as I would like it to. I knew it was time for an update and so I did a lot of research in picking my new camera.

I wanted a camera that took great pictures and had features like extensive zoom, video, high megapixel, good quality while still being compact and easy to use. I didn't want to go as far as to get a DSLR because I'm not advanced at all in photography and I don't think I would ever want to lug around that big of a camera.

The reviews for the camera I got said it was one of the most advanced camera you could get without getting a DSLR.

I went for the Canon Powershot SX260 HS.

 I'm really loving this camera. It takes amazing pictures and I'm just discovering all the features it offers. I love how far you can zoom with it too. (It's actually kind of funny how far the lens comes out at full zoom, haha). This camera isn't as small as cameras I've had in the past which is okay because I don't plan on putting it in my pocket. The only downfall I've had so far is that the flash pops out when you take a picture that needs flash and it pops out right where you have your finger to hold the camera....but other than that I love it.

If you're in the market for a new camera I'd recommend it!

Here's a few examples of photos I've taken with it so far. (I'm especially excited to use it on my trip to Croatia!)

Have a great week everyone!

Yours Truly,
 Amanda

TidBits

This is going to be a random post... I think I'll organize it with bulletpoints!

• Made these yummy lemon bars from skinnytaste.com

Recipe Here



• Celebrated the 4th at a family friend's house on the water



•  Party with friends this past weekend

•  Organizing and packing for our move in August. I went through all my magazines and took out the articles, recipes, workouts etc to put in a binder. I'm a huge magazine-a-holic so I literally had stacks to go through but I love all the recipes, exercise ideas, beauty, travel, and fashion tips that they offer! My favorite mags at the moment are Glamour, Self, Martha Stewart Living, Money and Coastal Living.

•  Currently reading

just started



It's okay so far...



currently on Leviticus which is interesting...



• I hope to get back to posting more often, until then enjoy the rest of your Sunday!

Yours Truly

Amanda

A Couple Recipes

Hey all!

I made a couple recipes last night from pinterest and they were both so good I thought I'd share!

First were these crostinis with goat cheese, fig jam, prosciutto and basil. They were a perfect appetizer. I made some with fresh mozzarella sans fig jam for the more picky eaters.

 Recipe

I also made spinach and cheese stuffed shells with a meat sauce. This recipe is actually a skinny version because the meat sauce is made with ground turkey and all the cheese used was skim. I used a little more spinach than the recipe called for and they were delicious!!

Recipe

There you have it!

Have a great rest of your week!

Yours Truly,

 Amanda

What I want to do

Hey everyone,
 I know I've been neglecting this blog mostly because I have an idea for a total revamp/new blog idea that I just haven't gotten around to implementing! I thought I would throw a post out just so you know I'm still here!
 Lately I've been thinking about new things/goals I have for myself. As a kid I liked creating a "summer list" of all the things I wanted to do before school started back up again. Now of course I no longer have the luxury of a summer break but I still have the urge to create a sort of summer list!

Lately I've been going to yoga about once a week and I definitely want to continue. It really creates a peace of mind and body that I love.

I want to learn how to play piano. Back in the day I played clarinet but since have not picked up an instrument. Music is so good for one's mind and soul so I intend to find time to go maybe once a week for a lesson. This could be a very slow process, haha but a challenge is always good!

I want to actually take action and volunteer. I've done plenty of searches and have found some great places to volunteer, but I haven't actually taken the next step to get involved so now is the time!

I want to travel. Now I've already got this goal in motion with trips planned to New Orleans and Chicago already for this summer. However, I'd really like to plan one to Croatia, Las Vegas, and maybe a few others by the end of the year!

Next I want to become an informed voter. With the election coming up in November I really want to do some research and I find out as much as I can about the candidates, etc. before voting. I have never voted before because I felt I didn't have enough knowledge to make that decision. Also I have a pretty negative view on politics in general (does anyone tell the truth ever!?) But that's a whole other post haha.

I have a few other little things on the list and I think this will be enough to keep me very busy this summer! What's on your summer list?

Yours Truly,
 Amanda